Chapter Ten - 'There is a Hell, Believe Me I Have Seen it. Let's Keep it a Secret.':

Severus was lying on the cold stone floors of: Malfoy Manor, Voldemort's new home. His eyes were shut tight and his hearing had become muffled. His nervous system was in tatters; as was his whole body, in fact. Voldemort had made him pay for what had happened on the last event of the Tri-Wizard cup, and he suspected that Severus had killed Barty Crouch Jnr - even though he had not.

He was shivering now, and the sound of footsteps and voices were fading, as the Death Eaters had just left the room. He pushed himself up onto his feet and swayed, almost falling straight back on the floor again. He apparated back to his home in Spinner's End, where he planned to get a few days rest.

The few days rest that he planned turned out to be just one, as Dumbledore soon turned up at his home. "What is it you want now, Headmaster?" Severus groaned, he was barely awake.

"Do not take that tone with me, Severus, Harry needs to spend the remains of his summer at Grimmauld Place, we need someone to stay at the house whilst the rest of us remain busy," Dumbledore's voice spoke.

Severus rolled his eyes, "and that someone is me, no doubt?" he confirmed.

"Indeed, Severus, I expect you to arrive there tomorrow evening," Dumbledore spoke and then vanished.

XXX

Hermione had an awful summer... She had finally found out what her parents had been arguing about when she had left at the start of last year's term - her parents had a divorce while she was at Hogwarts the whole year. Not a letter from either of her parents should have told her something bad was going on... He had no idea to the extent of it all...

Hermione had only just finished revising and came downstairs. It was late afternoon, six o'clock. Her Father was in the kitchen holding a plate in his hands... Hermione had bruises all over her body from the past few weeks... She had began to fear for her life in her own home, she wanted to run away. Her Father... All he did was get drunk and that is when his temper would flair. Hermione was the only one around whom could be the victim to being assaulted by her own Father. Hermione had began to blame herself for this; as a result her skin, more specifically her arms began to have red scars soon fading into just... Self inflicted scars. She felt she had no other means of escape, she was spinning down a spiral and it was all her fault.

Her Father stood with his broad shoulder hunched, the plate on his hands. He dropped it to the floor - it shattered into a thousand shards.

"Look - look what you made me do!" He cried at Hermione, she stared blankly at him. She did not know what to say... Everything was her "fault" - she knew that.

"I am sorry..." She whimpered in fear. Her Father's hand came in to contact with her cheek, her former pale left cheek now full of colour. A red hand print painted on it. It stung... It really stung, but she was used to it now. Her hand rose to her cheek, a tear dribbled over her face. Her Father gripped her wrist and yanked her onto the floor, "pick it up, bitch!" He slurred and began to kick her.

There was a sharp loud cracking noise and now standing in the kitchen was Severus Snape...

Severus' summer had been terrible. After Dumbledore's meeting, he had been summoned again and was forced to 'prove his loyalty' to the Dark Lord. He had passed, however, and had learned that the Death Eaters were going after 'Mudbloods' now. Severus knew Hermione needed to be safe; she was the brains of the trio, the boys could not cope without her and of course - she was now Severus' sort-of friend. No, he was not sure exactly what they were - but she knew a lot about him as he did with her, and they both seemed to trust each other. That was something surely? He had to save her, and here he was…

He stood wide-eyed, mouth open in sheer horror as he watched the man, whom was supposed to be Hermione's Father - someone she should feel totally safe with - sprawled over her and hurting her. Severus felt sick, swallowing bile - he raced forward and threw the man across the other side of the room. Oh, he could have swung for the man, but he was not sure he would stop if he had, but he chose not to hit him. There was a terrified little Gryffindor lying there and he did not want for her to have to put up with another minute of this place.

"Pack your things, Miss Granger. I'm taking you to the Headquarters of the Order. I will explain on the way," he spoke calmly as he helped her up and watched her go upstairs. As soon as she was out of sight, he turned to her father who was now stood up and was about to start speaking when Severus punched him in the face - knocking him on the floor.

"Your daughter is in great danger, whether you care or not, it is important that she comes back into our world and stays under our protection. The men that are after her can't be taken down by petty little men like yourselves who use weaker people as their targets," Severus spoke coldly - stood over the man.

"Get out, get away from this house because they will come looking for you, and if you refuse to tell them where your daughter is, or claim that you do not know, they will kill you and as little as that image bothers me right now - 'she' would still grieve you, despite what you have done to her," he was now very close to shouting - which was rare for Severus.

Her father scrambled to his feet and followed Severus' orders, soon leaving the house without saying a word to Hermione. Severus sat down on the sofa, aside Crookshanks as he waited for Hermione to return downstairs. Hermione came back downstairs with a small, black case. Her face stained with tears, her cheek still bright red and sore. She felt the bruises forming on her wrist legs and her cheek. She had placed a baggy hoodie on - hiding her shrinking frame. She had lost a lot of weight in a few weeks, she had also put the hoodie on to hide her scarred arms.

