AN: Last weekend, I lost a chapter of the story I was working on. In my frantic search of the drives, I happened across this little story start. I always intended to do something with it, but I never posted it…so, if you don't mind slow updates and you like fluff, this might be the story for you. Rated M because if the characters cooperate there will be a little smutty chapter near the end…I'm thinking maybe six or seven chapters, but we'll see what happens.

"I need your help Uncle."

Strictly speaking, Severus Snape was not his uncle. He was his godfather, but Draco had never broken his early habit of calling him Uncle Sev when they were alone. At thirty-five, it seemed unlikely to Severus that the boy ever would…besides, he owed him a debt of gratitude for saving his life all those years before.

"How can I aid your endeavors Draco?"

Draco, hair thinning slightly, and still as wiry as a ferret, stood up from his father's desk to turn and pace. The boy would never be as physically imposing as Lucius had been, but his mind was top notch when it came to business and he was a good deal less distracted. The Malfoy fortunes had suffered a significant loss during the war (in between bribes and reparations…which amounted to the same thing in Severus' opinion). Under Draco's careful investments and management, the family coffers were well on their way to being full once more.

"Are you aware that I hired Hermione Granger?"

Severus allowed a tiny bit of shock to show on his face. "That's a public relations nightmare Draco." On the surface, hiring the bright muggle-born witch should have been good for public relations…but five years before Hermione Granger had left Ronald Weasley at the altar…leaving quite publicly on the arm of Draco Malfoy.

The gossip rags had been brutal. Even Severus (who avoided gossip in general and nattering about the social lives of the so-called Golden Trio in particular) was familiar with the story.

"I know, I know." Draco ran his fingers through his hair. "She didn't want to go through with the wedding, so she just left on my arm…we knew what people would think. And we did go out a few times afterward…" The blond shook his head. "It just didn't work…plenty of chemistry, but I was always afraid that at some point in the middle of a fight she'd rip my head off and be done with me."

Severus chuckled. "Astoria is less likely to do so." Draco smiled when he thought about his wife of two years.

"My wife is a saint. Hermione didn't expect the firestorm that hit…She's totally blacklisted in the wizarding world but she doesn't leave the lab so it hardly matters…"

"You said you offered her a job…"

"I offered her the head of R and D for Malfoy Industries…which was why she left Weasel at the altar…she was seduced by the labs…not me." He chuckled. "Weasley told her that no wife of his would work for a Malfoy, and she walked out."

Severus sighed. "That's a ham-fisted way to deal with any female…"

"And with someone as bright and volatile as Granger…"

Severus allowed a corner of his mouth to lift. "Yes…the results could be explosive."

"Our history aside, I'm in a quandary. Granger has spent the last two years working on a solution for the squib problem."

Across the world, squibs were being born to magical couples at the highest rates ever recorded. Worse, the number of muggle-borns had decreased as well.

"She thinks she can discover the problem?"

Draco nodded. "The cause was simple. An inverted protein that causes squibs to be unable to access magic was introduced to the gene pool a hundred years ago…females are carriers, so they have to get a double set in order to be squibs themselves, but that meant the gene was free to infect almost every pureblood line in both England and France."

"Merlin."

"Exactly. Granger's working on a cure."

"So why do you need my aid? A bit of brewing she can't handle?"

Draco chuckled. "Actually no. I need you to check her work."

Severus raised a brow.

"She mutters to herself constantly, forgets to eat, and refuses to allow anyone near those notes like she's part bloody wolverine. I need to know if her research is viable, or if she's just gone round the twist all alone up there in her lab."

"Surely you have access to her notes."

"In the lab, with her looking over my shoulder. But frankly, she's moved so far into the realm of mixing muggle genetics, arithmancy, and charms that I can't follow it anymore. She might be the most brilliant witch on the planet…or she could be completely mad…I wouldn't be able to tell the difference."

"And how would I be able to deduce if she was mad or not?"

Draco sighed. "I'd do it myself, but I'm not an animagus. Her cat just died…bloody thing was ancient, but she's broken up about it. If another animal showed up at the lab…perhaps injured…she'd be sure to make a pet out of it."

"You want me to become…a pet?"

"I need you to act as a spy…just for a few days until you can decipher her notes. If she's on the right track, I'll keep funding her…if not, maybe we can nudge her on to another line of thought…and if she has gone round the twist, I'll get her some help."

Severus could tell that Draco was truly worried for the witch.

He narrowed his eyes and asked the blond suspiciously, "And you are sure that the romantic entanglement has ended between you? I warn you Draco…if I do this, I had better not find out that I was spying on her because she's your mistress…"

Draco made a cutting motion with his hands. "No…no…that's not even possible Uncle Sev. Astoria's father insisted on fidelity charms." Draco signed and shrugged lightly. "We've kept it quiet, but Astoria carries the inverted protein. According to our marriage contract, if we don't produce a magical offspring within five years our marriage will be annulled. I'd marry her again, but the bindings on the first marriage won't allow it."

