Hey all! Thanks for sticking with me so far. It has been a real treat writing for you.

I'mm stoked by all the reviews I received for te previous two chapters. You've all been so invested in Severus's wellbeing.

This chapter brings back my OCs, but they're really just there to provide a sounding board for Severus to bounce his thoughts off of in the beginning.

If Someone Cared Enough

Chapter Nine: Can of Worms

"So, it looks like they patched you up fairly well," Simone said, fiddling with a puzzle cube from Davis.

Two days after waking up, the healers deemed Snape well enough to have visitors. Before he regained consciousness, the only people allowed in had been Lily and her family.

The invitation was extended to his own parents naturally, but Snape's mother had sent word that Tobias was too ill to visit and she would try to stop by only if she wasn't too busy looking after him. It was an obvious lie; Tobias had most likely simply refused to set foot in a wizard hospital or let his wife do the same. It was in their absence that the Healers allowed for Lily's family to sit vigil by Severus' bedside, twisting and exploiting a few legal loopholes to let them stand in as a pseudo family for their patient in the meantime.

Now that Snape could actually have visits from friends, he was surprised to see a number of well-wishers come in the form of his new acquaintances from Hogwarts. All the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs Snape had spent his final weeks at Hogwarts studying with sent a slew of cards and various gifts.

An assortment of sweets came in from the Hufflepuffs, while there were a number of books, journals, and brainteasers from the Ravenclaws, presumably to ensure his mind did not go dull in the meantime.

Davis and a Hufflepuff girl by the name of Nesme—with whom Snape had played chess with several times—came in person to deliver the gifts, each bringing their own tidings of 'get well soon' and apologies for not having been with Severus when the fight occurred.

"If I had been with you, I would have hexed that rotten Avery's bollocks off!" Nesme had declared quite hotly. She had quickly smothered Severus in a not so appreciated hug and bestowed upon him a knitted neck warmer. The gesture was kind, but unnecessary given the warm summer weather, but clearly, the girl felt Snape needed extra protection and coverage around his throat now.

The allowance for visitors meant Simone and Thea made their way to Severus' side as well. Bringing a high quality leather bound book on rare potion ingredients and pricy ink in a platinum rimmed inkwell, the pair descended upon the bed ridden boy with their usual brand of affections. Thea busied herself with tidying and organizing the gifts as she made quiet inquiries of Snape's health, while Simone loudly berated the boy for taking on two wizards at once in close quarters, interrupting her own tirade repeatedly to inspect Snape's gifts and comment on the quality of the room.

"Did you honestly expect them to fight fair?" Simone practically shouted, "Those louts know when they're bested on skill alone—what is this? It's so colorful and the pieces move. What do I do with this?—of course Avery would play dirty! Thinking he wouldn't is like assuming a dragon won't set you on fire and eat you once you're nice and crispy—this room is appallingly small. Is it just me? It must just be me—it's suicide, Snape! Don't be so rash next time—seriously, am I supposed to solve this thing or something?" She shook the rubric cube from Davis, calling for Severus' attention.

Snape rolled his eyes, "You match all the colors up by rotating the different rows. In the end you should have all yellow on one side, all blue on another, etc, etc."

"The novelty of it," Simone marveled, holding the cube above her head to examine.

"So is there another reason you are here aside to give me a lecture?" Severus asked, annoyed.

"Quite," Simone hopped down from the windowsill and approached Severus' bedside. Without a word of warning, she leaned down and gave him the briefest of hugs.

"I'm glad you're alright," she said simply when she stood back up. She kept her head high, refusing to look at him, "I suppose it would be a shame if you died before you graduated."

"Right, because I would be so well missed at school," Snape drawled.

Simone gestured to the pile of presents Thea had arranged on the table, "I can think of a few people who might shed a tear," was all she said.

Snape eyed the pile suspiciously, "I honestly didn't expect them to be so worried about me."

Simone shrugged, "Why wouldn't they be? You've become a rather common presence in their lives. I imagine you dying would be quite unsettling for some of them." She watched Snape out of the corner of her eye, "It would seem you've made a decision."

