Oh my, I can't get over the response I had from my last chapter, it was simply overwhelming, and so wonderful, thank you to everyone who took the time to review, it really blew me away!

Here's the latest chapter… I don't know if I'll be able to post tomorrow.

Goodnight all!

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Chapter Forty Two

The last exam for the seventh years was their potions practical, held on Friday morning, five days before they would leave Hogwarts for good. Hermione felt a lump come to her throat as she entered the exam, knowing it would most likely be her last for a very long time.

To everybody's surprised, Professor Snape was seated in the corner of the room, his legs crossed and his fingers steepled at his chin, surveying the students as they entered with his usual glittering eyes. Hermione felt an odd jolt in her stomach when she glanced over at the Professor. She had hardly seen him in the past two weeks, and not since Tuesday. Not even a glimpse of him in the Hall. For some odd reason, she had mixed feelings about this, and couldn't understand why.

As she stood her place behind her assigned cauldron, her eyes flicked once more to the Professor perched in the corner, and found him looking at her quite intently. Again, a funny jolt shot through her stomach, and she automatically raised the tips of her fingers to brush against her lips. She swallowed and her eyes flicked to his lips. For some reason she had a feeling, that once upon a time, she had explore them more closely then she should have.

Looking back up into his eyes, she found an odd expression there, as if he was trying to wok her out, but just couldn't. Something odd occurred to her as she noticed this expression. She realised that for some reason, she felt as though she could understand him a bit better – she knew a little bit more about why the dark circles under his eyes were more pronounced then they had been in the past seven years. But she couldn't figure out why.

She tore her eyes from the dark man in the corner, and gave all her attention to the examiner who was standing at the front of the room, about to give the instructions for the potions exam. She let all thoughts of Severus Snape slide to the back of her mind as she worked away at her Aging Potion with quick, precise movements.

Out the corner of her eyes, she saw Neville constantly flicking gazes to Professor Snape in the corner, as though the Professor would come and attack him at any given moment. However, the Potions Master sat still and silent for the entire exam, leaving Hermione feeling very grateful. Harry was also throwing looks at the corner, though they were dark and accusing. Hermione tried her hardest to ignore the man, to ignore feeling as though she knew something, but just couldn't remember it.

It hit her, just as she was picking up her rabbit hairs to add to the potion, just what she was missing. It came back to her, and her mind pushed her back to the dream she'd had not many nights ago. Oh God, she thought, seeing it all in front of her, instead of the potion. She could see it all, could remember it, could hear it, her screams echoing off the walls. Then it came to her…

…he had been there. He had been behind her, he had held her, he had told her that she needed to understand. He had told her that it was a dream, that the bodies weren't there. He had… kissed her. "Do you understand?" he had whispered before kissing her, before holding her against him tight.

Her head shot up from the bubbling potion before her, snapped up to look at the man seated so calmly in the corner. But his eyes betrayed his calmness.

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He watched her throughout her exam, seeing her work so well with the potions, pleased with himself that he had been the one to lead her towards working like that. Oh, of course, she would have done it herself somewhere along the lines, but he had helped her, there was little doubt.

Her eyes when she had first entered the room had told her that she didn't remember the dream from a few nights ago. She did not have the look of someone who had been dragged through Hell and back, the way he knew he had the first time he had been subjected to that terrifying dream. Instead, her eyes only held the nervousness she felt about doing her exam. As if she needed to be nervous, Snape knew she'd pass, and pass with the top marks.

He watched her calmly, noticing how she refused to look at him. Was she working it out? He'd made a point of avoiding her since that morning, not wanting to answer her questions, if she'd had any, until after her exams were finished. He was almost relieved to see that she did not know.

Knowing that rabbit hairs were about to be added to her potion, he set his sights upon her again, and watched silently as she picked up the hairs. He saw quite clearly, though he suspected others wouldn't, as she stiffened, gazing in wide eyed horror into her cauldron as she surely remembered what had happened, the bodies she had seen.

He waited a few moments, and sure enough, her snapped up, her eyes met his, and he saw the look there, saw her put the last pieces of the puzzle together. His insides were shrieking at him as he tried to remain calm, begging her silently to not be angry at him for a his foolish action in their dream, their connection. He just hadn't been able to help it.

After a few moments, he realised that she would no longer be able to work in her exam while he was presence. He attempted to leave silently, sliding along the wall and out the door. Even though he did not look at her, he knew that Hermione was looking at him, she had noticed her exit. He could only hope that her exam had not been ruined by him.

Retreating to his private chambers, he slumped onto his couch, running his hands through his hair, feeling the stress of the past two weeks of examining even the most idiotic kids settling over him. The dream had done nothing to dampen that stress, and now he feared an angry student who might be bashing down his door at the very moment her exam finished, demanding an explanation for a kiss he had none for.

Except that he had wanted it.

As sick and perverse as he thought of himself these days, there was no way he could deny the growing attraction her felt for the Gryffindor witch. "Fucking brilliant time, Severus," he muttered to himself as he remembered this. It was her last days, her last classes, her last… everything at Hogwarts. He wondered if he would be her last kiss. No, surely the Weasley brat would get his paws on her.

A feeling coursed through him, a feeling he had felt many times as a wizard as young as she, but one he had not felt for years. He chose to ignore it. Surely Hermione, the Head Girl, would be smarter then that.

