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To Severus' relief, he heard nothing untoward about Potter that summer and his soulmark remained as it always was. However, a completely different mark of his was beginning to bother him.

His Dark Mark was acting up, sending sudden, sharp twinges of pain through his arm. He wasn't sure if he was surprised by it or not. He told Dumbledore about it, of course, only because it was expected of him, but at the same time, he wasn't sure how he felt about the entire thing.

The Dark Lord was a strange man. Severus, like many others, hadn't had any problems following him. It was the Dark Lord finding out about the prophecy that had changed everything for the worse.

While he'd never fully agreed with his Lord's ideals, he'd never fully disagreed either, and the Dark Lord had mostly honoured that. But Severus knew he could never trust the Dark Lord again. Not after Lily. And it was his own fault, he knew.

He was the one who had told his lord about the prophecy in the first place. If he hadn't, perhaps Lily wouldn't be dead right now. Perhaps Potter wouldn't be dead either.

Why would the girl ever want him as a soulmate when he was the reason she had been left an orphan?

"Violet will be spending the remainder of her summer break with the Weasleys," Dumbledore informed him from the floo. "They plan on attending the Quidditch World Cup." He sighed regretfully. "Ah, if only I had the time to do the same. I'm quite fond of Ireland's team myself, you see. I do hope they manage to win."

Severus, his knees already numb from kneeling on the cold and hard floor, released a sound of non-committal but didn't answer beyond that, wondering why Dumbledore thought he cared about what the girl was doing at all. This wasn't the first time he'd done something like this either, Severus realized.

Dumbledore was always telling him random things regarding Potter. Did he suspect they were soulmates? Or was it simply because she was Potter? He wasn't sure which was more likely, or even which one he preferred it to be.

"All of the Weasleys should be there," Dumbledore continued cheerfully, "save for Molly, and I believe Miss Granger is going as well."

Well, that made Severus feel a little better about this. Arthur was a bit of a pushover, and Percy was worse than Granger, but his two eldest sons, though one was a bit more reckless than the other, had always been mostly responsible, the oldest one especially. So long as Potter remained with Bill or Charlie, Severus was sure she would remain safe…

No wonder he found himself incapable of being optimistic. It never went well.

The last thing Severus had expected to take place at the Quidditch World Cup of all places was a Death Eater raid. And yet, that was exactly what happened. And beyond that, the Dark Mark had been cast up in the sky. It'd been a very long time since anyone had last seen it.

But he hardly had the time to think about it. Dumbledore contacted him early that morning and asked for him to go to the Burrow to heal Bill Weasley, who'd been hit with a nasty dark spell the night before. He was told no one but Severus would be able to heal it, and he already knew why.

It was his spell-one of the many he had invented himself. Few knew the counters to his spells. No Weasley would, that much was for certain. Dumbledore didn't know the counters either.

Severus didn't argue though and made his way to the Burrow immediately. He simply wanted to get it over with, he told himself. It had nothing to do with wanting to make sure Potter hadn't been injured as well…

When he entered the house it was Molly who greeted him. She was pale and wringing a dishtowel between her hands, but she smiled at him gratefully and thanked him for coming. She chattered away about what she'd been told regarding the raid as she led him through the house, but Severus only listened with half an ear.

He spotted Bill the moment he stepped into the kitchen. He was seated at the table, leaning back in his chair, his eyes shut as he breathed long and slow. His shirt was off, due to the wound on his chest, and he was pale, clearly having lost a fair amount of blood. But he wasn't alone.

Potter was with him, looking just as pale, but her green eyes were clear and focused as she held a bloodied towel to Bill's wound, keeping pressure on it. Her hands, her shirt-she was covered in blood, and yet she didn't appear at all fazed by the sight. That was strange, very strange.

But now wasn't the moment to dwell on that thought. Severus grabbed a chair and sat down by the two, pulling out his wand as he did so. "Remove the towel, Potter. Slowly."

She nodded and did so, carefully releasing the pressure and raising her hand, along with the towel, away from the wound on Bill's chest (the motions appeared to be strangely well practiced). It was still bleeding.

Severus got to work immediately, waving his wand over the deep gash and murmuring a spell under his breath. The wound healed almost immediately, and he handed Bill a potion, which was downed without complaint. Severus lowered his wand and it was only now that he paid attention to Potter again.

She hadn't gone far. She'd remained exactly where she was. She'd set the stained towel on the table, and instead of getting up, had taken Bill's hand in her own, though her own hands were positively tiny in comparison. Even as he watched, Bill's thumb gently passed over Potter's knuckles. It was an absent gesture, one he doubted Bill had even realized he had done, but-

Severus looked away, jaw clenching. "That will scar," he said instead.

Bill nodded with a grimace. "I thought it might." Then he shrugged lightly and straightened. "That's alright. Thanks for the help, Professor. I appreciate it."

With an incline of his head, Severus got to his feet and replaced the chair, and he was following Molly out of the room when he heard Potter and Bill speak.

"Are you sure you're alright, Bill?" asked Potter. She sounded concerned.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me, Violet."

"But you lost so much blood!"

"That's what the potion was for," said Bill, clearly trying to be reassuring. "It was a blood-replenishing potion. Takes a minute to kick in though. I'll be fine, I promise. But you look like you could really use some sleep. And a bath."

"I could say the same about you," Potter retorted, and Bill laughed.

Severus heard every word of the exchange on his way out and had no idea how to feel about it.

That's it for now. Looking forward to reviews! Laterz!