"Hey Mione, are you alright?"

Harry and Ginny had turned up early, the day after the Quidditch match, to Hermione's bedroom. Harry and Hermione were now sitting on the muggleborn's bed, while Ginny was perched on the desk chair, swivelling from left to right.

"I fine guys. Really! You don't have to worry about me. It's Ron who has the problem." Hermione sighed. "He didn't take our break up well and then a month or so ago, he told me that he wanted me to take him back. Unfortunately for Ron, I turned him down."

Harry nodded, "Yeah, he didn't take it well. He was real upset after that."

"I know," agreed Hermione, "and we've been friends for so long and gone through so much together that I don't want to lose his friendship. But I don't like him romantically and he holds it against me."

"He's now decided that it's because you're with Malfoy," Ginny said, "Are you Mione? Neither of us will say anything as long as you're happy. Malfoy's a git, but hey, so is my bloody brother." Harry laughed at his girlfriend's statement.

"Guys, I'm not dating Draco. I suppose I've become friends with him, but that's all we are. He's actually rather nice and quite funny when you get to know him."

"I suppose having Daddy Malfoy locked up has mellowed Junior Malfoy a bit too," Ginny said.

"But what do we do about Ron? I don't know about you Gin, but I'm finding it rather difficult when my two best friends don't talk to each other."

"I'm so sorry about it Harry," Hermione said sincerely, "but until Ron gets over me, I doubt there's anything we can do. You guys don't have to worry about me though. I understand if you can't always hang with me because of him. This wouldn't be the first time that Ron's had a problem with one, or more, of us."

Ginny sighed, "My brother's an idiot. He'll eventually come around though, he always does. Well," she said with a grin, "he better or I may just have to hex the stupid git."

"Come on, let's head to breakfast. I'm starving!" Harry said as he jumped up and held his hand out for Ginny.

The three friends headed to the Great Hall, now chatting about the usual topics of classes, homework and quidditch, and sat at the Gryffindor table. Ron turned up about ten minutes later. The tall boy he sat down next to Harry, completely ignored Hermione, and began to devour a breakfast normally considered enough for a family of four. Just down from them, Parvati, Seamus and Lavender were making their knives and forks battle each other, Dean and Luna were making puppy-dog eyes at each other, and Neville was feeding an odd looking plant some of his bacon. All in all, it was shaping up to be a normal day a Hogwarts.

Well, that was until Severus Snape walked in.

The Headmistress came into the Great Hall via the teachers' entrance. She was talking to Severus who was looking every bit the forbidding Potion Master that he was. He was dressed in a black wizard's robe with his hair hanging down limply. As the two sat down at the high table, whispers broke out amongst the students. Hermione wasn't sure what to do, but was fairly certain that her cheeks had turned a light shade of pink.

For the next fifteen minutes, Hermione tried to eat, and chat normally to the people around her. But she couldn't help but occasionally glance at the high table and wonder what he was doing here. Finally, she saw Severus and McGonagall, as well as the new Potions teacher, rise from the table and start to walk down through the Great Hall towards the main exit.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Draco approach Severus, and the three older adults paused. The young blond briefly talked with Severus before returning to the Slytherin table. Severus continued on and was very close to her now as he walked with his companions. Hermione could do nothing but avert her eyes and stare down at the toast and tea in front of her, as though the inanimate objects were doing very interesting things on her plate.

"Well at least we won't have to wait long to know what Snape's doing here," said Ron in a loud, scathing voice, "We'll just have to ask Hermione to talk to her ferret of a boyfriend."

Hermione turned red and shot daggers towards him. Harry told Ron to 'shut it'.

Severus exited and Hermione found that she could finally breathe right.

..ooOOoo..

Hermione hadn't left to see Severus for almost a week. The end of the school year was looming fast and her work load was becoming ridiculously huge. Hermione was fairly certain that her professors were trying to accomplish what Voldemort had not - kill Harry Potter and all of his friends. So it was now Friday night and Hermione packed her study books into her bag, as well several changes of clothes, and left for the Potion Master's house. As strange as it sounded, Hermione was beginning to miss the quiet man. Arriving with a crack, she walked down the pathway and was greeted by Sissy at the door.

"Hello Miss Hermione. Sissy is very happy to see Miss. Master is in his library Miss, would you like Sissy to go and get Master for Miss?"

Hermione was going to have to teach the little elf some pronouns, like 'you', 'he' and 'me'.

"Thank you, Sissy, but I'll head on up myself."

