I own nothing! Just playing in J. K. Rowling's amazing universe!

Thank you to everyone who has put me on follow and favorites! And the reviews are heartily welcomed :) Thank you!

.

Hermione's POV
Hermione spent the next days in Severus' chambers. She had told him about her encounter with the house elves, and his expression had turned disturbingly dark by the time she finished. She shivered when she remembered his words and the grave tone of his voice. "House elves rarely involve themselves in wizard affairs. When they do, it should not be taken lightly." He had then given her an intense look before he started pacing around the room. "Our research project is hereby upgraded to high priority. Damn those house elves and their cryptic messages." He stopped and gave that intense stare again. "Honey told you to care for your magic. Cryptic or not, you should listen to her. You will listen to her." His gaze was so piercing at this point that she couldn't do anything but nod.

And so the High-Priority-Research-Project began. Hermione spent most of the time in his library, where she was sprawled on the floor. He had big, soft carpets, and she loved it. The first time Severus had entered the library and seen her, he had stopped to look at her. She was on the floor, with her back on a fluffy carpet, knees bent up on a chair and legs lying comfortable on the chair pillow. He had rolled his eyes and asked if she needed him to explain how a chair worked, or if she found his chairs inadequate. She had laughed and declined his kind offer, telling him he should try it sometime. He had rolled his eyes again before getting a book and leaving the room. The next day he had spent more time in the library with her, sharing things he found in the books and discussing theories with her. She loved it.

The day before Christmas Eve, she jumped out of bed and went to get ready. After taking a shower, she tried to tame her chaos of curls, admitted defeat, and went to get dressed. She had been wearing robes outside her clothes the previous days, but it was uncomfortable and she decided to skip it today. She put on blue jeans and a black T-shirt she had gotten from Ron when they were still a couple. It was sweet really. The print was simple, it looked like someone had used a piece of chalk to draw it. Three sticks with circles stood up, representing Quidditch goals, and under it said: I'M A KEEPER. She found it amusing, even though she lacked interest for Quidditch. She threw on a hoodie, and went down to the dungeons.

At Severus' "Enter" she went in. he was sitting behind his office desk, writing something. He looked up, and looked curiously at her for a moment. Then he froze for a few seconds, before bursting into laughter. She had no idea why he was laughing.

"Why are you laughing, Sir?" She was perplexed. Laughter fading, he looked at her. "Curious choice of clothing, Miss Granger." She froze and looked down. Oh no. In big, white, very visible letters on the purple hoodie it said: KEEP CALM AND TURN TO PAGE 394. She recoiled, having no idea how what to do.

Fred and George had given her the hoodie one Christmas. Knowing she liked muggle clothes, they had gone through the trouble of having it custom made. Turn to page 394. It was a legendary quote from Severus himself, saying it with all the sarcasm and cold he could manage, putting pressure on every syllable. The legendary quote came from the year Professor Lupin had the Defence against the Dark Arts position. Page 394 contained information about werewolves. Remus Lupin was a werewolf, and Professor Snape held a grudge against him. Severus wanted the students to discover the truth about Lupin in hope of him losing his job. He even gave them an essay on werewolves, but Hermione had been the only student to discover the truth.

She panicked and ripped off the hoodie. "Sorry Sir! I got it for Christmas one year, and I didn't think!" He looked up at her while waving his hand dismissible, and noticed her t shirt. He laughed again. "So Miss Granger, what kind of keeper are you? I was not aware that you had an interest in Quidditch." She blushed furiously and stuttered. "Uhm, I do not have an interest, Sir." He gave her a wry smile. "Do elaborate Miss Granger, what kind of keeper are we talking about?" She blushed even redder and tried to speak. "I, uhm, it's, uhm," She gave up "Gods, Sir, stop messing with me." She paused for a second, and continued, her annoyance getting the best of her. "I am damn well a keeper, and don't you forget it!" Then she stomped off to the library, the sound of his laughter following her. After a bit, he came after her, leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest. "Very well, Miss Granger" she looked at him with a confused expression. He grinned at her. "I will not forget it. Trust me on this." She blushed furiously again, and he chuckled and walked out of the library.

The rest of the day was spent in a more normal fashion, and Severus ended up actually sitting on the carpet with her. She decided not to comment on it, since it would probably result in him never doing it again. He sat with his legs crossed; back straight while reading a book. Again, Hermione thought about how graceful he managed to look, even when sitting on the floor. Even Buddha would have given a nod of approval at Severus' posture.

