"Knock it down! Now!"
"I most certainly will not!"
Perhaps it was the cold, but the more likely explanation for the color that actually began to spread across Professor Severus Snapes face, and yes, yes -to his very scalp was that pure, unholy rage had finally driven him to a point where his head was about to pop off like a cork jamming up a steaming kettle. The... thing was bad enough in itself. The thing! Merlin, there was no way to even refer to ...it mentally that didn't make it worse. The monstrosity? Oh absolutly not! All the student body needed to see now was their Potions Professor collapsing in hysterical giggles. Which were threatening to emerge as his memory looped back just a few minutes in time when the Head Girl had plunged his whole morning into distaster by actually saying (she really, actually SAID it!) "Er... Sir, we've got a big problem."
A BIG problem! Yes, he was definitly going to giggle hysterically or wring someone's neck. And right now, the Head Girl in question was the prime candidate for a good neck wringing. First the ...thing, then the fact that pretty much the entire student body, eagar to get to Hogsmeade for thier last chance to get some holiday shopping done before the break, was crowded at the front doors of the school, silent, unmoving, watching, and now, NOW here was Miss Hermione Granger, Head Girl extroidinaire, talking back to him in most impudent -and loud -manner, refusing a direct instruction.
For a moment time suddenly seemed to somehow curve in on itself, winding around and folding in this moment, freezing Miss Granger and himself into a perfect plastic snow globe. Time no longer existed here. It stopped, it froze into slow motion. Severus was aware of each snowflake, with all its exquisite uniquness and could follow where the the forces of chaos whould meet the forces of logical physics and he imagined he could predict the path of each one as it drifted, drifted oh so slowly on its meandering destiny. Professor Snape was having a Zen Moment.
This was probably a biological automatic response to keep his head from exploding.
"You. Will. Knock. It. Down. NOW."
"I SAID I will not." Hermione hissed back.
"Fifty poi-"
"-I don't care if you take away all the bloody points in existance and give me detention until the day Dumbledore puts on a blazing pink tutu and dances the cancan! Im. Not. Touching. That. Thing."
"It's hardly something to get squeemish about, Miss Granger!"
"Then why don't YOU knock it down?!!"
Because. Because they both knew what sort of consrquences awaited the one who carried out that action in front of every student in the school and -he was sure there were some teachers there now, but THEY weren't going to show themselves at a time like this -not with the risk of being stuck with he and Hermione's big problem-
Oh thank God he didn't just mutter that outloud...
Life itself had actually seemed simpler only moments later. Clearing a path through the snow and ice was always a sure way to avoid breakfasting in the Great Hall. Something that was grating at best at other times of the year, but which became quite the hideous experience when the holidays came around. Everyone with their damn cheer. And who was their number one victim? Why, one Severus Snape, of course!
"I most certainly will not!"
Perhaps it was the cold, but the more likely explanation for the color that actually began to spread across Professor Severus Snapes face, and yes, yes -to his very scalp was that pure, unholy rage had finally driven him to a point where his head was about to pop off like a cork jamming up a steaming kettle. The... thing was bad enough in itself. The thing! Merlin, there was no way to even refer to ...it mentally that didn't make it worse. The monstrosity? Oh absolutly not! All the student body needed to see now was their Potions Professor collapsing in hysterical giggles. Which were threatening to emerge as his memory looped back just a few minutes in time when the Head Girl had plunged his whole morning into distaster by actually saying (she really, actually SAID it!) "Er... Sir, we've got a big problem."
A BIG problem! Yes, he was definitly going to giggle hysterically or wring someone's neck. And right now, the Head Girl in question was the prime candidate for a good neck wringing. First the ...thing, then the fact that pretty much the entire student body, eagar to get to Hogsmeade for thier last chance to get some holiday shopping done before the break, was crowded at the front doors of the school, silent, unmoving, watching, and now, NOW here was Miss Hermione Granger, Head Girl extroidinaire, talking back to him in most impudent -and loud -manner, refusing a direct instruction.
For a moment time suddenly seemed to somehow curve in on itself, winding around and folding in this moment, freezing Miss Granger and himself into a perfect plastic snow globe. Time no longer existed here. It stopped, it froze into slow motion. Severus was aware of each snowflake, with all its exquisite uniquness and could follow where the the forces of chaos whould meet the forces of logical physics and he imagined he could predict the path of each one as it drifted, drifted oh so slowly on its meandering destiny. Professor Snape was having a Zen Moment.
This was probably a biological automatic response to keep his head from exploding.
"You. Will. Knock. It. Down. NOW."
"I SAID I will not." Hermione hissed back.
"Fifty poi-"
"-I don't care if you take away all the bloody points in existance and give me detention until the day Dumbledore puts on a blazing pink tutu and dances the cancan! Im. Not. Touching. That. Thing."
"It's hardly something to get squeemish about, Miss Granger!"
"Then why don't YOU knock it down?!!"
Because. Because they both knew what sort of consrquences awaited the one who carried out that action in front of every student in the school and -he was sure there were some teachers there now, but THEY weren't going to show themselves at a time like this -not with the risk of being stuck with he and Hermione's big problem-
Oh thank God he didn't just mutter that outloud...
Life itself had actually seemed simpler only moments later. Clearing a path through the snow and ice was always a sure way to avoid breakfasting in the Great Hall. Something that was grating at best at other times of the year, but which became quite the hideous experience when the holidays came around. Everyone with their damn cheer. And who was their number one victim? Why, one Severus Snape, of course!