Lunch had been a pleasant affair, all three parties kept their conversation cordial and on neutral topics. Draco made to leave shortly after, but not before asking if he could stay the night. Hermione had been sad to hear about his mother's passing even though her memory of the woman wasn't the most pleasant she could see the pain in the boy's eyes. No one should have to lose a parent that way.
Her mind rounded on herself after that, blocking out the rest of the conversation between the two of them. She wondered about her parents. If they were alive, or well if they missed her. She had been gone a very long time. She scratched at the side of her head absently as she attempted to think about what they looked like. It had been a vain and headache inducing experience. She let the thought go with a heavy sigh rubbing at her temples just in time to hear the back door close.
She glanced up at Snape as he came back to pick up the dishes. He paused looking at her face but she waved a dismissive hand forcing a smile on her lips. She turned her head away from his intrusive look, noticing a few books that he had stacked at the corner. With a glance to his freshly turned back, she pulled open the top one and flipped it open to a marked page. She was just about to turn to the picture of the creature when a large heavy hand slammed down over hers.
"Miss Granger, do you think it wise to tempt fate?" His face was startlingly close to hers and she reared back just a bit bringing his large nose into focus. She didn't understand, not at first, then her brain caught up and she swallowed thickly.
"I'm sorry, sir." She said in a rushed whisper slowly pulling her hand back from under his. He sneered slightly snapping the book shut. He turned sharply placing it on top of the cabinet well outside of her reach. She made a small face, his temper at her was rolling through their connection but it was muddled and messy, "I want to help." She chirped finding her courage that had hidden somewhere behind her thumping heart. "Please, I know I can help." Her face turned softer as she watched him. She felt something akin to fear wash through their connection before it was snapped closed. She twitched. "Maybe, something that's...I don't know, not as direct?" She chewed her lip a bit waiting for his answer. His fear slightly confused her, but as she lingered on the residual feeling she started to understand. She focused back on his face. He looked like a cobra sizing up its next strike, it left an odd sort of flutter in her stomach.
He watched her eager face, his lip twitching a bit baring his sharp canine. Always the insatiable know-it-all, craving knowledge well beyond her years. "Fine." He growled out after some time, "On one condition." His tone left no room for argument and he paused watching her head nod vigorously. "The first sign and I mean at the very first sign." He said leveling his eyes at her watching her resist the urge to cow away from him, "You are to immediately stop what you're thinking about and close the book." He watched her nod again, her eyes filled with a spark of understanding and respect for his terms.
He pulled the legilimency text from that morning from the top of the stack holding it out to her with a raised judgmental brow. He watched her lick her lips like she was a thirsty man lost in a desert. Her eyes locked onto the text in his hand.
"Thank you." She took a small breath reaching out as if she was approaching a stray dog. She glanced towards his narrowed eyes as her hands closed around the text. She felt the urge to run her fingers over his, something to quell the tension that was rolling off of him. Her mind told her the dangers of such an idea; fearing that he was wound so tight a simple touch might snap his control.
He watched her for a few moments before pulling back releasing the book into her hold. He turned setting the dishes a bit heavier into the sink than intended as he started to wash them by hand, needing to distract himself from his temper. He had felt so much on edge lately and he didn't want to risk losing it on her.
Hermione chewed her inner cheek slowly, watching his stiff shoulders for a few seconds before looking down at the book in her hand. She flipped it to its title, "The Power of Dark Occlumency..." She whispered, she glanced up at him but he paid her no mind as he worked. She took a deep breath and slowly opened the book. She tried to let the tension wash away turning her mind to the task. If he didn't relax she was liable to be the one who snapped.
She noticed a small scrap of paper sticking out from between the pages and flipped towards the page he had been reading just before she woke. She let out a soft noise as she recognized the door in the picture. She missed the glance Severus threw her over his shoulder as she leaned in to read its description.
The Firmamentum Suppressae Memorias, is considered the most powerful occluding shield in all of the art...A vault such as this can be created by inciting the darkest of magic. It requires the creator to pull part of their soul away from their magical core, using the power of their magic to form the required shape...Blood is required to be spilled during the process, bringing the creator to the brink of death where their soul is the most vulnerable. Only then can the caster pull the power needed from their very essence...
Hermione leaned forward pressing herself closer to the text as she slowed down wanting to retain everything exceptionally clearly. Her brown eyes moved over each line twice before moving on, her brain was kicked into high gear. Her lips moved soundlessly as they recited each word cementing it into her mind.
