Disclaimer: Harry Potter is sadly, J.K.R.'s and not mine.
Author's Notes: Thanks for reading! Also, reviews are fantastic – thanks to everyone who's been posting them!
The rest of the class was a blur. She knew she had finished her antidote, because she remembered giving a vial of it to Snape at the end of class, taking great pains to ensure that her hand did not touch his as she handed it to him. She honestly couldn't remember anything else that had happened in Potions class after Snape had told her not to be late.
She made her way to the library, still a bit light-headed from her encounter with Snape. He had been so close to her, so intense… Because he was reminding her about her detention, she told herself firmly. An act no doubt intended to embarrass her in front of the whole class. She was going to study for her NEWTS now and was absolutely not going to think about Snape any more. Reaching the library, she headed straight towards a carrel in the back where she knew she would not be disturbed, pulled out her Transfiguration textbook, and began to review the theory behind transforming people into non-magical inanimate objects.
She had managed to get through two chapters of transfiguration and was working her way through a third when she heard two rather loud sets of footsteps coming towards her. She looked up to see Harry and Ron. "Come on, Hermione, it's almost dinner time," Ron told her impatiently. She gathered her materials and followed the two boys towards the Great Hall.
She was still thinking about the interaction between magical cores that occurred when one transformed a magical creature into a magical inanimate object when she sat down at the Gryffindor table. "Pass me the mashed potatoes, Hermione?" Ron asked. She found the dish and passed it to him, but nearly dropped it in the process. As soon as she had looked up at Ron, she had seen Professor Snape glaring at her from behind his head. She mentally berated herself for forgetting to sit facing away from him. This was going to be a long meal.
xXxXxXx
After dinner she returned to the library and continued to study transfiguration until it was time for her Occlumency lessons with Snape. She had actually been able to put him out of her mind while she studied, but as she began to pick up her materials, the realization that she was now soon going to be stuck in a room with him where she would be the sole object of his attention hit her with full force. She had nearly caved in Potions, just because he was there. Now he was going to be trying to get into her mind- She gasped. She had completely forgotten to read up on Occlumency so she would know what she was doing in the lesson tonight. Well, it was too late now; she would just have to wing it. Right.
She reached the Potions classroom just a few minutes before 9:00 and knocked softly. There was no reply. She knocked again, a bit more loudly this time. The door swung open under the pressure of her hand, revealing the dimly-lit interior of the potions class, but no Snape. She stepped into the classroom, looking around. She heard a voice and headed towards the place the sound had come from. The voice seemed to be coming from behind the door to the Potion Master's storeroom. She came a bit closer. The voice sounded like Dumbledore. Then she realized what it must look like for her to be standing right outside the storeroom door while Dumbledore and presumably talked. She backed away from the storeroom, sat down on a chair on the opposite side of the classroom. She didn't fancy having either of those men catch her eavesdropping.
Suddenly, the storeroom door burst open and Snape strode out, looking agitated. Dumbledore followed, looking sanguine as he always did. "Good evening, Hermione," Dumbledore greeted her. "I must apologize for keeping you from your lessons with Professor Snape. I wish you the best of luck with them, although I suspect that you are in no need of it." His eyes twinkled at her, which was very rarely a good omen, but he turned and departed without saying anything else.
Snape glared at the place where Dumbledore had been standing, then turned to glare at Hermione. "Dumbledore seems quite confident that you will be able to master Occlumency within the week," he commented. "I hope that his confidence is not misplaced, as I have many other holds on my time." Oh God. He was going to kill her when he figured out she had no idea what she was doing. Although it was difficult to imagine the situation progressing to something worse than him staring at her with that intensity. Snape crossed the room in a few quick strides, coming to stand about a foot away from her. Apparently, the situation could get worse.
"Miss Granger, do you see the pensive over there?" he asked her, gesturing to a counter along the side of the room. She nodded mutely. "I have stored some of my more personal memories inside it. You will not touch that pensive at any time during the duration of our lessons, unless you would like to be serving detentions from now until graduation."
"Yes, sir."
"Miss Granger, please stand and come over here," Snape said, motioning to the floor in front of him. Hermione obeyed, coming to stand a few feet away from him. He closed the distance between them as he continued to speak. "The only way to learn Occlumency is to practice occluding one's mind, an act which is accomplished by a combination of magical energy and sheer force of will. In these lessons, I will attempt to penetrate your mind, and you will attempt to resist me." Oh god. She could feel herself blushing at his words and prayed that he didn't notice in the dim light. Her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest from his proximity and intense stare. "Miss Granger, as I am sure you are aware, eye contact is necessary for the practice of Leglimancy." She looked up at him to find his wand inches away from her face. He locked eyes with her and then whispered, "Leglimens."
Hermione could no longer see the room. Images were flooding her mind, none of them staying longer than a few seconds. She was sitting on her living room floor in bright red pajamas with feet, opening Christmas presents. She was looking up at a monstrously ugly and very angry troll. She was holding her breath as she watched Harry battle a Hungarian Horntail in the Triwizard Tournament. She was pressed against the grass as Snape kissed her. Suddenly the image vanished and everything went black. She was aware of a pointed object jutting into her neck and something hard pressed against her back. Slowly, the room came back into focus. She blinked. She looked up to that Snape had driven her up against the wall and was pressing his wand against her neck. He looked like he was several notches past livid. "Miss Granger," he said in a dangerously soft voice, "would you care to explain why you are currently in possession of one of my memories?"
Footnotes: In case you cared, Snape's "In these lessons…" line is straight out of the Harry Potter movies because I couldn't resist. Also, in case it's confusing, Snape doesn't know that Hermione was in his dream. She was just being paranoid about that before.