Till the End | Snarry | English Translation

Chapter 7

Draco woke up in the middle of the night when suddenly a shriek echoed through the room and Harry was writhing in bed. Beads of sweat stood on his forehead and Blaise had drawn his wand in panic.

He quickly put it away and looked at Draco, overwhelmed.
"Go get Snape! Go on!" The Malfoy demanded of him a little louder before Blaise winced slightly and quickly made his way to the teacher.

Panting, the Slytherin patted and waited as he tried to draw air back into his lungs.

Suddenly the door was opened with a grumble and Severus stuck his head out of the door wearily.
"What are you doing here, Mister Zabini. It's half past three. Shouldn't you be asleep?"

Blaise stepped nervously from one foot to the other.
"It's Harry, sir, he's having a pretty bad nightmare and we can't get him awake. Draco thought you might be able to help him."

Concerned, Severus sighed and quickly allowed himself to be led to his students.
Hastily, the Potions Master climbed the few stairs and immediately rushed to Draco's room.

There Harry had already been tossing and turning for the past time and Draco's attempts to calm him down or wake him up had all failed.

"Uncle Sev, I don't know what to do anymore. When we went to sleep everything was still normal and now he just won't wake up!"

Severus held Harry tightly, heart pounding, trying to get him into an upright position.
But the student would not calm down. He was sweating and every few minutes a plaintive sound escaped his throat.
Tears ran down his reddened cheeks in steady streams until suddenly it seemed as if all life had gone out of the Slytherin.

A rapid heartbeat assured Severus that Harry was fine. Well, according to circumstances.

Relieved, he exhaled.
"Okay Draco, thanks for coming for me. I'll take him to my rooms now, I can look after him better there."

Draco nodded, exhausted.
"So he's all right, then. Thank Merlin!"
Severus smiled gently at him and motioned for both boys to join him.
When they did, he pulled them both into his right and left arms respectively. Balancing Harry on his lap, he calmed the agitated teenagers.

"Everything's going to be fine. Don't worry, okay?" They both nodded and Severus let go of them.
With his light load, the dark-haired man stood up and was about to leave when Draco said something else.

"Oh, and Uncle Sev, please protect him and yourself. I don't want to lose even one of you. Okay?"

Severus smiled slightly and nodded.
It was clear that these words applied above all to the future.

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Harry awoke with his head buzzing and a heavy feeling in his stomach.
His eyes hurt and his mouth was filled with the coppery taste of blood.

He remembered very dimly that Severus had given him a calming draught and a strengthening potion.
After that and before that, he had no clue.

Groaning softly, he straightened up and stared into a very dark room, lit only by the moon in the magical windows.
A little further ahead, he could make out the outline of a larger bed and a person sleeping in it.

Harry looked at his watch and couldn't believe his eyes it was half past five!
Suddenly a shrill noise shattered the morning silence and Severus startled.
Why the hell had that guy set his alarm at half past five!!!?

Still a little dazed, the teacher rubbed his eyes and lit a few candles.
He flinched noticeably when he saw Harry, still a little sleepy, sitting on his sofa, where he had bundled him off the hours before.

All at once Harry's memories came crashing back to him and he gasped in fright.
He began to tremble and Severus was with him in an instant.

"Shh, it's all right, Harry. No one can hurt you now. It's just you and me here." That didn't sound quite right either, if you thought about it a little longer, but it apparently helped Harry.

He was still clinging to him, but the shaking had stopped.
"Sev... I've got... I-Voldemort... graveyard... trap."

Severus stroked his back reassuringly and Harry forced himself to take a deep breath.
"I think I had a vision or something. I was in a graveyard and suddenly Voldemort was standing there with lots of his followers and he- he attacked me and... and- and- "

Still completely rattled, he ended stuttering, but Severus had heard enough.
"Okay. It's okay. Harry. It's going to be all right. You'll see, I'll always be with you and help you. There's nothing the Headmaster can do."

Harry moved away from him and stared into those black lakes that the Potions Master was allowed to call his own.
Slowly he came closer and moistened his lips as Severus suddenly jerked away from him.

"I'm sorry, Harry. We really need to get ready and you still need to go to your room. Draco's probably worried already."

Perplexed, the student stared up tot where Severus was searching for his things in a jittery manner.
"O..okay. I'll- I'll be off then." Harry said goodbye quietly and slipped out through the doors into the corridor, confused.
Behind him the door closed with a soft click.
As quickly as he could, he ran back to his dormitory.

To be sure, he knocked once before opening the door and seeing a tearful Draco sitting on his bed.

"Dray... what- "