A/N: Happy Mothers' Day, everyone! Thanks to all the great moms out there:)

Okay, so this one might be just a bit confusing. Between Severus and Hermione, the time changes. I didn't really want to put this little part with him where it is, but I felt like I was ignoring him a bit (I know, that's lame, but whatever).

Anyway, I hope it isn't too bad, but just let me know if I need to clear anything up!


It hadn't been as difficult to find them as he'd thought it would be. Muggles had these things called phone books; all he'd had to do was find their office's address and he apparated there as soon as he found it. Disillusioning himself, he followed a patient into the work space, where he sat and waited for them. The "replacement" had been there, too- he hadn't even known about him; what a nice surprise!

He'd stunned them all and pulled out the portkey he'd made before coming to the office. He didn't know how he knew how to make an illegal portkey- he'd never bothered to learn- but he made one nonetheless. It took him back to the Scottish highlands, where he could dump whichever one he took and return to get the others. In a matter of minutes, they were all back in the United Kingdom.

The next matter was where to take them from there. He wanted to take them to her house, but he didn't think there would be enough room for what he wanted to do, so he decided on their old practice. He remembered the bitch explaining how a Muggle dentists' office was set up, so he knew about the store room in the back. Once he'd gotten them all there, he woke the woman and had her write out a note, telling her daughter to come home.

After he sent the owl, he realized that she would go to the house first, so he stunned the bitch's mother again and woke the father. He wrote out a note that would send her here. It was amazing what people would do when their lives were being threatened- better yet, the lives of their

Knocking the older man back out, Ron found the store room and, once he'd rearranged the shelves, knew that this would work. Tying them all to chairs he'd found around the office, Ron took the note and dropped it off at the house.

He sat in the waiting room for hours, waiting for her to get there. It wasn't until nearly eleven o'clock that he saw her through the window and quickly disillusioned himself. She walked in, totally unsuspecting, and wandered through the office. Ron followed her silently, careful to only pass through doors after she did. It wouldn't do for him to reveal himself just yet.

Keeping quiet when she reached the store room had been difficult. He could tell that she didn't know anything was wrong when she first walked in, and knew the exact moment she figured out something was off. She could be so unobservant sometimes. Ron watched her freeze when she saw her parents and the kid tied up in the middle of the room, and he knew it was time.

"Hello, 'Mione. Glad you could join us."

As if she were hoping that she were hearing things, she turned slowly, and she paled when she saw him. Brushing off the feeling that he was doing something wrong, he smiled maliciously at her before he looked back to her family.

"Let's get this started, shall we?"


It was just after two by the time Severus happened upon what he could only assume was Hermione's hometown. He was walking down a quiet street when he doubled over.

His chest was being torn apart from the inside out. He couldn't breathe, and he was vaguely aware that his heart was pounding in his chest. It almost felt like the Cruciatus, but it was centralized. Then he realized what was happening.

Hermione was dying.

Looking up and trying to focus, Severus realized that he was moving again. The soul magic seemed to know that time was running out- the tugs were harder, more insistent, and Severus started to run through the streets, grimacing from the pain.

It didn't take him very long to reach the dentists' office, but he was in an almost unbelievable amount of pain. It wasn't bad enough to keep him from finding Hermione, but it was giving Voldemort a run for his money.

With a quick 'homenum revelio,' Severus determined that there were two living people in the office, and three were dead. Drawing his wand, he threw open the door and mentally prepared himself for whatever he was about to find.


No. Nononononono. It can't be…

Hermione stared wide-eyed at the young wizard she used to call a friend, a best friend, a boyfriend. There had been a time when he'd been her family. Now, here he was, with her parents and Seth. Ronald was standing in front of her, and those she loved were tied to chairs in the middle of the room.

"Ronald, what are you doing here?" she asked slowly.

"Can't you tell? I'm just here for a little reunion," he said. The dark tone and malicious smile sent shivers down her spine.

As much as she wanted to turn around and see her family- and yes, she was considering Seth her family- Hermione didn't dare turn her back on Ron. She couldn't even draw her wand, as he had his pointed at her.

"Go ahead; say hello."

Hermione slowly turned so that she was half-facing both Ron and the middle of the room.

"Mum? Dad?"

