i am snape

"A complete mess... too lenient... utter chaos... I've had enough..."

Filch grumbled incessantly under his breath as he strode along, dragging James ahead of him, clearly looking quite distraught. Snape, meanwhile, was supporting Pandora, trailing behind them.

By the time they reached the Hospital Wing, Madam Pomfrey was already waiting for them.

"Come right in," she said, "Professor McGonagall told me you'd be needing treatment."

After helping Madam Pomfrey settle the trio into separate beds, Filch trudged away.

Upon seeing the bandage on James's hand, Madam Pomfrey's eyes lit up. "Potter, that arm of yours is quite well bandaged. Why haven't you seen to it yourself all those other times?"

"I did it," Snape stated. "I'm no bone-setter, so that's the best I could manage."

"Excellent," Madam Pomfrey praised. "At last, a student who knows some basic medical care!"

But then, she immediately gave Snape a stern glare. "It would be even better if you stopped getting yourselves injured in the first place!"

Madam Pomfrey worked with practiced ease, mending James's bone in but a second. Next, she thoroughly examined Snape and Pandora, concluding that neither had suffered any serious harm. However, Snape had bruised his tailbone from the fall and needed to lie prone for her to treat it. After his vehement protests, Madam Pomfrey agreed to draw the curtains for the treatment, sparing him the sight of the other two.

"Madam Pomfrey, we're quite all right now," Snape said, raising his head after his treatment. "May we leave?"

"Absolutely not," Madam Pomfrey declared firmly. "Professor McGonagall has given orders for you to remain comfortably in the Hospital Wing, and nowhere else."

Seeing Snape about to protest further, she quickly added, "If you're not going to be compliant, perhaps a sleeping draught would suit you? It would grant you a dreamless slumber until morning."

"No, thank you," Snape shook his head like a bobblehead. "I'll stay right here."

After what felt like an age, Snape's mind began to feel fuzzy, and a heavy drowsiness descended upon him. The ward was utterly silent, his head drooped lower and lower, and everything around him blurred. The lamps in the ward seemed to wink at him kindly through the curtains. He felt his body sinking deeper and deeper into the warm feather mattress...

---

"We must ask them."

"Can't it wait until morning?"

"It will wake them up!"

Snape woke with a start, hearing hushed voices just outside the door. The room was still dimly lit, and he presumed it must still be night, not feeling as though he'd been asleep for very long at all.

Madam Pomfrey huffily pushed open the ward door, ushering Dumbledore inside.

"We meet again," Dumbledore said kindly, a gentle smile gracing his face. "It's certainly been quite a lively evening."

"Professor," Snape quickly sat upright. "You're back. Is everything well?"

"Not so fast, Severus. You, and James, and Pandora, once you're feeling a bit more rested, come along to my office."

Disregarding Madam Pomfrey's silent protests, the group left the Hospital Wing and made their way to the Headmaster's office. The stone gargoyle guarding the entrance hadn't even changed its password yet; it was still "Lemon Drops." Snape and James were well-acquainted with the place by now, but it was Pandora's first visit.

She looked around curiously, her eyes wide, and paused before a portrait of a sleeping former Headmaster. Mimicking the portrait, she squinted one eye as if to peek, then quickly shut it when she realized she was being watched. She even tried to prod Fawkes with her finger, forcing the phoenix to take flight from his perch, circling the room for a moment before gracefully landing on Dumbledore's shoulder to preen his feathers.

"Do sit down," Dumbledore said. "Pandora, you speak first. Their accounts are rather less reliable."

"Alright, Headmaster," Pandora said, still looking quite sleepy, struggling to keep her eyes open. "Severus and I went to a passage on the fifth floor, and we intended to—"

"—I intended to blow the place up," Snape interjected. "I asked Pandora to help me."

"It's not your turn yet, Severus," Dumbledore said, giving Snape a stern look.

So Pandora continued, "I found traces of ancient magic there, and I managed to clear them away. But just as we were preparing to blow up the passage, Inferi—just like Professor Grubbly-Plank showed us in class—started crawling out of the staircase. Seeing more and more of them, we decided to make a hasty exit. But when we opened the door, Mr. Potter was outside. He hung Severus upside down. There wasn't much time left, so I hit my satchel with a spell, hoping it would destroy the passage. And then we flew into the air..."

"Is this true? Why did you want to destroy that secret passage?" Dumbledore turned to Snape, asking.

"Professor," Snape said, "Mulciber has been disappearing from the dormitory a lot at night this term. I followed him through that passage to Hogsmeade. But I don't know what he's been doing. So, I had a bold idea: why let him continue? If he's using the passage for mischief, why not just destroy it?"

"That's a rather extreme solution, Severus," Dumbledore said calmly. "You should have approached a teacher. But speaking of which, how did you discover the way into the passage?"

"Sir!" James stood up, now fully alert, his face alight with indignation. "The Marauder's Map! He used the Marauder's Map to get into the passage!"

Clearly, James had completely thrown caution to the wind regarding secrecy. It was understandable, of course; if the Marauder's Map was confirmed to be in Snape's possession, it was better for it to be confiscated by the Headmaster than to remain with Snape. Snape was furious at James's spiteful behavior. Reluctantly, he pulled the parchment from his pocket and handed it to Dumbledore.

Dumbledore took the parchment, examining both sides, and quietly said, "A blank piece of parchment." Then, he took out his wand, held it between his fingers, and unfurled the parchment, laying it flat on the desk.

"Show your secrets!" Dumbledore tapped the parchment with his wand.

There was no reaction whatsoever. Snape suddenly felt a surge of anticipation for what might happen next. James looked a bit nervous, his hands tightly clasped in front of him.

"Reveal your true form!" Dumbledore tapped the map forcefully.

The paper remained stubbornly blank.

Snape was delighted, though he desperately fought to suppress his laughter.

"Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of this school, commands you to reveal your hidden message!" Dumbledore said, tapping the map with his wand.

As if an invisible hand were writing, words began to appear on the smooth surface of the map. Beads of sweat trickled down James's forehead.