The Ties that Lead to Trust

Chapter 40~ Taking Back the Day

In the few remaining days of July, Hermione spent most of her time outside walking. Initially, her feet would only consent to take her around the perimeter of the property, within the wards, but gradually it was easier to step beyond its security and explore the immediate area. The first day she walked by herself down the road, she used a disillusionment charm to ease her thrumming nerves, but the quiet road and gentle breeze were her only companions.

Meandering down the dirt road, she scuffed her shoes and watched small pebbles dance and skittle in front of her. The soft clicking of the tiny rocks made a rhythmic counterpoint to the steady rustling of summer leaves. It really was beautiful here, even though she hadn’t taken much time to appreciate it. The soft breeze dispelled the heat of the day and only a few flies buzzed lazily about her, not ambitious enough to land and maintain a hold on her slightly sweaty skin.

About a mile down the road she reached her neighbour’s laneway and peered down it. Cows were laying on a small rise towards the front of the west pasture, seeking out the breeze and occasionally flicking their tails to swat away the hovering insects. The air seemed much more still here, hot and with a certain heaviness to it. She watched as a young man, about thirty by her guess, walked tiredly towards the house with a small girl skipping energetically about him. Even at a distance, she could see the look of exasperated exhaustion on his face as Katie flaunted her boundless energy. Hermione raised a hand, about to call out and wave to them, then realized she was still disillusioned. As she dropped her hand she felt exceedingly foolish and looked around before moving closer to the tree line. She was getting carried away, wandering the countryside in a moderate state of invisibility, and tapped her wand solidly on her head.

The warm trickle that accompanied her reillusionment made her feel more uncomfortable in the stiller air near the trees, but she wiped her brow and moved back into view of the house. The man and Katie had disappeared from sight, presumably into the house. Hermione shoved her hands into her pockets to keep them from wringing and fidgeting and moved up the lane towards the house. The heaviness to the air, she realized, came from the dust associated with haying. As she moved closer to the yard, she could see a hay strewn wagon pulled up close to the barn, a couple broken bales laying haphazardly beside it. There wasn’t a breath of air near the buildings and she could just imagine how stifling it was to work in the midday sun.

Tentatively, she climbed the front steps to the house and knocked. The bright light outside made it nearly impossible to catch a glimpse of the inside, but she could hear energetic footsteps approaching the door. Suddenly the door flung open and there was a high pitched squeak of delight.

“You came!” Katie exclaimed then called behind her shoulder, “Brian! Our neighbours are here.”

As her eyes adjusted to the dim light of the front hall, she saw the young man from earlier poke his head out from the next room. He shook his head at Katie and sighed, “Well then, Katie, invite her in.”

Moving to take off her shoes, the girl shook her head. “Don’t bother with your shoes. Nobody does during the summer.”

In the kitchen, Katie bounced to the counter where a pitcher of lemonade had been abandoned and filled a third glass. Flopped tiredly in a chair by the table, the young man extended his hand saying, “Brian Winters. I’m Katie’s oldest brother.”

Hermione smiled and took his hand. “I’ve heard a bit about you. Sorry I didn’t let you know I was coming. I was just out for a walk and I thought I’d stop by.”

Brian waved his hand in dismissal. “You’d likely never reach us during the day anyway. We’re in the middle of haying. Any excuse for a break is a good one.”

Katie set a glass of lemonade in front of each of them then sat back in her chair, swinging her legs and inquired, “Where’s Severus?”

“He was busy working when I left,” she explained.

“Oh,” her face fell a little.

Hermione smiled at her and chuckled softly commenting, “You are probably the only person under the age of thirty who looks forward to seeing him.”

Katie gave her a confused look and she continued. “Severus is well known for having a foul temper. I suppose you’ve never been his student. I’m sure you’ll hear plenty of stories when you get to Hogwarts.”

“So that letter Katie got wasn’t a joke,” Brian said, still sounding somewhat sceptical.

