Severus quickly left the Slytherin dormitories and began walking down a long hall, trying to remember how to get to his old classroom. His pace was hurried and silent, something he had been quite good at in his past life. He walked through the halls like a ghost, but he could hear the paintings whispering around him. He knew how strange it must be for all of them to see him again after so long. He found himself wondering what time was like for them, perpetually trapped within a flat surface like that.
Everything looked familiar, but not quite how he had remembered it. There was a smell in the air, but he couldn't quite place it. Despite the feeling of unease he experienced, it was oddly comforting. He slowly raised a hand and traced his fingers against the smooth, carved stone. He closed his eyes and let out a small sigh as he tried to let himself relax, but it wasn't happening. He knew he wouldn't be at ease here, not for a long time yet. That fact did not stop him from hoping.
It occurred to him then, that he did not know who was left at Hogwarts. Yes, he had already run into Minerva, but it was very clear that time had aged her quite a bit. He couldn't remember the last three years before dying; at least, those are the years he couldn't quite pinpoint, not yet.
He looked at the walls, and could see the repairs that must have been made. He found himself wondering how much of the war happened here. Perhaps he would make it a point to ask the paintings, or perhaps the ghosts when he had a chance.
"Severus! Severus, stop!" A squeaky woman's voice called from behind him. The footsteps following sounded like the stride was long, but the pace was quick. He slowly turned around to see a very tall, very muscular running toward him. She was wearing clean, white robes and she smelled of disinfectant and eye of newt, even from the distance. She had to be at least six foot, but it was hard to tell from a distance. She had dark hair that was tied up in a very neat bun. There were streaks of gray that reflected silver when the candlelight flickered. She had small bags under her eyes. She was clearly tired and already fed up with his behavior. The way he saw it, as soon as she left him alone, the sooner this situation would end. He was not doing anything wrong. All he wanted to do was go back to his classroom, and try to solve his dilemma by himself.
"I don't know who you are." Severus said sternly, though he had a good idea as to who she was. He did not have time with this nonsense. He was fine and did not need assistance from anyone. He had always been able to take care of himself just fine.
"I'm Henrietta, the Nurse. Please, let me help you." She said, her voice more stern as she approached him. "You clearly are not doing well, please, let me help you!"
"I do not need your help. I have clearly been doing just fine without you. I survived my coffin, made it back here. I have no one to rely on and I am not about to start now." He snapped back angrily before raising his wand. "Do not take one more step near me."
"Severus, stop!" Odette cried out as she ran down the hallway, her black robes billowing around her like a dark cloud as she walked. "You are distraught. I cannot possibly understand how hard this is for you, but you need to lower your wand. What kind of a message do you want to send to the children!" She protested, her accent showing more clearly now. He was positive that it was French.
"What children!" Severus laughed disdainfully. He raised his arms and looked around, spinning slightly, but never fully turning his back to the Amazon nurse who stood down the hall. He could tell that she was just waiting for a moment to contain him.
What he hadn't expected to see when he turned, was Minerva. She had a hard look upon her face, but there was a small child, likely a first year student, standing to her left. He looked sleepy, as if they had just woken him up. He wore very plain, blue and white striped pajama's, that had been repaired a few times in the knees and elbows.
"Severus, I have someone who would like to meet you." Minerva said with a caring tone in her voice. More than anything else, she was worried about her friend. The kind of trauma he was experiencing was inhuman. She did not know who brought him back, but she desperately wanted to know why.
What kind of living person would want to wish this upon anyone, and why did they wait so long? Was their only purpose to make a miserable man, and take away the only peace he had ever felt?
"Who is the child, Minerva?" He snapped hastily as he turned to face her, not yet lowering his wand. He focused on her face, but she was giving her nothing. She was utterly unreadable in that moment. This caused him to focus his attention on the child that was standing beside him. His eyes went wide and he shook his head for a brief moment.
"Go ahead, tell him your name." Minerva urged softly as she placed a warm hand upon the child's left shoulder.
