Happy Thursday everyone! Hope y'all enjoy this chapter! Pls do not hate me for where I left it off.
To the reviewer who commented about Winky's speech: Ty for noticing that discrepancy - it has been fixed! I went back to the book and looked at her dialogue and Ch 2 was definitely too proper of speech for her! I thought Ch 4 was in line with her speech in the book though, but I tried to make some minor changes there as well.
Chapter 7: Dumbledore's Discovery
When Hermione awoke that morning, tucked into her own warm bed, she knew two things for certain: 1) this was the worst hangover she had ever had and 2) she was a little bit in awe of Severus Snape. Not just in awe, you definitely fancy him, her inner voice piped up. She squashed down her inner voice, settling for describing her feelings towards him as a much more acceptable form of hero worship. Plus he's literally a war hero, so it's fitting, she resolved.
She licked her lips unconsciously as images of him holding her last night rose unbidden into her thoughts. His arms were so strong and they felt so safe, she thought before mentally chastising herself for sounding like a schoolgirl with her first crush.
However, regardless of how his arms had felt, there was also the ever-present fact that she had thoroughly embarrassed herself. Her head pounded viscously as if on cue, reminding her that she would definitely be paying a price for her behavior the previous day. As she swung her legs over the edge of the bed to stand up, her stomach did a sudden turn and she found herself rushing to the bathroom to heave into the toilet. Well I can't say I don't deserve this, she thought as she tied her hair back, knowing that she had acted childishly in turning to alcohol to dull her sadness. Of course it amplified it, even a second year would know that.
As she puked into the toilet once more, she pictured Snape's angular and disappointed face, which would soon grace her with its presence if not at midday, then most definitely at suppertime. His sharp eyes, which had originally held a muted regard for her, would most definitely be judging her when he returned. Ugh I miss the perfectionist, put-together Hermione which the war destroyed, she mourned. There was no doubt that postwar Hermione was more emotional and hedonistic than prewar Hermione – the war had changed everyone who had managed to survive. In Hermione's case, she had developed a strong urge to live more in the moment, as she had witnessed firsthand how life could be yanked away from someone in an instant. She had watched the life drain out of the eyes of countless people as she was forced to remain strong in the interest of winning the war. And Snape was no exception, she thought.
Thus was born her newfound pursuit of more pleasures in life. Although she only had a short while to enjoy the postwar world – three days to be precise – she had irrevocably changed in those days. However, her new desire to live in the moment also happened to equate with being an irresponsible, emotional wreck in this case, and she deeply regretted ever opening the letter from her parents.
She felt her stomach settling a bit as she sat on the bathroom floor, deciding to risk standing up and returning to bed. She crawled back into her warm bed sheets, still dressed in her clothes from the previous day. She realized that Snape had likely carried her to bed the previous night – a thought that made her feel rather, well, she couldn't quite put her finger on the feeling. Maybe comforted? she wondered, acknowledging that she had been feeling rather alone and lost without her parents. She drifted off to sleep again, determining that it was probably wise to sleep off the hangover.
~o-o-o-o-o~
When she awoke a few hours later, she noticed some orange juice and toast on her bedside table. Ah, Snape did come by for lunch? she surmised. Her stomach grumbled, reminding her that it had been hours since she had consumed anything other than alcohol. She sat up in bed and gratefully reached for the toast, chewing it as she took a sip of the orange juice.
She regretted having missed him earlier, as she had wanted to reassure him that she was wholly embarrassed and very much not an alcoholic. Oh well, there's always dinner to awkwardly try to make amends, she presumed. I should start coming up with a plan for actually saving his life rather than just taking notes for his defense. After all, what use are these notes if he is dead? she mused.
She got out of bed once more, stretching and changing into comfortable sweats. She went out into the main room and over to the bookshelf, looking for a large print book – large print due to the lingering headache – on spells and potions for life-threatening injuries. She found a big blue book entitled Emergency Magical Medicine that seemed appropriate for her current task. She opened it and began skimming it, but found that her headache was returning with a vengeance so she placed it back on the bookshelf to read the next day.
She decided instead to practice her potion-making skills, figuring they would come in handy in the near future. Strolling over to the room housing the cauldron, she opened the door and scanned the shelves to see what Snape had in stock. These will work nicely; I can brew a number of advanced potions with these ingredients.
She set to work brewing a number of potions that Snape would find useful as well – everything from Felix Felicis to Calming Draught.
Hours later, she stepped back from the cauldron in satisfaction, certain that she had made the best Calming Draught of her life. If she was ever hysterical again in the wrong situation, a little sip of this pure, bubbly liquid was sure to help her focus on the mission at hand. She worked on bottling her last potion of the night, noting that it must be rather late.