She on the other hand was everything but graceful. She went from lying on her back, to rolling over on her stomach with her feet dangling in the air, rolled over on her back again, one knee up and the other leg balancing on it, dangling. Every time she changed position, Severus would glance up from his book to raise an eyebrow or roll his eyes at her. She ignored him.

When lying in bed that night, Hermione thought about the day. She blushed when she remembered how they had started the day. She couldn't believe that she had actually said that to him. I am damn well a keeper, and don't you forget it? She cringed. Oh Gods.

Severus' POV
Severus Snape was pacing in his library, looking for a book. When he found it, he automatically walked towards the chair, before stopped, and sat down on the carpet. She's making a fool of me. I know it's not even her intention, but she is making a fool of me. He thought about it for a bit. No. I am making a fool of myself. He couldn't help it though. She was slowly getting under his skin with her enthusiastic personality. She would talk non-stop if she found something that might help them, and he would mostly just listen. A few months ago he would have harshly cut her off, telling her she was insufferable, and now he was letting her talk. He had realized what he thought was endless chattering, turned out to be logical thoughts, rational conclusions and intelligent theories. He was baffled.

He chuckled as he thought about her furious expression and red cheeks when she told him she was indeed a keeper. It had been a priceless sight. When he had walked after her with the intent of tormenting her just a tad more, he had instead just agreed. She really was a keeper.

He shook his head. Do not fool yourself. She is half your age, and a brilliant witch with her whole life in front of her. Why would she want you? He clenched his jaw. The first person to show you some compassion and you lose your head like a hormonal teenager. Get a grip. With that thought, he went to bed.

Severus woke up on the morning of Christmas Eve feeling happy. For a second he didn't understand why, but then remembered the reason. For the first time in over ten year, he wasn't going to spend Christmas Eve alone. Sure, Dumbledore and some of the other professors usually stopped by sometime in the evening, but they just stayed for a cup of tea or a drink, and then left. He didn't think that counted as spending Christmas Eve with someone.

But this Christmas Eve he would be spending with someone.

The day before he had listened to Hermione's endless stream of words describing what they were going to do today, what to research, even what to eat, while waving her hands in vigorous explanation, and it had made him positively warm on the inside.

About an hour later he heard knocking on the door. It was still early and he wondered who it could be. He went to open the door instead of just telling them to enter, and just as the door opened, he got a package thrust into his hands, and heard an enthusiastic voice exclaiming; "Merry Christmas!"

He went rigid as he realized she was about to hug him. Since he was doing a quite impressive statue-like imitation at the moment, he didn't really think it was possible, but she managed to get a hold of him and squeezed him for a moment before letting go. Gods, imagine if anyone saw me right now. He wasn't sure if he would actually care though. Realizing he was just standing there like a fool, he stepped aside and let her inn. She actually skipped in.

"Aren't you going to wish me a merry Christmas?" She beamed. He rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Merry Christmas, Miss Granger. What exactly is it that I am holding?" She rolled her eyes as she walked over to him, putting her hands on her hips and cocking her head. "A present. I'm giving you a present. You should probably get used to the idea." He looked down on the thing he had in his hands and looked up at her, raising one eyebrow. She sighed and rolled her eyes again. "Don't worry; I didn't spend a dime on it." He sighed, and went in to the sitting room with her following him.

Placing the present on the big table, he crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her. When she saw his expression, she paled. "I pushed my luck, didn't I?" She suddenly seemed smaller, and she was looking down at her feet. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to go overboard, Sir."

Severus looked at her. Really? She skips in with presents and enthusiasm, and you react like this? She doesn't have her parents, and she was dreading this Christmas Eve. And here she is, happy as a clam anyway, and THIS is how you respond to it. Great. Now fix it. She was still looking down at her feet, and he could see her fists clenched. She is going to cry. Oh Gods, don't cry.

He walked briskly over to her and stood in front of her. "Hermione." She didn't move. He raised his hand and put his index finger under her chin, and his thumb under her lower lip and gently raised her head. There was indeed tears. Merlin's beard, I'm a bastard. "Hermione, don't cry. You didn't do anything wrong. I on the other hand, did everything wrong since you stepped in the door. "Forgive me. There aren't many enthusiastic, skipping people down in the dungeons, and having one beaming outside my door took me by surprise." She gave him a small smile at that. "Will you open your present?" He gave her a dark look, and rolled his eyes. He let go of her chin, and put his hands up in defeat. "Yes. I will open the present." She beamed at him.

