Disclaimer: I do not own anything, or receive money for anything.

Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers, I know that ff's alerts aren't working so I won't hold it against you if you didn't know I have been updating.

Chapter 10: Mercy

Severus did the one thing he had always wanted to do, knowing that he could not really get Remus to sit still while he yelled at him.

"Stupefy"

Remus fell to the ground with a look of confusion, anger and frustration on his face.

Severus levitated Remus and took him to his quarters, he put him down not to gently on the couch and took the spell off only his head so that he could talk but not go anywhere.

"Now we are going to be here until you get some things through your head, and I may let you leave here in one piece if you have even one good reason as to why I had to medicate Hermione so that she would sleep. Because when I got in her room this morning, she was a mess, and not only was she a mess but she considered her life over, and figured if it was easy for you to throw it away, she should consider the least painful method of removing herself from this world."

"She will get over it Severus, I am no good for her, and she will be better off without me, just help her get over it please," Remus' voice shook at the thought of Hermione killing herself over his rejection.

"You are a fucking idiot Remus, she won't be able to get over you, and you made that impossible for her, and will you stop giving me and everyone else this shit about not being good enough for anyone, it comes down to you being a coward Remus," Severus yelled at him.

"Oh what are you talking about, it's not like I marked her or anything…. why are you looking at me like that?"

"We all thought you knew until I saw her today."

"Knew what Severus?" Remus asked, half of him wanting it to be what he thought, the other half hoping it wasn't.

"Last night when Albus brought you to see Hermione, she was unconscious, and in pain, and you went over to her and took her in your arms," Severus started

"What does…"

"Let me finish," Severus sneered.

Remus nodded, not real sure if he wanted to know what he had done the night before.

Severus took a deep breath and started again.

"Last night when Albus brought you to see Hermione, she was unconscious, and in pain, and you went over to her and took her in your arms, you shifted the hair off of her shoulder and bared the mark you had made, or should I say the mark that Moony made, and you started to lick and kiss it, and she calmed down because of it."

"Oh God, Severus what have I done."

"Nothing that can't be fixed Remus, go and talk to her, let her know that you didn't know about marking her and tell her how much you love her."

"There has to be something else I can do, something that will let her live her life without being stuck with me," Remus said thinking aloud unknowingly.

Severus walked up and punched Remus in the face.

"I can't believe you would do that Remus, surely you know she loves you and it would kill her for you to reject her like this, knowing she was going to give up her life so you could be happy, god what a fucked up coward you really are, don't you see what a nightmare this would turn out to be for her?"

Grabbing him by the collar Severus pulled him from the couch until they were standing face to face.

"You are going to stop thinking like you are the shit on her shoes, and realise that you and her, are something that hardly ever happens, you have both found the person you will be spending the rest of your lives with if you don't act stupid like this and fix what you have done to that woman… yes I said woman, cause that is what she is, and if you can't open your eyes up and realise that then your need more help then I thought ," Severus said, the look on his face not changing from the calm exterior he usually portrays other then a touch of red in his face, giving away his anger and exasperation.

Remus sat back on the couch he had occupied earlier now that the stupefy he had been under had worn off, his elbows on his knees and his hands over his face.

"I love her so much Severus, and all I wanted was what is best for her, but I know you are right, I have been an idiot not to realise that even the animal in me knows that she is the best for me and I can work on being exactly what she needs, please friend, help me fix the mess I have created, I don't think I would be able to live with out her," Remus breathed out the words like they were being dragged from his soul.

Severus looked at him with relief, it hadn't taken as long as he thought it would, he walked over to the door leading back into the halls, and before opening it said only three words.

"Go…To… Her."

Remus got up from the couch, walked over to the door and stood in front of Severus and thanked him.

"If you need any help to get her to believe you, believe that you are not going to change your mind again tomorrow, let e know, she deserves to be loved, and for some reason, I know you can do that better then anyone else Remus," Severus whispered, but Remus heard it anyway, and nodded in answer.

He walked through the school, taking the back ways and secret tunnels so that no one else would detain him until after he had fixed all the stupid mistakes he had made. God he had been a fool to think they could just move on with there lives, the only way they would ever be doing that now would be together, there was no other way, god help who ever got in his way.

When he reached her door he stopped with his hand on the knob. He could hear her singing along with some music in the background, and started to listen to the words, and the rhythm, it sounded very depressing.

Mercy - pure and simple
Longing - cold and hollow
With sweet breath you'd come to warm me
But I held on too hard to only a memory
You lie there on the swollen ground
Deserted in your heart
Still longing for what yesterdays lost
And for all that tomorrow might bring
The passion lost - taken, stolen
The dreams we had and we shared - shattered, broken
With kind words you'd come to soothe me
But I go blind and filled with fear
Would send you away from me
There is no hope in regretting now
All the pain that we could not see
We both knew what we wanted
And we took it believing it free
And we took it believing it free.

As the song ended he could hear Hermione sobbing, and he realised she wasn't the only one who it had effected as he wiped the wetness that had been flowing down his face. He realised he would not be able to do this alone, there would be no way he could go in there and convince her right now, he would need to take Severus up on his offer, and use his help. He also needed to have this conversation somewhere she didn't have all the power.

He walked back to Severus' thinking up a plan of attack.

When he explained what had happened to Severus they came up with a plan, and they would put that plan into action after dinner that evening.

AN: The lyrics are a song called Mercy, sung by Sarah McLachlan. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.