Seven

A/N: You've all been so patient, and you'll be rewarded for your patience next chapter, when this bus makes its first stop in Lemontown. If you don't like explicit sexual content, well, why the heck are you reading this? :D

As always, big sloppy kisses to those taking time to review, and many thanks for reading.

No beta, so all mistakes are my own.

Disclaimer: They are not mine, I just take them out to play.

*******

Shortly after Hermione tumbled through the floo at Harry and Ginny's cottage, she realized the fixing of her hair had done nothing. Harry gaped at her, his mouth opening and closing like a fish trying to breathe air, and Ginny dissolved into a fit of giggling. Hermione rolled her eyes at both of them before she flopped gracelessly onto the sofa.

"Date went well, I take it?" Harry asked dryly as he sat beside her.

"Was he any good?" Ginny asked, waggling her eyebrows at Hermione.

At the sharp memory of Steven's kisses, Hermione couldn't help the slightly goofy grin that appeared on her face. "Devastating."

"You'll have to tell me all..."

"No," Harry quickly interrupted. "Absolutely not. I care about the man, I'm thrilled he's alive, but I do not want to hear about what you two get up to in the sack."

"Well, we haven't made it to the bedroom...yet," she added with a wicked grin.

"Don't want to hear it!" Harry restated, looking for all the world like he was about to put his fingers in his ears.

"Had a lovely snog though."

"Stop!" Harry growled.

"Do you want a deflating drought for those swollen lips, Hermione?" Ginny asked, and then giggled again.

Hermione raised a hand briefly to the lips in question. "No. Makes me remember."

"Ugh!"

Both women giggled then until Harry stopped making disgusted faces. Seeing Harry's knapsack on the coffee table, Hermione remembered the reason for her visit.

"Harry, what was it with Steven and your book bag? It was almost as if he was hypnotized."

"Simple, really. Easy way for me to figure out if that was Severus."

Unzipping the bag, Harry reached his hand in and drew out a wand. It was clearly not Harry's supple holly wand. The wood was so dark it appeared black, the surface shiny, the grain of the wood so dense that it looked molded out of plastic. Ebony, thirteen inches, firm. She'd ever only seen one wand like it.

"Harry," she whispered, still staring at a wand she'd seen countless times, "how did you come by Snape's wand?"

"After the last battle, they couldn't find Snape's body. When things had calmed down, after the funerals, I went looking myself. Minerva was so upset about having to bury an empty casket and worried he'd been left lying around somewhere. I started in the Shrieking Shack. Merlin, Hermione, but that room was terrible. Blood all over the floor...so much blood. I cast a strong Lumos, thinking that if someone had transfigured the body, it might still be in the room. I didn't find it, and now we know why, but I did find his wand tucked up next to the wall. I'm not surprised no one had found it. I almost missed it myself."

"Why did you keep it?"

"I don't know. It was too late to bury it in his tomb. We couldn't find the body...I guess I felt like I needed to keep it safe, make sure it didn't end up lying in the mud somewhere."

"I understand. Merlin, no wonder Steven felt drawn to it. The wand chooses the Wizard. I'm surprised Steven didn't snatch that backpack right away from you."

"He was a bit distracted, being all jealous and all."

"I can't believe he's still alive," mused Ginny. "Not only alive, but snogging Hermione's socks off"

"Enough with the snogging talk!"

Hermione had a sudden thought and interrupted her friends before they got to arguing again.

"Harry, have you tried casting Priori Incantato on it?"

"Are you mad? I haven't done anything with it. It's an angry wand. Honestly, it doesn't even like me touching it. Either Snape had it warded, or it just hates me."

Gingerly, Hermione reached out a hand and picked up the black wand. She could immediately see what Harry meant. While the smooth wood didn't hurt her, she could feel the magical energy thrumming angrily beneath her fingers. As she held it, it bucked slightly in her hand.

"No, I'm not about to try a spell with this," she said, laying it back on the table. "Besides, Harry, if you can't manage it, I expect no one could. Pity though. The last spell cast might shed some light on what happened to Severus."

"It might at that," Harry agreed. "But you're wrong about no one being able to cast something simply because I can't. If it's warded, it could be warded against certain people or a group of people."

"Like students, for example?" Ginny said.

"We were in the Order, but we were still students technically." Hermione reached out a finger to touch the dark wood again and felt it thrum with power. "He lost it at the final battle. He wouldn't have had a chance to reset anything."

"Take it to Minerva tomorrow," Ginny said. "They were friends, even though he had to play the spy until the bitter end. Minerva might have warded her wand against him, but I doubt he would have done the same."

"Harry, do you want to come with me?" Hermione asked.

"No. I've got a day planned at St. Mungo's tomorrow. I'm going to find out all I can about memory losses, by both physical and magical means."

"What about your work?"

"I took some time off. We're not busy and I have time coming. Once we knew Steven was Severus, I wanted to be free to try to figure this all out."

