I appreciate your reviews and comments very very much. I have to admit that it was a pleasant surprise that you find the story such a mystery. It wasn't my original plan to write a suspense story. Oh well... there is no turning back now. It's going to take a little time for our hero and heroine to discover the culprit behind Severus' political case. The truth behind the power struggle, as well as the solutions for the conflict, may just be something completely unexpected. I hope you will enjoy the twists and turns. =)

Thanks TMNinjaGinga for being my beta again!

All characters belong to the brilliant J. K. Rowling.

Chapter Four - A Change of Plans

Severus wasn't sure what to think when the guard didn't come to take him to their meeting at 9:30 the following morning.

Why didn't she show up? Had she changed her mind about the case over night?

A part of him was relieved. It was, after all, what he wanted to see. Or was it? There was a small voice asking all kinds of questions inside his head. Hadn't he tried everything he could think of to convince her to drop out of the case? But then why was he feeling so terribly disappointed? Perhaps it was painful to finally realize just how much she truly cared about Severus Snape: nothing... absolutely nothing at all.

There goes her promise to bring back "his freedom and rights". Severus grunted under his breath. She probably said those promising words to her pen pal because she was too proud to admit that it was a hopelessly complicated case, and that she had no interest in taking on a miserable bastard as a client.

Slowly Severus opened the box of tea that she left him the day before, and found an assortment of neatly arranged small silk bags filled with Darjeeling, Ceylon, and Assam leaves. At least she had the courtesy of considering the lack of accommodation in his current living arrangements. He let out a sigh as he picked out a small packet of Darjeeling. He made himself a cup of tea using the hot water provided through the drinking faucet in the kitchen sink. They had taken his wand of course, and there was nothing magical about getting hot water from a faucet. With the tea in his hand, Severus sat quietly by the window, feeling the bitterness slowly roll down his tongue and seep into his soul.

She wrote him again at the same time that evening, like she had always done. He sneered at her words as he read the small print in front of him:

"Hello T,

How's your day? I had a busy one at work. You wouldn't believe how difficult it was to get a hold of Kingsley. Why does he have to go to so many meetings? What can you accomplish if all you do every day is attending endless meetings? Say if ideas were exchanged at a meeting, he wouldn't even have time to implement them! How inefficient is that! Wait... I shouldn't badmouth my boss. You are not Kingsley, are you? I'm almost positive that you are not him, because I actually looked into it a while ago. Kingsley didn't join the Order until after I received this notebook from Dumbledore. But if I was wrong, and you happen to be him, please don't be mad at me. Just yell at me in the morning and I'll get the hint.

I saw Ron today. He was heading out to lunch with a witch from his department. I think she's the one he will be taking to the Quidditch game this weekend. She seemed nice. It's good to see him so happy again. He told me Molly wants me to go to the Burrow for Christmas. I'm not sure if I want to go. By the way, you never answered my question yesterday, what are your plans for the holiday?"

Taking a deep breath Severus turned the page, hoping his bitterness would disappear with her words. How could she sound so pleasant, as if not meeting with her client did not bother her one bit? Picking up his quill he began his reply:

"I had a rather disappointing day. I don't know why, really. I guess it was foolish of me not to be prepared for the inevitable. But that doesn't matter. I will get over it. I always do.

Sorry to hear that you had a busy day. How's your client? Did he give you a hard time again?

I haven't thought much about the holiday. It's still a few weeks away, isn't it?"

He paused for a few moments before adding to the bottom of his message:

"By the way, nice try, but I am not Kingsley. So if your boss does yell at you in the morning, it probably only means that he is not very satisfied with your performance."

He turned the page and watched the soft glow taking his message away to her. It didn't take her long to write back to him:

"I'm sorry that you were disappointed. You said it's inevitable. Things always happen for a reason. Maybe it's for the best that way? I wish there was something I could do to help you feel better. As for my client, he is probably going to make my life miserable for a while. I'm working on it though. I think I may be making some progress.

