It was dark out with no moon to guide her as Airiala searched the extensive grounds of Hogwarts.
She had passed by Hagrid's hut when the wind came rushing to her. There was someone in the Forbidden Forest, alone, and quite human.
Following the trail, she headed into the darkness of the forest alone.
It was even harder to see here than in the clear fields of the school. The little light shining from the windows of the school had provided enough to search by, but here in the woods she was forced to rely on her wind.
"Severus!" she yelled, knowing he would answer her if he was out there. "Severus!"
She had to be getting closer because the wind was getting stronger. Airiala was beginning to panic. What was Professor Snape doing out here?
"Sever…" Airiala hit the ground. She had tripped over something rather large…and moaning!
Airiala looked at her feet and could see a figure in the darkness. "Severus?" she said softly.
The figure looked up towards her. "It's…Professor…" The man tried to say, but Airiala didn't care. She instantly recognized that voice.
"Oh, Professor Snape! I've found you!" she said moving to his side. Airiala listened to his shallow breathing and started fearing the worst.
"What happened?" she asked gently. She touched his side and felt a warm, sticky liquid reaching her fingers. She instantly drew back.
"Dear God!" she exclaimed. "You're bleeding!"
Taking the bottom of her shirt she ripped it and covered his wound. Then she sent the wind to Hogwarts to get someone's attention. Then it was quiet, with only their breathing breaking the silence.
Airiala kept pressure on the wound on his side for several minutes before she realized that could be one wound of many.
"Are you injured anywhere else?" she asked gently. Snape tried to answer, but he couldn't get the words out. Suddenly he felt a hand on his cheek.
The hand, though covered in his blood, was warm and soft. Just like the voice that came with it. "Just nod yes or no."
He shook his head indicating he had no other injuries, at least none as bad as the one on his side she was already attending to.
"Are you sure?" This time he answered with a nod. "Okay, I had to make sure."
Airiala went back to concentrating on his wound. She didn't know what had happened, but once he was well enough to speak she was going to find out.
The wind came rushing around them suddenly and Airiala looked up to see someone coming toward her carrying a light.
"Over here!" she yelled. The light moved toward her faster and suddenly both Hagrid and Dumbledore were visible.
"He's bleeding badly," Airiala said as she removed the rest of her shirt and placed it over the wound.
Hagrid placed the lantern on the ground before gently picking Snape up and keeping pressure on the wound.
"Take him to your cabin Hagrid," Dumbledore said. Hagrid nodded before heading off in the direction of Hogwarts.
Dumbledore quickly transfigured a nearby stick into a large blanket, which he handed to Airiala before picking up the lantern.
"We need to hurry," he said. Airiala wrapped the blanket around her bare shoulders and nodded.
When they reached Hagrid's cabin Dumbledore asked Airiala to wait outside.
"I'll call you when we're finished. Stay out here and don't let anyone in here."
Airiala nodded and quickly set up a wind barrier around the building after Dumbledore had entered the cabin.
The next several minutes seemed like hours to the girl. She was tired and worried. What could have happened? Was his spy status revealed and they tried to kill him. Would they try again?
Did they succeed this time?
By the time Dumbledore opened the door, Airiala had worked herself up to near tears.
"Airiala?"
She looked up and quickly rushed through her barrier and to Dumbledore. "Is he okay?"
Dumbledore smiled at her. "Yes, you can come in now."
Airiala didn't even wait for Dumbledore's permission before rushing past him into the cabin, straight to Snape's side.
He was lying on a rather uncomfortable looking bench, looking a little worse for wear, but he was breathing steadily. He was going to live.
"Thank god," Airiala said as she sat on the ground next to the bench.
Dumbledore smiled at the girl. "If it hadn't of been for you he would have died before morning. You saved his life. Thank you."
Airiala took Snape's large hand in her rather small ones. Despite all the time they spent arguing she still couldn't imagine Hogwarts without him. "I care about him. He's my friend."
She actually cared about him. Snape was in shock. He wasn't asleep, just resting as best he could on the hard bench. He has almost jumped when she took his hand in her own.
Even in the woods, when she had been taking care of him, he hadn't realized how close to tears she was. Then when he saw her sitting there in the cool weather using her shirt to keep pressure on his wound, leaving her half-naked in just her bra and jeans, he understood how much she had sacrificed for him.
She could have been seen, or captured while she was searching for him, but she did it anyway and saved his life. He would argue with her about that later, because he knew it would lead to an argument.
For now, he was grateful.