Trouble in the Staff Room
Chapter 13: Finale
Professor McGonagall woke up, she wasn't sure what time it was, but Snape wasn't in the room.
"Bugger." She said.
* * *
Dumbledore was tired. He had been awake all night, since he had that disturbing dream. His past was beginning to haunt him, and by Jove! He wasn't going to allow that to happen.
* * *
Snape looked at the sleeping figure of Hermione, her head upon his shoulder. He saw how peaceful she looked and smiled.
"Hermione." He said softly.
She began to stir.
"Hum" she replied
"It's time that you went back to your dormitory."
"What time is it?"
Snape looked at the clock on the wall.
"Nearly seven."
"Shit."
"Watch your"
"Language." Hermione finished. "Sorry, okay, well night."
"Night." Hermione stood up and stretched. She gave Snape one last reassuring look and headed down the stairs.
"At least someone is happy." He pulled himself painfully to his feet. "Bye." He said looking up at the sky. The stars had died a long time ago. He set off at a quick snail crawl to the Hospital Wing.
* * *
Professor Binns thought about his letter, what did he need to say?
* * *
Hagrid woke up. He had a spitting headache.
"I knew I shouldn' 'ave drunk sa much las' nigh'." He muttered.
* * *
Snape had managed to get back to the Hospital Wing before Madam Pomfrey had woken up and started to do the rounds. He lay back and thought about the conversation he had, had with Hermione. Had he been right to tell her?
* * *
Draco Malfoy woke up. It was a quarter past seven. Today was the day that he started to put his father's plan into action. Over the night he had thought it through and decided that the cause was right.
* * *
Hermione sat at the breakfast table, trying not to fall asleep in her bowl of corn flakes.
"You ok Herm?" Harry asked.
"Just tired." She muttered in reply.
"Me too." Ron yawned.
"Me three."
The three friends laughed.
Hermione looked up at the staff table, Snape wasn't there, and that wasn't all together surprising thinking the state he had been in last night.
The owl post arrived and one black owl flew towards Hermione. She was a bit flabbergasted, as she didn't know anyone who would send her a letter by owl post.
The owl dropped the letter on her plate and flew off again. Nervously Hermione opened it.
Hermione,
My divorce from your mother has come through. I'm living with Sandy you know the receptionist at work? Well she has kindly put me up until I find somewhere else to live.
Hope you are well
Hugs and kisses
Dad.
Hermione re-read the letter. She knew her dad and Sandy had gone to school together and were good friends, she had even called her "Auntie Sandy" when she was little, but. how could her dad do something like that?
"What are you reading Mudblood." Malfoy said, coming up behind her and taking the letter.
"HEY!" Hermione shouted, trying to get the letter off him, but he held it above her head.
Harry and Ron jumped up.
"Give her the letter back Malfoy," Harry said.
"Are you going to make me, scar head?"
"Yea."
"And whose army?" Crabbe and Goyle, who were as usual flanking him laughed.
"Me." Ron spoke up.
"Oh, I so sorry, Weasel, but I can't be bother to fight someone like you your mum probably wouldn't have enough money to pay for bandages." Malfoy cleared his throat. He began to read out loud in a posh voice. "'Hermione, My divorce from your mother has come through. I'm living with Sandy you know the receptionist at work? Well she has kindly put me up until I find somewhere else to live. Hope you are well. Hugs and kisses Dad'." Crabbe, Goyle and Malfoy burst into fits of laughter. "Ha! Mudblood doesn't even have parents! HA! Potter, maybe you can give her a few tips." Hermione's eyes filled with tears.
* * *
Severus looked over to Remus Lupin. Lupin was a handsome man. Sleek grey hair, soft eyes, and a wonderful smile. He didn't smile with his mouth but with his eyes. For some reason Snape was attracted to him, but he knew that Lupin would never
* * *
Hermione cried into her hands. She knew that everyone in the hall was looking at her, thanks to Malfoy they knew that she, Hermione Granger, didn't have proper parents and that her father had been having an affair.
"Piss of Malfoy!" Harry said. Knowing that everyone could hear his voice.
Malfoy laughed.
"Come on Crabbe, Goyle, we have more important things to do than stay around with rejects." Malfoy stalked of smiling to himself.
Crabbe and Goyle hung back.
"Look."
