Epilogue ~*~
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The majority of the student body back after the week long holiday found out about what had transpired on Harris Island when the news hit the Daily Prophet, but not until well after Harry had filled Ron and Hermione in on what he'd been through.
He was sitting in an armchair by the fire in the Gryffindor common room, absently turning the pages of text that Perth Taber had lent to him, when his two friends came through the portrait hole together.
"Harry!" They exclaimed together, coming quickly to where he sat. Both their expressions changed almost at once from the look of happiness at seeing him after a week away, to one of concern when he looked up at them. They knew him well enough to know that SOMETHING had happened.
Hermione dropped into the closest chair while Ron dragged another one closer.
"What is it, Harry?" Hermione asked quietly, dropping her voice a little so that none of the other arriving Gryffindors would overhear.
Harry gave them a small smile and then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He looked at each of them and then spoke very quietly.
"Voldemort," was all he said.
Ron and Hermione each looked stunned and turned to look at each other and then at Harry again.
"V...V..Vold..?" Ron stuttered.
"What happened?" Hermione asked.
Harry sat forward in his chair, as did the other two, and he told them in hushed tones about what had happened the night of the banquet. He glanced about them periodically to make sure that no one was overhearing, but the other students in the common room were all too busy telling each other about their own holiday.
"Oh, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed when he'd finished his story. "Thank goodness you're alright!" She looked close to tears at the thought that something terrible had almost happened to one of her best friends.
Ron looked quite shaken as well.
"It's okay," Harry said calmly. "It's all over and everything is fine."
The two of them didn't look quite convinced.
Harry decided that he needed to change the subject, at least for now. "Hey! I didn't tell you about what happened earlier in the week!" He told them about the ordeal that Snape had been through on account of his relationship with Lorien.
It was debatable whether Ron had looked more stunned about the news concerning Voldemort or the new concerning Snape.
"Snape?" he whispered. "In a duel? Over a witch?" He looked dumfounded. "Are you serious?"
Harry nodded as Hermione looked thoughtful.
She opened her mouth to speak but Ron cut her off.
"Don't," he said.
She smiled. "What?"
Ron frowned. "You were about to go on about how there's more to Snape than meets the eye, and that you've told us that before."
Hermione continued to smile. "You said it, not me."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright. So, maybe the man does have the odd minute or two when he's not a complete git."
Hermione brightened and spoke up again. "So, are you going to do it, Harry? I mean, spend the summer on Harris Island?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah. I have to go and stay with the Dursleys for a while, but then the rest of the summer I'll get to study with Perth Taber."
He saw the look on Ron and Hermione's faces.
"Don't worry - Sirius and several of the Moodys will be keeping an eye on me," he said sheepishly, somewhat embarrassed at having a group of bodyguards.
"Oh, really? Which ones?" Hermione asked, trying to sound casual.
Harry smiled as he saw Ron roll his eyes and shake his head where he sat in the chair next to her. For the moment, at least, things were relatively back to normal.
*
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*
Remus walked purposefully down the hall to Marlina's rooms. He knew that she'd arrived back at Hogwarts only a few moments before, and he was anxious to see her. And Noah, of course.
He knocked on her door, and suddenly found himself impatient and wanting to open it before she could answer. So much had happened in the last few days, and he wanted to tell her everything.
Not just about the duels and the Death Eaters, but that in those few moments when it looked like his survival, along with Sirius's might be in question, that he'd thought of nothing but her, and Noah, and how he might never see them again. Even now, when he stood just outside, waiting for her to open the door, the thought made his insides go cold.
Even though everything had ended ok for the time being, he knew that there would soon be rougher times ahead, and he wanted her to know just how he felt. Time was short, and while the future of the wizarding world was in doubt, he wanted to be sure that how he felt about her was not.
Marlina opened the door, along with Noah, and both of them broke into broad smiles at seeing him standing there.
