I laughed out loud multiple times, hehe amazing story!!

Good chapter, but only wish Hermione could forgive herself & Ginny so her and Severus can move forward!

...what the devil is Ron thinking?  "You're coming over to help unpack and you can't get out of it?"  He'd have met the uncomfortable end of an Unforgiveable from me for that!

And why the devil didn't she get the book? O-o?

Ginny should feel bad.  That was inexcusable.  And I wish Hermione wasn't so quick to forgive, but she has such few friends.

GAHHHH!  GAHHH!  GAHHHHH!
Stupid Ginny.  Seriously, I fell back with a bit of a scream when I read what she said out loud.  Good on you for eliciting such a response!  I am, as ever, a faithful reader of this fic, and loving almost every moment of it.  Except now Ginny must die.  lol j/k
Maybe.

I'm so sad for Hermione and Severus.  Potions class must be torture for both of them.

When Hermione received the Owl inviting her to dinner with Ron and Lavender, I thought that perhaps she would/should decline, but it turns out to have been good for her to get away from Hogwarts for a few hours.

I am surprised at the mature way Lavender is behaving toward Hermione.  Hermione views her as vain and flighty, and Lavender views Hermione as too academic, but they seem to have accepted each other for the way they are and are beginning to venture onto a more trusting level. 

I hope Lavender won't betray what she and Hermione talked about—even to Ron.  Hermione desperately needs someone with whom she can be herself without being judged or worrying that what she says or does will be blathered to every one within hearing.

I wonder if ruminating on her behavior over the past few weeks will spur Ginny to tell Professor Snape that Hermione hadn't been the one who originally spilled his secrets to her, that she had over heard Madam Pomfrey talking to her mother, and that she had been the one to give Hermione a hint of all that had happened to him before Hermione had learned anything about the torture he has suffered.  I don't know if that would make the situation better or worse.  Worse, I think.  But will Ginny feel obliged to try to make amends to him for her part in the fiasco that culminated in his embarrassment in The Three Broomsticks?

I'm glad that Hermione found the book on exotic plants that listed the flower she had wondered about.  Now that she knows which flowers the book on the use of unicorn blood was referring to, what will she do with that knowledge?  Somehow I find the thought of her brewing a love potion will only make the situation with Severus worse.

I think that her decision to brew the final potion to heal Severus is a good thing.  With the support of Professors Vector and Flitwick, perhaps she will decide to ask Professor Vector to take it to him, and maybe Madam Pomfrey will persuade him to allow Hermione to complete her project to heal him. 

That's a lot of "maybes," isn't it?  Sorry, but I love this story so much, and I cannot restrain myself from imagining what might happen later in the story.


Beth

Thanks, Lavender, for bringing back some normality into Hermione's life!

I'm glad that Lavender is being such a good friend to Hermione and that Hermione has gotten over her and Ron being together (mostly anyway).  Potions class must be excruciating for both Snape and Hermione.  We didn't get any Snape POV in this chapter.  I hope he is spending this time analyzing what happened and not just sitting around being angry at her.   Anxiously awaiting the next chapter!

Oh... wonderful chapter but I am still heart broken for Hermione. can't wait for things to move forward!

Lady Slipper orchids grow wild in the woods behind  my mother's house. I used to be fascinated with them when I was growing up. I would try to transplant them into our yard, but they never took hold. So delicate. Ours were pink, but I have seen photos of yellow as well.

I hope that Hermione doesn't have to resort to a love potion to capture his heart. Perhaps the Unicorn blood gift in itself was enough to tie him to her and he will eventually realize the value of her unconditional love. I hope so, for both of their sakes.

Good old Lav. Hermione needs a friend right now. :)

I love the way you are working Lavender into this story. Hermione needs a friend.

Well, that's not the way I imagined Severus finding out about Hermiones' feelings. Way to go Ginny! I can't wait to see what happens when she finds out that Hermione and Severus were both there to hear the tirade. Things are definitely going to be awkward, but I think they'll work out.

O.M.G.  I knew Ginny was too immature to be trusted with Hermione's intimate secrets.  Yes, Hermione should not, under any circumstances, have told Ginny anything about Severus or her project to heal him, but they were for the most part things that she had overheard her parents talking about. 

It took great courage for Hermione to invoke Severus' life debt, and I hope with time he will come to understand just how lucky he would be if he allowed himself to love her... openly and before the world, to love her.

I am heartbroken for Hermione and Severus, and thoroughly angry with Ginny.  Because of her immature and childishly selfish nature, Ginny has single handedly cost Hermione the love of her life and any hope for a future in her chosen profession.  I hope she is satisfied.

Beth

Ginny is still behaving strangely, and though I can understand her chafing at the double standard employed by her parents, she still seems very troubled about the way things are going.  Harry, it seems, has not changed his mind about having a long engagement despite what Ginny told Hermione.  Something is really off about this whole thing with Ginny and Harry.

Lavender is proving to be much more mature than she had been previously, and I'm glad that she didn't tell Ron what her comments to Hermione were about.

Did the owl find Severus to deliver the message Hermione sent him?  And where would our Potions master have gone so early on a Sunday morning?

A very interesting chapter!
Beth

This was such a lovely chapter that I had a smile on my face the whole time.  I so very much wish that Winky hadn't popped into the room.  I'm dying to know what Severus was about to say to Hermione. 

