At the Shore of The Heart

It was three a.m., and Hermione was curled in the chair beside Lucy Snape’s bed, reading a Jane Austen novel. Apparently it was Lucy’s favourite and Hermione had been reading it aloud to her, until she fell asleep. She looked over the top of the book at Lucy’s sleeping form and smiled a little.



There were ethical issues connected with using potion therapy on muggles, particularly where they were unable to give informed consent. Hermione had got around this by stating that Lucy was too sick to give her consent and that permission had been sought from her next of kin. Realising quickly that there was no cure for Lucy, and that to keep her calm and pain-free was the only solution, Severus had happily signed the required documentation, not meeting Hermione’s eyes as his quill scratched the parchment.



The door of room four opened quietly and Severus Snape stepped inside. Glancing up, Hermione smiled softly and stood to give him the chair.



‘She’s sleeping,’ she whispered.



Severus nodded and sat down wearily, rubbing his face and sighing as he did so.



‘How long do we have, do you think?’ he murmured quietly, his eyes gazing on Lucy’s face.



Hermione paused. She was used to this question from relatives, but hearing it from he old teacher made it sound different and more poignant.



‘Honestly?’ she asked him, her voice level. He looked at her with serious eyes, and Hermione knew he needed to know. ‘I think about a week, going by past experience. Maybe a little longer.’



Hermione didn’t say sorry. It was futile, and she had a role to play. ‘I’ll bring you some tea,’ she said, and walked quickly from the room.



When she returned, she could see the trace of tears on Severus’s face. She didn’t say anything, but slowly put a steaming mug of tea on the small table by the bed, and placed a box of tissues onto the bed beside him.



‘Where did you meet Lucy?’ she asked him quietly.



A ghost of a smile crossed Severus’s face. ‘We work together. Lucy teaches English,’ he said.



‘Have you been married long, sir?’ Hermione knew she was probing, but she knew that talking could help, as well as answering her own curiosity about his life after the war.



‘Almost two years,’ he said softly, ‘I took some persuading.’ He laughed a little and looked down at his wedding ring, turning it around on his finger slowly.



‘I can imagine,’ Hermione smiled. ‘She is very beautiful.’



‘Inside and out. She is the kindest, most gentle soul, I have ever met,’ he breathed, and Hermione heard the catch in his throat.



‘Why didn’t you tell her, about yourself I mean?’ Hermione stepped a little closer, into his eye line, and he raised his face to look at her.



‘After the war, I chose to live as a muggle and did so for many years before I met Lucy. She joined the staff at the school I was teaching at, and we became friends eventually. It was just easier to keep up the pretence, and to be honest I enjoyed it. It certainly made life simpler,’ he said.



Hermione let out a slow breath and held his gaze. ‘Life is not fair a lot of the time. But it seems to have given you more than your share of unhappiness,’ she mused, half to herself.



‘On the contrary Madame Granger. For the past four years, my life has been blissful.’ He smiled sadly, and took Lucy’s hand in his. She started to stir a little, and Hermione checked her gently.



‘I’ll give you some time. Don’t forget your tea, sir,’ she murmured.



A soft laugh came from the bed. ‘Sir?’ Lucy repeated, her voice light with amusement.



Severus looked into his wife’s blue eyes and smiled warmly at her. ‘I used to teach Madame Granger some years ago,’ he responded.



‘Poor Madame Granger,’ she smiled at Severus and squeezed his hand tightly.



Hermione laughed softly, ‘ he wasn’t that bad, really. It was mostly pretend. But don’t tell him I knew that,’ she said in a whisper, and Lucy laughed again.



Severus caught Hermione’s eye and raised an eyebrow at her. She returned his gaze, held it for a moment and then turned, leaving the room quietly.







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Thanks for the comments so far. I wish I was in the mood to write something a little more cheery, but alas no.