"Remus!" Noah exclaimed, jumping forward with his arms wide.
Remus dropped to one knee to embrace the boy tightly for a long moment with his eyes closed. "It's so good to see you," he said softly.
Marlina knew that something was up by the way she saw Remus cling to the boy, and she spoke to Noah when Remus finally stood up. "How about going and unpacking your bag for me?"
"'kay, Mom." Noah smiled at Remus again and then ran to his room.
Remus stepped inside and closed the door, and took Marlina by the arms.
"What?" she asked. "What is it?"
"I'll tell you later," he said quietly, pulling her in to rest against him. "Later, okay?"
He could feel her nod, but tighten her embrace.
He'd have so much to tell her later, but for now, for just this moment, all was very, very right with his world.
*
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From the moment Kaneene had arrived at Harris Island, she had been all business.
Decisive and efficient, she'd been 100% Auror during the brief confrontation with Voldemort, and the methodical search of the island after. She'd snapped orders at her brother and cousins, in charge of the securing of the site until the arrival of more ministry officials and Aurors.
There'd been a brief moment where she'd seen Sirius in passing, not long after Voldemort had made his escape, when Lorien had pronounced Harry unconscious and exhausted, but apparently otherwise unharmed, and she'd spoken to him.
"You alright?" She'd asked, briskly.
"Yeah," he'd replied, still not yet convinced that he was.
She'd looked at him for a long moment, and then with a quick nod of acknowledgment, swept off with her bother to secure the perimeter of the island.
Sirius hadn't seen her for three days, nor had word from her. He knew that she must have a million sheets of parchment to fill out for her report that would keep her busy for a while, but he grew anxious to see the lady Auror just the same.
He finally saw her, walking alongside Dumbledore in the hallway that morning, and he made it a point to catch up with the pair. As head of security he needed to know what was going on, and it was also a perfect excuse to get close to the dark-haired woman.
"Good morning," he said from behind them, and both the headmaster and Kaneene turned to look at him, breaking off in mid-conversation.
"Well, good morning, Sirius," Dumbledore said, "we were just going to send for you."
"Sirius." Kaneene acknowledged him quietly.
"You were?" he asked.
"Yes. Kaneene needs to fill you in on what is taking place at the Ministry, and I need for the two of you to put your heads together and give me some recommendations for increasing security over the summer so that we are better prepared for the start of the next school year."
Sirius listened but couldn't help but notice the slightest lightening to Dumbledore's tone of voice. And was that a tiny twinkle behind his glasses?
"And I," Dumbledore continued, " have some matters that need to be addressed in my office. You'll get to work at once?" he asked, looking at each of them in turn.
They both nodded, and the headmaster walked away, leaving them standing together in the hall.
Kaneene turned and started walking, and Sirius fell in beside her as she gave him a synopsis of the clean up of the island. The nine living Death Eaters that had been apprehended were all in custody, but no others had been caught on the island.
"Damn shame," Sirius grumbled. "Would have been nice to hear that Malfoy had his ass thrown back in Azkaban," he growled. "What about Lestrange?"
"She got away, too," Kaneene replied. "A complete perimeter search failed to reveal the whereabouts of any other Death Eaters."
"And her husband?" Sirius asked as they came to Kaneene's door.
"Never found the body," was all she said, unlocking her door.
Sirius followed her inside. "You know, K, I think that we can put the map to better use...." He broke off when he realized she had turned and was looking at him in a strange way.
"What?" He asked, frowning a little.
Her voice was soft; nearly hoarse and a little ragged when she spoke, and her eyes were a bit overbright. "You could have been killed."
Sirius suddenly realized that he was seeing great emotion welling up in the dark haired woman in front of him, and he found himself at a loss as to how to deal with it. He grinned at her in a slightly cocky manner and started to joke to cover up his unease. "Nah, Moony and I had everything under...." He broke off again when she stepped forward quickly and grabbed a handful of the front of his robes.