When she emerged from the cauldron room, she checked the clock in the main room. It read a quarter past nine. Hmm I suppose I will wait for Snape before having dinner, he should be back shortly, she surmised. She grabbed Emergency Magical Medicine and took a seat on the window seat.
She was deeply engrossed in the book an hour later when Winky suddenly appeared in far corner of the room with a pop.
"Miss Granger, Miss Granger," she whispered, looking around the room for her. Spying her on the window seat, she hurried over and looked at her with wide eyes.
"Miss, you is needing to go to the Hogwarts disapparition point immediately," she urged. Hermione put her book down and looked at her worriedly.
"Why? Winky, what is the matter?" she asked.
"Mister Snape, he is needing you. I is coming to tell you, Miss!" the house-elf responded with a sense of desperation.
Hermione quickly rose up from the window seat, hurrying to her room to grab her invisibility cloak and wand with a "Thank you, Winky, I will go immediately."
God, does he always have to go and get injured on the days I choose to read about healing? she wondered as she hurried out of his chambers and through the castle. It's almost as if Voldemort knows he can do whatever he wants to him because I'm here to heal him. She reached the entrance to the castle, sneaking out with a wave of her wand and dashing through the grounds to the disapparition point.
The wet grass squelched under her boots as she ran to the edge of the castle's grounds, scanning the darkness for a sign of Snape. Unable to see him, she pulled out her wand and chanted, "Lumos." The tip of her wand lit up, illuminating the immediate vicinity and she finally spied a huddled figure a few yards ahead of her.
She ran over to the dark figure, hearing the faint sound of labored breathing as she drew near. The white of Snape's face shone brightly in the light, his eyelids fluttering as he gasped for breath.
"Sir, Professor Snape, can you hear me?" Hermione questioned as she pressed his cheek gently to turn his face towards her. His body lay in a crumpled heap on the ground as he continued to breath laboriously, not saying a word. Hermione looked helplessly at the mass of black robes surrounding him, unsure where to begin checking for injuries. She put her hand to his forehead, worried when she felt how cold his skin seemed.
What do I do? she wondered frantically. I can't disapparate to a nearby hospital with him without possibly alerting Voldemort or the Death Eaters.
Suddenly, a small groan came from his lips and Hermione leaned closer to hear what he was saying.
"Sir, sir, where are you hurt? What can I do?" she asked hurriedly.
"Water," he managed to croak out faintly, as Hermione hastened to cast the Aguamenti spell and aim her wand in the direction of his mouth. The jet of water streaming out of her wand entered his throat by surprise, causing him to start coughing violently. Hermione quickly attempted to lessen the strength of the water stream pouring from her wand, controlling it with a great deal of concentrated effort. She finally managed to get it down to a gentle trickle, tipping her wand in the direction of his mouth once more.
Snape drank greedily, sucking in liquid for minutes as he lay on the damp grass. Finally, after about five minutes of drinking water continuously, he had regained enough strength to sit up a little. Hermione was internally a complete wreck, her emotions from the previous day mixing together with the current rush of adrenaline, anxiety, and faint tinges of relief as his condition began to improve. I can't watch him like this, she thought to herself as she felt her own insides twisting with pain. Please be okay, please be okay, she silently prayed, looking up at the dark night sky.
"Can we try to stand you up? I am worried about our discovery outside your chambers," Hermione asked after he had been sitting up for a few minutes.
Snape nodded wordlessly, grabbing her arm for support and pulling himself to his feet. He winced as he stood and his step faltered a little, but he seemed to quickly regain balance. Hermione gently placed the invisibility cloak over the two of them and began to slowly lead him up towards the castle. The walk back to his chambers seemed to take forever as he kept pausing to lean against various walls in the castle. At one point, he even moved to collapse, Hermione deftly catching him and supporting him as they took their final few steps down the tunnels of the dungeon. She opened the door to his chambers with a sigh of relief, leading him into his bedroom and assisting him into bed. She quickly ran to the cauldron room, returning to his bedroom to proffer an assortment of healing potions to him. He drank down almost all of what she offered while she busied herself muttering generic healing spells as she had heard Madam Pomfrey do in the past for ailing students.
Hermione had questioned him on the way back to the castle as to what had happened to him, but he had tersely uttered that he did not remember and she decided not to press him further in his current state. She sat on the bed next to him, waiting for the potions to take effect. Among them had been a number of sleeping potions, and she presumed he would drift off to sleep in short order.
Instead, thirty minutes later, he was in a clammy, restless state, mumbling various things in his delirium. He abruptly sat up, a glassy look in his eyes as he reached towards Hermione. She recoiled in surprise, but his hand still came to rest on her cheek and he caressed it gently with his thumb.
"Lily, oh Lily," he whispered reverently. Hermione had no idea what to do, so she let his hand remain on her cheek.
