Well! This is an incredibly long chapter, but I felt it would be so mean of me to divide it, so I hope this will tide you over! Next chapter will be back to a normal length. The action picks up again soon...that devil, Vegar and his schemes! Anyways, have a lot of mental healing and discovery, and then a large dash of...well you'll find out ;)

Jared Powell slowly opened his eyes, feeling for all the world as if he'd just awoken from a terrible dream. Cringing at the pain of the bright lights, he shut his eyes again and tried to remember where he was. Was he at home? The bed was soft, but it felt slightly uncomfortable. No, it couldn't be home.

What had he been doing when he fell asleep? Why did it feel like such a long time ago? Groaning, he tried to sit up,but his body wouldn't answer him. Oh, how he ached. What had happened? He thought back to what he remembered before he had fallen asleep, but all he could remember was a terrifying feeling of being lost. Lost and alone, a crushing fear that had been his since the day his magic had first appeared, when he apparated without knowing to the park near his house. The minute that had followed when he realised there was no one around him had been the most terrifying of his life.

Is that what had happened? He was a decently powerful wizard, was it possible he apparated somewhere and couldn't remember it? But that couldn't explain the terror he felt when he tried to remember...

"Sir? Mr. Powell?"

Was that a female voice? Where was he? Carefully, he tried to speak, but all that came out was a whisper. Why couldn't he talk? Suddenly, he began to feel incredibly worried.

"Mr. Powell, my name is Hermione Granger," Hermione said in what she hoped was a reassuring voice. "You're in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries."

Hermione and Severus had consulted with the Healer, and they all agreed that Powell shouldn't be made aware of how long he had been asleep for until he was more lucid. So for now, Hermione was simply telling the patient the basics.

Powell opened his mouth again and tried to speak, but was unable to enunciate any words.

"Mr. Powell, you've been cursed and it may take you a few hours to regain speech. For now, you can simply nod and shake your head for 'yes' and 'no', all right?"

Powell nodded stiffly, and Hermione glanced back at Severus excitedly. Powell could understand what she had said, which meant his mental capabilities had been unaffected by the curse. Severus kept his expression impassive as he nodded back at Hermione, but she caught the subtle glint of optimism in his eyes. It was a good sign. "Do you remember anything about what happened before you fell asleep?"

The patient shook his head slowly, and Hermione felt her hopes dampen a bit. So it had affected the memories, possibly more than they had anticipated. It was most likely that while the curse implanted memories, it had taken others out so they could be replaced with the Dark Magic ones. We should have seen this. It made sense, too. The curse wouldn't have been able to give the patient more memories, just replace certain ones. "Can you remember anything at all?"

Powell nodded slowly.

Hermione looked at Severus, and asked in undertone, "is it time?"

Severus inclined his head once, and replied just as quietly. "Yes, it is. I will have to put him under another magically induced sleep, but it will be much lighter than the sleep that Dreamless Sleep invokes. I need the conscious mind to be partially active in order to delve deeper to find the web of a person's magic. When I need it, grab my hand and imagine your magic flowing into me. The body is well attuned to the brain, and it should do as you ask. Magic can be used in a myriad of ways, and transferring some to another person should be within the realms of its capabilities."

"I hope it works," she said quietly. Turning back to the patient, she spoke in a louder voice. "Mr. Powell, we need to put you back to sleep. There are a few tests we have to run to make sure you are completely healed, and you will wake as soon as we are finished. You should be able to speak by then."

Powell nodded once more. Hermione glanced at Severus and moved out of the way, but stayed close behind him as he moved forward. Severus smoothly drew his wand, and waved it over the patient whilst he muttered a few words, and Powell sunk back into the bed, his breathing quickly evening out as the spell took hold.

Severus paused, trying to work out how to start. The few sentences he had read on the topic hadn't bee clear on how to start, but after reading about muggle psychology, and other culture's mental magics, he knew that the conscious was a palpable thing. Which meant he could feel it if he looked in the right spot. It was like Legilimency, but deeper, it required one to delve down the same path in the mind as Animagus magic did. "Hermione," he said. "I won't be able to tell you if I need you. You will have to look at me for signs that I am faltering. Paleness, sweat, things like that. If it looks as though I am struggling, it is most likely because I am."

