A Different Kind of Magic--UNDERGOING EDIT

Special thanks to my Beta VIVAvivacious for her wonderful help pulling this chapter together! Everyone thank your beta's, they deserve the shout-out with every chappy! Rowling owns it all and makes all the $$. I do not.

Warning: Graphic description of wounds and bitching from Snape.

If the situation hadn’t been so serious, one might have laughed at the absurdity of it all. Severus Snape and Hermione Granger lay in opposite beds next to each other, in a little-used room off the professor’s former quarters in the dungeon. Thick layers of dust layered over almost every surface, save for the hastily charmed and cleaned beds they lay upon. They both looked as though they had rolled in coal and ashes in addition to the grave wounds that the pair sported; which, in fact, wasn’t too far from the truth, as it were.

A flurry of activity kicked up the dust from the floor as hushed, harried voices entered and left the room at a dizzying pace. Minerva stood over Severus, a grim line set upon her lips as she gingerly probed him to determine the extent of his injuries.

“Gods, woman!” he growled, “Even a bloody fool could see where my injuries are without all the prodding I’m being subjected to!”

Minerva shot him a warning glare, “Oh, do shut up, Severus. I can’t heal you properly if you won’t let me alone. Now, just lie back and let me work.”

With a huff, he did, growling and barking in a dog-like manner as she continued her examination. After what seemed like an eternity, Madam Pomfrey busted into the room and bustled over to his bedside. “Oh, I am sorry, Minerva, but a pair of third year Ravenclaws got into it with a Slytherin boy, and I had to patch them up and send them back to bed before I could tear free. Then, I – oh!” Poppy started, looking down at the prone form of Severus Snape. “Well, as I live and breathe! Professor! What are you doing here?”

He gave her his most menacing glare and snorted. “Why Poppy, didn’t Minerva tell you? I was on holiday in Wales for the past year. I decided to drop in for a bit of tea with Minerva, but got caught up in the Floo network!”

Minerva and Poppy exchanged knowing glances, and Minerva rolled her eyes. “Poppy, I will explain later. Please, go fetch as many Healing potions as you can round up, Blood-Replenishing Potion, wound-cleaning potion, pain relieving potion and some Sleeping Draught.. Now hurry, go!” Poppy’s wizened face disappeared as she rushed from the room to gather the necessary items.

Minerva leaned in to whisper to the Professor. “Now, Severus, I am going to need to remove your clothing in order to cleanse and treat these wounds. I will conjure a privacy curtain around the bed, but I will brook no argument from you.”

He nodded tersely in response, gritting his teeth when the spike in his thigh and bullet-wound seared when Minerva shifted him slightly. He tried to crane his neck to see what was happening with Hermione, but there were too many bodies in the way. Just then, black curtains appeared around the canopy of the bed, effectively shielding him from prying eyes. “Thank you, Minerva,” he whispered as she began to remove his clothing and clean his person, just as Poppy re-appeared with the necessary potions.

Remus, Madam Hooch, Pomona Sprout, and Ava Longbottom, cousin of Neville and young apprentice to Poppy, all stood around Hermione’s still form, arguing feverishly over what to do with her.

Ava waved her wand at Remus in consternation. “Get out of the way! I can’t work when you’re standing in front of me!”

“Remus needs to run the diagnostic on Hermione. Give him some room!” Madam Hooch hissed back at the young healer.

Ava conceded to the elder witch. “Sorry, Remus,” she muttered as he began a singsong incantation over Hermione.

Tense minutes passed as the witches and wizard hovering over Hermione worked frantically to stabilize her. She was divested of her clothing, cleaned, and examined. The women dressed Hermione in a plain cotton nightshirt and covered her. It had turned out, with the exception of a nasty bruise on one leg and multiple bruises on her arms, wrists, and torso, most of the damage was to her head. A nasty cut above her eye was rapidly swelling it shut. It didn’t appear as if the eye was affected, but the cut was deep, split practically down to the skull on her brow. She had multiple lacerations on top of her head, a concussion, and possible unknown damage to her brain. The worst of the wear seemed to be the exceptional signs of malnutrition and exhaustion. That worried Ava even more, since it was difficult to say how her weakened disposition would affect how quickly they were able to heal her.

Ava worked feverishly, weaving and mending with her wand, chanting and singing to heal the bruises, close the cuts, and minimize the appearance of damage to Hermione’s eye. No amount of spells or potions would completely take away the inevitable scar she would bear on her brow from the cut. After applying dittany, giving the poor girl a pain relieving potion, and administering a few drops of Draught of Living Death, there was nothing to do except move to the opposite bed to help Poppy.

Remus thanked Madam Hooch and Professor Sprout for their assistance, excusing them to go back to their chambers. He summoned Dobby. “Dobby, we have some emergency guests, and I need you to clean the rest of this room, and bring some food and tea back when you are finished.”

