Ch 11: The Truth is Stranger Than Fiction
Snape cursed his weakness as he dragged Hermione to the headmaster's office. He couldn't believe how he had let his guard drop, pathetically coming to believe that she was sincere, that she posed no threat to the school. Now, after everything (not the least of which was the aborted kiss) he had learned of her lies.
Learned that she had brought a killer to this world.
The fact that the killer in question was none other than Lucius Malfoy was even harder for Severus to stomach. He shuddered at the memories of the cruelties Malfoy had inflicted upon this world; it was a cruel twist of fate that he, of all the Death Eaters, was allowed to return.
Severus had defeated Malfoy before and possibly could again if necessary. His mind drifted back to the last few moments of the Final Battle. Bitterly, he remembered that he had been too late to save Granger from Malfoy's curse. And though he had avenged her, her death still weighed heavily on his soul.
Ironic that she was responsible for her killer's reappearance in this world.
All thoughts of the past aside, Severus was half tempted to let Malfoy have the infuriating woman. He should never have allowed himself to trust her; inevitably, trusting people always led him to trouble. It was, oddly enough, the guilt over his inability to save this world's Hermione that had softened him towards this older version. Traitorously, his body reminded him of how perfect she had felt cradled against him mere moments ago; she had felt as though she had belonged there, molded to his side.
Brushing aside such traitorous thoughts, Severus glanced at the woman in question. She was trailing along beside him, occasionally stumbling in an attempt to keep up with his longer strides. He tightened his grip on her arm when she tripped and threatened to fall. He couldn't help but notice the looks of shock and fear on her face. Whether they were because of Malfoy or having to face the headmaster, Severus wasn't sure.
"Come along, Miss Granger. We shan't keep the headmaster waiting for the explanation as to why Lucius Malfoy had once again come to grace this world with his presence."
"Hey, wait up." Snape grimaced as he heard the youngest male Weasley's footfalls behind him. He had forgotten the redhead was there.
Severus stopped, tightening his grip on Hermione's arm when she didn't slow. He noted, with a pang of concern, that she was pale, her eyes wide and unseeing. Nor did she respond when he said her name. Brusquely pushing aside his concern, he turned his attention to Weasley.
"Your presence is no longer required, Mr Weasley. We will speak to the headmaster without you," Severus sneered.
As expected, Weasley's face grew red with fury. "You greasy-"
"Ron," Hermione said in a small voice, "He's right. You can't go with us."
Snape watched as Weasley cast a worried glance in his friend's direction. He must have noticed Snape's firm grip on her arm, because he asked, "Is he hurting you, Hermione? Because if he is…"
She shook her head tiredly. "I'm fine. Please… Just go."
Weasley looked at her doubtfully, but with a threatening sneer from Snape, must have thought better of questioning her further. He glared at Snape defiantly before turning his attentions back to Hermione.
"I'll go, but if he does anything to you tell me, hear?"
She nodded, giving him a small smile.
"Well, now that you are done reassuring your boyfriend that I'm not going to kill you, shall we?" Snape drawled.
Hermione, seemingly recovered from her earlier shock, glared at Snape. The looked lacked the ferocity that it normally carried, and Severus could easily tell that she was worried and on edge. Instead of retorting further, she merely shook herself free of his grip and turned her back to him.
They made their way to headmaster's office, Severus harshly shouting the password when he reached the statue. With mock politeness, he gestured for her to precede him. She swept ahead of him regally, but her façade crumbled upon seeing Albus. Severus scoffed at her apparent distress; he would not be so easily fooled by her act again.
"Headmaster, I believe Miss Granger has something she needs to tell you," Severus pronounced. Albus looked at him gravely before turning his attention to Hermione.
"This concerns the Dark Mark and Mr. Crabbe's death, I assume," he asked her gently.
Snape answered instead. "Yes, Albus. Miss Granger has information concerning her involvements in the killing." Albus sent him a look that quelled any further comment.
Severus grimaced, ignoring the headmaster and turning his attention to Hermione. He expected that she would be angry at his inference, but was again surprised to see only a tired resignation.
"Hermione," Albus asked again, "What do you know about Mr. Crabbe's murder?"
Both men watched as Hermione sat heavily into one of the office chairs. For a long moment, she was quiet. When she finally broke the silence, Severus couldn't help but be somewhat startled by the brittleness of her voice.
"Lucius was in the dungeons when I arrived from the battlefield. He taunted me, kept me from the potion. I knew he would kill me if I raised my wand, so I ran at him, knocking us both into the cauldron. Truthfully, I guess I had forgotten that he was drenched just as much as I was. How could I have known he was dragged through to this reality? He wasn't in the dungeons when I arrived."
Severus interrupted. "You said you knew he was here."
Hermione looked at him, eyes expressionless. "A few weeks ago, I read an article in the Daily Prophet about a rash of murders in Diagon Alley. One of the witnesses mentioned a man with cold grey eyes with a cane. I did consider that it might have been Lucius, but I wasn't sure. When I didn't hear anything more, I assumed I was simply seeing demons where none existed. I would have told you if I'd known for sure!" Her voice was desperate towards the end.
"Nonetheless, you should not have hidden even your suspicions from us. Do you have any idea how dangerous Lucius Malfoy is?" Snape yelled.
Hermione gave a strangled laugh. "Of course I do. He killed my husband and almost killed me!"
Snape glared. "Then you know that he won't stop until you are dead."
