Disclaimer: This is not mine. This is not mine. This is not mine. Remember it, geez!

A/N: Hello! I know I haven't kept my promise... but sadly, my life doesn't include reading and writing only! I've got to go to a camp, and I got sick, and tomorrow I'd receive the most important report card in my life...so, hahahaha...

*audience shake head and taunt, 'excuses, excuses'*

...heh, heh...Sorry for not updating earlier...*brightens up* but this is the longest chapter yet! It is very long! So... it's worth the wait. To a lighter topic- There's only a word to describe you guys...

*audience shout random words like 'brilliant', 'pretty', 'rock', 'lovely', 'cute'...*

Ok, ok I get the idea. There are many words that can describe you, but the one I had in mind is- WHOA! 20 reviews a chapter! I can never thank you enough!

MoonFlowerLain: Neat way! I am just curious, that's all... lovely to know a new reader!

sarah: It's strange, I know... I AM strange...hehe.

Noriko M. Chijinu: Hey you changed your name! Something to do with the new policy of ff.net? Anyway, I am not telling about the steak now... you've to read to know! *wink* Don't ya just hate authors when they say this?

Asmodon: Sorry I didn't update quickly... I tried!

Ezmerelda: I should be the one thanking you for reviewing! As for the cooking thing, I am not giving too much away now... hehe!

evilbon32: For your long review I'm going to give you a long reply. Yes, I hope ya don't hate Ron too much... if my crush go on liking Snape I'd do something worse! So yeah... and he would change, eventually, I think...Hmmm... As for Umbridge... SHE IS ONE BIG UGLY EVIL TOAD!!! I hate her!!! Grrr... She'd make a presence in this chapter...hope you won't throw your computer across the room becoz of this! *wink* Enjoy this chapter as well!

shiroiryu144: HG/SS ALL THE WAY! Sorry, I just had to do that... *sheepish grin* HP/DM is okay too... in fact the first fanfic I read is that ship... anyway, please keep reading!

crazy2: Hello back! *waves* Here's more!

VampireHunter2: Thx for adding me to your fav list! *blushes* Ya guys are flattering me...

Lady Boo: I wrote this deep at night too! Insomnia is evil! And oh thanks! That's so flattering! Hehehe... *silly grin* Hope you enjoy this as well!

reader: Yeah, since Hermione developed a crush on Sevvie her life is nothing but trouble! Lol. Thx and keep reading!

Kashii: Thank you!

Kryptonite: Yeah, so now Hermy can have detentions without points taken away! YAY!

kat-tak: It's fun to think up things for her to do as well! Hope you like this chapter!

Lily of the Shadow: Sorry for not updating earlier, thanks for reviewing!

VampireHunter278: Oh that's so flattering... I think I am gonna blush. *blushes* Glad you like the story!

*Elentari*: Yeah! Don't you just want to see what happens if he actually eat that?! Haha, great fun thinking up his reactions... but I am not giving it away now! Please keep on reading!

Claire Bear Blondie: Thankies! I hope you like this chapter as well...

Real-fan05: Hahahaha! Finally someone who loves root beer like me! ROOT BEER RULES! Ok not really... here's the new chapter! :D

Teri: Glad you like it... keep on liking it! *wink*

Yeah! Hope this chapter got as much review... now, the moment you've been waiting for: "ON WITH THE STORY!"

----------

"So, have you eaten yet, sir?"

Severus glared at the brown-haired Griffindor in front of him. There she is, smiling at me again. The girl had more Griffindorish, aka dumb rash bravery in her than he thought. No one ask him questions during detentions. She just can't keep her mouth to herself, he mentally snorted, and replied in his patented talk-back-and-die silky tone.

"How does 50 more points taken sound to you, Miss Granger?"

"I'm just being courteous," Hermione frowned, but brightened remembering McGonagall's spell and her new-and-improved prefect badge. She took out the piece of parchment the said older witch gave her earlier and handed it to Severus. "Professor McGonagall asked me to give you this."

Severus took over the piece of paper and unrolled it. It was a short note.

Severus,

As you may have noticed, Miss Hermione Granger's state of emotion is rather unstable in the past few days. She is a prefect and thus a role model
for our younger students, and her breaking down would do more harm to them than anything else, not to mention her health and studies would be
greatly affected. For all these reasons she is now exempted from points taken from her, though detentions are still effective. Albus will be notified
of this and will most certainly second my decision.

Yours,
Minerva McGonagall

P.S. Staff meeting Thursday night, eight o'clock, be punctual. No more headaches or similarly lame excuses, please.

