Ch 15 Epiphany
Sirius POV
"Since when did Hermione and Snape become a team?"
Sirius knew that technically the three of them were a team but right now he was focusing on two members of the team. Who seemed to have a different dynamic together than the rest of them did.
"Is this the first time I am ever noticing this? And I don't simply mean them working together to destroy the Horcruxes." There was a closeness between them he never saw. He and Hermione were close since she was living with him and she is also Harry's best friend. He even saw her as a niece or a daughter himself. But she was Snape's student. He figured that Snape kept all of his students at a distance with his harsh words and demeanor and the threat of detention. But there was a closeness and familiarity there that was not consistent with those titles. They definitely had a more intimate relationship. He used the term intimate loosely. Confidence would probably be a more appropriate term. Though this confidence did start because they were working together so closely. He just didn't expect one to occur. He figured that nothing would change between them. As if their interactions in the classroom would be the exact same in his private quarters. He was mistaken.
"I mean I hate the guy and think that he is a complete bastard. He may be extremely closed off and guarded But I have started to notice some things. Snape may actually have a heart. He no longer seemed like a shadow or an overgrown bat anymore. He is and I don't say this likely. He is almost a human being." With him being so closed off and guarded. The only hint of emotion that he displayed was his snark and rudeness. He always gave the impression that he was cold hearted. And though he may not wear his heart on his sleeve like the rest of them. In comparison to his previous passive behavior, there was a huge difference.
Sirius was pacing back and forth in the kitchen as he talked. Hermione was upstairs. It was a Saturday. And though she should be at school right now. It was a Hogsmeade weekend and both he and Snape thought it would be best if she stayed here for the day. Plus nobody would notice her absence for the next couple of hours. And that right there is what started this whole line of thought. It wasn't his idea for Hermione to come here. It was Snape's.
He was the one who considered the possibility that if she went to Hogsmeade she would have a flashback from when she was kidnapped and become unnecessarily stressed.
Why didn't he think of that?
He was the one that cared about her the most. Out of the two of them at least. And before they started working together he didn't even think for a moment that Snape cared about anyone other than himself. And yes, over the past couple of months Sirius did realize that the man seemed to have cared about his brother and perhaps a select few individuals. But he didn't include Hermione.
For a guy that seemed to hate being a teacher and children, who knew that Snape actually cared about the well-being of one of his students. Who would have known the guy listens to classical music or can draw. Or would lie to honor the wishes of a student. He didn't have to lie for Hermione, it wasn't as if her life was in danger if he revealed what had happened. Even though he wasn't prepared to lie for her over Christmas, inevitably he did. But Snape did for the simple reason because she asked him to. These past few months have changed him. Made him more open and talkative. And Sirius didn't think for a moment that he had anything to do with it.
"Hermione isn't innocent in all of this either." She has been acting slightly differently. It's not necessarily a bad thing considering everything she has been through but at times she seems more confident while at others more withdrawn and stuck in her own head. He noticed that she seemed more like her usual self when she interacted with Snape. It wasn't enough to cause Sirius any concern; it was just something he noticed.
"She talks to him so freely. Like there is no hesitancy. As if the boundaries and propriety of student and teacher have slipped her mind. Both of theirs. And like I get it, we are working together as partners. Some rules were bound to be broken. But it's like the two of them threw the freaking rule book out of the window." And weirdly he was kinda enjoying it.
"I mean Snape has always been a stick up the mud. But he is relaxed with her. Hell, he was even teasing her. And made her blush and not from embarrassment. It's nice to see someone challenge her instead of her simply being able to walk over me." Snape also has this way of getting underneath Hermione's skin. Normally Snape just aggravates people. But for Hermione, he in a way made her exasperated. He would provide her with thought-provoking questions that would leave her in awe and annoyance. Sometimes when he talked she would be completely captivated by what he had to say. "And she is able to pull Snape back on his leash when he is being too much of a git." It wasn't as if she had some control over him, but it was as if her presence alone reminded him to tone down his temper. As if she had a calming influence over him.
