Why Me?
He felt the burn of his Dark Mark before he saw Potter reappear at the maze’s entrance with Cedric Diggory’s lifeless body in tow. While his arm burned more intensely with each moment he didn’t answer the summons, a cold chill spread throughout the rest of his body.
He knew what this meant. He knew that his short-lived peace was over.
Flashes of the horrors he endured at the Dark Lord’s side raced through his mind unbidden before he could slam his occlumency into place. The force of this sudden and unwanted reality hit him and nearly brought him to his knees as he stumbled down the stands as people crowded the two Hogwarts champions.
Two hours.
Dumbledore made him wait for two hours, Dark Mark still burning in agony, before he was allowed to answer the Dark Lord’s summons. He was tortured at the hand of his master for nearly just as long for his disobedience.
‘Why me?’ He wondered as he peeled himself off of the floor. ‘Why do I have to do this again? Why am I destined to live my life isolated and in pain?’
That night Severus Snape understood exactly how much he was worth to Albus Dumbledore.