A/N: The title may change a few times because I'm not sure what to put. You may have to CTRL-B to make it easier to track.

The next reemergence was more predictable. She felt better, stronger... She opened her eyes blearily, greeted by the sight of hospital curtains and sunlight gently filling the entire space with bright light. She yawned as she propped herself up in bed.

This sensation was wrong. She looked for her missing appendage and gagged in horror as she saw a silver item in its place. It was a hand, made up of the the infinitesimal scales of silver, and it seemed to be moving at her accord, but it wasn't her hand. She held it up, staring at it in a combination of awe and fright. She flexed the hand experimentally. The individual scales rearranged themselves quickly to allow the movement. Impossible

The one who had put her to sleep was here again.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

Erin turned her arm slowly, examining the work, trying to logic how it was functioning. The sleeve of her gown fell back as she raised her hand a bit higher. She traced the seam of the metal to the flesh, not finding any palpable means of attachment.

"I know it's a shock," the woman continued in a kind voice. "But it's an excellent reconstruction.

The Headmaster's own handiwork, along with mine of course!"

Erin touched her face and swore the metal hand could feel the borders of the scar a childhood bicycle-accident left on her cheek.

"It's amazing," she replied, somewhat breathlessly.

"How long have I been here?" she asked.

"About a week, we were lucky there weren't any students staying over the Summer. I had you under an extended sleep in order to have the reconstruction done, so you lost most of the time there. I'm Madam Pomfrey, dear. We haven't managed to complete introductions"

"Erin...Erin Coffrey," said Erin said, extending a hand.

She received a tentative handshake in return. It didn't seem to be the normal greeting in these parts.

"Where's your wand?" Pomfrey suddenly asked.

Erin hoped her eyes hadn't bulged out of her sockets.

"I-" she said dumbly.

The milliseconds that elapsed felt like an eternity.

"I lost it, in the struggle," she finished, hoping it didn't fall too flat.

Thankfully, Pomfrey nodded.

"I see our patient is looking well!"

Erin whipped her head towards the direction of the new voice. From a doorway further off, two men came walking up to them. The speaker was a wizened older man, dressed in a complete set of flowing purple robes, topped off with a small conical hat. Flanking this one was him. The crumpled figure she had see in the woods. The one who had socked her right in the face. She twisted her neck to shrug off a mental crick. He was of medium height, with an incredibly pale complexion and lank black hair that ended just before his shoulders. For someone so young, he had an incredibly severe face. It aged him. His nose was definitely the next dominant feature. She was sure it made for a striking silhouette. He wore a black frock coat that was lined with several buttons that went nearly up to his throat. Strange garb, she thought.

He peered out at her with keen eyes. He didn't seem to appreciate her critical gaze, and gently pursed his lips in what could be mistaken for a smirk.

"Are you feeling quite ill?" he asked in a slow, deliberate sarcasm.

"You look remarkably better," Erin said, ignoring his thinly veiled statement and training her eyes on every visible aspect of Snape's figure.

The face had been restored, though she suspected he had broken his nose during some previous encounter. His posture was stiff, but upright. His gait had been alarmingly graceful for one so injured just recently. In the one week Madam Pomfrey had alleged she was asleep, this man had been nearly completely renewed. She was now slowly building up a wall of denial, behind which the matter of her metal hand, her violent encounter with this man, magical flashes of light in the air, and now his miraculous recovery were being placed. Her goal now, she thought to herself, was to wake up from the bizarre dream or more alarmingly, get away from these people as quickly as possible.

There was a silence amid the party as she was deep in thought.

"Thank you," Snape said shortly, breaking the tension.

She didn't know whether the overly succinct statement was because he detested speaking, or if he didn't mean it.

"Likewise," she said, recalling the trick with the tourniquet.

There was a polite noise of someone clearing their throat, and the one in the robes stepped forward.

"I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry"

Erin neatly threw that statement behind her quickly straining wall.

She nodded and introduced herself and was also rewarded with the younger man's name. Severus Snape.

She was suddenly reminded of how she hated these types of interactions, where there was a distinct power difference between herself and the others. She was the patient, in bed, so there was both a chasm of knowledge and height between them. She straightened up some more, determined not to put herself at any more of a disadvantage than she was at already.

"It was a valiant thing you did, saving Severus' life. Although I've never seen such a technique before, very...imaginative," said Dumbledore.

