Author's Note: Thank you again for all of the good reviews. I also hope that people check out my newest story, Blood Tithes, which will probably grow to be as long as this one...but much darker.
30. ...Hermione really doesn't understand Boys
Professor Snape stood by the edge of the gray and very cold looking lake and scowled.
He couldn't remember how he had been talked into coming or, more importantly, why,
and the whole situation was making him very peevish. He scowled some more. After all,
why would three students, two of which had always hated the other, and a teacher go on a
picnic by a lake in the middle of winter? It made no sense. And yet somehow they had
talked him into it. Snape took another gnawing bite of his chicken leg, discontented.
He looked over at the three students who had spread a blanket, presumably from
someone's room, and were proceeding to devour a large lunch wheedled from the house
elves who staffed the kitchen. Hermione had suggested turkey sandwiches and potato
chips and the two boys had vehemently disagreed, instead voting for cold chicken.
Hermione had taken a turkey sandwich for herself anyway and Snape now found himself
nearly amused as he watched the boys try to pretend that she was now eating nothing of
the sort. Their skittishness of the food confused Snape, but he was sure he probably
didn't want to know anyway.
Besides, what was more confusing in any case was the outing as a whole. Not the fact
that they had decided to abscond and leave Harry alone with Ginny. That he could figure
out for himself, despite Harry's little panic attacks. No, what was confusing was the civil
manner in which their outing was being conducted. Draco was almost being nice to Ron
and Hermione and they were almost being nice back. It was highly disconcerting and
Severus Snape didn't like it one bit.
He sighed as he walked back over to the group, and sat down on an unclaimed corner of
the blanket. One of the things that had him so disconcerted, he realized, was that he was
almost enjoying himself. The weather was uninviting and the company not exactly
choice but it was certainly nice to get out once in a while.
"Lucius, both the Andersons and the Whindletons have invited us to dinner next
Saturday. They've been in a blood feud for years, ever since that stupid gray hound
incident and dining with one family is bound to the offend the other. Which one of them
is less important to your political maneuverings? I need to send a reply soon."
"Darling, must we talk about this right this second?" Lucius had been conducting an
experiment with Blaise that involved cocktail olives when his wife had walked into the
room and the thinness of his patience was very clear in his voice. And to top it off,
Narcissa had left the door open and there was a draft. Lucius Malfoy hated drafts and
had spent a fortune to insure that Malfoy Manor, despite its age, was draft free.
Narcissa crossed her arms in response to his question and stared imperiously down her
nose. She didn't even bother to acknowledge Blaise. "Let the Garden Society hold their
annual banquet at the Manor and I'll leave you alone." Narcissa had always had as little
as possible to do with growing things, but everybody who was anybody in the world of
aristocratic witches had a membership in the Garden Society.
Lucius growled to himself before replying. "Fine, whatever you want. I assume you can
find your own way out."
"Oh, assuredly." Narcissa's expression was the small, tight smile of one who has
successfully accomplished their goal. She didn't bother to close the door on her way out.
Hermione shaded her eyes with her hand and watched as another stone arced across the
gray water of the lake. Somehow the male members of the party had gotten into a whole
stone-skipping Thing and Professor Snape was now using his status as a teacher to give
an impromptu lesson on the only best way to skip a stone. However, it was quickly
decaying into a contest between Ron and Draco to see who could skip their stone the
farthest. So far Ron was in the lead by one skip.
Hermione shook her head. She would never understand boys. They seemed to always
want to make everything into a contest. This she could almost understand, as she herself
was always very competitive when it came to school, but sometimes they were just
utterly inexplicable. From the looks they'd been giving her when she'd been eating her
sandwich you would have thought she was committing murder or something equally
horrifying. 'Boys are just silly' she decided as she watched Draco heft another stone.
Professor Snape was walking back to the blanket, apparently having given up on his
lesson.
Suddenly Hermione saw the oddest expression cross Ron's face as he watched Draco
skip his stone. It was a sort of suddenly remembered righteous evil, and Hermione was
confused. Then, before the stone had even finished skimming across the water, Ron
shoved Draco into the water.
Hermione started to her feet as Draco came up sputtering. He was scowling but he didn't
look nearly as angry as Hermione would have expected. She figured it had something to
do with the fact that he was wearing borrowed cloths and therefore wouldn't freak out if
they got soiled.
"What was that for!?" Draco's voice was rather high pitched from the cold and the black
robes he was wearing seemed to drag at him as he started slogging back for the shore.
"That was for..." Ron paused and glanced quickly behind him as if remembering that
Hermione and Snape were there. "You know bloody well what that was for!" Ron
shoved Draco back into the lake to emphasize his point. Professor Snape had stopped
walking toward Hermione and had turned to watch the tumult, though he didn't seem at
all interested in intervening.
It was a second before Hermione realized that Draco hadn't come back up again though
she could see the black lumps of his Snape-robes breaking the surface of the water. Ron
seemed to realize this at about the same moment and waded out to where the clothes were
visible. " Draco?" Ron made a grab and came up with nothing but sopping black robes.
He turned and looked back at Hermione and Professor Snape, the quintessential worried
Ron look plastered over his face. Suddenly, the water behind Ron erupted and a once
again nude Draco dragged him backwards into the water.
'Why do I have to keep seeing Draco naked?' Hermione asked silently. It really was
ridiculous. Ron came up scowling and trying to wipe his hair out of eyes with hands
hampered by long, wet sweater sleeves. Draco was grinning. "I thought you forgave me
for that."
"Never! I told you I'd get you back when you least expected it." Ron lunged and tackled
Draco.
Hermione watched as Draco and Ron began a mad wrestling match in freezing water.
"Boys," was all she could say.
