A/N: Thank you guys so much for adding my story to your alerts and my very first comment/review! I was giddy! I really hope you guys are going to like this story and the rush of alerts and the comment made me unable to wait any longer to put out this next chapter.

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-DoE

*The wonderful L'Vanna let me know of a few canon errors (BIG THANKS) so I have corrected them. :) Enjoy.

Chapter Two – Nothing Short of Thankful

Hermione had finished packing every part of her life except the bare essentials she would need for her last night before leaving for Hogwarts. She had expected to live here the rest of her life. Now, just six years after moving to Australia to be with her parents, she was leaving again. It was nearing 5 o'clock and her parents would be getting off work soon. She showered and got dressed for her last dinner out with her parents. Since their home wasn't too far from hers she chose to walk the few blocks and enjoy the clear autumn evening. On her walk she actually thought she was going to miss Australia. A small tear came to her eye as she remembered landing in airport at Sydney for the first time. She didn't want to be tracked through the floo network so she opted to take the muggle transportation to find her parents. This gave her plenty of time to reflect on what had transpired, and with tears streaming she knew she made the right choice to leave.

It didn't take long to find their dentistry and she was very happy to find they had chosen to settle down in the big city of Sydney. She entered the office building and introduced herself to the receptionist as a dental hygienist in need of a job. The young girl asked her to take a sit and she would let Mr. and Mrs. Wilkins know she was there. After just a short time she was called back to their office. Once the door was shut Hermione began undoing the memory charm she had placed on her mother and father. Gradually she made them more aware of who they actually were and who she was, little by little the family was being mended back together. Much of the time directly after the spell was complete was spent hugging each other and crying. Once the initial shock and joy had died down she filled her parents in on exactly what had brought her to Australia. She told them about Harry and Ginny, the day at the dress shop, and then confronting Ron about Lavender. Explaining to her parents how he hadn't even tried to hide it, he just came out and confessed it was true. When he didn't even try to fight for Hermione to stay and not leave him she knew it was over. Her parents weren't surprised when she told them how Ginny and Molly had begged her to stay and Ron could go live at Grimauld Place until she found somewhere to go. Even Harry had offered to let her stay at Grimauld Place instead. She explained it was just too difficult and truly wanted to be with her parents again. After a few hours, and some rescheduling of appointments, Mr. and Mrs. Wilkins took their daughter home.

Hermione got a job very quickly and moved to a small flat a few blocks from her parents as soon as she could afford it. She went back to England for Harry and Ginny's wedding when it came around because she couldn't let Ginny down after everything she had done. Ron had been removed from the wedding party itself but was of course still in attendance. Molly may not have been happy with her son's choices but he was still her son after all. She didn't speak to him the entire evening and sensing her displeasure he chose to stay his distance as well. The wedding really did turn out to be beautiful and almost like a fairytale. Hermione honestly did enjoy her time with her friends and was happy when they had wanted her to move back to England, but explained to them that should couldn't leave her parents again and since they were so happy in Australia, she was going to stay there with them for the time being. Hermione hadn't made many friends other than her work acquaintances whom she liked very much and would miss now that she was moving back to Hogwarts.

She arrived at her parents house and they went to the restaurant together. As much as they had enjoyed having their daughter there with them in Sydney, they knew what Hogwarts meant to her. They knew Hermione was extremely intelligent and they couldn't be prouder of her for her accomplishments and being chosen to teach at the Wizarding school. They would miss their daughter very much but knew this was the best thing for her. Hermione was indeed excited about returning to her former school, she spent most of the meal talking about all her former teachers that would be there and couldn't wait to be counted among them as a colleague. She spoke animatedly about her fellow staff members and hoped she could prove to them she could be as good of a teacher as they are. Hermione felt her face flush a bit when she began speaking about her former potions Master, Severus Snape. Her mind seemed to race as she recounted for her parents everything he had done and gone through for the Wizarding world.

Her parents didn't have the heart to stop her and remind her that she had already told them, twice. They listened as intently as before as Hermione told them about Harry going back to Severus to collect his body to be properly buried and honored. Harry had knelt down and was talking to Severus' lifeless body about the final fall of Voldemort when he heard the slight gasp from Snape's mouth. Once back at Hogwarts and observed by Madame Pomfrey, she discovered the large amounts of anti-venom coursing through his veins. After a few months Severus Snape finally regained full consciousness and motor function and divulge to the Medi-Witch how he had been drinking generous amounts of the anti-venom after Arthur Wesley was attacked at the Ministry. The potions Master had already been cleared of all charges before waking up, once the truth about Dumbledore's death was recounted for the Ministry officials through the pensive. Once he had fully recovered he graciously returned to Hogwarts teaching Potions, having no desire to return to teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. Hermione blushed at the thought that she might be seated next to him at the staff table in the Great Hall.

The Grangers finished their last bites of dessert, left the restaurant and decided to part ways outside. Hermione wanted to make sure everything was ready and in order for her to leave by portkey first thing in the morning. She hugged and kissed her parents goodbye and promised to write to them, which they knew very well that she actually would.

Hermione began her walk home, it was farther home from the restaurant than from her parents but not far enough to consider wasting money on a taxi. The temperature outside had turned slightly chilly and Hermione was thankful for her ability to transfigure a couple of tissues from her purse into a pair of gloves and a hat. On her walk, she began thinking about why she had become so flustered when Severus Snape was brought into the conversation. She played it off in her mind as admiration for the war hero. How could anyone not be humbled in his presence. Harry Potter may have defeated the Dark Lord, but Severus Snape lost the most during the journey. She was suddenly very proud that she would get to work with him at Hogwarts.