Seven Grangers

For Disclaimer etc., please see Chapter 1

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No Music More Enchanting

Chapter 10 – Seven Grangers

Hermione awoke and slowly opened her eyes. Feeling Severus' arms around her midst, she smiled. It had taken her no time at all to get used to waking up next to her man morning after morning and beginning the day with making love. His attentions so far had not ceased to amaze her, both in bed and out.

She suddenly remembered what day it was and a wave of excitement washed over her. The arms around her tightened, and the man next to her mumbled, "You are beautiful."

Hermione abruptly turned around. "Am not."

"Good morning to you, too, my love," Severus said, smirking. "Tell me, Hermione, have you ever seen you through my eyes?"

She looked at him. "N... no," she said hesitantly.

"Exactly. So, kindly refrain from disagreeing with me in matters you know nothing about." He sounded stern, but Hermione thought she'd happily listen to him recite the alphabet all day long. His voice was more enchanting than the sweetest tones of a violin. And his hands more capable than those of a musical genius, she thought idly.

Her eyes widened as Severus smirked. "Mind in the gutter again, Miss Granger? Tsk, tsk. We'll have to do something about that..." Action swiftly followed his words, and time passed unnoticed.

~|~|~|~

Late in the afternoon, Neveron arrived, and after sharing a light meal together, the group prepared to leave for the Externsteine, hundreds of miles north of Munich.

Neveron cast Disillusionment Charms on everyone...without a wand, Hermione noted. "I will require minimal time to create a replica of the Ark, but I cannot do so until I see the real Ark. So, let's allow for that. With the smallest measure of luck, we should be on our own in any case." He held out his hands, and Hermione and Luna took one each. Then Severus and Lucius joined hands with their witches, and they Apparated just outside the giant standing stones.

The sun was about to set, and the stones stood stark against the darkening sky. The three wizards cast detection spells on the area as the group slowly approached the largest stone.

"How do we get up there? Apparate?" Hermione asked.

"No, we don't want to risk disturbing any wards Rowle might have placed here," Severus said. "There is a hidden entrance on one side."

Neveron stepped forward, his hands stretched out as if feeling for the entrance. "There," he said softly, and a wooden door became visible, its washed out color contrasting the sandy beige and red hues of the stones. As Neveron stopped in front, the door opened, and he entered, motioning for the others to follow.

Hermione noticed a narrow staircase winding upward and followed Neveron, who was already climbing up and seemed to dimly glow, just casting sufficient light for the others.

They climbed higher and higher until finally a door abruptly obscured any further ascent. "Come, Hermione," Neveron said. "I believe the Ark to be behind this door. If it is and you are the descendent of a witch who opened it, the door will yield to your demand."

Hermione took a deep breath and wondered whether or not to cast a spell when the door silently faded away to reveal a very large room. Everyone but Neveron gasped. The walls were shimmering with a golden glow, and placed in the center was a large trunk, its front decorated with an array of the most perfect crystals and gemstones that sparkled in the reflection of the soft light emanating from the gold of the walls.

The ancient wizard laughed softly. "It has been a long, long time."

Hermione wondered what he meant, but she was too overwhelmed seeing the Ark of the Covenant, the very Ark of which legends were made of, which hardly anyone even knew whether or not it existed in the physical realm.

A strange sensation washed over her as she pondered what to do, and suddenly she knew exactly what to do, as if some outside force had whispered the instructions to her.

The young witch stepped forward and slowly but deliberately walked to the center. As she came closer, she raised her arms toward the trunk, silently asking it to open.

The lid rose slowly until Hermione let her arms fall to her sides. She was now right in front of the Ark, but could not see inside it. As she realized her lack of height, she felt herself rise until she was eye-level with the top of the trunk. It was filled to the brim with a white-golden substance.

This is what they are after... Hermione looked reverently at the white gold and then thought, But it must not fall into the wrong hands.

Instinctively fully aware of what was to be done now, the witch set to work. She filled one small vial to give to Neveron, then a larger one for herself, Severus, Lucius and Luna, should they ever need to hide their magic. If this project of finding and protecting the Ark of the Covenant was any indication for her future career, anything unconventional would likely come in handy at some stage.

