Severus Snape was slightly taken aback at the phone call from Molly Weasley, informing him that he had been invited to the Burrow for Sunday brunch. Thankfully, he was relatively ahead of all his casework and would be able to attend. He knew, given Hermione's relationship with young Ronald, that she would be in attendance, and it was always pleasant to see her and catch up with her. She was a bright young woman with a wonderful future, now that Mr. and Mrs. Granger had adopted her and set her on a good track, both educationally and personally, and she seemed to be thriving.

Severus got his own car out of his flat's garage, and immediately drove directly to the Burrow in West Berkshire. His car, a black 1976 ford Cortina GT, was his pride and joy and had been since his mother had managed to pinch enough pennies to buy it for him upon the occasion of his sixteenth birthday. He had upgraded to a CD player, replacing the cassette tape one, at some point at the beginning of the decade, and never went anywhere without the Please, Please Me album by The Beatles.

Severus took good care of the thing, too, getting the beast of an automobile washed and checked over regularly, and Arthur Weasley always gave it a complimentary once-over whenever he found himself over at the Burrow. He had bonded with the Weasley patriarch over the thing, and the man had always shown Severus trade-secrets about the business and allowed Severus to see whatever projects he'd brought home. Severus anticipated such things immensely, and yet he always kept his pocketbook handy just in case, knowing that the Weasleys really could use the money, and he didn't feel right having the talented Weasley patriarch constantly looking over his car for free.

Severus made it to the center of town, smiling fondly at the various businesses there, and pulled off into the parking lot at the small, family-owned grocery store that he'd frequented whenever he was in town. Stepping inside and nodding in greeting towards the wife, who ran the front counter, he went to the back of the store towards the butchers, where he obtained some fresh meats and cheeses from the patriarch of the family. He passed through the wine aisle, picking up an Italian red that Molly had spoken fondly of on more than one occasion, as well as a fresh loaf of bread before he returned to the front counter. He paid for the food and wine and spoke to the woman for a moment; her name was Mrs. Wright, and her husband was Mr. Wright, and they always spoke enthusiastically about their only child, a son called Bowman, who would one day inherit the shop for himself.

Severus thanked Mrs. Wright as he always did before he went on his way, meandering back to the parking lot. He unlocked his car and placed his purchases on the passenger seat, before getting in himself and driving the rest of the way to the Burrow. He parked behind Draco's car and got out himself, grabbing the purchases again and tucking his paperback copy of The Wicked Count and the Secret Masquerade within his peacoat before making his way towards the front door of the Weasley house.

"Oh, Severus!" Molly greeted, immediately pulling him closer. "Come in, come in!"

"Thank you, Molly," Severus replied, and handed over the bag from the shop.

"Oh, you delightful man!" she crowed, kissing him on the cheek and squeezing his shoulder and drawing him in further. "The children are upstairs with the twins, and Arthur is tinkering with something or other in the garage beyond. Sirius and Remus haven't shown up yet, but you know how they can be," she said with a laugh.

"Yes, I can," Severus confirmed.

"Well, now," she began again, and her eyebrows raised at the spine of the book creeping out from within his coat. "That's the latest one, then?"

"Yes," Severus said with a laugh, and pulled it out, permitting Molly to look over the cover. "I do hope the shop here sells them."

Molly laughed, rolling her eyes. "Of course they do. Thomas and Merope are doing quite swimmingly for such a small area of a larger town," she told him. "Tom Jr. is studying his doctorate over at Oxford but comes down regularly to help with the place."

"There should be more establishments like Tom's Tomes," Severus remarked fondly, recalling the occasions of shopping there, and informing Molly to take Hermione there, which she had done, on more than one occasion. "Well, if it is not objectionable to you, I would appreciate the use of your parlor to read a bit before dinner."

"Of course, dear," Molly said gently. "You know where it is, and you know where to find one of us if you need anything." Molly promptly reached out and removed his coat, and moved to hang it on the peg. "Go along now, and no spoilers, please," she said, grinning at him.

