Here's yet another chapter. Hope you enjoy. Please please read and review… tell us what you think! )
Chapter 4: Just Between You and Me
Hermione put her best game face on as she walked down the stairs towards the dungeons. He's not going to know what's hit him, she thought. The huge wooden classroom door stood there in front of her. She paused and took a deep breath. Pulling open the door she heard a thunderous howl of pain. Her mind raced as she ran into the classroom. In the far end of the room she spotted Professor Snape and a lot of shattered glass on the floor around his feet. A steaming cauldron lay upside down on the table in front of him. Hermione noticed that Snape was holding his hand.
"Are you alright Professor?" She asked when she saw the blood running down his arm.
"I'm fine Miss Granger." He said, reluctant to let her know the truth. Whatever he had been brewing was now starting to form a puddle at his feet.
"You certainly aren't fine. You're bleeding…" Hermione stared at his hand.
"It's only a scratch." He interrupted her, waving his hand dismissively. He flinched and pulled it back to his chest.
All the anger she was feeling left her and worry replaced it, yet she couldn't exactly say why she was so worried about Snape. Hermione noticed the flinch and walked over to him. She gently took his hand and examined the deep gash in his palm. My what a courageous young woman we have here. He thought.
"Only a scratch?" She said with a laugh. She cradled his wounded hand with her own. "It looks pretty deep to me. You're going to need to bandage it." She led him to the sink. He didn't resist her aid, which surprised both of them. She turned the tap on so that the water trickled out and pushed his bleeding hand under the water. He pulled it back and scowled as the water caused his hand to sting. He looked down at the young woman who was now washing his hand, being extra careful not to cause him any more pain or discomfort than he already had.
"Miss Granger, I am quite capable of cleaning up my own messes." He said coolly, studying her face.
"I know Professor." She said and continued to clean the blood from his hand. When she was satisfied she took a handtowel that sat next to the sink and carefully dried it. "Does it hurt?" She asked, her voice full of worry.
"Yes." He replied curtly and bluntly. He stood there staring down at the girl who was examining his wound again.
When he didn't say anything more Hermione looked up. She found herself staring into black eyes. They seemed softer than usual. Behind the bitterness she could see the appreciation in his eyes.
Letting go of his hand she went in search of a first aid kit. Upon finding the kit she lifted the lid and grabbed a handful of bandages. His eyes followed her across the room. She took his bleeding hand again and started to wrap a cloth bandage around it. He noticed a small crease form in her forehead, an indication of her intense concentration.
"Thankyou Miss Granger." He said in a low voice, almost a whisper.
Snape had to admit that she was very brave, not only had she helped him, but she seemed to care that he was hurt, which was more than what most students would have done. He supposed most students would have turned and run, expecting to be screamed at by a furious and wounded Professor. He was tired and his whole body ached, and now, to top it all off, his hand throbbed wildly.
"Are you sure you are ok? You should go and rest… you look tired. I can clean up here, please Professor go and relax."
"Thankyou for your offer Miss Granger but…" The look in her eyes stopped him from saying what he had intended to. Instead he said, "I think I will go and rest. Goodnight Miss Granger." A thought crossed his mind as he turned and left. Why the hell was he leaving a student alone in his classroom? Miss Granger was a student, yes, but the most responsible and reliable one at Hogwarts he reassured himself. He was reluctant to leave the annoying know-it-all girl in his classroom alone but he was on the verge of falling asleep were he stood.
Hermione watched as he slowly left the room. She then looked down at the scattered glass and silvery blued liquid that was dripping from the upside down cauldron onto the stone floor. Grabbing a mop and bucket from the cupboard she began to tidy the classroom. She cleaned up the potion and glass and placed the cauldron back on its shelf. Before leaving she glanced around the room to make sure everything was back where it was supposed to be. She spotted something long and black sitting on the floor underneath the table at which Professor Snape had been working. His wand.
Hermione bent down to pick it up and put it into her robes with her own. I should take this to Professor Snape before I go back to the common room. She thought. It had been at least forty-five minutes since Professor Snape had left Hermione to clean the room. Surely he would be relaxed and feeling a little bit better now. She decided she would return his wand and make sure he was ok before heading to her bedroom.
