A/N: First of all, I would like to respond to several peep's reviews. Number one, I stated in Chapter 3 in some dialogue that I believed Snape to be around 36 years old, not 20, as one person stated. I merely did a calculation, based on what I knew from the books. Number Two, I apologize if I stated somewhere that Hermione is a blonde; I know she's a brunette. Number Three, thank you to the reviewer who pointed out that a "slash" meant something else…um, yeah, I'll be changing that…and finally Number Four, I am glad that people like the pace I'm going at with the "romance" because it is very good feedback as to how the story will continue! Thx!
I also just completely realized that I have not put a disclaimer in the first three chapters, oops. So, yeah, J.K. Rowling is the mastermind, and The Grim is just the big black friendly stray who is coming up with her own diabolical plot based on the mastermind's books. (That's me! Heehee…)
Chapter 4: Unknown Talent
Hermione slept badly that night; she could not stop thinking about what had happened on the staircase. Early that next morning she lay in bed staring at her canopy above in thought. He's my teacher, he's so much older and above me, to him I'm just a know-it-all Mudblood. She mentally pinched herself, she really did not need to insult herself, but that's what he thought of her. Well, more happened that night than I expected. I thought he'd just give me detention, (oh yeah, he did) and then leave me to fend for myself. But he didn't. He actually helped me out, and then I had to duck in front of him and pick up the wand and make him fall on top of me. She shivered. It was uncomfortable, yet, not. She wondered what else there was to Professor Snape.
Dragging herself down to breakfast, she took a seat next to Ginny and Ron. Harry was not at his usual place. Ron mumbled something about 'finishing his potions essay' and then asked where the hell she'd gone to last night, she was right behind them, and then when they got back to the common room, she was not.
"Ron, my, er, foot got caught in the trick step, and then Snape caught me and gave me detention." She froze; she had to have detention with him, alone.
"Good luck, hope you survive," said Ron sympathetically. He sneaked a glance at Snape. "Why does he always try to make our lives miserable?!" banging his fist on the table, causing the people around him to look over.
"Look Ron, I'll just do whatever dirty job he has assigned and then get the hell out, no sweat. I'll just ignore anything he says to me." Ron shrugged and starting eating his plateful of eggs and bacon. Hermione, also hungry, began eating.
No, no, don't look at her, no, too late. Snape had been poking around his plate of food until Hermione had walked into the Great Hall, and he watched her as she sat down, images of the previous night flashing through his brain. He gave an involuntary shudder, what had he been thinking?? He'd had to completely embarrass himself in front of the worst person possible: Hermione. He could not stop thinking about what had went on, replaying it critically through his mind.
That can't have been a coincidence, or an accident. Was there some inexplicable message Hermione was trying to portray to me? There had definitely been some tiny fragment of chemistry he had felt, and if he were wrong, he'd damn well eat dragon dung. Why is this so bloody scary? He was ashamed, he was acting like he was 17 again, and it did not help matters that he had to endure her for a detention after that 'incident.'
Hermione looked over cautiously at Snape, he had a deep look of concentration on his face as, she suddenly realized, was looking right at her. She looked away in embarrassment, blushing as she excused herself from the table. Great, now he probably hates my guts even more now, what a way to start the year out. And for some reason, this made her feel very sad.
First, Ron, Hermione, and Harry, (who had showed up after breakfast looking clear minded and composed), had History of Magic. For the first time in her years at Hogwarts, she actually didn't listen to Professor Binn's lecture on goblin revolutions. Besides, it's review anyway, she thought, and then continued to let her mind wander towards surviving Potions next.
Potions class was absolutely unbearable. As he had come to habitually do, he sat at his desk; doodling god knows what, staring at her when she wasn't looking, and then finally sweeping around the classroom at the end criticizing everyone's reviving potions, except hers. 'Evanesco' could be heard around the room as he vanished many students' potions. Surprisingly, he did not find anything wrong with Ron, Harry, and even Neville's potions. Harry and Ron looked immensely pleased with themselves, and Neville was just glad that he wasn't being yelled at.
"Miss Granger, would you please stay behind for a moment," Snape drawled silkily behind her, making her jump.
"Yes Professor."
