Chapter 9 – I DON'T DANCE...
The lab was swelteringly hot as the fire and fumes of seven different potions boiled at once, bubbling merrily in the assorted cauldrons. Hermione was glad that this was her task actually, considering the fact that as Head Girl, she would have to play a major role in the upcoming Halloween Feast. Thank whatever Gods or Goddess that Ginny Weasley have been way too enthusiastic about it and lend a hand so did a bunch of giggling female prefects whom Hermione don't seem to understand. She disliked balls, remembering her first one with Viktor Krum, which ended in a shouting match with Ron. Her second ball wasn't any better. In her sixth year, Ron had convinced himself that he was thoroughly in love with Hermione and even though she had resisted all his advances, telling him in extremely plain words that she was not ready for a relationship yet, they ended up with another shouting match, Ron blaming Hermione for being so in love with her academics that she had shunned people who cared for her.
In truth, Hermione could care less. She wasn't interested and had never been interested in anybody. True, she agreed to go to the ball as his date in her fourth year. But that was only because he was the first one to ask her and he could hold quite an interesting discussion with her. She knew he fancied her, but she never felt the same. If this is the rate I am going, I'll end up being an old maid, she thought wryly. Not that it bothered her very much, if the alternative was being surrounded by intellectually challenged boys, who couldn't tell the difference between a potion and a poison. Which jerked her back to the task at hand.
She stopped stirring abysmally and realized that the liquid in the cauldron had turned to the shade of Orange she wanted. It was her first time brewing that particular potion but she was sure she got it right. The potions for decorations had long been done; Snape completed those for the food, as he didn't trust her enough that she would not poison the students. She snorted at the idea. She wouldn't be surprised if he was the one who poisoned the students.
Now it was the precautions potions that she had to brew. The seven she currently brewed ranged from hangovers to contraceptives. It would be the last batch. She was tired from all the study and potions brewing she had to do. She rarely showed it though. She had held her head up high and faced all the challenges. After the Peeves incident, Snape had been avoiding Hermione. She wondered why. She knew she fainted and she knew that he had carried her, again. She wasn't bothered with his words that night. She didn't waste her time puzzling over what it meant. It didn't matter.
Her training was easy. Charms and transfiguration she was beyond advanced such that he need not teach her much. Potions weren't hard to teach as he had only made her review all the potions she had concocted and test her on her knowledge. DADA-wise, she was loaded with books and more books, teaching her with many interesting self-defense spells. Overall, she knew she had to learn all that was given to her. Yet, her discontent lie in the fact that she had too much to read and too little practical.
She had only brewed these useless potions, fought in defensive position in the duels he had instructed her in, and learnt occlumency by emptying her mind. The old innocent Hermione Granger would have been content at having so much new things to learn. The Slytherin Hermione Granger wanted more. Her thirst for knowledge went deeper than just reading from books and applying them to save her skin. She wanted to attack.
And unbeknownst to her, one knowing Potions Master was standing in his classroom, silently probing her mind for thoughts. He was very subtle and only a skilled legilimens such as him could pull it off without her detecting him consciously. Her mind was subconsciously erecting a barrier to him, but he had skirted over it and detected her displeasure at learning at the pace he was giving her and the hunger for more knowledge.
He smirked. Just like him. She was already hungry for knowledge. It was self destruction when he took the first step towards Dark Arts. He was lured by its seductive power and its promise of giving him all that he wanted. Severus Snape was no fool. He knew the extent of the power of Dark Arts, being a skilled practitioner himself. He knew power; he ever had a taste of it and would never forget the sweetness of bending things to his will. Yet he felt hollow at the same time. What use was it to bend things to his will?
Though he wasn't following Voldemort's Order anymore, he knew he would never be free. He was tainted. Had he not a task to fulfill, he would have killed himself, and enjoy his death immensely. Any kind of life is better than waiting to die. Yet he had vowed to Albus he would treasure his life. He snorted at the thought. Treasure his life indeed. The first rule to being a Sytherin would be the absence of guilt even after doing something wrong. The second was not to trust anyone and not give anyone his or her trust. It might have looked on the surface that he trusted Albus, but deep down he knew he trusted no one.
