A/N

No need to go back, I decided to just wade on from here.

"Is everything a competition to you?"

Hermione glared at the two idiots who were bickering just inside of her Infirmary door. They turned in unison, looking suitably ashamed.

"That was…" She palmed her forehead. "I can't believe you are so childish. "You're both worse than Ron and Harry ever were. What made you completely lose your faculties like that?"

She watched them expectantly. Severus stood stiffly with his hands behind his back. Cavan shifted his feet and peeked at her through a lock of his hair.

"It's my fault," he said sheepishly. "I lost my head. You know what I'm like, can't lose if it kills me." He jerked his head. "And he's a tough nut to crack, your Severus."

Hermione scoffed, willing her face not to redden. "I clearly remember you both throwing curses like madmen," she said, ignoring Cavan's offhand remark. "I thought this was going to be a demonstration of shielding and disarming spells."

"Well…we-"

"You realise that Miss Montague is in one of my beds right now?" She waved a hand over her shoulder. "I had to give her a sleeping draught to calm her. She couldn't form a single coherent sentence."

Cavan winced. "That's a bit…unfortunate..."

"Rose saw you," she hissed, pointing a finger directly at Severus' chest. "She probably thinks you're some kind of lunatic by now."

They both watched their feet and she shook her head.

"I swear, one day I'm going to throw the both of you in the Black Lake."

Severus cleared his throat. "You'll have to get in line," he said in his slow, mellow voice, "Filius has already claimed first rights."

"He'll gut us, for sure." Cavan made a shuddering movement. "I don't think I ever saw him this agitated."

"He was angry, hm? That's a rare occasion." She felt the corner of her lip twitch despite herself. "You have it coming for you then. Not that you don't deserve it."

"Right." Cavan stole a glance at Severus. "Hermione, I think you should have a look at Severus' hand. I caught him with diffindo rather roughly."

She looked between them noticing that Severus held his left shoulder low, as though he were in pain. Cavan's shirt was torn and burnt. She sighed.

"Fair enough. Come inside."

She turned and waved them along to her office, where she pushed Severus down to sit on one of the closest beds. He seemed grateful, which perhaps should be faintly worrying. Degree of severity would normally have prompted her to examine his arm first, but for reasons she didn't care to scrutinise right then, she turned to Cavan.

"Well?"

He removed his shirt gingerly to reveal a scorch mark high on his shoulder. She approached and took his arm gently, angling it to have a better look.

"It looks like first-degree, but…" She glanced at Cavan's hands to assess their size. "One to two per cent by palmar surface, so it isn't serious." She released him. "There's some sweltering though."

She turned to Severus who was watching them from his seat. "This is from a lightning bolt, if memory serves?"

"Tempest."

She nodded. "It's good it didn't hit the face." She palpated the injury, pressing her fingers into the skin in places to check for capillary refill. "But you'll be fine, Cavan, it's mostly superficial."

Her uniform had a special breast pocket for her wand and she brought it out to retrieve some potions. "I'm going to clean it," she explained in her patient-voice, "and then I'll apply a mild cooling charm that will last an hour. Dittany takes care of the blisters."

Cavan scowled at Severus over her head. "If I'm disfigured, I'll bring a lawsuit against you," he grumbled. "I've always had a great complexion."

She heard Severus snort behind her. "Might take you down a peg or two," he offered, sotto voce. "That would make all our lives easier."

"Some women find scars handsome, actually." Hermione wafted away the smoke from the anti-septic potion and applied dittany to Cavan's shoulder. "They'll be fawning all over you after this, if they weren't already."

She glanced over at Severus, catching his eye, but he looked away quickly.

He had been avoiding her and although she wanted to interpret his tense shoulders as jealousy, she wondered if it rather had something to do with her breaching his personal space so boldly last weekend. It wasn't easy to tell; he always kept his cards so close to his chest, and Rose hadn't been around either to break the ice. It was a relief that Ron had brought her in the night before because he was going to Romania to play, but Hermione felt incredibly silly for relying so much on her daughter to sort out her love affairs.

