Chapter 7
Severus stood by his Floo grate, staring at the soot gathered at the bottom. He was quite nervous, just because he didn’t exactly handle rejection well. Hermione had helped him, but… what if that only went so far? What if her powers as Minister only went so far? What if he was going to face humiliation again?
“Get a grip,” he muttered to himself, before grasping a handful of powder. He took a deep breath, then said, “Ministry of Magic,” and dropped the powder down. He disappeared in a plume of green fire and smoke.
Traveling to the Ministry was always a drag. He had considered Apparating, given he still had his privileges as a former headmaster within Hogwarts, but didn’t need to be spooking anybody on the way. He did that enough as it was with just existing.
He had put quite the bit of effort into his appearance that day, purely because it was the most important meeting of his life. He was in a fresh suit that he’d only wore a few times, his hair was washed and dried, he’d brushed his teeth, everything he should do all the time, but admittedly… didn’t. He had no real reason to take care of himself on a daily basis. He wasn’t happy. There wasn’t anyone he was trying to impress in his day-to-day life.
Severus went to the floor he’d seen far too many times and checked in with the clerk at the front desk. With a side-eye, she directed him to take a seat. Hopefully he’d leave today in a better mood than all the previous visits.
People stared as he walked, something he’d grown used to long before the end of the war. He had taught most of the population, and those he hadn’t taught, he’d gone to school with or otherwise knew in some way or another. Now that the war was over, it seemed like the world knew him and he hated every damn second of it. He hated being stopped in the street. He hated being recognised. He hated being fawned over. He hated people asking for his autograph and Merlin forbid, a photo. Severus had never sought glory. Just forgiveness from an old friend. A couple old friends.
“Professor Snape, they’ll see you now.”
Severus exhaled and nodded, before standing to walk into the room. He strode to the front of the room, exuding the confidence he always did in the classroom. This was not the time to be shy. He looked around, seeing all the familiar faces that had turned him down so many times before.
“Whenever you’re ready, Professor.”
Severus nodded again, and just as he was about to start, the door opened.
“I apologise for my tardiness,” a very flustered looking Hermione Granger said as she bustled into the room. She took her seat and folded a leg over the other. “Please, continue.”
For whatever reason, he immediately felt calm. Just having her there soothed his nerves, and he felt like he could take on anything. It was an odd and unfamiliar feeling, one he hadn’t had for many years. But it was welcomed, all the same, especially in this situation.
“Good morning,” Severus greeted. Kill them with kindness. Ugh. He hated that phrase. He’d rather kill himself.
“You’re all familiar with the preliminary work I’ve done on my Wolfsbane potion. As I outlined, I cannot do any more work on it by practical testing without adequate funding. As stated in the outline, I am also confident I can link a potion remedy for the Cruciatus Curse’s long-term effects with curing lycanthropy. I have extensive data for both, and I’ll be able to apply them each in multiple ways in our society. I’m requesting twenty thousand galleons between the two projects. With this money, I can upgrade the outdated labs I have at Hogwarts, where I do all of my work, buy ingredients that are ordinarily out of my reach, and take time off teaching to put my full energy into this work.”
“Why can you not use the labs here?” one man spoke up.
“I could. I suggest Hogwarts because we are in the middle of term and I have no replacement for my classes. Traveling back and forth between the castle and here would be impractical on top of my lessons. Not to mention the energy exertion would diminish my potential doing physical work in the lab,” Severus answered.
“You understand you’d be under a magical binding contract? You’d be expected to provide detailed expense reports weekly to ensure the money is being used as intended,” another said.
“Yes,” Severus said. Obviously. Fucking pricks. “I don’t intend on stealing from the Ministry,” he then added. He had a snarkier comment backed up, but the look from Hermione suggested he keep his cool. “You would get very detailed reports from me regularly, down to the knut.”
They all looked between each other, then looked at Severus. “We will be contacting you with our decision. Thank you, Professor.”
Severus pressed his lips together in a thin line. That’s it? He reluctantly nodded and gathered his things. “Thank you for the opportunity,” he said, though it felt like swallowing nails. He hoped that the Minister’s presence would sway them a bit. He cleared his throat and left the room, hovering outside the closed door behind him. He tried to remain positive, but… he just wasn’t so sure.
