Prologue
"Oh God! There's so much blood!" Hermione Granger knelt over Severus Snape in the Shrieking Shack's moldy living room a pool of his blood spreading beneath them. Even with his eyes out of focus, Severus would recognize that bushy hair anywhere. He'd managed to live long enough to give Potter the last piece of the puzzle. Even Granger could be trusted with something this simple. He clamped a hand around her forearm, his memories seeping out from his eyes, nose and mouth.
"Take them. Take... them." He rasped as he locked his dark eyes with her frantic ones.
"Harry, get the memories."She was tearing bits of her robe. He would have screamed as her hands compressed his neck, but the pain was fading into a comforting gray.
"What are you doing?" Potter's voice.
Granger sounded like she was down a hole. "Repaying a debt. Ron, give me the Dittany!"
He was so tired, so very tired. Tired of serving two Masters. Tired of stringing Potter along by the nose. Tired of being away from Lily. It had all fallen into place. He wasn't meant to survive the war and things were coming to pass as they should. Behind his eyelids, he could see the veil. Lily was behind that veil. On the threadbare carpet he smiled even as he choked on his own blood.
Lily.
Only now could he know if he'd earned her forgiveness. The veil rippled and fluttered, like a curtain on a summer breeze calling him, beckoning him. He tried to relax into it, as easy as falling off a broom stick. He waited for the singular embrace of death, his breath hitching in his chest.
"Hold on, Professor!" He felt the burning at the side of his neck anchoring him to the pain and weakness. The acrid smell of Ditanny jerked him back to the crumbling room.
"No!" He wanted to yell, but it came out as a ragged whisper. He was almost there.
"Are you mental, Hermione? Leave him!" Weasley.
Yes, leave me.
"Enough people have died. We owe him." She hissed, angry as a wet cat.
Just one more. Just me.
He struggled to keep the veil fluttering in his mind. He saw himself reaching out to part the curtains, to feel the radiance of Lily's smile on his face again. The distance between his fingers and that fluttering cloth was widening. It was slipping away. The comforting gray around him was fading to black streaked with pain.
Let me go, Miss Granger.
"I'll take him, Harry. Get to Dumbledore's office." When they hesitated, she yelled, "Go! There isn't much time!"
Snape grabbed a fistful of her robes and jerked her to his face, his eyes desperate, "Please...please Lily, forgive me?" Tears trickled from the corner of his eyes, his face was contorted in anguish.
_-**}{**-_
Hermione looked down at her Potion Master's frantic eyes, she was fighting him to keep up the pressure. She had to get him to St. Mungo's. He was getting more and more agitated. With a pang of guilt, she leaned in and whispered in his ear, "It's alright. I forgive you. Rest now."
He clung to her, weeping as they disapparated.
Chapter One
The Wizengamot
Severus was raised into the center of the courtroom, his arms bound to the arms of a heavy wooden chair. The chair clattered to a stop inside an iron cage. The rows of people climbed up the circular room into the darkness. As his eyes adjusted he picked out Minerva McGonagall sitting to the right of Kinglsey Shacklebolt at the head of the proceedings. So it was true, they'd made him acting Minister of Magic.
Off to his left he saw Potter and Weasley on the bottom bench whispering back and forth. To his right he saw his barrister sitting behind a long defense table with... was that Granger? He lifted his left eyebrow at her as they made eye contact. She kept her face impassive and turned back to the proceedings as Shacklebolt spoke.
"Severus Snape you have been accused of colluding with Death Eaters, killing or allowing to be killed over thirty wizards and muggles, including Albus Dumbledore..." And the list went on.
The prosecution was a rabid little wizard in blue robes. Every point the prosecution brought up, Severus's defense team would easily bat it aside. He was a member of the Order of the Phoenix. He was working exclusively under Dumbledore's orders. And so it dragged on.
He saw the press several rows up behind the defense table, scribbling madly with their quills. Apparently, the trial of Severus Snape was big news.
Hour after hour, witness after witness the wheels of wizarding justice ground ahead.
One gray-haired witch in the Wizengamot seemed particularly bloodthirsty. She was recognized by Shacklebolt as Miranda Blount. "Yes, yes," she said dismissively, "But the fact remains he bears the Dark Mark and he killed Albus Dumbledore. Isn't that proof enough?"
To Severus's surprise, Granger stood for the first time from his defense table with a resigned sigh, "I thought we would come to this. Madam Blount, am I correct in assuming that you have viewed Dumbledore's pensieve – currently noted as exhibit G?"
Blount gave a tight nod and Hermione continued, "And you recall the earlier testimony of no less than three Ministry memory officials who could find no evidence of any tampering with the memories, correct?"
Behind him he heard Weasley groan, "Hermione, no!"
Potter stood, "You don't have to do this!"
She met their eyes sadly, and nodded, "Yes, I do."
Madam Blount pursed her lips and snapped, "I was here, yes. Get to the point."
"The point, Madam, is this." Hermione jerked back her sleeve revealing an angry raised scar as long as her forearm reading Mudblood. She walked around the ring of the Wizengamot, putting her arm on display.
Madam Blount's voice went shrill over the murmurings in the crowd, "I fail to see..."
Hermione gave her a withering look, "Of course you do. You seem to have trouble accepting that Dumbledore would ask Severus Snape for help. You see, when Albus Dumbledore begged Severus Snape to end his life if he were ever captured he said, and I quote: Bellatrix likes to play with her food. There are only three people alive today that know exactly what that means: Frank and Alice Longbottom – who are currently in the permanent spell damage ward at St. Mungo's- and me."
