Chapter 6 - Think of what I'm saying. We can work it out!
"She's so creepy! She looks at us and … "
"She took forty house points because we didn't mix it fast
enough!"
"I've never had bad marks in potions in my whole entire life!"
Severus Snape looked incredulously back and forth between the three distraught
Slytherins standing before his desk. This
must be a joke.
"… and what do you propose I do about all this? You are aware that I have
no jurisdiction over that class."
"But … but …"
"There's nothing I can do. I suggest studying, and for Merlin's sake, stop
looking so pitiful."
The boys sighed glumly, and tromped out of the room. Snape sat in
thought.
These few complaints were just a handful of more than a dozen he had received
in the last few weeks. After the … incident
… of the first week of school, Professor Tome's teaching methods seemed to
have changed. Drastically.
Against his better judgment, Severus hauled himself to his feet, and resigned
to making a trip over to the newly-draped
Potions office.
* * *
"Knock, knock, Opheelee dear," Snape called in a voice dryer than he thought
possible, "I think it's time we had a friendly
little chat between colleagues."
"Come in …"
As he ducked into the office, he saw her look up briefly from a stack of
papers.
"Oh, it's … you."
"And what, pray tell, is that supposed to mean?" Severus surveyed the office,
which was even dank and dustier than he had left
it. How pleasant. "Love what you've done with the place. Really, it suits
you -"
"Please leave." Severus blinked.
"Excuse me?" He was not in the habit of being treated like a …
student.
"I am expecting another person in a short time."
And I care … why?
"Now just wait one second, you can't just -" he stopped as she stood up.
Her braid was now, in fact, tied as a noose. Snape
raised an eyebrow. Psycho.
"Why are you here?" she grumbled, standing tall. Unfortunately for her sense
of superiority, "tall" meant barely 1.55m.
"Why are you harassing my House?" Tome pouted as he continued, "I'll have
you know that Slytherins simply excel at
potions work-"
"Do not worry, it is not just your House. That would not be fair. I am unkind
towards all students, just as you have said to
be."
Fuck.
"I didn't say to terrorize them! They can't learn if … if they don't have
a stable learning environment. No one can do well in a
class where they have to worry about the teacher, um, being cruel!" As he
spoke, Severus realized that he was spouting utter
bollocks and hypocrisy. But she won't know. "And you look so goddamned
frightening!" She glared.
"And you don't? Mister Defense against the Dark
Arts."
Maybe.
"Of course not, don't be ridiculous. There's a difference between trying
to scare the students, and doing it naturally!" He resisted
the urge to swoosh his black cape in defiance.
"I do not care! You cannot say one thing and then say another! You are being
angry because you have nothing to complain
about!"
"Hardly! Your methods of teaching bring shame to this highly esteemed
institution, and to the delicate science of potion making!"
"If you are so caring about potions why aren't you teaching the class
again?"
"I don't want to teach those awful excuses for -"
"I'm sorry - I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" a quiet voice called from
the doorway. Snape spun around quickly, causing his
robes to billow up. He hastily tried to straighten then while still retaining
his poise.
"Lupin?" Severus was startled. Last person in the whole fucking world
…
"Hello, Remus. I am sorry about this, I was asking for him to leave." Ophelie
apologized, pushing past the dazed DADA professor.
"Severus … you,re … okay, aren't you?" Asked Remus slowly, trying to asses
the problem.
"Yes. I'm fine, Lupin. Unexpected." And quite
unappreciated.
"Okay then. Shall we?" He nodded towards Tome, who walked out into the hallway.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your discussion, er,"
Lupin felt the need to explain, "but Albus asked me to, you know, show her
around for a while. Talk. You know."
That bloody decrepit lemon-dropping
bastard!
"Yeah."
Snape watched, motionless, as the two walked hurriedly down the corridor
chatting incessantly, not quite understanding what had
just happened.
Albus ...
Note: Eww, sorry that took so long to update. School is bad !! Science is
bad !! This is the only day so far I've been free to do any
writing, so I'm updating chappies as much as I can.
