Disclaimer:- I neither earn nor own anything from this story except my plot. Harry Potter and his world are the intellectual property of JK Rowling and her associates.
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A/N:- I normally alternate between posting on all my stories, but I'm posting again on Maple Lane to overcome the cliff-hanger I left you all with last time.Thank you all for your comments and kudos for the last chapter, I appreciate them all. Thank you also to, Golden Asp, for betaing this chapter.
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Chapter Eleven - Frustration
Can nothing be without complications? Severus wondered irritably as he strode out into the office. He was happy that Hermione had taken the hint and gone to her room. He knew that he had no right to tell her not to follow him, but anything urgent these days seemed to be trouble. He opened the office door and saw Blaise Zabini glancing worriedly over his shoulder.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, sir," the dark-skinned Slytherin stated, his eyes returning to Severus as he heard the door open. "But they've fed Greg a lust potion and I think they may have cast the Imperius curse on him…" and raising his wand he cancelled the disillusionment charm on the levitated Slytherin who was bobbing lazily in the air behind him. "I think they wanted him to… play for their entertainment," he finished with significant look.
Severus nodded his understanding and looked at the stiffly rigid form of Greg Goyle. "You best both come in," Severus said, taking in Zabini glancing down the corridor once more. Severus closed the door as he evaluated the situation. He noticed that even under the petrification spell Goyle was flushed and his eyes were very restless, but Severus could not see any haze of the Imperius Curse in them, and he thought he had best inform the young man's saviour of that. "I doubt an Unforgiveable would have been necessary, Mister Zabini, the potion alone would have made it impossible for him to resist their plan."
Blaise nodded. "That is true, perhaps that is all it is, but he seemed very intent," he agreed.
"Was anyone … injured as a result?" Severus asked carefully. Severus knew exactly how much Greg Goyle had been through to get where he was today, and the last thing he needed was any allegations of rape against him.
"No," Blaise said, "I managed to get him out of the common room—using a confundus spell against Nott and Bulstrude—but I did not know how long it would take them to realise what had happened, that's why I was a little jumpy about being in the hallway."
Severus breathed a sigh of relief. "I see, so only those two were involved?"
"I can't say for certain," Blaise informed him. "I should think that Greengrass was not far behind either, but it was definitely Nott who gave him the laced Firewhiskey."
Severus could see that the young man had all the tell-tale signs of being under a lust potion, but he had to ask. "And you know for certain that it is a lust potion?"
"Yes, sir. I had been coming into the common room from our dormitory, when I heard them taunting him. I stopped and listened before they saw me, and I plainly heard Bulstrode say, 'Oh look, he's got an incredible boner, who knew. I want that one for myself'. Then Nott told her, 'we didn't give him the lust brew just for you to get off, we have bigger bitches to deal with."
"Do you know who they meant?" Severus asked.
"No, sir, no idea, but I suppose it would have to be a Slytherin because Greg would not have made it too far in the condition he was in, would he?"
"Very true. Then this needs to be dealt with as quickly as possible," Severus stated, then added, "Stay here with Mister Goyle. I will return momentarily." He turned towards the sitting room on the left and for the second time that day he sought Hermione. He was glad that he had a task for her that would keep her out of things, and as he glanced through the door, he saw Hermione working on something at the table. "Are you able to brew the Cupid's Blessing Draught?" he asked, a slight grimace of distaste on his face at the name.
If she thought his question strange she never said; she just smiled, aware of how much it must have pained him to say that particular potion's name. It was a stupid name for a potion, but she just said, "I have researched it for my project, and I have the recipe in my notes. Why?"
"Would you be good enough to test your research then? A cure is needed for a lust potion. Get Draco to brew..." but then he seemed to think better of finishing that sentence. "Never mind I'll speak with him as the pair of you move through the office."
"Oh, okay," she said uncertainly, and she hurried from their sitting room and up to her room to fetch her notes, and then to knock on Draco's door. He opened it, and she said, "Severus wants to speak with you in the outer office."
"What's happened now?" Draco said, growing panic on his face.
