Hello everyone! It's amazing how much support this story gotten in just a few days. I felt that since we saw how Hermione got to where she was its only fair how we see Severus got to be where he was. It will be in two parts or else it will be too long. I know a lot of you were hoping we would see how Severus and Hermione would react to seeing one another, but I'm going to wait a little bit. Please leave a review and let me know what you think.
Severus Snape's black eyes followed the Golden Trio as they ran out of the shack leaving him behind. The last thing he saw was Ms. Granger's bushy brown hair as they ran down the steps. He closed his eyes ready and waiting for his heart to give out. This was the end for him. His mind tormented him as he laid there gasping for his last few breathes of air. He remembered how terrible his parents, Eileen Snape and Tobias Snape, were to him as a young boy. He was abused his whole life by his alcoholic father and he found Hogwarts to be his sanctuary. It was the only place where he found freedom. His mind again cruelly reminded him of the Marauders. He watched as he was bullied repeatedly by his childhood bullies. The last straw being Potter pulling his pants down in front of the whole school. It cost him the only friend he really liked. His mind continued on showing him memories that he had suppressed for years. He remembered when he went to the Dark Lord for the first time ready for the Dark Mark. He was naïve and foolish. He wanted a place where he felt accepted. He was manipulated into believing this was where he truly belonged. By the time he found out it wasn't true it was already too late. He ended up losing the only girl he loved. Because of his foolish actions he was forced to teach for years and protect a boy he didn't want to protect. His mind lastly reminded him of Dumbledore. He felt his heart finally give out on him. He slumped back against the glass giving out his last breath.
When he reopened his eyes again he found himself in a white room. He squinted slightly trying to get his eyes to adjust. He didn't know where he was or why he was even here. Am I finally dead? Is this what the afterlife looks like? He took slow strides as he walked down the white tiled floor. When he reached the end he saw a man with his back to him. The man had long gray hair that reached his waist. His robes were colorful. Severus thought he looked familiar. "Um excuse me where am I?" His slow drawl came out a little rusty. It was difficult to talk when his throat was just cut and viciously bitten again and again. The man turned around and Severus couldn't help but roll his eyes when he saw who it was. There in front of him stood Albus Dumbledore. "You just couldn't let me die in peace can you old man?"
Albus smiled at him. "Severus my boy thank you for sacrificing yourself for the greater good at least now Harry can go on and do what he has to do."
He scowled slightly at the way Dumbledore was looking at him. "So what now old man I'm stuck here for all eternity with you? This truly is a nightmare." He started to massage his temples not believing that even in the afterlife he still had to answer to Dumbledore.
Dumbledore frowned at him and said, "This isn't the afterlife Severus. This is the road in-between. You have to decide where you want to go from here. I'm just here to send you off. You have done a lot for the war and I truly am sorry for the role I played in your death. You deserved to live a better life."
"I don't need your pity old man. What are my choices? I want to get far away from you as possible," he growled angrily.
"You don't truly mean that do you Severus? I looked at you as if you were my son," Dumbledore said sadly.
"After the way you treated me yes. You used me all these years to do your bidding and now I am finally free from it all. Now tell me my choices," he said through gritted teeth. In actuality he truly did care for Albus. He gave him a chance when it mattered most and he would always be thankful for that.
"Let me direct you to the two doors behind me," Dumbledore said calmly. "You have the door to the left where you will find yourself in the afterlife. You will be dead and be seen as a war hero. You never have to answer to anyone as you said."
Severus approached the door ready to go in, but Dumbledore stopped him. "Wait my boy. Let me explain the door to my right. That door, in my opinion, is the better option."
"I highly doubt that, but go on if you must," he said lazily. He was tired of hearing him talk and just wanted this to be over with. He was ready for the afterlife. He was ready to be left alone in his solitude.
"The door to my right gives you another chance in the world. You can be alive again and do whatever you please. If you choose the door to my right you will be lying in a bed. There will be a healer there trying to heal your injuries. After you are finished healing you can leave and keep living your life." He turned towards Severus and his voice lowered a few octaves. "I beg of you Severus. Choose the right choice. Don't end your life here. I always wanted to see you surpass the war and do what you truly love doing. This is your second chance."
