Hermione went to her room and began to unpack, deciding that since she had to stay here for three whole months she'd make herself at home. The first thing she unpacked was her stereo, saved from wreck that was her room. Fortunately, she had discovered long ago how to magically recharge batteries, and soon she was dancing around as she put things away. Music always did make her feel better.
Her robes went into the wardrobe first, then her muggle clothes. She used the drawers to store her books and CDs, the only real possessions she'd brought with her from her home. She had never been much of a pack rat. When she was finished, which didn't take long because Hermione made a point of being efficient, she leapt onto her bed and sank down in it to think. She had a lot to think about. Disturbing images still filled her mind: her parents holding each other desperately as the Death Eaters burst in, the shocked look on their faces as the green light of Avada Kedavra made its way to them. Hermione remembered seeing the green light heading to her as well.... but how was that possible? She was sitting here thinking about being hit with the killing curse, which just didn't happen. Had she somehow resisted it? Her heart began to pound, and she was overcome with disbelief.
Shelving these thoughts for the moment, Hermione took the time to mourn her parents. Locking her door, she put her head in her hands and cried for what seemed like hours. In her heart she knew her parents wanted her to move on, so she simply let out all of her sadness in one big explosion. When she finally looked up, her crying ended, she still felt sad, still missed her family, but knew that she had made peace with them and with herself. Hermione had never been one to give into grief for long. After making sure her eyes were no longer puffy, she got up and decided to have a crack at that library. She was on her way when there was a timid knock on her other door. Removing the locking spell, she called, "Come in!" The door opened, and Minny meekly entered the room, looking nervous. Hermione smiled.
"Come in, Minny. Why don't you sit down for a moment?" Minny looked at Hermione, amazed, and obeyed. "What did you need?" Hermione asked.
"Miss is not angry? Only Master likes talk with Minny!" Hermione smiled. "No, Minny, I'd be glad to talk to you. What did you want to say to me?" The little house elf looked afraid for a moment, but Hermione smiled comfortingly.
"Minny wants to ask Miss to be good to Master. He is very kind to Minny, but Minny not always enough company for him. Master is very lonely." Minny's concern for Professor Snape was touching, and Hermione felt there had to be something special about Snape to evoke such loyalty from a house elf.
"I don't even know if Professor Snape likes me, Minny. But I will try." Minny looked up at Hermione, delighted. "Master likes Miss, Minny knows. Minny always knows what Master likes. Miss will be very, very good for him, though Master might not know this." Hermione raised an eyebrow, unsure that anyone could read Professor Snape. Minny beamed at her once more and said goodbye, leaving Hermione with even more confusing thoughts. So much could happen in one day! Deciding that Minny's observations could be trusted, Hermione vowed to herself that she'd be kind to Professor Snape. The way Minny's face had looked when she'd said he was lonely had almost broken her heart, even if they were talking about the Potions Master.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hermione relaxed for a while and listened to some more music, lying on her new bed and staring absently at the ceiling. Alone time had been exactly what she needed, and now that she had her wits about her, she was ready to take on the world. She had also recalled her thoughts about repelling the killing curse, and began to wonder about it. Why was she alive now? Perhaps she had something left to do on Earth? Was there a special way to repel the curse? Could it be developed? Even better, could other people do it, too? Hermione's head was hurting after a moment, but luckily she couldn't dwell on it for too long because there was a sharp knock on her door, letting her know that it had to be Snape.
"It's open!" she yelled, sitting up. The door cracked open, and Snape poked his head in, followed by the rest of his body. Hermione looked at him expectantly.
"Miss Granger?" he looked almost uncertain. "Are you hungry? It's getting late and I wanted to know if you wanted anything...." His voice was still cold, but his eyes...
"Thank you, Professor Snape. I'd like that," Hermione smiled. Snape looked like he felt a little better. He obviously wasn't used to entertaining people. "Well," he said, unsteady again, "I can have Minny bring something to you up here if you want, or you can eat downstairs with me." He clearly expected her to choose the former.
"I'll eat with you, if you don't mind. Are you ready now?" Snape frowned, and then nodded, motioning for her to follow. Hermione wondered why she was suddenly reading all of these emotions into Snape's perfectly normal, polite behavior. Of course he was going to be nice to her! He had to be!They went down the stairs in silence, and he led her through a larger dining room to a smaller one, closer to the kitchens. There was a table there that Minny was setting up for the two of them while humming tunelessly to herself. She looked up and winked at Hermione, who grinned. A delicious aroma began drifting from the kitchen, which Snape seemed to recognize.
