Allyna jerked away from him with a quick, "Holy hell!" But she'd misjudged just how close to the edge of the bed she was and started to slip over the side. Before she could do more than squeak in fear, Severus had grasped her shoulder and yanked her back on the bed, though not cuddled against his chest as she had been. She peeked up at him, fearing the annoyance she would see in his eyes.
"Good morning, Professor," Allyna said quietly. She could feel a blush burning her cheeks, both in horror that she'd somehow managed to knock the pillow out of the way and cuddle up the closest warm object (him), and that she'd nearly fallen out of the bed.
Severus merely stared down at her. "Might I ask what you are doing, Miss Wilson?"
"Um...you showed up injured last night, almost dead. You were so cold, like ice, Professor. So I helped you get warm and put you to bed." Allyna sped through her explanation. She didn't fear the man, but he sure made her nervous. She knew it wasn't right to have a crush on your teacher, but he was brilliant, had been kind to her (well, kinder to her than he was to most of the other students, she thought), and he'd been taking time out of his busy schedule to work with her. And he danced divinely.
Severus shut his eyes, as if in pain. His mind was racing with thoughts, most of which involved how he was in only his own shorts, a nightshirt and laying in bed with a student. "Miss Wilson, how exactly did you "warm me up"?" Severus watched as her cheeks went an even darker shade of red, he'd have enjoyed teasing her about it if the situation wasn't so very, very bad.
Allyna spoke so quickly her words seemed to have no spaces between them. "You-were-bleeding-so-I-took-you-into-the-bathroom -and-stripped-you-to-your-shorts-and-put-you-into- the-tub-of-cool-water-and-massaged-your-hands-and- feet-till-you-were-warm-again." She took a breath. "Then I dried you off and put you to bed."
"That's not all, is it, Miss Wilson?" When she started to nod her head, his temper flared. "I saw the scars Miss Wilson, don't lie to me."
Allyna went from blood red to pale in a second. She bit her lip and stared at the mattress. "I can heal with touch, Professor. It's something my grandmother's people have done since their creation."
"Your grandmother's people?" Severus asked, his thoughts reeling from her revelation. He'd seen people healed many times from wand work or potions, but he'd never seen someone healed by touch. And how had she managed to heal something inflicted by Dark Magic? It took months to heal after the curse had been broken. Surely she couldn't be telling the truth? But then, he'd never seen her lie, either. "Show me," he commanded.
Allyna jumped at his tone, it was the harshest he'd ever spoken to her. "There...there has to be a wound, Professor." she said softly.
Sitting up, Severus took his wand in hand, happy she'd left it by his bedside after retrieving it from his bloodied clothes. He whispered a spell that Allyna didn't hear, and grunted as blood began to well up from the wound he'd inflicted on his arm. Allyna came to stand beside him, biting her lip nervously. She looked into his eyes, those dark orbs staring at her with disbelief.
She closed her eyes, grounding herself, felt the power building inside her. She felt the heat first, the flash of searing hot pain across her palms. She'd been numbed by her panic the night before and hadn't felt it. This time it ripped through her, though, and she gasped in pain. Her eyes flew open, her palms glowing white-hot. Severus stared at them, eyes widened slightly. Allyna reached out, placing her palm over his wound. He felt a jolt of heat and a slight burning sensation as the wound stopped bleeding. Allyna took her hand away to show him the scar, used the edge of her shirt to wipe away the blood. She placed her hand over the wound again, and another flash of white heat seared his arm. He gasped when she pulled her hand away and there was not scar, no nothing, to show that he'd put a hole into his own arm.
"How?" he asked, staring at her. He stood, gripping her shoulders, to ask her more questions and then sighed in frustration as she sagged against him. He saw her eyes flutter. "Merlin's pants, girl! Lay down before you pass out!" He shouted at her, making her wince. She sat carefully on the edge of the bed, her head between her knees until her vision cleared. When she could finally see straight again.
"Sorry, Professor. Overdid it a bit. Took quite a bit of healing last night with those wounds, and I had forgotten how much energy it uses up. As far as how, Professor Snape, all I know is what my grandmother told me. When her people first gathered magic from the earth, their god appeared and offered them a gift that would be passed from generation to generation. The elders of the village called a council and debated as to what the gift should be. They saw their people, many of them injured from a recent war with another tribe, and decided that they wished the gift to be a gift of healing. Their god agreed and so it has been passed from mother and father to child. Or in my case, from grandmother, mother to me. My father was born here."
