When Hermione woke the next day, Severus was not in bed next to her. She touched her hands to the sheets next to her. They were cool. He'd been out of bed for awhile. Sliding out of bed, she pulled a sweater over her head and headed out into the sitting room and walked toward the lab when she noticed the door was open. Severus, his back to the door, was fully dressed and was bottling more stock for Astoria while the Wolfsbane potion simmered, which it would do for awhile.

"You didn't sleep well?"

He didn't jump at the sound of her voice, but he froze momentarily. "No," He answered, and then started labeling the vials.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"About what?" He asked coolly.

"Whatever kept you up last night," She said.

He finished labeling the last vial after a moment. Sighing, he turned to face her. He looked absolutely exhausted. "I was 11 the last time I hoped that the future might be better than what I had always known."

The weight of his words hit her like a train. Her eyes stung and she blinked rapidly. "That hope was short lived. It did not even make it half a train ride to Hogwarts from King's across Station."

"Is that what you're doing now? Hoping the future will be better?"

His dark eyes narrowed and he studied her in a calculating way. He looked very serious. If she didn't know him better, she might have assumed he was trying to use Legilimency on her. He clenched his jaw and looked away toward the floor.

She stepped toward him and his eyes snapped back to her, questioning her advance, but not forbidding it. "Talk to me. Please. Tell me what you're thinking, even if it's an incomplete thought."

He closed his eyes. "Can I?" He said softly as she stopped and stood only a pace away from him.

"Talk? Of course," She encouraged. He shook his head once as his forehead creased. His eyes remained closed. "Can you what, Severus?"

He opened his eyes and swallowed hard. "Hope?"

"Oh," She said in an emotional squeak. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his thin frame. "Yes," She answered. "Of course you can hope for and want better."

He moved his arms around her back. "Despite how it probably appears, I have not actually wanted to be as miserable or as alone as I have been for ever. This..."

She nuzzled her face into his cloak. "Feels too good to be true?"

"Yes," He said.

"Especially considering the circumstances," She mumbled.

"Yes," He agreed again.

"We can figure this out," She said. "Together. After all, you're married to the brightest witch of her age," She said and smirked.

"The line between confident and arrogant is blurring," He murmured lightly.

She laughed and kissed his sternum. When she looked up at him, he was looking at her with an intense gaze. "What?"

He blinked, leaned forward, and pressed his lips to her hairline. It was tender and affectionate, intimate. She felt the air on her arms stand on end as he stepped away from her. His gesture had made him a little uncomfortable, so he began to observe the potion.

"Does it truly taste as awful as Remus makes it sound?" She asked, allowing him a change of subject.

Severus hummed. "I certainly hope so," He quipped.

"Don't be cruel," She teased him.

He arched a black eyebrow and looked at her for a moment. "You slept well?"

"I slept okay," She nodded. "Do you feel a bit better?"

"Indeed," He mused. "Perhaps there is merit in your theory about constant and Gryffindorish babbling about feelings improving one's mood."

She feigned shock. "Imagine how much the mental health of Slytherin House would improve if they simply talked about their feelings!"

He rolled his eyes. "Just because we don't wear our hearts upon our sleeves doesn't mean we are all emotionally unhealthy."

"Really?" She teased.

"I believe that would be just me," He admitted.

"Oh, I could name a few," She said smoothly. Her eyes shined in amusement at their playful banter.

"You once told Weasley that he had the emotional range of a teaspoon, did you not? He is not a Slytherin," He noted.

"That's too true," She said. "But... You were not preset for that conversation..."

"Potter's Occlumency lessons. I saw the memory later that night. It was quite fresh in his mind," He explained.

"Ah," She said. "Harry really was awful at Occlumency, wasn't he?"

Severus shrugged. "The lessons were difficult for both of us for any number of reasons. He loathed me, and I was brutish with him. The entire setup was not conducive for success. Still, Potter's strength comes from his emotional displays, so he probably would not have been good at it, no."

"It wasn't fair to ask you to do that... Messing about in Harry's head could've hurt you..."

"Oh, it certainly did," Severus said coolly. "Do you know what he hears when a Dementor is near? He remembers his mother screaming," Severus said. His voice sounded suddenly very distant. "Though, I am not entirely sure he knows it is her."

"Severus..."

"I asked Dumbledore to take my place in training him. I practically begged him to do it, even told him the honest truth about why..." Severus said. "He wouldn't."

"I'm... I am sorry, Severus. That's horrible," Hermione said and grabbed his hand.

He looked at her face. His dark eyes moved from freckle to freckle. "Gryffindors," He grumbled and tore his eyes away from her face, unable to bear the hurt in her eyes. "Always apologizing for things which are not their fault."

He moved to turn away, but she pulled his hand toward her. "He made you endure that, made you suffer hearing the final scream of someone you loved..." She closed her eyes. After a moment, she reopened her eyes and met his. The black eyes she had thought for so long to be emotionless were filled with fear and pain. "You deserve an apology for having to endure that... Even if it wasn't my fault you had to..."

He blinked, and then moved away. He was vulnerable. He didn't like it. He cleared his throat as he turned his attention back to the cauldron. "Astoria's re-supply is ready," He said. "You said you wanted to take it this time?"

She nodded. "I'll shower and take that to her," Hermione said. She was careful not to push him now. She could sense his emotional fragility bubbling under the surface of a cool exterior.

She moved toward living room. "Thank you... Hermione," He said quietly. She turned to look at him, but wasn't surprised that his dark eyes were still focused on the cauldron. "Your compassion is a treasure." Her eyes filled with tears as she smiled and walked toward the bedroom to shower.