"Minny, you didn't!" he smiled. She nodded at him knowingly. "How kind of you! You'll have to save some for yourself, you know." Minny giggled and ran to get the food. He turned to Hermione and explained, "It's fried calamari. I've always been fond of the stuff, ever since my parents took me to Italy when I was younger." Hermione grinned--she'd never thought fried squid would be on the list of anyone's favorite foods. When they sat down, Hermione was amazed when Snape pulled her chair out for her, ever the gentleman. She frowned at him for the thousandth time that way, and he shrugged. "I was taught to behave this way. Being in my own house calls back some of my old habits."
Once the food was brought out, they sat in silence for a while. Strangely, Hermione found the silence to be rather companionable, unlike it had been when she'd gotten detention from Snape last year and had to sit for two hours feeling his eyes boring into her back. It still amazed her that this gentlemanly, though still laconic, man who befriended house elves was also the greasy git that had made her six years of potions so far a living hell. She thought that perhaps she would just appreciate the change and enjoy it while it lasted.
Before long, their eating pace slackened, offering more room for conversation. Snape didn't seem like the type to indulge in, much less start, a conversation, so Hermione started. "So.... does Voldemort really think I'm dead?" Snape looked at her, surprised, and nodded.
"Miss Granger, if you're not up to discussing this---"
"Call me Hermione. I don't think I could get through an entire summer of being called by my last name. You don't mind, do you?" He cocked his head. "No, Hermione, I don't mind." She decided she liked the way her name rolled off his tongue. "And I suppose you may call me Severus, although it had better not carry over into the school year." She grinned at him. "All right, Severus, you have a deal." The corner of his mouth twitched. Hermione almost categorized it as a smile.
"About my earlier question...." Snape nodded. "We still don't know how, but you managed to resist the killing curse. Albus spoke to me about it, and he wants you to simply continue developing your powers. If you're feeling up to it, we could...." He seemed unsure of himself again. Hermione felt a rush of mixed compassion and admiration for the man. This had to be hard for him. "We could work on some things." Hermione nodded. "Yes, I'd like to work with you, Severus." Once again, he seemed to relax. Had he really been so sure that she would reject him? Or was she just reading things that weren't there? It wasn't like he was an open book, and every reaction she'd seen in him was too subtle for her to be sure... Hermione doubted herself for a moment, but Minny caught her eye and nodded solemnly.
Her robes went into the wardrobe first, then her muggle clothes. She used the drawers to store her books and CDs, the only real possessions she'd brought with her from her home. She had never been much of a pack rat. When she was finished, which didn't take long because Hermione made a point of being efficient, she leapt onto her bed and sank down in it to think. She had a lot to think about. Disturbing images still filled her mind: her parents holding each other desperately as the Death Eaters burst in, the shocked look on their faces as the green light of Avada Kedavra made its way to them. Hermione remembered seeing the green light heading to her as well.... but how was that possible? She was sitting here thinking about being hit with the killing curse, which just didn't happen. Had she somehow resisted it? Her heart began to pound, and she was overcome with disbelief.
Shelving these thoughts for the moment, Hermione took the time to mourn her parents. Locking her door, she put her head in her hands and cried for what seemed like hours. In her heart she knew her parents wanted her to move on, so she simply let out all of her sadness in one big explosion. When she finally looked up, her crying ended, she still felt sad, still missed her family, but knew that she had made peace with them and with herself. Hermione had never been one to give into grief for long. After making sure her eyes were no longer puffy, she got up and decided to have a crack at that library. She was on her way when there was a timid knock on her other door. Removing the locking spell, she called, "Come in!" The door opened, and Minny meekly entered the room, looking nervous. Hermione smiled.
"Come in, Minny. Why don't you sit down for a moment?" Minny looked at Hermione, amazed, and obeyed. "What did you need?" Hermione asked.
"Miss is not angry? Only Master likes talk with Minny!" Hermione smiled. "No, Minny, I'd be glad to talk to you. What did you want to say to me?" The little house elf looked afraid for a moment, but Hermione smiled comfortingly.
"Minny wants to ask Miss to be good to Master. He is very kind to Minny, but Minny not always enough company for him. Master is very lonely." Minny's concern for Professor Snape was touching, and Hermione felt there had to be something special about Snape to evoke such loyalty from a house elf.