"I don't know the details, but Severus asked me to brew the cure for a lust potion, and he started to tell me what he wanted you to do but then said not to worry he'd talk to you as we went through the office."
"Oh… Oh, yes," he said nodding, and grabbing his outer robes he shut the door to follow Hermione. He knew what Severus wanted him to brew, and he chuckled to himself that the man had been too much of a gentleman to tell Hermione that he needed a potion to make the male organ relax.
Draco had only ever seen someone under the effects of a lust potion once, and Severus had brewed the cure that time, but the problem was that the cure calmed everything except the erectile problem, and he'd since read that it could take days for it to deflate normally without a prolonged screw to solve the problem. However, he did not say anything, he simply followed Hermione.
When they arrived in their little office and Draco saw who had been affected as well as Blaise's stoic but warning eyes he was shocked. Poor Greg, he thought as a gasp escaped him. He really can't cut a break.
The office was getting very crowded, as it now also contained Minerva McGonagall and Aurora Sinistra, and McGonagall attempted to stop Hermione and Draco as they came through the door. "Go out another time, Mister Malfoy, Miss Granger," she said in an irritated voice. "We are dealing with something very serious here."
"They are on an errand for me," Severus stated, an expression of irritation flitting quickly across his face at her attitude. "A cure needs to be brewed for Mister Goyle," and he gave Draco a significant look, but before Draco could say that he understood, Minerva cut in.
"Then Professor Ross should be asked to do that," she stated irritably.
"I actually want the cure to work, Minerva," Severus said, a sneer arriving on his face while his voice brokered no argument.
Minerva's eyes narrowed. "So you're asking students to brew it?" she spat, like he should have known that was a stupid plan.
"I have every confidence in the abilities of Miss Granger and Mister Malfoy," Severus informed her imperiously.
McGonagall glanced at the still restrained Goyle, obviously thinking, then she snapped irritably, "Well, they best get to work then," and her narrowed eyes returned to the two young adults.
Anger flooded Hermione; she had just about had enough of Minerva McGonagall. What had changed since this witch had been Hermione's head of house? Why was she still treating them as children? Hermione had credited her with more intelligence than that, but so far this year she'd proven herself to be a weak leader in a crucial time.
As she thought this Hermione forced her eyes not to look at Severus as she and Draco walked from the room. There was no point in giving the headmistress more fuel for her insecurities. She was also upset because she just knew that this new crisis meant that Severus wasn't going to be able to take her to her rehearsal, and she knew that she should not have been worrying about that, but she had been so looking forward to spending time alone with him.
Hermione sighed as they moved the short distance to the Potions classroom and opened the door. They were included in the wards because they had the privilege of being in Severus' class, and they simply walked in and quietly started setting up at their respective desks to brew the cure.
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Back in the office after Hermione and Draco had left, Minerva started to give Blaise the third degree about the incident.
"So, you're telling me that you apprehended Mister Goyle after other students had given him a lust potion?" and she cast dubious eyes on him.
"I did not apprehend him, Ma'am. I saw what happened and I intervened, and then brought him up here where I knew a cure could be arranged."
Minerva's anger was sharp her next words, her niece should have been given the opportunity to furnish the cure. "The infirmary is the correct place for the curing of magical mishaps," she stated tersely. "How do we know that you did not do this?" she asked.
"Well, you don't," Blaise managed to splutter, incredulous that he was being blamed for this, let alone that he should not have brought his friend somewhere he trusted. "And I'm not certain that Greg will be any help. It's likely that he won't remember, but I didn't do it," Blaise said, glancing at Severus for support.
Professor Sinistra sniffed. "Minerva, really. This is ridiculous. Mister Zabini is a model student," she said. "How could you think he is responsible? You know that out of the eighth-year Slytherins this group is the least of our worries. Some of the others…" and she left that sentence open.
"Yes, I must agree with Aurora, you are being most unreasonable," Severus stated, a raven brow rising as he said it. He was starting to wonder why she was being so unfair about things. It was one thing to be contemptuous of a house when you were the leader of another house, but now that she was the headmistress she should be being impartial to all houses.
