Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter character, all of which are owned and © J.K. Rowling
Warning: This is not a Snape/Granger fic
Strange Days

It Starts

The day was coming to a close and the clouds over head were darkening with a moisture, preparing to rip open and shower down into an emptying Knockturn Alley. The alleys dark shops and even darker shoppers were slowly emptying, leaving behind the stray men whom people knew not to look twice at, as well as one lonely Gryffindor.

Clothed in her darkest outfit she could fined(tattered jeans and a black T-shirt) and her Gryffindor cloak, Hermione Granger made her way down a short flew of steps trying her best not to attracted the attention anyone. At the bottom of the steps she stopped momentarily to take a look around to take note of the man sitting in a window sill of a dark shop, a motorcycle in front of him. The mans outfit consisting of a pair of black riding boots, black leather pants, a tight black shirt with buckles going down the front, and a long black trench coat. He had his long black hair pulled back in a lose ponytail, some hair falling down, obscuring his face.

Hermione pushed her shoulders back, stuck her nose up, closed her eyes, and tried her best to blend in, looking like she walked this alley every night. So, she stuck out like a sore thumb as she walked past the man in the window sill. She spared a glance at his face to find him glaring at her and the badge on her cloak.. "Well, Hermione, this was a brilliant idea," she said to herself, picking up her pace and forgetting to look ahead of her.

* * *

Inside Knockturn Alley three men watched the Gryffindor walk along the street, flashing her badge like it could save her from danger. Head held high like she owned the alley. Two of these men where waiting just inside a dark, abandoned shop up the street from the third. This man if one looked closely may look familiar, to a point. For this man, if you saw him at work would be considered a loner. Always making sarcastic remarks and shrouding himself in secrecy. Few really knew his true nature and few ever would.

This man who hid most of his life behind a glamore was none other than Professor Severus Snape, Potions Master, and head of Slytherin.

He watched as Granger walked past, with her head held high, eyes closed, paying no attention to the goings on around her. He saw just up th street, a shadow move. Flicking his gaze back to Granger, he noticed she had no idea what she was getting herself into.

Growling, Severus gracefully removed himself from the window sill and with an annoyed sigh, set off down the street, trailing Granger.

* * *

Hot sweaty hands sprang from the shadows, grabbing Hermione as she walked past. One hand

grabbed her mouth, silencing any nose she might have made. The other snaked around her middle haling her into the shadows of the shop.

* * *

Soft silky hair slowly shifts to a gangly, greasy, mess. Straight nose morph to one hooked. Leather pants and coat change to crisp, harsh cotton. Severus had become Snape.

* * *

"Let my go," came a determined voice.

"Come, now. Don't you know how this game is played," was the reply.

"Please, No," came the almost inaudible reply.

The small condemned shop housed its first three occupants since it's closing, several centuries earlier. One of the occupants, a girl was on her knees crying, while the man behind her held her shoulders and the man in front of her held her forearm firmly. Both the men whore long black cloaks that covered most of their bodies and a hood covering most of their heads, as well as white purslane masks that covered their faces.

Hermione knew at first glance that they were Death Eaters and will she could not see their faces,

looking through the eye slits in the masks she could see that both men had ill intentions.

"Come on, little miss Gryffindor. Don't you want to play," the man in front of her spoke.

She couldn't help the sob as the man reached out a hand to touch her face. Then..

SLAM!

The front door to the shop swung open and hit the wall hard. Both man turned away from the

sobbing Hermione to look at a man cloaked in all black, who stood in the door way, arms crossed and scowling at them.

"Professor Snape," both the man had recognized their old Head of House instantly. Suddenly, a wave of fear washed over them as they stepped away from Hermione, letting her curl into a fetal

position. Severus Snape stepped into the room, ignoring the two Death Eaters as he walked up to stand over Hermione, his cloak billowing behind him. Looking down on her his scowl deepened.

"Umm, Professor? I-I, W-we where just..."

"Leaving," Snape turned on the two. "You. Were. Just. Leaving."

The two boys looked at each other than back at Snape. "R-right. We were just leaving..But, the Dark Lord just..."

The boy never got to finish as his whole body was overwhelmed with pain. Falling to the floor

and wreathing from the cruciatus curse that Snape held onto him. The other boy stood stock still, trying his best not to exist. After several minutes, Severus lowered his hand, tired of the boys screams.

"Leave."

With a pop the two vanished, apparateing to a place the Severus could care less about.

"Idiots."

Severus turning to look back to Hermione who was trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. "Well, Miss Granger?"

Hermione looked at her feared potions professor, eyes red and puffy. "'Well' what, Professor?"

"What are you doing in Knockturn Alley?" He sounded irritated.