Severus ground his teeth and crushed the note in his grip. That Minerva, always using her relationship with Albus to her and Griffindor's advantage. He peered down at Granger and wondered whether she knew about what was said in the note. Unstable emotional state? He snorted again, fragile was just not the word he could associate with Hermione Granger, not even when she had cried in his classroom.

Hermione observed her Potions professor curiously. She saw frustration, despise and suspicion flashed across his face, and wondered what was in the note.

"So you're unstable... because of what? Weasley?" He sneered.

"I don't know what are you talking about, sir," Hermione said, her face confused and innocent.

"Don't think you can use this to your advantage, I have plenty of ways to punish a student other than taking points," he continued, knowing that it was not completely the truth. He had always preferred taking points to detentions, simply because he hated thinking up work for those idiots who called themselves students to do. He also enjoyed the peaceful solitude in the dungeons after dinner.

"Oh," Hermione replied, not understanding much, but knew it had something to do with her no-points-taken status. She smiled. "Should we start our detention, sir?"

"It's your detention," Severus grumbled, and they started to work.

----------

It was a week later, and apparently his warning was as good as gone down the drain- Hermione hadn't took it very seriously and was indeed taking every advantage she could from her special status. And it seemed that his scowls, frowns, threats, snarls, glowers and many other menacing acts he prided himself for had lost their intimidating effects- on her, at least.

I'd drink another potion Longbottom brew if her emotional state is unstable, Severus thought one night, she looks perfectly happy to me. Glaring at the girl who was buzzing around the dungeon cleaning the shelves for the second time of the week, he remembered darkly that he was slowly running out of chores for her.

Hermione looked over her shoulder at him- an act she did so often now it was as natural as breathing- and saw that he was staring at her with a deep frown on his face. She blushed a little and didn't notice that he was not really looking at her. She turned back to the shelves, then asked sweetly, "Say, professor, what are your favorite colors?"

There she goes again, popping stupid questions at me and sticking her nose into my personal affairs, he thought angrily. But damn my conscience I had to believe that note.

"Black, silver and green," he sighed tiredly, "is it that hard to guess?" All he wanted was to shout 'This is hardly any of your business, a million points from Griffindor' at her and get back his quiet evening. But no. He didn't dare to trigger her 'unstable emotional state' and cause her mental breakdown. The Slytherin side of him reminded him constantly to play safe. He hated that nagging voice back in his mind. And Minerva. And Albus.

"No it's not," Hermione chuckled while fighting back a snort. "Mine is red and gold, and ginger too, because Crookshanks is ginger-"

And she was not contented with asking him everything from his family to his favorite potion too, but she had to inform him about herself, to which he really held no interest. Not for the first time of the night, 'Why me' flashed through his mind. He rubbed his temples and interrupted.

"As interesting as your cat may be, can I please finish my work in silence?"

There. Every time he said anything slightly harsh to her- be they in forms of shouts, snarls, whispers, pleas or threats- she would give him the look. Her large brown eyes would be filled with questions, her expression confused, and she would bit her lips subconsciously. She would play with her fingers and bit her lips some more before returning to work. Now she was shifting the phials and arranging them in alphabetical order- the way he arranged them. He sighed, picked up his scales and continued measuring his ingredients.

Hermione looked at the cold phials lining neatly in front of her, and sighed. She didn't understand his reactions- she thought it was a light and quite enjoyable conversation. In the past week she had learnt more about him than she ever did, how Potions was his favorite subject (closely followed by Defense Against the Dark Arts), how he preferred owls to cats, how he was allergic to bananas and lilac. She enjoyed his words, enjoyed his attention- although most of the time it was an annoyed one, enjoyed his mere presence. She felt warmth and contentment no one else could provide, and marveled that it was in a dungeon, the least place she had thought, that she found them.

Didn't he like it as well? She doubted miserably, but was at the same time determined not to be let down. She quietly labeled the newly added ingredients, thinking over and over again what had she done wrong.

----------

Another week had passed, and Severus was growing more and more distressed. First, those horrid food hadn't stop coming. Adely would only cry when he inquired about them, and the next day the dish would be on his desk readily. So far he had encountered Yorkshire-muddy-pudding, cheese-overbaked-broccoli, meatballs-jumbled-pasta and many, many more.

Secondly, he had inevitably ran out of things for that annoying Granger to do, and was too lazy to think of something new. He had tried to assign her detentions to other professors but they were too lenient to his liking, so he took up the responsibility again. He was unaware of the fact that he was not much sterner than his colleagues and didn't wish to read much into his reluctance to assign her to Filch.

