Author's Note: Hey everyone! Sorry that there was no introduction whatsoever for this story with the first part. I hope everyone enjoys my attempt at a believable Snape fanfiction. I still haven't decided if I want to take the relationship in this story to a romantic level; Eleanor and Severus may just stay friends. For the most part, I'm going to keep this canon. However, if any romance comes in, it is clearly straying away from canon, especially since I don't think Snape would really have a relationship with Eleanor – or any other student for that matter – because A) He NEVER got over Lily and truly loves her and B) Does Snape really seem like the mess-around-with-students type?
I want to apologize now for slip-ups with timelines and such. I'm relying on a great site called for most of my information on Snape. Based off his age in this fiction (22), it should be 1982…which presents problems because I was not alive in 1982. I'll try to keep all gadgets and such inline with this date, but I'm sure I'll make mistakes and slip stuff in there that doesn't show up for another 10, or even 20, years.
I hope you all enjoy the story! Reviews would be fantastic – thanks to the fabulous Ravenclawblonde for already being a loyal reader and reviewer.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter in any way. I do own character like Eleanor that I have personally created.
Eleanor woke up the next morning a good hour before anyone else, due to the fact that she had fallen asleep before any of the other Slytherin sixth year girls had come to the dorm. In that hour she had to herself, she took a long shower and then slowly changed into her full school uniform, taking an unusual amount of time to button each button and to tie her tie. Just as she was buckling her pristine black shoes, the other girls stirred as Leigh's magically run alarm clock started to belt out a moody song by Hostis Dei, one of Leigh's favorite wizard bands.
"Morning Elle!" Beatrice Crabbe said dazedly, sitting up in her four poster bed which was clad in elegant beige and gold Egyptian cotton sheets. "We missed you in the common room party last night."
"I bet she snuck off with some sort of secret lover," Arianna Belle quipped as she got out of bed to curl her normally flat blonde hair. "How about it Elle? Who is he?"
"Oh dear, you guys caught me. I was off at the Hog's Head snogging a Ministry official." She giggled along with the four girls in the dormitory: Beatrice, Arianna, Leigh, and Maxi. Light conversation continued as the girls changed into their uniforms.
Despite wearing the same basic pieces, each girl looked very different. Beatrice had hiked the skirt up a few inches and was wearing a pair of designer black heels that showed off her legs, toned and golden from her summer job as a Quidditch instructor at a young witches' camp. Her elbow-length black hair was tied in a ponytail with a green, silk ribbon that matched her expensive emerald earrings and bangles. Arianna had totally abandoned black shoes in favor of a pair of green stilettos. She was wearing her Slytherin tie as a headband to hold back her recently curled hair and had left her shirt unbuttoned down to the top of her sweater (that was cashmere, not the normal wool). Leigh had only messed with the uniform a little by hiking the skirt up like the other girls, but she wore pearls in her ears and at her neck, giving Leigh an overall classy look. Her naturally platinum blonde waves cascaded all the way down to her slender waist. Maxi Black-Hernandez had gone the furthest away from the basic Hogwarts uniform, having done things like trimming the skirt with green ribbon and making the neckline of the sweater lower cut. Her hair was dark brown and had two colored streaks, green and silver, at the front. Frankly, the other Slytherin girls thought she looked a bit trashy, but no one would say so because her family was comprised of two of the most prominent pureblood families.
Eleanor was the only one who had left her uniform untouched. As a prefect and a girl with an overactive case of OCD, she prided herself in having her uniform neat and proper. The only item she wore not specified for the uniform was a simple silver locker that rested on her tie. She was just reorganizing her books in a plain black satchel when a piercing screech sounded from the common room. Startled, the girls sprinted down the stairs to the common room.
It appeared that the whole Slytherin house had materialized in the common room. Several people were in the center of the crowd, shouting. Leigh and Eleanor both climbed up on one of the leather couches to see over the seventh year guys who were in front of them. Meredith James, a rather possessive and stuck-up seventh year, was screeching shrilly at her boyfriend Jackson Waters who had his arm casually slung around the waist of a very skinny fifth year named Abigail, who had a rather smug look on her face.
