A/N: Hey everyone! Great news, the sequel is finished *does happy dance* I will be starting to post it after Aug. 30th, the reason for this is because I wrote it for sicfi bigbang on livejournal.

There were a couple of other things I wanted to let everyone know:

1. I've had this story beat'ed, (at least the first several chapters so far) so I am going to be reposting it, and I have decided to change the title to Far Away, if anyone is interested in reading the beat'ed version just look for the title in my profile.

2. I am posting an alternate ending to Never, (because it worked better for the sequel) and I'm posting it with this note so I don't get into trouble, though I think that might be coming someday with the writing police on here. With that said I've posted links in my profile to where my stories are also being posted if anyone is interested.

Thanks to everyone whos reviewed and added this story to their alerts and now on to the story….

Severus slowly opened his eyes again to look up into a pair of honey brown eyes looking at him anxiously. He looked down where his hand was wrapped around her wrist then he looked back up at her. She gave him a small smile before saying,

"I think you're going to be okay."

His throat felt as if it was on fire, but he had to tell her.

"Don't…" he swallowed as she said,

"Don't try to talk." She smoothed his hair out of his face with a shaking hand.

He shook his head as he tried again,

"Don't… don't abandon…me… Hermione."

He saw the look of shock that crossed her face before it softened into something else as she laid her other hand on top of his before saying, "I never would."

"Be…here… when I wake."

"Yes, I'll be right here." She smiled at him before brushing his hair back from his eyes saying, "Rest, I'll be right here."

Once his eyes were closed she knew she needed to get him medical help quickly, his breathing was labored, and she was sure the venom was closing his throat. She did what she could with the lacerations, and where his throat was ripped by Nagini.

She raised her hand to wipe her forehead when she saw the amount of blood on it, then looking at the floor she knew that the blood replenisher potion she gave him was not enough. She tried to remember how much blood the human body could lose without dying, but the fact was escaping her at the moment.

She finally stood, casting Mobilicorpus to levitate him to the castle; she took him through a side entrance to an abandoned classroom. She laid him on a table then turned to go find Madam Pomfrey, as she closed the door Hermione wondered why she was going to so much trouble for the man that killed Dumbledore. But something in the way he looked at her when he woke briefly made her want to help him.

There was also the fact that she had always thought there was more to that night than what Harry had said, something about it never made sense to her. If Professor Snape had always been a death eater then why didn't he kill her when he had the chance? The supposed brains of the group. If he truly believed the propaganda that Voldemort spouted, then she was nothing more than a Mudblood.

Hermione saw Madam Pomfrey standing outside the great hall, she ran up to her before saying, "Madam Pomfrey, there is someone I need you to come check on."

"Who dear?" the matron asked.

"I don't want to say here, just hurry, I don't think they have much time."

"Hermione, I have people here who need my help. Unless you tell me who you are talking about I am not leaving them."

Hermione knew telling her would more than likely sign Severus Snape's death warrant so she aimed her wand at the at older witch saying, "I need you to come with me now, someone's life hangs in the balance."

"What are you doing Miss. Granger? Who is it that's so important?" Madam Pomfrey asked taking a step back.

"You will see. Come."

"Fine," the matron said, upset that she was being called from those who needed her, and at wand point also.

Hermione guided the mediwitch back to the classroom, and closed the door before hearing.

"He killed Albus," Pomfrey said with a choked voice, "why would I help him?" the mediwitch took in the blood covering the front of Snape's clothes and Miss. Granger. She walked up to the table wondering what she could do for him, there was so much blood she was sure he had bled out already.

"Because it's your duty as a healer, and for some reason Voldemort did that to him. Now please, I don't know if what I did was enough."

"Hermione…" She started in a pleading voice.

"Just help him, if it makes you feel better, think of it this way: If he dies he will not be able to stand trial for what he did to the headmaster."

Poppy pulled the collar of his shirt aside to see that his skin was ripped apart in two places, she thought it looked like bite marks and gasped.

Hermione knew it was worse than she thought when she heard the mediwitch gasp. Hermione looked up to see Madam Pomfrey waving her wand in an intricate pattern over Snape. Finally she looked up saying, "I don't know if I can do anything for him, what happened?"

Hermione took a deep breath and started to explained the attack on the professor "Harry saw that Voldemort had called Professor Snape to the boat house - we were outside as they spoke - then he cast Sectumsempra before ordering Nagini to kill. I closed the wounds from the hex and then found an anti venom in his robes, it did heal the bite some."

"Hermione, I think he is beyond anything I am able to do..." Hermione looked crestfallen, she had already seen too many people die, and though she couldn't explain it, she didn't want to see another person die, even Professor Snape, "But there is a doctor here-."

"Who is he, I'll go find him." Hermione said as she started toward the door.

