Messing With History
By Mae Noelle
~*~
Disclaimer: See my stuff? Hah, neither do I.
Please review! And make suggestions! They make the world go round.
This story is mostly from Hermione's point of view, except for a part near the end, which is a good exception, you shall see.
~*~
Ch. 9 - Loosing Spectacularly
~*~
Lydia sat in the History of Magic class, staring forward at the blackboard and not really seeing it. She had been bored to tears ever since Binns had started in a long monotonous lecture about yet another goblin rebellion.
She tore her gaze away from the blackboard to look at her friend. Lily looked even more bored then she was - if that was possible. She had her head leaning on her elbow and looked like she was sleeping with her eyes open. She sighed deeply and it was just then that she remembered her present from Snape. Her eyes lit up at the thought, and dug out her small book, quill, and bottle of ink from her bag at her feet.
She moved her hand over the cover of the book, her fingers catching in the imprinted snakes on the cover. She hesitated for a moment before she opened the book to the first, crisp page.
`God, there is nothing to do,' She scribbled hastily onto it, the blue ink glistening for a moment, before the words sunk into the paper. Lydia wondered for a bit if that was supposed to happen, but a moment after that, words appeared on her book.
`Bored, are you?' it was scribbled also, but so neatly scribbled. She wondered slightly how it could possibly be neatly-messy, but figured it wouldn't do to sit marveling at the mans hand writing.
`How on Earth did you guess? Finally using that super-intelligence you are always talking about, are you?'
`You just say that because you loathe the fact that you will only be able to measure up to half my brilliance when I was at the age of two.'
`Is it big in here, or is it just your ego?'
`Is is ignorant in here, or is it just you?'
`That comment was too much like mine to even be considered an intelligent one. Please, don't write to me until you have something more intelligent to say. No, wait, don't do that, because then you will never be able to write to me again.'
`You know, your writing is just as easily seen through and deciphered as the emotions you display when you speak, or do anything, for that matter. You are as easily read as a book - not literally, of course, since we are writing at this moment - I can't help but think you wouldn't get that.' Lydia stared at the writing on the page. 'Did you get any of that? You didn't, did you? I wonder why. . But you should know what I mean.'
Lydia stalled for a moment, trying to understand what he had just said, staring up and down the page where all of Snape's comments had appeared. She chewed on the end of her quill as she thought of what to write next.
`Damn. Of course, your legible hand writing displays the same mask you always seem to hide behind. Now, good thing we are talking about how hiding things is a good thing right now, or you would be at the pit - and we can't have that, now can we?'
`No, we can't. My brilliance just won't allow it.'
Lydia sighed loudly, looking around the class immediately afterward to see if she had attracted any attention. Fortunately, just about everyone was asleep, or writing down bits of information here and there.
`Your brilliance? You mean your so-called dignity and reputation is more like it.'
`Do I detect a bitter tone in that bit of writing?'
`If you are too stupid to figure that out, and then stupid enough to ask, then all my questions about your intelligence are answered.' She smirked self-consciously, not seeing the glance it earned from Lily.
`You know, I don't think that I want to talk to you right now.'
`Damn good thing we aren't talking, then, isn't it?' Lydia scribbled, feeling more angry toward his attempt to get out of a conversation then by his actual rude remarks. Deciding to change the subject, she wrote as neatly as possible, `So, what are you in the middle of right now?'
`My common room. You?'
`History of Magic. Only class in which I would have enough time to have a complete conversation like this.' Lydia laid down her quill, staring ahead at Professor Binns. It'd be best if she didn't look like she was having too much fun in this class, people will get suspicious. `I wish people wouldn't stare so much. If I don't watch it, Binns will start to wonder why I am actually writing.'
`What? Am I not good enough to risk writing to in the middle of Transfiguration? Or potions? I don't know if I can be in the library tonight, I have transfiguration homework to do. Transfiguration is such a ...'
She waited for a few seconds for the rest of the sentence, but it never came.
`Such a what? This had not better end up a joke about McGonagall.'
Suddenly a barely legible scribble appeared on the page. `Shut up!' Lydia could feel a bit of anger stirring inside her.
`I don't ever remember you being my boss,' she scribbled quickly. `And you had better not been telling me to shut up about McGonagall,' Lydia looked over at Lily, who was eyeing her oddly. Lydia hid the green little book from view as best she could with one hand.
`Shut up' was scribbled once more on the page before Lydia snapped the book shut, whispering a few well chosen words to keep it shut. She wasn't even going to reply to Snape's weird little spasm, and she was getting enough odd looks for the moment.
She smiled apologetically to the rude stares she received from her formerly sleeping peers while placing the items on her desk into her bag, Binns still droning on.
~*~
Lydia bounded past a couple of empty classrooms on her way to the Great Hall. Shadows danced on the wall as she sprinted down the empty hallways, late for dinner again. Lily would be furious. Ever since Lily had found out Lydia's final secret that she held against her (or what Lily thought was the last secret) Lily had decided that she would be now be taking responsibility of Lydia. Meaning everywhere Lydia went, she was followed. Lily monitored where Lydia went, when she went there, who she was with, and who happened to be around at that moment.
