Chapter 42

As Severus passed back through the Atrium, he realized it was pretty crowded. He also realized that he was the reason. He'd seen very few people since his return. People were pointing and starting to come forward. When he saw Rita Skeeter heading his way, he quickened his pace and stepped into a Floo back to Hogsmeade. He had decided to go to Hogsmeade first and get Hermione a surprise from Honeydukes; then he headed up the road to Hogwarts and found his wife smiling at him from the other side of the gate.

"Hermione, are you okay? It's a long walk down here." He used his wand to lower the wards and open the gate and then reset them before drawing her into the crook of his arm."

"I'm fine, and the exercise is good for me. I was anxious to hear about what happened."

He handed her a little bag of chocolate truffles. "For you, my wife."

She opened and peered into the bag. "You've been reading my mind, again," she cried out as she plunged her hand into the bag.

He watched her with a smile as she devoured the first chocolate and then started on the second. He took her arm and told her about his visit to Azkaban as they walked slowly back to the main door of the castle.

"That's progress, but what about Sartoff? What kind of man is he?"

"My research at the Ministry told me he's meticulous in his own life. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders. He's somewhat germaphobic, though. Maybe he never actually visits his prison. He may be leaving the everyday work to his lackeys. They may be the ones to hold responsible."

"Maybe physically, but he is responsible. Maybe we need a new warden," she said, feeling warm and secure against him.

He said, "I hope you don't mind. I went to see Arthur; he's back at work. I mentioned the bonding ceremony."

She grinned. "You did? What did he say?"

"Judging by his reaction, if Molly is half as excited, we will not be able to contain her." He grinned back at her.

Hermione stopped him and threw her arms around him and gave him a kiss. "I'm so glad you asked. I've been thinking about it all day. I want it to be soon, Severus. With the baby coming, it's a little behind schedule already."

"You think," he said with a smirk. Drawing her to his side again, they continued up the grassy slope toward the castle. "We can visit them next weekend and make the arrangements. You should get a hold of Harry and Ginny and tell them about the bonding and the baby as soon as possible. As it is, they may know already. I didn't exactly ask Arthur to keep it a secret."

Hermione gave him the cat-that-ate-the-canary look. "I spoke to them through the Floo after lunch today. I didn't want to tell them about the bonding until I had a chance to talk to you again. I'm glad you asked Arthur. Ginny is beside herself with glee, and Harry is trying to put the idea of a baby and you and me really doing it together out of his head." She giggled.

Severus stopped. "He had to know."

She burst into uncontrollable giggles. "Of course he knew. He just didn't want to think about it. What man wants to think of his sister doing it?"

"Sister?" Severus cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Of course. He's like my brother...always has been. And he was so far behind us all in the relationship department. Ginny had to go after him before he got the courage to tell her he cared about her, too. He's always been a little prudish."

Severus laughed. "Hermione, he can't be to prudish with all those kids." He was watching some flyers over the Quidditch field. "Hey, I think that's Albus and Scorpius. Let's go watch them."

They climbed into one of the stands and watched as the boys raced each other for the snitch. Then they practiced hitting the Quaffle through the hoops.

"Albus really does have talent...like his father." Severus couldn't help but see Harry flying through the air with Draco fast on his heals all those years ago. Looking back over at Hermione, who was whistling and screaming, made him marvel at his life. She was a grown woman well into her childbearing years. How odd the passage of time had been in his life. He glanced back at the Harry look-a-like and felt nothing but pride and happiness. A tinge of regret hit him at what might have been between him and Harry had he been supportive, but he had to remind himself that time was gone and there was no time for regret. Things were much better now, and he had been given the time to make up for a lot of the wrong done. When the practice was over, they went to dinner in the Great Hall. Severus and Hermione sat close to Minerva and Poppy, telling them about the location for the bonding and letting Minerva know about the baby.

"What! A baby, already? Don't you two breathe a word to the students until the bonding ceremony is over. We must set a good example," she warned, but her cheeks had color in them, and she looked ecstatic.

"Yes, Minerva," Hermione said, laughing at her.

Severus gave her a stinging smirk. "We are married, and they know that." But he couldn't stop the edges of his lips from curling up in a tight smile.

Minerva laughed. "Yes, but the purebloods don't recognize that as a marriage. It's shocking how separate their lives are from the physical world we live in. Most of them have had little or no contact with Muggles. It's like an alien world to them."

Hermione nodded. "I'm afraid most of them take their Muggle studies as fiction. Maybe we should have field trips."

Those listening to them at the table suddenly turned with a gasp.

Hermione stared back. "What did I say?"

Minerva said, "Field trips are impossible. Underage wizards do too much uncontrolled magic to trust them in an open environment like that. No, I'm afraid we are doing as much as we can to teach them about Muggles."