She pulled him toward her a step, and stared up into his eyes as she spoke in a choked whisper. "I could have lost you."
Sirius swallowed hard. "But you didn't," he said quietly. "It was just...."
This time he was cut off by her mouth covering his in a deep kiss that lasted for quite a long moment.
Sirius cleared his throat when she pulled away. "Yes, well, er..I guess.."
"Shut up."
"Huh?" he blinked at her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed up against him tightly. "Shut up and kiss me," she commanded.
Sirius complied with the request, and as she clung even more tightly to him, he realized that Moody the Auror was gone, leaving only a stunning green-eyed woman in his arms. He decided that for the moment, things just couldn't get any better.
*
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*
Mercifully, the last weeks at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry went by in fairly uneventful fashion as far as Snape was concerned. His week long holiday had been eventful enough, thank you very much, and it surprised the Potions Master that he had actually almost looked forward to returning to classes. Well, who could blame him after the holiday he had had?
Snape sat at his desk, working diligently on the stack of Potions finals that he was grading, trying to get through to the end. He'd made quite a dent in the pile, and all that was left facing him was this last seventh year Ravenclaw's test, and that monstrosity of an essay written by the damn Granger girl.
Snape of course, would never admit to anyone, even himself, that he'd saved her exam for last because he knew that he might actually enjoy reading it. The girl seemed to have developed a, (dare he say?) predisposition, for his beloved subtle science, and it was refreshing to read some original thought from a student in place of the regurgitated monotony from the majority of the student body.
Snape paused for a moment, quill poised over the Ravenclaw exam. When had that happened, exactly? Sometime over the past year it had become evident that Miss Granger was beginning to shine in his class, more so than even her other studies. Well, it wouldn't be the only surprising thing that had happened this year, now would it? He returned to marking the test for a moment, and then paused again, quill tapping against his chin, as he thought back over the past year.
Who would have thought, in the fall, that any of the year's events would have possibly taken place?
Snape sat there lost in his reverie until he heard the door to his office close.
"Severus."
Lorien's voice from behind him. Snape started back in on the exam in front of him, purposefully ignoring her and trying to get through this last one. If he could just finish these last two his grading would be done. Yes, he'd be done...the students would get their grades before they left on the Hogwarts Express, and he'd be free of academic responsibilities for a few blissful weeks.
He continued to scratch red comments along the margin of the parchment as Lorien spoke again.
"Almost finished?"
"Hm." Barely an answer.
"It looks like you're almost to the last one," Lorien observed, coming to perch on the edge of his desk.
"Hm." Snape continued to ignore her and write as she picked up Granger's exam.
"My, but this is a long one," she observed. "Hermione wrote this?"
"Hm." Snape grunted the wordless answer at her again. Blasted woman! Couldn't she see that he was nearly through? Just one more and he'd finally be finished! He completed grading the Ravenclaw's test and set it in the pile next to him even as he held out his hand for Lorien to place the remaining parchment in.
When she didn't set it in his palm, he turned an icy gaze in her direction. "Test, Lorien," he demanded quietly, holding out his hand again.
"Oh, but it's such a LONG essay, Severus," Lorien lamented, even as she handed him the parchment.
"Which is precisely why I need to start it NOW," Snape replied, dipping his quill in red ink to ready himself. He unfurled the first page and began to read.
"Well, all right," Lorien was saying. "I just thought that after all that grading that you might need a break before you started reading such a long exam."
Severus sneered slightly at her without looking at her. "And just why would I need a break when I only have one....." he broke off and sat there motionless for a minute.
"You're saying I should take a break?" he asked at last.
"MmmHmm." Lorien answered him.
"Now?" He asked.
"Now," she replied softly.
"Lorien?" He asked tentatively.
"Yes?"
"Would you happen to be wearing black under that robe?" he asked her, quill still poised over the essay.
"Perhaps," she answered, but he could hear the amusement in her voice.
