Disclaimer: None of these characters, except Carey Burke, belong to me.
FROM MY HEAD TO MY HEART
Chapter Nine: Running on Faith
Hermione shifted her fingers in her and Snape's finger lock as they walked down the stairs to the dungeon. They were approaching the Potions room. Hermione never did much like Potions, but that was because Snape was a teacher. Hermione laughed to herself and glanced up at Snape. She couldn't help but wonder what had turned such a misunderstood young man into a cruel old guy. Snape looked back at her, smiling. Hermione had never felt so happy.
"Stone...road less travelled...dirt, dirt, dirt...Devia," grumbled someone in the darkness.
Hermione and Snape stopped halfway down the stairs, barely in view of the Potions class door. Snape pressed his finger to his lips and left Hermione to sneak down and see who had been grumbling about such things. Hermione watched Snape peer into the darkness, then scurried back to her side.
"It's Carey," Snape whispered, his arm around Hermione.
Carey emerged from the darkness and went into the Potions room, slamming the door behind him. Snape led the way down the stairs.
"Why do you suppose Carey was late?" Hermione asked in a hushed tone.
"Don't know," Snape admitted, "but he was not coming by way of Slytherin house."
"D'you think that grumbling was because he was doing something with Devia?" Hermione proposed.
"Seems quite likely," Snape said, still peering into the darkness. "But what was that he was saying about road less traveled?"
Hermione just shrugged.
She felt Snape pull her closer as he asked, "D'you think we should check it out?"
Hermione quickly nodded.
Snape plunged into the darkness, bringing Hermione along with him. The dampness and darkness of the place was quite unnerving. Hermione pulled out her wand and caused it to light up. It didn't help the feel of the place much. Now, it was just damp stone walls and darkness ahead. Snape and Hermione continued on until they reached a dead end.
"Come on!" Hermione exclaimed. "How could Carey have come right out of a wall?"
Snape walked up to the dead end and felt the wall for idiosyncrasies. Hermione glanced about until she noticed shadows to indicate grooves of some kind in the wall beside her. She looked more closely and saw it was words.
"Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference"
-Robert Frost
I D A V E
"Severus!" Hermione called. "Look at this!"
Snape came up quickly and looked over the words.
"I, Dave?" he said in confusion.
"Dave who?" Hermione asked.
Snape just shrugged, saying, "Do you think it's a sort of code?"
"If so, what does it mean?" Hermione muttered unhappily.
"'Took the one less traveled by,'" Snape read over. "Isn't that one of the things Carey was grumbling about?"
"I think so," Hermione told him, hoping he had a sort of plan.
"I, Dave," Snape repeated, rubbing his chin.
"I, Dave," Hermione murmured, feeling slightly frustrated. "I, Dave. Dave I. Davi. Dav- WAIT!"
Snape glanced at her in curiosity.
Hermione ran her finger over the letters I, D, A, V, and E. She tapped her wand against the letters in the following order: D, E, V, I, A. Snape caught on and nodded. The letters began to glow, then the hall began to shake. Snape put his arms around Hermione. The portion of the wall that had the word and letters on it swung aside. It was a corridor like any other, but hidden from anyone who did not know the Latin word for an out of way road.
Hermione held out her illuminated wand and started into the tunnel. Snape came along, keeping a hold of her hand. A loud scrapping sound informed the couple that the wall had closed behind them. The thought that they could be trapped could not be prevented from entering Hermione's head. Still, she continued on.
"Look!" Snape pointed out more words in the wall. "Maybe it's a way out."
The words said, "If you have found the road less traveled, then you are probably really hungry. I hope it serves as well you as it has me. Best wishes, Ashley Burke."
"Ashley Burke," Hermione whispered. "Carey's aunt?"
Snape shook his head, saying, "His father."
"Next we'll find that his grandfather's name was Courtney," Hermione muttered drolly. "What do you suppose it means by 'you are probably really hungry'?"
"I guess we'll find out," Snape proposed.
