Chapter 5

It was only a week since Professor Granger duelled Snape but the whole school was abuzz with the topic. Everyone knew that Hermione Granger would go far in life. Her intelligence would thrust her into the light of amazing opportunities. But everyone figured that she would head off to the ministry or at least be consumed in the world of academics. She had a temper, anyone who asked her a question during exam season while she was studying knew that personally. But they didn't think she could be so deadly with a wand.

The class was working on some essays and reviews but not everyone was focusing on the work at hand. Harry noticed that several of his classmates kept looking up at the professor. He didn't know if it was in fear or intrigue. Harry was personally intrigued. He knew Hermine was skilled with a wand but defence wasn't her strongest subject though that was a topic they rarely discussed. He remembered how the professor said that up until this year both her and his best friend's lives were the same, which means that they had the same defence teachers. His teachers in the past weren't the best consisting of a Voldemort infected Quirrell, a fraud and a death eater. So he figured that the professor must have gotten a hell of an education for her last three years or the most likely option was that she had experience in combat.

He had questions but he didn't know what to ask and what answers he wanted. But it seemed his classmates had already thought about their questions.

"Professor Granger?" Daphne Greengrass asked, gaining the professor's attention.

She was seated behind her desk working. He thought she was grading essays but he couldn't be sure. Whatever she was doing was exhausting for her since she kept rubbing her temple as though she had a headache. She looked up in surprise at the address but she seemed to welcome the distraction. "Yes?"

"You said that you knew Professor Snape had years of experience on you when it came to fighting. How did you know that?" That was an interesting question, one that Harry didn't give much thought to. Probably because it had to do with Snape; one of his least favourite people in the world.

"I didn't. I made an accurate guess. The man is a decade older than me. He has most likely been in more life and death situations than I have."

"But how did you know that he always won. He could have lost duels before," Parkinson pointed out.

"Yes he could have but if he ever lost a duel as intense and life-threatening as the one we engaged in. It would have shown if he lost." She talked about the professor with respect. In fact, she talked about all of the staff members with respect. She has been seen talking with the other professors in a polite manner. She seems to be a welcomed member of the staff and most of the students could see her having a permanent place at this school. Even though they knew she would only be here for one year which left a sadness amongst the students. "Usually in the form of a permanent scar, disfigurement, inability to move as he once did or there would be a gravestone. But since none of them are easily present on him. I assumed he didn't lose.

"Have you ever lost in a duel?" Tracy Davis asked.

"I have. Several times." She dropped her quill, leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Wanna hear about them?"

Looking directly to her alternate self. "Remember what happened to me does not indicate what will happen to your life." Harry noticed that she always restated this fact when she was about to say something that wasn't exactly pleasant.

"The first duel I lost was when I was a little older than you. It was at the end of my fifth year actually." That left an ominous feeling amongst the students. "In my year we had an awful teacher who didn't teach us anything. And when I say nothing I mean she was one of the worst teachers Hogwarts had seen in decades. She also abused us. So you can see why when I came here and I learned what year my alternate self I was concerned about history repeating itself. Hence why I am teaching." Everyone had their fair share of bad teachers and those they personally hated. But none of them were ever abused by a teacher, at least not physically. Some were so strict that it borderline verbal abuse but nothing to this level.

"Sounds like we lucked out," Seamus said. She huffed at that. Clearly, it was stating the obvious.

"You have no idea." She stood up and started to pace around the front of the classroom. She moved towards the bookshelf and ran her fingers down along some of the spines as she seemed to lose herself in thoughts of the past. "But anyways. She isolated and cut off our contact with trustworthy adults and me and my friends got caught in a trap against some very dangerous men." She turned to look back at the class and stood up straighter and folded her hands behind her back. "I ended up having to duel against six men. I was young and inexperienced when it came to fighting, scared for my friends, and fighting against professional killers. I am lucky to be alive. I got a pretty bad scar. And that is pretty good considering."

"What was the curse if you don't mind me asking?" Parvati asked.

