Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any related works, they belong to J.K Rowling. I do own Daniel Carter, the MC from Hogwarts Mystery Mobile game.

Author's note: Characters and scenes from Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (RPG Mobile Game) will be used later on in this story.

Minerva McGonagall was seated on one of the student tables and though she was looking over at the head table, it was clear that she was not actually seeing anything. This was the first time in the weeks that followed the battle she was not working or worrying about anything. The castle repairs still had a long way to go, but at least it was no longer in danger of falling apart at the lightest of breeze. She sighed and rested her head in one of her hands. There was still so much to do. The great hall had mostly been repaired though they would need to figure out how to re-charm the ceiling to show the sky outside and replace most of the furniture. The glass cases showing the house points needed replacement. New teachers had to be hired for those who had… the ones who…

Pull yourself together lass! You've done this once before. You can do it again.

That was the problem, wasn't it? She had been through all of this after the last war, but things had been different. At the end she had mourned so many of her brave young lions- the Prewitt twins, the Potters, the Longbottoms, the McKinnons, her own baby brother Robert Jr., but there were people who were still there to help her move forward. Albus, her mentor and friend had been a great help. Now though, knowing what she did, she could not bring herself to take comfort in his memory.

Before she could begin her mental tirade of question everything he had said and done, and then move on to debating with herself on whether she should blast his portrait or go question it, an owl swooped down and landed near her elbow.

She abandoned her thoughts, if one could call her urges to simultaneously break down and break everything around her thoughts, and took the envelope off its leg. It flew off without waiting for a treat while she broke off the Ministry seal.

Respected Professor McGonagall

This is to inform you that in a unanimous decision, the Board of Governors has appointed you as the Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You shall be succeeding Headmaster Severus Tobias Kalovan Snape as the 148th Head of Hogwarts.

We wish you luck for the upcoming years and hope that you shall lead Hogwarts back to its former glory.

Best Regards,

Solidus Maris
Chairman
Board of Governors.

She skimmed over the letter and kept it aside. She was officially the Headmistress. It didn't make any difference to her. She had been leading the school since… he had been forced to flee. Of course, now that she was finally able to stop and mull over what had happened, it was painfully clear to her that he had fled for them and not from them. By leaving, he allowed them to get the younger students evacuated and the defenses mounted to hold off the other side.

You could have wiped the floor with us, and yet you chose to throw yourself out a window.

She had called him a coward. Of all the things, he was, infuriating, caustic, looming and sweeping the halls like a vampire the students accused him of being… he was incredibly brave. She had always known that, from the moment he had jutted out his chin and strode forward to be sorted, he had shown a certain kind of courage. It was not the bold and glorious kind her house was known for, rather it was quite and invisible. The kind that got you through hell and back, day after day, with none the wiser. In the end, that courage allowed him to be the villain so he could help the bold warriors step up and save the world while he stayed in the shadows.

She once again picked up the letter and stared at his name. The name she had called out over twenty-five years ago.

"Snape, Severus"

She purposefully ignored his two middle names just as she always did; some parents simply gave their children too many names. The prime example of that was sitting in far too bright yellow robes at the head table.

The boy who had stepped forward was slight with stringy black hair falling over his face and a proud aquiline nose he had yet to grow into. His robes were clearly second hand even though they had been taken care of. That was more than what could be said for the boy. She briefly hoped that his condition would improve from here on.

As he turned around to sit on the stool, their eyes had met for the briefest of moments leaving Minerva slightly concerned. In those eyes, there had been a certain understanding that should not be in a child so young. As she placed the hat on his head, she was certain the hat would yell out Slytherin any moment. It was not that she did not think he was intelligent or hard working; it was that by the look he had; only Slytherin could provide what he needed. Whether it would be for good or bad only time would tell.

There had a brief deliberation between the boy and the hat, and then the verdict came. Into the snake pit it was. Before he went off, he gave a forlorn look to the Gryffindor table where a newly sorted girl gave him a small smile.

Sitting there, she could still see him, small with hunched shoulders, walking towards the Slytherin table with an unmistakable air of pride. It never ceased to amaze her how he could look so pitiable and yet impressive at the same time. Perhaps, his fate had been decided that day.

No. he made his choices. They were initially horrible ones and later on honorable ones. But they were his choices, which he made in circumstances that no man should be in. Could she really blame him for what had happened? If he had lived, she might have been angry with him; she might have even refused to acknowledge his role, or maybe chosen to distance herself from him until she was ready to face the moral conundrum that he had entangled himself in. On the other hand, perhaps, she would have felt ashamed of herself, for not trusting him, as she did now. She might have done all she could to help him and make amends from her end. However, she had no way of knowing; because he was gone and there was not even a body that she could bury to have some sort of closure.