His mood grew steadily worse because of the Griffindor's obvious enjoyment in these detentions. She kept asking questions and talking to him in this merry way no student ever used with him. To this he responded by giving her more detentions, which to his disappointment didn't seem to bother the girl much. In fact, she almost looked cheerful to have detentions with him to probably the end of her fifth year. He couldn't help but feel sorry for himself- he was missing his calm, student-free evenings already.

Hermione was indeed very happy to have more detentions. It was good training, she thought, as she no longer flinched at his acid tone or glares anymore- it was in his character, she reckoned, to be horrible to anyone he considered intruding. The more time she spent with him, the more he seemed like a giant puzzle to her, one that piqued her curiosity so badly that she just had to solve it.

It was also quite amusing to see him fighting to control his temper, but every night she would win and gain herself more detentions. He had tried to assign her to other professors, but it seemed that McGonagall had informed them the truth- at least part of it- that those detentions were more like private lessons. She would finish her homework and extra projects during them, while having light conversations with her professors. Severus soon noticed this and took her back. Not that she was complaining.

"Hermione, you'd be late for your detention if you don't go now," Lavender reminded her friend from her armchair beside the fire. Dean pulled her back onto his lap.

"I know, but my essay-" Hermione flipped through the thick reference book frantically. Her parchment was five inches longer than required, but she was not finished yet.

"Why not take that with you?" Lavender suggested while fending off Dean's hand.

"Great idea," Hermione replied and picked up the book and her essay, then exited the Common Room hurriedly.

"Snape's going to let her finish that in his detention?" Dean asked incredulously.

"You never know," answered Lavender with a wink, and kissed her boyfriend deeply on the lips.

----------

Bam! Following the loud bang was a red object rolling in and parchments were flying everywhere. Severus snapped his head up from the assignments he was marking.

"Miss Granger, manners!" He barked at Hermione.

"Sorry," the latter apologized with a small grin, and tucked a wild piece of hair behind her ear. She threw the heavy books onto a desk and began to pick up the scattered parchments.

"What are these?" Severus asked, his eyes narrowing maliciously.

"I- I thought- these are my essays-" Hermione's voice was somewhat muffled under the desk.

"What makes you think I'd let you do your homework in my detention?"

"Well..." she straightened up and started carefully. "Since there seem to be nothing important for me to do-"

"I have plenty for you to do!" He would never admit that he really had ran out of detention ideas. "You can scrub the cauldrons!"

"I've done that three days ago, sir."

"Then the floor!"

"I've also done that, and the walls, too. Last Monday."

"Brew some- er-" Rats. She had brewed enough antidotes and burnt salve two nights before. "Dreamless Sleep Potions!"

"Again?!" She asked incredulously.

The two of them stared at each other. Finally, Severus sighed, "So I've nothing more for you to do in the meantime. That does not mean you can do anything you like."

"Okay," she conceded and sat down. He smirked satisfactorily and turned back to his work. The dungeon fell silent. Hermione placed her face on her arms, which were rested upon the desk, and stared at him. He is so charming when he works, she thought and her lips curled into a dreamy smile. Not for the first time she mentally traced her hand along his features, and imagined how his skin would feel under her touch. This is not so bad, I can finish my essay tomorrow.

The silence continued to ring in the chamber, and Severus started to feel uneasy. This room was so usually filled by her giggles and small talks at this time of the day that the queer silence now was awkward to his ears, instead of peaceful as he thought it would be. A dismal thought passed his mind, am I getting used to her company? before being pushed away mercilessly. He shook his head, his mind was really killing him these days. No longer concentrating, he looked up and saw Granger staring straightly at him from the other desk.

"Alright, alright! Do your essay! Just don't bother me," he wanted to shout and threw his hands into the air. Hermione's face lighted up and sat up straight excitedly. Never had Severus seen a student so eager to finish an assignment. He shook his head in amazement and watched her open the brick-sized books. He wanted very much to snort as she unrolled her parchment. It was filled by her minute writing and was clearly longer than required.

"Are fifth years required to write longer than four and a half feet?" He asked conversationally. Hermione looked at him in surprise. No sarcasm, no scathing tone, no acid remarks. It was as if he wanted to talk to her.

"Well, no," she looked down at her essay and let out a chuckle. "I merely thought some background information will help me explain the Mermaid Emancipation in 1874 better."

"Mermaid Emancipation?" He raised an eyebrow. "I thought the History of Magic had deleted that item a few years ago."

