Chapter 22

Finally, in this chapter, Severus goes to talk to Draco.

When Hermione arose the next morning, she was alone. She had known that Severus had early hall duty, but waking alone in their bed was shocking. He had not woken her to say goodbye. Was he still upset with her? She turned toward his pillow and found a red rose lying across it, which made her smile. He had left his love after all, but she still couldn't stop the sinking feeling that she had somehow damaged their relationship with her careless words.

She bathed and dressed and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast. Severus was already sitting in his chair. He rose, took her hand, placed a chaste kiss on her cheek, and then held her chair out for her.

"Severus, I missed waking with you. It seemed like the life had gone out of our rooms. Thank you for the beautiful rose."

"I did mention I had early hall duty." His voice was very like his old self, formal and non-familiar, and it brought tears to Hermione's eyes.

Hermione said, "Yes, you did." She turned away to add food to her plate...food that she found she couldn't eat.

Severus could hear the strain in her voice and he thought, Now what did I do? She told me it was okay to be my grumpy old self, and now she's hurt by it.

He reached over and took her hand. "Hermione, neither of us are hungry. Let me walk you back to the classroom." He stood, and Hermione nodded. He took her hand, and they walked out of the Great Hall, not noticing the concerned looks on everyone's faces.

In the corridor, Severus slipped his arm around her and drew her close. He kissed her deeply and said, "I missed waking with you, too. But it was so early and we'd had such a long weekend I wanted you to get as much rest as you could. If you wish, I will never leave our rooms again without a goodbye."

Hermione clung to him and said, "I'm sorry, Severus."

"What for, my love?" he asked. Apparently, marriage was going to be a bit harder than he had thought.

"For last night." She sniffed, and he fished a handkerchief out of a pocket in his robe and handed it to her.

"You already apologized," he replied. But he knew it wasn't all right yet. He didn't know how to fix it right now.

"You're still hurt," she cried.

"Yes, Hermione, I am still hurt." He figured honesty was the best policy. Another half-truth or a falsehood would only damage them further. "But I will get over it, and you must know that nothing you say will ever make me not love you with all my heart." They reached the classroom, and he locked the door behind them.

He turned and took her by the arms and tilted her chin up to look into his face. "If you have some reservations about me, if you have some tiny part of me that you do not trust, I will earn that trust back."

His face was hard, and yet Hermione could see the fear in his eyes. He was scared!

"Severus, I do trust you. I do. I don't know where that came from. Look at what you have done for me. You've endured so much pain...I didn't realize how much. You have the right to hurt and be frightened that Scorpius might hurt you again. I guess women don't realize that men can fear further torture. It made my attack from Lucius seem trivial."

He took her by the arms and peered down into her face. "Nothing about what happened to you was trivial, Hermione. You have a right to feel fear, rage, and pain. We can get through this together."

"I feel guilty that I didn't see that you have a right to mistrust that boy. I will not ask any more of you than you can take. If you feel something more is needed to ensure your safety and mine, then do it," she tried to explain.

Her words made Severus feel a bit better. She would let him choose. He also knew he would allow Hermione time to help the child. He would try not to give in to tactics practiced before the war. This was a new era and a new life. If it was to be different, then he would have to try to make it different by his actions. He would try forgiveness for now. He would try to encourage and work with the boy, but he would not for a second relax around him."

"This is our new life together. I will try for a time. But if I see one more thing out of line from that boy, I will not risk either of us again."

Hermione nodded and held on to the front of his robe. "Agreed." She tugged him till he bent, and they kissed again. She buried one hand in his hair while the other one went down his back and squeezed a buttock.

"Woman," he said when the kiss broke off. "If you do not cease, I will be forced to cancel your first class and take you back to bed."

She sighed. "We are newlyweds. That's what they do: shag themselves senseless."

He grinned. "They do, do they? Well, sadly, we have jobs, and the hordes will be banging down your door at any minute." He kissed her again and slipped his hand down her back to squeeze her buttock. "Now we are even," he said as she groaned against him.

She giggled, and it made his heart feel even lighter. They would get through this. It would be all right again.

"Be gone with you then," she laughed. "I'll see you at lunch."

Severus kissed her again and then unlocked and opened the door. "Tonight," he promised her.

