AN: Edit: I know that I told y'all I would write an epilogue, but when I read through the story again, I decided that this was where the story ends. All of my attempts to continue it fell flat because my heart wasn't in it. I'm sorry to be a tease, but I hope you enjoyed this fic. It's been a joy to write it. And thanks again for all of your reviews and messages! They make me feel so warm and happy inside (and don't we all need a bit more of that nowadays, lol).

…*~*J*~*…

For all that he hurried to finish the potion, ladling out a generous portion and thrusting the girl's hair into the glass, Severus hesitated a long moment before actually consuming the thing. What if he couldn't get through to her? What if she simply wasn't there? What if his mind was lost forever in the dying shell of her once brilliant one? He scoffed. That was too ridiculous to be true.

And anyway, Hermione Granger was well worth the risk.

Stripping out of his outer layers and kicking off his boots, Severus climbed into bed and sat staring down at the potion. What could he say to her? What if it was no use? Why did he think he could save her at all?

After all, he was no hero.

But he'd come too far to turn back now. This was not the time for doubts. Steeling his resolve, the Slytherin tossed back the contents of the glass, gulping hard to crush his doubts with the certainty of his decision. And before he could so much as wonder how long it would take, he was suddenly elsewhere, surrounded by darkness on all sides.

There was a feeling of falling. No. Of sinking. It was as if he were being crushed by some invisible force; as if he were sinking to the bottom of the sea. He couldn't breathe. The intangible darkness choked him like a heavy weight, and still he sank deeper. It took a moment for him to realize that she wasn't here. Panic overtook him, then, causing him to thrash about, completely helpless in this vulnerable position.

There was nothing he could do.

But the practiced spy had learned long ago how to calm that instinctive panic. Clamping down on what was left of his control, he steadied himself, counting the heartbeats he could hear instead of breaths. It was then that he realized. Beneath his own quick pitter patter, there was a faint but definite thumping. Hermione. Somehow, he knew that it was her. But she was deep; deeper than he was, even. And he was afraid to follow after her. She needs me, he reminded himself. And anyway, who better to follow someone down a dangerous path than Albus Dumbledore's Death Eater spy?

Re-orienting himself with sheer will, Severus dove down into the depths of her mind. She was sinking, shrinking, dwindling down to nothing, and it was up to him to pull her to the surface.

The deeper he dove, the warmer he felt, until he could feel her presence all around him. It was odd; an eerie sense that she was there beside him, though no empirical assessment could be made. And somehow he knew that she was unaware of him. She was too weak to pay attention.

"Hermione," he murmured against the crushing weight of suffocation. Distantly, he wondered if he could die from lack of oxygen, since this was just a dream.

She did not respond, exactly, but a sort of movement in the current drew him deeper still. He flinched when he first felt her; a cold, lifeless body floating curled in on itself. He fought the instinct to abandon the hideous thing.

Instead, gripping her arms, Severus unfolded her stiffening form, pulling her close to him as if to share his warmth. Unbidden, tears pricked at his eyes, and he buried his face in her softly floating hair. "Hermione," he murmured again, "Please."

To his momentary terror, the girl responded with a weak, but undeniable "Mmm…"

His heart leapt and he held her tighter, desperation fighting with despair. "Hermione," he told her, "listen to me. I'm here. Wake up. It's just a dream." Bloody hell, he wasn't prepared for this. What else could he possibly do? Maybe if he pulled her to the surface?

Kicking his legs, Severus made as if to pull her upward, but it was impossible to know if it was making a difference. There was no light toward which to swim, nor any other sign to mark his bearing. If anything, it seemed that they were sinking faster than before, tugged down by the invisible hand of hopelessness.

But if this is a dream, I should be able to control it, he thought. Focusing his will, he imagined clean air and a beach at the surface of her mind. But it was useless. Was it simply a lack of faith? Perhaps if he tried something smaller. If only he could see where they were. Closing his eyes, he desperately tried to believe that when he opened them, he would see the girl he held. But he was so full of doubt. It took three tries, but on the third he paused and counted the heartbeats and cleared his mind and told himself that when he opened his eyes she would be there.

And she was. And the vision was so horrible that he almost let go of her again.

Though he had imagined the witch who had haunted his dreams, this slender form was that of the emaciated girl whose hospital bed he had tended. She looked like she might have been dead, already. And for a moment, he believed that she was. He had been a fool to come down here! The healers had been right! All they were doing was keeping her artificially alive, long after she had gone. Perhaps it would have been better to let her die on the Grounds of Hogwarts.

But no. He had heard her voice, not long ago. She was not yet gone. Something of her remained there with him, and it was up to him to wake it.

"Hermione," he spoke again, louder and more forceful this time. "I don't want you to die. Come back to me. Open your eyes."