"What about TV and movies? Those would give them a better idea."

"You know we have a separation of technology, Hermione," Severus reminded her.

"I know, but maybe it's time for a change," she told her listeners. "How can our students learn about Muggles from picture books? They need to touch and feel the objects and see how they work. They need to watch movies and experience the Muggle world. I'm not saying take first years out on the town, but 5th to 7th years might be able to control themselves in an outing. We are all part of the same world."

"Well, hmmm," Minerva said, giving Severus a look that told him to control his wife.

He smirked at her.

"I will take the idea into consideration, Madam Snape." The old witch got to her feet. "I will see you all tomorrow."

Poppy stood. "I'll walk with you. Good night, Severus, Hermione." She smiled warmly at them and winked at Severus.

Hermione said, "I might as well be talking to a brick wall. When you are Headmaster, we will discuss it again." She got to her feet, and they left the dinning room and headed toward their rooms.

Severus smiled. "She has lived many, many years, Hermione, and seen many things. Our people are safer the further we stay away from Muggle society. Do you want our people exploited or hunted again?"

Hermione shook her head and blinked away her tears. "No, I don't want that. I wouldn't want to put our people through any more strife now that they are rebuilding their lives."

He hugged her close. "I know you want both your worlds to be one, Hermione, but the world is not yet ready. Let us take on only one cause at a time."

Hermione said. "The prison is your cause; but you're right, I have other things to be concerned about now: my job, the bonding, and our baby." She grinned up at him. "You have no idea how happy I am about our baby, Severus."

He smiled down at her as they reached her classroom door. "I think I do. I'm very happy, too. I'm not sure I want to take up a cause like Azkaban right now. But this cause may save lives and stop horrible suffering. It's not something that can be put off."

"You're right," she said as he closed the door behind them. "You need to start this as quickly as possible. Try hard not to step on too many toes. Try to let the guy in charge be the one who thinks it's his idea to implement changes. If you find someone is well funded and taking money for his or her own purposes, then have the person tried. But if it's lack of funds, then petition the Ministry for them."

"Sound advice, my wife," he said as he undid the buttons of his cape and frock coat. He hung the garments in the closet. Hermione slipped out of her robes and handed them to him. After hanging those up, as well, he turned to her. She stepped up to unbutton the buttons of his shirt and leaned in to kiss his chest and run her fingers lightly over the hair on his chest. She smiled up at him when his nipples hardened. "You like my touch, husband?"

"I love all your touches." He moaned as she ran the tip of her tongue over his nipple. "Your touch is like a touch of heaven... every one of them." He buried his fingers in her hair, and he closed his eyes.

She smiled and then said, "Come to bed, Severus. I'll show you a slice of heaven tonight."

******

Before Severus knew it, he was back standing before the gates of Azkaban. Grimmley was not there. Another man checked him over and led him to the warden's office. The minute Severus stepped through the door, he knew there was a serious problem. The floor was covered in plush carpeting, and there were walls of windows overlooking the sea. The sea, without any view of the prison itself, was quite beautiful. The office furnishings were of finely carved, rich ebony wood.

A large, well-fed man stood as he entered and held out his hand. "Professor Snape, what can I do for you? Welcome, would you like a drink?" He waved his hand toward a cabinet filled with fine wines and liquors from around the world.

Severus gave him a withering look. "No, thank you. I have some matters of grave importance to discuss with you."

The man had sweat along his hairline, and he waved his hand to the leather chair that sat before his desk, then he took his chair. He reached for his own drink, and Severus caught a whiff of very fine whiskey. "Of course, what is it you want?"

"Sir, I had occasion to visit Lucius Malfoy a few times this last couple of months. He had information I needed. His physical condition was deplorable, and his cell conditions were even worse. It was not fit for rats...let alone a man. Sir, have you been downstairs recently? Do you visit the men and women incarcerated here?"

"I have employees who do that sort of work. I trust them to take care of the prisoners."

Severus sat forward and gave him another withering look, and the man cringed. "Sir, I looked into a cell yesterday, and there was an obviously dead man inside! Are these people not checked on? They should be given medical care and bathing privileges."

The man's eyes were no longer friendly. "They are prisoners. They are here because their crimes against the wizarding world are horrific and barbaric in most cases." He stood and went to look out over the sea. "You have no idea how difficult it is to be in charge of the dregs of our society."

"You seem to have made yourself comfortable," Severus accused nastily.

"This job pays well, and I must survive this situation," he said, taking another drink from his glass.

