Part Six - Epilogue

Snape eyed the festivities in the Great Hall with distaste. Classes had been canceled, and the entire castle was nearly vibrating in celebration.

The feast was magnificent. One would expect no less for a milestone as grand as the one year anniversary of the final fall of Voldemort.

It had been a year since Voldemort had escaped his holding cell only to be tracked down by a mob led by Potter. A year since Voldemort and Potter had fallen, their magics linked until the last tremors of the Avada Kedavra freed them from each other. Potter died that night.

And some say, like a phoenix he was reborn.

Those who were there knew the truth, the real reason Potter was currently enjoying the feast and not rotting in a hole.

Hermione. The irony being, of course, that the only thing that might have saved Riddle, that did save Potter, was a Muggle-born's knowledge of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Hermione's quick thinking while others wept kept Potter's body oxygenated and viable until Pomfrey and Snape managed to coax him back to the land of the living.

All hail Wonder Boy Potter. Don't mind the rest of us, we're just support staff. All we did was bring him back to life, a minor pittance.

Potter stood at the cries for a speech. He did have the grace to look for permission from the man seated on his right.

Which Dumbledore graciously granted.

Snape rolled his eyes and tuned out the words. It was nothing he hadn't heard hundreds of times before.

The seat next to Snape was empty, had been since she left a month ago.

She had learned everything he had been willing to teach. There had been no reason to continue the apprenticeship other than his selfish need to be near her. Even with the strain of returning to a strictly professional relationship after that night, of awkward pauses whenever they accidentally touched, of formality forced for the sake of his sanity… it still hurt to send her away.

She left just a few days shy of the anniversary that truly held some value to Snape.

Hermione had led him to her room that night, waited until he had settled into the unfamiliar bed and curled up against him. He had lain awake long after she'd slipped into deep sleep.

It had been a night of firsts for them both. She had given her body for the first time, and he feared that he might have given his heart.

He didn't love her, couldn't love anyone while his two masters still owned him. But he cared about her and that was something he had never admitted before.

Then he panicked and ruined everything.

He could still see the hurt in her eyes when he had blurted out some meaningless garbage about she being his apprentice and their shared intimacy wouldn't influence that. He had meant to reassure them both that they could separate the personal from the professional. But the moment the words left his mouth he knew that wasn't how it would sound.

She had stared at him, blanket clutched to her naked breast like a shield. He'd tried to elaborate on his position of power over her and how some might view what happened as an abuse of that power, but his voice disappeared after a moment and he could only watch the blush form on her cheeks.

"I see," she said so quietly he had had to strain to hear her. "Well. I thank you for your assistance, Professor, and I see your point. Such a relationship between master and apprentice would be inappropriate."

She had refused to look in him the eye after that.

Somehow he had stumbled back to his room, only to find Dumbledore and the remaining two-thirds of the fabled Dream Team sprawled across his sitting room. The boys jerked awake when he let the door close with more force than strictly necessary.

Their incessant questions were quelled by the Headmaster who had taken one look at Snape's weary face and surmised the Potions Master's need for solitude.

"Ms. Granger's dilemma has been resolved? Good, good. That is all we need to know. Come along, gentlemen, I have heard that a sunrise as viewed from Greenhouse six can be awe-inspiring. I suggest we find out."

Dumbledore ushered Weasley and Potter into the corridor and quickly pulled the door shut, separating them from himself and Snape. A wave of his hand and the door had locked.

Snape had squirmed under the Headmaster's scrutiny for a long moment before Dumbledore spoke. "In her time of need she turned to you, not Harry or Ron. I wonder why? Most curious. Even more curious is your willingness to help, my boy. You should ponder the significance of that."

With one last meaningful look, Dumbledore opened the door. "Harry! Ron! What a surprise? I didn't think you even knew where Severus' rooms were?"

Weasley's voice had echoed through the hall. "You're the one who bloody brought us here!"

Dumbledore's voice faded as he escorted the boys down the corridor. "Did I? Are you sure?"

Not wanting to be alone with his thought any longer, Snape had changed into clean clothes and hid in his lab.

Hermione had appeared several hours later. They had eased into careful conversation. The first hour set the tone for the next eleven months. Out loud she was once again Ms. Granger. He made a point to avoid physical contact with her, and she with him.

Once in a great while he would suddenly turn or look up and catch her watching him with a familiar look of longing. Familiar because it was similar to the one he wore when he knew she couldn't see him.

Invariably those nights would be filled with extra torment. He would lay awake, aching, with her voice echoing through his mind calling his name.

Sometimes he felt like a dying man who had been giving a glimpse of salvation before being thrust into Hades, doomed to spend eternity known how close he had come to Heaven.

A crystalline tinkle brought Snape out of his revere. McGonagall tapped her goblet once more to ensure everyone's attention as the Headmaster waited to make an announcement.

"It is indeed an honour that so many have chose to spend this day of celebration here with us at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." He nodded to indicate the several dozen people seated amongst the students.

"We have been awaiting the arrival of another small group who had met with an unfortunate delay. I believe they should be arriving any mom… aah, there they are."

The doors opened to reveal the entire Weasley clan looking flustered.

