Disclaimer: See Chapter One.
Chapter Nine:
Showing Human kindness
Severus sat at the high table watching Hermione talking with Potter. He couldn't understand why he was drawn to the young witch she was a mystery to him. He saw the rare eagle land gracefully next to her holding out a letter. He saw a soft smile grace her beautiful face, and he mentally shook his head at the thought.
Minerva watched the young potions master out of the corner of her eye at him watching her only child. She couldn't help but feel the traction that he was having towards the young woman. She let a small smile cross her face and nodded in approvingly that they would make a wonderful couple. She knew that she would have to give them time to get to know each other before she stepped in with her suggestion. She turned her head to her daughter and saw her stuff the letter into her pocket to read for later.
'Tom really shouldn't have given her that rare eagle.' She thought to herself. 'He was going to spoil her rotten.'
Ron sat cross from Harry and Hermione and his face turned red as his hair with anger. She got everything she wanted with no questions asked. She got the best grades and she was starting to spend more time with Harry then him.
"What have I done now Ronald?" asked Hermione as she took bite of toast noticing his reding face.
"You always get everything don't you." Ron snapped at her watching her feed her eagle a bite of bacon.
"What? I don't get everything Ron. I have worked hard to get Head Girl and it's not my fault that father gave me Aries. Now, if you will excuse me. I must meet Professor Snape this morning." She snapped standing up and the eagle flew out of the Great Hall. She turned and looked up at the dark headed wizard and nodded her head. Severus nodded in return and she left the hall.
"Ron you can be so stupid. If you would but half the work that you do into quidditch you wouldn't be so far behind in classes. I have to go to library. I have to look for something. Let me know when you grow up some. Yea?" said Harry and left the Great Hall for the library.
Ron ignored his two friends and piled some more food onto his plate. Severus raised a brow at the redhead as he walked by the Gryffindor table. He made his way to his office.
TR/MM
Hermione stood at the Potions class room door waiting on her Potions Master. She had stayed up nearly all night working on her homework and so she could brew with him on the potion and hopefully could talk to him privately.
"Miss Granger, please follow me to my private lab." Severus told her leading her down the side corridor.
Hermione nodded her head and followed the dark headed man down the stairs. She watched him waved his wand in a series of complex motions lowering the protective wards. He motioned for her to enter before him. She smiled stepped into the lab and looked around in awe.
"Do you like what you see Miss Granger." said Severus in amusement.
"Sir, it's wonderful." Hermione said happily as she took in her surroundings.
The room held walls of shelves full of different ingredients labeled alphabetically. The measuring and stirring spoons and cauldrons and empty glass bottles. The row of books that lined the other part of the lab. Then two large tables for brewing stations.
"We will be less brothered here and able to work on what the dark lord wishes for us to create." Severus said. "I trust you have been building on your library?"
"Yes, I have. I've gotten to my second floor." said Hermione looking at the potion book that was on the shelf.
Severus raised his brow at the woman but didn't say a word. He walked over the bookshelf and began to pull down several books and took them to table. He leaned against the table and watched the woman struggle to reach the book. He walked over and pressed his body against her small womanly frame and grabbed the book. He nearly dropped the book when he felt the spark and heard Hermione gasp knowing that she felt it.
"Miss Granger are you a Druid?" asked Severus handing her the book.
Hermione took the book. "Yes. I found out last night." She whispered.
Severus crossed his arms over his broad chest sighed heavily. "Which one of your parents is a Druid? This is very important that you are truthful with me."
"Tom is a Druid." She told him shocking him to his core.
Severus slowly sat down on the stool next to him. He motioned for her to take a seat. Hermione said down on stool across from him sitting down the book on the table. She watched him squeeze his eyes shut at the pain in his head.
"Then, creating this potion will be impossible. It causes him more harm than do him good. He gets his magic from nature." He sighed heavily he knew what the price was if he failed. He would be tortured. "Now, we must think about what to do next."
"I was brainstorming with Harry last night, and we have thought about if we can reunite Tom's soul to his body. The horcruxes would be destroyed and the prophecy would be fulfilled without killing the man." explained Hermione.
Severus eyes widen and walked over to the large shelf and pulled down a thick book. He sat it gently down on the table. He fingered the cover over the centuries old book.
"This is an old Druid potions book. I will teach you during our time together as well." explained Severus.