Floating back to the floor, Hermione made eye contact with the ancient wizard, who nodded slightly and pointed to the side of the wall where now an exact replica of the original Ark stood.

Next, Hermione rose her arms again, looked at the lid of the Ark and slowly moved her arms downward. The lid closed at an equal pace to her arms lowering. When it shut, she took a deep breath. May you be safe from evil forces...

Neveron stepped forward to stand next to Hermione and moved his arms in an upward movement. The Ark of the Covenant slowly faded out of sight. "It will be safe inside the Department of Mysteries for now," Neveron said and turned to look at the other wizards. "We'll place my replica where the Ark stood, and then we can Apparate from here. It won't matter if wards are broken now." He smiled. "Thank you. You have prevented an unspeakable evil tonight. The wizarding world has every reason to be proud of having such fine souls in their midst."

Before anyone could speak, Neveron disappeared...there was not even the typical pop of Disapparition.

~|~|~|~

Late that evening...Lucius, Severus, Luna and Hermione were getting ready to break up the spontaneous celebration Lucius had evoked by popping a bottle of champagne...an owl scratched at the window to be let in. Lucius opened the window, and the owl flew straight to Hermione.

The witch untied the parchment from its leg and opened it.

"It's from Kingsley!"

"Go on, read it to us. What does he have to say for himself?" asked Lucius.

Hermione started to read aloud.

"Dear Hermione,

Kingsley

"What the hell? He's coming on Wednesday?" Hermione asked, her eyes wide. The Minister himself overseeing a project, in which she played a part, made her uneasy somehow. Despite all the publicity she had received along with Harry and Ron after Voldemort's downfall, it was something she'd never get used to.

Both Lucius and Severus suddenly looked somewhat sheepish. "Sorry, love. Forgot to mention it. He owled me a couple of days ago."

"Lucius?" Luna's voice sounded unusually stern.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I forgot. Severus mentioned it very briefly, and then you distracted me." He looked nonchalant.

It was so typical of Lucius to not accept blame, Hermione thought, amused.

Wednesday before Valentine's Day arrived far too quickly for Hermione's taste. She was relieved when Severus suggested they'd skive off lectures today and happily succumbed to the need to stay prolonged hours in bed.

It was late afternoon when Kingsley arrived, just in time for an apéritif, which the foursome had started to make a habit of since the day the Ark had been opened.

Kingsley wasted no time and got straight down to business. "Is there enough Polyjuice Potion?" He looked questioningly at Severus.

Lucius replied, "Severus had some stock; I procured the rest from a trusted source. We have about twice as much as we anticipate we require."

"Wonderful. Now to the details..."

They discussed the plan, strategy, and possible difficulties until late that evening. Eventually, everything seemed to have been covered, and Lucius opened a bottle of wine. "You simply must taste this, Kingsley. It comes from a vineyard that is exactly one square kilometre in size, south facing, growing above the Moselle River. The grapes are not even picked if the first frost appears before November first or after December 25th, and the largest ever harvest yielded just enough to fill two hundred bottles. It is absolutely divine!"

Hermione and Luna wrinkled their noses simultaneously, eliciting a dry laugh from Severus. "Would you like some French Red instead?" he asked.

"Oh, that would be lovely," said Hermione. "Sorry, Lucius, but I just can't get into this sweet wine, no matter how much you praise it," she apologized.

Lucius smirked. "Isn't it funny how women can happily consume an entire pound of Swiss chocolate, but refuse to learn to appreciate the frost-induced sweetness in wine?" he asked idly.

The Minister laughed. "Honestly, I don't mind not sharing! This is some wine! I wish they sold it in London." He twirled the glass in his hands, took another sip, then turned to Hermione, his face showing utter mischief not at all befitting a Minister.

"Say, Hermione, has Severus ever let you in on the secret of your bedroom décor?"

Severus glared daggers at him, and Hermione gasped in surprise. "You did that? I was wondering what on earth had happened since no spell I tried got rid of the Slytherin colors." She shrugged. "I got used to it..."

