"Oh Merlin, what happened? What kind of trouble? Are they hurt?"

"He'd gone through a major shock. He tracked down Sirius Black in the Shrieking Shack, and -"

"He's alright, though?" Hazel pressed, wanting to race down the stairs but knowing that Dumbledore wouldn't have delayed her for this long if he knew Sev was seriously injured. What was he thinking, running after a murderer on his own? "Professor, please tell me he's alright."

Dumbledore looked unbothered. "He will be fine, once he gets over the loss of his Order of Merlin. It is a long story, which I do not doubt he will tell you, but Sirius Black is a completely innocent, and by now a completely free, man." She gasped, but Dumbledore continued to explain. "The Potters switched Secret-Keepers at the last minute. Peter Pettigrew was a far less obvious choice, so they decided on him."

"Peter Pettigrew is dead." And if you had known… Why did Sirius spend twelve years in Azkaban?

"He ought to be. Sirius tracked him down, and it was Pettigrew, not Sirius, who caused that explosion. He faked his own death, and has been hiding under our very noses for twelve years. However, things are beginning to be set right, though it is at the expense of Severus' Order of Merlin. He hasn't taken it well, and after such a massive shock and the great amount of cranial trauma he took this evening, Madam Pomfrey is keeping watch over him. However, I think he would enjoy your company." He paused, adding, "I am glad you have been consistently there for him over the course of the last year. Give it some thought, but if you would like to continue to teach here in the fall, you will find that no one would oppose it."

"Thank you, sir. I should be going."

She disappeared down the stairs before Dumbledore could say more. Taking the steps two at a time until she reached the Hospital Wing, Hazel unlocked the door to find Madam Pomfrey writing out a note, one of the school owls patiently perched on top of the bedside curtains. "Ah, there you are. I was about to summon you, though I assume the headmaster sent you down here."

"Yes, is he -"

"He will be fine," she said matter-of-factly, casting a glance towards one of several curtained-off beds. "He's just had an incredible shock. Ranting about Sirius Black and a werewolf and an Order of Merlin and… The students who were with him say he took a nasty hit to the head, so it may not all be perfectly accurate, but I've given him a Calming Draught and will be keeping an eye on him for -"

"She's forcing me to stay here," came a disgruntled voice.

Madam Pomfrey frowned. "If you keep that racket up, you're going to be in a lot more trouble, young man." She turned back to Hazel, thinking Sev would explain everything better than she could. "Bed two, if you couldn't tell."

Hazel stepped through the curtains, waving her wand to pull up a chair. She took his hand as she sat down, Sev smiling at her weakly. "Dumbledore filled me in on a lot of it. I can only assume what happened… I went to find Remus earlier, and he wasn't in his office. He didn't take that potion, did he?" She lowered her voice, leaning in a bit. "Dumbledore told me about Sirius, about how he discovered he's innocent. But you still saved three kids from a full-grown werewolf, and in the building where you almost got killed by one years ago. Order of Merlin or not, you're still a hero, Sev."

Under the effects of the powerful potion, he was far less angry about losing the Order of Merlin because of Sirius Black's escape. Instead he focused on the moonlight shining off of her concerned face, the smile she still gave him despite everything that happened that night. "I'm not a hero," he mumbled, distracted by the comforting warmth the Calming Draught afforded him. "Not even close."

"Yes you are," she assured him, reaching out to brush the hair out of his face. "Of course you are. For now, though, you need to get some rest, Sev. There's going to be a lot of nonsense to deal with in the morning."

"Hazel?"

"Hmm?"

Sleep was overtaking him, but he still had the strength to ask, "What are you doing over summer?"

She laughed a bit, wondering why this was what was on his mind, of all things. "I'm going to see my aunt and uncle in the Sussex Downs. Now that Nicolas Flamel and the Philosopher's Stone are out of commission, well, they only have enough Elixir of Life to last until August. So I'm going to help them get their affairs in order. They've decided it's time. They're content with it. But I'll be back here early, to set up for… for what the school has planned for next year." Even then, even there, she couldn't be too careful. "You're welcome to come and visit. They both adore you. But for now, you need to rest."

"That would be nice," he smiled, closing his eyes and falling asleep seconds later.

It was already late at night, but Hazel didn't sleep. She sat up with him, holding his hand and saying hello to Madam Pomfrey whenever she checked in. He'd had a long night already. Much of her night was spent watching over Sev, but she also kept checking the window for any sign of Remus. Without the Wolfsbane Potion, he would be racing through the forest, tearing apart anything he met. Or himself. It was going to be a long night for all of them.

Dumbledore stopped to look in on them and Harry, Ron, and Hermione at daybreak. They had another visitor before breakfast, a very tired Remus who looked rather worse for wear. "I didn't hurt him, did I?" he whispered. "Dumbledore told me everything, and I -"

"No. He'll be fine." Hazel let go of Sev's hand, walking Remus into the hall so Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell him off for being too loud in the Hospital Wing. "Everything worked out."

"Not everything. You know he hates me, and this will only make it worse. He's going to let it slip -"

"I won't let him."

"He will regardless. I've already taken the liberty of resigning." She would have protested, but he'd made up his mind. "If I can neglect to take the Wolfsbane Potion once, I can do it again. It's only a matter of time before someone actually gets hurt. It's a miracle it didn't happen already. So I'm hoping to go quietly."

Hazel sighed, telling him to write to her when he could. There was no convincing him to stay, but, "You can't just disappear. I have some friends working near Yorkshire, or I can write to Charlie and see if he needs a hand out in Romania. Just… don't vanish again, okay?"

"Of course. You're welcome to have all of my books on dark creatures, if you want them. I'm going to start packing up my classroom before breakfast, but I'll stop by to say a proper goodbye before I go. I thought I owed you a warning, though."

"Rem… I'm sorry."

"I'll be alright. I always am," he shrugged. "As for you, well, I'm glad you're happy." He nodded towards the Hospital Wing doors. "You two were always meant for each other."

"Thanks. And Rem - tell him hi for me. I know we never really got along, but… there's a man out there, a free man, who's out there waiting for you." She looked around before whispering, "Sirius would be glad to see you."

With a glance back at the Hospital Wing door, she promised to help him pack after breakfast. For now, though, she had to check on Sev. Remus knew. It was always destined to be this way. He was genuinely happy for them, and even though he and Snape never got along, he was glad to see they'd drifted back to each other after all of this time.