Going over to the table, she picked up the present and brought it with her to the sofa. She sat down, and looked expectantly at him. He sighed, and went to sit next to her. As he sat down she thrust the present into his hands and smiled happily. "Open it." He gave her one final dark look, before turning to open the present.

He opened it to find a tree. A tiny, miniature tree made of glass. She made this, didn't she? She made it specifically for you. How much of a bastard can you be? You should be given an award. The tree was dark green, with shades of grey. It looked almost withered. It even had ornaments, but they too had a faded. The star in the top hang to the side, and had a faint glow in it. It looked depressed. Realization hit him. He remembered the conversation from the notebook; "Not having seen a depressed Christmas tree, I cannot tell you how I would feel about one." Hermione obviously saw the understanding in his eyes, because she gave him a wry grin.

"So how do you feel about it?" He raised one eyebrow at her and gave her a half smile. "I like it. It suits me, don't you think?" She giggled. "It does. Now that we have the depressed-ornament gifting out of the way I remembered a book I would like to look at. Do you mind?" She was about to get up when he turned to her. "Don't you want your present?" Her eyes widened. "You got me a present?" He sighed. "Yes Hermione, I got you a present. Since spending time with you I've become this person that does these things." He looked at her with a resigned expression. "I also use words like amazing in a non-sarcastic matter, talk to floating lights, and sit on the floor to read." I'm waiting for someone to come get me and lock me in St Mungos for the rest of my life. Because I'm pretty sure I'm slowly going insane." Hermione burst into laughter. "Let's hope not, I would miss you!" Obviously she didn't realize what she just said, because she looked as relaxed as ever. Severus was shocked. No one had ever told him they would miss him before. It felt surreal. Hermione spoke again. "And no, I would like my present tomorrow." She smiled. "You're getting your present tomorrow as well, this was just an impulse." She gave him a warm smile before she got up and walked into the library.

Hermione's POV
Christmas Eve turned out to be a great day Hermione thought. After a rocky start, the day had been really nice. The depressed tree had been assigned a place on the fireplace mantle, looking utterly devastated. They had read books and talked while sitting on the persian rug, and didn't even attend dinner. Instead, Severus had summoned a house elf to bring them food in his chambers. A few minutes later the house elf returned, surprisingly accompanied by Honey, who seemed to have taken personal interest in Hermione. "Miss forgets to eat, I have noticed. It is not good. I will take care of you." she had said, giving Hermione a very stern, motherly look. Honey had then taken one look at Severus, and it seemed like that had been enough to bring him straight into the same in-need-of-tlc category.

The sight of Severus Snape being lectured by a tiny house elf in a flowered dress and apron was not something she would ever forget.

Minerva had come looking for them, but they had avoided all questions with excuses about potion apprenticeship and research. Since she had found them in a chaos of books and parchments, she had wished them a Merry Christmas with a wry smile, and left.

Hermione was exhausted when she finally went to bed that night, the day had been great, even though their High-Priority-Research was frequently downgraded by other very important things, like; what Beatles album was actually the best one, or; do mandrake roots have feelings. They had done some progress though.

Hermione fell into a dreamless sleep this night, no nightmares for once.

Christmas morning, Hermione woke up feeling rested. She sat up in bed, and noticed the pile of gifts at the end of her bed. Grinning, she dug into the pile. Molly Weasly had knitted her the usual sweater, except for the colours. She usually got a Gryffindor coloured sweater, but this one was black, with thin lines in red and gold. She actually liked it, it looked warm and comfortable.

Ron had gotten her candy, and Harry had bought her a leather-bound notebook, and new quills. She smiled at that. She was outraged to find what was in the present from Ginny. Lingerie! Black silk with lace. She swiftly stuffed it back and went back to the rest of the presents. She found a beautifully wrapped present, green and silver wrapping paper, and a big silk bow in red and yellow. There was no card, but she suspected she knew who it was from. She put it to the side, deciding to open it last. She opened the rest of her presents, getting a weird looking amulet from Luna, and a book about flowers from Neville. Finally it was just the mystery present left.

