Chapter Four: What's Love Got To Do With It?

Summary: Sin and virtue: can one exist without the other? And to what end do they determine our final outcome? Severus ponders these very questions as he tries to determine exactly where he's ended up. Is love really the answer?

Disclaimer: The characters, settings, etc. of the Harry Potter series are not mine; they belong to J.K. Rowling and Co. I promise to return them when I am through. Well, most of them anyway.

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Sin and Virtue by Pearle

Chapter Four: What's Love Got To Do With It?

"Heaven or Hell. What if there was another choice? What if you had the chance to go back to Scotland, to Hogwarts, instead? Would you take it?" Al watched as hope bloomed in Severus' eyes.

"Go back? You mean now, after the Dark Lord's defeat? Or earlier, before everything went terribly wrong with my life?"

"Now. Would you like to see what's happening since you've been gone?" Al brought his open hands together in front of him; a purple mist seemed to swirl above his palms. As Severus watched, it gradually gained substance. An image, almost like that seen in a crystal ball, formed in the mist. Severus gasped as he watched Hermione fall to her knees, clutching his body to her. Potter and Weasley stood speechless a few steps away.

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Dumbfounded, Ron watched Hermione drop to her knees.

"How could you? After all he's done! After all McGonagall told us about him," Hermione screamed as sobs wracked her weary body.

"Hermione?" Harry watched a tearful Hermione clutch the lifeless body of Severus Snape to her breast.

"Professor, wake up. Please wake up." But her plea went unanswered. Her tears cut a shinning path through the muck and blood on her face. "He can't be dead. After all he went through. It's just not right."

Harry knelt in the mud, aware that others were staring at them. "Hermione, I don't know what Snape did to you, but he's gone." Gently, the-boy-who-sill-lived tried to take her arm and help her up. "Let's get you to the hospital wing."

"Let go of me," she screamed. Pulling back, her cries turned into a soft mummer of regret. "There wasn't time. I never told you. You've got to come back to me. It can't end like this. I should have said something. I know that now. Please..."

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"Well?"

Severus sat back. Hermione was mourning him? "How can that be?" he whispered.

"Something about regrets and lost chances. She refuses to let go of you, not just physically, but emotionally. Most people grieve when they lose someone they care for. But this goes much deeper. She seems to be losing her will to live. I've never seen a person's spirit dim so quickly before. I would send you on. You've earned a place in Heaven, whether you believe it or not, but your spirit and her desire to join you seem to have overruled all common sense." Al sighed; in truth he thought the Dark man deserved a proper chance. "Considering all that she has sacrificed, and the fact that your final act was totally selfless, I believe you've earned a second chance."

"How can that be going on now? I've been here almost two days. That looks like it happened about ten minutes after I... ten minutes ago."

"I warped time a bit. We've stepped outside the loop, as it were. That scene actually happened seven minutes after your demise, not ten. So, what's it to be? Do you want to go back to Hogwarts and see what happens or go on to heaven?"

Severus smiled, knowing the answer was obvious but not willing to leave anything to chance. "Hogwarts. I want to go back to Hogwarts... and Hermione."

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"Oh, dear God." McGonagall quickly took in the scene before her. Severus' lifeless body was being held tightly in the hysterical young woman's grip. Quietly she addressed the distraught witch. "Miss Granger, he died a hero. There is nothing more we can do for him now. Potter, Weasley, let's see if we can get Miss Granger to the hospital wing." Wisely Minerva decided not mention who had caused his death. There would be time for that later.

"I tried, Pro..."

"What good is dying a hero? Dead is dead." Hermione's angry voice cut through the whispers now surrounding her. Her voice softened to a mournful cry. "It can't end like this."

"I think we should take her straight to St Mungo's. Snape must've cast some kind of lust spell on her thinking he'd survive the battle." Privately, Ron was convinced his friend had lost her mind. Her recent insistence that there was more to Snape than anyone knew was proof enough for him, even before this display of misplaced grief.