Severus chuckled, knowing what had happened when he had inadvertently spoiled the last book for her, The Wicked Count and the Dagger to the Heart, in which the marquis tells him that their supposed arrangement—which hadn't been exclusive—could no longer be so. He turned around then and made his way down the hallway, and entered the parlor, noticing that Hermione's ginger cat, Crookshanks, was there for the weekend, and curled up upon the sofa. Crossing the room, Severus invited himself onto the piece of furniture and opened the book, to which the cat made himself known, and invited himself onto the social worker's lap.

Severus stroked the animal absentmindedly, and realized that he was on the seventh chapter of the story, aptly called, 'In Which the Count and Marquis Prepare for the Masquerade'. He knew that he shouldn't be so into the entire storyline as a whole, and he was quite embarrassed that what so many people would describe as drivel was considered literature these days. However, he found that he couldn't get out of his head the notion that the green-eyed count felt so alone in the world, and the raven-haired marquis seemed to be there to save him from it all.

"Peverell Park had not seen a masquerade ball in nearly half a century, so the notion that Count Hadrian Peverell himself was about to pull off such a feat was a rather daunting task for the staff to even entertain. The staff had, by this time, become quite aware of Marquis Sebastian Prince's involvement with their lord and master, and because the count was so powerful—and paid their wages to boot—they knew that it wasn't any of their business. However, they also knew that the former count, Lord Fleamont, and his lady wife, Lady Euphemia, would likely not approve of the relationship, despite the noble blood between them.

'I do so wish that the general public themselves could just look away for the entirety of the celebrations,' Hadrian mused for the umpteenth time to Sebastian, about a fortnight before the celebrations.

'And why do you wish that?' Sebastian queried.

Hadrian shot Sebastian a loathsome look, despite the feelings he had for the man. 'You are aware that, upon the occasion of my twenty-first birthday, in two weeks' time, to coincide with the ball itself, that I must announce my engagement to a proper lady of the peerage. How can I do so, when I...?'

Sebastian got to his feet, effectively rendering his young lover silent, and crossed over to him, from where the man was lying rather delectably upon the chaise longue. Without hesitation, he pulled at Hadrian's collar, successfully pulling him upwards, and molding his lips to the lovely twenty-year-olds' which had successfully wormed their way into his cold and bleak heart. 'I know that you care for me, love,' the marquis told him gently, 'but our love story was always doomed to end in tragedy.'

'No, don't say that,' Hadrian begged, his beautiful green eyes filling with tears. 'Please don't say that, Sebastian. I need you. I'll always need you...'

Sebastian sighed at his lover's words and allowed Hadrian's hands to wind themselves into his raven hair. 'I know you believe that now, love, but...'

'I'll always believe it,' Hadrian said, his tone determined, as he slammed his body into his marquis', and molded his lips to his. 'Please... I need you, Sebastian. I need you inside me, to mark me, to claim me. I can't marry anyone else, because I'll never love anyone else. I love you, and it shall always be you...'

'Hadrian...' Sebastian whispered.

'Do you think I wanted to see others?' Hadrian whispered, his lips barely a hairbreadth away from his lover's. 'Of course I didn't! However, you must be aware by now of the reputation you've got, bedding half the young men throughout England. How was I supposed to compare to any of them? I was untouched when you had me the first time, Sebastian. I'd never allowed anyone in my bed, and to those who asked, I had them banned from my house, from my life, because I was so fearful of giving that part of myself to anyone. But then came you, you who I could not refuse because I fell so head over heels in love with you that I could not imagine another day without you...'

Sebastian didn't need to hear another word, and slammed his lips to Hadrian's, gathering up his wicked count into his arms, and pushing him downwards, back onto the chaise. As he did his best to remove those bothersome trousers from the lithe body of his young lover, he managed to get them open and fondled his eager cock and balls. 'I have never given my heart to another, my Hadrian,' Sebastian whispered, lowering his lips to the erect member of his lover, 'for I could not, for when I saw you that first time, all was lost, as it is yours.'

'Sebastian, my Sebastian,' Hadrian moaned, arching into Sebastian's touch, knowing that he had to find a way to be with this man forever, for not being with him for even a day was..."

"Severus?"

Severus suddenly remembered where he was, and he felt all the hairs upon his body stand on end when he heard the voice in the doorway. Slamming the book shut and growing red in the face, his eyes raised and met those of Harry Potter himself, who was white as a sheet, eyes wide. "I... I sincerely hope that you're not aware of these books," he said, automatically hating himself for acknowledging the books' existence in the first place.