Granger waited for the rumble of conversation to pass before continuing, "I received this scar while Bellatrix LaStrange tortured me. I assure you, it isn't the only one she gave me." She paused and walked to stand next to Severus.
He saw her scar, angry, red and puckered spelling out the slur. When had Bellatrix tortured her? Why hadn't he known?
With a wave of her wand, she freed the bindings around his wrists."Professor, if you would please roll up your left sleeve."
Their eyes locked. He had no idea where she was going with this. How far was he going to trust her? He slowly rolled up his left sleeve revealing his Dark Mark.
"As our inside man, Professor Snape also knew what Bellatrix was capable of. He was our spy in Voldemort's ranks. But he could not have been our spy without this. The Dark Mark that Voldemort himself gave him when he was brought into his innermost circle." On cue Severus held up his arm. "He and I both bear scars from this war, Madam Blount. We were both on the front lines. We both knew what Albus Dumbledore's last true request was. It is a travesty our justice system has to rely on wizards and witches in the Wizengamot who have no idea what really happened during the war."
McGonagall's mouth tightened as she admonished her, "Miss Granger!"
"I beg your pardon!" Blount spluttered, "If you continue in this vein, I'll have you held in contempt!"
Granger scoffed, even as Severus growled a near inaudible warning to her through the bars.
"You will hold me in contempt?" Granger barked a laugh, "That's rich, Madam. I hold you in contempt, as does everyone else who fought and died to be rid of Voldemort. Where were you when Cedric Diggory died and the Ministry vilified Albus Dumbledore? Where were you when the Dementors were being allowed to run rampant through Britain? Where were you when the muggle borns were being rounded up like cattle? Were you even at the Battle of Hogwarts, Madam?" Hermione was panting for breath. "Were you?" She blew out a long breath, clearing her face of errant hair.
"Careful, Granger," Severus growled quietly.
"Trust me." She hissed back out of the side of her mouth.
Shacklebolt was banging his gavel and his baritone voice boomed, "Miss Granger! I will have order!"
"Minister, Headmistress McGonagall, all of you who stood by me and Harry and Ron and Professor Snape, I beg your pardon. But for the rest of you, the ones that hid behind the might of the ministry, thinking only of yourselves, I beg you to find me in contempt. Please."
She crossed to the other side of the gallery and looked up into the press box at Rita Skeeter and smiled before turning back to Kinglsey. "The press would just love to hear what a certain girl heroine has to say about a certain Wizengamot witch who allowed muggle borns to be tortured and have their wands snapped right in this very room. I can and will name names."
Granger smiled up at Rita Skeeter. "I have friends in the press. Rita and I go way back." Rita giggled and gave a little wave as her Quick Quotes quill blurred back and forth over her notepad.
Granger wheeled on Blount, "When the truth comes out, who do you think the public will believe, Madam? You or me? It's time you all started acting in the best interest of the Wizarding Public and stopped hiding behind the letter of the law."
She crossed back to Severus's cage. "This man saved Harry's life. He saved Ron's life. He saved my life. He saved Dumbledore from a fate worse than death. Dark Mark or no, this war wouldn't have been won without Severus Snape, and it's time you all recognize that."
Granger turned to face Shacklebolt with her hands held out for binding. "Minister, I am ready to be found in contempt." She met Blount's eye and smirked in challenge.
A guard in gold security robes grabbed her elbow and Severus held his breath.
Shacklebolt called out, "All in favor of placing Miss Hermione Granger in contempt?" A smattering of hands went up, but the vast majority of the Wizengamot turned away.
"Motion failed. You are free to go, Miss Granger."
She yanked her elbow from the guard and turned to wink at him. Wink! At him! She flounced back to the defense table. He fought to hide his smirk. Insufferable know-it-all.
"Minister," His defense lawyer said, "I move that all charges against Severus Tobias Snape be dropped."
"I second!" Rang from the gallery.
"Hear, hear!" Another call echoed in the dark.
Shacklebolt banged his gavel again, "All those in favor of dropping all charges against the accused?" He took a quick view of the votes. Blount didn't raise her hand. "Motion passed. Charges dropped, please free the accused. Let's break for lunch and resume here at two o'clock."
The cage was lifted, his feet were unbound and he made his way to the defense table. His barrister and Granger were straightening up their mounds of paperwork. He placed his hand on the stack nearest her and waited as she shoved random piles into her bags. When she tried to yank his pile in the bag, it wouldn't budge. She looked up.
"Oh, Professor. Congratulations."
He raised his brow, "Indeed. It would seem someone let a rabid NEWT student form my defense strategy. Did you qualify to practice law while I was in the hospital?"
She blushed. "No, sir. I-" And in that moment she seized him around the middle and hugged him.
Severus froze.
She whispered, "It was the only way without showing them these." He felt several small items tinkle into his pockets. "Let's go claim your wand, and I'll buy you a cup of tea."
Rita Skeeter bustled by with her photographer in tow, "Picture for the evening edition." A flashbulb blinded both of them. "Listen, Hermione, do you think you and I could get a drink sometime this week? Love to do a column on the corruption you were talking about." She spun on Severus, "Any comment for the Prophet?"
Hermione threw him a 'be nice' look. He sighed and snapped, "Miss Granger was brilliant. Now if you'll excuse us." He grabbed Hermione by the elbow and hustled her out the courtroom door.
