Although I knew that it was not the end yet, at first I pushed that thought away, to the deepest part of my mind. Perhaps because I was aware of the fact that the Death Eaters had been weakened and could not be reckless now. They would not be able to attack us, therefore it was possible to resume the exams and while the students were once again revising the material from the previous year, we, the teachers, were getting ready for war.

And yet, in this hustle and bustle, I managed to write a letter to my parents. I did not want to wait with announcing the news to them until the holidays, even though then, I would be able to do it personally. I had a feeling that it would be better if they got to know sooner, even if from a letter, that I was planning to get married.

I wondered how they would accept the news. Especially because my fiancé was much older than me, and I had probably told them quite a bit about him when I had still been at school. I was afraid that they would not approve of that relationship – and one could not be even surprised. And yet, in this case, I could never be persuaded by them. I had changed during that last year, and I knew that I would finally be able to have my own way.

Now, as I thought of Severus and called him in my thoughts "my fiancé", I could not help but smile just like a teenager would. I was blushing upon just thinking about it, and I felt my heart begin to race, to flutter like wings of some magical bird. Perhaps even Snape himself would scold me for that, but I could not control myself.

I was just working on correcting a whole pile of History of Magic exams, when I once again thought of that evening. I hid my face in hands, still not believing in my own luck, and I grinned to myself.

"I'm teaching a bunch of idiots," I suddenly heard a tired voice. "Perhaps it would be better for me if I had to leave this hatchery of imbeciles once and for all."

I looked up and shook my head.

"You know best that it wouldn't be so. This place is your home. Just like mine. Besides... maybe you're not very liked by the students–" (here Snape raised his brow a bit) "– but you're a wonderful teacher. If you left, it would be a great loss for the school and the students. They'd feel it..."

"At least I'd be calm."

I couldn't help giggling quietly. I put my quill down and stood up to stretch a bit for a moment, then walked over to Severus.

"Would you really be so calm, leaving me here for the whole year all alone, without your protection?" I asked, teasing him.

Once again, he looked at me surprised.

"Not for the whole year. You'd be coming back for every holiday," he answered in such a tone as though it was something obvious. "Besides, I could always be visiting you and make sure you're all right. But I don't think I'd need to be worried about you... soon, we'll get rid of the rest of that scum, and we'll make sure they'll rot in hell."

I took a deep breath and nodded my head. One more battle was still awaiting us; this one, I hoped, was bound to be the final one, and afterwards, we would not even remember who the Death Eaters were. Soon, the longed-for peace would come.

I felt Severus taking one of my hands into his. At such moments I once again realised that Felix Felicis in fact did not give the real happiness. Of course, the feeling that appeared after having drunk that potion was wonderful, but it was simply nothing compared to what the touch of a beloved person could give.

"Don't hope for too much, though, Shirley," he said quietly. "I intend to come back here many times... and I'm afraid I will soon be following your every step."

Soon, all the exams were over. The Ministry had used that time in a different way, neutralising the Death Eaters that had been caught at Hogwarts (I did not know what really happened to them, because no-one but the Ministry's employees had never got to know what that "neutralisation" actually was), and a questioning about the Death Eaters at large had been carried out.

From what I got to know, once again one of the most valuable sources of information turned out to be no-one else but Lucius Malfoy himself. When we talked about it later on, he seemed to be amused, stating that the Ministry very easily changed their mind about who they need, and who they do not.

Since it was mainly thanks to Severus that the whole plot had been discovered, he participated in all of the conferences at the Ministry, which caused his constant absences at school. However, when he came back, he always told me about everything he had heard.

"Today, they pointed out that these are meant to be secret meetings," he said with a strange smirk on his face as he looked at me. "Probably I shouldn't be telling you all this."

"Then don't," I answered, feeling myself blush.

"Wouldn't you be curious?" he asked, raising his brow a little, then sat down in the armchair, crossing his legs and putting his fingertips together. Whenever he did that, I remembered the moments when I had still claimed that I had hated him, and felt some kind of shame. "Wouldn't you be trying to get it out of me at all costs?"