"This is an extra project." She explained enthusiastically. "And I am sure this knowledge would come in handy later when I organize the U.P.B.A.H.E.E.P."

"What is that suppose to stand for?"

"Under-Paid and Badly-Abused House-elves Emancipation Programme. This will be the first attempt only-" and she plunged into a detail explanation of her plan to free the poor house-elves.

Severus interrupted her rant by a loud chortle. Hermione stopped abruptly and gawked as the sound of his laugh bounced off the dungeon walls. He is laughing! She could hardly believe her ears and remembered that in her five years in Hogwarts she had never seen him laugh.

He stopped seeing her expression, and berated himself for letting his guard down, but could do nothing to stop the amusement reaching his eyes. "Miss Granger, I wish not to dampen your hopes, but you will never succeed." She was more naive than he believed if she thought her plan would work, but when her eyes sparkled when she spoke of the house-elves he couldn't help but think that she was cute.

Cute?

"- assumed that they don't want freedom, but we never proved it, right?" He caught up just in time to nod, but shook his head again.

"Miss Granger, there are many more things to their 'emancipation', as you call it, than just give them clothes-" And they spent the night arguing over house-elves' freedom.

----------

The more Hermione talked with Severus, the more she was astonished at the man's knowledge. He must read a lot, for he knew something about almost everything. He told her how the Ministry of Magic would never allow house-elves to be free, how many traditional wizard families would oppose these creatures' freedom, how had this topic became a taboo in the wizarding world, and how many problems would arose if they were truly freed. She listened and absorbed all of this, while voicing some of her ideas. By the end of the conversation she began to doubt her plan, but was very happy that they had shared a long talk.

Both of them seemed to read each other's mind and stopped talking at the same time. Severus continued to grade the papers and Hermione tried her best to write down every single thing he had said in the past hour. The room was once again quiet with only noises of quills scratching across parchments.

Severus was surprised at himself. He was an Occlumens, and blocked his mind from almost everyone. It was most unlikely of him to talk with another person, least a student, for an hour. And over something that is not of his concern, too. But he was even more surprised at Granger. She had more inside her than he wanted to believe. She read a lot and remembered all of them, no matter how trivial they may be. She had analyzed the data and laid out her plan carefully. He was almost sorry to break her dream.

Moreover, he had never imagined an intriguing dialog between the two of them; but it had happened. He hadn't had a real conversation with someone for a long time, and honestly, it felt good. Her animated gestures, her confident voice, her sometimes childish comments, and above all, her sparkling eyes, almost golden in the dim candle light, ran through his mind once again. That's the effect of having someone close to you for a long period of time-

STOP! His mind screamed, but it was too late. Painful memories flooded back and he racked his hair with a hand, frustrated.

Opening his eyes and wanting to escape from those memories, he tried to focus on the essay laying before him. Hermione Granger, he read the name, and groaned. He looked up and saw the girl had fallen asleep on her desk, books still opened and quill still in hand.

"What time is it already?" He wondered softly, and walked over to the sleeping girl. She looked even younger when asleep. Her hair was frizzy and sticking out in some odd angles as she never brush her hair properly. She was too busy for that. Her eyelashes were not very curly, but it was long and wavering slightly to her breathing rhythm. She was snoring lightly and peacefully, deep in sleep. Severus took away the quill from her hand, took off his cloak and placed it gently around her. She stirred but didn't wake up.

Severus sat back into his seat and started to read her essay. It was six inches longer than what he asked for. Her writing was tiny, as usual, and the essay was near perfect. He rubbed his eyes tiredly, read the essay again and looked over to the soundly asleep Griffindor. She had to serve a detention every night while coping with fifth year's heavy workload and extra projects, no wonder she was so exhausted. He thought for a moment, then in his spiky writing he scribbled a large black 'O' on her paper.

----------

"Mmmm..." a bushy head stirred uncomfortably on the desk. She sat up groggily and for a second didn't recognize where she was. It was not her dorm, this she was sure.

"Merlin!" Hermione exclaimed and jerked up, suddenly wide awake. A black cloak fell to the ground. "What the-?" She picked it up and felt the soft fabric in her hand. Looking around, she discovered that the room was deserted and dimly lit by a small wad of wax that was once a candle. She hugged the cloak closer. It was his.

His cloak. She took a deep breath in it and inhaled something of a mix between herbs and cool rain. So this is how he smell, she thought, and dug her nose in it once more. The tender fabric rustled under her skin. It was not a dream.