"I don't even know if Professor Snape likes me, Minny. But I will try." Minny looked up at Hermione, delighted. "Master likes Miss, Minny knows. Minny always knows what Master likes. Miss will be very, very good for him, though Master might not know this." Hermione raised an eyebrow, unsure that anyone could read Professor Snape. Minny beamed at her once more and said goodbye, leaving Hermione with even more confusing thoughts. So much could happen in one day! Deciding that Minny's observations could be trusted, Hermione vowed to herself that she'd be kind to Professor Snape. The way Minny's face had looked when she'd said he was lonely had almost broken her heart, even if they were talking about the Potions Master.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hermione relaxed for a while and listened to some more music, lying on her new bed and staring absently at the ceiling. Alone time had been exactly what she needed, and now that she had her wits about her, she was ready to take on the world. She had also recalled her thoughts about repelling the killing curse, and began to wonder about it. Why was she alive now? Perhaps she had something left to do on Earth? Was there a special way to repel the curse? Could it be developed? Even better, could other people do it, too? Hermione's head was hurting after a moment, but luckily she couldn't dwell on it for too long because there was a sharp knock on her door, letting her know that it had to be Snape.
"It's open!" she yelled, sitting up. The door cracked open, and Snape poked his head in, followed by the rest of his body. Hermione looked at him expectantly.
"Miss Granger?" he looked almost uncertain. "Are you hungry? It's getting late and I wanted to know if you wanted anything...." His voice was still cold, but his eyes...
"Thank you, Professor Snape. I'd like that," Hermione smiled. Snape looked like he felt a little better. He obviously wasn't used to entertaining people. "Well," he said, unsteady again, "I can have Minny bring something to you up here if you want, or you can eat downstairs with me." He clearly expected her to choose the former.
"I'll eat with you, if you don't mind. Are you ready now?" Snape frowned, and then nodded, motioning for her to follow. Hermione wondered why she was suddenly reading all of these emotions into Snape's perfectly normal, polite behavior. Of course he was going to be nice to her! He had to be!They went down the stairs in silence, and he led her through a larger dining room to a smaller one, closer to the kitchens. There was a table there that Minny was setting up for the two of them while humming tunelessly to herself. She looked up and winked at Hermione, who grinned. A delicious aroma began drifting from the kitchen, which Snape seemed to recognize.
"Minny, you didn't!" he smiled. She nodded at him knowingly. "How kind of you! You'll have to save some for yourself, you know." Minny giggled and ran to get the food. He turned to Hermione and explained, "It's fried calamari. I've always been fond of the stuff, ever since my parents took me to Italy when I was younger." Hermione grinned--she'd never thought fried squid would be on the list of anyone's favorite foods. When they sat down, Hermione was amazed when Snape pulled her chair out for her, ever the gentleman. She frowned at him for the thousandth time that way, and he shrugged. "I was taught to behave this way. Being in my own house calls back some of my old habits."
Once the food was brought out, they sat in silence for a while. Strangely, Hermione found the silence to be rather companionable, unlike it had been when she'd gotten detention from Snape last year and had to sit for two hours feeling his eyes boring into her back. It still amazed her that this gentlemanly, though still laconic, man who befriended house elves was also the greasy git that had made her six years of potions so far a living hell. She thought that perhaps she would just appreciate the change and enjoy it while it lasted.
Before long, their eating pace slackened, offering more room for conversation. Snape didn't seem like the type to indulge in, much less start, a conversation, so Hermione started. "So.... does Voldemort really think I'm dead?" Snape looked at her, surprised, and nodded.
"Miss Granger, if you're not up to discussing this---"
"Call me Hermione. I don't think I could get through an entire summer of being called by my last name. You don't mind, do you?" He cocked his head. "No, Hermione, I don't mind." She decided she liked the way her name rolled off his tongue. "And I suppose you may call me Severus, although it had better not carry over into the school year." She grinned at him. "All right, Severus, you have a deal." The corner of his mouth twitched. Hermione almost categorized it as a smile.
"About my earlier question...." Snape nodded. "We still don't know how, but you managed to resist the killing curse. Albus spoke to me about it, and he wants you to simply continue developing your powers. If you're feeling up to it, we could...." He seemed unsure of himself again. Hermione felt a rush of mixed compassion and admiration for the man. This had to be hard for him. "We could work on some things." Hermione nodded. "Yes, I'd like to work with you, Severus." Once again, he seemed to relax. Had he really been so sure that she would reject him? Or was she just reading things that weren't there? It wasn't like he was an open book, and every reaction she'd seen in him was too subtle for her to be sure... Hermione doubted herself for a moment, but Minny caught her eye and nodded solemnly.