"Tell me, Severus," Amycus Carrow wheezes in Severus face outside of Hogwarts main entrance. "Do you make her scream just as I did?"
"My wife is none of your concern, Amycus." Severus spits as shoves past Carrow.
"Oh, come on, Snape. You can't tell me you haven't had a piece of that sweet ass. Or are you not a man?" Amycus chuckles at him as he comes up behind him, narrowly avoiding stepping on his heel.
"I am twice the man you could even imagine being." Severus spits as he whirls around to pin Amycus to the wall with one hand, his wand clenched in his other fist, pressing it into the bottom of Amycus' chin.
"Touchy are we, Snape?" Amycus spits, his eyes darting towards Severus' wand.
"You'd better pray I never hear you say another word against my wife." Severus rages as he pushes himself away from Amycus and turns abruptly to stalk back towards the headmasters tower.
"You're only jealous that I had her first." Amycus spits as he attempts to push past Severus.
"For one to be jealous, the other party must first have something that one wishes for. You, Amycus, have nothing that I wish for." Severus makes his way around Amycus and through the main entrance.
Once inside, students flee in every direction to get as far away from his as possible. Potter's word that he had killed Albus had spread like wildfire. Severus was honestly surprised so many families opted to send their children to school this year, especially the Weasley family, who still had their youngest child to get through school. In the distance, Minerva spots him, makes a sour face, and spins on her heel to avoid coming anywhere near him.
He went to his room and made love to his wife after his altercation with Carrow; not to prove anything, but because he could. Because she is his, and he is hers.
Because the screams that come from her mouth while he was inside of her is music to his ears. Because those screams were due to ecstasy, and not terror.
—
Severus does what he can to protect the students from both Carrow's, but he can't stop them entirely. When word got out that they were having students practice the Cruciatus Curse on one another as part of their power trip, he had tried to put an end to it. He went directly to the Dark Lord, tried to make him understand that torturing students was no way to get them to join His side. Despite now being His "right hand man," He simply asked the Carrow's not to use Slytherin students as their prey.
Sectumsempra was created as a means to an end. Severus hadn't wanted to truly harm anyone, but the anger and rage bubbled within him. After Black had nearly had him killed by Lupin in his werewolf form by leading him to The Shrieking Shack and Albus blatantly ignored his cries for help, he needed to produce an effective form of protection. They had used Levicorpus, another of his own spells against him more times than he had been able to count. He hadn't wanted any of them to get out; Lily, Mulciber, and Lucius were the only ones he had shown it to, but one of them let it leak and before he knew it, you could barely walk down a hall without being lifted it to the air by your ankles.
Severus kept Sectumsempra to himself, not even telling Lily of its creation. He had only used it twice on another person, and deeply regret it each time. The first was on James Potter after he and Sirius cornered him after his O.W.L's, the second was in an attempt to protect two of the Seven Harry's when they moved the true Harry from the Dursley's to a safe house. It was months later that he learned it was Remus Lupin he had been trying to protect when his hand slipped, and he had accidentally cut off George Weasley's ear. He couldn't sleep or eat for days afterwards. He could have easily killed the poor boy, who had risked his own life protecting his brother's best friend, protecting his own best friend's son.
He saw firsthand the damage his own spell could cause in the hands of the wrong person as he looked down upon his godsons slashed body on the cold bathroom floor after Harry Potter had cast it. Severus muttered the counter-spell over the boy's body as his heart pounded in his chest. He was terrified of losing Draco, filled with guilt over the fact that it had been his spell that would now leave his face and chest scarred for life.
Watching the horror and realization on his wife's face as he taught her the spell nearly brought him to his knees. She needed to know it, though. When the day came that he could not protect her, she would need it to get away from Amycus Carrow, for he would take Severus' death as a means to take back what he thought to be his.