She hated how her voice was thick with tears, but there wasn't any fighting it. Hermione let them stream down her face as she watched her parents.

The confusion written all over their faces cut into her like a knife. They didn't remember her. Ron had used them to get to her, and she'd fallen for it.

As realization dawned, Ron began chortling.

"You really believed they remembered you, didn't you? You always were a stupid bitch, 'Mione. 'Brightest witch of her age' my arse."

"That's enough, Ronald. You wanted me, and now I'm here. Let them go."

"No, I don't think I will. Once they're gone, what's keeping you from apparating away?"

"Ron, if you let them go, I'll stay. I promise."

"As if I'd trust you! You're the reason I got expelled, you know."

"Is that really the only reason you're doing this?"

"Not that I owe you an explanation, but no. It's everything you've done to me. I mean, you wouldn't shag me, you wouldn't do my homework. You left me, 'Mione. Now, you can pay for what you've done."

"What I've done? Ronald, you tried to force yourself on me, you cheated on me, you beat me, and then you raped me and left me in the corridor. I don't even want to hear about 'what I've done to you.' If anybody in this room can play that card, it's me."

Hermione was trying hard to remain calm, but her temper was very close to running away from her. She could feel the magic beginning to course through her hair, and knew she would lose control if things didn't get better soon.

While Ron would have once cowered at the sight of Hermione when she was angry, now he only seemed to be encouraged. Whirling back around with her wand in her hand, Hermione didn't care that her parents and Seth were watching her. She didn't care that she was very close to hurting someone she'd once been close to. All she knew was that she'd been hurt, lied to, and was now very, very pissed off.

"You stop smiling like that right now. Ronald, give me one reason why I shouldn't hex you into oblivion."

His smile widened. He held up his hands and moved around her before he pointed his wand at Seth.

"How's this?"

As soon as it had come, Hermione's anger left her. Well, maybe not completely, but it was on the back burner- now, fear and worry had taken the forefront in her mind.

"You don't have to do that, Ron. Leave them alone. You can do what you want to me, but don't hurt them."

"What, like this?"

The room was suddenly filled with the boy's cries as Ron hit him with a not-so-mild stinging jinx. Her parents were struggling against the ropes, crying out for their son, but Ron wasn't having any of that. He silenced them, and continued throwing jinxes and hexes at Seth. Hermione didn't think twice before pointing her wand at Ron and sending him flying across the room.

She went to the boy and checked to make sure that he was alright, and was raising her wand to untie the ropes when she went down.

Hermione felt the blood trickling down her shoulder from where she'd hit it on the concrete and torn her shirt. The breath had been knocked out of her, and she was struggling to pull herself from the ground. Just as she turned over, still wheezing slightly, the bright green light hit Seth directly in the chest.

"No!"

All three Grangers cried out simultaneously, but it was too late. Seth was dead.

"How could you? Ronald, I knew you'd changed, but enough to kill a child?!"

Her parents were sobbing as their worst fears were confirmed. They only knew that the light had hit their little boy, but they hadn't known for sure until that moment that he had been taken from them.

"Seth, my baby! You killed my baby!"

Hermione's heart clenched when she heard her mother's pain, but couldn't do anything about it. Monica Wilkins didn't know who Hermione was, and all she knew was that her little boy was gone forever. Her father's reaction was what really broke her, though.

She'd only seen her father cry once, and that was when she had been leaving to go to Hogwarts for the first time. His little girl was going to be part of a new world, one that he and his wife couldn't possibly understand. He loved her more than life itself, and now she would be gone for nine months of the year.

The man who'd read her Sherlock Holmes at bedtime, snuck her mugs of hot chocolate in winter, took her to the book store after a long day of being bullied, and made her feel like she was important and truly mattered to somebody was sobbing brokenly as he cried out for his son. Hermione wanted to reach out to him, but was afraid of doing more harm than good.

As she listened to the anguished howls of parents who no longer remembered her, Hermione all but forgot about the pounding in her head or the difficulty breathing. All of her attention was on her parents, and their cries hurt her more than Ron ever could.

