Homecoming

Severus rushed into the house as he arrived at Grimmauld Place, nearly bowling Remus over as he headed straight for the lab. Remus followed him after himself, wondering what was going on. When Remus entered the lab, he saw Severus un-warding a cabinet that contained all of his most powerful potions. As Severus rifled through his stock, Remus said, "Severus, what's going on? What's wrong?"

Severus didn't even turn to face him as he answered, still looking for the right potion. "I was called before the Dark Lord; Lucius came forward and admitted to his capture of Hermione. He wanted to use his abuse, and my ordered rescue, as a way for her to open up to me for the Dark Lord's benefit, as he put it. I have little time before I need to be at Malfoy Manor to retrieve her." He paused as he found the potion he was looking for and uncorked it, sniffing it to see if it was still viable. Satisfied that the potion was still good, he locked and warded the cabinet before heading for the main stock cabinet. He gathered the potions he imagined he would need for treating Hermione once they got her back. He lined up the potions, making sure he had Calming Draught, Pain-Relieving Potion, Essence of Murtlap, Skele-Gro, Blood-Replenishing Potion, Bruise-Healing Paste, and Wound-Cleaning Potion.

He turned to Remus and started spouting orders. "Take all of these and lay them on the nightstand in her room. Make sure the room is spotless and the bed has fresh sheets. Make sure to conjure plenty of bandages and place a bowl of warm water with lavender mixed with the Wound-Cleaning Potion next to her bed with cloths for washing. Brace yourself, because it won't be pretty; but I won't have time to lecture you, I'll need steady hands so we can help her with whatever will be wrong with her," he said as he started for the door. Suddenly he stopped. "Also, make sure the book on Healing spells that Molly keeps around is there as well, just in case there's something I need to look up. I'll be back as soon as I can. I suggest you make sure Arthur and Molly are not here when I return. Molly will be more of a hindrance in her hysterics than a help." With that he left Grimmauld Place, intent on his rescue mission, hoping against hope that his efforts would not be wasted on what was left of Hermione Granger.

Remus went to work right away, mentally preparing himself as best he could. He owled Arthur, warning him to keep Molly away for a day or two, promising to contact them as soon as possible.

~{}~

Severus Apparated into a grove of trees located at the rear of Malfoy Manor. He had never forgotten, from the early years of his training as Lucius's protégé, that the fastest way into the Malfoy dungeons was through a secret door that appeared with a simple incantation. He pulled his wand out of his sleeve and pointed it at the exact spot in the wall and said, "Accessus! " As soon as the iron door appeared, he opened it and proceeded quietly down the stone steps. His fury, which he had barely held in check until now, came back fully as he heard Lucius's voice clearly upon approaching the first cell.

"So, little Mudblood. What kind of fun would you like next? It's been a few days since I whipped you properly. I don't think the cane I used on you yesterday was enough, do you?" he said in a sickly-sweet voice, running his fingers lightly over her jaw.

Severus contained the urge to gasp as he saw her fully. She was facing his direction, but her eyes were unseeing, staring at the floor. Her hair was matted and dirty. He fleetingly thought they might have to cut it off, the tangles looked so severe. He assessed her again; from the smell that emanated from the cell, he imagined she had not been cleaned up once since her capture. She hung from the ceiling by her wrists, her feet barely in contact with the floor. He realized there was a possibility of permanent damage to her hands, from the look of the deep cuts, as the cuffs of her manacles seemed embedded into her skin. She was visibly bruised on nearly every limb of her body, thought it was hard to distinguish the bruises from the dirt that covered her. Countless cuts and lacerations were all over her body, but the majority of the damage had to be on her back, as he noticed the deep cuts that reached around to her sides. Just as Lucius was about to continue his verbal assault, Severus whipped out his wand and screamed a Bone-Breaking Curse, aiming perfectly for Lucius's left knee.

Lucius cried out in pain as he collapsed on the floor. Severus approached him, pointed his wand at him, and said, "I hope you've enjoyed your twisted fun, my friend. Because you will never be able to seek these pleasures again." Severus pulled his special potion out of his pocket and uncorked it. "Now will you drink this willingly, or are you going to be difficult?" he said, glaring at his enemy.

"I'm not drinking your poison, Severus," Lucius said with a defiant smirk to hide his fear. Despite the Dark Lord's orders not to harm him permanently, Lucius was no fool; better yet, he knew how cunning Severus was when it came to following orders.