...Only one dark creature has been able to create this door, and its process must be replicated should the caster wish to cast it upon themselves. The Soul Tearer or Tamashiheki is able to split apart its victim's soul using the very life force of its host to create the vault. It is believed that the Soul Tearer then pulls away all of the memories of the afflicted leaving them with whatever it chooses. It is not suggested that any caster of this magic conjure this creature as it is extremely volatile and nearly impossible to be rid of once the vault has been created...
Hermione paused taking a small breath looking to the complex diagrams outlining the soul tearing process and the recommended way to bring yourself to the brink of death without actually crossing over. She shuddered to think about what any normal person would even hope to accomplish by using such dark magic on themselves. She chanced a glance at the man in black who was starting to put the dishes away in the cupboards and she knew his attentions would be back to her soon enough. She chewed her thumb nail a bit going back down to the page, hoping to impress him by having a theory by the time he finished.
Severus had calmed his raging temper by the time the last dish was dried and put away. When she had expressed her interest he hadn't really been surprised. She had always been eager to learn. A part of him did respect that about her. Though he had tormented her endlessly through her schooling about it. But now, knowledge was indeed power. The creature had made it very clear of its feelings on that subject. His fear had become anger rather quickly. It made him uneasy to think about. Even though he had relented so easily to her, he wasn't sure if he was doing what was right or simply lost his mind. Deciding that he simply lost his mind he let the thought go for now. His shoulders relaxed marginally and he turned to look back at the table.
The girl in his care had curled her legs up into her chair the book resting on her knees. She was chewing absently on the corner of lip murmuring something softly under her breath. He watched her narrow her eyes go still for a moment before her head popped up with an epiphany.
"I've got it." She stated confidently her eyes coming back into focus. She blinked a few times looking to where he was shadowed against the window. "I think..." She lowered her enthusiasm just a bit growing a bit uncomfortable when he crossed his arms raising his brow for her to continue. She squirmed slightly in her chair taking a few calming breaths through her nose, her stomach was fluttering again and she couldn't figure out why. She'd never had this reaction when she couldn't see him. But now his intense gaze was almost boring holes through her body. She wasn't really scared of it, but it was disconcerting with the intensity in which he looked at everything. "Right..." She swallowed putting the book onto the table lowering her legs down. She was not going to be scared, he wasn't the least bit scary to her. She wasn't going to let his eyes make her squirm.
"So this door, I've seen it before." She pointed to the vault door inside the book, "I think...that's where the memories slip out from." She flicked her eyes towards him, "From what I understand, the strength of the door is directly proportionate to a number of memories locked inside." She turned the page turning the book so he could look at the calculations that were printed.
He came off the counter hearing her very logical assumption, he wasn't sure what he was expecting but he was mildly surprised that she could even read the equations given her diminished mental state. He looked down at the page himself his lips terse as he did his own calculations. "How do you plan to remove the memories inside without drawing out the creature?" It wasn't an accusation but rather curiosity.
She smiled just a little before straightening her shoulders a bit, "I managed to release some memories before." She pulled her legs back up into the chair wrapping her arms around her shins. "Maybe, if I look into the pensive again or..." She watched him, not wanting to really speak her request aloud. She had instantly thought about returning to his mind space when she had come up with the idea, but now, being able to see any rejection his face, she felt rather nervous. It made her feel rather guilty to ask such a personal thing of someone who was going so outside their comfort zone to care for her needs. Now that she was feeling better, the guilt had only increased.
"Or what Miss Granger?" He lifted his head from the text his brow raised.
"Maybe...I could..." She squirmed a bit more pulling a face somewhere between frustration and embarrassment. "See into your memories?"
He leaned back into his chair, his dark eyes flickering over her reddening face. It wasn't the first time she had been in his mind why was she acting so skittish about it now? He used their connection to skim the very top of her racing thoughts. He winced just slightly as her thoughts were too discombobulated to really discern anything. He quickly shut down the connection adjusting himself in his chair, he leaned over on his forearms keeping his voice dangerously soft and level. "And just which, pray tell, of my so many wonderful memories would you like access to?"
She swallowed as his voice dipped down and felt her heart flutter slightly in her chest, "I..Well..." She took a calming breath trying to start again pulling up all the courage that had disappeared somewhere in her toes, "Maybe just memories of me?" She made a sort of face as if she didn't believe her own words.
"Maybe?"
Hermione bristled, how was it humanly possible to drop one's voice that low? She swallowed and turned her gaze from his, "I don't know just forget it." She huffed and pushed her legs from the chair. She glared at him from the side of her eyes before carefully pushing herself up onto her legs. She swayed slightly before using the back of the chair to keep her balance. It wasn't the dramatic exit she was looking for, having to use the back wall and the doorway to keep herself steady as she slipped into the sitting room.
