Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise.
Written for; Hogwarts Assignment 6; Herbology 2 - Someone being injured.
Other Challenges listed at the bottom.
Word Count - 1934
Beta'd by Ace Panda.
AN - Canon divergence from… probably the end of OotP, since people are alive and Voldemort wasn't defeated in DH.
Written for my Grandma, who is literally the only person that can make me like Hermione and Severus in the same fic. I love you :D
allow it to blossom
Hermione had a bad feeling about the upcoming mission. She could feel it in her bones; something was going to go wrong.
It was supposed to be simple, just observation, but she'd seen the worry on Dumbledore's face before they'd left Grimmauld Place, and she knew that this wasn't going to be as simple as everyone had hoped.
Something was going to go wrong.
Before that thought had even finished in her mind, a flash of light burst out across the clearing, and a large crack sounded.
The sound of Apparition.
Within seconds, they were surrounded by people in silver masks and black hooded cloaks, and spells begun flying immediately. Sending a quick prayer up to the sky that they'd all make it out of this, Hermione left her cover and joined her comrades in the fight.
…
She fought, and she fought hard. Every time she thought she had a moment to breathe, to check herself for injuries she knew she had, another masked assailant descended on her, and she was forced to defend her life once more.
Hermione didn't understand how there were still so many of them. This wasn't their first battle, far from it, and yet every time, she was overwhelmed by the numbers of people willing to fight for the wishes of a mad man.
If Lord Voldemort could even be called a man.
A well placed stunning spell left her a moment to find a safe place to hide, to take shelter for a few minutes to assess herself and her ability to continue to fight. One thing that had always been stressed upon them before a mission was that it was better to withdraw than to put others in danger trying to fight when they could no longer do so.
She healed up her minor cuts, and put a mild numbing charm on her left shoulder, where she'd been hit with a piece of debris. She was okay. As she prepared to throw herself back into the battle, a quiet whimper caught her attention.
Frowning, she gripped her wand tightly in her hand and shifted deeper into the shadows behind the building which she'd taken cover behind. Leaning against the wall further down, was Severus Snape.
She dropped to her knees beside him, lighting the area as best she could without revealing their place.
"What happened?" she asked, looking him over for injuries. His trousers were torn badly, and she winced when she saw that his right leg was badly injured, the bone protruding from the skin.
His robes were all but burnt to ash, singed and threadbare. His left arm was bleeding heavily close to the top, and she unwound the scarf from her neck, tying it tightly to try and stem the bleeding. It didn't take long for the ochre wool to take on a new colour, soaked in blood.
She'd never been more glad for her naturally calm mind, because it helped to force the panic back and think clearly.
"Leave me," he hissed, trying to shake her off. He glared up at her. She ignored him, the pallor of his skin worrying her. He was always pale, but she'd never seen him quite this pale. "I can fix myself."
"My mother says I shouldn't entertain stupidity, Professor," she murmured, waving her wand in a complicated gesture to check for internal injuries. She couldn't risk portkeying with him if he was too badly injured, he'd never make the journey. "Okay, you're… you're going to be fine. And this is going to suck, but I have to get you out of here."
"Miss Granger, leave me," he snapped.
She rolled her eyes. "No. I'm going to conjure a stretcher to make it easier to transport you," she added. It was habit to explain everything she did when someone was injured; Harry freaked out if people just did things, and she was so used to him being the injured party that it was ingrained in her to voice her actions.
"Just strap it up and rejoin the fight," he growled. "I don't care if it hurts, just split the leg."
"Don't be ridiculous," she reprimanded.
When he was prepared for travel, she unhooked the portkey from her neck and activated it, holding it against his chest. The familiar jerk pulled them away and moments later, they were deposited at Hogwarts gates.
She took a moment to check Snape was okay, that he'd remained conscious for the journey, and then levitated the stretcher, much to his displeasure. He opened his mouth to reprimand her, but groaned when a stab of pain shot through his leg.
Hermione moved as quickly as she could while keeping him stable, glad to find Madam Pomfrey awaiting her at the doors to the castle.
"I have to go back," Hermione panted. "But I'll check on you later."
He grumbled. "Stay alert out there," he said, but she'd already turned, was already running across the grounds, and Poppy was levitating him inside.
…
Arriving back at the battle scene, Hermione glanced around her, taking stock of the still raging fight. She threw herself back into the fray, falling into step beside Harry, who was fighting viciously against two Death Eaters.
"You okay?" he asked, on a brief pause.
"Fantastic," she replied dryly, when one of the Death Eaters fell. He rolled his eyes at her good naturedly, and the two of them continued on, eventually defeating the remaining Death Eater against them.
"You're bleeding," she murmured, pointing to his cheek.
"I'm fine," he assured her.
As they moved to help the others, Hermione turned a step too late, crying out in pain when she was hit in the side by a purple spell.
The last thing she heard was Harry's terrified yell of her name.
…
She woke to a white ceiling. Hospital Wing then. Before she moved, she took stock of her limbs, pleased that she could feel them all and move them individually. After seeing Seamus Finnigan lose his leg, she was always scared that she'd wake up in the Hospital wing missing one of her limbs.
