Severus wasn't sure how long he had laid on the dirty floor before he thought he heard her voice coming over the pattering clatter of the rain and wind hitting the windows of his house. He was dazed and smelled blood but the voice of that girl, Nakavii rang his ears once more. "Kor Sul Hah – sorcerer, day, mind... Severus wake up... Wake up Severus..." Severus rolled himself over looking to the window as a flash of lightning illuminated a bloody handprint on the glass. He leapt off the floor and ran to the windowsill, his heart pounding in his chest, he saw the handprint being washed away and it was too small to be his father's hand. 'Nakavii?' Snape thought as a chill worked its way up his spine. Another roll of thunder rattled the window causing Severus to step back clutching his head from the noise. Nakavii's voice carried with the sound as he heard her voice yet again only this time it was weaker and strained like someone in pain, someone crying.

"Zu'u los ahraan Severus... Aak dovah, vokrii dovah... Please... Severus nii ful vul het... Zu'u ful krah... Nii ahraan..." Severus could hear her words and felt an odd pull to leave his house. He threw a cloak over himself and stepped out into the storm following the echoes of Nakavii's voice. The words repeated over and over with every clap of thunder. "Nii ahraan... Nii arhaan... nii ful vul het..." Severus weaved through the alleys around his neighborhood as her voice echoed off the walls growing louder as he made his way to the park nearby. 'I know you're close by, but where are you?' Severus thought as he reached the river's edge. His view was obstructed by the heavy rainfall and wind whipping around him. He knew she was close he could feel her magic as if he was right next to her.

"Severus...?" He froze when the lightning flashed and the wind seemed to stop as all of time slowed down and he saw her, Nakavii, in a bloody heap beneath the tree where he first met Lily. Severus wasted no time in scooping her up from the mud and carrying her back home, where he got his strength and energy, he had no idea but he wanted – no needed to get her to safety. He could feel the warm stickiness of her blood coating his arms and staining his shirt as he ran through the rain back through the open door of his home. He set her down gently in the bathtub before rushing off to retrieve towels, clothes, and some dry blankets from his room as well as his wand from the dresser. Nakavii was bleeding heavily and appeared deathly pale, her skin was icy to the touch; Severus saw she had no weapons, her wings and horns had vanished as well and her once amber eyes were now a glassy grey color. Her breath came in shivered pants and her voice was raw from screaming for so long. Severus ran the tap on hot, grabbing bandages and ointments from the nearby cabinets.

"Severus..." Snape turned to the dying girl behind him, seeing Nakavii struggle to move out of the tub.

"Nakavii don't! You're bleeding you need to stay still. I just need to get some Sweet Grass Salve and Blood Replenisher Potion and you'll be fine after some rest. Just stay put. Stay here. Please stay still, okay." Sverus said stroking her wet hair away from her face. Nakavii nodded limply.

"Was... attacked... drunk man... Too many muggles..." Snape paused a moment in thought.

"It's okay. You did your best and you're going to be fine." He replied. He had a suspicion but he needed to clean and tend her wounds before Tobias got home. Snape didn't want to think about what Tobias would do if he saw Nakavii here. Shaking his head, he gathered his potions and a few spare ingredients in case he needed to brew up a few spares; his greatest task was going to be getting Nakavii out of her clothes so he could properly clean her wounds. A chill went up his spine and heat flooded his face, he was going to have to tend a naked girl in his house alone, just the two of them. Snape shook his head vigorously and focused himself on the task at hand. He knew she had answers and with his mother gone he had to do everything he could to get them, even if it was immensely embarrassing.

Nakavii was gasping at the warm water hitting her skin, her slashes were deep from that drunkard's stupid bottle. She could feel the stabbing burn from where the neck of the bottle had gotten stuck in her side; Nakavii knew it hadn't hit anything vital or she would have been dead an hour after the attack. She felt so ashamed of herself, she was an ancient mage, a Dovahkiin who was nearly taken out by a common muggle! She was supposed to wait for Severus to have answers, but now that his mother had passed, she had to return to him and explain everything his mother no longer could. Nakavii wept openly at the funeral, saddened that Severus was unable to attend his own mother's burial much less told about her death, his own father hed left her outside to rot only to be discovered by Nakavii's father, Dahmulrah two days later. She was buried in a fine dress provided by Nakavii's mother, Alana, while the carpet she was rolled in was promptly burned with her wand and letters from the Prince family as was requested in her will. Nakavii had faith Severus could save her life but she had so much to say but no strength to do more than a few simple words. She lifted her eyes to see Severus kneeling in front of her with a few towels and strange vials in his hands.

