bluefirefly5: Thank you so much for your kind review! The Easter-egg letters is a Scandinavian tradition – but as Easter is late in the school year, I wanted to place the game early in the story and thought that misunderstanding when to play a Muggle game, would be something the wizards would do.

A/N: Please review so I know, if people are enjoying the story, or if I should stop writing it.

The next morning Hermione sat in the hall eating her breakfast, while Ron and Harry talked passionately about the upcoming quidditsch game. Hermione looked at Professor Snape, who seemed to be deep in conversation with Professor McGonagall. She wondered, if she should thank him for the chocolate or perhaps tell him, that he had misunderstood the game. Since he had guessed the letter was from her, he didn't have to give her chocolate; she would have had to buy him a chocolate-egg. She realized, he might be angry no matter what she did: He might be angry, if she was so ill-mannered not to thank him; he might be angry if she thought it okay to talk to him in order to thank him; he might be angry, if he found out, he had not needed to give her the chocolate-egg; and he definitely might be angry, if he found out, she had known and still taken the egg. There really was no winning this. Hermione sighed and looked at her plate with untouched breakfast. Why on earth had she made the letter and sent it to him..

Harry looked at Hermione, when she sighed, and exchanged a knowing glance with Ron. Everyone who had stayed at Grimmauld Place after the war knew, that Hermione was suffering from terrible nightmares, and usually that left her tired and exhausted. Harry and Ron had tried talking to her about it, and he knew, Professor McGonagall had tried to help her by offering to obliviate the worst of her memories, but Hermione had refused to even talk about it. Harry put his hand on her shoulder: "Are you all right, Hermione?"

Hermione jumped a little as he ripped her out of her thoughts and spilled some pumpkin juice on her robe. She looked at her robe, and when she looked up, her eyes briefly caught Professor Snape's eyes at the teacher's table. She felt clumsy and embarrassed and..."Oh Harry, you scared me" she said, trying to dry of the juice from her robe. Looking at Harry and Ron's questioning faces, she stood up and smiled at them: "I'm fine. I'm just a little tired. I'll just go change to another robe before classes." She quickly left. "She doesn't have classes until this afternoon" Harry looked at Ron, who continued: "And why didn't she just use a cleaning-spell on her robe?". Harry shrugged, and let his eyes follow his friend, as she left the dining hall. "Harry?" Ron said, almost in a whisper "you don't think it is because of me, do you? I mean, we both agreed, we didn't match, but sometimes I wonder, if the times we kissed have made her feel awkward around me?" Harry patted Ron's back "I don't think, that is it Ron. I think, she still doesn't sleep because of the nightmares." "Oh... good" Ron said, immediately clasping a hand in front of his mouth: "Not, good but better. No. I mean. Not good that she's having nightmares. But good..." Harry laughed: "Don't worry Ron, I know, what you mean."

Snape had watched Hermione out of the corner of his eye, since she entered the hall for breakfast. He had felt her eyes on him all morning, and it made him uneasy. He had wanted to send her a strict glare, but for some reason had not. She annoyed him more than usually, especially since he had sent her that chocolate-egg. He could not explain, why he had bought it and sent it to her, in the first place. But why he had taken the time to place a spell on it, so the chocolate carvings matched the clippings from her letter, was beyond his own understanding. The girl was annoying. He shouldn't even have given her chocolate, since he had guessed, the letter was from her. He felt a knot forming in his stomach; she shouldn't have sent him the letter! He looked up, as he heard a small shriek coming from her direction, and his eyes locked with hers. He felt frozen and watched as she blushed, broke eye contact and stood up in what to him suddenly seemed like slow-motion. She smiled at the trio-boys and left the room. Snape snapped back to reality, as Professor Bilding asked him a to pass the salt.

Half an hour later, Hermione walked up the tower, holding a green, velvet box. Before the war, she had found out, Professor Snape usually came here, looking out over the open spaces in front of the school. She had wandered here by accident the first time, she had found him here, and had thought, he hadn't heard her. She had watched him, as he seemed to stare at the world and at nothing, until he had snarled at her to leave. Since then she had started up the stairs several times without really knowing why, and as soon as she saw his back in front of the open arch, she turned around and left.

Today she had looked for him in his classroom, but it had been empty, so she had decided to look in the tower. As she reached the top landing, she saw him standing with his back at her, looking out at the open spaces. She stopped at the top of the stairs, took a deep breath and opened her mouth to speak, as she heard his distinct voice: "Miss Granger, what brings you here to once again disturb me?" He turned around and glared at her in what had to be contempt. Hermione swallowed hard. She looked at him, avoiding his eyes; she couldn't meet his eyes, not after leaving him that horrible night. She held out the box: "Sir, I wanted to thank you for the chocolate-egg, it is so beautiful. But since you guessed, the letter was from me, it wouldn't be right for me to take it. I should be giving you something instead..."