"I can't see why you're all making such a fuss over a silly prank," Minerva said, failing to hide her contempt.
Blaise's dark skin flushed with anger, and he stated in a voice full of disdain, "I do not appreciate your inference, Ma'am. The people who perpetrated this obviously had…" he started indignantly, but stopped when Severus cleared his throat.
"You do not need to concern yourself, Mister Zabini," Severus told him, then he turned to McGonagall, his eyes narrowing. "Minerva, I cannot even begin to fathom your thought processes on this issue," he told her as he thought, or many of the other things I've seem you take umbrage about recently, and he glanced at Aurora Sinistra as she agreed with him.
There's something very wrong here, Severus considered to himself, but he said, "Now, since none of this can be solved definitively before Mister Goyle is cured," and without giving the scowling Minerva a chance to answer he went on. "I propose that perhaps the process of collecting evidence and those accused of the so-called prank should be the first thing done. Mister Zabini, would you be kind enough to stay with Mister Goyle until he is cured?"
"Yes, sir," Blaise replied, levelling narrowed eyes at the headmistress as he thought, surely this is a farce. I will not be blamed for things I have not done. If Greg leaves after this—and he's likely to—I'm not staying either. This is a complete waste of my time. I don't need it.
Severus nodded his approval, and turned his attention to Aurora. "Would you like me to accompany you to collect Miss Bulstrode and Mister Nott and escort them to the headmistress' office?" he asked, knowing that getting the belligerent young adults to do anything was going to be difficult, and that his fierce reputation would help the matter.
However, before Aurora had a chance to answer, Minerva cut in. "I will collect the two concerned," she stated unequivocally. "You wait here, Severus!" she demanded. "You are not a head. Professor Sinistra will accompany me."
Severus raised an eyebrow, but conceded. Actually, here was exactly where he wanted to be, as it meant that he could still get Hermione to her rehearsal if she wished to go. He could send her with Draco and Blaise, but of course, that was like sending the spiders out to mind the fly, and he quickly backtracked his thoughts on that idea. Before he could claim Hermione as his, he was not tempting two red-blooded sons of Slytherin with his witch, especially while she was dancing provocatively in front of them.
As he watched Minerva leaving, and his thoughts turned to her. Yes, there definitely is something strange going on here, he thought. He would watch the situation, and he turned and levitated Greg Goyle into the sitting room, laying his ever-restless form on the lounge. "Draco and Hermione should be finished the potions very soon, I'll go and check on their progress," Severus said, turning towards the door again.
He left, walking to his Potions classroom deep in thought. Certainly he still had control over the castle, but part of that was that Hogwarts was allowing him control. This meant that it had not wholeheartedly accepted Minerva McGonagall as its head, when in reality, she was next in line for the headship. The school had accepted him as the best person to lead through the crisis of war, but he had fully expected not to have privileges he currently enjoyed now he was back.
He was still thinking as he entered the Potions classroom, and saw that indeed his two brewers were both almost finished their task. He looked into Hermione's cauldron and saw the gaudy hot pink colour distinctive to this restorative potion, and he nodded, his lips ticking up as he acknowledged her achievement.
She smiled at him, understanding his gesture as an indication that he was pleased with her work.
However, Severus saw her cast several quizzical glances at Draco's project while he was inspecting her work, apparently his godson had not informed her of its purpose either, and he could see her mind working on the information she'd gathered, trying to form an opinion and he wanted to laugh. She certainly did not like not knowing things.
Draco was currently placing the ointment he'd brewed into a small glass jar. "Here you are, Severus. The balm is finished," he said, handing the jar to Severus.
"Yes," Hermione added, setting up to measure a dose. "Would you care to estimate how much Greg will require?" she asked, glancing at Severus.
"I would estimate that a dose for a person of one hundred and twenty kilos should suffice," and with pleasure he watched Hermione pick up her quill and start working out the dose.
Severus knew he was a lost cause where this witch was concerned when a warm fuzziness settled in his chest as she came up with the same answer he had already settled on in his head. He nodded in response and watched her fill the phial to the correct amount. Her warm whisky-coloured eyes sparkling with happiness at a task well done as she handed him the mixture.