"But mum told me not to talk to strangers…" The child protested softly. He had short, brown hair, and round glasses. He looked familiar, but Severus could not quite place from where he knew this child.
No. He did not know this child. There was absolutely no possible way that he knew this child. He had been dead for fifteen years, and could not remember approximately three years before that. This child could not have been any older than eleven, maybe twelve at the oldest. This sent his mind reeling as he struggled to piece it together.
"He is not a stranger. You never met him, but your father knew him. His name is Severus." Minerva explained with a tender smile before squeezing the child's shoulder again.
"Severus…?" The child said before turning to look at the older, crazy looking man. He did know this man; at least, he knew the stories. "You're Severus Snape? Father said you died."
"Who is your father, Child?" Severus asked softly as he continued to focus on the young man.
"Harry Potter. My name is Albus Severus Potter." Albus said nervously, obviously feeling rather uncomfortable with this whole situation. Why had Headmistress McGonagall woken him for this? His father had told him stories of how this man, Severus Snape, had died for the greater good during the Wizard War. He had grown up learning the stories of this man, and looking at his pictures on walls. How could he be standing here?
"He… Named you after me…?" Snape whispered softly before a look of sorrow crossed his face and he finally lowered his wand.
This small lapse in focus was all that Henrietta needed.
"Stupefy!" She exclaimed hurriedly before waving her wand at Severus. Before he could turn to scold her, a beam of red light shot from her wand and hit him, square in the chest. He let out a very soft groan before falling backward against the stone floor. His body hit with a soft 'thud' and suddenly the whole castle seemed to grow silent.
"Oh gods…" Odette whispered before covering her mouth with her hands. "You were too aggressive! I hope you haven't killed him again." She exclaimed, with irritation in her fair voice as she slowly walked toward Severus. She knelt down beside him and sighed as she looked down upon him.
His face seemed so peaceful, but also like he had suffered far too much for one lifetime. His hair had clumps of dirt and dried blood in the black locks. She nervously reached out and began to pull them from his hair with gentle fingers.
"What on earth are you doing?" Henrietta huffed as she knelt down and grabbed Severus by his shoulders and pulled him up. With one, fluid motion, she had thrown the man over her right shoulder with a small grunt. "Grab his wand. I don't want him to cause any trouble in the First Aid Wing." She said impatiently as she began walking down the hallway.
"Oh… Alright." Odette said softly as she reached over and was going to grab Severus' wand. She stopped, her fingers only an inch or two from the smooth wood, but it felt strong. The magic coming from it was too much for her to handle, and she didn't want to risk anything happening. She sighed as she slid out of her black robe and folded it neatly a few times before using it to pick up the wand.
When she touched the wood, it felt like a jolt of energy rushing into her arm, even through the thick layers of fabric. She returned to her feet, just in time to see Minerva talking to young Albus.
"Albus." She said gently. "Thank you, for your help. However, I need you to do at least one more favor. You need to tell your parents what you just saw, or rather, who you just saw. It will be difficult to explain to them, but I think they would want to know."
"Headmistress, is he really the man I was named after, or just some man pretending to be?" Albus asked softly, but his face did not show fear or disbelief. He only expressed curiosity and grave concern for the well being of the man he had just seen.
"Yes, Albus, it is the man you were named after. Now, it is very late and you should get some sleep before your classes in the morning. Go on know, hurry back to your dormitory."
"Yes Headmistress." He said with a small sigh before he turned and walked back to his room.
"Headmistress, I really do not want to question your judgment, but I fear I must. I beg that you will forgive me for my words. Do you really think it was a good idea to show Mr. Potter something like that? You took him from his bed, in the dead of night… To have him meet a man who has been dead for fifteen years? That is a lot for one person to take in all at once."
"I knew that Harry would not believe me if I had told him directly. Perhaps, coming from Albus, it would seem more believable. Besides, that was not the point of my actions, Odette. I wanted to distract Severus, but in a way that would not make him bitter with us. I have never met anyone who holds a grudge like that man." Minerva said with a very tired sigh. "I aught to go help Henrietta with him, just in case he wakes up."