Hermione nodded and drew in a shaky breath as Severus leaned forward to start. Taking a deep breath, he carefully placed a hand on the patient's head, and lifted his eyelid. Staring intently at the eye, he whispered "Legilimens."

The sleep spell he had placed on the patient was unique; it subdued the patient just enough that they couldn't resist, but their mind was still active. It was a violation of Severus's moral code to perform Legilimency on a person without their express permission, but there was no way around it. This was the only way they would know for sure that the Dark Magic had been eradicated. If even the smallest amount was left behind, it could have terrible affects on how the personality of the victim.

Gasping at the flood of memories that threatened to drown him, Severus used all of his power to bring his mental shields up, blocking the memories. He moved past most of the memories, he had no use for them and he had no desire to peer into the life of Jared Powell. He did, however, note that the most recent memories contained no hint of when he had been cursed. The curse must have replaced that memory.

Moving down, he wondered at the structure of Powell's mind. It was a wide expanse, with no particular focus on a certain area. Severus assumed it meant that Powell wasn't one to dwell on certain things, instead he let each area of his mind work accordingly. In the people Severus had performed Legilimency on in the past, there had always been a certain area that the person favoured– or relied on, be it sense, smell, touch or something else. It's usually what defined how a person learned and functioned as a whole. Some people were visual learners, with emphasis on sight, and some people were hands on learners, with emphasis on touch.

Severus delved deeper still, until he reached the back of the mind, where the memories that a person couldn't recall perfectly were stored. They were still here, everything a person experienced. But the mind functioned on priorities, and if it decided that a certain memory wasn't needed, it moved on to another. It was incredibly complex, and Severus knew that it was entirely possible to spend the rest of his life researching how the human mind worked and still not know more than a fraction of what he did now.

A memory flashed before him of an shadowy figure stepping out, and then a flash of dark purple light lit up the memory before a wave of the purest terror Severus had ever experienced crashed over him. His mental shields crumbled like dust compared to the Dark terror, and Severus screamed. A small part of his mind tried to remind him that it wasn't his mind, it wasn't his terror, and he could overcome it, but it was too difficult to listen.

The terrible feeling of being utterly alone took hold, and he felt as though the very fibres of his being were being torn apart by how strong the fear was. Severus fell to his knees and screamed aloud as the black wave of terror continued to overwhelm him.

Hermione stood beside Severus, watching him carefully for any of the signs he told her about. It had been a hour since he'd started, and Hermione was starting to wonder as she let her gaze travel to the patient. If it was true, and Severus was needed to eradicate the last of the Dark Magic, he would have to do that for every victim. It would be a near impossible task, especially if this were as magically draining as she thought.

Severus released a shuddering gasp, and Hermione whipped back to him, scanning his face for any signs of trouble. He was deathly pale, and trembling horribly. Hermione grabbed his hand and shut her eyes, imagining her magic as a flowing substance, and sent it towards Severus. She had discovered more about her magic since trying to become an animagus, and she had learned to recognise its presence in her mind. It was like a bubbling mass under her consciousness that was always there, and released the amount needed for a spell.

If she didn't focus on it, she couldn't feel it, so it wasn't distracting in any way. But now, she focused on it, and let it flow through her mind towards her hands. Hermione didn't feel any of her magic lessening, and she opened her eyes, wondering if anything had happened.

Severus had started to sweat, and was muttering feverishly under his breath, his skin whiter than Hermione had ever seen it. It hadn't worked.

Feeling the panic start to rise in her chest, Hermione stood and took a deep breath, willing herself to stay calm. Sitting back down, she started to think. The way Severus had told her to give him her magic hadn't worked, but it had felt possible. There had been something blocking it, but what?

It couldn't be the curse, because Severus wasn't under its influence. And it couldn't be Severus stopping her himself, because he was too involved in what he was doing to protect herself. In fact, it looked as though she could perform Legilimency on him and not be blocked...that was it!

Legilimency. The reason the magic was being blocked was because she wasn't connected to his mind. If magic could flow through skin to skin contact, everyone would have a small bit of everyone else's magic simply from day-to-day touching. It was something more, something deeper that had be done in order for magic to be shared. Hermione moved to sit on the bed, and raised her hand to Severus's face tentatively, lifting his eyelid with her thumb.

His pupil was completely dilated, and the blood vessels in his eyes had started to burst in places. Hermione took another deep breath, and focused on his pupil. She had never performed Legilimency, she only knew the theory. Hopefully it would be enough, especially with Severus in this state. "Legilimens."

