Shout out to maleficdragon and Lucyole for being so kind as to review! To everyone following my fic, I thank you! It is truly humbling.

Luna,

You said you were looking for a Tuberwyrm. What is it?

Things are really taking off here at the Auror's Office. We've taken back one location earlier in the week and were in pursuit of some Death Eaters just last night. It's so great to finally make some headway. I'd like to tell you more that I can't really say in a letter. Could we meet up sometime soon?

I know we've never really spent very much time together, but you seem to understand me better than anyone else. I know I can always come to you for the right answer. I guess I'm trying to say thank you, Luna, for always being there and I hope you know I'm there for you, too.

Harry

Harry,

A Tuberwyrm is a mysterious creature that few have managed to see. It's a dragon-like creature that takes the form of roots when it feels threatened. That's what makes it so hard to search for. I believe a few of them were responsible for the Irish Potato Famine.

I would love to meet soon. Is this Saturday a good time? With evening classes I find Saturdays are easier to make plans for.

Thank you, Harry. I'm glad to be there for you. I find it difficult to lean on others. I've been on my own so long, you see. Still, if I were to seek help it would be from you.

Be careful out there.

Luna

. . .

"So good to see you, Miss Granger." Familiar half-moon spectacles peered knowingly down at Hermione.

"It's good to see you, too, Professor. I've been meaning to talk with you." The witch replied. If it weren't for the heaviness in her heart, she might imagine Albus Dumbledore had never died at all. But he had, and this was his portrait. Though a well informed one.

The old Headmaster leaned forward in his chair with interest. "I am at your disposal, dear girl."

Hermione took a breath and gathered her thoughts. "It's true, isn't it, that you ordered Seve- Snape to murder you atop the Astronomy Tower?"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "It is. You call Severus by his first name out of habit, do you?" The old man gave a little grunt of mirth.

Hermione blushed. "He doesn't like me to call him Professor anymore. And since he's helping me reverse a charm I put on my parents, we thought it best to be less formal with each other."

The old man gave an exaggerated nod. "Of course. It's only natural. Working in such close proximity and you being of age. You did save his life, after all." A twinkle shone in Dumbledore's painted eyes.

How could his eyes twinkle from beyond the grave? Did he deliberately teach that to his portrait as well? Hermione couldn't help feeling more flustered and cleared her throat. "I think we're getting a little off-subject."

"Are we?" Dumbledore asked in mock surprise.

Hermione eyed the portrait with more than a little irritation. "I was wondering if you thought…. Severus… would disappear after he's done with his obligations? You knew him better than anyone, sir, and sometimes I think that he will just leave without any hint to his whereabouts."

Dumbledore scrutinized the young woman. This question was clearly very important to her. But he had limited knowledge as a portrait. This interest Miss Granger was showing in her one-time Potions teacher was a new development that was not something that would have been previously possible. Likely bourne from her tending to him as he recovered from his near-fatal wounds. "Being a Gryffindor, you are well aware of your house's proclivity to loyalty." At Hermione's acknowledgement of the fact he went on. "It is a less well-known aspect of Slytherin house: loyalty. But loyal they can be, to a fault. When a Slytherin determines a cause is worth their while, they will 'use any means to achieve their ends.' I fear that's why so many have followed Tom for so long. But when they find a cause truly worth achieving, I think you will find they are quite dependable. Does this answer your question, Miss Granger?"

The information churned in Hermione's mind. Severus was certainly seeing his current goals through, but surely there was nothing that would hold him once these goals were accomplished. He would not abandon his dedication to Lily. And while he may feel obligated to inquire after Harry's well-being for the foreseeable future, he had no solid ties to her. With the admission to herself that she felt something more for her former professor came the realization that what she had been worried about all this time was his leaving her. She knew that if he were to disappear from her life she would mourn the loss.

"Thank you, Professor." Hermione heard herself say. "I think it does."

Mind still occupied with worry, Hermione made her way down through the school grounds and into the Forbidden Forest. The forest floor was treacherous, particularly as one trekked more deeply into the wood. Hermione was following very precise directions Severus had given her to find an herb he had need of for his personal stores. Asphodel to be exact. From the lily family. Hermione quoted Magical Drafts and Potions to herself bitterly.

It was proving tricky to pick along the jutting roots and sudden sunken earth. So absorbed, she was, in minding her footing, she nearly didn't see the Death Eaters in time to conceal herself.