Draco calmed himself. "I need Hermione's work to be viable…and I need to know right now if it isn't so that Astoria and I can make another plan if there isn't going to be a treatment."

SSHG

Hermione was in a foul mood. Fine, truthfully, she'd been in a foul mood for weeks. The charm should work…it did work on animals…but there was a problem with the witch's own magic interfering with the subtle charm to 'flip' the offending protein. Blasted magic kept flipping it back. Which was wonderful in that it kept magical lines from mutating too much, except when it actively promoted something that was a mutation in the first place. (The Malfoy tendency to be platinum blond came to mind as she smirked.)

She was aware that Draco was getting antsy about her progress…her arithmancy calculations indicated that human testing would work in four out of five cases, but these were real people…not numbers.

"Bloody effing…annoying…gormless…" Sure, she sounded crazy…but she was thinking for Merlin's sake!

A tapping at the window distracted her.

Who would be owling?

She and Draco had an owless delivery charm for memos, it was spring, so Harry's annual 'I haven't seen you since last Christmas' missive wasn't due…and Draco's wards kept out reporters…

A large black raven perched on the window sill, parchment tied to his leg, wing obviously strained.

She opened the window cautiously. The raven's beak was long and sharp; the last thing she wanted to do was startle him.

"Come here…"

He allowed her to pick him up.

She ran her fingers over his body, smoothing feathers as she went. "I don't know if the mild healing potion I use for owls would work…" She muttered as she accioed a phial and poured it into a goblet.

The raven turned up his beak at the potion.

"Well, you know best I suppose. I'll just take this letter and you'll have to spend a few days here with me healing before you go home."

The raven sat perfectly still while she untied the parchment.

"Astoria! She knows I never attend these things." Hermione crumpled the latest in a long line of invitations. Astoria was truly a sweet soul who didn't seem to understand that Hermione was still very much persona non grata in the wizarding world.

"It's a good thing I can just send a note to Draco." She wrote a rather snide remark and tossed it and a bit of floo powder into the fire.

She turned to the raven who was eyeing her curiously.

"Come on then. Let's get you fed and watered…then I can get back to work." She carried the bird into the kitchen gently.

The raven clipped his beak at her. She smiled. "Oh don't worry, I never get owls so I won't force feed you owl treats." She rummaged in a muggle-style refrigerator.

"Hmmm…do ravens eat curry?" The raven cawed loudly.

"Only the fresh stuff, huh. Can't say that I blame you." She took a delicate sniff and wrinkled her nose.

"How about a nice salad?"

She snorted at the disdainful look he gave her. "Well, don't blame me, I didn't know I'd have company or I'd have sent out for fresh stuff…"

More rummaging…and the triumphant waiving of a little package.

"Frozen salmon! I know you can eat these. We'll just thaw them with a little magic…" Her wand worked culinary magic as the salmon was thawed and sliced thin.

"With that beak, I doubt you can eat anything larger than one inch strips."

The raven ate the prepared strips neatly.

"There we are…and you and I can have more salmon for supper. I think I'll broil mine though…I've never cared for sushi."

She laughed. "You shouldn't be so eloquent in your looks bird…I can tell you're thinking, 'the more fool you." She patted his feathers into place again. "Let's find you a proper perch…"

The raven hopped onto her shoulder.

She mock-glared. "That wasn't what I meant and you know it." She shot a cushioning charm at her shoulder. "You can stay…but watch the claws."

She went back to her notes, warm weight of the raven near her neck.

Hours later the bird was as still and quiet as before. "Hmmm…quiet one aren't you?"

She took the bird off her shoulder. "Time for dinner little guy."

HGSS

Severus was flabbergasted.

The witch had done it. She wasn't on the verge of the discovery; she had cracked the code completely.

So why was she holding out?

Where were her test subjects? Hell, why wasn't she already doing the lecture circuit around Europe? A charm that prevented squib births in four-fifths of all tests? The ratio hadn't been that low in decades.

He carefully turned a page with his beak….what had she been scribbling today?

Ah-ha.

She was trying to find a way to keep the prospective mother's magic from interfering in the charm…going for the one hundred percent accuracy.

He bloody well should have known. It was Hermione bleeding Granger after all. The witch was never satisfied with' exceeds expectations'. She had a pathological need to make 'Outstandings'.

He quickly read a few more pages of scribbles.

Even he had to admit her take on the issue was brilliant.

She was working at the smallest levels, using charms that required delicate control to apply correctly. Her technique was subtle, sublime.

The arithmancy calculations were intricate and balanced, lovely in their own way, and as verbose in their math as she'd always been in her six foot essays…

"Oi! Shoo…not that!" She picked him up and carried him away from the notes. "If you feel the need for a nest I'll get you something else silly bird. You may not play in my notes!"

He glanced back and noted with surprise that they were rather spread out…it was difficult reading as a raven.