You said you are not Kingsley. Do you mind if we start a guessing game? What do you think if we play twenty questions, you know, that popular American parlor game?"

He frowned at her words. Things always happen for a reason... for the best that way... Really? That's what she had to say about all this? And her comments about her client... She didn't even show up for their meeting. How could he make her life miserable if she didn't come to meet with him? Feeling anger rushing through his veins, Severus completely failed to see the humor in her last few questions. He slammed the notebook shut, and didn't write back to her again for the rest of the night.

The lack of sleep from the night before didn't do his insomnia any good. The cup of Darjeeling he'd had before going to bed probably didn't help either. Since the Detention Facility didn't offer the luxury of dreamless sleep potions, Severus was left tossing and turning all night long. As he lay wide awake in bed, he remembered all those messages they had written to each other throughout the years. Was it his imagination or did she really sound like she cared for him in those notes? Did she want to know his identity merely because of her uncontrollable curiosity, or was she really interested in getting to know the real him? What would she say if she discovered her mysterious contact was the same person as the "miserable bastard"?

Severus didn't get a moment of peace as he went through all those questions in his mind over and over again. When he finally fell asleep, he saw her.

She no longer looked like the school girl that he remembered from Hogwarts. She seemed taller. Or perhaps it was only because she stood taller. She turned and looked towards him, like she had when he saw her the day before in the meeting room. There was a small smile hiding behind her lips. Slowly she walked towards him, with a strange sparkle glistening in her eyes. The closer she walked towards him, the more obvious it was to him that she was now a young woman. A very attractive one, he added inwardly. He could see her confidence in the way she carried herself. He could feel his body responding to the magic of her every movement. She simply looked breathtaking.

He watched her getting closer to him, but was soon troubled as he realized her eyes were glancing right over him, as if he did not exist. "May I have a word, please, Miss Granger?" He called after her as she walked past him. She didn't slow down, nor did she look back. His brows furrowed as he realized she was walking towards a wizard standing behind him in the shadows.

She continued to smile at the wizard in the shadows as she walked closer to him. The wizard leaned over and pulled her into a tight embrace. Watching from a distance, Severus felt his stomach churn. Was he kissing her? Narrowing his eyes, Severus tried to get a closer look at the shadow that was holding her petite body. But the wizard continued hiding in the darkness, making it impossible for Severus to make out his face. Suddenly, the faceless wizard looked up towards Severus and said, in a velvet voice that could not be mistaken, "You can stop dreaming Snape. She has no interest in you. You mean nothing to her."

Severus felt his heart beating in his throat. Did he really just hear himself? How could that be? The floor suddenly opened up under his feet. He began to fall...

Severus woke up in a jolt. Bloody brilliant, he thought to himself as he ran a hand through his greasy hair, I will lose my mind long before I am greeted by a dementor.

By the time a house elf popped into his room and took away the lunch that he barely touched, Severus was convinced that it was going to be another day of complete solitude. However, just before the afternoon slowly turned into evening, a guard surprised him by coming into his room, carrying a stack of clothes. On the very top of the stack was the black coat he was wearing the day he arrived.

"Please change and gather your belongings, Mr. Snape. I will be waiting for you outside your room. You are to be transferred."

When Severus followed the guard into the lobby he immediately saw her waiting by a large mural. Another young wizard was waiting next to her, his back facing them. His red hair however quickly gave away his kinship with the Weasleys.

Percy Weasley turned around and acknowledged his former professor politely without a word. As he exchanged a few pieces of paper with the guard, Hermione came to Severus' side. "You look better in black, Professor." She greeted him with a small smile.

"I told you to stay away from this case." He ignored her comment and said coldly.

"It's good to see you again too." She countered. Ignoring his piercing gaze, she turned her attention to Percy, who was now putting a few pieces of parchment into his folder.

"Finally, the last approval form…" The young wizard murmured without even looking up, "You owe me one Granger. I haven't been late to my mum's Wednesday dinner since the end of the war."

"You know it's not my fault that it took so long to gather all the signatures." She mumbled.