With a groan, he tipped his head back, and waited for the knocking to resound through his chambers. It was barely an hour before it came, signalling the arrival of the witch. Smoothing down his front again, he made his way to his office door.

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The moment the exam finished, Hermione rushed from the room, not waiting for Harry and Ron as she normally did. She knew that they'd guess where she was headed, but she couldn't care right now. With everything in her, she needed to know.

She hurried down the corridor, coming to a halt at the Professor's door. Here, she took a breath or two, before raising her hand to knock on the door. Yes, she needed to know what had happened, if he had known it.

The door opened after barely a moment and she guessed that he had been expecting her. His departure from the exam room had told her that something was up, and she had known that he had guessed that she knew just what had happened. There was no doubt in her mind that they had shared the dream, that they had both known what was happening. In a way, Hermione felt thankful that she had forgotten about the dream until now – she felt as though she was suffocating under what she had seen.

"Miss Granger." Professor Snape's was that of a troubled man, and she knew that she had caused that. She didn't regret it, not now. "Step in." He motioned for her to follow him, and she did so, allowing him to lead her into his private chambers. Before she had a chance to say anything, he summoned her a glass of pumpkin juice.

"I assume you know why I'm here, Professor," she said quietly, watching his face.

"Yes," he responded, holding her eyes in an equal gaze. "You remembered something. A dream you had."

"We had," she corrected with a small smile. She watched him closely as he acknowledged that fact. At least he hadn't bothered to try and deny it, despite knowing that he couldn't have possibly done so.

"Yes, we had," he said, still holding her face with his eyes. "I assume you did not realise what had happened until just now."

"You knew the whole time, didn't you?" she whispered, once again forgetting that he was a Professor. "I didn't see you, but you always saw me."

He gave a small laugh. "Like a true Gryffindor, Miss Granger, you allowed yourself to be lead. You did not question, you did not look behind, you simply saw something and followed. You needn't be ashamed of that right now… but perhaps you have learned for the future?"

"If you knew where I was going, if you knew where I was going, why didn't you stop me?" she asked, heat raising in both her cheeks and her voice as hard as she tried to fight against it. "You told me to keep going, you encouraged me. I know it was your voice inside me head, telling me to walk on."

A look of sadness fell over his face. "You needed to understand, Hermione." He whispered, his eyes finally falling from hers, and to the rug that lay beneath their feet. "All that you say, all that you do… you didn't understand the numbers, the people. You were there when he fell, I have learned this much, and this year you have fought for a man who did nothing but cause pain and anger – even if he didn't mean it." His voice dropped to almost silence, and she strained to hear it. "Just like he didn't mean to show you that dream, to let you in. But once you were there…"

She couldn't help but feel a light of interest spark in her chest. He had showed her the dream. It wasn't by chance, he had done it. "How did you show me?" She asked quietly.

Professor Snape turned his head away sharply, looking at the fireplace where no fire burned. His fingers traced the outline of his thin lips, and Hermione felt it hard to concentrate on what he was saying for a moment, wanting to think about those lips, and just how they had kissed her. "I honestly do not Miss Granger – but how else could you have seen? It is my dream, a dream I have experienced many times. I did not think it would be possible for me to show to anyone without using an external device. Perhaps… perhaps in a way, I invited you into my mind. Perhaps… you accepted, and you did not realise. There is a chance." He gave her a smile from behind his tracing fingers. "I've been meaning to research it."

"I have five days left at Hogwarts, sir," she informed him. "My exams are over."

"Meaning what?"

She took a breath. She knew this man was fiercely protective of his privacy – but over the lat few months, he had opened up to her in small ways – was it time to make another step? "Meaning, perhaps I could be of some assistance to your research. I am part of this."

"Quiet, Miss Granger, you are beginning to sound like Potter." She glared at him for this statement. "Always wanting to be involved in everything."

"I believe I already am involved in this, sir," she whispered, as his eyes captured hers once more and she found herself lost in the pools of black.

Silence fell over them for a moment before the Professor stood up. "Yes, Miss Granger, you may assist me with your research, however, not tonight. You have just completed your final exam, one I am sure you passed quite comfortably. You have celebrating to do with the other brats of your house, do you not?" He almost actually smiled at her after this remark. "If you still wish to research, please, I ask you to be here tomorrow morning after breakfast."

Accepting the unspoken dismissal, Hermione stood, straightening her skirt before making her way to the office door. He remained seated and as she reached the door, she heard him call her name softly, just once more. She turned to him.

"What I asked you… do you understand?" He asked, his black eyes giving her the feeling as though he was searching her soul.

"I understand what, I do not understand why," she answered honestly. "But I hope to." She paused, wondering if she had the courage to ask what she did. Before she could decide if she did or she didn't, the words came tumbling out. "Sir… what you did… do you regret?

"No…" came the softly reply. "Are you angered?"

She thought for a moment, studying his face, looking in his eyes and seeing him as a man – truthfully he was not her Professor now, she had completed her classes with him. After a quick search of herself, she came up with the answer she felt was right with her.

"No, I am not. Don't you be either."

She turned and left, too scared to see the expression on his face.

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Kind of a poxy ending, I am well aware of that, lol. Researching together next!

This fic has not much longer to go, not much longer at all… probably three chapters. Hope you all enjoying the ending :-)