AN: Thank you for all the support! It is very deeply appreciated!
"You were right about the wizard," Hermione shook her head as they stepped out of the wizard's throne room. "It was stupid to believe he'd help us from the kindness of his heart."
"It was not stupid," Severus put a hand on her tin back. "You wanted to believe the wizard was good, even if your faith wasn't warranted."
"I feel so foolish."
"You shouldn't blame yourself for his abhorrent behavior. If he wasn't such a snarky bastard he may have helped us."
"Was he a snarky bastard in the movie?" Harry asked.
"No, he was more of a threatening, foreboding presence," Severus tapped his foot. "Come to think of it, he was more interested in scaring Dorothy and his friends than verbally sparring with them."
"So the movie was wrong about how he'd behave?"
"It would appear so, though in both now and in the movie he demanded the witch's broom."
"Great, what do we do now?" Harry's frown deepened.
"We...we have to get the witch's broom," Neville answered
Everyone turned to the lion.
"We each need that broom, and we won't get it until we defeat the Wicked Witch of the West," Neville began, his voice stronger. "We have to defeat her and grab her broom."
"Fine," Severus turned to Hermione. "But you will stay here."
"Excuse me?" She furrowed her metallic eyebrows.
"You heard me. You'll stay here."
"I most certainly will not stay here! I'm going with you."
"You don't need to be anywhere near Molly, not after everything she's put you through," Severus argued. "It's much better if you stay here where you're safe."
"I don't want to be safe. I want my heart, which I won't get unless I help you defeat Molly."
"You can have your heart. We'll tell the wizard you helped us, and he'll give it to you. He'll have no reason to believe you didn't help us."
"No, the wizard too powerful. He'll know we're lying if I stay here. It's best if I go with you."
"Hermione, you've been through enough. Nobody would fault you for staying in Emerald City where you'll be safe."
"What's wrong with me going?" She raised her voice. "Do you think I'll slow you down?"
"No."
"Do you think I'm incapable of defending myself against Molly?"
"Not at all."
"What is it?"
"You're the one person I cannot lose!"
Hermione took a step back.
"As much as I tolerate, and to some degree even like, Neville, and Harry, you are the person I care for the most. If Molly were to hurt you, if she were to destroy you," his throat constricted. "I don't know what I'd do."
"Do I die in the movie?" Hermione asked in a softer voice.
"Yeah, what happens in the movie?" Harry asked. "That movie has been right about almost everything so far. Do we succeed in grabbing the broom?"
"Yes, we do," Severus answered.
"Does anyone die?"
"Fortunately, no," Severus answered.
"Then what's the problem?" Neville asked.
"It's one thing to watch everything play out in a movie, but it's another to live it."
"Then let's have a plan," Harry suggested.
"That might be helpful," Severus couldn't believe Potter was thinking things through. Perhaps as a scarecrow Harry was much more intelligent, or at least much less likely to put everyone in a terrible situation.
"How did they defeat the witch in the movie?" Harry asked.
"Dorothy threw water on her, and she melted."
"So all we need is some water."
"Where are we going to get water?" Neville asked.
"From the flying monkeys," Harry answered.
"The flying monkeys?" Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, the flying monkeys are biologically monkeys, meaning at some point they need to drink water."
"So if we find their water dish, then we'll have the means to destroy the witch," Hermione's lips turned upwards.
"Exactly," Harry snapped his straw fingers.
"I never thought I'd say this to you, but that is not a terrible idea," Severus replied. "I would even go so far as to call it intelligent."
"Well, if that's what I can do without a brain, imagine what will happen once I get one," Harry beamed.
"Yes, I'll find a way to distract the monkeys, and Severus can grab the water. Then, he'll do whatever Dorothy did in the movie," Neville replied.
"I can help distract the witch," Hermione answered. "I shouldn't be near water."
"True, so I can help get the water if necessary," Harry replied.
"This sounds doable," Severus replied.
"Then it's settled." Harry raised a hand. "Let's go get that water!"
"After a good night's rest." Neville yawned.
"I must agree with that sentiment," Severus looked down at Crookshanks, who had fallen asleep in his arms. "It is much better for us to approach the Wicked Witch of the West well-rested. Plus, if we rest here, we won't need to wander around her realm in the dark."
"Do you think she'll catch us while you're sleeping?" Harry asked. "She was able to fly above the clouds and write that terrifying message."
"No," Hermione answered. "I've had enough dealings with Molly to know that while she's an evil witch, she's afraid of taking on people more powerful than her. She's biding her time for us to leave Emerald City. She'll attack then."