Snape watched her attempt at dramatics with a lazy eye, though he was tense ready to keep her standing at a moments notice. He watched her hand slip from the doorframe before letting out a small breath. It wasn't like it was the first time she would have been in his mind. In fact, he distinctly remembered her slipping into a few memories he'd had rather forgotten. He had purposely riled her up, he knew, he couldn't help himself. Her theory was brilliant, he was sure it would get some sort of result. But the other side of him was deeply concerned. Ever since her date with the grim reaper, he'd had the insatiable urge to treat her like some invalid. It was safer for him. Safer for both of them. Or so he thought. He could tell there was no way he was going to cage that intellect for much longer. She was growing in strength as well. He knew he would have to deal with her neurotic tendencies sooner or later. He just didn't expect it to be so soon after her brush with death.
He pushed himself up with a sigh grabbing the book for good measure as he followed her into the sitting room. He was just able to catch her slipping down into his chair as he came around. He let the sneer crawl over his face for just a moment before schooling his features into the cool indifference he was accustomed to.
Hermione shifted in his chair, it smelled of him and it was oddly comforting. Despite her temper with the man, she allowed the smell to abate the fire inside her. She turned sideways in it curling her feet up. The dip of her hip lightly dug into the arm as she wedged herself into the wing keeping the pressure off of her back the best she could.
She heard him come around the chair and let her head fall to the side closing her eyes, maybe if she didn't look things would feel as they used to. She heard him sit on the lounge and tilted her head slightly towards him.
Severus frowned as she refused to look at him, he wasn't exactly sure what she was playing at but he didn't like it. He had worked too damn hard to see her amber hues again.
"Look at me." His tone was short and slightly more aggressive than he intended.
Hermione's brow twitched but she pursed her lips stubbornly turning her face into the back of the chair. If he was going to be a prat then so was she. Gradually, a very Slytherin like thought came and her lips curved into a wry smile.
"Say my name." She turned her head back towards him but kept her eyes closed.
"Excuse me?" His tone dropped to that dangerous tone that made her shiver and she knew she was playing with fire.
"My name, Hermione. Say it." She kept her words gentle but her chin was tight with her resolve.
"And if I don't?" He caught her game instantly and wasn't the least bit interested in playing. They had already had this argument.
Hermione shrugged and turned her face back into the chair feigning indifference. She squirmed as her back twinged but tried to hide it from the eyes she could feel on her.
Snape had come with intentions to smooth over her temper, but when she did that he suddenly felt his jaw tense. If she wanted to act like a brat then so be it. He pushed himself up intending to go read in the kitchen when he noticed her squirm. His mouth opened before snapping shut forcibly, she wasn't in life threatening danger, and if she wanted to be stubborn then so could he.
She felt him move and pause, she tried to still herself. When he finally left she peeked open her eyes turning around the edge of the chair to watch his stiff back return the kitchen. The scrapping of a chair betrayed his intentions and she sighed softly turning her gaze to the fire. She felt unbelievably lonely in that moment. Her heart ached in her chest, leaving a frown over her features as she rested her chin on her knees and settled to watch the fire place. It wasn't long before she felt herself falling into its hypnotic dance, the world started to fall away and she slipped silently into her own private world.
She found herself in the familiar darkness, she turned slowly looking to the chair and cold hearth. It had been a while since she had appeared in this particular space. She turned looking at the quiet shelves. The fear and dread that normally accompanied her was absent. She turned and walked slowly around the space, as she neared the darkness she noticed the light shining from her body and looked down at herself.
Her hand ran down the brightly lit fissure running along her chest. The light was strong and pulsed brighter at her touch. She lingered over the hole over her heart feeling something besides her own energy meeting her fingers. Her heart didn't share the identity of the new energy with her brain but she had her suspicions. She let her hand fall down feeling even more lonely in the dark space. She could feel him, even there inside her own mind. His essence lingered. She took a slow breath and stepped into the stacks hoping to clear her thoughts.
Her feet lead her to a wide running space of destruction. Her steps halted as she recognized the space. She turned cautiously trying not to draw attention to herself, she grabbed an empty book from an overturned shelf and covered her light. A deep blue glow started to come into focus, the natural light of her space coming up from the floor. She shivered as she approached the end of the trail. Her head leaned back as she saw the large vault door.
She swallowed as she took in its elaborate design. She worried her cheek, the darkness seemed thicker the closer she got. She decided it was best to stand as far back as possible and still be able to see the vault. She wrapped her arms around her waist as she memorized its design. It looked almost exactly the same to the one in the book, except... She leaned forward just a fraction more taking notice of the large crescent shaped cut along the intricate locks down the front. It had broken a fair few of them. She tensed her jaw trying to sort out the pattern. She had managed half of the lock work when a pain started to throb along her back. She hissed slightly with impatience before closing her eyes with a resigned sigh and pulled herself out.
