As the weekend began, Hermione was still torn about whether or not to send a statement about her relationship with Ron. It was a chapter that she was trying to close in her life. He had made the decision for her. Unfaithfulness wasn't something that she would tolerate. The only problem was that, although it seemed so far away from Durmstrang, at the end of the year they would go back to the UK and she would have to deal with the aftermath of Ron thinking that she wouldn't fight back.
Hermione glanced at her clock. Severus was brewing contraceptive potion for Galen and would be a few more hours. Grabbing the Witch Weekly, she glanced through the article and pulled out a few quotes that had been used. She couldn't act defensive, but she had to dispute his statements. If all she did was claim that he cheated on her, she knew how it would go. It would somehow be her fault for not loving him enough. For not wanting to marry him.
She would never win over everyone. That was all that she had to keep in mind. After the week that she had, Hermione was feeling confident in herself. Her students hadn't killed her. Her fellow Professors hadn't killed her and, at the risk of sounding optimistic, some of them were being nice to her. She sure as all hell wasn't going to let Ronald Weasley get her down.
The statement about her relationship with Severus during school was easy to dispute. She made a note to ask Minerva for a quote on her insistent need to get students to respect their professors. Perhaps Neville, as well. She had never met anyone who wasn't a Slytherin who didn't like Neville.
"Hermione?" Severus peeked into the room.
"I thought you were busy keeping the parents of students in ignorance of their children's behavior."
He smirked. "I am, but I'm going to need new ingredients to finish. I found out that to get said ingredients, I will need to take a trip into Tromsø. Would you care to accompany me?"
"Now?"
He shook his head. "I have to finish the current batch. Could you be ready in an hour? We may have a bit of time to explore."
"Yes, of course," she replied. "I can't believe we haven't been yet. The last time we were there we were not well-received."
"I'll be back for you in an hour," he said, closing the door quietly.
Hermione turned back to her notes. Tromsø would make a nice break. Her section on having a crush on Severus as a student would have to end on how focused everyone was on the war. That would also drum up some support from those who had supported her at the time.
With that part figured out, she moved onto the more difficult subjects. She was a workaholic. There was no getting around that and to try to deny it would be denying part of who she actually was. That wasn't the answer. No woman should feel as though she shouldn't pursue her dreams. There was a difference between being a happy housewife and a woman who had been denied her goals in life. There had to be a way to get her point across without making the article too personal. While she wasn't happy with Ron, he was the man that she thought she would spend the rest of her life with.
Hermione dropped her quill on her desk and pushed herself away from it. It took her a moment to realize that she was crying, but once she did the tears came full force. Before he had cheated on her, he had tried to control her and that was never going to be okay. However, she had also spent the better part of a decade in love with him.
The only thing that kept going through her mind was how everything had changed. Yes, she had put off the wedding and she had wanted a career, but she hadn't changed. Never in her life had she not been ambitious. Ron had known that about her. He hadn't always agreed with it, but he had known that about her.
Letter writing was done for the day, she decided. Instead, she picked up a book that she had placed on the coffee table.
Severus walked back towards Hermione's room after dropping off the potions he had already made to the Hospital Ward. He had been wondering if leaving the castle was permitted, but hadn't had much of a reason to ask. It was a relief when he was told that it wouldn't be a problem.
"Hermione? Are you ready to go?" He asked upon entering.
Hermione was asleep on the couch, a book open across her chest. When she heard Severus, she sleepily opened her eyes.
"Severus?" Her eyes were red.
"You've been crying," he said, sitting on the chair across from her.
"I was just having a moment," she said, sitting up and putting the book beside her. "I'm sorry."
Severus knew that he had two options. The first was to ask her what kind of moment and risk the emotional breakdown that could happen. Considering he had a feeling that a certain ginger was the cause, that wasn't ideal. The second was to transition into an afternoon out.
"A moment that could be cured by a bookstore?" he asked.
"No," she laughed. "But it will have to do for now. Let me grab my cloak."
Severus held in a sigh and glared at the wall when she walked out of the room. In his opinion she had grieved over her failed relationship long enough.
"How do we get there?" She asked. "Do we need a portkey?"
"No," he answered. "Since we've been to the school, we can Apparate from the edge of the school boundary."
"How big of a bookstore?"
"If it isn't big enough, then I'll do my best to get you drunk."
"Severus!" she exclaimed. "I'm sorry. I'm probably not going to be the best company today."
"If you're trying to back out of coming, I should tell you that I don't accept. You are free to talk about whatever is on your mind. I can't promise I'm going to say anything that you want to hear in return."
"You wouldn't be the Severus Snape I know if you did," she said. "It's nothing new."
They began to head out of the building, running across a few groups of students, but they weren't held back.