She pushed herself off the table and strode towards the dungeons to convince Horace to stay on for at least a year. The dungeons had been largely unharmed during the battle but the entrance had caved in. Now, they had cleared out the rubble, installed a temporary barricade to hold up the remaining ceiling, and laid out planks to serve as the staircase leading down to it. She cautiously made her way down and proceeded towards the potions classroom. She found Horace arranging the storeroom, looking uncharacteristically subdued.

"Good Morning Horace."

He jolted around quite fast and muttered a greeting. She raised an eyebrow at his odd behavior, but decided not to comment on it for the time being.

"I came to inquire about your future plans, whether you wish to retire again or not." She decided to get straight to the point.

"Umm… well... I... what I mean is that… I've been thinking…" he trailed off.

"Go on. I'm listening." She prodded gently.

He briefly closed his eyes and drew in a fortifying breath, while Minerva braced herself to look for another Potions professor who could also take on as Head of Slytherin.

"Professor Sinistra has bought to my notice that had I been an effective head of house, this Voldemort war might have been prevented, and the last one ended much sooner. She may have a point there. In addition, at the present moment, Slytherin house is in need of strong head who can bring them back on track. I do not think I can handle that Minerva. I will stay on as Potions professor if you want but for the head of Slytherin, I suggest you appoint Aurora. She intends to contest anyway if you appoint me. She said something about regularly assisting Severus and knowing how he ran the house which was what was needed at present." He finished in a quiet voice.

Minerva wanted to comfort Slughorn and scold Aurora for her behavior, but something Horace said had caught her attention. Aurora had blamed him for being able to prevent this war; surely, she would not have placed the blame on one person's shoulders without any good reason? Moreover, hadn't he just conceded that she might have had a point there?

She asked as gently as she could manage, "Horace, I will speak with Professor Sinistra on this matter. But I must know, what did she mean when she said that you could prevented the war?"

Horace sighed and motioned for her to take a seat. Once they were seated, he told her how years ago, a sixteen-year-old Tom Riddle had asked him about horcruxes, how he had answered him and then, kept that moment to himself until, sometime before Albus's death, Harry had gotten the truth out if him. He revealed that Albus had always suspected that he knew something, and that he had even questioned him if Tom was truly gone after that Halloween night. With his eyes downcast and voice heavy with regret, he told her that it was for this reason that he left so suddenly in '81.

"A couple of weeks before Albus's death, Severus said the same thing. He refused to speak to me after that. I cannot bring myself to disagree with them. Severus did a spectacular job with the house, much better than I did; if Aurora claims she can do it as well as him, I say we let her. She has grown into a strong willed woman; I do not think she will back down from her stand. Besides, we can always step in if things don't work out."

Minerva simply nodded, and excused herself after reminding him to restock the infirmary and that there was a staff meeting at six. Her mind was racing; Horace had not only known about the Horcruxes, he had been the one who gave that information to Riddle! That little piece of information was the reason they had ended up with a resurrected Dark Lord in the first place. It was obvious, Potter had given the information to Albus, and he must have revealed it to Severus. It also explained why Albus had brought back Horace instead of hiring a new Potions professor when he gave Severus the DADA post. She starting making her way to the Astronomy Tower. At some point, Severus must have told Aurora, and Aurora had decided that Horace was not fit to take care of an entire house. Minerva was not in a hurry to argue with her on the matter; she had always thought Horace to be cavalier regarding the students, though she would have some words regarding her methods of making her opinions known. Horace had proven himself trustworthy and capable of immense bravery in the past year and even more so in the battle, but could he manage to pull Slytherin out of the rut it was stuck in?

After Minerva left, Horace locked up the storeroom and proceeded towards his chambers, where he promptly poured himself a glass of scotch. After taking a few calming sips, he leaned back his head and remembered the day Severus had called him out on his mistake.

Horace was making his way back to his chambers from the great hall, when Severus seemingly materialized out of thin air in front of him.

"Albus told me something very interesting today." He spoke in barely above a whisper.

"Oh? And what would that be my boy?" he inquired jovially.

Severus's nostrils flared upon hearing his response. He stood as still as a statue for a moment then grabbed his collar and shoved him against a wall.

"How could you not realize what you were doing?" Horace had never heard a more anguished voice, what shocked him even more was that it was Severus speaking in such a manner.

"You could have prevented this war! Why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"Severus, please… I… what…I'm not sure I understand-"

"Oh I think you do. You know what you told Tom Riddle when he was still a student and you bloody well know what happened after!"

Horace felt all the color drain from his face. He was beginning to find it very hard to breathe, though that could be because of Severus's grip on his neck. He seemed to come to same conclusion because he loosened his grip.