What happened next she could only describe with one word: strange. She was in Severus's mind, but it was almost entirely empty. At the same time, she could feel her magic draining at an almost imperceptible pace. It was utterly strange, and not at all what she had expected.

Suddenly, Hermione had an idea. She didn't know if it was possible, but she knew somehow that she had found the connection she was looking for. Gathering herself, she picked out the happiest moment she had experienced to date; the memory of her and Severus kissing for the first time. Once she let the happiness of that memory flood over her, she shouted out "Expecto patronum!"

Severus felt the feeling of pure terror lift, and he was blinded by an intense white light. Severus felt something shift in Powell's mind, and somehow, he knew the Dark Magic had been completely eradicated. Severus didn't know exactly what it was, or how he knew, but he did know it had something to do with the white light. Closing his eyes, he shut off Powell's mind from his own, and returned to himself.

He opened his eyes carefully, and stifled a groan when he felt how stiff his muscles were. He flexed his hand experimentally, and looked around to see Hermione looking at him anxiously.

"You were out for close to two hours," she said. "I helped you an hour ago but it took you a while to come back to yourself."

Severus frowned. "It took me less than a minute to come back to myself."

"Your mental sense of time must be quicker than normal," Hermione replied.

"It must be. I assume it was you that caused the blinding flash of white?"

"Yes. Well, it was actually my Patronus."

"Your Patronus? You will have to explain what happened in further detail," Severus said. "I sensed that whatever you did worked in Powell's mind, but we need to wake him up to be sure."

Hermione nodded and withdrew her wand, waving it over the patient with a muttered word. Powell's eyes fluttered as he groaned. Severus and Hermione sat back, giving the patient time to wake up fully.

He opened his eyes. He felt...good. He turned to look at the two people sitting in front of him. The girl. She had spoken to him earlier. Hermione...Hermione Granger? "Doctor Granger?"

The woman looked relieved, and smiled warmly at him. "I'm not a doctor, but yes. I'm Miss Granger, and this is Professor Snape." The girl gestured to the man beside her. Snape...snape. Yes, that name definitely rang a bell. Jared looked at the man. Professor Snape?

Hogwarts. That man taught at Hogwarts. His son was at Hogwarts. "Where's my son?" he asked. His voice was scratchy. How long had he been asleep?

Granger looked at Professor Snape questioningly, and the Professor leaned in and whispered something into the womans ear. She nodded in understanding, and turned back towards him. "Your son is at Hogwarts, sir. He can be brought to you within an hour. How do you feel?"

"I feel good," Jared responded. "What happened?"

"You were cursed, Mr. Powell," Snape replied smoothly. "Cursed with a powerful mental curse that affected your mind. You were put under Dreamless Sleep, as there was no cure. However, one has been discovered, and it works. In a half hour, I must ask you to do something, if you are capable."

"What is it?"

"You will need to cast your Patronus. It is crucial to your recovery."

Jared nodded. He could do that. It had been a while since he had cast it, but he had never had difficulty with the spell. "Why wasn't my son here? Didn't he know I was cursed?"

Granger looked back at Professor Snape once more. "Sir," she began gently, "you were under the influence of the curse for longer than you think."

Something wasn't right. He sat up, ignoring his protesting muscles. "Tell me what happened."

"You were cursed almost three months ago."

Severus waited as Powell came to terms with the reality of what had happened. Hermione went to go find Healer Elfred, and Harry to tell them what had happened. In two days, the hospital would administer the potion to all those who had been affected. Severus felt the need to stick around for all the patients, but he knew he wasn't needed. The qualified healers would take control of the situation from then on. "I know it is a lot to take in," Severus spoke out evenly. "And I know it will take you a while to work through it. I'm not saying it will be okay. But I need you to try and cast your Patronus. Your son will be here soon and I will be more than happy to leave you and him alone after I know you can cast your Patronus."

Powell nodded absentmindedly. "Where is my wand?"

"Here," Severus replied, handing it to him. The patients wand had been kept close at hand, and Severus had requested it be given to Powell almost immediately after awakening.

Jared thanked him, and closed his eyes, concentrating. "Expecto Patronum!" A silvery monkey burst forth from the tip of his wand, and stood at the foot of the bed, eying him curiously. Jared smiled at the sight of his Patronus, he always loved his monkey. "Is that good enough?"

