"Snape?"

The words come from Draco's mouth as he shoots a protego before him. Hermione, Harry and the nearby Auror guards barely have time to stand up their owns shield from the incoming shards as the door shatters.

Even if his likeliness was hard to notice for the furthest rows of wizards, Snape's canonical stance would complete the image to those who remembered him. Shoulders loose, but his hands snapping into striking position. He pauses, realizes where he is and who is before him. Hair whipping from his cheeks as he bites the following incantation. And in a flash moment, Gilderoy Lockheart is flipped upside down by his trousers and hung off the lamppost. Robards Jr.'s lips curve into a smile.

Now aware that Hermione was staring straight at him, he relaxes his shoulders and brushes the loose locks from his head and some bit of yellow off his pant leg. Slob. Hermione smiles.

Now Robards Jr. is muttering something while the crowd dissipates. Snape stands very still, but it looks as though he'd rather sink through the floorboards than face the number of eyes glaring at him.

"How come the wards didn't signal him?" Harry asks.

"If he were alive, they would," Hermione replies. "But Snape is a different sort of alive."

Now approaching the scene, Hermione notices Harry's eyes darting. Presumably not knowing where his loyalties lie: with his employer who was now aiming his wand straight at Snape, or with Snape- the man who (unbeknownst at the time) protected him through his school years. Though Harry always made his decisions on his feet at the opportune times.

"Sir." Robards Jr. turns to see that Hermione had not stood alongside him as did Harry. Her body faces him, but her back turns to the intruder. She blocks his strike. "You can't Hex him without explanation."

Robards Jr. struck again and again his spell deflected by the mass of curls. "You know who he is."

"Get out of my way Granger. I know very well that his supposed devotion to the Headmaster does not exempt him from his crimes under the hand of the Dark Lord. If Snape really is who he says he is. I've suspected it for quite some time now."

Now it all made sense. Only she could see Snape because the memories in her locket were mixed with his own. Why Draco had been so evasive? He didn;t recognize him. Now that he did, Draco had given him the information needed to identify Snape. All for his promotion. She would not forgive him so easily, if they'd made it through the day at all.

And to attack Snape? Four against two as Martin from the Ministry and Draco are now close behind.

Her back still to Snape, she feels her way up the steps and is surprised to see the spells behind deflected from above. Snape – wandless and wordless was still the master of silent incantation. Though clearly, he had lost a great deal of practice as his shields would occasionally break and he would stumble backwards.

Harry looks at Hermione, his aim clearly missing Snape by quite a notch. And she could feel that Draco was not trying hard to knock their winds out. Only Robards Jr., furiously striking alongside Martin and another group of Aurors who had joined from the back.

"You needn't show off so much," Snape says as he trips backwards, knocking the Minister's stand into the columns behind. "You're giving them a hell of a time already."

"Just covering…for you…" She bites her lip as Robards Jr.'s attack bounces from her shield. "On your left."

"You forget who they're fighting witch." Snape's years of lawless fighting would not be erased from instinct. With each hit, he seems more sure of his steps, the art of combat returning to him.

"Just make sure they know that."

Snape back around a column. Waiting for a few moments. Hermione is left one with a group of Aurors, most of whom would rather not fight against one of their own. Then Snape whips out and knocks the entirety of the front three rows of guests and Aurors off their feet. The hit is draining and he sinks back down with a groan.

"Stand here," he commands, lying on the floor. He reaches his hand forward to hers, the cool metal in the middle of both. The Locket.

"This will hurt."

He crushes it with the force of his enchantment. The metal screams as crimson blood reeks through their fingers and onto the floor. The last thing Hermione sees are the red roses before it all fades to black.