Seven

"House-elf Apparition," Harry said. "That's the only thing I've found, and I've been around the perimeter of your property twice. So Delky must have taken Snape somewhere." He raised a hand cutting off any questions. "Hermione, your wards are intact, so no one could have Apparated onto your property without alerting you. There are no signs of anyone else, human or otherwise, in the house. There's no other reasonable explanation."

"Where did they go?"

"The only thing I can tell you definitely is that they went west. I think they went a long way, hundreds of kilometers, and I'm fairly sure that they left relatively early in the day."

Despite herself, Hermione found her curiosity piqued. "How do you tell all that?"

"It's first-year Auror stuff. When you Apparate, it leaves behind a magical signature. It's more or less cone-shaped, with the point of the cone indicating the direction. The size of the cone tends to indicate distance – to cross the Atlantic leaves a pretty big splash – and the clarity of it shows a very, very rough approximation of how long ago the Apparition was cast. This is a big signature, but it's faded. It'll be gone in entirely in another hour or so." He shrugged. "I'd guess they ended up somewhere in North America.

"Why would they go there?" Her eyes widened. "I told Severus I was thinking about emigrating! I was going to tell him about the job, but I asked him about America!"

"How'd he take it?"

"Rather well. He said he wouldn't object if it was what I wanted."

"Did you tell him you were going to put him in St. Mungo's?"

Hermione shook her head. "It didn't come up. I'd been expecting a huge fight with him, but he was civil, almost friendly. It was..." She thought a moment. "It was like he already knew that was what I wanted, and he'd resigned himself to it."

"I hate to say this, Hermione, but that doesn't really sound like Snape." Harry yawned hugely. "Sorry. It's much more likely that he think you're betraying him and this is his way of punishing you."

"Harry!"

"Think about it, Hermione. He never was what you could call a nice guy, and being paralyzed made him a thousand times worse. Earlier tonight you mentioned that you'd never told him you'd been working, but did you ever wonder what he thought you were doing when you'd leave him alone all day nearly every day?" He shrugged. "I can tell you what I'd think. I'd assume my wife was having an affair."

Whatever reply Hermione was going to make was lost in the appearance of two disgruntled owls on the windowsill that hooted madly and then grudgingly consented to give up the messages they carried before flying off in a huff. She picked up the envelopes hoping to see Severus' familiar scrawl. Instead, one bore the Gringotts seal and the other... "Harry, who in the world is Maxwell Sebastian, Esq?"

"Max Sebastian? He's trouble. He's a solicitor, and his practice is just on this side," he held up two fingers a hair's breadth apart, "of legal. He's the one who defended the Malfoys at their trial and got them exiled rather than imprisoned. What's he want?"

"He sent an owl to Severus..." Hermione opened the envelope carefully, and then breathed a sigh of relief. "It just says that he couldn't make a meeting today and invited Severus to reschedule."

"Max is bad news. Max working for Snape is even worse news. Hermione, Snape... Severus, then. If he's hired Max Sebastian, he's planning something very, very bad. What's the other owl? Gringotts?"

"Yes..." she opened it, too dismayed to be upset by Harry's reading over her shoulder. "An inventory of our vault? Why would he want that? He'd only find out that we don't have a lot of money left, even with my salary."

"If he's thinking of hiring Max, he would need to know how much money he had available. Max doesn't work cheap; the Malfoys deeded him the manor and lands in exchange for the work he did for them because we'd seized their Gringotts vault." He grinned a bit wryly. "Of course, we insisted on going through the house top-to-bottom before we allowed the transfer, and we found a lot of Dark books and such which we confiscated." The grin faded. "Hermione, Severus is up to something. Something not good. I think it might be dangerous for you to stay here by yourself."

"Severus wouldn't hurt me!" But even as she said it, she remembered the impotent rage in his eyes as he shouted at her.

