A/N: First story my loves, treat me kindly.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K Rowling, the Queen.
Clare Fortwright likes to think she's a pretty smart girl most of the time, so when she stumbles upon the Golden Trio conversing about the events that went on up in the Astronomy Tower that night, she wonders at her own stupidity.
"I was right! Malfoy is a Death Eater! He plotted Dumbledore's death, let the Death Eaters in, almost killed Katie Bell … everything!" Harry pants angrily as he paces back and forth.
"But, it wasn't him who killed Dumbledore … It was Snape! I knew he couldn't be trusted! I've always known he was a Death Eater and I never understood why Dumbledore trusted him so much!" Harry was practically spitting the words from his mouth as if they were venomous and seconds from killing him.
When Harry says this, Clare feels as if her very heart has frozen solid. She does not move for fear of crying out in disbelief because this cannot be true, she refuses to believe it.
"Harry … Are you completely sure that's what happened?" Hermione questioned softly as if in disbelief, hesitantly resting a hand on his shoulder.
"Oh it's true; I was there underneath the invisibility cloak when Malfoy confronted Dumbledore and when he couldn't finish the job, Snape did it for him! He killed Dumbledore! He killed him! He killed him … He killed … him …" Harry's once angry tangent became a garbled jumble of whimpers as he crumpled to the ground in tears.
"Oh Harry … I'm sorry, I'm so sorry …" Hermione whispers as she crouches down and cradles Harry's sobbing form to her chest.
Dazed, Clare begins to quietly walk away, knowing even now in her confused state what an intimate moment she has begun to view. As she stumbles her way back – back where? – she attempts to process what she just heard. Snape … Severus … killed Dumbledore? Her thoughts are a mess and she can barely function at this point. She feels as if she is seconds from falling to her knees, pounding her fists against the ground, and screaming, "WHY?" How could he turn his back on Hogwarts? How could her turn his back on her? She doesn't know who she is angrier at, him or herself for trusting him so damn much.
Right when she feels she is about to fall apart at the seams, out of the corner of her eye, she sees a figure blur past and her head snaps around because she knows, she just knows that it is him. She sees him striding quickly towards the front gates of Hogwarts, Malfoy in tow. At first, she takes a few tentative steps in his direction then she is walking quickly, steps fast and measured and then, before she knows it, she is bolting after him. Her feet fly across grass and stone pathways, her breath comes in harsh pants and her lungs burn, but she pushes herself to catch up because she needs to know. She needs to know why, this man she trusts (trusted) with her very life, would stab her in the back so thoroughly without a second thought.
"SEVERUS I TRUSTED YOU!" She screams at the top of her lungs because he is almost halfway across the school grounds and she wants needs him to hear her.
She can tell he's heard her when she sees him stop and Draco Malfoy continues on without him - after a bit of hesitancy – and he turns around to face her; she runs faster.
She finds herself in front of him panting before she even knows what is going on. They silently gaze at one another and she tries to draw a shred of strength from his calm demeanour, yet she finds it hard when all she wants to do his punch his stupid hooked nose, the one she had once found endearing, in.
She opens her mouth to speak, but a sudden curse hits her in the chest and sends her flying. The pain is searing and she bites her lip to keep from crying out. She didn't even see Bellatrix approach and scolds herself for letting her guard down.
"No! I will handle this one, you must return to the Dark Lord!" Clare hears him say as she struggles to stand. She guesses he won that argument because she hears the sound of retreating footsteps.
When she finally returns to her feet, she sees him watching her. Part of her hates him even more for not helping her up, yet another part is thankful that he didn't because she is afraid of what she might have done should he have put his hands on her.
"Did you ..," She begins, yet stops for fear of his answer. Taking a deep breath, she continues. "Did you kill Dumbledore?" Because even though she has no reason not to believe Harry, she needs to hear this for herself. From his mouth.
"Indeed I did." He looks her dead in the eyes as he replies, his face and voice devoid of emotion, and she thinks that is what breaks her heart the most because the man she was once able to read without a thought has vanished from her sights.
All the emotions that had been building up inside of her over the course of the night finally explode out of her and she feels an agonized scream fall from her lips as she pulls out her wand from god knows where and attacks. She sends curse after curse at him hoping to cause him even half the pain he has inflicted on her, yet he deflects them wordlessly with graceful ease, his eyes never once leaving her face.
She feels herself becoming frustrated and she screams, "FIGHT BACK, YOU ASSHOLE, FIGHT BACK." as she sends another curse his way. He deflects that as well and his silence only serves to further anger her. She seriously wants to throttle him because even now he is the most infuriating man she has ever met in her life – approaching everything with a calm and detached demeanour. She hates herself for continuing to think of him in this way even after all he's done. She hates how she's allowed herself to open up to another man, allowed herself to trust another man because she knows she is to blame for the immobilizing heartache she is feeling right now; she hates herself for wanting to die.
Tears she refuses to let fall blur her eyes and she raises her wand to fire off another curse, but he beats her to it.
"Incarcerus." It is almost a whisper.
Clare's arms lock to her sides and her legs clamp together; she wobbles and falls backward - a grunt leaving her throat on impact. She closes her eyes when she feels him walk up and bend over her because she just can't look at him right now for fear of breaking down. Her eyes, however, snap open when she feels the cold tip of a wand press lightly against her temple. Her eyes widen and she shakes her head in denial as she struggles (albeit) to break free when she realizes what he is planning to do.
"Severus … Please." She whispers pleadingly while gazing into his eyes (those bottomless black, black! eyes) because anything but this! She knows that no matter how much he could have possibly hurt her, she could never (never!) want this.
She sees him flinch almost imperceptibly before his jaw clenches lightly and he presses the wand a bit more firmly against her. "I assure you, Miss Fortwright, that this is for the best."
Her eyes flutter closed because she knows that tone (he is not budging) and feels the tears finally slip past her eyelids and trail silently down her cheeks. "I loved you." She does not know why she uses the past tense because she knows she will never stop loving him – nothing will change that.
She thinks she hears him whisper, "I know." And feels the feather light brush of lips against her forehead before he mumbles, "Obliviate." And she slips away into unconsciousness.
A/N: Let me explain Clare and Snape's relationship, since I didn't elaborate much in the story. Clare (obviously) loves Snape and while Snape does not outright reciprocate her feelings, her cares about her and that means a lot coming from Snape. Hope you enjoyed it! R & R 3