Things Have Changed

Hermione awoke, the bang of Severus's conjured glass slamming onto the night-table accomplishing what he had intended. She stretched her limbs, looking over at him. Severus sat on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands. Cautiously, Hermione went to sit beside him and slowly put her hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay? Do you need something?" she asked him quietly.

"Why are you here? Why do you even care if I might need something? You shouldn't have bothered healing my leg. I deserve every bit of pain that's given to me," he replied nastily. Hermione pulled her hand back and looked away.

"I care because you're my friend. I care because no matter what you've done, I know you do it only out of necessity..."

Severus hissed and stood up. He turned to face her with a glare that would have intimidated even the meanest student. "Necessity, you say. You think of murder as a necessity, one that I may be forgiven for doing in the name of war?"

Hermione scowled at him as she rose to her feet and advanced on him. Poking her finger into his chest, she countered, "This is war, Severus. I know you well enough to know you haven't murdered anyone. You might have saved someone from terrible, prolonged agony, but you haven't murdered anyone. You haven't killed anyone who wasn't dead to begin with! I can't honestly say I understand how hard this role is for you, but that's no reason to be nasty with me, your friend. But for the sake of our friendship and your sanity, bring it on. Give me everything you've got so you can get it out of your system and get back down to the business at hand!"

Severus stood there for a moment and then did something he just couldn't prevent...he reached out and grasped both sides of her head and pulled her into a fiercely passionate kiss. Hermione was frozen for only a moment before she wrapped her arms around his waist and gave as good as she was getting. It was several moments before Severus finally pulled away, just an inch or so, and rested his forehead against hers, both of them breathing deeply after moments of not breathing at all. "Thank you, Hermione," Severus said awkwardly.

Hermione stood there in bewildered silence as Severus let her go and went into his bathroom and locked the door. With a gentle touch of her fingertip to her swollen lips, Hermione walked slowly into her own room to get ready for the day. As she closed her door and locked it with a flick of her wand, her mind could only form one thought. What was that about? she thought, astounded.

~{}~

Hermione controlled her breathing and chastened herself as she made her way to the large dining room where the Order was meeting. She chose a chair at the back of the room and avoided looking at anybody. She knew Severus wasn't there yet, but she also knew that as soon as he joined them her face was likely to turn a color that would shame a red rose.

Sure enough, the moment she noticed his silent entrance she blushed and looked away from him. During the brief moment when their eyes connected, she saw the smirk hiding behind his carefully serious visage. Severus stalked to the head of the table and called the meeting to order.

"I asked Remus to let me speak first so I could apologize for my failure to warn you all about what happened late last night. There was no way I could have warned anybody without giving away my position as spy. I know it will not comfort most of you when I say how truly sorry I am for my... part in the attacks."

Severus looked around the table, his eyes meeting a few sad faces, a few angry ones, but for the most part the Order was still in shock over the heavy blow it had received. "Fourteen good witches and wizards gave their lives yesterday. Thirty-seven were injured. But despite our great loss, we have to press on, if only to honor those we have lost," he said, bowing his head in a moment of silence. When he lifted his head, he pulled his wand from his pocket and the list of Portkey instructions from his other pocket. With a quick copying charm, a stack of the instructions piled up before him on the table. With another wave of his wand, they flew around the room to land in front of each person present.

"What you see before you is our final plan for the battle. Miss Granger and I have developed a strategy to get everyone to safety after the Avada-Bomb is thrown at the Dark Lord. We will need two volunteers. One person will need to make the Portkeys himself. Another will need to be our safeguard at the battle. This person will need to stand, Disillusioned, with the sole purpose of activating the Portkeys at the precise moment the bottled Avada-Bomb leaves Potter's grip...assuming he agrees to be the one who throws it. This person will have our lives in his hands. Are there any volunteers?" Severus asked, glancing around to see if anyone would raise a hand.

All the members looked at the sheets of parchment they had been given and considered the task before them. "I'll do it!" Molly finally replied firmly.

Severus nodded in her direction. "Very well. Now, who will volunteer to make the Portkeys? They must all be charmed with the spells listed on the parchment before you. It will be a painstaking task, and one that needs to be finished as soon as possible."

Remus and Hestia both raised their hands, agreeing to take on the task.