"Very well. Petrificus Totalus!," Severus said forcefully. Lucius was frozen in a very awkward position as he tried to brace his shattered knee. Luckily for Severus, he froze with his head turned up and his mouth opened just enough, as if he'd been about to say something before he was placed in the Body-Bind. Severus strode over to him and poured the vile-looking potion down Lucius's throat, glaring at him with a smirk in his eyes for a moment as he watched Lucius's throat involuntarily swallow the potion. Severus turned away from him without a further thought, conjured a warm cloak, and waved his wand, breaking the manacles that held Hermione upright. He tried not to let his concern overcome him as she fell into his arms, and he folded the cloak around her as he hefted her up into his arms, cradling her broken body as gently as he could. The whole time she hadn't moved; her eyes still stared at nothing. A slightly glazed look of pain was the only thing he could read from them. He left the dungeons without releasing Lucius from the curse. It would wear off in an hour or so. It was the least he could do. He had thought briefly, after giving him the potion, of staying longer and inflicting more pain, but his first priority was helping Hermione.

~{}~

Severus waved his wand, opening the door to number twelve, Grimmauld Place, and hurried upstairs to Hermione's room. He glanced briefly at Remus, who stood up immediately and moved to help him lay her carefully down on top of the bed. "Merlin, look at her eyes!" he whispered as he looked at her helplessly.

"Where is the bowl I asked you to prepare? Bring it here. We need to clean her up. That bastard has let her rot this whole time. It will be easier to tell the bruises from the dirt once she's clean," he said through gritted teeth. They both unwrapped her from the cloak, trying to avoid looking at her chest and lower as they worked to clean her up. Briefly, they cast a Mobilicorpus spell, lifting her high enough above the bed to cleanse her back. Even with the dirt removed, she still looked horrible. They cleaned the sheets quickly before lowering her carefully down onto the bed again. Severus waved his wand over her body, casting a health detection spell, and waited the standard minute. Suddenly, a bright light flashed above her, and a sheet of parchment listing her injuries appeared, floating above her. He grabbed the paper and skimmed it, relieved to see that there were no serious internal injuries. Everything should be able to heal eventually. He passed the list to Remus and started pouring the healing potions down her throat after he lifted her up carefully.

-Zero Life-Threatening Injuries-

-One Hundred and Six Non-Life-Threatening Injuries-

Three Broken Ribs

Two Broken Wrists

Four Fractured Vertebrae

Extensive Female Reproductive Damage

Small Fracture of Left Cheekbone

Extensive Emotional Damage

Seventy-Four Lacerations to the Back

Eighteen Bruises on Various Limbs

Severe Dehydration

Moderate Malnutrition

Remus dropped the list, sickened at the injuries that were listed. He walked over to the other side of the bed and began helping Severus as he applied potions and pastes to the visible injuries. "Did you make him suffer? Tell me that bastard will never do anything like this again," Remus said stiffly as he glanced at her face, which was now calm, the potions having put her to sleep. He was relieved to see her eyes closed; it was haunting to see the look on her face when they were open.

"The Dark Lord allowed me to punish him, but nothing that would hamper him from still being useful. I shattered his kneecap and gave him a very special potion. He will never be able to take a woman again...he is now permanently impotent," Severus replied, smiling with satisfaction at the mere thought of Lucius's reaction when he finally figured out what the potion had done to him.

"You may not be able to safely kill that bloody bastard, but if I get the chance..." Remus said, cringing when they turned Hermione over to mend what was left of her back. It would heal, but she would be severely scarred. They worked together, making sure they didn't miss anything, and finally Severus stood up and stretched his back and conjured a sheet to cover her with.

"I'll stay in here tonight, just in case she wakes. It's likely that she'll have nightmares, and I'll need to keep a Draught of Dreamless Sleep close at hand. Let's give her a day or two before you write to Molly and Arthur," Severus said, as he transfigured a small bed for himself, complete with sheets, a wool blanket, and a pillow.

Remus told him goodnight, making him promise to call for him if there was a problem. Severus sat down on the cot and just stared at Hermione for a while. It was obvious that she had closed up inside of herself. Think...what can I do to help her? he thought to himself, frustrated. He left the room briefly and headed for the library. Searching the shelves, he found a medical book that he thought might help. He perused the index of Mysteries and Answers of the Unstable Mind: A Guide to Treating Emotional Trauma, and decided to read for a while; hopefully the book would enlighten him as to how to approach the problem at hand. It would take a lot of work; he knew that much. There's got to be a way to break through the wall she's obviously built around herself, because I won't rest until she's capable of understanding the meaning of my words when I chasten her properly for bringing this on herself! he thought angrily to himself, though he knew he would never yell at her. She's been through enough to remind her of how stupid she was to take off on her own, and Lucius will pay for this with his life when the final battle comes!

Severus walked back into the room, and after checking to make sure she was still asleep, he lay back on his small bed and started reading. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep any time soon, anyway.

