Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling still owns the Harry Potter characters, and the Potter universe. I own nothing. Except maybe my twisted plot, hehe.
A/N: Thanks again to all my readers. Much love.
Alive
Harry woke up feeling slightly lightheaded. He could see that he was in a bright and sterile environment. Maybe it's an infirmary. I must have passed out. Where is Snape? What happened in the battle? Is Voldemort dead? Harry could hear voices outside the room.
"Shhh…You will wake him." "How do you know he is not already awake? He is in that room you know." "Yes Ronald, but we are not allowed to go in there yet." That's just like Hermione. Always following the rules. Harry decided that he would have to settle the argument himself. He started to sit up when an old lady bustled into the room. "Oh! You are awake! That's good. Lay back down dear." I wonder who she is? I don't think I have ever saw her before.
"Are you feeling alright dear? I don't think you have any permanent injuries. Probably just need a little rest, and you should be back to normal." "Oh, erm yea I'm fine. Can I see my friends?" "Yes, I suppose a quick visit will be alright. But I don't want you moving from that bed!" Harry watched the lady go to the door. She seemed a tad bit disgruntled when she discovered Ron and Hermione behind standing behind it.
"Harry!" Hermione looked truly relieved at the sight of Harry. Ron just followed her quietly. "I'm glad to see you guys." Harry watched as the nurse left the room. I have to know if Snape made it. "Erm, Hermione…do you know if anything happened to…" This is bad, I can't even get the question out right. He has to be alright. He has to be. "Do I know if anything happened to what, Harry?" I never knew this would be so hard. "Is Snape alright?" Ron looked a little surprised at the question. Despite the fact that he knew he had been working with Snape for a good deal of the time. Hermione looks nervous…."I don't know Harry. They couldn't find him after the battle. They are still looking for him after what happened last year…"
Of course. How could I forget about that? He couldn't very well stick around to get arrested. "And what about Voldemort?" This time Ron answered. "They couldn't find a trace of him. As far as they could tell he was dead." Harry's spirits lifted a little at that. Although he knew there would always be someone that would try to take his place. But that could be someone else's problem. But still he hoped that Snape was alright. I can't believe I miss him already.
The rest of the Weasley family walked in. Most of them didn't look so great. Harry could see bruises as well as the tiredness of their eyes. Percy even showed up. Maybe the twins had talked some sense into him after all. He was halfway afraid to guess what he looked like. But he could move his arms and legs and that seemed to be a good sign to him. Harry smiled. If he had a family, he would want it to be like the Weasleys. The nurse walked back into the room. "Visiting hours are done for the day. You can come back tomorrow." Harry gave them a thumbs up to try to reassure everyone that he was alright.
As he watched everyone leave the room the tiredness became overwhelming. He decided that the best thing he could do at the moment was to go back to sleep. Harry woke up some time later. Not very sure how much sleep he had. He knew it wasn't time to get up though. It was still very dark. He could see some figures approaching his side. I better act like I'm sleeping. I wonder why I have visitors at this time of the night. "Minerva, you can't possibly be taking his side. You know just as well as we do what happened." "Yes. At the same time he did help defeat the Dark Lord. No one can truly hate him after that." "We should leave before he wakes." And with that the softest pitter patter of feet left the room. Leaving Harry in isolation to think about things.
Are they talking about Snape? Is there anyway to clear his name? How long have I been here? No one really wants to talk to me. Harry could hear someone open the door once again. This time it was only McGonagall. She held her usual stern expression as if she did not approve of Harry being unwell.
In a quiet voice, "Potter? Are you awake?" Should I say yes? I think she already knows I'm awake. Harry propped himself up on his arms a little so he could see McGonagall a little better. "Yea. I'm awake. Do you know how long I've been here? I didn't think to ask about it earlier." Not the best way to greet a person, but I really need to know. McGonagall replied, "Six days have gone by since the fall of the Dark Lord."
Six days? That can't be right. Why am I still so weak? "I understand your astonishment. Although it is inevitable, you almost used your entire power supply. Any longer and you would have died." If it did that to me….Snape is strong he can withstand it. He is stronger than I am. I think he is. I hope so anyway. Even if he withstood the battle there is no guarantee that he was in good shape. Someone could have easily took advantage of him after that. He is probably in hiding….
"I was wondering if you would like to talk about what happened. With the battle that is. I know you have been through more than most people will ever have to endure in a whole lifetime." I don't think I really want to talk about that right now. "No, not really. I would like to know what happened after the battle though." McGonagall's expression didn't change any. Everyone seemed to want to hide their true feelings about everything. "A great number of Death Eaters have been convicted and arrested. They are currently being held in Azkaban by the aurors. It seems that something happened to the Dementers after the war. They all vanished that night of the battle. Some villages will have to be rebuilt entirely."
"The Dementers are gone?" "Yes. Yes they are. We still haven't found a proper substitute for them, but if you ask me I like the change. I never cared for them too much myself." McGonagall seemed to shiver at the mere mention of the creatures. "Do you know what made them disappear?" McGonagall frowned. "I suspect it was love." Does she know about me and Snape? Of course she does. Anyone that was in the premises would know from the way the spell worked. "You should know that we have yet to find Severus. And when we do, we have yet to know what actions will be taken. He is a wanted man Potter."
"Yes, I understand. Are you angry with me?" She sat down in a chair beside the bed. "I believe that sometimes we have no choice but to follow our hearts. I don't know where this love came from but the spell is absolute. It doesn't work unless the conditions are exact. It's not a widely known spell. Few know the truth about you and Severus. But I can assure you that it will change. Word will get out. After all you are the most famous wizard in the world now." Harry let himself fall back into the bed. Of course they will know. But I'm more worried about what they will do with Snape. I don't want to go on with life without him.
"I have to go now. We are in the process of reopening the school. Some students will be behind if they choose to go back of course, but I think we can work it out." The school is reopening? That's great. Although I'm not going back. It wouldn't be the same anymore. McGonagall got up and walked out of the room. How can I make Snape look like a good guy? After all I didn't trust him until sometime this year. Harry yawned as he drifted back into the land of nod.