Harry swallowed, all under Severus's watchful gaze, and Severus had to grit his teeth in an effort to risk the temptation to drag his tongue over the Adam's apple, which bobbed in the teenager's delectable throat. "I am perfectly aware of them, Severus," he replied.

"Well, you're far too young to be," Severus snapped, and leapt to his feet, surprised when the teen didn't draw himself backward at the sudden movement. "Why are you here, then?"

"Molly says that dinner's ready," Harry said awkwardly, wrapping one of his arms around his slender frame, which already seemed to have broadened slightly, in the nine days he'd been in Sirius's and Remus's care. "She's about to plate everything up, and Sirius and Remus have just arrived... Molly sent me to go and get you..."

Severus schooled his features then, knowing that he could hardly get angry at Harry for bothering him in a house that belonged to neither party. "Yes, of course. Well, we'd best get out there, then..."

Harry nodded, bending down and clicking his tongue. "Come on, Crookshanks," he said, and the orange cat immediately bolted from the couch and bounded towards him, and Harry scooped the animal into his arms. He said nothing further as they walked into the kitchen together, but Severus noticed that his flush, which had gone all the way up to his ears and down to his neck, had not yet vanished, and Severus wondered why on earth that could be.

~*~

Brunch that weekend at the Burrow had been a pleasant affair, as it was always wonderful to see Hermione and catch up with her. However, after he had fetched him from the parlor, Harry had been surprisingly quiet towards him in the aftermath. Although Severus attempted to banish such thoughts from his mind, he found that he was unable to do so completely, and wondered what he had said or done to evoke such a reaction from the green-eyed teen.

The rest of the week seemed to fly by, and Severus was hard at work with his latest case, about a three-year-old girl called Victoire, who had been abandoned by her parents, a native French couple who hadn't appeared to want a child in the first place. When Severus met the young girl, who was blonde-haired and blue-eyed and an all-around delight, he found that, considering that French was her first language, it would be beneficial to bring in Fleur on the assignment. Calling in the younger social worker, Fleur immediately developed a rapport with the girl, and quickly wanted to introduce her to Bill. By lunchtime, the paperwork had been signed by Bill and Fleur Weasley to foster young Victoire, whom the pair were already attempting to teach English to, so as she could attend a British school.

Severus was quite close to literally patting himself on the back, so much so that, around three-thirty, he was a little surprised to have a phone call from Penelope. "Yes, Miss Clearwater?" he asked into his receiver.

"Pardon me, Mr. Snape, but you've a visitor," she said gently.

"Who, may I ask, is it?" he queried.

"Miss Granger, sir," came the reply.

"Send her right in, please, Miss Clearwater," Severus told her.

"Right away, sir," she said quickly.

Severus got to his feet as he heard the high-class school shoes of Hermione tapping on the floor just outside his office, and, when the door opened, he smiled warmly at her. "Ah, Hermione," he greeted, walking around his desk and embracing her. "How were your classes this week?" he wanted to know, gesturing her to sit in the offered chair as he prepared them cups of tea. "I trust they weren't too filled with dunderheads..."

"It is difficult when your two closest friends attending the school are a full year behind you," she admitted, shrugging her shoulders. "Ron's former girlfriend, Lavender, goes there as well, and she's in my year..."

"She knows you're with Ron, then?" Severus asked, putting bags of Tetley into their mugs and waiting for the water to boil.

"Unfortunately, yes," Hermione told him, nibbling at her lower lip. "Apparently, they were together last year, and for a period of about three months. They ended things about eight months before Ron and I commenced our relationship, and she seems a bit..."

"Envious?" came Severus's guess.

"Unfortunately so," Hermione replied, watching as the kettle boiled, and Severus poured them a cup of tea each. "Not so much one can do about it, I suppose. Ron and I are in love, and I think she deeply resents that..."

"Perhaps young Lavender will soon find something, or someone, else to occupy her time in future," Severus mused, bringing over the cups—milk and two sugars for Hermione, and black for himself—and setting them onto his desk. He moved to sit down himself, quickly smiling across at her. "Now, not that I don't love our visits, but what does bring you here to M.K., my dear? Are Robert and Beth treating you well?"