"Nakavii, can you hear me?"

She nodded. Severus looked at her and a blush began to dust his cheeks. He rubbed some strange green paste into a small cloth.

"Nakavii I need to take care of those cuts so," Severus swallowed, "I need to take your clothes off to reach them properly. I have a fresh change of clothes for you and some blankets to warm you up after and I'll be completely respectful -" Nakavii silenced him with her finger pressed to his lips.

"Breathe... I trust you... We'll... Be okay... It's okay..." She gasped cupping his cheek. Severus took a deep breath and assumed a focus he didn't know he had command of. He lifted Nakavii carefully into his lap and removed her shirt, surprised she had no brassier on, before removing her trousers with a wave of his wand. Severus saw the full extent of her injuries as he set her back into the warm water. A frown deepened as he took note of every bruise and cut on her body – so far, her bruises were either black or a deep purple and were centered around her arms, thighs and neck while several deep slashes were covering her back and torso. Severus' eyes went wide when he saw part of a glass bottle stuck in a deep stab just below her ribs, he sighed as he placed a hand over her drooping eyes. He knew he was going to make extra blood replenisher tonight if Nakavii was going to have a chance of surviving tonight. He heald as much damage as he could with his wand but her cuts were deep and many which left everything else up to the salve and potions he gathered from his trunk earlier. He knew the tricky part was going to be the glass piece in her side, not as dangerous with the majority of her injuries under control.

"Nakavii, I'm sorry." Severus whispered as he set down his wand and reached for the broken bottle. Needless to say, it was agony just trying to pull it out. Severus gave a sharp, quick tug on the piece, pulling it free causing Nakavii to howl in agony. It was a terrible sound as if a unicorn was being ripped apart slowly by werewolves; it made Severus shudder and tense. Her screaming was brief but it was painful enough for her to nod off immediately after. Severus checked her relieved when he saw Nakavii had closed her eyes but her breathing was stable and some color had come back to her skin which had warmed up considerably since he started. Severus wiped his forehead hoping Tobias wouldn't be arriving anytime soon give that it was 2am now and his father had a habit of bursting into his room at this hour after returning from his pub crawl.

"Nakavii, Nakavii I need you to wake up." Severus said patting her cheek. She stirred slightly her eyes fluttering open but only into slits.

"Nakavii give me your arm I need to bandage and dress you okay." Nakavii nodded in response, lifting her arms like a child asking to be carried. Severus sighed, feeling today was already too much. Regardless he lifted her onto the counter and gently slipped her limbs into his mother's old nightdress. Nakavii stared at him as he hoisted her into his arms and carried her to his room. He tucked her in gently with a tenderness he was certain he didn't have. Nakavii cupped his cheek in her trembling hand and rasped,

"Kulaan..."

"No, don't talk talk. Save your energy for getting better okay. We'll talk as soon as you've had some rest. No exceptions. Rest now, talk later, it's an order." Severus said remembering Nakavii's words of serving him as a family arrangement. He wrapped her in extra blankets and settled himself into a cot he kept under the bed for rougher nights, knowing he wouldn't get any sleep he waved his wand to handle the mess in the bathroom and summoned a book. He couldn't retain anything he was reading because of how worried he was for tomorrow, he knew Tobias would come home and possibly kill her, if he didn't kill Severus first that is.

The morning sun streaming through the curtains woke Nakavii from her slumber, igniting the burning soreness throughout her body as she stretched herself out on the rickety bed. Her skin felt like a warm campfire as she rolled over seeing Severus hunched against the wall on a tattered cot. His eyes were closed and his breathing was soft but his face was twisted in pain as if he was watching something terrifying. Nakavii sighed, ignoring the painful stings racking her body she climbed out from the covers and knelt next to Severus. She brushed some of his hair behind his ear and softly tugged his shoulder towards her, in response Severus leaned over and let his head fall into her lap. She knew his orders were to rest but her duty was still to ensure his good health and Nakavii was too stubborn, as dragons can be, to let any part of his health be neglected. He sighed once and snuggled further into her lap. Nakavii smiled at the sight, she leaned back against the wall waiting for sleep to claim her once more. She absentmindedly stroked Severus' hair as he slept hoping it provided him some comfort from whatever was tormenting his dreams. Her wounds were mere scratches now but the fight itself was a fresh wound in her mind that kept her from a peaceful sleep. The event was a haunting effect on her at the moment knowing full well that Snape's father would return soon to finish her off and possibly harm Snape in the process. As much as she resisted it the event kept flashing in her mind on a suffocating replay as she stroked Snape's hair as if to ease him and herself at the same time.