She sighed. "Yes, I know." Suddenly, the colour drained from her face. She whirled around to look at Albus and said, "He'll come after Severus when he discovers he's alive in this world. He might even assume that he's my husband." Albus's eyes widened at her slip and Hermione froze.
Severus felt as though time had slowed. As if in slow motion, he saw Hermione turn towards him, her face ashen and her eyes wide. His mind slowly began to put two and two together. In retrospect, he could see evidence of the truth: the way she acted around him, never intimidated; the way she admonished Albus for denying him the Defence position; the ease in which they had worked together over the past few weeks, almost as if she was used to working with him…
"What do you mean by that?" He asked quietly.
"A slip of the tongue, my boy," Albus started. Severus shot a glare his way that stopped him cold. Severus then turned his attention back to Hermione.
"Tell me what you meant. No more lies."
Her eyes slid shut, hiding the pain he had seen in them. Collapsing into a chair, she quietly said, "I was married to Severus Snape." She opened her eyes to look into his shocked stygian gaze. "I was your wife."
The words were undeniable, but Severus did not want to believe them. Suddenly, everything that had happened over the last few weeks seemed like a lie. Certainly, she had simply been using him as a replacement for her dead husband. He felt sickened by the thought. Even more now, he cursed his weakness; he should have never let himself begin to fall-
He didn't let himself finish that thought. It was too much to bear right now. He began to pace the study, occasionally sending a heated glare in her direction. She was tense, watching him with wary eyes. Angrily, Snape stepped in front of her.
"This had better not be a game, Granger," he growled.
Hermione's gaze bore into his own. She stood, causing Severus to take a step back. Her eyes were as hard as agates. "It's no lie. I was married to Severus for six years. He died moments before I came to this world."
Frustrated, he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her towards him. He looked for any indication of a lie in her eyes. Instead, he found only truth and sorrow. He could feel her breath on his skin, feel the blood rushing through her veins, but he couldn't tear himself from her honest gaze.
Minutes passed in which the office was silent, Severus locked in place by her hazel eyes. Eventually, Albus cleared his throat.
Startled, Severus released Hermione. He whirled and stalked away from her. He stopped by one of the windows and gazed out it, lost in thought. He had been so tempted to use Legilimency on her; in fact he had sensed her desire for him to do so. He hadn't though; truthfully, Severus wasn't sure he could have handled what he would find there.
As through a tunnel, he heard Albus ask, "Hermione, how sure are you that Malfoy is the one committing these murders?"
She answered him gravely. "Nearly positive now that the Dark Mark has been sighted. Before I could have passed it off as coincidence, but with this new murder all the evidence points to Lucius."
"Why do you think he didn't appear when you did?" Albus asked.
"I'm not sure." Severus covertly cast a glance in her direction. Her brows were furrowed in thought, and he couldn't help but feel a little jealous towards his other self for having had this brilliant woman. After a few seconds, she continued, "Although, the original purpose of the potion was to transport the user to a place where they felt safe. It's possible he was transported to a more familiar location here. Possibly his manor or some other safe haven."
"It's possible," Severus mused. "Malfoy Manor has been closed for years. Draco had it shut and warded." He turned to look at Hermione, resolving to focus on the matter at hand. "Is it possible the potion could have over rid the warding?"
She nodded. "After all, I was transported inside Hogwarts despite the warding. The fact that I was there in the other reality may have had some bearing. I still think it's possible though."
He nodded. Turning to Albus, he said, "That's where we should start then. There may be evidence at the Manor that could lead us to him."
Albus shook his head. "I will pass this information along to the Aurors, Severus, but Hermione is right. You are in too much danger from Malfoy. He would kill you if he saw you."
Severus glared at him. "I've fooled him before and could do so again."
"Your position as a spy is too well known now, my boy. No doubt Lucius would have discovered your role in our victory over Voldemort."
Severus sighed. Albus was right, as much as he hated to admit it.
"Spy?" He heard Hermione ask. "What do you mean?"
Albus looked at her curiously. "Severus was a spy in Voldemort's camp for a number of years. His information about the attack at the end of Harry's seventh year was the reason we won the battle."
Snape glowered at the old man, who merely looked at him benignly.
"My husband was never a spy," Hermione said quietly. "We had no warning about the attack that day."
Albus laid a hand on her shoulder sympathetically.
Severus was surprised. "Was your husband never a Death Eater, then?" he finally asked.
"He was when he was younger," she said, "but the headmaster thought the risk would be too great for him to resume his spying activities when the Dark Lord arose in my fourth year. They figured his cover was already blown due to the incidents with Quirrel and Pettigrew."
Albus looked at Severus pointedly. "Now do you understand how truly important you contribution to the war was, my boy." The two men looked at each other intently before Snape finally bowed his head in a curt nod.
Albus continued, "And as such, I will not allow you to place yourself in danger further. You will remain inside the castle until the threat from Malfoy has been eliminated." He turned his attentions to Hermione. "The same goes for you as well. I recommend you both use this time to further your research into the Latere potion." He stood, moving towards the hearth. "I'm going the Ministry to speak with Arthur. I believe you two might need to discuss a few things so feel free to use my office to do so." And with that he Floo'ed away.
A/N: This was a tough chapter to write. Hopefully, it doesn't disappoint too much. Next chapter: Severus and Hermione talk.
Thanks for all the great reviews! I'm glad you are liking the story. Big shout out to sophierom, my ever-patient beta!!