Quickly, she unfurled the Cloak of Invisibility from the pocket of her robes and hid under its voluminous folds. Once she had assumed the role of voyeur she noted that the Death Eaters' faces were moving as though speaking, yet she heard nothing. It must be a muffling spell. She reasoned.

Based on the Death Eaters she saw stationed in a wide circle with a smaller congregation in the center, she hoped they had cast a large perimeter for the spell. A perimeter she could breach undetected. As quietly as she could manage, Hermione made her way to the presumed edge. She gave the lookouts a wide berth. When she crossed the guarded point, her speculation was rewarded with the sound of conversation reaching her ears. Quickly, she cast a silent recording charm, knowing the Aurors would benefit from evidence.

"- a very reliable source. I have connections within the Ministry, Avery. We are gaining power. It's just as thrilling as the Dark Lord's first rise to power!"

The man indicated by the speaker as Avery grunted, apparently unconvinced. "Severus is well connected. He will either help or hinder our work." Avery said. "Perhaps after Lucius' blunder we may never know to what degree either way."

"I'm sorry, brothers. Mark me, you will find an improvement in my work here." Hermione recognized this voice as belonging to Lucius Malfoy.

Avery scoffed. "Since the Dark Lord's second coming you've been a disappointment. I don't expect much from you since your family has abandoned you and the old ways."

The first speaker, still unnamed, raised a hand to silence Avery. "Do not be so hard on Malfoy. He has proven his loyalty. Even at the cost of all he holds dear, he has stayed within our ranks."

"Thank you, Archbishop." Malfoy grovelled.

Another disapproving scoff from Avery. "We still need to decide what to do with Snape."

"If he proves himself he is a brother. But one inkling we have that he is not one of us, we kill him. This is the first priority next to Harry Potter himself. Snape knows much. He is a beneficial ally." The supposed Archbishop said.

"Or a detrimental foe." Avery pointed out.

"We shall see." The Archbishop practically snarled.

The conversation took a turn towards future plans and while Hermione wished she could collect all the information there was to glean here, she decided it would be best to capture these Death Eaters instead. She wasn't sure what an "Archbishop" was to these zealous Death Eaters, but he was clearly a man of high rank. Perhaps even the new leader. She would need to hurry to the Auror's office with this if there were to be any chance of apprehending them.

Silently, she ended her recording and retreated from the ring of lookouts. She was careful to keep her breath shallow as she stepped gingerly over the thick underbrush. To her terror, the Cloak caught on a thorny evergreen bush. It came away at her insistent tug, but not before it rustled quite obviously, alerting the nearest Death Eater to the sound.

The tall figure advanced swiftly and Hermione took long, careful steps in the opposite direction, hoping he would continue to investigate the bush while she made her escape. She heard the man behind her pounce, likely jumping to the other side of the bush to find the culprit. Continued rustling met her ears as did another Death Eater's voice, falling behind her as she hurried on through the forest. "What is it?"

"Probably just a rabbit. I don't see anything."

"You sure? We can't risk-"

The rest of the conversation was lost to her as she neared the treeline. She could see Hagrid's cabin and she released a pent up breath, her lungs burning from trying to keep it shallow through the close call. Abandoning stealth, she ran for the limits of Hogwarts' grounds. Her trainers slipped over the moist grass in her haste, yet she forged ahead.

When she finally reached the point she knew she could safely apparate, she did so without slowing. She practically stepped out of her apparition when she reached her destination and ran into the toilet entrance to the Ministry, tucking the Cloak into her pocket as she went. It being the middle of the day, there was hardly anyone there and the few witches she encountered looked on with bewilderment as Hermione shot by them in a blur of windswept curls. She flushed herself into the lobby impatiently and squeaked across the marble floors at breakneck speed in her wet trainers. The lift she set her eyes on was just closing its doors as she darted into the mass of people crammed within. "Auror's Office." She gasped through ragged breaths. The passengers around her looked away uncomfortably as Hermione caught her breath. One kindly old wizard jammed in the corner asked, "Any trouble, young miss?"

Hermione flashed him a strained smile. "Just something important." She said vaguely. The man's eyes widened and rolled to the side, his lips puckered. He looked sarcastically impressed by her 'something important' but Hermione spared no annoyance on him. She was counting the floors, vibrating with impatience as passengers came and went until at last she squirmed out of the lift herself and dove into the auror's office. "I need to speak with Auror Robards." Hermione said urgently as soon as she entered.

