A/N: Thank you to RenitaLeandra and Keladry Lupin who have put in so much work into this story.

Remember, this epilogue is in three parts. The next two parts will be up within the next few days.

Epilogue- Part 1

The whispers which had been filling the courtroom came to a halt as the Wizengamot returned to their seats. Already the trial had drawn more than its fair share of attention, just by the identities of the two prisoners who sat chained in the middle of the room. That didn't even take into account the identities of the people who had testified on their behalf.

Harry Potter, savior of the wizarding world, had created mammoth headlines, even by his standards, for his defense of Severus Snape. Hermione Granger had nearly caused riots when she defended both Snape and Draco Malfoy, as she told of her experiences as a prisoner at Riddle Manor. The Daily Prophet had responded in the only way they could. They concluded that Harry had clearly been put under the Imperius Curse, and that Hermione was obviously in league with the Death Eaters.

Still, their testimony had been gripping, and each day the courtroom had been packed full. Those who were not lucky enough to witness the proceedings in person had waited with bated breath every evening for the owls that would deliver the extra editions of The Daily Prophet, which were dedicated solely to the Death Eater trials.

But finally, two months after the trial had begun and a full thirteen months since the former Death Eaters were first incarcerated, the Wizengamot had come to a verdict and the entire room was waiting silently to hear it. Most of the people gathered there had no personal stake in the proceedings and were waiting out of morbid curiosity and the desire to be a part of a historic event. But there were a few, mostly situated in the row closest to the prisoners, who waited with such tension and nervousness that it would appear it was their futures who were being decided.

Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, Ginny, Arthur and Molly Weasley, Nymphadora Tonks, and Remus Lupin were referred to in The Daily Prophet as the Death Eater Cheering Section, for they were the only ones who seemed to care about the fate of the prisoners. In fact, Tonks was the only family present. Severus Snape had no living family, and Draco Malfoy had very little family who was willing to claim him, or vice versa. His father was still rotting away in Azkaban, spending most of his time telling the walls of his cell what a disappointment his son was.Draco's mother, upon learning of the death of her dear sister Bellatrix and the imprisonment of her precious son, had lost what small shred of sanity she had remaining and was now spending her time in the closed ward of St. Mungo's.

In typical melodramatic fashion, the court had saved the best trial for last, although the prisoners themselves were not nearly as exciting as most in the courtroom had hoped they would be. Even with such famous names and the fact they were being tried at the same time, their behavior was generally nothing short of boring.

Draco Malfoy's charges were not so severe, but being the son of the formerly-revered and now-disgraced Lucius Malfoy was enough to cause headlines. People had shown up in droves to comment on how he must despise his tattered prisoner uniform and to snicker at his poorly-cut hair. It was to everyone's disappointment that he did not appear to be fazed by this and spent most of the trial staring straight ahead, without expression.

Severus Snape was another matter entirely. The trial of Albus Dumbledore's murderer would have caused headlines no matter what the circumstances. But the story told by the members of the Order of the Phoenix was so outrageous that it was the subject of gossip everywhere from the Ministry of Magic to Knockturn Alley. Snape had also provided a bit more of an interesting subject, as he had been teaching so long that many of the people present had either been former students or had children who were. Still, he did not seem nearly so fierce when deprived of his billowing robes and the ability to take house points. He did at least have a bad habit of losing his temper when provoked, which he had displayed on more than one memorable occasion.

Chief Warlock Everett, a very old wizard who leaned heavily on an elaborately-carved cane, rose and walked up to the podium. He was extremely short and could barely be seen, but his voice, in contrast to his body, was strong and even.

"We have reached a decision regarding the two prisoners who sit before us now," he said, staring down at the two men. He turned his head slightly giving his full attention first to the younger of the two. "Draco Malfoy, you have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and being a follower of You-Know-Who as one of his Death Eaters. We have carefully examined all the evidence and it is our determination that you are guilty."

He had barely even got the word out when the whispers flared up again, louder this time, and the Order members all looked at each other with worry in their eyes. Draco had not moved, but fear began to creep onto his face.

"However," Everett continued, raising his voice above the drone, "given your young age, the obvious influence you were under from your father and the contributions you made during the final battle, we have sentenced you to time served. You will continue to be monitored with tracking spells for the next six months."