“Dobby is pleased to serve Master Remus. Dobby will clean and fetch food for the Professors. Dobby is happy to help.”

With Dobby set to task, Remus went back to sit by Hermione, holding one small hand in his larger one, a frown contemplating what could have landed the rescued pair in such a desperate state. He transfigured a white curtain around her bed and waited, listening to the others work on Professor Snape.

Poppy barely registered Ava’s presence opposite Minerva. She was too busy concentrating on preparing the professor for the procedure. “You will need to brace yourself, Severus. I need to pull the spike out,” warned Poppy.

Grasping the headboard, Severus gritted his teeth, stifling a yell as Poppy tried and failed to remove the spike. “Blasted curses, woman! Get on with it!”

Poppy renewed her determination, managing to wrench it free on the second pull. Sweat beaded over the professor’s brow at the strain of the effort, extreme pain shooting through his body. Minerva gave him a pain relieving potion, and his face visibly relaxed. After cleaning and disinfecting the wound, Poppy clucked at its severity. “This is going to take some time to heal, Severus. I am surprised you were able to walk at all with the amount of pain you must have been in.” She worked her magic and bandaged the site.

Moving down to the Professor’s ankle, Madam Pomfrey gasped at the bullet hole. It had shattered his ankle, lodging in the bone. She chanced a glance at Severus, who was now observing her with the old dispassionate gaze she remembered from before the war. ‘The pain relieving potion must be working,’ she thought.

Poppy looked at Minerva and gave the Headmistress a slight shake of her head, indicating it was bad. With a nod, Minerva moved to sit on the bed and block the professor’s view of Poppy working on his ankle. Minerva had Ava hand her another pain relieving potion and made the Professor drink it. Ava was standing by with Blood-Replenishing and wound-cleaning potions.

Poppy addressed her patient. “I’m sorry, Professor, but even with the pain relieving potion, this is going to hurt quite a bit.”

Severus indicated his affirmation and grasped Minerva’s hands. An ugly cracking sound resounded as Poppy worked to free the bullet from his bone. “Quite painful” was an understatement. Only being under the Cruciatus Curse for an extended period from the Dark Lord was more excruciating than this sensation. There were no words to describe it. His face went white as he gripped Minerva’s hands tightly; she gasped, but said nothing. The professor’s features contorted as Poppy continued to dig, cursing and muttering under her breath about damn Muggle contraptions.

At last, the bullet popped free, hitting the floor with a “clang.” Severus sagged back into the bed, unaware he had tensed every muscle in his body in response. The color didn’t return to his face until several minutes after Poppy had set the delicate bones to knit and bound his ankle. Ava took that as her cue and gave Minerva the last pain relieving potion, wound-cleaning potion, and the Blood-Replenishing Potion. Last, but not least, Minerva forced him to take some Sleeping Draught, watching his stubborn features soften as he dropped off.

---

Ava was left to mend the final scrape on his head where the stray bullet had grazed him. Other than the severe wounds, he was in remarkably good shape. He was more fit than Minerva had ever seen him, although his pallor was more sallow than ever, and his bones jutted out at sharp, unhealthy angles. She covered him with the duvet, instructing Ava to tend to the two patients.

Dobby had done a spectacular job in a short period of time, making the room sparkle. He had lit a fire, put down warm rugs throughout the room, set the table by the window for four, and had tea with a steaming, hearty soup waiting for the exhausted staff.

Minerva had to pry the worried Remus away from Hermione to get him to sit down and eat. Ava finished up her duties and joined Poppy, Minerva, and Remus at the table. They all ate as they conversed, burned out from the night’s events, unable to think much beyond the current situation.

“We need to come up with a plan,” Remus began, lifting a spoonful of the steaming broth into his mouth.

Minerva hated when he spoke the obvious. Lupin had an annoying knack of doing that. As the Headmistress, she had come to rely heavily on him during the past year. She had little choice but to put up with his mannerisms, in exchange for his influence within the Order and counsel regarding the movements of the Ministry and public opinion. He wasn’t the most respected figure at Hogwarts, but his service was invaluable beyond measure.

“For now, Remus, the plan is to keep this under tight wraps until we find out what the Ministry knows about this incident. I am going to have to put the Deputy Headmaster in charge of securing that information for us. He is the only person among us that will not arouse suspicion.”

Remus agreed over a slurp of tea. Ava giggled at him. “What?” he asked her.

Ava shook her head, tittering behind her hand. “You’re so cute when you slurp your tea,” she replied, blushing.

Poppy told her to hush and Ava looked down at her food, but not before smiling shyly at Remus. He gave her a small grin before turning back to Minerva.

“Yes, yes, Minerva, quite right. I think Severus is going to blow his top when he finds out who’s taken over his Potion’s classes,” he mused, frowning again. “I’m going to have a hell of a time keeping those two from ripping each other apart once they meet.”