An odd shadow crept down the hallway towards Lydia. Even though she had been at the castle for what felt like forever, she really didn't know if it was okay to be going down the halls alone during dinner. As she had never been caught, and she never asked, she always crept around fearing she would get kicked out of the school for some reason or another.
She slowed down slightly, running a few well-chosen excuses over in her head, when she suddenly found herself standing in front of Snape. He had a frightening look on his face, and she had a fleeting thought to turn and run.
"Come with me." Snape grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her into an empty classroom to Lydia's right. "You have been avoiding me!" Snape closed the door and turned to stare at Lydia. She turned slightly away from him, a little scared and weirded out. He couldn't have done something as odd as what he just did to tell her something so obvious. She had avoided him, but only because she didn't feel like talking to him. Just for about a week, when she had felt incredibly irritable and grumpy.
"Why, I didn't know you cared. It has only been about a week, Severus, I really didn't think that you would miss me so much." She said smoothly, pulling her arm out of Snape's tight grasp. She tilted her head up to match Snape's glare.
"I've been needing to talk to you." Snape said quickly with a clenched jaw, backing up slightly toward a desk. Lydia crossed her arms and started to tap her foot on the hard floor, waiting for Snape to explain his behavior. "When we last wrote, Lucius was trying to read my book, along with everything that you had written. Unfortunately, he succeeded."
Lydia's tapping came to an abrupt stop. She could feel a surprised look mingling with her glare. Naturally, she hadn't thought that Snape was telling her to shut up for a good reason.
Great. So it was her that should be saying sorry. "Well, you sure could have told me to shut up a bit nicer, and maybe why I needed to, some kind of hint along those lines!"
"When someone tells you to shut up, you should listen without question, because something along these lines is usually what is happening!" Snape yelled. "Lucius knows that I have been off to the library every night - and he applauded me for that (of course, the rule-breaker he is), but then he realized I was with someone!" He threw his hands up into the air. "I can't go down to the library any more, or they will all want to come with me, and break the rules with me, and everything to do with that. They have been going down to the library every night since then, in fact, to see if you were down there. Mean while you kept running at the sight of me as I tried to keep you from death or something worse!" Snape said this all rather fast, and was standing rigidly by the end of his little speech.
Lydia tried desperately not to laugh as he tried to look incredibly intimidating. She was supposed to mad at this prick, damnit! She went over all the wrong things he had done, just to make herself feel better and not give in. He wouldn't win this time.
"And so it's all my fault, then, is it! Completely sorry for everything that I do wrong, then. Forgive me, please, since you have never made such a horrible mistake in your entire life!" Lydia stepped forward as close as she could to Snape, her hands balled into fists at her side. "Oh, forgive me, I am such a sinner. Please, I will never do it again!" She screamed. She tried hard to keep her hands down at her side, and not around Snape's throat, or slapping some sense or understanding into his thick skull. Snape took half a step back before grabbing Lydia's upper arms and slightly shaking her.
"God, you hysterical woman! Why I decided that would come and tell you this, instead of just letting you find out when you were sitting in front of Lucius and his Slytherin friends in the Library is beyond me!"
Snape started to shake with anger. Lydia, completely surprised by this, just stood there. Hardly breathing, she suddenly realized that she was in Snape's grasp and barely a wand could fit between them. Then she stopped breathing completely, and amidst her cursed thoughts of her unlucky tendencies to find herself in awkward situations, she couldn't help but feel slightly comfortable standing so close to him.
After a few moments of standing there, staring at Snape with a hint of glare still left in her eye, she managed to say, "Will you let me go now?" His hands reluctantly let go of her probably bruised arms, giving Lydia the feeling that he still wanted to shake some more sense into her. She stepped back, not letting herself dwell on the disappointment that action brought about to all her senses.
And without a backward glance, Lydia walked quickly and silently out of the room, careful to slam the door behind her. So she didn't see Snape go to pick up a little book that had fallen out of her pocket and onto the floor.
She didn't see him study it for a few moments, before comprehension dawned on him as he suddenly realized what the little book on the ground was. Snape pushed on the clasp that held the book closed, and the book sprung open. He closed the small book quickly, sensing that she had probably just written in it, and hadn't locked it properly. And knowing her, she most likely had one or more hundred charms on it when it was properly locked.
Nor had Lydia seen Snape look back at the door quickly, afraid of being caught doing what he was doing. He looked back around and dropped the little book onto the floor, waiting to see if it would 'accidentally' jump to a page that he just might 'accidentally' see.
He sighed guiltily, scooped up the dairy, placed it in his pocket, and walked swiftly out of the door, without so much as a look at it.
~*~
Sirius Black walked down quickly to the Greenhouses. If he was to steal the roots he needed for the perfect potion to aid him in the perfect prank, then he would need to get it now, under the constellation of Orion, eleven o'clock at night.
