Severus awoke with a start in the early hours of morning. His arm was burning with a passion of heated flames. He clutched at it as he groaned with great pain, trying to not let the world go out of focus. The bedroom door flew open as he rushed down the hall, banging on another door as if his life depended on it. Within second it was retched open to reveal a frazzled Minerva, hair wild and untamed.
"Severus-" She croaked, but Severus interrupted with clenched teeth.
"M-m-my ar-arm!" He didn't even wait to see if she acknowledged what he meant, he needed to get his robes from his room and he needed them fast. He turned back, sprinting to his room to grab the needed items.
"May the gods be with you. Please, come back safe." She barreled down the hall to the man's room, but it was empty. She only hoped that he had heard her prayer.
Severus barely even registered her parting words before he allowed his arm to portkey him to his destination. He landed hard, kneeling in front of large double doors. His surroundings were very unfamiliar, believing that the Dark Lord had relocated again, but from the looks of it, it looked to be an old church.
He took a quick moment to recollect his thoughts and to bury everything down. The folds of his mind could cause a trespasser to forever be lost within its labyrinth of doors, corridors and rooms. He held each persona needed to fight and survive behind different colored doors. He retracted his human antics back, locking them behind the steel doors in the basement of his mind. The only safe haven he had created for himself that could never be entered through unless he allowed such a thing, and he never did. Even when he was in the final moments where his unconscious mind began to claim him, never did he fold. He brought forth a new persona from behind a black door in his mind, the one that lost all sense of humanity and belief of right and wrong.
He stood from his position, as if on cue the doors shuffled open on their own accord. He watched as the view of figures appeared, not surprised that many were present so early in the morning. Eyes turned to the new comer, watching and murmuring quietly amongst themselves as they followed every step he took into the large cathedral room.
Severus held his own, sneering at the swarms of people who stared at him through masked faces and non-masked ones. If there was a kingdom of hell on earth, then this would be its court of annoying and disgusting followers. Its king the traditional ugly serpent that ruled all kingdoms and its message, nothing but genocide and cruelty. Severus glided towards the front of the room, stopping only to kneel before the Dark Lord.
"Ah, Severus. How good it is to see you my loyal comrade. Come let us retire to my private chambers. I have missed you my old friend." Voldemort eerie voice echoed off the stone walls. Severus simply nodded towards the mongrel, standing up to full height and allowed him to be escorted out of the big cathedral room to the snakes' private chambers.
"Muggles and their pitiful religion, eh? If only they could but taste the true powers of a real god would they fear and worship me in the same way. Severus it has been awhile and I have not heard any news from you. Excuse the early morning summons, would you like a drink?" Voldemort inquired before opening a door to what looked like the chambers to the muggle Pope.
"No thank you Master, I am quite alright. I presume that I have been summoned so early before classes start?" Severus took a lazy look around the room, eyeing everything with a subtle hunger to acquire all the details it possessed. There were naked men and women chained to the far wall with the rat Pettigrew violating some of the naked girls. He retracted his silver hand from the nether folds of a petite redhead girl and the other hand that was fondling another's breast. Severus felt sick to his stomach when he saw that some of them had their eyes gouged out or broken and mangled body parts.
"Get out Wormtail." The rat bowed low, shivering from the fear Voldemort instilled in him and slipped out.
"Always the sensible and understanding one, you are Severus. You've always understood the methods to my maddening mind. How is Hogwarts fairing these days?" Voldemort smiled as he took a seat in a throne-like chair.
"Good my lord. Draco has been of marvelous help gaining support from the other Slytherins and other houses as well. I have encouraged him to seek out some of the Gryffindors in the hopes that he might gain information on Potter that way. The boy never strays from his pack of cats and I thought that we could find someone with in." Severus paraded around the room, feigning interest in an average sized brunette. Voldemort watched with narrowed eyes and an evil grin. This was a test; Severus just knew it deep within his bones.
"Good, good! Now Severus, I know you would never purposely lie to me nor try to betray me, so I will ask you this. Why are you not at your post?" Severus took a deep notable sign, as if he was being irritated by such a question. He turned eyes to Voldemort, reassuring him of his loyalties with the images he fabricated and pushed to the front of him mind.
"Forgive me my Lord. There was a raid the previous week, headed by Dolohov, myself and a few others,- Yes, yes, yes. You try my patients Severus. Answer me true and your punishment shall be lessened." Voldemort growled.
"We violated and killed Hermione Granger's parents, my Lord." Severus said evenly, letting the mood drift.
"The muddblood?" He cocked his head curiously.
"Yes, my Lord. The muddblood." Severus kneeled in front of the serpent, as if he was prepared to plead for his life. He watched as the wheels of the man's mind and thoughts began to turn. Ever so slowly a smile spread across his scaly face.