Inside the room, Hermione looked at the men surrounding her. “I don’t think that there should be a question in any of your minds right now as to his suitability,” Hermione remarked firmly, with a sense of finality. “I will informally offer him the funding now, and you will ensure that he receives a written confirmation in due course.” And with that, she stood, gathering her things before moving to walk out. Of course, she hoped that he was still about. She’d rather like to catch up with him. She walked out, closing the door behind her as she looked down the hallway.
“Professor Snape?”
She caught him just as he’d been about to round the corner. She rushed to reach him, smiling as she caught up. “I have some good news for you. The funding has been approved. You’ll receive all the paperwork soon enough, but let’s not drag this out any further on your behalf. Those will be the people that you have to continue to impress, with both your financial reports and research findings.”
Severus was unable to hide his relief.
For a moment, she looked him over, not ever really having seen him quite like this before. He’d certainly made an effort. There was something oddly endearing about it, not that she’d say that to him, he’d undoubtedly be mortified, but she couldn’t help herself thinking it.
“I was running a little late today and haven’t managed to eat. Would you care to join me for lunch somewhere? I have another quick meeting, but I’ll done in half an hour or so,” she spoke, glancing down at her wristwatch. “If you’ll bear with me, of course. I understand if you have somewhere to be.”
“I have nowhere to be,” Severus replied.
Hermione smiled and nodded. “Feel free to just wait about in the foyer and I’ll be with you as soon as I can. I know a couple of lovely muggle places that we could choose from. My treat for your success.”
“Alright.” Severus watched her walk off, then he forced himself to sit down and not pace like a loon. He had almost forgotten about the funding because he was now wrapped up in what the hell he was supposed to say to Hermione Granger over an entire lunch.
//
“Thank you for agreeing to come out with me,” Hermione said as they walked the streets of muggle London together. “I’m sure you have better ways to spend your time, but–”
“Why do you do that?” Severus interrupted, looking down at her. At her confused look, he shook his head. “Act like you aren’t worth being around. This is twice today you’ve presumed someone else’s company is more important than yours. I don’t know how exaggerated the lovely press have made my social life, but believe me, dining with the highest witch in the land is quite the step up from my usual Friday afternoons. Do not doubt your importance again.”
Hermione swallowed and nodded, knowing better than to argue with him. Nobody – save for him, truly – had ever spoken to her that way. And deep down, she knew he was right.
They wandered into Chinatown and she gestured to a small, hole-in-the-wall restaurant. “How about here?”
Severus looked upon the suggestion and furrowed his brows. “A noodle shop?”
Hermione’s face fell. “We can go somewhere else–”
“No, it’s fine… I had similar food a lot growing up with Lily. We didn’t have much money so it was easy to make something out of nothing,” he said. “It just brought back good memories for me, that’s all. This place is just fine,” he reassured. Severus walked inside sat down with her, then looked over the menu. He couldn’t really remember the last time he’d gone to a restaurant like this and ordered noodle soup. Long gone were the days he went out to somewhere so inexpensive and simple. Spending time with the Malfoys had squeezed that side of his past out of him.
“I don’t know much about Lily,” Hermione said, gauging his reaction. “Everyone who knew her is gone now. Well… almost everyone. Everyone I regularly speak to.”
“We’ve been speaking rather regularly, have we not?” Severus asked, eyeing her over the menu.
“Recently is the word I would use for our conversations as of late, Severus. And until now, you would only say the bulk of ten words to me my entire visit to Hogwarts. I want to get to know you. Be your friend. You owe me, after all,” she teased.
Severus rolled his eyes. “Always a catch…”
“What sort of noodle soup did you two make? How old were you?”
Severus sighed and let his menu tilt down against the table a bit. “Nine or ten. We never made any specific one any given day. It was always just with the scraps we had. It was cheap. We used to take the ends of bacon that her mother made for us on th weekend and put it in the broth, which was really just some hot water and dried noodles we split. I remember adding an egg once and it was like we’d discovered fire. Or we were dining on the most elegant caviar.” He did smile at the memory. He’d give anything to go back in time for just one day.
Hermione mirrored the expression. “That’s lovely. From what I’ve heard of her, she was very kind.”
“The kindest person in the world,” Severus agreed with a nod. “I’ve never told anyone that story.” It had never had any reason to come up. Talking to her was easy. Too easy, sometimes.
