Upon their arrival in the infirmary, they barely had a chance to place their patient onto a bed before a shrill noise began to sound loudly. An enchanted bell appeared above the bed and vibrated urgently – his heart had stopped.

"Severus, no, please don't do this," Poppy groaned as she summoned a Medighost to assist in emergency care for her patient. The medighost appeared to slip into Severus's chest, hands disappearing from sight as they began to massage his beleaguered heart. The portrait above Poppy's desk depicting her predecessor, Dilys, came alive and the old mediwitch appeared, breathless, in the frame.

"Poppy , I've flooed St Mungo's, they will be here short –" she barely finished her sentence before a series of sharp pops filled the air. Suddenly the deserted infirmary was a hive of activity as two uniformed Mediwitches and a white-coated doctor apparated into the room. Without ceremony they burst into action and the air was suddenly alive with healing energy and complex spell work.

Hermione had Severus's hand clasped firmly in hers when she felt strong but gentle hands grasp her shoulders and pull her away. Reluctantly she let his hand slip from hers and she managed to steal one last look at her lover's face as she was moved back. His face had relaxed in his unconscious state and he looked so much younger than his 38 years. Long, dark lashes looked stark against the colourless pallor of his skin, the only sign of colour beside the blue tinge of his lips. Her brilliant, brilliant Severus - I love you.

Blinking back tears she tore away from the hands restraining her and ran from the room, sobbing blindly as she burst out of the infirmary and collapsed in a heap in the corridor outside. Great sobs wracked through her as the severity of what had happened hit her. He was dying. She was going to lose him at a time when he had finally found some happiness, when he had finally started to live. It was so unfair.

When she had first arrived at his side by the whomping willow, she had felt the warm welcome of his magic, a light brush of his consciousness in her mind, reassuring her he was still there with her. Even when he had slipped unconscious, he had managed to maintain a weak connection with her, barely a whisper, but there, nonetheless. But as soon as they had arrived in the infirmary, the gentle touch had vanished, and she felt utterly alone. The four-way apparition had been too much of a shock for his badly injured body, as they had known it would be. His heart had stopped. She had reached out for him then, her magic coursing into him, searching him out – but there was no response, nothing. Just emptiness. The implications of it terrified her. She prayed he was just deeply unconscious to allow his body to heal, and not that it was a sign of something more final.

She took some calming breaths, firmly telling herself that getting hysterical would not help Severus. As she felt her heart calm, she heard the door at the far end of the corridor open and the tall figure of Albus Dumbledore slipped though, carrying something carefully in his hands. As he drew nearer she could see the brilliant red and gold plumage of a beautiful bird nestled between his clasped hands. Fawkes.

She scrambled to her feet as he drew level with her. His face was heavily lined with worry and concern "Miss Granger, is Severus –" his voice was but a fearful whisper. Seeing her there, so clearly upset had brought a series of terrifying scenarios to mind.

"No – but he, he's –" she stuttered before simply adding "his heart stopped. They wouldn't let me stay –" she didn't finish her sentence. Dumbledore grasped her hand firmly and tugged her through the doors which opened magically before him.

The room was a hive of frantic activity. The enchanted bell was still ringing. Medics dashed to and from the bed, blood smeared across their medical whites. Hermione was drawn to the bloody footprints imprinted across the floor and morbidly tracked them back to an area around the bed where a large pool had gathered. She could see it dripping steadily from a pale hand that hung limply off the side of the bed. Drip. Drip. Drip. She swallowed the rising nausea and forced herself to look away. The floor was littered with empty potions bottles. Blood replenishers mostly. She felt Dumbledore release her hand.

"Poppy?" he called, his voice soaring clearly over the clamour. Poppy looked up, a momentary flash of hatred on her face before the worried expression returned.

"We cannot get his heart started – he has lost too much blood. The damage to his pulmonary arteries and left lung is extensive. He is losing blood faster than we can replace it. Never mind attempting to treat his other injuries. I sincerely hope you are here with a miracle, Albus."

