Chapter 4- Scars

My hand paused fractionally, before knocking on the door before me. I knew this was a stupid idea. I was half turned to walk, maybe even run away before he opened the door.

The door was wrenched open, and he was standing there, towering above me. His expression grew slightly less furious when he realized who was standing at his door at dinner time.

He stared for a moment longer; all the while I was desperately berating myself for being foolish enough to disturb him. He didn't need my stupid girly rants about my dead pet. My murdered pet.

An idea dawned on me. Could it have been because of him that someone killed Crookshanks? I felt like slapping myself in the forehead. Of course it was. No one would murder a cat like that. Madam Pomfrey's warning made more sense now.

"Yes?" He asked sardonically with an eyebrow raised. I opened my mouth then closed it. I was angry all the sudden.

I pushed him out of my way and marched into his sitting room, where he'd apparently been reading.

"This is all your fault!" I said in a hateful voice.

His eyes widened with the shock of my touching him, or maybe for yelling at him. Possibly both. He stepped closer to me, his own temper rising.

"What exactly is my fault?" He asked in a dangerous tone.

I faltered for a second, "Someone killed my cat."

His expression was wiped clean and I just stared at me blankly.

"Are you saying I killed you're cat?" He said calmly. I gasped when I realized how my accusation sounded.

"NO! Of course not…If you had a problem with me…you'd kill me, not my cat! I mean...not that I think you kill people you don't like… I just…"

I was rambling nervously and the corners of his mouth were turning up just a bit. That was something, I guess.

"It's your fault because you've avoided me whenever we're in public. It makes everyone think that you're upset with me. I figure that's why this happened. Someone could be trying to hurt me because they think you've got a problem with me. It's hate mail to the extreme. He was brutally murdered in the girls bath. He didn't have his face left. Someone wants to hurt me and I think the nature of our relationship is why. You don't even make fun of me anymore in class. You ignore me whenever we aren't alone and it's pissing me off."

It all came out in a huge rush and I almost ran out of oxygen.

He turned and sat down on the nearest sofa. "I think you might be right. I also think this would have happened no matter how I treated the situation."

I couldn't think of an argument to that. I was waiting for him to yell and scream at me to leave his rooms. He didn't though.

"You have no idea who did this? No threats were made on….?"

"Crookshanks….and no there weren't any threats on him." I said softly feeling drained after my rant. He looked thoughtful.

"I guess we'll see what happens. There isn't much we can do right now. I will, however, stop treating you any differently than I have in the past."

I sighed and smiled. "That might help. I'm sorry I barged in here, but I was in a mood."

He shook my apology away, "Completely understandable."

I shifted awkwardly, unsure whether I should just leave or stay and talk more.

"I'll see you in class tomorrow, Miss Granger." He said standing up and leading me to the door. I sighed in relief.

"Okay, thank you sir." I said hastily. I didn't need to be here any longer. He closed the door behind me and I sighed in shock. I probably just escaped –

The door opened just a centimeter. "Detention for a week, Miss Granger."

I let out a dark laugh and went to find Harry and Ron…..probably Malfoy too.

Harry was in the common room, seated on his soul mate, while Ron was playing chess with some third year.

"Hermione!" they screamed in harmonization. I was surprised at Malfoy. He really knew what he was doing.

"Hey guys." I said softly. Ron scared his third year away and I took his seat.

"So…Crookshanks was murdered." I said into the tense air. Malfoy shifted uneasily.

"Who is that?"

I smiled at him, "My cat for seven years."

He paled a bit and hid behind Harry's back. Harry took his hand and interlaced their fingers.

"Do you know who did it?"

"No, Harry, I don't. I don't want you asking every day either. This one is just going to play out by itself. Okay? I don't need any help from you guys on it. It'd just be nice if we all were together more. I found him by myself." A tear fell down my face; the onslaught of emotions I tried to keep away came pouring out.

My parents, the fake letters, crookshanks, it was all too much.

"Why can't it all just be over?" I screamed. Harry looked startled and Malfoy jumped to his feet.

"Guys, I've seen my mother have one of these fits and they are not pretty. I suggest we leave. Immediately."

Harry and Ron stood instantly and they were all about to take cover, but I spoke before they could leave.

"You're just going leave me here all alone? I've been alone for most of my life and now you guys are leaving me too." My hair was frizzy enough to look electrified and my eye makeup that I rarely ever put on was smeared in a terrifying way. I knew why they wanted to leave, but didn't they see that I needed to the stay? Who was going to help me? Who take care of me?

"Mione? Why don't you go see your mom? She can help you better than us." Ron said softly, moving back into the room.

I stood and walked past them to the door.

"Mom's aren't that good a help when they're dead Ron." I said hollowly and then left them all standing there in silence.

It wasn't their fault. Ron didn't know my parents were dead, no one did. He couldn't have known not to bring them up.

I hid from Harry, Malfoy, and Ron for the remainder of the weekend, sleeping for almost two days straight. I eventually had to eat and shower, though. I woke up Monday morning, feeling sluggish and maybe a little drugged. I had transfiguration first and then Potions. I was thankful that I'd had enough sense to schedule only two classes on Monday for my seventh year. I was toning it down. I didn't need Newts in every single class I took. That wasn't realistic.