Erin realized he was speaking of the make-shift chest tube.

She took a breath to calm her nerves.

"If I had my wand," The word sounded ridiculous, "things would have been different"

"Indeed," said Dumbledore in a more subdued tone.

"I took the liberty of preparing this charmed bracelet, which has a strong Glamour on it to disguise the reconstruction," he said and produced a petite gold cuff. She tentatively put it on and to her amazement, found herself looking at a fleshy hand.

"Sir," she said quickly, before he could begin again. "Thank you for the hand and your care," she turned to Pomfrey to acknowledge her. "... at this time, I would like to return home".

"Of course, Ms. Coffrey. However, there is no apparating on school grounds. I can arrange for you to be taken to the borders. Where are you from exactly? Your accent is quite distinctive"

Thousands of miles from where she really considered home, she now acutely began to feel the ache of homesickness. She didn't know if she was longingly referring to her temporary one or to her small familiar apartment in the city.

"I've taken some time off from work and I'm living in London at the moment. But I did grow up in the United States."

Did the States even exist here? What if she was in another dimension entirely. Images of transporters and alien flashed through her mind. The thought that she was just having an elaborately bizarre dream surfaced again and she surreptitiously dug her thumbnail into her finger, attempting to wake up.

Dumbledore nodded.

"You've got a long journey ahead of you. I'd like to clear some things up however. Ms. Coffrey, would you mind recounting how you came to meet Severus"

Erin licked her lips. She was so close.

"Sure. I was camping near the woods. I went looking for some firewood. I hadn't walked so far in before hearing people yelling nonsense and seeing flashes in the night." The two men shared knowing glances and a look of relief at this. "I saw him, Severus, lying against a tree, obviously injured. I'm a physician, so I provided first aid"

"We're very thankful for your intervention and deeply sorry for the wound you received. The reconstruction is a small gift. It will not break down unless in rare cases of exceptional sabotage, or in the event of your death. I'm sure you've noticed by now, the basic sensations are present. However, it is mostly impervious to extremes of temperature and pain-"

But halfway through this, Snape's eyes narrowed and he was shooting her suspicious glances.

"A what?" he asked very calmly, once Dumbledore finished.

"A doctor, like Madam Pomfrey," said Erin, a bit irritatedly.

She could see the atmosphere shift and the previously grandfatherly attention Dumbledore had been showering on her disappeared. She then realized her mistake. She leapt out of bed, and almost tripped catastrophically on the sheets as she made a break for the door. The others sans Snape were caught off guard, and it was he who grabbed her by the shoulder and held her at wandpoint.

"She's a muggle!" said Snape viciously.

There was a horrified gasp from Pomfrey, who now touched Dumbledore's arm.

"Albus, the Statute!" she said.

Although it was just a stick of polished black wood that was leveled at her head, Erin felt as if she were being held by a gunman. There was real intention in Snape's movements. He had a vice grip on her, and though she tried to jerk herself away, he held on tightly.

"Headmaster," said Snape.

They were going to kill her.

"I saved your life!" she shouted at him, "I saved your fucking life, and I'll be damned if you're going to zap my head for it!"

Her entire body trembled as she railed against him.

"Headmaster?" he asked again.

She heard a sigh from the old man.

"She's called in your life debt," he said to Severus, "You know what this means"

"Surely, that archaic law does not apply in these circumstances," said Snape in an even voice.

"It most certainly does," said Dumbledore.

She stared at Snape's unreadable face, and stumbled backwards trying to regain her balance as he roughly released her.

"As per my life debt, I shall not remove your memories" he intoned, but she was sure it was laden with the utmost loathing of the turn of events.

Dumbledore held up a hand signalling peace.

"Ms. Coffrey, calm your nerves. Due to the nature of your contract with Severus, he is bound to his word. We will not harm you"

There was no way Erin would be able to rest easy, but the way Snape had acquiesced really did make it appear that she had stumbled upon a way to keep herself safe...relatively.

"I want to leave," she said strongly, emphasizing each word.

Dumbledore slowly closed the space between the two of them.

"My dear. I apologize for the horrible way you came to find out about the wizarding world. But what you stumbled upon was a delicate thing that I must ask you never to speak of outside of this circle. It is imperative that you understand I am completely serious about this one requirement."