They started walking back to the office, and as soon as they were behind the office door, Severus handed the phial of cure and the jar to Draco, and said, "You had best tend to your friend with Mister Zabini, Draco. I will be there momentarily."
At the same time as he said it his other hand came out to halt Hermione's progress. He watched Draco purse his lips and then walk into the sitting room without comment.
"I am sorry, Hermione, but I will need to make certain that Mister Goyle is represented correctly here," he told her gently. "Could we postpone our trip to Flintlock?"
Hermione swallowed her disappointment. "Yes, of course, you will be required here," she said, her eyes gazing up at his.
His traitorous hand started the journey up to stroke her cheek. The look she was giving him was so filled with need and want that the intensity of it almost burned him. He managed to abort the almost unconscious movement of his hand, and he said, "Would you know where Mister Potter is? Perhaps he could keep you company while I deal with things here, and I will see you at the meeting tonight."
Hermione's lip slipped between the teeth. "Harry went to his bar to help Oliver with restocking," she answered.
"Do you think he would mind if I delivered you there?" He watched her face falter, and he added, "Perhaps there is a space there where you could rehearse this afternoon."
"Perhaps," she said absently, but then jerked a nod. "If it will make things easier for you I will go to Harry."
"No, my witch. I will escort you to Harry before I must deal with the situation here." Severus wanted to say more to her, but he knew that under the circumstances he shouldn't, even as he realised that his mouth had run away with him. Where was his legendary control? This lovely little witch was totally obliterating it; that was the answer to that question. "Where is this bar?" he asked as his arms curled around her to apparate her away.
"The former Hogshead," she answered, instantly nestling into him. Oh, how I want him, she thought as being against him again made her legs weak. Then they were travelling, and they arrived at the Hogshead in a moment.
He stepped away from her and she felt cold. She swallowed. "Thank you," she whispered, and she watched the corner of his lip tilt up slightly.
"I'm assuming you'll be coming back by broom?" he questioned.
Hermione nodded. "Yes, that is how Harry left."
"Then I will add Mister Potter's signature to my wards so he may return you straight to our tower."
She wanted to be back in his arms, but she knew that was not possible. "Thank you," she said, and turned away, raising her hand to knock, thinking that the door would be locked. However, she was surprised when an image of Harry appeared and said, "Welcome to The Hogshead," and the door opened. She glanced back to where Severus was and just caught the end of his disapparition. Swallowing again she walked in and saw Harry carrying a crate of Butterbeers around to the bar. "'Mione," he said, smiling, but he saw her sad expression and asked, "What's happened now?" as he placed the crate on the bar.
"Umm, Severus has asked me to stay here with you until you return. There's been another attack, but this time Greg Goyle's been laced with a lust potion."
"What for?" Harry asked, sitting at the bar and patting the stool next to him.
She came and sat down, but shrugged. "I don't know, but the up-shot of it is that Severus can't take me to Flintlock this afternoon, and he wondered if you might have a place for me to practice here," and she sighed, slumping forward onto the bar to rest her face in her hands. "Only, I'm not certain that I want to practice anymore," she said.
"Cheer up, love," Harry said suggestively. "You'll have all Christmas to live out your Snape fantasies."
"Excuse me, but they're not fantasies, Harry. They're real desires," she told him haughtily.
He chuckled and grinned cheekily at her. "It's the real reason you came back, isn't it?"
She blushed, but nodded. "It's one of them," but her lip slipped between her teeth. "But sometimes I still feel so very guilty for lusting after him," she admitted quietly.
"I know, and I've told you hundreds of times that there has to be a logical explanation for that day. You were going to help him, we both were. He did something to stop us, it has to have been him, because Ron was already out of the room, and he's not powerful enough to cast that kind of magic. Snape was the only other person there."
Hermione inhaled slowly. "Yes, I know, your explanation make perfect sense, but how?"
