The sound of wind and rain outside was clear and distinct, and the fire in the fireplace crackled softly.
Sir Humphrey stared at Snape for a long time, weighing the truth behind every word he had said. At last, he made up his mind. He stood up abruptly and turned to Bernard.
"Bernard!"
"Yes, Sir Humphrey!" Bernard responded reflexively.
"Contact the motorcade immediately," Sir Humphrey ordered as he put on his coat, his gaze flickering briefly between Snape and the desk. "Invoke my highest level of authority to requisition the armored car. Notify Escort Team C. Maximum alert level."
"We," he paused, pointing to himself and Bernard, "and this Mr. Snape, will go see the Prime Minister. We depart immediately."
He picked up the red secure telephone on his desk, but his finger hovered above the keypad without pressing it. He lifted his eyes and looked at Snape searchingly.
Snape understood at once. He gave a small flick of his wand, dissolving the protective barrier spell that had enveloped the room.
"Now it's fine, Sir Humphrey," he said. "You can contact the outside world."
Sir Humphrey nodded but still didn't dial. Holding the receiver, his gaze stayed fixed on Snape.
"Mr. Snape, forgive my bluntness," he said slowly. "After you meet the Prime Minister, how do you intend to protect him?"
"I plan to take the Prime Minister," Snape replied, "and perhaps you and Mr. Bernard, if you're willing to accompany him, to a safe house protected by powerful magical wards.
"It is unlike any location protected by conventional Muggle means. It cannot be found, traced, or entered by any method."
"Unless the most powerful wizard guarding the Fidelius Charm on our side perishes, no one can perceive or breach it." He paused and added quietly, "And I do not think that will happen."
Sir Humphrey's brows furrowed together. He looked skeptically at Snape, pondered for a few seconds, and pressed on.
"Then forgive my directness again, Mr. Snape. The strongest wizard on your side, how does his power compare with the leader of those Death Eaters you oppose? What are your chances?"
A faint, almost ironic smile appeared on Snape's face. "I am here now, Sir Humphrey. Am I not?"
"Decades ago, when the British Empire faced its darkest hour, did it ever bow to Nazi Germany?"
Sir Humphrey fell silent, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together again. He fully understood what that meant.
He gave Snape a long, deep look, then stopped hesitating and pressed a coded sequence of secure numbers.
"This is Humphrey Appleby, authorization code Aurum-9-King..." he spoke clearly into the receiver. "Initiate the contingency protocol. Yes, the Prime Minister's location... I have a special consultant accompanying me. Patch me through to the Prime Minister."
Tense acknowledgments came from the other end. Bernard exited the office to arrange the necessary coordination.
When Sir Humphrey hung up, he turned back to Snape with grave formality.
"Mr. Snape, I trust you understand," he said. "Given the Prime Minister's importance, and the highly sensitive nature of his current circumstances, and considering what we have just witnessed of your people's power, I must ask that upon arrival, you exercise discretion.
"At least until the Prime Minister fully understands this extraordinary situation and is ready to accept our explanation and plan, please refrain from revealing your abilities or identity on your own initiative."
"Of course," Snape nodded slightly, without objection. "For the sake of the Prime Minister's safety and a smooth transition, that is only proper.
"The task of explanation and persuasion, I leave to you. Though I doubt the Prime Minister is as fragile as you fear."
They said nothing more and waited for Bernard's return.
A few minutes later, Bernard opened the door and gave a subtle nod, everything was ready.
The three men rose at once, striding through the solemn corridors of the ministerial residence, taking an internal passage leading toward the rear exit.
A dark-colored armored executive car, solid and understated, was already waiting on the wet pavement outside. Its door stood open.
Although the armed guards eyed the unfamiliar young man warily, one brief look from Sir Humphrey was enough for them to avert their gaze and straighten to attention, pretending to see nothing.
Sir Humphrey gestured for Snape to join him in the back seat; Bernard took the passenger seat.
The door closed with a heavy click. The driver, expressionless, gripped the wheel and started the engine without a word.
The low hum of the motor filled the silence as the car pulled away from the fortified compound, soon merging into the river of traffic on the damp December streets. It sped through the city toward a suburban town outside London.
Inside the car, silence reigned, broken only by the rhythmic swish of the wipers and the hiss of tires on wet asphalt.
Bernard sat upright, staring forward, though his gaze flicked from time to time to the rear-view mirror, where Snape, seated by the window, appeared to be resting with his eyes closed. Sir Humphrey sat motionless beside him, fingers tapping lightly against his knee.
After a time, the car turned into a quiet row of townhouses, half-hidden by trees, and stopped behind an unremarkable one.
Two raincoated passersby walking their dogs gave a seemingly casual glance toward the vehicle, plainclothes guards in disguise.
Under their watchful eyes, the trio quickly disembarked and ducked into a narrow side alley beside the house.
At the end of the passage stood an iron door. Sir Humphrey stepped forward, keyed in a code, and underwent a retinal scan.
The door slid open a fraction. Inside was a bright, narrow room where armed security officers immediately approached, scanning the newcomers for weapons or tracking devices.
After the inspection, they passed through two more doors, each requiring separate verification, and finally entered a warmly lit, tastefully furnished office.
There sat Prime Minister Jim Hacker, lounging restlessly in a wide armchair, flipping through a document, his face full of the boredom of confinement.
Hearing the door open, he looked up. When he saw Humphrey and Bernard, his face broke into a delighted smile.