"I love you, Lily," he said achingly, as if saying the words hurt him terribly. Oh no, maybe I should say something now? Hermione wondered.
"Professor – " she cut in, "It's me, Hermione."
He didn't seem to register her words, suddenly slumping backwards as he tossed fitfully on the bed once more. As he writhed on the bed, he keened over and over, "Please forgive me, please forgive me," in a heart-wrenching tone. He soon exhausted himself, falling silent again as he trembled gently. Maybe he's cold and shivering? Hermione mused, running to grab another set of blankets for him.
She tucked a couple more blankets around his trembling form, resolving to stay next to him the entire night. She sat on the other side of the bed at first, soon giving up on any sense of propriety and climbing into bed next to him. His fitfulness had eased and Hermione felt comfortable falling asleep for a little while.
~o-o-o-o-o~
When she awoke, a bedside clock alerted her to the fact that it was half past five in the morning. She turned over to look at Snape in the dim light, surprised to see him completely still and rather pale.
She nudged him lightly, whispering, "Professor, professor," but he failed to respond in the slightest. Dammit is he unconscious? she wondered worriedly. Clearly the various potions and spells had little effect. She had previously thought that he had been tortured and lost blood, and she had acted accordingly in the healing process. Now she was at a loss as to what had happened to him, having had little magical medical experience even during wartime.
She pushed him harder this time, but once more, he did not respond in the slightest. Rather than seeming peacefully asleep, his face bore a sickly look and was covered in a sheen of sweat. She leaned her head down to his face and listened to his labored breathing, at the same time feeling his neck for a pulse. When his pulse weakly beat back against her two fingers, Hermione knew something was seriously wrong.
Okay Plan B, she thought resolutely, running to her room and changing into a grey skirt, black sweater, white-collared shirt, and Gryffindor tie. She teased her hair with a brush and added a smattering of black eye shadow under her eyes, rubbing it in to give the impression that she had been studying all night.
She grabbed the invisibility cloak and her wand, running back through Snape's bedroom and telling the unconscious figure, "I'll be back shortly." She ran out of his chambers, covered in the invisibility cloak, just as the clock on the bookshelf struck six. She hurried through the castle, dodging the early risers and various others roaming the staircases at that hour.
Out of breath, she finally paused at the gargoyle outside Dumbledore's office. Bollocks, what was the password Harry told me in 6th year? Fizzing Whizbees? Sherbet Lemon? Acid Pops? She looked around to make sure the coast was clear and took off the invisibility cloak quickly, hoping anyone who passed by would simply mistake her for the younger Hermione.
The gargoyle looked at her expectantly, as she confidently tried, "Fizzing Whizbees." A couple third years passed by and looked at her strangely, giggling to themselves at her random pronouncement.
When the gargoyle failed to allow her entrance, she tried again - less confidently this time – "Sherbet Lemon?" The gargoyle just stared back at her.
"Perhaps Acid Pops?" – this time the gargoyle showed a flicker of approval before a loud creak sounded and he granted her passageway to Dumbledore's office.
Relieved, Hermione rushed up the winding stone staircase and into the ornate circular room. Dumbledore, clearly in the habit of getting an early start to his day, looked up from his desk in surprise.
"Why, Hermione, what are you doing here?" he asked. Hermione simply stared for a minute, delighted to see the headmaster in flesh and blood after over a year. His silver beard, his crinkled eyes, his melodious voice – she paused to drink it all in.
It appeared to suddenly dawn on him that this Hermione was not quite the same that was likely studying in her dormitory at the present. He looked at her inquisitively as he waited for her to speak.
"Headmaster, you sent me from the future – well, your portrait sent me – to rescue Professor Snape. I came to you because he is ill," she managed to say.
Dumbledore's face registered a faint bit of surprise before quickly asking, "Where is he?"
"In his chambers – if you would come with me," she asked, motioning back down the stairwell.
Dumbledore rapidly rose to follow the girl down the stairwell as she slipped under the invisibility cloak. It will just look like he is walking alone, Hermione thought, as she made her way back to Snape's chambers with Dumbledore in tow.
When they arrived at Snape's chambers, Dumbledore speedily went to his bedside with a quick, "Hermione, if you will wait out here."
He took a few minutes inside with Snape's unconscious body while Hermione paced nervously outside in the main room.
By the time Dumbledore emerged from Snape's bedroom, Hermione was beside herself once more, anxious to hear how he was faring. Dumbledore looked grim as he stated, "He has been poisoned – I believe by some sort of woodland creature that lives in the vicinity of where he has been meeting the Death Eaters. It appears we cannot blame this on Voldemort."
"I am sure he was weakened by the Cruciatus before this woodland creature stumbled upon him," Hermione said unforgivingly.