~*~

Snape woke up to a tingling in his fingers and toes. With waking came memory. He'd nodded his agreement, and Erias had touched him between the eyes with one long finger. Then nothing until now. He raised his head and looked around the room. It was almost wedge-shaped, with the door at the narrowest end of the wedge. At the widest end, sunlight poured in through a single large window. There was nothing in the room within his line of sight except for himself and the pad he was lying on. He felt himself flush when he looked down at himself and realized he was completely nude.

The tingling in his extremities was growing more pronounced, and spreading. It wasn't precisely painful, but it was somewhat uncomfortable. On the other hand, Snape thought to himself, at least he was feeling something again.

The door opened, and a Sidhe came in with a pack casually slung over one shoulder. "It was easier to cleanse the venom from your body with you asleep," he said by way of greeting. "The tingling is your nerves reconnecting. Once your body is recovered, we will mend your magic." At Snape's obvious amazement, the Sidhe grinned. "And to answer your next few questions, you were asleep for a day. You should be physically recovered in another day and completely healed in a week. Your clothes are here in this bag, as is your wand. You are our guest, not our prisoner; if you wish to leave, you have but to say so." Another grin. "And I am called Delchir"

Snape looked up at the Sidhe. There was something about the voice that was very familiar. "Are... were you Delky?"

"Oh bravo! Erias was right, you are quick. Yes, here I can assume my true form."

"Where is here, if I might ask?"

Delchir put down the pack and sat down next to it. "This is the Sidhe city of Kes Rihan. There are several among my people who wish to speak with you, so it was easiest to bring you here."

"Sensible," Snape agreed. He suddenly realized that he had been less than kind to the Sidhe who was sitting not three feet from him. "Delchir, I must apologize to you. I have treated you shamefully for years."

The Sidhe looked over at him; the grin had vanished, leaving his face a closed mask. "Are you apologizing because you now find yourself in my power, or do you truly believe your actions to be wrong?"

Snape took a long breath and thought before replying. "Both," he said finally. "The things I've said to you and about you, those were wrong and I have neither excuse nor explanation. And it's not likely that I would ever have admitted that to myself if I weren't in this situation."

"And when we go back, what then? For I will have to become Delky again, and obey the Geas."

"I have to return to England to speak to my people, to make them understand the situation. But you don't. You're a free elf by wizard law; you could stay here."

"And if I do, how will you find the Sidhe again? No, Severus, you will need me there. But remember who and what I truly am." Warning delivered, the grin flashed across his face again. "For now, try moving your hands and feet."

Snape did so, and was pleased to see that his fingers responded – however slowly – to his mental commands. "It's as if I was buried up to my neck in mud," he said as he continued his experiments flexing fingers, toes, wrists, ankles, and so on.

"That will pass." Delchir reached out and grasped Snape's hand. "Do you feel this?"

"Yes... I can."

"Excellent. You progress more rapidly than expected. Grip my hand in return, and pull yourself up so you are sitting. Good! Now, dress." The Sidhe shoved the pack over against Snape's legs. "No, this is no jape. To dress, you will have to move. It is an exercise for both mind and body." He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall nonchalantly. "Now."

Slowly, Snape complied, fighting with limbs that felt encased in a mire and muscles weakened by long disuse. Delchir had brought him clothing in the Sidhe style: a soft linen shirt that pulled over the head and laced up the front, belted knee-length loose leather trousers, and knee-high leather boots. It was just as well; Severus couldn't imagine trying to deal with all the buttons on his frock-coat in his current condition. By the time he'd wrestled himself into the shirt, he found that he was moving easier. And by the time he was completely dressed, he felt almost normal again.

"Bravo, Severus," Delchir applauded. "Rest for a moment and then try standing." He took two steps closer and held out a hand. "You've not been on your feet in years, so it may make you dizzy. Slowly now." Then, as Snape unfolded himself to his proper six feet. "There! Don't try walking just yet. Take the measure of standing."

Snape reeled as his head spun, and he felt Delchir's quick hands ease him back down so that he was sitting again. "That feels just a little short of the worst hangover I've ever had." He rubbed his temples futilely. "At least it doesn't hurt as much."

The Sidhe laughed. "It will pass. Take a long slow breath, blow it out again, and we shall try again."