Along the Path of Least Resistance
The sun was just beginning to peak over the tree line on Spinner's End when the young mediwitch arrived. She was dressed in light blue jeans and a matching sweater, her hair pulled back like it always was. She bore a small medic's bag in her left hand. She knocked three times on the door before she heard any noise from inside. Finally the barrier between her and her patient was pulled open slightly. Severus caught sight of her former pupil and immediately slammed the door in her face. Hermione heard the locks click into place.
"Professor, be reasonable. I'm here to help," she called through the thick wood.
"I don't need anyone's bloody help," he answered.
"Albus has roped you into this and I'm tired of having my life invaded," he added.
Hermione didn't answer. Instead she took out her wand and whispered the unlocking charm she'd learned so many years ago. She simply pushed open the door and walked in. She came face-to-face with her former teacher. He was dressed, which surprised her.
"Get out of my house Miss Granger. You are trespassing on private property," Severus snarled.
"Oh drop the act," she countered, moving past him to survey the place.
"How dare you speak to me in that manner," he hissed, sending her one of his trademark glares.
"Sir, I'm sorry to say, but your look of contempt did not intimidate me in school and it sure as hell isn't going to intimidate me now," Hermione retorted as she caught the man's look.
"Not to question your…d�cor but why on earth is everything in this house black?" she asked after having done a cursory round of the first floor.
"I like the color black. Not that it is any of your business," he snapped.
"Alright. You don't need to have a coronary," Hermione muttered more to herself than to Severus.
The 48-year-old took this moment to look over his former student. She had most certainly filled out nicely. Her hair was no longer bushy as an afro. Instead, she'd learned to tame into a gentle wave. He found himself thinking that she looked prettier with her hair down but putting it up wasn't that bad. Before he knew it, he was staring fixedly at the young woman in front of him.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked, eyeing him curiously.
"Other than the fact that you have the flu," she added.
"No," he sniffed, regaining his composure.
Hermione shifted nervously from foot to foot as they stood in silence. She'd felt his eyes sweep over her briefly and it made her rather uncomfortable that her former teacher had been checking her out. She swallowed quickly and decided to take the focus off of her.
"So, why have you been so disagreeable with everyone else?" Hermione asked casually.
"They invaded my privacy, as you are doing right now," Severus responded.
"They had your best interests at heart," Hermione stated.
"That may be so but I do not appreciate people simply waltzing in here and trying to tell me how to run my life," he spat.
"I'm a grown man. I can run my own damn life," he added.
"Can we sit down and talk this out over a cup of tea perhaps?" the mediwitch suggested.
"Fine," Severus remarked and smoothly tossed himself onto the couch.
Hermione smiled to herself as she entered the small kitchen. She quickly oriented herself with where things were and set to making a pot of tea. From what Minerva had told her the day before, he liked his tea piping hot and strong. She had been extremely surprised that they shared a similar taste in tea. She finally poured the cups of tea and placed them on a tray, bringing them into the sitting room and placing it on the table before sitting down in the seat next to Severus. He picked up the cup nearest him and sipped at it gingerly.
"Them just being here seemed to set you off, is that right?" Hermione began.
In her yeas of training, she'd acquired the ability to act as counselor to her patients. She figured the best thing to do at this point was to try and discern what made him angry enough to throw four women out for trying to help him.
"Yes," he muttered from behind the rim of his teacup.
"Why?" she asked.
"I told you already. They simply waltzed in here and tried to tell me how to run my life," he snarled, glaring at her.
"Something else is bothering you," Hermione stated calmly.
"No there isn't," Severus denied.
"I'm a doctor Professor. I know when people are lying. Now what else is bothering you?" Hermione asked.
"They think they know what's best and they don't. They aren't…you," he admitted.
"They aren't me?" Hermione echoed.
"They aren't professionals," he explained quickly, trying to cover up his slip.
"Oh. Yeah," Hermione muttered, catching his slip up.
She found it very odd that he kept making references like that to her. First he was giving her the once over and now he was talking as if he'd have been perfectly content if she'd been the one to show up at the beginning of the week instead of Molly. She tried to push it aside and think about it when she had a moment to truly ponder it.
