Author's Note:

I want to thank everyone for their kind words and support. My aunt passed away unexpectedly in May, and it threw me for a bit of a loop. So, I took a little time, but I'm back at it again.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

Severus Snape soon grew weary of the Malfoy's hospitality. It wasn't that he didn't like them. He genuinely cared for them. It was his fellow house guests that were the issue. He had no patience to live in what was quickly becoming a Death Eater dormitory, a fraternity house. He'd lived in a bloody school for most of his life. He certainly had no interest in communal living outside of it.

The problem was that he couldn't return to his house and Hogwarts was out of the question. Several of his landed "friends" had offered him room hoping to ingratiate themselves with the killer of Dumbledore and the Dark Lord's new favorite, but what he really wanted, though, was solitude.

That is what led him to a little cottage nestled in the woods. He'd used solicitors to act on his behalf to purchase it and the surrounding land. It was miles from any community. A muggle dwelling almost forgotten to time. It had obviously fallen to disuse as footpaths through the woods were replaced by roads and highways. It suited him though. The small kitchen was serviceable, the living room had large windows that allowed the sun to stream in on clear days. He quite liked the idea of reading in the sun for once. Beside the loo, a steep staircase led to the 2nd floor which was evenly divided into two rooms. Along with the root cellar that he planned to convert to a potion's lab, it was all he needed.

Moving in was relatively easy. He had little in the way of belongings that weren't either in his quarters at Hogwarts or Spinner's End. He honestly didn't know if he'd see any of them again. He'd cursed himself numerous times for not bringing the photos of his mother and Lily with him. He also thought of his mother's treasured tea service hidden away in the attic of Spinner's End. He hoped it wouldn't be destroyed by clumsy or vindictive aurors. He had wanted to give it to Hermione one day.

He found that he rather liked the work of renovating his own home. He'd never truly had a place that was his alone. Spinner's End would always feel like his parent's house and was associated with such dark memories. His quarters at Hogwarts belonged to the Slithyrn Head of House, not to him.

This cottage, though, it was all his. He soon started learning that he had firm preferences on all sorts of things he'd never really considered before. He learned that he liked plush rugs to corded ones. He liked how soft they were on his feet when he went without shoes which had become a habit as of late.

He liked ceramic dishes to china. They seemed less fussy and were easier to wash with cleaning spells. The same went for stainless steel as opposed to silver utensils. He preferred cooking the muggle way and cleaning with magic.

He planted a small vegetable patch and an herb garden in front. He then built a little fence around it and spelled it to keep out rodents and deer. He painted it white because he thought it would looked nice, and it did. He was even considering putting in flowers or perhaps a hedgerow.

He placed two wingback chairs by the fireplace and another in front of the large windows. Now he wouldn't have to move his chair to go from sitting in the sunlight to sitting by the fire. He added white curtains throughout the house to block the glare but not the light. He'd lived most of his life in the dark and was rather sick of it at the moment. That was why the rug in the living room was a butter yellow, and his bedding was a sky blue.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

He soon fell into an easy routine. He woke when the sun peeked through his windows in the morning. He'd typically have some tea and toast then putter in his garden until lunch or until he wearied of it. After he had a bite to eat, he'd head down to his lab. He really didn't need to brew anything. It wasn't as if he could give them to the Order, and selling them would be a complicated task. He simply had no appetite for such frustration, and he never made potions for the Dark Lord unless he explicitly requested it.

The lure of a private potions lab with absolutely no interference or snooping was a luxury he couldn't resist. He brewed for the pleasure of it. He first stocked his medicine cabinet with everyday potions in most wizarding homes. He soon moved on to more challenging ones, ones rarely asked for or taught. It wasn't long until he lost himself in experiments and new creations.

True solitude suited him, Severus decided. Not just separating himself from others but being truly alone. It calmed him, and gave him the peace and time he needed to start processing Albus's death. Occlumency shields shouldn't and couldn't hold forever. However much he wished they could. At least, he didn't need to wonder who was watching or listening. He didn't have to concern himself with how others would perceive him. He didn't need to listen for whispers or ignore snickering. This was his domain and his alone.

It was almost….liberating, to simply be. He had no missions from the Order now, and the Dark Lord was busy with other matters. Since Dumbledore's death he had been scheming and putting plans into place. He would have no real need for him until later in the summer. Now, though, now was his.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

Severus was in his lab when he felt heat emanating from his trousers' pocket. He felt a shock of cold dread when he realized what it was. The coin. Her coin. There had been no need to carry it after he and Draco had betrayed her, but he couldn't seem to break the habit, just in case. Now though, he regret his decision. Did he really want to know what she had to say to him? He considered ignoring it. As much as he wanted to think otherwise, he knew the girl was far too careful to have activated it by accident. It could be nothing less than a deliberate message.

He admonished himself for his cowardice. He owed it to her to at least see what she had to say. He deserved every harsh word she may have for him and more. He gathered his courage and read the message. A second shock of dread surged through him. It simply read, "Please help".

Severus instantly replied. "Where?"

Her answer appeared immediately. "Home"

He momentarily considered that this could be a trap, but decided he just didn't care. His girl needed him.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

Severus apparated in front of the Granger house. From the outside, all looked well. The windows were lit and the street was quiet. Hardly what you'd expect after a deatheater attack. Wand in hand, he approached the door. Checking the handle, he found it unlocked.

Upon entering the house, he could almost taste the magic in the air. It lay heavy and thick, surrounding him. He found the telly still on in the living room and two glasses of wine on the coffee table but no Grangers. He stealthily slipped through the house. He checked the kitchen next. Again no one, but there was produce on the counter waiting to be chopped next to a cookbook. No one was in the dining room or the loo either.

He crept upstairs trying to keep his dread at bay. He felt a sick sense of déjà vu. The last time he had undertaken such a journey, he discovered his first friend and love dead next to her crying child. Where that home had been devastated by the magic it had witnessed, this one was unnervingly still.

He found nothing amiss in the small office at the top of the stairs or in the loo adjacent from it. Moving silently through the hall, he opened the next door and went inside. This was obviously Hermione's room. Books and parchment littered the otherwise orderly space. He felt like an intruder in her domain as he quickly searched the closet and under the bed but again found nothing.

One door left, he thought. He wasn't sure he was ready to see what was behind it, in this eerily quiet house. He took a fortifying breath before removing himself from the girl's room. Wand drawn, he opened the last door.

Author's Note: Never fear, readers. I wouldn't leave you with a cliffhanger if I hadn't already written the next chapter. It will be out next week.