The Healing
'Miss Granger' the silky words slipped past the throbbing ache in her head. She stirred, eyes flickering open and fixing weakly on the silhouetted figure leaning over her, registering briefly the cold hand resting lightly on her upper arm..
'P-professor'
His shoulders tensed involuntarily as he watched her bright eyes close for a moment, grimacing as she let out a shuddering sigh that caught roughly in her throat… tears seeped from the long, thick lashes lining those glassy eyes and ran in rivulets down her stained cheeks…
She swallowed hard, failing to push herself up and collapsing back against the sinking mattress, the slightest moan of pain escaping her dry, cracked lips.
He lent closer to her, gazing into her glassy eyes until they shifted to meet his stare.
Dimly, he noticed her hand reach up and caress a lock of black hair that had trailed down the side of his face.
His hand caught hers, the long, elegant fingers closing firmly between hers, and tracing the delicate lines of her palm with sharp, straight-edged nails. His head inclined to one side slightly as he surveyed her thoughtfully, his other hand travelling toward the ragged hole in her shirt. Before she could react he had torn the thin material, the fraying edges ripping apart as though they were tissue paper…
Bare skin shone through as he shifted closer to her, the change in weight causing the mattress to sink further and a strip of moonlight to fall across her face. His fingers gently pressed the raw skin around the wound… the blood had dried in flakes. Repulsed, he drew his wand from the leather holster strapped close to his abdomen, deep within his robes.
'No… please… PROFESSOR!'
'Lay still… unless you wish to do yourself more damage' he hissed, easing her back against the pillows and pinning her beneath him.
'Lie back… ssh… close your eyes' she grudgingly complied, through fear of what he might do if she refused.
His grasp shifted on her tender shoulder, peeling the soaked material, the scratch of his sharp nails waking the skin beneath the layers of blood and fatigue. Part of her mind wanted to blank out that fact that Snape was slowly undressing her… and then the weirdest of sensations ran through her body. It was like ice… like ice throbbing through every vein in her body… a strange dull numbness that she could not express…
Forcing her eyes open, she felt her voice die inside her chest as a gruesome vision met her sight - thin strands of transparent skin seemed to be entwining with each other, drawing the wound closed - sewing it back together like thread…
…she had fainted. Severus restored his wand safely back inside his robes and stood, moving toward a small cabinet, its wooden surface scratched and faded from neglect, a thick layer of dust frosting the once smooth sill. Neatly folded clothes belonging to its previous owner were stored inside the top drawer. He rummaged through the silky soft materials until he found something suitable…
Velvety black material scrunched beneath his fingertips, and the weighty fabric tumbled down and hung in its intricately sewn shape, dangling from his grasp and shimmering in the faint moonlight. It was perhaps slightly large for Granger, but it was a damned site better than rags she currently presented …
Tear welled deep within the intense gaze of the man as he surveyed her - his bespectacled emerald green eyes sparkling with a passionate sadness as he continued to gaze through the swirling black mist… his messy black hair falling lifelessly around his pale face. A face whose sharp features jutted prematurely, drawing the once soft, smooth young skin taut… old eyes, young face…
A hand drifted gently across her jaw line, delicately pressing against the ridge of unfinished bone as he tilted her head slightly. Something cold and smooth pressed against her dried, split lips and overwhelmed her mouth with icy water. She jerked upwards and coughed… into his strong, warm embrace… for a few moments, she let him rock her back and forth, then he drew away…
'Here… you could use something less ah… revealing I think' he thrust the velvet material at her and rose, striding purposefully from the room.
'You… are no longer needed in my service. The Dark Lord should have known that such a useless… futile… pointless piece of vermin like you could be of no use to this mission'
Wormtail wrung his hands and flinched with every word that Severus spat at him. His watery eyes screwed up with intense dislike as he met the venomous glare of the taller man…
'Now get out… before I change my mind…' He uttered in a low, malevolent threat, twiddling the black wooden wand between his fingertips.
Wormtail did not need telling twice… he fiddled helplessly with the latch on the door and stumbled outside in a flurry of harsh wind.
'Why..?' a small, barely recognisable voice uttered behind him. He turned and fixed the girl with a questionable glance.
The velvet dress clung tightly to her figure, revealing the fresh scar across her shoulder and quite a few shy curves…
'Why?' he repeated sardonically, pushing the door shut with a snap that caused the girl to flinch 'because the Dark Lord does not appreciate fools meddling with his plans… and besides… I'd have you would feel ah… less threatened' his eyes travelled her body… a smirk daring to raise his thin lips slightly…
She nodded dazedly, stumbling and catching the door handle for support…
'What… what happened last night?' she asked quickly, her eyes widening as his shadow fell across her face, swallowing and straining to focus as he approached…
'I take it in your desperation, you took me for someone else… perhaps a certain Weasley' his eyes shone with malice, but inwardly she felt it was not solely directed at her, ha however taken another step toward her.
'Ron… it didn't… work' she stated simply, then questioned how and why she had divulged that personal bit of information to Snape.
'Volde- I mean… h-he'll think you and m-' she broke off, took a deep breath and mentally shook herself '-Wormtail will have t-told him a-about-'
'It's possible I suppose' Snape cut her off, scratching his chin unconcernedly.
'W-we didn't… did we?' Hermione's eyes widened with horror.
'No Miss Granger… I may be a murderer-' she flinched and turned her head away from him '-but they're are some things even I would not consider'
She met his eyes for a second…
…I noticed your old Professor kinda has a thing for you…
'That Dark Lord has called for your service… you will accompany me to tonight… I will take you to him' Snape told her this with an impassive coldness, his eyes glittering, his gaze intense. So that was the reason for the dress at least.
Funny, but when the human mind is overwhelmed with a powerful emotion they cannot control, sometimes it is the simplest detail that becomes the pivotal point of the situation. Hermione closed her eyes, willing herself to stand strong for once…
This chapter is all about the exploration of feelings… too many times I have read a fic that uses hardly any so maybe that is why I felt I needed to go overboard… hope you enjoyed it - the fun starts in the next chapter - read it if you dare…