-.-
"Fuck them…" Hermione spat and threw the newspaper on the floor near the fireplace. She opened another one and they had a similar picture of the dead bodies on the stairs, and below the original keeper photo now with three red X's on it. Apparently they remade the photo with Margot's addition. She was going to find out who was the original journalist behind that photo manipulation, and she was going to make him swallow his photo and the red X's along with it. She crumbled the second newspaper in her hands. She picked up the one on the floor and then threw both of them in the fireplace. She turned and looked at the rest of the newspapers on the coffee table and her blood started boiling. The same picture was in most of them. She looked at the three X's and shuddered.
"Stop reading" Ginny said calmly sipping her coffee. She appeared in Severus's home that morning when Hermione had just finished cleaning up the whole house. She found herself tossing and turning all night long and finally throwing in the towel at the break of dawn, she shut the bedroom door and decided to utilise her tension for something useful. Why not clean the whole house. After several hours of labouring she dropped dead tired on the couch, only to see Ginny's worried face in the flames. She needed her friend so much that she invited the girl over.
"Someone is undoing the Keepers from the inside out Ginny…they are killing them one by one" she said obviously distraught.
"One of them died, not three as the picture suggests. Hermione you need to pull yourself together" Ginny spoke carefully.
"One is dead, the other a vegetable and their chief is inside carrying a strong concussion with his shoulder blade torn apart. Do you feel the Keepers are still standing strong? From the original group only two remain unscathed. As for that bitch Margot she doesn't belong in that photo, so I am not counting the X on her. I want to find out that reporter and kick his ass to kingdom come!" she bit her lip painfully.
"Ok, i'll admit they do seem to be targeted. Harry came home rather late last night, cursing you for taking Severus away from the crime scene. They need to find out what happened Mione, you do understand that right?" Ginny asked pointedly.
She harked "I just offered him some recuperation time. Ginny you have no idea how messed up he was yesterday" she sobered up quickly.
Ginny winced "I can imagine"
"He barely spoke to me when we returned. I think he left part of him back at the crime scene" Hermione rubbed her burning eyes.
Ginny got off the stool and approached her "Harry is the same way whenever he returns from a similar situation. Hermione one cannot simply get used to death. It's as shocking to them as it is for me, or even for you. You see it all the time at the ER"
"Yes I know…"
"No one can be cold-blooded in front of a murder….in this case a double" Ginny pressed her shoulder offering her solace.
"Fuck Ginny…" Hermione pressed the heel of her palms on her eyes trying to erase the image she saw yesterday. Him broken down in front of two dead bodies.
"No matter how hardcore they want to appear, they have feelings. Harry suffers from nightmares…" Ginny sat next to her "I think most Aurors do. Why not the Keepers…. I mean especially them. They see far worse things than the aurors. Harry is visiting the health care department's psychologist regularly. Especially after serious events such as this one"
Hermione looked at her friend "I didn't know Ginny…" she felt remorse for not even realising what Harry or Ginny were going through at times "…i couldn't even imagine how serious all this could get"
Ginny smiled knowingly "No one does, unless they are forced to. Now you do"
"and how do you support him?" Hermione asked swallowing a dry throat.
Ginny smiled "I offer him comfort in whichever form he requires it. If he wants to speak nonstop then I listen silently and I try not to cringe when he is awfully descriptive. If he cries I hold him, if he wants to sleep I make it my business to keep the household quiet. If he wants to make love to me I do it without trying to become his psychologist when we are at it. I just offer him whatever he needs. He'll get round it Mione, just give him time. They all do. Especially Snape. He is not your average auror and he is more experienced than most of them combined. He trained under Voldemort. I think you should expect a quick and adequate recovery".
Hermione felt her eyes watering again and cupped her forehead "When I saw him like that yesterday I lost my breath. I never expected that I would feel this strongly …for him…" she said quietly.
Ginny sighed "Well, one cannot always control one's heart…"
Hermione cringed and closed her eyes painfully "I don't know Ginny, I feel like my heart has been torn apart…i don't know if I can handle seeing him like this again. I don't know if I can stand the thought of him getting back to work" she said and began crying.
"Yes you can handle everything. You ended up becoming the wife of an auror like me, well sort off... Mione, you feel for him don't you?" Ginny rested her head on Hermione's shoulder.
