In Severus' Name

Summary: Severus, at home in Spinner's End, receives a package and a letter from Hermione, care of Ginny, turning his world upside down… A tragic love story, spanning roughly 15 years.

A/N: Set in an alternate timeline (well, duh!), so expect non-standard shippings (ah, Harry and Hermione will be together… for once, mwahahahaha!). Technically, there are spoilers, so if you haven't read all six books, I wouldn't read. Depending on Book #7 when it finally comes out, I might have to make a major re-write.

Legalness: Obviously, I'm not JK. I don't even live in the UK. So, it's obvious I don't own HP. However, if you're going to sue, Ms. Rowling, please sue the writers of the other 235977 (as of 12th March '06) fanfics, okay?

Chapter One – Where Are They Now?

Severus Snape was sitting in his lounge room in Spinner's End, clutching a photo of Hermione Granger, far gone from her days at Hogwarts. She was staring up at him, waving. Her eyes had that look of joy in them, reflected on her face. The photo itself was taken at a fairly recent ball for S.P.E.W., the Society for the Protection of Elfish Welfare.

Hermione has made a name for herself in the Wizarding community. After graduating from Hogwarts – with the highest NEWTs Hogwarts had seen in a long time – many were stunned to hear of Hermione's decision to undertake further study at the Muggle university, Oxford. Fortunately, Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts' headmistress, had connections among the lecturers there, so Hermione would not have to come up with why she disappeared from the school systems.

Completing university, Hermione took the training to become an Auror, but never actually became one. Hermione also continued her work with S.P.E.W., the Society for the Protection of Elfish Welfare. As she was in the public eye a lot, Hermione had taken to using Sleekeazy's Hair Care Potion daily, and wearing beautiful, but practical, dress robes.

As for Severus, he was a hunted criminal for a long time, having murdered Albus Dumbledore. However, it was discovered in Dumbledore's will that this was so he could continue spying on Voldemort. After the fall of Voldemort, Snape returned to Hogwarts, but only briefly so he could gather his belongings, and returned to Spinner's End, awaiting the Death Eaters who would come after him for having betrayed the Dark Lord.

Severus had then become a philosopher of sorts, now having the time to contemplate, deciding the world would be better off without him in the public eye. Being a recluse had its benefits, but as a recluse, you never expect visitors…

Snape was sitting in the same lounge that had an emotional Narcissa Malfoy pleading for him to assist Draco several years ago. Outside it was pitch black; the area was experiencing a power cut. It was also snowing lightly. As usual, he was not expecting visitors. All of a sudden, Severus heard a faint bang.
"Apparition?" he asked himself. Leaning forward, he went to pick up his wand. Lights in the window appeared, the sound of an engine and wheels crunching on the snow could be heard.
"Only a passing car," he thought to himself. Severus leant back into the lounge, and picked up the book resting face down, opened about halfway on the arm, Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals by Immanuel Kant.

Several minutes later, Severus was shaking his head at what Kant had written when he heard a knock at the door; a single, gentle tap. Suspicious, he listened for another knock, but heard nothing.

Obviously, it was a wizard, for Severus had made his house Unplottable. But the only wizards that knew where his house was were Death Eaters and Dumbledore.
"Albus?" he whispered, thinking that Dumbledore had come back to kill him. "But this is what you wanted…" Severus shook his head at this thought. "Dumbledore is dead… Pull yourself together!" he thought. "All this time cooped up this damn house… You're losing your mind, Severus." Snape picked up his wand off the coffee table, and slowly walked to the front door.

Severus placed an eye near the peephole built into the stained pine door. All he could see, however, was a figure wearing a black cloak with a hood. Completely unrecognisable. Poking out the bottom of the right sleeve was a wand tip.
"Whomever you are, you're not getting me!" thought Snape, unchaining the door and muttering a spell to unlock it. He grasped the handle with his left hand, having raised his wand with his right. He pulled open the door fast and was about to disarm the figure when he heard…

"Severus?" Snape dropped his wand upon hearing the direct, female voice.
"Granger? Is that you?" he asked, shocked. She pulled her hood off, and placed her wand in a pocket in her cloak. Indeed, standing in front of him was the same face, the same bushy brown hair and the same smile he had remembered coming from Hermione. She nodded.

"How long have you been here for?"

"Several months, but how did you find me?"

