A/N: Sorry about the longer lapse between posts; I had a long week with schoolwork and bad days. Anyway, enjoy! Disclaimer: I own nothing, for I am not the amazing genius that J.K. Rowling is.
Severus sighed as he looked at all three of the adults standing before him. Poppy was standing with her hands on her hips, shooting him a reproachful look. Minerva had her arms folded across her chest, one eyebrow raised. Albus looked almost shocked. He looked back to Mina and saw that she looked somewhat apprehensive about the three people standing next to her. She was leaning towards Severus, who quietly assured her, "Don't worry, they won't hurt you." She visibly relaxed, though still kept both eyes on the trio, clearly not wanting to take her gaze off them should they suddenly turn on her. For now, however, she appeared to be content with their gazes being firmly glued on him.
"We might not hurt her," said Poppy, emphasizing 'we' quite emphatically, "but what about you?"
Severus simply stared.
"What Poppy is trying to say," said Minerva, taking a step forward, "is…how did you get Mina's memories?"
"First off, how do you know their Mina's?" Severus countered sarcastically. Minerva raised her eyebrow again and Severus waved his hand at her dismissively. "Secondly, I got them the same way you would get memories from someone else incapable of casting such magic as of yet: asking before carefully removing them."
"And what, exactly, did you see that would bring you to tears?" Dumbledore asked quietly, "And why did she show you first? You've only been with her for a few days."
"Firstly, she showed me first because she trusts me as I have been with her the most over these past few days, calming her after nightmares and feeding her," Severus responded. As he spoke of food, his stomach protested to the certain lack thereof in his stomach. He turned to Mina. "Are you hungry?" he asked. She nodded, still looking at the trio. Severus began to wonder if she was somehow entranced with their animi or something; she had been staring at them for quite a while. He sighed, deciding not to ask her, and flicked his wand, summoning two trays of food. "Do any of you need food?" All three shook their heads and he stowed his wand. He deftly caught both of the trays that came flying into the room and he handed one to Mina who reluctantly tore her gaze from the three other adults and began to tuck into her food quite wholeheartedly, still seeming to think it was the last meal she would ever receive, savoring every bite. He summoned a few more potions for her to take and handed them to her, not commenting on her cautious sniffing of every bottle and simply tucking in to his own meal. The house elves had sent along eggs benedict, a side of hash browns, a small bowl of cereal, an apple, and a glass of orange juice for Mina. Severus received tea.
Those house elves don't miss a thing, do they? Severus thought. Glancing out one of the many windows, Severus realized that the sun had indeed risen, most likely while he was submerged in Mina's memories, and that it was indeed time for breakfast.
"Severus." He looked up at the headmaster at the sound of his name. "You never answered my first question."
"It is not mine to answer," he replied smoothly. "Mina will tell you when she wishes, which I suspect won't be until at least after she finishes this rather large breakfast we've been served.
"Sit, you three. You look odd just standing there." With sighs and mumbles, the three drew up chairs and settled in them, waiting for the pair to finish their meal. Poppy was surprised when she saw Mina finish the entire meal, then realized that Severus had probably fed her a Nutrient Potion, a Stomach Growth Elixir, and an Appetite Increaser. The girl desperately needed to put on some weight and regain the vital nutrients she had lost. She wondered why the girl had sniffed at every potion put in front of her, but decided not to comment on it, deeming it untactful and potentially embarrassing for Mina as well as disrespectful.
Once the pair had finished their meals in what was a more awkward silence than the last meal they had shared, Severus made to pull out his wand again and send the trays back to the kitchens but a house elf suddenly appeared, grabbed both trays and disappeared again. Mina was staring at the spot the house elf had been in with a look of pure confusion and shock on her face. Severus chuckled a little at her expression and explained, "It's a house elf. They do most the chores here at Hogwarts. Washing clothes, cleaning the dorms, that sort of thing." She nodded, looking almost relieved. Severus realized she had probably never seen a house elf before and was happy to hear they weren't out to get her.
Poppy cleared her throat and all three looked at her. "I'm going to need another Diagnostic Charm on you, Mina," she said. "After that, I'll need to run a few more tests to figure out how severe some of your psychological injuries are and such. It shouldn't take too long."
"While you're doing that, I think I'll take some time to shower," said Severus, standing. Mina looked at him, a pleading look in her eyes coupled with alarm. "Would you prefer if I stayed?" he asked. She nodded emphatically. "Then I shall stay." He sat back down and Mina visibly relaxed against the pillows. One corner of his mouth twitched upward into a smile, pleased that he was trusted before any of the others. Usually, no one wanted to get anywhere near the snarky Potions Master if Albus Dumbledore was around. He was definitely more amicable. Yet Mina had gravitated toward him, most likely because he'd been around more.