Hermione cried harder and shook her head "Very much so, yes…" she whispered.
Ginny caressed her hair "Auror wives are tough cookies. Sometimes we must be tougher than them to handle all this…you understand?"
Hermione nodded and took the offered tissues "I didn't enter my name up for this challenge…" she sobbed and blew her nose.
"No, you went in quite oblivious of how this was going to turn out, and fell head over heals in love with him…correct?" Ginny said quietly.
Hermione's sobs intensified "Fuck you Ginny" she said with a weak voice.
"fuck me and the world also…that doesn't change the fact that you are in this deep Mione. Like it or not…i mean look at you.." Ginny said pulling her head up "Red eyes, puffed lips and a nose fit for a clown". Hermione snorted and sobbed at the same time "Yes, yes cry out little darling, crying can heal you. You don't know how many times I cried my eyes out after Harry made desperate love to me with his hands still bloody from work. I cried because I love him to death and his pain is my pain. You see?"
"I wish he had made love to me, I wish he had responded in some emotional manner towards me…he was cold Ginny. Bloody impassive and unresponsive. That scares me the most" Hermione said wiping her nose and eyes. She threw the wet tissue on the floor and picked up the next Ginny gave her.
"You cannot control his emotions. Let him ride them out on his own and in the meantime just be there for him" Ginny said rubbing her shoulder.
"No question about that…" Hermione said feeling her chest lighter from the strong emotional outburst she went through "I just don't know how ready I am to be called a tough cookie, like all…auror wives" she hesitated on the last word briefly.
"Ah, you are the army nurse. You are the toughest cookie of us all. You just forsaken it…Actually I am glad that your puzzle piece locked next to Snape's so comfortably, for no other tough cookie would be able to deal with this man in particular" Ginny said offering her a soft smile.
Hermione snorted "You have a way to see the bright side of things"
"You do too, when I am down" Ginny raised her brows.
"tough auror wife…ha…" Hermione harked " …said the epitome of that term"
Ginny laughed briefly "Don't go around calling yourself that in front of him, and don't ever make the mistake of calling him an auror either. I don't think he will react kindly to it"
Hermione nodded "What did Harry tell you about last night?"
Ginny drew in a deep breath and stood up "Things are not good Mione. The minister may declare the city in a state of emergency"
Hermione looked up "In that case I will be called on duty 24/7"
"Maybe you should ask for a leave again" Ginny turned around worriedly.
"In a state of emergency all basic hospital personnel are called back on post. I cannot hide from the world Ginny. Why would I even want to?" Hermione rejoined.
"You must understand how important it is for you to get some protection…" Ginny raised her brow.
"I am protected enough" Hermione rebuked.
"In here you are. Out in the streets and at the hospital you are not. I would suggest you lay low for a while. They are targeting the Keepers yes, but they are also killing muggleborns. We saw the first victim yesterday, but there are more than thirteen girls missing. Who's telling us they are not lying dead in some underworld level waiting to be found?" Ginny pressed on.
"I told you if they declare a state of emergency I must join the hospital. Also I have Conroy under my care and I promised to help Jody and her son. I won't go into hiding, no" Hermione said decisively.
"There is the tough cookie surfacing again. Missed you…but beware that the danger is palpable for you baby" Ginny chimed in with a sad smile.
"Then so be it. He fights for the right cause, I will fight with him. I can protect myself alright" she rejoined.
"Like you did when Severus beat you down?" Ginny raised her brow.
"In that case I was unprepared…" Hermione pressed her lips.
"That girl didn't die from a curse, someone slit her throat. Are you prepared for that?" Ginny eyes looked intense.
Hermione felt the blood draining from her face. Her mouth opened and closed but no words came out. Ginny frowned and relaxed "You didn't know" she said.
Hermione shook her head "I didn't want to read any details, no" she said sadly.
Ginny approached her with care "You don't even know who the girl was?" she asked quietly.
Hermione shook her head again "No"
Ginny bit her lower lip "Fuck I am sorry Mione…"
Hermione grabbed her upper arm "Who was she?"
Ginny hesitated for a few seconds "The girl you saved in the alley…Nasta Palidor…"
She covered her mouth and her eyes filled with tears "No…" she whispered.
Ginny embraced her "I am so sorry my love"
Hermione felt her throat convulsing and she began sobbing again "I tried to save her…"
"yes yes I know…now hush my dear…" Ginny's hand smoothed her hair away from her face.
