"If…if I come with you..you'll keep me safe?"
His answer was immediate.
"Always"
cont.
He came back to himself with a lurch , and found that he was once more seated on the sofa in his quarters with a distraught Hermione in his arms.
Time spent using legillimency moved differently to natural time , so he knew thought it had been an ordeal for the two of them, it had been all but a few moments for Poppy, however he still quickly turned to her to see if she was alright.
Poppy was sprawled on the floor , surrounded by papers, broken glass and what were once his chairs (and were now rather avant-garde pieces of twisted wood). Fortunately the pressure in the room had stabilised, and the thick electric charge fog, and abstract hues of strange light had disappeared , everything appeared normal , apart from the mess of course.
Hermione was shivering and had her arms wrapped around her self, as he absently stroked her back in a soothing gesture. He felt like he should be offering more to her in the way of comfort , after what he had just discovered , but at the same time he wanted to respect her boundaries , if she sought him for more comfort he would offer it , but he would not smother her with his presence when she was so obviously distraught.
"Severus...is everything ?"
Hermione had flinched in his arms when the mediwitch began to speak , and he felt a slight hum of pressure. He realised that Poppy's presence was going to cause more damage than good in the short term , and whilst everything was so raw with her , it would be best to let her have some distance from the mediwitch , until she was more herself...but how to go about healing her ?
"Easy Hermione... I am going to go and speak to Poppy over here, I will not leave the room , just the sofa and I will be back shortly"
She didn't respond to him, when he had shifted slightly to the side to address poppy she had leaned back into the sofa and buried her face into a cushion that she had grasped within her arms.
It unsettled him when she was unresponsive, but at least she wasn't climbing the walls or in danger of killing them all with wild magic.
He walked over to poppy, grasped her arm and helped her up from her position on the floor as he addressed her quietly in a low tone , so that Hermione would not hear.
"Are you alright Poppy ?"
"I'm fine now... but Severus what was that ?"
"Wild Magic"
"Don't play dense with me Severus , I know damn well that was more than any run of the mill wild magic"
"No it wasn't..."
He paused, unsure of how much further to go , when the witch's stern visage melted into one of concern.
"You were in her mind then , weren't you , at the end , to calm her down ?"
"I was"
"And...?"
"I believe it was as we had feared... I cannot yet comprehend the...extent...of the atrocities that she has suffered , but I have witnessed that there was definitely some abuse of a ...personal...nature"
Tears shone in the soft chocolate eyes of the witch , as she sniffled and looked over his shoulder at the small form of the girl on his sofa.
"That Poor child... what horrors has she seen , none should have to suffer as she has , let alone one so young and heartfelt"
He remembered the small bushy haired girl , knitting for squibs and houselves, travelling through time to save a hippogriff and defending him to the other students, and then he looked at the broken thing on the sofa and felt despair at the unfairness of it all.
"What do we do now Severus, we've barely begun and she's nearly killed us already , not to mention nearly had a heart attack herself in the process"
"Spare me the hufflepuff theatrics , she's not nearly killed anyone..."
"I may be a hufflepuff Severus , but don't think you can use those Slytherin wiles on me! I may not know what just happened, and I am not sure that I want to know...but I have a damn good idea, and I know that I can't ever recall seeing you afraid like that since that event in the shack... you went white as a ghost"
"Obviously you're going senile in your old age... I am always this colour"
Poppy picked up the nearest book and slapped him upside the head with it.
"Give over you bloody berk , that situation could have gone to thestral shit and you and I both know it , if it is as you say she's going to need a lot of help , not to mention the amount of blood she's leaving on your sofa she's obviously hurt.. but every time I go near her, she blows a gasket... why is she so afraid of me Severus ? I could understand if I was a man... but she has no trouble with you... so why me?"
Poppy almost looked hurt, and he could sympathise with the witch. Hermione had been on quite good terms with the witch , though they were not as close as her and Minerva had been, she was one of the few students who she was "Poppy" to, and she had often spent her spare time brewing for the mediwitch or assisting in the infirmary, and had shown an interest in the (albeit misogynistic male dominated) field of medicinal potions, but Miss Granger had never been one to back down from a challenge. Poppy had once confessed to him that she was of a mind to offer her an apprenticeship when she was finished with her schooling , as her potions were exemplary , much better than the ones she got on contract from slug and jiggers and second only to his own brews, which with his teaching and work for two masters, he no longer had time to provide her with.
"When I was in her mind earlier... it became obvious to me that there may be some...corruption... within the staff of azkaban. Though I am not sure yet as to how her teeth were broken... I know it was the resident mediwitch , along with a couple of guards that are the reason for the subsequent vicious removal... "
"Gods Severus... the inmates, the staff, the guards...she was so isolated, did she have no one to turn to ?"
"I do not know Poppy...in addition there was another incident with the mediwitch...one which caused her great pain , both physical and mental... the extent to which I cannot comprehend... I do not know what happened, but I know that it's tearing her apart"
"Merlin..."
"Indeed..."
"And this is why she didn't want to be restrained either ?"
He winced and looked away at that , choosing instead to focus on the deep black of his dragon-hide boots.
