Chapter 1
Hermione fell to her knees beside Severus, her hands shaking as she tried to assess the damage. “Severus! No! Please!” she begged, rolling him onto his back. Pressing her palm against his throat, she felt the warmth of his blood sliding thick and warm under the useless pressure of her hand. “Stay with me, Severus! I can help you!” Tears streamed down her cheeks as she desperately searched his face for any sign of life, pouring potions down his throat.
His dark eyes fluttered open, and he called for Harry. “Potter, take them,” he managed to rasp, trying to indicate the tears pooling at the corners of his eyes.
“Take it, Harry, take it and go!” Hermione yelled. Harry and Ron just stared at her in shock. “Hermione?” Ron asked, his voice barely a whisper, but she ignored him, her gaze returning to Severus.
“Please! Don’t leave me!” She had to save him; she had to believe that he would fight for her just as she would fight for him. “You promised,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “You promised until after eternity, Until before everything. Don’t you dare leave me Severus Snape!”
She heard Harry and Ron gasp, but the sound was drowned out by the rush of blood in her ears as her fear overwhelmed her. Tears continued to stream down her cheeks, pooling on the floor of the Shrieking Shack and mixing with his blood.
His dark eyes met hers, filled with a mixture of pain and an undeniable love that shattered her heart. “Hermione,” he whispered, each word a struggle. “We’ll meet in the end. Time is a sea but not a shore.”
She wanted to scream, to shake him awake, to make him fight, but all she could do was hold onto his hand as if her life depended on it.
His breath hitched, the struggle evident in the way his chest rose and fell. She could feel the warmth slipping away, his magic—so strong—dwindling before her eyes. “Look at me,” he said, his voice growing weaker. She did, staring deeply into his beautiful, dark eyes. “I love you.”
“Please, Severus, I love you” she begged, leaning closer, her forehead resting against his. “Don’t leave me. Not like this. I can’t bear it. We haven't had much time”
But his eyes began to flutter. With every breath, he slipped further from her grasp, and she felt a part of herself breaking away with him. “Stay with me,” she pleaded, squeezing his hand tighter, willing him to fight. “I need you. We can still find a way. We can make it through this.”
He didn’t respond; his breath became shallow, more erratic. “You promised,” she cried again, desperation flooding her words. “You promised eternity.”
As if hearing her silent plea, he took one last, shuddering breath. “I will always be with you,” he whispered, his voice barely above a breath. With that, he exhaled one final time, and his eyes fluttered shut. “No!” she screamed, cradling his head in her lap.
The air around her seemed to shift, a gentle breeze brushing against her skin, kissing her face with an otherworldly warmth. In that moment, she could hear his voice, smooth and far away, yet as close as her own heartbeat.
“Until after eternity,
Until before everything,
We will meet, you will see in the end.
Time is a sea but not the shore.
Until the ends of the wind,
Until the light goes out,
We will meet, you will see in the end.
Time is a sea but not the shore.
You will see in the end.”
The grief became too much to bear. The world began to fade, darkness creeping into her vision as she felt herself slip away. She fainted, collapsing beside the man she loved, her heart forever belonging to him