Chapter One: Old Formalities

"Good evening, Severus." Minerva McGonagall smiled from behind the Headmistress' desk. After Dumbledore's death she was instantly awarded the position as headmistress by the Wizengamot. "I'm glad you decided to come back and teach." Her usual sternness was still there, but she had mellowed out a great deal since the end of the war.

"What the hell would I do otherwise; the old codger black-listed me with an unbreakable vow!" Severus was silently seething in anger from his wingback chair.

"Now, now, Severus, at least it is better than rotting away in Azkaban."

"There is obviously a reason for my presence in your office, and I hardly believe it is for you to become further acquainted with a murderer, Minerva," he hissed her name, "so perhaps you will quickly skip to the important part of this bloody conversation." Severus crossed his arms and waited patiently for her to begin.

"Severus, you know I don't believe you're a murderer. I was simply stating that things could be worse. I wanted to tell you that I have hired for you an apprentice to help teaching your first and second year students, possibly the third years."

"You did what!" Severus stood in rage.

"Hogwarts has grown considerably and I know how hard it is for you to teach large classes of potions students. I think it wise that you have help." She answered reasonably.

"You think I can't run a class of students by myself!" He roared. "I have been teaching for the last seventeen years, thank you, and I know what I am doing!" He went to open the door to the office, when he bumped into something.

Hermione Granger was, hands down, the most insufferable, Gryffindor, know-it-all, he had ever met. From the moment she first raised her hand her first year, he knew that he was in for seven years of hell. To make matters worse, the girl, who he knew was not much of a girl anymore, was incredibly intelligent. If only she wasn't friends with Harry, I-killed-the-bastard-once-and-for-all-and-lived-to-tell-about-it, Potter.

"Professor Snape!" She yelped as she fell down to the ground with him on top of her. He quickly scrambled away from her.

"Will you move?" He screamed at her fallen body lying in the doorway.

"Hermione!" Minerva moved around Severus and leant a hand to help her off the ground. "I'm glad to see you. I've just told Severus the news." Hermione's eyes bulged and darted towards a very red and angry Snape.

"And?" She asked timidly in his direction.

"What do you want, you foolish child? Must you never speak in full sentences?" Severus scorned and she blushed redder than ever.

"Severus, she will be your new apprentice." Minerva said slowly and clearly to make sure he heard it correctly.

"Who will be my new apprentice?" He asked in confusion, unable to understand what Minerva was talking about as he clearly did not want to believe what she was saying.

"I will, sir." Hermione said quietly and raised her chin slightly.

"Not bloody likely. I will more quickly hire a flobberworm to teach my classes than you!" Hermione's eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"It's not like I wanted to accept this position, you miserable git! How dare you say such horrid things? I have never done anything but show you respect. Now I know why Harry and Ron hate you so much!" Hermione quickly stormed out of the room leaving Minerva to glare at Severus.

"I can't believe you." She said solemnly. "She's right, you know? She hasn't ever shown you anything but respect. You'll be kicking yourself later on tonight when you realize that the only person that would have ever cared to investigate why you would murder someone was Hermione Granger." Minerva sat down in her chair. "You may leave, Severus, good night." Severus was confused and angry, but mostly confused, as he left Minerva's office and went back down to the comforts of his dungeon quarters.

Minerva was right. Later that night, Severus found himself with a bottle of firewhiskey and a batch of hangover potion brewed for the next morning as he quickly downed his worries away in liquor. Why would anyone like Hermione Granger give a damn about him? He had wondered who uncovered the truth the day he was released from Azkaban. Luckily, he only spent the rest of the war in Azkaban. He probably had a more enjoyable time within his jail cell than most did out of it.

The war against Voldemort was bloody and cruel to all the families that openly opposed Voldemort. The Weasleys lost three: Percy, Charlie, and Uncle Tom on Molly's side of the family, and when Narcissa took Draco into hiding, her only remaining relatives were murdered by Lucius himself. Basically, no family was forgotten when it came to death, and in the end, all were happy to see it over with.

Severus was sure that as soon as Voldemort was defeated, he would be forgotten and left to rot in Azkaban. The sad part is that he really didn't care. He spent most of his days alone anyway, what could it hurt? But even he was happy that he was released. When he received a letter from Minerva begging him to come back to Hogwarts, he was again, strangely relieved.

Now he was back, again, and wished nothing more for the world to disappear.

Hermione Granger was absolutely ecstatic about her final year at Hogwarts. Her sixth year was spent learning to fight a war, the summer after sixth year was spent finding Horcruxes and killing Voldemort, and finally, she felt for once, that she could go on being a normal witch.

When she packed her belongings to go back to Hogwarts for the last time, she couldn't help but feel giddy. Even better, she was given the chance to be an apprentice with Severus Snape, a man who had been nothing but absolutely wretched to her, but she couldn't help but want to please most. She was awarded Head Girl, alongside her best friend, Harry Potter, and was, amazingly enough, still dating Ron Weasley, so she expected this year to be the best so far.

But of course, she didn't actually realize just how awful Severus Snape was. He openly called her retarded and childish in front of the woman she most respected and forced her to blow up on him, which she was not proud of at the moment. All she wanted to do now was relax with her friends. She quickly changed out of her 'business' robes, as she liked to call them, and hopped into a pair of muggle jeans and a hooded sweatshirt, and headed out to her and Harry's common room where she most likely would find Ron.

"Hermione!" He said with glee as he raced over to her tired looking form and gave her a hug.

"It's good to see you, Ron." She said happily, though not as happily as she thought she should feel after not seeing her own boyfriend in over two months. He quickly wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her close. She found herself bringing her own hands up to his face and pulling it towards herself to give him a kiss. She placed her lips upon his lips exactly when Harry decided to come out of his bedroom.

"Oh, come on, guys!" Harry yelled in disgust. Ron only lowered his hands to her butt area and turned for Harry to see it all as Hermione continued to passionately kiss Ron. Harry's jaw dropped slightly at their public display of affection and he actually felt himself growing somewhat jealous of Ron. Finally they unlatched from each other, both flushed and smiled at Harry, who blushed.

"Harry!" Hermione said as she left Ron's side and gave him a hug. He flinched below her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said as he grew even redder, "I was sort of afraid you would do what you did to him, to me." Hermione couldn't help but laugh, and Harry noticed Ron stiffen up a little.

"You wish!" She playfully swatted his arm and gestured for them to all sit on the couch together. They spent the rest of the night telling each other of their summers. When they were all talked out, they each left to their own rooms, Ron to the Gryffindor common rooms after giving Hermione a kiss goodnight, and fell asleep awaiting their first day of their Seventh year.

AN: The R/Hr thing is going to end real quick like... it makes me sick... but a story has to start somewhere... I'll try to keep up...