Sirius stopped his pacing and turned to look at his companion sitting on the table. "What do you make of all of this?"
Crookshanks did not reply. Not even meow. The orange ball of fluff did not move from his seat. Only his eyes followed the man. The cat's expression looked as if he was thrown face-first into the wall. He was an ugly cat that's for sure but in a cute ugly way. He was also part Kneezle and supposed to be very intelligent. It had to be if Hermione chose him.
Sirius had enough and banged his hand on the end of the table firmly staring at the cat. It didn't even move at the sudden vibrations on the table. "Come on knock it off with the silent treatment. I need a simple yes or no."
The cat continued to stare at him with his beady yellow eyes. He did, however, meow this time. Sirius was going to take that as a yes.
"Are you talking to my cat again?" Hermione called out as she made her way by the entry of the kitchen. Sirius immediately tried to not look suspicious. He was too deep in his thoughts that he never heard her come down the stairs. Who knows how much she had heard.
"He is good company and actually likes to listen to what I have to say." He pointedly tried to distract her from asking him what he had been talking about.
She just huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. She gave him an expectant look waiting for him to catch on. "He is just waiting for you to feed him."
"There is nothing wrong with a little bribery," he defended. Pretending as if he did know the cat was just using him for snacks. That feline was much too clever for its own good. But then again he did owe that cat more than a lifetime of treats. If it wasn't for him Pettigrew would probably still be pretending to be a rat.
Even as he watched her come further into the kitchen and pick up Cookshanks to carry him off to wherever she was going. He couldn't help but think about her with Snape.
They were legitimately interested in the others' theories and work. They would also mention the other when they were not even there. But when they were with each other their eyes would be solely focused on each other and their attention would never waver. When she is pushing herself too hard he will tell her to stop and she actually listens. The same could be sad when Snape was seething. She would reel him back in and calm him.
But it wasn't just the way the two of them talked that had Sirius noticing the pair. It was their interactions, especially when it was nonverbal. He went after her when she was captured by the Death Eaters. Refusing to let him rescue her. In hindsight, it would have been smarter. What would have happened if he was seen? In contrast, she was the one who wanted and did bring him into their secret mission.
Sometimes Snape's eyes would follow Hermione when she would move about the room. When it was just him, Snape could never be bothered to look up from what he was doing. Snape would also always let Hermione enter the room first. As if he was a gentleman. She would catch his eye and the two of them would stare at each other for just a few moments. But it would be long enough to cause Snape to smirk. And shortly after they were both nowhere to be seen.
Or there was one time she was furious at him and Snape grabbed her by the forearm and pulled her back from hexing him. He probably saved him from castration.
A memory of the two flashed in his mind
It was over the Christmas break. He was in Padfoot form, laying in the library next to one of the bookshelves. He was waiting in case Hermione had a nightmare. He never heard her have one before but he was too worried that something would happen when he was two floors below.
His ears perked up as he heard soft barely noticeable footsteps approaching the room. He whined softly as the scent of smoke and burgundy filled his nose. He was almost asleep before the person disturbed him. This wasn't who he was expecting. He could see through barely opened eyes as Snape walked in. He moved to stand in front of the window. The soft glow of the moonlight illuminated his face. His facial expression was blank but his eyes were closed. He seemed tense. His hands were connected behind his back and he stood so rigid you could barely tell he was breathing.
Snape seemed lost in his head or was trying to get lost if he never even noticed that Sirius was there. And since the guy clearly wanted to be alone. He wasn't going to interrupt him with conversation neither wanted to have.
Sirius ignored him and whatever he was doing but then another scent consumed him. This one of honey and peaches.
She was wearing a robe and quietly padded into the room. She stopped moving when she noticed she wasn't alone. He didn't indicate that he knew she was there. But they both knew that she was. And yet neither noticed his presence. Though he was obscured in the shadows.
"I can go if you want to be alone," she said, offering him solitude.
"No. Stay." His voice came out quiet and raspy. He never turned to look at her.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"No."
Even from this angle, Sirius can see her biting her lip and looking at him hesitantly. "Do you want me to talk?