"Have you heard of that Muggle disease – Cholera?" Dumbledore asked. "His symptoms are similar as the venom primarily seems to work by dehydrating its victim."
Hermione nodded as Dumbledore continued, "I will administer Antidote to Uncommon Poisons – I trust there is some in his potions room?" he inquired.
Hermione nodded again, running over to the room to grab the antidote off the shelves.
"When he awakens, be certain to give him plenty of water," Dumbledore advised, heading back into the bedroom to administer the antidote to Snape.
Hermione waited outside once more for Dumbledore to return.
He returned shortly and said, "Thank you for coming to fetch me, Hermione. I imagine that you have been through a lot in the past few years – I am eternally grateful to you for your service. I will see to covering Severus' classes for the day, I imagine he will be much better by evening." With that, Dumbledore turned and strode out of the chambers, leaving Hermione feeling quite bereft in his absence.
Hermione decided to check on Snape first, pleased to hear that his breathing had already improved. Exhausted, she got back into bed next to him and fell asleep.
She awoke midday, light streaming through a square magical window on the near wall. Wondering what had awakened her, she was suddenly hit in the ear as she turned to face Snape. Far from unconscious now, it appeared that he was back in a state of restlessness, his limbs moving about randomly as he writhed on the bed. Did the antidote even work? Hermione questioned, before remembering that Dumbledore had mentioned it might be evening until he improved. She watched his face contorting in pain as his limbs thrashed about, her heart twisting with sadness and anger for how Snape had been treated by life.
His hand suddenly cracking down on the wooden frame of the bed, Hermione moved to control his limbs with her own body, not wanting him to get hurt further. She quickly straddled his legs and pinned his arms down, holding his limbs down tightly while he continued to attempt to thrash about.
In about ten minutes, he finally settled down once more, drifting off into the most peaceful sleep of his recovery thus far. Hermione noted that his breathing was even and his cheeks were beginning to regain a bit of flush, and she sighed gratefully as she swung herself off him so that she was standing.
She left to the main room, wanting to allow him his rest as she summoned Winky, requesting the largest brunch buffet possible as her stomach growled. Had I really not eaten since lunch yesterday? she thought as she wolfed down three fried eggs in minutes. If you can even call that orange juice and toast a proper meal...
After the most satisfying breakfast of her life, she busied herself finishing Emergency Magical Medicine for the rest of the afternoon.
She finished the book around four, deciding to do some yoga in the sitting area. She got into Child's Pose, calming her breath and her mind as she tried to forget her worries and fears from the past few days. Just as she was about to go into Downward Dog, she vaguely heard someone croak, "Hermione?"
She dashed to Snape's room, where she saw him awake and alert, attempting to sit up. Relief washed over her in waves as she fought away the tears that were pricking her eyes.
"Ah you are here, do you have water?" he croaked, his throat sounding extremely parched. She nodded, and moved to grab a series of empty bottles from the bedside table and fill them with water from the bathroom sink. When she returned from the bathroom, she observed how much healthier Snape looked as he propped himself up against a couple pillows.
"You're okay, oh my god, thank god you're okay," Hermione said rather incoherently as she sat down on the bed and handed him the first water bottle. She stared at him as he drank, marveling at how much better he looked. Suddenly, before she could help herself, a few tears escaped her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. He looked at her in surprise, putting down the bottle of water.
It was as if those few tears had caused a veritable dam to burst, and soon Hermione was full-out sobbing in relief as she clutched his injured right hand which had hit the bed frame a few hours previously.
"You're okay," she repeated, tracing her thumb across his red, swollen knuckles. "You're okay," she repeated again, regarding his face and looking into his eyes deeply. His eyes registered concern for her, and a little bit of confusion.
"Hermione," he said gently, his voice still cracking due to the lack of water, "I am sorry to have concerned you so greatly."
She cried more at that, grateful to be hearing his calming voice once more.
"I'm sorry," she laughed a bit at the ridiculousness of her behavior, "Please drink more water, I'll just be sitting here crying like a mad fool."
He looked at her, his mouth quirking upwards in amusement, as he reached for a couple bottles of water, downing them within seconds.
She managed to get her resolve under control within a few minutes, smiling at him as he finished the last bottle of water. She took the bottles once more to the bathroom to fill them, returning with them in hand. As she handed the first of the bottles to him once more, an errant tear snaked its way down her right cheek. Snape watched her thoughtfully, brushing his black hair back with his injured hand as he brought his left hand to her cheek, tenderly wiping away the tear that was descending its way down to her chin.
They were close to each other now, their faces mere inches apart as Hermione regarded the striking lines of his face and soft kindness in his dark orbs. She saw him look down at her lips as she licked them self-consciously, his eyes darkening a bit. His breath ghosted along her chin and she felt herself let out a faint whimper as he moved to close the gap between their lips.