"Thank you," Hermione whispered to Severus, trying to hold back the the tears, a lump had now formed in her throat because of it. Severus cocked his head to one side and looked up at her, his gaze very soft. He then stood up and placed his hand on her shoulder.

" I am sorry, Hermione... Do you need any pain relief?" He asked in a softer-than-soft tone. His other hand rubbing small circles on her back - trying to sooth her. Hermione did not speak, she just began to weep with distress.

'Oh, sod it. The girl needs comfort...' Severus thought to himself. His arms stiffly wrapped around her torso and pushed her into his chest, where she buried her head and allowed the tears to fall. Her arms retiring his embrace. Everything seem to stop with his presence, she seemed to relax totally. Her eyes shut tight, and soon the tears stopped, Severus did not let go though. He apperated them to his home: Spinner's End.

Hermione was now more relaxed to be out of that house. She took her jacket off and reviled her extra slim waist and the scars on her arms were now visible for Severus to see. She slumped herself down on the sofa and curled up into a ball - beginning to rock forwards and backwards.

Severus noticed the scars and frowned for a moment; before something clicked in his head, and he went down into his basement.

When he returned, he held a pot of cream and handed it to her as he came to sit next to her on the sofa.

"Do you wish to talk about what's been happening, Miss Granger?" His velvety voice spoke softly in a silky tone.

"What does the cream do?" She asked staring into his eyes. She looked at him as if she was no longer the smart, intelligent Gryffindor she had been...

"I would like to talk... I trust you, I always have..." She whispered, she was speaking in a quiet whisper. "You saved me...thank you, thank you," tears wept from her eyes - again.

"It's for your scars; it will ease most of them away," he gave her a small smile, then it faded.

He felt awkward again, he wanted to lift the mood so tried to add a bit of humour:

"Miss Granger, please stop crying or I may be forced into giving you some sort of embrace again," he spoke with a small smirk.

'Maybe I enjoyed your last embrace,' she thought to herself, she let out a quiet, gentle chuckle as a response. She then wiped her eyes and looked up at him.

"It had all started while I was at Hogwarts. My Mother had cheated on my Father, and she had filed for divorce. When I came in the summer I found this out; my Mother told me she was leaving me with my Father. Then, she left... That's when it started... He... Got drunk that night-" Hermione paused for a moment and then began to speak again.

"-he would get so drunk he turned violent. He blamed me for Mum leaving always my "fault" - as he would say. I believed him, I still do. I have always been the issue..." Hermione had to stop the tears from forming in her eyes; this causer a lump in her throat, but she held back.

"He would come in every night... Attack me. He has: kicked, punched, slapped ad burnt me. The scars on my arm are nothing to do with him..." Hermione said ashamed and in anguish.

Severus nodded in understanding. He'd experience a rather similar childhood to this.

"I know the feeling. Firstly, you must believe me when I say that it is not your fault, Miss Granger," he spoke gently. "I came from a violent background, and I too, did things like... Like this... To myself," he gestured at her arms.

"It is nothing to be ashamed of, will you promise to try and stop it? When we return to the school, should you feel like you are about to, come and see me. We can do some potions, I sure could use an extra pair of hands when it comes to supplying the school and 's, I also have my own private supplies," he watched her as she began to calm down. '

I'm getting good at this,' he thought happily to himself. Hermione began to relax totally, someone was on her side. Best of all it was: Severus Snape. He could empathise with her, he understood. And best of all he was the only person she could trust right now. She shuffled up closer to him; their thighs - and leg - now touching. From hip-to hip, toe-to-toe.

"Thank you, Sir. If I have your help I will try my hardest to stop, I promise. I am glad you understand me... So, none of it is my fault?" She said softly, relief was filling her face, she began to look like Hermione again. "One other thing... I have a huge burn on my back... Well... I cannot reach it. I-I have not been able to look at it... Could you?" She's asked nervously.

"Non of it is your fault, Miss Granger," he said softly then thought for a moment.

'Oh Merlin, this is going to be torture.' He thought to himself.

"Yes, I will look at it for you, how did you get it?" He asked, wondering what sort of burn it was. The cream he had given her did ease off some burns, depending on how severe they were. She twisted her hair around in her fingers looking nervously.

"I would say it would be a second degree burn. Not third... He threw a pan of boiling hot water on me..." She whispered hoarsely, clearly not wanting to talk about it. "I bathed in a bath of ice and it still hurt... It hurts every time I lie on my back... Still."

Severus felt something inside him flip, at the thought of anyone doing that to her.