Snape had gone back to his private quarters and taken off his robes and jacket to settle in front of the fire. His hand hurt terribly and he wasn't up to brewing a painkilling potion at the moment. Some fire whiskey would definitely dull the pain he thought. The whiskey bottle sat beside him on the beautifully carved side table. A glass tumbler was perched on the edge of the table, threatening to topple off and spill the honey-coloured liquid onto the floor.
He reached with his good hand to clutch the tumbler and brought it to his lips. Yes, the whiskey had definitely dulled the pain considerably. He didn't usually drink but today was an exception, today had been a long day and by the time it had come to a close he was feeling sore and tired. He sipped at the whiskey again. Very rarely did he find himself wishing for company but today was one of those days. He could not remember the last time he had had someone share a conversation with him in his chambers, he couldn't even remember the last time he had had someone in his chambers.
A subtle knocking on his chamber doors brought him out of his reverie. Who the hell could that be? He thought, not at all in the mood to deal with some silly adolescent who had dared to disturb him.
He staggered to the door and pulled it open, a scowl set upon his face. When he saw Hermione Granger standing there in front of him his expression changed instantly. He looked pleased to see the girl.
"Miss Granger. Nice to see you again." He turned and walked into the sitting room. He had hardly taken three steps into the room when he tripped on the rug and fell with a thud on the stone floor. Hermione hurried to help him up and was surprised to hear his deep rich laughter filling the room. He pulled himself from the floor and led her further into the room. "Very nice to see you." He slumped into the handsome ebony chair he had occupied a few minutes earlier.
"Professor…." She realised that something was different about him now; he was so mellow and pleasant. She spotted the whiskey bottle on the table and a half full tumbler next to it. "I see you're feeling better. I just came to give you your wand. You left it beneath one of the tables in the classroom." She held out the wand to him. "Good night Professor."
Hermione started for the door.
"You don't have to leave in such a hurry Miss Granger. I do not bite." He picked up the glass and took a mouthful of whiskey. Hermione turned to stare at him. Had he just asked her to stay? "Despite what you may think, I do have a nice side, but that's just between you and me. Drink?" He grabbed the bottle from the table, raised it and gave it a shake so that some whiskey splashed out. He emptied the bottled and looked at it. "Looks like someone drank it all." He said with a chuckle. He waved at the chair that stood opposite him.
Hermione sat down in the large chair. It was upholstered in ebony satin, with rounded armrests and had elegantly carved dark mahogany legs. It reminded her of the French antique furniture her grandmother owned. Very old and very beautiful. She was surprised that such beautiful things would be in the private quarters or such a feared man.
Hermione's gaze scanned the room. His sitting room was rather large. The far wall was full of books, from ceiling to floor; against the adjacent wall was a tall mahogany wall unit with glass doors on the bottom. The top was packed with books and through the glass Hermione could see even more books.
"Admiring my collection Miss Granger?" He asked. Hermione turned to face a half sleeping and very intoxicated Professor.
"Yes. I don't think I have seen quite so many books in one room before." Snape's eyes opened to look at her and then closed again. She glanced at her watch. "Professor, I really should go. It's nearly seven."
The tumbler swayed dangerously in his relaxed hand. His breathing had become steady and his eyes remained closed. He's asleep. Hermione thought. She got up and grabbed a blanket that had been draped over the settee behind them. Careful not to wake him for fear of having an extremely disgruntled man on her hands, she lightly placed the blanket over his sleeping figure.
Unexpectedly his eyes flew open. Hermione almost jumped back in surprise. "S... Sorry Pr.. Professor," she stuttered.
"That's quite alright Miss Granger. No harm done. Sit… please, and let me enjoy your company." He said groggily. He definitely has had a little too much alcohol she thought, why else would he say something like that? When she thought he had dozed off again she rose from her chair and quietly lifted her foot.
"Really Miss Granger," she heard him grumble, "One would think you would be kind enough to stay with a lonely man for a while. I know that that it may be hard for you to believe but I too get lonely."
Her Professor's last comment made Hermione think. Snape didn't seem like someone who had many guests; in fact most people were scared stiff of the man so naturally they wouldn't dare to visit him. She had to admit that if she were him she would certainly get lonely, although he did a great job of hiding his feelings. She had only seen a few of the potions master's emotions: Anger, disgust and pure dislike, most of which deepened when he was around Harry or Ron.
