Stopping short of the conference room door, I abruptly turned to Shacklebolt with my pulse racing so fast it was making me regret having eaten. "Minister, this will be hard on Miss Granger, and I believe it would be best if I spoke to her alone."

     His golden robed shoulders relaxed, "Good, I was up late trying to figure out how to handle her."

     I gave him a puzzled look even though I'd been up all night feeling like a bi-polar maniac as I'd contemplated fifty million different outcomes that may occur today. "Handle her?"

     He cleared his throat and looked uncomfortable, "Please don't misunderstand me, The Department of Magical Law Enforcement is lucky to have her joining their ranks, but after working with her last summer..." He took a deep breath, his eyes growing large, "... well, she's more intimidating than almost everyone I know."

     Pride rippled through me, "She is indeed a force to be reckoned with."

     "You know she's not going to take the news well or that you waited close to two months to tell her about it."

     I nodded, there was no doubt in my mind that Hermione was going to be livid, just as anyone would be. "I'd hoped to have her parents in custody getting treatment and have Greyback locked away in Azkaban."

     The look in his dark brown eyes said you're in deep shit buddy, "It would have been quite a marvelous tale, too bad it hasn't turned out that way."

     Tightness constricted my chest uncomfortably as the conflict of dread over the unpleasant news I was about to deliver, versus excitement from being near the one thing I've yearned to be close to for over nine months battled within me.

     I took a deep breath, "Then it's best to keep the Minister of Magic out of dueling range when she receives the news."

     "Right." I sagged feeling a little relief as the dark-eyed wizard walked off without a backward glance, "Let me know how everything goes and thanks, Snape."

     "No, thank you, Minister," I mumbled as I took a few moments to calm my mind and try to ease my nervously shaking body before entering the room.

     Hermione was looking out the window with her back to the door, reminding me of when I'd first woke up in St. Mungos last summer. My eyes drank in her lengthy, butterscotch-hued hair and hourglass silhouette. I swear by Salizar Slytherin that just to make my day she wore a black dress that hugged her shapely curved backside, begging my hands to run over it.

     Merlin, I silently begged, help keep me from making an idiot of myself - please!

     "Hermione," Her name pleasantly caressed my tongue as it slipped from my lips.

     I heard her take a startled breath as she jumped. She took a moment to straighten her shoulders and cleared her throat before moving.

     The air was knocked out of me, and I froze in awe when the stunning know-it-all turned my way. I stood there, marveling over the loss of baby fat that once lightly plumped her face and kept her looking young. Aphrodite would be jealous of the mouth-watering, perfectly sculpted woman that she'd become. 

     Severus, I reminded myself, breathe in, one - two - three. Breathe out, one - two - three.

     A sexy smile pulled at her full pink lips while her velvet-chocolate eyes roamed over my body, sending my blood zipping through me.

     Breathe in, one - two - three. Breathe out, one - two - three.

     When her velvet-brown eyes locked on mine they were filled with warmth like they'd been the last time I'd seen her, but there was something else in them, an edge or hardness, that made her look confident and more than capable of handling anything that came her way.

     "Severus," She seemed to sigh out.

     Blood surged through my veins so hard that it was rocking me back and forth. I could hear my mind screaming at me, "You're not breathing! Fuck the counting Severus, just get some air buddy! Breathe before you pass out!" At that last thought, I sucked in a huge breath.

     Magnets locked onto me, pulling us together. Without hesitation, I wrapped my arms around the little beauty, buried my nose in silky hair, and sighed in relief when she held onto me just as tightly as I was holding her. Slowly, with each lungful of her sweet intoxicating smell, my high strung body relaxed; knowing that she was here, no harm had befallen her as I'd continuously feard and she was safe - for now.

     I wasn't altogether sure how long we held each other, but the feel of her supple, nicely curved form pressed against me was making it hard to ignore my body's primal response to her proximity. At the last lungful of air, a hint of strawberries teased me, and I had to let her go before I lost complete control of my blood flow making it evident that I was physically attracted to her.

     Rose colored her cheeks as she moved to look up at me, and sheer pleasure filled her sing-song voice, "It's good to see you."