Snape set his quill down and smiled to himself. Yes, a lot had happened this year, that was for certain, and a lot more was yet to come. He knew one more thing was certain as he rose and moved to put his arms around the blonde witch, and cast a wandless locking charm on the door over his shoulder....
...Miss Hermione Granger was just going to have to wait a little longer for her Potions grade.
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A/N: There! Just a bit less awkward and messy than the last ending. Maybe that makes up for all those cliffhanger chapters?
Now, many of you that have read my bio page recently already know that this is going to be a trilogy. By the time the third installment takes place, we'll know what REALLY happens in year five, so this will become a bit of an AU fic. I plan to charge ahead, and change nothing based on what we learn in book five.
I suspect that by the weekend may of you will be busy reading another Harry Potter story for a while, so the timing is perfect to give me a short hiatus to work on the third part of the saga.
As for me, I'll be in line at Borders at midnight on Friday, trying to get my reserved copy of OoP early at the release party....dressed in black, green, and silver, of course - even the cobra earrings may emerge again.
I have to keep a low profile though. The Bureau of Magical Affairs in Augusta is getting a little touchy about having to clean up after some of the incidents I've been a part of. (They threatened a hefty 'obliviate' after the You-Know-Who incident, but dear Remus, ever the peacemaker and quick thinker, assure the officials that it wasn't my fault, and advised them that I am a well-informed..er...liason of sorts between the wizarding and muggle realms, and that everyone was better off with my memory intact.)
After that I'll be spending a little time with Scott the Gryffindor, tending my garden (with its large re-planting of wolfsbane), and then finally delving into my writing to explore more of Snape's past, the tensions between him and Sirius, the romances, the wolfsbane potion, and of course, the wandless magic.
May you all get your copies of Book V quickly.
Until we all arrive back at the realm of wolfsbane potion and wandless magic....
Doth artou, doth lectou, e ben samhradh! (Good hunting, good reading, and a good summer!)
Nytd
*
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The majority of the student body back after the week long holiday found out about what had transpired on Harris Island when the news hit the Daily Prophet, but not until well after Harry had filled Ron and Hermione in on what he'd been through.
He was sitting in an armchair by the fire in the Gryffindor common room, absently turning the pages of text that Perth Taber had lent to him, when his two friends came through the portrait hole together.
"Harry!" They exclaimed together, coming quickly to where he sat. Both their expressions changed almost at once from the look of happiness at seeing him after a week away, to one of concern when he looked up at them. They knew him well enough to know that SOMETHING had happened.
Hermione dropped into the closest chair while Ron dragged another one closer.
"What is it, Harry?" Hermione asked quietly, dropping her voice a little so that none of the other arriving Gryffindors would overhear.
Harry gave them a small smile and then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He looked at each of them and then spoke very quietly.
"Voldemort," was all he said.
Ron and Hermione each looked stunned and turned to look at each other and then at Harry again.
"V...V..Vold..?" Ron stuttered.
"What happened?" Hermione asked.
Harry sat forward in his chair, as did the other two, and he told them in hushed tones about what had happened the night of the banquet. He glanced about them periodically to make sure that no one was overhearing, but the other students in the common room were all too busy telling each other about their own holiday.
"Oh, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed when he'd finished his story. "Thank goodness you're alright!" She looked close to tears at the thought that something terrible had almost happened to one of her best friends.
Ron looked quite shaken as well.
"It's okay," Harry said calmly. "It's all over and everything is fine."
The two of them didn't look quite convinced.
Harry decided that he needed to change the subject, at least for now. "Hey! I didn't tell you about what happened earlier in the week!" He told them about the ordeal that Snape had been through on account of his relationship with Lorien.
It was debatable whether Ron had looked more stunned about the news concerning Voldemort or the new concerning Snape.
"Snape?" he whispered. "In a duel? Over a witch?" He looked dumfounded. "Are you serious?"