She nearly choked on her tongue when none other than Pansy Parkinson turned around to answer her request from behind the front desk. Pansy gasped in surprise, then quickly schooled her features. "Granger." She said acidly. "How can I help you?"

"I need to speak with Auror Robards." Hermione repeated, more guarded this time. What could Pansy Parkinson be doing here? None of the boys had mentioned her previously. This was suspicious.

"What seems to be the trouble?" Parkinson asked in a bored, dismissive tone.

Hermione looked at her aghast. "I intend to tell Auror Robards if it's all the same to you."

Parkinson sneered. "Look, Granger. I know you're accustomed to Hogwarts where you could raise your hand and talk to teacher, but this is the real world. The Ministry of Magic, if you hadn't noticed, and we have policy for these sorts of things. So if you would; what seems to be the trouble?"

Hermione gritted her teeth against all the choice words she had for her old classmate. That Archbishop had said he had sources within the Ministry. Could Pansy be one of them? She was the one who had been most eager to hand Harry over to Voldemort during the battle at Hogwarts. She didn't feel comfortable giving her too much information. But she still had to speak with Robards immediately. "I have a tip on the whereabouts of some Death Eaters. It's urgent I speak with Robards about this immediately."

"Hmm, where has the Know-It-All been sticking her nose today?" Pansy mused.

"Worried I'll have something on one of your friends?" Hermione fired back.

Pansy's eyes widened in panic for a moment, lending some credence to Hermione's suspicions, but the Slytherin recovered quickly and stepped out from behind the counter. "Follow me." She ordered huffily.

Hermione resented Pansy's casual pace. She didn't almost kill herself getting here just to be set back by pig-nosed brat. As they rounded the corner, Hermione recognized Robards immediately by Harry and Ron's description of him. Seeing her friends with him emboldened her and she side-stepped Parkinson to rush up to the head of the department. "Sir! Robards! I have some urgent information to share with you."

"Rude." Parkinson chided behind her, but she paid it no mind.

"This is quite irregular." Robards remarked, then looked to Pansy. "Who is she? What's she here for?"

Pansy started to answer but Hermione interrupted. "I'm Hermione Granger, sir, and I wouldn't have rushed in if it were not vital you here this and act on it this instant."
Robards narrowed his eyes, but gestured for her to continue nonetheless.

"I was just at the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts and I found a group of Death Eaters. I heard the names Avery and Lucius Malfoy. I think there may also be a man in a leadership position. They called him Archbishop. I have their conversation recorded but we don't have much time. If we go now we might be able to catch seven of them. They have a muffling charm cast with four lookouts. I can show you where." Hermione turned as if to lead them there now and noticed Pansy had left. Perhaps she realized she hadn't been needed after all.

"Wait." Robards snapped. "We can't just run in on some whim. I need to verify this. Get some people together."

"We can't afford to waste any time!" Hermione insisted. "They could be leaving at any moment. This Archbishop could be their leader. We have a chance to end this right now!"

"Potter, Weasley. This is your friend, I understand? Talk sense to the girl." Robards rounded on the two young men.

Severus stepped towards Robards instead, speaking quietly. "Remember what I told you about a militia? This is an instance where you might heed my words. Would you hesitate to act on intelligence gleaned on the battlefront? We might not get an opportunity like this again."

Robards matched Snapes cool onyx eyes with his own icey blue. Did procedure and hierarchy mean nothing to these people?

"If you don't give the word now, sir, we'll go ourselves." Harry said boldly, moving to stand by Granger.

Robards growled in frustration. "Shakespurts, Aurors!" He roared. Aurors immediately came from every nook and cranny, filling the room. Robards admitted to himself that it did feel powerful to act swiftly. He imagined himself as a general, his forces ready to act on his word. Perhaps these upstarts had a point. It was possible the Ministry moved too slowly for times such as these. A little less decorum was necessary for war. "Listen up! We've got seven Death Eaters in the Forbidden Forest. We'll apparate to the edge of Hogwarts and use a stealthy approach. We know they have four lookouts and have cast a muffling charm for the other three. One of these bastards might be the lead Death Eater so we need to treat this mission with all seriousness. Stun on sight. This lady will lead us there. Got it?" A cheer rang out and Robards grunted in approval. "Then let's shove off!"

