The Presentation
Finally the day she had both dreaded and longed for arrived, a nondescript Wednesday in early December. Nerves assaulted her almost as soon as she woke up, and the presentation wasn't due until after lunch. Everything was already prepared, checked and double-checked. She got up early as usual, made a cup of tea for herself and dressed in a set of crisp robes in brown and silver. After some hesitation she pulled the hair from her face and fastened it with a silver comb at the back of her head, and put on the earrings Severus had given her for Christmas. She hadn't used them before, finding the memories too painful, but now it seemed right to put them on. She could feel the faint whisper of an enchantment washing over her when she put them on, almost as if she was wrapped in the security and warmth of his arms.
After feeding her animals she made her way to work, walking the familiar route to St Mungo's through London's busy streets. The morning was dim and gloomy but the stores and streets had plenty of Christmas lights and other decorations ranging from pretty to tacky. Lucy luckily kept her distracted with tea, shortbread and the request for help with some Arithmancy calculations for her next article until Healer Trout collected both of them to go down to St Mungo's main lecture hall where she would hold her presentation. They were half an hour early so that she could set everything up the way she wanted. The room was roughly circular and quite dark since the dark wood panelling swallowed a lot of the daylight that seeped in through windows near the ceiling at the back of the room. Steeply rising wooden benches with padded black leather seats made up the auditorium. The front of the room held a slightly oval scene, with a podium for presentation notes, two large white boards where notes and pictures could be displayed or scribbled, and a table in the middle set up as a workstation for potions demonstrations. The examiners would sit centrally in the front row, with a long table in front of them for note taking.
People were starting to filter into the room, some from her work, a few friends including Harry, Luna, Neville and to her surprise also Millicent. Lucy went over to sit with Luna and the others, greeting Millicent and Neville. There were others too, people she didn't know, some in Healer's robes and some that appeared to be from the Ministry. George arrived together with both Bill and Fleur, the latter waving at her before they found their seats. Seeing them surprised her, she hadn't expected to have any Weasleys present at all, but she smiled at them, happy for their presence.
The examiners were next to arrive. She had thought there would be only one or two of them but Healer Trout kept introducing her to more people. An elderly witch in purple robes with a plump face and a kind smile introduced herself as Master Bassenthwaite from the Association of Arithmancers. Then there was Master Young from the Potions guild, a tall and gangly dark-haired wizard in shabby brown robes, the short and stout Master Ogden from the Charms guild with bushy eyebrows that almost met up with his equally bushy moustache and sideburns, a dark-haired witch in Healer's robes who introduced herself as Healer Fawley, and Master Ainsworth also from the Charms guild, a blonde witch with sharp eyes and a serious expression.
It was time to begin. Healer Trout called for silence and introduced her and her work. She blushed when he claimed that she was the best Apprentice he'd seen, calling her work impressive. He then smiled at her and left the floor to sit down next to the examiners. She cleared her throat, took a sip of water from the glass she'd placed at the podium, cast a Sonorous on herself to be heard, and began.
"I set out on this Apprenticeship with one goal in mind: to cure my parents from the Obliviation I performed on them at the height of the war against Voldemort." There was a collective intake of breath in the room when she said the evil wizard's taken name. She pushed on. "I had done it to keep them safe, to send them away from Britain without the knowledge of ever having a daughter, but when I later tried to reverse the Obliviation the counter-charms didn't work. Thus, when I started at St Mungo's, my goal was to find a way to bring their memories back again. Unfortunately, that goal will not ever be realised, but my work has nonetheless advanced the fields of Memory Charms and Memory Potions, as well as the Arithmantic framework for calculations used to predict their effects."
She had talked herself almost hoarse by the time she reached the end. A myriad of notes and calculations filled the boards, she'd demonstrated both the standard and the improved Memory Potion and even showed the Memory Charm on a frightened student in Healer Trout's team who had been volunteered as a demo subject and who wanted to recall his notes on magical creature-induced wounds for an upcoming exam.
"In conclusion, my work has improved the status of several areas. The improved Memory Potion may be used instead of the regular one when there is a need to recall forgotten things, the Memory Charms may be used as a basis for improved targetted Obliviations and their reversals, and the Arithmancy calculations I've had to develop can be seen as a framework for understanding the mind. It is my sincere hope that more patients will be helped with these methods, and that others may use them as foundations to create even more advanced treatment methods. Thank you."