"Humphrey! Bernard!" Hacker exclaimed, springing to his feet. "Thank heavens! But what could be so urgent that you both had to come in person, and couldn't even tell me over the phone?"
Bernard turned to close the office door. As he did, the figure that had been obscured behind him, Snape, came fully into view.
Hacker blinked, puzzled, his gaze moving over the unfamiliar young man. "Er... and you are?" he asked, looking to Humphrey for introduction.
"Magic, Prime Minister," said Sir Humphrey gravely.
"What?" Hacker froze, not sure he'd heard correctly.
As if to confirm Humphrey's words, Snape calmly drew his wand from his pocket.
The moment Hacker's eyes fell on the slender wand, he recoiled two steps, pointing at Snape in alarm.
"Oh, wait! You don't need to turn my teacup into a bird to prove anything! I've seen that kind of trick before!"
Sir Humphrey's smile froze on his lips. He turned to look at the Prime Minister, stunned and hurt. "You already knew about this, Prime Minister? But why didn't you tell me?"
Hacker gave a sheepish grin, revealing his slightly awkward but endearing teeth as he tried to ease the tension.
"Oh, my dear Humphrey, this matter... well, by their rules, only the sitting Muggle Prime Minister is allowed to know."
He spread his hands helplessly.
"Muggle?" Humphrey's voice rose a pitch. He stared in disbelief. "Prime Minister, you even know the word 'Muggle'?"
Hacker's smile grew even more embarrassed. He scratched his chin. "Well, if I had told you, would you have believed me, Humphrey?
"You'd only think I'd gone completely mad, not 'mad enough to be Prime Minister,' but mad enough to be committed to a psychiatric ward."
He looked away from Humphrey's wounded stare and turned to Snape, gesturing for everyone to sit.
"All right, all right," he said. "Let's all sit down. This gentleman..."
"Severus Snape."
"Yes, Mr. Snape, please, take a seat. Your Ministry of Magic already sent someone to protect me once, though I only learned what he really was after he left. Before he went, he warned me to be careful.
"It kept me on edge for days... Ah well," Hacker shrugged, a hint of resignation in his tone. "Go on, show me something then, might help me get in the right frame of mind." He pointed to the teacup on the desk.
Snape obliged. With a small flick of his wand, the cup bearing the royal crest transformed into a plump British Shorthair calico kitten.
The kitten shook out its fur, jumped lightly onto Hacker's lap, rubbed against his hand, then leapt back onto the desk. After two dainty steps, its form rippled and reshaped itself into the teacup once again, half-filled with warm water.
"Astonishing..." Hacker murmured, eyes unfocused. "Every time I see that, I feel like I'm dreaming." He shook his head and focused on Snape, his tone now grave. "All right, Mr. Snape, what's happened this time?
"I must say, whenever your people come looking for me, it's never good news."
Snape succinctly explained that the Ministry of Magic had effectively fallen, that the Death Eaters had discovered the Prime Minister's location, and that they intended either to control him or eliminate him. He outlined the plan to move everyone to a magically protected safe house.
As he spoke, Hacker's frown deepened. The lightheartedness vanished from his face, replaced by tension and a faint, involuntary fear. He didn't answer Snape immediately but instinctively looked to Sir Humphrey.
"Prime Minister," Humphrey said solemnly, meeting his gaze, "after witnessing, and personally experiencing, some of Mr. Snape's extraordinary abilities, I believe he neither needs nor has reason to deceive us. If he were on the side of destruction, he would have far better options."
"So..." Hacker licked his dry lips and turned to Snape. "Must we really go to that magical safe house? Can't we stay here? MI5 spent a fortune fortifying this place. Perhaps you could reinforce it instead..."
"No, Prime Minister," Snape said firmly, glancing toward the door. "Against true Dark Magic, this place wouldn't last a moment. They could arrive at any time. We must leave at once."
Hacker's expression twisted with hesitation. To abandon this fortified refuge and follow a stranger to an unknown "magical safe house" seemed an enormous risk.
Seeing his doubt, Snape pressed on. "Prime Minister, the recent unexplained disasters, the ones with heavy casualties, and the leaks concerning your movements... none of them were accidents or ordinary incidents.
"They were all the work of the most dangerous Dark Wizards alive. Magic is not merely about conjuring kittens or obedient birds, it can erase streets, twist minds, or end lives forever.
"If you doubt the power of magic, once we're safe, I can show you what real combat spells look like."
Then he fixed his gaze on Hacker. "But for that, you must first live long enough to see it, instead of becoming part of the demonstration."
The icy tone sent a chill down Hacker's spine. He shuddered and got to his feet.
And at that very instant-
BANG! BOOM!
"Stop him!, Ah!"
A violent commotion erupted outside: the crash of bodies, the screech of torn metal, the thud of heavy impacts, and the panicked shouts of guards, mixed with the shrill crack of spells.
Everyone in the room turned pale and leapt up.
Snape's wand was raised instantly. "Protego!"
A shimmering, invisible shield flared across the doorway.
Almost at the same moment, the reinforced blast-resistant door buckled inward, as if struck by a giant hammer. Metal shards and splinters sprayed into the room.
They struck the magical barrier with rapid, crackling impacts, then clattered harmlessly to the floor.
Through the haze of smoke and dust, a hooded figure appeared in the shattered doorway, its face hidden behind a grotesque mask.