She carefully removed the bow, not wanting to ruin it. She even managed to take of the paper without ripping it. inside she found three things. A book, a letter and a another, smaller present. On the envelope she read: Open presents first. She put the envelope down and read the title of the book.The Colours of Magic'. She was curious as she opened the book, and looked at the first page before slamming it shut. Oh Gods, it's a first edition. I'm going to kill that man.

She picked up the smaller present. This one had silver wrapping with a black ribbon. Carefully removing the paper, she found a black box. It looks like a box for jewellery. Her heart skipped a beat when she opened the lid. Inside was a Victorian era designed silver hair comb. One of those that wealthy women from that era would wear when dressing up in their finest ball gowns. She winced when looking closer. It was not silver but white gold. And it was embedded with crystals. Please, dear God, let it be crystals. She lifted the box to examine it closer, and dropped it like she had burned her hand. Christ! Jesus Christ! It's diamonds! Nonono! Her hands trembled when she picked up the box again.

The design of the comb was classic. Six pins pointed straight down, and was fastened under lines of white gold, shaped like eights. Or the symbol of infinity. For some reason, the thought made her heart race. Diamonds were embedded in the gold. Everywhere. Severus Snape, I am going to kill you.

She couldn't possibly accept this. She would have to return it to him. Though, she doubted he would let her. It's going to be an ordeal. She sighed and looked at the comb. On top of the twirling infinity symbols were three small flowers, or more specifically daisies. Embedded with diamonds as well. The daisy stamens were of course diamonds as well. Only these were slightly bigger. You have GOT to be KIDDING me. Diamonds! Why did it have to be diamonds! Severus, you bloody bastard. The comb was beautiful, though.

She picked it up from the box, but dropped it instantly. It had glowed when she touched it! What. She carefully touched it with her index finger. YEP. GLOWS. CHRIST. She put the comb back in the box and closed the lid. This was too much for her to handle right now. She put down the box and opened the letter.

Hermione

I am suspecting you already are panicking over your present? Don't. There is a reason why I'm giving it to you. I do strongly believe it will react to your magic. Have you tried touching it yet? If not, do so before reading further.

And yes, it's diamonds. How furious are you at the moment? But it had to be diamonds.

I have been doing some research, not wanting to tell you before I was sure. If the comb reacted to your touch I believe I am correct.

If not, the comb will fit your hair perfectly. It's charmed, and cannot be stolen, or lost. And I am told it has been charmed with the most AMAZING charm, to put up ten different hairdos. The flamboyant man whom told me seemed to be devastated at my lack of enthusiasm over this.

Ten hairdos or not, I thought it would be a worthy replacement for your quills. I am sure the flamboyant man would heartily agree with me on this.

Back to the subject of your magic.

If the comb reacted to your touch, your magic is one of The Colours of Magic. This is old magic, ancient even, and it apparently comes from the Old Gods.

Since so much of your magic based on light, it would be logical if your magic is White Magic. But I do not know for sure. White Magic supposedly comes from a Sun Goddess. That is all I know at this point.

The book is obviously about the different colours of magic. Do read it. It comes from my library, so I haven't bought it. Not recently anyway.

Merry Christmas.

S.

PS: If you as much as make an attempt to give the gift back, I will throw you out and stop speaking to you for a month. At the least. Understood?

She was indeed furious. And confused. And thrilled. Her head was spinning with all the information he had just given her, and the comb. I cannot accept it. But he will make me. Damn, damn! I need to clear my head. She decided to take a walk outside. She got dressed and exited the dormitories.

Severus' POV
Severus woke up feeling happy. Looking down at the end of his bed, he could see a surprising amount of presents. I can see it helps to be redeemed, he thought dryly before starting the process of opening them. The other professors gave him very impersonal gifts. A bottle of firewhisky, a black scarf with the Slytherin crest, and he got three of the same potion bottle set. He didn't mind though. It would always come in handy, and he wasn't used to getting presents anyway.

He thought about Hermione and wondered if she had opened her presents yet. Or more specifically if she had opened the one from him. He had been extremely pleased to find the comb in Hogsmeade. He had walked into the jewellery on impulse, and the flamboyant man whom greeted him inside the store had been the one to suggest a hair comb. He had instantly said yes. A hair comb was the perfect gift for Hermione, even without reacting to her magic.