Once everyone had gone, Hermione waited for Snape to say something, but instead he sat back down at his desk, doodling. She decided he was waiting for her to walk up to his desk.
"Sir, is this about my detention?" Snape jumped ten feet in the air and frantically shoved his quill and piece of parchment into his desk, but she caught of glimpse of some drawing on it. Snape was extremely frazzled.
"Hermione, would you please come serve your detention at 7 o' clock sharp tonight, and oh, and don't be late." It was a question and a dismissal in one breath. Hermione stood staring in shock at him: he'd called her Hermione!
"Well, Granger," back to his defensive side, "get to your next class and close that hanging mouth of yours." Hermione stupidly turned around and walked out, feeling his ebony eyes burning into her from behind, but she did not notice the first flush of red that had been seen on Snape's face for 16 years.
The day had passed too quickly, and soon it was ten to seven, and Hermione trudged to Snape's office. When she walked in, there was no one there. Puzzled, she glanced around to find another door that was slightly open. Thinking he must be in his office, she timidly pushed the door open.
What she was seeing in Snape's office was something out of her worst nightmare and fantasy. Everywhere, there were drawings of her. They were piled on his desk amidst all stacks of essays, lying around everywhere, between books, shelves, and sitting on top of lab equipment. She picked up one and examined it.
He was really good. The drawing looked almost exactly like her. He had caught every detail of her face, body, and hands. In this one, she was bent gracefully over her parchment, scribbling, most likely, an answer to a recent essay question on a test. He even had her picture biting her lower lip, just like she always did when she was concentrating. He had captured her very essence, her soul, in the simple black scratches of a quill.
She frantically began looking at all the drawings she could find, there were at least twenty littered around. Some were of her stirring a potion, measuring ingredients, some were of her taking notes, and others showed her in formal dresses, or posing in her school uniform, and one of her laying down, leaning her hand against her cheek.
Hermione did not know what to do. Why is Snape sketching me? That must be why he stares at me in class, as a model. Then she heard footsteps, Snape was coming; she dived headfirst underneath his desk, hitting her head hard on the edge, her world going black.
Snape swept into the room. It's seven-fifteen, where is Granger? She will get another week or more detention for skipping this one. Now what happened here? Noticing all his pictures astray on the floor, he gathered them up, actually smiling at them.
Then he went over to sit at his desk and wait for stupid Granger to show up. Once sitting in his desk chair, he felt something right against his leg. Pushing back the chair, he nearly had a heart attack. There was Hermione, lying unconscious against the desk with a large bruise on her temple.
He cursed, and then dragged her to the couch and laid her on it. He pointed his wand at her bruise, said something, and it shrank until gone. He then went to his stock of potions and picked out a bottle of reviving potion that would wake her gently and a bottle of veritaserum. I must find out what the hell she is doing, he muttered.
Dropping a small trickle of the reviving draught on her lips, he waited while she licked it with her lips and swallowed. Hermione stirred, slowly fluttering her eyelids to wake. Snape then put a single drop of veritaserum on her lips and waited again until she was fully awake.
"Hermione Granger?" She finally opened her eyes halfway with a slightly vacant look.
"Yes?"
"What were you doing in my office?"
"I came at seven, but you weren't in the classroom, so I checked in here."
"But you didn't just sit here and wait patiently did you?"
"I saw all the drawings of me." Snape blanched for a second, then spoke quietly.
"Did you like them?" Hermione sighed.
"Yes, they were beautiful. I didn't know you were such an artist. I loved them."
Hermione suddenly jerked her head and opened her eyes wide; the veritaserum had worn off, and she was fully awake, staring into her Professor's face. Snape backed away and put the bottles back on the shelf. He then grabbed her hand and pulled her up to a standing position.
"You're dismissed, Hermione," his eyes glowing with laughter. Who thought he had a sense of humor? Hermione wondered as she gazed back at him; he still hadn't let go of her hand.
"Sir?"
"Call me Severus when we're alone, Hermione. I daresay I will tire of hearing 'Sir' and 'Professor' after another two weeks of detention."
A/N: Soooo, little of everything, romance and some humor. Reviews make me happy! hint hint What on earth is to become of Hermione now???