Hermione woke up on her first morning in Grimmauld Place feeling better than she had done for weeks. Last night with the Weasleys had been incredibly therapeutic, and felt that she had begun the journey on the road to recovery. It was the first time she started to see a future for herself.

The days went by quickly, and before long it was the day of the memorial. Hermione had spent the last few days with mixed emotions. A part of her was dreading the sadness of the day. Another part was happy for the closure she expected the day would bring her.

Harry, Ginny and Hermione Apparated to Hogsmeade together early enough to have breakfast at Hogwarts before the service began. It was the first time either of them had been back since it had been completely rebuilt, and they were all happy to see it looked as if there had been no battle.

They entered the Great Hall which looked as busy as it would on a normal school day; students past and present had turned up for the event. Hermione felt the back of her eyes sting as just the presence of so many of her classmates brought back the memories of her school years, and the memories of Ron.

They found the rest of the Weasleys sat near the front of the hall, and they joined them. Mrs Weasley looked as if she too was finding the day incredibly overwhelming. They sat in companionable silence as they all ate together, before Professor McGonagall stated the memorial would be beginning in ten minutes and for people to begin making their way outside.

Hermione followed Harry and the Weasleys out of the Hall, and as she was walking through the Entrance Hall, she spied Professor Snape standing in the shadows near the door. She broke away from the group and made her way towards him.

"Good morning," she said to him.

He looked down at her with an expressionless face.

"Hello, Miss Granger," he replied stiffly.

"Would you like to sit next to us during the memorial?" she asked, aware that he didn't really want any idle chit chat.

He considered the offer for a moment.

"You're not going to talk to me all day are you?"

"No, of course not, I just don't want you to be sat on your own."

He followed her out into the grounds. They found seats near Harry and the Weasleys. The memorial statue was unveiled after a few minutes. A gold phoenix sat atop a large plinth. Engraved on the plinth were the names of all had died in both wizard wars. Harry made a speech thanking everyone who had fought with him, apologising for the lives lost and families torn apart and that he knew the statue could never make up for their loss, but that he hoped it helped in their journey to find closure.

Tears ran freely down Hermione's face at Harry's words, and once the ceremony was over, she shared hugs with Harry and the Weasleys. Professor Snape had stalked back inside before she even had a chance to thank him for coming.

SSHGSSHGSSHG

Snape awoke on the day of the memorial ceremony feeling apprehensive about the day ahead. He had spent the last week sitting alone in his house drinking until he fell asleep. It did not help his dreams in any way, but considering the subject of some of them, he wasn't sure he wanted to stop dreaming; in his dreams he wasn't the bitter old man he was in waking life.

He Apparated to Hogsmeade and arrived at Hogwarts just as people were finishing breakfast. He didn't particularly want to be seen, and so he waited just inside the doors of the Entrance Hall. He saw Granger before she saw him. He was glad she had come. He knew as painful as this day would be for her, it would also be a great help.

"Good morning," she chimed, looking even more attractive than he remembered. He wanted nothing more than to take her from that moment and comfort her in silence, in a place where no one could touch them, no one could hurt them.

He knew his reply came out sounding less than friendly, but he felt he should distance himself from her as much as possible, he didn't want to give her any false hope that they would be anything more than professor and student. But he had no idea how to get out of sitting next to her for the service, and he reluctantly went along with it.

He watched the tears streaming down her face and wanted nothing more than to be able to comfort her, but to do so would reveal his vulnerability. As soon as the ceremony was over, he made his way back inside the castle, down to his dungeons.

He entered his classroom which had been unoccupied for some time now, sat at his desk and broke down. He knew coming today had been a bad idea. Potter's words had touched him, as much as he hated to admit it to himself. He could so easily have been one of those names on that plinth and ever since he was brought back from the brink he felt like an emotional wreck. He couldn't work out why, he had dealt with pain and suffering for as long as he could remember.

He banged his fists on his desk in frustration. This was not him, he could not allow this to happen. He stood up so quickly his chair flew backwards. He paced up and down trying to clear his head.

He heard a knock on his door before he saw it open slowly. He turned to face the opposite wall. Whoever it was could not see him in this state.

"Professor?" he heard Granger's voice and he wanted to scream.

"What?" he snapped.

"I wondered where you'd got to, I wanted to…"

"Get out." He interrupted.

"Excuse me?" she sounded taken aback, but he didn't care.

"GET OUT!" he yelled. He turned around, and stormed towards her, pushing her out of the door, slamming it shut behind her. He fell to his knees and cried out in anguish.

SSHGSSHGSSHG

After spending some time admiring the statue, Hermione made her way back into the castle. She scanned the Great Hall looking for Professor Snape but could not see him and thought he might have gone down to his classroom.

She made her way down to the dungeons and knocked on his door before entering.

"Professor?" she whispered when she saw him standing at the back of the classroom.

His reply sounded off, but she continued to speak.

When he interrupted her, she wasn't sure she'd heard correctly and questioned him. He yelled like she'd never heard him yell before and when he turned around he had the look of a madman, pure hatred in his expression, charging towards her like a bull. He pushed her so hard she hit the wall in the corridor as he slammed the door shut.

Shocked by his behaviour, she made her way back upstairs to the Great Hall. She was not going to let him ruin her day. Today was about celebrating the people who'd given up their lives for each and every person here. If he was too busy having a strop to accept her thanks, then that was his problem, and she vowed not to bother him again.