Snape quirked an eyebrow, "On what?"

"On them. The Death Eaters," Simone clarified, "You just managed to send two of his future followers to a potentially life long stay at Azkaban. And all to protect a muggleborn. I doubt he's going to welcome you with open arms now."

Snape sighed, "No…I suppose not."

"You weren't still hoping to join him, were you?" Simone questioned.

Severus thought about it a minute, mulling the question over in his head. Eventually he shook his head, "No. Not anymore. I don't think I could bring myself to be one at this point. What Avery and Mulciber did…it was nothing like the ideals they taught us while trying to recruit us. It was nothing like his teachings. But…" Snape shook his head, "looking into Avery's eyes, I saw such…conviction. Like he truly believed in what he was doing, like it put him in the right somehow."

Snape turned to Simone, his eyes haunted, "Avery talks big at school but deep down he's a follower. Whether it is Malfoy's instructions or someone higher, Avery's just carrying out another's will. He did what he did because he believe someone would either approve. Someone gave him the impression that it was justified. I don't know who, but they're on his side…and I don't think I can be a part of something like that…not after what happened."

"Wise words," Simone stated, "Though I can't say you severed your ties with them too cleanly; this incident is bond to attract his attention and not in the good way."

"I know," Severus admitted.

"Are you going home after this?" Thea asked timidly, coming to stand by Snape's bedside, a glass of water in hand, "When you're released, I mean. Will you be going home or will the Evans be taking you in?"

Snape looked at her, "Why would they take me in?" he asked, utterly baffled, "I've got a house to go back to."

"Not a very good one," Simone muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Severus asked dangerously.

Simone raised her hands, "Nothing, nothing…ooh look! Red hair!" she pointed to the left side of Snape's bed, "What have you been up to, Snape?"

Severus followed her gaze to his pillow. There on the linen lay a few strands of long red hair. They mushed into the rumpled pillowcase, curving this way and that along the grooves in the fabric, as though someone's head had been resting there not too long ago.

"I didn't notice," Snape began, confused. Since he woke up, he had come to find the sensation of numbness below his head had limited his movements to simply looking left and right. He couldn't lift his arms or legs and his torso stayed glued to the mattress unless someone lifted him into a sitting position. This was not just limited to his waking hours either. According to a very short and clipped explanation from Petunia he had 'slept like the dead' during his impromptu coma, never moving a muscle, much to the concern of the healers.

This meant his bed had gone relatively undisturbed as he lay still, the covers untouched around him from a lack of tossing and turning. But now that he thought about it, before the nurse came in to make his bed the morning he woke up, the left side had been ruffled slightly, the blankets moved around and turned up like someone had been under them at some point. The nurse hadn't touched the pillow and the red hairs still remained.

"Lily?" Severus wondered.

"Isn't this an interesting development?" Simone teased.

"There is no development," Severus insisted, "I was asleep. Nothing happened."

"Oh, and here I thought I needed to be worried someone was stealing you from me," Simone smirked.

"They can't steal from you what you never had," Severus sneered.

Simone pouted, "Pity."

Throwing her arms up over her head, Simone leaned back in a stretch, "Well Thea and I should be going now. We have reservations for lunch in at that new café in Diagon Alley. You've probably heard of it; the Golden Bridle? It is a classy joint and it's rumored the chef puts Unicorn milk in his dishes. Very interesting."

Simone beckoned to Thea and the pair headed for the door. On the way out, they bumped into Lily, returning from grabbing Severus some lunch.

"Oh!" Lily gasped, righting herself before she spilled Severus' stew, "Leaving so soon?"

Simone nodded, "We hate to cut it short, but my parents are expecting us."

Thea smiled warmly at Lily, "It was lovely to see you."

Lily smiled in return, "And you as well," she replied kindly.

"Well, we mustn't dawdle," Simone said, linking her arm with Thea's, "Say goodbye, Thea."

"Goodbye Severus," Thea called, already being ushered out the door, "Get well soon!"

Left alone, Lily and Severus stared at each other awkwardly, not sure what to do or say.

