If You Would Only See
folder
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Snape/Hermione
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
11
Views:
14,690
Reviews:
58
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Snape/Hermione
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
11
Views:
14,690
Reviews:
58
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter Eight: Empty
CHAPTER EIGHT: Empty
Hermione had never cried so much in her entire life. She had not cried this way over the war, over her parents, or even when she and Ron had finally gone their separate ways. Nothing was as she believed it to be. All these years, they had grieved for him, wracked with guilt over their misconceptions of him, for the terrible things they had accused him of, the things they had done to him. And all along he had been close by, locked inside a prison of his own making.
She stroked her fingers over her lips again, as she had done so many times in the two weeks since she had realized just who it was who lived next door. She could still feel his lips on hers, as though he had burned his taste into her flesh. Why had he kissed her? How could he just walk away from her? He had avoided her at all costs, refusing to answer the door when she came by, refused to answer her letters, he hadn’t even reacted to the howler she had sent one evening when her emotions turned to pure anger.
“Are you ever going to tell me who broke your heart, love?” Draco asked, looking down at the woman lying across the sofa, her head resting in his lap. They had spent many an evening like this, watching movies and talking. She had been so….sad lately and he couldn’t get her to open up. He just wanted her to be happy.
“I can’t, his wishes were that I not tell anyone about him.” She said softly. Draco stroked his hand over her soft curls, wishing he could make it better for her.
“Do you want me to kill him? I’m rich you know, and a Malfoy, I could have it done.” He said it with such a serious, and deadpan tone that Hermione had to laugh. She turned her head so she could look up at him. The light from the lamp behind him cast a halo around his head, making him look almost angelic looking down at her. She never dreamed she would have that thought about a Malfoy.
“No, I don’t want you to have him killed, you prat, but I appreciate the sentiment.” She laughed softly, pushing his hair back and tucking it behind his ear.
“So, what did you find out on your trip Draco?” She asked him. He had been gone for a couple of days handling business in the US.
“Well, on the business end, things are going amazingly well.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I visited a medi-witch in Salem, a surgeon.”
“And?”
“And he says that there is a surgery that can remove most of the scar tissue. Not all of it, its impossible to completely heal an injury caused by a cursed object, but enough that I can function normally again.”
“Oh Draco!” She sat up and threw her arms around him. “That is wonderful news! You can have what you wanted! A family!” She cried, happy tears this time.
“I know, odd coincidence that, because I actually met someone while I was there.” He said, blushing slightly.
“An American?” Hermione asked, brows raised.
“Yeah, her name is Emma Stellar, and she’s relocating, here.” He said.
“You like her?”
“Yes, I guess I do. I don’t know her very well, but I want to.” Hermione laid her head on his shoulder, her arms wrapped tight around his bicep.
“I’m so thrilled for you Draco. Promise me we will still be close after.”
“Always, love.” He kissed her forehead. “I just wish you were happy. It hurts me to see you like this.”
“I know, I just wish I knew what to do. It’s such an odd situation I find myself in right now.”
“Tell me.”
“Let’s just say I got myself slightly involved with a man, who wasn’t at all who I thought he was.”
“You in love with him?”
“No, it wasn’t like that, he only kissed me once…” She grazed a fingertip over her lips again. “But it was…..unexpected.” She said, smiling softly as she remembered the taste of him.
“Why aren’t you with him?”
“He…..chose to walk away.” She said softly. Draco cupped her face in his hands and leaned his head against hers.
“Then he is an idiot. If I thought, for one moment, that you could love me that way, I would never walk away from you, I would have you with me always.” He kissed her softly. He was always touching her, kissed her often on the lips, but this was different. When he pulled back, she saw something in his eyes she hadn’t seen there before.
“Draco…..”
“Shhh, it’s ok, I know that we don’t have a future together, not like that. I just wanted to kiss you, really kiss you, just once. I love you, will always love you, you are my best friend Hermione, without you, I would have ended it a long time ago.” She was sobbing against his chest as he held her tight, rocking slowly back and forth.
“I wish I could love you like that Draco. You don’t know how much I wish I could.”