Without thinking, Hermione began crawling towards her father, wanting to comfort him even if he had no idea who she was. She made it about halfway before crying out as she felt a sharp pain in her left arm, just barely catching herself as the arm gave out. Looking down at it, she saw that it had been sliced open and there was now blood trickling down from just above her elbow to pool on the floor. The cut wasn't deep enough to sever anything important, but it did render her arm nearly useless. She reached for her wand, but realized she'd lost it at some point. Looking around the room, Hermione was dismayed to find that she couldn't see it on the ground anywhere, which could only mean one thing.

Ronald had her wand. She was defenseless against him and whatever he wanted to do to her and her parents.

No. That sounded a lot like somebody who was ready to give up, and Hermione was far from it. She would never stop fighting. She wouldn't give Ron the satisfaction of breaking her.

Suddenly, one of her evenings with Professor Snape came to mind.

"Wandless magic is extremely difficult to learn- it can take years to master. Wands channel magic, making it easier to control. However, it also becomes near-impossible to use magic when without that channel."

"How is it done, exactly?"

"It's different for everyone, but basically- Miss Granger, are you aware of the relationship between chakra points and magic?"

"I've read about it, but only briefly. Magic is energy- it flows throughout one's being, and the strongest chakra is where magical energy is focused, right?"

"Yes, that's an adequate explanation. So, when practicing wandless magic…?"

"Oh! You have to know your strongest chakra so you can learn where to focus your magic. That could strengthen magic with or without a wand, couldn't it?"

He nodded his approval. "This is true. Knowing where to concentrate your magic makes it stronger, no matter how you channel it. Now, am I correct in assuming that you are unaware of which chakra point is your strongest?"

"Yes, sir. How do I find out which it is?"

"I can help with that, if you'd like."

Hermione nodded vigorously, jumping at the opportunity to learn something new.

"Yes, sir- if you wouldn't mind?"

"I wouldn't have offered if I minded, Miss Granger. Sit down; this may take time."

She promptly did as he told her, looking at him expectantly.

"I'll demonstrate, then help you find your own. Is this acceptable?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Good. Now, watch carefully, Miss Granger, and keep in mind that this would normally be done while sitting down. I'm only standing so you can see what's happening," he said, rising from his seat.

He stood before her, eyes closed and breathing slow, looking more relaxed than she'd ever seen him. He looked as if he were truly at peace and without a single worry. Calm as he was, though, Hermione could tell he was concentrating, and she assumed he was focusing his magical energy.

Sure enough, a faintly-glowing red light formed in her professor's pelvic region, where Hermione estimated his tailbone to be. Her gaze bounced between his face and the light, and the light became brighter as his expression became more relaxed-yet-focused.

She suddenly gasped in surprise, startling her professor out of his concentration.

"Miss Granger? What is it?" he asked, sounding somewhat dazed.

"I don't know," she murmured. "It was… I don't really know how to explain it- it was like a tingling, but it was also pulling. I've never felt anything like it before."

To her surprise, Professor Snape chuckled. "That, Miss Granger, was your magic."

At her confused expression, he clarified.

"When two or more magical beings are in close proximity to one another, their magics call out to each other- usually on a subconscious level. It often goes completely unnoticed. When one focuses their magic at their strongest chakra as I just did, however, the strength of the magic allows the calling to become conscious. So, what you just felt was your magic answering the call of mine."

Hermione was fascinated. She knew that magical beings could sense the powers of others, but she'd never imagined it to be anything like this. The entire concept was intriguing, and it only intensified her desire to know more.

"Sir, do the chakra points have anything to do with how the magical energies interact? Is it possible that some energies respond better than others because of the relation to the strongest point?"

"There is some level of compatibility, yes. Some chakras are more likely to call to each other, and some just have stronger responses. For example, my chakra- the root- reacts more strongly with those near the top of the body- the crown, third-eye, and throat. It's likely that you're one of these three.

"It is important to note, however, that it also depends on the person, not just the chakra. While the chakra points have something to go with personality, the way magics interact is also influenced by the defining traits of the magical beings who are calling to each other."

Hermione nodded, contemplating her next question before deciding to just ask. "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, what does your chakra mean? They all have different characteristics, right?"

"Yes, they do. The root chakra- Muladhara- is best known for survival instincts and security. There is a relation with the flight-or-flight response, as well."

