In Need

A/N - Warning: Character Death.

~~**~~

Snape paused at his door and unwarded it. Surreal. There was no other word for it. Wait, yes there was - numb. Surreal and numb.


‘Just step in, you fool,’ he thought to himself as his feet hesitated. ‘You have entered these quarters alone countless times.’


With heavy steps, he walked across the room and sank into a chair facing the fire that the house elves made sure was always waiting for him. His boots had tracked clods across the floor and he was still wearing his cloak. The sun was beginning to rise outside, but in his windowless dungeon it was dark save for the light flickering out of the fireplace. He did not want to see the sun and he did not want to think about how he was going to get through the stretch of the day that lay ahead of him.


~~**~~


Back in the forest clearing, he had learned that Megan was still alive under the earth. Barely. The earth mages had been able to determine that much at least, but the rest of the news left him teetering on the razor’s edge between hope and despair. They said that healing was more efficient when the mage herself was directing it. They also said that the earth, in the early stages of waking up for the spring, was still sluggish. Aninalinally, when he had been ready to dig down to her with his bare hands to get her out of there, they said that nothing could be moved or altered because it would upset the work that the earth was doing, drawing its attention away from healing Megan.


He and Dumbledore had set up deflection wards around the immediate area so that the ground above and around her would remain undisturbed. Dumbledore had left with Potter, but he had stayed awhile longer staring at the patch of ground futilely willing something to happen.


~~**~~


Severus looked down at his hands in the flickering light of the fireplace. They were filthy - crusted in earth and blood from the night’s desperation. Megan’s blood was on his hands, and he felt it most palpably (however inaccurately) in the metaphorical sense. Dirt was packed under his fingernails and he studied them numbly.


It was very quiet in his quarters and he noticed with some amount of detachment how odd it is that one can be accustomed to quiet and solitude for most of one’s life and then still find it odd when things return to that state. Gone was the zzip-zzip-zzip of nylon track pants and the rustling of robes that accompanied her steps around him. Absent wae ofe off-key humming and the stream of chatter to him and to the cat. Gone was the resonating echo of instruments played upstairs in her quarters that floated down the connecting stairwell into his. The stillness, he realized, was dreadful and he began to shiver.


He got up and washed his hands, watching the swirls of black and rust spin down the drain. He took off his death eater’s cloak and robes, wadded them into a ball, and tossed them into the fire. The new flames that leapt up to lick them into ashes were reflected in his eyes as he watched them burn. He crossed his arms over himself in the chill air and noticed that his dark mark had faded into a pinkish-white outline.


Severus went to the cabinet in his washroom and selected a vial neatly labeled in his spidery handwriting as dreamless sleeping potion. Thinking twice, he picked up one more, went to the bedroom, and got under the covers. Placing the extra vial on his bedside table for later, he downed the potion and was asleep in a few seconds. He always brewed a much stronger preparation for himself than that which he made for the dispensary in the hospital wing, and it guaranteed him several hours respite.


Some time later, Ernie wandered in and inspected the bed downstairs. ‘Miaow?’ he asked, sitting on the empty pillow and looking at Severus sleeping. Getting no response, he jumped down from the bed and stretched out to sleep by the door, one small foot sticking underneath as far as the wards would allow.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------


Breakfast in the great hall was quiet that morning. The night before, the students who remained at Hogwarts knew that something was going on - several professors and a sizeable group of students had been seen leaving the grounds and apparating away, and the dragons had been taken away as well. The remaining professors had instructed the prefects to gather all of their students together and keep them in their respective house’s common rooms or dormitories.


The rumor spread quickly that war with you-know-who had finally come, and some of the older students teased the younger students with it, relishing in their fright. When the news that the rumor of war was in fact true it spread even more quickly through the houses, and any spirit of mischief evaporated instantly. It was all that the prefects could do to keep their charges confined - the Gryffindor prefects had actually had to take the measure of collaborating with the portraitthe the fat lady to not let anyone out until Professor McGonagall said it was alright.


~~**~~


That morning, Minerva McGonagall sat in the headmaster’s chair at the head table, feeling most uncomfortable doing so. It was the first time since she had known Albus Dumbledore that he had voluntarily taken time away from his headmaster’s post, and for as much as she respected his need to do so, it was nonetheless intensely unnerving. They all relied on him as their facecalmcalm and strength, and his absence was palpable and worrisome.