"Why does she trust you so much?" Minerva asked. "I understand you've been around her the most and comforted her when she needs it, but you aren't exactly the easiest person to trust, Severus."
"Would you care to tell them?" Severus asked, looking at Mina and gesturing toward the three other adults. She looked at them appraisingly for a moment, then turned back to Severus and shook her head. He turned back to the other three and said, "Then you'll just have to accept that she trusts me first and foremost. I'll not divulge secrets she herself won't reveal."
They sat in awkward silence for some time before Minerva stood, saying she needed to deal with a flood of mail. Albus quickly followed, saying he needed to get to the Ministry, leaving Poppy alone with Severus and Mina. She sighed.
"Well, Mina, shall we get these tests over and done with?" she asked. Slowly, Mina nodded. Severus, sensing her nervousness, reached out his hand and grasped her own. She jumped but he didn't let go. He simply gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and was content to allow their hands to remain entwined beneath the sheets. She gave him a reluctant squeeze back as Poppy pulled out her wand. "Now, there may be a slight tingling feeling throughout your body while I cast these spells, Mina, but they shouldn't hurt. If you feel any pain in any part of your body, I need you to tell me, all right?" Mina gave her a short nod. Carefully, trying not to startle the girl, Poppy moved her hand forward and reached for Mina's sheets. Slowly, she drew them back, and Mina clutched Severus' hand all the more tightly. He gave her another reassuring squeeze, assuring her he wasn't going anywhere. Poppy began muttering spells under her breath and Severus was relieved to see that Mina eventually began to relax.
When the Healer raised her wand to Mina's temple, however, she leaned away and raised her other hand defensively.
"They're just some basic Diagnostic Spells designed to see how severe your psychological scarring is, dear," Poppy assured her. But Mina refused to lower her hand and Severus knew why. But how had Mina known?
"Mina, you really don't want anyone seeing your memories, do you?" he asked quietly. She shook her hand frantically and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Look at me." She did. "Would you prefer if I cast the spell? Because unfortunately, this is something we have to do." Mina still looked tense. She shot glances back and forth between Poppy and Severus. Once or twice, he thought he caught her shooting glances at the ground near her bedside table. Then, finally, cautiously, she gave him one short nod.
Still holding her right hand with his left hand, he pulled out his wand and gently raised it to Mina's temple. She sighed and closed her eyes and as his wand touched her temple, the spell activated, he was flooded with her emotions and memories.
The spell, a Mental Illness Diagnostic Charm, told the caster the extent of a patient's mental illness by showing the caster the patient's strongest feelings and the images associated with those feelings. Primarily, he felt Mina's fear, and she feared a great deal of things. She feared Albus, Minerva, and Poppy turning against her with their wands and hurting her in some way. He saw her imagined images of them doing this, then images of the Death Eaters casting various hexes and curses, including the Cruciatus, Cutting Curses, and Nerve Frying Curses. She feared being found naked by someone; she'd had bad experiences being naked in someone else's presence, too many bad experiences. He saw those memories and quickly advanced through them, grateful that the spell did not bring the memories to the forefront of the patient's mind like Legilimency, for he guessed that Mina did not want to relive any of this. Unfortunately, Mina also had a fear of various household objects, such as canes, kitchen knives, rope, wooden beams, among other things. That would be something they would need to fix the quickest so she could walk about in someone's home without having a panic attack and/or a flashback, which was the last thing they wanted.
But the thing that Mina clearly feared the most was her own memories. She did not want to remember anything. She spent most of her time focusing on the few good memories she had, namely eating with Severus, seeing her parents, and being rescued. Severus was pleased that a more personal scene with just him and Mina had made her top three favorite moments.
Not that she has much to go from, thought the annoying voice in his head. He quickly shoved it away, knowing he needed to concentrate on what he was doing before he caused Mina some serious pain.
Refocusing, Severus moved through various parts of Mina's brain and delved into not only what she feared most, but also what she hated most (which, oddly enough, included Brussels sprouts as the top of the list), what she loved the most, and what she wanted the most. All were important for her healing so they could be sure to provide her with the things she wanted and missed from her decent early memories and avoid the things she feared and hated most unless, of course, in psychological conversations.
Eventually, Severus finally pulled out of Mina's mind and found that, for the second time in a single day, he had tear tracks running down his cheeks. Slowly, Mina reached forward and swiped them away with her thumb and gave him a look that said, It's all right. You couldn't have done anything. I appreciate what you're doing now.
Severus, she's just saying that because she doesn't know any better, the annoying voice interjected. Once she gets to know Minerva and Albus and starts seeing them as the most helpful witch and wizard of the age, she'll abandon you for them and go to them for everything. You know that.