Harry nodded as Hermione looked thoughtful.
She opened her mouth to speak but Ron cut her off.
"Don't," he said.
She smiled. "What?"
Ron frowned. "You were about to go on about how there's more to Snape than meets the eye, and that you've told us that before."
Hermione continued to smile. "You said it, not me."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright. So, maybe the man does have the odd minute or two when he's not a complete git."
Hermione brightened and spoke up again. "So, are you going to do it, Harry? I mean, spend the summer on Harris Island?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah. I have to go and stay with the Dursleys for a while, but then the rest of the summer I'll get to study with Perth Taber."
He saw the look on Ron and Hermione's faces.
"Don't worry - Sirius and several of the Moodys will be keeping an eye on me," he said sheepishly, somewhat embarrassed at having a group of bodyguards.
"Oh, really? Which ones?" Hermione asked, trying to sound casual.
Harry smiled as he saw Ron roll his eyes and shake his head where he sat in the chair next to her. For the moment, at least, things were relatively back to normal.
*
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Remus walked purposefully down the hall to Marlina's rooms. He knew that she'd arrived back at Hogwarts only a few moments before, and he was anxious to see her. And Noah, of course.
He knocked on her door, and suddenly found himself impatient and wanting to open it before she could answer. So much had happened in the last few days, and he wanted to tell her everything.
Not just about the duels and the Death Eaters, but that in those few moments when it looked like his survival, along with Sirius's might be in question, that he'd thought of nothing but her, and Noah, and how he might never see them again. Even now, when he stood just outside, waiting for her to open the door, the thought made his insides go cold.
Even though everything had ended ok for the time being, he knew that there would soon be rougher times ahead, and he wanted her to know just how he felt. Time was short, and while the future of the wizarding world was in doubt, he wanted to be sure that how he felt about her was not.
Marlina opened the door, along with Noah, and both of them broke into broad smiles at seeing him standing there.
"Remus!" Noah exclaimed, jumping forward with his arms wide.
Remus dropped to one knee to embrace the boy tightly for a long moment with his eyes closed. "It's so good to see you," he said softly.
Marlina knew that something was up by the way she saw Remus cling to the boy, and she spoke to Noah when Remus finally stood up. "How about going and unpacking your bag for me?"
"'kay, Mom." Noah smiled at Remus again and then ran to his room.
Remus stepped inside and closed the door, and took Marlina by the arms.
"What?" she asked. "What is it?"
"I'll tell you later," he said quietly, pulling her in to rest against him. "Later, okay?"
He could feel her nod, but tighten her embrace.
He'd have so much to tell her later, but for now, for just this moment, all was very, very right with his world.
*
*
*
From the moment Kaneene had arrived at Harris Island, she had been all business.
Decisive and efficient, she'd been 100% Auror during the brief confrontation with Voldemort, and the methodical search of the island after. She'd snapped orders at her brother and cousins, in charge of the securing of the site until the arrival of more ministry officials and Aurors.
There'd been a brief moment where she'd seen Sirius in passing, not long after Voldemort had made his escape, when Lorien had pronounced Harry unconscious and exhausted, but apparently otherwise unharmed, and she'd spoken to him.
"You alright?" She'd asked, briskly.
"Yeah," he'd replied, still not yet convinced that he was.
She'd looked at him for a long moment, and then with a quick nod of acknowledgment, swept off with her bother to secure the perimeter of the island.
Sirius hadn't seen her for three days, nor had word from her. He knew that she must have a million sheets of parchment to fill out for her report that would keep her busy for a while, but he grew anxious to see the lady Auror just the same.
He finally saw her, walking alongside Dumbledore in the hallway that morning, and he made it a point to catch up with the pair. As head of security he needed to know what was going on, and it was also a perfect excuse to get close to the dark-haired woman.
"Good morning," he said from behind them, and both the headmaster and Kaneene turned to look at him, breaking off in mid-conversation.