“My parents thought the same thing when I got my letter. I’m surprised the school hasn’t sent someone here to visit you. When I got my letter, it was only a matter of hours before there was someone at my house transfiguring teapots on the kitchen table,” she told him, smiling.

“Well, I suppose mum got the big demonstration when she went over to see you. Katie hasn’t stopped talking about it since, have you midget?” Brian said, giving his little sister an amused look then shrugged. “I suppose it will be awfully quiet around here this winter.”

Katie gave her brother a friendly shove. “I just know you’ll have big parties when I’m gone. You don’t fool me.”

“You bet. We’ll have wild parties every night and ice cream for breakfast every morning, but for now there is work to do. Why don’t you go check on mum and Duchess. See if she needs the IV. I’m going to lay down for an hour and we can go get another load,” Brian told his sister and turned to Hermione, “I’d love to chat, but the weather calls for rain tomorrow and there are still several loads of hay sitting in the field.”

Hermione nodded in understanding. “Of course. If you need help, I can stay and give you a hand.”

“We should be alright, but I’ll keep your offer in mind. Nice to meet you, Hermione,” Brian said and put his glass in the sink before disappearing down the hallway.

Katie pulled at her arm, urging them back outside. She kept up a running commentary as she guided them out the back door, through the yard, under a fence and down a path. The sun was still as hot as before, but it didn’t seem to phase Katie as she walked with her ever present bounce to her step. Hermione wasn’t entirely sure where they were going or what exactly Duchess was, or what an IV might have to do with the excursion, but not having any real plans for the afternoon and seeing the girl’s enthusiasm, she followed. As the path made its way out into the fields, she felt the afternoon breeze brush across her face again. They crawled through another fence as they approached a line of trees and her young companion whispered to Hermione, “We’ll go see my mum in a bit, but I have to show you something. Shhh.”

Hermione nodded and attempted to walk more quietly through the dry knee length grass but found it difficult. The grass swished around her legs noisily and she wondered just what it was that she was being shown that required quiet. Ahead of her, Katie was weaving through and climbing over trees. With another enthusiastic waving gesture, Hermione followed and arrived at a clearing where her guide had stopped.

Across from them, big as a draft horse was a hippogriff. Hermione’s jaw dropped as she recognized the grey plumage and intelligent bright eyes. Automatically, she bowed and watched the creature do the same, his eyes fixed on her. Ignoring Katie, Hermione dashed towards the hippogriff and flung her arms around his neck. “Buckbeak! What on earth are you doing here?!”

Buckbeak nudged her insistently until her hand scratched under the feathers at his neck. When she found the right spot, the hippogriff stretched his neck and pawed a back hoof in contentment. Katie, who had come up quietly beside them asked, “You know him?”

“Quite well. I haven’t seen him in two years though. Not since my friend Harry let him loose on the rooftops of London,” she explained, “How long has he been here?”

“About that long. I found him trampling my hide away down here a couple weeks after my birthday two years ago. He was eating the mice that lived there. I’ve never told my mum about him though. I don’t think she would understand,” the younger girl told her.

“Do you get many animals turning up here?”

Katie shrugged. “Some. There used to be this tiny owl that was really friendly. He stayed in the barn last winter, but left in the spring and I raised a baby raven once. It’s mostly birds that I find, or cats. I like looking after them, but mum won’t let me bring them in the house.”

Hermione turned and smiled at her young friend, speaking with amusement, “I think you are going to get on well with Hagrid when you get to Hogwarts.”

Duchess, as it turned out, was a rather large cow who was calving in a field by the pond. By the time they got around to leaving Buckbeak in his shady grove, there wasn’t much excitement left to be had as a knobbly legged calf eagerly suckled from it’s mother. Beth had waved them away saying everything was fine and informed them she would be up at the house shortly. As they walked back up to the house, Hermione’s mind was still spinning from her recent reunion with Buckbeak. More time than she had anticipated had passed, and she decided to begin her walk home through the fields. As soon as they were out of earshot, Katie began peppering her with questions about hippogriffs, eager to learn more about them.

