Chapter 12-Arguements

"Severus Snape!" A voice roared, yanking Severus awake. "You idiot! You knew better than to bait her before a spell of magnitude! Luckily, for you, Hermione prepared some of us; just in case something went wrong. I hope you're happy old man; she's been crying for the past twelve hours! She's even been crying in her sleep!" Draco was livid. He was going to see to it that his godfather never forgot what he was going to say.

Severus looked stricken. Whoops, maybe he should have changed the wards so he could get through this god-awful night/day/whatever without having to deal with his godson dumping more guilt on his heart. He had spent the past ten hours trying to find the information pertaining to the love-binding spell; he still couldn't find how she had been able to change the grounding requirements. Moreover, the alcohol he had been drinking was making his head pound; he needed to track down a headache potion or a hangover potion before attempting conversation.

"Damn it all, Draco. Get out before I hex you to Hell and back." He replied as he replaced his emotionless mask. He started to stand up and found two hands roughly shoving him back onto his couch.

"You bloody bastard! How far were you going to go? Huh? Until she felt completely worthless? Because if that was your goal, you succeeded beyond your expectations. She almost didn't come back! Or had that escaped your notice." Draco violently jabbed his finger into Severus' chest with each word. "You may not need her; you may even hate her, but what about the rest of us? What about me, Ginny, Harry, Luna, Neville, and Ron? Had you forgotten that she is our sister now? She has helped us in more ways than you will ever know me especially, and you stood there trying to break her down." Draco broke off as he gave Severus a right jab to the side of his jaw. Draco lowered his voice, pouring his displeasure in with the disdain rolling off, "If you ever even think about doing something like that again, I will have nothing more to do with you."

With that said, he strode out of Severus' private chambers and slammed the door shut, hard. Books of infinite price value fell off Severus' bookshelf, but he made no move to catch them. Even through the alcohol-induced headache, the words stabbed his heart and soul, they echoed, digging in deep and deeper. They embedded themselves so far they were the only words he could hear. Bugger it. Bugger it all. Severus put his face in his hands and did something he hadn't done in nearly twenty years.

He wept.

Dumbledore sat in his office. This was very disturbing. He hated having so many people miserable and he was powerless in this case. There was absolutely nothing he could do to ease their suffering. He waved his wand and cut off the painful images from the mirror. He took off his spectacles, laid them on his desk, and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He felt small hands place themselves on his shoulders to give him comfort. He reached up and took her hand in his.

"Minerva, what am I to do? These days it seems that every decision I make only results in more agony. Did I really have any other choices to make?" He sighed heavily, grateful to his wife for her unwavering support along every step of the way.

"No, Albus, I believe you made the right decisions. You are only human, dear. We all make mistakes," she hesitated, "maybe you could persuade Mr. Malfoy that it would be best to give Severus the antidote to the forgetfulness potion before the Final Battle. Other than that, I have no suggestions to offer you."

They sat in silence, their minds besieged by all their hopes, fears, dreams, and 'what ifs?'

Monday night found a quiet-spoken Hermione in the potions classroom assisting a withdrawn, grief-stricken Professor Snape. They had been working side by side for over an hour; the only sound was the splash as ingredients were added and the liquid bubbling.

Severus broke the silence; he couldn't stand it. He feared he had ruined the tentative friendship they had formed in these past two months. "Miss Granger," he started softly, "I apologize for my behavior Friday night. That was unacceptable and I am truly sorry that I did not act in a more professional manner."

She looked up at him, surprise clearly written on her face. Hermione swiftly placed her wooden, emotionless mask on and chose her words carefully. She felt no anger towards him, only compassion, but he would become enraged if he thought for an instant that she pitied him. She didn't of course, but he didn't know how to correctly interpret love or true compassion. "That's okay, Professor Snape. I'm fine now. From what Draco told me, you helped bring me back. Thank you. I know it must have been hard for you, so thank you from the bottom of my heart." She turned away to retrieve the next ingredient she needed.

Severus was blown away. She had not only told him it was 'okay,' she had even thanked him for his role in helping her. He had severely misjudged her. She was clearly far more mature than he had ever allowed himself to accept.

He watched her silently as she carefully added the ingredient and waited until she set the cauldron aside to simmer. "Miss Granger, May I ask you to join me in a cup of tea for the duration of the simmering time?" He tried not to show any emotions, but it was hard for him when he was around her to keep his mask up since these past two months he had gotten out of that habit. Only around her and Draco did he ever truly let his mask fade.

