Adventurous Hearts Part III: Merlin's Tomb

Chapter 10: Clinging to Life







It was nearly three hours later when a healer finally came to speak with Lucius and Severus. They followed the man into a small room, both of them terrified when he closed the door and took a seat across from them.





“My name is Healer Gallows, I am the one in charge of Ms. Granger’s care.” He said. “She is alive.” He watched their shoulders sag in relief, heard their sighs. “She barely made it. You most likely saved her life, Mr. Snape, by giving her the healing potion and performing mouth to mouth. Not many wizards would have known to do that.”







“I am a half-blood, Healer Gallows, I have spent some time with muggle healers; I have studied the healing arts of many cultures.” Severus said. “How is she, what is her prognosis?”





“She has a collapsed lung that we have re-inflated, several broken bones, damage to internal organs, a concussion, several lacerations and contusions. She has not regained consciousness at this point and currently she has a device breathing for her to give her body a chance to rest.” He said gently. “Right now it is touch and go. She needs to regain consciousness.”







“May we see her?” Lucius asked.







“Certainly. I was told that you were handling the cost of her care, Mr. Malfoy, so she was moved to the private rooms on the top floor.” He said.







“Of course, I would want nothing less than the very best for her.” Lucius said, though he did find it interesting that they just assumed to provide the most expensive services without asking the guarantor first.







“If you will both follow me, I will take you to her.” He said, curious about the two men who were clearly much older than the witch, but who seemed devastated at her current state. He led them onto the lift that carried them to the upper floors of the hospital, then down the hall to the room where she rested. “I want to warn you that she doesn’t look very good at the moment. It seemed pertinent to heal the injuries posing the threat to her life, not the superficial surface damage. We can repair that later, once she has had a chance to heal internally.”







Healer Gallows opened the door and stepped aside for the wizards to pass him. Both of them stopped at the foot of her bed, staring down at her with unreadable expressions. She lay still in the center of the bed, a tube running from an archaic device that made whooshing noises as it blew air into her lungs, her chest rising and falling with every artificial breath. Bruises marred her arms, neck and face. Her lip was split, her eyes swollen and they could clearly see the stitches in the cut above her eye. Blood and soil was still matted in her hair.







“You can talk to her, there are studies that suggest that unconscious individuals can hear you and that it helps them heal, encourages them to fight, to hold on.” Healer Gallows said softly from behind them. “There are no visiting hours on this floor; you can stay with her as long as you wish. I will be in later to check on her again before my shift ends.”







The two men heard him leave, but did not acknowledge him. Without a word they pulled chairs up to either side of her bed and settled in, each of them taking a small, battered hand in theirs.







“Hermione?” Lucius said her name softly, looking for any sign that she could hear him. There was nothing but the sound of the device breathing for her. He lifted her hand to his lips, kissing the bruised knuckles gently before bowing his head to hide the tears.







Severus was still as a statue as he sat beside her bed, her tiny hand in his. He couldn’t say anything, do anything because to move would set it free, the demon inside him that screamed within his head. That part of him that had the ability to kill, that part of him that he kept so tightly controlled. He wanted to scream, to destroy, to kill, to beat someone, something into nothingness in his rage.







“Severus?” He heard Lucius’s voice come from across the bed but he didn’t blink, he just stared at her. The beautiful creature who had been his friend, lover and family for a decade was broken, unrecognizable as she lay near death and there was nothing he could do to make it right, to fix it. “Severus, I know that look, are you going to be alright?” Lucius had seen that look on his friends face before, that blank expression that shadowed his emotions, hid them from the world.







“Not until she wakes. I will not be alright until she wakes.” Severus said quietly, his voice strained. Lucius didn’t respond, he knew how the wizard felt.







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It was well after dark by the time Draco received notification and made his way to the hospital. He stepped into the room and his stomach twisted into knots at the sight of Hermione in the small bed. His father and Severus were sprawled in chairs on either side of her, her hands in theirs as they slumbered. He closed the door behind him and moved to his father’s side, resting his hand on his shoulder.







Lucius opened his eyes and looked up at his son, his hand moving to rest atop the one on his shoulder.





“Hello, Son.” He said.







“I just heard. How is she?” Draco asked.







“Won’t know for certain until she wakes.” Lucius said, sitting up and wincing at the stiffness in his back.





“How is he doing?” Draco asked, nodding towards the dark wizard sleeping across the bed.







“Not well. He has his death eater game face on. I think that if there was someone at fault for this accident he would kill them.” Lucius said. “As it stands now he has no where to filter his rage, I pity the person who crosses him before she wakes.”







“Do the healers think she will wake soon?” Draco pulled up another chair and sat beside his father.







“They don’t really know. Only time will tell.” Lucius sighed and ran his hand over his face. “You should go on home, Draco.”







“No, I will stay here with you. Get some sleep, Father; if she wakes I will let you know.” He said.





The three wizards sat at her bedside for two days before the nurses finally ran them out so that they could wash and redress the witch. They didn’t go far, refusing to leave they simply stood in the hallway and waited for the staff to finish.