"Mmmm," she responded, her eyelids crinkling more, as if reluctant. And suddenly he understood. It was as if she were asleep.

"Hermione, it's time to wake up." His mind worked fast, searching for some inspiration. Then, as abruptly as an apple landing on his head, he had his plan. "You don't want to be late for class," he told her, his heart soaring when she squeezed her eyes shut in consternation. "Won't Potter and Weasley be angry when I deduct points? Don't think I won't, Miss Granger." He cut off suddenly, as one of her legs kicked out between his two. It was working! "And if you hurry," he continued, speaking almost automatically, from some deep, instinctual well, "you might not miss the exam." At that, her eyes popped open in bleary surprise and Severus actually laughed. But his humor was quickly cut off by the vacant expression in her eyes.

"Professor?" she murmured, her voice hoarse and weak. "Where am I?"

Her use of his title took Severus aback. Suddenly, he realized that she didn't know he knew. "Miss Granger," he said awkwardly, reverting to formalities to soften the blow, "This is a dream." He stopped at that, unsure what else to say. Perhaps her brilliant mind could extrapolate the painful details. But her eyes told him that she was too confused.

Suddenly, she contracted in on herself, burying her face against his chest and choking on a sob. "I'm so weak, Professor. I-I think I'm dying." Severus had no response to give this chilling revelation. "I should have been more careful. I just wanted to help Harry." The stunned wizard patted the girl on the back. Comforting but pointless words (there, there) echoed in his mind, though he had not the heart to voice them. "I only regret. I regret… never telling you…" She seemed unable to continue as weak sobs continued to choke what was left of her voice.

"I know," he told her.

And at that she froze, tilting her head back to look up at him. "I-I'm so sorry, Professor. I didn't mean to… it just got out of hand…"

"Shhh," he cut her off, placing a finger on her lips. "Miss… Hermione…" He didn't know what to say. How could he explain how he felt about this? How could he tell her in simple terms how he forgave her for lying to him, how he was glad that she had come to him, how he wouldn't trade their dreams together for the world?

"We don't have time," he told her. "You need to wake up. They've taken you off of your potions and don't expect you to make it 'til morning."

To his surprise, one frozen hand came up to touch his face, and her eyes were so open and sad that he almost looked away. "Professor," she whispered, "Severus…" His breath caught on a knot that had formed in his throat. "It's okay." Severus shook his head, not wanting to understand her meaning. "Everybody dies," she whispered. "I'm just happy that I got to see you… that you know. I'm happy you're safe."

"No," he told her in a stern voice that threatened to break, "I won't let you give up, Granger. You're stronger than this."

"I think I've been holding on," she confessed. "I just wanted you to know."

"Well you're going to keep holding on. You have so much more to do!"

"Severus, it's okay. I got to see you. That's all that matters."

And suddenly he understood. The crushing, suffocating hopelessness was her acceptance of her own death. She really was dying. Pulling her tight against himself, he hid his tears in her bushy hair. He couldn't leave her like this. If she were dying, he wanted to go with her. There was nothing for him in the world of the living. Not if she was gone.

But then her embrace began to feel weak, as if she were becoming insubstantial. He opened his eyes to see that she was slowly disappearing; fading into nothingness in the depths of the surrounding dark. "No!" She couldn't leave him like this! She couldn't leave him behind! She couldn't be gone!

He couldn't let her.

"Hermione! Hermione, please," he begged, "you're going to wake up. I need you to wake up." He clenched his eyes tight, clinging to the feel of her, terrified that he would open them and find her gone.

"I'm sorry, Severus. I'm just… so weak…"

"Please, Hermione! You have such promise," he told her, desperate to persuade her to stay. "You're going to wake up and finish school. You never even took your NEWTS! Do you know they have bets on you? They have bets about the scores you'll receive. You can't let them down, Hermione. You have to take your exams!"

"Mmmmm," she responded.

Panic gripped him tighter than his hold on her. She was fading back into the darkness whence she had come. "No! Hermione, you can't leave me! You only just came into my life!"

There was a gasp and Severus's eyes popped open to see her nearly transparent form. She pulled back far enough to look into his eyes, a wary sort of hope pouring out of her own. It was as if some of the weight on his chest had been lifted. He had her attention. She was focused on him. Instinctively, he knew that he had to hold her there, that if she looked away she would be lost.

"Wake up, Hermione, and I swear to you, I will do whatever you want. Anything! Do you want books, Hermione? I have thousands of books. You can have them!" It was not his imagination that the pressure was lessening, and with a start he realized that they were beginning to ascend. His heart pounded desperately. "I-I have a private potions lab! You can… share it… with me. And I'll… I'll settle my differences with Potter, if you like. And… and… and I will never deduct another House Point from Gryffindor."