Hermione faced him and looked deep in his eyes. Severus fought against squirming; the chit's eyes seemed to see straight to his tainted soul. If he allowed her to see that part of him, he didn't think that it would help the truce he was offering with those words. She nodded, "Yes, sir. I'd like that. Hold on a moment."

As she turned away to gather the teacups, Severus felt as if this had all happened before. The last time had been Halloween Night after the ball hadn't it. He still couldn't summon up what had been different about the tea that night. He nearly shrugged; he would remember it eventually.

They talked of many things. The most notable was Severus complimented Hermione on how careful she had been in wording the blood magic rituals. There was one question that Severus wanted to ask her: How had she managed to change the grounding requirements? They were interrupted by the sound of a bell; time to put down their tea and conversation and finish the potion.

They worked in silence once more. After they had completed bottling the potion, Hermione turned toward him. She reached up and took off a necklace. It was braided silver chain with a teardrop the color of a dark, deep ruby almost mistaken for an onyx until the light glinted red. She held it out, "Professor Snape, would you please take this necklace and keep it secret, keep it safe?" she asked solemnly.

He simply nodded and bent his head so she could place it around his neck. He would keep his promise, even if it was made in a dream. Something strange happened in that moment that the necklace was transferred. Their hearts beat as one and it was the only sound for them; they could feel the other's emotions swirling around their own. Hermione quickly slide her fingers away and fled from the potions classroom, leaving a stunned Severus. He was trying to understand why that had occurred and why it had affected him that much. He sat down in his favorite chair by his fireplace and stared into the flames. He needed answers and he needed them soon. However, as always, he feared there simply wasn't enough time.

While Hermione and Severus had been busy brewing and talking, Draco was meeting the Headmaster. Draco had come up with a way to have everyone in the Qudditch pitch and a way to have a little fun with two of the most important people in his life.

"What do you think, Professor Dumbledore? You can pick four staff members and have the students nominate one person from their respective houses. You can pick the songs for each staff member and the Head Boy and Head Girl can be responsible for picking a song for each student?"

Dumbledore chuckled and rubbed his hands together. "Yes, Mr. Malfoy, I believe this is one of your better ideas. A singing competition will be most welcome. Three rounds, correct?"

Draco nodded. This was going to be very fun. "Yes, sir. The first round to bring it down to two people per category. Then one person in each category and then the final round will include a duet between a staff member and a student as well as individual songs." Draco already knew who he wanted to the two people in final duet to be. Luckily, for him, both of them could sing very well, but not many people had that knowledge.

Dumbledore looked at Draco, his blue eyes twinkling madly. "Yes, Mr. Malfoy. I do believe this will help with several problems. How about we have the final round take place that day, but have the first round in the Great Hall a week from Friday and the second round two weeks after that. That will give them two more weeks before the final round. We can have it end about seven forty-five that evening and have all of your friends 'help' take down the area. That will ensure all of the others safety."

"Yes, sir." Draco replied, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Let's have the nomination tomorrow at breakfast and announce at lunch who the contestants are."

It took a lot of Dumbledore's control not to start jumping around. This was going to be very fun; he enjoyed making the staff nervous. In addition to being a way to prove Draco and Severus' 'loyalty' to Voldemort without endangering anyone else, yes Mr. Malfoy had come up with a brilliant suggestion. "That will be all, Mr. Malfoy. Unless, of course, there is something you wish to tell me…"

Draco leaned back in his chair with a frustrated sigh. "I'm worried, Headmaster. I've never had so many people I care about or who care about me in such pain. Of course, it is partially my fault that Sev is so miserable, but then again, I'm sure you witnessed our exchange. I swear I just get so bloody infuriated sometimes. Why can't they just admit their feelings? It would make everything a little easier." Draco paused to breathe.

Dumbledore looked at him sadly. "Mr. Malfoy would you and Miss Weasley have openly, to any degree, pursued your relationship with one another if it had not been for Miss Granger's open support?"

"No, sir; if it hadn't have been for Hermione we wouldn't have. We were afraid that our mutual friends would react badly." Draco stopped. "I understand your point, Headmaster. I'll do my best not to do anything more rash."

"Very well, Mr. Malfoy. If I recall correctly, it is your night to retrieve Miss Granger from the dungeons. Have a good evening."

Draco stood, inclined his head toward the powerful wizard in front of him and left quietly.