"Come on in", said the aged headmistress after hearing knocking on her office door.

"Hello, Professor. I see that Hermione and Severus already arrived?", greeted a rather happy Harry Potter his former teacher.

"Mister Potter, you sure did take your time visiting me. You brought Miss Weasley with you as well. Please, take a seat." and with that, she conjured another two chairs.

When all were settled again a house-elf popped in again.

"Mistress, Binko has prepared the rooms Mistress asked for. Is there anything else Binko may do for Mistress McGonagall?" said the elf in his high-pitched voice.

"Thank you. Would you please bring another two cups of tea and prepare another room for two?"

"Of course, Mistress." 

With that, he was gone.

"Severus, I had him prepare your old chambers for you and Hermione to reside in. Do you know where they are, Hermione?"

The young brown-haired woman nodded her head yes.

"The password is "Lioness". We didn't change it. In fact, no one stepped foot into your chambers after the war save for Binko who just dusted them off."

"Thank you very much, Minerva", said Severus pondering why this witch knew that he valued his privacy a great deal.

"Come, Sev. Let's go. Harry and Ginny have to play catch up just as we had. Give them their time as well."

With that, she pulled him with her out of the office and down the uncountable stairs into the dungeons of Hogwarts castle.

+++++++++++++

"Now, Mister Potter, Miss Weasley, what brings the two of you back to Hogwarts?" asked the aged witch.

"Professor, please call us Harry and Ginny. For one, we're here to help Hermione and Severus. In the next few days, Draco Malfoy should be arriving to help, too. As he and his family are the only friends of Severus we know of. Secondly, we would like to invite you to our wedding this summer."
Harry smiled happily at his former teacher.

"I see, please call me Minerva then. Of course, I'll be attending your wedding! It would be an honour to be invited. Concerning Hermione and Severus, what do you think about them?"

Harry couldn't help but notice the mirth and happiness in her eyes.
"I, for one, think, that they are good for each other. I mean, he got her to go back here after she didn't step foot outside for years. She started living again because of him. She wasn't the same after the war. Not only that, but she always hid away, didn't want to talk to anybody. Now she is the same old Hermione again we all missed. She is happy, happier than she was in years."

"It seems we share that opinion. I had a house-elf prepare a room for you. I hope you don't mind that they are in the dungeons?" she asked sporting an excusing smile.

"Everything's fine", answered Ginny.

"Well, I guess we should go down and get settled before dinner will be served. If you need anything, we're down there", winked Harry before he took Ginny's hand in his pulling, her to the door.

++++++++++++

Slowly Hermione cracked the door to the potions room open. Relieved she noticed that nothing had changed since she left Hogwarts.

"Come, Sev. Do you by chance remember where you hid your door?" asked the brown-haired woman, the man who was standing behind her as she pushed the door open.
She went into the room with him trailing insecure behind her.

"I'm not sure, but I'd guess that I would hide it behind that shelf. Maybe you have to pull out one of the boo-..."

He suddenly stopped talking and collapsed, sliding down the cold grey stone wall.

"Severus? Severus, what's up?"

Shocked she saw that he clutched his left forearm, obviously in pain if not excruciating pain. Observing his face she saw his pupils moving way too fast behind his closed eyelids.

"Severus, what's up. What is wrong, please, talk to me. How can I help you? Please, Severus!"

Desperately, she kneeled next to him. While she tried to get him out of his trance, she saw his dark blue button-down getting soaked and dark red at his collar. His scar seemed to be open again.

"Severus!" she shouted at the man who was slowly losing his consciousness.

As fast as humanly possible she bolted up and floo called Madam Pomfrey in the hospital wing.

"Madam Pomfrey! Please come to Severus' chambers as fast as possible. His neck is bleeding again, and he just fell unconscious."

Just after having yelled that, she was at his side again, pressing her cloak on the wound to stop it from bleeding that much.
She sat down next to him and began cradling his upper body to hers to give him at least a bit of comfort. Plus she had better access to his neck wound.

"Wake up, Sev, please. I need you, Severus. Don't leave me please. Severus!" she desperately whispered to him while waiting for the mediwitch to arrive.

She pressed her cloak to the wound with one hand and with the other she pushed stray strands of hair behind his ear.

Shortly thereafter the aged witch stepped foot into the classroom and stood still.

"Miss Granger, what are you doing here? Wait, is that... is this Severus?" she asked still trying to figure out whether the scene before her was any real at all.

"Yes, this is Severus. Please, help him. He just collapsed and the scar was all open again. It started bleeding and it won't stop. Please, you have to help him. He's lost so much blood, he will die if you don't." and that wasn't a lie.
He really lost a great deal of blood.

Quickly, Poppy Pomfrey conjured a stretch and transported him to the hospital wing.

On the way there, Hermione was still pressing her cloak to his neck and stroking his pale cheeks which were completely drained of any colour they previously had.

"Miss Granger, what are the two of you doing here. You were gone for more than two years and even declared dead. How did you get here and why are you here?" the mediwitch asked.

"We are on a mission. I met him in the park a few days ago. He doesn't remember anything at all. He didn't even know that he is a wizard. Now we try to get his memories back and Hogwarts is going to be our last stop for now. Please help him."

"Don't fret, Miss Granger. If you were so kind and assist me?" the older witch asked as they entered the infirmary.

"Of course. What can I do?"

"Please relieve him of his shirt while I'll be hunting down a few potions. Please press the cloth on his wound, I'll be back shortly", and with that, she scurried away to her office.

Slowly Hermione started undoing the buttons on his shirt. As she freed him of it, she saw that the blood leaking from his neck was thankfully getting less.

She was trying not to focus on his rather well-built body, but she was not really succeeding. He's only a friend, nothing more. Remember, you are here to help him not just stare at him. He wouldn't want that. But, Merlin- when faced with a body built as his? Who could just look away? Stop it, Hermione, that's totally inappropriate. But since when am I just anybody? Ah, that's why he always wore those copious amounts of black clothing. No girl would have been able to concentrate on his lessons if he had been wearing something a bit more revealing, mused the young woman all the while her cheeks were beginning to become flaming red.

His body is certainly lean but still muscular. He definitely is your type of man. Hermione, stop it, he was your professor, and he is your friend now, nothing more.

She chastised herself before forcing herself to look away and focus on helping him. So instead she pressed her cloak onto his wound again.

Only seconds after that the mediwitch returned with some potions and salves.

"So, he should be asleep now for a few hours. I gave him blood-replenishing potions, anti-pain potions and applied a few salves that should help the wound to heal. When he awakes he won't be in too much pain I hope. It wouldn't surprise me if he didn't remember anything that happened to him whilst he had that attack. I think there should be someone waiting for him to explain everything when he comes to", Madam Pomfrey told the younger woman.

"I'll stay. I won't be able to sleep anyway."

She smiled at the grey-haired woman next to the sleeping man and softly pulled the covers up.
Quietly, she conjured a chair and sat down next to his bed.

Madam Pomfrey went back to her office to do her paperwork. Deep in thought, Hermione's hand began to draw circles on his hand until she's falling asleep, too.