He knew that Longbottom and the Weasley girl had restarted Dumbledore's Army not long after the start of the school year and did all he could to ensure the Carrow twins were busy in the dungeons or off on an errand. Because he himself could not access the Room of Requirements without fear of them finding out that he knew about it, he had begun leaving boxes of healing potions at the Hog's Head in the dead of night to aid them, as he had also discovered that they had somehow managed to get it to create a tunnel directly to the pubs storeroom. When possible, he would send students to detention with Hagrid in the Forbidden Forrest. Outside of McGonagall and Slughorn, he was the only person that Severus trusted not to harm any of the students, and they would at the very least be out of the castle with someone who would make them feel safe.
As a way to further protect the students from harm, he had re-enacted the Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four, as there are safety in numbers. The Carrows could not hunt down and harm every single student, much to their displeasure. If the students were in packs, they were more likely to get away, and more likely to run for help or outnumber the twins. Not to mention, plot. Sooner or later, word would spread, which would result in more students becoming aware of Dumbledore's Army, thus protecting more of them. Think what he may of Longbottom's potions skills, he was certainly good at undermining two sadistic professors.
However, Longbottom, Weasley, and Lovegood together were terrible at breaking into offices to try and steal fake swords. Severus had just come down from having dinner with his wife and had intended to speak with Phineas on the current whereabouts of Potter and his slew of idiots, when he saw movement and a flash of red from the window.
After quietly opening the door and slinking in without notice, he catches the Weasley girl standing from behind the glass case holding the fake Sword of Gryffindor before passing the sword to a waiting Longbottom. After taking the sword from them and sentencing them to detention with Hagrid, he finds Lovegood guarding the door for them, and sends her with them. Albus advises him to give the fake sword to The Dark Lord, who has Bellatrix put it in her vault at Gringotts. Two days later, they then send Phineas to spread the word to Potter through his second portrait tucked in to Granger's purse. Obviously, they couldn't tell Potter that the real sword was still at Hogwarts, but they could tell him that the real sword could destroy Horcrux's and had hoped that Granger would have been smart enough to read between the lines.
She was not.
—
The connection The Dark Lord had with the snake was something Severus had never seen before, and it frightened him to no end. It had become clear to him, even without Albus having to tell him, that Nagini the snake was the final Horcrux. The two were able to silently communicate with one another, feel the other's emotions. Watching it was unsettling, thinking of it sent a chill down his spine.
Severus didn't even need to ask for any of the snake's venom, the Dark Lord gave it to him willingly in the middle of October for safe keeping and ordered him to create a complex potion with it.
The very potion he had used to keep himself alive after his first downfall.
He was making plans to come back should he fail a second time.
Severus did as he was told, for the most part. He purposely omitted most of the snakes venom from the potion, instead opting to create the very anti-venom that had saved Arthur Weasley's life years prior. This anti-venom now hung securely around his wife's neck should The Dark Lord set the snake upon her to get back at him. Severus handed the weak potion to The Dark Lord who seemed to be none the wiser. He didn't even check the potion to ensure its potency.
The Dark Lord had the snake stationed safely in Godric's Hollow for the better part of three months. He had killed Bathilda Bagshot and used the snake to reanimate her rotting corpse. The Dark Lord knew, thanks to the prior connection of he and Potter's minds, just how sentimental the boy truly was. Potter would return to Godric's Hollow at some point, and Nagini would be waiting to draw him in and alert her master.
—
His wife spends Christmas Day 1997 tucked securely beneath a blanket on the fainting couch before a fire, a book in her lap, a never ending supply of tea in her hand as the snow falls outside. Severus watches her from a distance for most of the day, trying his best to sear her exact image into his brain should anything happen to her as a result of Potter's escape from Godric's Hollow. The Dark Lord was furious, and the only thing that ever came from His fury was retaliation. It didn't even matter if His victim had anything to do with what angered Him, whatever name came to His mind first was going to die.
It could be her that he must watch die next, and there was nothing that he would be able to do to prevent it.
Severus watches as she turns the final page of the book she had been reading, places her now empty mug of tea on the ground and stretches her arms high above her head as she yawns deeply. He comes from behind and places a small box wrapped in bright green paper on her lap and watches as she carefully unwraps the box and smiles up at him when the silver charm bracelet within is revealed.