"In fact, I am," The tall wizard stepped forward, and the medics parted to let him through, revealing an extremely pale and heavily bloodstained Severus. He didn't move. His once pristine white shirt lay open revealing the huge rents in his skin, evidently where Remus had torn into him, shredding his lungs and causing catastrophic damage to the blood vessels there. The shocking sight of his young potions master so deathly ill rocked him and he put a hand against the wall to steady himself. The Medighost still had both hands embedded in his chest, continuing the heart massage. Everything barring his face was hued in various shades of fresh and drying blood.

"Sweet Merlin," he gasped. It was then that the bundle in his arms stirred and opened its eyes. Its eyes rested on the stricken man and suddenly it rose to its feet. It stretched its wings wide and the room turned scarlet and gold as the light reflected off its brilliant plumage.

"Fawkes, to Severus," Dumbledore managed numbly. The medics stepped away from the bed as the Phoenix fluttered delicately onto Severus's ruined chest. The bird turned an ear and appeared to listen intently for a moment before letting out a heart wrenching cry. Tears began to fall readily from its closed eyes and onto the devastating wounds below. Hermione watched in fascination as the bloody rents began to close. The jagged edges of skin slowly edged together, leaving a livid red scar in its wake. The incessant dripping of blood slowed to a stop and the bell above the bed finally stopped its shrill warning as Severus's heart began to beat independently. Breathing heavily, Hermione edged closer to the bed. The Medighost removed its hands and retreated, leaving Hermione space to stand beside his head. She clasped his cool hand to her cheek and closed her eyes, and tentatively brushed her magic against his. There was no response. She took a deep breath and tried again. Nothing. Sadly, she opened her eyes and was surprised to see Dumbledore stood beside her, one hand resting against Severus's pale cheek, his eyes closed. The room had emptied leaving her, Dumbledore and another white coated man alone with Severus. The Medidoctor was speaking in the Headmaster's direction in a hushed and worried tone.

"Although he didn't receive a bite as such, we have tested for lycanthropy as a precaution, but there is no rushing the results I'm afraid. It can take up to a week for a reliable result. Until then, he must be restrained at all times and under 24 hour surveillance."

Dumbledore's voice was so quiet she barely caught it, "He is hardly going anywhere Henry."

"Even so Albus, it is for his protection as much as everyone else's." Turning to view the results of his diagnostic spell, the Medic took a deep breath before continuing. "As for his recovery –" he stopped as he appeared to notice Hermione for the first time. As if sensing it, Dumbledore waved away his concern, "She stays Henry, she and Severus are very close."

The Medic nodded solemnly and addressed Hermione directly, extending his hand in welcome. He had a kind face, she thought distractedly. Someone with a face like that would hardly deliver bad news, would they?

"Henry Goodfellow, Professor of Critical Care at St Mungo's, and you are –"

Hermione stretched out her hand, "Hermione Granger, pleased to meet you Henry. I must thank you and your team for all you have done for Severus. After his heart – I thought, um. I thought he -" Her voice was shaky with emotion and she found she couldn't continue.

The Medic gave her a warm smile and clasped her hand, nodding. "It's okay, it is very distressing to see people we love in such a condition and I wish I had better news for you but I'm afraid he is not out of the woods yet. Severus is in a critical condition and is currently in a coma. For how long, we do not know. He experienced severe and sustained blood loss, and serious damage to his left lung and the major blood vessels there. He has also suffered a number of broken ribs, not to mention a hairline skull fracture – he requires intensive medical care for the foreseeable future. However, most worryingly for us, his brain was deprived of adequate oxygen for an extended period of time. It is too early to tell if there will be any permanent damage –"

"Wait – are you saying he might have suffered brain damage?" Hermione gasped as she finally found her voice. Not his mind – not his brilliant mind. She felt Dumbledore stiffen beside her. He opened his eyes abruptly.

"Henry?" he pushed, his face a picture of worry.

The Medic clenched his jaw and swallowed heavily before answering. His eyes were full of compassion, "Albus, Hermione - I must warn you that there is a very real possibility that Severus may not recover from this. I have been unable to make any cognitive link with him since we arrived here."

"Me neither," Hermione mumbled. She could feel tears beginning to crowd her vision. The Medic met her forlorn look.

