Disclaimer: Come on Barbie, let's go party! Oh oh ohhh yeah. Come on Barbie let's go party. Ohoooh Ohooooh. NANI? DAMARE! Neither that song nor this chapter are mine! Baka. J/K

Chapter 11:

Her breathing was shallow. He could barely see her chest and stomach rising and falling at all under the thin blanket that laid over her body. She had a cut on her left cheek and a black eye. Her usually rosy face was now pale and almost a shade of yellow. He was afraid to see what was under the blankets. In long strides, he made his way to her bed, sitting down on a chair next to Lupin's.

His face became hard and emotionless, his face paling. He should've known this would happened. Everyone he ever loved got hurt. Here was bright, beautiful, innocent Hermione, laying motionless on a bed. It was his fault. He shouldn't have gotten close. And she… she shouldn't have strayed from her pack.

Severus completely forgot he was in the presence of Lupin. He didn't notice when Potter, Evans, and Black all made their way to the inside of the curtain, staring at the interaction. He didn't notice Lupin staring longingly at her. He didn't notice the angry looks that Sirius threw his way or the tears slipping down Evans's cheeks. He did notice her hand unclutch from a fist.

His hand hovered above hers. No, he shouldn't touch her anymore. He only caused her trouble. Dumbledore was wrong. He couldn't be helped. He couldn't be saved. She could be though. She could be spared and protected from all the drama that surrounded him. She was too bright, her future too important to give up simply for him. He needed her safe more than he needed her. He needed it for his own sanity and for his own heart. He needed it for her.

His thoughts were jumbled, and he was confused. He tried to restrain his emotions, but they kept coming back to the same dilemma. He wanted to feel her touch, but he knew he shouldn't. He shouldn't. No. He shouldn't. How could he be so stupid? When did he allow himself to be broken down, his walls deteriorated? When did he tell himself it was alright to fall in love again? He didn't deserve it the first time, and he didn't deserve it now. In a few months, this insufferable Gryffindor made him fall in love. He had recently accepted it, but he still hated it. He hated it.

He would betray everything and everyone but her. So, wouldn't it be hypocritical of him to feel her skin on his once more? He already caused her this much pain, after all… but then what could just one more touch do… before he left her alone? 'Break down my walls again. Kill my resolve. Rip my control away from me.'

She grabbed his hand.

His eyes which had been closed just a few moments ago now snapped open, looking to their interlocked hands. If he wasn't so good at hiding his emotions, he may've turned a few different shades of red, or he may've shed a few tears. He wouldn't allow himself to do that. He was better and stronger than that. He was trained. His eyes wandered to hers to see them looking around the room, giving a weak smile to everyone. Then, she turned to him and simply said his name.

"Severus."

They closed again.

"I knew something like this would happen." He whispered, more to himself than to her as she had fallen back asleep.

If he wasn't presently living the situation, he'd probably laugh at himself. It was like an episode of one of the soap operas he'd seen while visiting muggle relatives. All that was missing was a confession of love. Of course, he couldn't laugh about it. He didn't know what happened, but he had a feeling that it wasn't just an accident. He just wondered why the others were unscathed while she was lying here, clinging onto her life.

He kept hold of her hand, not wanting to think at all anymore. His thoughts had been scattered, and now they were few and far between. He only had energy to think about the rapid beating of his heart. He'd never had this feeling before, and he hated it. He should've known better. She should've known better.

He sighed, closing his eyes.

Leaning against the stone wall, Severus sighed a heavy breath. August 31sth was always worse than September 1st. On the 1st, he had to say goodbye to the few family members he had surrounding him and the friends he'd made in the nearby Muggle village. He knew he'd be leaving within a few minutes and would not have to deal with the discomfort of packing or the displeasure of having time to be saddened by prolonged goodbyes. On the 31st, he was already packed, but that didn't make up for the pain of not knowing when he'd see her again… or if he even would.

Times were changing, and he knew the war was preparing to burst out any second now. He knew You-Know-Who would be recruiting everyone and anyone in his house. He knew he was a prime target with his wit, intellect, lack of showing emotions, and pure hatred towards so many people. He'd thought about this. His parents (naïve fools) had already tried to talk to him about it. They never shared the same thirst for power he did. They could never understand what it meant to be wanted by the possible future ruler of the world. He knew what his choice was before it was even demanded of him to make it. He would become a follower of one wizard and a leader of millions of others.

The only problem was that through the extermination that would be happening during the purification process, his beloved might be killed. He couldn't stomach the thought of her blood being spilled. He couldn't stomach the thought of seeing anyone's blood spilled (besides Black's and Potter's possibly). That was his biggest obstacle. He knew he couldn't possibly be good inside. He put it up to a weak stomach. He'd have to get around that to become a great Potions master anyway so why not do it through murder?