He had spotted the small pendants in a shop while he was purchasing new quills weeks prior and decided to buy them for her for Christmas. The bracelet itself is a simple woven silver thing, the pendants attached to it are what make it special.
A small silver bat and a matching doe.
"You do so much for me, and I can't even buy you a Christmas gift." His wife whispers as he clasps the bracelet on to her wrist.
"There is nothing that I need." Severus murmurs as she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses his cheek.
"You don't need to keep buying me things, Severus. I told you before, I only want you." The weight of her head on his chest making him feel whole for the first time in months.
"Do you not like it?" Severus asks as he wraps his arms around her waist and breathes in her scent, doing his best to etch that into his memory as well.
"I love it. I just feel bad because I want to give you gifts, too."
Severus does not sleep that night. Instead, he spends hours pacing the Headmaster's office waiting for Phineas to bring back news of Potter's safety and possible whereabouts, and watching his wife sleep peacefully in bed.
—
Boxing Day 1997
Severus stands before the railing overlooking the Headmaster's Office, behind him is the small library he had created for his wife. Draco sits before the fire sipping tea; his wife is safely tucked into the bath. He had asked her not to come down, he needed to speak to Draco privately.
Phineas had brought news earlier in the day that Potter and Granger had made camp in the Forest of Dean. Weasley had still not rejoined them, and no news of him had surfaced. After consulting with Albus, it was decided that he would bring the duo the Sword of Gryffindor shortly after dark. If he should somehow fail, if he were spotted by Potter or Granger, it was over for him.
Severus turns and makes his way towards the back of the room to retrieve a cardboard box. Inside is the small pewter cauldron his mother had bought for him when he was a boy; the very cauldron Severus had taught young Draco with. He wanted the boy to have it, to look upon it and think of him, to use it to teach his own children. Severus places the box on Draco's lap and sits next to him on the sofa as he peers down into it.
"A cauldron?" Draco asks as he lifts his head to meet Severus' eyes.
"Yes. I would like for you to have it." Severus sighs as he lifts one brow at the boy.
"I already have a cauldron. A gold one. You gave it to me for my birthday after I passed my O.W.L."
"You may recall, Draco, that this is the cauldron I used to tutor you when you were a boy." Severus watches as Draco pulls the cauldron from the box, he had forgotten just how small it actually was.
"Why do you want me to have it?" Draco asks as he cups the cauldron in his hands, the firelight reflects off of the tarnished metal giving it an ominous look.
"Use it to teach your children." Severus admits as Draco looks to him once more.
"I am seventeen. You are married. Shouldn't you be using this for your kids? Besides, I do not plan to have children." Draco sounds offended but continues cupping the cauldron in his hands.
"You and I both know that your parents will expect it. It is up to you to carry on the Malfoy name."
"My parents should have thought of that before they decided to only have one kid." Draco mumbles as he rolls his eyes.
"Draco." Severus begins as he stands and makes his way back to the banister. "I must ask something of you."
"What?"
"I must ask that you look after my wife should anything happen to me. Just ensure she is taking care of herself, that no harm comes to her. That is all."
Severus clasps his hands behind his back and looks over the railing at the office below, trying his best not to imagine his wife mourning him. Just then, a movement upstairs catches his attention. No doubt his wife emerging from the bath to warm her feet before the fire as she was known to do. Severus looks over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of Draco looking up at the ceiling, following the sounds of his wife's footsteps as she crosses the room above them.
"Why me? Why not ask—"
"Because, Draco, I am trusting you. I trust that you would not harm her or allow any harm to come to her. Because you are my godson, and I would not ask this of anyone else." Severus turns his back on Draco once more, he can practically hear the gears turning in the young man's head.
"You're…you're not asking me to marry her, are you? Because The Dark Lord, he's already said I'm to marry one of the Carrow girls."
"No, Draco. I am not asking you to marry my wife. She is your cousin." Severus sneers between grit teeth, the thought of her taking anyone else as her husband causing a bile to rise in the back of his throat. Draco makes his way to his side and grips the banister tightly, his knuckles turning white.