She pulled away from the cloak and something about it caught her eye. It was a firm belief of every student in Hogwarts that their Potion Master's wardrobe was entirely black. Therefore, no one ever pay much attention to his clothes, including his cloak. It was jet black unexceptionally, and it produced great belittling effects when billowing after Severus. However, upon closer inspection, Hermione could see that there were small smudges, spill marks and evidence of burnt, though most were carefully concealed. It was hardly surprising, he worked with cauldrons and clumsy students all the time, after all.

Hadn't he another cloak? Why didn't he dispose this old one? She thought mystified, and pulled out her wand. Tapping the cloak, she muttered an easy renewing spell. The piece of clothing immediately transformed into something fit for showing in Vico Martin's- best place for designer wizard clothing- display window. She smiled contently, folded the cloak neatly on the desk and left the dungeon.

----------

"Wow, an 'O'?!" Parvati exclaimed unbelievingly looking over at Hermione's paper.

"Snape gave an 'O'?" Harry bent over to look. "Mine's a 'P'."

Hermione was in shock herself. She blinked at the black, spider-like O with mouth hanging open, speechless. An 'O'? What had she did to get an 'O'? Slowly, she cracked a small grin. Finally he had given her his approval, one that she fought so hard to gain in the past five years.

"Miss Granger, come and see me," Severus called coldly from the front of the dungeon. Hermione nodded happily. He has changed! She didn't dare to take full credit, but last night's conversation must have some kind of effect on him if he gave her an 'O'. Does that count as some kind of success?

"I wonder what has she done to get an 'O'," Malfoy whispered sourly behind her back. "Compliment Snape's hair?" Some Slytherins snickered furtively, and to her great depression she could hear a familiar sound too.

"Maybe she slept with him," Ron muttered but the Slytherins heard him. Hermione didn't turn back to see their reaction. Ron could be as hurting as any Slytherin, this she knew from the first year they met, but never imagined the day he used it against her. She closed her eyes and walked to Severus' desk while the other students filed out of the dungeon.

Standing directly in front of him, she quickly noted that he hadn't change his cloak back, it looked sleek and brand new.

"What is the meaning of this?" Severus asked icily, following her gaze and fingered his cloak. Hermione winced at his tone. The malice was back in his tone, it was so different from the one he used last night. His eyes were glittering angrily.

"I saw that it was, er, not in top condition so, I, er, used a renewal spell," she stammered. It didn't look like a good idea anymore, but she couldn't understand why was he angry.

"Meddlesome Griffindor! Had anyone ever tell you how annoying you are?" He snarled and her confusion turned into anger.

"Well sorry if I helped!" She shouted back before she could stop herself.

"Helped? " His glowered at the girl intensely like a hungry eagle. "Care to ask before you help next time, please. Did you stop to think a second before hexing my cloak that I can handle a simple renewal spell myself, IF I REALLY NEED ONE?!"

Looking at the color draining from her face, Severus felt a mixture of grim satisfaction and frustration of feeling guilty. He lowered his voice into a waspish whisper, "You've earned yourself a detention with Professor Umbridge tonight, now, out!"

Her lips trembled and her large eyes swam with tears, but she retreated with her head high. It was only when she was completely out of Severus' sight she broke down and cried until her chest heaved dangerously. She hiccupped and sobbed with a thousand thoughts flashing across her mind. She was so foolish to think he had changed! He hadn't change a bit. How can she be so naive? He probably think their conversation was boring.

How can I be so wrapped up in my own fantasy? Ron's right, he will never think twice about me, and oh I even thought I had succeeded...what had I done wrong? I am just trying to care...just trying to love him...

Still sobbing, she sneaked back into her dorm, careful not to be seen by anyone. Wrapping the blankets around herself, she felt a fresh round of tears ready to flow. Crookshanks snuggled at her ankle and she drifted off to sleep.

----------

Severus sat in his office and stared blankly at the parchment before him that he was supposed to be marking. Putting his face into his hands, Granger's pale face with round tearing eyes appeared in front of his eyes again. He groaned deeply. She just wouldn't leave him alone.

Her confusion, her anger, her melancholy... all caused by his piercing words. He was not known for controlling temper, and he blamed her for his outburst. If it wasn't her being so presumptuous, he would never have raged like that. So, it was all her fault. He concluded.

She's just being nice, you ungrateful piece of crap, his stupid conscience defended her heatedly.

Oh yeah? Since when is anyone nice to me? He retorted and locked the voice into a barred box. Since never, that's since when. Few people treated him civilly when he was young, and they did now only out of fear. He snorted, he had no use of goodness. That didn't exist anymore, not in his world, anyway. He picked up the hem of his cloak, and played it between his two slender fingers. It was still so soft.

