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Memories of Deception	By : professorflo Category: Harry Potter > General > General Views: 20868 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters within. I make no money from this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Memories of Deception
- 2-2
- 3-3
- 4-4
- 5-5
- 6-6
- 7-7
- 8-8
- 9-9.
- 10-10
- 11-11
- 12-12
- 13-13
- 14-14
- 15-15
- 16-16
- 17-17
- 18-18
- 19-19
- 20-20
- 21-21
- 22-22
- 23-23
- 24-24
- 25-25
- 26-26
- 27-27
- 28-28
- 29-29
- 30-30
- 31-31
- 32-32
- 33-33
- 34-34
- 35-35
- 36-36
- 37-37
- 38-38
- 39-39
- 40-40
- 41-41
- 42-42
- 43-43
- 44-44
- 45-45
- 46-46
- 47-47
- 48-48
- 49-49
- 50-50
- 51-51
- 52-52
- 53-53
- 54-54
- 55-55
- 56-56
- 57-57
- 58-58
- 59-59
- 60-60
- 61-61
- 62-62
- 63-63
- 64-64
- 65-65
- 66-66
- 67-67
- 68-68
- 69-69
- 70-70
- 71-71
- 72-72
- 73-73
- 74-74
- 75-75
- 76-76
- 77-77
- 78-78
- 79-79
- 80-80
- 81-81
- 82-82
- 83-83
- 84-84
- 85-85
- 86-86
- 87-87
- 88-88
- 89-89
- 90-90
- 91-91
- 92-92
- 93-93
- 94-94
- 95-95
- 96-96
- 97-97
- 98-98
- 99-99
- 100-100
- 101-101
- 102-102
- 103-103
- 104-104
- 105-105
- 106-106
- 107-107
- 108-108
- 109-109
- 110-110
- 111-111
- 112-112
- 113-113
- 114-114
- 115-115
- 116-116
- 117-117
- 118-118
- 119-119
- 120-120
- 121-121
- 122-122
- 123-123
- 124-124
- 125-125
- 126-126
- 127-127
- 128-128
- 129-129
- 130-130
- 119
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- 121
Disclaimer: See chapter 1
Hermione closed the door gently behind her with a click and paused with her back to the door and looked around the room. The early morning sun trickled gently through the high windows, bathing the room in pale light. Nothing seemed to have changed since the last time she'd been in there. It had the feeling of abandonment, although there was not a speck of dust to be seen thanks to Tiggy. There was a strange silence that wasn't to be found in any other area of the castle, not even in the dead of night, and an unnatural stillness in the air. Hermione had not officially been in his rooms since the beginning of the first term after the battle, though she had snuck in a few times in the following months when she'd been having a particularly bad day and was desperate for the safety of his rooms.
Hesitantly Hermione stepped away from the door and crossed the room towards Snape's chambers, taking no notice of the portrait of Dumbledore that was observing her silently from the wall. She'd had plenty of practice ignoring the portrait over the past two years when visiting Minerva's rooms, as she'd still not forgiven him for his treatment of Snape, and before long he'd got the hint and had begun to return to his frame in the Head's office as soon as Hermione had entered. Minerva had tried a few times to get into the office but the castle had prevented her from dismantling Snape's wards. The fact that she'd felt his wards wash over her as she entered the study gave Hermione hope that Snape hadn't died while hurtling forward through time. Well, that and the fact that the charm he put on my hands hasn't ended either…
She knew from experience that the time-turner was not instantaneous, a few hours backward took only a few seconds, so she'd worked out that it had probably taken more than a few hours to travel 2 years. He might still be alive, but what state he would be in was her worry. After discovering the reason why his anti-venin hadn't worked as it should, Slughorn and herself had created a potion to remedy the problem, but what they couldn't guess at was how far his body had gone towards shutting down completely.