"I don't think he is going to wake up any time soon, Minerva. Henrietta hit him pretty hard…" Odette said quietly as she wrapped her arms around the folded robes, holding it tightly against her chest.
Without her robes, she would never pass for a professor. She wore very plain, black pants, a white shirt, a gray sweater and a tie. Her hair was currently tied back in a very neat braid down her back, but it was done very strategically.
Looking at her from any further than five feet away, one would not be able to tell that her hair was not completely white. Truth be told, her hair was mostly red, but she had learned to hide that over the years. Her parents were ashamed of what they called her 'birth defect'. They came from a very long line of pure blood wizards, and felt like her appearance 'muddied' their lineage, despite the fact that the blood was still pure.
"You clearly do not know Severus. He is one of the strongest men I have ever known. He will not be kept down for long." Minerva said with a very confident smile. She opened her mouth to speak, but before any more words could leave, there was a loud crash heard from down the hallway.
"I think… That would be Severus coming to." Minerva said with a smile. "Odette, do you think you could go and help Henrietta?" She asked before she reached out and grabbed the pile of fabric encasing Severus' wand.
"Oh, I..." Odette started to protest as Minerva took the objects from her. "I don't know. He doesn't seem to like me a whole lot."
"Don't take it personally. He doesn't like anyone." Minerva called over her shoulder as she walked away.
"Unhand me!" Severus shouted angrily from the First Aid Wing. Odette groaned and hung her head as she begrudgingly walked toward the Medical room.
The closer she got to the room, the louder the crashing and struggling got. She started to hear bits and pieces of dialogue that were oddly concerning. The words that filled her ears were things like 'Stop struggling, or this is going to hurt.' And 'Stop touching me, I do not want your hands on me.'
"What is going on in here?" Odette demanded as she finally reached the infirmary and walked in. The sight that met her gaze was not unexpected. Severus was tied down to a medical bed with leather straps. She assumed that Henrietta had put a charm upon the straps to ensure that he was kept down.
"He's awake." Henrietta huffed softly as she sat down in her chair beside the bed. Her hair was slightly askew now and she looked exhausted. "He won't take his medicine."
"I don't need any of your bloody medications!" Severus shouted angrily as he thrashed against the bindings and groaned in anguish.
"Please, Severus. You have gone through so much tonight. Why don't you just take the medication and rest-"
"I'm not taking anything." He snapped angrily before he looked at Odette, locking onto her face with his dark eyes. "I am not going to take orders from a child!"
"I am not a child, you ignorant old fool!" Odette screamed as she finally lost her cool and glared at him. "I am one of the most advanced professionals in the field of Defense Against the Dark Arts!"
"Professional? Ha! I was mastering and creating spells before you were even born. How dare you speak to me like I am some common man!"
"You aren't!" Odette cried out before she approached his bed, but stayed back. She didn't want to punch a man while he couldn't defend himself. It could wait for later. "You've come back from death. You helped win the Wizard War. Can't you see that the only reason we are doing this is because we are trying to help you? We want to help you figure out what happened to you. We want to help you figure out how you died. The people that are trying to help you are only doing so because they care!"
"Why are you helping me? You don't have any history with me!"
"I'm only doing this because Minerva asked me to! You are a cruel, selfish and all together unpleasant old man!" Odette shouted angrily. "I hope you suffer through your night, throwing up maggots and feeling every single muscle rebuilding itself, because that's what you're in store for. We are trying to give you medications to help ease the transition, but you're too stubborn to accept our help." She finished before looking over at Henrietta. "Go on and get back to bed… I will stay here and watch him. He doesn't have his wand. Even if he escapes the binds, I can knock him out again." She said with exhaustion in her voice.
"Are you sure, Odette? I could stay here with you incase something happens."
"No, I will be fine. He may be a bad person, but I don't think he's going to deliberately hurt me, not unless he really has to."
"That is a lot of trust to place in a complete stranger, Odette. Are you sure?"
"Yes. Henrietta, please go to bed." She said with a tone of dismissal in her voice.