     My eyes swept over her before stopping on the necklace I'd given her, jealous of it getting to lay on her supple chest. Without realizing it, I lightly ran a finger down the silver chain, fighting the desire to touch more. I hooked my finger under the crystal to rest on my fingertips, softly caressing her silky skin with my knuckles. "I see it arrived safely."

     Her breath shuddered through her slightly open mouth. She was studying me intensely, and my tongue twitched excitedly at the idea of pressing against the rapidly pulsing vein along her neck.

     As if coming out of a trance she swallowed, "I would have owled but knew I'd see you soon and preferred to..." the rose coloring her face was flattering, "It's beautiful. Thank you for such a thoughtful gift, Severus."

     I couldn't help but smile at her, "You saved my life, and a gift does little to express my gratitude. On top of that, I believed having your parent's with you at such an important crossroads was necessary - regardless if you'd figured out how to open it or not."

     Her eyes were searching mine, "I've never seen a piece like it before. Where did you get it?"

     I cleared my throat, suddenly feeling uncomfortable being so anal-retentive about my need to give the perfectly thought out gift. "I made it."

     Her warm smile was brilliant, "You did!?"

     "I detest shopping, and they never have exactly what I want to give anyone." I cringed at the thought of all those loud, annoying humans shuffling around like cattle as they decided what to waste their money purchasing.

     "Did you make McGonagall's too?"

     I cocked a surprised brow at her and nodded, "She told you about that?"

     "I'd wondered what kind of gift you'd give, and she told me about hers."

     "Minerva still hasn't opened it yet has she?"

     "No." She ran her fingers over mine as she spoke, sending tingling sensations through my body, "It means even more that you'd take the time to make it for me."

     I sighed in relief, "I'm glad that you like it."

     "I love it, Severus," She stared into my eyes. "Just one question."

     "Only one?" I gave her a disbelieving look.

     Her light laughter filled the air, "Well maybe not, but where did the box go?"

     I was thrilled that she liked it so much, "When you tire of it and decide to take it off..." I shrugged.

     "It'll come back?"

     "They're one and the same," I answered, unsure how much she'd care to hear about the crafting process I'd used.

     "I don't know if I'll ever want to take it off." Her fingertips sent more jolts of excitement through me, "It goes with everything."

      My hands were begging me to touch more of her. Instead, I let the charm fall gently back against her pale chest and made my way to the round table to pull out a chair for the little beauty.

     "I was informed that the valedictorian mentioned me in her speech. I admit I'd like to have seen that first hand."

     She gracefully filled the offered seat, "Yes, you were spoken well of and missed at the ceremony. McGonagall told me you'd have been there, but Ministry work pulled you away."

      "Unfortunately, there was a matter I had to attend to and couldn't make it back in time. How was the trip to the Bahamas?"

     Butterscotch hair had fallen over my hands on the back of her chair. I spread my fingers into it, enjoying the feeling of the silky strands for just the briefest of moments before slipping into a seat next to her.

     She sighed, "Wonderful. I laid on the beach, soaked in the sun, and read."

     "I'm glad you did something to celebrate before starting your career here at the Ministry."

     "Me too, but I'm thrilled to be back and starting my life." Dark-velvet eyes seemed to assess me like a doctor looking over a patient, "I'd read that you were badly injured some time back, but you look good. Even better than your pictures in the Prophet."

     "Yes, I was hit with a poisoning spell and had been a guest at St. Mungos once again." Her eyes were calculating, making me feel guilty that I'd avoided communicating with her. "But, I've recovered," I flinched at my stupidity and suddenly envisioned Ron Weasley, wondering if it was partly Hermione's fault he'd seemed so stunted.

     She arched an eyebrow in disbelief, and there was an underlying heat to her words, "Yet, you were too unwell to bother to owl me after my second letter asking after your health?"

     Squirming under her heated gaze, I stated lamely, "There were extenuating circumstances that prevented me from writing you." I'd tried, but I cared about her too much to give her the bad news through a letter and not telling her about her parent's made me feel like I was lying. On top of that, I wouldn't show up at Hogwarts to interrupt her studies and throw her life into a tailspin of worry, so I'd waited. However, the anger vibrating off her made me wonder if I made the right choice. The look Shaklebolt had given me a few minutes ago came flashing to mind along with Abdelaziz's words advising me to tell Hermione about this as soon as I'd been released from St. Mungos.

