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Emancipation	By : BadGirlgoesworse Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Snape Views: 14093 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Anything recognisable does not belong to me. Story is based on the books by JKR and inspired by other writers of this genre. I do not make any money with this story.

Chapter List
- 36
- 37
- 38
SHATTERED PERCEPTIONS
“WHAT THE HELL!”
The shout cut through the excited chatter of the Wednesday morning breakfast goers shortly after the post arrived. Everyone looked up to watch Ronald Weasley storm towards his sister with a Daily Prophet crumpled in his fist.
“What the fuck have you done?” the expression on his face was beyond rage.
“Got engaged you mean?” Ginny was buttering her toast unperturbed. “I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
“TO THE FERRET? HAVE YOU GONE COMPLETELY BONKERS? HE’S A DEATH EATER!”
“Really? I didn’t see any Mark on his arm only yesterday. Has he become one overnight?”
“You... you...” Ron was spluttering with anger and disgust, apparently unable to process the concept of them being together that way. So, he gave up and directed his ire to something he could understand, or so he believed.
“It’s all your fault!” he pointed an accusing finger at Hermione of all people. “You have given her the idea, haven’t you? Going on and on about that bloody snake of a fiancé of yours... You have brainwashed her! Made her believe that scum isn’t all that bad, right?” he was trembling in suppressed rage. “Whoring yourself out is one thing, but pulling my sister down with you is another!”
The sound of Hermione’s hand connecting with the side of his face reverberated through the entire hall. “HOW DARE YOU, YOU PATHETIC BASTARD!”
Professor McGonagall was hurrying towards them and ordering them to stop this nonsense immediately, but Hermione and Ginny did not care. They pulled their wands and proceeded to hex the living daylights out of him with the most painful curses in their repertoire, until their wands were ripped out of their hands by the Professor’s Expelliarmus.
McGonagall came down on them like a ton of bricks, ordering Seamus and Dean to take the bleeding and unconscious Ron to the hospital wing and the two girls to follow her to her office. When the dust had settled the entire Great Hall broke out in chaos. People were either muttering excitedly or arguing with each other in loud voices, creating a hum that was strongly reminiscent to an angry hive.
“SILENCE!” Dumbledore’s voice cut them all off. The Headmaster had a look on his face none of them had ever seen before, like he had bitten into something sour. “Students, that is quite enough! Please proceed to your classes of the day.”
Everyone got up and obeyed, at least until they were out of his sight.
xxxoooxxx
My dear Draco,
Imagine my surprise when I opened the today’s paper! I am very upset that you obviously decided to leave it to the press to inform me of your plans. Though considering, I can only assume that you did not want to have an argument on your hands.
To be honest with you, darling, I am not sure whether the argument would have been all that great. Yes, she is a Weasley and that in itself is a point demanding thorough discussion. However, in the face of the alternative, it does seem like you have traded well indeed.
I know it must surprise you to read this. My words and actions in the past must speak against me. I can only ask you to forgive me my weakness, since as you know your father did not take it well to be contradicted. He never deigned to explain that particular decision to me, brushing my concerns aside and even losing his temper whenever I persisted. However, since it was made shortly after his trial in the wake of the Dark Lord’s first fall, the thought presents itself that it had something to do with the fact that Lord Parkinson was substituting for Mr. Crouch as the Head of the Department of Law Enforcement at that time.
My only wish was for you to find happiness despite the circumstances, thus I have tried to be as supportive as possible, to make the situation easier on you. I am glad that you have found your way around the contract with a partner of your own choice. I am very proud to see you rise above your father’s shadow and finally become a man in your own right. I only wish he had not succumbed to madness past the point of no return and were able to appreciate the effort you have made to bring the House Malfoy back to its former glory.
My dear son, let me hereby formally congratulate you. I wish you and Ms. Weasley all the best and look forward to meeting her properly.
With all my love,
Your mother
xxxoooxxx
To Harry Potter, Heir of House Potter and Black,
Dear sir, sensitive information concerning your esteemed husband has found its way to my desk, that I honestly have my trouble to decide what to make of. Please consent to a meeting with me at my office at your earliest convenience.
Yours sincerely,
Barnabas Cuffe, Editor of the Daily Prophet
xxxoooxxx
Friday evening found the 12 Grimmauld Place kitchen packed with the usual assembly of the Order of the Phoenix members, however minus Severus Snape, which had not gone unnoticed by those who had brains enough to think for themselves. Fortunately for Dumbledore, those consisted of just about two dozen, unfortunately, the very same two dozen were the best of the best he had.