“Thank you for telling me,” Hermione said. Severus couldn’t ignore the sincerity in her tone. Hermione understood better than anyone how deep a friendship could burn. It was the main reason she was so scared to make changes in her love life, despite how unhappy she was. She didn’t want to believe her friends would choose sides, but how could they not?
“At least we won’t be bothered much here,” Severus said, changing the subject. “I’m surprised you don’t have a security detail. I was certain Potter would have jumped at the chance to be your personal guard-dog.” Briefly, he wondered if she ventured into muggle London often. When Severus went into town, he tried to stick to muggle establishments, purely because he didn’t get recognised. He probably had it easy though, she was likely swarmed everywhere she went. Then again, this was Hermione Granger. She could handle herself and then some.
“I like the privacy,” Hermione sighed. "That isn't to say there aren't eyes on me. I just don't find the need for the intense security other ministers have insisted upon."
“Fair enough. For what it’s worth, I’ll be your bodyguard anytime we’re together. That’s the good thing about being around me: people tend to stay away,” he smirked.
Hermione shook her head disapprovingly at his self-deprecation, then looked back down at her menu. “I’m going to get the tofu noodle soup.”
“I’ll get the spicy beef,” Severus said. “I know you said your treat, but… it goes against my masculine moral code to make a lady pay,” Severus said honestly.
“The feminist in me is cringing right now, Severus. It’s only lunch.”
“Indulge me. Please. At least split it with me. It’s been a long time since I’ve been out with a friend,” he said, then paused. A friend. She wanted to be friends. She had just said as much. They could be friends. He shook his head and huffed. “My apologies, Miss Granger. I only ask because I wanted to know if you’d like to share an order of their pork dumplings,” he said as he pointed to it on the menu. He had seen a table nearby order them when they walked in and his stomach was doing all the talking for them now.
“Of course,” Hermione responded with a small nod. “They look really good. I’d noticed them too,” she laughed, before a waitress came over to take their order. She sat back comfortably in her seat, before tilting her head as she watched him. “I really am wholeheartedly sorry that they made you work so unnecessarily hard for this. It’s ludicrous.” She rolled her eyes. “Your proposals are the best that I’ve seen in my time doing this. I’d like to say that, what, almost thirty or so percent of the projects we’ve funded in the last couple of years have actually come to fruition. I don’t trust their judgment.”
“It’s the Ministry. No offense.”
“None taken. That’s precisely why I ran. I want to undo that very correct opinion of our government. It won’t happen overnight but… I hope I’m making some small difference.”
“You made the world of difference for me.”
Hermione searched his eyes at those words and blushed, as usual, her brain tacked on. “I was happy to.” She watched him for a second, a few moments of comfortable silence settling between them, before she spoke again. “I appreciate your loyalty to Hogwarts, too. You could very easily have chosen to immediately walk away.” She smiled across at him as she picked up her freshly set down mug of green tea. “It’s going to be difficult finding a replacement for you though. Your knowledge and skillset are astounding, even I have to admit that, all these years later. Although, I always felt a great deal of respect for you for that, Professor. Even whilst you were being particularly rude to me…” she trailed off, arching a brow accusingly, before slowly smirking.
Severus sighed and picked up his water to take a sip. “I wasn’t overly interested in returning, but Minerva asked me, and I felt I owed her. She felt the same, and is still apologising for ‘not believing in me’ toward the end. Dumbledore was very hard for her to get over, despite the circumstances. I empathise with her. In any case, I needed a job, and it was guaranteed employment. Businesses weren’t exactly beating down my door to hire me after my trial,” he said. It was the sad truth. He had his freedom, but how free was he, really?
“I’m not going to apologise for how I acted back then. I needed to wear a mask, as I know you know. To be fair though, if you had been in my shoes, you would have put you in your place too. I see your little hand waving in the air in my nightmares,” he chuckled teasingly. She really wasn’t so bad, and he didn’t mind her wanting to learn. He couldn’t say that for many of her peers.
“I… was rather over-enthusiastic, I’ll give you that,” Hermione laughed as she cringed.
“You were excited. It was a brand new world. I get it. I was just a prick. You can agree,” he chuckled, shaking his head. He could have been nicer, and he could have gone another way about it, but he’d had so much other shit going on, he hadn’t really cared about a child’s feelings.