Hermione certainly knew what it was like to be lonely. In her first year at Hogwarts she wasn't exactly swamped with friends. Now she had Harry, Ron, Ginny and half the student body. Who did Professor Snape have? Hermione frowned.
Most students come to me when they're lonely, she thought to herself. She tried to imagine Professor Snape knocking on her door and asking to talk to her. She let out a short bark of laughter as she considered just how ridiculous that image was. That was one thing that was certain to never happen! She quickly covered her mouth and held her breath as she glanced at her sleeping professor, who had fortunately not been disturbed by her accidental outburst. She sat still waiting to make sure he was asleep.
Snape suddenly stirred and caused Hermione to gasp. He grunted and sleepily opened one eye. Moments later he was fast asleep and snoring quietly. Hermione looked at the empty bottle of whiskey then at her professor.
What a headache he will have when he wakes! She thought. Silently she left the room. The door closed behind her with a soft click and she dashed up the stairs to her room.
Flinging open the door she dived onto the bed. What a night! So far all of her experiences with Snape outside of class had been interesting, but this was by far the most interesting yet. Hermione rolled onto her back. She lay there spread out just letting the events of the evening run through her mind. Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud thud followed by an even louder "Hermione!"
She pulled herself up and sat cross-legged facing the door. From the thud she knew it could only be one of two people. Ron or Harry. They were the only two people who attempted to bash her door down rather than knock.
"Come in." She called. Ron opened the door and dived onto the bed beside her.
"Hey Hermione!" He said, his grin running from ear to ear. "I think tonight you may have missed the best game of wizards chess I have ever played."
"Did you win?" She asked hopefully.
"Nope."
"Ok …" She laughed.
"I came to drag you down to our group. Everyone is still in the common room." He grabbed her hand and yanked her off her bed. Together they descended the stairs to the waiting group of friends.
"Hermione! We thought you'd skipped town." Harry grinned and beckoned her to join them. Ginny sat opposite him. She was leaning over the chessboard obviously thinking very hard about her next move.
Lavender, Seamus and Neville were spread out on the floor. Dean and two other young Gryffindor girls sat with them. They must have met up after dinner Hermione thought. Gloria and Alice were the names of the two other girls. They were in their sixth year at Hogwarts and Hermione remembered seeing Ginny speaking to them on occasion.
Evelyn sat on the sofa behind them. To one side of her were two neatly placed pillows while the other side had only one very crumpled cushion. Hermione knew that Ron must have been sitting there. What happened to the other cushion Hermione could only guess. It had probably been thrown at someone during a competitive chess game.
Ron walked over and sat down on the crumpled cushion. Evelyn patted the unoccupied seat beside her and was pleased when Hermione sat down.
"Has Ron taught you how to play chess yet?" She asked with a giggle.
"I sure did!" He cut in. Evelyn nodded. "I think …"
"Ron!" Ginny shot him a threatening glance. "I'm trying to beat Harry. Something you wouldn't know much about, and you are being incredibly loud."
"I would too know about beating Harry. I came extremely close tonight!" He replied.
"You say that every night." She remarked.
Ron's face went red with embarrassment. He tugged the pillow from beneath him and threw it at his sister. He immediately turned his head and began to whistle as if it had been someone else who had thrown the pillow.
Ginny picked up the pillow and threw it back. She hit Ron square in the face. He stood ready to take her on. She jumped out of her seat and had tackled him in a matter of seconds. Evelyn seemed to be getting a kick out of what was going on because she was gasping for air between little giggles.
"I give… I give!" Ron shouted as Ginny twisted his arm.
Ginny let Ron go and was back in her seat debating whether to move her knight or her castle.
"If you teach me to play chess, I'll teach you some self defence moves." Evelyn offered Ron. He stared up in disbelief from his spot on the floor.
"You know self defence?"
"My father taught me when I was a little girl. He's a muggle and he insisted I know how to defend myself in the muggle world." She explained.
Harry stared. That was the most he had heard the girl say all night. Her brown eyes stayed glued to Ron's face. Harry laughed inwardly at the picture of the two staring at each other. He was definitely going to question Ron about Evelyn later.