"Very good," Severus responded as he stood up. He gathered his papers, and nodded at the patient. "I'm happy to say that all is looking quite well. You'll be kept for a few more days, to make sure. But otherwise, it's over. Your son will be here soon."

"Thank you, Professor," Jared said sincerely. He leaned back into the pillows, suddenly feeling quite drained. Apparently using magic after three months of inactivity had that effect on a person. Severus nodded again, and walked out. Hermione stood in the corridor, talking with Potter. Severus moved behind Hermione, refusing to meet the boy's gaze.

"Did it work?" Hermione asked when she noticed Severus.

"Yes," he responded stiffly. "We can leave."

Hermione winced slightly at his acid tones. It had been many weeks since she had heard him speak like that, and she had quite forgotten how biting it was. She turned to look at Harry, and smiled tightly at him. "It works, Harry. She'll be back soon. In a couple days you'll have Luna back."

Harry nodded and moved to wrap Hermione in a hug, burying his face in her hair. Choking back a sob, he muttered a broken "thank you." She nodded in response and squeezed him tightly.

Even though Severus knew that Hermione and Harry were close friends, seeing his arms around her was something he did not find pleasant. Nevertheless, he waited patiently until they were done. Hermione said good bye to Harry, and Severus turned on his heel to walk away.

"Thank you, Severus."

Severus didn't stop at the words, nor did he acknowledge them. One day he would let Potter apologise to him and thank him, but not today. He was exhausted, and all he wanted to do at that moment was go home. They made their way to home quickly, pausing to give their good byes to the Healer. Severus had to restrain from tapping his foot from impatience as Elfred thanked them over and over again. Hermione grabbed his hand and squeezed, and Severus returned the gesture. Finally, the Healer waved them on their way.

They stepped out of the floo, and Severus dumped his paperwork unceremoniously on the couch. He turned to look down at her, a dazed expression on his face. Hermione stepped closer and grabbed his hand comfortingly. "We did it."

Severus nodded slowly, and felt all the pent up tension, worry, frustration, doubt release at her words. It was done, they had created a cure. Literally completed the impossible. So, so many things could have gone wrong, or not worked. But it did. Amazingly, brilliantly, it had worked. Together, he and Hermione had created the cure for a curse that they still didn't know the origins of. Suddenly, he smiled.

Hermione grinned back up at him, and placed her hands on either side of his face. Raising herself on her tiptoes, she pulled him down to her, and kissed him. Severus complied readily, bringing his hands to her waist. She fingered the hair at the back of his neck as his lips moved against hers. Severus brought a hand up, and fisted his hand in her hair.

He loved her hair. He may not ever tell her; it was too much fun to rile her up over her hair, but to him, it was immensely attractive. The wild, unkempt look was utterly beautiful to him. He broke the kiss and sucked in a harsh breath at the look in Hermione's eyes.

Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, and Severus felt most of the blood in his body rush to his groin. Gently, he pushed her shirt up to grasp her hip. She sighed and leaned in to kiss him again.

Severus pulled back,and smirked at the wicked glint in her eye. "I suggest we take our...celebration up to the bedroom."

Hermione looked around, she had quite forgotten they were only in the sitting room. "Uh, yes, actually that might be best," she said, a little breathless. She grabbed his hand, and led him upstairs to their bedroom. She closed the door behind him, and turned to face him, and suddenly felt herself become ridiculously shy. This was really happening. She bit her lip as Severus raked his gaze up and down her body.

Quickly she stooped to remove her shoes, and she straightened only to be pushed back against the door. Hermione moaned as she felt Severus's warm breath on her neck, and felt the heat in her center grow hotter with every touch.

Severus quickly threw any inhibitions he had out at the sounds of Hermione's breathless sighs. Every movement she made only served to drive him further down the path he was headed, and he had no intention of stopping. He pulled back from his assault on her neck, and stepped back, his hands deftly removing his cloak. It dropped to the floor, and he moved to start on the buttons of his vest, but his hands were stilled by Hermione's.

"Let me," she whispered. "I've wanted to do this for quite some time."

Severus smirked and stood still as her hands moved down his chest with each button she undid. "How long, exactly?"

