A/N: Before we begin, please keep in mind this is my first HP fanfiction, and English is not my first language, so I'm finding my way as I go, trying to be as faithful to the HP universe and style as I possibly can! This story will be a slow-burn, but I'm eager to explore these characters and what I always thought would be an interesting pair ;) Please let me know what you think on the comments! I am open to all opinions as long as they are stated in a kind tone :)

The light of the dawn shone brightly across the shattered glass of the Great Hall's East wall's tall windows.

The sky was unusually clear in contrast with the everlasting mantle of clouds that had been covering the castle for what felt like an eternity. The crisp spring morning air carried thousands of particles across the golden sun rays, creating a sparkling shower of what looked like magical fairy dust.

But that magical feeling faded as soon as one realized the particles were nothing more than the dust and ash of the half-demolished castle, and then they became a reminder of the destruction that surrounded them, which had vanished so many of their hopes and dreams for the future into something even thinner than dust.

The soft touch on his knuckles brought him back from his momentary trance. His eyes found the concerned glance of his best friend.

"Are you okay?" she whispered, though regretting her words immediately. Of course he wasn't okay. None of them were. Yes, there had been this euphoric explosion minutes before when Voldemort's body had finally dropped dead… but it had been quickly replaced by a heavy silence as the new reality of their lives, and most of all, their deaths, had sunk in. The Great Hall was lined with bodies, over which people reunited in small groups, weeping and holding each other. It was only now, that the threat was gone, when they could allow themselves to grieve.

The scene before their eyes was gut-wrenching, even though the faces that looked their way did their best to provide a thankful, comforting smile. But even those couldn't distract them from the nearby sobs of Molly Weasley, who was shaking in the arms of their red-headed best friend, whose face looked greenish as he avoided looking down on the lifeless body of Fred.

"Do you need to get out of here?" Hermione asked instead, and Harry's relieved nod was all the answer she needed. She grabbed his forearm and lead him across the multitude, trying to convey as much determination and warning in her eyes as she could, to stop people from approaching them now.

Fortunately, it worked, and soon they found themselves at the beginning of the main stairs.

"You need to rest" she said firmly, pointing her head towards the Gryffindor tower, which had luckily been spared from the bombing spells.

Though his guilty conscience told him that he couldn't leave Ron like that and just go to bed, there was not an ounce of strength left in his body to argue that true statement. However, just when he was about to agree, something jumped inside his stomach.

"There's something I have to do first" he said, suddenly alert again.

"What is it? Whatever it is, I'm sure I can take care of it" Hermione said, placing her palm on Harry's chest to stop him when she realized he was about to start walking back towards the entrance.

"This is something I have to do myself." Harry replied, shaking his head.

"Last time you said that, you walked into a death sentence in the Forbidden Forest." she responded, raising an eyebrow.

"It's nothing like that, I promise." he assured her, but the look on her face let him know that she wouldn't yield without a satisfying answer. So he looked around to make sure no one was listening, and lowering his voice he confessed "I need to get Snape's body back."

Hermione's lips parted in disbelief, giving her an unfamiliar aspect of puzzlement. However, the genuine look on Harry's eyes was enough to convince her that he was telling the truth. And, whatever the reason was behind that strange request, she guessed it was valid enough if he was willing to postpone his much needed rest for it.

"I'll go, then" she decided, finally lowering her hand.

"But I..."

"Harry" she interrupted him with an exasperated tone. "I know you just defeated the most powerful wizard of all times, but when are you going to get into that thick skull of yours that you don't have to do it all alone? If it weren't for us..."

"You're right" he agreed, surprisingly fast. He didn't have the energy to get into an argument right now, least of all with a witch who knew how to use her logic better than anyone. "Just… make sure to place him somewhere… private." he asked quietly.

"Of course" she nodded. Though she didn't understood the sudden sympathy that Harry was feeling towards a man he had always hated, she knew it wasn't random. Snape had given him something moments before dying. Harry was yet to share what he had revealed, but clearly it had been enough to make him at least respect the Potions master. Not that she needed any extra information to respect him. Despite what had transpired in the last two years, she had always had this feeling that Snape was much more than what they thought him to be… and apparently she had been right, even if she didn't know how yet.

However, Hermione also knew that most people at the castle wouldn't see it that way, specially those who had spent the last year under his mandate as a Headmaster. If he had been despised before, for his teaching ways and his treatment towards the students, she wasn't sure what they would do to his corpse now, with all the battle emotions still raw and boiling.

"I'll be discreet" she promised Harry, and with a sigh of relief, he walked up the stairs and disappeared into the hallway.

Going towards the hole where the main door used to be, Hermione felt grateful for her newly acquired mission. Even though she was also exhausted, she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep with all the adrenaline still rushing through her veins. And anything was better than going back to the mourning sounds of the Great Hall, unable to do anything to help the people she loved. At least now she felt useful, and she held onto that feeling and focused all her thoughts in her task.

However, walking through the passageway to the Shrieking Shack, she began wondering if she should have at least let anyone know where she was going. The darkness and the humid underground smell gave her goosebumps, and she wondered if it was possible that any Death Eaters had tried to find a safe hiding spot within those tunnels. She shook her head, reminding herself that only very few people knew about the existence of that passageway. However, the Shrieking Shack…

She cast a disillusionment spell on herself, and also a silencing charm. She walked slowly over the wooden floor, flinching at every sound, but apart from those of the creaking walls and a solitary magpie, the place was empty. "Homenum revelio" she murmured, but her wand indicated no human presence. Relieved, she went towards the spot where they had left Snape a few hours ago. When she saw his dark figure laying on the floor, she paused.