Now the whispers were a dull roar. This was not something anyone had considered. All the other Death Eaters had been sentenced to a minimum of ten years in Azkaban. The Chief Warlock, however, appeared unconcerned by the commotion going on around him and the room quickly died down when everyone saw his attention had turned to the other prisoner.

"Severus Snape," he said and Severus bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement. "You have been charged with the murder of Albus Dumbledore and the use of Unforgivable Curses, as well as being a Death Eater. We have examined the evidence and we find you guilty with extenuating circumstances. It is clear that you did, indeed, use the Avada Kedavra to murder Professor Dumbledore.However, the testimony given to us under Veritaserum and the memories that were provided to us have shown that this was because of a direct order from the headmaster. Therefore, you will be sentenced to six months of house arrest and, following that, a year of monitoring with tracking spells."

If it had appeared chaotic in the courtroom with Draco's sentencing, it was complete pandemonium now. People were shouting, some with obscenities, at both the Wizengamot and the prisoners. The doors to the courtroom had swung open as reporters rushed off to their offices to get the story reported as quickly as possible. The Wizengamot also began to file out of the courtroom. Even the prisoners' supporters rose to their feet, although more than one had slightly weak knees from relief.

The only people who had yet to move were the ones in the center of the room. Although the shackles had magically fallen off of them at the pronouncements of their sentences (an Auror was waiting to perform the necessary tracking spells), they had yet to rise to their feet. Finally, when most of the room had emptied, as if on cue, they both stood at the same time and looked over at each other.

"Well, sir," Draco began, "this has been an enlightening experience. The next time you need someone to stand trial with you from crimes against the wizarding population, be sure to let me know."

Severus could not bring himself to smile, but his eyes appeared lighter than they had been in months, perhaps years. Instead, he just nodded his head and turned away to where the Auror was waiting for him.

"You will be given twelve hours to reach your residence," the Auror said. He waved his wand several times, and Severus felt a tingling sensation. "We will, of course, be monitoring you to assure that you done as you have been told. Once you reach your home, you will not be allowed to leave. If an emergency arises which requires you to leave your property, you are to Floo-call Auror Headquarters and ask for me. If I decide to allow it, you will be escorted out by an Auror."

He handed Severus a piece of parchment that had his name: "Auror Geoffrey Robinson".

"Do you understand?" he asked.

Severus nodded as he folded the parchment and held it tightly in his hand. Auror Robinson turned away from him and began to perform his spells on Draco.

Severus turned to look at the people who had not yet left the courtroom. He could feel his heart lighten as he looked over at their faces. There was a time in his life that he was sure that he would die alone and friendless and most likely at the hand of the Dark Lord. Never would he guess that he would make it out of the war, not only alive, but with The-Boy-Who-Lived and his little entourage actually supporting him.

They had moved down off their bench so they were now level with him and he walked slowly over to them. Harry stepped out away from the rest and held out his hand. Severus reached out and shook it.

"I never thought I'd say this, sir, but I'm glad that you're not going to Azkaban," Harry said.

"Well, Potter," Severus said, managing a small smirk, "I never thought I'd say this, but thank you for everything you have done. Your efforts here have been… adequate."

There were snickers from the group of people around them, and Harry moved away only to be replaced by Remus. Then Tonks. And then the Weasleys. It seemed everyone had something to say, whether it was funny, kind or encouraging. Severus did his best to be polite, even attempting a smile once or twice, although he was sure the effect was more frightening than friendly.

Just when Molly Weasley had given one final pat to his cheek, which he used great restraint to keep from batting away, Draco came over to join them and the process started all over again. This time, however, Hermione was the first to greet him; throwing her arms around him in a hug. For a moment Draco seemed to be in shock from her reaction, but then he slowly put his arms around her to return the gesture. When she finally pulled away, she was wiping tears from her eyes. Severus forced down the wave of jealousy that threatened to crash over him. She had not yet even spoken to him.

"Honestly, Granger," Malfoy said with a grin, "I know you've wanted to do that for a while, but couldn't you have waited until we were alone?"

The entire group laughed, including Hermione, who also punched him in the arm.Severus felt the tightening in his chest lessen a degree. The rest of the group came forward with a comment or a pat on the back. Even Harry, who had had minimal involvement in Draco's defense, shook his hand and thanked him for the kindness he had shown Hermione during her time at Riddle Manor.