Hiding in the loo, Pansy shook uncontrollably. She had sent off her patronus as soon as she could. Would it reach her father in time? If not, she wasn't sure what would happen to her family.

As soon as Hermione saw the Aurors behind her, she sped towards Hagrid's cabin, knowing that to be a good reference point for the others as well. The muffled sound of many feet running behind her gave her confidence. Once they reached the treeline, Hermione softened her footfall and began to pick her way through the dense forest. She wished she could give words of comfort to her friends. Tell them to be careful. But now was not the time.

A silver figure zoomed past the group. It moved as though running and a faint wheezing sound could be heard as it passed. Hermione couldn't make out what the form was but she knew what it was. A patronus. The Death Eaters were being warned. She picked up the pace.

As they approached the site Hermione recalled, several spells were fired at them. The warning had beaten them there and the Death Eaters were making their escape. Severus hurried to Hermione's side and blocked a hex that she hadn't seen among the many fired in her direction as the first to appear at the scene. He fired back at the Death Eater with his own stunning spell. Hermione blushed at the intimidating figure he made.

Ron and Harry running to confront the Death Eaters broke her out of her reverie and she rushed after them, Snape right beside her. The other Aurors seemed as eager to act as her friends. Unfortunately, it resulted in nothing but an abandoned campsite and even more questions to Snape's loyalty. It was there in whispers as the Aurors sifted through the remnants of the Death Eaters' presence. Hermione felt indignation rise and sit heavily on her tongue, but she bit it back. She had been enough of a nuisance today and she knew Harry had already done all he could to allay their fears. What more could she have to say if Harry Potter's word wasn't good enough for them? They would simply have to find out for themselves through investigation.

McGonagall and Hagrid approached the group warily. "What is the meaning of this, Robards? Why was I not informed of your presence here today?"

Robards eyed Hermione pointedly. "This one told us of a group of Death Eaters that had taken up residence here and several in my company insisted we act immediately."

"We did." Harry said cheerfully from his crouched position over an old camp fire.

McGonagall pursed her lips and raised a brow in much the way she did when the young man was impertinent in class. "Next time I hope you will let me know if my students are so near danger of this magnitude."

"Certainly, headmistress." Robards assented. "Then I'm afraid I must tell you your students are currently in danger. I don't think the Death Eaters chose the Forbidden Forest lightly. It was very bold of them to settle in for a prolonged stay here."

"What do you think it means?" McGonagall asked.

Robards lowered his voice and began to walk with the Headmistress away from the others. "The Death Eaters we captured at Grimmauld Place: many were students. We have interrogated the adults on the scene and they have admitted one of their focuses now is influencing the youth to take up what their parents have begun. They are looking to expand. We don't know much else, but this post at Hogwarts was very deliberate."

"I will heighten security here. If you would have the Ministry put a monitoring system in place for the Floo Network." McGonagall requested.

Robards bobbed his head. "And I'll have officers posted at Hogsmeade at all times."

McGonagall stopped and fixed Robards with her earnest gaze. "How is it that you spared no time even to send word to me of what was happening and the Death Eaters still escaped?"

Robards looked over his shoulder at Snape who was walking with the young Miss Granger. He returned his attention to the Headmistress. "I believe the Ministry has, indeed, let a snake inside. A patronus preceded us here."

"Severus' patronus is a doe." McGonagall offered to Robards.

Robards shook his head. "I didn't get a good look at it, but it was certainly not a doe. Much too small. And it snorted like a pig or a dog."

McGonagall considered. "Dumbledore's portrait maintains Snape's innocence. Even after death."

Robards laughed humorlessly. "I put no stock in portraits. If Dumbledore didn't expect his death and he truly was betrayed he would not have had time to communicate that to it. Still, the memory we have seems legitimate. But someone informed the Death Eaters today. Someone very close to our department. It's possible there could be more than one informant. But I still have not ruled out Snape. I suspect everyone. Even Mister Weasley gives me pause at times."

Severus took Hermione to a mossy slope where the asphodel had been hiding, right behind the campsite.

"Thank you." Hermione said as she brought the clippers out she still had just for this errand, before she made her terrifying discovery.

"For what?" Severus asked, his eyebrows knitted tensely.