He left the room and went out of the building to the gates at Hogwarts and Apparated to the Ministry. He'd asked Minerva if he could go to see Draco. He had made an appointment with Draco early that morning. He supposed he should have mentioned it to Hermione before he left. But the moment of frivolity between them had felt so good he hated to destroy it. It would only make her worry."

He walked through the huge main entrance. It hadn't changed much. He found people stopped to stare at him. The public had gotten wind of his return. This was his first appearance in wizarding society other than the hospital.

He saw a few former students heading his way. He turned to glare at them, and they turned away. He smiled to himself: He still had it.

He found the department Draco worked in and was shown into his office.

Severus was surprised by Draco's appearance. He was tall and broad shouldered now, but his eyes looked haunted and his face was gaunt.

"Draco." He came forward and extended his hand.

Draco stood with a weary smile on his face. "Uncle Severus," he said. His handshake was firm, and he held on until Severus drew him into a hug and felt the man hold on a bit more than was necessary. Time didn't change much. The "boy" still needed support, and he hadn't had much from his father in years."

Severus pushed him back gently. "Are you alright?"

Draco ran his hand through his short hair and shook his head. "I'm at a loss as to how to deal with Scorpius." He stepped back. "Please have a seat. I am sorry for the pain he caused you. Merlin, Uncle, you don't look any older than the last time I saw you. I have more grey hair than you do."

Severus was pleased to see that Draco still cared about him. That was going to go a long way with this situation. "With a son and a father like yours, I've no wonder you're going grey." He leaned in toward Draco. "I'm sorry about your mother's death and that your father felt so betrayed. It was the only thing that would save all wizarding kind from a terrible reign of terror."

Draco nodded. "I know. I don't think it was your betrayal that twisted my father; it was mother's death. Father really wasn't a hardcore Death Eater. He only wanted power, and he became disillusioned by the horrible things he was asked to do. My father loved my mother more than anything in existence. When she died, he lost his mind. He needed someone to blame, and your name just fit in that slot."

"Life was difficult for us after the war," Draco continued. "We lost a great deal, and it made him more bitter. I had to work, and Pansy does, too. We didn't realize how he was poisoning our son. Scorpius had nothing to compare the knowledge to, and so he took his beloved grandfather's word as truth." He got up and paced the room. "I have tried to explain to him, and Pansy has tried. But we fear it is too late. He will not listen to us."

Severus stood and went to stand eye to eye with him. "Draco, I will not sugarcoat this for you. I mean no disrespect to all you have gone through, but I cannot allow Scorpius to hurt Hermione or me again. It's a miracle students haven't been hurt as well."

"I heard you were with Granger. How did that happen?" Draco asked, suddenly afraid to hear what Severus might wish to do about his son.

"She found me. I will tell you about it. Let me finish talking about Scorpius first." He looked into Draco's face. "I proposed to Hermione that we alter Scorpius's mind and relocate him in a different life."

"What? Surely there is another way." Draco, who was already pale, turned ghost white.

"He is my only child, my only son, Uncle," he pleaded. He sat at his desk and covered his face with his hands. "He was once a gentle and kind boy."

Severus was surprised the man didn't threaten him but seem to take his word as law.

"You would allow me to do that without a fight?" Severus said a bit forcefully.

"Scorpius will end up like father, dying in Azkaban. I do not want to see this happen, and Pansy and I have talked about just this sort of thing. Uncle, is there no other way?"

"Draco, with your permission, Hermione and I wish to try to reach him. I want to try kindness at first, with encouragement. If he responds, I will not alter his thoughts. But I will be keeping a close eye on him. I want to show him what life was like when I was a Death Eater. Let me share with him some of the horrors of the times your father and I shared. If he does have a kind heart under the anger that now seems to rule his life, maybe we can find him and turn him back."

Draco sat up and shot Severus a hopeful look. "You would do that and the Mu.... Granger will agree. I'm sorry, Uncle," he said, having received an angry glare that had stopped his words. "Old habits and bad habits are hard to break."

Severus nodded. "I do understand. I should inform you that Hermione Granger is my wife, Madam Snape."

"What!" Draco exclaimed, gobsmacked. He actually grinned at him. "You work fast, Uncle."

Severus stood. "Circumstances brought us together, and it seems right."

Draco stood and held out his hand over the desk. "Congratulations, Uncle."

Severus shook his hand and squeezed it as well, and then the men sat down again. "Thank you, Draco. I will do my best for Scorpius." He went on to tell Draco how Hermione had found him and what had happened since. Finally he stood. "Hermione and I will be having a wizarding bonding for our friends. I would be honored if you would attend."