Not that there was much of an affair to write home about.

"All done." She straightened and offered Cavan the small vial of dittany. "Use it once tomorrow and once the day after, and the scarring should be reduced. You can apply some to your forehead as well if you're concerned about that."

"Thanks." He sat down on the bed opposite to Severus and examined his shoulder critically. She rolled her eyes.

"Put these back on." She threw his clothes on the bed beside him with a smile. "Filius won't like it if you parade through the castle half-decent."

She turned to stand before Severus while Cavan sorted out his shirt.

"How did you fare then?"

"He lost," said Cavan from behind her, "in case you missed that part."

Severus held his left arm carefully against his side and she felt a little bad for having him wait so long. His sleeve was in tatters and his hand was covered in stripes of dried and fresh blood.

"Hm." She tapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Remove the shirt, would you?"

He blanched. "What? No…"

She almost smiled at the way his cheeks turned slightly pink. "I can't fix that with this in the way." She tugged lightly at the sleeve of his coat, well above the cut.

He made a grimace, but after a moment's deliberation, did what he was told. He dropped his coat and shirt at the floor with a steely glare over her shoulder.

They both ignored Cavan's snigger. "I'll just clean it up a little," Hermione said, using tergeo to get a clear view of Severus' arm. She brought a chair over to sit in because she could tell the injury was not in a good place for him.

She was about lean close, hell bent on remaining professional and not ogling his upper body, when a crash behind her indicated the flagon of dittany had fallen to the floor. She whipped her head around.

"What's the ma-?"

Cavan had managed to put his clothes on, but his face had suddenly gone as white as a sheet. He stared.

"Cavan?" She straightened and felt Severus do the same. "Are you-?"

She didn't have time to complete the question before he fled from the Hospital Wing in a flurry of green robes. The door closed behind him with a bang.

Bewildered, she turned back to Severus. "What on earth was that about?"

"I've no idea." He frowned, mirroring her own expression.

"Do you think he was ill?"

Severus shook his head. "Not judging by the speed…"

"Hm, probably not." She brought his hand into her lap and bent over it once more. "It isn't like him to run off without a word though, is it? Do you suppose he's angry about something?"

"I don't know." Severus shrugged, jostling his arm slightly and she held it firmer. "He is a little odd sometimes, isn't he?" he asked quietly. "But until today, I've always thought that he…"

There was a prolonged silence in which Hermione was unable to concentrate on healing. Their knees were touching and instead she took full advantage of her position while pretending to examine his cut. It was with a jolt of excitement that she realised she could see him up close from the corner of her eye.

Severus didn't quite have Ron's athletic build -her only former lover. His body was more mature and he had a few scars, most prominently the ones on his throat, but his shoulders were broad and his arms looked strong and he had dark hair on his chest. Something in her stomach fluttered because when she squinted, she could see that a trail of it went down into his trousers.

Warm air tickled the side of her cheek when he sighed. She breathed it in.

Desperate to relieve the tense atmosphere, she searched around for something to talk about and a particular scar on his side caught her attention. It was faded and stretched, and looked like he must have got it when he was very young.

"You had an appendectomy?"

"Hm?" He started slightly. "Oh. Yes."

He sounded like his thoughts were far away. Or maybe he was embarrassed, Hermione couldn't tell for sure. He was half-naked, after all. "I noticed your scar," she said quickly. "They're not that common on witches or wizards." She gave a tentative smile. "Not on non-magical folk either anymore, they do it by laparoscopy. Was it long ago?"

"Ah, I think I was eight or ten," he said absently. "I don't remember…"

"Okay." She cleared her voice, feeling awkward. She couldn't even focus on her job in his presence. "I'm going to use a diagnostic charm for you," she said, raising her wand. "I'm worried that the-"

His eyes darted towards her. "There is no need." He pushed her arm down, gently this time. "It's only a cut."

She frowned. "But what if a tendon is severed? I-"

He shook his head. "I can move just fine. Look." He flexed his fingers for her. "You don't have to."