He moved so that he was now facing her back:

"would you lift your top, so I can see?" He spoke, feeling like a horrible, dirty old man at that moment. He scolded himself in his mind as he waited for her reaction. Hermione did as he asked, without no questioning, she had told trust in Severus. She lifted her top over her head and then folded it neatly, leaving it resting on her lap. She was a little nervous, but sad still. She hoped it was not too bad of a scar.

"How does it look?" She whispered hesitantly.

Severus closed his eyes for a moment as he occluded his mind to stop his thoughts from straying.

He opened his eyes and looked at her back, focusing on the burn as he finally suppressed a small sigh of relief.

"Ah, not as bad as I was expecting, the cream I gave you can ease the pain and eventually fade it," he spoke blankly as he was occluding his mind still - he hoped she wouldn't notice and question why he was using occlumency right now.

"Miss Granger, as you cannot reach, I could..." He suggested, now really angry with himself.

'What are you letting yourself in for, Severus?'

"Or if you would prefer a female then I could call Madam Pomfrey," he covered up quickly. Hermione had begin to question why; she noticed there was no emotion in his words, or tone of voice.

"Are you okay?" She asked him before handing him the pot of cream.

"I would prefer if you did it... I don't want anyone else seeing me..." She whispered. She was scared what people would think; Severus had seemed like he had not cared what she looked like when he saw the scars on her arms, hence why she was allowing him to see her back.

"Is it ugly?" She sighed.

"No, it isn't," he spoke a little softly now as he reached for the cream and got some of it on his fingers.

There was a moment's pause, then his hands touched her back and massaged the cream on her burnt skin.

His hands moved softly, the cream was cool on her back. He closed his eyes tightly as he continued to massage more cream on her skin. Hermione closed her eyes tightly. At first the pressure on her burn had hurt immensely. But, now the cream was having a wonderful effect on her, at was as if it was numbing the burn, like it was ice. It was soothing. And his fingers massaging it into her back felt wonderful; she bit her lip hard to try sand not allow any moans to escape her mouth. But, one stray moan escaped her mouth - it was a soft one of pleasure. She was enjoying it.

He slowly stopped massaging her, dropping his hands by his side as he didn't really know what else to do.

'Why did she moan? It was probably the the actual massage, not like she felt anything for me like that...' He cursed himself again for thinking along those lines. This was surely going to get him killed.

"Feeling better?" He actually managed to speak to his own surprise. His eyes were dark now as he was heavily occluding his mind.

Hermione nodded, and turned to look into his eyes.

"Much better - that cream has eased the pain already. Your fingers are like magic..." Ironic that she has said that really, magic really did flow from his fingers. She felt totally relaxed right now; the past few weeks had just left her mind, she had even forgot to put her top back on...

"Severus, are you sure you are alright? You seem, well very distant..."

"I am fine, Miss Granger, you should put that top back on; I am going to make us some dinner," he stood up and walked over to the kitchen as he began to prepare them a meal.

"Tomorrow you will need to go to the Headquarters of the Order, Dumbledore will murder me if you are not there in time," he called to her from the kitchen.

Hermione went red in the face - even though Severus could not see - she had mortifyingly forgot about her top. She quickly scrambled it on and put her hoodie over the top of the t-shirt. She then approached the kitchen; she knew something was not right with him. She came behind him and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"If you need space I can go up to bed... I am grateful for everything you have done for me, Sir," she whispered. She decides to call him 'sir' due to him still calling her 'Miss Granger'.

"I know that this 'know-it-all' can get a bit much for you..." She then left the kitchen and took her case upstairs, getting changed into her baggy pyjamas. She began to read on the bed. Well, she was not really reading. She was deep in thought about Severus' reaction earlier.

Then, it hit her. He started to go strange as soon as she asked him to look at the burn - he had obviously been using Occlumency...

Severus knocked at the door and entered with a tray, it had a drink and a rather well prepared meal on it. He came over to her side and placed it on the bed.

"Try to eat as much as you can, I have noticed the weight you've lost recently," he said softly.

He headed to the door and went straight out of the room, going back downstairs.

XXX

It was now around eleven in the evening and Severus was curled up on the sofa with a small blanket around him, in his pyjamas. He couldn't sleep - he was thinking about how much he'd enjoyed giving her that massage.

The confusion occurred again as he desperately tried to figure out what he was to do about this. He wasn't sure if it was a crush or anything more, he obviously cared about her but he thought that he loved Lily. That couldn't be true, because whatever it was with Hermione; it was not forced like it was with Lily, he did not have to try to impress Hermione all the time, he could be himself - something that he could not do with Lily.

So maybe it was the other way round? Maybe it was just a crush on Lily, coming to think of it: was it even that? Lily was the only person Severus could have called a friend, the only person who really acknowledged him.

He certainly didn't know what love felt like, as no one had ever shown it to him.