"I hope that nothing happens to you." Draco whispers as Severus reaches out and grips the boy firmly on the shoulder.
—
Severus finds himself circling Potter and Granger's camp, getting a feel of the land. Potter would only take the sword if he felt he had worked for it. He sees Potter in the distance leaning against their tent, his head falling forward then jerking upright as he tried desperately to keep himself awake. The boy looked so strikingly like his father, more so in the dead of night with stubble on his face.
Severus makes his way through the trees, further and further away from the camp, and towards the edge of a pond where he quickly drops the sword in the middle and cast his Patronus in the direction of the camp. He has himself hidden behind a large oak tree as he listens to Potter's heavy stride come closer and closer.
"No, come back!" Potter shouts as his doe dissipates before each of their eyes.
Potter casts Lumos before kneeling at the ponds edge. He murmurs something in the darkness, but the call of an owl drowns out whatever he had said. Before he knows it, Potter has stripped and dove into the frozen water. Severus' breath catches in his throat, terrified of what may happen to the boy. Potter sloshing and sputters in the water, Severus swallows his fear and steps out from behind the trees, ready to pry the boy from the water and wrap his cloak around his freezing body. Just as he steps out from behind the tree, Weasley comes running down the hill towards them. Severus ducks back behind the tree and watches as Weasley pulls Potter from the pond, the sword gripped tightly in his fist.
"Are. You. Mental?" He hears Weasley ask as he turns and quickly Apparate back to the Hogwarts gates.
—
First May 1998
Severus finds himself standing before the open doors in the Headmaster's Office, the sun hangs low in the sky as the late spring air fills the room. He sneezes once, wipes his nose on the back of his hand as a child would, and continues to filter through memories in his head. Once he is satisfied, he watches out of the corner of his eye as a blue wisp flows from his temple and towards his wand. He safely bottles the memories, corks the glass vial, and places it on his desk next to his will, a signed dead, the key to his wife's home on Spinner's End, his thin gold wedding band, and a letter to his wife which included her Gringott's vault number and the account number to a Muggle bank account he had opened and deposited a substantial amount of money shortly after Christmas written on the bottom. Next he reaches into the top drawer of the Headmaster's Desk, produces her old copy of The Hobbit, writes a quick message on the inner cover, and places it next to the growing pile. He runs his fingers over the dried ink on the letter he had written to her, his tears had slightly streaked some of the words, but it was still readable.
The Dark Lord had become increasingly unpredictable since Potter's escape from Malfoy Manor in March. Something was going to happen this day, he could not put his finger on what, but he could feel it in his soul. He would not have time, nor an excuse to get his wife out of the castle. This is why he trained her, but he would still lock her in the office before he left.
Severus Tobias Snape will die before the end of summer.
Whether it be by The Dark Lord's hand, Harry Potter's, or the Ministry for what he has done, he was unsure.
He knows, though, that he is on borrowed time.
The clock is ticking.
Severus turns, takes a long look at the office he had grown to know so well over the course of twenty-seven years, puffs out his chest, and climbs the steep stone stairs to the balcony where he had left his wife reading at the wrought iron table outside of their chamber door.
She looks up at him, the sun gleaming off of her red hair. She squints her blue eyes and smiles up at him as he rounds the corner. Severus holds his hand out, she takes it and stands as she turns her book down on the table, the pages splayed out to the side to save her place. He bends and kisses her deeply on the lips. She tastes of the pineapple and lemonade she had been snacking on throughout the day. Severus swipes his tongue across her bottom lip as she giggles and buries his hand in her hair with one hand, the other slides up her supple thigh.
"What's gotten into you?" She giggles as he bends once more to take the skin of her neck between his teeth.
He shushes into her ear as she gasps slightly and leans further into his embrace. He needed to be inside of her, needed to feel her body one final time. Then he could die.