Applause filled the room until Healer Trout called for questions from the examiners or the audience. Master Bassenthwaite asked a few questions on her Arithmancy calculations, Healer Fawley asked about the patients' current status, and Master Ainsworth wanted to hear more about her method for developing the charms.
Master Young was the last to speak up. "I see in the paper you published that you collaborated with Master Snape on the potion. Are you sure you developed it yourself or did you just claim his work as your own?"
She sputtered in indignation, what kind of a question was that? The room started to fill with whispered conversations.
"If I may?" a rich baritone voice asked from the back of the room. Severus Snape rose from his seat and must have cast a Sonorous to be heard. "Master Young, I find that question to be below even you. My contribution to Miss Granger's work was to review her notes and to assist with the test brews, exactly as outlined in the journal article. The ideas and methodology were developed by her. This I vow on my magic and my honour as a Potions Master. If you still question her integrity we can … discuss … that in the Guild Hall, along with your latest contributions to the field of human bioluminescence." Even from a distance she could see that eyebrow of his rising, and apparently Master Young could too and wasn't immune to its effects.
"Thank you, Master Snape, for that clarification," Healer Trout said rather pointedly. "Any further questions?"
Master Young flushed and nodded jerkily. "No further questions from me."
The examiners rose from their seats to go into an adjacent room for discussions. Healer Trout rose from his seat and got on stage, casting his own Sonorous before talking.
"Thank you, Hermione Granger, for this excellent work. It has been my pleasure being your mentor through this time, and I think you've gone above and beyond what a normal Apprenticeship project is about. Your motivation for doing this work was to bring your parents' memories back. Unfortunately, we discovered that the selected approach would not work for that, for which I am deeply sorry. Still, you have to recognise what you've actually achieved here. Through your work, several people have already regained their memories after severe injuries that have left them in the long-term ward at St Mungo's for years."
Someone in the audience shouted "Lockhart".
Healer Trout cleared his throat and continued. "In conclusion, I think this is the best thesis I have ever seen in my years here. I know that no matter what you choose to do from here on out you will be successful, but please remember that you'll always have a place here should you want it, and that I won't allow you to not be in touch. Thank you, Hermione."
He cancelled the Sonorous, turned towards her and caught her in a big hug, surprising her.
"You did great, dear," he told her quietly.
"Thank you, Desmond," she whispered back.
The room filled with applause again. Several people started to leave, but her friends still remained in their seats. Lucy had promised to stay until she had heard the verdict, and she must have told the others about the process. She couldn't really focus on them, however, not with him in the room.
He was there. He had come. That thought made her all jittery, and as soon as she was able she walked up the side stairs to the top row where he was seated. He rose when he saw her approaching, and she stopped a little distance from him. He wore almost the same outfit as he had the first time they'd talked in Prague, his black Guild robes with swirling potions fumes along the lapels, an emerald green cravat and a slate grey frock coat underneath.
"Severus?" Her voice was little more than a whisper.
He looked wary, for some reason. He nodded at her and cleared his throat. "I brought some people you might want to meet."
Severus stepped aside and two persons that had been seated on his other side came forward.
Hermione gasped. "Mum…? Dad?"
Her parents smiled at her as they came closer. She flung herself into their arms, sobbing, her heart bursting with joy. They looked well, tanned and healthy after their time in Australia. Her father, Henry Granger, had lost weight, her mother had lost some of the stress lines on her forehead.
"But how…?"
"He came to visit this autumn," her mum Catherine said. "He did some wonky mind-reading thing that took forever, doused us with flasks full of potions that tasted horrible, and talked us through everything. He spent a whole week with us but asked us not to tell you until we could meet in person. I'm sorry love, we should have come right away but we had to think about a lot of things and figure out what to do with our lives. We're staying at a hotel this week, dear. Severus didn't want us back in the house until you'd cleared the words or whatever he said. Something about magical intruder alarms, at any rate."
"He told us about you," her father said. "He seems to really care about you but said something about some issues you'd been having lately. What is he to you, Hermione?"
She turned to look straight at him, willing him to come closer, even as she addressed her father.
"We had a bit of a falling out earlier this year so I don't know if he ever wants to have anything to do with me again. I just want him to be happy, whatever he's doing. Dad, I love him."
He walked closer, slowly, his eyes fixed on hers but still wary. Finally the answer was easy, the words she needed to say. "Severus… I love you."
"You…" He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "Since when…?"
