Chapter 17

Albus looked at the young man cradled in the even younger woman's arms and said, "Severus Snape was made strong by his experiences. It hardened him into that amazingly talented spy. Voldemort took it all away from you. He left you little more than a child in a man's body. All the hardness, maturity, and pain that was Severus is gone. You don't have to hide your feelings like he did. Raven, what you are now is a wonderful, kind, feeling man. There's nothing wrong with that. If you and Hermione are successful, we can only hope that you will be able to integrate the two men you have been into a whole, kind, gentle man who has strength and leadership abilities."

"Leadership? What for?" he asked curiously.

Minerva stepped forward. "I always hoped you would one day fill my shoes here at Hogwarts."

"What? Be a headmaster?" He laughed. "You've got to be kidding."

"You already filled the position in the past for a short time. You did a good job considering the circumstances."

Raven got to his feet and pulled Hermione with him. "Hermione mentioned that. I can't fathom it." He laughed nervously.

Albus said, "Well, nothing can be done about it all unless you recover who you were. It's ironic that in doing so you could possibly help Harry...the same boy your other life was lived to save."

"Ironic," Raven said dryly.

Hermione, Minerva, and Albus laughed at his tone, which was so like his old self.

*******

Minerva gave Raven a magic backpack that was much like Hermione's bag. He watched gobsmacked as they packed item after item into the bag: a tent, tools, food, clothing for all kinds of weather, books, and potion's ingredients. They also spent a few hours teaching Raven to do spells that would return the items to their normal size and then reduce them back. Poppy came in the evening after dinner and taught Hermione and Raven to do some minor healing spells and Hermione to do some more serious spells. It was a lot to take in.

That evening as they sat before the fire in their common room, they looked carefully through the diary Snape had left Raven. There were other details about the caverns, such as the scent of sulfur and the sound of water dripping in the background. There were extensive notes taken on the sample of moss he had collected that day. And there were maps of the Carpathian Mountains and the areas in which the moss was common. It looked like Snape had spent several summer vacations hunting many of the areas of the mountains and eliminating a number of them. Hermione was grateful for the research included in the diary, and they made a plan based on the remaining areas that he hadn't had time to search.

"Of course, we will have no clue if Voldemort was able to conceal himself from Snape during those searches. He may not have known it was Snape, but he would have made his Lair as invisible as was possible with his extensive knowledge of magic. She was certain that Snape had also known some very serious concealment charms and was pleased he had included some of them at the end of the diary. There were a number of charms and spells that they might find useful in the search.

Raven began to kiss the back of her neck, and soon the book fell to the floor unheaded. He drew her into his lap and kissed her breathless and then slid his hand over her breasts, feeling the nipples harden beneath the robe's fabric. "Enough books for tonight," he whispered against her lips.

She moved to straddle his lap and pushed the robes away from his shoulder and kissed her way down his neck and across his shoulders. He lay back against the pillows and closed his eyes, and she made her way down his body. His fingers slid through her hair as she set his nerves on fire.

*******

They woke in the early morning hours, still wrapped up in each other's arms, on the couch in the common room. They had pulled a knitted blanket over them. Hermione, who was spooned against him, stretched; she loved feeling the length of his naked body against hers.

Raven ran his hand down her side and over her leg. She nearly purred with happiness. "I can't remember ever feeling so content," she whispered to him.

"Neither can I." He chuckled. "Not that I remember anything."

She turned to face him. "If Harry didn't need your help, I would not change who you are for the whole world. I will only hope that when you are Severus Snape again, you will also remember the bond we have formed."

"I also hope I remember. I will certainly make efforts to leave him as much of my memories as possible. Knowing how I feel when I am with you, I do not believe he will ever be happy unless he is with you."

"It's weird to speak of Severus as a totally different person...like he has his own body elsewhere." She caressed his face and placed tiny kisses along his jaw and the corner of his mouth. "You have his face and his scent, like his classroom, which I have always loved. The scent is like the spices of the potions he has brewed all his life. If for some reason he does not remember our time together, I swear I will make him. Raven, I swear to you." She slipped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck, and they both held on tightly until they had to dress for breakfast.

That morning after breakfast, Hermione found herself alone with Minerva in her sitting room while Albus had a private talk with Raven.

"Minerva, do you think I could teach here once all the stuff with Raven and me is settled?"

Minerva gasped and reached out to take the young witch's hands. "Oh, I would love that. If you come here, there is more chance of you and Severus working something out."

"You really love him like a son, don't you?" Hermione observed.

Minerva looked surprised. "I didn't think it showed."

"To me, yes." She added, "Minerva, Raven said when you hugged him, he felt as if a mother was hugging him." Hermione saw the old witch's eyes fill with tears.