Hermione adjusted the clippers in her grip. "For convincing Robards to come. And for blocking that hex." She went to cut the asphodel, but Severus' hand on hers stilled her movement. Hermione's heart thundered in her chest and she blushed furiously.

"Lower." Severus instructed in her ear, guiding her hand down below the base of the plant to clip the tops of the roots. "It'll regenerate that way."

His hand squeezed around hers gently and Hermione took her cue to snip the flower. Snape released her hand then and took the liberty of summoning a protective bottle for the clipping from her beaded bag. He cast a stasis charm, then sealed it in with a cork. With a bittersweet half-smile he handed the asphodel cutting to her. "I'm glad you are safe."

Hermione could feel that he had more to say, but instead he stood, helped her to her feet, and returned to the other Aurors. It was then she noticed Ron leaning against a tree on top of the little slope they had just occupied. Ron shot Snape a dirty look as he passed by, but the Potions Master ignored it, continuing on. Hermione stood awkwardly, feeling a little guilty though not sure exactly why. "I-I was surprised to see Pansy at the Auror Office." Hermione began awkwardly, putting the plant into her bag.

Ron's eyes narrowed. "She told me she wanted to be an Auror so I helped her get an interim position. What of it?"

Hermione was taken aback. He had helped her get the position? She wasn't sure why Ron was being so confrontational about this either. It wasn't as though she had thought to interrogate him about it, but since he was behaving so oddly maybe she should. "I didn't know you were on friendly terms with her."

"Why not?" Ron asked stubbornly.

Hermione couldn't stop her incredulous laugh. "You're serious? Don't you remember Pansy Parkinson of the Inquisitorial Squad? Draco's girlfriend?"

"She wasn't his girlfriend." Ron huffed, then turned bright red.

Hermione couldn't believe it. Ron must have developed feelings for the girl. Was it possible she was taking advantage of him so she could get information? This was bad. Had Harry and Severus noticed this going on?

"What were you doing going off alone with him that way?" Ron turned the line of questioning around on her.

Hermione blushed. "I was here to get a clipping before I ran into the Death Eaters. He was just helping me find it."

"You know that looks suspicious of you, spending time alone with him." Ron said, walking towards her. "It looks like he's taking advantage of you. Trying to manipulate you. Robards and a lot of other Aurors suspect him, 'Mione. It's not just me. He's a snake. And you're cozying right up to him."

Ron stopped mere inches away, his gaze dipped to her lips. A confusing tug of desire pulsed within her and Hermione couldn't tell if it was a result of her previous encounter with Severus or residual feelings for Ron. She studied his mouth and remembered, not the kiss they had shared, but the times she had felt love for him. How jealous she had been of Lavender. How she pined for him at the Yule Ball. Those years they had spent inseparable.

Shaking her head, she took a deliberate step back. Anger returned to her then. He was the one who had left. He always left when there were important things to be done. And he was the last one who could lecture her on using her head. "I'm not the one recommending known enemies to jobs in the Ministry."

"What?" Ron's voice was eerily calm and Hermione feared her friend for the first time. He had never seemed so volatile. "You know what I think, 'Mione?" He said, little above a whisper, advancing on her once more. "You're jealous that Pansy is actually making something of herself since the war and you've done nothing."

Suddenly, he turned on his heel and returned to the others, leaving Hermione feeling very alone and useless. It was true. She hadn't done anything with herself. But she really couldn't. She had to get her parents back. She wanted to finish her education. Was she wrong to wallow in the past? It felt like war wasn't over yet. She wondered if it ever would. Maybe when the last Death Eater was locked up in Azkaban? Perhaps not even then.

With a heavy heart, she rejoined the others. She still had to turn the recording over to the Aurors. She'd have to see Pansy again, hear Ron's accusations of jealousy echo in her head, and feel the bitter truth in them.

Pansy was weak with relief when she saw the Aurors return with no one in custody. Her message had gotten through in time. She had worked so hard that night her father insisted she learn a full-bodied patronus and she felt a connection to the little silver pug that greeted her each time she cast it. It was a little awkward and noisy, but those were characteristics she felt she could relate to. Sometimes she wasn't sure why she had to show out the way she did. Maybe if she were more eloquent she wouldn't have been such a disappointment when she had called her fellow classmates to act against Potter. But maybe deep down she knew it wasn't the right thing to do anyway.

