"What happened at that battle Severus?" Liberty asked her first question, a far away look in her eyes. The Potions Master frowned in rememberance.
"Other than you dying, we lost no one else and the Death Eaters were forced to retreat due to being out numbered." The dark haired woman sighed in relief to hear that no one else had met their fate.
"What happened to my friends?" The pity that was etched onto Severus' face nearly answered the question for her. "Merlin no, what happend Severus?" She dreaded the answer.
"Potter and Evans married, had a baby boy..." He trailed off and Liberty looked deep into his eyes.
"What happened Severus?" She nearly demanded. He frowned.
"Due to the rising of the Dark Lord, they went into hiding. Their secret keeper however, turned them in to the Dark Lord. When their child was only a year old he found out about their hiding place and killed them both in order to get to the child. Due to protection that Evans gave to the baby, the killing curse was rebounded upon the Dark Lord and he fell from power, but it left a scar upon the child." He paused and took a deep breath, while allowing Liberty to digest the information that two of her friends had perished.
"Continue." Her voice was thick with emotion, tears gathered in her eyes as she took a seat under a tree with him.
"Not too long afterwards Black was charged with the murder of Pettigrew and a multitude of other muggles. He spent twelves years in Azkaban for his crime before recently escaping. Nobody has any idea where he is currently, but it's clear he's on the loose." When he finished Liberty found herself crying. She slumped into Severus' arms and let the tears fall.
"Wh.. what of Remus?" She was hesitant to ask, her voice mixed with pain.
"All I know is that he graduated, spent one year here at Hogwarts teaching as Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. He was found out to be a werewolf and as far as I know, he is jobless." Liberty sighed in relief once more knowing that at least one of her friends was well. She snuggled into Severus and continued to cry.
"And you Severus?" He almost smiled from her curiousity.
"I graduated, gained my Potions Mastery and have been teaching at Hogwarts ever since." His simple answer made her raise an eyebrow.
"Anyone special in your life?" Her question threw him for a loop and for a moment he sputtered in disbelief. He quickly gained his calm once again and gave her his most infamous glare. She laughed and gave him a brief kiss on the cheek. He couldn't help but answer after that.
"Just you." He whispered in her ear, "Always you." She smiled sadly and hugged him tightly.
"Always so good to me Severus." They sat there for the rest of the day until the lunch bells rang.
OoOoOoOoOoOo
Severus and Liberty walked into the Great Hall hand in hand, he proudly flaunting his best friend while still giving off the vibe of the snarky Potions Master he's always been. Liberty on the other hand became withdrawn the moment they stepped inside, transforming on the inside back to the girl she had been while in school. Totally loud, sarcastic and witty with Severus, and withdrawn, quiet, and mysterious with everyone else. They approached the Head Table and she sat next to Severus. They were bombarded with questions and most all were ignored due to Liberty being incredibly shy and Severus anti-social.
The Great was almost completely empty with the exception of two students. This year's Head boy and girl: Blaise Zabini and Hermione Granger. Both of them were staring blankly at the new woman sitting beside Professor Snape wondering exactly who she was, and why she was there. The two students turned to look at eachother for a moment before continuing with their meals. Answers to their questions would come with time, they were sure of it.