Chapter 25

A.N Hey Folks we are on the final stretch! Please review as it makes my day to read your opinions...enjoy!

The figure that had held off making its move was beginning to become restless. Sure, it was important to stay in the dim, watching, waiting and preparing, the opportunity for sabotage had not yet presented itself. The figure had taken the excursion along with Hermione and Severus to visit Tobias Snape and done its work there, the disgusting perverted old man had insulted Hermione and the shadow had reacted by choking the old bastard to death. That would teach him to play around with synonyms when it came to the girl. Now it seemed the opportunity was beginning to present itself. The shadow in the corner had moved rooms, it no longer frequented the girl's dormitories. Instead it had finally been able to penetrate the wards that surrounded Severus Snape's heavily guarded rooms. The silhouette had endeavoured to come past Ivan but had failed, the portrait tended to sense someone's presence and would heighten it's guards when the figure was nearby. Now the shadow watched, a warped grin on its face as it witnessed the couple kiss deeply, their hands running up and down each other's bodies, before announcing the name of a concert hall in the North and stepping into the Floo Network. The shape emerged from the corner of the room and followed the pair through the Floo, now was its chance to finally make its progress.

Severus Snape brushed a piece of lint from his tuxedo, reaching down into his case he pulled out the highly polished violin and tweaked the strings with his dextrous digits. Severus had been able to play the violin for seventeen years, beginning when he had joined the Death Eaters. As an alternative to using magic to aid his playing he had taken a Muggle course using colourful tomes, practicing endlessly each evening for a couple of hours at a time, more so when he had been summoned. Severus had broken through the music scene when his conductor had recognised the young man as something potentially special, and taken it upon himself to instruct him privately. Severus mused on the now deceased man as he mentally prepared for the stage. Hermione had accompanied him to this small concert on his request, and was now comfortably ensconced in the front row. He envied her relaxed pose as he strode onto the stage; she looked snug in a warm Nordic pullover, denims and UGG boots. Even in her casual attire Severus desired her, he needed to rip those clothes off her later, leaving the boots on for effect...of course.

The Norrington Concert hall was once again filled greatly with its usual clientele, the elderly, the middle aged with a particular interest in his music and the dragged along. Severus gave a curt bow to his audience and then to the orchestra who nodded back at their Maestro with the usual fright in their eyes. Turning and looking upwards he also bowed and nodded to the boxes above the audience, he could see a couple of the envious seats were occupied, and they deserved his recognition also. Finally his gaze went to his beloved Hermione, who beamed at him and pulled her hair down one side of her face. Biting her lip suggestively Hermione winked at Severus who felt his trousers tighten... this was not the time. Severus pulled his features into the stern expression Hermione had witnessed so many times as a student, even now she shrunk down slightly in her seat, she loved Severus with all of her being, but sometimes he was still able to unnerve her just a little bit with his masterful stares.

Lifting the violin to his shoulder and, with his usual lack of introduction, Severus launched into a more modern song than he would usually perform. Severus had been keeping it under wraps that he had been secretly practicing this tune after hearing it on the Muggle radio when he had visited London, and had been desperate to play it. Hermione moved forward in her chair, she knew this song, her mother had been insistent in making Hermione listen to it when she had visited her at the weekend, following her appointment to see Ron. Thus she was late back too Hogwarts. The need to see her mother after such a trying day had been more imperative than being back for dinner. Jean Granger had been so excited to see her daughter that Hermione had not had the heart to tell her about the problems she had with Ron, nor had she shared her assault or the fact that she was hopelessly, in head over heels love, with her Professor of Potions. But instead they had spoken about school, her parent's decision to expand their practice and the latest musician her mother was spending all of her waking hours listening too. Now she found herself thinking of her mother and welling up as she softly sang the lyrics to 'Impossible', the song Severus was playing.