"Well it's quite early and I'm not sure why you are out of bed. You need plenty of rest and little activity in order for your body to properly heal itself, Professor," she began.
"Please Miss Granger. You are no longer my pupil, it will suffice to call my by my first name," he retorted.
"Alright then, Severus, I'll give you ten minutes get back in bed before I drag you to it," Hermione countered with a smirk.
"You've been talking to Minerva haven't you," he muttered as he got up and placed his empty teacup on the tray.
"Do whatever works," Hermione snickered as she watched the man saunter off towards the staircase leading to his room.
She waited the allotted ten minutes before climbing up the stairs and making her way to the last door in the hall. She knocked and waited to be invited him. Surprisingly the invite came quite soon after she'd finished announcing her presence. She opened the door and found the room to resemble the rest of the house, bathed in shades of black.
"You get some sleep I'll be downstairs ok," she informed him.
"Downstairs doing what?" he asked harshly.
"I brought work with me," she said.
"Just don't touch anything that isn't yours,' he remarked.
"I won't. I've been warned about the do's an don'ts around here," Hermione chuckled.
"But honestly, you need some variety in your color schemes. It's all so depressing and non conducive to sunlight," she commented.
"I do have a certain level of paleness to maintain you know," he retorted with a smirk.
"Of course you do. I'll be back in a while to check on you," Hermione said as she closed the door.
Severus lay there in bed, his mind spinning. He had been thinking about Hermione since the moment she'd walked in through the front door. He had no explanation as to why he was thinking she was pretty. She was a former student for Merlin's sake. He knew that that stipulation had disappeared years ago when she'd graduated but he was nearly twice her age. Besides, what could she possibly find attractive about him with his hooked nose, pale skin and stubborn demeanor? He eventually succumbed to sleep, with thoughts of the woman downstairs swimming through his dreams.
Downstairs, Hermione poured herself another cup of tea and opened up a large file folder. She began going through, case by case and doing her weekly right ups on her patients' health. While she loved the physical interaction with patients, she was the odd duckling when it came to paperwork. She absolutely adored the silence that accompanied the write ups. So as she sat, scribbling away happily, she allowed her mind to pour over that morning's events. She was going to figure out why Severus had been acting so strangely if it took her all day. Her old Gryffindor spirit had returned full force and she was not on a mission that she would not fail.
"What is up with him?" she mumbled to herself as she poured yet another cup of tea.
She obviously got no verbal response. So, she set about the task of scrutinizing every movement and comment he'd said from the moment she'd stepped into his house. He told her to leave for she had been trespassing on private property. Yet he had at the same time given her a once over and seemed to be so pleased with what he saw that he allowed himself to be caught gaping at her. He'd covered that up well enough. What really bugged her was his comment about the other four women who had attempted, and failed, to help him get better.
'They aren't…you' echoed over and over in her mind.
She was sure he'd meant it as a compliment. Even though hadn't liked her much during her school days, he had acknowledged her abilities during the war. She'd even been the one to heal his shoulder, though he didn't know it. The idea that perhaps Severus had a romantic interest in her suddenly wiggled its mischievous way to the forefront of her mind.
"Oh that's just foolishness," she chided herself.
Her rational seemed to disagree with her saying why did it have to be foolishness? What was she afraid of it seemed to prod. She tried to ignore the persistent feeling that maybe it was her that was being foolish but to no avail. She decided she would just go upstairs and ask him flat out if he had feelings for her.
She walked up the large stone staircase purposefully. When she got to his door, she knocked lightly before entering. She found him asleep on top of the covers. She shook her head in disbelief and levitated him up so she could turn down the bed. Once she'd laid him back down and adjusted the blankets comfortably about him, she stepped back. She didn't have the heart to wake him and ask him right now. Her medical instincts were kicking in and telling her curiosity to sit tight and let him sleep. After all, rest is one of the body's most potent medicines. She slipped from the room and returned back to where she'd been sitting and picked up where she left off on her work. If nothing else, she'd have her weekly reports in ahead of schedule and that always made her feel good.