As Hermione walked through the door and down the corridor towards the library, she was pleased to see that Severus had been purchasing more furniture. There was now a low lying table in the entrance way, several different chairs and cabinets in the various rooms, and a few pieces of art to grace the high ceilinged walls. The house was beginning to get a 'lived in' feel to it. She knocked lightly on the open door frame and watched Severus lift his head from the papers that he was evidently working on.

"Hi," she said softly, "You mind having company?"

"Not at all," Severus replied, "depending on the quality of the company, of course."

Hermione smiled and walked inside, sitting on one of the comfy armchairs that faced the fire. Severus stood and took the other one across from her.

"So, I hear that you are dating my godson?"

"What? Oh not you too! For the millionth time today, Draco and I are not dating!"

"Draco, is it? I didn't realise you two were on a first name basis. The relationship must be getting serious."

"Who told you?" Hermione asked with her eyebrows raised, "How in Merlin's name did you hear that stupid bloody rumour?"

"When I was at Hogwarts discussing my drafts of potential textbooks, I overheard young Mr Weasley talking about it. I must say, it rather intrigues me."

"Look," Hermione said with earnest, "I promise you, Draco and I have just become friends. That's it! Ron's just jealous because I won't go out with him. Please believe me! I like Draco, but not in the same way that I..." she trailed off, embarrassed at what she almost said. "Please," Hermione continued on, "you can ask Draco if you want. Or use your Legimens on me. I don't mind!"

The left side of Severus' mouth twitched. "Stop fretting, Hermione. I am simply teasing you. I know that you and Draco are not together."

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. "But how do you know?"

"Let's just say you aren't his type," Severus said cryptically with a smile. "Now, my little witch, have you brought work with you tonight?"

Hermione motioned towards her bag, "Yes, I hope you don't mind. My workload is simply horrible at the moment."

"Of course not, I have my own work after all."

Hermione moved herself to the floor and Severus returned to his desk. She scattered her noted over the plush, thick rug and began to go over them. She had decided to try to do some more of her final essay tonight. For her NEWTs, Hermione had to submit a final essay which would sum up her knowledge of the key courses that she was taking. The essay was supposed to demonstrate the career path that Hermione wanted to take after she finished her schooling at Hogwarts. For hers, Hermione was combining Potions, Magical Aide and Charms. Considering she was currently working in the home of a Potions Master, it was a good chance to run through some interesting and rare potions texts for cross-referencing and quotes.

Walking along the long rows of books, Hermione skimmed her finger across the spines, looking for a potential book.

"What are you trying to find?"

Hermione jumped. Severus had come close to her without her noticing and he was now standing directly behind her. "Not sure yet," she answered without turning around.

"Well," continued the velvet voice, "if I knew what you are working on, I might be able to help."

Turning around, Hermione looked upwards at his face. "I'm looking for some books to help me with my NEWTs essay."

"Indeed, and what are you trying to write about? Surely it will be something overly ambitious and with a word cound far past the minimum required," Severus mocked.

"Well yes, if you must know." Hermione felt a finger trace up her sleeved arm and then twirl a piece of her hair. "You see," she continued, trying to concentrate while having him standing so close, "I recently treated someone who had been bitten by a poisonous snake. Normally, the bite should have been fatal. Luckily, this person was a Potion Master and had developed a barrier against some potential poisons, due to his work with a wide range of magical plants and animals on a regular basis. I am wondering if this type of barrier exists in other professions."

Severus raised an eyebrow in question.

"Take a Dragon Handler, for instance," Hermione continued, "Dragon's blood, skin, nails and such are often used in potions for their magical properties. A Dragon Handler obliviously has a dangerous occupation and often gets struck by the dragons. Couldn't such a person also become immune to certain illnesses because of this fact? I have been researching for such occurrences. Ginny's brother handles dragons and he has been helping me, as well as several other wizards in similar professions. It has been quite fascinating."

"What would you think this information will do for Mediwizardry?"

Hermione shrugged, "Maybe nothing. But if someone like you, a Potion Master, is brought in with an illness, obviously it is not going to be because of a common cold. You have too much tolerance for those types of illnesses. Instead, it is likely to be something far more life threatening. However, most mediwizards would place you through the same tests and procedures as anyone else, because they do not take into account the profession of the individual patient. This takes valuable time that could be potentially fatal. Also, I figure that wizards who are not in such unusual circumstances, such as a Potion Master or a Dragon Handler, could benefit from having such tolerances for certain substances and illnesses, and I am working on whether it could be possible..." Hermione stopped talking at the odd look she was getting from Severus. "What?"

"As per usual, you have taken on something which is far too complex for a simple NEWTs essay."

"Simple NEWTs essay?" Hermione repeated in disbelief.