Finally, it appeared that the group was breaking apart. Molly and Arthur said they were heading back to the Burrow, and Draco indicated that he was anxious to get to Malfoy Manor and, as he put it, "assess the damage". Privately, Severus worried about what the state of the manor and the family's finances were.

Harry had invited everyone back to Grimmauld Place for a celebration and Remus, Tonks and Ginny looked eager to go. Draco suggested he would stop by in a while.

"What about you, Severus?" Remus asked, as he fastened his cloak around his thin frame. "Surely you have some time before you have to be at your house."

"I believe I will decline," Severus said. "I'm afraid that right now the idea of celebrating seems a bit foreign to me."

Remus gave him a sympathetic look that made Severus want to hex him, and the group bade him farewell. It was only when the last of their backs was turned that he realized Hermione was still there. It took no more than one look from him for her face to break into a shy smile.

"Hello, Severus."

He looked at her and raised an eyebrow; his question did not need to be spoken. She blushed a little and looked down at her feet.

"Do you need anyone to… uh… accompany you home?" she asked, looking up at him in the end.

"I don't believe I would be very good company," Severus said quietly. "Would you not prefer the celebration at Potter's house?"

Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "Not really. I don't feel much like celebrating either."

"Why not? You have devoted a year of your life to a cause and have been wildly successful in your endeavor."

"You can't honestly believe that," Hermione said, her eyes wide with disbelief. "I would hardly call house arrest and a year of tracking a success. You committed no crime!"

Severus could not help but smile. Only she would be disappointed in his sentence. "Hermione, tomorrow when you get your edition of The Daily Prophet, you will understand what a remarkable thing you have done. My sentence will be talked about for months to come. If it wasn't for you and your… creative defenses, I would have been given life in Azkaban for sure."

"Well; it's wrong. You are a hero! When are people going to start recognizing that?"

Severus sighed and looked down at her. After everything, she was still as idealistic and passionate as she had been as a student.

"How is it that after everything you have witnessed over the past year, all the cruelty that you experienced, you can still ask that?"

Hermione blushed and looked away and he knew the thoughts that were going through her head. Although he had been the main target of the rage from the wizarding world during the trial, his defenders had received their fair share as well. Especially Hermione. Given Harry's hero status, which had been maintained despite the fact that he had not actually been the one to kill Voldemort's body, it had only been a source of mild irritation. But Hermione had taken the vast majority of the criticism. As soon as it became public that she had spent more than a week in Riddle Manor and survived, all sorts of nasty rumors had been started. Severus had personally reacted very poorly when it was suggested during his trial that she had been his mistress. Not that it had been worded so politely at the time. Harry had even told him of one time when she was approached in Diagon Alley by a woman who spat on her and called her "that Death Eater Snape's whore".

Yet she had never once mentioned these incidents to Severus. Even when her robes began to get more and more shabby; when he could see the dark circles under her eyes and her face lined with worry. And here she was, after thirteen months of fighting for the freedom of two men that no one cared about, still outraged at the callousness of society.

"Well, I suppose none of it matters anymore, does it?" Hermione said, smoothly changing the subject away from such an upsetting topic. "Are you sure you wouldn't like to have someone accompany you? I don't like the idea of you spending your first free evening alone."

"I am quite sure," Severus said and Hermione was unable to hide her disappointment. "I am looking forward to being truly alone for the first time in over a year. Lucius's raving was sometimes a bit hard to take."

Hermione winced. She had visited Severus often enough in Azkaban when she was researching his defense and his unfortunate proximity to Draco's father was a bit unnerving. The man had come completely unglued when he discovered the roles Severus and Draco had played in the downfall of his master. He would often begin ranting about it during the wee hours of the morning, making sleep nearly impossible for those close to him.

"Very well, then," she said with a sigh. "I will leave you to your solitude. Don't get too used to it, though. I'll be by to visit you in a few days."

"I suppose if I haven't got rid of you by now, I never will," Severus said, not sounding nearly as put out as he liked to pretend.

Hermione just nodded with a smile and, before leaving, gave him a small, awkward hug. He hesitated a moment before putting his arms around her. He had meant to return the hug gently, but he couldn't help but tighten his arms, lowering his head until his lips just grazed her hair. After a moment she reluctantly pulled away and then turned to leave the courtroom. Before she could get out the door, however, Severus called after her.

"Hermione…"

"Yes?" she asked turning back around.

"Thank you."

Her smile grew wider, and she hesitated for a moment before turning back around and leaving the room.