Chapter 1
3 Years Later
Hermione stepped through the fireplace into the library of 12 Grimmauld Place. Severus Snape, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Kingsley Shacklebolt lifted their heads curiously. They all crowded around a table laden with papers, maps, and open books.
"How was-?" Harry began.
Before he could finish, Hermione let out a yell of frustration, throwing her bag from her shoulder to the floor, ripping her robes off to slap them onto the couch.
She flung a murderous glare Kingley's way. "You-I- They-UGGG!!" With the last gutteral response, Hermione stormed from the library, her stomping feet hammering the steps mercilessly.
Kingsley turned towards his three fellows. Unable to speak from shock he gestured with his thumb towards the empty doorway.
Harry sighed and nodded.
"This happens A LOT," Ron explained their casual expressions.
Severus snorted. "That's a bit of an understatement."
Harry nodded his head. "Yeah, actually most days end like this. This or tears."
Kingsley frowned. "Surely they can't be that bad!"
Severus raised a dark eyebrow. "Would you like to tell her that?"
Kingsley shook his head and held his hands up in surrender. "I've seen enough of her wandword to know better. How does she handle it?"
Ron nodded his head towards the door. A few moments later, quick steps could be heard on the stairs. As Hermione passed the library door she spoke a single word. "Leaving."
"Have fun!" Ron called.
"Don't break someone else's nose!" Harry called after her.
Kingsley raised an eyebrow at Snape. The dark haired man shook his head, slick black locks falling over his eyes. "She boxes so she won't hurt anyone else. Though a couple days ago she hit the sandbag and sent it flying into another boxer. It kind of broke his nose."
"She felt bad afterwards," Ron reminded them.
Harry nodded. "She'll be fine. Now back to the matter at hand. What is causing -"
And they were back to discussing a recent Auror case. The men continued for another two hours and hey we're finally coming to a close when the front door swung open.
"Hermione's back!" Her voice was slightly breathless but much more relaxed. She hurried up the stairs and soon the run of water sounded.
Harry turned back to Kingsley. "You are welcome to stay for a drink Kingsley."
The dark skinned man smiled but shook his head. "Thank you but I must return to my office. There are a few notes I need to finish before I can officially check out for the day. Good night!"
Each man called out a goodnight to their fellow. Harry and Ron began gathering the papers and maps while Severus returned each book to their respective shelves.
Harry collapsed onto the couch, head hanging over the back. Ron slumped into an armchair, extending his long legs towards the fireplace while Severus settled himself at the other end of the couch Harry was draped onto.
After several minutes of comfortable silence footsteps were heard on the stairs once more. Hermione shuffled into the library, dressed in an overlarge cream colored sweater, with knitted grey knee high socks and comfortable shorts. Her damp curls were pulled into a knot at the top of her head.
With a sigh the young woman curled on the couch, setting herself between Harry and Severus. Harry sent a sympathetic smile towards his sister. "So what happened today?"
Hermione sighed deeply, slumping against the back of the couch. "Just the usual. We're still going over how to ensure another war doesn't occur and today we moved on to the creatures aspect of it." Hermione closed her eyes. "When I brought up some of the many reasons the creatures were in the war and how we could possibly stop it from happening again, let's just say many did not agree. I'm sure it's because they don't feel like taking the time necessary to create and implement solutions. Board member Hodges told me, 'That's nice dearie, but you're so young. Why don't you leave the war talk to the grownups.'"
Ron gave a cry of outrage. Harry's eyebrows disappeared into the wild locks hanging down. Severus gaze softened the tiniest bit.
Hermione shrugged. "Before I could make a fool of myself Lucius stood up and spoke for me. He reminded them that they were talking to a part of the Golden Trio who had, while still in school, taken down not only the powerful wizard Voldemort, but also had discovered and taken out seven hocruxes to ensure he never returned again."
Ron chuckled. "Never thought Lucius Malfoy, supreme lord pureblood, would be the most helpful for you, Mione." The red haired wizard looked down at his prized watch, the one he had received on his seventeenth birthday.
A smile pulled at his lips. "Well I'll see you guys either late tonight or early tomorrow. I've got a date to meet!" With an excited wave he hurried towards the Floo and with a flash of green flame, disappeared.
Harry glanced at Hermione. "You still sure you're okay with this?"
Hermione gave the wild haired wizard a look. "For the millionth time, yes! I told you we both agreed that we could never be more than best friends. There was just too much between us to go any further...if that makes any sense."
Harry smiled. "I get it, just making sure. I'm meeting up with Ginny actually." The young man heaved himself to his feet, pulling his arms above his head and stretching his entire lengthy body. "Don't wait up."
Dropping a kiss onto Hermione's forehead, Harry picked up a handful of Floo powder and disappeared with a flash of green flames. Hermione sighed and scooted to place her back against the abandoned arm of the chair. The move positioned her so that her side was pressed into the back of the couch, her body facing Severus.
With a flick of her wand, the book she had been reading flew from a table and into her hand. As she set her wand down on the side table and opened the welcoming cover, Severus' forearm hooked underneath her knees. With a small twist, the dark haired man pulled Hermione's legs onto his lap.
A smile pulled at Hermione's lips. Severus similarly summoned a book, laying it gently on her shins. A comfortable sigh escaped her lips as she turned towards her book.