"Ginny I am scared" she bawled and tightened her grip around her friend's back.
"I am scared too…these are scary times". That's when they heard the bedroom door opening up. Hermione hid her face in Ginny's chest and dried her eyes quickly with her sleeve.
"Don't let him see me like this…" she muttered.
"Shape up…shape up" she whispered hurriedly "Hello professor" she then told him.
There was a physical pause in his movement and Hermione found the opportunity to run to the kitchen and open the tap "I am not your professor anymore…" his heavy voice resounded in the living room.
"I hope I am not intruding this morning" Ginny responded equanimously.
Hermione splashed a lot of water around her face and in her eyes, intending to use it as an excuse for them being red "It's ok Mrs. Potter" he replied and moved heavily towards one of the easy chairs.
"Good morning…" she said drying her face with the towel.
"Back at you" he said.
She looked at him. He looked dreadful and that was an understatement "I invited Ginny over for breakfast….are you ok with this?" she asked coming closer to him.
"Of course" he said heavily. He was cradling his head on his hand and had his eyes closed. His right arm was still on the sling she put on him last night.
"How do you feel this morning?" she asked leaning over him. She pushed his hand down and pulled his hair back trying to assess the temple wound. The skin had healed very well but there was a deep purple bruise around the impact area that had come down at the side of his eye.
"Like a freight train crashed on me…" he muttered.
"I want to check on you, open your eyes" she nudged his chin upwards. He looked at her with bloodshot eyes. She pulled out her wand and illuminated the tip. Bringing it close to his eyes she tried to see if the iris was responding "Look at me" she said tipping his chin up. His eyes concentrated on her and one more time their dark green hue captivated her. With a soft smile she caressed his jaw "Any pain?"
"Yes my head hurts quite a bit" he said not taking his eyes from her.
"At the point of impact or elsewhere?"
"It hurts all over, it is a pulsating pain…but my temple is hurting constantly" he said pulling his head away and closing his eyes.
"When you shut your eyes you feel better?" she asked truly concerned.
"yes…the throbbing goes away"
She signed "You have a concussion, that's where the pain comes from. The throb you feel could also be fatigue. I didn't let you get any real sleep last night. I had to wake you up every two hours to see that you were responsive. I am sorry…" she bore her teeth regretfully.
He huffed without opening his eyes "You do what you have to do…" he said quietly.
"You need to get back to sleep, after some breakfast. Are you in the mood for eating anything?" she pulled his black t-shirt back in order to check on his shoulder blade.
"No, my stomach is a mess" he shook his head.
"One of the symptoms of the concussion, it should go away by tomorrow, or the day after at the latest. I have magically scanned your brain and there is no internal haemorrhage, but there is a substantial amount outside the skull. That purple bruise will keep you company for a couple of days more until your body absorbs the concentrated blood. I could close it up, but that could potentially build pressure inside your skull. I want it to run freely inside and leave your body to deal with it" she pulled up his arm and he hissed in pain "Fuck I am sorry darling" she said on impulse.
He opened his eyes and looked at her with a deep scrutinising frown "It's alright…" he rejoined.
She turned to his back trying to alleviate the tension that she felt under the intense look he gave her "Was it a rock?" she asked.
"A what?" he looked up confused.
"What hit you on the head…a rock?" she kept up his arm and pulled down the gauge she had placed last night. The skin had begun healing and the dark magic ooze had stopped leaking. She touched the broken skin with her fingers and pushed gently. It became white under the pressure. It was still infected.
"Hermione can you please not poke me like that?" he grimaced in pain.
"I have to assess the infection…i am sorry" she said regretfully "So what happened to your head" she continued. Her fingers were trying to feel the depth of the oedema. Her other hand went to the front of his chest and pushed inwards.
His breath caught and a soft moan came from him "A creature with a dozen tentacles impaled me, wrest me ten feet in the air and trashed me on some rocks….ok now?" he said coldly.
Her ministrations stopped and she felt her eyes watering again. She promptly looked at Ginny that was in the kitchen with questioning eyes. Ginny shook her head in negation and a silent no formed on her lips. Hermione nodded and closed her eyes "Forgive me Severus…i shouldn't have asked" she said hoping that she got Ginny's message to stop questioning him correctly.