Hmm... when did that burn happen ? Oh right Longbottom.
"Severus... what aren't you telling me?"
He sighed deeply and began to rub the bridge of his nose with his fingers, trying to stave off the stress induced headache he could feel building.
"Miss Granger went willingly to the mediwitch when her teeth were broken... as she was awaiting to be stunned by the witch...the woman instead petrified her"
"Circe... surely not? Any professional with half a mind knows...but then she would've..?."
"Indeed...she was fully aware throughout the 'procedure' , she saw, heard and felt everything . The witch knew was she doing, the twisted bitch was laughing"
The mediwitch turned a shade of green that would have made any slytherin proud.
"I like my boots the colour they are Poppy, if you feel the need to vacate your stomach , please do so elsewhere"
She gave him an exasperated look , even as her colour began to go back to normal.
"What do we do from here then? If the girl is that traumatised..."
"I believe that your presence is not of any benefit at the moment to Miss Granger... I believe the best course of action would be to do the general overall health scans, to ensure she is not at any immediate risk of death , and then I will have to take over her care until she is in a more stable state of mind"
"Normally I would say that she would be better off under the care of another woman given what's happened to her , but she seems to be comfortable around you Severus, so I believe that would be best."
"Indeed... I must confess that I have little idea where to go from here Poppy...I..."
"Severus...I trust you... more importantly SHE trusts you , just don't do anything to break that trust and I think you will be fine...and Severus ? Eventually you must get her to talk about it , to acknowledge it, accept it...as painful as it will be for her , to continue on denying and shielding herself from it , will break her...she can't change whats been done, but she can learn to overcome it in time."
"I am not one for talking about feelings Poppy... maybe Minerva?"
"I have no doubt Minerva will play her own part in the girls recovery...once she is a bit more grounded , however I think you have a bigger part in all this. Just be there for her Severus, encourage her to talk , listen when she does, and when she cries and breaks down, and she will...be there to pick up the pieces and put her back together"
"And what If I cannot...what if I make things worse?"
"You won't Severus, I know you... you're a good man, with a good heart underneath all those layers, I know you'll do right by the girl , and you can floo call me, day or night for anything"
Poppy placed her hand on his arm and slowly rubbed his bicep , it was the hug that was not a hug, as a hug would have got her hexed...but it was appreciated all the same.
"Let's get this scan done then Severus, I think you're in for a long night"
They turned as one to approach Hermione , curled up on his emerald green sofa , he was concerned to see the mediwitch had been right about her losing blood , there were a number of small pools of blood where she'd been sat, and there were also patches on both the back and the arms where she had lent, she must be losing blood from a number of places.
"Hermione...Poppy is going to do one last scan of you , then she's going to leave , alright ?"
There was no response from the silent girl other than to squeeze the silver cushion tighter to her chest.
Taking a deep breath , the mediwitch raised her wand and began to do a quick up down scan of the girls body.
Once again Severus watched as her face managed to become pale and green at the same time.
She dropped her wand arm after a moment, and stared in sympathy at the girl , who was visibly starting to get agitated by her presence.
After another moment passed without the witch saying anything, the girl whimpered and he felt the temperature and pressure change slightly around him.
"Poppy...the results"
She turned quickly to him , and looked white as a sheet.
"There's...there's a lot Severus... nothing I could see in full detail...but enough to be grateful she's not dead...I..."
"Poppy...her urgent requirements ?"
"yes of course...there's nothing that will kill her overnight but... definitely get a blood replenisher in her with the skelegro before bed, and a nutrient potion and some water, she's so extremely dehydrated and nearly starved that she's at risk of organ failure , there's something else too...hormone and chemical levels are off...endorphins too, strange but... nevermind , none of that is urgent tonight, other than that, assess her as you get her cleaned up and just play it by ear"
"Thank You Poppy"
"Oh and Severus , before I go ?"
He turned to face her as she walked away from him
"I do believe you said something about warbeck and firewhiskey..."
He raised his eyebrow at her but gestured towards his cabient all the same , snorting as she went straight for a full bottle of ogdens and took it with her.
He would have liked to indulge himself , but it seems he was responsible for someone else now and imbibing large quantities of alcohol were not tantamount to being a responsible protector.
He moved back towards the sofa , thinking on what Poppy had said to him , 'Assess her as you get her cleaned up' how it Merlin's name was he going to manage that ?
As he got closer he took in her appearance once more, she does need to be cleaned up, that's for certain he thought as he wrinkled his nose at the smell of her , she shivered again and scratched her arm, which seemed to be irritating her and he was once again concerned about the possibility of an infection , as he came to sit by her.
She did not react at first , but once more he sat and waited for her , as he had done in the hall when she first arrived, he would not rush her.
Within a few minutes of sitting down , she had slowly raised her eyes to meet his gaze.
"Alright in there Granger ?"
She just stared at him slowly blinking , but was otherwise unresponsive.
He sighed, he really didn't like when she occluded, but still it was better than the dangerous level she was at earlier , at least a part of her was here , even if she was otherwise keeping hold of her emotions.
Poppy was right, seeing the colour drain out of her honey eyes earlier had terrified him , the thought of her being lost to them, was unthinkable.