"You've failed Horace. You had always been a failure as a head of house, but in keeping this knowledge to yourself, you have failed as a person as well. Was your reputation and influence more important than the Wizarding World?"

Horace was unable to utter a single word. Not that Severus gave him a chance before he continued.

"Ten years Slughorn. Ten years. There was an entire decade between his disappearance on that Halloween night and his reemergence the year Potter came to Hogwarts. Albus could have hunted down and destroyed all the Horcruxes in that time. He never would have been reborn, this war would never have happened."

"My entire generation was ruined by the war. Especially the Slytherins who were supposed to be under your care. Half of them are dead for Merlin's sake and a quarter rotted in Azkaban for nearly 15 years! You could have saved them, saved all of us. Now this generation, these children, their lives revolve around a War that was begun by their grandfathers and furthered by their fathers. People, whom you taught, people who looked to YOU for guidance. Entire generations have been destroyed Horace."

With that, he heaved a great sigh and stepped back. He looked weary, though his eyes burned with an intensity that Horace had rarely seen in anyone.

"Severus, I… I couldn't have known what he would become." The excuse sounded feeble to his own ears. "I made a mistake. I'm sorry." It was quite relieving to apologize to someone for what he had done.

Severus simply shook his head and said, "Albus always says that it can never be too late to correct a mistake. This time, I'm not sure I believe him."

A fortnight later, Albus Dumbledore had died by the wand of his most trusted staff member: Severus Snape.

Severus had spun on his heel and stalked off and Horace had hastily beat a retreat to his quarters. He had consumed copious amounts of scotch and had refused to dwell on what Severus had said. Somewhere, in the back of his head, he had realized that there was some truth in his accusations. Horace had not paid attention to students outside his Slug club; he had not deemed them worth the effort. He had been unimpressed by the boy's habit of going against the book and its instructions and resulting in him botching up potions and even melting cauldrons on occasion,. He had thought him practically incompetent, though his theory had been outstanding, and only found out the truth when the OWL examiners for Potions had claimed Severus to be a future revolutionary in the field. In his sixth year, he was invited to the Slug Club, though even then he was not among the star students.

A few years later when Severus had become the youngest Potions Master by completing his apprenticeship in just three years, he had told anyone who would listen that he had taught the brilliant young man for seven years. Severus had let him lay claim over his success and had been nothing but respectful when he had joined the staff as an assistant Professor. Upon Horace's return, Severus had been accommodating and had not even mentioned his abrupt departure from years ago. It had belatedly occurred to Horace that at twenty-one, with just a teaching career of only a few months, Severus had become a full time professor and Head of House just after the end of war that had all but ruined their house. When he had heard about the seven-year winning streak, he had been immensely proud of his former student. Now, his feelings were a mix of pride and regret.

When Tom had said that he had killed Severus three hours ago…Horace had felt conflicted. A part of him was telling him that he should be pleased or relieved that a Death Eater had died, especially Dumbledore's killer, but another part, could only see the intensely burning eyes and hear the anguished voice telling him that he could have prevented this war. When Harry Potter revealed his true loyalties, Horace was simultaneously relieved and filled with joy, and struck with guilt and grief because Severus had joined the dead.

Horace sighed and refilled his glass. He got up and strode over to look at the photographs resting on his mantelpiece. One of them was of Regulas Black. There was a rumor that the boy had tried to defect from the Death Eaters and killed for the same.

Perhaps there was truth to what his two former students had said. Severus and Aurora had been in the same year, and had taught alongside for quite a long time. A twenty-four year old Severus Snape had lead Slytherin house to victory for the House Cup for seven long years. From what he had heard, it had been Harry who had been largely responsible for turning the tables in recent years. If Aurora could recreate that winning streak and give Slytherin a reason to be proud, then why not let her. Perhaps it was time for Slughorn to hang up his boots and remove himself from these matters.

Aurora had been awake for almost three hours. It was quite unusual for her to even be awake before noon, but here she was, not only wide awake, but also lying in her bed completely unwilling to move. The rational part of her mind was telling her that she ought to get up and do something lest she go mad with grief. The other part was lost in an ongoing loop.

Septima is dead. Charity has been for months and Severus…

Septima had fallen in the first part of the battle. The Arithmancy professor though good in casting magic, lacked speed and precision for a duel. She had asked Aurora to promise that she would get through the battle alive and had then died herself. She had sacrificed herself for someone else, a student, chosen her own death in exchange for someone's life. Her death was painful and had taken a small part of her, but she could accept it. She had fallen in battle, by her own choice. Aurora could not stop the onslaught of grief and the filling of her eyes at the mere thought of it, but she would get over it. Eventually the pain would lesson, and she would be able to recall her memory with a smile. She had visited her grave the previous day, and as she had placed flowers on it and walked away, it felt as if she was walking away from a chapter of her life as well.