He leaned his head on his hand and his body loosened up a little under her hands "No you shouldn't have…" he chastised her. Hermione felt her throat closing down and took a deep breath. Ginny had warned her that Harry could sometimes get like that after a bloody encounter. That she had to let Severus ride out his emotions at his own pace, but his attitude was bruising her.
She bit her lip and took courage from Ginny one more time "Your shoulder blade is quite infected and I don't want to heal the skin completely because like in your head I will trap the pus inside. I have to make some antibacterial potion. Can I use your laboratories?" she asked and saw Ginny nodding and giving her the thumbs up.
He shook his head "I don't think I have one already made, I need to show you how to move down there and find the proper ingredients"
"I'll manage if I get an ok to open your trap doors" she said with a soft smile he missed.
"You are free to use any part of the house Hermione" he said solemnly.
She touched the skin around the wound and felt it burning up "Will you allow me to take your temperature?" she asked carefully caressing his shoulder.
He pressed his lips "Do I have a choice?"
"Not really, you got a nurse in the house" she said trying to sound playful when her worry was spiralling quickly out of control at the idea that his wound was causing him fever. If she was unable to contain this infection she would have to drag him to the hospital, and she didn't think he'd follow willingly.
"Fine stand still…" she said taking out her wand and pointing it at his forehead "Ginny can your bring me a glass of water. Sometimes dehydration can cause mild fever" she said thoughtfully and concentrated on the spell. A transparent number appeared above her wand that read 102.8. Her heart drummed stressfully. That was not mild, but high fever. Chastising herself for not checking sooner she lowered her forehead to his and felt it burning up. She touched him with her lips and winced. Ginny came and offered him the water "Take a sip please…" she helped his hand that was slightly trembling.
"102.8…hell" Ginny raised her brows.
"His wound might becoming septic…i have to go fix a potion" she said looking back at him.
"Or you could take him to the hospital to get treated…" Ginny said but his heavy voice resounded like a whip in the room.
"No way!" he snapped.
Hermione's eyes bulged in disagreement and this time it was her turn to tell Ginny a silent NO. Ginny raised her brows and backed up "No one is taking you to the hospital.." she said "I want you to go lay to bed, or the couch, anywhere you like and let me cast a spell to lower your temperature, until I fix the potion" she felt his back shuddering. Getting the shivers with such high fever, could only foretell an rapid temperature rise, and he was already high enough. There was no room to experiment. She had to bring down his fever first.
"Can't you go and buy one? Or go to the hospital to get one? Wouldn't that be quicker?" Ginny asked frowning.
"I already have one in the bag, but I know how to make a more efficient, using the generic potion as a basis" she said helping him up. He collapsed on the couch with a hard groan and then laid down heavily "That's where the throbbing pain comes from…ok? …you got high fever. Now stay still" she said and pointed her wand at his head again calling on a febrifuge spell. An orange hue spread on his head and then moved down his chest and legs. Slowly his body loosened up and his arms unwound from his chest "No more shivers?" she asked.
He opened his red eyes and looked at her "No" he said with a tired smile that quickly disappeared.
"ok Ginny go to my magical bag…search in there and find a smaller red bag. It has all my medical paraphernalia. Bring it over please" she said releasing his arm from the sling and pulling it under the t-shirt. He tightened his teeth and she saw his brows contracting in pain. Unable to stop herself she leaned over and kissed him gently on the lips "I don't want to hurt you, but I need to treat your infection or else you will end up in a hospital, ok?" she whispered upon his lips.
He barely opened his eyes and nodded silently. Ginny came over and brought her the red bag "Search in it and take out a bottle of peroxide of hydrogen…yes that one, bring it here, an alcoholic potion for disinfection….the purple bottle with the white lines. Yes, good. And also I want you to bring out an electrolyte IV bag, and a hypodermic needle. Yes, now give me the peripheral cannula. Not that…the other one…the long one! Yes" she said clearing out yesterday's gauge from the wound.
"Fuck Hermione why do you carry a small nursing station in your bag?" Ginny asked sitting near Severus head. He didn't open his eyes.
"For cases like this. You said I was the tough cookie wife of an auror…." she bore her teeth looking down at him.
He opened his eyes and tried a formidable brow lift but failed "Allow me the chance to say bullshit while you half unconscious ok baby?" she asked with a tender smile. Ginny smiled at her show of affection towards him.
