Chapter 4.

Thanks Fallen Angel111586 for your reviews, you and I both wait for longer chapters I'm afraid, I'm just not good at dragging chapters out when they tie themselves up I tend to let them, so sorry but hope you like this one all the same.

Hermione flopped down on her bed upon returning to Hogwarts, feeling more than a little fuzzy and suspecting that the Champaign had nothing to do with the feeling.

When she'd left the castle Hermione had envisioned some sort of purely academic meeting discussing for a start Snape's existence, and then hopefully a revelation that would explain his interest in her.

The week before she had concluded that he needed her help or maybe something from her but it seemed the opposite was true; starting with his unexpected gift; she rolled over reaching to her bedside table and gently picking up his gift turning it in her fingers, it was a beautiful miniature phoenix in spun metal, each feather was delicately wrought; his claws grasped the upper edge of the leaf leaving his flaying tail to spread artfully over the page. She ran her finger down a curling tail feather watching the light catch as her fingers rippled the delicate metal as if an actual feather had being caught in molten gold.

She wondered at this new man she had discovered truly, she preferred him one hundred fold to his old self, but it was as though he'd undergone a complete character transplant. Before that final battle he would never have looked at her twice much less have tolerated her company by his own choice, and in her territory none the less, then there was the gift, and the concert- now what to think of that! A grin spread itself over her face without her realising it at the thought of the evening.

It had felt so dreamlike when he danced with her she was entranced, the feeling of damp grass under her toes and his arms around her had being surreal enough for her to forget the situation and simply enjoy their time together.

After they danced they had flopped down onto the blanket laughing like school children, they'd just danced to a stirring ballad that got faster and faster as it reached its peak, and Snape had spun her faster and faster until her feet weren't touching the ground, the evening had been a delightful mix of laughter and tenderness. And as they fell to the floor she had ended up under him staring up into his dark eyes, she held her breath for just a moment as he found himself drawn towards her, then he rolled to her other side and they lay top to toe on the blanket looking up at the stars, he then reached out his hand to lay it atop her uncovered foot.

'Do you know much about them?' he questioned

'The stars?'

'Hmm'

'Nope… well I can label a chart but they don't look like that for real do they?'

'I know exactly what you mean, for instance look at Draco it looks much more like a boot'

'A boot!' then she laughed and sat up to look down at him

'It does! From this way up it does!'

Hermione scooted around and lay so her head was next to his

'There look' he said lifting his arm and drawing imaginary lines in the night sky

'Nope still can't see it… now a ferret, that fits just perfectly'

'A ferret what are you talking about girl Draco looks nothing like a…. oh not that Draco?' he enquired pointing to the sky and turning her head to look at her with a chuckle and an arched eyebrow.

She smiled back at him,

'I'll never forget the look on his face…'

'I would never have thought you the type, enjoying the young Malfoy's pain?'

'No not pain, the only thing that was injured was his pride and goodness knows that could still cope with a humongous set down and be double the size of any other persons'

'I dare say you're right, do you see much of him?'

'Enough, at the ministry, we've decided to give him a chance, I don't know how long he'll last though he's under Ron's division' she said smiling

He glanced over at her smiling face as she mentioned her long time friend and he felt a strange twinge in his stomach.

She continued to stare up at the stars squinting and frowning until she Whispered

'Look, there's a ship' pointing up to the sky slender fingers carefully outlining her imagined vessel.

'I see it' he replied hoarsely awed by what he felt lying beside this girl with the music rising to the stars that they watched.

They carried on stargazing; their findings getting progressively more ridiculous, until the first of the fire works lit the sky, perfectly accompanied by Beethoven's 5th, Hermione sat up with a gasp, her mouth opening and heart pounding at the unexpected explosion, she laughed, cooed and squealed in all the right places throughout the piece, then felt an intense emotion well up inside her as the final earth shaking notes of the orchestra, the upsurge of fireworks and the aura of the man beside her all combined to leave her feeling weak, several seconds of stunned silence followed the conclusion before the crowd united then an outburst of cheers and a noise like thunder filled the air as they expressed their delight, Snape and Hermione stood, at one with the crowd for the first time that evening.

Hermione rose from her bed and lazily removed her clothing her shoes were at the foot of her bed having not been replaced since Snape took them off for her, they had walked back through the grounds together avoiding the path.

She pulled a cotton nightie over her head before picking her discarded clothing up from the bed in a bundle, and in the most un-Hermione-ish way imaginable dropped them on to her chair; but then she disentangled a large black cloak from the garments on the pile that she'd just disregarded, and then lay on her bed using it-Snape's coat, instead of her blankets.

And as she fell to sleep with a smile on her face, she mumbled something about saving the house-elves unnecessary chores.

sigh that was sort of taken from my memories of an open air concert at castle Howard, except we didn't get to apperate home we slept in tents that night, was pretty cool trying to find our way back using only fading lantern light though, oh the memories : )