His mind wandered involuntarily back to his seventh year, the year that was filled with feelings, the year that he lived and died...the year he discovered something so alien, so unfamiliar...happiness. He had few happy memories, but all of them included a certain person...

A shadow began to materialize in his head, the shadow that haunted him so many nights, the shadow that he kept safely at bay by working himself to exhaustion everyday in those years-

NOOOO! The voice screamed from its box. Severus cringed silently at the pain... it was like those nightmares were coming back, the heartache rushing for him to experience all over again. Stop! Stop! Stop!

He shot up abruptly. Glancing at his pocket watch, he was shock to find that it was almost eight thirty. He swept into the adjoining dungeon. With only one glance he knew what was wrong. The desk was empty. No sticky meals tonight.

"Adely!" He called like he did every night in the past fortnight. The elf obediently appeared on the desk and bowed.

"Sir wants Adely?"

Severus raised a pointed eyebrow at the house-elf. She saw it and bowed again.

"Adely will bring Sir his supper." Then with a small 'crack' she vanished into thin air.

He sighed, this scene had replayed every night it was almost a part of his life now. He would call the elf, she would come and take away the dish, then bring him some proper food. He marveled at the persistency of the student who cooked him those food- this was the first night in two weeks that they hadn't appear- but swore at the same time that the day he caught him it would be a dark day.

He sat down and looked around the dungeon which was filled with children in the morning. It now looked very empty with only lonely chairs and desks sitting still. The loud, unpleasant silence was back and it ringed frustratingly in his ears. Something was missing.

Granger. His lips curled into an angry thin line as the realization hit him. She was not by the cauldron, stirring, looking bored. She was not sitting on the stone floor, twisting the towel until her hands were red. Her frizzy hair was not swaying annoyingly in front of his desk. She was not giggling beside the shelves. The dungeon seemed colder tonight, and Severus sank lower into his seat. She was not here because of her own fault.

She is not here because of you clever guy, that voice pointed out icily in an exact imitation of his own.

Keep talking and you will never live to see the sky again, he mentally kicked the box. It was nice to be alone, he decided, I can finally sulk in peace now.

He ate his supper in silence, and graded some third year's paper (which in his opinion was rubbish). He slid into his private chambers, took a book and sank into a plushy armchair. The fire was dancing in the fireplace, blissfully cracking the logs. He started to read.

Ten o'clock.

Eleven o'clock.

When the hands on his watch met each other, indicating midnight, he stood up, admitting defeat. He hadn't read so much as a page. He threw on the cloak Granger renewed, and slipped out of the dungeon.

----------

He didn't know what was he doing, for he wasn't in the mood to prowl the halls tonight. He caught some Ravenclaws sneaking near the dungeons, but that was all he found. He strode quietly like a giant bat across the corridors and was about to return when he saw light seeping through Umbridge's office. Why had he got there he wished not to know.

Surely she had finished her detention? It was way past curfew. His brows furrowed at the thought, and he approached the room.

"-not enough, child. I think you need to remember your lesson, and think before you choose who to support-" A sickly sweet voice said.

Severus grimaced at it. That toad of a woman. He knocked on the door and without waiting for a reply, he pushed it open.

Umbridge was sitting across Hermione, who was writing with a pointy black quill. Her face was flushed with anger and pain, her lower lip harshly bitten. Severus stared at the quill. It looked very familiar...

"Why, what a pleasant visit Severus!" Umbridge broke into a big smile and motioned for him to come in.

"It is indeed," he replied in a great imitation of courtesy, but stood resolutely at the door. "I needed Miss Granger to help me with some potion, is it okay with you if I-"

"Sure," the ugly professor cracked another grin at her colleague, then to Hermione, "Go on child, remember what you've learnt!"

Hermione stood up and winced, then rushed pass Severus. He nodded coldly to Umbridge. "Goodnight, Dolores." With that he turned and walked back into the dark.

The two of them walked in silence along the hallways. The moon gently spread its light across their path. She was biting her lip again. Severus noted, and strongly suspected she was hiding something from him. He scowled at her face which was next to transparent under the silver light, but didn't say anything. He led her back to his dungeons.

Hermione's heart throbbed at the sight of him, the man who had caused her misery just hours ago. Had he forgiven her? Why had he come over to save her? She bit her lip and crushed the thought, better not to get her hopes up. The pain in her heart was ignored in the past hours because of the one on her hand, but she could feel it bleeding again.