He looked over his back slowly, pulling his cloak tighter around him. There were only a few lights scattered around the castle. "Hopefully McGonagall wouldn't look out her window tonight," He said under his breath.
The greenhouse door creaked slightly as Sirius pulled it open, right after he had tapped his wand on the door handle and whispered a few magical words. The first thing he did was let out an audible gasp as he slipped into the greenhouse. He was not alone.
A shadowed figure turned it's head sharply at the sound of the intruder. It slowly turned around to face him.
His black eyes glittered maliciously as he stood above an oddly shaped plant. "Now what are you doing here, Black? So late in the night?" Snape crossed his arms, bits of things held tightly in his grasp.
Sirius's grip on his wand tightened, and through his clenched teeth he managed to whisper, "Ah, but I think the question should be, why are you here?" Snape scoffed.
"I sleep here, Black, isn't it obvious?" Snape stared at Sirius, a look of intense hatred glossing over his eyes. "Now, maybe, you can keep your mouth closed long enough to keep this a secret, and then I won't have to tell anyone about your late night wanderings."
Sirius opened his mouth to reply, but his eyes fell on a little book hanging slightly out of Snape's pocket. A little reddish book, little unreadable words in Latin engraved on the bottom edge of the book.
There should have only been one book like that, which should only be in the pocket of one person.
Sirius would know, he had gotten it.
How Snape had gotten Lydia's dairy was beyond him, but Snape had most definitely read it, or done something to it. He had to get it back, to give it to Lydia. Sirius could feel the corner of his mouth twitching. He whipped out his wand, and in an instant cried,
"Accio!"
Snape looked down, startled, as the book in his pocket leapt out and into the air. Sirius leapt forward, reaching towards the book. Snape also jumped towards the flying book, grabbing an end. Sirius snatched the other.
They both stood, holding on to the same book that was suspended in between them. Snape's mouth curled into a cruel smile. "Didn't know you would want a diary so bad, Black, they shouldn't cost too much down at Hogsmeade."
"Why would you want to carry around a diary, anyway, Snape? You never struck me as the type," Sirius twisted his wrist with a quick flick, and the book flew back with him as he stumbled slightly. He pocketed the book quickly, and rose his wand into the air. He realized that he had risen it too slowly when it was knocked from his hand and across the greenhouse floor. Snape poised his wand in front of him, and opened his mouth to shout a curse.
Sirius, realizing he didn't have much of a choice, balled his hand into a fist and thrust it forward, right onto the side of Snape's head.
Snape fell silently, and Sirius rushed over to grab his wand, coming back reluctantly to where Snape lay. He kicked him in the side and waited for a moment while glaring down at the motionless body that lay before him. With one last look of hatred, Sirius dashed out of the greenhouse - completely forgetting about his roots.
He ran across the cool green grass, the moon casting a pale glow onto the scene enclosing Hogwarts and it's grounds.
Sirius fingered the book inside his pocket once reaching Hogwarts. He took it out, flipping it over and checked for anything that could have been done to it. He pressed the clasp that held it together, checking to see if it was locked.
It sprung open.
He could have just closed it. He should have closed it.
But he didn't.
He flipped toward a page near to end of the written entries, completely devoid of guilt and conscious.
He flipped past the diary entries about late night library meetings, about Christmas balls and walks in gardens. He flipped right to a part that would probably be the best for someone to read, since it told nothing of anything that had Lydia had done, but then again it was probably the worst page Sirius could have flipped to, because it held most of her feelings. He came to a stop by the Charms room, giving his complete attention to the diary and it's contents.
There was a clatter as the dairy dropped onto the ground. Sirius stood there, his hands still out in front of him, his head slightly bowed, and a look of complete surprise floating across his face. "Holy Merlin's balls, what is she thinking?" He murmured. His hands dropped to his side, and he took a step backwards, away from the fallen book.
He looked down the hallway desperately, and swiftly scooped up the diary into his pocket without giving it a second glance.
~*~
Lydia walked hurriedly down the corridors, furious with herself for loosing her diary. And it was most likely unlocked, since she had been careless enough to leave it that way.
She came to a halt as she walked past the room she had been in earlier with Snape. The door crashed into the wall as she pulled it open and threw it. She tore apart the room fairly quickly, fearing the worst.
It was after she had left the room, disappointed that she hadn't found her book that she ran into Sirius.
Lydia hadn't been paying attention where her feet were carrying her, so she wondered about that slightly as she sat on the floor, her robes out in every direction around her, making it look as though she were sinking into a black hole in the floor. It took her a moment to remember that she had run into Sirius in an unknown hallway.
He mumbled an apology before helping her up to her feet. Lydia shot a questioning glance at Sirius, having seen him look down at the ground with a twisted look on his face.
"We need to talk," He said quickly. Lydia sighed inwardly. "But not out here."