After a few moments of hesitation, Henrietta sighed and stood up with a small groan. The sound of her knees popping could be heard when she stood. She walked out of the room fairly quickly and disappeared down the hall. Not long after, the sound of her footsteps vanished too. Odette took a deep breath before she reluctantly sat down in the steel chair beside the medical bed. She did not look over at him, but she could feel him staring at her face. The urge to punch him quickly came back, but she knew that she couldn't.
"Why would you trust me…?" He asked. His voice was much softer now and no longer rang with rage.
"I do not trust you, but Minerva does. As long as she trusts you, I will too." She said sternly before looking over at him. She regret that decision. The look on his face physically hurt her. There was a pain in her heart that she could not explain. There was such a deep agony and despair within his eyes.
As he looked upon her, he felt better than he had before. He did not notice the red streaks in her hair when he had met her earlier. He liked them. They were unique and he had never met anyone with hair quite like it, not naturally. It looked natural, but he wasn't going to ask. Her face was smooth, like porcelain and just as pale. It was almost as if someone had molded her out of clay. The up most time and concentration was taken when creating her, he could tell.
He did not like the fact that she looked so worn down. She had bags of sleep beneath her eyes and he knew it was partially his fault. Not only had he woken her in the most absurd way possible, but he had been nothing but cruel to her since his arrival. He knew that people were only trying to help, but it was hard to accept. People never wanted to help him before, except for Lily.
"What are the side effects of taking the medication?" He asked gently.
"The side effects are nausea, vomiting, light sensitivity, muscle spasms, paralysis…" Odette listed off with a small yawn that she tried to hide with a trembling hand.
"I'll take the medication if you do as well." He said sternly. "That way, I know you're not trying to poison me."
"You really think that after all this effort, we are going to try and kill you?" She groaned before looking at him. She closed her eyes and let out a small groan before nodding. "Alright. Fine. If it gets you to take the medicine, I will do it." She agreed reluctantly as she grabbed the purple bottle next to the bed. She removed the cup shaped lid and poured the thick, black liquid into it. The smell that filled the air was strong and smelled vaguely of Elderberries. She reached over and slowly brought the cup to his lips.
"Open your mouth, or I'm going to do this for you." She said tiredly as she looked at him. He shot her a glance before sighing and spreading his pale lips. She poured the liquid in and he struggled to swallow it. He couldn't remember anything quite this vile. Even the maggots from earlier did not seem so bad compared to this.
He gagged and coughed when the liquid was finally gone. He looked up at Odette, who was crinkling her nose. She clearly did not like the smell of the medication and was not looking forward to drinking it herself.
She poured a second dose of medicine and slowly lifted it to her own lips. She did not tremble or gag as the smell entered her nose. She wanted him to know that she was going to handle this way better than he was. She had a point to prove now, and he was not going to win.
"Wait." He said softly as he looked up at her.
"What?" She asked before lowering the glass.
"Don't take that. You have no idea what it is going to do to you and your healthy immune system. There's no reason that both of us have to go through this misery together."
"But… I told you that I-"
"And now I am telling you that you do not have to." He said before gagging slightly. "Oh gods…" He groaned before shaking his head. "I can already feel it. I need to sit up."
"But I can't…" She said before nodding. "Alright, but, don't do anything foolish… Subduing you with magic while you're under these effects may not end well… For you." She said, trying to smile a little bit at the end. She looked at the bonds that surrounded him and let out a sigh of relief when she realized that Henrietta did not place a charm on them.
She quickly untied the straps and helped him into a sitting position. She sat down on the side of his bed and nervously placed a hand upon his back. He still felt cold, like a corpse. She knew that it had only been an hour or two, but she wondered if he was going to stay like that forever now.
He groaned as he sat up before taking a deep, wracking breath. He turned to look at her slightly, but not fully facing her. "I am already feeling the side effects… My organs feel like they're on fire." He huffed before wrapping an arm around his stomach. "I'm going to be sick."