"Very well," Severus said with a flick of his wrist, recalling the parchments from everyone who had not volunteered. "Be sure to prepare yourself, Molly. Remus, Hestia, if you follow me after the meeting, I will show you to a room that has the supplies you'll need. Remus, the floor is yours."

Remus stood and took the spot at the head of the table, turning to face the room. "Before you leave, I would ask all of you to take a few moments to help us with those you brought here after the attacks last night. Some of them are well enough to go home, some will need to go to St. Mungo's. Others should recover just fine and will be given beds in the spare rooms upstairs. Molly will direct you as to who will go where. Also, I want to share this letter that came by owl just this morning. It's from Harry and Ron," he said happily.

Several people in the room began talking quietly, but Remus held up his hand for silence so he could read the letter.

Victory! We are coming home. Give us time to get there safely. We are tired, so make sure the ghoul is shut up properly.

Love, Harry and Ron

Molly started to cry, and the others exclaimed how happy they were that Ron and Harry, were safe. Arthur left the room immediately, dragging the tearful Molly with him. It was obvious that they intended to head for the Burrow in preparation for the boys' return.

Hermione smiled at their departing figures, then met Severus's blank stare. Remus cleared his throat and formally dismissed the meeting.

When Severus rose from his chair and swept out of the room, Hermione was swift to follow.

~{}~

When she entered the lab, she immediately went to work brewing more potions for the few wounded who would be staying at the Manor.

Severus looked up at her several times, but it was obvious that she didn't feel comfortable talking after their previous encounter. He put down his black eagle owl quill and walked over to her; he leaned his backside against the table next to her, arms folded, and waited for her to acknowledge his presence. He smirked, imagining how funny this might seem to her since this was how their whole association as Potions master and apprentice had started out in the first place; only now their roles were reversed.

Hermione sighed, put down her chopping knife, and looked up at him. "Yes?" she said, her voice betraying her nervousness.

"I think it might be prudent to discuss what happened this morning. Firstly, if I have offended you or overstepped some boundary, I sincerely apologize. Personally, all I have to say for my actions is that your passionate plea for me to vent as I wished... well, it caused a rather surprising reaction. But the way you responded to my actions leads me to believe you did in fact enjoy it."

Hermione smirked at him and replied, "Yes, I enjoyed what you did. It was a surprise to me as well, but I can truly say you didn't overstep anything. I'm still a bit stunned, but happy nonetheless."

Severus looked at her for a moment, and something was communicated between them more deeply with piercing looks than if anything had been said out loud. "Very well. Just for future reference, if I were to approach you again in such a manner, would you be receptive? Or would you rather we both kept our distance for the time being...especially since two people who care for you deeply, but loathe me, are to arrive soon?"

Hermione cocked her head to the side. Harry and Ron had been the last thing on her mind just then, but she realized it was smart of Severus to consider how her friends might react to whatever it was that was going on between him and Hermione. "It's very likely they wouldn't be happy to find us snogging in a corner somewhere. Since this development is so new, would you agree that we should keep any actions to ourselves for the time being? Besides, knowing you as I do, I imagine you'd rather not share something so personal with the lot of them anyway, at least not yet. Agreed?"

"Your reasoning sounds sensible to me, Hermione. And you're right, I would rather we avoid the tantrums that would ensue if they were to find us...as you say...snogging in a corner somewhere," he replied with a smirk, lightly grazing her chin with the tip of his finger. That simple act in and of itself startled the air out of her lungs. Her eyes focused on his intense gaze.

Severus and Hermione looked deeply at one another for a few moments before Hermione, her skin crawling with nervousness, cautiously lifted her face and pressed her lips ever so gently against his. Severus was shocked by her overture, but he didn't let that stop him from deepening their second kiss. Both of them held each other closely as they explored this new facet of their relationship. An unknown amount of time passed as they enjoyed the feeling of their passion. It was only when the timer for Hermione's cauldron alerted them that they finally pulled apart, both of them gasping for air.

"Well, it seems we have some work to attend to. Might I be so bold as to request a postponement of our... explorations?" Severus asked her, the tone of his voice promising a thrilling encore.

Hermione smiled as she picked up a silver stirring rod and started to blend the bubbling brew in counter-clockwise movements. "Yes, you may request a postponement," she replied, a chuckle escaping her when she thought of his adorable request.