Hermione suddenly found the crack in the floor very interesting. "I..I got lost," she didn't dare look him in him eye. After several seconds of silence, Hermione looked up and was caught by his eyes.

Severus glared at her for several minutes, all emotion void from his face. But those eyes showed all his frustration. Deep and penitrating, they searched Hermione for a real answer. For a weakness. For the truth.

"Are you capable of finding your way home, Miss Granger? Or would you like a map?"

Hermione flinched as Severus narrowed his eyes. Daring her to tell another lie.

She had to force herself to answer, but she did it looking at the floor. "I can't go home."

It was a simple answer, but it held the truth. Severus could see that, but he could also see that there was something behind it. Looking her up and down, he decided that now was not the time to press the subject.

"Well, Miss Granger come along."

Hermione looked up shocked, "What?"

"Would you rather stay here?" Severus didn't stop walking until he reached the door.

Hermione stood swiftly, stifling another sob, and fallowed Severus' steps to the door. When she had reached the door, Severus had turned around to face her. "Something wrong, Professor?"

"Before we continue, Miss Granger, I would like to make one thing very clear: If you tell another soul what I am about to show you I will make the rest of your time at Hogwarts a living hell. Am I understood?"

"You all ready make my life a living hell," she had said it before she could stop herself.

"Oh, believe me, Miss Granger, I can do a lot better. Now, am I understood."

Hermione knew that this time it wasn't a question, but nodded anyway. Severus heaved a sigh

before closing his eyes and began to concentrate. Hermione gave an eep in surprise as her feared potions teacher's form began to shift. His greasy hair turning to silk, a hooked nose straightened, a cotton cloak faded into a trench coat, black shirt and leather pants. She recognized him as the man that had been sitting in the window sill outside. As Severus opened his eyes and spoke, Hermione noticed that his teeth had also changed to pearl white.

"Your gaping like a fish, girl," Hermione quickly closed her mouth. "Now, come along."

Hermione fallowed her Professor out of the shop and down toward the window that he had been perched on, stopping once so that he could pick up an empty can. Severus pulled out a hair tie from his pocket and handed it to Hermione, telling her to put her hair up as he transformed the can in his hand to a helmet.

Once she had her hair back he handed her the helmet as well.

"What's this for?"

"I'm not about to let you ride my motorcycle without it." Severus turned away from her and got onto the Harley that Hermione had seen earlier.

"Cool."

* * *

About an hour later...

Outside a motorcycle revved it's engine before shutting down. Footsteps sounded as two people
walked down the path leading to the front door. Listen closely one could hear Severus as he talked.

"I'm going to say this one more time:.." the door swung open as he walked in and held a hand up in
welcome. "If you tell another soul what you see I will make the rest of your time at Hogwarts a living hell."

"Yes, Professor," Hermione muttered as she walked past Severus into the greeting room of his large
mansion. Looking around she couldn't help but marvel at how clean it was, she had been expecting a cold, dark, dirty, hell hole. But this was quit the opposite.

"If you're done staring, the guest room is this way," Severus walked past Hermione to open the large door at the other end of the room.

Pulling out the hair tie she walked into the next room and stopped dead as a girl about her age came running down the stairs to her left and flung herself and Severus.

"Your home," the girl yelled into Severus' stomach.

"Thank you, Sage, I hadn't noticed," Severus said absentmindedly, pulling out his hair tie.

Sage pulled away from him and beamed. "Oh, Dad, you'll never guess what happened today, Stibbles has finally filled her first chest lock. She's been running around singing about it all evening. I think she was able to brake through the hexes that you had on the old potions room so that she could clean it. She's so smart.

Who's that?"

Severus just stood there for a few seconds staring off into space before looking at Sage. "Oh, I'm sorry,
your done talking. This is Hermione Granger, a sixth year student who found Knockturn Alley is not the place to be after dark. Miss Granger, this is my daughter, Sage." With that Severus turned and left the two to talk, hearing their fading voices talk about lord knows what.

Several minutes later he found himself in his old potions lab and it had indeed been raided by his house elf, Stibbles. Picking up the closest bottle to him. He read the labile that was written in his hand writing: Beaters Bones. His mind was suddenly filled with different ingredients, side effects, and uses of the potion.

A wave of pain shot up Severus' left arm and the potion that he had been holding hit the floor, sending glass and potion in every direction. There was a distinct pop and Severus Snape, the Death Eater was gone.

The only sound in the house was that of two girls in the greeting room, "So, did you want to go look at the Harley again?"

* * *

Ok, that is it for the first chapter. What did ya think? Hate it? Love It? Don't Care? Please review. I will be adding the next chapter ASAP

-Chibi_Marrow