It wasn't like she was scared of a dead body at this point. Granted, this particular body didn't look just harmlessly asleep, as did most of the ones who had been hit with a killing curse and now laid on the Great Hall's floor. The gruesome wound on Snape's neck, with the dark clots of blood staining his robes and floor, was certainly a shocking view. But she had seen similar or even worse during the past few months, and hours.

She shook her head, scolding herself for her old habit of feeling such reverence for her teachers. She was a grown woman now, and she had left way behind those days when the little muggle-born girl she had been, looked at her wizard teachers as some sort of deities whose approval would seal her fate. Of course, she would always respect those who had share their knowledge with her avid mind, but after the war and the battle, now more than ever she was aware of their very human condition, and did no longer feel intimidated by the thought of merely touching them. Even the menacing, dark, Potions teacher.

So no. That wasn't it either. The thing that had stopped her in her tracks was a subtle, yet powerful eerie sensation that there was something going on there. As if something were still to happen, and not all was said and done. But that made no sense, right?

The man was dead. And there was no one else there. Both had been proved by her homenum revelio spell.

"Professor?" she called, against her better judgment. But, obviously, there was no answer.

Hermione gathered her courage and approached the lifeless body. She cast a couple scouring charms to clean up the man's appearance. Just because she wasn't much impressionable anymore didn't mean that she wouldn't spare anyone from having certain images inside their mind like she now inevitably did.

She was about to cast a levitating spell to bring the body back with her through the passageway, when she noticed Snape's eyes were half open. Again, she hesitated. But it didn't feel respectful to leave them like that, so, reluctantly, she kneeled beside his head and slowly took her hand to his face to close his eyelids.

Just when her fingertips touched his skin, a no longer deniable feeling of presence sent a chill down her spine and froze her in the spot. With her breath caught in her lungs, she turned her head around, almost expecting to find Voldemort himself standing right behind her with his massive snake ready to turn her into its breakfast.

But instead, she found the silvery, almost blinding light of a big patronus, very still, watching her every move.

Hermione looked around anxiously, wondering who had cast it. "Harry?" she called, suspecting he might have followed her there after all, though she immediately realized the patronus couldn't belong to her friend, since the deer figure had no antlers. It was a doe.

She rose to her feet, carefully stepping away from Snape's body. The creature followed her with its gaze.

Hermione had seen many patronus before. She had seen Harry's deer several times, big, and powerful and amazing. She had also seen Ron's terrier, and Ginny's beautiful horse, and the rest of the DA members, though they were all weaker in power than Harry's. And of course, her own otter, which was small but she was particularily proud of. However, not even Harry's deer had ever made her feel like she was standing before a breathing, living creature like this bright white doe in front of her now. It didn't look like a mere charm. It was hauntingly beautiful and alive.

"Who…?" she asked, her words drifting into the silence.

She then remembered something Harry had told her when they were in the Forest of Dean. He had said that a doe patronus had guided him to Gryffindor's sword on the frozen lake. Back then, she had wondered if it might have been Harry's intuition guiding him, taking the shape of that patronus in his mind, for she knew for sure there was no one else there. But they had more pressing concerns at the moment, so she had just forgotten about the whole thing, though Harry seemed sure that someone had come to their help that day. What if he had been right?

For a second, her heart pounded strongly in her chest to the perspective of it being Dumbledore, through some kind of unknown magic... but soon she realized that Dumbledore's patronus was a phoenix. Maybe Aberforth? No, he had already denied being responsible for the sword's appearance. Though it had been a long shot, the sharp sting of disappointment in the pit of her stomach made her realize how much she had actually wanted to believe that the old wise wizard was not totally gone for good.

But before she could ponder any longer, the patronus suddenly moved.

Hermione held her breath as it slowly walked towards her. "There is no way this is dark magic" she reminded herself when she felt a surge of fear at the perspective of it coming closer. Whatever it was, it was almost certainly not harmful... though somehow she could perceive a strong essence emanating from the creature, which went way beyond the pure light magic of a regular patronus; it felt filled with emotion, complexity and power.

The doe was almost beside her now. It raised its head to look her in the eye, and Hermione felt a clear familiarity in its gaze, as if she was looking at someone she had known for a very long time. She then felt the firm silent instruction to step back, and she felt compelled to obey.

The glowing creature walked past her and to the dead Professor. It lowered its head to his chest, as if to sniff it carefully.

The young witch hesitated. Should she shoo the animal away from the body?

But then, something strange happened. The doe pressed its snout to Snape's heart, and Hermione saw a fine strand of white light entering the Professor's ribs. Her eyes widened as the strand became thicker and more bright, and she could see that there was a flow of light from the patronus to the lifeless man. Slowly but steady, the figure of the doe seemed to be depleting itself of energy and transferring it to the wizard.

Hermione had never witnessed anything like that. She didn't know what to think. Whoever was casting this patronus was clearly attempting to heal or resurrect the dead Potions master. But that didn't make sense! Whatever wizard or witch powerful enough to cast such a spell would most certainly know that the man was too far gone and no magic means could bring him back at this point.

Nevertheless, she observed mesmerized as the doe continued its task, transferring its magic to his chest until its back legs began to fade, followed by the shape of its body and front legs, until all that was left was a formless white mist that concentrated in one particular spot, pulsating while floating a few inches over the Professor's ribs. She looked at that tiny sun of silver light, and for reasons she couldn't understand, her eyes began to tear up.

She felt a warmth enveloping her entire being, as if she was suddenly in the presence of something much bigger than herself, something that made all the horrors she had lived through and witnessed pale in comparison to a much stronger, reassuring sensation that all would be well, that nothing was lost, that she was safe, and whole, and found.

She could have stayed in that state forever, but it only lasted a few seconds. All of a sudden, the light dropped and entered the body's chest in a swift move.

And then, Severus Snape gasped.