"You don't like hospitals much, do you?" She bit her lip. "Or perhaps it's me who's making you uncomfortable?"

He gave her an alarmed look and she hurried to add, "It's alright. I'll just stitch you up and you can come back later if there's a problem. Or you could go to St. Mungo's. There's a nurse at Spell Damage called Maltby. He'll take good care of you."

The sting of rejection washed back up her sense of professionalism and she used the heavy silence that followed to cast the proper healing charms to seam the skin and flesh on Severus' forearm back together.

In her fluster, she forgot both the wound-cleaning potion and the pain-reliever, but he didn't seem to notice.

"He likes you though, doesn't he?"

She had never heard him speak so softly, not even to Rose, but the question startled her all the same.

"Pardon?"

"Hern," said Severus, his tone a little off. "He has told me there's nothing between you, but I've seen the way he looks at you…"

She finished healing his arm feeling like a deer caught in headlights. Was he actually asking, or was he still puzzling over Cavan's odd behaviour? Her brain picked up speed to a hundred miles an hour, but all it seemed able to do was to rocket around in loops and circles.

"Er, you mean to say you think that's why he ran off?"

"I wouldn't know. Maybe." Severus looked away. "But don't you like him too?" He glanced back up at her and there was something fragile in his eyes. "It seems you should…"

"What?" She recoiled.

"It's fine, Hermione," he hurried to say, "I don't mind. If you do, I'll back off, I-"

On its own accord, her hand shot out towards him. "What? No!"

There was a hitch in his breathing. "You don't?"

"That depends on what you- Of course I don't like him!" she blurted. "How could I? He isn't you. For months I've been trying to drop you hints, but you've never taken me up on them and-"

The world spun and her mouth felt like a desert, but for some reason, all she was able to do was blabber on at top speed.

"-and I was always so afraid you only spent time with me because you wanted to be around Rose-"

It was as though the tension she had felt found its only release through her mouth. It was unstoppable.

"-and then Harry said that I should just ask you outright and that you'd never play me for a fool, but then I wondered because you tried to tell me something important and then you wouldn't say what it was-"

Severus' eyes were locked on hers, like he was unable to look away.

"-and then, when we met the other night, I wanted you to stay, but you left and I thought perhaps I was mistaken-"

Surely, he couldn't be looking at her like that?

Somehow, they must have moved closer because she could smell him now. Sweat and pepper-up potion and man and…

"-and then Cavan says that he's been competing with you and I don't know what to think because maybe you're just competing too and - oh my, I've said too much."

She squeezed her eyes shut. "I don't even know if you…"

She felt a large, warm hand on her cheek and her thoughts stilled, but her heart raced. When she looked up, they were inches apart. Severus' Adams' apple moved up then down. She shivered.

And his lips brushed against hers, like a silent question, and everything around them –the sounds of the students leaving the Great Hall, the chatter of people outside the door, the rustle of fabric as she met him half-way- all went silent. Joy erased every other feeling. It fluttered in her stomach, pricked the corners of her eyes, and lodged itself deep in her bones.

His face had the slightest bit of late-day stubble and she knew then that every other kiss she had had in her life was wrong.

She parted her lips, nose-to-nose and breath-to-breath, cautiously reaching out to touch his bare chest. She could feel his heart beating fast beneath her hand, unaware of anything but how close they were and how she wanted him closer still, and didn't care when her large front teeth scraped his bottom lip.

He pulled away, inhaling deeply, but only so far that he could rest his forehead lightly against hers. She smiled, traced her thumb across a bruise on his cheek, tucked some of his smooth, dark hair behind his ear. He leaned into her palm.

"Hermione," he said hoarsely, "I-"

The door to the Hospital Wing suddenly opened with a loud creak and the sound of approaching feet made them draw apart quickly. Severus was on his feet in an instant.

"Mum! Sev'rus!"

Rose's light, hurried steps darted across the Infirmary floor and soon enough, Neville's voice cut out, "I'm sorry, Hermione, she insisted! I hope it's alright, I- Oh…"

Hermione wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eye. They both turned to see Neville stop dead in his tracks. His head swivelled back and forth between them before his face went beet red.