"Mr Weasley..."

"I would never resort to such juvenile tactics." Severus coughed heavily, his voice hoarse from shouting during the battle. His recent "death" also taking its toll on his already strained vocal chords. "Miss Granger, your apparent concern is gratifying, but I fear I am unable to breathe well at the moment. I must ask that you loosen your hold on my person."

"Professor?" Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief as she felt the body in her arms shift; a slow, torturous rattle of air escaped as Severus tried to draw a deeper breath.

"He was dead!" Shocked, Harry watched as Severus struggled to breathe. "You were dead."

"Yes, so it would seem. I believe you've heard the old Muggle saying, 'Heaven doesn't want me, and Hell is afraid I'll take over.. That leaves... here." Severus gazed up into Hermione's soft brown eyes. While she had released her stranglehold on his body and shifted his head to lie in her lap, she was still clutching his hand to her chest. "It seems you and I have much to discuss once I'm able to breathe properly again. I believe I may have suffered multiple broken bones when I was last cursed. If you don't mind? My hand?" Severus winched in pain as Hermione let his hand fall to his chest. A small moan escaped as one of several broken ribs responded to the movement.

"Oh, God, I'm sorry." Hermione's voice broke, tears once again running down her face. "You're alive. I can't believe you're alive."

Severus reached a shaky hand up to wipe the tears from her cheek, reveling in the feel of her skin. He sighed heavily, grimacing in pain as he tried to draw a breath into his lungs. "Neither can I."

"You died. I saw Ron curse you."

"It would seem that is one more item you can add to the list of topics we should discuss. And I will be happy to answer any and all questions you have right after Poppy heals me. I find breathing a necessity I can't do without. We will talk..." Severus turned and glared at the youngest Weasley male. "...Right after I return the favour and curse Weasley. Let's see how well he survives an Avada Kedavra."

"I... You... You're a traitor! You killed Dumbledore." Fear blanched his complexion, his freckles standing out in stark contrast to his pale skin. "Harry, you said it, too. Snape's a traitor. I just..."

"Mr Weasley, that will be enough of that. Severus, we need to get you to Poppy and let her patch you up." Minerva shook her head, tears running unchecked down her cheeks. "It's a miracle. I can't believe you're alive. After losing so many, it's... it's a miracle."

Severus nodded. He would forever be grateful to the Headmistress; she has extended her friendship to him through the long months he'd been "exiled" to Voldemort's side. It was her no-nonsense comments that had kept him sane and spurred him to keep going when his spirit had sagged. He'd had no illusions about how a few select Order members felt about him. He knew Potter and Weasley had doubted his loyalty, even after being presented with irrefutable evidence of his loyalty. Had positions been reversed, he, too, might have acted much the same as Weasley had.

But he'd survived. He was alive.

And now he had Hermione.

Minerva had cast Mobilicorpus over his aching body, the slight movement sending waves of pain through his chest.

"I'll go with you. I'm not letting you go again. There is so much I want to say to you. To tell you." Hermione's eyes shone with quiet warmth.

"Why would you grieve for me? What have I ever done to deserve such devotion?" Weary beyond human endurance, Severus' eyes closed, his breath barely discernable.

"Professor? Severus!"

Severus' eyes flew open. Coughs wracked his body as he tried to answer the startled witch. "I'm still here. I have no intentions of leaving you again." Losing his battle with consciousness, the world around him faded out.

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Severus woke with a start; several hours had passed. Glancing at the waning light coming through the oversized windows merely confirmed that fact. Every bone in his body ached as he tried to sit up.

"Hey, lay back down. Poppy will have my head if you re-break those ribs." Hermione's voice softened. "How do you feel? Would like a bit of broth? You must be starving by now."

"You're still here." The words passed his lips not as a question but as a statement, his tone quiet with wonder.

"Where else would I be? How do you feel? You were tossing and turning something terrible in your sleep."

