Disclaimer: The same as the previous chapter.
Chapter 65
The Headmaster of Hogwarts soon found out that his determination was about to dwindle into nothing. Severus Snape felt himself being dragged up to the second floor. The small voice had morphed into a siren's call. He knew the lyrics of the song but the way it was being sung made it sound like a song of longing for what was impossible to achieve. Before climbing into the landing which opened up to the first-floor corridor, he glanced around tentatively. Even here the walls were bare of domestic touches. But he had seen several windows from outside. It was impossible that there would be just a single door. Redoubling his mental shields, he counted ten and looked around again.
Standing on top of the last stair he studied the visible floor plan and scrunched his eyebrows together. Potter was by his side. He sounded urgent," What, what is it?" The Headmaster just murmured," I saw so many windows from outside, there couldn't be just one door on one side."
The song stopped suddenly but the three of them could feel someone breathing heavily, around them. It was not a spirit neither did they encounter another Knight of the Undead. Draco heaved a little sigh at that. As a child, he had always wondered what it was like to grow up in an absolute muggle household. Granger had caught his attention in the most unique way. His attraction to her had begun from pure hatred and over the course of their school life and the war it had grown into something that made his heart clench and twist on its own. He could feel that magic in this house beaconed his own magical resource. He knew what was beyond this door. Every atom, every spec of shimmering dust had her name written over them.
How often did he imagine, her room, perhaps littered with books and tomes, just the way her desk at Hogwarts's library would end up looking like after she had spent only an hour browsing through them and furiously scribbling lines after lines over parchments. Granger's schedules were a talk of the school, but the witch hardly took any care into righting herself up. Until of course the Yule Ball. He was not going to think of Victor Krum, not now. Not recall how he had kissed her in front of everyone. Stamping his feet harder than he intended he started looking around trying to understand the mismatch Snape was trying to pinpoint at. Pointing his point lazily at the visible door, He pondered aloud," If we consider this as the children's bedroom, where is the master bedroom or the adjacent bathroom." Potter by this time, had returned after walking up and down the corridor, feeling up the walls and studying the floorboards and the ceilings.
The Wonder Boy mused," No attic, no trapdoor, no storeroom, that is strange. Well, we did see quite a number of windows, didn't we?" The Headmaster stood diagonally at the middle of the corridor, pointing his hand at the previously singing door, he murmured," If this is the children's room or precisely Hermione's childhood room, then, the parent's room or the master bedroom has to be on the opposite wall."
No sooner had those words escaped his mouth the bare wall on the opposite side of the only visible door had started shifting with a lurching sound. The three of them just stood there perplexed as the wall shredded itself bit by it, revealing a door, which shimmered with a soft glow. It was Harry who exclaimed, making the sight seem all too real. " What on earth! Merlin, it looks like the door to your potion's classroom. And the shifting of the bricks, how did she manage to do that! It's so like…"
Draco supplied, "entering the Diagon alley…" and Snape had finished, his voice shaking slightly," and watching No. Thirteen, Grimmauld Place, appeared out of nowhere." Knowing that the door would only respond to him, the Headmaster had steadily approached it, keeping his wand handy, he nodded once at the two men behind him and turned the latch. The door clicked but did not open up on its own.
Harry and Draco just managed to exchange concerned looks, when Severus's shoulders quaked and he tried not to laugh aloud," Oh, I see," was all that the man said, and the sound of heavy breathing gave way to muffled giggles when the man pushed at the door forcibly and made it bang against the other side of the wall, much in imitation to his usual way of entering his own classrooms. Both the young men behind him shook their heads, amazed at the details the witch had incorporated. Everyone would have missed that but definitely not Severus Snape. But the tall man had continued to stand transfixed at the threshold of the room. Draco peered over his shoulder and felt a chill run over him and Potter blurted out. "This room is dedicated to you."
The humming sound from the other door began once again, but this time the three could distinctly feel a sweet flavoured breeze tickling their skin, raising goosebumps on its wake and inhaled the smell of berries and fruits and herbs and morning dew and freshwater. Sparing the other bare door a final glance, Draco gulped down and placed his hand over Snape's bony shoulder," Well, what is it?" Severus stammered, pointing his finger at a pair of mannequins propped at a dark corner on the furthest wall. Harry noticed one was draped with robes he had seen witches wear. And Snape unlocked the mystery about the other. Apart from them, there was a desk, an armchair, a floor lamp and a bookshelf. No photo frame. No bed, and nothing else, apart from pitch black blackout curtains hanging over what could only be three windows on two sides of the room.
In automation, the man strode forward, till his feet were inches away from the displayed attire. Gently brushing his fingers over it, he sobbed to himself. The two had all but rushed to his side. The man grabbed their offered hands and shaking at them, said reverently," I wore that on the day of the final battle. I distinctly remembered pinning a petal of a lilac inside one of the lapels. My robes, cloak, frock coat, linen below it, everything must have been in tattered, Look at it, just see for yourself. She has painstakingly stitched every bit of it together in the muggle way. She did this all by herself. I can feel her magic running over it. Protecting it from dirt and decay. Keeping it pristine and clean."
Draco had given the man time to gather his wits and walked up to the only existing bookshelf in the room. He turned his watery eyes at his godfather and mumbled in adoration," And over here, she stacked up every journal you ever wrote in. See for yourself, Severus." Potter walked up to the other mannequin standing behind the one displaying Snape's attire. He turned at them abruptly, truly unmindful of the tears falling freely from his eyes," It is Mum's dress, or what she was wearing in that muggle photo you have with you, the one we found hidden behind the painting from downstairs." Snape had kneeled at the middle of the room clinging onto his pendent, breathing heavily, crying harder than ever, wondering how lonely Hermione must have been feeling for the past years. Her muggle parents were untraceable, and the only parent she had was blissfully ignorant of the relationship. Moreover, the very last thing she would have had of him was the burden of hatred he had flung at her at the hospital wing.
Severus dragged himself up while the others stood at their place, unsure of how to handle the situation. If he could have his way, his girl was not going to spend another night in the Circle. She would spend it in his arms under his protection and whosoever had done this to her, whosoever was causing her pain had their death written in the hands of one Severus Tobias Snape.