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Who Are They Now? COMPLETE	By : Snapes_Slave Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Snape/Hermione Views: 9085 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I own no part of the Harry Potter universe, That honor lies solely with Madame Rowling herself, nor do I own any part of Funny Girl or its music. I make no money from this story.

Chapter List
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Hermione slowly walked towards her house, stepping carefully on the dirt road, deep in thought. As her mind wandered over the revelations that the day had brought, a smile crept across her delicate features. Severus Snape, it appeared, liked her. He thought her talented, brilliant, and strong. Words she never would have thought she would hear from him, but she found she now couldn't stop replaying in her head over and over.
She lowered the wards on her new home and entered, hanging her messenger bag on a hook near the door. She let out a breath as she looked around. This was her home. The place that she could be comfortable. The place where she would research and work and relax. The place where she would heal. She had been taken completely by surprise realizing that Severus was her new neighbor, but upon reflection, she realized she felt incredibly safe with him there. Hermione had always thought him to be brave and powerful, like some sort of larger than life Wizard of Oz, but after talking with him today, after the care and consideration he had given her, and after the deep level of understanding he had shown in regards to her PTSD, she knew that he was just a man. She could not ask for a better ally. Having her own personal hero so close by, she hoped that her nightmares would finally stop.
In a flurry of motion and excited waving of her wand, Hermione set about cleaning up her sitting room and the rest of the downstairs, being sure to place extra wards on the door to her basement lab. The children were curious creatures much like their parents had been, with a tendency to find trouble. No need tempting them with volatile chemicals and ingredients. She placed dinner in the oven and, after glancing at the clock above the stove, ran upstairs to finish preparing herself for the arrival of her friends. It was true that the lot of them tried to live in relative obscurity, but they did manage to get together at least once or twice a month. With Hermione moving house, she hadn't seen the whole crew since their previous dinner, and other than getting coffee with Ginny and Luna last week, and an owl from Harry, she hadn't heard from them in that time either. She nearly squealed with excitement thinking of their likely reactions to hearing about Snape.
Although the boys had forgiven him, they had still harbored some ill feelings for their former professor for some time. In fact, it was Hermione's stalwart defense of the man on many occasions that seemed to finally get through to them. Harry had been considerably easier to sway than Ron, and it would be his reaction that Hermione was most looking forward to this evening. She new the girls would both be supportive and probably more than a bit scandalous in their rebuttals, but Ron would be down right hilarious.
Hermione put the finishing touches on dinner just as she heard several pops outside near her front porch and went to answer the door. She was immediately swarmed by 5 small bodies all throwing themselves about her legs, letting out shrill cries of "Aunt 'Mione! We missed you!" And its several variations. Hermione smiled widely, doing her best to hug them all back simultaneously, before saying, "Well come on, then. Inside. Let me show you my new house."