"Um," Lily began, "Oh, I brought you something to eat." She approached the bed and placed the tray on the side table, pushing it closer for Severus.

"Thank," Severus asked, not yet moving it try the stew, "Where are your parents?"

"Talking to the doctor—the healer—right now," Lily explained, "I'm still getting used to that, I'm used to muggle hospitals. Anyway, my parents should be along in a minute, but Petunia went home. She…um…she doesn't feel very comfortable here."

Severus nodded, "Right, the whole magic thing."

"Exactly," Lily said in return. They sat in silence for a moment or two before Lily spoke again, "The stew is going to get cold if you don't eat it soon."

Severus allowed Lily to lift the spoon to his mouth without complaint, though he greatly would have loved to tell Lily he was old enough to eat when he wanted to. As with all hospital food, the stew was bland, not foul tasting or anything, but not very flavorful. The broth was weak and needed more salt and pepper and the meat was a tad more chewy than tender while the potatoes had been overcooked and mushed too easily into mash. Still it was better than the nutrient potions the healers had been plying him with all morning. At this point, anything was a blessing if it would get the taste of the last vial out of his mouth.

"Hey Sev?" Lily said after a few minutes of silence.

Severus tilted his head in acknowledgment, his mouth still full.

"I never got to thank you for what you did back there on the train," Lily said quietly, "It really means a lot to me that you would stand up for me to your friends like that."

Swallowing, Severus attempted to roll a little on his back, prompting Lily to assist him until he was leaning on his side facing her.

"They aren't my friends, Lily," he said, "I don't think I ever saw them as friends either."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked.

"They were convenient for me," Severus went on, "People to hide behind so I wouldn't get picked on in Slytherin, purebloods to make me feel important. But I never liked them. Sometimes when they said things about people I hated—like Potter or Black—it was funny and I could get a laugh or two, but for the most part being around them was a chore. They had no interest in learning, no appreciation for what they had or what they could become. So used to having everything handed to them that they never had to work for it…like I did. In a way, being around them just constantly reminded me of how they were everything I hated in a person. But I kept them close because—"

"Because they said they could help you," Lily finished understandingly, "Simone told me they wanted to use you."

Severus let out a humorless laugh, "She said the same to me. Lousy girl, sticking her nose into everything," Severus closed his eyes, "I hate it when she's right."

"I'm glad she was," Lily admitted, "I'm glad she was right about them, about you."

"Me?" Severus asked, bewildered.

"You chose me, Sev," Lily said her voice choked with emotion, "I was so scared and…and you came for me. You could have just turned your back on the whole thing, like I did to you and yet you didn't," she buried her face in her hands, "And I'm so happy that you didn't."

"Chose you? Lily it wasn't a choice at all," Severus wished he could reach out to Lily, to wrap his arms around her or just touch her hair, "It always would have been you."

"But, what I said," Lily stammered, "How I acted…I turned my back on you."

"And nothing you could have said or done would have meant you deserved what happened," Snape said with finality, "Lily, no matter what you say or do to me, I will always come for you."

Lily peered at Snape from the top of her hands, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Can I tell you something?" Severus asked.

Lily hiccupped then nodded.

"I was looking for Avery back on the train," Snape confessed, "I knew he had wanted to see me and that I wouldn't be able to speak with him once we arrived home. I had no idea what I was going to say to him. I had plans to join for quite some time, but lately I was so unsure of everything. Simone got in my head; she kept making me question everything I thought I knew. If Avery asked me to choose between you and them…I wouldn't be able to respond. I wanted both, Lily; I thought I could have both. But…the further I went down the train the more I kept thinking of you," he looked at Lily, held her gaze for as long as he could," when you looked at me that day, it was the first time in days since I had seen you smile at me. When I saw you smile, I could breathe again. It was like I had been suffocating all this time and didn't even realize until the breath came back."

"…I loved that feeling," Snape said quietly, "I never felt like that with anything else. Nothing Avery promised me ever felt as good as seeing you smile like that. I wanted to hold unto that moment, to lock it away and keep it for myself. I kept thinking about what life would be like if I never felt like that again…if I never saw you smile for me again. Lily…I don't think I could ever give that up."