~{}~

Severus didn't know when he had drifted off to sleep, but he was suddenly woken from his light slumber when he heard whimpering. He shot off the bed and sat down next to Hermione, who was thrashing and whimpering in her sleep. He carefully shook her. "Hermione, you're dreaming! Hermione!" he said, trying to wake her. "Hermione! WAKE UP!" he shouted. Suddenly, she sat up quickly and scooted back against the headboard, hugging her knees. Severus reached out for her, trying to make her focus and realize it was him and not Lucius, but she jerked out of his reach even further and jumped off the bed, stumbling a few times as she ran over to the corner of the room, crouching down between a chair and a window. Severus grabbed his wand and waved it to light all the candles in the room. He grabbed a throw blanket from the bottom of the bed and started walking toward her slowly, stopping when she tried to sink further back into the corner. "Hermione, it's me, Severus Snape. I was your professor, do you remember me?" he asked cautiously, afraid she didn't remember anything.

She tried to speak, but it was obvious that she couldn't. He waved his wand, conjuring a glass of water and levitating it toward her. "Hermione, its just water. Now take a drink so that you can speak. Your throat's just dry...you were severely dehydrated when I found you," he said, trying to get her to drink. She shook her head and started to tremble. He waved his wand again, saying, "Expecto Patronum!" Then he pointed his wand in the direction of Remus's room, watching the silvery Panther dart out of the room. Severus folded up the blanket and levitated it toward Hermione as well, setting it down next to the water, hoping she would cover herself up. It was one thing when she was incapacitated and needed medical attention, but walking around, or in this case crouching in a corner, still naked, was not proper. He was starting to get uncomfortable with this whole situation. He stood there quietly watching her for a moment while he waited for Remus to get there. She was shaking terribly, staring at the floor in front of her feet, and tears were pouring in a steady stream down her cheeks.

He heard Remus's footsteps and turned to the door the second Remus entered the room. Severus just pointed toward the corner and said, "I need your help to convince her it's us and that she is home. I don't know what to say to her, she won't drink the water or touch the blanket to cover herself!" Severus said, irritated, and a tad bit embarrassed by her nakedness.

Remus walked forward very slowly. "Hermione? Hermione, it's me, Remus. Your old professor, your friend. It's really me," he said almost desperately as she finally looked at him, disbelief clear in her eyes. He wracked his brain, wondering what he could say that would make her understand she wasn't being tricked by Polyjuice, or some other magical potion or spell. Suddenly he knew what to say. "Hermione, I can prove it's really me! In your third year when I taught Defense Against the Dark Arts, we were going to the staff room for the Boggart lesson. On the way, Peeves was annoying us, and I said a spell to make him swallow an old piece of gum, remember? 'Waddiwasi!' And remember the end of the year, when Sirius escaped? I forgot my Wolfsbane Potion, and I nearly attacked you, Harry, and Ron?" She stared at him for a few moments, and he sighed in relief as she nodded. He started to walk forward again, and she backed up more, her eyes going wide. He held up his hands, realizing she didn't want anyone near her just yet. "Okay, I'm stopping right here. But can you please use the blanket to cover yourself? If you drink the water, it will help your throat so that you can speak to us," he said, hoping she would comply.

He smiled encouragingly as she reached for the blanket and covered herself. She was slower to drink the water, looking from the glass to his eyes several times as if she was afraid it was poisoned. She finally drank the whole glass down, some of it spilling down her chin, which she didn't even notice. She set the glass down and looked back at the floor. She opened her mouth to speak, and it took a moment for her to croak out, "How long was I-I there? How did I get home?" Tears were running down her face again as she said those words.

Severus spoke up this time. "You were there a little over three months. I looked for you, but I didn't know for sure who took you or where you were. I rescued you last night. You were at Malfoy Manor," he said cautiously. She didn't say anything for several minutes. Remus and Severus just stood there, understanding that she needed a moment.

She finally looked up at Severus, and as she started sobbing, she choked out, "Thank you, Severus." She started rocking as sobs wracked her body. Severus was almost happy, though, thinking that she was at least letting it out and was once again aware of herself. As he watched her cry, he didn't know what came over him. Memories of how she looked when he first stepped in view of her cell, how she looked when he tended to her injuries, and how distraught and lost she looked now were too much for him to just stand there. He walked cautiously over to her and sat down next to the window. He tentatively held out his arms, as awkward as such a gesture was for him, and was surprised when she scooted over and buried herself in his uneasy embrace. Remus dug quietly through her dresser drawers for her pajamas. He signaled to Severus as he laid them on the end of the bed, then he left the room.

When she had cried herself to sleep, Severus picked her up and laid her on the bed. Turning his head away from her, he cast a spell and her clothes folded themselves around her. When he heard the rustling of fabric cease, he turned around and tucked her under the covers. Lying back on his small bed with an exhausted sigh, he wondered about his earlier inclination to comfort her as he had. Unable to figure it out, he grunted in irritation as he laid his arm across his eyes, hoping he would get a little sleep before the morning.

A/N: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please remember to review! *HUGS*