"Are you a Druid?" asked Hermione hopefully to find someone she could relate too.
"Yes. But many do not know. This must be done carefully." Severus explained carefully and Hermione nodded her head agreement. He opened the book to the Cleansing Potion. "This must be done on the fullness of the moon. This is a very complicated potion, and we must know this backwards and forwards before we brew it and we must harvest the ingredients. Some of them are very rare." Severus explained to her.
Hermione moved her stool until she was sitting next to her Potions Master. Severus moved his left arm until it was almost wrapped around slender waist. Hermione breath caught in her throat. She looked at him in the corner of her eye and blushed slightly and quickly looked away from the man, and she turned her attention to the book in hope to save her father's life and the end the war.
The couple read over the potion and debated on what would be the easiest to harvest. Hermione wrote down list of what needed to be harvest. She sat the quill down on the table.
"I believe the hardest to harvest would be the unicorn hair. I believe since the evil has been present for nearly seventeen years the fresher the ingredients need to be it will attack the dark magic." Hermione suggested.
"Yes. I agree with you. The fresher the ingredients the better." Severus said nodding his head.
"But the hardest thing is going to track down the items that contain his soul." Severus told her.
'Hogwarts what did Tom use to hold his soul and do you know where they are located?' asked Hermione.
'The items that contains Tom's soul is a horcrux and they are all related to Hogwarts founders. He used items that were important to him.' Hogwarts told her.
Hermione wrote down the artifacts that related to the school and she smiled they were one step into helping her father return to his human form.
Ravenclaw diadem
Hufflepuff's cup
Slytherin's locket
Diary
Harry's scar (possible?)
Gaunt ring
Nagini
"How did you come up with the list so fast?" asked Severus in awe.
Hermione turned her head and smiled at the man next to him. "Now, Professor Snape I can't tell you all my secrets." She told him grabbing the list of items. "I must get going. I have a class in few minutes." She grabbed her bag and walked to door. "Professor, please call me Hermione while it's just us working. It will make things more relaxed."
Severus gently closed the old book and but it on the shelf with a wave of his hand. "Very well Hermione, you may call me Severus. Only in private." He quickly slipped into Hermione's mind and was pleased to find a large vast library with several locks several doors. He pulled back. "Very impressive mind library. I will see you at our normal time."
Hermione smiled. "Until next time Severus."
The Potions Master felt like his heart had stopped at the sight of the lovely smile on her face and returned her smile with a small smirk. He watched her leave the private lab. He shook his head at thought of magic drawn to the lovely woman.
TR/MM
Voldemort swept into the dungeons once he had learned about two prisoners they had locked in the dungeons. He didn't order any capture. He threw open the door and found Bellatrix Lestrange standing above a couple that were screaming in pain.
"What is going on here Bellatrix?" hissed Voldemort. "I did not order a capture and torture."
Bellatrix was a deranged woman with wild black hair, fare skin, deep brown eyes and womanly figure that was shown off by her corset top and tight dress. She looked down in shame. She looked up with a twisted smile.
"My lord they are worthless muggles. I just doing as you requested." She told him.
"Who are they?" hissed the dark lord dangerously.
"The mudblood Granger's parents." said the witch.
Voldemort turned and struck Bellatrix across the face slicing her right cheek drawing blood from the cut. She turned her head bowed her head and left the dungeons closing the cell door behind her with a with a slam.
He knelt down and wrapped his arms around Jean's waist and helped her to feet. She sobbed out of the pain. He lifted her up into his arms bridal style.
"Can you stand Mr. Granger?" asked Voldemort watching the man slowly stand shakingly on his legs. "I will place you somewhere safe for now. If my daughter knew. I would never receive her trust or love." He told his daughter's parents.
John could only nod his head and follow the strange looking man from the dungeons. He couldn't do anything but somewhat trust the man because he did save them from the mad woman that had been torching them.
"Thank you for coming to our rescue." Jean whispered. "What is your name?"
They made their way up the stairs to an unused area of Malfoy manor. He looked down at the woman in his arms. "My name is Tom Riddle, and you will be here at Malfoy manor for now." He opened the door to a large sweet. "I will make sure you are safe here." He told the couple and laid Jean down on the bed. "I will send Tricky with a pain potion to help you rest." He told them just as he left the wing waving his hand down the hall casting protective spell over the wing of no harm was to done.
TR/MM
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