Chapter Twenty-Four
"Photography"

Page Two

The last few days of their Christmas holidays sped by as if they were in fast forward. The rain that fell that night slowly turned to snow, which hadn't stopped to rest at all that week. If it hadn't been for the sun deciding to show through the clouds every now and then to melt some of the snow on the ground, they would have been buried up to their necks in it.

The students returned later that week, although it was barely noticeable. It seemed not even half of the students that left bothered to return. It felt odd to Harry, knowing that classes would start back up again with the castle still so empty.

The following Monday, classes resumed, but things still seemed strange. All the Professors were distracted, despondent, some were even a bit nervous to even be there at all. The most striking change came from Professor Trelawney; she actually became quiet. Normally she'd go on and on about auras, the mind's eye and such. But recently, she seemed almost normal. Not a word about the future, fate, or dramatic deaths.

Professor Malfoy showed an unnerving change, as well; he didn't change at all. While all of the Hogwarts staff seemed to be in an emotional frenzy, he was just as calm, collected and nasty as always. That is, until a certain Potions class in mid-January. He was lecturing to them about the seventeen uses of the Hungarian Horntail Dragon's horns in making potions, when Snape opened the door. Malfoy looked at him as if he were a slug, which was stuck to the bottom of his perfectly shined alligator boots.

"Yes?" he said rather haughtily.

"I need to speak to Potter," replied Snape, who looked even more exhausted than he had been on Christmas night. And not only was he extremely tired, he looked positively perturbed.

"Can't this wait?" Professor Malfoy was obviously trying to make that a rhetorical question, but Snape wouldn't allow it.

"No," he said definitively. "Potter, come with me."

Harry stood up, more willing to obey Snape than Malfoy. He collected his books and followed Snape out the door.

Snape led Harry to an empty classroom, where they sat down on opposite sides of a dusty old table.

"I've received a letter from Black," said Snape, cutting right to the chase. "He says a package was delivered to you that I need to know about. Care to explain?"

Harry's mind went blank; he had no idea what to say. Sirius had been sending Harry nightly letters ever since his visit on Christmas, pleading with Harry to take the package to Snape, but never, in any of those letters, did Sirius say he was actually going to speak to Snape himself.

"Harry," pressed Snape, "I need to know."

"Yes, I got a package," confessed Harry. "It was Christmas morning, when you got all those letters,"

Snape's nostrils flared. Obviously those letters did not bear good news or memories for him.

"Do you remember that owl?" said Harry, trying to remind him. "The one that screeched so loudly?"

"Yes…" said Snape, looking carefully at Harry.

"It dropped a rather large envelope in my lap," continued Harry. "I didn't really get to look at it until later that afternoon. The envelope wasn't addressed, there wasn't anything resembling a note inside, only pictures."

"Pictures?"

Harry nodded his head, then looked down at the table and began picking at some dried wax. Finally, he worked up the courage to finally say it: "They were the same images that I saw in my dream. That night that I… woke up screaming."

Snape dropped the cane in his hand, which fell with a clatter that echoed around the room. Snape's face went completely blank as he stared at Harry. He quickly stood up and pointed at Harry.

"I… I need those pictures in an hour, got it?" he said firmly. "You're excused from classes, but you're to go get those pictures, then slide them under my office door, understood?"

Harry nodded his head sharply, shocked to see Snape acting like this. Snape turned and opened the door briskly and left without saying another word.

Harry grabbed his book bag, slung it over his shoulder and walked out of the empty classroom just as everyone else was coming out of Professor Malfoy's Potions class. Harry waited outside the door for Ron and Hermione, who came out and immediately started begging him to know what Snape said.

"Follow me," whispered Harry in reply. "I'll tell you in a minute."

Harry led them along with the rest of the group, who were heading to History of Magic. When the time was right, the three of them broke away from the crowd and ran up to Gryffindor Tower. Once they were inside and they were certain the room was entirely empty, Harry broke into an explanation. After everything had been said, Ron couldn't contain his thoughts.

"What were those envelopes he got about?"

Hermione slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "That's not what's important, Ron," she said. "Go get the pictures, Harry, I don't think Snape was kidding."

"Alright, be back in a second," he darted up the stairs, then came back down a minute later with the envelope in his hand.

"Got it," he said as he stuffed it inside his robes. "Let's go."

They ran out of the common room and dashed through the castle towards Snape's office in the dungeons. They reached it a moment later and just as Harry was about to slide the envelope under the door, they heard someone talking inside the office.

"I know what you're doing," growled Snape. "I got all those letters from the parents, don't think I don't know that you've approached them about it."

"You don't know what you're talking about!" said Fudge angrily.

"You git!" yelled Snape. "You're buying off the parents! You're keeping their children from coming back, hoping to close Hogwarts."

"How dare you!" bellowed Fudge.

"You will not get away with this," Snape was irate, his voice had turned into a growl more threatening than that of a giant bear. "Hogwarts will not shut down simply because of your bribery."

"I think we better get out of here," whispered Hermione urgently as they crouched outside the door.

"You'll pay for your insinuations, Snape," spat Fudge. "You forget who I am and you forget your place. Remember that not everyone in the magical community was so forgiving towards you as old Dumbledore."

"Get out of my office," said Snape more threateningly than before, "And take your apocryphal guards out of my castle before I show you why the magical community is so unwilling to forgive me."

"We need to get out of here now," whispered Hermione, standing up and pulling Ron up by the collar. Harry grabbed the envelope and ran after them. They rounded a corner and hid with their backs pressed against the walls.

They heard Snape's office door open and slam so loudly that the sound reverberated through the dungeon corridors. They heard the clicking of Fudge's boots as he took each furious step away from Snape.

"Now we know what those letters were about," said Hermione, a thoroughly concerned look in her eyes. "And why these halls are so empty…"

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