"Tribe?" Severus was intrigued now. He knew, of course, of the native tribes in the United States. "American Indians" some called them, "Native Americans", others called them. As a child, devouring every book he could find, he'd come across references to them, of the different tribes. In some of the wizarding books, he'd read that some tribes even practiced magic, though of a different form than Wizarding England. Now it made some sense, given Allyna's strange, strong magic. It must have been passed through her mother's side.
"I don't think they have an actual name anymore, Professor. They aren't claimed on any roll of tribes, now it's just a small collection of families who have been intermarrying for ages. My grandmother was very pleased that my mother chose a wizard from "outside" as she herself had done. 'Brings new blood,' she said." Allyna explained.
Allyna's alarm clock went off, startling both of them. "Loud, blasted, annoying..." Allyna muttered as she reached over and slammed her hand down on the button, turning it off. "If you leave now, Professor, most of the students should still be abed. If you use the floo, straight to your quarters, no one will even see you."
Feeling frustrated, but knowing Allyna was right, Severus nodded. "We'll meet tonight in the hidden room. Your dancing still needs work. Bring the shoes." he ordered, throwing his handful of floo powder down and shouting out his destination. "Severus Snape's private quarters, Hogwarts!" and was gone in a flash of green flames.
Allyna was exhausted and threw herself down onto her bed. She pulled the blankets around herself and fell asleep again in minutes. Hours later, a knock at her door and pulsing of her wards (that she'd embedded after the wards Dumbledore had placed) woke her. Allyna stumbled from the bed, still in just her pajama pants and white tank top that she'd transfigured the night before. She threw open the door and was surprised to find Hermione, Luna and Neville standing there. "Hi, guys!" she said, sleepily, rubbing her eyes. She stepped back, motioning for them to come inside. They stepped inside and she shut the door behind her.
"Where have you been, Allyna? We were worried!" Hermione asked.
"Sorry guys, had an incredibly bad bout of insomnia last night, it was seven this morning before I was able to fall asleep. Sent a message to Dumbledore saying I was ill." Allyna blushed, feeling bad for lying to her friends, but sure that they thought she blushed at lying to the Headmaster. "What time is it, anyways?" Allyna asked. She moved around the room, straightening her bed. She nearly panicked when she saw Professor Snape's bloody clothes still on the floor in her bathroom. She quickly shut the door, hoping, praying that none of them had seen them there.
"It's half-five," Hermione answered. "Dinner will be in thirty minutes, won't you come down?"
Allyna nodded, she needed to eat before she met with Severus. Otherwise she really would pass out this time. She had them step out of the room while she dressed in her school robes over a pair of jeans and her green sweater. She quickly threw Severus's bloodied clothes into her hamper, knowing the house elves would take them, clean and mend them, and return them to Severus.
The quartet headed down to the Great Hall, Allyna joining her Slytherin classmates while Hermione, Neville and Luna joined their own tables. Dinner was delicious as always, a lovely roast chicken with roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes and a dark chocolate fudge cake for dessert. She looked up at the Professor's table and saw Professor Snape staring out at the room. He seemed to sense her eyes on him and looked down at her. She smiled at him and he turned his head to talk to McGonagall about something.
She finished her dinner quickly and when she returned to her room, she found several notes on her desk from her teachers outlining the assignments of the day. Nothing looked particularly trying, so she pulled of her sweater and pulled on her tank top. She took the shoes from her wardrobe, carrying them by the straps. She hurried to Professor Snape's office and used her wand to tap out the "combination" as she thought of it. She passed through the wards, feeling the burst of sunshine-like vibration as it slid over her. She sat on the chair Severus had transfigured the day before. She slid her feet into the shoes, strapping them over her ankles. She was glad she'd not had classes today, when she spotted her Transfiguration book on the table still from the night before.
She stepped carefully at first, sure she was going to take a tumble. But she stayed steady on her feet and made herself walk a few laps around the room. She heard Severus tapping on the bricks and was waiting for him when he entered. He looked approvingly at her attire and her shoes already on. He took off his outer robe, leaving himself in the frock coat and trousers. He pulled his hair back, tying it with a leather strip. "Ready?" he asked.