As her eyes opened she hissed and arched away from the chair. Her body had twisted a bit awkwardly while she was in her inner space. She could only guess that with her mind elsewhere her body had relaxed into its current state. She let out another soft noise of discomfort as she dropped her legs to the floor laying her chest over her thighs.
"Agh, Merlin's pants..." She wasn't prone to cursing and the words felt sort of salty as they passed her lips. She hugged her thighs arching her back trying to release the tension. It felt like her skin was too tight like it was tearing. "Ow ow..." She hissed through her teeth looking to the side, she could hear the sound of a chair scrapping. Was he coming to her? Even after she had been so brattish? She closed her eyes taking a small breath the burning was starting to intensify. The muscles in her back twisting in knots.
"Miss Granger?"
"Yes?" She squeaked trying to swallow down the lump in her throat as her back let out a small ripple down into her tail bone.
Severus came around the corner of the chair his brow raised at her curious position.
"It's my back." She took a small breath, "It's cramping." She closed her eyes thunking her head down on her knees to try and divert her brain's attention elsewhere.
"Don't give yourself a concussion." He grumbled moving away from the chair, "See if you can get to the lounge, if not I'll assist you when I return."
She heard his retreating steps and turned her head towards the lounge. With a small hiss, she lowered herself down to her hands and knees. Oh yes, that was a much better way of movement. It was a short crawl but the getting up was the hard part. She had her arms over the edge but they let out dangerous tremble warning her not to even attempt to lift herself. She huffed heavily and thumped her head against the edge waiting for him to return.
He returned quickly enough, he noticed her slumped against the lounge her breathing light but her face was pinched tightly. He set the jar of salve onto his chair and moved behind her, his hands slipped under her arms and she gasped softly as he pulled her up so effortlessly. She jolted not from pain but surprise, "Crisse! Wear a bell!" She squeaked more startled than offended. She helped him get her onto her stomach on the lounge and sighed heavily as she stretched her arms over her head.
He snorted through his nose, "I'm going to part the seam on the back of your shirt, are you okay with that?" It was odd to be finally able to ask her whether it was okay to touch her. He had rubbed the salve onto her wounds before, but she had been unconscious and unable to give her consent, he'd also been very careful with her clothing. His stomach did a sort of flip at the very idea that she would actually know it was him who was touching her.
"It's fine." She said slowly bringing her arms down to her sides she chanced a glance towards him and watched his face twitch with something underneath. Watching him pull his wand from his sleeve, through pinched eyes, he gave it a lazy draw to the right and a cool breeze wafted over her heated skin. She let out a soft gasp from the temperature change before cringing as her back let loose another spasm.
His jaw was clenched so tightly that he was sure it would be sore for days. The shirt fell away a victim of gravity falling over her curled arms. He kept his eyes focused though they twitched to wander, he forced them to stay on task. He traced the wide line along her spine. It had stretched taunt with her return to health and the edges were flaming red with the strain. He watched her skin roll underneath and he turned to get the salve. "It's going to feel cold at first." He warned opening the lid taking a fair amount onto three fingers. He breathed out heavily through his nose and leaned closer.
As soon as she felt the salve touch the base of her neck she arched unable to stop herself. The light crackle of static hardly registered as he moved his fingers gently over the stretched skin. Her toes curled and she let out a soft noise. His fingers ran slowly down the line, massaging in lazily circles, blazing a frigid trail. She closed her eyes as she felt him pull back, fearing her reaction scared him away she forced herself back down into the lounge. When his hand returned she let out a slow breath, another long circular pass of his fingers ended at her waist and she could already feel the ice turning warm, it was seeping into her muscles most wonderfully. She felt him pull back and let out a soft whine opening her eyes just a fraction to watch him. His face was forcibly blank, his eyes focused unwaveringly on the task at hand, he only paused long enough to get a bit more of the salve before he leaned forward again. She couldn't stop the low groan that passed her lips as he finished the trail just above her tail bone. She felt like she was melting. She felt his fingers stutter before pulling away and couldn't help but smirk internally. He was human. Her eyes rolled back of their own accord as the salve got to work. She let another soft moan pass her lips before nuzzling her face into the lounge. Yep, she was officially a puddle.
Snape took a deep breath as he closed his eyes shutting out the noises she made. He had the will of a Saint as he pushed himself away to clean his hand and put away the salve. When he made it to the kitchen paused leaning over the kitchen table shaking his head to clear his thoughts. She was ill. Nothing more. Her response was perfectly natural and was in no way a reaction to him. Yes, that was it. He rubbed his heart that had given a heavy thump of protest. Nothing had changed, he assured himself.