The next week went by without incident, Hermione falling back into her public role as Severus's familiar. Her first morning back she'd been surprised by the whole of Hogwarts' staff surrounding her and questioning Severus about her wellbeing, much to his annoyance and overall dismay. Professor Vector had cooed at her and Hermione could practically see the hearts floating in her eyes as she stared lovingly down at the lioness. Hermione thought it was amusing, but also quite creepy.

Severus had grumbled and growled and finally snapped and berated the crowd of Professors surrounding his chair at the Head Table, causing everyone to scurry like mice to escape his wrath. Narrowing his eyes at the fleeing forms he had turned to face front, sneering in disgust, but his hand had found Hermione's head and pulled it onto his thigh, where she rested it and he stroked her ear absently.

Potions classes had been getting much more interesting to watch. Now that the students were getting used to Nyota's presence, Hermione was able to walk down the aisles and assist Severus at watching for potentially dangerous situations. A few times Hermione had caught some students about to pour in ingredients that would have caused utter disaster and snarled at them to halt their actions. She was spending way too much time around Severus because the look of shock and horror on their faces came across as way more amusing to her than it should have.

It was Christmas break before Severus approached her about proceeding with the next step of her Occlumency training. She had been in her form for a little over a month, and the few attempts to revert her back had failed miserably. Despite this, Hermione had managed to remain mostly in control of her lioness instincts, but she agreed with Severus's assessment that they leave nothing to chance and that they make sure she was as strong an Occlumens as possible.

They were standing outside now, Severus turning to face her, his cloak billowing out behind him in the brisk winter breeze. Snow had come quickly, coating Hogwarts ground in a matter of hours one November evening and it had only gotten deeper and colder since.

Swirls of misty air puffed in front of both Severus and Hermione as they breathed quietly, and Hermione felt her coat standing on end, acting as insulation to keep her heat in and the biting air out. Severus looked down at her.

"I'm going to transform into my Animagus now. I'm not sure if it will trigger you, but if it does, do not panic. I'll be able to handle it," Hermione narrowed her eyes. The blasted Slytherin had refused to come straight out and tell her what his Animagus form was, leaving her going stir crazy trying to guess. She had long ago thrown the idea of his being an actual 'Dungeon Bat' out the window, and she doubted he would turn into a giant snake - she was sure his disgust of Nagini would make sure he wouldn't take such a form - leaving her with absolutely no ideas. She figured he could be a big black panther, it would definitely fit his strong personality and affinity for wearing dark colors. Professor McGonagall's lecture floated into her mind as she once again pondered what form he might take,

"One's Animagus form cannot be chosen by the witch or wizard, but is determined by their personality and inner traits. It is not uncommon for one's Animagus to match a witch or wizard's Patronus form, as the Patronus also reflects one's inner self and unique characteristics. An obvious example of this would be myself - Both my Patronus and Animagus form is a cat.

Your Animagus form will also bear an identifying mark that is caused by something on your human body. For example, as a cat I can be found with dark spectacle markings around my eyes due to the fact that I wear glasses. However, these identifying marks can be anything and are unique to every witch and wizard - no two Animagus's are the same, even if they are the same species.

Your Animagus form might come as a surprise. Often times the form a witch or wizard takes does not seem obvious, nor is easily explained in relation to their personality. It just means you have to open your mind a bit to figure out the reason behind the form you took,"

Hermione glanced back up at her Professor, who was setting his wand down on a nearby rock. What were Severus's inner traits? He was strong willed, that was for sure, and extremely intelligent. He was courageous, and loyal. And strong, both mentally and physically. He was sneaky and sly, witty, manipulative - all traits of a true Slytherin.

Hermione was practically shaking with anticipation. Severus fixed a scowl in her direction and grumbled,

"Calm yourself, witch," Before closing his eyes in concentration and taking a slow, steady breath as his body started to shift.

Severus felt his body changing - shrinking in some places, growing in others, felt his face protrude and his teeth lengthen and sharpen, felt his hands widen and thicken, felt his skin turn to fur, felt his senses become more acute - until...

Hermione's mouth dropped.

Severus had turned into a tall, strong, striking, and fear inducing tiger.

He was huge, without a doubt bigger than Hermione in every aspect - taller, longer, heavier - and definitely stronger.

A sudden thought hit her as her eyes perused the figure in front of her - so this was what Professor Dumbledore had meant! It all made perfect sense now.

His eyes met hers and Hermione saw they were Severus's eyes, pure obsidian that one could get lost in easily without finding anything. They were deep, but at the same time shallow. They were expressive but impossible to read.

His coat was a deep silver, covered with thick black stripes. His ears were pure black with a white eye spot on each one, the only white on his body besides the two spots above his eyes and of course the white along his chin. His face was framed with a deep black line of hair followed by the dark silver fur that protruded around his thick cheeks and firm jaw. His nose was slightly arched, giving him a noble, Roman look.

His thick paws were positively monstrous, and his long tail swung idly from side to side as he stood under her curious gaze. Eventually he'd had enough, and he moved forward, turning, unintentionally giving Hermione a side view of his long, muscular body.

She immediately knew what physical human quality could be used to identify Severus as an Animagus.

It was his scars.

Hermione had never thought about the possibility of Severus having scars, and now she felt a fool for it. Of course he'd have scars. She knew that the Death Eaters were not exempt from horrific, brutal punishments at the hand of the Dark Lord, and Severus was no exception. If anything, he got punished more than any of the others due to his difficult role as a spy.

There were so many.

They littered his back; some thick, some thin, some long, some short, some healed and shown as white hair, others fresh and raw, the pink, inverted skin stiff and unmoving as he walked forward.