"Well perhaps if you hadn't gained so much weight in June, your boyfriend wouldn't have turned to me," Abigail snapped back at the screeching Meredith.
That shut Meredith up for a minute but not for any longer than that. She lunged at Abigail with a dog-like yelp and tackled her to the ground. The room burst into cheers and jeers. Several perverted guys moved closer, hoping to get a better look at the two girls rolling around on the floor. Eleanor and Leigh just rolled their eyes and climbed down off of the couch. It really wasn't that unusual to see two girls going at it in the Slytherin common room. If teenage girls were known for being a bit hormonal, then the Slytherin girls were known for being pure bundles of hormones, in other words, rather bitchy.
"Silence! SILENCE!" a vaguely recognizable voice yelled over all the noise. Miraculously, the whole room went completely quiet and turned to face the entrance to the common room
Professor Snape was standing just inside the room with his arms crossed angrily across his severe black robes. A chill seemed to rustle through the room. Despite Severus Snape only being five years older than the seventh years, authority just seemed to ooze from him. Abigail and Meredith had paused in their catfight, Meredith's fist frozen just above Abigail's face. Eleanor and Leigh both rose up on their tiptoes, too nervous to climb back on the couch for a good view of him. His face was completely void of emotion, but his tone had hinted at strong disdain.
"I came in here to tell you all how glad I was to be your new Head of House, and THIS is what I'm greeted with?" he drawled. "Explain yourself."
Meredith climbed slowly off of Abigail and then helped her up. Nerves showed prominently on both of their faces. "I'm sorry sir," Meredith said, staring down at the floor. "We were just being catty teenage girls; we're done. Right, Abigail?"
Abigail nodded fervently. "Yes Professor Snape. Sir, did you say you're our new Head of House?"
"I presume it occurred to all of you that you would have to have a new Head of House, seeing as I took Professor Slughorn's job." Snape uncrossed his arms and surveyed the room. "I am the only Hogwarts teacher who has graduated from Slytherin, so, therefore, the job fell to me. The Headmaster will announce it at breakfast in a few minutes. How about we end this little quarrel for good and all head down to eat?"
The room filled back up with chatter as the Slytherin students began to gather their things and leave the room. Leigh hurried back up to get her schoolbag, so Eleanor waited for her by the couch they had been standing on minutes before. Eleanor couldn't help but think about how silly it was for two girls to fight over a guy who was very clearly an ass. Jackson Waters was notorious for cheating and being an all-over player; it was surprising that Meredith hadn't caught him in something before then. Eleanor shook her head as she thought about the stupidity of the situation; those students had no idea what real problems were.
Just then Leigh flounced back down the stairs. "Come on, darling," she crooned at Eleanor. "I am absolutely famished." Leigh practically dragged Eleanor out of the common room.
"Miss Vector!" Professor Snape was standing by the wall opposite the common room's exit. "Would you mind helping me sort my ingredients that just came in after dinner this evening? I'll give you house points."
"Oh, of course Professor," Leigh said brightly. "I'll bring Elle with me. She's kind of obsessive compulsive, so she's pretty good at organizing things."
Professor Snape nodded. "Thank you, girls. I'll see you both in class; sixth years have me right after lunch."
"Why did you just volunteer me?" Eleanor exclaimed after Snape had disappeared down the hallway.
"Well, you are a good organizer. And frankly, he's really creepy to be with alone! I don't know what my mother was thinking when she just decided to volunteer me to help him out." Leigh's tone was not incredibly convincing.
"You have other reasons Leigh," Eleanor said, raising her eyebrows at her friend.
"Okay…so I feel like you and Professor Snape could be good friends, perhaps more when you graduate."
"That's sick Leigh. He's a teacher!" Eleanor wrinkled up her nose in mock disgust.
"But you do have to admit that if he got a haircut, he could be rather attractive."
Eleanor just rolled her eyes. "I'm not the least bit interested Leigh. You have a sick, sick mind. Can we just go eat?"
"If you insist," Leigh sighed, skipping off down the hallway. Eleanor shook her head, smiling slightly, and followed quickly after her best friend.