"Exceptionally so," Hermione said quickly. "I wanted to come here to discuss something of importance, but it's got nothing to do with either of them."

"Very well, then," Severus said, nodding. "Tell me."

"As you know, I'm on track to attend classes at Oxford once my graduation from the City of London School for Girls is final next June," she said carefully.

Severus nodded. "I am. I don't remember if I congratulated you or not."

"You did, don't worry," she told him, flashing him a quick smile. "Well, I've been thinking as to what my major will be..."

"I assume Robert and Beth have encouraged dentistry," Severus put in.

Hermione laughed. "They've brought it up, once or twice, and I've been to their practice several times over the past few years..." She shrugged her shoulders. "As much as I appreciate what they do, it doesn't hold the same fascination as it does for me. As such, I've had to do quite a bit of research when it comes to potential majors, and I believe I've come to a decision, which is where you come in, Severus."

"I'm all ears, Hermione," Severus told her.

"I've decided to go into social work," Hermione told him, her cheeks flushing then. "I don't know what would have happened, had you not found me that day, and I shall always be indebted to you for doing so, and to finding me my mum and dad. As such, I believe that this is a most appropriate career path for me."

Severus smiled. "You would make a wonderful social worker, Hermione."

"Well, thank you," she said softly. "I've begun the preliminary research, and it's encouraged that you shadow a social worker of your choice, one who is certified by the board, and one that the dean, your advisor, and your major coordinator approves of. Once these steps are in place—which I'm quite sure they ultimately will be—I would appreciate it if you would consent to being the social worker I shadow."

Severus curbed his eyes from filling with tears. "Well, I would be honored," he told her. "As long as Albus approves it..."

"He has," Hermione assured him. "School ended early this afternoon, and I secured a meeting with him beforehand."

Severus chuckled. "Of course you did," he said. "Well, then, I shall make sure that I am open to you when the time comes for you to shadow me."

"You will?!" cried Hermione, bouncing out of her seat and darting around the desk, whereupon she threw her arms around him. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" she said over and over again, obviously pleased with the entirety of the situation. "You're amazing, I hope you're aware of that, Severus Snape!"

~*~

Severus remembered the day that he had discovered Hermione as if it was yesterday. Since he was one of the few social workers without a family—Minerva was married at the time, and Pomona and Filius were seeing one another, plus Albus had his two younger siblings to see over the holidays—he was expected to arrive promptly at the office to open it up. Not that he minded in the slightest; it was a formality at this point, even though serious cases could potentially crop up, it's not as if he himself expected anything.

He parked in his space in the senior social worker section of the cark park, and made his way from his car, holding tightly to his very important notes, and made his way down the lane of sidewalk towards the front entrance. What he was not prepared to see, however, was that of a brown-eyed, bushy-haired little girl, who blinked owlishly up at him, stuffed into the corner beside the main door to Magical Kinship, likely attempting to preserve her warmth. As he stood there, filled momentarily with shock, he inventoried the girls' clothing—a red sweater dress, green tights, black Mary Janes—and nothing else.

"Hello," Severus said carefully as he stepped closer, and wasn't at all surprised when the girl shrunk back and away from him. "Are you lost, little one?"

The girl gulped but nevertheless shook her head. "No, sir," she whispered, an accent reminiscent of the Surrey dialect within her little voice. "I... My mummy and daddy don't want me anymore," she said softly and, almost as if she had just now grasped the enormity of the situation, her face quickly crumpled, her dark eyes filling with tears.

Severus gritted his teeth to prevent a litany of curses aimed at the foolishness of the girls' parents, knowing that that could potentially frighten the little girl. "It is all right, love," he told her gently, although it was quite clearly not all right. "What is your name?"

"Hermione Jean Dursley," came the reply, although her voice shook.

"Very well, Hermione," Severus said, moving past her and unlocking the main door. "I am a social worker here, and I can help you. Would you like to come inside?" He watched her hesitation then, and smiled. "I am quite sure your parents warned you against strangers, but you seem like a very smart girl. I promise all we'll do is sit in my office, get warm, have some hot chocolate, and talk. All right?"

