I honestly can't believe it—the end of all things! I suppose it had to come eventually, but it's still a shock. Now I actually have to focus on real work *shudder*

Anyway, hope you have enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it; thanks for all your comments, and good luck for any future stories of your own!

**

**

A FEW MONTHS LATER

Good morning, this is the Department for the Reasonable Restriction of Dangerous Wizards, what is your business today?" The secretary smiled at Hermione pleasantly, a flicker of near-fear going across her countenance as she saw Snape lurking behind the visitor.

"Werewolf Services, pelase." Hermione said brightly. "I believe we have an appointment."

The woman swallowed, straightening her robes nervously. The front slipped a bit. "Ah. Last door on the right, please."

"Thankyou, Miss Flander." Snape said silking, steering Hermione in the right direction and away from the red faced witch.

"Poor woman." Hermione chuckled. "She didn't know what hit her."

Snape nodded slightly in agreement. "Always was a timid student- possibly in the wrong line of work."

Hermione opened the door without pausing, confidence in every movement. There was only one desk visible inside, the rest of the long office shrouded in darkness. A man sat at the polished wood table, scribbling furiously- the very picture of a bureaucrat. Snape cleared his throat, loathed to be ignored.

The man glanced up reluctantly, but they soon had his full attention. He sprang to his feet. "Pr-Professor Snape! We've been expecting you, and your-" His eyes flickered towards Hermione, obvious surprise on his features.

"My werewolf?" Snape said dryly. "Yes, this is she. Now get on with it, you bumbling excuse for a wizard."

"Y-yes, of course." He sat heavily, retrieving a form with a flick of his wand from somewhere in the recesses of the office. "Details, please..."

Hermione dutifully recorded all her facts, waiting for the inevitable test.

"We need to see your bite for identification purposes, and a small test by silver." He said, trying to downplay it. "If you would..."

Hermione pulled down the neck of her robes, revealing the shiny pink scar. Then the real test- he passed her a block of pure Silver.

Nothing happened.

The clerk swallowed. "There appears to be..."

"There is no problem, Dawkins." Snape sneered. "You may have been aware of a certain cure being peddled to werewolves throughout Britain- don't deny it, I know you have records of this sort of thing. Miss Granger is merely a recipient of this, and poses no threat to society."

"Be that as it may, she must be Registered and Monitored, just like all the others, until this supposed 'cure' is proven." He said it with a tone that lacked conviction; Hermione was about to pounce on it when another voice came out of the office, behind the desk clerk.

"No, she must not." A grizzled man stepped out of the shadows, carrying a large stack of parchment with no apparent difficulty. He shoved in front of the timid man, addressing all of them with an air of a scholar. "You know the rule, Dawkins. No silver reaction, no record- officially. However, in this case, where a werewolf must be accepted as part of this man's plea bargain... we need a medium path. As Director of this sub-Department, I declare that this woman's record shall be taken down as truth, promptly lost in the Ministry paperwork system, but the Registration of a singular individual today a matter of record."

"So, to clarify- Hermione will be officially registered, but her name is confidential?" Snape pressed.

"That's it. Not even the Minister can find a piece of parchment in this mess."

Dawkins looked lost, but he reluctantly followed his superior's orders. The old grey man was careful to bury the evidence deep within the archives.

An Obliviate later, and Dawkins didn't even remember their visit. The man chuckled in his dusty way; Lupin had been explicit in his instructions of the matter, and they had been followed to the letter. As a fellow werewolf, he wasn't about to betray one, was he?

Snape and Hermione were already long gone, Flooing out of the Ministry separately before anyone had even realised their reason for being there initially.

"That went remarkably well." He remarked to her as they left the Ministry, walking back down a busy London street.

"It was a foolproof plan, Severus." Hermione smiled. She still thrilled to hear his name coming out of her mouth, and she could tell that he enjoyed its casual nature as well.

"We both have the credit." He reminded her, holding onto her upper arm and guiding her gently through the Muggle crowd. They both stopped simultaneously when they saw the perfect scene as they approached the crest of the hill; London was stretched out beneath them, washed over with the pale light of the moon. Hermione noted with a pang that it was full; she didn't even notice anymore, and neither did all the werewolves they had saved. They were all free, and no one could take that feeling away from them.

She turned to him, a smile coming to her face. She was delighted to see that an identical grin had reached his face, a genuine and vulnerable expression that took her breath away.

She held herself closer, now facing him. Although she missed the heightened scent of him, there was still more than enough to reach her human senses. She reached up without thinking, placing one hand on his chest.

"What you were saying earlier... about a summer trip through Europe for the Cure..."

"You may recall that the Potion wasn't the first reason on my mind." He replied with his velvet tones.

"Something does come to mind." She admitted. "Though what happened next was more interesting..."

They repeated it, Snape pulling Hermione into a long and passionate kiss with no inhibitions. Breathless and with a light head, Hermione looked deep into his endless eyes.

**

After their kiss, he looked deep into her brown expressive eyes, feeling at peace once again. Only she could make him feel that way, make him so thankful for being alive and not giving up along the long journey- and it had been long, almost too much to bear.

There was a flicker of something in her eyes... a growing streak of amber, no, yellow... for an instant, her eyes were those of a wolf.

Then the moment was gone, and he began to doubt if he had ever seen it. Deciding that it was unimportant, he pulled her in close again, deciding on what he had to say.

"A summer in Europe..." He considered. "I've changed my mind."

A flicker of confusion went across her face. He was quick to placate her, slipping a stray strand of hair behind her ear with infinite care. He would never get over how vulnerable she looked in that moment...

"How about a lifetime... without limitations?"

Her eyes filled with tears, and he felt a momentary fear that she would refuse.

She pulled him closer, holding onto his hand with a fervent strength. Her reply made his heart leap out of his chest and into hers.

"When do we leave?"

FINIS