Nakavii sighed as she realized she had made yet another wrong turn. She huffed in frustration as she began to back track for the seventh time that day and if she was honest with herself, this whole ordeal was beginning to irk her in all the right ways. Spinner's End seemed to be one long stretch of repeated alleyways and identical housing colors which was starting to tire her eyes. She saw the sun setting and passed a pub in her attempt to reach Severus's house once again. Since his mother's passing, she had gained permission to tell him everything – even if she already told him the history of the family arrangement between their houses, she hadn't told him the full story and felt inclined to tell him since she had first met him and had her powers suspended for breaking the rules. She bobbed and weaved through the exiting crowd until a firm push had stopped her dead in her tracks.

Tobias has wasted his money on drink once again looking for another pub that would accept a tab until that pretty little thing bumped into him. She was young, very young, but she had the same dark hair and bright eyes as Eileen. Same deep hourglass curves and strong lean legs. She would do nicely for him. Nice enough anyway.

Nakavii said her pardons and passed by the shabby black-haired drunk. She knew he was following her as she could feel his presence behind her the whole way. His aura was dark and foreboding with the scent of alcohol floating about him like a fog which scared her all the more. She saw a park up ahead that had a great tree and a small river floating by, hoping the man behind her would keep his distance with all these families around. Sadly, she found no such luck when a firm hand grabbed her arm and shoved her into a crevice in the alley beside her, his shadow pressing down on her. Nakavii couldn't transform with all these people, she couldn't use her magic, she felt helpless. His hands roamed over her as she was left pinned and frozen, her mind running a mile a minute for options on what to do. A clatter of a bottle rang in her ears and without hesitation she grabbed it and slammed it against the drunk's head with full force. Tobias had stumbled back screaming. He swung a fist into her stomach and snatched the broken bottle as she doubled over. He slashed her over and over again while she lay screaming at every strike before swinging her foot out landing a fierce kick into his teeth. Tobias landed hard onto the grass as Nakavii ran forward slamming her body against him in the dirt sending punch after punch into his face and chest. Tobias dug furiously for something before his fingertips touched the broken bottle piece and he rammed it deep into her side. Nakavii reared back howling in agony as Tobias grabbed her legs and pulled her back to him, tugging the belt of his pants and chuckling. Nakavii could feel herself growing weaker and made one last attempt to escape sending her magic to her nails, thinking only her claws could save her now. She swiped at her attacker slicing his neck clean. Blood poured over her as he leaned forward before she threw him off.

Nakavii watched his body plunge into the river as the sun faded behind the horizon. Nakavii heard a clap of thunder roll over her head and felt the first few drops of rain fall onto her face. She knew she couldn't get far so she made an attempt, her last attempt to get away but she had to try. The scent of blood filled her nose as red trickles dripped from her body, she dragged herself to the tree as best she could and cried out her Thu'um with every wave of thunder that rolled in the storm. She hoped he would find her but she was doubtful until she saw his face tilting her head to his body. She felt his arms around her and warm water. She tried and yet, in the end, she had failed.

Nakavii felt exhaustion sweeping over her as the memory finished its loop and darkness filled her eyes. Severus felt a strange warmth as he stirred awake and stretched, his eyes fluttered open to his empty bed and he sat up in panic until a grunt turned his attention to Nakavii's sleeping form as she shifted against the wall, her face peaceful as she sighed deeply. Severus stared at her human form in awe as it felt as if he was seeing her for the first time. He hair was a shining mix of black and blue like a raven's wing and fell over her shoulders to her waist in soft waves and spirals, her skin was a paled olive tone with scars lining every inch of her body some from the wounds she obtained last night but he noticed a good number of them were old and faded, she had twin dragon tattoos on her shoulders that reached just above each elbow, she had long eyelashes that stood out from round almond eyes. He sighed as the sense of relief flooded through him, grateful that she was healing so well and that Tobias hadn't gotten to her – yet. He stood but froze as he realized where he had been laying this whole time, in Nakavii's lap of all places. She was injured and had still made an effort to go to him and cradle him all night while he slept. He paused as he realized that even injured, she was willing to look out for him, he wasn't used to that kind of treatment, not even from his mother. He sighed heavily as the weight of her loss seeped into him yet again and he made his way to the kitchen to set about making breakfast.