Her hands grip his shoulders firmly as he backs her into the room, his mouth not once leaving her neck as she moans. Severus pulls away to pull the cotton dress over her head as they cross the threshold, he takes a step back, his eyes roaming her body. The setting sun coming through the open doorway reflects off of her pale body, she stands nervously before him, unsure of what to do with her hands. He pulls her against him once more, his hands moving slowly down her sides, gripping her bottom tightly, then up her back to unclasp her bra. Her skin so soft, so warm. He buries his face in her neck once more, breathes in her scent, and backs her up against the bed as her bra falls to the floor.
Severus lies her back on the bed and slowly undresses himself as she gazes up at him, her blue eyes so full of burning passion. Once he is down to his shorts he goes down to his knees at the bedside and hooks his thumb beneath the waistband of her panties and pulls them down her legs slowly, his hands smoothing down her long legs. He brings his mouth to her calf, rubs his nose up to her knee as he grips her ankle before pinning her leg to the bed, the other rests on his shoulder. Severus kisses his way up her thigh as she pants and squirms beneath him.
The things he had read about in the book he had purchased to learn how to pleasure her, the things he had always been too embarrassed to try, he would do tonight. He wanted to taste her, needed to experience that sensual act that would set this time apart from every other time they had lie together.
"What are you doing?" She breathes as he places one hand on her lower stomach and sucks the soft skin of her inner thigh between his lips.
He doesn't answer, instead he flattens his tongue and swipes it between her labia, she squeals and jerks violently. She grips the bed sheets tightly as he does it over again before gripping the hand that rest on her lower stomach firmly. She tastes sweet, her arousal dominating each of his senses.
He sucks, licks, laps, and groans as she writhes and moans above him. His own arousal aching deep in his groin as she finishes with a force he had never seen before. She grips his neck tightly with her thighs, her back arched completely off of the mattress as she screams his name.
Severus rests his head on her lower stomach and breathes heavily, each breath from his lungs hitting her causes her to jerk and tremble as she pants and clenches the sheets. Finally, he lifts his head to meet her eyes, the blue of them dazzling with her recent release. He kisses his way up her stomach, stopping briefly to take her left nipple between his lips. She cups the back of his head, holding him close to her as he sucks greedily at her breast.
"I need you." She begs beneath him as she wraps her legs around his waist and pulls him tighter against her.
He needs her, too.
Severus leans back, grips himself, and watches as he slowly presses into her. Each of them letting out a slow, deep breath as buries himself deep inside of her.
—
Harry Potter has broken in to Gringott's, stolen something from Bellatrix' vault, rode off on a dragon, and had somehow made his way into the castle. The Dark Lord's voice had been raging in their heads since He had gotten word.
Lucky for Severus, he had been able to finish making love to his wife and got to hold her in his arms for several moments before he had to pry himself from her loving embrace and leave her side for what will likely be the final time. He kisses her deeply, dresses as she smiles back at him.
"Stay here. No matter what you hear, don't leave the office." Severus demands as he pulls his cloak over his shoulders and slides an empty vial into her pocket.
"What's wrong?" She asks, her brows furrowed slightly as she pulls her dress over her head, not bothering with her bra or panties.
Severus walks to her, cups her face in his large hands, and bends to kiss her one final time. He pulls her against his chest and breathes in the scent of her hair.
"I care for you more than you will ever know." Severus whispers against her head as his eyes sting with unshed tears. He releases her and stalks from the room, not daring to turn his head as she follows him down the steep stone stairs and into the Headmaster's Office below. If he were to turn his head, see the worry he knew to be etched on to her beautiful face, he would not be able to leave.
Alecto Carrow alerts that Potter is in the Ravenclaw common room. Severus drags his feet, hoping to give him time to make a move so he can catch him alone. He is likely traveling beneath the cloak, so Severus moves slowly, careful not to make much noise. Behind him in the darkened hall, Severus hears Minerva's hushed voice and steps behind a suit of armor.
"Who is there?" Minerva breathes, undoubtedly she had hear his steps as he moved hurriedly behind the armor.