He stopped speaking, and Hermione got the impression he was holding back. As much as she wanted to know what he wasn't telling her, she didn't want the lesson to come to an end, so she let it go and resolved to read up on it later.

"Alright, so how do we go about finding my chakra?"

"Get comfortable," he told her as he sat in the chair across from hers, pausing to allow her to shift in her seat before continuing. "Close your eyes, and try to match your breathing to mine."

They sat in the silent room, controlling their breathing, His was slow and steady, and it didn't take Hermione very long to make her breathing match his.

"Good. Now, we've already determined those that could possibly be your strongest chakra, so we'll start there. In your mind, visualize the top of your head."

He waited until she nodded before going on. "Keeping that image in the back of your mind, turn your attention to the energy flowing within you. Feel the power of your magic coursing through your blood, making you the brilliant witch you are. Direct it towards the image in your mind."

Hermione took a few minutes to find what she was looking for, but once she did… she didn't know how to describe the feeling of finding her magic. As she focused on the way it seemed to circulate through her very being, colors danced behind her eyelids- flashes of vivid purples, reds, and blues- and the raw power of her magic began to pulsate; she could feel it with every heartbeat, every breath. In that moment, she was one with her magic. She had more of an understanding of it then than she had in all her years as a witch.

Doing what her professor asked of her, Hermione willed her magic to the top of her head. She could feel it all flowing through her, trying to reach her crown, but it just couldn't seem to make it. Hermione tried again, thinking that she was doing something wrong, only to have the same result.

As if sensing her struggle, Professor Snape slowly pulled her out of her concentration, calling her name and lightly shaking her.

"Miss Granger, I don't believe that's the one. Let's try the next one, shall we?"

She nodded, and tried again, focused on the area between her eyes. That wasn't it either, much to her dismay. Conjuring a mental image of her throat, Hermione directed all of her magic there. She was nearly overwhelmed by the surge of energy she felt- it was thrumming through her, and she only saw flashes of blue behind her closed lids.

"The throat it is, then," she vaguely heard Professor Snape say. After feeling the strength of her magic for another moment, Hermione drifted out of her meditation and back to the present.

That was it! Hermione forced herself into a sitting position and focused all of her magic to her throat. She'd never practiced magic this way- she only knew the theory- and wasn't sure if it would actually work, but it was her only option.

She turned until she was facing Ronald, who was leaning against the far wall, twirling her wand in his hands. As much as she wanted to try and blast the sorry bastard into the other room, she knew she needed her wand first. Bowing her head to hide the blue light at her throat, Hermione willed her wand to fly into her hands with a whispered "accio."

Her wand flew from Ron's fingers and landed in her outstretched hand, and he gave an angry shout. Hermione pointed her wand at the cut on her arm with a shaking hand, trying to heal herself. Unfortunately, the strong burst of wandless magic had drained her stores, and she couldn't summon enough power to heal herself, let alone fight Ron- which was really bad, as he was coming at her now.

"Dammit, 'Mione! Why can't you do anything right?" his voice echoed around the room, drowning out the cries of her parents. "All I wanted was for you to hold still and stay out of my way!"

His fist connected with her face, sending her reeling and trying not to lose what little balance she still had. Her head didn't have a chance to stop spinning before his foot flew into her ribs, leaving her gasping for breath once again.

The hits kept coming, and Hermione vaguely registered the sound of her wand breaking under his foot.

She so desperately wanted to fight him, but she could do no more than cry out in pain from her spot on the floor. Her whole body hurt, she could barely breathe, and her head was pounding. One last kick to the head sent Hermione falling into the darkness, and it welcomed her with open arms.


A/N II: I had a guest review last chapter, so I'll go ahead and respond here:

Garnet- First of all, thanks for reviewing! Second, I don't want to give anything away, but hopefully this chapter answered at least one of your questions; the rest should be answered in the next couple of chapters:)

Also, I have a proposal for y'all: As of now, we're sitting at 84 reviews (which is fantastic, by the way; thanks so much!). Whoever gives Natural Disaster its 100th review gets a one-shot of their choice:)

Hope you guys liked this chapter. Sorry about another cliffhanger- I actually had to split this chapter in half, so there's another next week, but that one and last weeks were supposed to be the only two. See y'all next week:)