Likely swayed by the promise of hot chocolate, Hermione nodded and slipped after Severus into the warmth of the front lobby. Severus shut and locked the door behind him, aware that no one else had signed up to work that day, and gestured for Hermione to follow him down the hallway and towards his office. Unlocking the second door, he held it open for Hermione to step through, and she did, moving promptly over to the cushioned chair provided for guests.

Severus hung up his coat and scarf upon the series of pegs beside the door, disgusted with the Dursley family for not dressing Hermione appropriately, given that snow had begun to fall in the area a good quarter of an hour ago. He made his way promptly over to the kitchenette to get started on the promised hot chocolate, relieved that he had whipped cream, marshmallows, and candy canes at this time of year. He opened the fridge as he waited for the water to boil, seeing that he had a bit of food—cold cuts and cheese in the fridge, as well as mayonnaise and mustard, plus some bread on the counter—all of which he'd bought the day before.

"Would you like a sandwich, Hermione?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes, please, sir."

"Call me 'Severus'," he told her gently, smiling at her from over his shoulder. "I've got chicken, salami, and turkey for the meats, cheddar, provolone, swiss, and Wensleydale for the cheese, and mayonnaise and mustard. Plus, some sourdough, white, white, and marble rye for bread."

"Chicken on sourdough with cheddar and mayonnaise, please, Severus," Hermione told him and flashed him a quick smile herself.

Severus nodded, plating up her sandwich, as well as a salami on marble rye with mustard for himself. He remembered having some bags of crisps on a high shelf of his cupboard, and he smiled as Hermione selected a cheddar and sour cream variety, while he took salt and vinegar for himself. Once the water had boiled, he brought over Hermione's sandwich and her hot chocolate first, before bringing over his own sandwich and hot drink, which he put upon his desk, smiling slightly as he watched Hermione pulling her chair closer, to ensure that she wouldn't get crumbs or spill her drink upon the floor.

"So, where are you from, my dear?" Severus asked.

"Farnham, in Surrey, sir," Hermione replied, and Severus was amazed that this Dursley family would seek to drive over an hour to 'get rid of' their daughter.

"Do you have brothers and sisters?"

"One brother, Dudley. We're twins, but he came out first," she explained.

Severus nodded. "Why do you think your parents wanted to get rid of you?"

"Dudley," she said softly. "He's not a very nice boy. He... He would hit me or mess something up within the household, and Mummy and Daddy always thought it was me. After that, Dudley kept wrecking things and blaming me. Then they said I was far too much trouble, so they brought us up to London for some Christmas shopping, but they just put me on the steps here, and told me that I wouldn't be coming home with them, as they didn't want me anymore..." The girl's voice broke, and she put her head into her hands and wept, some of her hair moving slightly to the side, where Severus could clearly see bruises in various forms of healing, starting upon her neck, and his stomach churned.

It seemed to be a clear-cut case of child abuse and, despite the fact that it seemed as if Hermione was the only child afflicted directly, there would need to be a report done on the entirety of the Dursley family, just to make sure that Dudley wasn't abused as well. If it were up to Severus, he'd personally like to see that family locked up and have the key thrown away, but he was no copper, that was for certain. As he gazed at the frail child that was Hermione Dursley, he knew that, as it was his duty, he would have to figure out a way to help her and fast.

"Hermione," he said gently, and the girls' sobs subsided for the moment as she lifted her tear-stained face upwards. "I need to make a telephone call. Don't worry," he said quickly, due to her sharp intake of breath, "I won't be calling the Dursleys. I'll be calling Albus, a close friend of mine, the one who runs this place."

Hermione nodded, but her lower lip trembled. "All right, Severus."

Severus gave the young girl a smile—she couldn't have been more than six-years-old—and moved to pick up his phone. He dialed Albus's personal phone number and listened to the rings; Aberforth and Ariana were likely at Albus's residence that day, along with their families. When the phone picked up, and Albus answered, Severus breathed a sigh of relief.

"Albus, I'm sorry for the call," he said quickly.

"Severus, my boy, it's quite all right," Albus replied in that typical gentle tone of his. "Aberforth is regaling his children and our nieces and nephews about his time in the service. Did you know that his code name was 'Goat'?"

