Redemption I

Chapter 12

"I'm so sorry Ron hit you..." Harry grimaced pressing the ice pack gently against Luna's cheek.

"It's alright, he was upset." Luna gave him a kind smile placing her hand over his to take his place, "We've all been a bit tense, I think it has to do with whatever you found in Bellatrix's vault."

Luna had cast the spell successfully on one of Hermione's books, but the needle that was meant to point them in the correct direction just spun in place unable to lead the way. Ron had thrown the book in a fit of rage hitting Luna by accident who had been wholly unprepared for the outburst.

Bill had stepped in then, bodily forcing his brother from the room while Fleur and Mister Lovegood saw to Luna. Harry had stepped in as well leaving Ron to his brother.

The guilt that rested on his shoulders almost made it impossible to stand. The image of his best friend tied and tortured was worse than he could have ever had imagined. It brought back all the pain and hopelessness he had felt when they were in the cellar, her screams then, standing in for the silent ones he had witnessed.

Everything was such a mess.

oOo

Snape looked up from his desk to a soft groan. He'd laid Hermione down on one of the couches before the fire; making sure her broken form was in clear view of Albus. He had said nothing since their return and Snape knew his point had been made very, very clearly.

Her left side was still vibrating, but she hadn't had a full seizure since they had returned. He was grateful that his preventative measures had done something. He would have to wait until she woke naturally to give her his own special potion. It would help counteract the effects of the curse but the potion didn't play well with others. He had to make sure everything was out of her system before he gave it to her.

That was at least another four hours away. He'd noticed her breath had smelled of cherry when she'd been pressed against him. There was no doubt that she had taken one of the lozenges for her throat before everything had happened. In the meantime, he was going to make Albus watch her suffer.

Severus looked back down at the pure onyx stone on his desk and raised his wand again. Like a stone cutter with a blade, he pressed the tip of his wand into the stone, carefully carving the runes she had written.

"Pro...professor?"

Severus finished the rune he was working on before answering. He pulled the magnifying glasses from his eyes and came to his feet so that she could see him from where she laid.

"Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Wa-ter?" She shifted her upper body, her left arm falling off of the couch to the floor. She winced and pulled the incorporative limb back up.

"One moment." Severus moved around the desk over to a small cabinet. He pulled down a rather ornate looking goblet before spelling it to fill with water. He came to kneel beside her helping her shift so that she was sitting up enough to drink properly.

He frowned when she reached for the goblet, both hands trembling too much to be of use. He used his fingers that held the cup to push them back down before taking the back of her head with his free hand.

"I'll do it, small sips." Snape's jaw twitched growing tight. He brought the rim up to her lips tilting it just enough for a taste. Hermione did her part well, using his support to take three small sips. Her eyes closed with relief after the third before she turned her head away with a grimace.

"What's wrong?"

"Stomach...hurts..." Hermione's fingers curled into her dirty jacket and she hardly had time to warn him before her stomach lurched. The meager amount of water she had swallowed came up in one swift motion. Her bile was clear but smelled acidic.