Both of them retreated into their work. Neither bothered to mention Harry and Ron's homecoming. Later that night, after a dreamy goodnight kiss, they went to their respective rooms to sleep, though neither could avoid thinking about the sudden change between them.

The last thought that crossed Severus's mind as he drifted into a contented slumber was of the young woman who had turned his world upside down.

~{}~

"Mum! I'm starving," Ron bellowed as he brushed the ash from his clothes just before Harry appeared in the fireplace behind him and did the same.

"Ronald! Oh, my sweet Ronald! And Harry, dear! You're both home...and safe!" Molly sang happily as she rushed forward to hug and kiss them both. "Oh, look at you both! You've grown so much...and you look so peaky! Don't worry, my dears, I'll fix you some good food...it must have been rough out there on your own without proper meals for so long. Why don't you have a bath while I prepare you something? You're a bit ragged-looking from your travels," Molly said, the words rushing together in her effort to baby them both.

"Molly, dearest, give them a break. They've only just arrived, and I'm sure they'd like to relax for a bit," Arthur said as he came forward, pulled Molly off the boys, and hugged them himself.

"How was your mission? We received the letter, but naturally you couldn't divulge anything in case it was intercepted. I trust you were safe from any real danger while you..." Arthur began, only to be interrupted by Molly.

"Now who's pestering them? Honestly! Why don't you come tell us all about the mission while you sit and have something to drink in the kitchen? I can cook you something while I listen," she said insistently, pushing Harry and Ron in the direction of the kitchen. As soon as they were seated she served them some tea and biscuits and started to put a meal together.

"Mum, where's Hermione?" Ron asked curiously. "Harry and I were hoping she'd be here waiting for us," he said, his tone of voice reflecting his disappointment.

Molly pursed her lips disapprovingly as she busied herself with preparing the meal.

Arthur cleared his throat and answered for her. "She's busy at the moment, but she did want to be here when you arrived. You can see her when she has a moment tomorrow; in fact, I believe she plans to spend her lunch with you both at the Manor."

"Manor? Since when is Grimmauld Place called a Manor?" asked Harry, a confused look on his face.

"Oh my, Harry, we forgot you didn't know," said Molly, sitting down for a moment to address them both. "Harry, Grimmauld Place was destroyed in an attack not long ago. We had to relocate the Order; luckily Severus had an old Manor that not even Voldemort knew about. After the attack at Grimmauld Place, we salvaged what we could, but it wasn't much. The few things we were able to save are in boxes at Prince Manor," she finished quietly, waiting for the blank look to disappear from Harry's face, for him to respond to the news.

"No one was hurt, were they?" he asked quietly.

"Not that day, no. Have you two heard about the attacks that happened yesterday? I don't know if you've kept up with the Prophet, but attacks took place at Hogsmeade, Godric's Hollow, and the Ministry."

"Who... died?" asked Ron, his freckled face pale. "Hermione wasn't hurt, was she? Is that why she wasn't here? Mum?"

"No, Ron, she's fine. She's just busy with her... work, as I said. We did, however, lose fourteen people in the attacks, and thirty-seven were badly injured. Hermione was at the Manor with Remus and me when the injured came in, and with her help we healed them as best we could. But after things settled down, she had to spend extra hours brewing more healing potions since we'd run out...and that's in addition to the hard work she's been doing on the Avada-Bomb she and Severus created," Molly replied.

"Avada-Bomb? She created a bomb? Mum, why don't you start at the beginning while you make us that food? Obviously we've missed out on a lot, but I really am starving," Ron said so seriously that Harry and Arthur laughed while Molly chuckled and got up to finish preparing the meal. It was with rapt attention and a lot of questions that Harry and Ron listened to everything that had happened while they were gone. Almost everything. Molly and Arthur exchanged brief looks and skipped over the part about Hermione's capture.

After eating two large helpings of turkey sandwiches, fried potatoes, and fried squash, Harry and Ron went to bed; both of them were exhausted, but excited about being home.

The last image Ron saw in his head was of the happy reunion with Hermione that he expected to have the next morning.

A/N: I hope you guys have enjoyed this update. I was a bit 'iffy' about certain parts of it... but after re-reading it several times, I can't think of a thing I would want to change.

Please Remember To Review!!! *HUGS*