"But it is your fault to insist that we do this today instead of tomorrow morning." Percy didn't back down.

"Would someone please explain to me why I need to listen to your bickering?" A cool voice reminded them of the existence of a very impatient Severus Snape. "And I am definitely not interested in attending any family dinner, if you were going to be kind enough to consider my preferences."

Hermione let out a small laugh as she glanced over at Percy. She seemed to be in such a good mood, not even a dementor would be able to take away her cheerfulness. "No worries Professor," She said happily, "There isn't a dinner invitation."

"Granger bought you a lot more time to prepare for the trial, Professor." Percy said to Severus as he led the way towards a line of fireplaces on the opposite side of the lobby. "She also managed to get you out of the Detention Center for the next few weeks. I have to say though, she scared quite a few of my colleagues in the process of completing the necessary procedures."

Severus cast a side-way glance at the witch walking by his side. She shrugged at Percy's comments. "The regulations are there for a reason. I was only pointing out the obvious laws we have to follow. It's hard to argue with the rules sometimes, don't you agree, Percy?"

The red-haired wizard let out a grunt and shook his head. "Ron has warned me about arguing with you Granger. At any rate, I really need to hurry. Can we just get this over with?"

Severus watched in amusement as Hermione strode past them with her head held high, as if she was a young general who just won her first battle. She threw a handful of floo powder into the fireplace, and murmured an address, before disappearing into the green flames. Percy followed suit and threw some floo powder into the fire place and called out an address that Severus did not recognize, "After you Professor." He gestured towards Severus.

When he stepped out of the fireplace with Percy Weasley, Severus found himself standing in the living-room of a small but fully furnished flat.

"Welcome to your temporary home, Professor." Percy murmured as he dug into his file one more time and fished out another piece of parchment. "Would you hurry and sign on the confirmation please Hermione. If I leave now I may still have a chance to avoid getting yelled at by my dear mother."

Muffling a snicker Hermione scribbled her name at the bottom of the document. As soon as her quill left the paper, the parchment quickly folded itself into the shape of a pointy airplane and dashed across the room. Flapping its little white wings, it quickly disappeared through the chimney. Percy nodded in satisfaction and turned towards the fireplace himself.

"Wait a minute Percy." Hermione called after him, "Haven't you forgotten something?"

The red-haired wizard slowly turned around and looked at Hermione with a frown. He stared at her for a short moment then said, "Ron would kill me if anything happens to you."

"But nothing will happen to me." She glared at the young wizard, "And besides, you, of all people, should be the last one I need to remind that we have rules to follow. I signed the papers, so he gets to keep his wand."

Percy considered her words before slowly reaching into his chest pocket and pulling out the wand that belonged to Severus Snape. He handed it over to his former professor and said in a small voice, "Here is your wand Professor Snape. I... I didn't mean to be rude. It's just that she... I... No one should expect her to take on such responsibilities."

Without another word Percy Weasley let out a sigh, stepped back into the fireplace and disappeared in a whoosh.

Turning his complete attention back to the witch in front of him, Severus crossed his arms over his chest, "I demand a complete explanation, Miss Granger."

"I will explain everything over dinner if you can promise me one thing, Professor." She looked straight into his eyes.

"And what would that be?" He asked coolly.

"Stop being a prick." She narrowed her eyes. She broke into a small smile as she watched his offended reaction in amazement. "My flat is on the other end of the hallway. It was pure luck that I was able to find an available unit in this building." She said, "But I don't have anything left in my fridge. Why don't you make yourself comfortable while I go get some dinner? Maybe I'll just order something from the pub down the street. I will be back in about an hour."

Without waiting for an answer she marched across the living-room and disappeared through the front door, leaving a bemused Severus staring at the door closed behind her. What had just happened? How did the young witch manage to get him out of the Detention Center? What was he doing here instead of his own house? And what exactly was Weasley referring to when he said she should not be expected to take on such "responsibilities"? In order to find his answers, Severus might just have to control his temper and stop being "a prick".

Let me know what you think. =)