Hermione went on, followed closely by Snape. They got to another dead end which opened the second the light of Hermione's wand hit it. Hermione extinguished the light and exited the tunnel. Snape and her glanced about. They were just meters away from the Great Hall.
"D'you..d'you think Ashley Burke built a tunnel for the sole purpose of getting to lunch before anyone else?" Snape asked, smiling at Hermione.
She couldn't help but laugh. It was the silliest thing she had ever head.
"Why would Carey be interested in this tunnel?" Hermione queried. "Lunch isn't for two hours."
"Tunnel," Snape muttered to himself, looking back at the wall that had closed. "Carey complained about rock, didn't he? The walls of the road less traveled are made of rock."
"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked.
"At the Yule Ball, when I followed Carey," Snape began, "I heard him say that he couldn't dig directly into the castle."
"Enchantments prevent such things," Hermione blurted, remembering something she had read in Hogwarts: A History. "Very few have found ways to make tunnels from place to place. I guess Ashley Burke was among them."
"Carey said it'd be hard to break through," Snape continued, pondering.
"Please tell me what you're getting at," Hermione requested, feeling a bit weary.
"Carey's tunneling Devia into the road less traveled," Snape told her bluntly.
"Wait! That means if we destroy the road less traveled-" Hermione began, overwhelmed with excitement.
"We stop Devia and Voldemort's plot," Snape finished for her.
Hermione hugged Snape, saying, "You're a genius! We can save the school! I can go home!"
Hermione pulled away quickly and looked up at Snape. His smile was fading.
"I'll miss you," Snape whispered, running his hand down Hermione's cheek.
"That's not all you'll miss!"
Hermione and Snape turned and looked at Carey Burke. His normally charming smile was replaced by a scowl and he held his wand up, pointing at them. Hermione clung to Snape's robes. Snape, in turn, pushed Hermione behind him to protect her.
"It sorrows me that you found this out, 'Mione," Carey said, now smiling pleasantly. "I hoped we could be together, powerful under Voldemort's rule. Pity you chose to waste your affections on the disgrace of Slytherin."
Hermione was surprised to see Snape not move an inch in response to Carey's taunting. She had never known him to be a man of self-control. Snape's face did get awfully red, though.
Carey glanced about the entrance hall until he saw something that made him smile. He walked over to the wall Snape and Hermione had come out of. Quickly, he muttered something and tapped the wall with his wand. The wall opened.
"Inside!" Carey commanded.
Snape didn't move. Covering Snape with his wand, Carey grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her to the road less traveled. Hermione fell to her knees inside the tunnel. She glanced up at Carey. His maniacal smile was unnerving.
"It really is a pity you're so beautiful," Carey said. "I hate to have such beauty perish in the darkness and wither by the stone."
Hermione saw Snape take this opportunity to reach into his robes and pull out his wand.
"Let Hermione go!" he commanded.
Carey wheeled around, holding up his wand. Both guys stood frozen, wands in their hands, and scowls on their faces. Hermione wasn't sure what to do. She fumbled for her own wand. Before she got it out, a spell was cast and a blast heard. Snape was on the ground.
*************
A stabbing pain in Snape's left side forced him to jolt into consciousness. His eyelids inched open, staring up at the beautiful face before him. Only the firelight of a nearby torch lit her face, casting elegant shadows throughout her brunette hair. Her deep chocolate eyes sparkled with tears.
"Where are we?" Snape groaned, trying to get up, but feeling a stiff pain in his back as he did.
"The road less traveled," Hermione told him gently. "For a while, I thought you were dead."
"I'm fine," Snape assured her. "We've got to find a way out of here."
"Carey took our wands and only wand light can open the walls from the inside," Hermione explained. "He said that we wouldn't get out until he broke through with Devia. Severus, he breaks through in eighteen years. We'll die in here!"
Snape took Hermione's hand, saying, "We'll get out. I promise that I'll find a way."