Ignoring the voice as best he could, Severus gave Mina a weak smile and turned to Poppy. "Are those the last of your tests?" he asked. The Healer nodded.
"Do you want to tell me the results of that test or would you rather simply serve as the girl's psychologist?" she asked. Neither of the adults missed Mina's small flinch at the phrase 'the girl's' and Severus filed the fact away for later thought.
"I will serve as her psychologist, Poppy," he said. He turned back to Mina. "Do you mind if I leave for half an hour to shower?" he asked. Reluctantly, she shook her head and pulled her fingers out of his, gently shooing him along. With one corner of his lips tilted up, Severus stood and gave Minerva a short nod before striding out of the hospital wing with a flourish of black robes. He decided to simply bathe in his quarters and began to make his way to the dungeons, but not before he heard Poppy say:
"Now, I'm going to be working on some paperwork in my office, Mina. Don't hesitate to call if you need anything."
Knowing Mina wouldn't call anyone for anything, he cast a silent Monitoring Charm on Mina. If she needed anything, he wanted to know about it.
He continued walking down to his quarters and muttered the password after passing a snake-shaped brazier. It had been the site of the Slytherin Head of House's quarters since the founding of Hogwarts, though each had changed the place to suit them. Severus' quarters were simple and contained only the most basic furniture to keep himself comfortable (which was really only one armchair and a fireplace) and to keep guests comfortable should he ever need to entertain them (which consisted of a sofa and two extra chairs to keep Minerva and Albus happy). However, the extra furniture was only necessary in the sitting room and kitchenette. The rest of his quarters were private to him and no one was ever allowed down the hallway leading off the sitting room, so he had no need to provide extra furniture for guests or to keep Minerva and Albus satisfied. He did keep a guest bedroom on hand in case Draco ever needed to stay with him during the school year; as the boy's godfather, he felt an obligation to steer Draco as far away from the Dark Arts as possible. He and Draco's mother had long since been in an alliance to keep Draco away from the Dark Lord, as Narcissa had never wanted to marry Lucius (it had been an arranged marriage, of course) and she still had no feelings for him even after thirteen years of having been married to him and having his son two years after marriage. Severus knew this was mostly due to the fact that Lucius was hardly ever around and when he was, he was a pompous prat, and a demanding one at that, who lost his temper when he didn't get his way and often reacted with his palms or fists. He had often been the facilitator of substantial amounts of Bruise Balm and Pain Potions to Narcissa.
So, in case either Narcissa or Draco ever needed to stay with him during the school year, he kept a spare bedroom on hand. But it was the only room he kept in tip-top shape for a possible outcome (although the outcome was becoming more and more plausible as the years went by); every other room was immaculate because he used it often enough for it to be necessary.
He strode into his bedroom, a simple affair with dark stone walls and no pictures adorning the walls. A bookshelf lined the left wall and a desk sat a little off to the side near the bookshelf on the near wall. Centered against the far wall was a four-poster bed decorated in dark green and a pale grey. Against the right wall was a dark, wooden dresser. A comfortable armchair sat in the near right corner of the room where Severus could read and watch the rest of the room comfortably, especially the door. Too many years as a spy had taught him that he could never be too careful.
Severus stripped and tossed his clothes into a magical laundry basket whereupon the clothes vanished and headed off to the house elves for washing. Then he strode across the hall into his bathroom and turned on the shower.
As he scrubbed himself clean and, contrary to popular belief, washed his hair, Severus was content to discover through the Monitoring Charm that Mina had fallen asleep. He was a little apprehensive that she hadn't had a Dreamless Sleep Potion before she fell asleep, but he knew the potion could prove addictive and that she needed to be able to fight her proverbial demons on her own, not resort to a potion every night so she could hide.
He showered as quickly as he could, then toweled off and changed into a set of robes identical to the ones he had been wearing previously. Casting a Drying Charm on his hair, he strode out of his bedroom and back up to the hospital wing. Strangely, he felt a sense of apprehension as he approached the hospital wing and the sixth sense that had kept him alive as a spy told him that he needed to be careful. Keeping one hand on his wand, though not sure what dangerous person or creature could possibly have entered Hogwarts, Severus peered into the hospital wing. Instantly, he rounded the corner and drew his wand.
Dumbledore had his wand raised against sleeping Mina's temple. And he looked too purposeful for his own good.
A/N: So, I figure it might be obvious, but what do you all think Dumbledore is doing? I'd really like to hear it; it'll let me know someone is actually reading, rather than just seeing the fact that I have so many views. Thanks to all of you who have stuck with me. Review please!