Charity had disappeared soon after her article on the dying out pureblood population was published in the daily prophet. Minerva had the Order members search everywhere they could for her, but there had been no sign of her. Several weeks later, when school had reopened, the Carrow siblings had mocked her and narrated how she had been captured, tortured, humiliated and ultimately killed with her body becoming Nagini's dinner. It was horrifying to know this was what had happened to her. It was than not knowing though. Now when Aurora thought about it, she felt sorrow, but the pain had faded. After all, it was not surprising that Voldemort had someone killed for expressing dissenting views.

Severus had warned them all against it at the very beginning.

She had avoided thinking about him since she had heard Voldemort's declaration of his death, and Potter's revelation of his true loyalties, and focused on her remaining best friend Septima's death. Now that she had finally visited her grave (she would have gone to the funeral as well, but was in St. Mungo's at the time), as much as she tried, her thoughts kept slipping back to him.

She had loved him. Moreover, she was certain, at some point, he had loved her too.

"You're mental Borealis."

"If you say so Dungeon Bat."

A pause.

"Why though?"

"I should be asking that. Why?"

She huffed and propped herself up on her elbow to look at him. "Why what Severus?"

He continued to stare at her bedroom ceiling, a depiction of the twelve zodiac constellations, let out a tired sigh and answered, "Why do love me? You shouldn't."

She rolled her eyes; did they not have this conversation a few days ago?

"First of all, you do not have the right to tell me what I should or should not do." She made sure to say that as sternly as she could, to make sure he understood. "Second," she continued much softly, "I love you because you're you."

"That is exactly why you shouldn't." he said it in such a matter of fact way that it reminded her that no one had ever bothered to dissuade him from the notion that he was unlovable and worthless. This particular knowledge never failed to anger her.

"Wrong. That is exactly why I should." Then she kissed him before he could argue.

They lay there for a long time, her head resting in the crook of his neck with her hand tracing constellations on his chest and he with one arm wrapped around her and the other lying across his midsection. Eventually, she began to drift off, the hand on his chest slowing its movements. Just before she fell into a deep slumber, he gently lifted her hand off his chest, kissed it tenderly, and murmured in her ear, "I too, am in love. Sleep well Borealis." He fleetingly brushed his lips near her temple and gently squeezed the hand he was holding.

Then, the arm around her slid off, his shoulder was replaced by a pillow and the warm body next to her was gone leaving an emptiness that was beyond physical.

She closed her eyes and extended her hand towards the left side of the bed, wanting to know he was there. He was not. He would never be there again. She wiped away the tears that come once again uninvited and unwanted.

For the past year, while everyone had believed that he had been fooling them all this time, she had held the belief that something had happened, something that had broken something inside of him, and that had made him embrace darkness once more. She could not bring herself to believe that he had always been evil. After all, she had held him after he was done reporting to both his masters for the day, had seen him come close to falling apart so many times only to take a deep breath and get up to do their bidding once more. She had seen how every death he watched, and how every curse he took for the sake of his cover, and every crime he assisted in or even witnessed, killed him bit by bit.

Potter's revelation had shocked her to the core, not because of his love and loyalty for an old friend, but because he had knowingly destroyed the life, he had built for himself to help save the wizarding world. The entire year leading up to Dumbledore's death, in their private moments, he had the look of a man who was waiting for death. He never voiced it, but it was obvious that he was convinced that it was a matter of when and not if. Now she knew why. In reality, he had signed his own death warrant, and executed it himself as well, at the place where she had confessed her love to him, where she had tried to distract him from the harsh reality of war by sharing hopes and dreams for a future they might not have. That night at the Astronomy Tower, her tower, he summoned death, and tore down his own little world, in the hope that everyone else's might be saved.

How he had brought himself to do it, she could not fathom. Perhaps she had misunderstood his words. Maybe he hadn't loved her after all. But what of the last time she had spoken to him?

"Aurora dear, the Headmistress is coming up the tower presently. I believe she wishes to speak with you." Came a soft whisper that belonged to the Bloody Baron. He had probably floated into in her sitting room, he knew better than to enter her bedroom.

Aurora shoved her thoughts into a dark closet to be brought out later, wiped her eyes once more, pushed herself off her bed and decided to get dressed, "Thank you for informing me Baron." Either she wants to discuss the repairs of the tower, or she has spoken to Slughorn and is now coming to yell at me. Minerva could yell at her all she wanted; she was not backing down.