She didn't care about the tears running down her cheek, didn't care about her parents, her friends, the audience. Only him. "I must have fallen for you in Prague, but I knew I loved you when I stayed with you at Hogwarts, all those hours spent working and arguing and being together. I just… I didn't realise until it was too late."
He wiped away the tears with his thumb, his hand cupping her cheek. She leaned into his touch.
"Silly witch, don't cry over me."
Finally he gathered her in his arms, hiding her from the rest of the onlookers in a swathe of black. He smelled just the same as always, of herbs and sandalwood. She clung to him, wrapping her arms tight around his chest, never wanting to let go.
"It's just…"
He kissed her forehead. "I know. I love you, Hermione Granger. I thought I could shield myself from pain, calling it a mere attraction, being flattered that you actually seemed to want me almost as much as I wanted you."
One or the other initiated a kiss, frantic, hard, as if trying to make up for lost time. One of his hands tangled in her hair, his other arm firmly wrapped around her shoulders.
"How long?" she asked. "And don't say almost, I doubt that is true."
The corner of his mouth lifted in a brief smile. "Ever since that day you insisted on eating breakfast clad in nothing but my shirt. That's when I lost my heart to you. It took me a while longer yet to admit it to myself, however."
She smiled at that and kissed him again, thoroughly. He tasted like home.
His large, calloused thumb wiped her tears away. "Witch, compose yourself. You need to go back there and be happy. Talk to your parents. Go with them now, Hermione. This evening is for you. Come to me later, if you really mean it." He produced a simple business card and scrawled something on the back of it before handing it to her.
She nodded. "I do, I will. Thank you, Severus." The card had Septimius Solutions' logo, a phoenix which was animated to rise from a cauldron and burst into flames.
He nodded and faded back into the shadows. She looked after him but soon reality came crashing back. Her friends were coming up the stairs. Harry was staring slack-jawed after their former Potions professor, Neville was blushing and trying to look elsewhere. Luna looked pleased, anyway, and was the first to speak.
"Your auras look much better now." The blonde witch hugged her and kissed her wetly on the cheek.
"Was that… Hermione, did you just kiss Snape?" Harry asked, looking a bit nauseated. "How… what…?"
She didn't know what to say but soon everyone else made their way over to her so she didn't have to. She knew Harry wouldn't drop it but hopefully he wouldn't make too much of a scene. Millicent merely smiled at her and winked. Neville congratulated her awkwardly on her presentation.
"It's not over until they tell me what they have decided," Hermione reminded him.
Luckily her parents approached again, and introductions were made all around.
Shortly thereafter, sooner than she'd expected, the examiners returned and she was called back down to the stage. They lined up in the middle of the stage, with Master Ainsworth as the spokesperson. The stern-looking witch called for silence and started speaking without preamble.
"Due to the extraordinary nature of this work we have hereby decided to award Miss Hermione Jean Granger full Mastery in the following subjects: Charms, as witnessed by Master Ogden and myself of the British Charms Guild, and Arithmancy, as witnessed by Master Bassenthwaite by the Association of Arithmancers. She is also awarded a Small Acknowledgement in Potions, as witnessed by Master Young of the Potions Guild, and an Honorary Mention in the Healer's Association, as witnessed by Healer Fawley, Head of the Janus Thickey ward at St Mungo's Hospital since her work has made such a difference to many patients that previously were thought to be beyond help."
She was asked to stand in front of them. They pinned her robes with the Mastery pins of her main subjects and smaller pins for Potions and Healing. All of them congratulated her before Healer Trout came up on stage to once again wrap her in a hug, and thank the examiners.
After what felt like half an eternity everyone had finally left and Hermione made it out of the room together with her friends and parents.
"Lucy, Harry, I hope you understand if I change my plans for tonight and skip the party at Grimmauld? I'm sorry to ditch you but…" She gestured towards her parents.
Lucy hugged her. "Don't worry, we completely understand. Just remember that we'll want all the details on Snape later."
Hermione blushed. Harry hugged her too and congratulated her, but she saw that he was frowning and his voice was strained.
"Congratulations again," Neville said. He and Millicent were heading back to Hogwarts.
"Thanks for coming, both of you."
Millicent smiled at her and winked before they turned to leave.
Her parents had stayed back when she talked to her friends. Hermione was surprised when she checked the time and noted that it was already well into the evening. She Transfigured her robes into a simple dress and her cloak to a coat just before they left St Mungo's via the main entrance. They made their way out into a chilly London together and took the Tube a short distance to an Italian restaurant her mother remembered. There were lots of people out shopping despite the late hour on a weekday.