Nevertheless, he was sure that whatever feelings remained for Lily after her death, were buried. He had gotten so close to Hermione without even realising, and he was slowly starting to realise of how wrong he had been in thinking that Lily was this 'Saint' and how he thought he had felt for her.

Severus finally managed to stop thinking, he had a raging headache. He closed his eyes and was on the verge of falling asleep; when he heard a scream. Making him jolt straight up the stairs and into Hermione's room - his room really, but hers for the night.

Hermione was curled into the tightest ball she could manage on the floor; she had woke up from a dream - a very nasty one at that. She had sweated a lot in her sleep; her clothes drenched. She un-curled herself and switched the light on, and began to undress herself. Finding new Pyjamas when Severus burst in the room. Hermione screamed out of shock and dived for the floor. She had become very jumpy and scared from her nightmare... It had nothing to do with Severus though...

"Miss Granger, what's going on? You nearly gave me a heart attack!" He was panting hard, he'd never ran so fast in his life.

He saw her in her underwear and looked away in embarrassment,

"ah, I will give you a minute..." He said slowly as he made his way to the door.

"I had a bad dream... Please, I thought he was back, I have no clothes to wear for bed; my others are soaked. I will just hope into bed..." She muttered climbing into her duvet.

"Sorry to frighten you, I did not mean too..." She sighed. "See, it is my fault..." She whispered and the tears began to fall from her eyes...

"Please don't go, Severus... Everything stop when you are with me. I know I am safe..." She whispered through sobs.

He turned back around to face her, as she was now in bed.

"It is not your fault Miss Granger," he sighed as he made his way over to the bed and sat on top of it, he was now sitting upright on top of the bed with his back resting against the headboard.

"I will stay here until you fall back asleep," he muttered quietly.

"Please don't leave me on my own... Stay here even when I am asleep... I don't want him to get me..." She whispered putting her head on his knee and closing her eyes tightly. She was wrapped heavily in the blanket. She was tired, so tired. Now, Severus was with her she could relax and sleep.

She had soon fallen asleep and Severus couldn't help but watch her as she slept so peacefully.

Her face looked so beautiful even up close, he knew her features well enough now that he could draw them blindfolded.

She looked so innocent and fragile as she slept, he didn't want to move to disturb her. After what was possibly hours, Severus fell asleep, his head resting against the headboard on the bed.

XXX

Hermione uncurled from resting on his knee. She had slept peacefully and was glad to be awake. She sat up and flipped the covers off her. Still in her underwear; shivering from the cold. She tried to drag the covers away from Severus' body and wrap it round herself. She yanked until it jolted Severus off the bed. Hermione could not help but laugh at the whole situation. She saw his eyes flicker open and she knelt down to where he was.

"I am sorry, I was cold," she laughed, "are you okay?"

Severus stood up looking rather embarrassed, but he had a small smirk on his face.

"Honestly, Miss Granger, I save you from a dementor, stop you from drowning, protect you from the Death Eaters and even let you have my bed, and you repay me buy throwing me on the floor," his voice was a little husky as it was early morning but the humour could be heard if you listened closely.

Hermione could not hold back the hysterics, she had hysterical laughter. Her ribs were showing as she laughed, that was how thin she had become. She loved the sound of his voice, silkily soft with a hint of humour. Suited him. She placed her hands on his shoulders, she could feel how tense he was.

"Let me help you up? I am sorry. You have saved me a lot of times... You are very tense you know; you should go get a massage!" She smiled still laughing.

"And you Granger, should put some clothes on," he cocked his head to the side and arched an eyebrow - doing his best to stop himself from smirking.

He got up off the floor and went into the bathroom to get ready, allowing her to get dressed as they would both have to go to Headquarters soon.

"You fell put of the bed!" She shouted through to him as she put her clothes on. She was soon ready and had all her bags packed. She was sat down waiting for Severus to come down. As soon as he did, she told him to sit down.

"Now, after everything you have done for me; let me give you that massage to make you was up? You are ridiculously tense," she placed her hands on his shoulder blades and began to use her fingers to need his skin in circles.

"Miss Granger... I don't think that's..." He stopped as she began to massage him, that felt extremely good - but he wasn't going to admit that.

He allowed her to massage him and ease his joints and muscles. Once she had finished, he stood up and gave her a soft smile.

"That wasn't necessary you know, but I am grateful nevertheless."

They made their way out of the house and apparated to just outside Headquarters.

"This is as far as I come with you I am afraid, Potter has a court hearing tomorrow which you will no doubt have to attend. Have a nice rest of summer, Miss Granger, I will watch you enter and then I will leave," he spoke watching her.

Hermione smiled softly at him.

"Thank you for everything, Severus - goodbye and look after yourself." She waved him goodbye and stepped into 12 Grimmauld Place.