“What in the bloody hell are you doing here?” Draco said, drawing the attention from the other two. They saw Harry Potter standing in the middle of the corridor, staring at the three of them. They were disheveled, unshaven and bleary eyed. It was obvious that they had not left her side.







“I came to see Hermione.” Harry said.







“Why? So you can tell her how she deserves to be where she is for being a…what did you call her….oh that’s right, a deatheater whore.” Draco spat. Harry flinched and his gaze fell to the floor with remorse.







“I shouldn’t have said that, I know it hurt her and I am sorry.” Harry said. “I have no excuse for my actions, I was wrong. I know that.”







“And that is supposed to make up for years of snubbing her? For making her feel guilty that she was involved with Severus, that she had the audacity to love someone you felt was inappropriate?” Draco’s face was flushed with anger, his fists balled at his sides. “You are worse than the deatheaters and their pureblood mania. You are just like the people you fought so hard against, Potter.”







“You’re right.” Harry said quietly. “I snubbed her, judged her because things didn’t work out with Ron. I was angry when she turned to Severus, when she became involved with him. I hated it that she blossomed in his friendship, that she seemed so happy with her relationship with him. It made me even angrier when I found out she was seeing your father.”







“She’s not just seeing him, Potter, they are in love.” Draco said.







“I know, I saw them together at the gala. I never thought I would see your father look at a muggleborn that way. I was wrong, I admit it. I want to make it right, Malfoy. Please, I love Hermione, I want to see her, to tell her so.” Harry said.







“She hasn’t regained consciousness, Mr. Potter.” Severus said. His rage barely controlled. He very much wanted to beat the younger man to a bloody pulp right there in the hospital corridor. Only Lucius’s hand on his arm reigned in the demon.







“But Kingsley said the accident occurred a couple of days ago!”







“It did, she nearly died in my arms.” Lucius squeezed his eyes shut tightly as he said the words aloud. “If Severus hadn’t come…”







“If Severus hadn’t gotten there as quickly as he did she would have died, Potter. It isn’t a little bump on the head; she was nearly crushed to death.” Draco saw the look of horror on Harry’s face, his green eyes filling with tears.







“Please, let me see her.” Harry croaked.







“When the nurses finish tending to her, we will take you in.” Severus said, though he was reluctant to allow him access to her after all he had done to hurt her over the years. They waited in silence until the nurses filed out and told them they could go back in. They watched as Harry approached her slowly, tears rolling down his cheeks as he sat on the edge of her bed. He took her hand in his and bowed his head, sobbing softly.







“I’m so sorry, Mione. So sorry.” He whispered. “I was an idiot. A hard headed fool, just like you have said millions of times. I know you aren’t to blame for what happened with Ron, it’s just hard to see you with anyone else. I’m sorry I said those horrible things to you about Severus, I’m sorry I wasn’t happy for you. Forgive me, please, I need you to wake up and tell me you forgive me.” She didn’t move, or even twitch an eyelash. “Can she even hear me?”







“No one knows.” Lucius said. “We choose to believe that she hears us, that she knows we are here.”







“You really love her?” Harry asked, looking up at Lucius.







“I do.” He answered. Harry nodded and stood, wiping his eyes as he looked down on her.







“Will someone please notify me if…when…she wakes up?”







“We will send word.” Severus said. Harry leaned over to kiss her brow and with a bowed head he left the room.







“She will forgive him you know.” Draco said softly from his chair in the corner. “She forgave me, and I more than snubbed her, I caused her physical and emotional harm and she still forgave me.”





“She isn’t one for holding grudges.” Severus said softly as he as he resumed his seat. “She never forgets, but she always forgives. And despite his behavior, she loves Potter like a brother.”





“She sure as hell wasn’t quick to forgive me.” Lucius said as he sat on the side of her bed. “She was a real…well I hate to use the word, but she was a real bitch to me when she first came in to my life.”





“She figured the best way to deal with you was to show no weakness.” Severus smiled softly and brushed his thumb over her knuckles. “She likes to goad you by swearing, she says for her it’s the equivalent of poking you with your cane.”





“I caught on to that one. I notice she rarely swears in front of others.” He said.





“She calls it your pimp cane, she said you only lack the whores.” Severus chuckled. A loud bark of laughter from Draco had Lucius frowning.





“I don’t understand.” He said.





“Muggle culture, Father. You know what a pimp is, well in muggle pop culture they are often shown wearing expensive suits, lots of jewelry, fur coats, hats and carrying canes.” Draco reached across the table and held up his father’s fur hat and the fur lined cloak with a grin. Severus gestured towards the expensive robes, the diamond tie pin, necklace, pocket watch, rings and bracelet adorning his person, despite being rumpled and soiled it was still obvious that he was a man of wealth.





“Hermione, my love, you need to wake up soon and save me from the two of them.” He said softly as they laughed at his expense.



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I know, another short chapter….though they don’t seem short on Word since they are 10-12 pages LOL….I posted a little early because I have a busy day on Thurs. So enjoy!!!!