"Well, good morning, Sirius," Dumbledore said, "we were just going to send for you."
"Sirius." Kaneene acknowledged him quietly.
"You were?" he asked.
"Yes. Kaneene needs to fill you in on what is taking place at the Ministry, and I need for the two of you to put your heads together and give me some recommendations for increasing security over the summer so that we are better prepared for the start of the next school year."
Sirius listened but couldn't help but notice the slightest lightening to Dumbledore's tone of voice. And was that a tiny twinkle behind his glasses?
"And I," Dumbledore continued, " have some matters that need to be addressed in my office. You'll get to work at once?" he asked, looking at each of them in turn.
They both nodded, and the headmaster walked away, leaving them standing together in the hall.
Kaneene turned and started walking, and Sirius fell in beside her as she gave him a synopsis of the clean up of the island. The nine living Death Eaters that had been apprehended were all in custody, but no others had been caught on the island.
"Damn shame," Sirius grumbled. "Would have been nice to hear that Malfoy had his ass thrown back in Azkaban," he growled. "What about Lestrange?"
"She got away, too," Kaneene replied. "A complete perimeter search failed to reveal the whereabouts of any other Death Eaters."
"And her husband?" Sirius asked as they came to Kaneene's door.
"Never found the body," was all she said, unlocking her door.
Sirius followed her inside. "You know, K, I think that we can put the map to better use...." He broke off when he realized she had turned and was looking at him in a strange way.
"What?" He asked, frowning a little.
Her voice was soft; nearly hoarse and a little ragged when she spoke, and her eyes were a bit overbright. "You could have been killed."
Sirius suddenly realized that he was seeing great emotion welling up in the dark haired woman in front of him, and he found himself at a loss as to how to deal with it. He grinned at her in a slightly cocky manner and started to joke to cover up his unease. "Nah, Moony and I had everything under...." He broke off again when she stepped forward quickly and grabbed a handful of the front of his robes.
She pulled him toward her a step, and stared up into his eyes as she spoke in a choked whisper. "I could have lost you."
Sirius swallowed hard. "But you didn't," he said quietly. "It was just...."
This time he was cut off by her mouth covering his in a deep kiss that lasted for quite a long moment.
Sirius cleared his throat when she pulled away. "Yes, well, er..I guess.."
"Shut up."
"Huh?" he blinked at her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed up against him tightly. "Shut up and kiss me," she commanded.
Sirius complied with the request, and as she clung even more tightly to him, he realized that Moody the Auror was gone, leaving only a stunning green-eyed woman in his arms. He decided that for the moment, things just couldn't get any better.
*
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*
Mercifully, the last weeks at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry went by in fairly uneventful fashion as far as Snape was concerned. His week long holiday had been eventful enough, thank you very much, and it surprised the Potions Master that he had actually almost looked forward to returning to classes. Well, who could blame him after the holiday he had had?
Snape sat at his desk, working diligently on the stack of Potions finals that he was grading, trying to get through to the end. He'd made quite a dent in the pile, and all that was left facing him was this last seventh year Ravenclaw's test, and that monstrosity of an essay written by the damn Granger girl.
Snape of course, would never admit to anyone, even himself, that he'd saved her exam for last because he knew that he might actually enjoy reading it. The girl seemed to have developed a, (dare he say?) predisposition, for his beloved subtle science, and it was refreshing to read some original thought from a student in place of the regurgitated monotony from the majority of the student body.
Snape paused for a moment, quill poised over the Ravenclaw exam. When had that happened, exactly? Sometime over the past year it had become evident that Miss Granger was beginning to shine in his class, more so than even her other studies. Well, it wouldn't be the only surprising thing that had happened this year, now would it? He returned to marking the test for a moment, and then paused again, quill tapping against his chin, as he thought back over the past year.
Who would have thought, in the fall, that any of the year's events would have possibly taken place?