One of the ingredients in the Draught of the Living Death that helped to slow the heart down had caused the problem. It had reacted with the active components in the anti-venin that kept the blood from thickening due to Nagini's venom. Hermione could recall all too well the way her own blood had clotted into a brown jelly-like substance when the venom had been introduced to it during testing. She'd almost thrown up at the thought of the pain he must have gone through as his blood turned to sludge in his veins.
The spread of the anti-venin through Snape's body had been halted as his heart and other processes had slowed, as had the movement of his congealing blood. As soon as she'd given him the Wiggenweld potion to revive him his heart had started pushing both around his body again, and that was when the problem had begun. Their tests had shown that the other effects of the venom, such as the immobilization of the nervous system and the breaking down of the body from the inside had been stopped by the anti-venin. However, Snape's blood had thickened, not as much as it would have done without the potion, but enough that it would be slowing down its movement around the body, and Hermione was worried that the lack of oxygen reaching vital organs may have caused permanent damage, or even that he may have had a stroke if a clot had reached his brain.
The plan was therefore to give him the potion she was carrying in her robes the moment he reappeared, and then Tiggy would apparate the two of them immediately to the infirmary where Poppy, who had been informed of Snape's survival about a year ago, could diagnose and treat any further complications. Hermione knew the nurse had already prepared a range of spells and potions in anticipation of whatever difficulties might arise. She had helped to brew a number of them, and between herself, Slughorn, Poppy and Minerva, she was pretty sure they had covered every eventuality. Hermione could only pray he was not beyond treatment.
Hermione was unsure of the exact time that Snape had used the time turner, as she'd been too distracted before waking him up, and crying after to actually take note of the time on the clock. She was only sure that it was sometime in the early morning, as Voldemort death had later been estimated around 6am and it must have been at least an hour before Snape had disappeared. It was now about 6, as Hermione had decided to get there in plenty of time to prepare herself. But as she looked around the silent room she wondered whether even after two ears, if she was ready for what was to come in the next few hours.
As she pushed open the door to his chambers a pang of – something between wistfulness and sorrow – seemed to squeeze the breath from her lungs. The very scent of the rooms seemed unchanged from all those months ago, and she almost fancied she could detect the slightest trace of him in the air – a scent she had been unaware of until she had been deprived of it. The memories that assailed her in that moment affected her far more than she had expected after so long, and it was a few seconds before she could proceed along the hall to Snape's bedroom.
Outside the bedroom door Hermione paused for a moment, her fingers on the handle. This was the scene of some of the most intimate and intense moments she had been through in her time with Snape, and she could feel her heart hammering in her chest. With a deep breath she turned the handle and pushed at the door. The scent of him was stronger in here, and for a moment it was so overpowering that she almost ran. You can do this Hermione. It's just an empty room. She stepped inside and looked around. The room had been left as she had first seen it, rather than dark and windowless as it had been when she had believed herself Snape's prisoner. It made her feel slightly less apprehensive than she might have done otherwise.
The last time she'd been in these rooms had been only after a few of her sessions with Sarah, when she was still struggling to come to terms with everything. That had been a particularly bad day, when Sarah had struck a serious nerve while pushing her to admit her feelings for Snape, causing Hermione to lash out in defence. As soon as the session was over she'd legged it to Snape's bedroom and cried herself into an uneasy sleep. It had been the first time Sarah had pushed her to an emotional outburst. Until then she'd still been trying to prove to Sarah, as well as lie to herself that she didn't need to see a psychiatrist.
That had really been the breakthrough Sarah had been waiting for, and it wasn't long before Hermione had learnt the benefits of having someone to pour out her worries and fears to. The past two years hadn't been easy, and not just for her. Hermione was sure that without Sarah, the fallout from the battle amongst the students would have been a lot worse, particularly among her closest friends. Hermione was sure that both Harry and Ginny had been suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome, from what she understood of the condition, and Ron had taken some time to move past his guilt over abandoning the two of them halfway through the year. Unfortunately the after-effects of their fight against Voldemort wasn't the only problem.
