A/N: There are some HBP spoilers in this chapter as I try to get the story to be HBP compliant. Don't say I didn't warn you. Oh, and they aren't mine, except what you don't recognize.

Chapter Fourteen: A Reluctant Hero is Born

Severus Snape was nobody's fool. He knew that Pettigrew had sabotaged his own potion in order to land Severus in detention; he was also quite certain that it hadn't been Pettigrew's idea. No, the little rat was far too stupid and obvious to plan something that cunning, and while Severus wasn't entirely sure who had put him up to it, he would bet a large sum of Gringotts' gold that either Potter or Black were behind it. Nevertheless, something about the situation nagged at him. The plan was worthy of a Slytherin – surely neither Black nor Potter possessed that level of intellect, but if they did, Severus knew he was in trouble.

At that moment, a large, regal-looking owl tapped on the window of the infirmary where Severus was delivering the freshly made potions Madam Pomfrey required. The owl stuck its leg out, looking disdainfully at Severus. Severus wasn't about to be intimidated by a bird, but impatient to find out what was needed of him, he quickly released the letter from the owl's leg and read it.

"S. – Down a well-traveled road lays the answer to what will surely become your most burning question: where could your precious Hermione be?"

Without hesitation, Severus left the potions on Madam Pomfrey's desk and sprinted for Hogwarts' gates. The moment he stepped outside of Hogwarts' grounds, he immediately Apparated in front of the Three Broomsticks. He slammed the doors open and stalked over to the table were Black, Potter, Lupin, and Lily sat. Without preamble, he slammed the note down on the table, he eyes glowing dangerously in the dim light of the bar.

"Well look what we have here James," Sirius growled, "a jailbird who's flown the coop. Tell me Severus; are you insane or just plain stupid?"

Severus barely spared Black a glance, but rose to the bait. "While I would love to see you drown in a battle of wits (because I can assure you that you are far over your head in the matter), there are far more pressing matters that I am currently concerning myself with. Where is Hermione? What have you done with her?"

Remus held up his hand to stop Sirius from answering. "Look," began Remus, "why would we have Hermione? We haven't seen her since this morning when she took off with Peter. They were headed toward the old Rickman place…"

Severus, without waiting for Lupin to finish whatever statement he was going to make, turned and made his way towards the front of the bar to begin his search for Hermione. He found himself immediately flanked by Potter, Lupin, and Black.

"What do you think you're doing?"

James sighed, "Look, it'll be faster if we team up to look for her. I know things have never been good between us, and we have a sordid history," (at this Severus snorted), "but I'm willing to extend the olive branch because she's happy with you. It took us a long time to come to terms with it – in fact, it was what we were discussing when you came in. We care about Hermione as much as you do – you make her happy, and we're willing to accept that. It's taken us all a long time to admit we've been wrong about you in the past, and I'm willing to admit it right here, right now, in front of you, as are Remus and Sirius." Both the mentioned men shook their heads affirmatively, and much to Severus' surprise, Black stuck out his hand although there was still a fair amount of resentment in his eyes.

Severus regarded the three of them warily. They had been known to play tricks on him in the past, but he decided to accept this uneasy alliance for the time being, if only to save Hermione. He would deal with them later if this venture turned out less than satisfactory for him. He quickly grasped Sirius' hand and then James' and Remus' in turn. Perhaps they would prove useful in his search.

The four men strode off down the lane where Lily had last seen Hermione walking with Pettigrew. Lily stayed behind to ask if anyone had seen Hermione since that morning. The men quickly reached the spot where Lucius had magically bound another letter to a large rock.

Severus took the note, read it silently, and handed the note to James. James proceeded to read the note aloud:

"S. – I see you have become one step closer to answering your question. This letter serves as a Portkey, which will activate within five minutes of touching it. It has been warded to recognize your touch and your touch alone. We'll be seeing you shortly."

Severus took the letter back, fully expecting to go ahead alone. He was startled when he felt three pairs of hands secure themselves to his robe.

"You didn't think we'd let you steal all of the glory did you," asked Remus by way of an explanation. Severus just shrugged as the Portkey activated, whisking them to their unknown destination.

