I saw you

Author's Note: The characters are not mine, and quite honestly neither is the coherent grammar. Thanks to sempra for the beta and making this fit to be read!

HG

Hermione wakes feeling deliciously warm and secure. She snuggles further into her comforter, ready to let sleep reclaim her when she realizes that she is wearing shorts.

I never sleep in shorts... or without shoes.

Hermione shifts a little, wiggling her toes.

This sheet isn't as soft as mine either, she thinks sleepily.

Slowly, she starts to pull herself out of her dream state and is flooded with memories she'd rather not have.

Sighing heavily as a knot settles in her stomach, Hermione peeks one eye open. She is lying on her side facing the wall. Pulling the covers further around her, Hermione notices the addition of a green comforter that wasn't in the room the night before.

He must have brought it.

As soon as the thought enters her head, Hermione's skin prickles as if being watched.

Both eyes pop open wide and she sits straight up in bed, head jerking towards the rest of the room. Sure enough, sitting at the dining room table with a bored expression on his face is Professor Snape.

He nods at her and takes a sip of tea.

"Good morning," he says.

"M-morning," she croaks nervously.

"Are you hungry?" he asks quietly.

Hermione opens her mouth to say no, but her stomach growls, giving her away. She closes her mouth and gives him a small nod.

"Mazy," Snape calls.

CRACK!

"Yes, headmaster?" the elf asks, bowing.

"Please bring a fresh tea service for two, and bring Miss Granger something for breakfast," he tells the elf.

Mazy bows again and Disapparates.

Professor Snape pulls out his wand and conjures a second dining chair.

"Join me?" he asks conversationally.

Hermione eyes him suspiciously, distrusting this cordial version of her ex-professor more than an openly hostile one. Slowly, she pulls the covers back and lowers her feet to the cold stone floor.

"I've left you a pair of slippers next to the bed; I know how uncomfortable these floors can be." Snape tells her, gesturing to a pair of soft looking slip-ons.

Hermione quickly puts the slippers on and sighs, enjoying the instant warmth they provide. She stands up and takes a step towards the bathroom.

"Thank you," she tells him. "I have t-to..."

"Of course."

Hermione quickly rushes to the bathroom and shuts the door. She leans against it and allows herself to sink to the floor.

What is going on?

She can feel the panic rising in her chest and tries to steady her breathing.

First, he ties me up and attacks me, then he releases me and sends an elf to make sure I'm taken care of, and now he's giving me gifts and joining me for breakfast.

She tries to find some logical reason behind his actions but comes up with nothing other than the idea that he is trying to lead her into a sense of false security.

If he keeps this pattern up, next he'll be proposing marriage.

Hermione shudders at the thought of being bound to Severus Snape for life.

SS

Severus smiles wickedly to himself. He can practically hear her thoughts questioning her sanity and his motives through the bathroom door.

When the running water stops, Severus wipes off his grin and begins stirring sugar into his newly arrived tea.

Hermione opens the door and slowly makes her way to the seat across from Severus.

"Mazy brought you bacon, eggs, and toast while you were in the facilities," he says, gesturing to the heavily laden plate in front of her.

"Aren't you eating?" she inquires, picking up her fork.

"I'm not hungry."

Was that concern in her voice?

"Oh, it's just... I feel uncomfortable eating in front of others who are not." Her cheeks flush.

Severus sighs and stretches a hand out to her plate, plucking a piece of toast off the top. He bites into it and begins to chew exaggeratedly.

Her cheeks flush further, but she gives him a shy smile as she starts on her eggs.

Of course, prim little Gryffindor Princess, held captive by a Death Eater, and still worried about manners.

Severus pulls out a copy of the Daily Prophet and turns it strategically, leaving a certain article in plain view for Miss Granger.

It takes her less than ten seconds to notice it.

"Ron has taken the Dark Mark!" she exclaims, clamoring across the table to rip the paper from his hands, sending eggs flying in the process.

"Miss Granger! Control yourself!" he commands, pulling the paper out of her grasp.

Hermione slinks back into her seat.

"Sorry, sir. It just... surprised me, that's all," she whispers, knotting her hands as she stares into her lap.

"Indeed."

"Is it true, sir? About Ron?"

Severus eyes her hopelessness and immediately questions his plan to be honest with her.

He sighs heavily. "Yes, it's true. I was there."

Hermione's head shoots up, and she opens her mouth several times before actually speaking.

"But, sir, I thought one had to kill in order to seal the mark. Are you saying that... that Ron k-killed someone?"

Her wide brown eyes transfix him.

"He did," Severus answers quietly.

"S-show me," she whispers, still holding his gaze.

Before he even realizes what he's doing, Severus summons his Pensieve and is pulling the memory from his mind.

He stands and offers his hand to Hermione; she hesitates only milliseconds before taking it and standing by his side.

They take the plunge together.

Having already lived through the ceremony, Severus focuses his attention on watching Hermione.

She is still holding his hand, though Severus is certain she doesn't realize this. Her expressive eyes are trained on Ron, and her tears threaten to spill over.

They are standing inside the circle of Death Eaters about ten feet from Ron.

When the Dark Lord begins to speak, Hermione visibly cringes and takes an unconscious step towards Severus.

"Ronald Weasley, former friend of Harry Potter, relative of Muggle-lovers, has chosen to see sense. He stands here before you ready to renounce his past and accept his pureblood status. Does anyone have any reason why we should not accept him?" the Dark Lord asks.

"My Lord, how can you be sure he can truly be trusted?" Bellatrix Lestrange asks.

Hermione presses herself firmly into Severus' side, trembling. He quickly recalls her telling him about Bellatrix torturing her at Malfoy Manor. Severus gives her hand a reassuring squeeze before he can stop himself. She looks up at him momentarily, but is quickly drawn back into the memory.

Looking for a distraction from the warmth crawling up from his belly, Severus focuses his attention on the memory as well.

"Are you pleased, Bella?" Voldemort questions sarcastically.

"I think not," Ron tells the man. "Avada Kedavra!"

Green light fills the circle, and the old caretaker falls flat, struggling no more. A smattering of applause breaks out around the circle.

A strangled sob bursts forth from Hermione's throat, pulling Severus back to the present, so to speak. She is staring fixedly at Ron, who is now bowing for the crowd, a single tear trailing down her cheek.

"Let's go," Severus whispers, giving her fingers a tug.

She just nods once in response, and he pulls them from the memory and back into his bedchamber.

When they land softly next to the dining table, Hermione gives herself over to her despair and collapses in a heap on the floor.

Severus kneels down next her and gently places a hand on her shoulder.

"He.... actually... did.... it," she sobs.

"He had to, at that point," Severus tells her. "If he had taken the mark and refused to seal it with murder, a slow acting poison would have trickled through his veins, leading him to a slow and painful death."

Hermione's head shoots up, and she glares at him fiercely. Her skin is all blotchy and red from crying, but made beautiful by her intensity.

"Then he should have died," she enunciates.

For the first time, Severus starts to question whether he has misjudged Hermione's strength. He remembers thinking that she didn't have the strength to harm herself, but quickly reevaluates his opinion.

If she believed it was for the greater good, or that her sacrifice could save another, Granger could pose as a great danger to herself.

Hermione sighs heavily and drops her head once more.

Severus pulls her into his arms and stands up easily, barely registering her weight. She cringes slightly against his chest, but doesn't offer any protests.

He carries her over to the bed and places her gently on the comforter.

"What did you see?" she asks.

"What did I see?"

"When you looked in Ron's eyes, what did you see?" she presses.

This time it is Severus' turn to sigh.

"I saw you."