Still, he did say in a round about way that he looked upon her as a woman.  YES!!!  Albus' twinkling eyes and his knowing smile told Hermione that the former Headmaster thought Severus was interested in her, too.

I really liked this chapter, and I'm off to see what's happening in the next one.
Beth

Is it my imagination or is Ginny behaving a little... oh, I don't know, she just seems very flighty and, well, something's off.  She got all defensive when Hermione asked her about her getting a garnet instead of a diamond.  She has pressured Harry into proposing to her, and instead of having a long engagement, she is planning a summer wedding.  Even Hermione noticed that what she was telling her was not what Harry had written to her in his letters.

Ah well, what will be, will be.  At least Hermione and Lavender have had a chance to talk privately and Lavender was able to make her apologies.  And she gave Hermione the beautiful lingerie she had admired.  It's a start.

I wonder if Hermione will have more confidence around Severus when she is wearing her new under things. 

Beth

And now it seems that Madam Pomfrey is aware of Hermione's love for Severus.  The tenderness with which she told her about how horribly Severus had been treated, and how she thought Lily had chosen a lesser wizard to marry opened Hermione's eyes to the extraordinary character of the man to whom she had given her heart. 

Ginny is very curious about the current status of Severus' impotence.  I wonder if she is telling anyone else what Hermione has shared with her.  God, I hope not.  That would end any chance Hermione had with Severus.

I share Hermione's love of books and bookstores, so I know how enjoyable it is to get a new book and get cozy in the bed and read.  I hope she has a good night... and I hope Severus does, too.

Beth

Hot dog!  That was fun!  The Professor and the Know-It-All are coming to an obvious awareness of each other.  

And I just remembered that in Chapter 15, Dumbledore had told Hermione that Severus was near death and she had to do something to make him want to live.  He told her that, “Severus is not yet ready to hear everything from you..."  Dumbledore is aware that she is in love with her Professor, and he didn't tell her not to pursue her affections for him.  He only told her that the time was not right for her to tell Severus how she feels about him.

And now the witch in the bookstore shares her secret. 

And I'll be a monkey's uncle if Severus isn't aware of her feelings, too... and I'm certain that he reciprocates! 

Oh, this is great!

Beth

Oh, oh!  A bit of progress here!  Has our dear Professor awakened with... err... a morning erection... even a small one... perhaps?

*slaps self*

Thank you for this endearing chapter and a look into the sense of humor that Severus has.  I adored the teasing way he told Hermione about his physical improvements.

And he's eating!  Yay!  He even enjoyed his dessert.  I think Hermione's determination is rubbing off on him.  Am I mistaken thinking that he is becoming aware of her feelings for him?  And that he has begun to feel affection for her?  Hummmmmmm.  Nice.
Beth

I wanted to cry when Severus said that there comes a time when one must accept that it is one’s lot in life to die.  No!  Nooooooooo!

I was almost beside myself for Hermione to tell him that he couldn't give up, that she loved him and he must try to hold on.  But in retrospect I realize that it was not the place or the time for her to declare her feelings. 

However, her heart rending protestations against losing him, that every one would miss him terribly, and her pleading to allow her to complete the potion and bring it to him won the day! 

I hope Hermione will be able to brew a perfect potion that will give Severus relief and buy him the time he needs to heal.

Angsty, angsty, angsty, and beautifully written!
Beth

Severus' condition seems to be growing rapidly worse.  It's a good thing that Hermione didn't just return to her room when he failed to answer his door. 

It must be a joyless existence for the Potions Master to live each day exhausted and in pain.  I can't imagine a worse thing than to have only that to look forward to each day.  I hope hearing Hermione's concerns for him personally and her fervent desire to find a solution that will let him lead a more normal life will provide the necessary impetus for him to battle once again to reclaim his life.

This was such a heartbreaking chapter, but very well written.  I could see the distress on the faces of Hermione, Poppy, Minerva, and Albus.  Nicely done!
Beth

When I first began reading this chapter I wanted to whoop and cheer with glee... and then she woke up.  You rascal, you!

But the final bit of the chapter is almost as delicious as the dream.  I loved the way they were able to talk about Potions and what differentiated a good potions student from an excellent one.  His compliment to her on her natural talent in Arithmancy was such a profound thing for her to hear from his lips... that he could study for years and never approach her gifts in Arithmancy.

When his arm had hemmed her in from the side and he spoke his parting remarks to her, I just sighed.  So close.  So close.

Beautifully written chapter!
Beth

OMG!  I just knew when Snape stopped Hermione in the hallway that led past his rooms that he was going to really blow his temper.  It seems, however, that her mature and genuine entreaty to go with her to the kitchens for cocoa to discuss how her latest research might make the potion work better to relieve his pain (if not his impotence) was well received.

Your depiction of the characters in these most difficult of circumstances is brilliant.  It's just how I would have thought they would have reacted.  Well done!
Beth

AARRRRGHH! GINNY, NO!!!!

It was a painful chapter to read, but good.
I particularly enjoyed your portrayal of an invoked life-debt. It was very vivid and more than a bit awesome.

You would think that he'd understand how she felt, being rejected like that. Oh, well.

Great work! Keep it up!