Hey guys! I hope you're all well and healthy during this crazy times. I hope I can maybe make you feel a bit better with this chapter! And if you have anything to say, comment or even questions, do not hesitate to review!

Stay safe and healthy!

It wasn't a nice wake up for Caroline. She couldn't even remember correctly what was happening during the time she was asleep. She remembered her argument with Rabastan and the explosion. After that, everything seemed blurry. There was pain, a lot of it, but she had also memories of someone taking care of her, healing the burnings and giving her potions that eased the pain.

She remembered they would wake her up quite often in order to give her potions. She remembered Rabastan and Wixie, and she thought someone else was there as well, but she wasn't in a shape to actually recognise who.

It took her three days to wake up fully and open her eyes for the first time. Wixie was pouring her a tea on the night table, and Caroline turned her head to the person sitting on the edge of her bed. Rabastan's face was emotionless but his gaze was piercing her.

The light was a bit too much in the beginning but she got used to it pretty fast. One glance from her husband towards the house elf was enough for her the disappear with a silent snap of her fingers.

Rabastan was silent. "How's my face?" Caroline asked with trembling voice. In was the first thought that occurred in her mind after she woke up, as all she could remember was the feeling of her burning face.

"It's fine. You won't have any scars," was his short answer with his eyes fixated on Caroline. "Severus made sure of that."

Caroline turned her head quickly at that notion. So Severus was here. She thought someone knew was here, but she couldn't really identify that person in her mind. It kind of surprised her that the potion master came here to the manor.

She didn't really focus on her mind magic now, but she could see Rabastan was watching her carefully. "I sent Wixie to bring him here. Bella wasn't here, and you know how Rudolphus and I are with potions. We didn't know what kind of potion that was and how to neutralize it."

There was a hint of concern coming from him, which made Caroline's heart melt a bit. "I'm sorry. It was stupid mistake from me to make."

"You didn't tell me you take such a high amount of Mind-stabilizing potion," he suddenly said and gave her a questioning look. And Caroline didn't know what to say to that. "Severus left around fifteen vials here for you. Said you usually prepare it yourself," her husband continued.

"Although I'm no healer, I'm not dumb, Caroline. The amount you take is damm high."

She could feel his concern. But somehow she couldn't make herself talk about it. She knew how dangerous this could be. But she was a brilliant mind healer and she refused to see anyone else with that condition.

"I take as much as I need," was her short reply. That didn't seem to make Rabastan feel any better about it. He looked like he really wanted to comment that but in the end decided against it. They sat in silence for a minute until he gave her a sharp nod, and left the room with quite "if you need anything, call Wixie".

Two days passed with Caroline lying in bed, and Wixie helping her to change the bandages and treat the injuries. Rabastan came only once, just to ask if she had everything she needed and then disappeared again.

Just when she was getting ready to call Wixie and help her out of the bed, there was a knock on the door. She didn't have time to invite the person to come in, and her husband already entered, with the infamous potions master just few steps behind him. She unconsciously covered herself more in the sheets.

"Severus came to check on you," was Rabastan short introduction and looked first at her and then at the potions master, whose face was a blank mask.

Severus gave her a nod and then approached the bed without any word. She stubbornly hold the silence, but let him get close enough and check her face.

"How is it?" she asked carefully after a moment that seemed too long, while Severus kept his mental shields up and no emotion was shown on his face.

"It's healing just fine. You won't have any scars," he said shortly and then waved his wand around in front of her face, before touching it gently.

"Ouch!" The woman moved her head a bit aside in order to get a bit away.

"It's still sensitive. But that's good. I would be worried if you haven't felt anything," he said with no hint of emotion. Then he looked at Rabastan before looking back at her and handling her a small bag.

"There's something for you for the upcoming days, before you'll be able to make it yourself. Caroline didn't need to ask what it was. Her own storage of Mind-stabilizing potion were running thin and she wasn't sure when the time would come then she could prepare herself her own in the lab.

But there was something else as well. She could feel it in the air. Severus wanted to talk to her, but didn't want to do so in front of her husband. But Rabastan didn't move and was watching them sceptically.

"I assume you still plan on going to the Annuall ball of St. Mungos? It's still a month away," he asked instead.

"She's not," was Rabastan's quick answer before she even managed to process the question. At that, both Caroline and Severus, turned towards him, and Caroline could feel Severus's interest going up.

"I am." It came oud strong and loud and Severus raised his eyebrows at her.

"You. Are. Not." Rabastan's face was now furious and he emphasized every word. At that, she actually sat up in the bad, and with a completely calm voice answered again. "I am coming to the Annual Ball."

Her husband was opening his mouth to start arguing, but she didn't listen and started to get out of the bed, ignoring the nausea and weakness coming over her after standing up.

"Could you be so decent, and take something to cover yourself with?" Rabastan was now an inch from yelling, looking at her in her night gown (that Wixie changed her to before), while Severus found this situation utterly amusing.

"Wixie," she said into the air and the elf appeared just a few seconds after that, with an expectation look on her face.

"Get me my housecoat, please," ordered the mind healer weakly while carefully holding her ground. Caroline had to put her shields up and lock Rabastan out, because the anger she felt from him started to be overwhelming.

Severus, on the other hand, looked like he was quite enjoying himself, his usual expression accompanied by a smirk on his face.

"I've done what I came for. Now if you excuse me, I have no desire on standing in the middle of your pitiful affairs. Some of us have a job to go back to." With that, the potions master turned himself on his heels and started leaving, only stopped when Caroline's started: "Wait, Severus. I could use your potions expertise in my lab. I'm starting to think the whole explosion happened due to the low quality of frogs legs."

She said it matter of factly, while adjusting her housecoat, while appearing totally calm on outside, ignoring Rabastan completely.

But the potions master did stop upon her request and slowly turned around. "I can spare no more than thirty minutes."

"It will be less then ten." And with that, she reached for him to help her walk towards the lab, still a bit unsecure after the time in bed.

She hoped Rabastan wouldn't join them, knowing how much he hated all the ingredients that had anything to do with potions making.

So when they entered her lab, with Rabastan wandering off to the other side of manor, she slowly turned to Severus, who was already wasting no time and was concurring all kind of privacy charms around them.

"Could you explain to me, since when was almost losing the skin on your face and becoming blind part of the plan?"

She shrugged at that. Admitting how it happened would mean admitting her emotions got out of control.

"I'm not in the mood games, Caroline. The only step during the preparation of mind-stabilizing potion where it get so wrong, is with the pumpkin seeds. You didn't add them early enough and failed to stabilize the potion."

She couldn't argue with him, so she just shrugged her shoulders at his remarks.

"You've done thousands vials of this potions before. If I cannot trust you with this, have can I trust you to handle anything else around him?" he continued coldly.

She sneered at that. Of course it was easy for him to say.

He made three steps towards her, so that he was standing so close to her, that she had a tendency to step back.

"There's far more at stake than your marriage with Rabastan. Think about your son. Your brother. Think about Dumbledore and all the other fools from the Order, " he stated. "I've seen you grow from a powerless shy girl into a bad-ass head of department of mind-healing at St. Mungo. You're easily one the best occlumens and legilimens in the country, maybe even wizarding Europe. Do not throw this away, because of your issues with a men you used to love. Get. Yourself. Together. Caroline." He stepped back and still watched her closely.

She closed her eyes and nodded. He was right.

"Find a way to go to the Annual ball. It's essential part of the plan," he continued sternly.

"I will."