“Are all hippogriffs the same colour or are they different like horses?”

“Well I’ve seen a few different colourings in class. Some are brown and I think I saw a black one once.”

“Can you really ride on their backs? While they fly?”

“Yes.”

“Have you ever flown on a hippogriff’s back?”

Hermione shuddered slightly at the memory and replied, “Yes.”

Katie seemed to bounce even more at that. She inquired eagerly, “Was it exciting?”

“It was terribly awkward and uncomfortable, not to mention there were three of us on his back at once. I’m not terribly fond of flying,” she confessed.

Katie shook her head, commenting, “But to be up in the air, above everything, the wind in your hair... It must be wonderful!”

Hermione shook her head ruefully as they approached the rail fence that straddled the two properties. She offered, “If I can come back and visit Buckbeak again sometime, then perhaps I might be able to convince Severus to give you a flying lesson or two before you leave for Hogwarts. He has a broom, I do not.”

“Really?!” the girl threw her arms around Hermione in gratitude, “That would be brilliant! Will you ask tonight? Can you come back tomorrow? Do you really think he will agree?”

Hermione suppressed a chuckle at the girl’s enthusiasm and answered, “We’ll see.”
*********

Severus looked up from his logbook where he was recording his most recent lab work when he heard the small chime of a recognised person coming through the perimeter wards. Jotting down a final note in his records, he ascended from the basement and looked out the west window in the front room to see the small figure of a woman walking up through the fields. He smiled at the sight and moved to the kitchen to clean up and make some tea.

It had been a pleasant surprise earlier when he watched her leave down the front lane, disillusioning herself as she stepped out onto the road. She had been very reluctant to leave the security of warded spaces since her attack in Hogsmeade, and understandably so. He had no real notion how to help her and made no comment on her initial need for closeness. She had scarcely let him out of her sight for a month, which he did his best not to become irritated with.

Since the trial, however, she had been actively trying to push away. Severus had noticed she stayed within the confines of their property’s wards, but her wandering over the past couple weeks had been solitary. Even when they were together, Hermione had strived to maintain some sort of distance, though in truth she only managed aloofness. Privately he wondered if she were striving once more for independence or even to be alone, but in the dark of the night she seemed content enough to be held close. He hoped, now that she felt increasingly comfortable creating physical space between them, that they might again be able to share more affection. It was somewhat startling to recognize the urge was his own.

The kettle began to whistle, and Severus poured the boiling water into the pot to steep for a few minutes. He rummaged about in the cupboards to find something suitably edible to have with tea and found a tin of biscuits that appeared to have been left behind by Molly Weasley on her last visit. He was adequate in the kitchen himself, but still somewhat out of practice. He set the biscuits on a plate and hoped that Hermione would eat some. She seemed thinner, something he had begun to notice when they were in bed, though she appeared to be eating well enough. Some of it, he knew, was due to her increased exercise but his summons to appear at the Fudge/Malfoy trial beginning next Monday might also be having an effect on her appetite.

Hermione came through the front door, her shoes clattering on the floor as she toed them off, and poked her head into the kitchen. She was smiling, he noticed, and seemed to almost be vibrating with excitement about something. She greeted him warmly as she came into the kitchen and Severus bent down to place a light kiss on her lips.

“Did you have a nice walk?” he inquired.

She grinned at him saying, “You won’t believe what I found at the neighbours.”

He quirked the corners of his mouth into the barest hint of a smile and commented, “I might if you told me.”

“Alright. Now don’t get cross, but do you remember the hippogriff Sirius Black kept at Order headquarters?” she asked, slight apprehension in her question.

Severus did his best not to grind his teeth at the name, and nodded for her to continue.