Harry waved at her politely as he filed in with the others. She gave him a weak smile in return. Ron avoided her eyes, but then she also avoided his as he came in. She felt guilty for sabotaging his raid. He could have gotten hurt. Then Granger and Snape, chatting about asphodel. And how comfortable they looked. Wasn't Snape in hiding? At least, that was what Ron had said when she had asked about him. When had he had time to become so comfortable with his former student? Didn't he just call her Hermione?

"Pansy." Ron's voice startled her out of her thoughts. She hadn't noticed him circle back around to her.

"Ron, are you okay? How'd it go?" Pansy asked.

Ron gave her a crooked smile. "Well we didn't get anyone, but we might have picked up some clues. But, hey, do you have anything to do tonight?"

"Not particularly." Pansy said, wanting to put off dealing with her father's exultation at the success of her warning them.

"Would you like to come over and have dinner at my house? I'd like for you to meet my folks." Ron scratched the back of his head nervously. "I mean I know it'll probably be weird. It would just mean a lot to me. And, well, I'd like to see you come over… sometimes."

Pansy smiled. "That sounds nice."

Dinner at the Burrow was not free of awkwardness. Mr. Weasley was happy enough to see anyone at their supper table, though Mrs. Weasley seemed a little befuddled at her presence in their home. "Ah, a friend from work." She said, unconvinced. "What is it you do in the Ministry?"

"I work at the front desk. It's an interim position." Pansy replied shyly. She hadn't had such a casual encounter with other purebloods before. Or anyone for that matter. Usually her parents did the speaking and arranging in her life. It felt strange to be acting for herself. Naked. "Ron was kind enough to put in a good word for me."

Mrs. Weasley looked at her suspiciously when she said that, but Mr. Weasley rallied her spirits some with a hearty, "A gentleman just like we raised him to be."

Pansy giggled a little. "He certainly is." She recalled how he had ensured she had a place to stay and someone to look after her when she had stupidly gotten herself drunk away from home. She didn't know many young men who wouldn't have tried to take some sort of advantage of her in that state. But then, Griffyndors were known for their chivalry.

After dinner, Pansy offered to help with the dirty dishes, but Mrs. Weasley would have none of it. Instead, she and Ron went for a stroll outside. "We were lucky nobody was home. Ginny's still in school. Fred and George have moved out with the earnings from their shop- rooming together someplace close to Diagon Alley. Percy moved back but he lurks around in dad's study. Bill's married. It's been weird just having me with my parents. Like I'm actually getting to know them as people, you know? I guess that's why I wanted you to meet them. For them to meet you. It seemed important." He shrugged and kicked a rock.

"It is important." Pansy agreed quietly. "I wish I could-" Her teeth clicked shut, barely missing her tongue.

Ron stopped walking and turned to face her. "I know you won't take me to see your parents." Pansy looked down sadly, but Ron lifted her chin so she would meet his gaze. "I don't need to know why. It's okay. I like you, Pansy. I'm not expecting anything. I just… I like you." He bent towards her, then. His lips meeting hers in a gentle kiss. He began to pull away, but Pansy leaned up carefully and recaptured his lips, kissing him back slowly, with feeling. She fought back tears as she tried to just enjoy this moment. Whatever was to come, she at least she could treasure this perfect moment.

. . .

The Death Eaters had Harry and Severus cornered. Hermione tried to scream, but her throat felt tight and painful. Tears were hot on her cheeks. She couldn't move. The zealous witches and wizards descended on them with awful, bloody curses. One wizard emerged to the fore and a flash of green light shot from his wand once, twice. Harry and Severus' bodies fell lifelessly to the ground. Hermione couldn't breath through her sobs. Her throat and lungs burned.

Suddenly, she was in her bed in Ainsley Place. Her throat was just as painful and tight as it was in her dream. She had been crying in her sleep. Hermione took a deep, ragged breath and lay on her bed, letting the tears run their course until she could regain her emotional equilibrium.

Sitting up from her bed, Hermione wiped her eyes, then donned her night robe to go check on the two men. She could not go back to sleep until she knew they were safely asleep. She checked on Harry first, his room being across from hers. Quietly, she padded in to the bedside and found Harry snoring softly. Satisfied that he was okay, she went to Snape's room. Upon opening the door, she found he was reading by wand-light. Hoping he hadn't seen her, she started to close the door, but she had no such luck.

"Miss Granger." His voice called with a slight hoarseness due to the late hour.

