Summary: Severus confronts Hermione.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Our couple finally can see and talk to each other!

Chapter 6

Severus' recovery came quickly. He spent the rest of the day exercising his muscles. The Healer gave him several potions to restore his strength and build up his flaccid muscles that had deteriorated over the seven months he'd been unconscious. They brought in a therapist to work with him the next day to make his muscles more responsive and continued to give him potions and cast spells upon him to increase his stamina. By the end of the second day, he was walking the halls at a normal pace.

He realized he wouldn't be running any marathons for a while, but he felt that he had recovered enough to be released the next morning. He hoped the Healers would feel the same when they examined him then.

The next day dawned, and the Healers agreed with Severus, releasing him from the hospital with several potions for him to take over the next few weeks to keep his strength up. Leaving the hospital, he Floo'd to Hogwarts, directly to his room. Moving as quickly as he could through the Headmaster's chambers, he changed his robes, gathered and shrunk his things, and was about to leave when he felt exhausted and sat down on his sofa. He was there for only a few minutes when Minerva appeared at his door.

"Oh, Severus! You're awake!" she cried.

"Minerva," he greeted as motioned for her to come in.

She entered and turned towards him, staring at him for a while, looking bashful. Finally, she spoke.

"I wanted to apologize…"

"No need."

She tsked and sat next to him on the sofa. "Yes, yes, there is a need. I acted horridly to you. Horridly. I'm sorry I didn't trust you. I'm sorry that I let Dumbledore manipulate my feelings for one of my friends. I should have known there was more to you killing him than what met the eye."

"Nonsense! You were supposed to think me a murderer and to hate me."

She cringed as she looked over at him. "But I should have known!"

Severus' scowl softened. "Minerva… Albus wanted it this way. He wanted me to be reviled by all of you so the Dark Lord would believe all the more of my fealty."

"Well, it's nonsense! He should have told me of all people. I'll never forgive him for what he's done to you."

Severus felt a lump in his throat. He fought to not have it affect his tone.

"It would have made that last year easier for me, I will give you that."

"Well, now that you are awake, you can take your rightful place as Headmaster again. I've kept the position warm for you."

Severus frowned. "Minerva, I don't want to return here, to be honest."

She frowned. "I hope you have a change of heart and decide to come back, but I will understand if you don't. Just know that you will always have a place here at Hogwarts, and we would be honored for you to be the Headmaster once again."

He bowed his head to her. "Thank you, Min, but I'm going to have to decline. I want a new lease on life… something totally different."

She sighed. "I somehow knew you were going to say that." Smiling at him with a titch of sadness, she continued. "I'm glad you're awake finally, Severus. It's not been the same without you."

"Yes, there was no one to wreak fear into the students' hearts."

"That's why you need to come back."

"I can't. I was never truly happy teaching, you know that. I can't see that changing. I want a fresh start. Even as Headmaster, I cannot see myself being happy. I must decline," Severus said.

"Unfortunate," Minerva said.

Severus' eyebrows knit together. "Minerva, where is Hermione Granger staying?"

She looked at him curiously. He cleared his throat in embarrassment.

"She visited me every day at the hospital. I just want to convey my thanks."

"Oh! Yes, well, I think she's staying with Harry at his house."

"His house?" Severus asked curiously.

"Grimmauld Place. He inherited it from Sirius Black."

"Ah, I see. I will seek her out there," Severus advised.

He was surrounded by an all-encompassing hug. "Don't be a stranger, Severus," Minerva said as she disengaged from him and stood.

"I will come by now and then, and we will have tea," he acquiesced.

"Perfect," she said as she moved back from him with a smile. Turning she left him to his thoughts.

He finally felt strong enough to leave, so he stood and looked back at his room where he'd spent a good part of his life. He was slightly melancholy but mostly relieved. What he'd said to Minerva had been true. He had never truly liked teaching. It was only a means to an end, and that end had finally come. Turning, he left his room and his old life behind.

oooOOOooo

Severus stood outside of Grimmauld Place, staring at the home. Was she there? And what would she say when she saw him? Did she want to see him, or was her disappearing the moment she found he'd awakened a hint to just leave her alone?

He gathered his wits and courage and moved to the door. Taking his wand, he knocked on the door with it so it would ring through the house. Waiting for an answer, he shifted from one foot to the other. All too soon, the door began to open, and Severus stood straighter as he awaited the person on the other side. He frowned as he saw Harry Potter looking at him incredulously.