----------

Once in the dungeon Hermione stood next to the farthest desk from him, her eyes fixed on the floor. Severus sat in his usual seat, leant back, and ordered, "Come here."

She didn't move.

"Come here!" He lost his patience. This girl was the most impossible he had seen in his whole teaching life. She reluctantly inched towards him, her eyes still averting his.

Severus rubbed his temple wearily and glared at the girl in front of him. She had her hand hiding behind her back. He narrowed his eyes.

"What have you got there?"

"No- nothing," she subconsciously clenched her hands together tighter.

"Show me your hand," he ordered chilly. He was exhausted and was starting to regret his actions.

"Look, let's make this easier for both of us, show me your hand," he repeated when she didn't move an inch. "Please."

She didn't want him to see the scar, it was stinging painfully on the back of her right hand and she knew it was ugly, but she had no choice. Slowly she pulled her hand and placed it on the desk, her gaze stubbornly on the floor.

He stared at the scar, which was evidence that something had cut deep into her hand, leaving a long, angrily red mark behind.

Hermione was startled to feel something on her hand. She looked up and into his eyes. He was tracing a finger across the scar with an emotionless face.

"Does it hurt?" His voice was barely above a whisper. Hermione flinched at it.

"Not really," she whispered back, wanting to take back her hand but decided against it. She could feel herself going red in the face.

He knew she was lying. No matter how unconcerned he looked, he couldn't keep the emotions from his voice. The scar stared back at him bluntly, and a surge of hatred and guilt passed him when he touched it. It felt strange to feel so many at the same time. He didn't feel much usually, and he was not prepared to change that. He let go of her hand suddenly, then walked away. When he came back, he had a porcelain dish with him.

"Soak your hand in this," he instructed, not showing anything in his icy voice this time. Hermione obliged and felt a comfortable relief at her hand as she soaked it into the yellowish liquid. It was Murtlap essence.

It was a strange scene, him sitting there watching her, as she stood, feeling very stupid with a hand in some yellow goo.

"I am sorry, sir, about your cloak," she broke the moment of silence by an apology. He waved a dismissive hand.

"Apology accepted," he said, standing up. "Come, I will walk you back to your dorm. Take that with you."

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September spanned easily into October without anyone noticing as their workload grew even heavier. The Great Hall seemed grimmer as the enchanted ceiling was gray with layers upon layers of thick rain clouds. The wind became colder and harsher, and students began to change into their thicker robes.

Hermione hardly noticed the change in weather. Unlike Ron and Harry, she spent most of her time indoors reading, doing homework and serving detentions. She and Severus shared a few more debates in the weeks, some of them very heated, but interesting nonetheless. He appeared to be more civil to her, and the times she received detentions lowered from one per day to one every three days, which she took as a good sign- though she enjoyed his company her studies were starting to get to her. The detentions now were more like private lessons, though she still had to scrub the dungeon occasionally, she got to brew some potion beyond OWL syllabus. She carefully hid her glee, afraid that he would deprive her from this privilege.

However, was her life complete? Far from it. Ron was getting nastier. He spread rumors to anyone who cared to listen that Hermione was a 'nymphomaniac' and hinted how she had 'got her good grades'. Harry had talked to him but he bluntly refused to listen. Therefore Hermione was grateful that the Quidditch season was about to begin- that ought to take his mind off her for a while. Lavender and Ginny were also great listeners, from whom she took great relief. Her soul still cringed sometimes thinking about Ron, but it was getting better.

"Ack-choo!" Hermione sneezed into her handkerchief.

"Bless you!" Several Griffindors next to her chimed. She smiled at them, but felt another sneeze coming up.

"Ackkkkk-chooo-! Merlin, when is this going to stop?" She complained. "My nose is all red already."

"You'd better go and see Madam Pomfrey," Neville suggested, "She's got some really good meds."

"Yeah, we'd have Care for Magical Creatures later, your cold would only get worse outdoors," Harry said helpfully. The others nodded in agreement.

Hermione looked around at her classmates and felt very warm. "Thanks, but I'm okay. I don't want to bother Madam Pomfrey with every little bug I catch. Merlin knows that happens only too often." She smiled reassuringly at them and continued with her lunch.

However, by the time she had finished her last lesson, she was feeling anything but okay. She berated herself for not putting on a scarf during Care for Magical Creatures- as Harry had said, the wind was fiercer than usual and bit into every inch of exposed skin. Fortunately, her asthma hadn't attacked.

"You don't look so good," Lavender said, feeling her friend's face.