He flushed and looked away, embarrassed that he had said too much.

"When I found you on the train," he continued, "There was no choice. It had to be you. I could never choose anything or anyone else. I know that now."

"Sev…" Lily whimpered, her tears spilling over as if a dam had broken. She reached out to her friend and pulled him into a hug. Pushing the tray aside, she scooted onto the edge of the bed, drawing her legs up and curling into Severus' side as she held him.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Severus leaned into her embrace, relishing the warmth she radiated, the sweet scent of her hair as it brushed his face. "I'm so sorry," he whispered back.

{page break}

Neither of them knew how long they stayed like that, just holding each other, but neither of them really cared. They took solace in the comfort each offered the other, both trying to reassure themselves the other was there, safe and out of harms way.

After some time just enjoying each others presence, Lily pulled back so that she could look at Severus properly, "There's a lot we need to talk about," she began.

Before she could continue, the pair was interrupted by a sound in the hall. It sounded like whispering, but the voices were too angry to do a better job at keeping their voices down.

"I don't care what anyone says, Hank," Mrs. Evans was saying, "he needs to come home with us. I will not send him back there."

"Now, now, Willow, the authorities said it needs to be his choice," Mr. Evans soothed.

"You heard those doctors!" Willow replied shrilly, "Some of the marks they found were years old. Years! Not even the bend in his nose is natural; it's been broken and healed wrong several times. I'm telling you, he cannot go back to that house!"

Lily felt Severus stiffen besides her, "Sev?" she shook his shoulder lightly, "Sev, I know you don't like to talk about it, but if you ever need to, I'm—"

"It's fine, Lily," Snape insisted, "There's nothing to talk about."

"But that's not true, you're—" a knocking at the door cut Lily off.

Mr. Evans stood in the doorway, accompanied by a rather stern looking man, "Sorry to bother you Severus, but this gentleman here would like a word with you."

Not waiting for an invite in, the man strode into the room, leaving Lily's parents to gawk in the doorway.

He was a tall thin man, almost inhumanely so, with gangly arms and sharp elbows. His graying hair was slick and combed back on his head into a short, straight ponytail. His glasses sat on the far too thin bridge of his nose, riding down slightly so that when he looked over them at a person, there was a distinct air of condescension.

"Mr. Snape," he said, in a lofty baritone, "I'm Alabast Wrence, from the child welfare office of the ministry."

"Hello," Snape replied, not at all welcoming.

"I've been called here today on the grounds of some concerns had by your healers," Wrence stated, pulling out a quill and some parchment from his robes. Pulling out an ink well from seemingly vast hidden pockets, he set it down next to Snape's half eaten lunch and placed the parchment on his lap over his folded knee, "Do you suppose I could talk to you about the matter?" he asked.

Sensing this was going to be a rather tense discussion, Lily slid off the bed and gave the pair some space.

"I'm afraid you'll half to elaborate more," Snape drawled, "I have no idea what concerns you are referring to."

Wrence was unperturbed, making a note on his parchment.

"It says here they have noted a history of physical injuries," Wrence explained, reading a list of notes, "Including a few internal abnormalities which could be contributed to physical damage," He leveled Severus with a questioning look, "Care to explain?"

Severus tried to shrug, before remembering he couldn't, "I'm bullied often in school," was his clipped reply, "boys tend to get rough. You know how it is."

"Ah, yes," Wrence said disinterestedly, "The old 'boys with be boys' defense. Well Mr. Snape, that would be all well and good if it wasn't for the fact that some of these injuries can be traced to having taken place… oh I'd say roughly about twelve or fourteen years ago."

"I'm clumsy," was Severus' response.

"Really?" Wrence replied, looking thoroughly unconvinced.

"Most children are," Snape said.

"Yes, but that is an awful lot of 'clumsiness' to be accounted for, what with the hairline fractures, broken ribs, sprains and contusions," Wrence shot back, writing more on his parchment. He regarded Severus with a critical eye.

