Hey everyone! Thanks for all of the lovely reviews and faves and alerts! I've changed the outline of this story somewhat, so the epically long chapter will be 13 instead of 12.
Also warnings for this chapter! Blood and knives and torture and things...
oOoOoOo
September quickly progressed into October. The autumn air was crisp and the leaves were changing all around the castle. Sooner than they knew it, Halloween was upon them. The castle was festively decorated with pumpkins and candles, and a huge feast with all sorts of candy was planned for that night. Professor Flitwick was offering extra credit for any of the students who volunteered to help decorate.
Hermione was in her room getting ready to spend the rest of Halloween with Severus. He was still in Divination as her Muggle Studies class got out early for the holiday. They were going to help levitate some of the jack-o-lanterns in the Great Hall and then read by one of the dozens of tiny bonfires Dumbledore had made outside for any students wanting to stay warm while studying. All of a sudden her door flew open with a bang. There stood a dozen Slytherins, most of which had already graduated. She panicked, all of them would turn out to be Death Eaters. She was too slow in drawing her wand to defend herself.
"Stupefy!" Bellatrix shouted gleefully, "Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione fell backwards onto her bed.
"Hello, little Mudblood," she taunted. "Want to play?" she brought out a pointy silver dagger Hermione had seen before. A frightened tear escaped her. Bellatrix advanced like a starving panther stalking her prey. "Where should we start, hmm?" she said in her horrible mock-sweet voice. "Your pretty little neck?" she placed the knife there and Hermione let out a whimper. "Go on, Mudblood, I want to hear you scream." One or two of the younger Death Eaters looked on apprehensively, but the rest seemed excited. "How about your arms then?" She slowly dragged the blade across her left arm, blood dripping out, but not deep enough for permanent damage more than scarring. The pain was excruciating as Bellatrix continued to make random cuts across her body, some deeper than others, laughing at Hermione's tears and screams. "That's what dirty blood looks like!" Bellatrix shouted triumphantly as she finished carving the word 'mudblood' into Hermione's arm. Hermione felt her blood pooling below her. Her arms were drenched red and mangled, her legs mirroring them, and Bellatrix was currently slicing fine lines across her stomach and sides.
"Bella, that's enough, remember she has to be alive and awake for the next part," Rodolphus said hesitantly, stopping Bellatrix's dagger. Hermione would have sighed in relief if she wasn't almost unconscious from the pain and blood loss.
"Just for the beginning," she pouted disappointedly and tucked the dagger away.
They levitated her to the Shrieking Shack after a moment of confusion when MacNair had tried to pick her up instead. Three of them had tried the levitaiton spell at once, causing her to fly into the ceiling and bounce off a wall painfully. On the way in Hermione's semi-conscious state, she heard Bellatrix explaining that this was their initiation into the Death Eaters: kidnapping, torture, and killing of a Mudblood. "There's a reason they call it the Shrieking Shack!" she ended with an insane cackle.
The instant the petrification spell was removed, each of the Death Eaters took their chance practicing the Cruciatus Curse on her. She couldn't help but scream as her body convulsed from the pain. Finally, there were two left, Lucius and Bellatrix. She knew the worst was yet to come. The younger ones had been more hesitant, but these two would really mean it.
"Crucio!" Lucius said coldly. She didn't even know if she was screaming anymore. The loss of blood and the pain became overwhelming and she passed out not knowing if the curse was lifted, her last thoughts a prayer that someone would find her before it was too late.
oOoOoOo
Severus walked into the dormitories after Divination to find Hermione. Her door was open. Frowning, he walked over to it, but it appeared as a solid piece of wood when he got close to it. He ended up standing across the hall from it to look in. There was something red on her bed, and no sign of her in the room. He called her name and got no response. He slowly took a step forward and moved a bit to the left as a sense of dread washed over him. Blood. Panicking, he looked around and saw a droplet on the ground by his shoe. He followed them out of the hall quickly and groaned when he realized they led out of the common room. He would have run but he wanted to take note of any inconsistencies in the blood droplets. So far he figured she had struggled at first but now the drops were more uniform, as if she had been levitated. The drops led him out of the castle and he paled when he saw they went to the Whomping Willow. He hadn't been near that tree in a year since the...accident with Remus Lupin.
"Immobulus!" he commanded and quickly dropped through the hole between two large roots into the passage to the Shrieking Shack.
There were voices coming from the end of the hall. He slowed his footsteps and made himself completely silent as he realized they were Slytherins form the upper years but also students who had already graduated, ones he knew would have already joined the Dark Lord and have Dark Marks marring their arms.
Severus carefully peered around the corner and almost fainted at the sight. It was straight out of one of his nightmares: Hermione lay crumpled on the floor, unmoving, and drenched in her blood. He should go for help, get Dumbledore, or-
"Crucio!" he felt sick as he heard Lucius' voice perform the unforgivable curse and Hermione's screams pierced the air as she convulsed on the ground. Without thinking he rushed into the room, spells flying out of his wand in every direction. Two of his stunning spells hit Crabbe and Goyle and they fell over with heavy thuds.
"Protego!" he shouted as Bellatrix sent a jet of green light towards him. Luckily he was good at non-verbal spells as he whirled around, dueling the ten remaining people at once. He got another with a Stupefy, and a fourth with Sectumsempra. One of the seventh years hit him with a stinging hex and a sixth year used the Cruciatus Curse. After fighting it off, he stood up again, swaying a bit on his feet. How could he have been so stupid as to take on twelve armed Death Eaters alone? He miserably tried to think of a plan.