Hermione reopened the door grudgingly. "I'm sorry, Severus. I didn't know you were awake. I won't trouble you."

"Is something the matter?" Severus asked, laying aside the book he had been reading and switching the room's light on wordlessly. Hermione hesitated at the door, stammering a haphazard explanation he didn't understand. Severus stood and stalked forward, his black silk pajamas moving sumptuously with his lithe form. When he reached her at the door, he noticed her eyes were bloodshot and the tender skin of her eyelids were red and puffy. Her nose was also a delicate pink. She had been crying. Quite fiercely by the looks of it. "What is the matter?" He asked quietly.

Hermione took a breath, gathering her thoughts. "It's nothing. I didn't mean to worry you. You should get your rest, sir. I've bothered you enough this evening."

As she tried to leave once more, Severus stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder. "Don't be ridiculous. Tell me. What's troubling you?"

Hermione looked up at him in surprise, tears beginning to gather again as the awful nightmare sprang back to mind. "I had a terrible dream. It felt so real. I couldn't move. Couldn't speak. I could only watch as the Death Eaters cornered you and Harry. They tortured you. All of them throwing terrible curses and hexes. Then, a man, the Archbishop, came forward and he-" Hermione's crying began again in earnest. "He killed you both. I saw it and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't save you."

Severus drew the young woman nearer with the hand still on her shoulder. He brought his other hand around to stroke the top of her head, then down to rest on her shoulder blades. He could not prevent his instincts to comfort her, but he tried to hold back. He wished dearly to hold her close, but being the elder he had to set the example. He could not allow his baser desires to take advantage of her emotional state. Though, the girl was making it quite difficult. She pressed up against him, her hands gripping the front of his nightshirt desperately as she nuzzled his chest. Severus could feel her soft breasts against him. Her stomach was nearly flush to his. Lower, Severus could feel his desire stirring. He feared she would notice his body's reaction to her proximity. Gritting his teeth, Severus forced his thoughts on words of comfort for her, hoping his lusts would diminish. "Hush now." He cooed gently. "It was only a dream. We're safe. There's no need to fret. We've come through greater danger than this. Potter and I are not going anywhere."

Eventually, Hermione's sobs gentled and she pulled away from him with a hand to her face, embarrassed. Severus accio'd a cloth from his bedside table for her to blow her nose and dry her eyes. She took it gratefully and turned aside to discreetly freshen her face. Severus kindly sent the used cloth to a hamper with a flick of his wand. He gave the hamper a look of disdain when it belched rudely.

"I'm sorry." Hermione apologized hastily.

Severus wanted to take her in his arms all over again. The exasperating girl. "Whatever for?"

"I don't like to cry in front of people. And I'm sure it's the last thing you want to be saddled with. A pathetic sobbing student disturbing your peace in the middle of the night." Hermione felt rather like she was rambling in her humiliation, but wanted to repair any damage she might have caused to their already puzzling relationship.

"You aren't my student any longer." Severus pointed out soberly.

The thought hung in the air between them. Since he was assisting her with her independent study it was so easy for Hermione to still see him as her teacher. And while he was in a way, there was not the forbidden barrier of teacher and student. Technically, Hermione would have already graduated from Hogwarts were it not for the war. And she was now nineteen. A young woman and fully fledged by wizarding standards. Perhaps her newly developed feelings for the Potions Master were not so strange. "No. I suppose I'm not." Hermione said thoughtfully. Her gaze flicked up to meet Severus'. She thought a faint tinge of pink colored his cheeks.

"Besides that, Miss Granger, it is never an imposition to comfort-" He paused a moment, searching for words. "-a friend." He finished with a vulnerable tenderness she had never heard from him before.

Tears shimmered in her eyes yet again and Severus sighed. "For Merlin's sake, Hermione, I can bear no more tears this night." Hermione laughed, then sniffed. Seeing her in a better mood Severus inquired. "Do you think you can rest easily now?"

Hermione considered how she would feel curling up alone in her dark bedroom and felt her fears still too close for comfort. "Actually, I wondered if I might be able to brew a potion? Just to occupy my mind with something else."

A small smile curved Severus' lips. "An excellent idea. Might I suggest Draught of Peace? It will help with your anxieties. There is a book open on the table that contains the instructions. I will be reading if you require anything."

Hermione thanked him and went to the book to determine the necessary items required while Severus resumed his seat in his bed to pick up where he left off in his book.

