On the Plain

Chapter 2

Because of her recurring dreams of Snape, her relationship with Ron deteriorated He couldn't understand her continued guilt.

"It wasn't as if you bit him, Hermione. Nagini did. There was nothing any of us could have done. He'd lost too much blood. Besides, we thought he was a bloody Death Eater and murderer. Why would we try to save him?" Ron argued.

"We should have known," Hermione countered. "All he did for us. He protected us so many times, Ron. Remember when he stood up for Harry when the Chamber was open? And how he didn't give Umbridge Veritaserum so she could question him? And how he sent the Order to the Ministry when Voldemort was after the Prophecy? The signs were all there. We just didn't see them! I didn't see them."

"Hermione, you couldn't possibly have known! You need to forget about Snape. Harry has and I have. It's over! We have to think about ourselves now!"

But it was when Ron discovered that Hermione believed that if she became intimate with Snape in her dreams, the dreams would stop that he really blew his top.

"What? Are you nutters? Shagging Snape even in your dream would be damaging beyond all belief! You could be scarred for life, Hermione! That's insane! That's not a dream! That's a bloody nightmare!" he said, shuddering.

But Hermione wouldn't budge on it and insisted she needed to hang on to her virgin status until she managed to assuage her guilt. Ron couldn't believe it. Even from beyond the grave, that dungeon bat Snape was cock-blocking just as surely as if he were still stalking the corridors of Hogwarts looking for copulating students.

"You need help, Hermione," he muttered. "Therapy, and lots of it."

After graduating from Hogwarts with the highest marks the school had seen in more than fifty years, Hermione did try therapy. Unfortunately, she had to go to a Muggle counselor, who promptly assigned her to a more experienced therapist after listening to her story. The psychiatrist believed Hermione was completely delusional when she talked about wizarding worlds and magic and Severus Snape. He immediately prescribed an anti-psychotic drug.

"This will stop the dreams and your delusions," he told her. "If it doesn't help, we're going to have to try in-patient treatment."

All Hermione wanted was to stop dreaming, so she took the pills.

The dreams stopped, but so did everything else as Hermione zoned out, staring at walls for hours and becoming more and more disconnected to reality. Her work at the Ministry suffered. Finally, she stopped taking the drugs.

The dreams returned, with Snape more dismissive and scathing than ever, railing at her to leave him alone and let him be at peace.

She couldn't.

Months and many dreams later, Hermione retired to her bed. She and Ron had finally broken up earlier that day, Ron telling her to come see him when she got Snape out of her system. He couldn't compete with a ghost.

Hermione fell asleep and once again found herself on the familiar plain. But there was something different about it, something wrong, ominous. The featureless plain was there, but the black clouds that rolled above were closer than they'd ever been, and the wind was blowing without lifting the sand. It began to grow darker as Hermione spun, unable to awaken Thunder crashed around her and she screamed at the loudness of it.

Then, a jagged bolt of lightning flew from the distance, forked and heading right for her. Stunned and horrified, she couldn't move as it struck the ground before her and Snape appeared, his robes billowing in the wind, his eyes narrowed as he looked at her.

"I've decided," the wizard said softly, his voice carrying despite the wind and thunder around them. "I've decided to engage you. It is all I can do if I want peace. You have no idea of the risk—"

"Risk? What risk?" Hermione asked him.

"It doesn't matter. But, this is not the proper scenario," Snape replied, and suddenly they were in Hermione's bedroom. She lay in the bed in her nightgown, Snape standing at the end of the bed, looking down at her. It seemed so real, but all Hermione's dreams about him were lucid ones.

"No need to undress, Hermione," Snape said, beginning to unbutton his robes.

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A/N: A little more writing. It came a bit easier today, but I still can't seem to write for my other stories, yet. It's like in new surroundings I need to do something new. But I want my muse back