"Yes, yes, your spirit is commendable."
Snape said in a dry voice,
"Of course, you are not of much use to him in prison, but this attitude is undoubtedly very good —"
"Attitude!"
She shrieked. In her rage, she looked a little crazy.
"While I was enduring the torture of the Dementors, you were hiding in the Hogwarts, comfortably playing the role of Dumbledore's pet!"
"Not really," Snape said calmly. "He refused to give me the teaching position of Defence Against the Dark Arts, you know that.
He seemed to think that would make me fall again... and tempt me to return to my old ways. "
"So this is the sacrifice you made for the Black Devil? Not being able to teach your favorite subject? "
She sneered. "Why did you stay there, Snape? Still spying on Dumbledore in secret, for a master you believe to be dead? "
"Perhaps not," Snape said.
Snape said, "But the Black Devil is very happy that I did not give up my teaching position. When he returns, I can provide him with sixteen years of information on Dumbledore. Compared to endlessly reminiscing about Azkaban's tragic situation, this is a much more valuable greeting gift …"
"But you stayed —"
"Yes, Béla Trix, I stayed."
Snape said, showing his impatience for the first time.
"Why should I go to prison in Azkaban when I have a comfortable job?
You know, they were rounding up Death Eaters.
Dumbledore's protection prevented me from being imprisoned. It was such a convenient thing, it would be a waste if I did not use it.
Let me repeat: the Black Devil did not blame me for staying, I do not understand what you have to say.
I think, what you want to know next is... "
He pressed on and raised his voice slightly, because Béla Trix was obviously going to interrupt him.
"Why did I stop the Black Devil from getting the Philosopher's Stone? This question is easy to answer.
He did not know if he could trust me. Like you, he thought that I had changed from a loyal Death Eater to Dumbledore's lackey.
At that time, he was in a very pitiful and weak state, sharing a body with a mediocre Wizard.
He did not dare to expose himself to one of his former supporters. What if that supporter reported him to Dumbledore or the Ministry of Magic?
I was very sorry that he didn't believe me.
Otherwise, he could have made a comeback three years earlier.
At that time, all I saw was the greedy and incompetent Quirrell wanting to steal the Philosopher's Stone. I admit that I did my best to stop him. "
Béla Trix's lips trembled as if she had swallowed a particularly disgusting medicine.
"But when he came back, you didn't come back immediately. When you felt the Black Demonic Mark burning, you didn't run to his side as quickly as possible."
"Not bad. I went back two hours later. I was following Dumbledore's instructions. "
"Listen to Dumbledore —"
"Think about it!"
Snape showed his impatience once again.
"Think about it! I only waited for two hours. In just two hours, I promised that I could continue to stay in Hogwarts as a secret agent!
I made Dumbledore think that I returned to the Black Demonic King's side because I was following his instructions. This way, I could continuously report information about Dumbledore and the Phoenix Society!
Think about it. Béla Trix: In those few months, the Black Demonic Mark became clearer and clearer. I knew that he would definitely come back. All the Death Eaters knew!
I have plenty of time to think about where I am going, to plan what I am going to do next, to run away like Kakarov, for instance, don't I?
"I explained to the Black Demonic King that I had always been loyal to him, even though Dumbledore thought that I was one of his people.
After hearing my explanation, the Black Demonic King's dissatisfaction at my late arrival disappeared without a trace.
Yes, the Black Demonic King thought that I had left him forever, but he was wrong. "
"But what use did you play?"
Béla Trix asked sarcastically. "What useful information did we get from you?"
"My information was passed directly to the Black Demonic King," Snape said. "Since he did not tell you —"
"He would tell me everything!"
Béla Trix was furious. "He said that I was his most loyal and most reliable —"
"Is that so?" Snape said, slightly changing his tone to show that he did not believe her. "After that defeat at the hands of the Ministry of Magic, he still said that?"
"That's not my fault!" Béla Trix said with a red face. "In the past, the Black Demonic King entrusted his most precious things to me for safekeeping — if not for Lucius —"
"How dare you — how dare you say that it's my husband's fault!"
Narcissa said in a low, vicious voice, looking up at her sister.
"It's useless to find out whose fault it is," Snape said calmly. "What should be done has been done."
"But you didn't do anything!" Béla Trix said angrily. "Yes, the rest of us risked our lives, but you weren't there once again. Isn't that right, Snape?"
"The order I received was to stay at the rear," Snape said.
"Unless you don't agree with the Black Demonic King's idea. Unless you think that if I joined the Death Eaters' camp and fought against the Phoenix Society, Dumbledore would not notice?
And — forgive me — you said that you risked your life … but in reality, you were only facing six teenagers, right? "
"You know very well that soon half of the Phoenix Society would join in!"
Béla Trix roared angrily.
"Also, since we are talking about the Phoenix Society, you still claim that you cannot reveal where their headquarters are, right?"
"I am not a secret keeper, so I cannot reveal the name of the place.
I think you understand how that spell works, don't you? The Black Demonic King was very satisfied with the information I passed to him about the Phoenix Society.
You probably guessed it. My information led to Emmeline Vance's recent arrest and murder, and it undoubtedly helped to take care of Sirius Black. However, in the end, the credit for his life still belongs to you. "
He tilted his head and raised his glass to her. Her expression did not soften at all.
"You are avoiding my last question, Snape.
Harry Potter, in the past five years, you could have killed him at any time, but you didn't. Why didn't you do it? "
"Have you discussed this with the Black Demonic King?"
"He … recently, we … I am asking you, Snape!"
"If I had killed Harry. Potter, couldn't the Black Demonic King use his blood to gain new life and make himself invincible — "
"Do you dare say that you foresaw that he was going to use that boy?"
"I didn't say that. I knew nothing about his plan. I just confessed that I thought the Black Demonic King was dead.
I just wanted to explain why the Black Demonic King did not feel regret when he saw Potter alive, at least until a year ago … "
"But why did you let him live?"
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