"Push off! Haven't you done enough damage?" Ron shouted at them.
"We just wanted to."
"GET LOST!"
Dumbledore leaned over to McGonagall and whispered in her ear.
"Maybe you better interfere now?"
"Aye, Malfoy, Potter, Weasely, Granger, can you all come with me please."
* * *
"The idiot!" Lucius Malfoy said, staring into a crystal ball. "I told him not to get into trouble!"
"Don't be angry, love." Narcissa said seductively stroking his neck. She bent down to look at him, all innocent. "You wouldn't want little me to get all upset now would you?" she pretended to cry into her handkerchief.
"I'm sorry, Narcissa. Draco is not an idiot. No fruit of my loins could ever be so."
Narcissa took his hand.
"Come, let us finalise ideas."
"Not now, dear." Lucius said, guessing what his wife wanted.
"Oh but you could do that any time. Please, or don't you love me anymore?"
"Of course I love you." Lucius kissed her on the lips.
"Then prove it." She smiled her seductive smile.
"Oh Narcissa," They fell down onto the bed, kissing passionately.
* * *
"Now lads. I want you to all explain to me what that fiasco was about at breakfast?" Professor McGonagall asked. Her mouth, as Harry noticed, was deadly thin.
"Nothing." Malfoy said smirking
"Don't you tell me nothing, young man."
"He insulted Hermione!" Ron shouted.
"I know he did, Ronald. I just need to know why you thought it necessary to exchange insults in front of the entire school!"
There was silence.
"Do you think language like that, Potter, is appropriate in front of the lower years?"
"No miss." Harry replied, looking into the floor. Wishing it would swallow him up.
"No miss is correct. Now you are all on detention."
"But."
"Don't but me Malfoy!"
* * *
Severus sat in the staff room; he couldn't concentrate on the work he had to complete. His mind was elsewhere.
* * *
Hermione ran up to the Astronomy tower - tears in her eyes. She couldn't take this anymore. Throughout the day people had been staring. Some people had even been avoiding her.
* * *
Snape could no longer deny it. He was in love with Remus Lupin.
* * *
Lucius looked at his sleeping, naked wife. He couldn't understand how anyone could shun this kind ofpleasure. It wasn't normal for a man to love another man. It was bad. It was evil.
* * *
"Hermione!" Harry shouted up the stairs to the girl's dormitory.
"She's not there." Lavender Brown said, coming slowly down the stairs.
"Have you seen here?"
"No."
"Okay, well if you do."
"Tell her you were looking for her?"
"Yeah, thanks Lavender."
* * *
Professor Flitwick had been ignoring Professor Snape all through the new term and it was getting harder and harder to do so.
He confessed to himself that Filch beating him up was not a good idea, but it did tell Snape where his place was, and that was certainly not a school.
What shocked him, was that none on the parents knew yet! Surely the Board would have informed all the new pupils parents!
* * *
Severus took a deep breath. He raised his fist to knock on the door of Lupin's office. He stopped and lowered his fist.
"No, I can't do it." He said to himself aloud. He turned and walked off feeling like a coward.
* * *
Hagrid was woken by a knock on his cabin door. Fang leapt up and began to bark at the door.
"Hol' on! Hol' on! I'm comin'!"
* * *
Dumbledore was having a hard time locating the old Hogwarts band members.
"There must be still some that are alive, willing, and able to play!" he said and in his frustration threw down his quill, splattering his books with ink. "Bugger."
* * *
"Hermione, com' in, com' in. What can I do fer ya?" Hagrid asked inviting Hermione in.
"Nothing, I just need to talk." Hermione sat down.
"Is it abou' yer parents?"
"Oh, Hagrid, the whole schools talking about it! I don't want it to happen I really don't." she broke down in tears.
"Ther' ther' Hermione." Hagrid said patter her gently on her back. "Don' cry."
* * *
Snape sank into his office chair.
"I have to tell him, I have to tell him." He said over and over to himself. It was becoming harder and harder to hold back his attraction.
There was a knock on his office door.
"Come in."
Remus Lupin walked in.
"Hi, Sev, I wanted to ask you something about Defence against the Dark Arts. I need someone to help me in a lesson next Friday afternoon, now I know that you are free then, and I also know that" Snape look Lupin's hand. "Sev."
"Remus, I love you."
For a moment, he was startled.