“I know, its okay.” He smiled as he pushed her away slowly. “It’s late, I need to get going, I have an appointment with the Minister in the morning.” He said as he got to his feet.
“Tell Kingsley I said hello.” She followed him onto her front porch. “Be careful.” She hugged him tight.
“I will. You going back to work soon?” He asked as he pulled away.
“I hired Susan Bones to manage the store for awhile, I took a leave of absence, I need to work out my situation.” She said.
“Alright then, love. I’ll see you Sunday night for dinner.” He kissed her cheek and left. She watched him walk away, a sad smile on her face. It would be so much easier if she could just fall in love with him. She turned to look at the house next door, she could feel him inside, knew he was watching. She lifted her fingers and waved slightly. Why did it have to be this way, could anything in her life be easy, just once?
She projected her sorrow like a loud speaker. He felt it, and it was tearing him up inside. Severus stood in the front window and watched as she said goodbye to Draco. He had hoped that maybe her time spent with the lad would make her happy, but no. He had conjured a small orb and watched them. He wasn’t anything like Severus assumed he would be. The boy had so much love for Hermione, that it amazed him. Where had he found the capacity to love so much?
Severus had spent the last few weeks watching her, his heart breaking as she cried for him over and over again. Every time she would absently stroke her lips, he felt her touch. It was only a kiss, a brief one at that, how had it affected them both so much? He glanced down at the letter he carried with him in his pocket. He had read it a hundred times over the last few weeks.
Severus-
Please, talk to me. You have no idea how much it means that you survived, what it will mean to others besides me. You don’t have to be alone, not anymore, You have been given a second chance at life, to have the things you sacrificed. Please, I beg you.
Yours,
Hermione
Yours. He traced that one simple word with his finger. If only that could be true. He looked up. She was standing on the porch, looking at his house. She knew he was watching, he wasn’t sure how she always knew, but without fail, she would stare straight at him every time. He saw the slight wiggle of her fingers as she waved to him before turning to go back into her house. He pressed his own fingers against the glass, wishing he could touch her and taste her again. It was wrong of him; he was too old for her, in more ways than one. He had nothing to offer someone like her, he was empty.
Hermione had never cried so much in her entire life. She had not cried this way over the war, over her parents, or even when she and Ron had finally gone their separate ways. Nothing was as she believed it to be. All these years, they had grieved for him, wracked with guilt over their misconceptions of him, for the terrible things they had accused him of, the things they had done to him. And all along he had been close by, locked inside a prison of his own making.
She stroked her fingers over her lips again, as she had done so many times in the two weeks since she had realized just who it was who lived next door. She could still feel his lips on hers, as though he had burned his taste into her flesh. Why had he kissed her? How could he just walk away from her? He had avoided her at all costs, refusing to answer the door when she came by, refused to answer her letters, he hadn’t even reacted to the howler she had sent one evening when her emotions turned to pure anger.
“Are you ever going to tell me who broke your heart, love?” Draco asked, looking down at the woman lying across the sofa, her head resting in his lap. They had spent many an evening like this, watching movies and talking. She had been so….sad lately and he couldn’t get her to open up. He just wanted her to be happy.
“I can’t, his wishes were that I not tell anyone about him.” She said softly. Draco stroked his hand over her soft curls, wishing he could make it better for her.
“Do you want me to kill him? I’m rich you know, and a Malfoy, I could have it done.” He said it with such a serious, and deadpan tone that Hermione had to laugh. She turned her head so she could look up at him. The light from the lamp behind him cast a halo around his head, making him look almost angelic looking down at her. She never dreamed she would have that thought about a Malfoy.
“No, I don’t want you to have him killed, you prat, but I appreciate the sentiment.” She laughed softly, pushing his hair back and tucking it behind his ear.
“So, what did you find out on your trip Draco?” She asked him. He had been gone for a couple of days handling business in the US.
“Well, on the business end, things are going amazingly well.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I visited a medi-witch in Salem, a surgeon.”
“And?”
“And he says that there is a surgery that can remove most of the scar tissue. Not all of it, its impossible to completely heal an injury caused by a cursed object, but enough that I can function normally again.”