Minerva briefly stopped at the landing to catch her breath. It would not do to look like an old asthmatic woman while she spoke to the latest contender for the Slytherin Head of House. Aurora was a fine example of a resourceful, cunning and determined Slytherin. She was impartial, had over a decade of teaching experience, and was sensible and understanding to the plight of others. There was only one thing that was making Minerva hesitate- while she was unsure of the details or the extent, she was certain that the relation between Severus and Aurora went beyond a simple friendship between colleagues. The Staff Christmas Party of '88 had proven it to her.

Their defense professor that year, Gerald Scott, was a muggleborn who had lost his parents and wife and child in the war. He hated the Dark Arts with passion and distrusted Severus just as much. He never lost an opportunity to taunt him, and Severus, so very defensive at the slightest of indignities, never failed to rise to the bait. That night had been no different. She and Severus were discussing the current disasters who masqueraded as students in their respective classes, when a snide comment came to Severus's remark of wanting to tear his hair out, "It must be quite frustrating, not being able to use an unforgivable on them."

Severus ground his teeth so hard, Minerva had to wonder if he cracked any of them. "I was not speaking to you Professor Scott."

"So you do not deny wanting to curse them?"

"That is enough Professor Scott!"

While she berated that annoying man, Severus quietly slipped past her and headed to the door. Minerva caught him exiting out of the corner of her eye. Once Scott acknowledged that 'perhaps now was not the time to discuss anything with his younger colleague', Minerva stepped out to go find Severus.

She found him leaning against the wall near the grand staircase with his arms crossed across his chest, and standing in front of him, with her hand resting on his crossed arms, was Aurora Sinistra. She was too far away to hear what they were saying, but something in the way they stood compelled her to stay out of sight.

Severus was looking at Aurora with a barely perceptible softness in his face; there was a tinge of melancholy in hers. She seemed to be comforting him, and he was letting her. She raised her other hand and tucked his hair behind his ear. He stood still, but it was not a statue-like stillness he presented when he was hiding his reactions; it was a relaxed kind, like what had happened, was such a normal occurrence that he had no need to pay any attention to it. Her hand lingered on his face; he did not brush it away.

She turned around and headed back to the party. She felt that she was intruding upon a very private and vulnerable moment between them even though they had seemed unaware of it. She priding herself on finally being able to forge a friendship with Severus, yet she had never witnessed him so at ease at any time, even as a student; also, she was certain that Aurora was halfway across the room with Professor Vector when Scott had come up to them.

The only possible explanation for what she had witnessed was that Aurora had seen Severus leave, had promptly followed him, and he had revealed what happened. She had been curious as to the exact relationship between them, but had chosen not to pry though she did snoop around a bit. She had found no proof, but several times, she had seen them glace at each other, when the other was not looking, with a look vaguely resembling fondness. She had kept her findings to herself, away from Albus who was not entirely approving of romantic relationships between the staff members. Heaven forbid the Board ever found out.

After a few moments, she knocked at the door leading to Professor Sinistra's personal chambers. The door opened almost immediately to reveal the young professor.

"Do come in Headmistress." She stepped aside and gestured to her sitting room.

"Call me Minerva, dear. I am not fond of that particular title." It seemed to grate on her nerves when she heard it.

Aurora nodded and shut the door. Once they were seated on the sofa, Minerva ordered some tea and biscuits, and then looked over to her companion. She had not paid her staff the due attention since, well, the battle actually, instead giving all her attention to the dead and the quite literally falling apart castle. She recalled the now deceased Professor Vector being close friends with Aurora.

"There are some matters I wish to discuss, dear, but before that I wish to know how you have been doing these past days."

Aurora opened her mouth, and then closed it. She tried again, but bit her lip and looked away instead.

Minerva could see her trying desperately to hold in her tears, she shifted closer and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Holding in your grief will do no one any good, I'm here, let it out."

Apparently, that was all it took to reduce the self-assured and confident young women to a weeping mess. Then again, they had just survived a war. Minerva let the motherly instincts she possessed take over and held the astronomy expert close until her tears dried up. Aurora lay in her lap as her breathing began to even out, while Minerva gently stroked her hair.

Just when Minerva became certain that Aurora had fallen asleep, the witch in question straightened up and announced, "I am ready for you to start yelling at me."

Wait… what?

"I beg your pardon?"

Seeing her confused expression, Aurora seemed to hesitate looking remarkably like a first year caught out of bed wondering if they should confess to their crime or not. "Have you spoken with Slughorn?"

Ah, yes. Best to get straight to the point.

"Indeed I have. He told me what you had said to him and the reasons behind it as well. Am I correct in assuming that Severus had informed you of Horace's mistake?"