"I'm not sure. I never asked professor Snape when he healed me. I'm not even sure if it has an actual name or just some twisted personal invention. She lifted up the bottom of her shirt slightly. To reveal a nasty purple scar protruding just above her hip and disappearing under her shirt. Her shirt was only raised to her belly button but it was enough to show the damage on her skin. Her skin was pale and provided a contrast to her dark purple shirt but the dark dye matched the unnatural tones from her scar. "It cuts all the way up my torso. When I was first hit I experienced a hot searing pain and I blacked out. I was later told that the curse tried to essentially infect my internal organs with black magic until they all failed. If it directly hit my chest I would have been dead in a matter of minutes. I was lucky. But the recovery sucked. I spent 2 weeks drinking 5-8 foul-tasting potions and wasn't allowed to leave the hospital wing for a week. I was on strict bed rest."

"That sounds awful," Lavender said sympathetically.

"It was but I had my friends smuggle me in some books. But it was a very informative life event. I have a couple of scars from other duels but nothing as life-threatening or as prominent on my body."

"What about the one on your arm?" Daphne Greengrass asked. At the confused looks of her classmates, she continued. "The one that is hidden under the glamour." Now that it was mentioned Harry did notice a shimmer on her left arm.

Professor Granger didn't flinch at the accusation. Instead, she took out her wand and moved it in an up and down movement until red letters started to appear. There was an audible breath throughout the classroom. Harry couldn't help but give a sideways look to Hermione. But to his surprise, she didn't seem surprised by the mark. He knew what that word meant to her and what it meant. Seeing it himself made him angry but that wasn't an uncommon feeling as of late. He knew Hermione figured he was going through a case of teenage angst and though he knew she was probably right as always he couldn't help but feel as though there was something more to it. He figured by her lack of response or emotion that she already knew it was there. "I hid this scar because I feared that it would make you uncomfortable. In my own timeline, I don't hide this scar. I wear it proudly.

"Why? It is an abomination," Harry said as he suppressed a shudder. He couldn't help but glance at the word Mudblood in morbid fascination. The same way he looks at his own scar.

"It is and I can't do anything about that. It is permanent and I shouldn't have to cover it up for the rest of my life. I am proud to have loving parents muggle or not. I am proud that I survived torture and didn't betray my friends or beliefs when interrogated." She approached this very logically and factually and didn't allow herself to succumb to the emotion that is associated with the trauma. "So I have no reason to be ashamed."

"I'm only telling you this as a heads up for the fear landscape where this scene might play out." The professor looked around the room and Harry could only imagine the sadness and disgust she saw in their eyes. Most if not all of the students must wish that they never learned this information. Learning about trauma and torture was always awful but knowing the victim was different. Though their teacher was from a different dimension she still looked like their classmate and his best friend.

"Fighting and war changes people. Have any of you conducted your career meetings with your head of houses?" Most people around him shook their heads in negative but Harry did notice that many Slytherins indicated that they did. Harry himself hadn't given it much thought over the meeting itself but he has been toying with the idea of being an Auror after meeting Tonks and learning that during the first war Sirius was an Auror himself. He and his dad went through training together. His father quit when he was born and Sirius quit shortly after that. Both of them chose to spend their free time committed to the order.

"I used to think about joining the ministry and working in law-making or the department of creature regulations. But when you are in a war and you fight for so long. Once the war ended I just couldn't stop fighting. Luckily I found a way to mix fighting and possibly life-threatening situations and my love for academics. It's not exactly healthy but it's all I am able to do. War changes you." Harry couldn't help but nod along with that. He himself has been struggling since Cedric died but there were signs long before that. Ever since he found out his parents were killed by Voldemort his scar started to hurt. He was no stranger to nightmares either. "Fighting and duelling isn't fun. It is scary. Because one mistake is all it takes and then. With a snap of her fingers. You are gone and all that is left is everyone you left behind and a gravestone.