“Well after he... after the Department of Mysteries incident that is, Harry decided to let Buckbeak go. I was over at Headquarters and Harry asked me to disillusion Buckbeak. We took him up to the roof and he flew away. That was two years ago, and not two hours ago Katie tells me she wants to show me something and there he is. Two years. I figured it would have been in The Prophet if the Ministry had found and executed him, but...” she trailed off, seemingly lost in the memory.

He picked up the tea tray and urged her towards the sitting room. With a cup of tea in hand, she continued to talk about the hippogriff and her visit with the neighbours. She was smiling faintly as she talked and nudged closer to him when he sat beside her on the chesterfield. He picked up his own cup and sat back to listen, putting an arm around her shoulders. She sounded more happy and at ease than she had in some time. Listening to her rattle on about the beast in question a thought struck him and he asked, “Where is she keeping this hippogriff?”

“In that treed area down by the creek,” she answered.

“All winter?”

She nodded, “For two years. I still can’t believe that of all places, I would find him here.”

“And does Beth know about this?” he queried.

Hermione gave him a questioning look, saying, “Do you really need to ask that?”

He chuckled softly, “No, I suppose not. I don’t like to think such an animal would be left without shelter in the winter, though.”

“I was thinking about that as well. Perhaps... oh I don’t know.”

“There is more than enough room. Besides, a hippogriff is as interesting as flying horses.”

She quirked a smile at him, “You weren’t kidding about exotic hippogriff breeding then?”

“Perhaps closer to September we can-” he started, but a tapping at the window interrupted him.

Opening the window, Severus stood back as a large barn owl flew into the room, dropping a letter on the coffee table. Hermione broke off a piece of biscuit and it snatched the treat while taking off again. The yellow parchment envelope had a familiar script on it written in green ink. It was addressed to them both, and Hermione picked up the letter and cracked the seal. Inside was a brief letter, written in Minerva McGonagall’s neat handwriting. Hermione read it aloud.

Dear Severus and Hermione,

I regret the tardiness of this missive, however, I am sure
you understand the hectic nature this time of year always
brings to Hogwarts. I hope you are both settling well into
your new home. It has come to my attention that one of
your neighbours, Katie Winters, has received and accepted
a position at Hogwarts. Unfortunately, as her acceptance
was received so quickly, her paperwork was filed incorrectly.
A representative has not, as of yet, been sent to visit.
Albus tells me you have met them, and I would request that
you assist them with any information they require prior to
September 1st.

I appreciate your time and help in this matter.

Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall

Severus took the letter and briefly glanced at it while nodding. He said, “I’m not surprised. I had figured something of the sort had happened since whomever would go to visit would likely have come to visit us as well.”

“I could take Katie to Diagon Alley, I suppose,” Hermione offered.

He glanced at her, slightly shocked and asked, “Are you sure?”

She shrugged, observing, “I can’t hide forever. I have things to get in London myself and really, who better to take her. I do have something to ask though.”

“Should I be worried?”

“Perhaps. Katie wants to learn to fly. I um... well I might have mentioned you might be able to teach her.”

Sitting down beside her, he was quiet for a moment before countering, “I think one of your friends might be a better instructor. Perhaps Miss Weasley?”

She nodded. “I suppose I could ask. Katie is terribly fond of you, though.”

“May Merlin help me,” he commented dryly.

*********

It was with infinite relief that Severus made his way to leave the Ministry of Magic for the last time in what he hoped was a very long time. He had spent enough time in the dungeon courtrooms to last several lifetimes and no matter the reason he was there, he always had the horrible feeling in the back of his mind that at any moment he would be shackled and taken to Azkaban. He knew logically that there was no reason for such a thing to happen, but when dealing with people like Lucius Malfoy and Cornelius Fudge one could never be certain.

Flashes from cameras lit from all sides as reporters clamoured for a statement, but he pushed through them without a word. Doubtless they would have the biggest story since the downfall of the Dark Lord the previous spring, but he wasn’t about to become food for the scavengers. Judge Xin had scheduled a press conference in the main atrium for fifteen minutes from now and all Severus wanted was to be as far away as possible by then. As he stepped into the open lift, several camera carrying reporters moved to follow him, but it was too much. He pulled his wand out and glared at the few foolish enough to try to follow him and growled, “If you enter this lift with me, you will discover the true meaning of poor judgement.”