It had been a strange world since the downfall of Voldemort. Both Hermione and Harry had spent the whole of their magical lives fighting against the dark wizard in one form or another, and it had affected the way they viewed the entire wizarding world. They had found it far more difficult than their peers or the older generation to settle into normal lives as they had never experienced true peace, and to boot they were also transitioning from childhood into the adult world. The media attention hadn't helped, although she'd been spared most of that, holing herself up in the castle, but Harry of course had borne the brunt of it. Seven years of Rita Skeeter exposes had taught him to be more thick-skinned however, and by and large he had done well at ignoring the ridiculous stories that were still circulating.
In fact it had been a story about Hermione that had caused Harry to lose his cool. Disappointed by the lack of sensational stories about the trio from Rita Skeeter, who was still bound by the terms of the contarct Hermione had forced on her, the Daily Prophet had hired another journalist who seemed to be as bad, if not worse, to dig for gossip concerning them. Someone who had been present in the Room of Requirement just before the battle had blabbed and the rumour that she'd been hiding in Snape's rooms instead of helping her friends defeat Voldemort had been printed.
Luckily, due to Snape's 'revamped image' and her own fame, the article hadn't dared to question their loyalty to the light, but it had come horribly close to the truth of what the two of them had been doing in all that time alone, and had also debated whether the relationship had started when she was a pupil. The details had made Hermione blush when she'd read them. The worst part of it was that the writer had suggested that she was a coward, and that had cut Hermione far deeper than the allusions to her and Snape's sordid sex life and the reason for her good grades at school.
Since Hermione was at Hogwarts and unavailable for comment the press had followed Harry until he had snapped and hexed a couple of reporters. Kingsley had had to get involved, but luckily for Harry he hadn't gone straight into Auror training, instead putting it off for a few years while he played Quidditch at professional level with Ginny.
If he'd been working as an Auror he might have been suspended, but he'd mainly gotten away with it, and had convinced Rita Skeeter, who was fed up of being side-lined by the newer reporter, to write an alternative story explaining how Hermione had been captured and tortured by Voldemort, but that Snape had allowed her to make contact with himself and Ron, and that they'd decided it was better for her to stay where she was and try to figure out where and what the horcruxes were. He had pointed out that by doing so she'd put herself in a position to be tortured further by the likes of Bellatrix Lestrange, and if the war hadn't ended when it had, who knows what else she might have had to endure.
Of the possible relationship between the two, all Harry had said was that there was no possibility that anything could possibly have happened at school, and that he didn't believe that they would have had a time to pursue a relationship under the circumstance, not that it was any business of anyone else's what happened between two consenting adults. Skeeter of course would have much preferred to write trash about Hermione, but her skills at contract writing had only improved since creating the one for Dumbledore's Army, and all Skeeter could do was prevent anyone else taking her position as top gossip writer.
Ron of course had not been available for comment at that time, as he'd been taken on as second place keeper for a Scottish team, and had quickly been recognised as having a good tactical mind. The coach had decided to offer him more money to also work as his assistant, which meant a good month of secret planning sessions in a location abroad during the off season before the rest of the team came out to train, and he'd jumped at the chance as it meant he could save up far quicker to buy a shiny diamond ring he'd had his eye on. Only Luna, Harry and Hermione and his parents knew how to reach him, and by the time he'd reappeared the story had been all but forgotten.
Hermione was overjoyed for Ron, and wholeheartedly approved of his relationship with Luna. The younger witch was good for him, far better than Hermione would have ever been. Harry also was looking forward to marrying Ginny, although the news of their engagement as yet had not been released to the public. Even Neville seemed to be ready to settle down, as were many of Hermione's peer group. It was normal for witches and wizards to marry early, but it meant that Hermione was one of the very few among her friends that wasn't in a relationship, and she did feel lonely at times, especially at large gatherings.