By now, her eyes were glittering with humor and with life. Yet still she was transparent. And though he was afraid to glance anywhere but into her eyes, he could sense that there was a light above them, growing closer as the heaviness subsided. Tears were running down his face but he held her gaze. They were near the surface; he could feel it.

But then her eyes crinkled with a question and it was as if they had reached the end of a long rope tethering them to the bottom. No matter how hard he hoped and wished and prayed, they ceased any movement toward the surface. Panic seized him and his eyes left hers momentarily, darting up desperately to see the blinding light above. When he turned back to her, she was more faded than before, flinching out of existence for the blink of an eye.

"Wait!" he cried out, pulling her tighter against him, though he knew it to be futile.

"Why are you saying these things?" she asked him, her voice full of doubt. And he knew that his answer would decide.

"Because… because…" his mind was blank with panic. The truth! his instincts shouted. What is the truth? "Because… " And suddenly he knew the answer plain as day, and all his panic was washed away. This was not some riddle where the cleverest answer would give him the outcome that he sought. Whether or not the truth brought her back to life, it was the Truth she wanted. It was the Truth she deserved. "Because I love you."

At that, her lips broke into a brilliant smile and a tear rolled down her cheek. The rope melted away, sending them drifting upward once again. And she began to glow, still translucent, bright as an angel of mythical lore. Then, in a flash, her brilliance blinded him. And he couldn't feel her anymore. "Hermione!" he cried out into the empty room.

As his eyes settled, he made out the dark silhouettes of his furniture at Spinner's End. With a jolt, he realized that he had woken up. Had he done it? Was she awake? Or had she 'passed on' into the light? His head and heart and body pounded with the need to know the answer, and he flung himself out of bed. In his shirtsleeves and his socks, he threw himself down the stairs and through the front door of his house, stumbling into an alley and Disapparating without a second glance.

The Mediwizards tried to detain him for procedural visitor's paperwork, but he ripped out of their grasp, sprinting through the halls of St. Mungo's toward that one familiar room. Early morning light was only just beginning to filter through the windows of the ancient building. He didn't so much as stop to consider what he might see when he swept through her door.

As it happens, he didn't so much sweep as hurl himself into the tiny room, noticing at once that a crowd of healers had surrounded her. His heart dropped in dread of what that might mean; and with the twisting stab of hope that she survived.

Pushing through the throng of purple-robed witches, Severus's breath caught at the sight of her open cinnamon eyes. His knees buckled, but he caught himself with an arm on either side of her, knocking Potter off his stool and onto the floor. "You're awake," he gasped, a single tear spilling down his angled face.

"Severus," she whispered, voicelessly. Lifting one trembling arm, she laid a warm hand against his cheek. "I love you, too," she choked out, tears suddenly blossoming from her eyes. And he reacted without a thought in the world, bending to capture her lips with his own; touching her in the simplest, softest way he could, to express the tenderness he felt for her right then. It was like a shock of magic sparked between them, igniting what had been there the whole time. And what he wanted more than anything in the world was to remain in her embrace forevermore.

Someone cleared their throat and Severus jerked away from her, smacked back to reality by the look of shock on the faces of everyone present. Potter's eyes were widest of them all. And when had Minerva come in? Heat poured into Severus's cheeks as the rest of the world returned, and he yanked away from Hermione's sickbed, straightening to his full height and brushing invisible dirt from his sleeves. Belatedly, he noticed his own graying socks peeping out from the legs of his trousers.

Already resenting the attention directed toward him, Severus cleared his throat. "Well, what are you all waiting around for? She'll need some potions, won't she?" At that, the nurses jumped to attention, bringing forth and uncorking various bottles as Severus ranted about irresponsible care-giving and her narrowly-avoided demise.

But when the potions had been administered, and Hermione instructed to rest, Severus lingered in the little room. They hadn't had much opportunity to speak, what with all of the mediwitches fussing over her, and he wasn't sure exactly where he stood. Approaching her sleeping form, he stared down into her peaceful face. He hadn't realized the boy was still lurking in the hall until his voice broke the silence of the room. "So I guess it worked, huh?" Potter said. There was an undertone of controlled hostility, and Severus tensed as if he'd been caught in a trap.

"Indeed," the Potions Master answered. Clearly, Potter was not content, as he dawdled in the doorway, obviously intent on saying more. "Is there a reason you're still here?" the Slytherin growled, hoping to scare off the intruder.

The boy hesitated. "It's just…" he huffed in frustration, "she dreamt with you, too, didn't she?"

Severus did not respond. Such were his instincts not to give up personal information without knowing his enemy's motives.

"Or else," Potter reasoned aloud, "you wouldn't have known how to save her."