The two cameramen within earshot took a few frantic steps backward as the door to the lift closed. On his way up to street level, he cast a disillusionment charm on himself and mentally plotted the shortest route to a quiet alleyway from the phone booth. Arriving at the surface, he slipped quickly from the glaring light of the main street and into the shelter of a small gap between two buildings. The pedestrians on the street continued to bustle about their business and he raised his wand to Disapparate.

With a pop, he stood in the quiet peace of his back garden. In little more than a month, the garden plot looked lush with lettuce, peas, carrots and sundry other vegetables. He enjoyed the fresh scent of growing leaves and the rich undertone of warm earth as it invaded his senses. In only a few moments he felt much more at ease than he had at the Ministry and felt some of his tension ebb away.

Entering the house he called out to see if Hermione was in. In the three weeks since her own appearance in the Ministry courtrooms she had begun to spend more and more time wandering the countryside. Once she had gone right into the village itself and was dropped off in a car by someone from further down the road. He was pleased to see her more at ease around other people but was still quite surprised when she offered to take young Katie to Diagon Alley to get her school things. They had gone a few days ago and his young neighbour was now to be seen skipping around fence rows shooting colourful sparks from her wand at every opportunity. In addition to that, the young girl had been given an old broom by Ginny Weasley, though it was currently stored in his broom cupboard to keep it secret from the girl’s mother.

From upstairs he heard a faint voice call, “I’m up here.”

The door to Hermione’s office was open to the hallway and he leaned in the door to see her studying a parchment intently. She heard his footsteps and looked up at him, concentration lines still etched in her face before her expression brightened to a smile. She waved the parchment in her hand commenting, “It would have been nice if I had received this before I went to London with Katie. Old coot.”

Severus arched a brow and read the offered parchment.

Dear Mrs Snape,
Please find enclosed a list of required reference texts
and materials. Read your schedule carefully and bring
theappropriate items as I do not provide them for you.

Note that the first session, August 28th , is to be a meeting
which will require the attendance of your husband. Do not be late.

W Ashfordly

“I see he is as cordial as ever,” Severus commented dryly.

Hermione sighed heavily, “What have I gotten myself into? Everything on the list is fine and I’m ready to work hard, but I don’t know if I can take his attitude. Why did I ever think this was a good idea?”

Severus stood behind her chair and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “Because you never pass up a challenge. Though he is every bit as cranky as advertised, he is also a very traditional man. He may not believe that a witch should have no rights, but he will respect those of a man first. Since he and I have met and hold each other in respect he will hold me in higher regard than you, whom he has not met.”

“Shouldn’t you respect everyone, before you meet them at the very least?” she posed, irritably.

“For the sake of argument, if someone like Albus happened to have a wife that you hadn’t met yet, wouldn’t you be inclined to refer to her as Mrs Dumbledore? Even if this mythical woman did not use the title, it is a form of respect to acknowledge the relationship,” he tried to explain.

Hermione hesitated, then asked almost meekly, “Do you think I am disrespectful for not taking your name? Do you wish I had made a different choice?”

He moved around the chair and pulled her up to her feet before wrapping her in an embrace. For a long moment he simply held her, then replied gently, “You and I made the best choices we could at the time. I would be proud to have my name attached to yours but there is no fault in respecting yourself or protecting your identity.”

“I only even asked because I thought it might hold things up a little longer. I did it as a statement of protest to the Ministry,” she informed him, letting out a slightly shaky breath.

“You did manage to irritate a number of people at the Ministry from what I’ve heard. Besides, as far as old Winston is concerned I think it highly likely he is trying to unbalance you before your studies begin. Part of earning a Master title is being able to set aside preconceived notions and try something new or unexpected. Perhaps he is trying to give a very clear preconceived notion of himself to test how you react to it?”