Although Hermione was fairly certain that most of the audience would not know this tune the way she, and most definitely Severus did, they gave him the benefit of the doubt and swayed along to his harmony. Hermione smiled at the audience around her, some of them were so enamoured with Severus that they would sway if he played heavy metal music. Hermione gave a self satisfied smirk as she looked up towards the boxes, she was Severus's lover, she was closer than these other people would ever be, and it amused her to the highest degree. Suddenly her eyes widened with surprise and then narrowed, endeavouring to confirm what she was certain she had just seen. The figure she swore was in one of the boxes had now popped out of view and she shook her head, her eyes must be playing tricks on her. Shaking her head again she tried to regain focus on Severus who, had opened his eyes and was staring at her intently whilst maintaining his tune. Hermione shook her head for the third time at him and he went back to his spectators.

Hermione felt her eyes close as she tried to concentrate on the composition; Severus was coming to the end of his piece when her eyes were ripped open as she heard a male voice engulf the concert hall.

"SNAPE!" the voice screamed using the Sonorus charm.

"No," Hermione shook, "No," before she was able to turn around she was forced heavily to the ground with the crushing weight of Severus's body. He had leaped from the stage and landed on top of the Gryffindor as the stage lights rushed through the air and crashed profoundly where Snape had been standing only moments before. The viewers around them began to shriek and started crashing towards the exits in the manner of stampeding wilder beasts, it was every man for himself and Severus, witnessing the aggression of a petrified room of people, remained in place. His arm was clutching at Hermione's head endeavouring to keep her from the crush of shoes and walking sticks.

"Severus," she shook, surprised by the roaring around her "What's happening?"

Severus watched as the dust began to settle around him. Knowing he would have to draw his wand, his hand hovered over his trouser pocket, he dare not raise it until the hall was completely devoid of Muggles. Doing so early would require a whole lot of Obliviation from the magical reversal unit, and Merlin knows he could do without the Ministries interference at this point, especially when it wasn't so well known what his favourite past time was, most importantly not so in the Wizarding world.

"Someone's tried to drop the lights on me it would seem," Severus whispered sounding as if he was reading the directions at a train station. Not wanting to alarm Hermione, he was endeavouring to remain as calm as possible, after all he had faced much worse than a light attack as a Death Eater...still...the possibility of what new terror he had to face was making him tense.

"The voice, it shouted of you... I know that voice," Hermione felt sick, she didn't want to believe her mind which was screaming at her, the name of the person at the end of the sonorous charm.

"Come and face me Severus Snape," the voice which Hermione had heard daily for nearly seven years, called from the stage above their heads. Severus momentarily looked stunned and aghast, the colour his face had turned was the feeling Hermione had in the pit of her stomach. He looked down into Hermione's eyes; his retina's burning her pupils their minds seemingly communicating without words.

"I will try not to injure him but..." Hermione shook her head upon hearing Severus's words; she knew what had happened with Ron, and how Severus had had to act in the moment to save her from Ron's arbitrary advances.

"Snape! Stop covering her...you don't deserve to touch her you filthy Death Eater," the voice snided again in a twisted way, it no longer sounded like it belonged to the occupant.

Severus clutched Hermione's hand tightly, she felt the warmth permeate her frozen body and her eyes begged for his safety as Severus stood, wand drawn and moved up the side stairs of the stage.

"I've been waiting for this moment Snape."

"I feel certain you have...Mr Potter."

Hermione's fist's went up to her face and pummelled her head as she finally had confirmation of who had been terrorising her for so long. Pulling at her hair, she tried desperately not to whimper, vomit or screech all at once, the trio seemed to cancel each other out and instead she rocked inaudibly.

"Why Harry? Why Harry? Why Harry?" she moaned swaying back and forth on the floor yet, her attention was still focussing on the stage, endeavouring to hear as much as she could of the exchange between the two men.

"You've been touching my property Snape," the Harry they no longer knew said smugly tapping his foot, arms crossed, he stared down Snape, his wand by his side...for the moment.

"What property would that be Potter?" his voice was dangerously soft but the malicious edge that was clipping at the sides was obvious to Hermione.

"Hermione obviously, she's down on the floor...why don't you come up and see me Hermione?" Harry sounded completely mechanical, there were so many holes in how they found themselves in this situation and Hermione desperately wanted to know what had happened to turn her friend so...Machiavellian.