"Draco. He overheard his father and Borgin discussing 'plans'…" Hermione looked him up and down.
"You bastard! I'm not stupid, you know! You baited them, didn't you?" Snape went pale. "How did she work that out?" Snape asked himself.

He shook his head. "I needed to do what was right."
"'Do what was right'? The right thing to do would've been not baiting them!"
"Perhaps. But at least the world is now rid of some filth," he said coldly. Out of nowhere, Hermione slapped him. Snape flinched from the pain.

"How could you? You disappear and go into hiding! You don't tell me what you're doing and now I hear this! Why?" screamed Hermione. She collapsed onto him, sobbing. Severus wrapped his arms around her.

"I did this… I did this because I needed to repay for some of my wrongs. Dumbledore… He asked me to… I never wanted to… But I had to… I had to hurt in the process." he whispered to her. "I thought you wouldn't want anything to do with me…" Hermione laughed grimly.
"Severus… You may know a lot, but you can be so stupid sometimes." She looked up at him, a silent pleading in her eyes.

"Never again, Hermione," Snape thought to himself. He kissed her lightly, yet passionately, on her lips.
"You're right…" With them words, Hermione pulled herself away from Severus and closed the front door.

Severus was now, somewhat, a softer person. He would admit that. Still, it had hurt him to find that Hermione still was not willing to trust him. He never betrayed her with another woman, as she had with him, countless times. Yet, he always had been more than willing to return to her.
"So what did I do to her that betrayed her trust?" asked Snape to himself. Absent-mindedly, he picked up another photo, one of her, Harry and the Weasleys. It was taken outside the Burrow, around her fourth year at Hogwarts. Even at that time, Severus was taken in by her. "God, I have no hope," he thought to himself.

Out of nowhere, he heard tapping. Looking out the window, Severus could see a snowy owl with a large wingspan, having a hold of what looked like a very heavy package in its talons.

"Hedwig?" Snape got off the lounge he was sitting on, rushed forward to the window and opened it. The owl flew in, dropped the package on the table and flew out again, not even acknowledging Severus. He closed the window again, noticing the first few flakes of snow starting to come down.

He walked back to the lounge, sitting down and staring at the package. Simply wrapped in brown paper and tied together with twine, one would dismiss it as a simple care package. However, attached on the top was a white envelope, with Severus' address on it. Leaning forward, he tugged out the envelope and leant back onto the lounge.

Poking a finger carefully into the side of the envelope, he opened the flap and pulled out the bit of parchment inside. Unfolding the parchment, he recognised the simple, childish writing easily, having seen it on numerous Potions essays.

"Ginny Weasley?" he thought.

Professor,

I honestly don't know what Hermione sees in you. I saw you in school as a bias, hook nosed, greasy haired git. Upon Hermione telling me you two were together I thought you were a hook nosed, greasy haired, reclusive git. I'm telling you this just so you know where I stand.

I've sent you this package because Hermione's asked me to. As you more than likely know, as this was your fault in the first place, you stupid prat, Hermione's gone running back off to live as a Muggle recluse. But this time, she doesn't seem like her reclusive self. She seems happy. A happy, reclusive Hermione is NOT good.

So make yourself useful, you stupid hook nosed, greasy hared, reclusive git, and get her back to normal, or I swear you will be hexed!

Sincerely,
Ginny Weasley

Severus read this letter several times over. What Ginny, of all people, was saying just wasn't sinking in. Severus looked at the package again. Pulling on the twine, the bow on it came apart. Tearing away at the paper, what Severus saw made his heart stop. Every letter Severus sent Hermione, their photos and several flasks containing a silvery liquid.
"No..." Severus was shaking his head, "why are you doing this to me, Hermione?" Quickly scrambling through the contents, Snape was searching for something - anything - that could give him clues to what was going on. The only thing unusual he could find though, was a single fake nail, painted black. Severus picked up the nail and laughed.
"You're not serious, are you Hermione?" he asked aloud. He laughed for a bit longer before sighing. "I hate them! I hate them, I hate them I hate them!"

Having realised where Hermione was heading to, Severus rushed to open the hidden door behind the bookshelves, hurried into his room, grabbed a bag, rushed back into the loungeroom, loaded the package contents into his bag, grabbed a Pensieve off the shelf, closed the bag and rushed out the door. If Hermione wanted a chase, a chase she was going to get.