"Dr. Bryce, he felt as if he needed to help. Says his daughter being a witch saved her life. I will send him my Patronus and have him come here

Before Hermione could answer, the mediwitch had her wand drawn and when a nightingale came forth she said, "Find Doctor Bryce, he needs to come alone."

Once the Patronus was gone Hermione turned to look out the window, she wondered what Harry had found from the memories that Professor Snape gave him. Was it a way to end this once and for all? She hoped so or all of this will be for nothing.

"Oh, Severus you've really done it this time." The sound of Madam Pomfrey speaking brought Hermione out of her musings, she turned to see the older witch smooth back the professor's hair, then she looked up to see such a look of compassion on her face. Hermione walked over to the table as Poppy looked up at her,

"He's always getting hurt, his whole time here. He was always in the hospital wing for something or another. I've always been able to fix him, but this..."

"I'm sorry I forced you to come, I just didn't know how else to get him the help he needed."

"I know, dear, it's just that I'm so angry at him. How could he kill Albus, then come back to be the headmaster?"

"I'm sure it was what Voldemort wanted, but there might be things we don't know."

"I'm sure there are," Poppy said as the door opened, admitting a middle aged man with dark hair graying at the temples and striking blue eyes.

"What have you got?"

Poppy explained as the man looked over the professor.

"I don't see how he is able to get any air, his throat is so swollen. I'm going to do a tracheotomy, it should-"

"A what?" Poppy asked.

"He's going to put a tube below where his throat is swollen so he can breathe better," Hermione answered automatically.

The doctor looked up at her before asking,

"Muggle-born?"

"Yes," Hermione said, nodding.

"Do you have any first aid or medical training?"

"Some, my parents are -were- oral and maxillofacial surgeons." She honestly didn't know if they were or not since she Obliviated them and sent them away.

"Can you prep?"

"Yes, do you have gloves?"

He handed her a pair of gloves before passing her the items she needed.

Hermione pulled the professor's shirt further apart, ripping the buttons off. She applied the alcohol, and then the iodine, to a big area above where the clavicle bones meet the manubrium bone.

Hermione looked up as the man standing across from her closed his eyes a moment before handing her the instruments that he would need for her to hand back to him, at her questioning looked he said,

"Never hurts to pray that all goes well."

Hermione watched as the man made the incisions then placed the tube, she hadn't realized how bad his breathing was until the tube was in and the wheezing stopped.

Hermione had to admit that she hadn't noticed the professor was wheezing that badly until the sound wasn't in the room any longer.

"Well that sounds better, but I think it's all I'm able to do for him now."

"I just hope the anti-venom was enough." Poppy said.

"He had a few years to work on it, Nagini attacked Arthur a few years ago and he came out fine."

"I hope you're right," Poppy said, "I hate to, but I think it would be best to leave him here for now. I just don't want to leave him alone, and I don't trust anyone else to not say something." She looked at Hermione.

"I have to get back to help Harry." Hermione said.

"Can you make some of those hospital screens here?" the doctor asked.

"Yes." Madam Pomfery replied as she took her wand out of her apron pocket and with a quick flick transfigured a nearby chair into a set of infirmary screens.

"We'll move the table to the corner, then, if anyone else needs me you have them brought here."

Three hours later it was over. Ron was gone, killed by Bellatrix. Harry was still alive. Hermione was hugging him close; They started walking back to the great hall, his arm around Hermione's shoulders when he said,

"Oh my God, the memories. Snape didn't kill Professor Dumbledore… well he did, but under orders, and we just left him there. Hermione, we need to go get his body before they take it. I don't even want to think what they will do to him, knowing that he was a traitor to them." Harry grabbed Hermione's hand, starting to pull her toward the boat house.

"Harry, slow down, come with me first."

"Hermione, you don't-"

"Just come with me, you'll see."

She tugged on Harry's hand until he followed her to the room that she had left the doctor and Professor Snape in. As she opened the door the doctor looked up, nodding at her as she looked at him. She took Harry to the other side of the room, pulling him behind the curtain when Harry saw Professor Snape's prone body he stopped fighting her.

"How?" Harry asked, shock evident in his voice.

"I just… Harry, after that attack I couldn't just do nothing."

"You are brilliant, Hermione." Harry said, putting an arm around her shoulders and kissing the side of her head.

"It wasn't me; the doctor is the real hero in this."

As if he heard, the doctor came behind the curtain.

"Well I suppose a thank you is in order, Mr. Potter. You really have made this world safe for everyone like my daughter."

Harry blushed, not knowing what to say so he only nodded before asking,

"Is he going to be okay?"

"It's too soon to know, one good thing is he seems to have a strong heart. It's not weak as I would expect, though I'm not truly happy with his respirations. Poppy said that his magic is good and it would seem the swelling has stopped."

"He's alive, that is more than I expected," Harry said.