Disclaimer: Surely you know this isn't mine by now.
The Aftermath of Explosions – Chapter 10
A/N: Enjoy! A new school term starts on the 4th for me and I have 3 exams this month as well as some other assessments so I am not sure how my writing will be able to fit around these but I won't be abandoning this story! I may reconsider how I spend some of my spare time this month if I was to get enough reviews...
"Miss Granger, the Headmaster has requested your presence immediately. The password is 'Cadbury'" said Professor McGonagall in a stern voice, not once letting emotion enter her vocal chords. Hermione could not muster a response, but nodded as she acknowledged her professor's words and she headed towards the Headmaster's office.
As she was granted access to the Headmaster's office after speaking the password which seemed to show that the Headmaster had a fond liking for muggle chocolate, if this was not the case he certainly wouldn't have set one of the most famous chocolate companies in Britain as his password, her mind was whirring; If it was made of cogs and screws (which it most certainly was not!) you would see them working like crazy.
She had not visited the Headmaster's office often during her years at Hogwarts, and the times she had been there previously had not been significant and she rarely took the time to take in her surroundings but upon entering the office this time, she gazed around in awe, drinking in her surroundings before being pulled back down from her observations by a rather amused Dumbledore. "Lemon drop, Miss Granger?"
"Um, no thank you professor," she replied, standing in his office fidgeting with her fingers.
"Miss Granger, you do not need to ask to take a seat, please," he directed her to a seat opposite his desk and as she headed towards her seat he took his own position opposite her, regarding her with a slight twinkle to his eye. This unnerved her slightly, as she still did not know the reasoning behind her visit here. Well, she did know that it must have something to do with Professor Snape as McGonagall had covered his lesson and asked her to see the Headmaster after Potions, surely if it wasn't to do with Snape then she could've been called out of any of her other lessons during the day...
She felt rather awkward sitting here, urging the Headmaster to start speaking soon and as if he could read her thoughts (though he is probably a Legilimens, she thought) he began.
"I am sure you are wondering why you are here?" at this point, Hermione nodded and allowed the professor to continue speaking. "Professor Snape has asked me to relay a message to you: he is okay, but is in need of your assistance. I tried to ask him what he needed your assistance for, and why he was asking for you specifically but he would not give up what he knows. He is rather ill and suffering the consequences of being in Riddle's company," Hermione looked rather shocked at this, she knew he attended meetings but had never heard of him being so badly injured that he was unable to teach. If the Headmaster had noticed her shock, he did not dwell upon it. He was aware of the shared link between student and teacher, but that would be for another time.
"Did he say when he needed to see me?" she asked, it was obvious Dumbledore had been waiting for a reply from her.
"I think it would be best if you were to excuse yourself from dinner this evening and spend it in his quarters, I will let him know of your arrival," said the Headmaster, still retaining the twinkle in his blue eyes.
"Okay, thank you Headmaster," Hermione replied, glad that nothing drastic had occurred during the meeting, well except being told that the man you lov – have feelings for – has been so badly injured at the hands of Voldemort that he can not teach, she thought rather sarcastically.
As she was exiting the office, she stopped at the sound of the Headmaster's voice. "Oh and Hermione, he likes you." and she stepped out of the room, hearing his chuckle emanating from the office as she descended the curved staircase. She didn't know what to think of this comment, did he know about them? Well obviously you stupid girl or he wouldn't have said anything like that, her mind retorted. She decided to tell Severus of this weird comment, and see what he had to make of it. It would be nice to know where she stood with him, for once...
SSHG
The majority of Gryffindor had now descended to the Great Hall for dinner, so Hermione grabbed her robe and put it on before exiting the common room and heading towards Severus' quarters. She had spent the previous two hours completing homework and trying to keep her mind off Severus and what would await her in the dungeons. She didn't know if she would be able to handle seeing him in an injured state, but she would try her best to be strong. After all, she was a Gryffindor and she was supposed to be brave and courageous. She would let her inner lioness show and prove to Severus that she was worth his time, trust and love.
During her thoughts, she did not notice the strange looks she received from a few late stragglers on their way to dinner from the Slytherin common room as she descended the steps into the cold dungeons. The temperature change always hit her like a ton of bricks, it was amazing how within a few steps you could turn to a block of ice. The castle was not warm for the most part, but it was all bearable except the dungeons. She didn't see why Severus had his quarters down there because she was positive he would've been offered them wherever he would've liked in the castle. It may just be so he could be closer to his snakes, she thought, everybody knew how protective and in favour of his own House he was, or maybe just his Potion's store, since he sometimes ended up in his private workroom during the night if he was unable to sleep. He was certainly a difficult man to understand, Hermione knew that.
Reaching the tapestry which hid the entrance to his quarters, she prepared herself for what she was about to encounter. "Professor?" she said while knocking three times on the door which had appeared behind the tapestry. She preferred to knock rather than just taking down his wards, because although they were somewhat...involved, she still wanted to give him the privacy he deserved and didn't want to go barging in on anything important.
