AN: I own nothing

A swirl of black robes moved through the gates, not pausing to check whether the newest employee of Hogwarts was keeping up. Hermione scurried behind him, struggling to keep the strap of her bag on her shoulder as her robes dangled precariously from the other. She had never liked apparating, it always left her flustered and in a state of disarray and so, she had always tried to floo wherever she went. Evidently, apparating was not a problem for Snape, who stormed ahead of her the instant they arrived. She glanced ahead as he flicked his wand to open the main doors.

Was there anything he couldn't do perfectly? Hermione thought to herself as he glided across the threshold.

They quickly made their way through the familiar twists and turns of the corridor until Snape made an abrupt halt at a portrait of an elderly woman with twinkling green eyes, stroking a tabby cat, looking down at Snape in a haughty manner. Snape seemed quite unperturbed by the portrait's expression and in his usual drone voiced the password.

"Asphodel."

The elderly woman harrumphed and just continued to stare at Snape who stared back at her waiting. Hermione tried to retain her composure as she watched this rather amusing standoff between Snape and a portrait. Although, her amusement was short-lived when Snape's patience waned and his wand shot into his hand.

"I. Said. Asphodel."

This time the elderly woman swung open her portrait to allow them entry. Hermione knew she'd need to have a chat with the woman at some point; the look of sheer fury on the portrait's face was quite a sight to behold. It would never do to have your chambers blocked simply because the portrait doesn't like you. It was clear she only opened for Snape because of his position as headmaster and the fact that nobody in the whole Wizarding world wanted to be on the receiving end of his wand.

However, that thought swept out of her mind the moment she saw her rooms.

Light filled the room through three large windows that were almost floor to ceiling. Comfy looking window seats sat at the bottom of each and were framed by rich red curtains. There was an elegant sofa and a set of two armchairs surrounding the fire, and in keeping with the Gryffindor undertones in the room, a few well-placed red cushions were sitting on the sofa. Through an open door, Hermione could see a very comfortable looking large four-poster bed and through another an exquisite bathroom could be seen, with a huge claw-foot bath and shower. She could see herself having many a relaxing evening in there with a nice glass of wine. What caught her sights, of course, was the spectacular wall of bookshelves. Due to the high ceilings in her new rooms, there were so many shelves that a ladder had been placed in order to reach the books that will inevitably fill the top shelves. It was like her very own private library. She finally had enough space for her books! Hermione just managed to contain her squeal of excitement but judging by the look on Snape's face, her facial expression gave away her feelings. He simply raised an eyebrow in her direction; Hermione blushed in embarrassment at her current inability to retain any sense of composure. Snape had obviously decided to save her any further embarrassment when he turned to face her and announced,

"I will leave you to unpack. Come and see me tomorrow after breakfast, Miss Granger, and we will discuss your employment and duties in more concrete terms."

Before Hermione could reply, he swept silently out of her chambers and she was left alone. It was barely a second before Hermione opened her bag, ready to set up bookshelves. The books flew out filling not even half of the shelves. Hermione squealed, at last she had space to expand and buy all the books she wanted. There had been many occasions when she had to leave Flourish and Blotts with only one or two books due to her lack of space in her flat. At last there would be no more precarious piles of books waiting to be knocked to the floor by Crookshanks. She had so much more space! Hermione moved into the bedroom and unpacked her clothing into the beautifully carved oak wardrobe and matching set of drawers.

Hermione sighed with contentment. She could feel the tension leave her shoulders as she surveyed her new home. It had honestly been one bad thing after another but now she was back in Hogwarts, she felt safe again. As she sat down onto the sofa, contemplating her future at Hogwarts. A stag patronus came shooting into her room and Harry's voice cried,

"Come quick! Ginny's in labour! Meet us at St. Mungo's."

Hermione quickly grabbed her bag and raced out her room towards the apparition point. As she rounded the corner to the main doors, she overheard Snape arguing with someone, she stopped in her tracks when she heard Snape say her name.

"I said leave her be. Miss Granger is a member of Hogwarts' staff now and whilst she remains here she will be under my protection. Now get out of my sight."

Hermione quickly broke into a run to avoid the person Snape had been arguing with. By the sounds of things, whoever was pursuing her didn't have the best of intentions. So, without a glance back, Hermione quickly apparated to St Mungo's eager to meet her godchild.

Hi, all! Thank you so much for your reviews of the last chapter, I loved hearing all your thoughts. I can't believe there have now been 83 reviews on this story. I am gobsmacked that all of you are enjoying it as much as I am writing it.

Drop me a review and let me know what you think of this chapter.

Also, I have exams coming up soon so chapters may be later than usual so bear with me if that does prove to be the case!