He dragged a weary hand across his eyes, glad to be back at Hogwarts. His sleep had been odd. He'd dreamed of seeing Al, of sitting on the other side of that damn desk discussing his fate again. For such a quiet, seemingly sedate dream, it had brought more terror than if he had faced the Dark Lord again. He'd been afraid that seeing Hermione and returning to Hogwarts had been nothing more than a pipedream, just wishful thinking.

Al had told him to use his second chance wisely, to cherish those around him and really live this time. Severus doubted he could change that much, but this time around he was not about to let missed opportunities get away.

And now he was lying on a cot at Hogwarts, recovering from the "Final Battle," as it would forever be known, with her sitting next to him. Severus studied Hermione as she sat back in the oversized chintz chair. It was not standard hospital issue. That was for sure. 'Must be something she transfigured for comfort as she sat here,' he mused. "Why did my passing bother you so?"

Hermione found it difficult to breathe. Now that she was here, alone with the man, her courage and determination seemed to have disappeared. "Why?" She found she couldn't answer him, couldn't meet his piercing gaze.

He was not an easy man; he never would be. But he cared more deeply for the young witch than he cared to admit, and he could make it easier for her. Make it easier for both of them. "Hermione, I know all about regrets and lost chances. I have lived through too many in my life, had far too many regrets, to let this chance pass unheeded."

The softness of his tone surprised her. "Regrets?"

Wearily, Severus nodded. "Come closer. It's still hard for me to move about."

Hermione stood next to his cot, carefully taking the hand he held out to her. There seemed to be no mistaking, on either of their parts, what Severus' intentions were.

Gently Severus pulled the young witch down until she was sitting next to him. He reached up, his fingers sliding through the mass of curls at the nape of her neck, and guided the witch to him. He watched her eyes drift closed, her tongue nervously darted out to wet her lips in anticipation of his kiss, her lips parted in expectation.

The fact that she hadn't run screaming from the room spoke volumes about her feelings for him. Her obvious desire to kiss him was duly noted by the lustful look she'd given him just moments before.

Softly, his lips touched hers, a tingle of magic crackled between them. He pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. His arms enveloped the witch, holding her tightly, not even noticing the ache in his healing bones.

Hermione's lips parted, her tongue darted out to meet his as he asked for entrance to the hot moist cavern of her mouth. This was the man she'd been stressing over for the past six months. The man who had populated her dreams with such visions of eroticism that she thought she would go mad if she didn't act upon her feelings. The man she had thought she'd lost.

Time spun out for both of them, their kiss an answer to a prayer. The need to breathe brought an end to the moment.

Hermione smiled. "I care about you. I think I have for a long time."

"Indeed. I believe the feeling is mutual." He brushed a callused thumb across her cheek, his heart clenching as she leaned into his hand. "What happens now?"

"We wait for you to heal and then..." Hermione's eyes shone as she recalled her dreams. There were quite a few things she thought they could be doing.

Severus laughed, his hand clutching his side as his healing ribs made themselves known. "While I have no objections to what you're thinking about, I was thinking more long term than that." He had no job. To the wizarding world he was still a traitor, and Potter and Weasley – who was to say Weasley wouldn't be the only one to curse him?

Hermione read the concern in eyes. "Minerva and Arthur are meeting with the Wizengamot tomorrow to present evidence of your innocence. I've also had a little talk with the boys while you were sleeping. They won't be bothering you again," she finished, her eyes snapping with fire.

He would have paid Galleons to see that. Hermione had always been a force to be reckoned with. But a righteous Hermione would be a sight to see. Too, having the Headmistress of Hogwarts and the new Minister of Magic on your side didn't hurt, but facts were facts. "I don't think it will be that easy. I'm not exactly innocent. You might want to take a step back and think things through."