Severus snickered. "Did you ever try a simple Finite Incantatem?" His face took on a look of smugness as he took in her astounded expression. "Tsk, tsk, Miss Granger. Sometimes, simplicity is what is called for."

Hermione scowled. "Anything else you've forgotten to mention up until now?"

Now, Lucius snickered. "Oh, Severus, how can you have secrets from her? You know women! They always find out! You better come clear about your alter ego, too, then!"

Severus sighed. "Spill the beans, Lucius, why don't you..."

Kingsley stood up rather abruptly. "Erm, I'll better leave you to your domestic bliss and go back to London. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

~|~|~|~

Later, when they'd retired for the night, Hermione decided to bring up the subject of withheld information again.

"Severus, what else is there you haven't told me? What is your alter ego? Why did you decorate my bedroom like that?"

Severus cast Lumos and looked at her intently. "As you know, the reason you were offered the position with the Department of Mysteries is because Kingsley recruited me and left it up to me whom to pick as my team. I knew I wanted Lucius. After nearly two decades of being friends with him, he finally saw the light and swore off his silly beliefs with regard to bloodlines.

"You know the reason I wanted you and Luna on the team. But, as you no doubt have deduced by now, there is more to my wanting you." He stopped and took a few deep breaths before continuing. "I... Hermione, I've never been one to date. I loved Lily since the day I met her when I was a mere child, and after she died, I could never envisage falling in love with anyone. I was afraid, not only of rejection, but more so that I might betray her as I did Lily, even though I had never, ever meant to. Please believe me."

Hermione placed her hand on his arm and squeezed it lightly. "I believe you, Severus. I have always believed you are a good man, even when everyone thought you were siding with Voldemort."

A breath of relief escaped him, and he continued. "When I pondered the possibilities of whom to recruit, you came to mind. At first, it was merely because I know you are bright. Eventually, I realized I was fooling myself. I started noticing you in your sixth year, and of course I denied it to myself. It could not happen.

"But then, the... Voldemort took over, you left school, Voldemort thought me dead after he'd instructed Nagini to kill me, and then Potter, with you and Weasley's help, took him down. Suddenly, there was new life ahead for me, a brand-new start, with no master, only my own conscience to follow."

He snorted derisively. "I spelled your bedroom in the hope that you might come to me for help. Don't laugh. Please!"

Hermione could not hide a grin, but she had the strength to refrain from laughing out loud. "I'm in love with you, Severus. I don't know how it happened, but I do know I'm happy every moment I'm spending with you, and I feel incomplete when you're not near me."

Once a reaffirmation of a growing love between them was complete, Hermione took up the subject again, squirming, but feeling it was necessary to make away with secrets.

"Alter ego? We might as well get it out of the way now," she said amiably.

Severus groaned. "I'm beginning to understand what Lucius means when he says women are insatiable in every respect.

"I have been studying the occult for decades. It started as a simple request from the Dark Lord in my early Death Eater days, but it intrigued me, so I researched it. The occult and alchemy go rather hand in hand, and it was quite easy for me to find connections between the Nazis' obsession with both subjects, and eventually, with Neveron's help, I had enough material for a book. Which was then published by a Muggle publisher under a pseudonym.

"I used the pseudonym then to take some time out after Lucius had found me in the Shrieking Shack. I spent a month in Northern France."

"The Nazis' Search for Occultum," Hermione said softly.

"The very same," Severus confirmed. "And it's banned here in Germany because the Muggle government is somewhat... shall we say, touchy about the subject. Mind you, it didn't hurt the sales one bit." He smirked.

"And if you want to know anything else, I suggest you'll look. My mind is open to you, but I've talked enough for a day, you know!"

Hermione had heard enough and felt her trust in him grow, now that any secrets were resolved.

~|~|~|~

"Thank goodness! It took him long enough," Lucius sneered, which Hermione was certain was because of his need to hide his relief rather than his irritation at having had to wait for nearly an hour to receive a message.

A Patronus in the shape of an eagle had just relayed a message to Lucius, Hermione and Luna, causing all three to breathe sighs of relief, silently or otherwise.

"Externsteine, midnight tonight," the eagle had whispered and dissolved.