Sirius walked towards a closed door near the end of the corridor, and motioned for her to follow him. Lydia wondered what the topic of conversation was going to be about this time, or possibly what he hoped it would turn out to be. How many times was she going to have to repeat this process in one day?
Sirius stopped in front of the door, as though he expected to have a private conversation in plain sight.
"Before I forget," He said, an skeptical look suddenly floating across his face, "I found this." he reached his hands down into his pocket, pulling out a little book. He leaned over as he flipped the book so that it's cover was facing up.
Lydia stared at the book for a few seconds before snatching it out of Sirius's hand. She eyed Sirius wearily. She wasn't going to ask the predictable old question, she wasn't.
"I'd watch where you leave that thing, especially unlocked," He said slowly, turning around to look at the other side of the corridor.
Lydia rose her eyebrows. "Where did you find it?" She inquired slowly, her voice in a higher-then-usual pitch. "And how would you know it was unlocked?" A million different things raced through her head. Of course, how could a nosey little boy avoid a situation such as this one? And he was acting so weird. What had he found out?
Sirius looked up, a guilty look plain in his eyes. "Snape had it." He said, as though this were supposed to explain it all. Lydia cocked her head, doing her best to give the impression that she was in complete and total shock. She clenched her hands to try and let out some of the anger that tried to force it's way out of her mouth. "Been carrying it around in his pocket, he has."
Lydia could feel herself beginning to explode. "Thank goodness you brought it straight to me, eh? Without doing anything else with it," she said, her jaw locked.
"And why do you think Snape would have it, Lydia?" Sirius snapped his head around to fix a fierce glare on the girl in front of him. Lydia hid the shock she felt as she glared back at him, wondering if she had ever seen him look quite like this.
"What part did you read?" She managed to get out quietly. She barely moved her lips, and her jaw was stiff, but the words still had the effect she had desired.
"Not as much as Snape, I can tell you that."
"What part did you read?!" She screamed again, pushing Sirius into the wall and grabbing the neck of his robe. She twisted the piece of fabric she had in her hand. Sirius wore a look of surprise on his face as clear as the robe he wore over his body. "Answer me, you chauvinistic pig!"
"The last page," He said silkily, grabbing Lydia's hand and ripping it off his robe. Lydia tore open her book, flipping to the last page, unsure of what or how much she had said. She finally flipped to the page, and began to read to herself;
Dear Diary,
I don't know what has gotten into me, I can almost feel my grades slipping. Minerva says she has noticed a bit of lack in focus, also. I keep telling everyone around me, and myself, that there is nothing wrong, but even now I can feel my focus slipping. My mind seems to be wandering in every direction for a while now. I think I know why, but I just want to deny it. Maybe I shall use Snape's present later, but I don't feel like talking to the rude bastard at the moment. Maybe it's just my menstrual cycle, I honestly can't tell. Either way, talking to him just doesn't seem to be a good idea at the moment. Though, for some idiotic reason, I can't help but think that I am rather enjoying this game of life-tag. I get the feeling that I want him to chase after me, so I know I am not the only one playing this idiotic game. Of course, these childish feelings are nothing, and I will never act upon them - imagine if I did - I can see Severus teasing me for the rest of my life. He would never let it down. But to denounce these feelings all together. I don't know if I can do that either. Maybe I am just going crazy. Damn teenage hormones. Maybe later,
Lydia M. Granger
Lydia looked up for a moment, wondering which impulse she should act upon now. Run, or kill Sirius? Of course, if Snape really had read this, the reaction would be so much worse.
"I never thought that Snape was your type, Lydia." Sirius said, seeing her gaze linger off of her diary's page. Lydia could feel the anger she had put off to the side a while ago boiling inside her again.
"Oh, and you would be my type? I don't know what you were thinking, to be getting into other people's lives, but it is none of your business! Not that I would even like Snape! That bastard, me, like him? What kind of drugs are you taking?! I would have to be a complete fool to even think of such things! Now leave from my sight, before I hex you!"
Sirius glared at her, before turning and saying over his shoulder, "He probably put some sort of potion over you, you know, and is probably just waiting for you to tell him to love him before he admits it and leaves you to your embarrassment."
Lydia turned and started walking hastily down the corridor in the opposite direction, muttering under her breath how she should expect to find Lily and have a spectacular fight with her in the middle of the common room.
No one saw a girl stick her head out from behind a statue, a brilliant smile flashing brightening her features, light brown curls framing her face in an unusual way.
~*~
Too short for you? Aww! I am sorry. Too bad though, cause most stories. like the ones that have two page chapters. and no punctuation. and crappy grammar. and huge spelling mistakes. and no plot. and no romance. have way more reviews, so this is all you get. :P
Sorry. I am on my menstrual cycle too. :P
Well, I got done what I wanted to get done, so I am happy. I hope everyone else is, though. Tell me what you think! Tell me what you hate, what I should change, any suggestions. Or just review to say you did. Just let me know you are reading, and that you want to read more of this!
