The next morning found a very restless Severus Snape.
He had taken a big chance by acknowledging Hermione's birthday and hoped that it was not a mistake. He wanted to show the girl that he was not the evil monster that people made him out to be- and had acted like in the past. Underneath the façade was a plain, quiet, smart man who just wanted to live a normal life away from the danger that he had already experienced. You could only get so far with intellect, which he was fully aware of, and he didn't want to spend what was left of his life playing parent to unruly dunderheads. He could never ever admit that though, his reputation would be ruined!
Even though he really wasn't as awful as he made himself out to be, he couldn't complain about the level of respect he was given- even if some of it was more out of fear. He already knew that Hermione respected him, and not out of fear, but he was ready for her to see him in a different light. That was part of the reason he had put together the private 'apprenticeship' classes. He wanted the chance for them to really get to know one another whilst doing something that they both had a passion for.
What she didn't know was that she could have skipped this year entirely and any apprenticeship, and still have gotten an incredible job. Aside from being a war hero, she was the brains behind the success of the Golden Trio. Horcrux or not, there was no way Harry would have gotten to where he did without her knowledge and without her ability to keep the group from killing one another. She was entirely a breed of her own, and that was exactly what Severus adored about her. She paid no mind to what others thought about her or her intellect, and lived her life to be the very best that she could be. He couldn't even imagine the type of parents who could have raised such an outstanding person, and made a mental note to ask her about them. He had been without parents for so long that the topic no longer hurt him and he found himself curious at times to hear about how different his life could have been if he had been born into a different family.
That was another reason he secretly had always wanted a family- to prove that you didn't always end up like your parents. He knew for a fact that he could never do what his father did to his own child. He had seen enough children tortured in his day, and while he made sure that he never had to partake in that type of 'entertainment', it still enraged him to think that a child's parent could cause harm to him or her. When he was younger he always attributed his abuse to not being good enough, or not being what his parents had wanted, but he slowly realized that abuse is never the child's fault. He was not a bad child. He was not a bad son, and he'd be damned if he ever found out that a child of his own ever had those thoughts as well.
He never would have considered himself a 'family man'- and really still didn't- but there was nothing worse than being alone when you saw how almost everyone else was able to be with someone that he or she considered an equal.
Severus was glad that he never found anyone of the sort whilst he was wrapped up in the doings of the Dark Lord, for even the slightest distractions were dangerous on his part, but then again he couldn't think of anyone that he had interacted with who would have come close to being his equal. That was before he actually saw what he had been interacting with all along. Well if you consider 'interacting' verbally abusing... he snorted to himself.
Whether anyone wanted to admit it or not, Hermione Granger was every bit his equal- from her insatiable need to learn, to her impeccable knowledge on the most exceptional topics. She also valued legitimate characteristics over superficial needs. She was the type of girl who would never admit to being beautiful, even though she was, but would settle for taking pride in the fact that she was healthy and alive. Material possessions and worldly values didn't faze her- which is probably why her previous relationships didn't last as long as expected. Krum was all about the physical things, and everyone knows there's nothing worldly about the Weasley boy- but Severus, he had something, or rather everything, that she wanted. It wasn't going to be easy, what with nosy faculty members and a media that would give anything to have a 'sensational' story such as this: War Heroine Seeks Comfort in ex-Death Eater- it was most definitely going to be a long road to any future that they might have.
First thing was that no one could find out about them. Especially because she was still technically a student and he was supposed to be her superior. That was going to be the hardest to pull off, especially if their interactions started to progress more seriously. He would never put her in a compromising position or force her to do anything that she wasn't comfortable with, but from her words and actions it didn't seem like they were going to have that problem. He had this strange feeling the small flame that had already ignited was going to burst into flames at any moment- he just wanted to make sure that he could keep the fire contained.
He also wanted to cultivate her skills as much as he possibly could. Severus wanted Hermione Granger to be as great as he was, and with hard work and long hours, he was almost certain that would come to pass. He had the opportunity to shape one of the greatest minds that had ever graced the Wizarding World and he wasn't going to ruin that chance. He would make sure that her name was known for much more than just helping to defeat the most evil wizard that they had ever known. She would be great, and she would (hopefully) be his. He had never wanted something so much in his entire existence without fully understanding what he was getting himself involved in. Yes, he knew the basics of what a woman was and wanted, but this was not an ordinary woman and he still had much to learn when it came to everything Hermione Granger. He really hoped that these lessons would do much more good than the harm they potentially could.
Aside from putting together lessons, Severus was finding it hard to forget about the bond that the bird still had with Hermione. She must want something much more for it to have not broken with a kiss, he thought to himself, but what could she possibly want from me? A million ideas began to swim in his head, but he couldn't grasp the concept that she would ever want anything to do with them. He was still at a loss that all of this was coming to fruition, but he wasn't going to continue to let that hold him back. He had lessons to plan.