"Professor Snape!"

"Well spotted, Potter. May I come in?"

"Oh, of course!" Harry said quickly as he stepped aside. "Hermione said you'd awakened. I'm glad you're finally all right, Professor."

Severus entered and turned back to Potter. Harry motioned for him to go into the home. They moved to the kitchen at the back of the house. Severus looked around, noting that Hermione wasn't in this room. He turned back to Potter.

"Where is Hermione?" he asked.

"Oh, she bought a storefront in Godric's Hollow. She's setting things up. She'll be back in about an hour."

"And you live together?" Severus asked as his eyes narrowed.

"Yeah."

"And Weasley?"

"Ron moved back to the Burrow. He said he couldn't stand being in the same place as Hermione when she was being so difficult."

Severus nodded thoughtfully. "And you and Hermione are…?"

He waited breathlessly. He didn't think that Hermione was seeing Potter, but he just didn't know. The thought that he may lose her to another Potter made his heart freeze within his chest.

Harry stuttered. "We… We're friends! Oh, Merlin, no. We aren't… you know. She's like my sister, yeah?"

He stared wildly at Severus, who just nodded at him.

"May I wait for her here, Potter?"

"Of course," Harry said. "You know you can call me Harry," he said as Severus moved into the library, chose a book, and sat down.

"Thank you, Potter," Severus said as he buried his nose in the tome he'd chosen.

"Sir?"

Severus' eyes drifted back up to Harry.

"I wanted to apologize for being such a prat. I accused you of doing everything horrid, and in the end, you were trying to keep me alive. I want to thank you for that," Harry said with a catch in his voice.

Severus just stared at Harry as he composed himself. Harry shifted nervously.

"Well, I just wanted you to know that," Harry said uneasily as he turned to leave the room.

Severus' lips thinned.

"Potter," he called before the younger man left the room.

Harry turned back to him.

"I accept your apology. As I told Minerva earlier, you were supposed to think me the villain."

"Well, I thought it a little too easily," Harry explained.

Severus gave him a quick nod of his head.

"Hopefully, in the future, we can be friends?" Harry said hopefully.

Severus gave him an odd look. "I doubt it, Potter, but stranger things have happened."

Harry gave him a quick nod and disappeared from the room.

Severus reached into his pocket and removed the vial with his potion in it. He took a sip and returned it to its place in his pocket. He returned to his book and was absorbed in it for a while. He heard a commotion outside the library and assumed that Hermione had returned. He put the book down on the table next to his chair and looked at the door expectantly. His heart began to race as he awaited her entrance. It took her a few minutes before she entered the room.

Hermione entered tentatively. She remained standing and gave Severus a wide berth as she greeted him.

"Well, there you are…" She muttered almost to herself.

She shook her head as if to clear it and started again. "Hello, Professor. I'm glad to see you are awake." She studied him for a second. "Do you have any lasting effects from the snake bite?"

"I am fully recovered," he said quietly.

They stared at each other in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, Severus spoke.

"You ran away when you saw I had awakened. Why?"

Hermione clasped her hands and wrung them together, looking down at the floor. "I…"

"You visited me every day for seven months, and the day I awakened, you chose to run the other way?"

"I felt… that you wouldn't want to see me. You've always hated me."

"Then why did you come every day?" he asked in exasperation.

"Despite you hating me, I never hated you," she said with a proud lift of her head.

He stood then. "I never hated you. Do you not understand? I was a spy! Being friendly toward Harry Potter's Muggleborn friend with the Dark Lord's henchmen everywhere was not conducive to my survival."

She relaxed slightly. "I sometimes wondered if that was the case, but just thought it was wishful thinking on my part."

He frowned. "It wasn't. I had a role to play, and being horrid to you fit into it perfectly. I apologize for having to be so cruel."

She nodded slightly but said nothing. Again there was a chasm of silence between them.

"You also wondered if I could hear you while I was in the coma."

Hermione's eyes grew wide. "You could? I read to you every day."

"I remember…"

Hermione's eyes met his, searching for something.

"Does that mean…?" she hesitantly asked.

"That I saw what you saw when you touched me? Yes, it does."

Severus let his statement lie as Hermione realized that he had experienced everything that she had. Her hands came up, and she buried her face in them.

"I'm so sorry, Professor," her muffled reply came to him. "I never meant for any of that to happen."

He quickly came to her side.

"Look at me!" he demanded sharply.

