Severus faded out of consciousness in a whirl of searing pain. He didn't hear the screams of shock, didn't feel Hermione applying pressure to his wound, he was in a world of nothing.
"Severus, Severus wake up." He heard a voice call him.
He sluggishly raised his lids and found himself face to face with what appeared to be Hermione Granger-but ten years older. Severus was alarmed to say the least, but he hid his nano-second of surprise and asked, "what happened?"
Hermione moved to the side, and too his shock he saw his own body, and another that looked like himself 20 years ago.
"This is the incident that brought us together Severus. The year is 1999, I was a student at Hogwarts, you were the potions master, and you are both adult and young master Snape. Lucious Malfoy stabbed you with a dagger and you are at the threshold of death." Severus took careful note of the emotion in her voice as she explained the situation.
"You have to believe what I'm going to show you, otherwise you'll die as you did in my reality." Hermione finished.
"But-" he began.
"You can't speak Severus. You'll see a variety of images, and you have to key into what you most want in the world, and which holds the most truth. You'll know what's right when you see it." She finished and lightly kissed him on the mouth.
She pulled back, and muttered an incantation under her breath while waving her wand. The darkness took him again.
********
A street grew before Severus. The air reeked of urine and vomit. The sky was grey but it hadn't rained for days, as evidenced by the dust everywhere. A vagrant scuffled across the way, apparently oblivious to him. Severus felt himself raise his wand arm and mutter the killing curse. The figure dropped dead, and Severus bent over the woman, and exposed the concealed wand. He placed the tip of his own against the flesh and said "Seversia."
The hand came loose of the arm and blood spouted from the new amputation. Severus looked over the hand, wrote a number code on it and placed it in the bag under his cloak. A satisfied look lit his eyes for a moment; Lord Voldemort would be most pleased with him.
Almost as soon as he reacted the scene before him faded. A sense of relief washed over him, but it was fleeting, he soon found himself watching and feeling another image that felt so real he was certain that it was.
***********
This time the setting was inside a house, which looked as if it had been cheerful once, but had fallen into disrepair and neglect. It was somewhere around Christmas as he saw a tree decorated and standing in the corner of a large living room. The wall opposite was full of pictures of a boy of 6 or 7 who had dark, messy black hair; ginger colored eyes and a wondrous expression on his pale face.
A door closing stirred him and he looked up to see a brown haired woman wrapped in a cloak. She turned to face him and Severus was startled to discover the owner of the greying hair, pallid face and tired eyes was Hermione Granger. He looked at her in surprise, and was taken aback by her sharp tone.
"Don't give me that look Snape. Its Christmas, I'm not in the mood for your accusations."
She rushed from the room and strode down the hallway in hasty search of something. Severus could hear her footsteps returning a few moments later, and he heard a sharp cry follow her through the house. Curiosity got the better of him, and Snape silently moved forward to better hear the muffled voices.
"I don't wanna stay here mummy, I want to go with you." The little boy sounded desperate.
"Eddie, you have to stay with your father, it won't be for long I promise." Hermione said if a far different tone than the one Severus had heard earlier.
"Please mummy, he hates me!" Eddie pleaded.
Hermione shushed the child and when he was quiet she moved forward again. Snape hastily retreated to his former spot and was there before she came round the bend. "I suppose if Potter's there you'll be giving Eddie a playmate." Severus heard himself say.
"Yes Severus, I'm leaving you, taking Eddie with me and marrying Harry since you're so bound and determined to see that happen." Hermione spat acidly and strode out of the door.
As before, Severus felt ill and wished to be away from what he had just seen. Another winter scene played out before him, but this time he found himself sitting on a warm blanket across from a little girl with rosy cheeks, straight brown hair and sparkling black eyes.
"It's your turn daddy." The girl said expectantly, clearly waiting for him to do something.
Severus felt a warmth flow over him that he was unaccustomed too, but nonetheless he knew instantly that he wanted it and whatever came with it.