"I nearly fainted when I saw him alive. He has been like a son to me. Mine are lost to me. They're off in their own worlds. They seldom communicate. Severus and I were student and mentor when he was young. We always kept our relationship a secret since I was a Gryffindor and he was a Slytherin. But we spent many evenings together. He needed someone so bad, Hermione. Yet I always felt I failed him, and I felt betrayed when he became a Death Eater. As the years went by, we were able to become friends of sorts, but I always mistrusted him. You have no idea how horrified I am to have not believed in him when he came back. Severus tried to make it up to me, with little things like the perfume, but I never quite forgave him for joining Voldemort. Yet I treasured it. I hope since I used it all the time he knew I still cared for him."

Hermione squeezed the old woman's hands. "I'm sure he did. He continued to make it for you, didn't he?" She sat back in her chair. "You have no idea how much I love him right now. I am so scared to lose him. He feels the same way, but our lives have never been ours. They were lived to serve and protect Harry. Even though he doesn't remember Harry, he still feels a sense of duty to him. It seems ingrained in him."

"I'm glad he feels that way. He may be Harry's only hope. I think the spell on Harry may be something similar. The link Voldemort and Harry shared through Harry's mark somehow had a similar effect...like Raven's Dark Mark."

"I think so, too," Hermione agreed.

Minerva said, "I'm glad you love Severus, Hermione. I never thought I'd see such happiness in his face. Whatever happens, I will be on your side if you need help to win him back later.

Later having said their good byes to Minerva and Albus, they returned to the little house on Spinner's End. They collected more things from the lab and took a few books from the library. That night, as they lay in Raven's bed, they didn't talk or make love. They just held each other and thought about the long, difficult trip they would begin in the morning.

*******

They packed their personal stuff in the morning. After warding the house, Hermione took a small box from her pocket and opened it. Inside was a small, metal paperweight. It had been charmed by Minerva to deliver them in a certain area of the Carpathian Mountains.

"Reach out your hand and touch it at the same time I do, and try not to be too afraid. There will be a yanking sensation at your belly button; when the motion stops, we will be in the mountains."

He looked pale but nodded and reached out his hand over the box.

"On three: one, two, three," she counted slowly, and then they were whisked away.

*******

They found themselves in a dense forest on the high cliff of a rocky mountain. Below a river ran through a deep gorge. It was cold, and the first thing they did was slip into warm coats. They already wore thick, turtleneck jumpers and heavy jeans. They had boots of fine leather lined with sheep's wool. They pulled their hoods up around their heads and turned to survey the area around them.

After setting up camp in a secluded area, they stepped into the tent to put their personnal things. Hermione laughed at Raven's shock when he saw the interior of the tiny tent and discovered the magically enhanced rooms. It was similar to the one the Weasley family had used all those years ago at the Quidditch World Cup. The tent had a huge family room and even a magical bathroom. There were several bedrooms, but they chose one and decided they would sleep together.

Raven said, "Minerva probably thought we shouldn't be sleeping together."

Hermione laughed. "You're probably right. You know she is very happy for us."

"Is she? I'm glad," he said.

Hermione waved her wand and the extra bed was replaced by a worktable. She unpacked some of the books, and they spent several hours looking through the cave sites in the same mountain range. They tried to figure out if some of the caves Snape had mapped were known caves.

They decided to start their search at Ursilor Cave in the Apuseni Mountains where they were. Granted this was an established cave with tours, but they had agreed to take the tour and use their wands to detect any magically enhanced areas. Though unlikely, it would have been like Voldemort to flaunt his lair right under Muggle noses.

The tour was fun, and Hermione and Raven where amazed at the wonderful rock formations. The cave housed some of the largest stalactites in Romania. It was like having a vacation day. Raven, having no memory of any of his former life's adventures, was like a kid in a candy factory pointing here and there and dragging Hermione to this and that formation. She didn't remember the last time she'd had such a fun day. After the tour, they sat at the entrance of the cave and had a small picnic lunch. Later that day they returned to the tent and studied the maps and the diary.

After a dinner of cheese, bread, stewed meat, and some wine, they slipped into their warm bed. Raven initiated the lovemaking, and Hermione welcomed it. They gently explored each other with gentle kisses and light touches. Hermione lay clutching the bed covers as he ignited the passion in her body. She thought, How will I ever live without him if he does not want me once we are successful? A tear leaked out the side of her eye, and Raven froze when his lips tasted the tear.

"Am I hurting you?" he asked, alarmed.

She groaned. "No, don't stop, please."

"You're crying," he accused.

"Raven, I'll tell you about it later. Please continue!"

"But..."

"Raven!" she cried out in exasperation.

He grinned. "Your wish is my command, my lady."

*******

Later, as he held her close, she whispered her fears to him, and she could tell by the way he clutched her that he felt the same way.