"Severus." He turned, watching as her hair bounced happily, her eyes twinkling in the sunlight. She stopped in front of him, hesitating for a second at his cold demeanor.

He said nothing. He kept still and quiet, only acknowledging her presence with his eyes. He turned to stare emotionlessly into hers. She frowned for a second before pursing her lips. She put her right hand onto her hips and put the other onto the front part of his plain shirt. Her expression softened, and she reached up to let her hand graze against his cheek.

"You need to shave." She said, smiling innocently. She stood on her tip toes and kissed him directly on the lips. He now let his demeanor go to return her touch. She broke apart from him a second later. "On second thought, keep it. It tickles a bit."

"If you wish for it to stay, it will." He simply replied, not giving any indication as to how he felt about the matter. This caused her to smile even wider.

"You always were the gentelman, caring about what I think. 'Do what you wish,'" she mocked.

This caused a sudden reaction out of Severus. He quickly came around her, pushing her into the wall he was leaning on. His lips covered her, his tongue trailing along her bottom lip before entering her mouth. She giggled into his mouth, placing her hands on his chest.

She was not the girl he imagined himself with. She wasn't very intelligent (though she was nowhear near stupid), and she was beautiful in his eyes. Her eyes lit up every time he came into view, and it caused him to question his future and his intentions. 'She's just a muggle,' he tried to remind himself. It was of no use. It was too late now.

He broke apart from her, and she gasped for air before taking his hand. She ran, giving him no choice but to follow her lead. She was so carefree, but he was too at the moment. She had time to play like a small child, but he never could resist her game. It was a dangerous game around him. He was a Slytherin, a soon to be Deatheater.

She slowed down and came to a complete stop by a nearby stream. She sat down on its edge, finally letting go of his hand. Severus stood from the spot she had finally released him. He looked into the water before turning his attention to her. August 31st was once the best day, but now it was the worst. She grabbed his hand and tugged him until he sat down next to her. They stared into the water silently until she leaned back to look into the sky. Few clouds occupied it.

"I know you've got things going on that you don't let onto, Severus. Know that I'm always here for you. I'll always be by your side." Her voice was soft yet clear.

He looked towards her as her face and saw nothing but truth. He wished he could repeat the same to her. He didn't waver as he looked into her eyes. They were a beautiful green, but they somehow were darker than usual. Her face melted away, blond straight hair replaced with silky, brown curls. He watched as her face turned into Hermione's.

His eyes opened again to indeed see that Hermione had once again opened her eyes as well. She was still clutching his hand, but she was in a hushed conversation with Dumbledore. The old man looked almost as displeased with the current situation as he was. He looked around to see that Potter, Evans, Black, and Lupin were still in the same position. He probably didn't drift off for too long.

He berated himself for drifing off at all. He wondered if he should listen to the conversation that was taking place or wait for Hermione to tell him what it was about. He pondered this for a second before the choice was made for him. Dumbledore nodded, grabbing her shoulder gently, squeezing it before walking silently out of the room. The nurse could now be seen making her way into the curtain. Her usual fiery temper was gone, and she sighed loudly, muttering under her breath before walking away again.

No one spoke, and the tension in the room was almost unbearable. Severus silently watched Hermione. She turned to face him, and he swore he could saw a green spark in him. He needed to snap out of this delusional state, but the memory he was flooded with just minutes ago frightened him. He admitted that to himself. Hermione seemed to sense something was wrong. Her voice cut through the air like a knife.

"What's wrong, Severus? Are you alright?" Her voice was weak, but it was still full of concern. This made him frown deeply.

"You're asking me?" He almost scoffed at the question, but he refrained from. She smiled slightly at the rhetorical question he presented. "I'm well. I would ask you, but it seems the answer lies in your current location." He let the words come out in a growl.

He felt like screaming. He wanted to throw things. Something. Anything. Kill whatever bastards did this to her. He knew life wasn't fair, but this was mind boggling even to him. How could someone hurt her? How could someone dislike her enough to do this to her? How could she be well enough to ask him how he was? He calmed himself quickly, but something was missing to make his heart stop beating like it was now.

He heard footsteps coming towards him before he saw Potter move to restrain Black (he presumed it was Black) from trying to beat him to a bloody pulp. Severus completely ignored this. He saw Hermione do the same for now, smiling widely before sitting up to look him completely into his eyes.

'Merlin.' He thought to himself as he lost control, his lips crashing onto hers.

A/N: Not a cliffhanger! Ha well sorta not... I dunno. (shakes head) I wonder what their reactions will be? Sevvie and Hermione aren't alone after all... (smirk)

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