Chapter 3
Hermione tapped lightly on the door to Snape's classroom. She heard the faint sound of footsteps from inside the dungeon. The door opened far quicker than she had expected and Snape's pale face shown through the opening. "Ah, Miss Granger, please come in." Snape's usual disregard for students was replaced with a professional demeanor.
Hermione stepped into the familiar dark, dreary, dungeon that she had taken classes in for all of the six years she'd been a student at Hogwarts. She waited for Snape to lead her to the front of the room, expecting to do the potion here in the classroom, but Snape led her past the rows of tables and his own desk, into another small room.
She looked around, obviously amused at the difference in scenery. The walls were a deep shade of forest green. There were four windows, all with covers on them, keeping the light out of the room for the moment. A large table made of stone held two medium sized cauldrons. Several herbs, liquids and spices were laid out on the table, along with a pair of cups and pestles, two silver knives, two silver spoons, and twenty glass vials. Beside the table, two stools stood next to each other. In one corner of the room, a pair of comfy looking chairs, were sitting next to each other, facing a beautifully carved and assembled fireplace. The mantle had the Slytherin crest engraved into the center, with two serpents running from each end to meet at the crest. Looking closer at them, Hermione noticed they were made of pure silver.
"You act as if you've never seen a laboratory before." Snape, once again, pulled Hermione from her thoughts.
"It's not that… it's just that… wow." She could hardly contain the awe in her voice. She peered around the room once more, and noticed a door, almost hidden behind a shelf of books.
Snape followed her line of vision. "It's a library, Miss Granger. Perhaps while we're waiting for the potion to cool, you can have a look, but if we want to finish this before class, we need to get started."
Hermione nodded and turned back to the table. She pulled up a stool and sat down, waiting for instructions.
"Madame Pomfrey requires a new batch of wit-sharpening potion. I know that you have made this in your Fourth Year, no doubt effortlessly, but seeing that such a large batch needs made, it would be easier with two people working on it." Hermione blushed slightly. Severus Snape had actually complimented her, sort of.
Hermione nodded in agreement and gathered the required ingredients: a few scarab beetles, one ginger root, and a small vial of armadillo bile. She set to work silently as she delicately cut up the ginger root, making sure each cut was identical to the others. Snape had taken up the stool next to hers, and began to crush the beetles, turning them into a ground mixture within minutes. The couple worked silently and quickly. Twenty-five minutes later, both cauldrons were filled; the contents boiled, and were now simmering.
"Are you ready, Miss Granger?" Snape's polite question took Hermione off-guard.
"Ready? Professor?" Hermione was slightly confused. The potion was nearly done. The only thing left was to let it cool and then bottle it. She had no idea what he wanted to do now.
"I believe I promised you a look at my library. Unless, of coarse, you have no desire to visit it." Snape's left eyebrow lifted in a curious arc.
"Of coarse, I'd love to see it!" Hermione grinned with delight. Libraries were her favorite place to be. She always found the silence and books comforting.
Snape nodded and directed her to follow him. He said an indistinct phrase and she noticed a charm being broken. iHe must keep this under tight wraps. I know I would never let anyone near my books./i
Hermione followed the tall man into the vast library. She gasped at what she saw. Books of every shape, size and thickness caught her eye. Rows upon rows upon rows of books covered almost every inch of the room. They reached from the floor to the high ceiling in bookcases. There was small sitting space, with a small love seat, a desk and chair, and a small fireplace. Books were scattered over the desk and pieces of parchment littered the floor next to the desk.
Snape observed the girl closely. He watched as she walked slowly past the first bookshelf, running her fingers delicately over the spines of the old books. She moved her lips slightly as she read the titles of the books to herself. Towards the end of the first row, she stopped in her tracks and stared at one particular section.
"You have Muggle books?" Her question was one of confusion and bemusement mixed together.
"Yes. I happen to enjoy some Muggle poetry." He watched as her small hands reached for the book, but pulled away. She looked at him for a moment, trying to decide if she should ask her question. "Yes, Miss Granger, you may handle the books. They aren't going to melt under your touch."
Smiling, Hermione pulled the book from the shelf, opened it, and made her way to the loveseat. She flipped through the pages until she found on she was satisfied with. "My father… he used to read to be before I went to bed every night, up until I came here, obviously." She sniffled a few times and stared at the pages. Snape moved to his desk and pulled his chair out. He moved it to face towards her and sat down, watching her.
"What did he read to you?" He knew where this conversation had to go. Minerva had asked, no begged, for him to reach her. She needed to talk about her parents, to get it out, to cry and scream and hit someone. iLucky me. I get to get beat up by a Gryffindor brat./i Snape thought miserably. But he kept his promise and pulled the girl into his slowly developing trap.
Hermione sniffled again, her breath starting to come in ragged, staggered shots. "Shakespeare. He used to read me 'Romeo and Juliet' a lot." She looked at the page, then, in an almost inaudible voice, started to read from the story. She suddenly stopped and slammed the book shut. Tears welled up in her eyes as her breathing became even more ragged than before.