     "I'd hate to think I saved your... well... everything, and that you'd gotten yourself killed less than a year later."

     "Let me explain," I heard the unfamiliar sound of panic in my voice and swallowed hard to keep my racing heart from jumping out of me.

     She leaned back and crossed her legs. When doing so, a slit in her dress, that I had no clue was there, opened and her sun-kissed, beautifully toned legs popped out, demanding I touch and worship them.

     Merlin's grey beard! Breathe in, one - two - three. Breathe out, one - two - three.

     "That would be nice," My eyes snapped back to her heated brown ones.

     I attempted to clear the frog from my throat before speaking, "Hermione, what I have to tell you is not going to be easy to hear or believe. I need you to stay calm, and I'll explain."

     "You're asking me to stay calm... now? After blatantly ignoring me." She glared, "I was worried about you!"

     I tried to ignore the intoxicating feeling of her thinking about me, and I nodded, "You have a good reason for being cross with me, but you'll have to trust that I had your best interests in mind."

     She scrutinized me for a moment, "Let's hear it then."

     I looked her over, avoiding her distracting legs as best I could, "My team, and I were tracking a pack of werewolves that had been leading us from the UK, across the North Sea, and up along Norway's coast into Nordkvaloyac."

     She sucked in a sharp breath, and her porcelain skin had become ghostly white. "The deaths, all the newspapers claimed they were animal attacks."

     "The ministry didn't want to panic the public. Shaklebolt even asked the Prime Minister to get the muggles to print that it's a pack of wolves or wild dogs until we catch them."

     "What about the victims, do you know why they were murdered?"

     "Not exactly. The deceased that we could identify were muggles that had a magical lineage or were a squib."

     She sucked in a shocked breath, "That's terrible."

     "It wasn't pleasant."

     She paled further, "Severus, please tell me I'm not here to identify my parent's bodies." 

     "No," I held my hands up, relieved I could at least give her a bit of good news. "They're alive."

     She sighed heavily, looking relieved.

     "Did Wendell and Monica ever show the slightest magical aptitude?"

     She shook her butterscotch covered head while speaking, "As a muggle-born witch, I obsessed over how it was possible for my parents to have a magically inclined child. Trust me; I kept a very close eye on them over the years to see if they possessed the smallest bit of skill. The only magic my father attempted is 'got your nose' and even that he was rather lousy at performing."

     "Got your nose?" The Dark Lord's unsightly face came to mind.

     She laughed lightly at my confusion, "It's a game you play with a little one. You make them think you stole their nose by doing this." She reached over and caressed my face to show me the so-called muggle magic.

     I couldn't help but chuckle at the idea of Voldemort losing his nose to a muggle that way.

     "Okay, they're not naturally magical." I shook my head at the frustrating mind-bending puzzle still unclear how they could perform magic.

     "What?" She tilted her head and squinted at me.

     I sighed heavily, "When we finally caught up to them, I was injured, and there was a fight. It's Fenrir Greyback's pack."

     She stated nervously, "I thought Greyback was ripped to shreds during the final battle at Hogwarts."

     "Everyone thought that, but unfortunately, the mutt is alive and doing better than I'd like." I tasted bile at the rising disgust I always felt when thinking of the unpleasant werewolf still breathing.

     "Why didn't you kill him?" She asked without blinking.

     I swallowed my anger down, knowing what I was about to say was going to hurt her and wishing more than anything that I could have prevented it, "Unfortunately, we were outnumbered, I was hallucinating from an attack and..." I took a deep breath, "Hermione, your parents were there - defending him with magic."

     All the color drained from her face, "What!?"

     Laying my hand on her small one, I squeezed to offer my support. "I've no clue how this is even possible, but I can attest, your parents are quite good with a wand."

     "No!" Silky butterscotch hair rippled in waves as she shook her head furiously, insisting, "You must have the wrong people Severus."

     "I'd be delighted if I was wrong in this instance," I admitted while waving my hand over the pensive occupying the center of the table. "You tell me if it's them or not."

     The liquid shimmered and morphed into images of her malnourished, unkempt, and bone-weary parent's. It felt like a dagger being driven into my heart when she sucked in a sharp breath. Her large watery eyes flooded me with guilt, and her hand rolled over to clutch mine tightly.

