HP's Lost and the Lighthouse

—The Life and Lies of Dumbledore.

A secret smile flitted across Snape's lips as he looked at the headline.

Even though he didn't have any expectations for a book signed by Rita Skeeter, he still read it.

……

It can be seen that the first few chapters have obvious personal tendencies, using the testimony of some so-called "insiders" and "witnesses" coupled with the author's rude speculation, to introduce Dumbledore's family background in detail - being imprisoned Azkaban's father, the Squib sister, the mother who imprisoned her little daughter at home, the rude brother...

Snape wasn't sure how much of this was the truth, and how much of it was Rita Skeeter's invention for grandstanding.He just suddenly remembered the bright blue eyes of the owner of the Pig's Head Bar that had impressed him deeply - after Dumbledore's death, the owner of the bar didn't know why he had a bad attitude and turned him away.

He lost his mind slightly, and after a while, he silently turned to the next page.Obviously, although the previous content has been devoted to coloring the old man's family background, these are not the main events of this book, which can be seen from the length of the chapters.

It is not surprising that Dumbledore has been at fault - many people, especially those who have never had real contact with Dumbledore, often deify the old man, which makes Dumbledore's flaws become It's so unacceptable, it's even serious enough to overthrow all previous cognitions about the elderly in an instant.But that didn't apply to Snape.

To him, Dumbledore was just an ordinary person.He had seen the old man's anger and fatigue, and he knew that Dumbledore would also be lost and hurt.In the past few years, Dumbledore and Snape have never been closer than ever, for whatever reason, but Snape has indeed touched each other closer and closer every day during this period. The real Dumbledore.

People of course feel cheated when they find out that a pristine saint is hiding a blemish that no one knows about, while Snape just feels from Dumbledore's correspondence with Grindelwald that the other has never changed been gentle——

[You mention that wizarding rule is for Muggle self-interest - I think that's the key point.Yes, we are endowed with power, and yes, that power gives us the power to rule, but it also entails a responsibility to the governed.We must emphasize this and make it the cornerstone of our career.When objected (as it is bound to be), it must be the basis of all our arguments.We strive to rule for the greater good.Therefore, when encountering Dahang, we can only use necessary force, not excessive. 】

In this passage, perhaps most people will only focus on ruling Muggles and using force, but Snape only noticed Dumbledore's emphasis on 'responsibility to the ruled' and 'use only necessary force' .He couldn't help but think of his quarrel with Dumbledore in the headmaster's office a few weeks ago - when the old man thought he shouldn't stand up and stop the Cruciatus Curse, because it might arouse Voldemort's suspicion.And Snape was disappointed with Dumbledore because of it.

"For the greater good."

He stroked the line of words with his callused fingertips, and he strangely understood the thoughts of Dumbledore in the portrait—about, for the old man, when the future of the wizarding world and these few students who suffered from the Cruciatus Curse were When weighed together, he is also inclined to choose the 'greater good'.

——Just as Dumbledore chose to give up Potter at that time... He chose to give up the boy he poured his heart and soul into for the sake of more lives.

Should have known... No one can fake caring for another person for years without flaws...

Snape lowered his eyes, thinking of Dumbledore's unrefuted look at his accusations at that time, and stretched out his hands to cover his eyes.

……

The only thing that this book dedicated to attracting people's attention through the taint of sainthood did for Snape was to make him understand Dumbledore better than ever-however, when the other party had left the world. What's the point of getting a little understanding and resolving a few trivial misunderstandings when we are in the world.

Closing the last page of the thick "Dumbledore's Life and Lies" exhaustedly, Snape fell back on the sofa, letting the guilt surge in his heart even more violently.

Christmas has slipped by in the deserted Hogwarts castle, and the only difference from previous years is probably that no one will force him to attend any Christmas dinner or send him a warm and precious gift.

If there is anything in this world that can stimulate the hidden emotions in people's hearts, it is probably only the night that fades away from the hustle and bustle and is so dark that it seems to be able to cover up all the fragility.

The headmaster from Slytherin stayed in his office silently for a long time, and finally he couldn't contain the impulse surging from his heart, put on his robe and walked out of his office.

In this dark night with no moon and no stars, he hurried through the cold night wind after another, and pushed open the door of the office that belonged to him and also belonged to the former principal.

"Dumbledore—" he shouted recklessly, and rushed to Dumbledore almost instantly.

The old man in the picture frame seemed to be woken up by him.He wore a light blue nightcap on his head, and a nightgown of the same color with soft lace on his body. His bright blue eyes were a little hazy under such attire.

Almost just for an instant, that bit of mist quickly faded from his eyes.

Dumbledore ignored the murmuring complaints of the other principals around him, showing a ready expression: "Is something wrong, Severus?"

"..."

All the impulsive words that he wanted to say were swallowed back the moment he saw Dumbledore's face, and Snape felt a burst of fatigue.He took a deep breath, rested his forehead on Dumbledore's picture frame, and blinked away the tears that suddenly welled up.

"Nothing," he said, his voice barely audible, "you're not even Dumbledore..."

Dumbledore blinked in the portrait. He couldn't hear the second half of the man's words, so he could only attribute Snape's sudden behavior to excessive pressure, so he just watched him silently.

Snape's vulnerability only lasted for a few minutes. After a few minutes, he straightened his back again and looked at the old man in front of him.

"There's one thing I've never said, Dumbledore," he whispered, looking into the portrait's eyes, "I love you, and, thank you."

In the portrait, Dumbledore looked down at his successor and smiled, "I love you too, Severus."

Snape smiled faintly, and he looked long into the blue eyes of Dumbledore in the portrait - the respectable old man could never really hear him, but that was enough...

I don't know how long this staring lasted, until Phineas Nigellus rushed into the portrait of the principal's office: "Principal! They are camping in Dean Forest! That Mudblood—"

"Don't say that word!"

"—that Granger girl said the name of the place when she opened the bag, and I heard it!"

"Okay, good!" cried the blue eyes of Dumbledore's portrait behind the Headmaster's chair, "Now, Severus, take that sword! Take it only if you have the courage - don't let him know you took it! In case Voldemort reads Harry's mind and sees you helping him -"

The soft and warm atmosphere just now quickly faded in Dumbledore's words, Snape's curled mouth was quickly flattened, his face became serious, and firm flames ignited in his deep black eyes, and he looked changed again. Be like a soldier.

"I know." He said simply.He approached the portrait of Dumbledore, pulled it out, and removed Gryffindor's sword from it.

"You still won't tell me why it's so important to give Potter the sword, will you?" said Snape, throwing a traveling cloak over his robes.

"Yes, indeed," said the Dumbledore portrait, "he'll know what to do with it. Be careful, Severus, they won't show any sign of your presence after George Weasley's accident." friendly--"

Snape turned at the door and took a long look at Dumbledore.

"Don't worry, Dumbledore," he said coldly, "I have my own arrangements..."

The author has something to say:

I don't know why, but I suddenly want to write in this chapter:

—The Life and Lies of Dumbledore.

A slightly bitter smile flitted across Snape's lips as he looked at the title.

Probably the best lie the old man had ever told in his life was when he claimed he didn't love Snape.

------

Finally back to the relationship line hahahahahahahahahahahahaha, after more than 70 chapters of the career line in this article, this article finally sees the dawn of the relationship line hahahahahaha [exhaustion in the smile]