By Mae Noelle
~*~
Disclaimer: See my stuff? Hah, neither do I.
Please review! And make suggestions! They make the world go round.
This story is mostly from Hermione's point of view, except for a part near the end, which is a good exception, you shall see.
~*~
Ch. 9 - Loosing Spectacularly
~*~
Lydia sat in the History of Magic class, staring forward at the blackboard and not really seeing it. She had been bored to tears ever since Binns had started in a long monotonous lecture about yet another goblin rebellion.
She tore her gaze away from the blackboard to look at her friend. Lily looked even more bored then she was - if that was possible. She had her head leaning on her elbow and looked like she was sleeping with her eyes open. She sighed deeply and it was just then that she remembered her present from Snape. Her eyes lit up at the thought, and dug out her small book, quill, and bottle of ink from her bag at her feet.
She moved her hand over the cover of the book, her fingers catching in the imprinted snakes on the cover. She hesitated for a moment before she opened the book to the first, crisp page.
`God, there is nothing to do,' She scribbled hastily onto it, the blue ink glistening for a moment, before the words sunk into the paper. Lydia wondered for a bit if that was supposed to happen, but a moment after that, words appeared on her book.
`Bored, are you?' it was scribbled also, but so neatly scribbled. She wondered slightly how it could possibly be neatly-messy, but figured it wouldn't do to sit marveling at the mans hand writing.
`How on Earth did you guess? Finally using that super-intelligence you are always talking about, are you?'
`You just say that because you loathe the fact that you will only be able to measure up to half my brilliance when I was at the age of two.'
`Is it big in here, or is it just your ego?'
`Is is ignorant in here, or is it just you?'
`That comment was too much like mine to even be considered an intelligent one. Please, don't write to me until you have something more intelligent to say. No, wait, don't do that, because then you will never be able to write to me again.'
`You know, your writing is just as easily seen through and deciphered as the emotions you display when you speak, or do anything, for that matter. You are as easily read as a book - not literally, of course, since we are writing at this moment - I can't help but think you wouldn't get that.' Lydia stared at the writing on the page. 'Did you get any of that? You didn't, did you? I wonder why. . But you should know what I mean.'
Lydia stalled for a moment, trying to understand what he had just said, staring up and down the page where all of Snape's comments had appeared. She chewed on the end of her quill as she thought of what to write next.
`Damn. Of course, your legible hand writing displays the same mask you always seem to hide behind. Now, good thing we are talking about how hiding things is a good thing right now, or you would be at the pit - and we can't have that, now can we?'
`No, we can't. My brilliance just won't allow it.'
Lydia sighed loudly, looking around the class immediately afterward to see if she had attracted any attention. Fortunately, just about everyone was asleep, or writing down bits of information here and there.
`Your brilliance? You mean your so-called dignity and reputation is more like it.'
`Do I detect a bitter tone in that bit of writing?'
`If you are too stupid to figure that out, and then stupid enough to ask, then all my questions about your intelligence are answered.' She smirked self-consciously, not seeing the glance it earned from Lily.
`You know, I don't think that I want to talk to you right now.'
`Damn good thing we aren't talking, then, isn't it?' Lydia scribbled, feeling more angry toward his attempt to get out of a conversation then by his actual rude remarks. Deciding to change the subject, she wrote as neatly as possible, `So, what are you in the middle of right now?'
`My common room. You?'
`History of Magic. Only class in which I would have enough time to have a complete conversation like this.' Lydia laid down her quill, staring ahead at Professor Binns. It'd be best if she didn't look like she was having too much fun in this class, people will get suspicious. `I wish people wouldn't stare so much. If I don't watch it, Binns will start to wonder why I am actually writing.'
`What? Am I not good enough to risk writing to in the middle of Transfiguration? Or potions? I don't know if I can be in the library tonight, I have transfiguration homework to do. Transfiguration is such a ...'
She waited for a few seconds for the rest of the sentence, but it never came.
`Such a what? This had not better end up a joke about McGonagall.'
Suddenly a barely legible scribble appeared on the page. `Shut up!' Lydia could feel a bit of anger stirring inside her.
`I don't ever remember you being my boss,' she scribbled quickly. `And you had better not been telling me to shut up about McGonagall,' Lydia looked over at Lily, who was eyeing her oddly. Lydia hid the green little book from view as best she could with one hand.
`Shut up' was scribbled once more on the page before Lydia snapped the book shut, whispering a few well chosen words to keep it shut. She wasn't even going to reply to Snape's weird little spasm, and she was getting enough odd looks for the moment.
She smiled apologetically to the rude stares she received from her formerly sleeping peers while placing the items on her desk into her bag, Binns still droning on.
~*~
Lydia bounded past a couple of empty classrooms on her way to the Great Hall. Shadows danced on the wall as she sprinted down the empty hallways, late for dinner again. Lily would be furious. Ever since Lily had found out Lydia's final secret that she held against her (or what Lily thought was the last secret) Lily had decided that she would be now be taking responsibility of Lydia. Meaning everywhere Lydia went, she was followed. Lily monitored where Lydia went, when she went there, who she was with, and who happened to be around at that moment.