"How about you, Gin?"

"Sorry. Unlike some slackers, I do have to work tomorrow. I'm afraid you're on your own."

After reminding Harry about their fake study session on Friday, Hermione headed home.

***

The next morning, she found herself back at the gates of Hogwarts. She hoped that the Headmistress wouldn't be too busy to see her. While it was true that Steven was in no danger, she felt the need to hurry and find answers. It wasn't her usual joy at puzzle solving, it was the heartbreak of a Wizard separated from his wand. Even though Severus didn't realize what he was missing, he wasn't complete without his magic.

After a brief message and reply from her Patronus, Hermione was once again settled in the comfy sitting room.

"Minerva, there's no easy way to say this, no way to break it gently. Severus Snape is alive."

The kind woman's teacup rattled on its saucer as Minerva hastened to place it back on the table. Her face had gone abruptly pale, and Hermione quickly grabbed one of the wrinkled hands and held it tightly in both of her own.

"Your Muggle man?" Minerva asked. "You're certain?"

"I'm certain, and so is Harry."

Minerva let out a shaky breath and raised her free hand to her forehead, closing her eyes for a brief moment. "And he remembers nothing?"

"Nothing. He doesn't recognize me, he doesn't even recognize Harry."

"Damn, how are we going to help the poor boy?"

"I have no idea, but I thought we might start with a Priori Incantato on this." Hermione reached into her handbag and pulled the wand from it, handing it to Minerva.

"Severus' wand! How did you come to have this?"

"Harry had it...found it in the Shack years ago. We didn't try the spell because the wand clearly doesn't care for us."

The older witch chuckled at that. "Severus Snape's wand? You bet your arse it doesn't care for students, not even former students. It feels like a normal wand to me, not as comfortable as my own of course."

"Then Harry was right. It's warded."

"Of course it is." She gave a little sniff but did not cry. "Not warded against me, not even after all that happened. Not even after I tried to kill him."

"Did you really try to kill him?"

"Oh, yes. Professor Sprout, Professor Flitwick, and I drove him from Hogwarts. Though I have long thought he allowed us to. Oh, he made it look good, but he didn't truly hurt any of us. I've felt very badly about trying to kill him."

With a flick of the wand in her hand, Minerva silently cast a spell with Snape's wand.

A grey fog spilled from the tip of the dark wand. A ghostly image appeared. a robed man in a pool of dark liquid. He dragged himself to his feet, tried to turn as wispy letters spilled from between his lips. The man staggered, his wand flying from his fingers as he began to fall. Before he hit the floor, he vanished.

"Deletius," Minerva muttered, and the ghostly image dissipated.

"He tried to apparate."

"He succeeded. But the poor lad wasn't himself enough to be clear. He didn't say St. Mungo's, he just said hospital."

"So, he could have ended up at any hospital, even a Muggle one."

"Which he evidently did. Oh, Hermione, how are we ever going to help him?"

"We'll find a way. Hell, even a diagnostic spell might help us find answers."

"Certainly. So would a nice visit with the healers at St. Mungo's, but how in the world are you going to get a Muggle man to let you point a wand at him?"

"I'm going to have to tell him at some point that I'm a witch. If it goes well, I don't see why he wouldn't let me do a simple diagnostic."

"You're going to tell him you're magical? Are you mad as a drunken badger?"

"It's not without precedent. There are other such couples in the world, Muggles who have gotten together with magical folk. It could work."

"Or he could drop you like the proverbial hot potato." Minerva studied her thoughtfully for a moment, a gleam in her eye. "Couple, eh? Can I dare hope that my abrasive friend has finally lost his status as unicorn bait?"

"Minerva! That's none of your business!"

"Not yet then, poor Severus. I'd wager by that blush of yours that it won't take long, though."

Hermione couldn't help it. She giggled. Knowing that her former professor wasn't exactly the staid and solemn woman she'd seemed as a teacher had changed their relationship to that of friends long ago.

"He is one hell of a kisser," Hermione admitted.

"Is he? Ah, yes, just look at that smirk of yours. Like the cat who's been at the cream. Did he even know how to kiss?"

"He does now."

"Good for Severus. I tell you, Hermione, I wish I could see the lad. Even if he didn't know me. I've missed the grumpy bugger, and that's a fact."

"Are you any good at playing Muggle? He does own a bookshop. Absolutely anyone could stroll inside."

"No, lass. And I'm a bit old to go learning now. However, I don't suppose anyone would think a stray cat too odd if one happened to be there on the street."

"You're a clever woman. That's a perfect idea."

For the rest of their chat, Hermione filled her friend in on Harry's plan to do some research at the hospital. Giving the woman the address of Steven's bookshop before she left, she returned home. She had homework to complete, though it seemed a foolish thing to waste time on when she should be trying to figure out how to help Severus.