The Prince at King's Cross

                                               The Prince at King's Cross </b>

          Snape opened his eyes, and found himself in a bright, white room. He had no idea where he was and found, to his surprise and embarrassment, that he was naked. He looked around, and saw a white table a few feet away. While he got to his feet and approached the table, he tried to remember what had happened.
          "That's right." he thought with anguish, "Voldemort killed me." Snape pulled the clothing on, which fit perfectly, and immediatly felt warmer and content. Remembering his last moments, he thought about what he had given Harry.
          He will know the truth now. There is so much that boy doesn't know. He really does have Lilly's eyes. Those beautiful eyes. Snape was thinking all of these thoughts as he stood in the blank room. It seemed as if shapes were forming around him, shapes that ,although white, gave the room a sense of depth and existance. This is King's Cross station...it's been so long, but this is it. He recognized where he was, yet he was confused as to why he was here. I'm dead though. I shouldn't be here. I don't think the afterlife is King's Cross. Puzzled, he began to walk along the edge of the track, hoping to find...something. Anything.
           Dumbledore was right. Voldemort trusted me...but he still found me worthless in the end. He still killed me.
          Something was appearing ahead of him. A number of somethings. They almost looked like shadows, gliding along the ground towards him. Cautious, Snape continued to edge along towards whatever it was. As he approached, one shadow began to form a figure. The figure came towards him, with long purple robes and half-moon spectacles.
          "Hello Severus." Dumbledore greeted.
          "W-Where am I?" He looked around confused, but intrigued.
          "Perhaps you can answer that question." Dumbledore replied with his You know the answer attitude.
          "Well I know what it is supposed to look like but, we can't actually be here. We are dead." Snape held firm to this statement. He remembered dieing in the Shrieking Shack.
          "Yes, yes. That we are." Dumbledore eyed Snape over the rim of his glasses, waiting.
          "So why are we here?" Snape would have normally begun to be impatient, but due to the fact that there was no existance of time here, he saw no point in the matter.
          "This is the station. The in-between point. This is where you must make your choice."
          Understanding dawned on him.
          "The choice to go back?" It was a rhetorical question. Snape already knew this was true.
          Dumbledore's head moved up and down.
          "I made my decision a long time ago." Snape remembered when he made that decision. He made it the night Harry became "The Boy Who Lived". "I'm not going to go back. I won't spend eternity as a ghost."
          "Most people do not. However, due to the fact that you were Headmaster for a short time, there is now a portrait of yourself hanging in the Headmasters office, which you can visit." Dumbledore explained.
          "So the portraits really are people? Their spirits?" Snape had never understood this.
          "Well, for some. It is really depends on the state of the spirit and the reason for the portrait. Since the portraits in the Headmaster's office are there to give the next Headmaster advice, part of our spirit resides in them."
          Snape thought this over. It was hard to believe, however, most aspects of magic are hard to believe.
          "So what now?" He was both interested and unsure with what lay ahead.
          " I believe you will be joining...them." He waved his hand in a sweeping motion behind him. The other shadows formed and glided towards Snape and Dumbledore.
          "Hey Severus." It was Sirius. "Looks like you met your end same as me."
          "I thought you fell through a veil?" Snape was not excatly happy to see Sirius, but he felt no loathing for him either.
          "I did. It took me to this odd place." Even in death, Sirius had an air of rebellion and carelessness.
          As Snape looked around, he saw that all of the figures had become people he knew.  Many of them were members of the Order, including Tonks and Lupon, who had perished in the recent battle at Hogwarts. There were three people, however, who he had not seen for quite a long time. Standing before him, were his mother, James and...Lily. His dear Lily.  Eileen Prince approached him first, and wrapped her arms around him in a tender way that only a mother could have done.
          "I have missed you Severus." she kissed the top of his head and let go. James and Lily walked up, both with warm smiles on their faces. Lily was the first to speak.
          "Sev, you really turned around. Thank you for helping our son." She too held him in a tender embrace. She whispered in his ear, "I know it was hard for you." She had no idea what this small gesture meant to him. As she held him in this hug, he put his arms around her and have her a gentle squeeze.
          "Lily..." He whispered, "...I never got the chance to tell you...in all those years, through all that happened. I always loved you." She pulled away and looked at him with her bright green eyes. The same eyes Snape had looked into when he died.
          "I know Sev. I know now." She turned towards James and took his hand.
          James ruffled his untamed hair and looked at Snape with an honest expression.
          "I'm sorry for what we put you through in school, Snape. Maybe things would have turned out differently." He was sincerely apologizing, and Snape knew it. He could not help but forgive him. Death put things into a new perspective and he knew that anger was not an emotion that exsisted here. Only love, trust, and hope remained after death.
          "I forgive you, James." Snape never thought he would say it, but he felt it.
          "It's time Sev." His mother held out her hand, waiting for him to take it. This was it.
          "Severus? Is this what you want? You cannot change your mind once you have have decided." Dumbledore was giving him this last chance... he was not going to take it.
          He looked into Lily's eyes, and she smiled. They were all smiling at him. James, Sirius, Lupin, Tonks and his mother.
          "I already made up my mind." He took his mother's hand.
          "Are you coming, Albus?" Lupin looked towards Dumbledore.
          "I will wait for Harry, he will be here soon and there is much to say to him." He smiled and the twinkle in hid eyes danced.
          The procession walked down the platform, heading towards what lay ahead. Snape did not know what to expect and he was not sure if he was ready, but as he looked to his left and saw Lily walking beside him, he knew it would be heaven.