The Death Eaters paused, waiting for him to make the next move. He needed to save her. A rush of adrenaline overcame him and he went into action. He froze the two behind him over his shoulder and whipped his wand back in an arc to shield Hermione's body from Bellatrix's next jet of light. His next round of spells knocked MacNair and Greyback out. Four left. One from behind sent him spinning across the room, his leg colliding painfully with the wall. He threw spells around even more wildly, not caring if they hit with precision or killed, only making sure none hit Hermione. Two left. Lucius and Bellatrix. He couldn't see Hermione around Lucius, who was slowly advancing towards him, but Bellatrix was cackling over her.
"Avada-" he silently stunned Lucius before he could finish the killing curse. They had been friends. And now he was trying to kill him? His thoughts returned to Bellatrix and the fight.
Severus knew his leg was broken. He dragged himself closer to Hermione as Bellatrix pulled out her dagger again.
"Expelliarmus!" he called and it flew out of her hand. She looked up as if she'd forgotten he was there.
"Pity you couldn't join us earlier, Severus. You still have a chance you know," Bellatrix said snarkily. "Kill the Mudblood and you'll be safe."
Severus looked up with a feral glare. "SECTUMSEMPRA!" he bellowed and waved his wand in precise slicing motions until Bellatrix fell over, screaming.
Finally the Death Eaters were all on the floor in various states of defeat. Severus weakly crawled to Hermione's side.
"Hermione?" he whispered. She was so pale. He touched her wrist and felt a faint pulse. He let out a sigh of relief. She was breathing, barely, but still breathing. He lightly shook her shoulder but she didn't stir. He shakily lifted his wand once more and began healing all the cuts and bruises he could see. She had no response and her breaths became slowed and shallowed even more. She was dying, he was losing her. His fight had been in vain.
In desperation, he sent out a Patronus to Dumbledore, not noticing it had changed form as he gently brushed her matted hair out of her face and kissed her softly.
"Please don't leave me Hermione," He whimpered as he hugged her tightly to him, holding her protectively. "I need you. Please. I should have said it before, and I should have told you every day. I love you. I love you so much, Hermione, without you I'd die. Please hold on. Please don't leave me now. Please..." he trailed off, tears streaming down his face, as he slowly lost consciousness, still clinging to Hermione.
That was how Dumbledore found them twenty minutes later.
oOoOoOo
The next thing Severus knew he was in the hospital wing. He groggily blinked a few times, trying to remember what had happened and why his leg was throbbing.
"Hermione!" he sat up, looking around wildly. "Where is she?"
"Who dear?" asked Madame Pomfrey distractedly as she bustled about the infirmary making beds. "Take your potion now that you're awake." she commanded.
The other occupied beds were filled with the Slytherin students who suffered his wrath. There was no sign of Hermione. He drank the bitter tasting potion slowly, dread filling him once more.
The doors swept open and Dumbledore strode over to Madame Pomfrey. "How are they doing, Poppy? It was quite a nasty accident with the Whomping Willow."
Whomping Willow? Severus was confused. He had done that, not the tree. After Dumbledore and Madame Pomfrey finished discussing the apparently unfortunate Slytherins, Dumbledore made his way to Severus' bed.
"Professor, where's Hermione? Is she...is she going to be alright?" Severus asked tentatively.
Dumbledore smiled slightly, "She'll be fine."
"So she's alive?" Severus said happily, "Where is she? Can I see her?"
"In time." Dumbledore responded. Severus felt his newly found hope plummet and his jaw dropped slightly in shock. Dumbledore patted Severus' broken leg and walked out of the room.
Dumbledore wouldn't have done it. Would he?
oOoOoOo
Gone. Hermione was gone. It was as if she never existed, the only evidence of her ever being here was the hole in Severus' heart. He numbly realized he had walked to the common room and was now standing in front of her door. The doorknob was there. If he wasn't so depressed we would have laughed at the irony. Her room was deserted. It looked like no one had lived there.
Severus began to frantically open drawers, hoping for any small thing he could find, anything of Hermione's to help him through this. Dumbledore had been thorough. He sank down onto the floor against the wall between her desk and the corner.
His thoughts drifted to his razor. He had promised Hermione he wouldn't cut. But she wasn't here. The voices in his head argued loudly as he summoned it.
"Shut up," he muttered weakly. He held the blade to his wrist then froze. Sobs overcame him and he dropped the metal to the ground.
A small glint in the back corner under her bed caught his eye. As he was gathering the strength to move to get it, the door burst open.
"Severus," Dumbledore greeted solemnly, taking note of the razor on the floor and the lost look in Severus' eyes, "I knew I'd find you here."
Severus made a scoffing noise, too emotionally drained to retort, and wanting nothing to do with the man.
"How about you and I have a little talk?" Dumbledore held his hand out. Seeing no other choice, Severus took it.
Hours later, Severus solemnly wandered back to the Slytherin dormitories. He sighed, knowing the nightmares would plague his dreams that night. He paused between their rooms, replaying his conversation with Dumbledore. He shook his head and stepped into Hermione's old room, pathetically and miserably flopping face first onto the bed. An angry noise escaped him when he realized all of the furniture in the room had been replaced; it wouldn't even smell like her.
Suddenly he remembered the metallic glint under the bed. He got onto the floor quickly and thrust his arm into the dusty darkness in the corner. The tip of his index finger brushed against a cool metal. He grasped the object and pulled it out to inspect it. A strangled sob came from his throat. It was the necklace he gave her. This changed things. It was the one shard of hope for his future self, the once chance he could be with Hermione later, but now he had it in the past. At least he had something of hers to hold onto now that the hope was gone. Tears poured down his face again in sorrow, confusion, and slight relief.
Clutching it tightly to his chest, he curled up on the bed and fell into a restless, fitful sleep, overcome with the exhaustion and emotions of loss.
So much sadness! Thanks for reading, everyone! Next chapter we find out what happened to Hermione.