"Fine," she said tightly, "I won't speak of this with anyone else"

"I'm going to require you take the Unbreakable Vow to your silence. This is a spell that will holds the people involved to keep their promises"

"This is no small deed," said Snape softly, "The Unbreakable Vow is called thus because if it is violated, the castee is punished with their death"

"But you won't let me go unless I agree to this," she said.

"There are events in place that you cannot be permitted to alter, even by accident," said Dumbledore.

"Fine," she repeated.

"If you would give me your hand," said Dumbledore, extending his.

He lightly grasped her wrist much in Roman fashion. She clasped his cautiously in return, still keeping her distance from him. He looked at Snape, who slowly pulled his wand to point at their hands.

"Swear that you will never speak of this world with someone who does not know what it is," said Snape.

"I swear"

A thin line of red firelike light streaked out from the tip of Snape's wand and wrapped itself around their hands.

"Swear that you will never speak of the events that led you and Severus to meet to anyone that is not Poppy Pomfrey, Albus Dumbledore, or Severus Snape"

"I swear"

"Finally, you will not reveal the true nature of your left hand nor the charmed item to anyone who is not of wizarding kind"

"I swear," she said for the third time.

She was mesmerized by the last fiery lasso which curled around them, creating the a pulsing red lattice. Snape's wand arm returned to his side. She watched as the lights faded away. She felt no different, and pulled her arm from Dumbledore.

"Farewell," he said, "And remember, you're now under the Vow"

In the end, it was Snape who was to escort her to London. They had a silent walk through the castle and through some of the lusciously green grounds surrounding it. Eventually, they stood together on a grassy knoll, a place not dissimilar to the one they had just spent their dying moments in.

"You were splinched," he said, the odd word accentuated by the sharp pops of his lips. It was the first time in a while he had spoken.

She must have looked confused because he continued to explain.

"When we...transported from the woods to this place, I was in poor condition. Lesser wizards often make this mistake when apparating, and body parts are left behind. We call this splinching"

Erin was absentmindedly stroking her false hand. She felt a chill go through her.

"And we're about to do this again?"

He looked at her with a fierce expression and she could see the faint movement of his jaw clenching.

"Apparition requires a license to prevent these mishaps. I assure you, had the situation been different, there would have been no casualties. Take my arm," he trained his dark eyes on her in an intense gaze, "And Do. Not. Let. Go"

Erin grasped his arm firmly and took a deep breath.

"I'm ready"

When she next opened her eyes, she was in the alley way of a bustling city. Her stomach heaved and she felt a wave of nausea hit her like a truck. She quickly released his arm and took some deep breaths through her nose to quell the sensation.

"It's normal," he said.

Erin swallowed several times as the nausea slowly faded. If this was the cost of transporting, then she was glad mere humans were relegated to motorized flight. She rubbed her face with an open hand, unable to hide her fatigue any longer. And there was also that horrible pounding that was starting to rap on her temples.

"Perhaps you'd like some paracetamol for that," Snape said dryly.

She looked at him, surprised. He stood with crossed arms and a slightly superior expression on his face.

"You're different," she said, "You knew I wasn't a...wizard, whatever-"

"Witch," he corrected.

"Witch," she repeated, "But that must mean your parents were from different sides"

She cocked her head at him, rethinking about everything she had learned. This was interesting.

Whatever scant signs there were that they were finally having a conversation were now vanished. He gestured down the alley.

"Mr. Snape, I sincerely hope we don't meet again," she said, taking her cue.

She walked away from the dead end and just before rejoining the main roads, turned around. All that remained was crumpled trash and bits of broken beer bottles.

"You're late!" a pitch perfect English voice hollered.

Erin grinned in spite of herself. His energy was infectious. The tall blonde Brit ran over to her, taking her bag from her.

"I expected you days ago, Erin. But I bet you were having fun off in the city, eh?" He winked cheekily at her.

"God n-yes. And I had a bit too good of a time," she said awkwardly. "Jonathan, I just grabbed my things and headed over here because now we're behind, and I really just want to work right now. I'm so sorry!"

He didn't seem to catch out her words tumbled out haphazardly and led her deeper into the small ramshackle office. He tossed a carefree hand in the air.

"You didn't miss a thing. Everything will be ok"

Paracetamol- Tylenol in the UK