Severus didn't reply, he closed his eyes again and shook his head slightly "Ginny check his temperature again will you?" she asked taking the peroxide and soaking a cotton with it. She then commenced cleaning his wound peripherally. He tensed slightly but didn't move much.
"101,5" Ginny said.
"It's gone down but not much" she said thoughtfully as she begun cleaning the front part of the wound "What did those creatures have in them to cause such an infection" she muttered to herself.
"They are created by dark magic" his sleepy voice interrupted her thoughts. He looked up at her testily "When they die, they liquify. The one I killed had impaled me and when it liquified it was already in me. Part of it might still be inside my blood" he said.
"Severus I cannot undo black magic…i don't know how. I think we need to go to the hospital" she said biting her lip.
"No hospital…no" he frowned and closed his eyes.
"Talk about stubbornness…" Ginny raised her brows.
"Ok, ok, I can do it through a foreign body identification spell" she said and raised her wand "That way at least I can see if there is something inside his blood" she mumbled and pointed her wand at his body. She concentrated and felt her magic stretching as the spell she was calling was rather advanced. Her magic covered him and a few moments later she opened her eyes "He is clean…he probably got infected by outside factors…he won't go to the hospital so I have to work on him here. Now pass over the alcoholic potion" she said.
"He is worst than Harry on making up hospital fuss" Ginny grinned.
Hermione huffed and puffed the alcohol based potion straight on the wound. He hissed, and groaned spasming under her hand. She bit her lip and caressed his hair "It's killing you, I know…patience…patience" she cooed him. Then she brought it at the front and repeated the action. His reaction was more controlled this time. When she was certain that the wound was clean she cast several disinfecting spells all over him and then dressed it up carefully. She placed his arm on the sling again but didn't try to fix his t-shirt. Instead she helped him out of it completely.
Ginny observed him closely and Hermione flicked her shoulders "I don't want the fabric to touch the infected area" she explained. Ginny mouthed at her something that looked like "Well built" and Hermione pressed her lips with bulging eyes "The hell Ginny…" she chastised silently.
She then turned to him again and touched his forehead. He was still warm but not scorchingly hot "I will put an IV on you, ok? It will help balance your electrolytes that have gone askew from the fever" she said and pulled his healthy arm.
"Hermione I think someone is trying to communicate through the fireplace" Ginny said as Hermione was gently feeling his skin to outline the strongest vein available. She looked up and winced.
"Tell them to call back in a minute" she said dismissively and she begun inserting a 20 gauge peripheral IV needle with a cannula in his hand. That is when she heard the loud poof of someone flooing into their living room and she looked up hardly surprised to see Harry "And here comes Potter in the most uncomfortable moment possible" she bit angrily.
"Ah not a good time…nope …no" Ginny stood and pushed him back to the fireplace.
"I want to talk to you people. First off how is he?" Harry asked pushing past his wife and coming close to Hermione.
"Quite bothered that you came in without an invitation Mr. Potter" his baritone voice shook them all into silence "And quite indisposed to get up and blow you and the fireplace back to 12 Grimaud street" he added taking Hermione by surprise. He could understand his surroundings pretty well and he was able to respond dynamically. Therefore in all her small playful comments he chose not to respond. She didn't know if that made her happy or ill at ease.
"You blew half the fifth level off the map last night…got a problem with a small fireplace?" Harry asked and Hermione could hear the lightness in his tone. She just wasn't sure Severus would enter that game readily.
"What?" Ginny asked surprised.
"Flattened the land on a three mile radius…his remaining keepers assessed the crime scene this morning" Harry said.
Severus opened his eyes with a frown "Who send them in there?" he asked heavily.
"The minister" Harry flicked his shoulders confused.
Hermione looked from one to the other as she attached the IV bag on a stand and fixed the cannula for a steady drip.
"No one but me sends people in the underworld…fuck you Potter" he sounded exasperated.
"Wait a minute..I wasn't the one that gave the orders" Harry said defensively.
Hermione intervened "Enough both of you! Harry get out please. This is not the right time"
He spoke over her "When will it be the right time Mione? We need to get his testimony and you saw how vexed he is that someone else ordered his keepers. He needs to come down at the ministry"
"He has a concussion, high fever and is in serious danger of his wound becoming septic. Cannot the ministry wait a little longer?" she said darting Harry with fiery eyes.
