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Frodo Lives!
Hermione chuckled as she spotted the fourth such graffiti since she’d left her parents’ place in Ealing earlier that morning. Apparently, the Tolkien nuts were already getting fired up for the films, even though the predicted release wasn’t for three more years. Working her way through the commuting crowds in Charing Cross, yet another one caught her eye.
This one was different from the others, she realized. She stopped for a moment, nearly getting run down by briefcase-wielding Londoners, and stepped out of the flow of traffic to study it more closely. This graffiti was glowing. And popping out of the wall three-dimensionally. And the letters were reforming into different characters.
Snape Lives!
Hermione glanced around her to see if anyone else noticed the peculiar sight, but it was as if the other passengers were all wearing blinders. She couldn’t help but stop and study this clever bit of charmwork, hiding in plain sight in the Underground.
“Snape lives?” she murmured in confusion. He most certainly didn’t live. She’d seen him die, even if his body wasn’t recovered later. Who on earth would go to this much trouble to make such a ludicrous claim? Unless it was some kind of Muggle-born rally cry? “Snape lives?” she said again, a bit louder.
Above the rumble of the trains, she heard the distinctive crack of apparition. Looking around again, her commuting compatriots hadn’t noticed the noise. Turning back once more, she noticed a narrow utility door right alongside the graffiti. She was pretty sure it hadn’t been there a moment earlier. Hermione grasped her wand firmly inside her jacket pocket, ignored her better judgment, and cautiously nudged the door open. A female house elf looked up at her, studied her gravely for a moment, then threw herself at Hermione’s leg, hugging it as if for dear life. The witch didn’t even have time to curse her own impulsiveness before the elf apparated, bringing Hermione along for the ride.
When the horrid squeezing, spinning sensation had stopped with another crack, Hermione found herself standing in a tidy, if somewhat shabby sitting room.
“Bego!” A rather hoarse, angry-sounding voice called from the room behind.
“Bego be coming!”
“Where did you go? What on earth were you doing?”
Hermione stood rooted to the ground, questioning if she had, in fact, woken up that morning, or if she was still sleeping. Magical graffiti in an Underground station did suggest a dream. Although, that apparition had felt nauseatingly real. Then again, hearing her dead professor’s voice coming from the adjoining room strongly hinted at “still sleeping.”
§§§§§§§§§
They had stood on the curb, solemnly staring at the charred remains of Snape’s home. Kingsley had recruited the three of them– Harry, Hermione, and Luna– to accompany him to Cokeworth, hoping to close the books on the Snape situation once and for all. Harry and Hermione had already obtained a full pardon for him from the Wizengamot, and Kingsley wanted three witnesses in addition to himself that Snape could reasonably be assumed dead. He’d lost a tremendous amount of blood in the Shrieking Shack, and although his body hadn’t been found, they’d been unable to discover even a hint of a rumor of Deatheater involvement in corpse-stealing. Hermione had floated the prospect that perhaps he’d been able to apparate home– wherever that was. But seeing, and even smelling a faint whiff of the burned-out timbers had dashed that hope as well. None of them had the stomach to get up closer and poke around the rubble. Best to let the dead rest in peace.
Luna, however, had returned by herself later that day. She could have sworn she’d sensed elf magic all around the property. Standing looking at the debris, she began calling out. “Hello? Helloooo? I know there’s a house elf around here somewhere!”
A very annoyed-looking elf strode out, seemingly from the empty air just a few feet back from the sidewalk. “What you doing? Why you call attention here?”
Luna smiled broadly. “I knew it!” She held out her hand. “It’s good to see you, Bego!”
The elf scowled at her suspiciously. “How you know Bego’s name?”
Still grinning, Luna said, “I think I know nearly all the Hogwart’s house elves. You perform such wonderful magic– I always stopped to admire your work whenever I could.”
Still scowling, Bego shot back, “Flattery not work on Bego. Why you here???”
“Oh, I’m not trying to flatter you, silly, I’m just being honest. And just as honestly, I’m here in search of Professor Snape.”
Bego gasped and took a step back. Luna pressed on. “He’s here, isn’t he. And you’re caring for him?”