HGSSHGSSHGSSHGSSHGSS

Once dinner had been eaten, and dishes cleared, the group moved to the sitting room. Hermione had chosen her favorite wing back chair near the hearth. It was obvious that she spent a great deal of time in it, it's soft cream fabric warn, and the nearby floor lamp tilted to the perfect angle for reading. Ginny and Harry occupied the soft blush loveseat opposite her, baby Lily in Harry's lap, while Ron and Luna rested easily on the tan couch with a small Hugo between them, his head on his mother's side as he played with one of her new 'charm projects'. Rose, James and Albus all played a game of exploding snap on the hearth rug. Hermione looked at the scene in front of her fondly. She loved being surrounded by her family and the obvious love they all had for one another. She hoped that one day, she would sit comfortably next to her husband, a child of her own in her lap or resting on her shoulder. Her thoughts strayed to Severus as she realized that she had envisioned a pale, dark haired child and him by her side. She shook herself out of her reverie and addressed the room.
"So, remember what happened with the rehearsal accompanist?" She said.
"Oh, right! Whatever happened? Did they find a replacement for her?" Ginny asked, running her fingers through Lily's hair absently.
"Yes, they certainly did. You'll never guess who it is." She answered, a Cheshire cat grin on her face.
"Who is it? Someone we know?" Luna asked, her voice somewhat breathy as it always tended to be.
"Oh, I would say so, yes." Her smile broadened.
"I give up. Who is it?" Harry asked.
"It's Snape." She said.
"What?! Snape is your new pianist? What a small world!" Ginny said, sitting forward. "How did he look? Still terrifying and head to toe in black?"
"No, as a matter of fact, he wore a charcoal grey jumper and dark washed jeans. And he was anything but terrifying. Actually... Erm, well, I had a bit of a fit when I saw him-" she started.
"What did that blackheart do, 'Mione? I swear, if he did something I'll-" Ron started in.
"He... Well, he helped me. I lost it, fainted dead away, right there on stage, in front of everyone. He jumped up on the stage and held me. He talked me back, and then told Simon I needed a break. Then we sat down and... Just talked. It was...-" she said, leading off, slightly dazed.
"Now, we're getting somewhere. What did he say? How did he look?" Ginny asked, on the edge of her seat.
"He held my head in his lap, and kept telling me to open my eyes. He told me he was alive and well, because of me then said to 'show me those honey whiskey eyes.'" The girls both let out romantic sighs and sat back, eyes soft.
"We talked. He asked me how I've been, and after he called me out on my lie of being 'totally fine', of course, I talked. I told him basically everything; how bad it's been, how sick I was, how much better it's gotten."
"That's really good 'Mione. I'm glad he was so good to you today." Harry said, putting an arm around Ginny's shoulder as Lily crawled to the floor.
"What else did you talk about? Your face says there's more." Luna asked, a large smile crossing her face.
"He told me that I was the strongest person he's ever known, told me I was brilliant and talented, and that my emotional strength and connection with people is why it was all so hard on me. I told him I felt weak and vulnerable, but he said I was really strong to keep going and do my research and live my life after everything." Hermione's voice had taken on an almost dreamlike quality as she spoke.
"We can't be talking about the git, right now. There's no way he would say that stuff!" Ron said, his voice equal parts disbelieving and harsh.
"No, no. I could see it, darling. You remember how he used to look at her? Especially after the Department of Mysteries and Dolohov? He respected her all the more for just picking up and continuing on." Luna told her husband, running her hand along his knee. "Or how he acted after she was tortured by Bellatrix. He was livid, you remember?"
"Oh, yeah. He did seem kind of soft for you, 'Mione." Ginny added, an eyebrow raised and a smirk on her face. "So what aren't you telling us?"
"Are you sure you can handle it, Gin?" Hermione teased. At her excited expression, Hermione's teasing folded.
"He lives next door." She told them all.
"No! Really?"
"What a small world."
"That's incredible!"
"Bollocks!?"
"Ronald!" Ginny shouted.
"Well, how should I feel about this?! Ay? He's always been a greasy git and treated us like rubbish, and now, here he is, after 10 years, hitting on her from just down the street? I'm telling you, 'Mione, that great bat wants to get in your knickers and nothing more. He sees how you've grown and the woman you are now, and wants a piece!" Ron ranted, pointing his finger menacingly at the group. "You all just watch. He'll butter her up and once he's gotten some, he'll be gone before you can say Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"
"God's, Ron! She's not some slag, looking to give it up to just anyone!" Ginny yelled, sending a small nonverbal stinging jinx at her brother from across the room. Ron winced, and rubbed his injured ear.
"Well, of course I know that. I just don't want to see you get hurt, that's all. I don't want to see you move backward... I hated seeing you so ill before. I just... Do me a favor, and whatever you do, just don't let him take away your health. Don't turn back into the stranger again." Ron babbled, his eyes softening.
"I understand, Ron. But whatever happens, it'll be between me and Severus. And I don't want to go back to that either. For right now, I am my first priority." Hermione stated firmly.
"Well, then. I hope things work out for you, love." Harry said, lifting a glass in Hermione's direction. He smirked at her surprised face. "What? I happen to think you lot are perfect for each other."
"Seconded!" Ginny shouted, also raising a glass.
"I agree. You and he balance each other out. It's really rather obvious, now." Luna mused out loud. Ron just looked between his friends and his wife, shaking his head befuddled but resigned.

HGSSHGSSHGSSHGSSHGSS

As her friends-turned-family left, Hermione waved her wand lazily, once again tidying up and setting the house to rights, thinking and daydreaming.

I wonder what he's thinking. I think I could really be happy with him. I certainly feel much better than I used to. What if it's all fake and Ron's right for once? What if I'm just some conquest to him? On the other hand, what of I'm not? What if what we could have is real, and special, and... Everything? Could I be his everything?

Hermione's brain was running mile a minute as she brushed her teeth and readied herself for bed. She loosely braided her hair and removed her clothes, laying down in just her cotton knickers, taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly, relaxing into the cool Egyptian cotton sheets.

Tomorrow. There's always tomorrow. She thought.

That night, for the first time in 10 years, Hermione slept, deeply and peacefully, with not a nightmare in sight. The evenings dreams were full of lazy Sundays reading by the hearth together, chubby black-haired babies, and music; and as the scenes continuously changed, the one constant in all of them was Severus' presence by her side and an overwhelming feeling of safety and contentment.

A/N
I know, I keep doing this to you. Not an excuse, but IRL, I'm nearing the end of my contract with the US NAVY, and it seems that the closer it gets, the more work there is to get done and the more exhausted I tend to be, ergo, less writing. This story will NOT be abandoned. That has to be one of my biggest pet peeves, when a story abruptly stops halfway. SOOOO, I also apologize for it being so short (and without any of our favorite snarky man in black), but hopefully, I will repay your patience with a couple more chapters this weekend...
Suzaku_Lancelot- You know I love you, right? So, you and I have talked about my back ground in shows and whatnot, why wouldn't they be theater geeks?! Sev would obviously love classical music and how big of a leap is it really for him to play? And Hermione? She needs the escape of being someone else. I like the PTSD angle because I feel like it isn't really used very often in fics, when realistically, it would definitely be present in all of them. They've seen some real shit. They would all have their own moments of the 'thousand yard stare' right?
HarryGinny4EVA- How did I do with all the pals? I had some difficulty trying to get the voices right, but they will be featured more throughout, so any advice is welcomed. I always have the toughest time with Luna... not sure why. My thought process is, why hide their interest? Although they both seem more likely to be shy nd fear rejection, they've been through a lot and seen first hand just how short life really can be. Why not go for what you want?
ANON (N)- Thanks! Did you notice, it's fixed. As I don't used Betas (too much pressure) I appreciate the assistance there.
ANON (LC)- Please review again, I'm hoping you enjoy the story...

Any tips or advice or comments or CONSTRUCTIVE criticism are welcomed!! How would Severus ask someone out? And how does he act when he dates? Let's continue on, shall we?
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Who Are They Now? *COMPLETE*

Who Are They Now? COMPLETE