A Better Fate...

Severus lay as the trio left him, completely spent, staring off to the far musty corner of the room. How he hated this place. It seemed a cruel twist that fate would have him bleeding out here, years after he had been pulled from a certain death that waited in these very rooms. He rasped out another shallow breath as the dim light grew to blinding brilliance, and he knew the end had finally come at last. Though he had little strength left to function, it occurred to him as a vague surprise that he be met with light at all, rather he had always expected to simply be eclipsed into darkness and chill. Yet from the center of the room it radiated out, and he could feel the warmth as several hooded figures formed from within it. One, in the center of them, lowered a white cloak to reveal a woman of luminescent ivory skin, eyes of an uncommon teal blue, and hair a pale strawberry. He noted a petal pink flush to her cheeks and lips, as the flush of youth, yet he could not have begun to place her age. Beside her stood another beauty, darker and if possible, lovelier. This child, for she could hardly have been older than his seventh years, wore the garb of a princess of old, a silver circlet over raven tresses, silver cuffs on her arms, and a gown of deep midnight blue that set off striking forget-me-not eyes.

As the others approached, remaining hooded, he could tell by their shapes they were all men. All hooded, but no Death Eaters. These men were robed as bards or the Druids of ages long past. They surrounded his body, their hands outstretched as he lay, too weak to move or fend them off as he knew surely someone must have seen this group enter from the grounds where the battle still raged. The dark one knelt by his head, lifting it to meet a chalice the fair one brought to his lips. He could not tell but the light seemed to emanate from them, all of them, as the men kneeled in a circle and laid hands upon him. Trying to swallow the water he was offered, he choked down some drops of the metallic tasting liquid as his neck began to burn and his body warmed until he felt quite hot. A bubbling at his neck brought on a new fear as he wondered fleetingly what this group was doing, any efforts he may have made to question or stir were squelched as everyone but the dark one above him began to chant softly, a thrumming sound that rose and fell with an almost palpable energy.

The wounds at his neck hissed and bubbled malevolently and the heat from his body had him breaking out into a sweat all over again. He looked from one person to the other, only the ladies' faces fully visible as if to plead with them to stop. Their chanting hum peaked to crescendo as he felt the last oozing trickle from the gouges Nagini had left and his skin suddenly felt as though it was knitting itself together again. The chants abruptly stopped as the hands lifted off of him and the heat dissipated. Once again the blonde woman (was she a woman?) tipped the goblet to his lips, and now he drank thirstily of water he could finally describe as tasting distinctly and strongly of iron.

Feeling his strength returned, Severus sat up, looking at the floor behind him at what he was sure must now be nearly all his life's blood drained, he was surprised to see the majority of it was a bilious milky liquid...venom. "But, how?" he asked, not even knowing how to phrase the question. As he turned back to face his saviors, the hooded men were already fading back into the light in center of the room. The two women remained, both rising as the fair one smiled.

"Our magic is older by far than any you have learned, Severus Snape," she said with a strange lilt. Both women held out hands to help him up, surprising him with their strength as they hauled him to his feet. Raising his hands to his neck and face, he was astounded to feel not only healed wounds, but smooth and unmarked skin.

At the shock on his face, the surly furrow of his brow, the dark one laughed gently. "You have been healed by the Hooded Ones, and drunk the healing waters of Slane, blessed by Dian Cecht." The names rang a bell, deep in the recesses of his mind, something he was sure Binns had mentioned years ago in his days as a schoolboy. "I am Lasair," said the dark-haired one. "This is Coventina, who comes from the sacred well. She's a healer as well. We are of the Aes Sidhe, the ones of the hills, and came on the orders of Cailleach. The Lady wishes to see you, as you are much a hero in our world as in your own. It is she who deemed you to be saved from death. She has requested your presence, Severus the spy, and she waits."

At this, she held out a hand as Coventina, nodding, stepped through the door ahead of them and walked out of the shack.