o.o.O.o.o
Present
May 7th, 1998

History was proving to be the hardest hiring decision he had to make. Not only was it a vitally important class, for obvious reasons, but given that there were several members of staff approaching retirement age, he needed to give a thought to a possible successor for one of the Houses. Filius was the oldest on staff, and the most likely to retire at some point in the next ten years. Appointing a Ravenclaw to teach History wouldn't raise any eyebrows either. That would mean that when Filius retired, he could hire a new Charms Professor and not be as worried about choosing a Ravenclaw for it.

The name at the very top of his list was a student he remembered from his own school days. Thomas Fawley had been a couple of years behind him, and was currently a guest lecturer at the Florentine Wizarding Academy in Italy. He specialized in early wizarding culture and the time before the Statute of Secrecy. He was a life-long academic and he had a feeling that he would be a solid fit here at the school. His name had been on both Filius and Horace's lists, so choosing him would show respect to them both. He signed his name to the official offer. He'd post it with an International owl later today.

With luck Mr. Fawley would accept and then he could focus on finding a person to take on Cultural Studies. He would be abolishing the Muggle Studies course, as it had long been nothing more than a joke. The information was wildly inaccurate, and most students took it for an easy mark. No, there needed to be a bridge between the children that had been raised here in the Wizarding World, and the students that had come from Muggle Backgrounds. That kind of course needed a very special kind of teacher, someone who had lived in both worlds and more importantly understood them in a way that most couldn't claim to. His original instinct had been to approach Andromeda, but he realized that for all her life experience, she'd never truly had to live as a muggle.

No. Only someone that had grown up in their world, but then lived in the other could successfully teach children about the intricacies of both backgrounds without bias or disdain. What Hogwarts needed was a Squib. It would be a pure theory class, with no actual magic required. That was why he needed to see Lucius. The other man would have a much better idea where to look for the ideal candidate. Squibs were a taboo topic of conversation most of the time. If a Hogwarts letter never came, children would often be shipped off to muggle schools, and set up in the muggle world. That was if the family wasn't completely fanatical and killed them. His floo flared at precisely 2pm, and Lucius stepped out.

While still looking somewhat haggard and frankly a little unwell, Lucius was dressed impeccably. His hair smoothed back into a neat ponytail, and his head held high.

"Lucius," Severus said as he got up from behind his desk.

"Headmaster." Lucius' lips turned up in a bit of a smirk.

"I was hardly going to let them run me off." Severus snorted a little. "How are Narcissa and Draco?"

"They're both as well as can be expected. There is a lot to do to put the Manor back to rights, but it's coming along. How goes the reconstruction here?" he asked.

"It is progressing. We'll be sending the students home on Monday, and the orphans will be remaining under our care for the summer." Severus motioned to the two leather wingback chairs he'd had placed by the window. Tea appeared on the table for them.

"Good. I am glad you managed to survive, old friend," Lucius said as he settled into the chair.

"You have Miss Granger to thank for my continued existence on this earth. Clever girl had a vial of Phoenix Tears, otherwise I'd have died in that miserable shack." He smiled fondly.

"I do hope you thanked her properly." Lucius chuckled and helped himself to tea.

"As often as I can manage," Severus said somewhat smugly.

"Well, then I suggest you get that girl a proper ring before long. Even if circumstances require it to remain private for the time being. She's about to be one of the most eligible young witches in Britain, and I would snap her up before others realize her worth," Lucius said.

"And here I was under the impression that you didn't like her all that much." Severus arched an eyebrow.

"I don't particularly." Lucius shrugged. "However, I do believe she's the reason you're still here and not just because she saved your life. She gave you a reason to fight. For that, I think you should hold on tightly and not let go. Besides, my wife is surprisingly fond of her and it would sew things up rather neatly."

"I don't want to rush her into anything and circumstances dictate…" Severus began.

"Yes, yes…circumstances dictate discretion and all that rubbish. Propose to the girl. Even the most secure witch requires some reassurances that she's not a shameful secret," Lucius said.

"I'll consider it, but that is not the reason I asked you here." Severus shifted a little in his chair. "I am looking to make some rather sweeping changes to the curriculum here at Hogwarts. I'm hiring a new History Professor and I will be introducing a Cultural Studies course. I want students to learn about both muggle and wizarding culture equally, so that there is less resentment and misunderstanding. I was hoping to find a squib from one of the old families that might be willing to take it on, but as you can imagine…" He trailed off.

"You're not really in a position to know just who's out there," Lucius said. His head fell to the side a little, as he considered. "You might want to try and track down Constance Greengrass. Her sister, Cherish, was in my year, and I remember her being very upset because her younger sister wasn't going to be coming to Hogwarts. I think they sent her off to boarding school. They were only a year apart in age, and very close. I imagine they kept in touch," Lucius suggested.