Snape glared at her, as he spoke: "Ah Miss Know-it-all has returned, I see. And you think yourself so superior, that you know the game better than I do? Need I remind you, you are merely a student? The game is wrong to begin with, it is supposed to be played at Easter, and why you would find it appropriate, to involve me in your childish games, I do not know, but let me take the damned egg off your hands if you do not want it!" He looked fuming with anger as he took a step towards her, and stretched out his hand. Hermione was taken aback by the gravity of his anger, and for some reason felt tears welling up, blurring her vision. As he suddenly took a step towards her, she instinctively stepped back, into nothing. She gasped as she realised, that only the descending stairs were behind her, and she started falling.

Snape had heard her coming up the stairs, and had felt annoyed. Why did she keep coming back to his one place of solitude? This was where he came to think; the view and the wind helping him clear his mind. And especially today, as she was on his mind. The memory of her caring for him, while he was ill, the knowledge that she was the reason, he had survived, haunting his mind - he didn't need her interruptions! He turned with an insult, and heard her explaining, why she didn't want his present. He felt a stinging in his breast, that annoyed him. Without time to figure out, why this hurt him, without wanting to find out, he instead opted for anger, as he chastised the girl. If she had not wanted the damned chocolate, she should have left him alone. He took a step towards her, ready to rip the damned thing out of her hands and throw it out the window. He saw her eyes shimmering with tears before widening in shock, as she took a step backwards and started falling into the abyss behind her. He quickly ran towards her just in time to get a hold of her hand and yank her forward. The impact made her small body crash into him, and he fell backwards hitting the floor, Hermione landing on top of him.

She landed with her face pressed into his shoulder, and for a minute they just lay there, hearts racing from the shock. Snape's arms had instinctively come around her, holding her firmly to him. As his thoughts slowed and the adrenalin wore off, he started loosening his grip. "Miss Granger? Are you all right? Are you hurt?" Hermione slowly lifted her head, until their eyes met, noses almost touching, and both of them froze. Snape looked into deep hazel and gold, and felt lost in her eyes. They still held shimmering tears, and he could feel her breath on his lips. A streak of her hair had come loose and hung in her face, tickling his nose. Without thought, he raised his hand and gently tucked it behind her ear. He felt an urge to close the small distance between them, but suddenly reality came crushing back. He jumped up, taking her with him and holding her steady but at arms length. The girl looked just as confused as he felt and again avoided meeting his eyes. That clumsy, annoying girl, why would she.. Before he could work up another rage, he heard her gasp and saw her fall to her knees. He looked at her in surprise, as he saw her picking up the pieces of the chocolate-egg, she had dropped. "Oh Professor" she said, finally looking at him with big tears running down her cheeks "I ruined it. I dropped it, and now it's broken. And after you bought it for me, even though... even though..." She started sobbing uncontrollably.

Snape looked at the girl in astonishment. For Merlin's sake, it was only a chocolate-egg! How could that make the proud and strong Granger girl fall apart like that? He wanted to tell her off and to leave but had a sudden flashback of her hand brushing away his hair from his fevered forehead, and before thinking, he took her by the arm, pulled her up and gently brushed away her tears with his thumb. She stopped sobbing and looked up at him. His hand stopped it's movement, still cupping her cheek. He bowed his head towards her, and his hair fell down on each side of them, like curtains. "It's only a chocolate-egg Miss Granger". Hermione thought, he almost smiled. She felt her stomach and heart flutter, and thought he must be able to hear it. She started lifting her face towards his.

Just before meeting her lips, Snape suddenly straightened up and pushed her away. His eyes were back to their usual condescending glare: "Well, Miss Granger, it seems you are all right. I suggest you take better care of where you place those clumsy feet of yours." He walked around Hermione and quickly disappeared down the steps.

Hermione followed him with her eyes, before she sat down and cried all of her frustration, confusion and guilt out. She didn't understand, what had just happened. She knew, he had always been annoyed by her, and that now he must hate her for leaving him in the shack. She wanted his forgiveness more than anything and still felt, she didn't deserve it. And then she had almost fallen, and he had caught her. The feeling of his arms around her, as they had fallen back on the ground, and she had landed on top of him, had been one of pure safety. He had sounded almost concerned, when he had asked her, if she was all right. And then... had they almost kissed? Hermione shook her head. The shock of almost falling down the stairs must be clouding her mind. He had pushed her away, of that she was sure. And then she had seen the shattered chocolate-egg, and suddenly it had reminded her, how she had failed him in the Shrieking Shack, and how he had still bought her a present, making all her guilt resurface. She didn't understand, how he had changed again so quickly, why he had comforted her, but her cheek still ached in a sweet way, after the touch of his thumb, brushing away her tears, and she could still feel the huff of his breath on her face, as he told her, it was just a chocolate-egg. She was sure, she had wanted to kiss him. He must have noticed, since he had left so suddenly. Great, now she had also embarrassed herself! It must have been the shock of almost falling down the stairs and breaking her neck. Hermione straightened her back and shoved the thoughts out of her mind with a sharp intake of breath, and started walking down the stairs.

Meanwhile Snape sat in his private chambers, staring at nothing and muttering: "What the hell almost happened..." In his mind, he went through the events in the tower and reached the only plausible explanation: adrenalin! It was all due to adrenalin after the clumsy witch had almost fallen to her death. Annoying, little know-it-all. He shrugged the thoughts away and headed for the classrooms.