Soon they were settled and suddenly Hermione felt inexplicably nervous. What if they got angry with her and left, again? She fiddled with the menu, trying to busy herself with unimportant decisions between the veal and the pasta, anything to postpone the inevitable.
"I'll have the artichokes and then the risotto," Catherine said. "What about you?"
Hermione barely noticed what she chose, something with mozzarella and then a chicken dish while her father chose a steak. The waiter came and poured some wine for them.
"Now tell me, Hermione. You're all grown up! How are you doing?" Catherine asked.
She took a deep breath, smiled and sipped her wine to give herself some time to think. "Well, I live in a small flat in the middle of London, with Crookshanks, do you remember him?" Her father nodded. "I have an owl too, she's called Iris."
"Alone?" her mother asked while drizzling olive oil on a piece of bread. "You're not with that Weasley, are you? What was his name, Rupert?"
Hermione grimaced. "No, I've never wanted to live with Ron. And… well, it's kind of messy, I was with him but then I met Severus."
Henry frowned but didn't comment, and soon their appetisers arrived. Hermione found that she was much hungrier than she'd thought, after a day full of focus and nerves. Catherine told her about what they'd been up to in London the past few days; sightseeing, playing tourists and visiting several museums and two plays.
"You know he's much older than you?" her father asked abruptly once the waiter had cleared away their plates. "He was your teacher, Hermione."
She tried to smile at him despite her annoyance with the subject. Still, it was understandable. "Yes, Dad. I know. But remember I haven't been in school for quite a few years and the age difference doesn't bother me much. Magical folk live longer, we could easily see the 120's."
Catherine placed a hand on her husband's arm. "She's not sixteen anymore, Henry. We have to remember that. It feels like you left us yesterday but it was several years ago."
Her father frowned. "I just thought you'd end up with a nice young lad, Hermione, not someone closer in age to us than to you, with such a complicated past. He's not exactly an outgoing sort either, that one."
Hermione sighed. "I understand that, Dad. But he's a good man despite his prickly attitude. He's honourable, loyal and fiercely protective of those he deem worthy. And, he's wickedly intelligent and reads as much as I do."
Catherine nodded. "Henry, remember that you're twelve years older than I am, you know. And that we met when I was nineteen. Hermione knows what she wants, and I for one think Severus would be a good match for her."
Hermione shared a smile with her mother while her father grumbled something in defeat, much like they used to do when she was a teen and they were discussing something. Luckily their food arrived, giving her a temporary reprieve from uncomfortable subjects. They switched to other topics such as her research and life after Hogwarts, her parents' life in Australia where they had joined another dentistry clinic but kept much shorter hours than they ever did in England. The only snag had been what Hermione had done to their English dentistry clinic. She'd had to sell it to their third business partner and didn't get a very good deal since she didn't have the knowledge about what it had actually been worth. The money was less of an issue to her parents compared to their other employees, especially Mrs Rodham in the reception who had been with them almost from the start and who must have thought that the Grangers were abandoning her along with all their work and patients.
"So… he visited you in Australia?" she began, uncertain of how to continue, or even what questions she needed to ask.
Catherine nodded. "Severus? Yes, he knocked on our door one morning, looking like a scarecrow in all that black. He must have done something magical to us already then because I invited him in for tea as if I'd known him forever. I don't exactly know what he did, but he actually stayed for a whole week, sleeping in our guest room. My memory is hazy, ironically enough. He stared into my eyes and did something that made images flash by my eyes, like in stories when you think you're about to die, you know? 'My life flashed before my eyes' and all that. He also made us drink lots of nasty potions and said they'd help us remember. Oh, and he spent the whole week cooking for us, or bringing take-out. We were completely out of it."
Hermione smiled faintly. "I'm glad he could do it, I thought I'd managed to erase myself from you too thoroughly."
Catherine nodded slowly. "Yes, Hermione, although you had erased our memories of you… my body knew. Somehow, I knew you had existed, and that you were missing. I could feel it. I saw it too, I don't have the body I would have had if you'd never existed. Some days I thought I was going mad, almost remembering you when something came up that reminded me of you somehow but never quite able to place it. It was bad, actually."
"I'm so sorry, Mum." She blinked away the tears. "It was… there was no one else who would help me, and things were bad here. Really bad. It was the only thing I could think of, to keep you safe even if you'd never remember me. They would have killed you."