"Thank you, if you can think of any others, please send me an owl with their names. I have a rough idea of what I'd like taught in the course, but it would be better if they Professor had their own input as well." Severus said.

"Naturally," Lucius said. "How are you managing, really? I can't imagine that facing your colleagues was terribly pleasant."

"It could have been worse," Severus said. "It's going to take time to rebuild trust, but I'll take it a day at a time. The Board of Governors will need rebuilding, and I want to have my changes in place before they are fully assembled."

"I'll keep my ear to the ground, and let you know if I hear anything on that front." Lucius promised.

Keeping ahead of things was going to be essential for all his plans, and Severus was very grateful to have Lucius firmly on his side.

o.o.O.o.o
Present
May 7th, 1998

Hermione didn't know why her throat felt so tight as she stood outside the Fat lady's portrait. She knew all the Heads of House had addressed their students this morning about everything that had happened. Tomorrow, they'd be going down to the Great Hall for breakfast and Severus was going to address them. She was worried for him, not because she feared for his safety, but she knew how hard it would be to say the things that needed to be said.

"I'm afraid I don't know the password," Hermione said once she was finally able to find her voice.

"My dear, there are few places in this castle where you would not be granted entry. Welcome home." The Portrait swung open and Hermione walked into the Gryffindor Common Room. Tears stung at her eyes as she took it in, seeing everything just as she remembered it.

"Hermione! Guys! It's Hermione!" Seamus sounded the alert, and in moments she was surrounded by friends and former Housemates.

"Guys, everyone give her a little space," Neville finally said, able to see that she was overwhelmed. "Come and sit down, we've been wondering when you and the others would come to visit. We're going mad locked up in here."

"Thanks Neville," Hermione said and sat down, looking out at all the faces staring up at her in a kind of awe. "We've been trying to fix the worst of the damage to the castle, it hasn't been safe to let anyone really wander yet."

"McGonagall said that Snape was still Headmaster, that can't be true right? I mean, even if what Harry said was true about him being on our side the whole time…The things he did, he just can't be serious about staying. Can he?" Neville asked, face grim.

"I wanted to talk to all of Gryffindor, Seamus…can you get everyone down here? I'm only going to want to say this once, and it's something all of you deserve to hear," Hermione said and waited while they went to grab the students still up in their rooms. Once the Common Room was full, she took a deep breath.

"I know almost all of you and I hope that even if we weren't friends that you all trust me enough to listen to what I have to say now." Hermione stood up. "When Voldemort was resurrected in June of 1995, I knew that things were going to get bad. I sent my parents away to protect them, because I remembered reading about what Voldemort and his followers had done to muggleborns and their families the first time around. That summer, I joined the Order of the Phoenix and Headmaster Dumbledore entrusted my training to Professor Snape. I had to swear an Unbreakable Vow to keep secrets from all of you, until Voldemort had been destroyed for good. I knew in September of my sixth year that Professor Snape would have to kill Dumbledore by the end of the year. The Headmaster was dying from a vicious and deadly curse, and he made Professor Snape swear an Unbreakable Vow to be the one to kill him. Dumbledore needed Voldemort to trust Snape completely so that he would entrust Hogwarts to him. Yes, he was forced to let the Carrows come here and yes he hurt many of you, but you have no idea how much worse it would have been if he hadn't been here. How many more of you would be dead today, or maimed beyond fixing? He did what he could to control the damage and he's staying because he believes it's his responsibility to try and put things right." Hermione spoke clearly, staring into the eyes of her former DA friends, needing them to understand. "You may not choose to believe that he's a good man, but I am telling you now that without him, there would have been no victory. He saved my life after the Department of Mysteries, he saved Harry more times than any of us will ever know, and he saved every one of your lives because he stood between you and Voldemort every day since he was named Headmaster."

"You can't seriously be asking us to listen to a word he has to say!" Seamus swore.

"Yes, I am," Hermione said calmly. "I don't know what you all lived through this last year, but I know what I had to survive. I spent mere hours in the care of Bellatrix Lestrange, and I'll carry scars from that for the rest of my life. She could have been given Hogwarts and I know she would have tortured all of you for sport. She'd have killed you, for no other reason than she wanted to. He did the best he could in an impossible situation, all I'm asking you to do is listen to him. That's all."

Neville stood and looked out at the room. "She's right. We should at least listen to what he says tomorrow. If Harry and Hermione say that he's always been on our side, maybe we should believe them."

"Thank you, Neville." She gave him a small smile as the others started to break into groups to discuss it.