"No." Again he didn't elaborate or explain.
The two of them just stood in silence for several minutes. Eventually, Snape's shoulders dropped and he let out a long exhale. Then he turned to look at her. He just nodded in her direction but they never said anything. But something unspoken passed between them. Sirius could see it in their eyes even though he couldn't understand it.
He left shortly after that. Hermione ended up sitting on one of the chairs and ended up falling asleep curled up with a book. Sirius wasn't sure what was wrong with the guy. He could hazard a guess that it was related to Death Eater business. But for all he knew it could have been a personal matter. But for whatever reason Hermione's presence helped him to relax.
It was strange and fascinating to watch if he really took the time to think about it. The way the two of them did things and trust one another without needing verbal confirmation. These weren't huge and drastic displays. But considering the two, from his knowledge at least, never did any of this before, there were still subtle changes. For the both of them that was unusual.
He kept pondering this new concept well into the night. And even as he tried to sleep he lay in bed awake staring at the ceiling trying to make sense of his thoughts.
She always had some level of respect for the man. She had a better understanding of him. At least better than most. She always claimed that there was good in him. And it has taken Sirius until recently to be able to notice.
But their relationship has definitely changed and Sirius wanted to know how to label it. Call it curiosity. Or whatever. But if he was going to continue working together with them he wanted to make sense of all of the players.
From what Sirius could tell Snape was a lot more tolerant of her as a student than anyone else. He hated teaching and the students and yet he didn't mind Hermione's presence. Frenemies was a title he would reserve for his relationship with Snape. He still wasn't a huge fan of the guy and he would still love to punch the guy in the nose but strangely he did trust him. He and Hermione were colleagues in a sense despite the obvious student-teacher power dynamics. Sirius never recalled Snape having friends when they were children. Though apparently, his brother was one of them. He mostly saw him associating with other Slytherins but they weren't friends now if they ever were.
It was funny if it wasn't for the fact it was Hermione and Snape he would almost think the way they interact with one another was romantic-
"Oh shit," Sirius said out loud. He almost rolled out of bed at the thought.
He knew that he should be freaked out and throwing up. But for some reason, he wasn't.
Well, this is new.
He knew that this was just his interpretation of what he saw. It was entirely possible that he was just sleep-deprived and seeing things. But it was the little things that started to add up. He knew that despite the signs that nothing romantic was actually occurring. It wasn't like the two of them were secretly dating. And even though he didn't like Snape he didn't hate him enough to think that he would ever do something to Hermione that she wasn't comfortable or consenting to.
Currently it seemed like unspoken sexual tension then a forbidden love affair.
Plus there were several reasons why Sirius thought this was nothing more than unspoken and longing glances. First, when would they have had the time. Second, Hermione would have said something or at least given herself away; messed up hair, glazed eyes, and swollen lips. But there was nothing. This was just the first stages of a crush which could quite possibly blossom into more.
And weirdly it made sense. To Sirius at least.
They were both wickedly smart. Snape had a dry sense of humor that would appeal to Hermione. Hell, she could even be quite sarcastic herself. The two of them trusted each other on some level. Both of them wouldn't be picky on physical appearances. And on top of that, they were both well-read and had similar interests. And Snape, though still unpleasant and rude, Hermione clearly could not only put up with it but also didn't mind his mannerisms. And even Hermione could be a bit overwhelming and bossy at times and it didn't phase Snape in the slightest.
And the guy does check off all of Hermione's boxes for a romantic partner. Including Crookshanks liking the guy.
Obviously, nothing about this screams love of the century. But Sirius had vision. He saw how Lily had feelings for James years before she ever admitted it. He saw how despite how much Moony pushed his cousin away he was head over heels for her. This was the exact same. Sirius could see in the silence the longing looks, the compassion, the understanding. And definitely the undertones of suppressed sexual tension.
The two of them make a good pair. The weird duo. Granger and Snape.
Oh shit. I am enabling this. I am an enabler, Sirius thought. Well if this all goes to shit. I can just blame Hermione. She was the one who told him to get a hobby.