So I guess posting some of my newer stuff inspired me to begin work on some of my older fics as well. I did always like this one and what I had planned for it, though that plan has changed slightly now. I found myself thinking of this fic over and over in recent weeks, tweeking things here and there in my mind while doing some of the most mundane of things (doing laundry is good for my muse apparently). Anyway, so here is (finally) the second installment to this one, and I plan on beginning the next one right away. Ooh, lots of suprises to come! Stay tuned and my sincerest applogies for taking so damned long to update :)

The wind continued to pummel the windows as the snow fell steadily, blanketing the countryside in a thick layer of crisp and chilling purity, what had started as nothing more than an angry thunderstorm was now magically turning into a full blown blizzard, one that would be remembered in almanacs for years to come. However, while the weather raged and fumed outside, another equally bitter and angry exchange was taking place within the small and secluded cottage. Hermione stood tense and seething with unspent anger as she glared down at her former Potions Professor who sat looking forlorn and broken among the jumbled piles of books and parchments, his drowning pool eyes cast down to study his still pale and lithe hands that absently curled into angry fists in his lap.

"How fitting…" Severus finally murmured more to himself than his unexpected and exceedingly unwanted guest, his fingers clenching all the more tightly as he fought back the urge to throw everything within proximity in a childish display of rage and hurt.

"What?" Hermione snapped brusquely, her usually gentle and soft tone twisted and roughed with irritation and frustration. After a long moment of silence Severus languidly cocked his head to one side, gazing up at her through the haze of his inky tresses and with a bitter smile curving his lips he replied,

"I was simply remarking to myself how fitting it is that the one person who should finally stumble upon me, is one of the people whom I had hoped and prayed to Merlin I would never have to suffer again." An indignant snort and a deepened frown was the initial response that Severus received in reply to his honest declaration.

"And I suppose this is your form of hospitality?" she quickly growled back at him, her own lips contorted with a sneer of contempt.

"Indeed it is, I consider myself being rather accommodating considering that you saw fit to intrude upon my solitude and peace of mind" he hissed back, though his voice lacked the bite it had held in previous years, now he simply sounded weary more than anything. "In fact, if it were not for the current situation I would have given you a much more fitting welcome" he continued with a hint of the sneer he once had worn as easily as a comforting mask.

"Oh yes? And what would you consider a proper welcome?" Hermione asked snidely, her typically warm brown eyes narrowed with skepticism.

"I would have promptly tossed you out on your ear, you insufferable girl!" Severus said in reply, his voice tinged with the warmth of sadistic amusement.

"I hardly think you are in any position to refer to me as an 'insufferable girl', or any of the other childish names you called me while I was at school" she said with an air of triumph.

"Indeed, I can think of many far more fitting terms for you now" he groused in response through clenched teeth, reminded all too well of his predicament as another book toppled heavily into his lap. Several long and silent moments stretched out between the two of them, only the wind howling beyond the windows serving as a discordant and fierce symphony in the background.

"And I suppose now you will be clapping me in irons and whisking me off to Azkaban, and my well-deserved and inevitable end?" Severus asked finally, his voice bland and lacking any hint of the very real and fierce fear that roiled just beneath the surface of his calm exterior. However, no response came at first as Hermione continued to glare down at him, her gaze softening only marginally as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, her arm extended holding her wand wavering for a moment before she let it fall limply at her side. Finally after heaving a great sigh and allowing her brows to draw together in the beginnings of a frown she gave an almost impercievable shake of her head as she said,

"Actually no, I was planning on escorting you back to Hogwarts." Try as he might, Severus was completely unable to shield his surprise as this outcome, he had at least expected to spend the rest of his days rotting away in some filthy and stinking cell in Azkaban if for some reason they deemed him undeserving of the Dementor's Kiss, but long ago he had accepted the simple fact that should he be discovered it was almost entirely certain that he would only live long enough to face trial and then be swiftly sentenced to death while the Wizarding World celebrated his passing.

"And why, in the name of Merlin would you do something as foolish as that?" he found himself saying in shock while a part of his mind ferociously snarled at him to keep his damned mouth shut for once in his life.

"You would prefer Azkaban then?" Hermione asked as a small glimmer of confusion flickered across her face, though after a moment she continued with a hint of amusement in her voice "Though I suppose I can see how that would seem more appealing than hallways fit to bursting with shouting and inept students."

"You sound almost as if you know from personal experience how vexing they can be" Severus said dolefully, the looseness of his tongue astounding even him as his mind waged a war with his suddenly flapping gums. Perhaps it had been the years of isolation, the feeling of all consuming loneliness that had often caught him off guard and left him reeling for days in its wake, but whatever the reason for his sudden penchant for speaking so freely, to a former student no less, Severus was intent to put a stop to it immediately. A noncommittal sound was the simple and completely unrevealing response that flowed over Hermione's lips as the crease in her brow deepened all the more before she gave a quick and short shake of her head as if to dispel thoughts that were bubbling to the surface. Quietly Severus watched her strange behavior, the wheels in his mind beginning to turn though perhaps a little sluggishly at first until finally he spoke up in a slow and bordering on cautious tone,

"There is something you are not telling me, Miss Granger." It was a long while before Hermione slowly raised her eyes to meet his daunting and penetrating gaze, a skill he had obviously not lost over the years, but when she finally did Severus saw something he had not expected to see in her gaze. A deep sense of loss and longing shone brightly in her deep brown eyes, the light from the crackling fire and dancing candle light reflected the tears that hung precariously in her eyes, threatening to spill at the slightest provocation as she took a deep breath and in the most heart wrenchingly solemn voice he had ever heard said,

"Minerva passed away last night."