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Hermione was currently doing something that very few wizards had ever done – she was staring straight into the eyes of Lord Voldemort. Her vaunted Gryffindor courage was coming out in spades. It was odd, she thought, he looked much more human than she ever remembered him. Hermione quickly derived a conclusion and realized Voldemort had yet to begin making his Horcruxes.

"How do you know about those? Only Lucius Malfoy was supposed to know about those!" With this, Voldemort grabbed her chin and forced her to look deep into his eyes, where he saw everything she struggled to hide. He saw Harry telling Hermione about the Horcruxes and his mission to seek them out and destroy them one by one. He saw Hermione's love for Severus Snape. This caused him to sneer. "Do you honestly believe, Mudblood, that someone who bears such a noble background, one so similar to my own, would stoop so low as to form an emotional attachment to you? You are good for nothing more than a slave!"

With that statement, Hermione did the unthinkable – she spat on Voldemort. He stared down at the dark stain on his robes and casually raised his wand. "There is something to be said about Gryffindor courage; however, such behavior cannot go unpunished. CRUCIO!"

Hermione was instantly on the ground, writhing in anguish. She clenched her jaw; she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of hearing her scream in pain. Her nerves felt as though someone had sent an unrelenting fire blazing through them, her muscles began to spasm uncontrollably. Just as she was about to lose consciousness, Voldemort lifted the curse.

"When I have Severus kill you, Mudblood, the pain will be ten times worse than that. At the present time, however, you are more useful alive than dead to me." With that, Hermione swore she heard faint popping noises in the distance. Maybe the cavalry had arrived.

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The men landed directly at Lucius Malfoy's feet. All four of them quickly scrambled to stand and face him.

"Clever," began Lucius, "to bring your friends, if that's what you call them. The men, Severus, who have tormented you tremendously, now stand by your side. Do you honestly believe these blood traitors will really stand up for you? Let's find out!" When Lucius made a move to raise his wand in Severus' direction, Remus stood directly in front of him and drew his own wand.

"You'll have to kill me first," stated Remus defiantly.

"That can be arranged," Lucius scoffed and made a move to cast the Killing Curse. "Avada…"

Nevertheless, before he could finish it, Severus (who had discretely drawn his wand the moment Remus stood in front of him) screamed out, "SECUMSORTIA!" James and Sirius each cast "Expelliarmus," and as a result, Lucius lost both his wand and his good looks. Remus calmly strode over to where Lucius' wand lay and snapped it in half. He also managed to staunch the flow of blood, ensuring that Lucius would live – he did this only to spare Severus a sentence in Azkaban.

It was at this moment that Severus gave absolution to the werewolf. He made eye contact with Remus to let him know. Both men simply smiled, but trudged on. There was still work to be done.

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They spied Voldemort from a distance. Severus watched him continue to torture Hermione every few seconds as they stealthily drew closer, and his rage grew exponentially. Pettigrew, oblivious as always, didn't hear them until it was too late, and found himself Stunned with his old friends keeping an eye on him. This left Voldemort without any help. Severus strode over to where Voldemort was standing – saving Hermione, it had been decided, would be his task alone, though the others would stand by in case something went wrong. Severus was more concerned that Hermione made it out alive than if he made it out.

"I see you have come to join me, my son," Voldemort hissed smoothly as he kicked Hermione out of the way. "Forget this Mudblood, when you join me, you will have indescribable power and access to women far more beautiful than her. Surely she is nothing more than a plaything to you?"

"That, Tom Riddle, is where you are wrong. Hermione is the light in my soul. She is so much more than just a piece of ass. It's really a pity that you'll never understand that."

"So be it, I had wished for you to do this, as a mark of loyalty to me, but it seems as though I'll have to dispose of this unworthy, filthy Mudblood myself!" Voldemort went to cast Avada Kedavra, and Severus immediately cast the strongest shield he could to protect Hermione. He watched helplessly as the events unfolded.

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The shield surrounded her just seconds before the Killing Curse reached her. She watched in amazement as the Killing Curse rebounded off the shield and struck Voldemort, whose body was suffused in a green glow before it crumpled to the ground.

Her last thought before she succumbed to the blissful abyss of unconsciousness was that the whole affair had been rather ironic and anti-climatic.