"Oh my, Alright!" She said hurriedly before grabbing the bucket that was beside her, beneath the nightstand. She handed it to him and nervously placed a hand upon his back.
He grabbed the bucket and held it nervously to his chest, glaring at her out of the corner of his eye, through the strands of hair that covered his face.
"I can tell that you do not like human contact, but I can't help it. I just have this urge to… Try and comfort you. You've gone through so much." She said softly before tenderly rubbing his back.
"Please, st-" He started, but his voice was cut off as he began gagging. After a few moments, there were the sounds of things hitting the bottom of the bucket, but they did not sound wet. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the sensation of what was happening. He could feel things squirming all the way up and it made the sickness even worse. The metallic taste of blood came back to his mouth and caused him to start coughing.
"Oh gods…" Odette whispered before turning away and covering her own mouth, gagging slightly. The smell of rotting flesh and blood filled the air. It was so strong that even her eyes were starting to water.
"Why is this happening?" He managed to whisper before he started retching again. "How can all of this be inside of me? Where is this coming from? Is this a result of the medication?"
"Y-yes and no…" Odette said with a sad smile. "The nausea and vomiting are results, yes… But… Not what's coming out. Y-you were dead. Everything that is coming out, was there already. Your body is rejecting everything that was not supposed to be there. I don't know how long any of this is going to last. I've only ever read about resurgence… I did not even know it was possible."
"Neither did I…" He groaned before spitting into the bucket and leaning back, shaking his hair back from his face. "I can feel everything… I can feel it like hot lead. My muscles are forming, my brain is starting to fire normally, I remember more now… More than I remembered earlier. Everything hurts." He groaned before tightly shutting his eyes.
"Your nausea will probably be less severe if I get rid of this for now…" Odette said quietly before waving her wand and muttering something. The bucket lifted and then carried to the other side of the First Aid Wing. She thanked the stars that no one else was in here and had to endure this.
"That does help… I know I have not been the kindest person to you, but I do appreciate you staying with me." He said softly before nervously reaching over with a trembling hand.
Odette looked at his hand nervously for a moment before she gently placed hers on top of it and gently coaxed it back to the bed.
"Don't waste your strength trying to thank me. You would probably fare much better if you were to sleep through the medicated period."
"I'm not tired… I slept for so long." He groaned in a quiet protest before looking over at her. "I do have some questions for you."
"I'm not telling you anything. If half the stories I know about you are true, you could be a very feared enemy."
"Feared?" He laughed before wincing as he slowly lay back down upon the bed. He felt like she was helping him, but he couldn't tell for sure. Her touch was so soft, as if she thought that he would shatter into pieces. He hated to be treated like a delicate object, but he had to accept the fact that he had no control over that, not now. After a few moments, he could feel her re-tying the straps. He tried to lift his hands to stop her, but his wrists must have been her first priority.
"I'm sorry." She said gently as she felt him jerk against the restraints. "Henrietta would be furious with me if I let you go."
"She seems like a very hateful woman. That spell she hit me with had a great deal of power behind it."
"Henrietta has a good heart, but she's very misunderstood." Odette said with a smile. "She was the first friend I made here." She explained. "But I won't tell you any more than that, not until we know that we can trust you."
"I'm not going to sleep any time soon." He said with a small groan.
"I was afraid that you might say that." Odette said with a charming smile before she leaned over him. "That is why… I'm not going to give you a choice."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Please, forgive me." She spoke softly before taking a handful of dust out of a small, leather pouch and holding it up to her mouth. She flattened her hand, palm up and blew the dust so that it gently sprinkled his face.
"I don't want…. To…" He muttered quietly as his eyelids immediately began to feel heavy. It was not long before he was wrapped in the painless, comforting embrace of sleep.
Odette sighed as she looked at him. She felt bad about just leaving him here like this. Henrietta wasn't going to do her rounds for another hour or so yet. She knew he had a fairly high tolerance to magic and did not want him to cause a scene with no one here to stop him. He could not be seen by any of the students, not until they fully understood what was happening.
