He continued to clean her, frequently glancing to her face to ensure that she was not upset or afraid of his actions , though she never reacted.
When it came to her lower body she began to tremble as he knelt in front of her and gently ran the flannel up and down her bloodstained legs.
He heard a sniffle and then she had collapsed onto her knees in the shower beside him, sobs wracking her small body.
Pulling her into his arms they lay there naked on the floor of the shower, wrapped in each others arms and cried together as blood and tears ran down the drain with the pelting water.
When she was silent once more , he turned off the water and helped her out of the shower , wrapping her in a towel as he carried her to his bedroom and placed her on the end of the bed.
Quickly ascertaining what she would need from the instructions on the products he'd been given , he brought her a pair of underwear.
At first he'd picked up a white pair , but then realising what exactly the products were for, decided black would be better.
He brought both the underwear and the products to her.
"Are these alright ?" He asked showing her the pair he'd pulled out.
It took her a moment to realise he'd spoken , and another to reply.
When she did she flushed in shame and just nodded miserably and held out her hand for them.
He turned around to give her some privacy , but left a supportive hand on her shoulder as he magicked on his own sweat pants and turned back when she moved away from him.
He'd been about to ask her what top she wanted , when she took the shirt he wore yesterday from the chair where he'd draped it .
As she attempted to fasten it up , her hands were shaking still.
So as he'd unbuttoned her earlier , he buttoned her up now.
Odin was never far from her, though the usually talkative bird was quiet.
As soon as her skin was covered when she had his shirt on , the bird jumped onto her shoulder and pressed his face against her cheek.
He didn't groom her , he was just there.
Seeing her stood there trembling , Severus just pulled her forward into his embrace , tucking her head under his chin.
Her spot.
The girl let out a shuddery breath and pressed herself into his chest , he could feel her tears wetting the bare skin of his chest.
"Would you like me to put on a shirt ?"
She shook her head no.
"I just need my men" She whispered softy "My Odin..my Severus"
He nodded and held her tight, still fighting his own tears.
Odin was pressed so close to her , it was if he was attempting to burrow under her skin.
They stood embracing for a while until her legs trembled with the effort and he assisted her back over to the bed , where he pulled the sheets back.
He passed her the potions Pompfrey had sent, after examining what they were.
Thankfully they were Hermione's own work , so he knew they were sound.
When she had taken both potions she got into the bed , and Odin quickly scrambled onto the headboard above her , where he stood like a Sentry guarding the girl.
She offered the bird a weak smile and stroked his head in gratitude.
Scratching his own head he was suddenly unsure.
"Would you like to be alone ? Or do you want me to stay"
"Please stay" She whispered as her hand cupped her soft stomach "I already feel alone"
Heart breaking for her loss , he got in to his side of the bed , she instantly moved to wrap her arms around him , so he held her tight.
As her body shook with silent tears, he vowed retribution on the one that had done this to her.
He wanted to know how this could have happened but would not push her tonight, even though his body was wired with the urge to solve this problem.
He wanted to know who, when and how.
And he wanted them to pay.
So he couldn't sleep.
But he held her close to him , rubbing her back and arms .
Either she couldn't sleep or she'd sensed where his mind was wandering , because safely ensconced in his arms and in their bed , she began to speak into the darkness of the room.
" I've been losing time "
He froze for a moment , but then continued stroking her back soothingly.
"It started after new years ... the first time was when I went back to my rooms , after staying with you"
She gulped and he felt her bury her face in his chest.
"I woke up in bed and I didn't remember going to sleep , but I just thought it was because I'd been so run down , and I was in bed and everything so I wasn't concerned"
"When I woke up... I was bleeding... but again I didn't think anything of it I..." She cut off her words and he could feel her face hot against his chest, and could tell she was embarassed talking about this.
"Of course , I understand that would be nothing of concern for most women , but now you feel there was more to it ?"
Thankful for the way he was handling the conversation in a mature and clincal matter , she nodded.
"I woke up bleeding and with pain , in my lower stomach... I dismissed it as cramps , but I didn't really get them until this year , so even though it was really painful I just assumed that was all it was... It only lasted for that day, the bleeding and I thought it was strange as my cycle is usually 3 days or so ... but the pain carried on for a few days after"
"You weren't concerned ?" He asked and she shook her head.
"After Bella-" She swallowed and a tremble of fear shook her.
"Go on" He encouraged.
"After Bellatrix t-tortured me...I didn't even think I could get pregnant" She said sadly and took his hand and placed it on her stomach and he felt the shiny smooth scars from the cruciatus , He'd noticed in the shower that they were covering her hips and stomach as they did her back.
"Since she tortured me , I'd been really off skipping my cycle most months or it being really heavy or really light ... so it just wasn't something that even clicked as unusual when I got the pain and the bleeding for one day"
He nodded in understanding , he could see why it would not raise any concerns in the girl.
"But then I started to get jumpy all that day , and for a while after and I didn't...I just assumed it was throwback what happened on new years."
He remembered with anger how the next day how she'd flinched at breakfast when he moved to reach something.