"Of course I would be curious," I admitted, propping myself on the desk, so I could look right at his face. I was not sure whether he was making fun of me at that moment, or not. "But would I be trying to get anything out of you at all costs? No. Certainly not."

A soft smile tugged at the corners of his lips, but he managed to tame it before it actually slithered upon his face.

"You put an emphasis on the word you," he noticed, even though I had really not noticed that while speaking. "Does that mean that if I were someone else, the answer would have differed from the one you've just given me?"

The blush that had appeared on my cheeks before, apparently got even darker now, because I felt a hot flush.

"What kind of person do you think I am, Severus?" I asked resentfully, which apparently amused him.

"A different one than the one I met here a couple of months ago," he answered, then stood up and slowly walked over to me.

I had nowhere to walk away, even though I felt some kind of nervousness. Not fear, because it had been a while since I had really been afraid of him, but it definitely did not mean that I always felt one hundred percent comfortable with him.

And yet, I had nothing to be nervous about, because Snape only caressed my cheek. As always, that gesture made me smile.

"You've changed, Shirley," he said quietly. "Back then, you were a hopeless case of a blithering coward. Recently, you've shown that it's no longer the case."

"No, it's not like this," I shook my head. "Even back then... if I'd seen someone I love in danger, I would've needed to react somehow. I haven't really changed that much. Just now... now, I really care for you."

One of Snape's brows once again went up.

"Well, back then, you were there... during that duel..." he muttered, a strange grimace on his face. "Do you want to tell me that you were there because you and Longbottom..."

"Nothing of that sort!" I interrupted him at once, feeling my heart drop unpleasantly, and my stomach curled up. "I and Neville... no matter what you think... what you've ever thought... we have really always been just friends."

I was not lying. Neville, after all, was the only person I had in fact known when I had appeared here on the first of September. We were of a similar age, had the same friends... it seemed to me that it was obvious that such a friendship would be the most natural. Never, however, had I ever seen anything more than a friend in Neville.

However, the more time had passed since Severus's true intentions had begun to come out, the more I could realise that he had every right to suspect that I could actually feel something for Neville.

"Did you want to say that no matter what anyone thinks," he spoke in an undertone, frowning. "I'm convinced that I was not the only one who suspected that... moreover, I could swear that the man at the center of everything would share my viewpoint."

I turned my face away to avoid looking at him. It seemed to have been such a long time before... and yet, I still felt some weird kind of shame. But Snape's hand stopped me and forced me to look him once again in the eye.

"You know that it would be more normal..." he whispered. "You're of the same age... and he's never been your teacher..."

"I don't care," I answered emphatically. "Neville has always been a friend to me, nothing more. I thought you trusted me."

To my surprise, Severus smiled, then made a step backwards, watching me with a strange expression on his face. If not for the fact that it was Snape, I would have said that it was pride. Or maybe it was pride...?

"Of course I do. I just wanted to hear that once again."

The last week of June was the best moment to start acting. We were totally aware of the fact that the Death Eaters had been informed that we knew about their existence. We did not know, though, how much information they had managed to gather, therefore we really needed to be quite careful.

We knew the names of the Death Eaters – some of them were a great surprise, and the Minister for Magic himself had felt the breath of terror when the people from his immediate surrounding had turned out to be suspected. It only showed that not only had the Death Eaters become more self-confident now, but also, they had a good reason for that – everyone who was cunning enough to have tricked a whole bunch of Aurors, associates of the Minister, and the Minister for Magic – ex-Auror himself, would get quite audacious.

We had to get rid of all of them, if we wanted to bring the peace back, because not only the fate of the wizarding world, but also the Muggle world depended on it.

This case, therefore, required not only a great dose of subtlety, but also a great number of people, since according to the plan, there were at least two or three for every one of the Death Eaters. It was due to the security reasons, for if they had all managed to fool the finest wizards of all for such a long time, it meant that they were really dangerous Dark Wizards.

"Potter will play the main role in this performance," explained Snape when we were hurriedly heading towards Hogsmeade, from where we were supposed to Disapparate to the Ministry.