He surveyed the gathered people with an air of grave determination. The main item of discussion tonight was not an easy one, but needed to be addressed and decided upon as soon as possible. He had neglected the danger Severus Snape posted for far too long and now the safety and integrity of the Weasley family was severely compromised. He had lost the brilliant mind of Hermione Granger and the power and money standing behind Harry Potter already, he was not going to give the bastard any more ground! If Draco Malfoy were indeed to marry Ginevra, then the whole family would become no longer trusted, and that he was not going to let happen. The Weasleys may not be the most respected family in the community, but they were magically powerful and had countless connections anywhere and everywhere in the country. To have to turn them away would be quite a heavy blow to the Order. Without doubt it must be exactly what Snape had in mind setting his godson up with their only daughter.
Arthur’s compliance with the whole arrangement was making the Headmaster frown. Could the man not see that the blasted boy was leading them all by the nose? A Malfoy having serious designs on a Weasley’s hand, it was a travesty if he had ever seen one! But no matter, if the man was indeed so simple as to believe in fairy tales, then it was his duty to show him the truth of things.
Dumbledore cleared his throat gaining himself the Order’s full attention. “My dear friends, as you might have already guessed, I have called you together this evening to discuss the latest bit of news.” He turned towards the Weasley parents. “Arthur, Molly, I wished I could congratulate you, though in the face of the identity of your future son-in-law I find that I cannot.”
Molly visibly flinched here, staring up at him with wide eyes. Arthur’s face though became set in stone, even if his eyes were betraying his anger. It was such an uncharacteristic expression on him that it made Dumbledore pause, but he brushed it off soon enough. William and the twins did not seem to be impressed either, nor was Minerva. The pureblooded members sitting around the table appeared quite taken aback and were exchanging uneasy looks, while the rest was either blinking confused or nodding grimly.
“Forgive me my blatant rudeness, but my only concern in this matter is your family’s safety. Whatever reasons Draco Malfoy has presented to you on behalf of his proposal, I personally cannot imagine how any of them could possibly be true, which leads to the conclusion that his motives are far from honest and need to be worked against.”
There was a disturbed murmur. Those who were blinking in confusion a moment ago were now nodding in wide-eyed stupidity. The pureblooded section though, was even more taken aback than before. It was not good. He needed everyone’s agreement in this or there would be no agreement at all. Dumbledore was about to open his mouth to rectify the situation when he was interrupted by Arthur.
“And how exactly are you suggesting we work against them, Albus?”
The man’s voice was calm and strong, betraying nothing of his feelings. The look in his eyes was telling a different story. Dumbledore though decided to ignore the warning bells going off somewhere in the background of his mind and charged ahead. With the whole of the Order behind him he would be able to force the entire family’s compliance anyway.
“Arthur, this marriage would compromise not only your own safety, but the entire Order’s as well. The Malfoys have a long history of service to the Dark in one capacity or another. Can you seriously believe that this one fruit has fallen so far from the tree as to become Light all of a sudden?”
“No,” Arthur had an ironic little smile on his lips, the meaning of which was absolutely unexplainable given the situation, “but I can well imagine him to become Grey.”
William’s and the twins’ heads shot up pinning their father down with a strange gaze. Feeling his sons’ eyes on him Arthur’s own narrowed as he looked from one to another calculatingly.
Unable to understand the whole exchange Dumbledore frowned. “Grey is not good enough to be trustworthy, Arthur.”
“No, I suppose not,” the man turned back to face him once again, “not to you at least. But you have still not answered my question, Albus.”
To say he was shocked would be the understatement of the year. Arthur Weasley of all people talking back to him? Questioning his opinions? Biting down on the words of reprimand, threatening to spill from his lips Dumbledore put on the mask of the bringer of grave, but unavoidable tidings.
“The answer is quite simple actually. Since accepting young Malfoy into your family is equivalent with bringing him into the Order, and the later would put the war effort and all our lives at stake, the engagement between him and Ginevra must be annuled.”
The room exploded in cries of outrage, shocked gasps and shaking heads mixed with shouts of agreement from the more fanatical supporters, drowning each other out. Such a proposition was very radical, even in the eyes of the non-pureblood section, thus it was unsurprising that the yes-man had found themselves in a clear minority and silenced, magically or otherwise, very quickly.
Dumbledore was seething inside. Did they not see that it was the only way? Did they not understand the consequences? The world they all knew and loved was in danger of falling into the grasp of Darkness! Snape might be a lesser evil than Voldemort, but it did not make him any less evil!
Oh, he blinked suddenly, but they do not know that, do they? I have yet to tell them.
His age must be finally catching up with him, if he had forgotten to share findings of such importance with his most trusted, not to mention the rest of the Order. He was about to open his mouth and do just that when he was interrupted yet again.