At the sound of Hermione gasping, Severus halted, confused, and turned his head towards her. Her mouth hung slightly open, and he followed her eyes, twisting his head around even further until he was looking at his back, and the scars.

Of course. The bloody fucking scars.

He always forgot about them. His body had always been unsightly; a few more blemishes meant nothing. If anything, he was glad for the scars. They reminded him of what he'd done. He deserved all of the torture and punishment he received, he deserved to bear the mark of his betrayal as a reminder that he carried with him always, permanently etched into his skin, so that he'd never forget. He didn't deserve to forget.

He deserved the horror in her eyes as she looked at them.

He dropped his eyes from his back and looked at her. She met his eyes immediately, her ears pinned back in submission. She hadn't meant to stare.

"I should have warned you," He thought, directing it towards her in his mind. Her eyes lit up and her body tensed in surprise, but then a smile curved her feline lips and after a moment she responded weakly,

"I didn't mean to stare," Severus shook his head.

"It doesn't bother me," Of course it did. But he deserved it. He deserved her judgement and scorn and that of every other person who saw the proof of the life he lived. Saw the proof of his life as a Death Eater. He tortured and cursed innocent lives, and he was tortured and cursed as well. It was twice as painful as it could be, and he was glad for it. If he wasn't tortured he wasn't sure he could have done it. It would have been too easy for him, easier to detach himself from what he did. But he always knew what they were feeling, the people at the end of his wand, at the end of his cruciatus curse and Sectumsempra spell. He couldn't detach himself. He looked into their eyes and felt the same pain they did, he felt the hoplessness and the despair and the excruiating fire that burned through their veins and overcame them until they were left with nothing; engulfed into an infernal heat.

He deserved it.

"No, you don't!"

Fuck. Her voice was stronger this time, perfectly clear in his mind, and full of Hermione Granger's insistance and confidence.

"Yes, Hermione, I did. Do not argue with me about this. I've done things you can't even imagine. Things that would send you fleeing from this very spot without hesitation. I deserve every single one of those retched scars,"

She was silent for a moment, and he could see the battle raging in her eyes. She wanted desperately to argue with him, but she knew this wasn't the time or the place. Severus hoped she would forget about it, but he knew better. Then, he watched, his brows furrowed, as her expression softened and her eyes warmed with sadness.

Oh, no. Not pity.

"I don't pity you, Severus,"

Fuck, he needed to gain control of his mind in this form, and swiftly. He couldn't keep unconsciously projecting his thoughts towards her like that. He was a bloody spy for Merlin's sake. He couldn't afford to be this careless, ever. He focused internally for a moment and hardened his walls, slamming them down mercilessly. He was detached now, he had to be, until he got used to being in this form again, but his thoughts were safe.

"I don't pity you," She repeated. His eyes met hers, cold and hard.

"You made your own decisions, your own choices, and you suffered the consequences. I understand that. But you didn't deserve it, Severus. You are a good person. You aren't evil. You aren't what you make yourself out to be. I know you better than that," Her eyes flickered to his back and the scars that raked across his pelted flesh. "You didn't, and don't deserve, all of that suffering,"

He didn't allow himself to feel anything at her words. They were empty. She was merely forming the words in her mouth and letting them slip out, there was no meaning behind them. There was no truth.

"I need a few minutes to get used to my form, then we'll continue your lesson," With that, he turned from her, and took off trotting down towards the track, his long legs swinging effortlessly underneath him, devouring the ground. He never looked back.

Hermione saw the change in his eyes immediately. She'd gotten used to seeing it, but she didn't think he realized she knew. She watched it happen every day. His eyes would be guarded around her, and she figured they always would be, but when they walked out into the corridor and into the public eye, then they really hardened. She could practically see his mental walls shut forcefully into place, keeping his every emotion and thought completely sealed inside, leaving the shell of his eyes behind, merely a vessel for him to see out of. When she looked into them, all she could see was the purest black, colored only by the yellowish white of the light that shone into them. His gaze turned strong, cold, ruthless when he cast it on to her, and she always had to remind herself that Severus was still in there, behind the mask of Professor Snape.

He was Professor Snape now.

She wasn't sure why. Was it the scars? Was it what she said to him that caused him to shut himself down, to close himself off from her?

Was it because of what she'd heard him say in her mind that she knew he hadn't meant to say?

Oh.

That was what he'd meant by needing to get used to his new form.

Of course. It was probably a very rare occurrence for him to take his Animagus form. There was no use for it in his life as a spy. Hermione remembered the first few times she took her form. Her mind felt out of control, overcome by the nature of the lioness. She doubted that Severus was in any way out of control of his body, or that he'd turn on her because he saw her as a threat, it wasn't that kind of loss of control he was suffering from. He had to rebuild his walls in this new form. For him, that was worst.

He couldn't be vulnerable at all, and he had been. He'd let his thoughts slip into her mind without meaning to.

So he'd completely shut himself down, suppressing every emotion, shutting her out.

She'd just have to give him time to sort himself out, if that was what the problem was. She prayed that the reason he'd shut her out was not because they'd finally talked, even if it was just in their minds. She prayed that this didn't mean he only wanted her as a "familiar", and that as soon as she was human again he'd forget or forcefully ignore the relationship they'd developed.

If that was why, she didn't know what she'd do.

A/N - I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has commented or favorited or just read this fanfiction! This my first ever fanfic and I've never published anything that I've written before, so seeing how many people have read this and looking through all of the awesome comments has been mindblowing! Thank you so much! :)

Also, there were some people who guessed that Severus would be a tiger as an Animagus (yay! for all of you!), but I'd like to call out Hitokimi who got it spot on by guessing that he'd be a black bengal tiger! (*hands you a cookie*)

You guys are all amazing and I appreciate all of you for reading this, and I hope that I don't disappoint!