"Oh. Right." He stood there for a moment in dumbfounded silence and then spun on his heel. They faintly heard him mumble, "I'll just… I'll be in my office in case you need me…"

Rose didn't seem to notice that anything out of the ordinary had happened as she threw herself at Severus's waist. "You were bleeding," she said in a small voice, eyes widening when she saw the stitched cut that spanned from Severus' wrist and half-way up his lower arm.

"I'm alright, see? Your mum made it all better." He turned his hand to show her, glancing up at Hermione. His crow's feet had deepened and his eyes were fond and she smiled back, heart soaring.

"Did you?" Rose looked up in admiration and Hermione let out a breath, feeling a little light-headed.

"That's what a healer does, Rose."

Severus dropped down on the bed. "Huh, I'll be sore tomorrow."

Hermione laughed softly. He had no one to blame but himself.

"Where are your clothes?" Rose climbed up to sit next to him, her eyes searching for other sings of injury. They landed on his throat. "Is that where the snake bit you?"

Severus merely dipped his head, but Hermione nudged her arm. "Rose, you didn't have to ask that. It's considered a little rude to point out other people' scars."

"Oh. Like the scar on your chest, Mum?"

"Well, yes," said Hermione, a little awkwardly. "I suppose."

Severus watched her curiously, looking as though he wanted to ask about it, but Rose looked up at him again.

"I'm sorry, Severus," she said easily, leaning her head on his arm. "Your stomach is different from Daddy's."

Suppressing a snort of laughter, Hermione was about to let her know that wasn't necessarily polite either when Rose took Severus' left hand in her little ones.

"What's this?"

Severus became very still. "That's…" He looked up at Hermione, plainly unsure.

"That's a magical brand, Rose," she said, thinking fast and regretting that she had put Rose off the scar topic. "It looks a little bit like a tattoo. You know, like the one Aunt Ginny has on her ankle."

"But Aunt Ginny has a butterfly," said Rose, not quite touching the mark. "This one looks different, it looks..."

'Malevolent', Hermione's mind supplied, unbidden.

"…mean."

"Well…it's not quite a tattoo, you see, it's, ah…" Hermione faltered.

Severus ran a hand over his mouth, groaning softly. "You're right, Rose," he said. "It isn't very nice at all. I got it a long time ago, but now I wish I never had it."

Rose seemed confused. "Then why did you get it?" she asked. "Did someone make you?"

"No…" Severus picked up his shirt and coat and started to put them on. "No one made me, but I didn't quite understand what…ah, how mean it was, at that time."

Rose frowned. "You didn't know then?"

"I knew it wasn't nice," said Severus, "but I didn't realise how it would influence me, and others. But when I finally did, the damage was done and it was too late."

Hermione had to look away. This part of Severus was one she didn't know very well, but she could feel his shame like it were her own.

Since she was unaware what the mark signified, Rose's eyes held only concern. Severus winced slightly when meeting her eyes.

"You can't take it away?" asked Rose, mistaking his expression. "When I get ink on my skin, Mum uses her wand to clean it off." She looked at Hermione imploringly.

"No. I'm afraid not," she said.

Rose looked up at Severus. "Does it hurt you?"

"No, not in particular." He struggled with his buttons, reminding Hermione once again to provide him a pain-reliever. "It used to hurt many people, but now, the magic in it is sleeping very deeply and I don't think it will bother anyone again." He added so quietly that Hermione almost couldn't hear, "that's what I hope in any case."

"Maybe we should let Severus put his clothes back on," she said lightly, reaching out to assist with the last few buttons that Severus seemed about ready to give up on.

"Don't mother me, Hermione," he murmured, but dropped his hands at his sides nonetheless.

"Since you and Cavan decided to act like a fine pair of teenage Gryffindors, it seems I have to." She winked at Rose, who grinned. "You should take a dose of this tonight, Severus." She waved her wand and a bottle of pain-reliever soared into her outstretched hand.