It was halfway through Transfiguration when I remembered that I couldn't just go back to my bed after classes. I had detention with Him. McGonagall never called me out during class, but I didn't expect anything that nice from Snape, so I tried to wake myself up a little before I walked into the room.

I was the last one to arrive, which had never happened before that I could remember. I took my usual seat in the back, glad that he hadn't yelled at me when I switch a month ago. I couldn't stand hearing the whispers behind my back about us. At least I didn't hear them as much in the back.

"Miss Granger, it seems that you've taken it upon yourself to move seats without permission. Twenty points from Gryffindor. Move back to your original seat."

I glared and rolled my eyes at him, which he ignored. I threw my bag down next to my desk at the front, glad I put an unbreakable charm on my ink. That would have been embarrassing.

"Everyone pass up the homework that you did on the two most deadly potions that you chose."

I reached to get mine out, and then paused. I didn't have it done. For the first time I didn't have my homework done. I sat back into my seat and watched everyone pass their homework up. I was the only one who didn't have it.

"No homework, Miss Granger?" Snape said softly. It would have been a nice sound, except I could hear his anger in it.

"No, sir, I don't have it." I crossed my arms, waiting for him to take more points and give me more detention.

"You don't have your homework Hermione? Where were you all weekend?"

Thanks Lavender. Thanks.

Snape leaned on the edge of my desk, "Yes, where were you, Miss Granger?"

I made up a lie on the spot, "Visiting my parents, sir."

His face sneered at me, "And what did they say about you're lack of skill when it comes to turning in homework?"

I paused and looked at him thoughtfully. "They didn't say much, sir, because they're dead."

Silence rang through the room, until he spoke, "You're lying! Potter came and spoke to me about those who died and he said that you're parents survived. Is this a cruel trick, Miss Granger?"

He sounded enraged and I stood to my feet slowly.

I unzipped my jumper and raised my shirt so he could see my stomach. I hadn't put any glamours on the whole weekend.

Carol and john…six feet under….

It was carved into my stomach with a cursed knife, so it moved and changed from Slytherin green to blood red every few seconds.

"I assure you, sir. They're dead."

He stared at my stomach in shock and then he yelled, "Class dismissed." No one moved a muscle.

"Get out or you all have detention!"

They were all out in five seconds. I sat on the desk and traced my scar. It was a funny way of saying my parents would always be with me.

It was a nasty carving. It had me be bleed a lot and the blood that had come with the cut had stayed and almost dyed my skin. It looked like a fresh wound. It didn't hurt at all, but I could feel it there. The roughness of the skin and it tingled when the colors changed.

Professor Snape pulled a chair over in front of me. He raised his hand to my stomach, "May I?"

"Sure." I didn't bother me at all if he wanted to look at it.

"Who did this to you?"

"Yaxley and Bellatrix. I was there when they killed them. I've tried everything to get it off, but they used a cursed knife. It won't come off."

He nodded silently, taking everything in. He placed a hand on the scar and his hand was unusually warm. I shivered a little, but he looked up at me.

"Is this all of it?"

I shook my head. Not even close. I looked down at my legs, the glamour were coming off completely now. He looked down with me and saw what she put there.

The names of all the death eaters. Every single one of them, which meant his name, was there too.

His name was on my thigh, just above my knee. Severus Tobias Snape.

I showed him and he sucked in a shocked breath, "I never knew your middle name. Your father's right?"

I knew it was a mean thing to say. It was no secret that his parents were probably the worst I'd ever heard of. He flinched but didn't yell at me.

"Every name? There are about fifty death eaters!"

"There are 54 death eaters. Don't forget the big guy himself. I pulled down the neck of my shirt and saw, Lord Voldemort, carved into my upper chest.

"How did you hide these from everyone?"

"As you can see they don't hurt anymore and she healed them over herself so they would scar the way she wanted. She said it was like drawing a picture."

I was getting into a bad place. I was getting angry again. It'd become such a habit to cover them that I forgot exactly what I was covering.

He looked at me for a long time; his eyes were the darkest black I'd ever seen.

"You should see a specialist; they might be able to do something more permanent than glamours."

I nodded and watched as his hand traced the blood smeared on my abdomen. It tickled.

"Are you laughing?" he asked incredulously.

"No, but that tickled." He raised an eyebrow and just shook his head. It wasn't my fault that my body was ticklish.

"I could give you the name of my specialist. She did a very nice job. I don't know what she'd be able to do for these types of scars."

"Thank you. I didn't go see my parents, I was just hoping you would leave me alone and teach. I didn't have my homework because I was sleeping for the past two days."

"I assumed as much. Be here after dinner for your detention." He said and finally lifted his hand from my stomach. I pulled my shirt down and zipped my jumper. I grabbed my bag and placed a piece of parchment in my hand.

"The specialist." He said softly and then retired to his bedroom, which was just a door away.

I had something to look forward to it seemed.

A/N:This one is pretty long! One of my longest for this story! Next chapter will be of the detentions. I hope you guys like it!