The last day, she stood in her chambers, shrinking her trunk down to a more manageable size when Professor McGonagall tapped on her door.
"Ah good, you're still here." she said, smiling unsurely at the youngest Weasley who was not so young anymore.
"Just barely. The train leaves soon." Ginny said, hefting her smaller trunk into a duffel bag and throwing it over her narrow shoulder.
"I'll walk you out, then." McGonagall said and Ginny had no choice but to agree. "I think time away from the castle will be good for you, dear." she started.
"Yes," Ginny agreed, automatically.
"And now that the term is over, you don't have to teach – not that we aren't grateful – but you can focus more on your studies." Ginny had never heard her head of house hedge around a subject like this before.
"Has my grade slipped in your class, professor?" Ginny asked, somewhat icily.
"Well, no..." she admitted.
"I appreciate your concern, professor, but I think there has been enough collective attention on my actions for one term." she said, her biting words saccharin. She hated to be rude to a professor that she respected so greatly, but enough was enough. She climbed into the horseless carriage and McGonagall watched her ride away.
She sat in a compartment with Ron, Harry, and Hermione. They had saved her a seat. She had not said goodbye to Snape before boarding the Hogwarts Express. She had wanted to, of course, but knew not to toe the line that they were always dangerously close to crossing.
At the burrow, her mother hugged her for minutes, refusing to let go. She hadn't seen her since receiving word of her illness.
"Mum, please." Ginny said, embarrassed by the attention.
"Ginny, you look so much older." her mother commented, holding her face in her hands. "But after all, you were a professor." Ginny blushed.
"You heard about that?" she asked.
"Severus told me himself at the order meeting." her mother said.
"Severus..." Ginny whispered. "What else did he say?"
"Yes, what ever else did dear Severus say?" asked Ron, bitterly.
"Oh, I know you children dislike professor Snape but he does good, dangerous work for the order." Molly scolded. Ginny knew this to be true. She prayed for a subject change while glaring fiercely at her brother.
At dinner, Ginny didn't speak. Christmas break would be lasting forever. She didn't want to upset her parents, though, or the twins or Bill or Charlie when the arrived. No one spoke of Percy. It was easy to get lost in a place like the burrow. No one paid much attention to her until Christmas morning when the flurry of opening presents was almost through.
"You have one more, Ginny." her father said, handing her a tall, skinny box.
"From who?" she asked, looking around at her large family.
"It came by owl last night. I figured a friend from school sent it." her dad said. "There wasn't a note, just a bit of parchment with your name on it." She knew, instantly, it was from Severus. She didn't want to open it there, in the living room, but everyone was watching and waiting. Her hands trembled as she removed the paper. A bottle was inside, full of blue liquid. A potion. She pulled out the cork and a billow of smoke rose out of it. First the smoke formed into the shape of a lion which roared, and then a snake formed from the smoke and wrapped itself around the lion, hissing softly. The lion lay down with the snake and both went to sleep, contentedly, and then the smoke dissipated. The bottle was empty. It was a beautiful symbolic interpretation of Gryffindor and Slytherin putting aside their differences and becoming friends. Or falling in love, as the case may be.
"That's it! It's enough! I am your older brother and I will NOT stand for that oily, greasy, disgusting man soiling my little sister!" Ron yelled. Ginny looked up at him, too shocked to do anything. He wasn't joking, he looked outraged. "Mum, dad, you HAVE to know what's been happening."
"Ron, no." Ginny said, finding her voice.
"Ginny, it's not right." Ron said.
"You don't even know if any of it's true." Harry said, tugging on Ron's sleeve so he would sit down.
"Know any of what? What's going on?" Molly asked, upset.
"Well let's find out what's true, right now." Ron said.
"Ronald Weasley, what are you going on about?" Molly yelled again. Ginny had her head in her hands.
"Snape! Snape is what I'm going on about. Ginny is always down in the dungeons with him, always teaching his classes or watching him at meals. He sat with her ALL night in the infirmary when she was sick." Ron said. "And who do you think could be able to make a potion that complex? Snape. And sending it to our home? It's just sick! He's totally infatuated with her." he said. All heads swivelled to look at Ginny.
"Ginny, dear?" Her father asked. "Is any of this true?"
"I – It's not what it looks like." she started lamely. She didn't want to do this in front of everyone. No one, however, was going anywhere. "He asked me to teach his Remedial Potions class two days a week, is all, and he helps me with the grading sometimes." she said. "Maybe I have been down in the dungeons more but he hasn't done anything wrong, I swear it." Ginny was determined not to cry and to stick up for herself properly.
"What about when you were sick?" Ron asked.
"What about it, Ron?" she asked, sharply. "No one has ever taken any time to try to get to know him."
"Why should we? He's evil. He hates me." Harry said.
"He hates your father, Harry, and you know it. Besides, you aren't doing anything to change that perception, are you? If you respected him even an ounce he might not act out so harshly toward you." she said. Harry looked stricken and then angry. He was touchy about his parents and with good cause but he knew she was somewhat right after his occulmency lessons in his fifth year.
"Okay, enough." Molly said. "Let's not ruin Christmas with this." she said, looking at Ginny. Everyone slowly dispersed. Ginny took her empty bottle and stormed up to her room. It wasn't long before she heard her mother's tired knock on her door. Some day, Ginny thought, I won't have to come home for the holidays any longer. Her mother came into the room where Ginny sat sullenly on the bed. "I think we need to have a chat, don't you?" She said.
"Everyone wants to have a chat with me, like I can't take care of myself." Ginny said, but she was tired and her statement didn't have the spitfire that it held downstairs.
"Well, for my sake, why don't you just start from the beginning?" her mother said, sitting next to her.
"The beginning is I am good at potions, something that isn't a secret by the way, and when Severus had to leave to do God knows what for the order, he asked me to teach remedial potions." she realized her mistake too late.
"Do you often call your professors by their first names?" her mother asked.
"It isn't... it isn't like that. You have to believe me. I would never do anything to jeopardize me or him or the school. I'm not stupid or a silly love struck girl. I just understand him and happen to be good at potions and why, why can't we leave it at that?" she begged. Her mother looked unconvinced.
"For now, because I don't want to ruin the holiday." she said. "Come downstairs for breakfast."
"I will when you can get Ron to control himself." she muttered. She knew it would never happen though and now she'd gone and pissed off Harry as well. She went to the window and stared out, wondering what Severus was doing. She found a spare bit of parchment and wrote him a quick note.
S –
Received your package and thought it was beautiful. Perhaps you'll teach me to do that someday? Wish I had stayed at the castle,
V
She woke Errol who often slept in her room for it was the quietest and tied the note to his leg. He nipped her shoulder affectionately and soared out the window.