"Yes, I seem to recall that," Severus replied. "Albus, we've a situation here at M.K.," he said quickly, knowing that he had to get the information out, and quickly. "We've got ourselves a case of an A.C.," he said, knowing that it was unlikely that Hermione would be aware of the code term for 'abandoned child'.

"Oh, I see," Albus said gravely, and Severus could almost see him scratching at his beard in a moment of contemplation. "Age and sex, then?"

"Hermione," Severus said quietly, covering the receiver of the phone, "tell me, love. How old are you now?"

"Six years and two months and sixteen days," she replied promptly.

Severus felt his lips twitching upwards in a smile before returning to the phone call. "She is six-years-old," he informed Albus.

"Right. And her name?"

"Hermione Jean Dursley," Severus informed him.

"Hermione. Lovely name," Albus commented. "Well, as you know, many relief foster carers aren't available, especially at this time of year. Before I left the office last night, I went over the books and, according to them, we don't have any in our network. Where is she from?"

"Surrey," Severus told him.

Albus made a noise of distaste. "Absolutely not," he told him. "Fenrir's Friendship Group is hardly a decent place to send children to. Their main social worker, Bellatrix Lestrange, does little more than frightening the poor things. No, absolutely not. I shall come down myself and collect her, Severus. She can stay with Ariana and the children for the night—"

"No," Severus said, unknowing as to why he felt such a strong air of protection over the small girl. "I'll take her, Albus. I have an idea of who would be a good placement for her, but they're in Australia until after the holidays. I'll call them up as soon as possible but, until then, there is plenty of room at my flat, and I'm certified for it, you know I am."

Albus breathed steadily through his nose then in a moment of contemplation. "Yes," he agreed after a moment. "Very well, then. Go out shopping with the girl and get everything she needs, and I'll make sure you're reimbursed for it. Take the rest of the day off and close M.K., and see that the family you intend for her is contacted soon."

"Can do, Albus," Severus said. "Thank you."

"Not a problem," Albus said softly. "Happy Christmas, my boy. And do remember that you're coming to the staff party on Christmas Eve. Bring Hermione."

"I will. Happy Christmas, Albus," Severus told him, cutting the call. "Well, now, Hermione, it seems as though Albus approves of me looking after you."

Hermione, who had taken the opportunity to finish her sandwich and hot chocolate during the duration of the phone call, nodded. "Yes. But you mentioned another family?"

"I did, yes," Severus said gently. "Friends of mine, wonderful people, who I believe will be an excellent fit for you. They're out of town at the moment, but will be back in the first week of the New Year. They're dentists."

Hermione gave a small nod. "Yes, I see."

"In the meantime," Severus said, getting to his feet and pulling his coat and scarf off the peg, "I am going to be closing the office for the day. You and I will be going to the shopping district to get you some appropriate clothes and anything else you might need. I've a guest bedroom in my flat, and it's a rather nice place. I think you will like it very much."

Hermione nodded tentatively, and moved to follow Severus out of the office, and seemed to be relieved when he accepted her holding his hand. "Thank you."

"Not a problem, love," Severus said, leading her from the hallway and into the lobby, whereupon he brought them outside again, and locked up the space. "Since you will be with me for over a fortnight, you will have to tell me your likes and dislikes when it comes to food. Are you allergic to anything?"

Hermione shook her head. "Not allergic, no. But I don't like spicy things..."

Severus nodded as they made their way over to the car park. "Many children don't, so that's quite all right," he assured her. He put her into the backseat of his car and made sure that she knew how to buckle the seatbelt. Then, he went round to the front and got on the drivers' side, and promptly left the car park and drove immediately towards Oxford Street, knowing that Ariana had requested items from a shop called Bonpoint.

Severus found some parking along the street and pulled into a vacant spot, and immediately fetched Hermione from the back of the vehicle. He took her hand and moved with her towards the shop, where a lovely woman called Andromeda met them. After taking Hermione's measurements and such, she found out her favorite colors and took her on a tour of the entire store, letting her pick and choose whatever she wanted. She then asked Severus if it was all right if she helped Hermione in the fitting room, and Severus immediately agreed to the request. Once the excursion was over, Hermione had dresses, pants, blouses, T-shirts, shoes, jackets, tights, and headbands for every occasion.