"Then on your birthday I freaked out , when you pinned me" She whispered sadly and he buried his face in her hair.
Her body began to shake.
"You were so happy when I told you I was a virgin , and I was already pregnant by then" She whimpered and shook as he soothed her.
"Sshhh it's alright" He whispered.
Even though it really wasn't.
"Everything seemed to calm down a bit then...until after valentines , after that night when I..." She once more buried her head in his chest as she gestured towards his crotch.
Oh yes , he remembered that night vividly. And frequently.
"The night after that it happened again , I woke up without remembering going to bed , and feeling rough...then it just seemed to be all the time. I was having nightmares and I was losing time , I just ... I kept waking up tired as stupid as that sounds , even though I must have slept for hours because I was falling asleep before I got any work done , I was either plagued by nightmares or waking up as though I hadn't slept at all"
"And you remember nothing ?" He asked quietly.
"Nothing" She whimpered . "Just whatever I was doing , reading , studying ... and then waking up in bed , once I could've sworn I was in the Library studying and I still woke up the next morning in bed , not remembering getting from the library to my rooms"
"Were you taking dreamless sleep ?" He asked gently , knowing this could be a sore topic.
"I..I'm not sure...once or twice there was a empty bottle , but I don't remember taking it , or where I would've got it from , I never wanted to take it and I never went and got any so I can't think how it got there , could someone have been dosing me with it ? Is that why I don't remember"
He shook his head
"No. They may have dosed you once or twice to cover up what they were doing , make you question yourself and your memories...Dreamless sleep cannot make you forget things"
"It just got worse and worse...then I woke up with that black eye "
He remembered , he'd been fuming but he'd read her mind then and seen her memories, seen her wake up and assume she'd done it herself as she hadn't remembered...she...fuck.
He groaned and she froze.
"I know why you don't remember Hermione "
"Why ? Could they have imperiused me ? " She asked shaking.
"They may have , but that does not lead to memory loss"
Holding her tightly he spoke calmly.
"You've been obliviated"
Hermione , Poppy , Severus and Minerva were all sat together in the Headmistresses office as Severus spoke.
"The first incident was the day after new years , the night Hermione returned to her own rooms. She was assaulted and then Obliviated, and most likely had any visible injuries healed so that she woke with no memory of the event , whether the attacker planned this in advance or not remains to be seen , however it's clear they chose to obliviate her so she would not be able to identify him"
The witch's tea cup was trembling in her hand. Her other was holding Severus's as Odin sat perched upon her shoulder.
"We believe he backed off for a while then , but when he realised that he'd in essence "got away with it" he attacked her again after valentines, this time he was careful to heal her and obliviate her once more. After this attack , he became more confident , the attacks became more frequent , but it also became suspicious to Hermione because she was losing sleep , and time "
The girl squeezed his hand and he squeezed back.
"The attacker then started dosing Hermione with , or simply planting empty bottles of Dreamless Sleep. This made Hermione question her own mind , she wouldn't be concerned about poor sleep or not remembering going to bed , as she thought she'd taken the dreamless sleep."
Poppy hissed in anger and Minerva was looking furious.
"At this point , I believe around March, things changed. So confident in his abilities , that he was getting away with his actions so frequently , he became cocky. He stopped bothering to heal the injuries he was leaving , by this point Hermione was having nightmares for real, though of faceless men due to the obliviation. She assumed they were throwbacks from the war or manor , and assumed that she'd injured herself in her sleep because of these nightmares"
There was a muttered curse from Poppy and Odin cawed as if in agreement.
"There was only one problem. Overuse of obliviation can cause damage to the mind , lapses in concentration and cognitive ability. What we thought was an addiction to dreamless sleep , was the fabric of her mind tearing apart , because someone was frequently putting holes into it , this is when we stepped in. We brought Hermione to my chambers , and she improved immediately. Whilst in my chambers she was able to sleep soundly , not be attacked and not be obliviated , which is why she seemed to improve with no side affects that we would usually see from withdrawl"
Here he looked angry at himself.
"In my naivety I was all too happy to be pleased that she was not as addicted to dreamless sleep as I thought , I was pleased for the lack of withdrawl symptoms and did not think to question why they were not there"
"Don't" Hermione whispered squeezing his hand. "Don't blame yourself"
He nodded sharply , but internally he roared with anguish. He would always blame himself for this.
"The rest you know firsthand" he added.
"And you had no idea at all you were pregnant " Poppy asked gently.
"None at all " She whispered .
"Surely when you missed ..."
"But she didn't" Severus cut her off , not wanting the witch to go on with this line of questioning.
"I don't understand ?" Poppy looked confused , until Hermione spoke.
"I didn't question it because I was bleeding" She spoke softly and flushed with shame and embarrassment.
"There were days I woke up bleeding and hurting and I just assumed it was...normal, worse because of the torture , so I just took a pain potion and carried on"
"I'm sorry to put you both through this " Minerva spoke softly.
"But we need to report this incident and it seems there's only one question left to answer"
Every person's face in the room was solemn as Minerva spoke.
"Who could be the father?"