"Ok, enough seriousness for one day. Dinner should be here soon, stay and eat with us?" Neville asked.

"I'd really like that." Hermione smiled at him. It had been a long time since she'd just sat here in the Common Room surrounded by her fellow students. It felt strange and she realized with a start that too much had changed and she'd never be able to go back to this. She mourned that loss, even as she accepted the truth that she was finally ready to take her first steps in the world following no one's agenda other than her own.

o.o.O.o.o
Present
May 8th, 1998

It had been a very long time since Severus had felt this nervous. If he had to rate the level of fear curling in his gut, it was on par with the night he'd gone before the Dark Lord after the Triwizard Tournament. He was standing just outside the teacher's entrance to the Great Hall, waiting for the last students to be seated. He could hear Minerva speaking, urging the students to calm and listen to what he was going to say. This is the one thing that all of his plans and preparations couldn't account for. If he couldn't find a way to make the students hear him, then remaining as Headmaster would be pointless. He took a deep breath and centered himself before opening the door and striding into the room. His robes today were black, trimmed in green, with a matching green ribbon tying his hair back at the nape of his neck. Hermione had added that touch this morning as he'd fussed in the bathroom. He'd disliked it instantly, but her insistence led him to admit that it did change his appearance drastically. Maybe this would help distance everyone from that man he had been for so many years.

A hush fell over the room and the hostility was nearly palpable. He walked to the podium and stood looking out over the house tables. He said a silent prayer that this was the right thing to do, and then began his speech.

"First, I wish to let all of you know that the Hogwarts Express will be taking most of you home on Monday. Provisions have been made for those that cannot return home at the moment, and your individual Heads of House will be letting you know about that privately over the weekend. Repairs are underway all over the Castle, but the grounds are open for your use and I imagine after so many days in your dormitories, you will be happy to get outside. The Library and all paths to the Common Rooms are safe, but some areas will be blocked off and I ask that you respect these barricades for your own safety." He paused, allowing a murmur of voices about the announcements before pressing on. "Meals will be served as normal and tonight there will be a feast to celebrate the end of the war. Before dinner, I would like to ask all of you to join me out by the Black Lake for a memorial service to honour all those that fell defending Hogwarts, and the Wizarding World." Severus took a moment to steel himself for this next part.

"I am sure that by now, all of you have been told that I will be remaining as Headmaster of Hogwarts. Many things were done in secret in the last few years, for a myriad of reasons. Because of those secrets and oaths, I was forced to allow harm to come to you. For that, I owe the gravest of apologies to every single one of you. This is a place where you should have been safe and shielded from the war that raged outside these walls. Instead, you faced peril, fear, and uncertainty. The debt I owe to you won't allow me to simply walk away and leave someone else to pick up the pieces. I cannot undo what happened here, no matter how much I wish that I could. All I can do is to spend every single day of the rest of my life trying to make amends. I will see Hogwarts rebuilt. I will see that all of our muggle born students are found and returned here for the education that was denied to them by Voldemort. I will fight to gain every advantage and opportunity that you all deserve. That is my promise to you, regardless of your house, your family name, or your blood status. The path forward will not be easy, but if we come together I believe that we can build a future where a Dark Lord like Voldemort can never exist," Severus said, trying to convey his emotions to these children. It was anathema to him to be this open, but they deserved every bit of truth he could give them.

"If you should choose to return next year, I would like to share some slightly happier news. Mr. William Weasley has agreed to come and teach Defence Against the Dark Arts with the assistance of Miss Hermione Granger, whom some of you may know," he announced and was unsurprised by the sudden eruption of cheers from the Gryffindor table. "There will also be a new Professor for History of Magic, and I can assure all of you that you will no longer be subjected to five years of repetitive lectures on the Goblin Rebellions." He felt some hope at the general chuckles from the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students. "Madame Hooch wishes me to inform all of you that there will be a fun Quidditch match today after lunch, and anyone wishing to play is to see her after breakfast. Thank you." He nodded respectfully and was utterly stunned as Neville Longbottom stood and began to clap. There was a hesitation, but then others began to follow his lead, members of the DA first and then spreading out like a wave. He noted that his Slytherins were the last to join in, looking extremely wary. They would need a more personal address. He'd visit them tonight with Horace, and explain the changes that were coming. They were not a group of students that liked change, and given the utter turmoil of recent events, they had to be reeling.

Severus went and sat down, only then sparing a small look to Hermione who was being gushed over by the staff. Yes, appointing two popular Gryffindors to the staff had been the right move, perhaps the only one that had saved him. He would need to talk to Longbottom at some point soon, and express his thanks for the young man's show of support. He wasn't entirely sure he understood it, but it had been exactly what he'd needed today.