"Umm…" Evelyn blushed as she realised that all nine students in the room had their eyes on the pair. "So would you teach me to play chess?"
"Oh... Oh... Yea sure... absolutely." Ron said, his face was also turning the colour of his hair. He laughed and ran his hand through his messy hair.
"Well guys, I think I'll go to bed. Holidays are only a few days away and I have a lot of school work I want to finish before everyone leaves." Hermione said with a yawn. She rose and patted Evelyn's hand. "Goodnight."
Evelyn rose and hugged Hermione. She whispered a quick thanks in her ear and announced that she too would retire to her bed. Both girls mounted the stairs and climbed to their rooms.
Hermione snuggled deeper into the cosy armchair, the book on the arm tottered and settled. Crookshanks shifted in her lap and purred softly. A soft knock came from outside her bedroom door.
"It's me Ginny." The girl outside called.
"Come in Ginny." She closed the book and put it on the floor.
Ginny entered and made herself comfortable on the big bed. "So… go on, spill! What happened?" Ginny asked excitedly, "Detention doesn't usually take half the night."
"Nothing." Hermione replied.
"Nothing?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you. I mean I can hardly believe it myself."
Ginny gave her a pleading look. "Hermione you're the most honest person I know."
Hermione laughed. "Is that so?"
"Hermione! You have to tell me! " Ginny pleaded.
"Oh alright, but you have to promise that you won't laugh and you can't look at me as if I've gone absolutely mad."
"Cross my heart." Ginny said, looking very serious. She drew an X over her heart with her index finger.
"Well you know how I was going to treat Professor Snape the way he treats everyone else?" She began.
Ginny nodded. "Yes, Lavender explained a little to me after breakfast."
"I didn't." Hermione went on. Ginny gasped dramatically, throwing her head back and putting the back of her hand on her forehead. "Ginny!" Hermione laughed. "So as I was saying, I walked into the classroom and Professor Snape had cut himself while brewing a potion. There was glass all over and blood was running down his arm…" Ginny's face scrunched into a pained expression. "I was really worried. I don't know why but I was kind of scared for a moment. Anyway… I washed his hand and bandaged it."
"He willingly let you do that?" Ginny asked sceptically.
"Yes. For the second time this week Professor Snape has completely surprised me."
"The second time?" Ginny asked.
"He gave me his robes in detention and when I returned them he gave me another detention!"
"So that's what it was for… you never told me that." The younger girl looked hurt.
"I'm sorry, the only people I told were Harry, Ron and Lavender, but of course Harry and Ron thought I was joking."
"And Lavender?"
"She was in the common room when I got back. I was just so mad and it was very late." Hermione explained.
"Oh." She replied staring into the fire.
"Ginny you're one of my best friends… please don't be mad!"
Ginny shook her head and smiled. "I'm not mad at you. But I will be if you don't tell me the rest of the story."
Hermione told her how she had insisted that he go and rest and how she had cleaned up the potion after he had left. "I found his wand and I guess I kind of wanted to check on him so I took it to his rooms."
Ginny shifted onto her stomach and rested her head in her hands. Hermione gave her a questioning look. "I can tell this is going to be good and I just want to get comfy." She said as if it were completely obvious.
Hermione continued, "He answered the door and he was quite intoxicated." The younger girl's eyes widened. She finished by telling the girl about the things he had said to her.
"He actually said those things to you?" Ginny questioned.
"Yes… I must admit I nearly fell over when he told me he had a nice side… and that he was lonely."
"What are you going to do? I mean are you going to do anything?"
Hermione thought for a moment. "I don't know. I am definitely not going to tell Professor Snape what he said. I shudder to think what he would do to me."
"I kind of feel bad for him, you know, not having any company."
"I fell like I should do something, I am head girl after all. And I am staying here over the Christmas break." Hermione said.
"Befriend him." Ginny suggested.
"I think I will." With that Hermione had made up her mind. She would befriend the feared potions master.
"Are you up for a challenge? Because it certainly will be tough." Ginny looked at Hermione.
"Yes." Was her simple reply. "I thought you hated Professor Snape nearly as much as Ron does."