Snape had been ignoring the little voice in his head that had wondered why Weasley hadn't been at his customary place alongside Potter. If he had questioned Weasley's whereabouts he would have to admit that she was also missing, and the implications were more than he could bear at the moment.

Room was quickly made for the new guests. Arthur Weasley smiled apologetically and stuttered a softly spoken excuse, causing those nearest him to breakout in laughter.

Ron Weasley hesitated in the doorway as if waiting for something.

Moments later Snape felt his mouth go dry as Hermione glided into view. She was wearing golden-colored robes that seemed to mold to the curves he remembered nightly in his dreams.

She stopped next to Weasley and gripped his hand. The look they exchanged was packed with meaning and Snape couldn't stand to see it.

He reached for his glass and briefly considered walking out.

"Now that everyone is here, I have a few more announcements." Snape turned to watch Dumbledore speak, anything to keep from seeing her talking to Weasley.

"As most of you already know, Professor Artemis will be leaving at the end of this semester, leaving the Defense Against the Dark Arts position open. We have within these halls a most excellent candidate for the position. Professor Snape, the job is yours if you wish it."

Snape kept his face carefully blank as his mind raced. Dumbledore is handing me the DADA. Why? Everyone is watching me, waiting for a response. Potter even has a stupid grin on his face.

Still reeling from the unexpected announcement, Snape managed to offer a small nod.

Dumbledore smile in return, before turning to face his audience. "That leaves us with another vacancy for which I've already had an inquiry. I would like to introduce our new Potions Mistress, Professor Hermione Granger."

Dumbledore nodded to someone behind Snape.

Snape's eyes closed as her voice washed over him. 'Thank you, Headmaster."

Dumbledore continued talking but the words meant nothing to Snape, too lost in his own frantic thoughts.

A light pressure on the back of his hand brought him back to his surroundings. He looked at the hand touching his own, followed her arm up to her shoulder and with a deep breath looked at her face.

Her smile was tentative, as if she wasn't sure how he would react. "Is it all right if I sit here, Professor?"

He bit back the sarcastic response on the tip of his tongue and nodded. "Of course, Ms. ... Professor Granger."

Her smile faltered. "I had hoped now that we were colleagues you might be persuaded to address me by my given name." She sat in the chair and looked at him as if contemplating something. Finally she drew in a deep breath and spoke. "Since we are on equal footing, I wanted to ask if you had any tips for the new Potions instructor. Maybe we could get together for a drink after this and you could pass on a word or two of advice?" Her lower lip slid between her teeth.

It was a tell-tale sign Snape recognized. She was nervous.

Her emphasis on the word "equal" did not go unnoticed. The lead weight in his stomach lifted as her message became clear. They were equals now, no more student/teacher, master/apprentice. They were peers.

Snape tested the waters, refusing to give in to the surge of hope just yet. "It may be very late by the time we finish our discussion. Will Mr. Weasley be willing to wait to escort you home?"

Hermione glanced at the boisterous group of redheads. "Molly and Arthur were kind enough to let me stay at the Burrow since my apprenticeship ended. I traveled with them tonight, but, I must admit, I had hoped to find a room here at the castle for the night." She looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"I am sure Albus would be delighted to find accommodations for you. Minerva must be overjoyed that one of her own is coming back."

She leveled another contemplative look at him. "She seemed pleased when Albus mentioned the possibility ... shortly after you informed him that my apprenticeship was ending."

Snape's eyes narrowed as he glared at the Headmaster. "Why is this the first I've heard of it?"

"I won't even begin to presume that I understand the workings of our Headmaster's mind. He made it sound as if the arrangement met with your approval. I was given to understand that the DADA was something you wanted, that was the only reason I agreed to accept Potions."

"I did ... do want the Defense position. I'm just not comfortable with the level of plotting that seems to be going on behind my back." He eyed her suspiciously.

"It wouldn't be plotting if we did it with your permission, Severus." Dumbledore stood next to them and placed a hand on Snape's shoulder. "Do stop giving Hermione a difficult time, she's only done what I asked her do to. Things are starting to wind down, now would be a good time for you to show her around her new workplace. Don't you think?" The older wizard winked at Hermione before walking off to shake hands with someone else.

Hermione opened her mouth to say something and ended up shaking her head in defeat.

"That is what you have to look forward to. Bunch of meddlesome busybodies."

She placed her hand on the back of his again. "They do care about you, Severus."

"That just makes it worse because then I feel guilty about hexing them. Was anyone else involved in all of this?"

Hermione started to shake her head in denial before slowly nodding. "Ron and Harry."

"Pardon?"

She looked at her hand on the back of his.

"Every time I started to doubt myself, they would give me hope. They encouraged me to seek you out tonight."

Snape stilled. His words were very stiff. "Why would they do that?"

Her thumb rubbed against the back of his hand. "Because they want me to be happy. And for some reason being with you makes me happy." She tactfully refused to mention the three months and various minor curses and hexes it had taken to for the boys to come around.

"Is that why Potter was grinning like a buffoon at me earlier?"

"Quite likely. Harry's never been known for his subtlety."

He turned his hand over so that he could wrap his fingers around hers for a moment before he pulled free. "I don't understand why Albus thinks you need a tour. Nothing has changed since you left. Might I suggest we adjourn for that drink?"

Her face lit up with her smile. "That would be lovely."