She heard a rather muffled and somewhat pained 'Enter' come from the other side of the door and felt his wards lower, permitting her entrance.
Her eyes widened as she saw her professor lying on his sofa semi-naked, propped up by his elbow reading a book. She roamed his body, noting the scars that littered his flesh – both older scars and ones which were visibly 'newer'. Though this would repulse many people, she didn't mind. Everybody had scars, whether they were visible or not and these scars didn't make him less attractive to her.
He raised an eyebrow at her and let out a chuckle as he saw her observing his body. Her face didn't show any disgust, he noted. "Well aren't you going to come in?" he asked, pulling her out of her daze.
"Wha? Oh, yes sorry," she replied, as a familiar shade of red crept into her cheeks. He shifted up slightly on the sofa and changed to a sitting position so that there was space for her, and patted the now vacant space on the sofa. She took the seat before looking at him and letting out a sigh. "I thought you would be worse than this, considering you didn't come to lessons today. McGonagall covered and made us take notes, I was really worried! Then she told me to stay behind and sent me to see Dumbledore and that's when I knew I had to come and see you as you needed my 'assistance'. And when I was leaving he said to me 'Oh and Hermione, he likes you.' I mean what the fuck Severus, WHAT THE FUCK?" This all come out in such a rush that Severus had to concentrate on what she was saying, then out of all the things he could do, he laughed. "What's so funny?" she practically screamed at him.
"You had a lot on your mind, huh?" he asked in a soft tone. She nodded in response, slightly out of breath from her little outburst. He beckoned her towards him and pulled her into a comforting hug, glad she was unable to see him wince slightly in pain at her arms squeezing his waist. She doesn't need to know, he thought. He really didn't want her involved in things that she didn't need to be involved in, he wanted her to stay young and innocent without having to worry about him.
"Mmhmmm," her reply muffled slightly as she spoke into his chest.
He whispered soothing words to her as he stroked one hand down her back, holding her tight with the other. These were the kind of moments he would savour.
"So what exactly did the old coot tell you then?" he asked after a while, that was the one thing that stuck in his mind from her outburst earlier.
"That you liked me. He told me right before I was about to walk through the door. How does he know?"
"I don't know Hermione, Dumbledore knows a lot of things just through observation. It obviously doesn't bother him a great deal because if it did...I probably wouldn't have a job anymore," he replied before placing a soft kiss on her nose, at which point she scrunched up her nose and playfully punched his arm. He winced at this, making Hermione fret over him.
"Oh god Severus, shit I totally forgot, shit!"
"Relax Hermione, I'm fine," he told her, getting rather agitated as she began acting like the one and only Molly Weasley.
"Well obviously not if you actually showed pain around me!" she replied, waving her arm frantically towards where she had punched him.
"Oh and am I not allowed to lower my walls around you now either?" he said, keeping his voice low and void of emotion. He knew that if he lost his temper with her, he would hugely regret it.
"Well, you are it's just I've never seen you in pain, okay? Am I not allowed to react when the person I love is in pain?" she screamed back at him, glad for the silencing charms placed on his quarters. Shit I just said I loved him!
"Repeat that," he said, his voice seemed shaky again.
"Am I not allowed to react when the person I...have feelings for is in pain?" she said, trying to cover up her tracks.
"No, that is NOT what you said!"
"Okay so I love you, is there something wrong with that?" she said, Severus could see the anger building inside her. He cursed himself for getting involved with a Gryffindor, they weren't the best when it came to controlling their emotions...
"Yes."
"Oh and what's that?" she questioned with a sarcastic undertone.
"You don't know what I've done," he said quietly.
"I don't CARE about your past. You are a different person to what you were when you were younger, you've changed."
"I don't change," he replied.
"Yes. You. Do. When you're around me, you change."
He had no response to that because it was all true and he couldn't handle emotional arguments like this so he did the worst thing he could've done at that moment. He demanded she leave his quarters. She looked like her heart had shattered right there in front of him, and gave him a look of longing before turning on her heel and rushing out of his quarters, back up to her rooms before breaking down as she lay on her bed. Sobs began to rack her body, they seemed to be never-ending. Why can't he just accept how I feel? she thought to herself.
That night Hermione cried herself to sleep, and Severus didn't sleep at all. He walked endlessly around the corridors of Hogwarts, deducting points was his way of getting his anger out. He had been rather harsh that night, even taking 25 points from his own House in the process but it got some of the anger out of his system though he knew the only way to resolve how he was feeling was to speak with Hermione again but he felt it would have to wait for now, they both needed time to get a grasp on the situation...
A/N: Longer than I intended, hope it tides you over to when I am next able to write – tell me what you think should happen! Hit review, remember what I said about getting more reviews? They may persuade me to write another chapter earlier than I have in mind!