"Do you and Severus have a link, Hermione?"

"Yes, we – erm – we only discovered recently that we have a soul link, that we have matching cores," she heard the gasp from the older wizard beside her and felt herself blush furiously. There was only one way of determining the existence of such compatibility and it certainly wasn't something she wanted to discuss with the Headmaster. Besides, she was an adult, no longer a student – they hadn't done anything wrong. She studiously avoided his questioning gaze and focused on the Medic instead. He nodded in understanding and offered a warm smile.

"Then you and Severus are very lucky indeed. It is a rare thing, believe me. With that in mind Hermione, perhaps you could try to make contact with Severus whilst I am here, so I can monitor him?"

"Of course," she answered without hesitation. She risked a glance at Dumbledore and found he was regarding her with a funny expression, something akin to gratitude. He put a hand on her arm.

"You have brought out the best in him, Hermione, he is lucky to have found you. Merlin knows he needs something good in his life." He spoke softly, his voice heavy with grief and she finally understood the depth of his feelings for the potions master. As if he sensed her realisation, he whispered "I love him as a son, Hermione." Their eyes met and Hermione was shocked to see how much he appeared to have aged in the few short hours that had passed. He looked weary, and old beyond his years. She squeezed his hand, "I will not lose him Professor. Not to the Dark Lord and certainly not to this."

Resolute, she turned her attention back to Severus, placing her hands gently on either side of his face. He felt a bit warmer now, but he was still deathly pale and so still, too still. At some point someone had cleansed him of blood and the sheets tucked in tightly around him were fresh and clean. She noticed for the first time the magical restraints fastened around both wrists and tethered to the sides of the bed. Already, dark mottled bruising was appearing on the pale skin of his forearms and across his shoulders where they peeked out from the infirmary sheets. Bruising was also starting to appear in vivid purples and greens across the left side of his head. His left eye was swollen shut. An involuntary whimper escaped her, and she bit down firmly on her lower lip to stifle it. Shaking, she closed her eyes. Please Severus, please be there – please be okay.

Concentrating hard, she brushed against his mind and was surprised to find his occlumency shields firmly in place. In his mind they appeared as an immense black wall, stretching as far as the eye could see – smooth and impenetrable.

"Severus, can you hear me?" She called out before the huge wall before her. She reached out and gently tapped it. It felt like marble, cold and unyielding.

There was no answering call, no familiar brush of his magic. She took a shaky breath and tried again.

"Severus, please – if you can hear me, please let me in, I need to know you are okay." She could hear the desperation in her voice. She waited, ears straining for the faintest sound.

Time stretched out before her, fear and desperation rising in her for every second of silence that passed. For man as skilled in this field as Severus, this prolonged silence had serious implications.

"Severus –" her voice cracked and she felt tears cascade down her cheeks.

Suddenly, she felt a brief whisper across her face, and she froze, not daring to believe. As she opened her eyes, she felt her heart begin to thud painfully in her throat as Severus's pale face appeared inches from hers. His black eyes were full of pain and concern.

"Severus! Thank the Gods," she seized him and held on for dear life. He felt fragile in her arms, but he was there, he was there! Breathing heavily she released him gently and willed him to speak.

"Hermione," his voice was hoarse and pain flitted across his features from the effort to speak. His chest was heaving.

"How bad?" she whispered.

Severus looked down, clasping her hands in his. Something was wrong.

"10, I think." He mumbled, a thin trickle of blood escaping from the corner of his mouth. "I don't feel –"

His knees buckled at that moment and she caught him under his arms as he fell. Lowering him gently to the ground. Her breath caught as she gently brushed a stray lock of hair from his forehead and his eyes locked onto hers. Momentarily lost in the swirling depths of black, she almost missed the barely whispered words.

"I love you."

He held her gaze for a moment before his eyes slid shut and she felt herself ejected forcibly from his mind. Her eyes burst open at the same time as the monitors surrounding Severus burst into a furious cacophony of shrill alarms.

Stricken, she turned to face Dumbledore and Henry,

"He's dying! HE'S DYING!" she screamed.