"It's just us now , Poppy has gone back to her office"
Once again he hoped for more of a response, but she just flicked her eyes slightly to the side to scan the room for the mediwitch , then brought her eyes back to him when she had done.
How to broach the subject of getting her clean...
"Hermione... I was wondering if you would like get clean , I'm sure you would feel better if you could wash your hair, change out those overalls for some clean clothes... and we don't want any of your wounds to get infected do we ?"
She was still staring at him , but he was not sure if she was even listening to him. Merlin's balls.
Making a decision he stepped toward her , then knelt in front of her.
"Would you like to get clean...maybe have a shower?"
THAT got a response... the minute he mentioned shower her eyes snapped to his and she frantically shook her head no.
Great... as if this wasn't going to be difficult enough... what could possibly...oh. Prisons and showers, god he hoped it wasn't that.
But...the brute that abused her in that memory had done so in her cell , he'd obviously found a way to get to her , and she certainly didn't seem to smell like she'd had a shower any time recently, there was nothing else for it, he needed to understand her triggers so that he could work around them, and Poppy said that she needed to stop keeping it all in.
"Hermione, I would like to make a compromise with you , whenever something upsets you or frightens you... I won't push you , I promise, however you must show me WHY , do that and I will not push you , and we can move on to something else , would that be agreeable ?"
The girl looked to her feet and her shoulders slumped, she stayed that way for a few minutes until he began to wonder if he had lost her to that fugue state again when she suddenly tensed her shoulders, took a deep breath and then looked him straight in the eye, she'd made her decision and he couldn't help buy smile softly as he entered her mind, brave little Gryffindor.
Unclean.
Dirty.
Filthy.
Mudblood.
She was unclean , she needed to get clean.
They'd said she could be showered once a week, she needed it today , she was so dirty.
She banged on the door to the cell , until one of the guards came through.
"Who's making all that fucking noise you wankers ! I'll fucking... oh it's you, what do you want princess ?"
she tried to ignore the revulsion at the positively lecherous look he aimed at her.
"I'm s-sorry , b-but I w-would really like to s-shower...they s-said I could?"
She hated the way her voice broke , how she couldn't form the words around the pain in her mouth.
"A shower eh ? need a good...rub down do you? Want some help with your back..."
She shivered at the positively vile look on his face as he unashamedly gave her an up down read.
"J-just a s-shower p-please"
The grin he gave her was positively predatory
"Course girl , I can take you to the showers now if you'd like... there's 4 shower heads in the stall to share between you , and I'm sure the boys will be happy to show you how everything works"
No.
.no.
"A-alone... p-please , can't I..."
"Well I suppose I could help you out...if you'd prefer to be alone that is..."
She jumped back as he opened the cell door and walked in , closing it behind him.
He was thin and pasty , with terrible skin and the dark grey uniform he wore was stained and he smelt like stale sweat , making her want to gag at his odious presence.
"Value your privacy do you pet ? I can see why...sweet little slice like you would have no end of friends lining up to help you get to those hard to reach places"
She shivered in revulsion , but had to push on.
So Dirty.
"P-please"
he grinned at her, and she was sickened by his stained and broken teeth, he reminded her of a muggle junkie.
"Course princes...strip"
No.
Please.
"N-no"
"I hope you're not talking back to an officer Princess...here I am going out of my way to help you , going against regulations to give you special favours and preferential treatment, and you're talking back to me and giving me trouble?"
She wanted to cry , as she stood shaking her head , trying desperately to hold back the tears.
"Suit yourself then love...Aguamenti Glacies"
MERLIN
Freezing cold water struck her from his wand as he cast the ice cold water to fall all over her , in powerful and painful jets like from a pressurised hose pipe,
Her mouth screamed in pain from the extreme cold, as her body burned with the sting of the cold water, he waterlogged robes dragged her to the ground with the weight of them , all while he continued to laugh and pound her with the freezing spray.
She tried to shout and beg ,but one hit of the ice water in her open mouth had her head in her hands as she fought not to vomit or pass out from the pain.
she didn't trust herself not to fall off the steep edge of the cell if she passed out where she was , on the now wet stone.
After what seemed like hours , limbs aching and numb from the cold , lips blue , clothing sodden and hair lank at her sides, the man finally stopped.
Her nipples were like ice, and rubbed raw on the rough prison overalls.. he took a step toward her , and pinning her to the wall with his body he reached up his hand and cupped her breast , running his finger over her erect nipple.
"There now love...hope you enjoyed your shower , happy to help you out anytime if you fancy a bit of one on one treatment yeah ?"
He pinched her nipple as he walked away , causing her to whimper in pain as she collapsed into the fetal position and cried.
Fucking Wankers.
Sadistic fucking bastards.
He was seething as he came back to himself , she just looked away from him with tears in her eyes as she held her cushion tighter to herself.
Taking a deep breath to calm his raging emotions, he reached out gently and put his finger under her chin , to carefully lift her tearful gaze to his.
"How about a bath yeah ? a nice warm bath?"
for the first time since she arrived, he got the smallest flicker of a hopeful and sad little smile.
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