“Oh Draco!” She sat up and threw her arms around him. “That is wonderful news! You can have what you wanted! A family!” She cried, happy tears this time.
“I know, odd coincidence that, because I actually met someone while I was there.” He said, blushing slightly.
“An American?” Hermione asked, brows raised.
“Yeah, her name is Emma Stellar, and she’s relocating, here.” He said.
“You like her?”
“Yes, I guess I do. I don’t know her very well, but I want to.” Hermione laid her head on his shoulder, her arms wrapped tight around his bicep.
“I’m so thrilled for you Draco. Promise me we will still be close after.”
“Always, love.” He kissed her forehead. “I just wish you were happy. It hurts me to see you like this.”
“I know, I just wish I knew what to do. It’s such an odd situation I find myself in right now.”
“Tell me.”
“Let’s just say I got myself slightly involved with a man, who wasn’t at all who I thought he was.”
“You in love with him?”
“No, it wasn’t like that, he only kissed me once…” She grazed a fingertip over her lips again. “But it was…..unexpected.” She said, smiling softly as she remembered the taste of him.
“Why aren’t you with him?”
“He…..chose to walk away.” She said softly. Draco cupped her face in his hands and leaned his head against hers.
“Then he is an idiot. If I thought, for one moment, that you could love me that way, I would never walk away from you, I would have you with me always.” He kissed her softly. He was always touching her, kissed her often on the lips, but this was different. When he pulled back, she saw something in his eyes she hadn’t seen there before.
“Draco…..”
“Shhh, it’s ok, I know that we don’t have a future together, not like that. I just wanted to kiss you, really kiss you, just once. I love you, will always love you, you are my best friend Hermione, without you, I would have ended it a long time ago.” She was sobbing against his chest as he held her tight, rocking slowly back and forth.
“I wish I could love you like that Draco. You don’t know how much I wish I could.”
“I know, its okay.” He smiled as he pushed her away slowly. “It’s late, I need to get going, I have an appointment with the Minister in the morning.” He said as he got to his feet.
“Tell Kingsley I said hello.” She followed him onto her front porch. “Be careful.” She hugged him tight.
“I will. You going back to work soon?” He asked as he pulled away.
“I hired Susan Bones to manage the store for awhile, I took a leave of absence, I need to work out my situation.” She said.
“Alright then, love. I’ll see you Sunday night for dinner.” He kissed her cheek and left. She watched him walk away, a sad smile on her face. It would be so much easier if she could just fall in love with him. She turned to look at the house next door, she could feel him inside, knew he was watching. She lifted her fingers and waved slightly. Why did it have to be this way, could anything in her life be easy, just once?
She projected her sorrow like a loud speaker. He felt it, and it was tearing him up inside. Severus stood in the front window and watched as she said goodbye to Draco. He had hoped that maybe her time spent with the lad would make her happy, but no. He had conjured a small orb and watched them. He wasn’t anything like Severus assumed he would be. The boy had so much love for Hermione, that it amazed him. Where had he found the capacity to love so much?
Severus had spent the last few weeks watching her, his heart breaking as she cried for him over and over again. Every time she would absently stroke her lips, he felt her touch. It was only a kiss, a brief one at that, how had it affected them both so much? He glanced down at the letter he carried with him in his pocket. He had read it a hundred times over the last few weeks.
Severus-
Please, talk to me. You have no idea how much it means that you survived, what it will mean to others besides me. You don’t have to be alone, not anymore, You have been given a second chance at life, to have the things you sacrificed. Please, I beg you.
Yours,
Hermione
Yours. He traced that one simple word with his finger. If only that could be true. He looked up. She was standing on the porch, looking at his house. She knew he was watching, he wasn’t sure how she always knew, but without fail, she would stare straight at him every time. He saw the slight wiggle of her fingers as she waved to him before turning to go back into her house. He pressed his own fingers against the glass, wishing he could touch her and taste her again. It was wrong of him; he was too old for her, in more ways than one. He had nothing to offer someone like her, he was empty.