Caroline looked grim. "Having children out there, fighting. It's completely absurd. It's good that your old Headmaster is gone or I'd go give him a good talking-to. And that snake fellow too."
"I'm sure you would, Mum."
~o~o~o~o~o~
It was late but her parents were safely back at their hotel, contact details had been exchanged and schedules compared. With them staying for a month there would be time to see each other in calmer circumstances, and they had made plans to meet up again that Friday. Hermione had also promised to go open the wards on the house the next day so that they could move out of the hotel. It had felt odd to reconnect with them as an adult. She'd left them as a minor, technically speaking, but now she had lived on her own for several years, paying her own bills and managing to stay fed and clothed all by herself.
She brought the business card out again, watching the phoenix rise and burst into flames. On the back he had scrawled an address in his familiar spiky script. Severus Snape lives in Oakwood Cottage, Malvern Hills, Worcestershire. Since she hadn't visited before she couldn't Apparate there, so she went to the Leaky Cauldron to use their Floo instead. The journey through the green flames was as disconcerting as always, but soon she tumbled out of a large fireplace onto a polished wooden floor into a foyer.
A house elf popped into view. It was wearing what looked like an elf-sized blue kimono-style robe with a double S embroidered in silver on the shoulder. The elf looked familiar, somehow. Was it — was she…?
"Winky?" Hermione asked slowly.
The elf looked well, much better than when she'd been freed from the Crouch family against her wishes.
Winky nodded. "Oh, miss remembers! Welcome to Oakwood, Miss Potions. I is with Master Severus now."
She deposited her outer robes and bag where Winky indicated, on a clothes hanger next to the Floo.
"Master is through there and right." Winky pointed at the large double doors on the other side of the Floo, which were open into a dining room area, and gestured for Hermione to enter.
She walked through the doorway and looked to the right as instructed. He was seated by the fireplace in a very comfortable-looking armchair, a book in hand and a glass of Firewhisky on the side table. He looked up sharply when she entered but didn't rise from the chair. "I wasn't sure you would come." He'd shed the outer robes and cravat and was only wearing a white shirt and black slacks.
"Severus," she whispered.
He rose from the armchair, put the book aside and swiftly made it to her, crushing her to him in a hard embrace. She sagged against him in relief, melding herself to his hard chest, and put her own arms around his waist. He buried his nose in her hair which was about to break free from the bun she'd put up that morning, and inhaled deeply. She could feel his heartbeat through his shirt.
"I've missed you so much," she murmured against his throat.
She felt him nod against her forehead. He lowered his head to hers, seeking her lips for a gentle kiss, as if to reassure them both that it was real. He started backing up, pulling her along until he sat back down in the chair. A gentle tug, almost like a question, and she quickly seated herself sideways in his lap, leaning against his chest. He didn't say anything, merely held her close, his nose and mouth resting against her hair. She put her arm around his neck, feeling the remainders of Nagini's scars against her thumb.
Slowly the tension from the whole day ebbed out. She was actually done. She'd done it. And he had in turn done what she thought to be impossible, bringing her parents back and even making it in time for them to see her present her work.
"Thank you," she whispered, placing a kiss on his cheek, slightly raspy with stubble. His arms tightened slightly around her in response.
They sat like that, not talking, only breathing each other in, until she found herself nodding off when the day caught up with her. She was completely spent, emotionally. Too much tension, too many feelings, she didn't have room for more.
He broke the silence, his deep voice rumbling against her cheek. "Come, let's go to bed. It's upstairs. I'll show you the rest tomorrow."
She yawned and rose stiffly from his lap. He led her up a circular flight of stairs and showed her the large bathroom, and handed her a well-worn black Muggle t-shirt with a Rolling Stones print to sleep in. Winky popped in with a towel and fresh toothbrush for her. Once she had cleaned up a bit and brushed her teeth she felt slightly better but still tired enough to fall asleep standing. She gratefully climbed up in his bed, shuffling over to the far side to wait for him. Soon enough he joined her, wearing nothing but a pair of comfortable-looking pyjama trousers, black of course.
"May I hold you?" He sounded almost nervous. "I think, tonight… I think that's what we need."
She nodded, another yawn threatening to break free. It sounded absolutely perfect, and she snuggled up with her back to his chest.
She fell asleep in his arms, surrounded by his solid warmth. His breath in her hair, his long arms around her, she was finally home.