"Hermione stay where you are," Snape warned his non wand arm held out towards her; Hermione did not heed the response and instead came to Severus's side ignoring the horrified look on her lover's face.

"Harry what's the matter with you?" Hermione choked "what have I? We? Ever done to hurt you? And why?" her voice hardened as she considered his previous statement. "Would you even presume to think that I'm your property? We're friends is all Harry?"

"I love you Hermione," Harry shouted stamping his foot on the stage in a child like manner. Hermione looked from Harry to Severus and as their eye's met they knew exactly what they were dealing with.

"The potion," Hermione sighed sadly, this was a warped version of Harry, another victim of a half brewed potentially poisonous version of Amortentia. "Oh Harry," Hermione sunk to the floor in despair; trying not to faint in her misery and guilt...she had poisoned another friend into thinking he was in love with her.

"You don't love Miss Granger, Mr Potter," Severus didn't move or attempt to send a spell Harry's way, he hoped it would be more fruitful to reason with a boy, doped up with a half brewed potion in his system that had potentially aged, become stagnant and metastasised in his body. The potion that Hermione had brewed had worked differently in the two boys it had inhabited. Severus's mind worked quickly, he knew both boys had been potentially dangerous yet Ron had been a more physical strategist who attacked rather than plotted. Harry it would seem being a logical thinking strategist had been biding his time, waiting for the right time to confront Hermione without rousing her suspicion.

"Why me Severus?" Hermione gasped from the floor, "Why is this happening?"

"It would seem the potion Mr Potter and Mr Weasley have ingested, points the obsessive attention side to the maker of the potion, wouldn't you say so Mr Potter?"

Harry gave a sickly wide grin and nodded in an unusual Harry way, "I love Hermione, I knew I had to wait until she was asleep to look at her, can't have her being suspicious can we? No? Silly little red haired girl kept getting in the way, but she had her uses oh yes she was useful, helped me figure out just who was stealing my Hermione from me". Harry was rambling in a sick manner; it appeared as if he had forgotten where he was in that second and who he was talking to.

"You stole Miss Weasley's memories didn't you Potter?" Severus sounded cruel as the realisation of what Harry had done to Ginny was becoming all too apparent. Hermione looked dazed at this accusation.

"What did you see Potter?" the rambling Harry was now once again focussing on Snape and Hermione, though his eyes were concentrating more greedily on the female of the two.

"The red head witnessed the two of you together in the castle grounds, I needed confirmation of what I already thought was true, and she had the information, I merely borrowed it from her." Harry grinned at his own ingenuity.

"So you knocked her out and stole her memories?" Snape said, rhetorical though his question was.

Hermione was watching this exchange in pure revulsion from her seat on the floor, she seemed to have lost the use of her legs in her panic and had not drawn her wand, she didn't want too...not on her best friend. She couldn't bring herself to harm him, not when the way he was was inevitably her fault.

Harry nodded and took a step towards the duo his wand suddenly raised in the air, Hermione's hand clutched Snape's trouser leg in reaction to his movement.

"Now I need you two to come with me," Harry whispered suddenly. With that he lunged towards the two of them. Even Severus, an ex Death Eater, had not judged the boy wizard's reaction time, and was unable to move fast enough to block the airborne Harry. Hermione remained in position, her hand still scrabbling at Severus's trousers as Harry tackled Snape to the floor with a twist in mid air.

Hermione shrieked as she felt her body crash to the floor on drenched lawn, she rolled across the mud and came to a stop. Inside her abdomen, the air that had been knocked from her body, left a burning in her oesophagus. 'Where was Severus?' Hermione struggled to pull herself up as she took in her surroundings...an old derelict carnival. The carnival around them was rusted up from lack of use; the night air around them was icy as dark had fallen. Hermione's back ached as she struggled to regain better focus on her surroundings.

"No!" she gasped.

Off to the side of her, almost five feet away was Severus, a motionless, silent figure of the man she loved.