The Potions Master and the Ravenclaw

"Stay With Me"

Snape and Madeline apparated just outside the castle gates.

Snape immediately took her face in his hands, trying to discern her features in the darkness.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

She nodded, closing her eyes and holding his arms to steady herself.

"Severus..."

"Shhh. Wait." He took out his wand. "Homenum Revelio," he said.

They both stood very still, listening. They heard nothing.

"We're alone. Apologies, darling. I needed to make certain we weren't being watched."

She clutched his robes tightly in her fists, her eyes filling with tears. "Severus! That man! What will happen to that poor muggle?"

"I... I don't know, love."

"Will they murder him? They'll kill him, won't they?"

"It is... likely," he said gently, touching her cheek.

"No!" Her eyes were wide. "Can we help him? What can we do?"

"Nothing, Madeline. He is probably already dead."

"Nothing? We can't just do nothing!"

"I know it's upsetting, but we cannot tip our hand. If we were to help him, we would reveal ourselves to the Dark Lord and it is far too early for that. This is war, love. As horrible and tragic as it is, some will be lost. Sacrificed. It is a necessary evil to reach our intended end. There's a long game to be played. Do you understand?"

She closed her eyes for a moment and wiped her tears, then looked into his face and nodded. "I understand. But that poor, poor man..."

"Now you see why we must fight. Why we must work to defeat the Dark Lord."

She nodded again, then let out a sob and covered her mouth with her hand as if trying to hold it in.

He pulled her to him and wrapped her in his cloak. Her arms went around his waist and she buried her face in his chest. "Shhhhh. Try not to think about it, my love. I know it's hard."

"I'll try. And thank you for saving me from Greyback."

He tightened his hold on her. "I almost killed him."

"I know. I really thought you would."

"I should have done. That's why I wanted to talk to the Dark Lord alone. To get permission to... deal with him if needs be. When I saw that animal looking at you, I knew there'd be trouble."

She pulled away to look at his face. "What did he say?"

"He granted my request."

"You really are his favorite."

"Yes. He doesn't care about Greyback. He hates werewolves because they are half breeds. He is disgusted by them but he puts up with Greyback because he knows he can sway his pack to support the Death Eaters. He is useful at the moment, but expendable. Easy to replace."

"He's... evil."

"Yes. You must never be alone with him, Madeline. He's known to have a taste for young girls and you're just his type. He hunts and kills even when he isn't transformed. I should never have left you alone, but I needed to speak with the Dark Lord. I didn't think he was foolish enough to go near you. I won't make that mistake again."

"He said he could smell me. He was actually salivating. He said he wanted to lick my pure blood off his lips." She shuddered in his arms.

"Shhh. It's alright. You're safe." He held her even more tightly.