Severus stood. "If you need help getting funds to take better care of your prisoners, I will petition the ministry. But sir, if you are using the monies for your own purposes or your men are skimming from the basic needs of those men and women in your care, Merlin help you. The condition of the prison below us is not fit for rats. I suggest you make yourself inspect that which you are guarding; otherwise you may well find yourself in the cell next to Lucius." He turned and left the office.

Sarkof gulped and glared after him. "Tarkov!"

"Yes, sir," called a burly man as he stepped into the room.

"That man is a danger to all of us. See that he does not leave. I will not have him take away what I have here." He turned and fished a perfumed handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his nose.

"But that's Snape. He's a bloody dangerous Death Eater." The man obviously was afraid.

"There are no Death Eaters. There are only half-starved men. Now go before he leaves here. Make it look like an accident."

Tarkov nodded, and his eyes bulged with the thought of coming up against a known hero and one-time Death Eater. He backed out of the office and turned, drawing his wand as he went after Severus.

Severus was a trained spy whether his life called for his talents right now or not. He'd wanted to be prepared to fight his way out if necessary. Knowing most of the prison was under a magical dampening field, he'd visited George Weasley at his shop earlier that day. He'd explained what he needed and discovered the man was quite a genius. He'd given him a number of distraction bombs and one-time spells that would work under any circumstance. Severus had also bought a second wand, which he'd turned over to the guard. His own wand was taped against his arm, and he drew it now as he stepped to the stairs from the posh upper floor. He brandished it behind him, Incarcerous, and discovered it worked up here. The guard who was rounding the corner was bound with magical ropes, and he fell onto the floor. He then said, "Petrificus Totalus." He then pocketed his wand, knowing he would not have to worry about his back, and took several items from his inner coat. The items magically inflated to full size in the light. One was a staff of hard wood. He knew this one would be very handy for his escape and held onto it tightly.

Severus headed down the stairs as an alarm went off. He brandished the staff, and the guard coming around the corner was dispatched with a strong hit to the side of his head. As Severus rounded the floor where Lucius was kept, he ran to the door, pushed open the food slot, and tossed a number of items into the room. They would expand into containers of food and water, and it was more than enough to keep the man alive and safe while he brought help. He then slapped what looked like a simple ball of rubber onto the door. It immediately expanded like a spider's web, encasing the door and wall around Lucius' cell, making an impenetrable wall. This would protect him. The warden knew he'd come to see Lucius, and he would not have Lucius bear the brunt of the man's anger. He also knew taking Lucius with him would earn him a cell in Azkaban. In the next hall, he lobbed one of George's darkness bombs. He slipped on an odd pair of glasses that penetrated the darkness and ran, holding the staff before him.

He'd reached the main hall and gate. He barely escaped a solid hit from a curse sent his way. He felt it glance off his left shoulder, and his shoulder went numb. He lobbed another item that looked like a grenade at the men who stood there smiling, confident that they had him. The stunned look on their faces as a force field of energy hit them and knocked them out was priceless. He brandished his wand, holding his other arm against his body, and blasted the door away. He heard shouts behind him and ducked to the side...but not before a curse sliced a long gash across his cheek. He was into the salty, damp air, and the cut stung like fire. Firing several spells behind him, he Apparated away.

Hermione cried out with alarm when Severus appeared and stumbled against the gate. She had been waiting for him. When she saw the blood, she sent her Patronus to Hagrid to come help; it would go on to Poppy after.

Severus slumped to his knees. Exhaustion from the excitement combined with the growing numbness of the spell prevented him from standing any longer. Hermione opened the gates and was down on the ground kneeling before him. "Severus, what's wrong? What hit you?" She tore some cloth from her robe and pressed it to the cut on his face.

"Stunned... numb... arm..." he stammered. He could feel the ground shaking and wondered what it was, but then he heard Hagrid's loud voice, calling as he came bounding up. The fact that the giant could cause an earthquake would have made him laugh under different circumstances. But he felt his sight fading, and he pitched forward.

Hermione shouted, "Hagrid, we must get him to the castle!"

Hagrid stooped and gathered the unconscious wizard into his arms and ran toward the castle. Hermione followed. Her heart was beating fast, and she tried hard to stuff the fear down. She knew the cut wasn't dangerous. But the spell, whatever it was, was taking his strength...and that scared her.

Poppy was coming from the front door as they neared.

"Hagrid, put him on the ground. We cannot wait to get him to the infirmary," she instructed.

Hagrid laid the unconscious wizard on the ground and stood back.

Poppy was already chanting a spell when Hermione, puffing tiredly, caught up with Hagrid. Minerva came from the castle, and students were now streaming from the door, making a circle around them. She saw the pale, confused faces of Albus and Scorpius in the crowd.

Minerva grabbed onto Hermione, lending her support as they watched.

Lisa, thank you for your beta work. You are invaluable to me.