An odd shadow crept down the hallway towards Lydia. Even though she had been at the castle for what felt like forever, she really didn't know if it was okay to be going down the halls alone during dinner. As she had never been caught, and she never asked, she always crept around fearing she would get kicked out of the school for some reason or another.
She slowed down slightly, running a few well-chosen excuses over in her head, when she suddenly found herself standing in front of Snape. He had a frightening look on his face, and she had a fleeting thought to turn and run.
"Come with me." Snape grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her into an empty classroom to Lydia's right. "You have been avoiding me!" Snape closed the door and turned to stare at Lydia. She turned slightly away from him, a little scared and weirded out. He couldn't have done something as odd as what he just did to tell her something so obvious. She had avoided him, but only because she didn't feel like talking to him. Just for about a week, when she had felt incredibly irritable and grumpy.
"Why, I didn't know you cared. It has only been about a week, Severus, I really didn't think that you would miss me so much." She said smoothly, pulling her arm out of Snape's tight grasp. She tilted her head up to match Snape's glare.
"I've been needing to talk to you." Snape said quickly with a clenched jaw, backing up slightly toward a desk. Lydia crossed her arms and started to tap her foot on the hard floor, waiting for Snape to explain his behavior. "When we last wrote, Lucius was trying to read my book, along with everything that you had written. Unfortunately, he succeeded."
Lydia's tapping came to an abrupt stop. She could feel a surprised look mingling with her glare. Naturally, she hadn't thought that Snape was telling her to shut up for a good reason.
Great. So it was her that should be saying sorry. "Well, you sure could have told me to shut up a bit nicer, and maybe why I needed to, some kind of hint along those lines!"
"When someone tells you to shut up, you should listen without question, because something along these lines is usually what is happening!" Snape yelled. "Lucius knows that I have been off to the library every night - and he applauded me for that (of course, the rule-breaker he is), but then he realized I was with someone!" He threw his hands up into the air. "I can't go down to the library any more, or they will all want to come with me, and break the rules with me, and everything to do with that. They have been going down to the library every night since then, in fact, to see if you were down there. Mean while you kept running at the sight of me as I tried to keep you from death or something worse!" Snape said this all rather fast, and was standing rigidly by the end of his little speech.
Lydia tried desperately not to laugh as he tried to look incredibly intimidating. She was supposed to mad at this prick, damnit! She went over all the wrong things he had done, just to make herself feel better and not give in. He wouldn't win this time.
"And so it's all my fault, then, is it! Completely sorry for everything that I do wrong, then. Forgive me, please, since you have never made such a horrible mistake in your entire life!" Lydia stepped forward as close as she could to Snape, her hands balled into fists at her side. "Oh, forgive me, I am such a sinner. Please, I will never do it again!" She screamed. She tried hard to keep her hands down at her side, and not around Snape's throat, or slapping some sense or understanding into his thick skull. Snape took half a step back before grabbing Lydia's upper arms and slightly shaking her.
"God, you hysterical woman! Why I decided that would come and tell you this, instead of just letting you find out when you were sitting in front of Lucius and his Slytherin friends in the Library is beyond me!"
Snape started to shake with anger. Lydia, completely surprised by this, just stood there. Hardly breathing, she suddenly realized that she was in Snape's grasp and barely a wand could fit between them. Then she stopped breathing completely, and amidst her cursed thoughts of her unlucky tendencies to find herself in awkward situations, she couldn't help but feel slightly comfortable standing so close to him.
After a few moments of standing there, staring at Snape with a hint of glare still left in her eye, she managed to say, "Will you let me go now?" His hands reluctantly let go of her probably bruised arms, giving Lydia the feeling that he still wanted to shake some more sense into her. She stepped back, not letting herself dwell on the disappointment that action brought about to all her senses.
And without a backward glance, Lydia walked quickly and silently out of the room, careful to slam the door behind her. So she didn't see Snape go to pick up a little book that had fallen out of her pocket and onto the floor.
She didn't see him study it for a few moments, before comprehension dawned on him as he suddenly realized what the little book on the ground was. Snape pushed on the clasp that held the book closed, and the book sprung open. He closed the small book quickly, sensing that she had probably just written in it, and hadn't locked it properly. And knowing her, she most likely had one or more hundred charms on it when it was properly locked.
Nor had Lydia seen Snape look back at the door quickly, afraid of being caught doing what he was doing. He looked back around and dropped the little book onto the floor, waiting to see if it would 'accidentally' jump to a page that he just might 'accidentally' see.
He sighed guiltily, scooped up the dairy, placed it in his pocket, and walked swiftly out of the door, without so much as a look at it.
~*~
Sirius Black walked down quickly to the Greenhouses. If he was to steal the roots he needed for the perfect potion to aid him in the perfect prank, then he would need to get it now, under the constellation of Orion, eleven o'clock at night.