When Harry entered the potions classroom for his dreaded weekly potions class with Snape he noticed that Professor Granger was having a serious conversation with Snape. Once they noticed his and the other students' presence they dropped the subject and patiently waited for everyone to take their seats.

Snape walked to the front and stopped in the center of the classroom. He folded his arms across his chest, his black sleeves hanging low off of his arms. He always looked menacing in this position. With his dark hair, black eyes and black robes. His skin was always pale. People said that his teeth were rotten and crooked or that he had fangs. But Harry had never seen the man smile so he wouldn't know. The closest the man would give is a smirk. People joked that due to his completion and the rumours that he lives in these dungeons and never sees the sunlight that he is a vampire. Harry believed that these were rumours to scare the incoming first years. He didn't think that the guy would actually bite someone's neck and drink their blood. But he wouldn't be surprised if he was arrested for murder. The man just had a way of getting underneath Harry's skin ever since the moment he laid on him. He hated him. And the feeling was mutual. He honestly had no clue why Snape was a teacher. The man may be skilled when it comes to potions. He was told by others that Snape was one of the greatest potion masters in all of Britain and has invented some amazing cures over the years. He stocks the infirmary and even provided some potions to St. Mungos. The man clearly hated children and was not what people called a man who possessed fatherly qualities. So why was he wasting his time at a school?

"Today we will be having a little competition. The class will be divided into two groups and each group will have to brew a single potion by the time this class period ends." This was certainly a surprise. The idea in theory almost sounded kind of fun. But nobody would ever say that they ever had fun in this classroom.

"We will be dividing the students not by houses but by gender." People groaned at this statement. If it was by house then the Gryffindors and Slytherins would be able to stay on opposite ends of the classroom together. But by separating by gender that means Harry would have to work alongside Malfoy and no Hermione to help. At least he had Ron and his fellow dorm mates. "And all students must participate in some shape or form." Neville gulped beside him. Everyone knew that potions and Neville Longbottom just did not mix well.

"Your potions will then be given to Professor Granger to cure each ailment. Just be warned the consequences for killing a professor is immediate expulsion and possibly several weeks of imprisonment in Azkaban. None of which should be possible as long as you follow the instructions." The threat was loud and clear.

"What's the prize for the group that wins?" Malfoy asked.

"You didn't kill the professor." No one laughed at that statement, not even the Slytherins. Snape was dead serious and by the encouraging smile on the professor's face, she was on board with this. But Harry had a feeling that this wasn't the discussion they were having when he first walked in. But he couldn't think about that right now since Snape said, "Begin."

The girls were assigned the Wit- Sharpening Potion. Which allowed the drinker to think more clearly. It only required four ingredients; Ginger root, Newt Spleen, Scarab beetles, and Armadillo bile. But the timing and portions were meticulous.

The boys were assigned the Draught of Peace is a potion that relieves anxiety and agitation. An equally meticulous and complex potion. Though Snape did mention that knowledge of both is often required for their OWL examinations. It was interesting how at first the Gryffindors and even some of the Hufflepuffs flocked to Harry looking for leadership. However, Harry was relieved after a tense moment of silence between the houses when Theodore Nott started to take the lead. Harry did alright when it came to potions but he wasn't the best in the class. He figured Malfoy was the best but he too stepped and allowed Nott to take the lead. Crabbe, Goyle, Zabini, and Neville were assigned to go collect the ingredients and to clean and sterilize the equipment as they went. Ron, Seamus, Malfoy and himself were tasked with chopping and preparing the ingredients. While Nott, Michael, Terry, Dean and Ernie focused on the actual brewing and timing of the potion. It was clear that those who were less than successful in potions were assigned the menial tasks that didn't have much to do with the outcome of the actual potion. A safe option in this case and one that no one objected to.