Fighting back tears, Bego nodded. “Nobody can know. He prefer to die than go to Azkaban.”
Laughing delightedly, Luna said, “But he’s been cleared! He’s a hero now!”
Bego eyed her cautiously. “Truth?”
Luna crouched down, meeting Bego eye-to-eye. “Truth.” Standing up again, gesturing, she commented, “This is tremendous spell-work you’ve done here. Your secret is safe.” Sighing, she added, “But do you think we can persuade him to rejoin the world of the living?”
The elf grimaced. “Mister Severus need reason to want to live. No Azkaban not enough. Bego not know how to… to fix his heart.”
§§§§§§§§§
Again ignoring her better judgment, Hermione followed several steps behind the elf, cautiously peering into the adjoining room.
There, on a bed, black hair starkly contrasting his pallid white skin, lay Severus Snape, living and breathing. She gasped, and his black eyes darted to her, widened in surprise, then tightened angrily.
“Miss Granger. Am I deemed so frail that the Ministry didn’t even bother to dispatch Aurors to apprehend me? Or have you joined their employ already?”
Forcing her mouth shut, Hermione fumbled for words. “No, sir! No, no one wants to apprehend you. You’re presumed dead. And you’ve been exonerated by the Ministry.” Glancing at Bego, she added, “And I wasn’t even looking for you, sir, but apparently your house elf was looking for me.”
Snape fixed his stern glance at the elf. “Bego….” he said menacingly.
Tugging at her ears nervously, she replied, “Bego only want to help Mister Severus. But Bego not know how, and other witch, blonde one, say she know how.” The elf gestured at Hermione. “So blonde send this one.”
“Other blonde witch?” asked Hermione, frowning. “Who… Luna? Luna Lovegood?”
When Bego nodded, Hermione continued. “But I haven’t even seen her since…” She thought for a moment. “Since the day we went to your burned-out residence to officially pronounce you dead, Professor.”
Smirking, Snape replied, glancing around, “Burned out? My house may be dilapidated, but it remains intact.”
“Wait? This is your house? In Cokeworth?” When he nodded, she continued. “So you— Bego, was it? – had concealed it entirely and made it look like it had burned to the ground.”
“But the blonde one not fooled. She tell Bego Mister Severus not go to prison and she find someone to help.”
Shaking her head, Hermione replied, “But I’m telling you, we haven’t spoken since we visited the property.”
“Then how did you come to be here, Miss Granger?”
“I stopped to look at some unusual graffiti in the Underground, Professor. It was sort of glowing, and morphing, and popping out of the wall. It was clearly Magical and I couldn’t understand what it was doing in the Muggle tube like that.”
“And then?”
“Well, I read it aloud. It said Snape Lives. It made no sense, so I think I must have said it again. And then–” suddenly glaring— “Bego here shows up and abducts me!” Bego feigned innocence.
Snape frowned, deep in thought. “Affinitas.”
“Pardon?”
He shook his head slightly. “I suspect Miss Lovegood imbued her graffiti with the Affinitas charm. It’s older, rarely used these days. It is designed to identify compatibility with the recipient of the charm. Historically it involved the use of the person’s hair, or a personal belonging, but apparently Miss Lovegood was able to modify it to use my name instead.” He nodded. “Impressive.” He glared again, at Bego. “Why…???”
Bego defiantly put her hands on her hips. “Because Mister Severus need company! Not just Bego! Need reason to get better!”
“Now look here, you insolent elf—” Attempting to sit upright caused him to double over in pain.
“Professor!” Hermione dashed over in alarm. “Please don’t overdo it! Here, let me help you.” And much to his annoyance, she slipped an arm behind him to support his back, then stuffed some pillows behind to bolster him.
“See?” crowed Bego. “Miss Hermione help Mister Severus get better.”
Turning in confusion, Hermione asked, “What do you mean? I’ve just started a job at the ministry! I can’t be his nurse!”
“Bego nurse. Miss Hermione only must visit. Not all the time. But enough.” Seeing Hermione begin to object, Bego continued. “No argue. You give company. You–” she pointed at Snape– “Take company.” With a firm nod, Bego settled the matter. “Magic insist .”