"What do you mean, I don't look so good?" Hermione mocked an indignant tone, but seeing that Lavender was truly worried, she added more seriously, "I'm fine Lav, really I am. But I'll go and see Madam Pomfrey after my detention, okay?"

"You're still going to your detention?"

"Yeah, can't miss!" Hermione winked and took off. Lavender shook her head at the back of the girl, but threw back her head and laughed.

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Severus glanced at the girl standing in front of the silver cauldron. She was slipping two dragonfly wings into it. Was it the steam? She looked redder in the face than usual. She was also uncharacteristically quiet tonight. He shrugged away the thought and focused on his own cauldron.

Hermione swallowed another cough. She didn't want to give him the impression that she was sick- though she was, she knew that clearly. Her head was getting lighter by the minute, her hands were cold despite her closeness to a fire. Her vision blurred and her throat was tight. She couldn't think straight as well- was it three beetle eyes needed or was it four? She tried to remember but to no avail. Frustrated, she emptied the entire vial into the stammering cauldron.

Severus watched in shock as the girl grabbed his vial of unicorn tears and emptied it into her cauldron. It took exactly two seconds for him to take it in.

"That is VERY expensive!" He thundered across the desk and marched over to her. She didn't seem to notice.

He peered down at the girl. "Look up at me when I'm talking to you!" When she didn't, he grabbed her shoulder roughly and wanted to shake her. To his terror, she almost collapsed the second he touched her. He caught her and without removing his hand, he knelt down until they were eye-level.

Hermione felt like her head was swimming. Her legs turned into jelly and she swayed. Hmmm, I must be dreaming, she thought as his face came into her sight. I must be, because I'm seeing him again.

Severus gaped at the girl as her lips curled into a smile in slow motion. Her eyes were not focusing and her face was very red. No steam would have caused this, he thought and felt her face with the back of his hand. It was burning. He withdrew his hand hastily and watched a drop of big sweat rolled down her forehead.

"You've fever!" He accused angrily. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Hot." was her reply.

He stood up and ran a hand into his greasy hair. Why must all bad things happen to him? He stared at the top of her bushy head. What now? He could carry her to her dorm- no. The thought of that ridiculous Griffindor girl's dorm stairs sent him a shiver up the spine. The least he needed now was to be found lying at the bottom of a Griffindor staircase.

He made up his mind, and put her into the nearest seat. "Stay," he ordered and went back into his office.

When he came back Hermione was slumped in the chair, her head tilted to a side. He approached her and gave her a phial of clear red potion.

"This pretty," she said happily as she took over the container. He rolled his eyes.

"That's not pretty, that's for you to drink."

"Ohhh," she cooed and drank it, then grimaced at the taste. "It's pretty, but it stinks."

He suppressed the urge to roll eyes again, and picked her up easily. She was not small, but not big either- just fit perfectly in his arms. The thought that she was just a little girl occurred to him suddenly. He had looked past her age so easily, maybe because she knew so much and always looked strong.

Or maybe she just talked too much, he smirked and looked down at the girl. She was so quiet when she was sick.

Mmmm, the smell of mixed herbs and rain, she felt so safe in this man's arms. He smelt very familiar...

"I like you," she announced to him.

"No you don't," he said swiftly. This girl was also very strange when she was sick.

"I like you," she repeated stubbornly, and cuddled closer to him. She rubbed her nose into his chest. His cool shirt felt good.

"You are delirious," he said as he tucked her gently under the green covers of his grand four-poster. She fluttered her eyes sleepily- the potion was starting to work.

"I am not," she protested weakly. He smirked and left the room in a sweep.

When he came back, she was sobbing lowly. Her pink cheeks were streaked with tears and his pillow was soaked. He scowled and walked over to her. If there's anything he hated more than a sick Griffindor, it'd be a crying sick Griffindor.

"What's the matter now?" He demanded, but softened as a crystal tear rolled down her cheek and disappeared into his pillow.

She hiccupped and grasped his cloak tightly. He looked at the small hand and sighed. She looked extremely dependent. He could understand why, but that didn't stop him from getting annoyed.

"I am not going anywhere," he said tiredly. "I'm just going to bring in a chair, see?" She didn't let go. He sighed again and accio-ed the armchair and a book to the side of the bed.

She could feel herself wrapped in his scent, the assuring, secure scent. She closed her eyes contently and drifted off to sleep, her hand never letting go of him.

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A/N: This chapter has more plot development... it may be less exciting but o no it is necessary! Next chapter will have more excitement... *slams chest* I promise! Now please REVIEW! Just push that little button!