“You are actually suggesting that I go against propriety, traditions and my Head’s of House wishes, Albus? And with the full awareness that my daughter will lose more than just a prosperous alliance, but her very honour and any further chances of marriage in the future? And we aren’t even talking about the consequences it will have for the rest of the family! All of us will be immediately disowned and publicly disgraced and you know it well, old man! How dare you even hint anything of the sort, much less demand it!” Arthur Weasley’s fist came down on the table forcefully, his face contorted in rage.
All eyes turned to Dumbledore, awaiting his response. He met them with deliberate calm. Molly was staring at him in disbelief, the other Weasley men with badly veiled disgust. The rest of the Order was in various stages of anger and shock, he could not tell if it was at his actions or Arthur’s though, which was worrying him. This turn of events was rather unexpected. He had believed that the man would jump on the opportunity to get rid of the unwanted family addition. Why on earth was he holding onto it so vehemently? Was there something he was not telling?
“Arthur, I believe your concerns are somewhat exaggerated. It is just a simple betrothal contract, is it not? Voiding it should be of no difficulty, especially with a good reason behind it. I assure you that after young Malfoy’s public exposure as a Death Eater in the making, which would be of no difficulty to arrange, since it is exactly what he is, your Head of House will all but demand it himself.”
“I see,” the fist still lying on the table clenched so hard that its knuckles turned white. “In this case I find myself forced to inform you that the betrothal contract is actually far from simple, it’s irreversible.”
Dumbledore could not help but stare, while an agitated murmur went through the room. “I beg your pardon?”
“You have heard me right, Albus, this marriage will take place no matter what you or anyone else will say and do. But I must concede that you do have a point where the safety of the Order is involved.” He turned to look into his wife’s troubled eyes and though no words were spoken, it was clear that a question was asked.
“Molly?”
“Aye,” was her broken whisper.
“Bill?”
“Aye,” the young man’s voice rang clear and strong.
“Fred, George?”
“Aye,” came in unison.
Arthur nodded in grim determination. “So be it.” He rose helping Molly to her feet and turned to face Dumbledore again. The other Weasley men followed suit.
“It is hereby decided that since the Weasley family as whole, our son-in-law to be included, cannot be trusted, we are leaving the Order of the Phoenix and the service of Albus Dumbledore from this day on,” the sneer that contorted his features was something none of the gathered people would have thought to ever see on this man’s face, “for the greater good.”
xxxoooxxx
Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk at the Headmaster’s office and holding his aching head in his hands, propped up by his elbows, resting on the for once empty surface. He was waiting for the Pain-Relieving Potion to finally work its way through his system and bring on the much desired result. Slughorn’s potions had been always inferior to those Snape was capable of brewing, but he would be damned if he took anything even so much as touched by that bastard ever again.
Finally, the sharp throbbing receded to a dull thrum and disappeared entirely, allowing him to lean back in his chair and sigh heavily. What a mess! It could hardly become any worse, though he probably should reserve judgement on that, lest he came to regret it one of these days.
As soon as the Weasleys were out of the door, chaos broke loose and no amount of shouting and Silencing Charms on his part was able to contain it. Some people were absolutely raging, others were trying to placate them to no avail, the worst in his opinion however were the ones who just stood up and left without a glance back. Those were the ones he had lost forever he knew and whose letters of resignation from the Order could be expected with the morning post any moment. They would be not many, but their loss would hurt the most, that much was for sure.
He really was losing his touch it seemed. Not to inform anyone of his true motives had cost him greatly this time, very greatly. Once the pandemonium started, it had been too late to try and explain himself. But honestly, how on earth should he have known that the engagement was irreversible? Had Arthur not insisted on keeping him out of the loop, it would have surely not come to such a disaster. And now what?
The Weasleys had packed their things and vacated the Headquarters, leaving for the Burrow most likely, which meant that they were sitting ducks for the Death Eaters to pick off from now on. His fists clenched angrily.
Well, if they insist, it is none of my concern anymore, is it? He nodded grimly. So be it. May their son-in-law to be protect them now, if they are so keen on choosing him over the Order and the wellbeing of the wizarding world.
The firmly set lips curved into a nasty smirk. They are going to crawl back before too long.
His musings were interrupted by the arrival of his breakfast via house-elf. To go down to the Great Hall in the state he was in was not something he wanted to subject himself to. In addition to that, Snape would be there and he was not sure he could trust himself enough, not to try and strangle him with his bare hands.
Finishing up he opened his window to let in the usual stream of owls, relieving them from their burdens one by one. As expected there were a handful of very familiar handwritings on quite thick looking envelopes. He sighed heavily and unrolled the morning paper.
THE CHRONICLES OF AN UNSUNG HERO: A FOOLISH BOY’S REDEMPTION
A documentary report of Severus Snape’s hitherto secret career as a spy among the Death Eaters of the Inner Circle.
Every breakable object in the Headmaster’s office exploded to a scream of rage.
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Emancipation