It was then that Hermione finished clearing everything. He wanted to sneak out, but was surprised when she called out.
"Did you have anything to say to me or were you merely distrusting me to do an adequate job on these potions Professor?"
So she had caught him. He could play the same game.
"Not at all Miss Granger. After all, I would be delighted if you poisoned those foolish enough to need a dose of your potions." He put on his best smirk while surveying the rest of her. She looked messed up as usual, and her eyes betrayed her posture and her briskness. He knew she had been staying up late into the night reading. And he began to notice something else altogether. She was quite pretty actually.
No, she was beautiful. Not the commercial type, where lots of cosmetics are involved. In fact, she wore no cosmetics at all. She was fair to behold, having little freckles due to the fact that she rarely spent time outside doing sports. Another similarity, he thought.
It was the long lasting type, which wouldn't fade with age or one that would get bored of. In other words, it wasn't her outer beauty that caught his attention. It was her inner beauty and her character, the thirst for learning and the aptitude for learning.
"Am I such a nice thing to look at Professor, or perhaps I wore my clothes upside down that's so strange to you?"
Her voice jolted him back to the present. He decided to teach her a lesson for being so cheeky.
"Hardly a thing Miss Granger. A beautiful lady would be more appropriate. Now are you done with your incessant clanking around in my classroom?"
She knew he was challenging her.
"I am forever grateful for the trust you put in me to allow me to use your classroom without supervision, sir."
"Without supervision? I highly doubt it. Perhaps I take a delight in meting out punishments if I find my classroom in a worse state after you leave Miss Granger. Unfortunately," he mocked sighed, "it is not so. Go and get some sleep Miss Granger. You look positively horrendous."
The speed in which he changed the subject didn't startle her. She had come to known Snape as a man skilled in verbal sparring and she actually enjoyed it. She gathered her labeled potions and proceeded to exit, with only a "Good night, Professor."
"Good Night, Miss Granger. And keep in mind tomorrow might be a...busy day...so I suggest you get some sleep. You'll need it."
Damn that bastard, she thought. He had to remind her didn't he? Which reminded that tomorrow was also the Halloween Ball and she had no one to go with her. Ron had given up and no one asked her. Ah well, she thought, I just have to go alone.
Hermione didn't bother undressing before she crawled into bed. She was too tired. It was always a mistake to let one's guard down, but it was a bigger mistake to forget why one should not let one's guard down. As Hermione entered the Dreams Realm, she learned why.
Voldemort was sitting on his "throne". He was stroking Crookshanks. And Crookshanks was purring. Then, he lifted his head and looked at her directly.
"So Lyanna, how is it coming? You seemed to have learnt quite some things. Yet I am displeased at Severus' reluctance to teach you Dark Arts. You are free to punish him, my dear. He will answer to you, if not he would have to face my wrath."
A sudden image of Snape being chained and pulled by her assailed her mind and she mentally smiled. She turned into a cold smile and displayed it to Voldemort.
"Don't worry Uncle. Everything is under control. I shall be seeing you tomorrow. And be nice to my cat."
She didn't even wait for a reply before gathering her will and throw out everything that Voldemort tried to assail her with. He tried again but was faced by an empty wall. She could feel a cold malice and fury, and then nothing more.
She awoke with a start.
And to her horror, Snape was there, in her bedroom. It was lucky she had not undressed.
"A foolish act!" He said.
No need of her to ask what. She should have been more careful.
"Did it ever cross your mind, Miss Granger, that he could use you unless you are alert AT ALL TIMES? CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"
"You sound like Moody." She grumbled.
"Did you realize you were taking a very big risk?"
"I fail to understand what you're driving at. I've succeeded driving him out didn't I?" She answered coldly.
"You realize that now he knew that it is possible to access minds even within Hogwarts? He could try to do it to others. Anyone, be it first year or staff might be used. You should not have let him entered at all! You let him enter your mind and tried to get rid of him. Yes you were successful. But that only showed the extent of your power. He wouldn't be happy to be bested by a mere seventeen-year-old. Furthermore, did you know what it took for me to sever the connection? If you had done it alone, you would have revealed far more to him. You were tapping into powers best left unknown to him. You mustered you will from your surroundings. You were using ancient Hogwarts magic to help you, you foolish girl. You are merely revealing to him the potential of this power. What would he do if he wield it?"