"Well..." Hermione paused. "I think since when I apparated to your house on Christmas. It struck me then how many buttons you really did have. I figured you must do them and undo them with magic, but I wanted to unbutton them myself. It seems as though it would be relaxing, in a way."

"It is relaxing for the first three buttons, but then it grows so tedious that I always end up doing the blasted things with my wand," he replied easily.

Hermione didn't reply for a few minutes, so intent was she on undoing the dozens of buttons. Severus entertained himself with watching her expression grow gradually more and more frustrated, until she huffed finally and reached around to her back pocket for her wand. "I don't have the patience right now," she said a little sheepishly in response to his knowing smirk. With a flick of her wand, the buttons undid themselves, and she nodded, satisfied.

"I tried to warn you," Severus purred as he stepped towards her, closing the gap between them. "But I am quite satisfied with your impatience, this time at least."

He moved down to her, and their lips collided in a heated kiss. He quickly slid his hands down her back to cup her behind, and he picked her up easily. Hermione pressed herself against him as he turned and gently placed her down on the bed, covering her body with his. She ran a hand lightly down his back, and he shuddered at the touch. "Hermione..."

She groaned in response, arching her back and undulating her hips against his. Severus' breath hitched as her crotch made contact with his erection. Hermione felt the hardness press against her, and grinned slightly as she repeated the movement, her smile growing broader as she felt him stiffen from the contact.

Severus rolled his hips into Hermione, seeking revenge, and was nullified to hear the gasp that escaped her as his pelvic bone pressed flush against her mound. His lips found her neck the next second, and his tongue sought out every sensitive spot leading down to her collarbone. He sucked lightly under her throat before he trailed his kisses down the rise of her chest.

"My gods," Hermione choked out as his hand moved to cup her breast, massaging it gently through the fabric of her camisole and bra. His hips continued their gentle, yet insistent rocking, and she writhed beneath him. Severus paused long enough to slide off her, rolling Hermione onto him as he inched his way up the bed to rest against the headboard.

Hermione settled herself in his lap, her fingers running through his hair as his hands slid up her back to unclasp her bra. His fingers trailed back down, leaving goosebumps in their wake. She leaned back, and Severus took the opportunity to pull her camisole off, taking the bra with it. Hermione looked at his expression, feeling self conscious for some reason she couldn't quite pinpoint. She supposed it was because it was her first time with him, but her doubts quickly vanished when he let out a guttural groan and pulled her to him.

His lips found hers, and she returned the kiss, her hands running up his arms to grasp at his shoulders. Severus lifted her again, rolling her over. He sat up and quickly removed his button-up, not particularly caring when he heard a few buttons hit the floor from how quickly he yanked it off. He stooped and captured her nipple in his mouth whilst his hand found her other breast. Hermione let out a breath moan at the contact, the heat of his mouth sending pulses of heat to her center.

He kissed his way across her chest to lave his attentions on her other nipple, and his hand slid down her stomach to toy with the edge of her pants. She arched into him, her hands running up and down his back. He moved his mouth further south, his tongue leaving a trail of heat from her breasts down to her navel. His deft hands quickly undid the buttons to her jeans, and he wasted no time in sliding them off. Severus looked up at her, and flashed her a wicked grin before kissing the inside of her thighs, moving closer and closer to her center.

Hermione felt her breathing get more and more erratic before it finally stopped when he placed his mouth over her soaked panties, his gaze locking onto hers. She found it impossible to look away as his tongue darted out to delicately lick the fabric that covered her slit. He ran a finger under the edge, and she had to muffle a scream of frustration. "Merlin, Severus, please, the teasing..." she moved her hand down to relieve some of the pressure she felt in her groin, but his hand caught her wrist swiftly.

"Now now," he murmured, "patience. It will come." His eyes glinted deviously, and Hermione gasped as he pulled the crotch of her panties aside, and slid a finger through her sopping folds. He lowered his head, and his lips found her clit. Hermione clutched at the sheets as he slowly fit one long finger up her channel, whilst his lips continued their ministrations, sucking and licking as she convulsed under them.

Hermione felt her control quickly slide out of her grasp, and it didn't take long for him to bring her to the edge. Severus stilled his movements, and she groaned in frustration as she wriggled her hips, trying to get him to move. "So close..." she mumbled, thrashing her head to the side as she tried to get him to resume his ministrations.