Snape sat there lost in his reverie until he heard the door to his office close.
"Severus."
Lorien's voice from behind him. Snape started back in on the exam in front of him, purposefully ignoring her and trying to get through this last one. If he could just finish these last two his grading would be done. Yes, he'd be done...the students would get their grades before they left on the Hogwarts Express, and he'd be free of academic responsibilities for a few blissful weeks.
He continued to scratch red comments along the margin of the parchment as Lorien spoke again.
"Almost finished?"
"Hm." Barely an answer.
"It looks like you're almost to the last one," Lorien observed, coming to perch on the edge of his desk.
"Hm." Snape continued to ignore her and write as she picked up Granger's exam.
"My, but this is a long one," she observed. "Hermione wrote this?"
"Hm." Snape grunted the wordless answer at her again. Blasted woman! Couldn't she see that he was nearly through? Just one more and he'd finally be finished! He completed grading the Ravenclaw's test and set it in the pile next to him even as he held out his hand for Lorien to place the remaining parchment in.
When she didn't set it in his palm, he turned an icy gaze in her direction. "Test, Lorien," he demanded quietly, holding out his hand again.
"Oh, but it's such a LONG essay, Severus," Lorien lamented, even as she handed him the parchment.
"Which is precisely why I need to start it NOW," Snape replied, dipping his quill in red ink to ready himself. He unfurled the first page and began to read.
"Well, all right," Lorien was saying. "I just thought that after all that grading that you might need a break before you started reading such a long exam."
Severus sneered slightly at her without looking at her. "And just why would I need a break when I only have one....." he broke off and sat there motionless for a minute.
"You're saying I should take a break?" he asked at last.
"MmmHmm." Lorien answered him.
"Now?" He asked.
"Now," she replied softly.
"Lorien?" He asked tentatively.
"Yes?"
"Would you happen to be wearing black under that robe?" he asked her, quill still poised over the essay.
"Perhaps," she answered, but he could hear the amusement in her voice.
Snape set his quill down and smiled to himself. Yes, a lot had happened this year, that was for certain, and a lot more was yet to come. He knew one more thing was certain as he rose and moved to put his arms around the blonde witch, and cast a wandless locking charm on the door over his shoulder....
...Miss Hermione Granger was just going to have to wait a little longer for her Potions grade.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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A/N: There! Just a bit less awkward and messy than the last ending. Maybe that makes up for all those cliffhanger chapters?
Now, many of you that have read my bio page recently already know that this is going to be a trilogy. By the time the third installment takes place, we'll know what REALLY happens in year five, so this will become a bit of an AU fic. I plan to charge ahead, and change nothing based on what we learn in book five.
I suspect that by the weekend may of you will be busy reading another Harry Potter story for a while, so the timing is perfect to give me a short hiatus to work on the third part of the saga.
As for me, I'll be in line at Borders at midnight on Friday, trying to get my reserved copy of OoP early at the release party....dressed in black, green, and silver, of course - even the cobra earrings may emerge again.
I have to keep a low profile though. The Bureau of Magical Affairs in Augusta is getting a little touchy about having to clean up after some of the incidents I've been a part of. (They threatened a hefty 'obliviate' after the You-Know-Who incident, but dear Remus, ever the peacemaker and quick thinker, assure the officials that it wasn't my fault, and advised them that I am a well-informed..er...liason of sorts between the wizarding and muggle realms, and that everyone was better off with my memory intact.)
After that I'll be spending a little time with Scott the Gryffindor, tending my garden (with its large re-planting of wolfsbane), and then finally delving into my writing to explore more of Snape's past, the tensions between him and Sirius, the romances, the wolfsbane potion, and of course, the wandless magic.
May you all get your copies of Book V quickly.
Until we all arrive back at the realm of wolfsbane potion and wandless magic....
Doth artou, doth lectou, e ben samhradh! (Good hunting, good reading, and a good summer!)
Nytd