"Oh, that's rich! Turn her to our side Severus, teach her the way you see things, teach her the truth that that hypocritical old fool twists. Had it not been for Harry Potter, had he not been born had she not become his friend her Parents would still live today. Feed her mind with doubts. I have heard that she holds quite the power and it may be in our best interest to gain her trust." Severus took his words in and instantly drew a disgusted look to his features.
"But, My Lord! She is a muddblood whore!" Severus wanted to cringe, but to do so would give him away. He would pay for his sins so enough.
"Then we will make her a muddblood Death Eater whore. I would like very much for Bella to have a new play thing." He spoke as if it was no big deal and Severus knew that it was such.
"My Lord, Dumbledore informed her that it was random sire." Severus cringed when Voldemort's tone changed to a livid one.
"Then inform her otherwise. Explain your absences from the school, now!" He snapped vigorously.
"I was summoned to escort the girl and protect her incase another raid was to occur. My Lord I swear I would have informed you earlier, but Dumbledore sent McGonagall to keep an eye on things. I couldn't cause any further suspicion if I were to be summoned during my duty."
"Your point is valid, but alas Severus. It will not excuse you."
Severus knew this would happen, it almost always did and he felt eyes watch him as the spell of the crucio curse shot him square in the chest. Severus opened the door to another persona, letting it envelope him as the pain seared through his body and screams of a ragged death tore from his lungs. His mind centered its self to a complete and focused calm interior. Behind the painted blue door was the emotion of numb and autopilot. The numbness enveloped him, causing the pain to be nothing but a simple needle prick in the side while his actions went into its well practiced motions of someone being crucioed. His back arched violently as his arms flagged helplessly on the floor. His teeth gritted together as the electric shocks of the curse stabbed his nerves over and over again. His eyes rolled into the back of his skull as he allowed his mind to count the number of potions he could brew. Naming all the ingredients and the process used to create each potion.
It went on for hours, and somewhere in between the mini breaks, others from the court filed in taking turns with the extended torture. Severus thought he could not last much longer and in the darkest hours of the night. Severus was forgiven and he kissed the Dark Lords robes graciously as he focused whatever energy he had left to not splinch himself. He arrived in a heap on the back deck of the Granger's Manor, after that, his world went black.
Hermione had stayed in her room all day, not bothering to heed any of Minerva's persistent knocking or coaxing to get her out. Her Head of House still knocked at 30 minute intervals, but Hermione paid no heed. Until 3 hours had gone by with no knocking was whe she finally braved the world.
The kitchen was tidier than when her mother used to clean it. Upon entering she noticed plates and baskets of what smelled like to be freshly baked food, wrapped and set on the kitchen table and counters. The clock on the oven read 1:32 am, lighting the kitchen in a dull red hue. She turned the light on, squinting as her sight adjusted and that was when she looked to the French-doors leading to the deck. With great caution she grew closer, barely making out a large lump of black in the backdrop of the dark night. Upon closer inspection she noticed pale skin and a large nose.
"Professor Snape!"
Gasping the handle, she flung the doors open and went to his side shaking him for any response. Hermione grew frantic when he made no noise. Quickly dragging him in, she pushed the plates and glass off the table, not paying any attention to the loud crash it mad. She flung him on the long kitchen table as best as she could and began trying to look over his person.
"MINERVA! HELP!" Hermione screamed.
She appeared within seconds through the kitchen door and it took her a few seconds to realize what was happening. Severus was a dangerous pale blue as his head lolled to the side. Blood seemed to trickle from his mouth where Minerva could tell he was still clenching his teeth. She crossed over, wiping strands of black hair that clung to his sweaty face. She watched as Hermione lifted the frail man up to take off the outer garment completely. Hermione grabbed a pair of scissors from a drawer and began cutting the arms of his frock and around the buttons, so as to not waste anymore time trying to take it off of him.
She threw the garment to the side and looked at her hands to see a dark sticky residue. The smell of new steel assaulted her senses as she stared in horror at all the deep gashes, bruises and the endless silver lines of scars along all over his torso. She only took a second to analyze the Dark Mark, noticing the black inked on the pale canvas of his forearm, damning him to a life of hell. She felt for the man in some way, but knew it was his choice and predicament to deal with alone. Hermione pushed such thoughts out of her mind, she needed to focus and focus she must.
"I will be back!"
Minerva ran her wand over him, using detection spells to help analyze and diagnose him. She only barely just registered the girl's words as the spells began to feed her eyes the information she looked for.
"Retrieve your wand and send a patronus!" There was no answer from Hermione; she had already left to do just that. The girl ran frantically through the hall and up to her room to retrieve her wand. Quickly conjuring her patronus, a playful otter emerged from her wand and looked at its mistress with smiling eyes. "Go to Headmaster Dumbledore, Severus Snape has been attacked and is unconscious, please send someone to help him! Tell him it's from Hermione! Go!" Her pleas were frantic and she tore out of her room as soon as its silver form disappeared. Quickly she took the flight of stairs to her conservatory two at a time, unlocking the cabinets and grabbing a large selection of potions that might ail him greatly.