It was apity to leave the castle. Now, as the exams had been finished, even the weather seemed to be lenient to everyone: after a giant storm, the air had been cleared, and the last weekend of the term seemed to be a promise of a veritable paradise on earth. Meanwhile, we were to spend at least one day of it fighting the forces of the evil.

I have to admit that back then I was not as scared as I had been that memorable night, standing on the top of the tower and awaiting the fugitives from Azkaban. Of course, I did feel some kind of anxiety which in some peculiar way resembled the stress I had once felt right before my exams, but it was not terror.

"But I implore you, Shirley, don't try to play the hero," added Severus after a moment, this time a little bit quieter. "I appreciate the fact that you've managed to get rid of at least a part of your cowardice, but I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm safe," I assured him.

"Oh, of course," he replied irritably. "We're just going to the most dangerous place on the earth at this moment, and she's telling me she's safe."

"I won't be by myself," I reminded him quickly, but it was apparently a mistake.

"That's exactly what I am afraid of."

I decided not to continue the topic any longer, because we had just left the castle grounds along with its protection, and finally, we could Disapparate.

The plan assumed that every group would start at another time, so the sudden inflow of the people from outside the Ministry would not attract too much attention. At the same time, we could not make it last too long, because it would make it possible for the Death Eaters to communicate with one another and inform the rest about the operation.

The point was, then, to find a way for our actions not to start at the same moment, but to begin one after another, so we could undetectably get rid of all the undesirable people without causing too much of a stir.

The most important thing, therefore, was to appear at a very specific moment – we could not come too late, so we would not cause any delay, but if we Apparated too soon, it also would not be too favourable. That was why Snape stared at his pocket watch for a moment before sighing and nodding his head. That was a sign upon which we both twisted at a spot and we were sucked in by the darkness.

We were not supposed to work together. Perhaps because the others were afraid that one would sacrifice their own life for the other, thus risking the outcome of the whole action, we were put into different groups.

That was why as soon as we had arrived in the Ministry, we got separated. Snape silently headed towards the lifts, and I, in turn, was to meet Hermione Granger in the Atrium. I had a bit more time than Severus, so my steps were slightly slower as I walked towards the splendid fountain.

Soon, I spotted her: Hermione, her steps brisk, a smile on her face, was walking in my direction. When she stood in front of me, she reached her hand out to me, and I shook it.

"How are you feeling?" she asked cheerfully. It was also a sign that it was really her, not a Death Eater impersonating her.

"Perfectly well," I answered, and she winked at me.

"So, let me show you to my office."

Hermione Granger was the unlucky one to work with one of the Death Eaters we were supposed to get rid of. However, it gave us some room for manoeuvre, because our appearance in this office was nothing surprising. I was nothing but an applicant in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and it had so happened that we had met outside her office.

Yet it turned out that the Death Eater had been prepared for that eventuality. As soon as we entered the office, he stood in front of us, using non-verbal spell to lock the door behind us, so he would cut out us from the escape route. But it was not the first time we had fought with a Death Eater – and now, he was outnumbered.

What was most important at that moment was to prevent him from warning the others by the means of the Dark Mark, so we had to either keep his hands somehow occupied, or tie him up. At first, it was easier to acquire the first goal, but from there, the way to immobilising him completely was quite straight.

According to the plan, which we had discussed with Hermione beforehand, I was to distract the man, while she was bound to cast one well-aimed Full Body-Bind Curse – it was enough to incapacitate the Death Eater until the relevant services dealt with him. In theory, though, it was much easier than in practice, but I had to admit that I had been afraid that it would take us significantly more time.

And yet, before the sunset, all of us had already gathered in the Atrium, while the employees of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement were "neutralising" the threat.

"You did an excellent job," said Snape quietly as we walked through the sleepy village.

"You've got no idea what I did," I laughed.

"Granger told me about it," he explained. "Perhaps you know, too, that thanks to this action, she's got promoted."

I blused slightly, being really glad that it was dark enough for Severus not to be able to notice that, then nodded my head.

"Deputy Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," I replied. "It does sound exceptionally boring."

"And what does sound interesting?" he asked.

I laughed.

"Teaching young people about the History of Magic, while one Potions Master follows my every step."