Change of Heart

Chapter 1

"Severus Snape."

A voice was calling out to him, waking him from his sleep. When had he fallen asleep? He couldn't remember... He tried opening his eyes but they felt heavy. So did his limbs, unwilling to move. It seemed that his own body didn't obey him anymore. But he didn't want to sleep, he wasn't even tired. Something about that voice was familiar, as it insisted, pronouncing his name again. Severus opened his eyes only to be momentarily blinded by the light surrounding him. He squinted and started to realise that it wasn't light that caused his eyes to hurt. There was no light, no dark either. He looked around; he was sprawled on the floor of a room he hadn't seen before. Everything around him was white, the floor, the walls, everything.

"Am I dead yet?"he asked.

"Not yet."the voice answered him and he spun around to see where it was coming from. Right behind him, the source of the voice, Harry Potter himself.

"I must be. Because this is, clearly, my own personal hell..."he declared but the young man didn't laugh, as he might have expected of him. He didn't even frown. His face remained blank. Apparently, he had something to tell Severus. Something important. "Did you say, not yet?"he asked.

"Severus Snape."Harry Potter started "You have a choice to make."

"How delightful..." Severus retorted sarcastically. "Can't you just leave me alone, Potter? Do you have to torment me, even in death?"

"This is your choice." Harry said in a voice that hardly sounded like his own. "Live or die. Now, chose."

Severus was curious. The whole situation was odd, to say the least. A big, white room and Harry Potter, the last person he wanted to see after his death... And now this choice he was presented with. Live or die. Well... That shouldn't be hard. Sure, he had often thought that upon dying, he would be at peace. Free from all his responsibilities. He had nothing to live for, anyway. But he was only human. The need to survive, no, to go on living, even if there was nothing to live for, was too great. He thought about it. Of course, he wanted to live.

"Why am I given that choice?"he asked. "And who are you?"

Harry Potter smirked in a way that suggested he'd been expecting this reaction. "The reason isn't important. The choice is."he said.

"Who are you?"Severus asked him again, more emphatically this time.

"I am an image your mind created to make you feel comfortable." Harry said and looked very bored.

"Comfortable? Around Harry Potter?"he fought back a laugh. "This isn't real, is it? Is it a dream?"

"No, it isn't a dream."

"I find that very hard to believe..." Severus commented.

"What you believe is of no importance. You must chose. Now. Time is running out. Your time."the boy looked at him, aggravated.

Severus didn't like it one bit. "What's the catch?"he asked.

"Live or die, Severus Snape."Harry said again and he seemed to blur around the edges as he spoke.

Life, Severus thought. Painful, cruel, unforgiving. Death, on the other hand... Peaceful and calm. Quiet. He shivered.

"Live. I want to live!"he shouted, noticing that Potter was almost gone. A gentle smile formed on the boy's fading face before he said "Good choice" and disappeared completely. His voice was just barely heard by Severus who suddenly felt himself being pulled backwards, for what seemed like hours. He considered this to be a trick someone was using to torture him, when his back crashed onto something solid. And cold. He realised he was freezing and a sharp pain went through his body, like an electric shock, causing him to draw a desperate breath.

At least, that's what he tried to do. Because he couldn't seem to draw any air into his lungs. His throat hurt like hell and he remembered what had caused his death in the first place. His vision was foggy but he searched around the room for someone that could help him. There was no one. He gasped. He would die. Again. Alone. He tried to breathe once more and heard the hollow sound that was coming from his throat.

"Professor?"someone screamed, just outside the room. Then, he heard footsteps approaching. Fast, urgent footsteps which gave him hope. "Professor? Can you hear me?"the voice said again and he couldn't focus his eyes to make out who was speaking. In his head, he knew he wanted to nod and let that person know that he still had part of his senses but he wasn't sure he had succeeded. Apparently, he had because he felt a pair of hands trying to lift him up. But they weren't very strong hands because he could still feel the hard floor under his back, still gasping for air.

"It's alright, professor."the voice comforted him. "I've got you now. You're going to be okay. Everything is going to be fine."

"I... can't... breathe..."Severus forced the words out of his mouth.

"That's because you're in shock. Try to calm down. Focus on breathing."she -she?- said and then yelled "Harry! Harry, get in here! He's alive! Come give me a hand!"

Why wasn't she trying to heal him somehow? Couldn't she see the gaping wound on his throat? At that thought, he felt air rushing inside him and his lungs swelled by its force. But how...?

"That's it, professor. You're doing very well."she told him. "Just breathe... Help is coming."

Severus did as he was told and realised his breathing started becoming normal, although it did hurt his chest a little bit. He twitched uncomfortably and heard more footsteps, hurrying inside the room.

"But how?"a new voice said but his ears were buzzing and he couldn't tell who it was. "He was dead before!"the voice continued in astonishment.

"I don't know! Look at him, all his wounds have healed! He's like a new man!"the girl said. "Did you call for help, Harry?"she asked the other person. So it was Potter. The Boy who Lived. Who was the other one?

"Of course I did. Mr. Weasley is coming."he said and moved closer. Severus could feel the floorboards creaking as Harry stood over him. He wasn't ready to speak yet. He kept his eyes shut tight, trying to keep his focus on breathing that felt easier after a while.

"How did that happen?"Harry asked. "You saw him before, right? He was dead, wasn't he?"

"Yes. Quite."the girl said and shifted her weight, taking Severus's head in her lap. She patted his hair softly. He also felt a soft hand gently brush by his forehead, several times.

"Could we have done something? To help him, I mean."Harry uttered, still terribly confused.

"I don't think so, Harry."she said. "As you said, he was dead. What could we have done? There was nothing we..."her voice broke and Severus felt her tremble.

"Hey, don't worry."Harry said. "He looks fine now."

"Oh, I know!"she replied. "He looks even better than before."

"It was good that you suggested coming back here, Hermione." Severus heard Potter say and his eyes opened in shock. He tilted his head upwards to be able to look at the girl who was still holding his head.

"Granger?"he murmured and felt dizzy.

"Yes, sir?"Hermione looked down, her happy eyes meeting the haze in his.

And everything went black.

A/N: I'm back! With a new story! Enjoy and review! Love you all! :)