Determining that it was safe to confide this much, Severus conceded the point. "Most astute," he said dryly.

But Potter was not assuaged. His concern hung heavy in the air, making Severus tense against possible attack. "I just… wanted to say… I guess… that I'm glad she did… I guess."

Severus was stunned into silence.

"That is… I don't know what you want with her, and I can't imagine she wants it back, but… well… I guess you must care about her to save her the way you did, so… I'm glad. Thank you… I should say…"

"Oh give over, Potter. I didn't do it for you."

The boy had the nerve to laugh at that, ruffling his messy, black hair with a nervous hand. "I know you didn't," he said, "but still… thank you. I mean… I saw the way you looked at her when you came in…"

"Potter," Severus warned. "Don't you have somewhere else to be?"

"I'm just saying… never thought I'd see you tear up, Professor."

Severus growled in indignation. "You little…"

"I mean, who knew you were capable of such…"

"Potter!"

"…tenderness?"

For lack of words, the Slytherin fumed silently, hunching his shoulders and willing Potter to go away. "Are you finished?" he growled to fill the silence.

Potter didn't answer right away. "I… suppose so. Just… you know…" the boy huffed in exasperation. "I haven't decided how I feel about it," he declared in a rush. "I mean, with everything that has happened in the last few weeks, I don't know how I feel about much of anything. And… well, I'm not just going to forget the way you've always treated us… even if you did save her."

"Yes, and don't expect me to treat you any differently from now on."

Potter grinned vaguely at that. "Merlin forbid," he said in a humorous tone. The sense of near-camaraderie made Severus bristle. He wasn't used to being so subjected to other people's feelings. "Anyway," the boy continued awkwardly, "I guess that's all I have to say for now." He hesitated, but Severus did not offer a response. "I'll just… go, then. If Hermione wakes up, just… let her know that I'll be back. Everyone's waiting for news of her, at the Burrow." Severus grunted in acknowledgement and watched the boy finally leave.

Turning back toward the bed, he let out a sigh. Would she think it was strange if he waited there until she woke? It was terrifying, finally facing his Hermione outside of dreams. What if she pushed him away? He would be humiliated to have shown such desperation. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to leave. Pulling over the little stool, he settled himself stiffly upon it. He didn't have to wait until she woke up, but he also didn't have to leave right now.

Without warning, her eyes fluttered open, and she smiled up at him. The terror must have shown on his face, for she gave a little coughing laugh. "Hello," she whispered, voicelessly.

"Hello," he echoed, immediately feeling foolish when he had. There was a long pause as their thoughts seemed to buzz in the air between them.

She cleared her throat, looking down at her hands. "Thank you," she whispered, her voice still weak after being unconscious so long. He shrugged his shoulders, opening his mouth to reply before closing it again when he had no answer. "I…" she coughed slightly, hesitating before seeming to steel her resolve. "Did you mean what you said? In the dream?"

He could feel the warmth glowing in his face and was not at all sure how to respond. The truth, that instinctual voice seemed to whisper. After all, the risk was gone. But somehow, not being under pressure to say the right thing made it more difficult for Severus to be honest. All his life, he had perfected the art of never expressing vulnerability. And yet here he was, sitting with the one girl who had ever challenged that (well, the only one since Lily), and he had a sudden strong impression that he was at a crossroads. Perhaps his words to her now were just as vital as the ones he'd spoken in her dream. Maybe a wrong move would tear apart what they had so tentatively created together. And what fool was he, having pined after her so desperately, to squander this chance to finally have her in truth?

"Yes," was all he said, his voice coming out weaker than he had intended.

She smiled softly, light shining from her eyes as she reached for his hand. He let her take it. "All of it?" she asked.

This time, his voice was stronger and he was more determined of its truth. "Every word," he told her, squeezing her hand almost unintentionally.

At that, her smile stretched wide, and she almost looked ready to laugh. "Excellent," she choked out, "because you made me some promises back there, and I intend to hold you to them."

…*~*J*~*…

Special Thank You's to Jamelia098, Lyra Lupin, pixiefang15002, crayolacreeper, cloudshape to enien, RhodaBush, just an anon reader, incoherentlove, credible, Smithback, marzipan4, mak5258, twixxy-dee, michele magnolia, Blue night fairy, jennydownes3, Montara, CharmedArtist, HatakeHinata, MayP, mama123, Perry Downing, articcat621, giada, DutchGirl01, ndavis77, Jen0318, kaida171, viola1701e, Petite Mule, sydney73588, Brightki, Auroras Jenkins, marianna79, Fantomette34, pianomouse, and several Guests for Reviewing my last chapter! You guys are awesome! Your feedback is really valuable to me! I hope you like the way I went with this conclusion. Thank you so much!

Much Love

:} llorolalluvia