"Don't get me wrong, Hermione, it is a wonderful theory and I look forward to seeing your results. However, you must admit that you are an insufferable know-it-all." Severus placed his hand on her cheek and brought his face lower to hers, "My smart, beautiful, little witch."

He kissed her softly and Hermione felt a book being pressed into her hands. Stepped back Severus said, "That may help," and returned to his desk.

..ooOOoo..

Tap, tap, tap... tap, tap, tap... tap, tap, tap...

Hermione groaned and found she couldn't move. Opening her eyes in the darkness, she saw that she wedged between the bed and Severus. Somehow, the older man had rolled on top of her during the night. His left leg, chest and left arm were thrown over her and Severus wasn't exactly a lightweight. Hermione found a slight bit of energy and pushed at his shoulder, trying to get him off. "Severus!" Hermione moaned out loud at him.

"Mmmm..." came the unintelligent response.

"Severus... Off!" He slowly rolled over and half woke up. The tapping noise had continued and Severus reached for his wand, which was sitting on the bedside table. Waving it, he opened the window. A large barn owl flew in and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Ignore it," Severus croaked out, "go back to sleep."

Hermione didn't need telling twice and closed her eyes.

Opening her eyes once more, Hermione noticed that there now was light coming in from the window and the barn owl was perched on the window ledge, looking out over the landscape. Wondering what time it was, she grabbed her wand, "Tempus". It was now 8:25am and she rolled over to see if Severus was awake. A sleeping form greeted her and Hermione smiled. They had been up until quite late last night in the library. Afterwards they stayed up a little longer in bed. Hermione wondered how she could wake up the man without him getting grumpy at her.

Reaching forward, she moved her hand downwards...

Down in the dungeons of Hogwarts, Draco had just finished a letter to his godfather. Signing it, he attached it to the barn owl he had gotten from the Hogwart's owlery and sent the bird on its way. Although early on Saturday morning, Draco had been up for quite a while. He was never one for sleeping in and, being the start of the weekend, he felt like doing something away from the confines of the school.

Standing, the Slytherin showered, dressed and made sure his hair was immaculate before leaving his private room. Looking at his silver wristwatch, Draco saw that it was 8:19am. The letter that he had sent had told Severus that he would arrive around half-past eight, and if Draco left now, he should get there just a little bit after the due time. Walking out of the common room and through Hogwarts, Draco was once again thankful that he was an early riser. Not many other teenagers were, and this meant that his walk was free from the usual glares and name calling that he had been experiencing since the war.

Arriving at the apparition point of his godfather's new house, Draco took the path and sauntered up to the front door. Not bothering to knock, he waved his hand over the door and, the wards recognising his magical signature, Draco strolled through.

He heard a 'pop!' and Sissy appeared before him. "Good Morning, Young Master Malfoy, good morning, good morning!"

Draco smirked at the elf. He liked this one. She was just so talkative for no reason and Draco loved how much she annoyed Severus. "Sissy, I am here to see Severus. I have already told him I'm coming so there is no need to go and get him, I'll manage."

"No, Young Master. Please, you can't, please, please."

Draco frowned, "And why not?"

"Um..." the elf squeaked and pulled at her left ear. "Master is in his bedroom. Yes, yes... Master is busy sleeping and you cannot go and see him, no, no, no."

"Busy sleeping?" Draco asked. 'Oh!' thought Draco, his godfather must be in his bedroom, busy with someone, 'This is way too good to pass up.'

Climbing the stairs two at a time, Draco had ignored the small elf, silencing and placing a binding curse on her. Draco crept up the long corridor and stepped up to Severus' bedroom door. With a quick flick of his wand, Draco flung the door open and laughed at the scene that lay before him. The woman that had been sitting on top of his godfather squealed and jumped off. Draco had only caught the sight of her lightly tanned skin and honey brown hair. She was now hiding herself under the covers. Severus roared at him, grabbed his wand and jumped up, threatening to curse the boy using quite colourful language.

"Firstly, my lovely Godfather, please put on some pants," Severus obliged with a growl and a flick of his wand, "Secondly, I see you were too busy to read my note." Draco pointed to the bird still holding the unopened letter around a leg.

"Draco Malfoy, I will kill you," Severus growled, "It will be when you least expect it, and it will be bloody slow and painful... I promise you this."

Draco smirked, "I've no doubt. So, are you going to introduce me...?" He pointed to the lump under the blankets.

Severus looked at the younger male. 'Oh, if looks could kill,' thought Draco.

The form under the blankets moved and the head of one Hermione Granger poked out. It took two seconds for Draco to connect the dots. "Well, well," the young Malfoy said with a smile, "it seems that my girlfriend has been very busy without me."

Hermione threw a pillow at him.