"Morning," McGonagall said expectantly as Hermione entered the Great Hall for breakfast. "Today's the big day, eh?"

"Mmph." Hermione wasn't in the mood for small talk.

Suddenly, a very unexpected and elderly snowy owl dropped a note on her lap. She opened it and began reading the familiar scrawl.

Dearest Hermione,

I know today is the test of your latest trial; I've kept in contact with Remus, naturally. Some guilt there…she hadn't exactly been owling Harry every day.

Keep me posted. I'll be in Hogsmeade tonight with Sirius; I'd love to see you today to go over the success I know you'll have. Meet me at the Three Broomsticks when you're done.

Love, Harry

He seemed to know a little too much about her schedule, but she supposed Remus had spilled those beans. Thinking of Harry after all she'd been through that weekend was a little much to consider, as she could see so clearly how she had rebounded into his safe arms, and away from the dangerous feelings she had developed for the Potions Master, after what had happened. It made her sad to see how safety, rather than love, had dictated her actions. She knew she had hurt him. Would he forgive her?

She gave Hedwig a bit of her toast, and scrawled a quick reply. Message received. See you at the Three Broomsticks at 1pm. –H.G. She tied the note to the owl, stroked her feathers and said "Off you go, find Harry."

"Good news?" McGonagall asked.

"I am sure you know Harry's in town."

"I did, at that. You know, while you're getting closure with other past events, it might not be such a bad idea…"

"Don't say it. I know. I'll talk to you later." Hermione literally ran out of the Great Hall, nearly smashing into Snape and Dumbledore rounding the corner. She didn't look up or acknowledge them, but continued her pace up the stairs. "What was that all about?" Albus said.

"I am not sure," Snape said shortly. They had arrived at the Head Table.

"Harry's in town," Minerva said quietly.

"I see." Snape's eyes turned cold, and he sipped his tea in silence for the rest of the meal, even with his fellow professors' attempts at engaging him with discussion of the test. Perhaps she still does carry a torch for that twit. Why does that bother you, Snape, you old fool? He knew the answer, of course, but he was not going to admit it, even to himself. As he made his way back down to the Potions lab after his meal, he cursed his inability to keep his mind off her. The walls certainly had served a purpose.

She was there, of course; he could see her eyes were closed, and she was gently waving her wand over the potion and singing an incantation he didn't recognize. This was clearly her proprietary Spiritus Cantata. In A minor, if he wasn't much mistaken. He silently watched and listened to her surprisingly beautiful voice. Mesmerized, he watched her hands form shapes in the air and her wand's tip glow with an iridescent sheen. At that moment, the wand tip dipped into the potion, and sparks flew out. She turned to him, having been aware of his presence but needing to complete the incantation before she could acknowledge him.

"That was the point in which the lab in the Ministry exploded, was it not?" It really wasn't a question. He could see the fear in her eyes dissipate even now.

"Indeed. So far, the spell looks like it will be a success, but of course, we now have to test it. I don't have to tell you that I've never made it this far before."

"I'll be your subject, of course."

"Oh, no. This is my creation and I take the risk. If my calculations are correct, you won't be able to see me after I drink this potion, and I will remain invisible for two hours, give or take. I will be able to pass through walls, through you, and over great distances, as if I were a spirit with wings."

"You should have called this the Angelus spell, then." His attempt at levity brought a snort of disgust.

"Anything to do with organized religion puts me off my chair."

"We should have Poppy and Albus here."

"Fiddlesticks, I'm not waiting. If I die by my own hand, so much the better." She didn't mean to say that, of course, but her words belied the anxiety of the previous day's work and the sleepless night.

"I won't let you die. We've not completed our…discussions together."

With this truth out, hanging in the air, she drank before she could lose her nerve. At first, she thought that nothing happened, but she could see Severus' eyes go out of focus. All her senses were suddenly hyperaware, which made her happy; the Ultrasensoria Incantatem on day 5 had worked well. She knew that he could not hear her even if she spoke, if all things had gone as planned, but she hoped he'd confirm what she suspected.

"You have disappeared, Dr. Granger. I trust you are still in the room, but I know that if all has been successful you won't be able to give me a physical sign. I'll be waiting for your report." He was shaking. She had really done it. He hoped she wasn't dead, or caught between atoms, or any of the host of other things that could have gone wrong.

She floated around the room, mesmerized with the feeling of weightlessness and formlessness. She decided to try moving through the wall, a huge test of the efficacy of the spell. She concentrated with all her might on moving aside the atoms of stone, and was only partially successful…the hole wasn't quite as large as she'd hoped, but there nonetheless. However, she found a workaround; she could make her form the size of a pin and squeeze through! Snape's additions to the work she had done were really excellent. She came back into the room, and twirled around his head in delight. Then she flew out of the castle for a survey of the landscape.

Hogsmeade loomed below, and she flitted into the Three Broomsticks and hovered above Rosmerta as she poured an early-day pumpkin juice for Hagrid. She flitted over to Sirius's home, and could see Harry bent over a parchment, writing furiously. Of course she shouldn't look over his shoulder, should she? She found that ethical questions weren't as pressing in this state. Of course, this was the effect of the gray magic on the spell; it was so much easier to put aside troubling questions and disturbing sights when you were able to put aside your own morality to be an observer. She entered the cottage and nearly saw the parchment, but he rolled it just as she approached. Probably for the best. She saw him attach it to Hedwig and stalk off to the kitchen for a drink from one of the goblets she and Harry had presented Black as a housewarming gift when they were a couple, and he was first moving into the hamlet in Hogsmeade.

Curiously, Sirius wasn't around, but she decided not to ponder this, and left quickly. She had some time to kill and thought she'd try the ability to move great distances quickly. Similar to Apparation but using no detectable magic, you thought of where you wished to go and forced your atoms to travel there. It was more a function of physics than magic, because you essentially traveled as an electrical impulse. She pictured Diagon Alley, and she was suddenly at Florean Fortescue's. She pictured Bill Weasley's place in Cairo, and she was there in only a few seconds. Amazing. Really, she had to wait for the other shoe to drop, because things were going far too well.

Before she could ponder her fear, she thought of Malfoy Manor. She was there in a flash. She made her way inside and saw Narcissa and Draco poring over a document. Flitting over, she saw that it was his wedding invitation. Not really something she wanted to think about. A quick fly around the home helped her determine that Lucius wasn't there. What in blazes are you doing, wallowing in your misery…get home. She got outside and concentrated on Hogwarts, and was back in the dungeons quickly. She took stock of the clock…fifteen minutes, at the very least, left till she would reappear…another thing to try.

Albus?

No answer. This was bad…the one thing she had intended to design the spell to do was allow her to have psychic contact with Albus if necessary. She had put magnification ingredients in, but clearly they had no effect. That was a disappointment. Suddenly another idea occurred to her. She curled herself on Snape's lap again, oddly free from the shackles of the day before, and attempted to contact him.

Severus?

Silence. Well, that's that, she thought; the spellcaster is on her own. She waited for the spell to wear off in silent thought. Hmmm, might be time to try a few of the more theoretical parts of this spell…