Allyna nodded, hoping she'd remembered all the steps from the night before. When the music began, Severus walked to her, taking her hand and placing his other on her waist. Within seconds, they were moving together as if they'd danced together for years instead of only twice. "Good," Severus said softly before changing the dance mid-step. As if expecting it, Allyna quickly slipped into the new dance, following Severus's steps easily. He replayed this scenario twice more, letting her get used to a specific dance and then changing it. He admitted to himself that he was a little impressed that she wasn't getting furious with him and instead focused on absorbing the steps.
Finally the music ended and Severus bowed to Allyna. She grinned and made a deep curtsy to him, but misjudged her footing. She shrieked in surprise as she tipped forward...right into Severus's arms. He looked vastly amused by her predicament, and finally wasn't able to hold it in any more and guffawed out loud. The sound of his laugh, so deep and rich, literally made Allyna shiver. He helped her to her feet, still chuckling. Allyna blushed and smacked him lightly, teasingly on the upper arm. He grinned at her and her only thought was, "He has a beautiful smile. I wish he smiled more often."
"Remember, Allyna, at this dance, you're going to be in a skirt. It will be infinitely more difficult than in jeans and a tshirt. You will have to be wary of a skirt. And as I told you before, Rita Skeeter will be looking for any excuse to publish a bad "review" of Hogwarts' new exchange student." Severus warned her.
Allyna nodded, already disliking this Skeeter woman. She was going to really have to watch herself. She noticed that Severus was wincing a bit. "Is something wrong, Professor?" she asked softly. He turned to look at her. "Storm coming. Makes the scars ache." he said simply. She bit her lip.
"Can I try something that might help?" she asked quietly.
He stared at her for a moment. "If you remove the scars, I'll be punished." he replied.
"I know, sir. I can try something else though, that might help with the pain itself." She waited for him to end the debate with himself. He could be in great danger if she got a bit overzealous and started clearing him of scars accumulated over a lifetime with the Dark Lord. But then, she had left the scars on his chest. He decided to trust her, something else he had not done since Lily. He sighed, nodded and slowly unbuttoned his frock coat, then his white buttoned-up shirt. He pulled it off, revealing his back to her once more. It took everything in her not to gasp again. The moonlight gilded them once more, bringing them into sharp relief.
Feeling anger flow through her, she tamped it down. Anger was no use in healing, she had to be peaceful. She raised her eyes to the skylight above, seeing the first drops of rain as they landed across the glass. She closed her eyes and let her face be bathed in the moonlight. She felt the first stirrings of power, starting somewhere around her heart. She fed it with the affection she felt for this man, even though he was at times grumpy, sarcastic and angry. She knew inside him that there was loneliness, a sense of humor and well-hidden kindness. She felt her palms beginning to burn and opened her eyes.
In the darkness of a room lit only by moonlight, her glowing palms brought the room alight like the sun. Severus was staring at her, his mind glancing on the thought that she'd looked beautiful with her face in the moonlight. He'd wanted to reach out and stroke her cheek to make sure she was real. MERLIN! What was WRONG with him? He'd never had these types of thoughts about a student before. Maybe he was losing his mind?
"It might be easier if you sit, Professor," Allyna told him. He nodded and sat in the chair, facing the back so that his spine faced Allyna. She bit her lip as she saw all the damage. "Bastard!" she whispered to herself. She placed her palms on his back, catching his quick gasp at the heat of them. She closed her eyes and reached under the skin to the nerves below. She felt that they were damaged, and poured the healing energy into them, feeling them slowly relaxing. She felt Severus relaxing under her hands as the heat melted the pain away. When she vanished the heat, his back was still the same mass of scars, but they no longer throbbed and ached as they had.
Severus stood and rolled his shoulders a few times, still not able to fully accept the fact that there was no more pain. He kept waiting for the slightest twinge. But there was nothing. He smiled, a sight that hit Allyna right in the heart. She had a feeling that Severus Snape had not spent much time smiling in his life. "Thank you, Allyna." he said, making her smile in return. "I think it's time for bed," he said, motioning for her to walk before him. She quickly changed out of the strappy heels and back into her sneakers.
Severus walked with her to her room, and left to patrol the halls. As Allyna began to fall asleep she realized something. Severus had not called her Miss Wilson. Severus had called her Allyna. And Allyna fell asleep with a smile on her face.