"After that Witch Weekly article, I'm sure that you could resume your relationship," Severus said. It left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"I don't want to get back together with him, Severus. As bad as it sounds, I don't even really miss him. I just miss not missing him."
He just looked sideways at her.
"Don't look at me like that. It was just a lot easier. I'm not sure where to go from here. Yes, I have a job. For now. After this year, what am I going to do? I don't know if I'll keep this job and I don't have a fiancé to fall back on."
"You can't be serious," he said, as they arrived at the edge of the school boundaries. It was freezing. "Even if you don't stay on at Hogwarts, you will find another job."
"I've only ever thought about teaching."
"To the train station," he said. It was the only place that they had been. "You could always try contract work."
He disappeared before she could react. Her face looked brighter when she reappeared next to him.
"No, thank you," she said. "I suppose I'll just have to find another fiancé before the year is out."
"Why don't we focus on keeping our heads down," he said. "If you survive, we'll find you a husband. If nothing else, Weasley will probably still be available."
"I told you that I wasn't going to be much fun."
"Whether you're fun or not is always a matter of opinion," he said, and led her to the edge of the train station platform. "I believe this is it."
Hermione looked at him and then at the large drop that was at the end of the platform. "I'm going to assume that you're right and that you haven't been planning on bringing me here and killing me."
"Remind me when we get back to work on a safe word."
"Severus, you've forgotten how to knock and have taken up barging into my quarters. If you start knocking again, then I'll get suspicious. Besides, if something happens to me, you can officially rule out most of the school."
He sighed and stepped off the platform. Instead of falling, he found himself in Tromsø's version of Diagon Alley. It wasn't as large, but it certainly had everything that they would need.
"Ingredients first or last?" she asked.
Severus glanced down at his watch. "Let's leave them for now. I believe I see the bookstore down there."
The bookstore was tucked between the Tromsø branch of Gringott's and a small café. It was tiny even on the inside, but Hermione had never met a bookstore that didn't have something that she wanted. She watched as Severus headed straight to the Potion's section and then began to wander around the rest of the store.
A few titles jumped out at her and then she noticed a book that had recently been published on the end of the War. Harry was standing proudly on the cover, the Sword of Gryffindor in his hand. Hermione was well aware that he probably had no idea that the author had chosen such a dramatic image as the cover, but it did nothing to improve her mood.
Hermione wasn't sure how long she looked through the books, but by the time she was done, Severus was sitting and reading a book. There were two chairs squished into one corner and he had managed to sit in one while blocking anyone from sitting in the other.
"Severus?"
He looked up and she received a small smile. "You seemed very relaxed. I didn't want to disturb you."
"That was a suspiciously sweet statement, Severus," she said. "But I really appreciate it."
Before he could respond, she bent down to kiss his cheek and then went to pay for the books that she had found. Severus could feel his cheeks turn red and he quickly looked around to make sure that no one had seen.
"Are you hungry?" he asked as they exited the shop. "I haven't had anything since this morning."
"Food sounds good. It's going to be terrible when the sun starts to disappear," she said, looking up. Being September, they still had a lot of sunlight, but by the end of November the sun wouldn't rise. Their bright summer was almost at an end.
They wandered around until they found a small Italian restaurant and quickly dove inside. It was small and cramped, just like the bookstore and although they were sat in a corner, it still felt dangerously close to the table next to them.
"I feel like I should cast a privacy spell," Hermione said.
"I'd wait until after we receive our food."
"And wine."
"Naturally."
Whether it was because they were both use to being in the media or not, they didn't say much until after they were able to put up their privacy spell. Hermione vaguely wondered if she would ever regain a semblance of privacy.
"Are the students here any better at Potions?" Hermione asked.
"Significantly," he answered. "It's almost embarrassing. However, I knew the old Potion's Master here and it isn't surprising. If you and your friends thought that I was an intense professor, you would never have survived him."
"Did he retire?"
"He was cursed at the end of the war and died only a few months ago. I was told that there was nothing they could do to save him, but he made his students miserable to the end."
"That sounds like something you would do."
"If I knew I only had a certain amount of time left, I would spend as much of it as possible drunk somewhere."
Hermione laughed. "I don't know why, but I just pictured you in a sombrero on a beach in Mexico."
Severus scowled in distaste. "That is not what I had in mind."
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," she said. "My students are rubbish at Charms. Some of the simplest things, that Professor Flitwick taught us first year, just seem to fly over their heads. I don't understand, at all."
"Thus far, they've learned the spells that they need to and nothing more. Many don't find a need in floating a bloody feather."
"I sense anger, Severus," she said, knowing full well that Charms had never been his strongest subject. "Besides, it's obviously about more than feathers."