Sitting up, Hermione looked at the other beds. She could see Ron a few beds down, sleeping peacefully, and Bill was sitting at the bed across from his. Hermione could see the silvery blonde of Fleur's hair, though most of her was covered with the blanket.
She felt a frisson of worry when she didn't see Harry, and was about to push herself from the bed to go in search of him, when a voice stopped her.
"Potter is fine, Miss Granger. He wanted to remain, but he was falling asleep where he stood, so Poppy sent him to bed."
She turned her head to see Snape in the bed beside her. His face wasn't quite so grey as it had been, though he was still pale, and she could tell by his expression that he was in pain.
"Thanks," she said, still turning herself in the bed so her legs could fall over the side. "Do you know what happened to me?"
"Dolohov," Snape spat. "According to Potter. A variant of a slicing spell."
Sure enough, when Hermione checked her side, she could see a healing cut running the length of her ribs. It would scar, she knew.
She sighed, rubbing a hand over her face.
"We all have our scars, Miss Granger," Snape said, misinterpreting her sigh.
"I know," she replied quietly. "How are you feeling?"
"I've survived worse," he muttered, his eyes closing.
She nodded to herself. They'd all survived worse at that point, him more than many.
"Hermione, what are you doing sitting up?" Poppy chided when she walked into the ward. She gestured for Hermione to lie back down, and tucked the blanket around her.
"Sleep, sweetheart," she murmured, brushing Hermione's hair from her face. "You'll be healed when you wake up."
"Is everyone okay?" Hermione asked, gesturing to the other occupied beds.
"Everyone will heal this time," Poppy assured her. "Everyone made it home."
Satisfied, Hermione nodded, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.
…
Hermione, much to Snape's voiced chagrin, checked on him daily. He'd lost a lot of blood, and his leg was almost beyond repair, so he'd had to remain in the hospital wing.
She brought him books and told him news of the others as though he cared, which he did of course, but secretly. She had no business looking at him with eyes wise beyond their years, as she filled him in on the health of all those injured in the battle.
Severus could admit that the books were welcomed, a pleasant reprieve from the boredom that hospital stays always brought.
He would not admit that he looked forward to her brief visits, not to himself and certainly not to her. He definitely wouldn't admit that it brought him comfort to know that somebody cared.
He refused to use her given name, despite the many times she told him to use it, but she rolled her eyes at his refusals every time, and it amused him, despite himself.
When Poppy finally declared him healthy and fit to leave, Severus thought that he might actually miss Miss Granger's company. He felt connected to her almost, a common reaction to being saved on a battlefield, and in spite of her youth, she managed to keep up with him on an intellectual level unlike many others.
He wasn't a sentimental person, not even slightly, but he thought that perhaps they had forged a friendship in the few weeks he'd been laid up, and he would… he would miss that.
…
Severus entered the room to find it already full. He accepted the welcomes with a curt nod, squeezing Minerva's hand when she gripped his tightly in her own. She sounded genuinely happy that he was back with them and back to full health.
At the table, some of the younger members of the Order were sitting together, pointing out different points on a map spread across the table, discussing strategy in a way that made Severus ache.
They were too young to be talking about battles like it was normal.
Hermione looked up and met his eyes, a small smile tilting her lips. He nodded to her, and her smile widened before she turned back to the discussion, reprimanding the youngest Weasley male when he pointed at one of the far points on the map.
Severus caught up quietly with Minerva, listening to her explaining the latest information that he'd missed while stuck in the Hospital Wing.
When Dumbledore arrived, there was a mass rush for seats at the table. Severus rolled his eyes at his comrades and moved around the kitchen to a free seat.
"Hermione," he greeted quietly, when he sat down beside her. Her eyes widened slightly at the use of her given name.
"Severus," she returned, her cheeks flushing lightly. He bit back a smile at that, politely ignoring her embarrassment at referring to her old professor by his given name, but he couldn't deny that it amused him.
It was nice to know that despite the war, despite the battles and the fear and the pain, there was still something less of the eager witch he'd once taught. It was nice to know that, however small, there was still some innocence left in the youth caught up in a fight that should never have been theirs to fight.
It was also nice to know, that perhaps their friendship forged in the hospital wing would be allowed to blossom outside of it.
Written for;
Character Appreciation - 6. Defend
Disney - S2. Write about someone thinking something is going to go wrong
Book Club - Barbara - Calm / "We all have scars, [name]." / Bone / Prayer
Showtime - 2. "Stay alert."
Attic - 14. Connected
Lyric - 13. I don't care if it hurts
Abby's - 9. Severus Snape
Gris Gris - Dialogue 3 - "You're bleeding."
Costume Party: 36. Grey / 98. Pain
Pizza, Step 2 - 3. White
Boyfriend Day - 5. Hurt/Comfort
Days of the Year - 17. A Canon Professor
Autumn - Scarf
Colour - Ochre
Birthstone; Citrine - "My mother says I shouldn't entertain stupidity."
Element - Scarf
Ravenclaw - Wise