"Are you certain of that?" Harry asked.
"I am," she answered. "Though if you'd like, we can keep watch over Neville and Severus while they sleep, just to protect them."
"Won't you want to rest too?" Neville asked.
"No, I don't sleep," Hermione answered with a wistful look in her eyes. "At least not anymore."
"I don't sleep either," Harry said. "I've never slept."
"Do you miss sleeping?" Severus asked Hermione.
"No," she admitted. "Not sleeping gives me more time to read at night, or at least it did before I rusted."
"So it's settled." Harry clasped his straw hands together. "We'll get some sleep tonight and head out tomorrow. Hermione will watch Severus, and I'll watch Neville."
"That sounds acceptable," Severus replied.
"I can do that," Neville answered.
"Great! Let's get a hotel room then," Harry replied.
"Wait," Severus drawled. "How are we paying for these accommodations?"
"With the Granger name of course," Hermione gave him a sly smile. "The name Granger still means something in Emerald City."
"Yes, the Granger name," Severus muttered as he followed her down the streets of the city, feeling a pang in his chest that no Granger would ever want to be permanently tied to a Snape
The room was pure emerald, from the wallpaper to the marble floor. Soft moonlight filtered through the emerald curtains, giving the room and almost dreamlike quality. It reminded him of the Slytherin Common Room, only more peaceful and less full of dunderheads causing unnecessary drama.
"Are you decent?" Hermione asked from the bathroom.
"Indeed I am," Severus crawled under the blankets, enjoying the feeling of the satin nightshirt over him. Hermione's name did carry some weight if he was able to get such lovely accommodations and sleep in such luxurious fabric.
"Where do you want me to stand?"
He looked at her.
"I didn't think you'd want me leering over your bed all night," she began. "It would be disconcerting to wake up and see a tin woman just standing there, at least it would be for me."
"You may stand wherever you want. A tin woman standing over me is hardly the worst thing I've experienced."
"True, you have faced Molly screeching."
"Indeed. Once you face that fear a Tin Woman in a hotel room is far less unsettling."
"I suppose so."
"Believe me, you are far more pleasant than Molly."
"I would hope so, though I do not always feel so pleasant," she admitted.
"Why? Do you fear I do not enjoy your presence because you have no heart?" He asked.
"That, and it cannot be easy having a friend who constantly rusts."
"Using an oil can is no great issue," Severus replied. "It isn't terribly difficult to loosen your joints. All you need is someone willing to be gentle."
"I haven't found anyone who cares enough to help me. Most people don't want a tin woman who can rust."
"Most people are dunderheads."
"Perhaps."
Severus lay his head on the pillow. "Hermione?"
"Yes?"
"Why didn't you tell me Molly wanted Ron to marry you because you were wealthy?"
"Who told you that?"
"Lavender."
In the dark he could see her tin smile twist into a frown. "Lavender always was a gossip."
"Do not be upset with her," Severus replied. "She was trying to explain a little more about why she was so shocked to see you."
"Yes, we really should get together after all this is done. It's been awhile, and I did think of her while I was rusted in place. Then again, I thought of a lot of things when I was rusted."
"Like what?"
"Where the travelers were going who passed me by, why I was too stupid to keep my oil can near me during the storm, how a flying monkey could fly, things of that nature."
"And you thought of the prince."
"Yes, he passed my mind more than a few times."
Severus asked, "If he were to burst into the room right now, what would you say to him?"
"Hello."
"That's it?" Severus asked.
"I'd need to start somewhere, and I'd need him to know it was me. He hasn't seen me as a tin woman, so my appearance may scare him."
"What if he wasn't afraid of you? What if he wanted to know everything that happened to you? What if," Severus yawned. "What if he told you he missed you? What would you say then?"
"I'd tell you to go to sleep."
"Nice diversion."
"Did it work?"
"Not in the slightest." He smirked.
"Fine," She paused. "I would tell him that I missed him too, and that the second I got a heart, I would find a way to love him."
"What if he thought you already loved him given how much you miss him?"
"I'd tell him he was too idealistic and that I could not give my heart away, not when it's gone."
"I still argue you have a heart."
"I still argue you should go to sleep," she replied in a soft voice. "We have a long day ahead of us. You'll need all your energy for the journey."
"I suppose so," he closed his eyes as Crookshanks leapt onto the bed and began to paw at his side before settling in himself. "Good night Hermione."
"Good night, Severus," she replied, once again feeling the overwhelming emptiness of her hollow chest.