He looked over his back slowly, pulling his cloak tighter around him. There were only a few lights scattered around the castle. "Hopefully McGonagall wouldn't look out her window tonight," He said under his breath.
The greenhouse door creaked slightly as Sirius pulled it open, right after he had tapped his wand on the door handle and whispered a few magical words. The first thing he did was let out an audible gasp as he slipped into the greenhouse. He was not alone.
A shadowed figure turned it's head sharply at the sound of the intruder. It slowly turned around to face him.
His black eyes glittered maliciously as he stood above an oddly shaped plant. "Now what are you doing here, Black? So late in the night?" Snape crossed his arms, bits of things held tightly in his grasp.
Sirius's grip on his wand tightened, and through his clenched teeth he managed to whisper, "Ah, but I think the question should be, why are you here?" Snape scoffed.
"I sleep here, Black, isn't it obvious?" Snape stared at Sirius, a look of intense hatred glossing over his eyes. "Now, maybe, you can keep your mouth closed long enough to keep this a secret, and then I won't have to tell anyone about your late night wanderings."
Sirius opened his mouth to reply, but his eyes fell on a little book hanging slightly out of Snape's pocket. A little reddish book, little unreadable words in Latin engraved on the bottom edge of the book.
There should have only been one book like that, which should only be in the pocket of one person.
Sirius would know, he had gotten it.
How Snape had gotten Lydia's dairy was beyond him, but Snape had most definitely read it, or done something to it. He had to get it back, to give it to Lydia. Sirius could feel the corner of his mouth twitching. He whipped out his wand, and in an instant cried,
"Accio!"
Snape looked down, startled, as the book in his pocket leapt out and into the air. Sirius leapt forward, reaching towards the book. Snape also jumped towards the flying book, grabbing an end. Sirius snatched the other.
They both stood, holding on to the same book that was suspended in between them. Snape's mouth curled into a cruel smile. "Didn't know you would want a diary so bad, Black, they shouldn't cost too much down at Hogsmeade."
"Why would you want to carry around a diary, anyway, Snape? You never struck me as the type," Sirius twisted his wrist with a quick flick, and the book flew back with him as he stumbled slightly. He pocketed the book quickly, and rose his wand into the air. He realized that he had risen it too slowly when it was knocked from his hand and across the greenhouse floor. Snape poised his wand in front of him, and opened his mouth to shout a curse.
Sirius, realizing he didn't have much of a choice, balled his hand into a fist and thrust it forward, right onto the side of Snape's head.
Snape fell silently, and Sirius rushed over to grab his wand, coming back reluctantly to where Snape lay. He kicked him in the side and waited for a moment while glaring down at the motionless body that lay before him. With one last look of hatred, Sirius dashed out of the greenhouse - completely forgetting about his roots.
He ran across the cool green grass, the moon casting a pale glow onto the scene enclosing Hogwarts and it's grounds.
Sirius fingered the book inside his pocket once reaching Hogwarts. He took it out, flipping it over and checked for anything that could have been done to it. He pressed the clasp that held it together, checking to see if it was locked.
It sprung open.
He could have just closed it. He should have closed it.
But he didn't.
He flipped toward a page near to end of the written entries, completely devoid of guilt and conscious.
He flipped past the diary entries about late night library meetings, about Christmas balls and walks in gardens. He flipped right to a part that would probably be the best for someone to read, since it told nothing of anything that had Lydia had done, but then again it was probably the worst page Sirius could have flipped to, because it held most of her feelings. He came to a stop by the Charms room, giving his complete attention to the diary and it's contents.
There was a clatter as the dairy dropped onto the ground. Sirius stood there, his hands still out in front of him, his head slightly bowed, and a look of complete surprise floating across his face. "Holy Merlin's balls, what is she thinking?" He murmured. His hands dropped to his side, and he took a step backwards, away from the fallen book.
He looked down the hallway desperately, and swiftly scooped up the diary into his pocket without giving it a second glance.
~*~
Lydia walked hurriedly down the corridors, furious with herself for loosing her diary. And it was most likely unlocked, since she had been careless enough to leave it that way.
She came to a halt as she walked past the room she had been in earlier with Snape. The door crashed into the wall as she pulled it open and threw it. She tore apart the room fairly quickly, fearing the worst.
It was after she had left the room, disappointed that she hadn't found her book that she ran into Sirius.
Lydia hadn't been paying attention where her feet were carrying her, so she wondered about that slightly as she sat on the floor, her robes out in every direction around her, making it look as though she were sinking into a black hole in the floor. It took her a moment to remember that she had run into Sirius in an unknown hallway.
He mumbled an apology before helping her up to her feet. Lydia shot a questioning glance at Sirius, having seen him look down at the ground with a twisted look on his face.
"We need to talk," He said quickly. Lydia sighed inwardly. "But not out here."