"I would like that, Uncle. Please give Hermione my regards."

"I will let you know when we have decided a time." Severus turned to open the door and then turned back. "Draco, I am proud of you for taking the higher road here. Send me a binding contract for permission to take your son under my tutelage. Have Pansy sign it, as well. I want there to be no question upon what has been agreed upon today." He then swept from the room.

Draco watched after him with a bit of hope in his eyes.

******

Severus returned to Hogwarts and made a couple rounds before meeting Hermione for lunch. He sent Darby to ask her to come to their rooms for lunch and had the house elf bring them food there.

Hermione came in with her eyes glittering with desire. "Severus, couldn't you wait for tonight?" She came forward with a seductive air.

Severus groaned. He'd been so happy about Draco's cooperation that he'd forgotten about their teasing this morning and how Hermione might interpret the invitation. He had no desire to make her angry again.

She saw the look in his eye and stopped. "I thought we were okay this morning."

"Come, Hermione, eat some lunch. I probably should have told you I was going to go see Draco this morning, but I enjoyed our...."

"You what! You left here with out telling me?" she accused.

"I'm sorry. As I was saying," he said a voice that was a little louder and deeper, "I was so enjoying our banter this morning that I didn't want to make you concerned."

"Well," she said, "you're in one piece. I don't see any blood, and I'm not your keeper. I would appreciate it if you'd tell me where you're going if you're leaving here, but I won't demand you do. I know you value your freedom as much as I do." She picked up one of the sandwiches and took a bite.

Severus sighed. He sat down and told her about his conversation with Draco.

Hermione reached out squeezed his hand. "I'm happy with your progress. Severus, I know you're doing this for me. I know it could put us in danger, but I feel this is right. We are teachers because we care about children and want them to learn and grow to be good, respectable, productive witches and wizards. It seems like giving up on Scorpius is the wrong thing to do."

Severus took her hand pulled her around the small table and sat her in his lap. "You're right; that's what teachers are supposed to do. I wasn't a proper teacher. I didn't care about the students when I was here. For me, teaching was a job necessary to be Dumbledore's stooge. I hated teaching."

"You seem to enjoy it now." She ran a finger under the edge of his hair and tucked it behind his ear, and then she kissed a path over his cheek.

"It's because I see how much you enjoy it. The student becomes the teacher... Hermione, we must be in class in 20 minutes." His breathing was becoming uneven as her hands were moving over his body and undoing his belt.

"There's enough time," she whispered, releasing him. When she found he was already hard and extended, she pulled her robes up and vanished her knickers. He helped slide her down and over him. Their bodies rocked back and forth on the chair, and it creaked with their combined weight. Their cries rang out at the same time, and she slumped against him with her arms wrapped around his neck. "Oh, Merlin, Severus, you are amazing."

"I'm not as amazing as you are...or beautiful. You're making all my teenage fantasies come true, one by one," he murmured against her forehead.

"Well," she said, grinning at him, "you will just have to tell me about those. But turn about is fair play. If I make one of yours come true, you have to make one of mine come true."

Severus stood her on her feet, cleaned them up with his wand, and replaced her knickers. He put on his robe and kissed her flushed forehead. He said, "Come on, let's go be nice to the hooligans."

The class was waiting at the door, and Hermione waved them all in. "Sorry, Professor Snape and I had some business to conclude." Hermione caught Albus's blush. That boy was too smart for his own good.

"Today Jake will work with Albert, Rosie with Allison, and Albus with Scorpius..."

"What? I'm not working with him," Scorpius complained. "He's a Potter, and my family hates Potters."

"Then you will receive a zero for the day," Hermione said to him. "You can do this. You're brilliant, and you can learn to work with others. It's a quality that will aide you in the world of business."

Scorpius' grades were excellent, and Hermione knew the thought of getting a zero might convince him to work with Albus.

He didn't speak but nodded and went to the station where Albus was standing. Albus looked at her in concern, but she nodded to him.

She continued to name students and partners. When everyone was divided up, she put the recipe up on the board, and she and Severus walked around the room, carefully monitoring the students.

That was the beginning of the rehabilitation effort for Scorpius Malfoy.

Lisa, thank you so much for your fine beta work.

Becky and Angela, thank you for pre-reading and for your comments.