"I think I need to get some rest," said he, accepting the potion without a fuss. "Maybe Hern is right about me after all and I'm getting old. It feels like someone beat me up."

Hermione clucked her tongue. "Don't tell him that, or you'll never hear the end of it."

"Mm." His lips quirked up in a smile that made her stomach flutter. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"Can I go with you Severus?" asked Rose. She looked up at Hermione. "Please, Mum. I don't want him to leave."

Hermione knew Severus well enough by now to guess that he couldn't say no to that. She sighed. "We'll be having supper now, Rose," she said before the girl invited herself for a sleepover. "We're heading in the same direction so you can walk Severus home before we go to the Kitchens."

Rose was delighted about that and she skipped ahead of them through the corridors. A few straggling students were about, scattering hither and yon when they passed. When they reached the Dungeon stairs, Hermione moved closer to Severus. Subtly, so that no one would be able to tell, she reached out to take his and in her own. His fingers were warm and strong when he traced his thumb over her knuckles.

It felt like walking inside of a dream. Like they were already a family. It almost felt too good to be true.

Rounding the Potions classroom, they saw Teddy loitering about a little bit ahead of them. His eyes changed from bright blue to hazel when he saw Rose. "Hullo, Teddy," said Hermione brightly, letting go of Severus' hand.

"Hiya." Teddy waved at Rose and grinned before skirting off with a wary glance at Severus.

But Severus seemed like he had not noticed the boy at all. His gaze was locked on something in the middle distance.

"What the…?"

Suddenly he was off in a flat-out run down the corridor, coat whipping out behind him. Hermione stared.

"Mum?" Rose caught her hand. "What's the matter?"

Hermione blinked, watching Severus lash out his wand and disappear through the opening that lead to his rooms. Someone or something had left the door wide open.

"Come."

Hermione pulled Rose along to catch up. There was something urgent about the way Severus' quarters had been ransacked. Papers were everywhere and his single flowerpot -a wormwood, she had checked- had toppled over. The books in his shelves and the cushions on his sofa were a-jumble. A teacup lay in shards beneath the kitchen sink. Even his bedroom had been disturbed.

Severus stood in centre of the destruction. "Shite," he muttered, not caring that Rose watched him with wide eyes. He gripped his hair, spinning once around. "Fuck."

Hermione took a step towards him. "Severus, please don't swear in front of-" She nodded her head at Rose. "Do you think Peeves did this?"

"I have a spell against him." Severus' eyes darted back and forth. "Someone must have been searching for something. They- Oh, no…" He paled.

"Why would anyone go through your rooms? It seems odd, doesn't it?" Hermione watched him carefully. "Don't you think you're overreacting?"

"Not now, Hermione!" He was panting. "I have to-"

Something seemed to come over him and he eyed the door suspiciously. Faintly she thought she heard him mutter 'uncanny eyes' and something that sounded vaguely like 'werewolf' to himself. Then, he ran off again, this time towards the Kitchens.

"No, Severus!" Hermione turned on Rose. "Wait here!"

"Mum! No!" Rose held her arm tightly. "Don't leave…"

"Sweetie, it's alright." She laid a hand on Rose's hair. "I'm going to find out what's happening, but this isn't something dangerous, I'm sure. Hold on for a moment and just wait for me. You can stay in the corridor if you want to."

Rose nodded weakly. Hermione pulled herself out of her grasp and took off in pursuit of Severus. She could hear agitated voices and she hurried to catch up.

He had Teddy cornered by the fruit-bowl painting, looking quite deranged.

"I already told you," yelled Teddy, "I didn't do it! You must be out of your mind!"

"You little…" Severus had caught hold of the lapels of Teddy's uniform and he pushed him roughly up against the portrait. Hermione grasped his arm.

"Severus, no!"

She knew she must have hurt him with her fingers digging into the wound she had just healed, but right then, Teddy's wellbeing felt far more important. Severus never even noticed, seemingly blinded by fear or some sort of madness.

"Legillimens."

Teddy wailed in outraged shock.

"Severus, stop it," she cried, "You can't!"