"When did Severus change his Patronus form?" Luna asked curiously.

Lucius snorted. "When he fell in love with Hermione, I think. Or maybe when he saw her new bat Patronus.

"Right. We have work to do. Luna, love, get ready to leave. Hermione, will you be all right on your own here?"

"Yes. I'd rather be here in case Severus sends another message or needs to escape. You two go and meet the Aurors," Hermione said. She hoped Severus would have at least his hands free to take a new sip of Polyjuice every hour while in captivity. Knowing that he could Disapparate made her feel more confident about the entire plan to catch Rowle and possibly some of the nazis. Neveron had lifted the Wards over Blutenburg partially...nobody could Apparate into the building, but it was now possible to Disapparate out of the building or within.

Lucius and Luna Disapparated from the living room, leaving Hermione behind to ponder what lay ahead. She felt a modicum of confidence that all would work out well. Neveron had been a tremendous help where wards and the lack thereof was concerned. He sided with her when both Severus and Lucius insisted she should stay behind because if the Muggle nazis got wind of her being there, they'd try everything to capture her again. She would hear none of it.

"I have every right to witness the event! If not for me, you wouldn't be involved in this! And besides, I was the one to save the Ark!" she'd yelled at the two wizards. Eventually, with Neveron's cool reasoning, they had given in and worked out a strategy that would be least likely to have her discovered.

The minutes passed at a snail's pace. Lucius and Luna had only left half an hour ago, and Hermione felt as if it had been an entire day. How long does it take them? she wondered, her worry and, with it irritation, increasing. She rose from the sofa, her book abandoned, and started pacing from one window to another. How is Severus doing as Polyjuiced me? she couldn't help wondering about once every minute.

Finally, after the longest hour of Hermione's entire life, she heard some commotion outside and rushed to the door. "Oh, Merlin!" she exclaimed as the door opened. "I thought you'd never come back!"

She was unable to hide her sobs, ignoring the fact that not only Lucius and Luna were there but also some of her friends and Aurors she'd never met.

Luna hugged her fiercely, followed by Lucius, who hugged the two witches together. "Now, now, it's all going well, my sweets. They didn't kill you on two occasions, Hermione, and they won't kill Sev-as-you when they think they're so close to having the Ark opened! Calm down." He patted her back. "Look, we've brought some friends for you."

Hermione looked up straight into the face of an astonished Harry, surrounded by an equally astonished Ron, a smirking Millicent and a grinning Ginny. She smiled wryly.

"Sorry. Got a bit emotional here..." she said sheepishly.

"It's okay, Hermione," Millicent said before anyone else had a chance to speak up. "I know the feeling."

Hermione gave her a grateful smile, wondering what on earth had happened that she would feel kinship with the Slytherin witch, but figured it was fine. "Thanks, Millicent."

"Hermione? You all right?" Harry asked, incredulous.

Hermione grinned. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just nervous. Don't know why. I mean, the Ark is safe, and tonight should be a ball compared to fighting Voldemort."

Harry looked from Hermione to Lucius to Luna. "Is that Snape's name I've been hearing? What have you not been telling me?"

"Oh, yes, you see..." Lucius explained his friend's existence to three pairs of bulging eyes.

Millicent giggled and then said rather soberly, "If there is one thing I'm grateful for, it's being sorted into a House whose Head was capable. I know he wasn't liked outside Slytherin, but if every House had a Head like him, Hogwarts would be one united front. He was the best Head of House anyone could ever ask for."

Hermione had never disliked Millicent, but she now was wondering why she'd not really liked her. "You know... you're right!"

Two sheepish, friendly smiles were exchanged, and the two witches took off to the kitchen. "Food is what we need before the big trip."

~|~|~|~

Once Harry and Ron had overcome their shock of their best friend being with the long thought dead Potions master and once the entire crowd had been fed with pasta and tomato sauce created by Hermione and Millicent, both of whom were no doubt channeling the afore-mentioned Potions master's culinary skills, Lucius spoke up.

"It's fifteen minutes to midnight, people. Hermione, is the Polyjuice ready?"

