The moment he finished speaking, Albert appeared without warning. He waved his wand at the man on the ground, using the Imperius Curse to control the unconscious Yaxley before turning with a smile to look at Snape, who was glaring at him.
"Let's talk."
With another flick of his wand, Snape's wand flew from his hand. A chair then slammed into the back of his knees, forcing him to collapse into it.
"You bastard..."
"You used the Imperius Curse?" the portrait on the wall suddenly asked.
"Yes. I've found that magic must be dealt with using magic, and Dark Wizards with a bit of Dark magic."
Albert's tone was calm, as though it were a trivial matter.
The old man in the portrait wore an especially complicated expression.
The cruel war had changed Albert. Then again, strength alone was nowhere near enough to deal with Dark Wizards.
"What do you want?"
Snape glanced at the unconscious Yaxley, then cast a sidelong look at the wand on the floor as he demanded an answer.
"I was a little curious whether your loyalties had changed."
Albert raised his wand and tapped Snape's wand, summoning it into his hand. Smiling at Snape, he gave the main reason for coming to see him. "As far as I know, you've been working tirelessly for the Dark Lord lately. That isn't what a spy would do."
"And precisely because of that, the Dark Lord has never suspected me."
Snape's expression did not change. When faced with the accusation, he found himself an excuse.
"So I thought." Albert looked Snape over and nodded. "Still, what you've been doing lately has made me suspicious. I don't think strengthening the Death Eaters is a good thing. This is one of our few advantages. Once that advantage is erased, all