Sodalis

Chapter 14

By the time Hermione had been released from the hospital wing she knew that there was more to the last 6 months than anyone was telling her. She could feel the life debt she owed to Narcissa Malfoy. There was a suspicious magical warmth in the back of her consciousness that she couldn't quite locate. Her mind library had been nearly untouched except for a stack of books on a table next to the armchair. No matter what she did her hands passed through the pile as if she were a ghost. She knew those must be her memories. Now she just needed to figure out why she couldn't open them.

There was a third magical link she could feel that was faint, felt velvety and fresh like Harry's magic, wrapped like a ribbon on her left pinky finger. She had considered asking him about it but something in her mind told her to keep it to herself. Was it another life debt? It wouldn't be so farfetched to think she owed one to Harry but in that case she would have felt this one long before. The fact that she could feel Mrs. Malfoys apparently had a lot to do with the amount of magic she had exerted to save her. The complexity of magical bonding was far beyond her comprehension at the moment.

Then there was the new found affection Harry was showing her. It was not unwelcome and no one seemed to be surprised about the fact. Ron, who she expected to feel a bit put out, hadn't said a single thing against it. Although the ginger was also a bit more affectionate than usual and had reminded her that she nearly died so he needed to 'get his hugs in now'. (That had earned him smack to the shoulder and a laugh.) Harry was by her side nearly the whole day and a half in the infirmary while she let Madam Pomfrey fret over her.

As the week wore on, however, things began to grate on her. From the sudden change in conversation topics, to the way Harry was always hovering at her side, she could feel the tension of holding back secrets. There was a distinct notion that although Harry had affection for her he did not make any overtures about wanting to date, though everyone assumed that they had some kind of arrangement. She had also noticed some pitying looks sent Harry's way from a very unlikely pair, Ron and Draco.

Even stranger was the Potions Master. From what she had been told she had taken it upon herself to risk her life to remove his mark. Something that truly had never crossed her mind and had apparently brought her under the ire of the Headmaster. The man in question treated her only slightly differently. Professor Snape did not berate her or Harry in class to her utter surprise. She had attempted to make eye contact with him across the Great Hall or during Potions but he acted like she didn't exist. Hermione would have given up on him but for the sensation of desperately wanting his attention. It was unnerving.

By the following Friday, Harry had asked her to meet him in the Room of Requirement after their classes. The serious look on his face had worried her but Hermione had agreed and given her best friend a hug while he kissed her forehead before he left the Great Hall for his afternoon classes.

The rest of the day continued without incident until she was making her way up to the 7th floor to meet Harry, running late after stopping to talk to Professor Flitwick about a report. In her haste, she turned a corner at a near run and slammed straight into the solid form of Professor Snape. They fell unceremoniously into a heap on the floor. The groan he let out sent a shiver down her spine.

"Oh! Professor, I'm so sorry!" Hermione hurried to say as she pushed herself up, only to realize that she was sprawled across the man and a liquid heat had washed over her. Their eyes locked and for a moment she thought she saw something in his eyes that was far more than the stoicism he always had when she was present. Up close she could really see how much younger he looked. It had escaped her notice at first but the girls in the common room had been commiserating over the Professor's appearance the last couple days.

His hair looked healthy and thick, her fingers itched to run through it. He looked his age, she would guess, which was a huge improvement considering how much older he looked before. It had always surprised her that Professor Snape had been classmates with the likes of the Marauders. His skin was healthy and didn't have the slightly malnourished pallor that it once had; probably due to a vitamin D deficiency with how much time he spent in the dungeons. There was something very austere about him, he looked sturdier and stronger. His eyes were rimmed with long pitch dark lashes that Hermione instantly coveted. She stared into his black gaze that flashed with something like desire. The warmth in the back of her mind flared and met the liquid heat head on making her gasp from the intensity. He was frozen beneath her, barely breathing as she traced a finger down the center of his brow and to the tip of his nose. Hermione dared to touch her finger tip to his shallow cupid's bow when she was thrown off of the Professor with such force she hit the wall next to them.