"Oh I don't hate him at all, although he can he pretty scary. But don't tell Ron that or he might die of shock." Ginny laughed. "I don't want to be disowned by my family any time soon so I think I will keep as far away from Professor Snape as possible."
A smile adorned Hermione's pretty lips. She was determined to help Snape. Beneath all that anger and hostility there had to be a kind gentle Professor. Hermione was sure of it. Her Gryffindor bravery and stubbornness was an assurance that she would succeed in her mission. She wasn't one to quit easily.
"Well I'm off to bed." Ginny said with a yawn.
"Promise you won't mention this to Harry or Ron." Hermione got up from her chair. Crookshanks jumped off onto the floor and curled up in front of the fire. She gave Ginny a hug.
"Mention what to Harry and Ron?" Ginny said looking confused. She grinned. "Of course I won't. It's just between you and me."
"There's only a few days until Christmas break and then I won't see you for nearly four weeks! Let's do something fun this week."
Ginny nodded and left Hermione's room. Within the hour both girls were fast asleep.
Hermione was up bright and early the next morning and headed down to breakfast to meet her friends. The trio ate and made their way to the dungeons for their first class, potions. The classroom was unusually dark and everyone was silent. Snape was sitting behind his desk and had a very nasty scowl on his face.
"Everyone is to write an essay on the uses of potions in the wizarding world. It will be due tomorrow in class." He said in a low voice.
Each student got their parchment and quill out and began to write their essays. The scratching made by the quills seemed unusually loud to Snape. Why the hell had he chosen to drink last night? A pain-relieving potion would have been the more sensible option.
He couldn't recall all the events of last night but he did remember cutting his hand and having a visit from Miss Granger in his sitting room. He would definitely have to speak with her and make sure she didn't blab anything about the school. The little know-it-all was giggling with her friends at the back of his classroom.
"Miss Granger, Mr Potter… would you like to spend an evening with me in detention?" He growled.
"No Sir." Harry replied.
"Then I suggest you be quiet and get on with your work." Snape snarled.
After class had ended, Snape requested that Hermione see him. She waved the others on and told them she would meet them back at the Gryffindor common room.
"Yes Professor?" Hermione asked.
"Miss Granger. Last night was quite and eventful night. Please… do indulge me by telling me what happened." He sneered.
"Tell you what happened?" Hermione looked puzzled.
"Yes Miss Granger. Tell me what happened?"
"If you don't mind me asking Professor, why do you want me to tell you what happened?"
"I seem to be having a mind block at the moment and cannot remember the exact happenings of the previous evening. So please Miss Granger." His voice was thick with impatience.
"Well, I came down to make…"
"Yes yes Miss Granger. I mean after I left the classroom." He growled, his patience becoming very thin.
"I cleaned up the potion and the glass and then I found your wand under the table you had been working at. I thought you may need it so I returned it to you." She finished.
"You returned it to me?" He questioned.
"Yes. I knocked on your door and you answered. You were…. Well…" She didn't quite know how to put it.
"Miss Granger." He growled.
"You weren't yourself Professor. You had been…" She trailed off, not sure if she should tell him the whole truth.
"I had been what Miss Granger?"
"You had been drinking Professor. You tripped when you invited me into your sitting room."
He groaned and lowered his head into his hands. "I invited you into my private quarters?"
"Yes Professor." She blushed. "I only stayed for a few minutes. I gave you your wand and left."
"Thankyou Miss Granger. You may leave. And make sure your tongue does not slip about this." He watched her leave the room to rush to her friends. What an idiot he was. Getting drunk and inviting a student into his private quarters!
At least he had the holidays to look forward to, no students to bother him and especially no Miss Granger. He neatly stacked the scattered parchment on his desk, put the stopper in the inkbottle and left the room. He walked through his sitting room into his big bedroom. He stopped, and retraced his steps into the sitting room. Searching the wall of books he selected a thick leather-bound one and proceeded into his room again.
Shedding his robes and his jacket he sat the book on the edge of the bed and opened it. Slipping off his shoes he moved onto the bed and leaned against the headboard. He unbuttoned his sleeves and rolled then up to his elbows then he unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt and started to read the book in his lap. A relaxing evening of reading was exactly what he needed to calm his nerves.