She looked up at him and said skeptically, “Do you honestly believe that?”

He shrugged. “Perhaps not, but the point is valid. Innovation does not come from sticking with established ideas.”

“I guess,” Hermione paused, then asked cautiously, “Are you not going to tell me about it then?”

Taking her hand, he lead her downstairs into the library where they could sit more comfortably to relay what had happened at the trial. Severus sat down with Hermione tucked close against him and began to tell her about the day’s events. He spoke with exaggerated calm, “Most of today was formalities. Final speeches from both sides and an adjournment to arrive at a verdict. No witnesses spoke today, but most were there.”

“And?” Hermione asked impatiently.

“Fudge has officially been removed from office and will serve twelve years in Azkaban. He also has to pay a variety of institutions money he took for his own.”

“How much?”

“Seventy six thousand Galleons.”

Hermione’s eyes went wide. She gasped, “Seventy six thousand?”

Severus nodded. “He will never hold a public office again.”

“And what about...?”

The arm he had around his wife tightened slightly as he said in a whisper, “Life.”

Beside him, Hermione had buried her face into his shoulder. Through his clothing he heard her muffled voice ask, “Is it really over now?”

“It’s just beginning,” he said cautiously

Her head snapped up and she demanded, “What is happening?”

Severus took a deep breath and began, “At least half of the legislation Fudge enacted is subject to review. The first one being Act 275. As of today, all enforcement is suspended and no marriage licences are to be issued for a period of thirty days pending the results of the new Legislation Review Committee. The Wizengamot has declared Madam Bones as interim Minister of Magic while the whole of the Ministry is subject to an inquiry. There are big changes ahead, Hermione. Things that should have happened well over a year ago.”

Feeling slightly dazed by all the information, she stared at the mantle of the fireplace, not really seeing it. Severus followed her gaze, but focussed intently on the objects on the mantle. A small photo gallery sat atop it with a few pictures each of pleasant times and places. There was a picture of Hermione’s parents and another of her with a collection of students from her year in Gryffindor. He had added a photo of Hogwarts to the collection and another of Rome he had taken while at a Potions conference nearly a decade ago. The only picture of them together was the awkward photo of their wedding day. Thinking of the words he had just spoken, he was slightly disconcerted to realize that nearly a year ago they were both cursing the Ministry for Act 275 and despairing the thought of being stuck with each other. He wouldn’t give it up now if he had the choice.

In a quiet voice he said, “The second brewing of my healing salve will be ready to bottle tomorrow.”

“Mmm? That’s good,” she commented distractedly.

“If you’re interested, we have time to spend a week in France, or perhaps Greece,” he suggested.

“What? Oh, France. I suppose. Why?” she asked, still preoccupied.

Severus leaned down and breathed against the shell of her ear hoping to focus her attention. She shivered as he whispered in her ear, “A week in the Hogwarts dungeons was hardly a special holiday. I thought I might do better this time.”

She sat up at this and looked at him in surprise, asking, “You want to go on a holiday?”

“I might have suggested something closer to home, but we likely won’t be disturbed outside of England,” he observed.

“Well... I.. I guess. Where do you want to go?”

Standing up, Severus moved closer to the photos on the mantle. He picked up the Roman city scape and glanced back at Hermione. “I haven’t done much travelling. This was a conference I went to a number of years ago. There was little free time during the week, but the evenings in Rome were pleasant. There are a number of magical communities in Italy and Greece, but I did not have the opportunity to visit them. Would you enjoy that?”

“I... I might. I’ve never been to Italy. I’ve heard the architecture and food are wonderful, and the art...” she trailed off for a moment, then asked, “Could we visit the Sistine Chapel?”

Severus extended a hand and pulled her into his arms. A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he spoke, “We could visit anywhere you like.”

She snaked her arms around him and leaned her head against his chest. “I think I’d like that very much.”

*********