"I want you to come with me," he said softly as he slid her panties down and off. He quickly undid the button to his pants, and shoved them down and tugged them off. He moved to cover her body again, his lips taking hers as he swallowed her moan at feeling his hardness flush against her crotch. Hermione tasted the musky saltiness of herself on his tongue, and moaned. Severus' hand found her breast, and his fingers toyed with her hardened nipple.

He broke the kiss to straighten up slightly, his hand sliding down her body to cup behind her knee, spreading her legs and lifting her up slightly. Hermione slid her hand down to grasp his length, and he suppressed a groan. She aligned him with her entrance, and ran her hand up his side to grasp at the muscles in his back. "Wait," she breathed. "Protection?"

"Are you on the potion?"

"No."

"Ah." He waved his hand over her abdomen and uttered a word, and Hermione felt a fluttering in her womb as the contraceptive spell took hold. He made a mental note to start brewing a contraceptive potion for Hermione the next day."There."

"Thank you," she said sincerely. She grinned, and rolled her hips against him, silently begging him to continue.

Severus smirked as he started to slide into her with excruciating slowness, but Hermione didn't mind the slowness. She hadn't gotten a good look at his erection, and she had been almost uncomfortably surprised at how well endowed he was. The slight ache she felt could have also been owed to the fact that it had been over a year since the last time she had sex, but she didn't bother too much on the specifics.

Severus let out a harsh breath as he stilled his movements, willing himself to hold on just a little while longer. It had been too long to think about since the last time he had been inside a woman, and his release threatened to wash over him if he didn't regain control, and quickly. Her wet warmth surrounded him beautifully, and Severus wondered how he had never done this before. It felt as if she were made for him.

Hermione let out a sigh as her body grew used to him, and she clenched her muscles experimentally. Severus gripped the sheets roughly, and spoke through gritted teeth. "Don't, Hermione. It's been so long," he let out a long breath. "I get the feeling you would be rather let down if you continued with what you just did."

Hermione chuckled. "Why haven't we done this before?" she breathed back as she arched against him.

"I don't know." Severus pulled out, and entered her again with more force. Her mouth opened and her eyes fluttered closed at the feeling as he began to rock against her, his pace quickening with every thrust. Hermione struggled for a moment as she tried to match his rhythm, and he slowed his movements slightly as she found it. Her hips rolled against his, and Hermione bit into his shoulder as a wave of intense pleasure washed over her as his pelvic bone brushed against her clit with each thrust.

He felt the coiling spring of his release growing tighter, and his pace became more and more erratic as his need grew. Hermione kept up with him, her breathing growing louder as she teetered on the edge of the precipice. "Severus..."

"Hermione," he responded, his mellifluous voice broken by his harsh breaths. "Come for me."

His words rolled over her, caressing her, and Hermione couldn't resist. Her orgasm washed over her, the waves of pleasure rolling over her again and against. Her nails scraped across his back, and her muscles spasmed with the force of her climax.

Severus felt her walls pulse around him, and the last vestiges of his control were lost as he spilled his seed inside her, his orgasm causing to nearly blind him with the intensity. Her walls clenched around him, prolonging his climax, and he collapsed on top of her as the last tingling sensation washed over him. Hermione clutched at his back as she slowly regained control of her spasming limbs, and she gently nudged him when the pressure of his body made it more difficult for her to breathe.

He took the prompt, and rolled off her, his breathing slowly coming back under his control. "Celebration, indeed," he said hoarsely.

"The best in my books," Hermione agreed readily.

Severus let out a short bark of laughter. "Your books are on your mind, even in the bedroom."

"It's an expression!"

"A fitting one, for you."

"Okay, well, I suppose you're right," she conceded playfully. "Even still." She rolled over and propped herself up on her elbows to look at him. "You're amazing."

"I return your sentiments, Miss Granger," he said with a smirk. He moved to her side swiftly, rolling her over so his body cupped hers. "However, it has been quite some time for me, and I find myself in dire need of sleep."

At his words, a yawn overcame Hermione and she realised exactly how knackered she was. "I do too."

"Good night then, Hermione."

Hermione yawned again, and nodded into the pillow, the patterns his fingers were tracing on her hip quickly lulled her into the arms of sleep. She murmured something intelligible before she dropped off completely.

Severus stilled for a moment as he tried to make out what she had said. It sounded almost like...he shook his head. He was too tired to think of these things.

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