When they moved on from the clothing boutique—as Severus truly didn't have another word in his repertoire to describe such a place—they moved on quickly to Debenhams, so as to get some things for the room Hermione would be occupying back at the flat. He smiled at her gasp of wonder as they stepped into the department store, which had been founded back in 1813, and she seemed truly amazed at the place. As they found the bedroom section, an employee made themselves known and assisted them with getting both top and bottom sheets, a bed skirt, a matching duvet and pillow shams, as well as outer pillows and a goose down comforter to finish off the thing.

"It's a lovely frame," Severus told Hermione as their purchases were rung up. "It's got these lovely curtains and a canopy upon it. The room itself will look lovely with all the pink you picked out because it's a creamy off-white color."

"I'm sure it's perfect," Hermione told him, smiling.

They left the store, and Hermione seemed a little surprised when Severus didn't return immediately to the car, but easily fell into step with him, her white peacoat flowing elegantly around her. They stopped at a shop called Flourish and Blotts just down the street, and Severus promptly went inside, easily maneuvering the purchases of Hermione's new wardrobe. He found a kind-hearted woman willing to show Hermione the chapter books in the children's section, and Hermione was fully in her element. She selected The BFG and The Witches by Roald Dahl, The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop, Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan, The Ring of Endless Light by Madeline L'Engle, Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones, and Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg.

Severus also selected for her The Magicians of Caprona and Witch Week, which were also by Diana Wynn Jones, as it was the sequel and third book in the Charmed Life series. Once the books had been paid for, Severus and Hermione went back out onto Oxford Street; it had started to snow again, so Severus quickly got Hermione back into the car so as she wouldn't go slipping and sliding down the sidewalk. Severus promptly drove them back to his flat and was touched when Hermione moved to help him with all the purchases that they'd gotten for her.

The pair of them made it upstairs in three trips, and Severus immediately set to work on washing the blankets, shams, and sheets. Hermione, meanwhile, was a little tired, and ventured into the living room with one of her new books—The BFG—and began reading it in silence. By the time Severus moved to take the new items from the washer and place them into the dryer, Hermione had fallen asleep. Severus smiled to himself, putting all of her other new books upon the shelves of her new bedroom, and stripped the bed of the standard sheets and things he had had upon it before. He also moved to cut the tags off her new clothes and wash those as well, knowing that Hermione had taken a liking to a pretty green nightgown out of the bunch, and would likely want to wear that to bed with her new slippers.

Once her bed was made, Severus lifted Hermione carefully from the couch and placed her into it, knowing that he would eventually wake her up to negotiate a takeaway for dinner. As he would be off for the foreseeable future, he decided that they could visit the market tomorrow. Once her clothes had finished in the dryer, Severus folded them expertly and brought them into the spare bedroom, and placed them in the dresser and wardrobe provided. Once this was done, Severus returned to the living room himself, and sat up on the couch, pulling his little folder of takeaway menus towards him, wondering what Hermione would ultimately help select.

Hermione roused herself just after four-thirty, and ventured into the living room; she was still wearing the pants and T-shirt she had chosen to wear from the children's store earlier, and although she had removed her shoes, her feet still boasted the white ruffled socks. She gave Severus a tentative smile and moved towards the couch, and perched beside him. Severus was slightly taken aback when she rested her head upon his shoulder, and Severus, greatly daring, gently carded his fingers through her hair. Much to his amazement, Hermione only seemed to move closer at his touch, so he kept on doing it.

"What's all this, Severus?" she asked a few moments later, indicating the pile of takeaway menus in his lap.

"Places where we can order dinner," Severus replied. "What do you like?"

Hermione reached out and thumbed through the places, her expressions at various eateries causing Severus to clear his throat to prevent himself from laughing. Finally, Hermione came to one and looked it over, opening it, and smiling at various pictures of dishes that the restaurant provided. "This one," she said promptly, and handed over the menu.

"Ah, The Leaky Cauldron," Severus remarked fondly. "It's a British pub and just a few blocks away from here. Well, then, what would you like?"

"The roast dinner," Hermione told him.

"With Yorkshire puddings, roasted veg, and boiled potatoes?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes, please, Severus."