Minerva sipped her tea. “I think our Severus will need to learn very quickly to accept there have been a great number of changes while he has been indisposed. For one, he is going to have to stay hidden until we can figure out a way for him to be of use. Second, provided he is to be trusted, I would need him to cover for the Deputy when he is gone by keeping the infirmary supplied with potions. It would be so good to have his measure of quality around here. Merlin knows he’s been sorely missed; the potions stores haven’t been the same without him. Well, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, shall we? There is trust to be established, first and foremost.”

Remus nodded, stirring the remainder of his soup absentmindedly. “I quite agree, and the information he and Hermione will be able to provide us with about that facility, will undoubtedly give us great insight into what the Minister is up to. What I don’t understand, is why it was shielded against magic. I can understand the need to have security when caring for Death Eaters as patients, but we were damn lucky our spells were able to penetrate the roof of the building. I hate to admit it, but Severus was always ingenious with his solutions to problems. It was sheer brains and balls that brought him out onto the roof with Hermione. We never would have gotten them out any other way!”

The damage that had been caused by the Ministry brought his blood to a slow boil. “It’s all that damn Shacklebolt! What’s come over the man? He was the perfect person for the job, and then he went tits-up schizophrenic on everyone! There doesn’t seem to be any way to touch the man. The public just fawns over him like he’s the second coming of Merlin. It’s high time we got some new information. They’ve been really tight with security at the Ministry lately, and Shacklebolt only ever speaks with that bat, Umbridge. Curse the lot of them!”

Minerva rose from the table, as Dobby appeared to take away the remains of their meal. “We must tread very carefully now, Remus, more now than ever. The first step is for everyone to get some rest. Thank Circe tomorrow is Saturday. I want you all to get some sleep. Ava, you will stay with our guests during the day, as duties permit, but I do not want to arouse the suspicions of the students. Only the staff and Order members present during the rescue are aware of our guests, and all have been sworn to secrecy. I will personally set the wards on this room to recognize only myself, Remus, the Deputy Headmaster, Poppy, Ava, and the house elves. No one else is allowed in or out without my express permission.”

Minerva cast a long look at Severus’s bed. “I don’t care how much of a fit our dear professor chooses to pitch, he is under strict quarantine until I am able to determine the state of his health, magical abilities, and…” she exhaled heavily before continuing, “loyalties.”

Remus quietly made his way to Minerva’s side, casually leaning in so only she could hear him. “You know his loyalties are suspect. It wouldn’t hurt to put a guard in here. For all we know, he could have been in on the whole thing and sent here to spy. We can trust our Hermione, but maybe we should separate the two. I worry about keeping her in his company.”

She faced him squarely, firmly pushing him back a full step, continuing to keep her voice low in response. “Clearly, you did not hear me the first time I spoke. Trust is to be earned, not freely given. I am afraid, Remus, the same precautions we take for Severus also apply to Hermione. There is no telling what has been done to them, and I will take no chances after having come so far with our mission. In a few days, I will attempt to extract their memories and review their situation. Until then, they are both under suspicion until I can be certain they are not a threat. My wards will be sufficient to keep them here. Ava or Dobby will be present at all times. I see no need to stretch our staff with added security.”

Remus didn’t like it, but he begrudgingly accepted her view.

“Dobby!” called the Headmistress.

“Yes, Headmistress!” answered Dobby with a “pop.”

“I need you to watch over Professor Snape and Miss Granger when a staff member is unable to be present in this room. If there are any emergencies, you can contact myself, Remus, or Poppy, but do so discreetly. If our guests need food, water, toiletries, or entertainment, you can provide that for them, but you are to tell them nothing. No one is allowed in or out of this room save for me, Remus, Poppy, Ava, or the Deputy. Is that understood?”

Dobby nodded emphatically. “Yes, Headmistress! Dobby is happy to serve. Dobby will watch over Professor Snape and Miss Hermione. Dobby will take care of them! Headmistress can trust Dobby!”

Minerva gave Dobby a tired smile. “Thank you, Dobby. Your service is most appreciated.”

She turned to the others. “Well? Off to bed with you! I expect to see everyone at breakfast in the morning; I can’t afford to have anyone missing. I don’t want the student body to be aware that anything is different.”

“Wait.” Remus touched Minerva’s arm hesitantly and breathed into her ear so the others couldn’t hear. “What about Severus? How can you be sure he won’t be able to break the seal on your wards?”

Minerva shook her head. “He can’t without his wand,” she mouthed back to him. Remus gave her a dubious look but acceded to her wisdom. With a flourish, she heavily warded the room, and she and the remaining staff Floo’ed back to her office before going their separate ways.

Dobby began his watch over the sleeping pair, nervously flitting between the two, before settling down next to Hermione with his small hand on top of her own. A small tear escaped a large eye, the only indication he was deeply distressed by the condition of his charges.

The large fire warmed the slumbering forms as shadows danced on the dungeon room ceiling. Explosions, gunshots, and terror were left behind in the endless ocean of deep, healing sleep.