Disclaimer: Same as time before last

By the way thanks for the wonderful reviews! I loved them.

Dumbledore stared at the man before him. Snape was standing unsteadily, gaping as he tried to breath through the torrent of blood pouring from his nose into his mouth. He was swaying, eyes rolling even as he tried to focus on the old man who was trying to attack him. He fell a moment later, crumbling to the floor like a tower of hard rock suddenly blasted apart.

Dumbledore strided foward swiftly, picking up the man from the floor. His usually twinkling blue eyes a well of unshed tears as he noticed with horror the weightlessness of the man in his arms and the blood issuing forth without restraint. He hurried towards the castle, grateful of the cover of the night. . As he reached the Hospital Wing, blood was staining his robes a darker purple. Color seeming to transfer from Severus to his clothes, leaving the young man more white than usual. This time a deathly white.

'Poppy!'

He called urgently, setting Severus carefully on a bed. He had called loudly, still his voice was serene and calm. As one who is simply accompanying one's friend to a nightime stroll. But in truth his soul was weighted down by worry. Madam Pomfrey came into view pulling a night robe over her flowery sleeping gown. There was a frown on her face as she had been roused from sleep. But as her eyes travelled over Dumbledore's dirtied robes and settled on the shaking form of the Potions Master it was replaced by widened eyes in shock and she took a few hesitant steps foward.

'What happened Albus?'

She whispered softly, the sound barely perturbing the stiffling silence of the empty Hospital Wing. Dumbledore shook his head wearily and pointed at Snape. Guilt and dread at the thought of losing Severus seeming to choke him, like a thick rope around his neck. Poppy took out her wand, eyes still widened, and lighted the gloomy room. She began the inspection at the feet, as usual. And spoke aloud more for Albus' sake than herself's. She knew the old Headmaster would want to know exactly what was wrong with the man, for though to most the Potions Master was not held in high esteem it was well known, at least among the staff, that he cared for the man dearly.

'Sprained ankle, cuts and bruises..' she began writing quickly in a small notebook to keep track, for it was obvious there were a great extent of injuries.

'Broken wrist, three cracked ribs one piercing the left lung, crushed homoplate ...'

Dumbledore marvelled at the strength of Severus, how he had held the wand with a broken wrist was a mystery to him.

'Split lip, broken nose...'

The wand paused over Snape's eyes, the eyelids were closed but his pupils were rolling around the sockets wildly.

'Lack of sleep. And though that is visible to the plain eye, severe malnutrition. Exhaustion due to both.'

Madam Pomfrey let her arm go down, still holding her wand and stared at the Headmaster, brows furrowed. She did not like the Potions Master very much and she avoided seeing him at all costs, but she could not believe Dumbledore had let Professor Snape destroy himself in such way. For it was clear from his sunken cheeks and protruding bones in all his body that he had not eaten in days, and properly not in months. And about the injuries? Now she was curious about those, no fall could lead to the way he was in. It seemed to her more like the results of...torture. Dumbledore simply shook shook his head, still unable to talk. She pursed her lips but proceded to treat her patient.

Brandishing her wand once more she mended the sprain easily, along with the broken wrist,shoulder and nose.

'No wonder his bones break so easily, with nothing more than skin to protect them...'

She muttered as she continued to the ribs. The went back together with a satisfying click. The muscles between the ribs were bruised and torn but she wanted to fix the lung first. For his rattling breath only served to indicate that blood was starting to soak the organ. Pointing her wand at the wound she began making slow circles, knowing underneath the pale skin and behind the ribcage the small veins and ripped membrane were fusing back together. After a few tense moments she was done and heard and audible sigh of relief escape the old man hovering behind her, who had, it appeared, been following her every movement.

'Now I'll have to wake him up for him to expel the blood in his lung Headmaster.'

She stated, the coldness she had tried to set agaisnt him in defence of her newest patient withering away as she looked into his tired eyes.

'Yes, go ahead dear. Though you better be quick about it.'

Dumbledore settled on the bed's other side and took Severus' icy cold hand. He had managed to break through a barrier that afternoon with that hand squeeze, but he had a feeling Voldemort had taken all progress away. When Severus woke up he would probably have set iron walls around himself once more, and the melting of that metal he had managed in all those years would be lost.

'Enervate.'

Rang through the room and Madam Pomfrey quickly reached for a metal tray. Severus opened his eyes abruptly, making the woman gasp. His darting black eyes filled with unnatural fear danced around the room to finally land on Dumbledore. Drawing in breath in surprise made him gag and a become overpowered by piercing cough spell. Blood escaped his mouth as he shook with the effort of struggling to stop coughing, Poppy patted his shoulder tenderly knowing it would hurt more if he was fighting agaisnt it. But only made him flinch and attempt to back away from her. A trickle of blood sliding down his jaw as he tried to stand up and leave. Dumbledore took action at the woman's wordless gaping, and with a silent plead for forgiveness he stupefied Severus.

'Oh my.'

The nurse said finally after laying Snape back on the bed. Dumbledore just sighed in grief and went back to sitting beside the man, picking up the bony hand once more. His eyes locked on the troubled face of his once student. His breathing was still rather shallow, raising his thin chest up and down. He glanced at Poppy as the woman made a small noise, as though just about to speak but thinking better of it.

'What is it Poppy?'

She pursed her lips in a stab of decisiveness, the healer in her taking over.

'It's just that- Well, I would recommend feeding via intravenosa for a few days. Professor Snape is in desperate need of some weight gain..but I don't think he shall be very amused by it.'

The old man nodded in agreement, no Severus would not appreciate it. But just feeling his hand made him decided to allow it, for it felt like holding a skeleton. Madam Pomfrey reached for her wand and grasped Snape's arm firmly, she jabbed it at the crook of the arm and a thin cord issued from her wand. It pierced his rather traslucent skin and connected with the painfully visible bluish vein, she pulled her wand back leading the tube to a metal stick beside the bed where a bag of glucose appeared. She put her wand away back in her pocket and watched in pity as the nutritients the young man was in desperate need of made their way silently inside the invisible cord and into his blood. Muggles used similar devices, though they were rather more painful and stranger.

'Poppy dear go to bed already. I'll stay with Severus.'

Madam Pomfrey nodded solemly and returned back to her quarters. Albus sighed once more in deeper regret and pity. Conjuring a wet cloth he wiped the blood from Severus' face and then sat back down, grasping his hand and holding it gently.