No sooner had the words left his mouth than Albert appeared without warning. He raised his wand and flicked it at the man on the ground. After using the Imperius Curse to control the unconscious Yaxley, he turned with a smile to look at Snape, who was glaring at him.
"Let's talk."
As he spoke, he flicked his wand again. Snape's wand flew from his hand, and a chair hurtling toward him struck the backs of his knees, making him collapse into it.
"You bastard..."
"Did you use 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 must be dealt with using 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 far from 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'm rather curious whether you've changed your allegiance."
Albert raised his wand and tapped Snape's wand, summoning it into his hand. Then he smiled at Snape and stated the main reason he had come. "As far as I know, you've been working wholeheartedly for Lord Voldemort lately. That doesn't seem like something a spy would do."
"And precisely because of that, Lord Voldemort has never suspected me."
Snape's expression did not change. Faced with the accusation, he found himself an excuse.
"So I thought." Albert looked Snape up and down, then nodded. "However, what you've been doing lately has still made me suspicious. I don't think strengthening the Death Eaters is