"I was exceptionally clumsy," Severus insisted woodenly.

"What would you say your home life is like?" Wrence asked. How predictable it was that the conversation would lead there.

"Average," Snape answered.

Wrence hummed, making a few notes on his parchment, "Really? No complaints?"

"You'd be hard press to find a teenage who didn't have complaints about home," Severus stated moodily.

Wrence snorted, "Yes, of course, but we both know I'm not really asking about typical teenage complaints, now am I?"

Snape did not answer.

Wrence made another note and then flipped to another parchment, "And, am I to understand your parents have not been to see you, Mr. Snape?"

"They're busy," Snape said, growing more and more agitated by the second.

"Too busy to visit their son who almost died of blood loss?" Wrence challenged.

Snape grit his teeth, "My father is sick."

"Of course," Wrence drawled.

Lily watch the exchange with wide eyes.

'What's he doing,' she wondered, staring at Severus, 'Just tell him the truth, Sev!'

Behind her, Lily's parents exchanged worried glances.

"Mr. Snape, are you sure there is nothing you wish to tell me?" Mr. Wrence questioned.

"Positive," Snape said.

"There's no reason to be so tight lipped," Mr. Wrence stated in a patronizing tone, addressing Severus as if he was a child, "You can tell me."

"I said there is nothing to tell," Severus stayed firm, refusing to look at Wrence anymore.

Wrence frowned, "I see. Well, if that is your answer," he stood up, gathering his things and tucking them away in his robes, "That's all I wished to discuss. A good day Mr. Snape."

"To you as well," Severus replied insincerely.

"That's it?" Willow hissed as she and her husband followed Wrence out into the hallway, "You're done just like that?"

"Ma'am, in order to corroborate the healers' claims of abuse, I need the victim to admit that there was any abuse," Wrence drawled, checking his pocket watch, "Unless he is willing to cooperate or someone catches the abuser in the act, essentially my hands are tied."

"But surely there must be something you can do?" Mrs. Evans pleaded.

Wrence shrugged, "That's the way the law works ma'am; evidence or a confession. I can't act on speculation alone. Right now, there are two differing accounts of how he got those injuries and I can't prove which one is true short of using Veritaserum."

He rolled his eyes at their blank looks. "Truth potion," he explained with much exasperation.

"Then use some," Willow insisted.

"Against the law," Wrence said simply, "unless the higher ups authorize it, you won't see me with a bottle of the stuff."

"So we can do nothing?" Mr. Evans asked.

Wrence sighed and dug through his robes. Pulling out a shiny, silver card, he held it out to them.

"If you get any more information, contact this office via owl or Floo call," Wrence said, "Aside from that, there's nothing more I can do for you or him." With a swish of his robes, he strode away.

Lingering in the doorway, Lily frowned. She turned back to Severus, her eyes narrowing.

"Why didn't you tell him?" she demanded.

"Tell him what?" Severus asked, feigning innocence.

Lily stomped angrily over to him, "You know darn well what! Why didn't you tell him where those injuries really came from?"

"I did," Severus tried to lie.

"Oh no you didn't," Lily cut him off, "Your father gave them to you."

Severus glared at her, "I don't know where you get your information, but frankly what goes on in my house is none of your business or Wrence's."

"The hell it isn't!" Lily shrilled.

"Lily," her father called warningly.

Lily turned to look at her parents and then looked back at Snape. He was staring at a fixed point on the wall in front of him, refusing to look at her.

Sending Severus another harsh glare, Lily threw her hands up "You are so stubborn!" She marched over to her parents, fuming.

Mrs. Evans placed a hand on Lily's shoulder, "Lily, yelling at Severus isn't going to help matters."

"But he's lying," Lily insisted adamantly.

"We know, sweetie, but cornering him and demanding answers won't get you anywhere," Mr. Evans told her, "In fact, it may make him clam up more."

"But," Lily began searchingly, "But…" deflating, she sighed.

"He needs help," she said quietly. Casting a glance back at Severus, still trying to ignore her.

