X- Suffoco
Suffoco - Suffocate
Hermione took a long drink, the firewhiskey burning an unpleasant line from her throat to her stomach. She was exhausted, exhausted and unable to sleep. It was a seemingly new side effect of the curse set upon her and one that was leaving her more and more irritable and weary by the day.
It had been three days since Snape had brought to her Dumbledore, and Voldemort's idea that she should be a spy, one for the other. She had accepted the morning after with a sigh and a feeling of heaviness upon her. That night she'd not been able to sleep, not even with the aid of a sleeping draught pilfered from Snape's cabinets.
She sniffed and took another large drink. This was a last resort, she had hopes of drinking herself into unconsciousness. So far she'd polished off an entire bottle of firewhiskey and had yet to succeed. She fell drunkenly into a chair, not caring if it was Snape's usual favorite and let her chin rest on her chest. Her eyes closed and her breathing stabilized but still she found no rest. Only dizziness from the alcohol swept over her and left her feeling nauseated and unhappy.
"Damnit," she cried quietly, silent tears streaming down her cheeks, her muscles began to spasm and she gave a gasp of discomfort. She realized her body was lurching to the floor without really feeling it. She didn't feel herself bounce from the rug that covered the cold stone. She couldn't really feel anything.
"Hermione?" A familiar voice, she had to stifle a cry of excitement when familiar hands swept her from the floor and deposited her back into the chair. Draco's face swam in and out of her vision as she watched him blearily. "What's happening? Are you having another fit? I'm getting Severus! This has gone on long enough."
She couldn't argue, could only watch as he moved away from her, leaving her slumped in the chair, and made his way to the door to Snape's private room. Her feet began to curl and her neck arched back, her head falling between her shoulder blades as she gave a long cry of agony. She was gone to the pain once more, drowning in a never-ending nightmare of agony.
"Severus!" The desperate voice on the other side of his door woke Severus from his sleep. He'd been dreaming, something lovely to do with Lily. He immediately growled at being snatched away from one of his few wonderful dreams and sat up in his bed.
The booming of rapid knocks met his ears and he cocked an eyebrow at the nearly vibrating door. Someone was desperate for him to open up, it seemed. "Godfather!" Draco cried and immediately his blood began to run cold.
Was something wrong? Had the Death Eaters moved up their efforts involving him? He desperately hoped the boy was in no danger as he stood and wrapped himself in his dressing gown quickly.
The door swung open and he found his godson, pale faced and panting staring at him. His wide grey eyes looked lost and pained and he wondered exactly what it could be that upset the typically stoic boy so.
"What is it child? Speak now!" He demanded, grasping the boy's shoulders. Then he heard it, a scream, barely audible and so submerged in agony that it made his very heart stutter in his chest. His head snapped in the direction of his sitting room, Draco's shoulders still clasped under his large hands.
"It's Hermione, she didn't want me to tell you. Salazar! I should have said something sooner," he looked down to his feet and keen eyes locked back on him. Only the back of his blonde head was visible and he shook the boy delicately to regain his attention.
"What has happened to Ms. Granger?" He summoned his wand and turned to make his way down the short hall that lead to his sitting room. He could see the fire burning in the hearth and the bookshelves of the far wall but the area that held his chairs was not yet visible to him.
"She's been like this since she started staying here. I think- I think it's gotten worse," the blonde wizard trailed when he was released. He followed Severus closely into the sitting room, deep, black eyes locked on the figure of the witch in his favorite chair.
Her body was contorted, all drawn up in on itself and her mouth was open in a cry of pure pain that he'd never thought he would see contorting the poor girl's face. He immediately strode to her side, realizing that this was what Bellatrix had meant. This was the change to the girl that would never leave her.
"Retrieve Dumbledore," he instructed clinically as he knelt before the girl. He wasn't certain whether or not touching her would be wise and so he stared at her, locked in a place between reaching out and forcing himself not to. "And Madame Pomfrey," he stared over the girl and turned to look at his shoulder when he heard no movement. "Now!"
This seemed to snap Draco to attention and he jumped a little before taking off to the door of Severus' chambers. With the boy gone his posture could relax some and before he could stop himself once more he reached out to the whimpering girl.
Immediately her body went limp and fell forward into his arms, the spasms of her muscles seeming to stop entirely as she fell against his chest. Her weight shifted his equilibrium and he was pushed back onto his arse, his knees bent at an odd angle.
She grasped his dressing gown, panting for breath as tears soaked the silken fabric.
Unsure what to do he simply held her there for a long moment, not speaking.
She was the first to break the silence, her rasping voice reaching his ears and nearly drawing a wince to his face at the pain she must have been experiencing.
"Kill me," she said. Severus felt his entire body go rigid.
As if by instinct alone his hand came up to stroke the back of her head, moving down to the silk of her exposed neck as he made small shushing sounds. "I'll do no such thing, Ms. Granger, we will find a solution to this," he assured, though he was unsure himself what could be done.
"Die, I want to die," she rasped again and he shook his head, his loose black hair fell onto her face as he bent over her and began to rock slowly. Her eyes closed and soon her breathing fell even. Her body went lax in his arms and he knew she was asleep.
It was ten minutes before a groggy Albus and Poppy joined him and he gave them both a harsh look as he stood from the floor with the girl in his arms. Any attempt to relieve himself of her seemed to stir her to wake and he wasn't certain his nerves could tolerate any more simpering and crying.
"It would seem Ms. Granger is not as well as she has lead us to believe," three sets of eyes turned to Draco, who gulped and attempted to back away. "Draco, it would seem you hold the answers to the questions Ms. Granger will not be able to answer this eve."
The blonde groaned, "I knew I shouldn't have listened to the bloody chit."