     The uncomfortable pressure of responsibility I've been carrying around over this squeezed my chest and relentlessly clawed at my consciousness. I shook myself to push my feelings aside, knowing this was about her needs, and I resisted the urge to pull her to me to try to protect her.

     When seeing me get hit by Wendell's spell, her eyes flashed to my chest before looking back to see the slow traveling green snake, her mother sent my way.

     Stopping the memory, I explained, "At this point, I begin hallucinating and things get very strange as well as confusing." I squeezed her hand, "That was your parents, correct?"

     She nodded slowly, staring off into nothing while her mind worked through what she'd just learned.

     I watched in fascination for the next few minutes before her vision sharpened and heated eyes snapped back to mine.

     Her face reddened in anger and her tone was deadly, "Greyback, has my parents, they use magic and dad injured you," she looked me over. "You and I both know that you could have caught them, but you let them go or..." She shook her head, "Severus Snape, you'd better not tell me that you let them go because they're blackmailing you!"

     I sat with my mouth hanging open in awe; wondering how in Merlin's grey beard she'd figured that out. The little witch was making it incredibly hard for me to keep from wondering what a body with a mind like that tasted like - everywhere.

    Strawberries flooded my mouth, and I had to swallow several times before speaking, "If you want to be crude about it - yes."

     "Coming after you effectively blocked the Ministry from hunting them down," she grouched. "Obviously Greyback wanted something more than his freedom. What is it?"

     "To leave him, his pack and the Sacred Twenty-eight alone."

     "Pure-bloods! I should have known," She shook her head in disgust. "I suspect he threatened to harm my parents well being if you get to close to something you shouldn't or they just decide to restrain you because they can?"

     "Yes," I'd never tell her Greyback planned on sending their body parts as a warning.

     She eyed me longer, "I appreciate that you didn't want to see me hurt by my parent's getting injured but you know as well as I do that they're now considered threats, and as an acting Auror, you should've caught them. What aren't you telling me?"

     I silently thanked Merlin that Shacklebolt had so eagerly agreed to let me handle this on my own and pulled the frayed edged picture from Greyback out of my breast pocket. I slid it over for her to inspect and was more nervous now than on all my dates combined. 

     Rose flooded her cheeks, and she was doing her best not to smile as she studied the photo. After a few long moments, her eyes ran up to mine, "Me?"

     My thumb stroked her soft hand, and I nodded slowly - mesmerized by her.

     "Severus, I..." She held her mouth open, and I tensed.

     I felt like my whole body was ready to explode from the anticipation as I waited for her to tell me she wanted me as much as I wanted her; that she'd thought of me every day and had dreams of me nightly, just as I'd done with her.  

     She twitched in her seat as a look of concern washed over her features, "There was a fight in the Forbidden Forest when I was at school. That was Greyback, and his pack wasn't it?"

     Well, I grumped, that wasn't at all what I was hoping for!

     I shook off my disappointment and refocused, "The attack occurred before anyone was aware that Greyback was still alive. However, Ellison Markus was able to get a positive ID on his attacker, who'd also fought with a centaur; his name is Norman Burke, a known member of Fenrir's pack."

     "Let me get this straight," Her cheeks flushed, and anger filled her voice, "They were that close to me, and you didn't think it would be a good idea to tell me I was in danger? I'm sure you told McGonagall and if I were Harry you'd have warned me!"

     "Of course, I told McGonagall. She's the headmaster of Hogwarts and is in charge of keeping the school and everyone inside safe."

     "And if I were Harry?" Her face scrunched in irritation.

     "Potter is... well," She was right, I'd have told Harry. I'd done her a great disservice by not believing she was capable of handling this situation.

     "But you couldn't tell me?" Her eyes flitted to the photo of us and back to me, "A person that it appears that you have feelings for."

     "I...," I sat with my mouth open as she glared at me.

     "Do you think so little of me as a witch that I'm incapable of protecting myself?"

     "Uh..." realizing her strength and seeing her anger had my mind spinning so fast I couldn't think clearly.

     "Well?" Her grip on my hand tightened, and I jumped as a light jolt of electricity shot down my arm.

     "Hey!" 