It was mere moments, before she was back in the kitchen watching as the last of the diagnostic spells finished their reads. She placed the large basket of potions down next to his feet and watched with growing concern, waiting to hear his synopsis.
"He has a punctured lung and has lost too much blood. His nerves are completely worn out and his left leg is shattered." Hermione listened and selected each potion that would help heal him, glad that she had take four of everything from her stores.
"Will he be okay?"
"We will have to wait for Poppy and the Headmaster to arrive." Minerva watched sadly. There was nothing she could do that would help him more.
Hermione clutched her wand in one hand and palmed a generous amount of healing paste. She murmured a cleaning spell that lifted the caked blood from his body then a stitching spell so the wound could close up. There was nothing she could do to help with the scaring, but with the healing paste she lathered it on all the stitched skin and bruised areas.
"Which lung?" She asked frantically.
"The left." Hermione's hand and wand hovered over the left side of his chest. Concentrating as she pictured the lung healed and working properly. Gold light erupted from both her hand and wand, and she felt the sensation of her magic working to fix his punctured lung. His breathing turned back to normal and she then began working on administrating the Blood-Replenishing potion. Color began to return to his skin, but he still remained unconscious and that was when the Headmaster appeared with Madame Pomfrey in tow.
Poppy scurried over to the fallen man, running her own diagnostics, causing Hermione to back away. Hermione watched with wide eyes, hoping that she had at least helped him in some way.
"What happened?" The Headmasters voice seemed to shake the world around them.
"He was summoned, Albus. This morning and Hermione found him and set him here. I ran my own diagnostics that you have trained me in Poppy. I hope I did not miss anything. He has a punctured lung and has lost too much blood. His nerves are completely worn out and his left leg is shattered.""She turned hopeful eyes to the schools matron.
"How long has he been like this?" Albus asked.
"I found him 20 minutes ago outside on the deck." Hermione answered, never tearing her gaze away from Severus' form.
"Miss. Granger, did you heal him?" Poppy turned this time, a stern look upon her face.
"Yes, Madam Pomfrey. Did I cock things up? Is he going to be okay?"Hermione was worrying her hands as she answered, hoping and praying to anyone who would listen to help her professor get through this.
"No my dear, in fact you have done brilliant. Minerva your assessments were correct. Miss. Granger, how do you have all these potions?" Poppy asked while making way to Severus' shattered leg.
"I grow my own ingredients and brew my own potions when on holiday, Madam. It is to help supply should anything happen to Harry or Ron and we cannot get to the infirmary or to Professor Snape. Whatever I can not fit in my trunk come the semester, I store them in my conservatory."
"If I could award points my dear I would give you 50 points for your brilliant mind and preparation for things to come. How many Blood-Replenishing potions did you give him?"
"2."
"Give him 2 more." Hermione did just that, taking great care to cradle his head up on her shoulder. She tipped the small vial on his lips and massaged its contents down his throat. Poppy busied herself trying to reset his leg and Minerva and Albus continued to mutter to themselves as they watched on with concern.
"What was he struck with Poppy?"
"The crucio curse mostly and a few stray slicing hexes it would seem. It was bad this time Albus, but he will come to. He's just self induced himself into a coma. Once his body has healed he will come out." There were sickening snaps that filled the room and after a few seconds the noises disappeared. "His leg is healed. Shall we move him back to Hogwarts?"
"No, we will let him stay here to get better, he is incapable hands." Albus answered, the lines of concern melting away from his old face.
"Is that wise, Albus." Minerva asked.
"He needs constant rest and care, something no one at the school will be able to do, not with the multitude of other things going on. He needs a mini vacation, even if it's not the tropical one I push on him to take. That is, if it is alright with you, Hermione."
"Yes, Headmaster, I think it very wise to keep him here. Thank you for coming so fast."
"Minerva, help me levitate him to his rooms and Poppy can inform Hermione of what you two will be needed to do. That is if it is not too much for you my dear Minerva."
"Of course not, Albus. Please if it will help him relax just a little bit then Hermione and I will do whatever." Minerva nodded towards Hermione before leading a levitated Severus Snape to his room.
"Miss. Granger, you will need to feed him soup and water, I advise against pain potions for what he has suffered. The after effects of the Cruciatus curse are more intense when give pain potions. Give him dreamless sleep every 12 hours to help with the nightmares. Send your patronus if you and Minerva are unsure of anything. As soon as he awakes call for both of us again and do not let that man out of bed. No matter what he tries to pull and he will pull something. Can you handle this Miss. Granger?"
"Yes, Madam Pomfrey. It will help to have something to take my mind off of things."
A/n: Nice big chappy for you all! Hope you're enjoying it! Just so you know my dear readers that I have another story up called Hermione Granger, 007. Please leave a review to let me know if I'm doing right. Thanks again!
Love deedee
p.s. if you don't like the story don't read it, but if you got this far and still don't like it then that's not my problem. Cheers!