After a few moments of watching him, she decided that she couldn't leave him, not like this. If it were her, she would want company. She leaned back in her steel chair and grimaced to herself. There would be no sleeping tonight, not like there would be much time left for sleeping anyway. There could only be two or three hours left until students began roaming the halls. She sighed and looked over at him again before smiling uneasily to herself.
She found herself wondering what he would look like underneath all of the dirt and death. She finally rose from her chair and went to the nearby bathroom. She grabbed a white washcloth and turned on the sink. She waited until the water was warm before filling a small, ceramic bowl that was kept on the sink. Once filled, she returned to his side and sat in her chair. She dabbed the cloth in water before gently wiping the smears of dirt off of his pale, slender face.
She did this for far longer than she had realized. By the time she was done, his face was completely clean, and she had also brushed all of the debris out of his black hair.
Now that he looked like a man, and not a zombie, she thought that he would be rather attractive under different circumstances. As it stood, however, he had been a very horrible person and she could not wait to be rid of him.
"I wonder what Headmistress is going to do with you…" She sighed tiredly before quietly dropping her cloth into the bowl of dark water that sat upon the nightstand.
"I am going to re-instate him as our Potions teacher." McGonagall called softly. It was only after hearing her voice that Odette could hear the light footsteps approaching from behind. She turned in her chair and her cheeks flushed slightly. She always felt foolish when caught talking to herself.
"Headmistress, I-"
"Don't bother explaining yourself. I know that Severus is not everyone's cup of tea, to say the least."
"How can you be sure that he is not a danger to the students?" Odette questioned. Her face showed her obvious concern, but her voice hid it quite well.
"Severus would never harm a student." McGonagall scoffed with a small, knowing smile. "He is a dear friend of mine. I do not want to know what would become of him without Hogwarts. You really aught to show him more respect. He was Headmaster here before I was."
"He was… What? Who let that happen?" Odette gasped before looking down at Severus again. "Has he always been such a… A distant person, or has he always been like this?"
"You're being disrespectful again. He did the best he could, with the time he was given. He had lost so much in his previous life. I pray that this one makes up for his lost time."
"You always have such a bright outlook." Odette said with a smile before yawning slightly.
"Odette, you should go to bed now."
"I can't. I have a morning class on-"
"You have had a long night. I will stay and watch Severus until Henrietta returns for her shift."
"Henrietta…" Odette said suddenly. "I haven't seen her all night. Wasn't she supposed to do rounds nearly an hour ago?"
"Was, yes. I've already talked to her. He is the only one in here, and she knew well enough that you wouldn't leave willingly, so, she left you here. Besides, she said you looked very content, cleaning him up."
"Oh my, I didn't know she saw that…" She groaned softly before standing. She arched her back for a moment, trying to stretch out her stiff muscles. "Are you sure he's going to be alright?" She questioned.
"Odette, stop your worrying. You have done all you can do. Worrying about him isn't going to do you any good now, is it? Also, to reward you for your dedication in this sensitive matter, I have cancelled all of your classes for today. This should give you ample time to get some sleep and create your lesson plan for tomorrow. Does that sound fair?"
"You didn't have to do that, Headmistress. I am sure I would have been able to manage through my day."
"I am sure you would have. Odette, this is not a punishment. It is a reward. Do not be upset about missing your classes. Even teachers deserve a day off every once in a great while. Go now." She said before raising her hands to shoo Odette away with a slow hand motion. "I promise you that he will be fine with me." She said before finally sitting down in the steel chair beside the bed.
Odette stood still for a few moments before lowering her head. She knew that it wouldn't be a good idea to try and teach her classes without sleep. Despite how badly she wanted to stay awake and fulfill her obligations, she knew that she could not.
"Good night, Headmistress." Odette said, sounding rather defeated before she slowly walked from the room, and down the hall.
"When you awake, Severus, we are going to have a very long conversation." She said gently before sitting back in her chair. She could hear the very early rising students already in motion around the castle. It would not be long now until Henrietta was awake.
Minerva knew that she had some very important people to contact, and with haste.