Professor McGonagall straightened her hat and stood up to address the students. “May I have your attention please?” she said in her clear prim voice.


She didn’t really need to ask that. The great hall was silent and everyone was already looking at her with wide eyes, waiting to hear what had happened. “I will begin with the news that Voldemort has been defeated once and for all.”


A collective gasp went through the tables, but with variation in expression from house to house. The Hufflepuffs looked relieved, the Ravenclaws thoughtful, the Gryffindors triumphant, and the Slytherins looked solemn.


Professor McGonagall continued, “There were losses on both sides that will affect many of us deeply, including some of your fellow students.” Another collective murmur rippled through the great hall. “I cannot give the roll of names at this time because some family members have not yet been contacted, but I assure you that we will make the information available to you by this afternoon. Notices will be posted on the boards of each house’s common room.”


She held up a hand to silence a sudden burst of discussion and speculation. “I also want to thank each of you,” she continued. “Your cooperation with my instructions last night was essential to allowing me and the other professors who remained to concentrate fully on the protection wards that we held in place last night to barricade us from potential intrusion.” The Gryffindors shifted somewhat guiltily in their chairs. “This morning’s final announcement is that you are excused from classes for two weeks and are to remain at Hogwarts. The prefects will come to my office after lunch to collect the postings. That is all.”


She sat back down and began her first day as interim headmaster. Throughout the rest of the morning, she received owls in her office as more information was released. Lists of the dead were made official, and lists of the injured were updated as their status improved or declined. She pursed her lips grimly upon reading that Lucius Malfoy had been found dead in his holding cell that morning, his throat slit. She reviewed the list of Hogwarts students, most of them from Slytherin House, who were being held in custody by the Ministry and who were awaiting hearings and sentencing. Floods of inquiries from the media regarding Harry Potter arrived, demanding details of his heroics and current location.


“Oh Albus,” she sighed and picked up her quill to being tackling the growing pile of parchments to be answered.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------


Also that morning:


~~**~~ Down in Hogwarts’ hospital wing, Viktor Krum surreptitiously swallowed another wakefulness potion and resumed his post in the chair next to Hermione’s bed where, despite having consumed heavy doses of dreamless sleeping potion, she nonetheless tossed fretfully on her bed. During her rounds Poppy Pomfrey asked Viktor if he wouldn’t like to get some rest. He scrunched his shaggy black brows together and frowned at her, giving her all the answer she needed. She had too much to do to argue with him.


~~**~~ In the physical injuries ward of St. Mungo’s Hospital, a team of healers finished removing the last of the splinters from inside Hagrid and began healing his internal wounds. His bulk was so massive that they had had to shorten the legs on the table he was on just to be able to reach him. The tree that had gone through him was difficult to remove without injuring him further, and required that he be levitated while the healers extracted it.


~~**~~ Upstairs at St. Mungo’s in the magical injuries ward, the Weasleys had gathered again, splitting their visiting time between Harry and George, neither of whom was responsive to treatment. Security held back waves of reporters who were gathering downstairs on the tip that Harry Potter was on the premises. While he was taking a break with a cup of tea, Arthur Weasley received an owl from the Ministry of Magic that in a week’s time he was to be appointed as Head of the Ministry. While it was shocking news, it wasn’t until a moment later when a nurse hurried in to tell him that George had died that the cup fell from his fingers and smashed on the floor.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N - Thanks to my readers, and special thanks to my reviewers - you are wonderful. Please keep me up to date with your thoughts & ideas. Yes, it really does help keep my energy fresh for regular updates.

deblovesdragon - I\'m sorry to keep you on the hook for another installment. I promise we will hear more about Harry next chapter. Thank you (as always) for your review - I love that you tell it to me like it is and that you give your feedback about particulars. Very helpful. You be well.

Maggie - Thanks as always to you - you are great. LOL - I thought of you guiltily while I was at my meetings and actually used a particularly boring meeting to tap out a few paragraphs on the sly. Thanks as always for your inspiration and encouragement!!!

Darsina - Thanks for all of your comments! I love that you are following the story now, and am so glad that you are enjoying it. Wow, I never imagined I\'d have such amazing literary review of this project! Thanks for your emails - I will try to reply soon.

Mary Beth - Thanks so much for your comments - I promise that your questions will get answered in the story in awhile. Take care.