But it was as though he didn't hear her. For several seconds he remained rigid while Hermione fruitlessly tried to break them apart. Then Severus abruptly let go, looking rattled.

"What did you just do to me?" whispered Teddy. He stumbled back, breathing hard.

Severus blinked. "I-"

Tears of betrayal welled up in Teddy's eyes. "You are evil!" he half-yelled, half-sobbed. "What did you do?"

Hermione stepped between them, allowing Teddy to escape. He ran off in the direction of the Hufflepuff common room, almost tripping over his feet. She threw her arms wide.

"What possessed you?"

Severus gripped her hand. "Not now, Hermione," he said urgently, "There's something I need to check, I-"

"That spell," she hissed, wrenching away. "It's a violation! It should be forbidden! How could you?"

Severus shook his head, black hair whipping about his shoulders. "Hermione, you don't understand." He stepped closer. "Someone was in my room and I thought it was him, but now that I know it wasn't, it's even more important that I-"

Hermione interrupted him with a scoff. She backed away, eying the man she had come to know as quiet, and reserved, and a little shy.

"You crossed a line just now," she said sombrely. "That spell, it's simply cruel. Would you do something like that to me?" She swallowed. "Would you do it to Rose?"

"Hermione, no! I would never-"

"But you could do it to Teddy?" she hissed. "Honestly. The boy is only twelve. I thought better of you!"

"Don't fight!"

They both stopped, turning to see Rose a little way down the corridor. There were tears on her cheeks.

"Please don't fight…"

Hermione's eyes met with Severus' startled ones for a brief moment. Then, she whipped around, turning her back on him. She hurried towards Rose, leaving him standing alone in the corridor.

"I'm sorry, I- Hermione!"

The sound of boot-clad feet swallowed his plea.

Without warning, two people rounded the corner with confident strides. Hermione froze. It was a young woman and an older man with his long, white hair in a ponytail. They wore the official red of the Ministry's Auror Office.

Without wasting a glance on Hermione or Rose, they approached Severus and crowded him up against the wall. The woman trained her wand on him, aiming it directly at his heart.

"Severus Snape," she said. "You are under arrest. Present us your wand or we shall take it by force."

The world seemed to tilt on its axis. For a fleeting moment, Hermione thought Severus was going to turn his wand on them and fight. His knuckles were white around the hilt of it and apart from the rapid rise and fall of his chest, his body was as tense as a snake coiled to strike. But then, his eyes fell on something behind her and slowly he relaxed, seeming to be taken over by a calm that appeared almost unnatural.

Hermione glanced over her shoulder to see Rose standing in the shadows, a frightened expression on her little face. Her heart wrenched.

"Mr. Snape?" The older Auror moved slightly and Severus' arms dropped to his sides. He didn't resist when the young woman extracted the wand from his hand.

"Wait!" Hermione caught a sniffling Rose in a one-armed hug, bringing her along when she approached the two strangers. Her head spun.

"Why are you arresting him?" she asked shrilly. She searched Severus' face for answers, but he looked away, dark hair falling in front of his eyes like a shield. "On what charges?"

The young woman raised a single eyebrow as though to say 'and what is it to you?' but the older one took a brief look at Rose and replied evenly, "Possession of illegal substances and suspicion of Death Eater activities. I suggest you take your daughter out of our path, Mrs…?"

"You must be insane!" cried Hermione around the lump in her throat. "What exactly are you going to do to him?"

"He will go to Azkaban to await trial." The woman took Severus by the arm, steering him away from the kitchens' entrance. "Now, please leave. Your employer will receive an official notification, and I expect, inform the staff in the morning. To avoid the spreading of inaccurate rumours, I suggest you keep this to yourself until that time."

Who did this witch think she was? Hermione felt powerless in the face of her cold indifference. Could she not tell that a piece of her world was crumbling?

Feeling shaken, and shattered, and alone, holding Rose's hand tightly, all she could do was stare after them in disbelief as they disappeared down the hall.

She wanted Severus to turn his head, to acknowledge her, to let her know that everything was going to be all right. But he didn't.