Hermione lowered her head, tears running down her cheeks. Snape couldn't stand it. He couldn't just sit and watch her cry. With compulsion, Snape jumped up and searched the walls thoroughly. There had to be some way out. It couldn't end like this.
Hermione looked up from where she was sitting as Snape looked over Ashley Burke's words.
"Severus," she said, her voice quivering. "If we're going to die, I need to tell you something."
"Since when are you so pessimistic?" Snape asked, kneeling down next to Hermione. "I promised I'd get you out, didn't I?"
Hermione reached up and ran her fingers through Snape's hair as she whispered, "I love you."
Snape just stared at her a moment, then he leaned in and kissed her.
"Gross!" came a voice concurrent with a blast of light into the tunnel.
Snape looked up and squinted at the shadow standing in the midst of the open wall.
"We leave you one minute, 'Mione," it was James Potter's voice, "and find you smooching with Slytherins."
It was the first time in his life that Snape was glad to see the marauders, though they did choose an inopportune time to rescue Hermione and him. Hermione got to her feet and ran over to James.
"C'mon, Severus," Hermione invited.
"No, close it! Close it!" Squealed Pettigrew.
Snape stood up and walked out of the tunnel.
"Can anyone lend me a wand?" Hermione requested.
Remus Lupin handed her his wand. Hermione ran over to the tunnel. She casted "Aboleo!" Immediately, the ceiling of the road less traveled began to collapse. Hermione pushed the wall closed just as a cascade of dust filled the entrance hall.
"'Mione, are you going mental?" Black demanded. "Why'd you destroy that tunnel? It could have come in handy at one time or another."
Hermione didn't answer him. She just walked up to Snape and hugged him around the waste. Snape held her close.
"It's over," Hermione whispered.
The marauders looked at each other.
"I think the lunatics would like to be alone," Potter said, leading the way away from the scene.
The other marauders followed his example and left.
"It's been one wild ride," Snape breathed, resting his cheek against Hermione's hair.
A/N: In case anyone's wondering how the marauders knew Hermione and Snape were in the road less traveled and how to get them out, they used the marauders map.
FROM MY HEAD TO MY HEART
Chapter Nine: Running on Faith
Hermione shifted her fingers in her and Snape's finger lock as they walked down the stairs to the dungeon. They were approaching the Potions room. Hermione never did much like Potions, but that was because Snape was a teacher. Hermione laughed to herself and glanced up at Snape. She couldn't help but wonder what had turned such a misunderstood young man into a cruel old guy. Snape looked back at her, smiling. Hermione had never felt so happy.
"Stone...road less travelled...dirt, dirt, dirt...Devia," grumbled someone in the darkness.
Hermione and Snape stopped halfway down the stairs, barely in view of the Potions class door. Snape pressed his finger to his lips and left Hermione to sneak down and see who had been grumbling about such things. Hermione watched Snape peer into the darkness, then scurried back to her side.
"It's Carey," Snape whispered, his arm around Hermione.
Carey emerged from the darkness and went into the Potions room, slamming the door behind him. Snape led the way down the stairs.
"Why do you suppose Carey was late?" Hermione asked in a hushed tone.
"Don't know," Snape admitted, "but he was not coming by way of Slytherin house."
"D'you think that grumbling was because he was doing something with Devia?" Hermione proposed.
"Seems quite likely," Snape said, still peering into the darkness. "But what was that he was saying about road less traveled?"
Hermione just shrugged.
She felt Snape pull her closer as he asked, "D'you think we should check it out?"
Hermione quickly nodded.
Snape plunged into the darkness, bringing Hermione along with him. The dampness and darkness of the place was quite unnerving. Hermione pulled out her wand and caused it to light up. It didn't help the feel of the place much. Now, it was just damp stone walls and darkness ahead. Snape and Hermione continued on until they reached a dead end.
"Come on!" Hermione exclaimed. "How could Carey have come right out of a wall?"
Snape walked up to the dead end and felt the wall for idiosyncrasies. Hermione glanced about until she noticed shadows to indicate grooves of some kind in the wall beside her. She looked more closely and saw it was words.
"Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference"
-Robert Frost
I D A V E
"Severus!" Hermione called. "Look at this!"
Snape came up quickly and looked over the words.
"I, Dave?" he said in confusion.
"Dave who?" Hermione asked.
Snape just shrugged, saying, "Do you think it's a sort of code?"
"If so, what does it mean?" Hermione muttered unhappily.
"'Took the one less traveled by,'" Snape read over. "Isn't that one of the things Carey was grumbling about?"
"I think so," Hermione told him, hoping he had a sort of plan.
"I, Dave," Snape repeated, rubbing his chin.
"I, Dave," Hermione murmured, feeling slightly frustrated. "I, Dave. Dave I. Davi. Dav- WAIT!"
Snape glanced at her in curiosity.
Hermione ran her finger over the letters I, D, A, V, and E. She tapped her wand against the letters in the following order: D, E, V, I, A. Snape caught on and nodded. The letters began to glow, then the hall began to shake. Snape put his arms around Hermione. The portion of the wall that had the word and letters on it swung aside. It was a corridor like any other, but hidden from anyone who did not know the Latin word for an out of way road.
Hermione held out her illuminated wand and started into the tunnel. Snape came along, keeping a hold of her hand. A loud scrapping sound informed the couple that the wall had closed behind them. The thought that they could be trapped could not be prevented from entering Hermione's head. Still, she continued on.
"Look!" Snape pointed out more words in the wall. "Maybe it's a way out."
The words said, "If you have found the road less traveled, then you are probably really hungry. I hope it serves as well you as it has me. Best wishes, Ashley Burke."
"Ashley Burke," Hermione whispered. "Carey's aunt?"
Snape shook his head, saying, "His father."
"Next we'll find that his grandfather's name was Courtney," Hermione muttered drolly. "What do you suppose it means by 'you are probably really hungry'?"
"I guess we'll find out," Snape proposed.
Hermione went on, followed closely by Snape. They got to another dead end which opened the second the light of Hermione's wand hit it. Hermione extinguished the light and exited the tunnel. Snape and her glanced about. They were just meters away from the Great Hall.
"D'you..d'you think Ashley Burke built a tunnel for the sole purpose of getting to lunch before anyone else?" Snape asked, smiling at Hermione.
She couldn't help but laugh. It was the silliest thing she had ever head.
"Why would Carey be interested in this tunnel?" Hermione queried. "Lunch isn't for two hours."
"Tunnel," Snape muttered to himself, looking back at the wall that had closed. "Carey complained about rock, didn't he? The walls of the road less traveled are made of rock."
"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked.
"At the Yule Ball, when I followed Carey," Snape began, "I heard him say that he couldn't dig directly into the castle."
"Enchantments prevent such things," Hermione blurted, remembering something she had read in Hogwarts: A History. "Very few have found ways to make tunnels from place to place. I guess Ashley Burke was among them."
"Carey said it'd be hard to break through," Snape continued, pondering.
"Please tell me what you're getting at," Hermione requested, feeling a bit weary.
"Carey's tunneling Devia into the road less traveled," Snape told her bluntly.
"Wait! That means if we destroy the road less traveled-" Hermione began, overwhelmed with excitement.
"We stop Devia and Voldemort's plot," Snape finished for her.
Hermione hugged Snape, saying, "You're a genius! We can save the school! I can go home!"
Hermione pulled away quickly and looked up at Snape. His smile was fading.
"I'll miss you," Snape whispered, running his hand down Hermione's cheek.
"That's not all you'll miss!"
Hermione and Snape turned and looked at Carey Burke. His normally charming smile was replaced by a scowl and he held his wand up, pointing at them. Hermione clung to Snape's robes. Snape, in turn, pushed Hermione behind him to protect her.
"It sorrows me that you found this out, 'Mione," Carey said, now smiling pleasantly. "I hoped we could be together, powerful under Voldemort's rule. Pity you chose to waste your affections on the disgrace of Slytherin."