She snapped her head out of her hands and gave him a wild-eyed look.

"When I awoke, you didn't wait long enough to even discuss this with me. How could you just run out like that? We are soulmates!"

"I didn't think…"

"No, you're right, you didn't think at all. You let fear take over, and you hid away, hoping this problem would just disappear, right?"

"I don't think it's a problem! Of course, you would, though. Why would I stay and have you tell me what a fool I am for even thinking we could be together? Why would I subject myself to your sharp tongue and caustic personality when you come across something you don't like or think is wrong?"

She turned and stormed to the door. Her hand rested on the doorknob as Severus flourished his wand, effectively locking her in the library.

She turned furiously with tears in her eyes. "Let me out of here, you bastard! I won't sit and listen to you demean me!"

He slowly came up to her, as if she was a wild animal. Her breathing was ragged, and she was staring at him in misery. All he wanted to do was take her in his arms, but they needed to get through this conversation first.

He gazed at her some more. To hell with the conversation. He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her.

"I understand what you're saying. That is normally how I would react to such an insane declaration. But… did it ever enter your brilliant mind that I could possibly feel the same way you do?" he asked her softly.

"No!" she cried into his robes. "You would never…"

He squeezed her to quiet her retort.

"You underestimate me, then," he sighed.

Hermione pulled back and looked into his eyes. She seemed like she was trying to read him.

"It's impossible for you to think that we are a good idea."

"Oh, you are gleaning that from reading my mind?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, I just… how could you? You may not hate me, but you have never liked me. I hoped that maybe we could be friends after you awoke, but now…" She looked down. "It's too complicated for that."

He released her, letting her step away from him. She turned her back on him and moved to the window, staring out of it absently.

"Do you know what I felt when you touched me?"

"Revulsion?" she muttered.

"Hardly, Hermione. Please turn around and look at me."

She slowly turned, her eyes moved to him and locked on his.

"I was baffled at the visions, especially at first, but they felt… right. To your point, I questioned my sanity in feeling those emotions, but as time went on, they made more sense. They felt more right. Your explanation that we were soulmates… once again, I thought you were mad… but I couldn't deny within myself that the thought of being soulmates with you excited me to no end."

Hermione's eyebrows knit together as she gazed at him.

"Your visits helped me to learn who you really were. You became more than just a student to me. You became my friend: the woman who sat by me day after day even when there was no hope that I could possibly awaken from the hell I was trapped in. You gave me relief, if only for a couple of hours a day. You talked to me as if I could respond. You confided in me. I answered every one of your questions, Hermione. I just wished you could have heard them."

His hands came up and grasped her arms. "Please, listen to me. I'm telling you that it's not impossible for us to be together. We are soulmates. That already gives us an edge. You said that you wouldn't mind seeing where this goes. Well, neither would I. I've missed your presence these last couple of days. I don't want to be separated from you again."

Hermione searched his face, looking for an affirmation that he was being serious. "You really want this?"

He looked into her eyes and his heart swelled with love for her. "The truth is, Hermione, as time went on, I came to regard you more and more, but I couldn't tell you how I felt. When you ran away that day when I awoke, I was gutted. I realized that I didn't want to live without you in my life."

"I can't believe you're saying these things," Hermione coughed out in disbelief. "I… I thought you were in love with Harry's mum."

"No, not for almost a lifetime. Potter misunderstood. Yes, I'll always love her… as my friend. I felt I needed to make amends to her. I betrayed her to the Dark Lord. I caused my best friend's death. Even if she wasn't still my friend at that point, I was guilty of the worst possible betrayal. I never stopped loving her as a friend, even though she had broken it off years prior. I devoted my life to try and make amends to her for the horrid thing I did. I needed to protect her son. I did it all because I needed to honor the life of my friend."

"Did you ever…?"

He nodded. "When I was a youth at Hogwarts, I was very much in love with her. I was too young to truly know what love really was, but I loved her as much as a fifteen-year-old could. Then we had our falling out, and later, she started dating Potter. I realized at that point she would never want to be with me. I put my feelings for her out of my mind and moved on as best I could."

"You stopped loving her?"

"Yes, I did. It took a long time, but I was finally able to convincingly say I didn't love her. When I heard the prophecy and told Voldemort, though, I realized how I had jeopardized her. I was the one who caused her death. When she died, I felt that I couldn't go on… I almost didn't… but Dumbledore convinced me to stick around and work against the Dark Lord to honor Lily."

