People in Snape's Memories

Harry took the last few steps toward the Pensieve and stood at its edge, looking down into the bottom.

Harry hesitated, tilted his head to listen, then drew his wand.

The office and the corridor outside were utterly silent. It seemed as though there was no one on the entire dungeon level of Hogwarts.

Harry gently poked the substance in the Pensieve with the tip of his wand.

The silvery substance began to spin rapidly.

Harry bent over it and saw that it had become transparent.

It was as though he were looking into a room through a round skylight.

This was the second time... If his judgment had not been terribly wrong, then he was actually looking down at the Great Hall.

His breath misted the surface of Snape's thoughts... He felt trapped between advancing and retreating... He really wanted to do it, but it was too unwise... He began to tremble... Snape could return at any moment...

He took a deep breath and plunged his face into Snape's thoughts.

The floor of the dark, damp office immediately tilted, sending Harry headfirst into the Pensieve...

He spun rapidly downward through icy darkness, then—

He was standing in the middle of the Great Hall, but the four house tables were gone. In their place stood over a hundred small desks facing the same direction, each occupied by a student with their head bent over a roll of parchment, scribbling furiously.

Harry could hear only the scratch of quills, with the occasional rustle as someone adjusted their parchment. This was clearly an examination.

Sunlight streamed through the tall windows and fell across the bowed heads. In the bright light, they gleamed gray-brown, reddish-brown, and gold.

Harry looked carefully around. Snape had to be somewhere here... After all, this was his memory...