Now the determined Slytherin witch as back. "It was more than just a mistake. Severus…" she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before continuing, "Severus nearly fell apart when Dumbledore told him. Surely you must realize what I said to him is true? This whole war would never have happened! Septima and Charity would still be alive and Severus…Severus would not have suffered as he did. He would be here." She looked away.

Now for the moment of truth…

"You loved him."

A bitter smile accompanied the response, "Why ask questions you already know the answers to?"

"Is that why you wish to be the Head of Slytherin? Because he was?" This was what had worried Minerva; that Aurora wished to be Head of Slytherin to feel closer to Severus. With him gone, memories of what he was and how he had been were all that remained.

Aurora shook her head, "No. I mean, yes. But that is not all there is to it."

Minerva tilted her head signaling the witch in front of her to elaborate.

"It's what he would have done. But since he isn't here anymore, I want to do it in his place." She looked away to see something visible only to her eyes, "The summer before the year we had Umbridge on staff, we were just lying on the observatory floor and talking about how everything would be different now. He seemed rather depressed, so I tried to distract him. I started talking about how our lives would be after the war. I said that we could get married and leave Hogwarts, he was aghast at the mere idea. He said that after the war, there was no chance in hell that Slytherin's situation would be any better than it was the last time. He said that no one would give a thought to them if he left, that they needed guidance and someone to be firmly in their corner in the face of the entire stigma they would have to face from the moment of their sorting. I asked him if the house was the only reason that would hold him back at Hogwarts, that was when he revealed, that despite all the awful memories he had here, it was the only home he had ever known." Aurora finally turned to look at her, "The years before Potter came to Hogwarts were the best years of his life. Particularly the later years with his favorite Miss Haywood and her friends Carter and crew causing trouble all the time. He even enjoyed teaching at that time."

Minerva was quietly contemplative for a moment. She leaned back her seat and levelled Aurora with a firm look, "Hogwarts was Severus's home, but Severus is no longer among us. Where is your home Aurora?" she already knew the answer, she wanted to hear it said aloud. She also internally winced at her tone, but sometimes, tough love was a necessity.

Aurora raised her chin and looked at her with the characteristic Slytherin haughtiness that dared anyone to contradict them. "I'll be honest, I never felt at home here as a student and he did not quite like it either, but as a professor I found my domain in this tower and he in those dank dungeons of his. I found home, only with him. If Hogwarts was his home, then it is mine as well."

So, Aurora would stay and do everything Severus would have done because she loved him. It always came down to love.

"You claimed you were aware of how he handled the house-"

"I often helped him out with the 'over-emotional students', especially the girls; he made sure I knew every detail of the way he worked. I can do it."

"There is a staff meeting in the Great Hall at six, following which we shall have dinner together. I will announce my decision then. I also do not want you behaving in such a manner. You will show proper respect and courtesy to staff members Aurora."

"Yes, ma'am." For the time being Minerva decided to ignore how empty those words sounded. She would deal with it later.

They talked a bit on how they ought to proceed with the repairs of the Astronomy tower, if she wanted any improvements, what the budget for it was. Then they moved on to how Aurora should start taking better care of herself (she looked like death warmed over, no pun intended), and Minerva should stop being too motherly (it did not suit her).

Minerva soon took her leave and went to find Filius to convince him to take on the role of Deputy Headmaster. This was too much to handle on her own.

Filius Flitwick was standing in what were the remains of his office. The outside wall with the bay windows had been torn down by … the reductor curse perhaps… it did not matter now.

As the Charms Master of the school, he was given the responsibility of identifying the areas that were damaged by dark magic so that an expert curse-breaker could be called for them. Residual magic had the potential to cause significant harm if not dealt with in the proper manner. After spending a week on bedrest for his injuries, Filius had gotten to work. Anything to distract him from the depressing air that lingered. He could swear that the dementers continued presence throughout the last year had imbibed the castle walls with despondency. Was that even possible? Perhaps Severus would have an idea…but it would have died with him.

Filius heaved a sigh and settled himself on a pile of rubble to the side. He looked out towards the castle grounds and lake, and let his thoughts drift to another brilliant student who was lost in the war.

Sixteen years of teaching alongside him, seventeen if you wanted to count the last year and seven years of being his teacher. Overall, Filius had been around Severus for over two-thirds of the Slytherin's life. Filius had been privy to almost his entire adult life. For all his being the intelligent and observant head of Ravenclaw, he had failed to see what had been in front of him for years.

"You'll do no more murder at Hogwarts!"

He had never done any murder at Hogwarts. He had prevented it. Moreover, he had become the most hated man, even more than Voldemort, because of it.

Now that the truth was out, hindsight had reared its wise head and shown him all the clues he should have noticed the first time around had he bothered to look, with blinding clarity.

