I awoke several hours later; unlike in previous times, I knew where I was. I rolled over and saw a sleeping Severus; I had never seen him look so peaceful. He stirred slightly, revealing the mark on his left forearm that Kara had been so provoked by; it looked like an ordinary tattoo. I felt the familiar sting in my heart for him. Severus didn't look evil; intimidating, yes. Evil? No. He certainly didn't help his reputation with his bad attitude and belittling remarks. But that was his problem.
Severus awoke slowly, squinting in the blinding sunlight - he let out a deep sigh and rubbed his hand over the stubble that had begun to poke through.
"Good morning, Sev," I said softly.
"Morning," he mumbled back, rising into a sitting position and taking his white button-up off the chair near the bed. Severus dressed, wearing the same outfit as yesterday and the day before.
"Do you ever wear different clothes?" I asked in a lighthearted voice.
"Coffee?" He asked instead, avoiding the question entirely. I nodded at him and got out of bed as well. The events of last night seemed like a distant memory; however, my right leg throbbed as I got up. I winced and tried to make the short trip to my trunk, he was watching me and I didn't want to have him fuss over me. So I sucked it up and managed to get to my trunk without provoking a comment. I chose a comfy long-sleeved crop top and sweatpants. With a raised eyebrow, Severus proceeded to the kitchen while I went into the bathroom to change.
I joined him moments later at the small dining table: it was black and well worn, the wood peeking through scratches and scuffs. I took the chair across from him, a cup of steaming coffee waiting for me. Severus sat with a cup in one hand and a book in the other; he looked up briefly as I sat down.
"Not a morning person?" I asked, laughing a bit, picking up my cup and taking a small sip. Severus only grunted, which I took as a no. We continued having our coffee in silence. The dungeons were colder today, the type of cold that gets into your bones. I shivered, my shirt barely keeping out the cold and the coffee only providing a few seconds of warmth as it made its way down. Severus got up then and made his way over to his wardrobe; much like the other furniture he owned, it was well worn, and its hinges screamed when he opened it.
"You'll have to put some WD-40 on that," I said.
"I don't know what that is," Severus answered monotonously; he came over and thrust a black sweater at me three sizes too big. I looked at him questionably but took it from him nonetheless.
"You were shivering," Severus said, sitting back down and resuming sipping his coffee. I felt my cheeks grow hot - I got up and pulled it over me; the sweater almost reached my knees and covered my hands entirely. It smelled strongly of him, and I felt safe as his scent surrounded me.
"We should go up and see Miss Hart soon before Madame Pomfrey decides visiting hours are over," He said, staring out of the window behind me. I nodded and took a final sip of coffee. The cups floated up off the table and into the sink.
*******************************************
Severus held the door to the hospital wing open as I walked inside and to my surprise, Kara and Sapphire were already there.
"We received an owl last night from McGonagall," Sapphire said in a soft voice. Severus came in behind me, keeping his distance. Kara stood up abruptly and drew her wand.
"What are you doing here!" She demanded.
"Kara, wait!" I protested, but she ignored me.
"Let me guess - this is your fault, some nerve you have to show up here!"
I tried to get her to listen, but when Kara went off, it was difficult to get her to calm down long enough to speak.
"I knew you were nothing but trouble! How Albus can even trust you is beyond me!"
Just then, Serenity groaned, and Kara stopped shouting and turned to look at her, and so did I. I gasped softly with Karas yelling I had failed to notice her. She had a bandage around her head and bruising.
"What's happening?" She asked in a croaky voice that was almost like a whisper.
"Snape is a sadist!" Kara shouted back; she had no intention of calming down.
I turned to look at Severus; he was clearly angry but remained silent; why isn't he defending himself? I thought.
"Because he's guilty!" Kara answered; I stared at her flabbergasted.
"So when were you gonna tell us you were a Ligilimens!?" I demanded, I had suspicions that Kara was a Ligilimens, but she would've told us something like that, right?
Kara only stared back at me, her cheeks had turned pale, and she was finally at a loss for words.
"Guys!?" With great effort, Serenity's voice rose above everyone else's. Once again every stopped and stared at her, "If I remember correctly, it was Professor Snape who came to our rescue and Professor Snape who carried me to the Hospital Wing."
"You were unconscious, Serenity; I don't think you'd remember something like that," Kara said in her usual tone, calming down only for Serenity, who looked so fragile in the hospital bed.
"Miss Hart awoke briefly while on the way to the Hospital Wing; I had found them both in the forest thanks to Juniper's Patronus," Severus had said calmly, despite the fire raging in his eyes.
"So you two are on a first-name basis now!?" Kara asked angrily "oh, and what in the bloody hell were you doing in the forest!?"
"I noticed what seemed to be the Periculum charm out the window in Gryffindor tower," I said with a slight edge to my voice; I didn't feel like being interrogated, especially after finding out - my best friend could read our thoughts and never told us. We were supposed to be family, but this hurt more than when Severus and I weren't speaking.
"But Juniper, your eyes got all funny when we got to the edge of the forest, and you kept insisting we go inside and mumbling to yourself. I'd never seen you act so strangely," Serenity said slowly.
"You're so reckless and have no regard for other people's safety, no wonder you constantly get yourself in situations where you might die," Kara said, back to being angry.
"At least I don't hide things from my friends like being able to read people's minds!" Now I was seething; how could she make such a big fuss about Severus being dishonest while she was just as bad?
"Don't change the subject, Juniper!"
"Stop avoiding the subject then, Kara!" The argument had gotten childish; as Kara and I continued back and forth, no one tried to stop us. Or they did, but we didn't hear them.
"What in Merlin's name is all this! I can hear you lot from down the hall" Madame Pomfrey had come in, shutting the both of us up.
"And Severus! Allowing these ladies to have a screaming match while Miss Hart needs quiet and rest" She clicked her tongue at Severus, who had become paler than usual. He had not moved from his place in-between Serenity's bed and the door; as if unsure whether to stay or leave.
"Out, all of you!" Madame Pomfrey demanded, shooing us away; I waved bye to Serenity as I followed the others through the wooden double doors.
I ignored Kara and Sapphire; it hurt because Sapphire hadn't done anything wrong. I increased my speed to match Severus', but for every step he took, it was two or three for me.
"You guys shouldn't get so worked up about something like this; we have to stick together," Sapphire said; loudly from down the hallway.
I scoffed and turned around, Severus stopped a few steps ahead of me, and I heard him sigh.
"I don't know lying about Ligilimency is a pretty big deal," I said calmly.
"I never lied to you; you never asked. Not to mention, there were some pretty big hints throughout the years; I would've thought you had figured it out by now," Kara responded in an attempt to better the situation. She then looked towards Sapphire, sadness coming over her features.
"Also, I thought if I told you guys, you act differently around me" Kara's voice was almost a whisper now, and I felt bad for yelling, but I was still upset, and it would take time to forgive her.
"Don't be silly! We'd never treat you different if anything; Ligilmency is more like a gift!" Sapphire said, wrapping her arm around Kara and squeezing.
"Juniper, enough come on," I heard Severus say behind me; I looked at the girls sadly before turning my back and leaving with Severus. Without saying a word.