Disclaimer: Not the inventor of the realm of Harry Potter. That would be J.K. Rowling
Crookshanks took deep satisfaction in extending his claws and dragging them through the boy's flesh. The child's immediate hiss of pain and grasping of his shin gave the cat a sense of peace.
'Good' thought Shanks viciously, 'maybe next time you'll think before you do something so dangerous again.' He wished he had someway of actually saying this to the boy.
"Maybe, Potter, next time you'll think before you do something so dangerous again."
Crookshanks whipped his head round to the dark man that had spoken his thoughts. The cat gave an appreciative purr. Finally, someone who had the sense to point out Harry's stupidity, not to mention having the presence to get through to the thick-headed boy. God knew, Hermione tried, she really did, and had acted as a brake on the boy's more outrageous plans but she wasn't really scary or strong enough to prevent him from going through with some of the less bone-headed ideas. It had put her in bad situations countless times often against her better judgement.
Shanks hated it. Oh sure, he knew that Harry, Ron and Hermione were friends, but lately this tendency to get into trouble had been getting out of hand. He attempted to warn her but he was only a cat, and there really was only so much you could convey with a vocabulary of 'meow', 'purr' and 'yowl'.
"I was only trying to help, Professor Snape," the voice was bitter and sarcastic. Behind him he heard Ron let out a faint gasp.
Snape's eyes narrowed at the boy, "You seem to have succeeded remarkably well. Miss Granger," here he paused and pulled a face, as if saying her name had left a bad taste in his mouth, before continuing, "is obviously much better off being comatose and imitating a porcupine."
'Not,' thought Shanks, 'quite how I would put it, but still, good point well made.' He was starting to like this Professor Snape. From the snatches of information he had about the man from whenever the trio were discussing him, he had expected someone more sinister, ugly, and bat-like, with a gianormous nose. The man standing in front of him was not handsome certainly, but not immediately repulsive. As he remembered what the children had said about Snape he realised that his mistress had never actually made any disparaging comments about the man. It had always been the boys, and it was always Hermione that made them stop. An idea began to form in the back of his mind.
Author's Notes:
Short, sweet and will be rapidly followed by an update tomorrow. I actually have a good idea where I'm heading with this, but as ever I'm open to ideas / suggestions.
Thankyou to everyone who reviewed the first chapter. Feel free to review this one too, hint hint :o)