Disclaimer: The characters, settings, etc. of the Harry Potter series are not mine. I just play with them.

A Summer at 12 Grimmauld Place
Part Ten

Hermione was not quite sure how long she and Severus had spent snuggling before the fire, talking and kissing, when Dumbledore's head appeared in the fire, reality crashing back into them.

"Headmaster!" Severus had exclaimed after Dumbledore had cleared his throat, interrupting a conversation about the effects of certain herbs in potion making.

"Hello Severus," Dumbledore replied, the exhaustion in his voice obvious. "And Hermione. No problems, I trust?"

"No," said Severus, "none of the Order arrived here."

"Then," Dumbledore said, "I must ask you to accompany Miss Granger back to Hogwarts. And bring your things, Severus, it's safe to come home."

"It's over then?" Severus asked.

"Yes," Dumbledore said softly, nodding. "It's finally over."

"And Potter? How is Potter?" Severus continued.

"And Ron?" Hermione squeaked, finally finding her voice.

"Both are alive, but unconscious. Poppy says they will be fine within a few days. I imagine you'll be able to see them as soon as you get here, Miss Granger, though they won't be very responsive. Now, no more questions. Not until you've arrived."

Severus nodded at this, and with one last smile, Dumbledore's head vanished from the grate. And Hermione promptly burst into tears. Severus held her, and though she was crying with joy and relief, she was grateful for his presence.

They apparated to Hogsmeade about a half an hour after Dumbledore had left the hearth empty, and nearly ran all the way up the path to the castle. When they arrived, they parted with a kiss; Hermione headed straight for the infirmary while Severus went to the Headmaster's office to hear a full account of all that had happened.

When Hermione burst through the doors of the infirmary, she was surprised to see it was nearly empty. Mrs. Weasley sat on a chair between the beds Harry and Ron occupied while Madam Pomfrey busied herself by checking their temperatures. As Hermione entered the room, Mrs. Weasley turned her head to look at her. Hermione could not help but notice the tears staining her cheeks.

"Hello, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said as she walked towards where her two best friends lay, almost perfectly still.

"Hello, dear," Mrs. Weasley said, rising from her seat as Hermione came to stand beside it and enveloping her in a hug. "How are you?"

"How am I?" Hermione echoed. "I'm fine, thank you. How are you?"

Mrs. Weasley pulled away, leaving one arm wrapped around Hermione's shoulders. "I'm fine. The boys are alive. All of our family is alive. Harry and Ron are the worst off, of course. Fred has a badly broken leg he's very proud of, and George managed to get quite a nasty concussion, but other than that, they're all very well. And Poppy says that these two will be just fine in a few days. As good as new."

"And the rest of the Order," Hermione prodded, "did we lose very many?"

Mrs. Weasley sighed. "Even one loss is too many, Hermione. But, no, not many of ours fell. All of the injured have been taken to St. Mungo's for treatment."

Hermione nodded, not wanting to push Mrs. Weasley for information and knowing that Severus would arrive with a full report eventually. For now, she would be content to sit beside Mrs. Weasley on the chair Madam Pomfrey had brought her, and keep watch over her best friends.

Hermione spent the rest of the day in the infirmary, and spent the night sleeping on the cot beside Harry's. She awoke the next morning early on, and was happy to see that Ron had awoken as well. He was ecstatic to see her, and told her all he could remember from the battle as he munched on the medichocolate Madam Pomfrey had given him.

"It was madness, Hermione," Ron said, chewing on a bit of chocolate, "hexes and curses flying everywhere, and I was trying to watch Harry's back while we searched for Voldemort. Found him eventually, of course, and he and Harry dueled. And then, it was over. Just like that. It was the oddest thing, you know, and I don't think I remember half of it really."

"What happened when they dueled, Ron?" Hermione asked.

Ron shrugged. "I was busy trying to hex Death Eaters when it happened, Hermione. I didn't see much of it, anyway. I knew it was over when there was a big burst of green light and the Death Eaters started disapparating all at once.

"When they were gone, everyone started cheering, you know, and I rushed over to Harry. He was unconscious by then, of course, I suppose from the effort, you know. It must have exhausted him. And then I was taking Harry in my arms and everything went black." He shrugged, shoving another piece of chocolate into his mouth. "And that was it, I suppose. That was the end of it."

The day wore on, and Harry showed no signs of waking up. Eventually, Dumbledore made his way down to the infirmary accompanied by Severus. Hermione did her best not to leap into Severus's arms as he was greeted jovially by both Ron and Mrs. Weasley. Hermione tried not be obvious as he sat on the cot next to Ron's bed and listened to his tale of the battle. Hermione tried not to verbalize how touched she felt when Severus called him very brave, and stated that Ron's efforts made him proud to know him.

She watched as Severus took up one of the chairs next to hers that Madam Pomfrey had set out for him and Dumbledore. She was happy to see, though, that Dumbledore had the good sense to seat himself between herself and Snape.

They sat in silence for a few moments, watching Harry, while Ron spoke quietly to his mother.

Eventually, however, Dumbledore cleared his throat and opened his mouth in preparation to speak. "Love is an amazing thing, isn't it?" he mused. "I credit love with Harry's success. His mother gave him a very great gift that evening in Godric's Hollow. I can only dream of having someone love me as much as she loved Harry.