Hermione was surprised to see Snape not move an inch in response to Carey's taunting. She had never known him to be a man of self-control. Snape's face did get awfully red, though.
Carey glanced about the entrance hall until he saw something that made him smile. He walked over to the wall Snape and Hermione had come out of. Quickly, he muttered something and tapped the wall with his wand. The wall opened.
"Inside!" Carey commanded.
Snape didn't move. Covering Snape with his wand, Carey grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her to the road less traveled. Hermione fell to her knees inside the tunnel. She glanced up at Carey. His maniacal smile was unnerving.
"It really is a pity you're so beautiful," Carey said. "I hate to have such beauty perish in the darkness and wither by the stone."
Hermione saw Snape take this opportunity to reach into his robes and pull out his wand.
"Let Hermione go!" he commanded.
Carey wheeled around, holding up his wand. Both guys stood frozen, wands in their hands, and scowls on their faces. Hermione wasn't sure what to do. She fumbled for her own wand. Before she got it out, a spell was cast and a blast heard. Snape was on the ground.
*************
A stabbing pain in Snape's left side forced him to jolt into consciousness. His eyelids inched open, staring up at the beautiful face before him. Only the firelight of a nearby torch lit her face, casting elegant shadows throughout her brunette hair. Her deep chocolate eyes sparkled with tears.
"Where are we?" Snape groaned, trying to get up, but feeling a stiff pain in his back as he did.
"The road less traveled," Hermione told him gently. "For a while, I thought you were dead."
"I'm fine," Snape assured her. "We've got to find a way out of here."
"Carey took our wands and only wand light can open the walls from the inside," Hermione explained. "He said that we wouldn't get out until he broke through with Devia. Severus, he breaks through in eighteen years. We'll die in here!"
Snape took Hermione's hand, saying, "We'll get out. I promise that I'll find a way."
Hermione lowered her head, tears running down her cheeks. Snape couldn't stand it. He couldn't just sit and watch her cry. With compulsion, Snape jumped up and searched the walls thoroughly. There had to be some way out. It couldn't end like this.
Hermione looked up from where she was sitting as Snape looked over Ashley Burke's words.
"Severus," she said, her voice quivering. "If we're going to die, I need to tell you something."
"Since when are you so pessimistic?" Snape asked, kneeling down next to Hermione. "I promised I'd get you out, didn't I?"
Hermione reached up and ran her fingers through Snape's hair as she whispered, "I love you."
Snape just stared at her a moment, then he leaned in and kissed her.
"Gross!" came a voice concurrent with a blast of light into the tunnel.
Snape looked up and squinted at the shadow standing in the midst of the open wall.
"We leave you one minute, 'Mione," it was James Potter's voice, "and find you smooching with Slytherins."
It was the first time in his life that Snape was glad to see the marauders, though they did choose an inopportune time to rescue Hermione and him. Hermione got to her feet and ran over to James.
"C'mon, Severus," Hermione invited.
"No, close it! Close it!" Squealed Pettigrew.
Snape stood up and walked out of the tunnel.
"Can anyone lend me a wand?" Hermione requested.
Remus Lupin handed her his wand. Hermione ran over to the tunnel. She casted "Aboleo!" Immediately, the ceiling of the road less traveled began to collapse. Hermione pushed the wall closed just as a cascade of dust filled the entrance hall.
"'Mione, are you going mental?" Black demanded. "Why'd you destroy that tunnel? It could have come in handy at one time or another."
Hermione didn't answer him. She just walked up to Snape and hugged him around the waste. Snape held her close.
"It's over," Hermione whispered.
The marauders looked at each other.
"I think the lunatics would like to be alone," Potter said, leading the way away from the scene.
The other marauders followed his example and left.
"It's been one wild ride," Snape breathed, resting his cheek against Hermione's hair.
A/N: In case anyone's wondering how the marauders knew Hermione and Snape were in the road less traveled and how to get them out, they used the marauders map.