"Harry really…this is hardly appropriate" Ginny crossed her arms in front of her chest.
Harry relaxed mildly "He's that serious then?" he asked looking at Severus carefully.
"I can become serious enough... Hermione please help me out of this IV" he said and pushed his body upright.
"No what are you doing? You need to have proper medical care. You cannot go now" she scolded him.
"Are you coming?" Harry asked carefully "Hermione and Ginny don't understand the liabilities of our job, but I do…we need you down at the ministry pronto. We need to move the investigation about the abductions down to the underworld. You don't have enough keepers to undertake this alone. We have to assign aurors over to you"
As if awakened by duty he stood up steadily and took his t-shirt "Help me with it" he told Hermione and then turned to Harry "I am coming"
"Harry if anything happens to him, I am going to kill you…that's a promise" she said feeling powerless at this turn of events. It was not that easy to persuade Severus to do her bidding, but she couldn't deny that things were serious. She saw him fumbling with the IV on his hand and hurried over "Don't touch it, we don't want another infection on your already burdened body" she snapped angrily. Now she was becoming mad at both Harry and Severus. She took out the IV and disinfected the small needle poke with some alcoholic potion. As he was dressing up slowly she pointed her wand to his forehead again. It read a comfortable 99.5
"He is just having low grade fever Mione…what the hell do you think we are? little kids? We are soldiers" Harry barked at her.
"Enough already Harry. He said he is coming…" Ginny shouted.
"He had almost 103 half an hour ago you fucking asshole!" she cried raising her hand on Harry. Severus got in the middle and grabbed her hand.
"Mr. Potter, you will go back at the ministry and I will see you there in half an hour. Mrs. Potter can you give us some privacy please" he said looking at Hermione. She kept her eyes steadily on him as Harry flooed out of their living room and Ginny moved into the bedroom closing the door behind. Silence fell around them.
She was the first one to react. She pulled her hand away from him forcefully "You are being an idiot right now…so you'd know" she said angrily.
"And you are being rude" he said steadily.
"You are sick…if it wasn't for your stubbornness I would have attended to you in St. Mungo. I barely have the time to offer you the treatment you need, and you get up and leave" Hermione breathed deeply counting inwards to keep her anger at bay.
"I will be back in a couple of hours" he said coldly and pulled his t-shirt down.
"A couple of hours…a couple of hours under a serious infection can be lethal!" she hollered trying to get her point across "you have a heavy concussion which can cause you to fall flat on your back at any moment and your shoulder blade has a huge oedema inside. If my doctors at St. Mungo knew I was letting you go, they would have stripped my nursing diploma in an instant"
"You do your job and i'll do mine ok?" he said putting on his boots. He tried to button his trousers but with one hand it was rather difficult. He looked up to her silently requesting her assistance.
"You cannot even fix your own pants and you want to save the world" she spat at him. She was finding his stubbornness quite infuriating.
He pressed his lips "you are dripping venom and I am not in the mood"
She snorted and came to him quickly "I want to shake you to your senses!". Her hands pushed his away roughly and she began buttoning his jeans. His eyes met hers and captivated her. A strong tag in her heart made her eyes water. He saw but didn't respond to it.
"You found the wrong time to do it" he pursed his lips and turned away from her the moment she finished with his belt.
"You are not leaving yet!" she warned and took her red bag. She dug deeply for a couple of minutes searching until she found the wanted potion. She brought it over to him "it's not the potion I wanted to make for you, but this is a standard antibiotic concoction. You will take three doses at once, or else I am not letting you go" she warned.
He picked it up, uncapped it and drank it without a flinch. She had to admit that she admired his stamina. It took a lot of balls to stand straight with a concussion and such a heavy combat trauma. Yet he stood there, quite imposing holding his coat and looking at her with an austere gaze that made her quiver "Have you finished berating me?" he asked intensely.
"Not yet..but I cannot stop you can i?" she asked wrapping her arms around her shoulders.
"You shouldn't even try…you see, me doing my job might save your curvy little bottom again in the future…now may i?" he asked caustically.
"by all means" she said feeling her heart torn to pieces by his cold attitude. He tilted his head in a curt nod and disapparated.