She was aghast. Was it really that bad?
Snape was pacing, a look of disgust on his face. Suddenly she felt...intimidated. And she felt bad for letting him down. She knew he wasn't the sort to have much faith in people. Yet, he had taught her many things, expecting her to obey him and follow him. Which she did, until tonight.
No, it would do her no good to be overridden with guilt.
"Drink this." Snape thrust a vial of clear sparkling liquid, which she knew to be the Dreamless Sleep Draught, with added sedatives to put her mind to sleep.
"Really, it isn't necessary..." she started protesting.
"DO YOU WANT ME TO FORCE IT DOWN YOUR THROAT MISS GRANGER? I THOUGHT YOU WOULD HAVE UNDERSTOOD THE CONSEQUENCES AND TRIED TO AMEND IT. APPARENTLY, YOU WERE NO DIFFERENT FROM THE FOOLISH GRYFFINDOR I DEEMED YOU WERE!" He was about to continue when she cut in.
"Fine, I'll drink it." She said rather sullenly.
"So much for him obeying me..."She muttered.
Under Snape's infamous glare, she drank the whole vial in a gulp and fell into a dreamless sleep.
Snape sighed. This girl was powerful. She could tap into powers beyond what others could. Even Voldemort himself hadn't been connected to the magic within Hogwarts. It was said that only a person who was loyal to the school would be able to use the power the ancient castle had to offer. Being a powerful wizard himself, Snape knew that it didn't take much effort for her to counter Voldemort at such a distance and within such protection. Yet he was still worried what Voldemort might do to her. She was too good for the Light to lose her.
There was nothing he could do but wait. And the years had taught him to be patient.
He looked at his surrounding with distaste. It was too nice and too friendly to have the eerie air that Halloween should have.
The house tables were set aside and smaller tables with different themes were set up all around the Great Hall. Even the staff's table had been taken down. Dumbledore looked his cheery self as he made an eccentric opening speech as usual, with the message for everyone to tuck in and enjoy themselves. There was a wariness around Albus that Severus did not miss.
He watched with detachment his surroundings. The students all dressed in Halloween style, impersonating many different type of people and creatures. He spotted Malfoy who had dressed up as a Vampire. If there was anyone suited to dress up as a vampire, it was himself. He didn't even need to. Perhaps the fangs...
He knew he had never belonged to the students in that way, and knew he never would, unlike other staff, who seemed to be enjoying themselves and relaxing. McGonagall was waltzing around with Dumbledore as the first dance started.
As he sat in a corner brooding and waiting, someone slipped into a chair quietly by his side. He need not even turn as she smelled her unique scent and deduced it she would not leave him in peace at all. Insolent pest, he thought. Yet he was glad of some company.
"Where's your dearest Potter and Weasley?" he questioned.
"Oh they're off dancing." She replied nonchalantly.
"Indeed. And you Miss Granger? Shouldn't you be dancing with the headboy? Or does his clumsiness in Potions also apply to his dancing?"
He expected her to be mad and try to defend her friend. She merely laughed and raise and eyebrow.
"What of you professor? You know, perhaps, if you turn off that glare, people might ask you for a dance."
That was the most ridiculous thing he ever heard her say. He couldn't bite back his retort.
"And I suppose, Miss Granger, anyone would dare to approach the menacing Potions Master? I did not try to intimidate everybody for nothing, and the least they could do is to leave me alone."
There was silence between them for a moment as the chatter around them and the dance music vaguely registered in Hermione's mind. Snape noticed that her garb was totally black, his color. It suited her in some way.
"I do." She replied finally.
"You do what, Miss Granger?"
"Dare to ask you for a dance."
He did not reply to her question. He merely said,
"The hour is getting late Miss Granger. It is best if we slip outside now, unnoticed."
She nodded, although she couldn't help feeling disappointed that he had turned down her offer of a dance.
Snape isn't evil enough. Truth be told, I don't know how to make an evil Snape. Wish I had a beta reader to edit my work.