Once her supplies were gathered and she had completed several steps in the complex potion, she began to think on her dream again. Something had seemed strange to her even while she was having the nightmare and it only just occurred to her why. Ron was not in it. This troubled her. While they had clearly grown apart, she was disturbed to not have him present in a dream in which Harry featured. Surely it was merely because Harry and Severus lived here while Ron did not? But she didn't like that the dream would make sense in that way as it seemed to lend it more credence. She hoped it was not in any way prophetic.

A hand clasped her wrist and prevented her from stirring the potion once more. "Nearly one too many." Severus' voice rumbled against her back. Hermione almost dropped the ladle in surprise. "Sorry to have startled you." Severus said, amusement in his tone as he guided her hand to place the ladle aside on the table. He reached past her for the powdered moonstone she had prepared. He expertly added the perfect amount to turn the potion the appropriate color of purple without having to use the color as an indication of when to cease adding the ingredient. Clearly he was not a Potions Master in name alone. Hermione found this display of his skill and intelligence to be as stimulating as his body warming her back.

"May I assist you?" Severus asked, his voice sending an excited shiver down her spine. She couldn't respond for a beat, but she soon cleared her throat delicately and was able to reply. "If you like." Hermione tried to sound more aloof than she felt. Perhaps it was the late hour, maybe the recent comfort he had offered. Or possibly the culmination of the months they'd spent getting to know one another. She didn't know the reason. What she did know was that she couldn't remember wanting to be near anyone as much as she wanted to be near Severus now.

With deft movements, the witch and wizard went about brewing the potion. Distracted by his intoxicating presence, Hermione almost erred a few times, but Severus always corrected her with a gentle, guiding touch. They didn't speak. Instead they felt the potion gather power as they felt the power in each other. Was this the Will that Severus had been trying to help her understand? Surely it was. She could sense it. An intention towards the potion that was actually coming together through the power she andSeverus were feeding it. He had been right. It was something that needed to be experienced to understand it. Now she was quite certain she could draw on this Will any time she had need of it now that she understood where it came from and what was involved in its manifestation.

Severus' fingers brushed hers briefly as he reached for the mortar and pestle. Magical energy surged at their contact and the two paused in the headiness of the sensation. Their awareness of each other had heightened significantly as they worked and they could feel their innate powers melding along the edges. It was as if they had begun to work as one.

This intimacy was something Hermione didn't know existed and she was a little afraid of its potency, though it was such a pleasure to experience that she could not bring herself to let the fear lead her to stop it.

When at last Hermione added the seven drops of Hellebore, the silver vapor indicating a perfectly brewed Draught of Peace rose up and the two could smell the strength behind this potion.

Severus used a silent accio to summon vials which he filled with the Draught. He sent the vials into a storage cupboard, and took in his hand a vial with a carefully measured portion of the Draught he had set aside for Hermione to take tonight.

Wordlessly, he turned her about to face him. She looked up at him with an emotional expression he couldn't quite decypher. He was sure there was desire there. Though there seemed to be fear as well.

So as not to upset her, he proceded cautiously. He stroked her cheek gently with the pads of his fingertips and her eyes fluttered closed. Cupping the back of her head, his fingers threaded through her soft tresses, Severus guided her head back as he pressed the vial to her lips for her to drink.
When he removed the vial, a drop of moisture remained on the young witch's lower lip. Her tongue swept up the white droplet with alluring, languid dexterity. Her deep brown eyes opened and fixated on Severus' mouth. He could feel her want and fought with himself under the heady rush of his own desires. He told himself to move away, even as he lowered his head to hers. Her eyes had drifted closed once more and he yearned to ravage those succulent lips. He was a selfish man to want this. Especially now. It was late. She had been through much today. It wasn't the time. Perhaps it should never be time- for this.

With great effort, he lifted his head to brush a light kiss to her temple, her scent and warmth nearly his undoing. "Good night, Miss Granger." He bade her.

Longing was still clear in Hermione's eyes as she followed his movements, subconsciously drawing her lips towards his. He held his breath. He didn't think he could hold back were she to kiss him. She studied his face, her needy eyes wandering, until finally she took an unsteady step back. "Good night… Severus." She whispered breathlessly. She walked to the door, then stopped to peer over her shoulder. She gave him a happy, sleepy smile before returning to her own room to curl up in her warm bed.