Severus smiled fondly at her. "Very well, then," he said, reaching for the phone and dialing up the number. "Tom? It's Severus," he said. "Two roast dinners, with all the trimmings, please," he said, flashing Hermione a conspiratory smile.

~*~

Severus stepped onto the sidewalk in Islington, London, ready and prepared for his one-month visit to Grimmauld Place. As practiced, Sirius and Remus would meet Severus at the door, and they would discuss how Harry had been settling in these past four weeks. Then, Severus would speak to Harry on his own, before a final meeting with all four of them, and then Severus could be on his way, back to Magical Kinship, to write his report.

Promptly at four, Severus tapped on the front door of Grimmauld, and Sirius and Remus came promptly to the knock. Severus smiled at them and permitted Remus to take his coat and scarf, while Sirius showed him down the hallway and into the living room, Remus following. He accepted the offer to sit, as well as a cup of tea and a biscuit, and the three co-workers caught up for a few moments. Finally, when Severus knew that they all had schedules to keep, he put aside his finished tea and nibbled biscuit, and brought out his notes.

"First and foremost, how is Harry?" he asked.

"Quiet," Sirius replied, and visibly melting with relief as Remus wrapped his hand in his.

"Is that necessarily a bad thing?" Severus quipped.

"Not typically, no," Remus told him. "It's just that, we're afraid that he's hiding something from us when we think it would benefit him to share."

"Not always," Severus said calmly. "He may just need a bit more time to adjust. It hasn't been all that long, remember, and he's already been doing excellently in his classes, and has made an impeccable group of friends.

"I suppose the adjustment period will take a bit longer," Sirius allowed. "We're just concerned that we won't be able to help him if he doesn't disclose."

"Putting pressure on Harry to disclose his past on your timetable certainly won't do him any good," Severus reminded them. "It has to be on his own terms. It doesn't mean that he doesn't like or trust you yet. It could mean that he wants examples of trust. Perhaps he believes that, should he disclose now, he'll be rejected."

Remus blinked. "I never considered that," he said quietly. "Perhaps we'd better plan out our schedules so that he feels more included."

Severus arched an eyebrow. "You do not include him?"

"We include him whenever we can, or whenever it's appropriate to do so," Sirius told him. "I suppose it has been a bit lacking of late, however..."

"Try asking Harry what he would like to do outside the house," Severus suggested. "Perhaps there's something you've yet to consider."

The three men spoke for another fifteen minutes before Severus said that he'd like to speak to Harry before leaving. Sirius went upstairs to fetch him, which Remus cleared away the evidence of their tea, which he brought into the kitchen. Sirius and Harry appeared a moment later, and Sirius squeezed the latter's shoulder, before moving into the kitchen to be with Remus, and shut the door behind them.

"Hello, Harry," Severus said.

Harry visibly swallowed, but nevertheless moved deeper into the room, and took a spot on the now-vacated couch. "Good afternoon, Severus," he said formally.

"How have you been?"

"Fine," came the reply.

"School is going well?"

A stiff nod. "Yes. Ron and Hermione have been a big help."

"Do you like living here?"

Harry nibbled at his lower lip. "Yes," he said at last.

Severus's pen scratched at his notes for a moment, before he finally looked up at Harry, who looked a bit perturbed. "Harry, I have to ask this, because I have to know," he said, at last, lowering his pen and staring at the teenager, "were you uncomfortable when you saw me reading that book at the Burrow?" he asked.

Harry's eyes flew to Severus's face then, and his jaw dropped. He looked as if he would move to say something, but his cheeks flushed. He was clearly struggling with forming a coherent sentence, and Severus was very close to potentially saving him, before Harry finally allowed himself to reply, "I wasn't uncomfortable, but..."

"What, Harry? It is all right."

Harry's shoulders hunched then; he was clearly disturbed by something, but it was clear that Severus wouldn't be able to readily put his finger on it. "I... I don't think you would understand," he managed to get out.

Severus nodded at the younger man's words then; he'd encountered many a teenager in the past who believed, because of his perceived advanced age, that he would be unable to understand their thoughts and feelings. "Try me," he said softly.

Harry raised his eyes to Severus's before they flashed, and, finally, permitted his mouth to open again, and he moved to speak.