"Wellthanks Severus but" he took his hand from Snape's. "I'm sorry, you know I'm not gay."
"Yes, I know, but II still love you."
"Hey, don't take this harshly, but I don't love you, not in the way you claim to love me. I love you as a friend and nothing more than that. Now, I think I better go and find someone else to help me." Lupin turned and left the office.
Snape sank back down again, put his head in his hands and cried.
* * *
Snape sat alone in his office. Tears rolled down his face and he felt like dying. The one person he loved had deserted him. The one person that he needed to survive had left him. How could he continue with his life?
* * *
Hermione sat and cried. The emotions within her body were getting too much to hold within the walls of her, she had to let them out. When she thought of Malfoy her blood boiled, and she needed someway of letting her anger go.
* * *
Lucius stroked Narcssia's soft black hair, she was sleeping peacefully and he no longer thought of trying to watch his son, but with the instinct every male feels when will a beautiful female.
* * *
Draco kicked himself. He had got a detention, and probably failed his father, he knew that his father was watching him, he knew that. He knew that he would have seen his failure and would be getting ready to punish him in someway.
He couldn't bare the thought of being punished by his father, his step mother had her wrapped round his little finger. That was something else he couldn't admit to, he was like Hermione. His mother had walked out on his father; he couldn't stand the thought of having something in common with that filthy mudblood.
"STOP IT!" He shouted. People in the common room turned to look at him. "Sorry." He said meekly.
* * *
Lupin leaned on his office door. He took deep breaths.
"Calm down." He told himself. "It's okay, Severus fancies you, but that's okay. No need to over react."
He sat down.
Severus is an ok guy. He thought. A little image of James Potter popped up in his mind. It pointed a warning finger at him. It was like a play, forming in his mind.
"Snape is a Slytherin." James Potter said in an almost shocked half admiring tone.
"I know, but does that matter?" Remus asked in reply.
"You've got a point." James agreed.
He knew that James wouldn't be bothered, and let him get on with it. But another person sprung to mind.
"A SLYTHERIN? YOU THINK THAT GOING OUT WITH A SLYTHERIN IS OKAY?!" Sirius' voice boomed out.
"Sirius, so what if he's a Slytherin? Haven't you forgotten what he put himself through to protect wizard-kind?" Lupin tried to plead.
"Change the subject why don't you? The point is, Snape is a Slytherin, he hates us and we hate him. You want to actually go out with him and see nothing wrong in that?"
"There is nothing wrong!" Lupin slowly began to lose his temper.
"Remus, my friend, you have been bewitched." Sirius turned away from him, saying a lot about what he currently thought of Lupin.
"Sirius, come on, Snape's one off us now." James tired using some of his new-found wisdom.
"Snape? One of us? Don't make me laugh James." This was getting ludicrous.
The play went on and on, the tension rose and rose, the shouting got worse until James and Sirius turned into Remus' parents.
"What's with you woman?" Ifan Lupin, his father, asked his wife, noticing that she looked grumpy.
"Nothing." Lynette Lupin, his mother, replied.
"There is. Tell me." he asked gently.
"It's you." Lynette put down the potatoes she had been busy peeling and turned to her husband.
"Me?" Ifan looked taken back.
"Yes!" his mother threw down the potato peeler. "If it hadn't been for your stupid argument Remus wouldn't have run off into the woods and got himself bitten!" she was referring to when Remus had been bitten by the wolf under a full moon.
"My argument? That's rich coming from you! You turned it into an argument." They began to argue.
"Don't talk crap."
"Me talk Crap? What have you been speaking for the last five years? Utter bull shit that's what."
"STOP!" Remus shouted aloud. Each one of the voices they now became visions. They encircled him. Glaring at him and each other.
"It's you're fault." His mother shouted.
"It's all you're fault." His father added.
"You want to go with a Slytherin, traitor." A young Sirius said
"Don't listen to them Remus, be who you want to be." James' voice was weakest of them all, drowned out by the angry shouting tones of the rest.
They pushed Remus into a corner, continuing with their deadly chant.
"It's my fault." He said in a strangled voice. "It's all my fault."
The visions and the voices vanished leaving Lupin sobbing in the corner, repeating "it's my fault" clutching his head as though he was in agonising pain.
* * *
Hermione was still in Hagrid's cabin. She hadn't any idea about how long she had been there, her only clue was that night was falling.