“You turned out fine,” he shrugged, picking up one of the dumplings with his chopsticks. He dipped it in the sauce, before popping it in his mouth. “Unless you have some deep-rooted trauma from me making fun of your teeth or dubbing you an ‘insufferable know-it-all?’” His smile returned at the glare she shot him… again. “You seem to have grown into all your dental shortcomings. And coming from someone with every bodily problem or deformation under the sun, I would know.”
He still wasn’t overly confident in himself, and hadn’t had much reason to alter his appearance since the war. His hair was grown out longer than he’d ever wore it, purely because he wanted to try to cover the scarring on his neck. His skin wasn’t as sickly looking without all the stress, and the bags under his eyes had mostly gone away. His teeth were still… not amazing, nor his hair, but he just didn’t have it in him to give a shit. He stayed in shape, went on runs around the grounds every morning at dawn and lifted weights in his chambers, purely from habit during the wartimes. This was the most effort he’d gone to in decades.
Their food came and he eagerly began eating. It felt like home. He smiled to himself at the memories that came flooding back, and in that instant, he wished it were Lily sitting across from him rather than Hermione. It reminded him what a strange, surreal situation this was, because it was Hermione Granger sitting across from him. He assumed that she was having similar thoughts.
“Thank you for suggesting lunch. I know you told me you’d sit in on the meeting, but I didn’t believe it until you actually showed up. Your influence and presence was invaluable, I’m sure. It calmed my nerves, seeing someone who I knew was in my corner be there,” he admitted. “I was hoping to find you today anyway. I wanted to thank you in person for vouching for me. Not many people would put themselves at risk like that for me. The gesture did not go unnoticed. I know we discussed payment already, but I really would like to pick this lunch up for us. I should be the one celebrating and thanking you, not the other way around.”
“You’re not going to let me pay, are you?” Hermione responded with a small, playful smirk. “Fine then, I’ll have to concede,” she laughed, putting her hands up. “Thank you, it’s very kind of you.“
She smiled warmly at him, thinking about everything else that he’d just said in appreciation of her. “And honestly, it’s not a problem at all. How could I not vouch for you? I can only apologise for the way that my colleagues judged you.” She rolled her eyes. “However, there’s certainly no need for us to dwell on that beyond this meeting. You have the funding, pretty much. You’re going to have to sign your life away for it though, but the first installment will be with you as soon as you’ve sent back the contracts. Read them carefully, but I’m certain that you will. You will obviously keep complete ownership of your ideas, that’s what I’ve always pushed for, but it’s more of a… reputation thing when it comes to there being any repercussions. You burn us, we burn you.” She then shrugged somewhat nonchalantly. “Trust me, not my idea, but I really can’t overrule everything.”
“I understand. I’ll cross every T and dot every I, don’t worry,” Severus said, pinching some of his noodles with the chopsticks.
It wasn’t too long before they were making their way out of the restaurant, back out into the hustle and bustle of the city. Hermione turned to look up at him with a kind smile, “It’s been lovely to catch up with you, Severus.”
“Likewise… Hermione,” Severus said, testing out the name. If they were going to be friends, he ought to use it, as she had encouraged.
“See? Was that so hard?” Hermione teased.
“Watch it,” Severus warned.
Hermione laughed and bowed her head in apology. Admittedly, she didn’t know when or if this would ever actually happen again. In all fairness, this could be the conclusion of their reason to see one another. It was a shame really, because she had been getting along rather well with him, and had felt that there was something to be explored there. She could perfectly understand, though, if he would prefer otherwise. She didn’t know what her friends would think when they found out about this, nor was she bothered really. They did all hold a level of respect toward him that they’d never had before, most prominently Harry, not so much Ron. Yet, she’d never actively expected any of... this. Whatever this was turning out to be.
She reached out for his hand, shaking it politely before then taking a step back, “I really do hope that we bump into one another again soon, Severus. I’d quite like to see how you get on with all of this.”
“Me, too.”
She hesitated for a moment, before speaking. “Goodbye Severus, for now.” She smiled again, before then waving as she walked away.
Severus watched her go again. It seemed like a revolving door of one of them watching the other retreat. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, then counted to ten. It was a good day. A very good day.