The portraits running off every time the Carrows started cursing students and Severus arriving within moments. Him assigning detention with Hagrid to the members of Dumbledore's army. His staunch dismissal of there being a secret room the students were hiding in despite him being aware of the existence of the room of requirement (the staff used it for dueling practice during holidays). The gargoyle guarding the headmaster's office giving him access. His weekly password for the students changing from one potion ingredient to another but the emergency password remaining 'Dumbledore' throughout. Most importantly, Severus stunning him and telling Miss Granger and Miss Lovegood to remain with him, away from the battle.

A long time ago, in his reckless youth, Filius had caused his opponent to lose his wand arm in a duel. Since then, he had a perpetual fear of causing irreparable harm or even death, in a duel. Severus had known this. He had known that Filius would rather defend and disarm than maim or kill even against the Death Eaters. Therefore, he stunned him and kept him away from the fray.

As Severus's teacher, he had often noticed the Marauders teasing him and at times even witnessed the boys exchanging hexes. He had given all the boys detention, and later in private, some dueling tips to Severus seeing as it was often four against one. He had not closely followed the situation, he was not their Head of House, and as long as nothing happened in front of him, he was not obligated to act. Perhaps things would have been different if he had. Some years later when Severus had joined as a professor, he had offered help in formulating lesson plans and the like. Even then, they had remained cordial but distant. At some point, Filius was telling his colleagues about the latest research paper on spell creation when he left his copy of the paper in the staffroom. It was delivered to him by a house-elf later in the evening, covered in notes written in a cramped spiky hand. It had led to several discussions on magical theory, those discussions eventually losing their stiffness and becoming casual exchanges, which later formed the base of a friendship built of mutual respect with a dash of fondness. The fact that they were the male house heads never came into play; despite belonging to rival houses, Minerva and Severus were the good cop/bad cop team who stayed up front and led, while he and Pomona handled ground matters and cleaned up.

Filius was shaken out of his fond reminisces, by a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The door opened to reveal Minerva who greeted him with a tired smile, "Hello Filius."

He stood up to greet her, "Ah, Minerva. Just the person I was thinking of."

She raised an eyebrow, amused, "Oh?"

"I was recalling the wonderful moments we four spent together." There was no need to specify whom he was referring to. Minerva's smile faded upon hearing his response. She did not speak until she had settled herself on a chair transfigured from some loose stones.

"I miss him." She did not need to say whom. He understood.

"I'm not surprised. For all your arguments with him, you two were always side by side."

She sighed, and then changed the topic. "I have a request to make of you."

"Yes?"

"I want you to take the position of Deputy Headmaster."

This was exactly what Filius wanted to avoid. He disliked all the extra administrative duties that came with that position. It was due to his dislike, that despite him being the senior teacher, Minerva was made the Deputy. Head of House was fine for him; he loved interacting and teaching the wonders of magic to children. Settling them in and taking care of their needs was not very difficult when yours was a house of intellectuals. For a moment, Luna Lovegood and Marietta Edgecombe's faces flashed in his mind. He shook his head. Severus had often pointed out the Lovegood girl as being an 'interesting' person.

"My answer would depend on how you wish to run the school."

Whatever response Minerva was expecting, that had not been it. She blinked. He continued, "It would depend on whether you wish to run the school in the same manner it has always been run or do you want to change certain things."

She understood what he was hinting at. Had they been more vigilant, more involved with their students, several lives could have been saved, directly and indirectly. The same discussion had cropped up after the first war but Albus had dismissed their concerns, out of tiredness from a long-drawn out war, and unshakable trust in Albus, they had dropped the matter.

"I am not like Dumbledore, Filius. It is high time we straighten out how this school functions and improve things for everyone." Filius absently noted the use of the man's surname and not his first name, Albus, like usual.

He nodded, "Instead of an additional position belonging a Head of House, I suggest we make it a separate one given to another member of the staff. It would save one Head from having extra load, and the deputy would be able function without worrying about their house. After things settle of course. That reminds me, have you been to the office yet? The Board must have sent you a formal letter by now."

"They have. Received it this morning in fact. I will go the office some time later this week. I need to clean it out first." She paused, "Your idea does hold merit, but for now, I would like you to take it alone, though you may take Pomona's assistance should you need it and she be agreeable to it."

He nodded, "Very well." He stepped away to pick up one his books that was lying on the remains of the carpet. It was a photo album.

"Feel free to ask for assistance in cleaning out the Head's office and personal chambers. I will make myself available." He said while flipping through the album. He quickly found the photograph he was looking for. He handed the book to Minerva without saying a word. He did not have to. She took it and upon seeing the photograph, softly smiled. She ran her fingertips over it almost lovingly and her eyes shone with something akin to pride.