Sarah had tried to convince her to date, even if she wasn't planning on pursuing a relationship with anyone. She'd said it would be a good way to get back out into society and to move on, but both times that Hermione had taken her advice she'd been unable to take it further than a first date. Neither wizard had been able to hold a decent conversation that wasn't either about themselves nor Quidditch. Hermione had spent both nights comparing everything about them to Snape and found them woefully lacking in every department.
After the second disaster Sarah seemed to have given up the subject, accepting that Hermione had at least taken the step of getting out and meeting people, but when Hermione had let slip that Snae had never removed the charm preventing her from masturbating, Sarah had once again tried to persuade her to get out and find someone who could for the job for her. She felt that being unable to move on sexually was holding Hermione back from moving on and taking her life fully back into her own hands.
Hermione had point blank refused. She just couldn't imagine being intimate with anyone else besides Snape, at least not until she knew for sure whether or not he had survived. She wasn't yet ready to accept the fact he might refuse to have anything to do with her, although Sarah had made her face the possibility in their sessions. Intellectually she knew he was probably still in love with Lily and that she would have to move on at some point, but her heart refused to listen unless being shown absolute proof that Snape would never want a relationship with her.
Time had not rid her of her feelings towards Snape, only perhaps dulled the sharp edges, removing the desperate need she had once felt to be in his arms. A deeper understanding of what she had been through and how she had been emotionally manipulated, albeit willingly, had helped her to realise that there were true emotions involved, but that the situation had forced them to develop more quickly than was natural.
Early on in her sessions she'd been terrified that Sarah would try to cure her of her feelings for Snape, or try to tell her that her feelings were wrong and unnatural. It had never happened, however. Sarah had gone through the events that had happened in great detail, and in the process had learned far more of magic than any muggle probably ever had or would. The Statute of Secrecy had only been lifted in her case because her brother was a muggleborn, and she had learned of the wizarding world at a young age. Luckily her brother and his family had gone into hiding, helped by the Order, and had survived the muggleborn purges.
The one thing Sarah had been fascinated with had been the horcrux, especially the psychological effect that splitting the soul may have had. Sarah had been concerned about how she had so easy agreed to leading Harry to his death. Hermione had gone to some lengths to explain the reasons why Harry had needed to face Voldemort, as well as the magical oaths she had taken and the calming and lust potions Snape had given her. While she had been devastated when she realised why he had to die, and even more so when she believed that he actually had, she was far too practical for it to have any lingering effect after everything had come out alright in the end. It had to have happened, and therefore there was no point in her worrying about it.
So lost was she in her reverie that the sudden appearance of a body on the floor in front of her made her squeal in surprise, and for a moment she froze. Then, coming to her senses she grabbed the potion from where it sat beside her on the bed and flew to his side, calling for Tiggy. He had landed awkwardly, chest down with an arm twisted under him, but his face to one side. He was deathly still and for a moment Hermione though she was too late, but then he took a raggedy, wheezing breath and her heart seemed to start beating again.
She was desperate to see him, to reaquaint herself with the way he looked the way he smelt, to run her hands over his face and through his hair. But she knew that she needed to get the potion into him and move him to the infirmary. She would have the chance she needed once he'd been treated and hopefully cured to spend time with him. But now, it was time to act.
Wrenching the cork out of the phial she pulled her wand out of her sleeve. "Ad ventriculum libera," she whispered, with a flick of her wand. The potion disappeared from the phial, and for a moment Hermione thought back to Madame Pomphrey's amazement and pride when she'd found out how she'd used that spell to save Snape two years previous. The witch had been surprised that she'd been capable of performing the charm after only having read about it, although she'd made Hermione practise it a few times on student's who had been admitted to the infirmary with minor injuries, just to make sure that nothing went wrong in this moment.
"Tiggy, now!"
The elf reached out to lay on hand on Snape, and the other on her shoulder, and before she could blink, they disappeared, leaving the bedroom silent once more.
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Memories of Deception