Potion seizure

Consulting St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries

The second Y/N woke up, Severus darted out of the room. After a few hours alone, she was incredible bored and was not allowed to leave until Madam Pomfrey had heard back from her 'informant'. Y/N was too tired to ask questions. Yet, she was awake enough for sleep to be impossible.

"You should refrain from making a habit out of this," Professor Snape said as he walked back into the room and towards her bed. Her eyes went wide as she realized that he lacked his usual cold tone. He joked. Severus Snape joked. A smile covered her face.

"I will certainly try my best, but whatever this is, it's out of my control," Y/N said. She motioned for him to take a seat next to her. He gladly took it but seemed rather uncomfortable when silence fell upon them. His feet moved inside his shoes as to make it less obvious that he was nervous.

"Thank you for being there - both times," Y/N eventually blurted out. She fidgeted with the blanket covering her legs, finding the entire situation bizarre. She had a seizure, two seizures, and Professor Snape had helped her both times. He stayed with me, she thought. Severus Snape cares.

"No need for gratitude. It is my duty as a teacher to care for the students - no matter what others might think, I do take my duties seriously," Severus said, straightening his back to show pride. Y/N stared at him. Not in a million years had she imagined hearing him admitting to caring for others. Her perception of the greasy dungeon bat was beginning to shatter into pieces. Left was a different view of a troubled man, who clearly had some priorities straight, but the methods could use an upgrade.

"Oh, okay. May I ask a question, Professor?" she asked, looking at him. Or rather she looked at his dark eyes, seeing a little bit of life in there. He nodded, indicating for her to continue.

"Why did you stay with me? Not that I mind at all. I... uhm... It was very nice of you," she stuttered nervously. The blanket was by then wrinkled beyond repair and Snape stopped moving his feet. Both froze, thinking.

Severus ran a hand through his hair and leaned back in the chair.

"It was rather unpleasant to watch, and I suspect it was just as unpleasant to go through. I wanted answers," he told her truthfully, but tried to hide his emotions by using his usual cold tone accompanied by a blank stare. Unknown to Severus, Madam Pomfrey stood behind him, smiling like a madwoman. She was trying not to ruin the moment in case he decided to open up and show his emotions clearer.

Y/N looked away from her professor, thinking about how awful she felt after an episode and how weird it must had been to see.

Y/N was lost for words and hardly listening when Madam Pomfrey informed them of the answer from her friend. Only a few information pierced her clouded mind. She had an appointment at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries the following week.

She spent the rest of the day sleeping on and off while thinking about everything that had happened in the past few months. What she thought had been a one-time thing could be something she had to go through repeatedly.

Y/N's mood took a severe dive in general. The only time she felt herself relax was whenever Severus Snape was nearby. Knowing he cared, that he knew how to handle the situation if things went wrong and that he would be there made her feel at ease.