He browsed several displays of hair combs and pins, but didn't feel like any of them was what he was looking for. The flamboyant man had looked thoughtful for a bit, before a smile lit up his face. He went in the back room, and emerged with a smaller display of combs. He had decided the second he saw it. He had read that true White Magic could react and become visible to a charm, but only if the charm was placed on daisies made from gold or white gold and embedded with diamonds. A tad extreme just to check if one had a knack for old magic in his opinion, but then again this was Hermione. And it was Christmas.

The comb was by far the most expensive thing he had bought in his entire life, but he didn't care. He was a wealthy man after the war. He had enough money to last him at least fifteen lifetimes.

He wondered just how angry she was at this moment, and chuckled. The last note on his letter would probably make her keep the gift, but she would probably still be mad. And she was glorious when she was mad. He was looking forward to this day.

He had only one gift left to open. It was the one from Hermione. It had an envelope, it had only one word: Severus. His heart skipped a beat. I'm going insane, really. He decided to open the envelope to read the letter inside.

Severus

Yes, I am calling you Severus, deal with it.

Since I know I have no way of competing against your extreme amount of books and academic items, I decided to go for a different approach. There is nothing academic about this gift. I hope you like it anyway. I spent quite some time to try to come up with something, and I'm quite happy with the result. Let's hope you are as well.

Merry Christmas, Severus!

Love, Hermione

He studied the gift and when he picked it up he discovered that there were actually three gifts, two smaller gifts was hidden behind the one he picked up. He was holding a rather large, box-shaped present, about the length of his wand on all sides. He put it to the side and looked at the other gifts and decided to open the one that he strongly suspected would be a book.

He opened the present and found, indeed, a book. It was a bit tattered, and looked like someone had read it a hundred times. It smelled like daisies. He read the title; Pride and Prejudice. He had heard of the book, if he remembered correctly it was a famous love story in the muggle world. He opened the first page and a note fell out.

Severus

I thought you could use a bit more romance in your life. It's one of my favourite books. You remind me a lot of Mr Darcy.

Merry Christmas

Love, Hermione.

PS: I was unable to find one in the wizard world, so I have given you my book. I hope you don't mind the condition of it, I have read it countless times.

He reminded her of Mr Darcy, whoever he was. Severus wondered how Hermione saw him. He was curious to read the book.

Severus picked up a small, soft present next. He opened it, and found a folded, black handkerchief. It was the size of a handkerchief at least. He unfolded it and found another note.

Severus.

I knew right away that I had to buy this for you when I saw it. Have you figured out what it is yet? If not, tap your wand on it, twice.

Merry Christmas

Love, Hermione

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the piece of cloth in his hand before he took his wand from the nightstand. He tapped the cloth twice.

The cloth started to grow. In just a few seconds it had grown to a full-size blanket that looked long enough to cover him from head to toe, and then some. It was thick, soft, and he could bring it with him everywhere. It was perfect. He smiled as he realized she had noticed his thing for blankets.

He picked up the large box next. It was a bit heavy, and he had no idea what it could be. What he saw when he opened the box stunned him.

It was them. A tiny, perfect replica of them on his library floor. They were placed on the big Persian rug she had declared to be her favourite. He touched the rug; it was soft, just like the real one. The Mini-Severus sat with his legs crossed and his back straight, a book in his lap and looking at Mini-Hermione. Mini-Hermione was on her back on the rug, one arm straight up in the air holding a book, and the other hand in a mid-waving motion. Her hair was fanned around her head on the rug, and her facial expression was enthusiastic, obviously in the middle of one of her grand speeches on what she just read in the book. One knee was up with her foot on the floor, and the other leg was dangling on top of it. It was positively perfect. Around them on the rug he could see the books from their research, complete with titles and actual paper pages. The whole thing was amazing. He was sitting there, just staring at the thing. He had that squeezing feeling around his heart again. He had started to come to terms with the fact that it was not a heart attack, but actually came from... feelings. He snorted out a laugh. I am pathetic. Noticing a note in the box under the figurines, he picked it up to read. It had only one sentence;

Memorable moment, wouldn't you agree?

Memorable moment indeed. She was really something. He put the figure back in the box and put it on the dresser. He had to figure out where to put it where he could see it, but no one else.

After taking a shower and getting dressed, he went to have breakfast and give thanks for the Christmas presents. He didn't see Hermione anywhere. He even tried the notebook, but didn't get a reply I hope she isn't that angry. Back in his chambers he paced a bit before deciding to take a walk. He was too restless to read or do anything productive. He put on his winter cloak and boots, and left the dungeons.