Sirius walked towards a closed door near the end of the corridor, and motioned for her to follow him. Lydia wondered what the topic of conversation was going to be about this time, or possibly what he hoped it would turn out to be. How many times was she going to have to repeat this process in one day?
Sirius stopped in front of the door, as though he expected to have a private conversation in plain sight.
"Before I forget," He said, an skeptical look suddenly floating across his face, "I found this." he reached his hands down into his pocket, pulling out a little book. He leaned over as he flipped the book so that it's cover was facing up.
Lydia stared at the book for a few seconds before snatching it out of Sirius's hand. She eyed Sirius wearily. She wasn't going to ask the predictable old question, she wasn't.
"I'd watch where you leave that thing, especially unlocked," He said slowly, turning around to look at the other side of the corridor.
Lydia rose her eyebrows. "Where did you find it?" She inquired slowly, her voice in a higher-then-usual pitch. "And how would you know it was unlocked?" A million different things raced through her head. Of course, how could a nosey little boy avoid a situation such as this one? And he was acting so weird. What had he found out?
Sirius looked up, a guilty look plain in his eyes. "Snape had it." He said, as though this were supposed to explain it all. Lydia cocked her head, doing her best to give the impression that she was in complete and total shock. She clenched her hands to try and let out some of the anger that tried to force it's way out of her mouth. "Been carrying it around in his pocket, he has."
Lydia could feel herself beginning to explode. "Thank goodness you brought it straight to me, eh? Without doing anything else with it," she said, her jaw locked.
"And why do you think Snape would have it, Lydia?" Sirius snapped his head around to fix a fierce glare on the girl in front of him. Lydia hid the shock she felt as she glared back at him, wondering if she had ever seen him look quite like this.
"What part did you read?" She managed to get out quietly. She barely moved her lips, and her jaw was stiff, but the words still had the effect she had desired.
"Not as much as Snape, I can tell you that."
"What part did you read?!" She screamed again, pushing Sirius into the wall and grabbing the neck of his robe. She twisted the piece of fabric she had in her hand. Sirius wore a look of surprise on his face as clear as the robe he wore over his body. "Answer me, you chauvinistic pig!"
"The last page," He said silkily, grabbing Lydia's hand and ripping it off his robe. Lydia tore open her book, flipping to the last page, unsure of what or how much she had said. She finally flipped to the page, and began to read to herself;
Dear Diary,
I don't know what has gotten into me, I can almost feel my grades slipping. Minerva says she has noticed a bit of lack in focus, also. I keep telling everyone around me, and myself, that there is nothing wrong, but even now I can feel my focus slipping. My mind seems to be wandering in every direction for a while now. I think I know why, but I just want to deny it. Maybe I shall use Snape's present later, but I don't feel like talking to the rude bastard at the moment. Maybe it's just my menstrual cycle, I honestly can't tell. Either way, talking to him just doesn't seem to be a good idea at the moment. Though, for some idiotic reason, I can't help but think that I am rather enjoying this game of life-tag. I get the feeling that I want him to chase after me, so I know I am not the only one playing this idiotic game. Of course, these childish feelings are nothing, and I will never act upon them - imagine if I did - I can see Severus teasing me for the rest of my life. He would never let it down. But to denounce these feelings all together. I don't know if I can do that either. Maybe I am just going crazy. Damn teenage hormones. Maybe later,
Lydia M. Granger
Lydia looked up for a moment, wondering which impulse she should act upon now. Run, or kill Sirius? Of course, if Snape really had read this, the reaction would be so much worse.
"I never thought that Snape was your type, Lydia." Sirius said, seeing her gaze linger off of her diary's page. Lydia could feel the anger she had put off to the side a while ago boiling inside her again.
"Oh, and you would be my type? I don't know what you were thinking, to be getting into other people's lives, but it is none of your business! Not that I would even like Snape! That bastard, me, like him? What kind of drugs are you taking?! I would have to be a complete fool to even think of such things! Now leave from my sight, before I hex you!"
Sirius glared at her, before turning and saying over his shoulder, "He probably put some sort of potion over you, you know, and is probably just waiting for you to tell him to love him before he admits it and leaves you to your embarrassment."
Lydia turned and started walking hastily down the corridor in the opposite direction, muttering under her breath how she should expect to find Lily and have a spectacular fight with her in the middle of the common room.
No one saw a girl stick her head out from behind a statue, a brilliant smile flashing brightening her features, light brown curls framing her face in an unusual way.
~*~
Too short for you? Aww! I am sorry. Too bad though, cause most stories. like the ones that have two page chapters. and no punctuation. and crappy grammar. and huge spelling mistakes. and no plot. and no romance. have way more reviews, so this is all you get. :P
Sorry. I am on my menstrual cycle too. :P
Well, I got done what I wanted to get done, so I am happy. I hope everyone else is, though. Tell me what you think! Tell me what you hate, what I should change, any suggestions. Or just review to say you did. Just let me know you are reading, and that you want to read more of this!