Anything you recognise is copywright JK Rowling and the company which butchered her books into those movies. Enjoy.

Chapter 2 - Imagination

Set in a café middle of London, in the happy energetic spring air, a group of three were being served their respective drinks. On black coffee, no cream, no sugar, concentrated, one lemonade, and one boring glass of water. However, all of them were made more interesting by the nature of their travel: they floated. A bright spring morning when the popular prospect of reawakening seems sickeningly …

' … bestowed with the temerity to stare the entire wizarding population in the face and demand that it be indulged. Hence disrupting the otherwise tranquil, or rather..'

'Yes, yes we know, Snape. You have a vocabulary list you can make a small fortune off of while writing thesauri. Now, I want you to treasure this moment. This is where I tell you to shut up.' Harry Potter bit out. It was spring, it was sun, and it was two-odd months from the finale. He really wanted to relax and sip is extra strong coffee.

'Never polite, are you boy?' Snape sneered. That hit a nerve.

'I told you time and time before, you call me 'boy' again and I'll…'

'What, Potter? Why don't you go about showing me the respect… '

'If you made …'

'That you never had the decency to…'

'Any effort to earn that respect…'

'Earn it? I believe I've secured it as –'

'STOP!' A very annoyed Hermione barked out at them, glaring. And so they did. Each glaring in the others' direction. Snape finally broke eye contact, turning away, and refocusing his glare on Harry's motorcycle, which once belonged to Sirius. He let out a humph in disgust and leaned back in his chair, glaring at his lemonade.

Snape was beyond intolerable these days. Harry knew he couldn't push it much. Despite the fresh start Snape was offered, he still owed too much to his previous professor. Way too much.

Still, Snape went too far.

'You didn't manage to convince her against publishing did you?' It was more of a statement than a question.

'No, she's adamant about publishing.' Hermione gave a sigh at this.

Snape took another sip, 'Have you found out how this happened Potter?'

'For the thousandth time I don't know.'

'Then why have you ignored my advice on working on finding the root of all this. The connections you may have with this writer?'

'Does it matter Snape?'

'Yes, you short-sighted twit, it matters! It matters a great deal!' He asserted angrily.

'Professor.' Hermione warned politely.

'No, Miss Granger, don't give me that tone. I do have enough to mention this to him. Yes Potter, I blame you for all the extra exposure, for all the wizard-world-crazed Muggles that are out there now. She knows every single thought that entered your head in those seven years, so obviously it's you she's siphoning our lives off of. I only thank Circe that it wasn't Dumbeldore she had access to.'

'Well you can't blame him for something he can't control.' She started arguing with him.

'Sounds like something repeated, doesn't it, Granger? A very astute observation I may say. It seems Potter has been the victim his entire life for things he cannot control. I congratulate you boy,' His voice was level, stressing ever so slightly on words he knew could coax a reaction out of Harry. The usual dance.

They both stayed silent. Snape looked from Hermione to Harry and drew back his chair, 'Well,' He said getting up, ' If you are done wasting my time, an impeccable ability of yours, I'm going back to my home. Maybe I'll stop by one of those Muggle Internet cafés on he way. Read some of that wonderful 'fanfiction'. You know what I speak of Potter. Those heated tales where I wind up in bed with Miss Granger.' Hermione blushed furiously at this, 'Or you Potter, or both of you for that matter… the Muggles do write them well, perhaps we should try it…'

'Goodbye Snape.' Harry shut him up.

'Goodbye Potter,' The familiar crack of apparition resounded through the air.

The man was disturbing.

Hermione looked miserable, staring at the untouched glass of water. 'Hey,' Harry said gently, 'Cheer up. Don't let that old bastard get to you.'

She looked up, and he could see that her eyes were serious. 'Harry,' she whispered strainingly, 'In a few months we… have to live it all over again,' her eyes became even more grim, 'we… he's… he's going to die all over again, and there's nothing we can do but face it.'

'Hey, hey,' he reached out and put an arm around her shoulder, 'After that it's over.'

'All those lives, all those deaths, and Voldemort. I … I don't think I'm ready to face it all over again.'

'You don't have to.' He said sharply, 'don't even pick up that book if you don't want to.'

'I'm not a coward!' She snapped.

He just looked at her then. Determined and miserable. He smiled kindly, 'Guess no one can put you off books, Hermione,' This elicited a small teary laugh from her.

'Thanks Harry,' She grabbed a napkin to dry her eyes, ' I have to go, he's meeting me in Hogsmeade.'

'Enjoy.' She cracked away into thin air. He noted at that moment that he still did not like apparition.