Severus swallowed with difficulty. His eyes looked at the door to the left. It was very tempting, but he knew somewhere in his mind he wasn't ready to die. He was only 38 years old, which was very young in wizards' terms. He didn't get to live a normal life. He never got to get married. He never lived a fulfilling life. He nodded slowly knowing which door he was going to take. He turned to Dumbledore knowing this would be the last time he would see him. "Thank you Albus for giving me a second chance just like you did years ago. You were right. I do deserve a chance to live freely now that the war is over. I am sorry that you won't be there to see it."
Albus put a hand on his shoulder and smiled at him. "Thank you my boy for making the right choice. I will always be looking down upon you and watching you succeed. Have a good life Severus. This will be the last time you will see me."
Severus felt so much emotion engulf him at hearing those words. He hugged Dumbledore tightly to him sad to see him go. He was his mentor, his protector, and the only man who ever saw him for who he was. He quickly let go of him embarrassed by his emotions. It was so out of character for him to show appreciation and love for anyone. He opened the door to the right and turned back to see Dumbledore one last time. "Goodbye my old friend. I will see you again in the afterlife I hope."
Dumbledore smiled at him and said, "Goodbye my boy. Good luck out there. You deserve to be happy."
Severus entered the doorway and found himself free falling through the sky. When he landed, as Dumbledore promised, he appeared lying a bed. He slowly cracked opened his eyes and found himself in a dark bedroom with IV's hooked up to him. He opened his mouth trying to speak, but found that he wasn't able to. He closed his eyes and tried to take a deep breath. He felt his heart start to beat fast and he heard the machine that he was hooked up to started to go off. He reopened his eyes when he heard the door open and saw a woman rush in. He didn't know who she was and again he tried to speak. All that came out was a gurgling noise.
"Shh don't overexert yourself Mr. Snape. You just woke up. You've been in a coma for over a year." The woman's voice was very soothing. The way she spoke to him eased his uneasiness and his heart beat went back to normal. "There now that's better. I am so glad to see that you are awake sir. I didn't think you'd make it out of that coma. I know you are wondering how you got here. I will answer some of the questions you most likely have."
Severus stared at the woman who hovered over him. He had so many questions he wanted to ask, but his throat just wasn't cooperating. He wanted to know how he got here. He wanted to know what happen after the war. Most of all he wanted to know if he was able to even speak after what happen to him.
"I can see how your eyes are narrowing at me that your first question is who am I? Well, my name is Evangeline Valachovic. You might have not known this but I was at the Battle of Hogwarts. I found your body at the Shrieking Shack. Amazingly you were still breathing and I knew that I had to save you. I am a healer at St. Mungo's. My job is to heal you. I didn't take you to St. Mungo's because I know that they would've let you die because you are or were a Death Eater. People now know that you are actually a war hero thanks to Harry Potter. He ended the war by killing You-Know-Who. I decided to take you to my house and heal you myself. I have been keeping you alive ever since. I didn't expect you to come out of the coma, but you again miraculously have come to. Anymore questions?" She finished speaking and she looked at him curiously.
He was surprised by her bravery and her willingness to save him. He really wanted to know about his throat. He, with as much strength as he can muster, pointed to his throat.
"Ah you want to know if you can talk or will be able to talk. It took me months to heal your throat. It took a lot of potions and incantations to get it right. Obviously I saw that you have tried to talk twice now since you've been awake and you weren't able to. All that came out for you was a gurgling noise. In my professional opinion I think with some more potions, this time being drunk, and maybe some actually applied to the throat, I think you will be able to talk. Now I think I've answered enough questions. Please rest now. I will be back later to check on you." She left the room leaving him partly satisfied with the answers she provided.
He pressed his head back into the pillow below him. He was still processing everything. So I am alive again. He didn't know how he felt about it. When he was being attacked by that fucking snake, he was ready to die. He passed on his memories to Potter like he was told and he was no longer needed in the world. He was actually looking forward to the afterlife. The only place where he can truly be alone, but Dumbledore convinced him that he still had years to live. He owed it to himself to finally have a happy and successful life. When he was fully healed he was going to give it one good try. He wasn't going to go back to Hogwarts. Fuck that! He didn't like teaching in the first place. Being a Headmaster was even worse. All he wanted to do was make potions for a living. He nodded at himself feeling semi-satisfied that he had a plan in place.