"It is I." Severus announces, his heart pounding in his throat as he steps from behind the armor. "Where are the Carrows?"
He had wanted the as far away as possible, he would kill them himself if need be.
"Wherever you told them to be, I expect, Severus." Minerva spits.
Severus' eyes flick around her in the darkness, trying to gauge where Potter was. He knew that he was with her, he could feel the rage bubbling from him beneath the cloak.
"I was under the impression that Alecto had apprehended an intruder." Severus answers, his voice much colder than he had intended. He flexes his left arm, his Mark burning worse than it ever had before.
"Oh, but naturally. You Death Eaters have your own private means of communication. I forgot." Her words a slap in the face, just as he meant for them to be. He wanted to take her in his arms, cry on her shoulder, and explain everything.
After he was gone, perhaps she could forgive him.
He hadn't meant to cause her to fight, hadn't wanted to anger her. He had foolishly hoped that Potter would show himself, that he would be able to pull him in to a class and force him to listen. It did not work out that way. Severus found himself jumping from a classroom window, plummeting towards the ground as he propelled himself upwards with combination of a feather-light charm and levitation charm as The Dark Lord had accidentally taught him years before. If Minerva killed him, or overpowered him and locked him up somewhere, he would not have the opportunity to tell Potter everything that he needed to know. He would have to find another way to get him alone.
—
The Dark Lord had been waiting in the Shrieking Shack, away from the fighting and death on the grounds. He calls to Severus as he is hiding behind a bush, doing his best to pick off any Death Eaters as they swarmed the castle, and adding his own protection charms to the castle.
Severus holds his head high, straightens his back, and makes his way to Him. He would not be able to get Potter alone after all, but perhaps he would find another moment to get his memories to him. He could not risk doing it now, not when he was going to meet The Dark Lord, He would know.
"Severus." The Dark Lord hisses as Severus makes his way through the tunnel and into the darkened room.
The Dark Lord barricades the entryway as Severus steps in and survey's his surroundings. The room is far more destroyed than he remembered it being the last time he was here; the day he found his wife hiding in the parlor below the summer before her seventh year. Above him, Nagini swirls and coils in a massive glowing orb The Dark Lord had constructed to keep her safe.
"My Lord," Severus begins as bile rises in his throat. "Their resistance is crumbling—"
"—And it does so without your help. Skilled wizard though you are, Severus, I do not think you will make much difference now. We are almost there. Almost." The Dark Lord hisses as he turns his red snake eyes towards him. The hairs on the back of Severus' neck stand, a chill runs down his spine.
"Let me find the boy. Let me bring you Potter. I know I can find him, my Lord. Please." Severus begs, desperate for any way to get the boy the truth before it is too late.
Potter is near, Severus can feel it. Whether The Dark Lord could sense him was unknown, but Severus knew that he was there, just beyond the crate He had stacked in front of the entrance. Severus paces in front of it, hoping to be close enough to protect him in case The Dark Lord realizes his presence.
"I have a problem, Severus." The Dark Lord hisses as Severus turns his back to the entrance.
"My Lord?" Severus whispers, his heart hammering in his chest.
"Why doesn't it work for me, Severus?" He asks, twirling the wand he had stolen from Albus' grave in his hands.
It did not work, because it did not belong to Him.
"My—my Lord? I do not understand. You—you have performed extraordinary magic with that wand." Severus couldn't help but stutter, he was terrified, but not for himself. He was scared for Potter, for his wife, for every child and professor in that castle being forced to fight for their lives.
His heart hammers in his chest, the bile rises once more causing his eyes to burn slightly due to the stomach acid in the back of his throat. The Dark Lord was speaking, but he did not comprehend any of the words He was saying. Severus' mind was on his wife. Her beautiful blue eyes, her red hair glowing in the sunlight earlier that day. The feel of her lips against his, her heart beating against his own, the way he woke up each morning pouring sweat as her warm body was plastered to his own. Severus thought of Lily, her smile and sweet laugh. Of her son, standing mere feet from him, her green eyes alive and gleaming on his young face, the face that looked so much like his father's that he couldn't help but hate him.