"I don't understand it either." The look on Professor Snape's face was unreadable.
30. ...Hermione really doesn't understand Boys
Professor Snape stood by the edge of the gray and very cold looking lake and scowled.
He couldn't remember how he had been talked into coming or, more importantly, why,
and the whole situation was making him very peevish. He scowled some more. After all,
why would three students, two of which had always hated the other, and a teacher go on a
picnic by a lake in the middle of winter? It made no sense. And yet somehow they had
talked him into it. Snape took another gnawing bite of his chicken leg, discontented.
He looked over at the three students who had spread a blanket, presumably from
someone's room, and were proceeding to devour a large lunch wheedled from the house
elves who staffed the kitchen. Hermione had suggested turkey sandwiches and potato
chips and the two boys had vehemently disagreed, instead voting for cold chicken.
Hermione had taken a turkey sandwich for herself anyway and Snape now found himself
nearly amused as he watched the boys try to pretend that she was now eating nothing of
the sort. Their skittishness of the food confused Snape, but he was sure he probably
didn't want to know anyway.
Besides, what was more confusing in any case was the outing as a whole. Not the fact
that they had decided to abscond and leave Harry alone with Ginny. That he could figure
out for himself, despite Harry's little panic attacks. No, what was confusing was the civil
manner in which their outing was being conducted. Draco was almost being nice to Ron
and Hermione and they were almost being nice back. It was highly disconcerting and
Severus Snape didn't like it one bit.
He sighed as he walked back over to the group, and sat down on an unclaimed corner of
the blanket. One of the things that had him so disconcerted, he realized, was that he was
almost enjoying himself. The weather was uninviting and the company not exactly
choice but it was certainly nice to get out once in a while.
"Lucius, both the Andersons and the Whindletons have invited us to dinner next
Saturday. They've been in a blood feud for years, ever since that stupid gray hound
incident and dining with one family is bound to the offend the other. Which one of them
is less important to your political maneuverings? I need to send a reply soon."
"Darling, must we talk about this right this second?" Lucius had been conducting an
experiment with Blaise that involved cocktail olives when his wife had walked into the
room and the thinness of his patience was very clear in his voice. And to top it off,
Narcissa had left the door open and there was a draft. Lucius Malfoy hated drafts and
had spent a fortune to insure that Malfoy Manor, despite its age, was draft free.
Narcissa crossed her arms in response to his question and stared imperiously down her
nose. She didn't even bother to acknowledge Blaise. "Let the Garden Society hold their
annual banquet at the Manor and I'll leave you alone." Narcissa had always had as little
as possible to do with growing things, but everybody who was anybody in the world of
aristocratic witches had a membership in the Garden Society.
Lucius growled to himself before replying. "Fine, whatever you want. I assume you can
find your own way out."
"Oh, assuredly." Narcissa's expression was the small, tight smile of one who has
successfully accomplished their goal. She didn't bother to close the door on her way out.
Hermione shaded her eyes with her hand and watched as another stone arced across the
gray water of the lake. Somehow the male members of the party had gotten into a whole
stone-skipping Thing and Professor Snape was now using his status as a teacher to give
an impromptu lesson on the only best way to skip a stone. However, it was quickly
decaying into a contest between Ron and Draco to see who could skip their stone the
farthest. So far Ron was in the lead by one skip.
Hermione shook her head. She would never understand boys. They seemed to always
want to make everything into a contest. This she could almost understand, as she herself
was always very competitive when it came to school, but sometimes they were just
utterly inexplicable. From the looks they'd been giving her when she'd been eating her
sandwich you would have thought she was committing murder or something equally
horrifying. 'Boys are just silly' she decided as she watched Draco heft another stone.
Professor Snape was walking back to the blanket, apparently having given up on his
lesson.
Suddenly Hermione saw the oddest expression cross Ron's face as he watched Draco
skip his stone. It was a sort of suddenly remembered righteous evil, and Hermione was
confused. Then, before the stone had even finished skimming across the water, Ron
shoved Draco into the water.
Hermione started to her feet as Draco came up sputtering. He was scowling but he didn't
look nearly as angry as Hermione would have expected. She figured it had something to
do with the fact that he was wearing borrowed cloths and therefore wouldn't freak out if
they got soiled.
"What was that for!?" Draco's voice was rather high pitched from the cold and the black
robes he was wearing seemed to drag at him as he started slogging back for the shore.
"That was for..." Ron paused and glanced quickly behind him as if remembering that
Hermione and Snape were there. "You know bloody well what that was for!" Ron
shoved Draco back into the lake to emphasize his point. Professor Snape had stopped
walking toward Hermione and had turned to watch the tumult, though he didn't seem at
all interested in intervening.
It was a second before Hermione realized that Draco hadn't come back up again though
she could see the black lumps of his Snape-robes breaking the surface of the water. Ron
seemed to realize this at about the same moment and waded out to where the clothes were
visible. " Draco?" Ron made a grab and came up with nothing but sopping black robes.
He turned and looked back at Hermione and Professor Snape, the quintessential worried
Ron look plastered over his face. Suddenly, the water behind Ron erupted and a once
again nude Draco dragged him backwards into the water.
'Why do I have to keep seeing Draco naked?' Hermione asked silently. It really was
ridiculous. Ron came up scowling and trying to wipe his hair out of eyes with hands
hampered by long, wet sweater sleeves. Draco was grinning. "I thought you forgave me
for that."
"Never! I told you I'd get you back when you least expected it." Ron lunged and tackled
Draco.
Hermione watched as Draco and Ron began a mad wrestling match in freezing water.
"Boys," was all she could say.
"I don't understand it either." The look on Professor Snape's face was unreadable.