Hermione searched his eyes and nodded finally. "I'm glad you're not in love with her. I mean, you deserve better than to pine away for a dead woman."

"Especially one who didn't want me," Severus agreed.

Hermione nodded again absently. "Still, that doesn't mean you would want me."

"But I do. I want to try this; I want to see where it goes. I believe you know me well enough to know I wouldn't lie about things like that."

"I know. I know; I just… can't believe it."

"It seems impossible, doesn't it? That the two of us could find common ground and desire to be together."

"Yes! Merlin, yes! How could you ever want to be with me like that?" she cried.

"I could ask the same of you," he retorted with an eyebrow arch.

"I find that it's easy for me to want to be with you."

His eyes narrowed.

"No, I'm serious," Hermione replied. "You are loyal, smart, sarcastic, hilarious, and you don't suffer fools. We are well suited to one another."

He had held himself back as he explained everything, checking his libido, desperately wanting to kiss her but refraining as he explained how he felt. Now, he couldn't help himself. He gazed at her in awe as what she said sunk in. He moved in, his lips pressing against hers, causing her to gasp as he lavished her with his affection.

His hand came up and buried itself in her hair as he continued to kiss her.

"Hermione…" he murmured between breaths.

Suddenly, he felt wetness and pulled back quickly. He saw tears streaming down her face.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked.

"Merlin, no, Severus. I am just… this is just… I'm overwhelmed."

He reached up and wiped away her tears. "And being overwhelmed results in this?" he asked with concern.

She nodded vigorously. "Sometimes, yes!"

"And is that good or bad?" he asked warily.

She grinned. "It's very good. I'm just so happy that this has worked out."

"I see," he said before kissing her again. He begged entrance and she opened up to him. He cherished her with every kiss.

Finally breaking apart, he ran his finger along her cheek. "What shall we do now?"

"I don't know."

"I hear you have a bookstore in Godric's Hollow," he murmured.

She grinned at him. "I do. Would you like to see it?"

"I would," he replied simply.

She stepped back and grasped his hand.

"I've connected the Floo to the shop," she said as she pointed at the fireplace. "Just call out Magnum Opus," she directed.

He arched a brow at the name she'd chosen but had soon disappeared into the Floo–Hermione following closely behind.

"You're right, it's perfect," he said as he moved about the cozy shop. "When will you open officially?"

"In two weeks. As you can see, I still have a lot of acquisitions to receive."

She pointed at the somewhat empty shelves.

"The front area will house the new books, and the rest of the store will contain rare editions of things I think will be of interest. I'll probably rotate things in and out. I haven't decided yet."

Severus regarded the area and moved to the front of the shop, looking out the window. Hermione had inscribed the name of the shop, Magnum Opus, on the window in golden script. There was flowing parchment underneath the words. He nodded in approval.

"Your logo looks quite elegant," he affirmed.

"Thank you."

Severus turned to her and regarded her seriously.

"I have a proposition for you."

"Oh?" she asked.

He moved to stand in front of her. "I want to invest in your store. I will put up half the collateral for you, and in return, will you let me have a corner of the store to sell potions?"

"Are you serious?" Hermione asked as her eyes widened at him.

He gave her a measured look. "Your description of what you want from this shop made me want to be a part of it… and the visions we had only increased that desire. I never want to step into a classroom again or be associated with Hogwarts. I just want to leave all of that behind me and concentrate on having a quiet, peaceful existence. It's all I dreamed of while being caught up in the war."

You've never had a minute's peace, have you?" Hermione asked, her eyes looking sympathetically at him.

Severus' lips thinned. "No, I can't remember the last time I had. It was definitely before you came to Hogwarts."

He found her arms surrounding him, hugging him like a lifeline.

"I'm sorry it's been so hard for you, Severus."

She pulled back slightly so she could see his face. "I would love to have you sell your potions in my shop, but you don't need to pay half the expenses. That doesn't seem fair."

"How is it not fair? I want to do this with you. I want to be a part of it, not just take advantage of a couple of shelves in your shop. I want to help you run this place… if you are okay with that."

Her eyes sparkled at him, crinkling slightly around the edges as she smiled. "I would love for you to partner with me. We'll have to set up some kind of contract."

He nodded. "Sounds prudent."

She chuckled. "Well, come on. There are some boxes in the back we can unpack, partner."

He grinned and followed after her where they spent the rest of the evening sorting the shop.