Harry shrugged. "He's a Potions Master, and a right sneaky bugger. Look what he's achieved," Harry cackled, and he moved his hand to rest over hers. "And he survived. He must have done something."
"Yes, you're right. I'm being silly," but their conversation was interrupted by Oliver coming in the door from the back.
"Hey, Harry, we've still got seven cases… Oh, hello, Hermione," he said, changing tack as soon as he saw Hermione.
"Yes, we've got a visitor," Harry told Oliver as he walked towards them, and grabbing a stool he went around the bar to sit on the opposite side.
"I can see that," Oliver replied, smiling. "Oh, and I forgot to tell you. Your new furniture arrived earlier."
This announcement had Hermione looking around. "It all looks like it did yesterday to me."
Harry laughed. "It's the next stage of renovations," he said. "Before you offered me the lounge in your common room, I'd started refitting Aberforth's old digs so I can live here and just attend lessons."
"Will they let you do that?" Hermione asked, blinking.
"Don't give a flying fuck whether they will or they won't," Harry said, scowling. "McGonagall said at the beginning of term that we could come and go as we liked as long as we attended our lessons and did our work."
Hermione inhaled. "Things are pretty desperate, aren't they?" she said, smiling at his defiance.
Harry nodded. "Yes, and I do wonder if it's all really worth it? I mean… we both wondered if it was worth coming back to Hogwarts when there are so many other ways we could have gone."
"True, and I am starting to feel a fool for putting my education off like I have," Hermione agreed.
"Well, it's not too late to change your minds, most universities have a pathways program," Oliver put in. "I mean, Harry's told me that's what you're considering."
"Yes, that's what we did consider," Hermione replied. "But, Severus has asked me to be his assistant, and if things do not improve I might just see where that takes me before I consider anything else."
"Assistant?" Harry laughed. "Since when?"
Hermione smiled. "Since I haven't had a chance to speak to you since yesterday."
"Wow," Harry said whistling. "That's quite some achievement, so you think it might lead to an apprenticeship?"
"Something like that maybe. Let's just see…" and she paused, suddenly remembering about going to Malfoy Manor and having no panic attack, but she didn't feel comfortable talking about that with Oliver there, besides, that would reveal lots of information that wasn't hers to tell, so she changed the subject. "Why didn't you just go back to Grimmauld Place? You know, instead of renovating here."
"Here's easier. I can fly back and forth," Harry replied, getting up and walking around the bar.
She nodded. "Yes, I guess so, you don't need the Floo or anything," she said, watching Harry squeezing past Oliver to get around him, and she saw them smile at one another, and she smiled watching their intimate little gestures to one another. Well, I never thought of them as a likely pair, she considered to herself. Actually, they suit one another, she pondered further, and that could be another reason why Harry decided to have accommodation here… and he calls Severus sneaky, and she pulled the bowl of peanuts on the bar that Oliver had filled just after he'd sat down towards herself and started munching as she watched.
Oliver and Harry stood talking quietly, but they were only discussing business, and soon Hermione became restless and got up and started wandering around. She kept glancing back at them. She saw just how interested Harry was, but he was also holding back, and she wondered why. Mind you, Ollie might already have a partner, she considered as she came across a jukebox in the corner, and that took her attention as she starting fiddling with that.
Soon Harry approached her. "Feel like walking back to Hogwarts?" he said.
"Sure, at least that will be some kind of workout," she laughed. "Are you ready to go now?"
He smiled. "Yeah, I'm ready. We're all set up here for lunch."
"When do you open for lunch?"
"Soon," he replied, and as they left, they passed the chef coming in to start. "Hi, Norm," Harry said.
"Harry," the elderly wizard said, eyeing Hermione and nodding. "Ma'am," he said politely.
"Hello," Hermione smiled as they kept going.
The two best friends started walking in the brisk wind that was starting to whip up, and Hermione pulled her coat tighter around herself. "How about we apparate to the gates and just walk up the drive?"
Harry cackled. "Yeah, it's colder out here now, well, I guess Christmas is approaching quickly, isn't it?"
"Sure is," Hermione said, smiling. She loved Christmas, and this year she was spending it with Severus.