Several months after Voldemort had been defeated, the Aurors and remaining members of the Order were still trying to track down escaped Death Eaters. For his own safety, Severus Snape had been moved into 12 Grimmauld Place. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny had taken up residence in the old safe house.
For the first several weeks both Weasleys and Harry had been suspicious of their old potions professor, steering clear of the tall, solemn man while they observed his behavior. Hermione had been the only one who welcomed him graciously. She had made sure he was eating and didn't enclose himself in his room.
They had begun a routine of reading together in the library, beginning when Hermione insisted on pulling him from his dark room. When he had complained he was reading she invited him to read with her in the beautiful Black library. Though he'd hesitated, the look on Hermione's face had told him it hadn't been a rhetorical invitation.
For the first couple days Severus had sat, stiffbacked, hyperaware of her presence, unable to concentrate on his own reading. However, gradually he had begun to relax. He had found that he'd begun to enjoy their reading sessions. The soft sounds of Hermione's breathing, the crisp rustle of pages turning, the little murmurs she gave when she noted something.
A year into their routine, Hermione had fallen asleep after a hectic day. She'd woken to her book neatly marked and set on the side table, a blanket stapled around her shoulders, and her legs draped across a very comfortable lap. Severus had been so absorbed in his book he hadn't noticed she was awake. She had taken the time to peacefully watch the older man.
When he was relaxed Severus Snape could be a handsome man. He didn't hold the same awe-inspiring beauty expected from models or a Malfoy. It was more of a striking beauty, a cleaver mixture of several harsh features to create a unique concept.
Severus' sharp nose and high, regal cheekbones had an odd, haunting beauty when combined with his white skin and long, sleek black hair. At the moment strands of his hair were tucked behind his ears, revealing more of his face as he read.
The calm of reading relaxed the harsh lines around his forehead and mouth, making him appear younger than his age. A soft sigh escaped his lips and he slid down the back of the couch, slumping casually. His fingers had wrapped around Hermione's ankles, lifting them so they were not disterbed in his move. When he was comfortable, he lowered her ankles onto his lower stomach but his fingers remained draped across them.
His hands were large, with long, delicate fingers. They were perfect for potion making, agile yet strong, able to cut precisely and stir a thick potion effectively. The tips of his fingers ghosted over the curves and dips of her ankle bones, drifting back and forth soothingly.
Since that day, at some point during their readings Severus would slip his arm under her legs and pull them onto his lap. Sometimes his fingers would ghost across her skin, other times he would simply lay his arms across her legs.
Both Hermione and Severus were lost in their books, Severus' fingertips gently brushing across the curve of her ankle. A couple hours passed comfortably, the quiet breaths of the other, the soft rustling of turning pages.
Their peace was interrupted when the fireplace roared green and the tall, white blond head of a Malfoy stepped through. Lucius' hair was long and straight but Narcissa had pulled a couple strands of the silvery hair into a braid at the back of his head. Normally the look would make a man seem effeminate but Lucius seemed to only appear more masculine. The royal way he held himself filled the room and Hermione immediately sat up on the couch, her legs still in Severus' lap.
Lucius' cool and calculating gaze flicked to the pair's connection, pausing for a second before lifting to Hermione.
"My deepest apologies, Ms. Granger, however, I knew you would want to know that there is a meeting taking place to discuss the Muggleborn situation." His voice was the usual low, celebrity drawl but both Hermione and Severus could detect a slight pinch in his tone. An angry pinch.
Hermione's eyes narrowed. "There was no meeting scheduled." Her voice was low and steely.
Severus watched her face, his fingers beginning to brush against her leg soothingly. There was a pause before Lucius answered, when the two older wizards locked gazes. Severus held his friend's scrutinizing gaze, defiance in his own dark eyes.
With a slight nod, the eldest Malfoy turned towards the young witch.
"There is a meeting scheduled and they are beginning in a couple minuets. Apparently they thought it unwise to include you in such a 'passion-inducing topic' is how they put it."
Hermione closed her book and set it down on the side table. Her jaw had locked angrily, hazel eyes cold and hard. She swiftly extracted herself from both Severus and the couch, hurrying from the library and up the stairs, leaving Lucius and Severus alone in the library.
The white blond head fixed itself on the dark haired wizard still seated on the library couch. "Severus," dark eyes turned from the vacant doorway towards a familiar grey gaze.
"Don't lecture me, Lucius, when you have no idea what's happening." His lips were curved downwards in a defensive frown.
An elegant eyebrow arched. "I have no idea? Trust me friend, I have several ideas and others will too when they find out about this."
Severus rose to his feet, making sure to carefully lay his book down before straightening to face Lucius. "There is nothing to think about. She is the one person who is genuinely kind. She saved my life. There is nothing more to it." The two men studied each other for a moment. Lucius was skeptical, especially with the look he had witnessed when he walked through the flames, but he did not push the topic.
Footsteps sounded on the stairs and seconds later a smartly dressed Hermione stormed through the library doors. Grabbing Lucius' forearm, she steered the blond haired man towards the fireplace, shoving him towards the Floo powder.
Glancing over her shoulder she sent Severus a strained smile. "I'll be back soon."
He nodded and lifted his hand for a tiny wave. With one last look, Hermione grabbed a handful of Floo powder and disappeared into the green flames.