Willow wrapped her arms around her daughter, "I know dear, and we want to help him. We just need to convince him—gently—to talk to us about it—and only if he wants to," she added, seeing the determined look on Lily's face.

"He needs to know he can trust us and that we won't pressure him," Hank threw in.

"So what do I do for now?" Lily asked, completely at a loss.

"Be there for him," Mr. Evans suggested, patting Lily's shoulder, "Like a good friend. He's going to need you in the days ahead."

"So he's going back to his parents?" Lily fretted.

"For now, but we're going to do what we can to help him," Willow said firmly, her mind made up, "We'll get him out of there, you'll see."

Lily looked over her shoulder at Severus, her eyes sad, "I'll try not to pester him…"

"Atta girl," Mr. Evans said.

Lily approached Severus once more.

"Sev?" she tried.

He didn't answer her.

"Sev, I'm sorry I yelled at you," Lily tried again, "You're right, I shouldn't have pried. I just want you to know that if there's anything you need to talk about, I'm here for you." She place her hand on his arm, wondering if he could feel it through the numbness in his limbs.

"I care about you, Sev," Lily said softly.

Severus did not move his head, but his eyes flickered over to Lily. Eyeing her silently he took in her downtrodden expression. Letting out a breath, he slowly turned and met her gaze head on.

"I suppose I may have been a little defensive," he admitted offhandedly, "I would just prefer to keep my private life private."

Lily nodded, "Of course," she agreed, though she had no intention of letting the matter lie forever. She'd get the truth out of Severus eventually. Someday he would open up to her.

Lily's parents watched on quietly, fond smiles on their faces. Giving the pair some privacy to just be themselves without an audience, they headed off down the hall to speak with the healers and see if there was perhaps a phone somewhere to check up on Petunia.

Against his will, Severus yawned.

"Are you tired?" Lily asked.

Severus nodded, fighting the heaviness in his eyes, "These potions really drain you of your energy. I feel like the day has barely started and already I'm exhausted."

"Well it's been an exhausting few days," Lily stated, bags still hanging under her own eyes.

"I might doze off for a few," Severus told her. He waited for Lily to leave the room so he could sleep, but she didn't.

"Hey Sev?" Lily asked.

"Hm?"

"Do you suppose I could stay here with you?" Lily suggested, "I mean, I'm a little tired myself, you know? And the chair isn't too comfortable." She fiddled with some of the bed spread between her fingers.

"You mean," Severus' eyes widened, catching her meaning, "You mean, like right here?"

Lily nodded, her wide and imploring.

Severus looked around warily. They were alone.

"I suppose that would be fine," he said awkwardly.

"Thanks," Lily said gratefully with a radiant smile. Quickly she climbed onto the bed, dragging one of the blankets from the foot of the bed up to cover her.

Snuggling into the pillows, she grabbed Severus hand in her own, "I'm really glad you're okay, Sev," she said sweetly.

"Me too," Snape said, "I'm glad you're alright too. And that we're friends again." He paused, "Lily…we are friends again, aren't we?"

Lily nodded happily, her eyes already closed, "We may have some things to hash out but…definitely."

For the first time in days, Severus felt something; a warmth in his body that spread from his chest down to his toes and the tips of his ears.

So there you have it, another chapter down.

Some of you may be wondering about Severus's stubbornness. You're probably thinking he should be jumping at the chance to be saved from his father, but Severus, and child abuse, is a complicated matter. Like many children, Severus faces the dilemma of having one parent he loves trapped in a dangerous situation and not being willing to leave. If Severus leaves, he will worry about her being alone in that situation. Many kids feel an obligation to the parent they love to stay and tough it out with them.

Severus also can't help but be a little skeptical of the sort of help he could get from those offering it. If he is removed from his home, where would he go? That's an unknown variable for him whereas his home is familiar, no matter how unpleasant. What he sees in Wrence is the potential to be displaced and put somewhere unknown to him, where he has little to no control over the situation. At least at home, he feels some element of control, in that he chooses to engage with his father, even if it leads to pain.

Once again, read and review please. Oh, and tell your friends if they are Potter fans!