     She raised her eyebrows, challenging me to stop her. I wouldn't, for some unplaceable reason I enjoyed her chastising me and the feeling of what she'd done was still tingling pleasantly through me.

      "You're the brightest witch of your age, and I'd never doubt your skill's."

     "Then why, Severus?" She was so beautiful and full of emotion that I wasn't sure if she was going to yell some more or possibly curse me. Either way, I'd happily accept it.

     I swallowed the pooled saliva that had collected in my mouth before speaking, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about all this right away as I know that you'd have liked." I leaned in and ran a fingertip across her forehead to move a flyaway hair back to where it belonged. "In my defense, I knew finishing school at Hogwarts meant a great deal to you, and I couldn't bring myself to destroy that desire with news that you'd only be able to fume over."

     She ran her eyes over me for a few long moments before speaking, "I appreciate that you wanted to protect me, but I'm very capable of dealing with complicated situations, and feelings." She rubbed her thumb slowly back and forth on my hand, and her eyes bore into mine, sending desire flooding through my body, "I hope you'll handle me a lot better next time Severus."

      I shuddered in excitement while trailing my eyes suggestively over her curves, "I'll handle you; however, you want me to." Merlin, I couldn't believe I just came off sounding like a willing sex slave - I was, but I was also turning into a love-sick idiot who says dumb things because of her too.

     "This..." she lightly tapped the picture of us with a smile pulling at her light pink lips, "...makes it look like we have a very intimate relationship."

     My heart sputtered as her eyes trailed over me with a hungry look in them.

      "If Skeeter were to get a hold of this, it will make the front page of the Prophet."

     "It would certainly help increase their sale's."

     "There's most likely copy's so it's pointless to worry since there's nothing we can do about it." She slid the picture back to me, "However, I'm keeping you from effectively doing your job."

     I looked down at our touching hands and toyed with her little fingers, before gently squeezing them and pulling away. Her brown eyes were making me ache to touch her, "Yes, you are."

     She blushed and looked away, "Do you have any leads on the pure-bloods that could be behind this?"

     "No," I sighed out in frustration. "We do know it's not any of the Weasley's, Longbottom's, Malfoy's or Slughorn's."

      "That's a place to start." She thought for a moment, "I only ever concluded that I was possibly related to a wizard through my father's bloodline. Not my mothers so I wonder how she's capable too?"

     "She carried you inside her for nine months," I suggested.

     "Anythings possible at this point. How do you suppose they accomplished this?"

     "I've gone through all my books, had Minerva look through all of the literature in the library, including the restricted section and all of the ones in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts. I've scoured libraries, contacted world known authorities on any number of subjects who might know of possible ways for this to happen and so far I have nothing solid to go on."

     "What about genetic modification?" She looked uncertain. 

     "That's an interesting and terrifying idea." I couldn't believe it, after all those years of watching Star Trek I didn't think of gene manipulation! Of course, we are dealing with pure-bloods, and I didn't believe they had any knowledge or interest in that particular subject. Abdelaziz was proof that magic and muggle technology were being used side by side, maybe the pure-bloods had evolved too. 

     "We need to be looking for Wizard geneticists."

     "I knew it was going to be a power play of some sort, but due to ages of inbreeding this is more clever than I'd considered they could be." 

     She laughed lightly, "You'd think they'd be tired of trying to rule the world by now."

     "As long as there's air in people's lungs, there will always be a struggle to dominate others - it's human nature."

     "True."

     "I do have some good news. Abdelaziz placed a muggle tracker on Burke, and we know they are in Australia. So far he's been seen in several different cities. Based on the traveling pattern, I believe he'll settle down soon, and we'll be able to capture all of them."

     She nodded in approval, "Good. According to the newspapers, there's been a lot of trouble for the Australian Ministry."

     "Voldemort's death caused many to believe they should be his successor and to prove it they flex their wizard muscles, or just cause chaos in general."

     She nodded, "Do you know why he might be there?"

     "Not yet."

     She grew quiet and caressed her necklace, "I cut myself out of my parent's life to keep something like this from happening to them, and it didn't make any difference."

     "You don't know what would have happened and thinking that way won't help matters."

     She was looking deeply in my eyes, "To be perfectly honest, I'd never thought I'd see them again. I did my best to get rid of their memories of me and don't know if it's even possible to reverse what I've done."