"Hermione." A gentle voice asked her. She found herself sitting up. "Welcom' bac' ter the land o' the livin'" Hagrid grinned and handed her a mug of hot chocolate.
"Thank you," she took the mug.
"Yer bin asleep fer a while. Thought 'bou' wakin' yer up, but Idecided against it like. How yer feelin'?"
"Funny."
"Understandable, Professor McGonagall, said yer can stay 'ere or yer can go and stay in her office."
"Why?"
"Wellpeople will be starin' at yer and givn' yer funny looks."
* * *
Snape walked slowly up to the top of the astronomy tower. He had only one thing on his mind.
* * *
"Professor Lupin" Harry pushed open the door to Lupin's office. "SIR!" he saw Lupin slummed against the wall with his head in his hands.
"I'm okay." Lupin replied shakily.
"Sir, I can't find Hermione any where."
"Okay, I'll come and help look."
"You don't have."
"I want to." Lupin interrupted.
* * *
"Hagrid I have to do something." Hermione said, handing the cup back.
"Sure"
"Alone."
* * *
Snape stood on the ledge; he looked down at the floor below him. It was reaching up to him; he knew what he had to do.
* * *
Hermione set off towards the Gryffindor Common Room, but something made her turn around and run towards the astronomy tower.
* * *
"I" when he got to ten he was going to jump.
* * *
Hermione quickened her pace. Luckily, the corridors were deserted so there were no obstacles preventing her from reaching her destination.
* * *
"6."
"STOP!" Hermione flung back the door, so that it bounced off the wall behind her. Snape was startled.
"Hermione."
"Stop, I can't let you do this." She walked briskly up to him, took his arm, and tried to pull him off the ledge.
"Hermione please, you don't understand." Snape said resisting her. "I have to do this."
"No you don't, you just need help that's all. Please"
"Hermione how did you know?"
"Doesn't matter, just please?" she looked at him.
"Hermione!" Harry shouted from behind her.
"Harry stay there." She called. "Come on, don't do this."
"You don't understandI have to do thisI can't go onit's getting too much."
"What is?"
"I've seen the way some of the staff look at me, I've been shunned from society in the village, I've been beaten up and I am sure that Malfoy is plotting something."
"Severus!" Lupin said, seeing the situation.
"Remus."
"Severus, don't be such a stupid bastard!"
"Think of your friends." Hermione said.
"WHO???" Snape challenged.
"Me." A voice from the shadows said. They all turned round. Albus Dumbledore stepped from them. "Don't look so surprised. I come here more than you do. I have seen and heard what you and Miss Granger talk about."
"I'm your friend." Hermione said quietly.
"Me too." Harry added.
"Me three." They all looked at Remus. "Just trying to lighten the situation"
"Severus, you have friends, friends who accept you and are willing to help you. Please don't do it."
"Please."
"Please."
"Please. Severus, I don't love you as a lover, but as a friend I do. I don't want to lose another friend please."
Severus looked around the room. Then he looked back at his way out.
"Don't take the easy option." Slowly he stepped down from the ledge. Lupin and Hermione flung their arms round his neck. Snape broke down in tears.
"You stupid bugger." Lupin said.
* * *
Lucius Malfoy barged into the Entrance Hall. He saw Professor's Snape, McGonagall, Lupin, and Dumbledore sat on the steps with Harry Potter, Ron Weasely, and Hermione Granger.
"Dumbledore, tell me this instant was is going on!?" he demanded.
"Nothing, Lucius. Professor Snape here had a little fall down the stairs that's all." Dumbledore replied curtly.
"Why is he." He pointed to Snape. "Still here?"
"Why I don't know what you mean?"
"Hedidn't he threaten my son?"
"No."
"Draco."
"I couldn't do it dad." A voice said from behind him. Lucius spun round to face his son. "It wasn't right. But I will do this." He swung his fist back and punched his father clean on the nose. Lucius staggered backwards. And the people cheered.
* * *
Later that evening
"Severus" Lupin said, awkwardly.
"It's okay." Snape answered
"You don't know what I was going to say."
"So? It's still okay."
"Oh ok then. Well what I want to say is thatI don't want to become romantically involved but I do want to help youwe might be able to help each other."
"Yeah." Lupin hugged Snape.
THE END