Hermione nodded and pointed to several vials placed on one of the shelves.

Lucius continued. "Right, those of you wanting to be Hermione..." he cleared his throat dramatically..."take one dose of the potion and keep the vial with you in case you need more." Then he turned to Hermione and handed her a vial. "This is yours. Are you ready?"

Hermione swallowed hard. "Yes."

Once everyone had taken their dose of Polyjuice, the group cast Disillusionment Charms on each other and Apparated as one to the Externsteine.

~|~|~|~

Three people, Severus and two Hermiones, led the way after revealing the door opening to the inside of the largest standing stone, followed by four Hermiones and a few others, all Disillusioned.

When they reached the top of the narrow staircase, the door was already open. Severus stepped into the room and narrowly avoided a vocal gasp, seeing Hermione in the center of the large room, right in front of the Ark.

"Open!" the Hermione in the center of the room shrieked.

Rowle stepped forward, closely followed by Ulrike and Schultz. "As if!" Ulrike said bitterly. "You've failed! She can't open it!" Ulrike started to sob. Then she turned to Rowle and cried, "Thorfinn, you said she is the one to open it! You have failed me!" Her cries were hysterical now, doubly so echoed by the walls.

One Hermione stepped forward, canceling the Disillusionment Charm. "Oh, dear!"

Immediately, another Hermione stepped forward, now clearly visible as well. "Do we have a problem here?"

A third Hermione approached the center and chimed in, "I dare say we do."

Rowle and Ulrike looked positively owlish, and Schultz tried to retreat, only to be held up by another Hermione and a couple of Aurors, all pointing their wands at him.

It took mere minutes to disarm and bind Rowle, Ulrike and Schultz. Harry, still Polyjuiced as Hermione, Apparated Rowle straight to the Ministry with Ginny following in his tracks.

Two Aurors held Ulrike and old Schultz. "You are under arrest. Hope that the Muggles come and get you, for if you're still here for us to take by the morning, we will not waste time."

Schultz whimpered, but Ulrike looked like an amazon...proud and unwilling to yield to anything.

There was a loud pop, and Kingsley appeared. "Hermione, Severus? Lucius, Luna? Will you please Apparate with me to the Ministry? The remaining Aurors will clear up here!"

The real Hermione, Severus-disguised-as-Hermione, Lucius and Luna followed Kingsley's instructions immediately and Apparated straight to London's Ministry of Magic.

Ten minutes later, all were back to their normal physical selves and found themselves the subjects of big applause.

Luna and Lucius basked in it. Severus felt uneasy.

"Do you like this?" Hermione asked him.

"No. It's not my kind of idea of having a good time," Severus said in reply.

"You know..." Hermione said while smiling politely into the room. "I've always wanted to visit Egypt."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Only, I thought it would be so much more exciting to do so with a worthy partner, you know?"

"I see." He looked at her and relished the mischievous grin on her face. "Well, in that case, Miss Granger, are you ready to Apparate?"

"Oh, Severus, yes!"

Two pops were heard in very close succession by those standing near, and when Kingsley asked a few minutes later for Hermione and Severus to come forward to receive the Order of Merlin, First Class, one wizard yelled, "They've gone off to Egypt!"

~Fin~

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A/N: Most grateful thanks to southernwitch69 for beta-reading and little_beloved for alpha-reading. Equally grateful thanks for my LJ friends who never told me to stop whining when I did because Lucius spent a great deal of time in my head, whispering in the most demanding tones what to write. He will probably always be a demanding sod, but otherwise he's become rather agreeable since the events of Deathly Hallows. And last, but by no means least, a big thank-you to sshg316, who wrote the following prompt for the 2007/08 Winter Exchange SSHG Exchange on LJ:

After Voldemort was defeated, Snape's body disappeared. After a futile search, he is assumed dead. Harry ensures that he is considered a war hero, a memorial is erected and life goes on. After taking her NEWTs, Hermione decides to leave the wizarding world for a while (you decide why). She decides to attend a Muggle university (you decide where). On her first day of classes, she is shocked to find that one of her professors is none other than Severus Snape. How does he react to seeing Hermione? What will draw them together?

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