     "What!?" She flinched. "You told me that you were going to locate them once it became a bit safer."

     "The wizarding world is too dangerous for muggles who know about it. And me being me, I'll be getting into plenty of trouble in the future, and they need to stay safe. I didn't tell you last summer because your health was more important to me than burdening you with my sob story."

     "That's the dumbest thing you've ever said to me!" I snapped, feeling my blood pressure rise. "It's not right of you to take their only child away from them! If I'd had the loving parent's I know you have, I'd fight tooth and nail to be near them, and here you are, throwing yours away thinking you're doing something noble."

     What an idiot!

    The memory she'd witnessed of my drunken father flashed to mind, making my blood boil. I was positive she didn't know, but it had been when he'd broke my nose again, and it never healed properly, giving me the notorious hook many enjoy making fun of. 

     She'd turned a bright shade of red, looking like she was going to explode, "That reaction is why I didn't say anything to you last summer!"

     "That's not true," I glared at her. "You didn't tell me because then you'd have to admit to yourself how bad of a decision you made."

     "I did it because they could die being around me!"

     "They'll die anyway!"

     "That's not... how can you..." She twitched angrily in her seat.

     "Your parents, they'd tried for years to have children, and when they'd just given up, you came along - completing them." I was suddenly reminded of Cupid needing Psyche and how having Soul made them a family, not just a couple. How I ached for that.

     She took several long calming breaths, and I felt myself doing the same, "Severus, what's done is done."

     "I guess we are both guilty of withholding information to spare each other's feelings."

     Her eyes ran over me before nodding.

     "Counter-productive," I grumped.

     She tilted her head up, raising her eyebrows, "Extreme waste of time."

     I ran my eyes over her, memorizing the slant of her nose, the curve of her lips and the enticing smell perfuming the air, "I promise, I'll do my best to remember you're no longer a child needing their handheld like some dunderhead."

     She smiled a little, "And I promise to tell you about my sad circumstances, if they apply, happily knowing it won't kill your ancient body."

     "Ancient is a bit far-fetched." I rubbed my chin in thought while looking deeply into her velvet-brown eyes, "Perhaps - perfectly aged."

     She shifted her body weight and crossed her legs, so that one lightly pressed against mine, "Perhaps."

     I knew she was with Weasley, and I'd repeatedly told myself that I could flirt but would ultimately behave and respect her relationship with him. I swore to myself that I wouldn't make a real move on her because I wasn't a creep; but as I admired her rose colored cheeks and soft lips, desperately wanting to taste them, I thought - game on.

     "I'll begin preparing memory restoration potions," She volunteered.

     "Sounds good. I'll speak with any Wizard geneticists I come across and let you know what I find." 

     Her eyes brightened, "When are we going down under?"

     "What do you mean, we?"

     "You can't possibly expect that I'd sit by, twiddling my thumbs, while you run off to help my parents now did you?" 

     I felt my mouth twitch into a smile, knowing she'd insist on being there, "I'd be disappointed if you didn't want to come with me." I stood, needing to get away from her before I stopped listening to my common sense, and she followed suit. "We'll leave just as soon as I hear a word from any of my contacts. It's a waiting game for now - not very exciting."

     "Okay," I'd expected more questions or demands but was pleasantly surprised when she smiled up at me - making my mouth water.

     "Be ready to go at a moments notice."

     Placing her hand on my chest where her father's spell hit me made my pulse skyrocket, "I'm glad you're okay, and dad didn't..." She tapped her fingers lightly against me, sending tingling sensations through my turned on body.

     Breathe in, one - two - three. Breathe out, one - two - three.

     The tapping suddenly stopped, and she was giving me a look that said the very opposite of what she was saying and what I wanted to hear, "I'd better go."

     I jerked my head a little, "I'm sorry that this has happened to you and your parent's. If you need me for anything, you know where I am."

     "Thank you," She smiled and walked to the door. 

     "Hermione," She turned and looked at me. "We'll get them back."

     "I know," She pulled the door open and vanished through it, leaving behind her intoxicating scent for me to enjoy. I sat down, taking deep calming breaths, and I began counting the minutes until I'd see the mouth-watering beauty again.