Hermione's chest released a sob and she covered her mouth. Yes, Ginny had warned her about emotional ups and downs but she never expected him to treat her like a stranger. Emotionless and distanced as if nothing had ever happened between them. The need to pick up her things and get out of his house covered her like a wet blanket and she sat on the couch trying to control her arms and legs from trembling too much. She heard the door opening and the voice of Ginny made her look up.
"What happened?"
"He talked to me as if to a stranger and left…"Hermione looked up painfully.
"Not unusual, especially so close to the events" Ginny sat next to her calmly.
"I don't know what I did to make him pull back from me. I only wanted to take care of him" she sniffed and wiped her nose.
"Quite honestly you were questioning and rather pushy on him. I don't think he needs that right now" Ginny rationalised.
"He is sick and wounded …how can I leave him without treatment?" she frowned.
"That's the nurse in you…and maybe the feelings you have for him talking. Harry was right on one thing. They are soldiers honey, not children to be taken care off by mommy. Maybe he just needed his space to deal with what happened in the underworld. He came back with two dead bodies in his arms and he is the only one who knows what happened. Muggleborns are in danger and the darkness that appeared after he returned in the east has not moved at all. People fear it is magical in origin. No matter your own need to help him, his need is to help others. In all honesty how many police officers have you seen remaining in a hospital bed willingly when duty called?" Ginny pointed out.
"Not many" she agreed.
"There you have it…now get over the whole deal. Nothing happened. He is going to return later, you are going to have his potion ready for him, let him rest a bit and he will be up and running on overdrive in no time" her friend soothed her.
"I don't want to have to face his rejection again…" Hermione covered her brow with her hand and closed her eyes.
"Who told you that relationships are happiness and smiles all the time…there's also rejection in their, anger and sometimes egotism kicking in. We all go through such phases dear. What is important is to raise above the difficulties. Just because you fell head first into an unpredicted relationship and got more than you bargained for, doesn't mean everything is going to be paved with roses for you guys. His history is dark and heavy, his profession dangerous and he is not the easiest man to get along with. Do you want me to talk about your highly diverse personality that gets poisoned sometimes by your superior intellect? That can be overbearing on people…no don't look at me like that…we love you…but sometimes you can be a bit too much. Especially on men like him. He doesn't seem the consorting type. You know so much, that you think you have the solution to all of our problems. Sometimes we don't need you to open your genius brain and spill out on us all your knowledge. Sometimes we just want you to be there…and just hear us. When you don't speak, you can hear a lot…even in dead silence" Ginny spoke calmly trying to get her point across.
"I think I understand what you are saying…." Hermione shook her head.
"Come on girl, when he comes back try to sit next to him in silence. Look at him, caress him and wait…just wait. He is going to talk to you…Harry is not much different from Snape. They think they are worlds apart…but not really" Ginny smiled.
"I will try…" Hermione looked at her friend searchingly.
"Ride out his emotions with him and make yourself available…when he needs you. Don't push him and don't question him. Hide the little know-it-all for a more appropriate time" Ginny said wisely "Experience talking"
"What about my emotions…don't I count? I felt like shit…" Hermione asked painfully.
"That's egotism talking…put it on a sort lease or things won't go far between you guys. He went through hell…you want to take care of him…then do so and place your needs second. You have to ask yourself if your feelings are strong enough to allow you to put your egotism at rest…" Ginny wised up to her.
Hermione licked her lips and entwined her fingers nervously "I think they are…"
"Then it should come naturally to you…" Ginny smiled.
"I'll do my best Ginny…" she rejoined with a force smile. After a few silent thoughtful moments Hermione met Ginny's eyes "Can I ask you a favour?"
"Tell me"
"I know you have psychic abilities. You are quite strong right?"
"Eh..I am adequate.." Ginny flicked her shoulders.
"I have been having this recurring dream and whenever I see it someone gets seriously hurt or dies. I want you to read it for me" Hermione looked at her keenly.
"Sure my lovely. You will cast a gin spell on your mind at night and that should capture the dream's soul. Bring it to me, and I will do the best I can to read it's meaning" Ginny smiled compassionately.
Hermione pressed Ginny's knee appreciatively "I don't like the times we are living in…" she whispered.
"No one does…they are full of death and terror…" Ginny cupped her hand lovingly.
Hermione's head motioned towards the bay windows and they both looked at the dark clouds that still lingered at the east of the city "Yes they are.." she spoke in hushed tones.
-.-