"Don't be ridiculous. The facts speak for themselves. You were put under the Unbreakable Vow not once, but twice. You only did what was required of you, and how the Headmaster could have put you in that position is beyond me. Didn't even think about what might happen to you, evidence or no evidence. Terrible, just terrible." She stroked the side of his face, thrilled to have leave to touch him. "Are you hungry? You haven't eaten in hours."

He nodded, allowing Hermione to fuss over him. "I could do with a bit of tea and toast."

The sound of footsteps and a door opening brought the outside world crashing in on them. Hastily Hermione moved off the cot and back to her chair. Madam Pomfrey, followed closely by Minerva, came into view.

Poppy glanced from her patient to his visitor, noting the slight flush to the witch's cheeks. "Well, it looks like you're feeling better. Lie back and let me have a look at you."

"I'll go order your tea." Hermione quietly left the room, giving the others privacy to sort things out. She floated out the door on a cloud, still shocked but pleased that Severus had returned her feelings.

Minerva sat heavily in the recently vacated chair, weariness warring with relief as she smiled at him. "I was sure we'd lost you. I still can't believe it's finally over." A look passed between the two. He and Minerva had talked long into the night the first time he'd contacted her after Dumbledore's death. Albus had bound him to the Unbreakable Vow, requiring him to end the Headmaster's life, instructing him to wait two weeks before contacting her after his death. While he had doubts to his safety the first time they'd met, Severus had followed his orders as instructed. At the time, he'd secretly wished Minerva had cursed him, desperately wanting to end his wretched existence. Now he was more than grateful for the gift of life he'd been given.

"When were you thinking of moving back into the dungeon? There's quite a bit of damage to repair, a few spells that refuse to reverse. We'll have to move fast if we're to be ready for the school to open in August."

"Move back into the dungeon?"

"I've never heard of broken ribs affecting one's hearing before. Yes, move back into the dungeon and get back to work."

"What makes you think I'm coming back?" Severus settled back into the cot and looked smugly at the Headmistress. They'd moved back to familiar ground with barely an inch being lost.

"I've several qualified applicants waiting to hear from me. I wouldn't tarry too long to decide if you want the job or not if I were you." Minerva smiled. "Besides, Hogwarts is your home, and what do you expect me to do without my new deputy Headmaster?"

"Minerva..."

"You have nothing to worry about. Tomorrow Arthur and I will present Dumbledore's Pensieve to the Wizengamot. After they question me with Veritaserum, they will have no choice but to find you innocent."

Severus closed his eyes; he didn't deserve this treatment. By rights he should be dead. He heard Hermione's footsteps as she returned with his tea and toast.

Poppy pocketed her wand and plumped the pillows around him. "Well, you seem to be doing fine. A good night's rest and you should be good as new."

"And there's my new apprentice now. Perhaps you can convince the old bat to stay. We could certainly use him to get the castle back in order."

"You're Minerva's apprentice?"

Hermione blushed. "I've always been good at Transfiguration."

"Yes, I see."

"Well, I've a mountain of paperwork to get through." Minerva's hand rested on his shoulder. "It's good to have you back."

Poppy gestured to the bedside table. "Why don't you put the tray there, dear? And you..." She turned back to the dark man. "Nothing strenuous. Let those ribs heal. At least for tonight."

Severus closed his eyes and shook his head. "Go."

They could hear the two laughing as the hospital wing door swung shut.

"Do you want to try and sit up?"

"Mhm, but not for tea. Where were we when those two interrupted us?" Severus pulled Hermione to him, his lips finding hers once again. Their kiss was warm, passionate and held the promise of things to come.

The future was here, in his arms; tomorrow would take care of itself.

~~~ Fini ~~~

A/N: And so we come to the end. While the ending might have been a bit fluffy, I figure Severus deserves any break he can get since his future hangs in the balance in Real Life.

I am working on the next chapter of Dances – in addition to working too much. RL bites. I really need to win the lottery so I can stay home and indulge my addiction to fanfiction.

A grateful thank you to my beta, the wonderful Southern_Witch_69. Any mistakes, however, are all mine.

Pearle