The photograph was from the year 1985, just after the Leaving Feast for the '84-85 school year. Filius was standing in the center on a stool. Minerva and Pomona were slightly behind him, to his right and left respectively, and standing in the center, just behind him, firmly held in place by Minerva, was Severus.

She remembered the day that photograph had been taken. It had been torture, getting Severus to agree to it. In the end, she had given in and had just dragged him to it whether he liked it or not. He had grumbled, a lot, but had let her do as she pleased. She realized he had often done that whenever she told him to something- grumbled and complained- at Christmas parties, staff meetings, during patrols, even while just sitting and grading papers, and more often than not, it was just for the sake of it. She looked closely at them, the four House Heads standing proudly together. While they looked almost the same, Severus looked significantly younger. He could not have been more than twenty-five at the time. Baring the rare Defense Professor, he had always been the youngest one among them; even Aurora was older to him by nearly six months. This was the year when the older students who had been at school with Severus had finally graduated allowing him to take charge of his own house unopposed. It was the year that Slytherin began its winning streak. The year when Severus removed all doubts and proved himself worthy of everyone's respect. The year when Minerva stopped seeing him as a young boy who needed as much as supervision as the students, and instead saw him as a reliable colleague and friend. The year she had felt inexplicably proud of how far along he had come. Moreover, he had known it. How else would you explain the self-satisfied smirk he sported?

"Those years of peace we had were quite pleasant, don't you think?" she had momentarily forgotten that Filius was still in the room; or rather, she was still in his room.

"I think you don't remember the havoc the graduating batch of summer '91 caused with their quest to seal the cursed vaults."

Filius let out a small chuckle, "No, not at all. I remember them quite well, if you remember Miss Karasu, Miss Ali, and Mister Winger were in my house."

"And if you remember, the leader of that odd disjointed group of friends, Carter was in mine."

"Oh that lot was one the best. Who would have thought that Carter's obsession with finding his missing brother would somehow lead to the students from the four houses to forge lifelong friendships? It's a pity it didn't extend to other years as well."

She nodded. Only now was it occurring to her that these past years, ever since Harry Potter had started, had been one disaster after another. The boy was certainly not to blame for it, trouble followed him like moths to a flame; of course, it did not help matters that he was always the first to jump headlong into battles he should not even be fighting, but then, young boys were often like that. She only hoped that he would grow out of it unlike his father. Facing Voldemort without a wand to buy time for his wife and son to escape was immensely brave of James, but not keeping his wand on him at all-times had been careless as well.

"That reminds me, when is Bill Weasley coming?"

She looked up in confusion at Filius, "Why Mr. Weasley would be coming?"

Filius blinked in confusion, "Is he not the curse breaker you called to get rid of all the dark magic traces?"

Minerva smiled like a Cheshire cat and answered, "Oh no. I have given that task to our new DADA instructor. And yes, the person I have hired is competent. Even Severus would agree." That was the ultimate measure of worth among the staff. If Severus found something or someone acceptable, it meant that it or she/he was brilliant.

Filius smiled a rather sad smile and extended his hand for the album she had holding onto the whole time. While handing it over, she glanced at it again, and realized with some embarrassment that none of them had changed their attire over the years. She lightheartedly mentioned the same to Filius.

He on the other hand looked at her, then back at the photograph with a troubled expression, and murmured, "Another clue…"

What?

He abruptly looked at her and said, "He dressed the same throughout. Not once did he flaunt his mark or even hang his mask from his belt like the Carrows. Just like his password, it was a hint to us. We never noticed."

Severus. Minerva had noticed that Severus stuck to his usual teaching robes rather than the Death Eater garb the Carrows preferred. It served to remind her that he was once the boy she had taken under her wing, and trained into a competent professor, whether he liked it or not. She had hated it and had wished that he would dress as the Death Eater he was. Why would he have done so though? He had never been one of them.

With that knowledge, another horrible thought occurred to Minerva, one that she could not bear to think of. Not here. Not right now.

"Do not delude yourself Filius. We had noticed his clues, but had chosen to ignore them; instead believing that the man we knew was a farce." It was quite deplorable, choosing to believe one moment of lie above sixteen years of truth. However, the lie had been enormous, killing the one person everyone trusted above all else. Were you even worthy of that trust Albus?

She refused to discuss any further on this topic and questioned Filius on the status of the residual magic from the battle. After reminding him that there was a staff meeting at six, she left and went to have lunch. After all, it was late afternoon and she was starting to feel light headed. It would not do to end up in the hospital wing when there was so much work.

Author's note: This was part of a much longer chapter, but I split it in two. The next part will be posted soon. Please review ;)