"True love," he continued, "lasts forever. And though it may not always manifest itself at the most convenient of times, if we are patient and wait, it will still be there when the right opportunity to act upon it finally arrives."

And as he finished speaking, Harry blinked twice and opened his eyes. "Professor Dumbledore?" he said, his voice groggy.

"Yes, yes, Harry. How nice it is to see you awake! Just give me a moment, and I will go retrieve Madam Pomfrey." Dumbledore said, and Hermione watched him stand from his seat.

When he'd gone, her eyes drifted to Snape and saw that he was staring at her. She smiled at him, and was surprised when he did not smile back. After a few more seconds of watching her, he arose from he seat abruptly and left the infirmary.

Hermione decided she would worry about his sudden change in demeanor later. At the moment, her most pressing concern was watching over Harry.

Severus returned to the infirmary not long after Mrs. Weasley finally fell asleep on the cot next to Ron's. Hermione felt him before she saw him; he stood behind her, resting a hand on her shoulder. "How are they?" he whispered.

"Fine," Hermione replied just as quietly, "still breathing."

"Then will you abandon your vigil for a short while so that I may speak with you?" he asked.

She nodded, stood from her seat, and turned to face him. He gave her a tight smile, and offered his hand. Taking it, she allowed him to lead her out of the infirmary.

They walked quietly through Hogwarts halls and did not speak a word to one another. Hermione let Severus lead her through the castle hallways, slowing descending, until they finally passed through the dungeon entryway. She followed as he brought her over to the doorway she knew led to his private chambers, followed as the door was opened and he ushered her inside, and followed as he led her over to the couch that sat before his fire.

He sat down, and she sat beside him. "Hermione," he began eagerly, "what happens now?"

"What do you mean?" she replied.

"Well," he said, "I will be returning to Hogwarts now. And you'll be going to university in the fall. So where does that leave us?"

Hermione frowned. "I don't know. It's a rather difficult situation, isn't it?"

"Indeed," he replied softly, thoughtfully.

"Well," Hermione began brightly, as an idea came to her. "I could spend the rest of my summer here with you at Hogwarts and then…"

"No," Severus said, cutting her off. "The Headmaster would not stand for it."

"Why not?" Hermione asked, frowning. "I'm no longer a student. It wouldn't be imprudent."

"But you see, Hermione," Severus said, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, "it would be. Did you not hear what the Headmaster said in the infirmary? You're not ready for the kind of relationship I would want to have with you. There is too much you must experience first, Hermione. Our age difference would not be conducive to a good relationship."

"Age doesn't matter where there's love, Severus," Hermione retorted, hating the slight whine in her voice.

"But it does, Hermione, and you're intelligent enough to realize that it does. My life experience and maturity level exceeds yours. Which is not to say," he continued, holding up a hand when he saw her mouth open to protest, "that you are immature. I will be the first to recognize your maturity, Hermione, but you still have a ways to go before I could consider you an adult or my equal. And until you come to the point at which I might consider you my equal, any relationship we may try to develop would be doomed. It would be as though I were taking advantage of your inexperience and your innocence. I care for you too much to do that."

She was overwhelmed by the urge to cry, but did not allow herself to do so. It would only validate his opinion of the matter. "This isn't fair."

"No," he sighed, chuckling softly. "It is very unfair that I finally find someone I am able to love who loves me in return only to realize that I must wait even longer before she can be mine. It is not fair in the least, Hermione, but this is what it is. We will just have to be grateful for the experience we've had until the time comes when we can have something more together."

"Grateful for what we've had!?" Hermione exclaimed, growing angry. "Severus, we've had a month or so of bickering and semi-civil conversations, and finally towards the end, a few hours of kisses. That's all we've had, and it's hardly anything." She sighed, clenching her hands into fists. "I want more, Severus."

He drew a ragged breath. "And you think I don't, Hermione? Do you think it's easy for me to tell you that we'll have to wait? Who knows when you'll come back to me? Who knows if you'll ever come back to me?

"You might meet some very handsome young man while you're at school. You may marry him, have his children, and think back on the summer when you fancied yourself in love with your old Potions Master. But what will become of me, Miss Granger? Nothing so wonderful. I may sit here and rot until the end of my days, cherishing the memory of the few moments I felt loved by another. You, at least, have ample opportunity to obtain more, whereas I, Miss Granger, do not."

Hermione watched the man who sat next to her, scowling at the ground in front of him. "I love you, you know," she whispered softly.

"I love you, too," he said, frowning.

"And that's it, isn't it? My cue to leave?" she asked.

"Yes," he said softly, not looking at her. "I suppose it is."

Hermione nodded and stood from the couch. She walked quickly to the door they had entered only minutes ago though, by now, it seemed like years had passed. She paused in the doorway, and turned slightly to look at him, willing herself not to cry. She would be strong because she knew in her heart that this was not the end. "I will see you later, Severus," and this time, she knew it was a promise.

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Author's Note: Before you bring out the silver platter and demand my head, remember that there's an epilogue. Though I would be quite content leaving the story as is, I'll be posting the epilogue sometime soon. Anyway, thanks so very much for reading and reviewing. You kids are the greatest.