As Harry took a break after his hand started to hurt from the grinder. He looked up towards Snape. Normally he could feel Snape's eyes glaring at him even with his head hung low. But for once Snape's attention wasn't on him. He was seated behind his desk. His gaze swept over the class but for the most part, his attention was directed towards Professor Grager who was seated on the edge of his desk. She appeared to be quite relaxed and it surprised Harry that Snape allowed her to do so. Since this was after all his workspace and desk. The two of them leaned slightly into one another and talked quietly. Too quietly for anyone but them to hear. She was pointing at various passages at a book that until now Harry didn't notice was laid open between them. He figured it had to do with her research. But he didn't see how blood artifacts were connected with potions and quite frankly he didn't think he wanted to know.

Looking over to the left side of the classroom the girls didn't seem to have much of a problem working together. Lisa, Tracey and Hermione seemed to have been running the show but no one seemed to have a problem with the way things were being run on their side.

Turning back to the task at hand he noticed that Malfoy was grinding up the porcupine quills while he was grinding up the moonstone. It was weird all of them working together. But luckily it was in silence despite the glares being thrown between Ron and Malfoy. It was interesting to watch the dynamics of the group. Everyone played to their strengths even though most didn't know it. The potion turned various colours as more ingredients were added. Purple, grey, orange, then white.

The class was only 50 minutes long. And normally the time went by slowly as Snape lectured but today it flew by and once their group bottled up their finished product it was under a silent agreement that it may have been their most successful potion's class yet. The pressure to do well was high with the threat of the potion being used on Professor Granger. And no one doubted Snape's threat that it would be used on her, especially with her presence being so prominent. The boys were confident that they brewed it correctly, in the end, it was the correct shade of turquoise. But there was still some anxiety amongst the group when Snape took it up towards Professor Granger.

Snape came beside Professor Granger who was now standing. Both groups had finished and returned to their original seats as they awaited the results. He performed a non-verbal incantation on her. Slowly her eyes became wide and her pupils blown. She began to look agitated and extremely uncomfortable. Her hand started to shake beside her thigh and it looked like she was itching to run out of the classroom in a full-blown panic. Professor Granger didn't appear scared when she drank either of the potions. But she, like the rest of the class, eagerly awaited the results.

Harry could feel as some of his classmates held their breath as he gave her the potion to drink. But after 30 seconds she appeared to be fine.

Once she was cured from the previous potion and ailment the professor performed another spell on her that made her appear slow and tired. From the nod of her head to Snape after she took the wit sharpening potion it was clear that it too was successful.

Snape raised a brow at the results and began to lecture the class for the last couple of minutes before the lunch period began. "Impressive. All it took was the proper motivation for you all to successfully brew this potion. Something most of you failed to do the first time around. And if you all performed as you did the first time around we would surely have different results."

"We could have killed her," Seamus said. It escaped Harry's notice that they already attempted to brew these potions during the first couple of lessons of this semester. But now thinking back he remembered the sour man's disdain over their apparent failure at completing the brew. He along with the rest of the class figured that if their potions didn't appear to be correct and that if they would have actually killed her then Snape wouldn't have given it to her to drink. But from the way he is talking, it makes it seem as though no matter what he would have given it to her to drink. Professor Granger didn't seem concerned by this possibility. She must have had faith in his ability to cure her if something went wrong.

"Exactly," Snape drawled.

"What was the point of this?" Ron asked, speaking for everyone.

"Let me ask you something. When you are in the real world how do you expect to save the life of a colleague or friend if they were poisoned? If someone relies on your potion-making skills. Then you better be able to step up to the task otherwise you would have committed manslaughter." He spoke with his normal tone but the words seemed to be much more serious than any lecture he ever gave during the last five years. It was expected that anytime he spoke the students were to listen. But Harry often forgot to hear the words actually coming out of his mouth. It didn't encourage Harry to listen to him when he was talking due to their mutual hatred of one another. But he was hearing him loud and clear now. "If you can't be expected to create a simple potion here in the classroom then how are you ever going to be able to perform the task outside in the real world while under pressure where the stakes are much higher." That triggered something for Harry. Snape was well known as being the strictest teacher in all of Hogwarts perhaps in history. He figured it was just due to his horrible personality. Harry never thought that there may actually be a logical reason for it.