"No difference." The Dark Lord says, dragging Severus from his thoughts.
He swallows once, straightens his back, and stares death in the face. The two go back and forth for several moments, Severus begging to go locate Potter, The Dark Lord refusing. Severus paces from his spot before the entrance, and to the far end of the room. When The Dark Lord finally strikes at him, he cannot risk Potter being injured as he stands behind him.
"The Elder Wand cannot serve me properly, Severus, because I am not its true master. The Elder Wand belong to the one who killed its last owner. You killed Albus Dumbledore. While you live, Severus, the Elder Wand cannot be truly mine." The Dark Lord hisses at him.
"My Lord!" Severus exclaims, his voice higher than he intended as instinct takes over and he pulls his wand from his sleeve, gripping it tightly in his clenched fist. He would not be able to fight him off, not in a million years.
"It cannot be any other way. I must master the wand, Severus. Master the wand, and I master Potter at last."
Severus jumps as The Dark Lord slashed his wand through the air, above him, a creaking sound causes his heart to stop for a moment. The cage holding Nagini falls from the ceiling and straight down on to his head. He screams as the bars hit him in the back of the head and pins his arms to his side. The Dark Lord hisses something in Parseltongue to Nagini, and she strikes. Another scream comes from his throat as the snake takes a chunk from his neck. Blood leaks down his chest, warming him slightly before panic truly sets in.
He will not be able to protect anyone else. If his were the only death that day, he could almost stomach leaving, but he knew his would not be. Innocent people will die, people who deserved to live far longer than he. Mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, children. Pure blood, half-blood, and Muggle born. They will all perish this night, and The Dark Lord could not care less.
Suddenly, his body is freed from the cage and Severus falls to the ground, his legs jerking from the intense pain radiating throughout his body as the venom enters his bloodstream. He tries to breathe, tries to regulate his beating heart to buy some time, but he cannot. The pain is more intense than anything he had ever felt, worse even than the Cruciatus Curse. He watches as The Dark Lord leaves the room slowly, Nagini in her magical orb floating softly behind him. The crate blocking the entrance lifts slightly, and Potter appears before him. For a moment, he thinks he hears a sob, but whether it came from his own throat or not he could not be sure. He presses his fingers in the deep gash in his neck, desperate to just hang on for a few more moments. He concentrates as hard as possible, and watches as the silvery blue memories escaping his mouth illuminate Potter's frightened face.
"Take….it…Take….it." Severus uses every bit of strength he has left to command Potter to take the valuable information he was giving to him.
His hands were growing numb, his body ice cold. He wanted to sleep, to close his eyes and wake up again tomorrow when the worst of the pain had subsided.
"Look….at….me." Severus whispers to Potter.
Potter lifts his head slightly, his mother's green eyes looking into his own. Severus sighs, his body warming momentarily at the thought of Lily. He turns his head, ready to fall asleep, when he sees her.
Lily.
There she sits, right next to him at last. Her head bowed, her red hair gleaming in the moonlight that seeped through the boards covering the windows. He tries to reach out and touch her, his blood soaked fingers moving in slow motion before his arm drop suddenly, too weak to move any further. Her takes one last deep breath, closes his eyes, and moans deeply before opening his eyes once more and catching sight of the most beautiful tear-filled blue eyes he had ever seen.
It was not Lily he had seen; it was his wife. He panics once more, wondering how she had gotten out of the office, how she would be safe out here in the midst of a war. He tried to find words, tried to get his hands to grasp Potter's, to make him take her elsewhere, but he couldn't. He couldn't move.
"I…..I…love….you." He manages at last before a weight drapes across his chest.
And he meant it. He loved her with such a force that it consumed his entire being, ached his heart, and filled him with such pride and joy each time she was near him. When she wasn't near, his every thought was of her. His duty, he now realized, though much too late, was to his wife.
Now there is nothing.
The pain is gone at last as his body relaxes and the breath leaks from his lungs as blood pools in the center of his chest from the gaping wound in his neck.