"Obviously," he drawled. "I never understood why you chose Charms."
"It felt right," she said. "I was good at all my classes, but Charms always felt the most natural. I did debate awhile between Charms and Transfiguration, but I always ended up coming back to Charms."
"Never Potions?"
"Never," she said. "I liked Potions well enough and I was always good at making the ones I found in books. I never had any problems there. When it comes to being a true Potion's Master, though, I never could do it. Creating them is a whole other story. I've never discovered that ability."
"Few can," Severus replied.
"Perhaps," she told him. "But I am never going to settle for not being the best in my field."
"That doesn't sound like much of a challenge."
"Charms challenges me," she said. "Potions would frustrate me. Besides, I wouldn't have wanted to threaten your job."
"Watch it, Witch," he said with a smirk.
He noticed a pink tinge creeping into her cheeks and quickly attributed it to the wine. Since he still needed to order ingredients, he couldn't let her get too drunk. There was no doubt in his mind that if he led a tipsy Hermione Granger through the streets there would be a new Headline the next day.
"Severus? Do you think they'll make us go in front of the school board?" She asked.
"I can't imagine why they would," he said. "Even if we did have a relationship, there is no rule forbidding it. Most marriages that Hogwarts professors have are to other professors. There aren't a lot of opportunities to meet new people. That's also a reason that a number of the professors are older. Both Minerva and Flitwick began teaching after their spouses had died."
Hermione nodded. "Why would it have come up then?"
"Probably to determine if we had been carrying on when you were my student," he said. "I'll owl Lucius and ask him."
"Have you heard anymore about whether he'll be visiting?"
Severus shook his head. "No. I haven't even heard back from him since the last owl. I hope your damn bird actually delivered my letter and didn't just run to the Weasley twins."
"Give her a little credit," Hermione said, although she didn't feel too confident in her statement.
After they had finished their meal, they headed over towards the Apothecary where Severus tried his hardest to understand the man behind the counter. It was their first real problem with translation. In the end, they were pretty sure they had ordered everything they needed.
"Are you ready to return?" Severus asked.
"Would you blame me if I said no?"
He smirked and disapparated. Once again they found themselves on the snowy border of the school. This time they didn't have to wait for it to appear. Severus offered Hermione his arm and the two slowly made their way back to the castle as the sun began to set.
"Are you going to finish your potions tonight?"
"I've had too much wine. It probably isn't worth trying. I should bring these down in my lab, though."
Hermione nodded as they walked into the Entrance Hall. There were only a few students walking through. "I'll see you later then. Maybe I'll finish writing my statement to Witch Weekly."
Severus nodded and turned towards his classroom while Hermione made her way up to he quarters. As soon as she sat down at her desk, she knew that she wasn't really bothered about finishing then. She was more concerned about why she felt awkward about wanting to invite Severus back to her quarters.
Ten minutes hadn't passed when a siren sounded in her quarters. Heart pounding, she threw her hands over her ears and ran to the door. Her fear of being locked in proved unfounded when it easily opened. Other professors had popped their heads into the hall and she could see Vik running and screaming.
"In your quarters! We're on lockdown! In your quarters! I'm putting up a seal in one minute! Get in your rooms!"
Most of the professors quickly did as he said, but Hermione being ever curious did not.
"Professor Vik?"
"Hermione, please, this is not the time," he said and turned her by her shoulders. "Close your door. I'm going to seal them for the time being."
"I don't understand," she said.
"Now!" he yelled and pushed her in.
"I need to find Severus," she said, struggling against him.
"I'm here," he said from behind Vik. "Do as he says, Hermione."
"I have to go make sure there aren't any students about. Stay in there!"
Severus followed Hermione into her quarters and shut the door. They both heard a suction noise and backed away. As soon as the door had sealed, the siren stopped.
"How do I know that you're my Severus?" Hermione demanded, hand at her wand.
"My brilliant witch," he said, pulling her to him. For a moment, Hermione was sure that he was going to kiss her. "Ask me a question."
Hermione looked at him for a moment. "What type of flowers did I buy in Amsterdam?"
"I bought you gladioli."
With a sigh, Hermione nodded and dropped her hand as Severus went to her window. He couldn't see anything but snow.
"Is the ground moving?" Hermione asked, pointing below them. It certainly appeared to be. "Oh!"
The ground was not moving. There were dozens of people in white cloaks moving around outside of the window.
"Who are they!"
Severus shook his head. They weren't facing the school. It was as though they were all waiting for someone to arrive. He looked out towards the edge of the property and shook his head.
"Speak of the devil," he muttered.
- Guess who's come to visit? I apologize that this is a bit of a filler chapter. Thank you so much for all the feedback! I'm really excited that so many of you are enjoying this story.
