Chapter Thirteen: A New Task
When Hermione woke, stretching out her sleepy muscles on the couch, she saw Munin above her, with a letter in hand.
"You do realize you aren't an owl." She informed it with a slight mumble, taking the note.
'Ms. Granger,
Please join me in my office once you wake.
Dumbledore'
"Fancy that." She yawned an in doing so woke the boys.
"Morn'in Mia," Ron mumbled standing and walking to the loo, Harry went upstairs, without a word.
Once gone, she transfigured her sleeping robes into day wear. Then she left.
Still half asleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Altoids." She mumbled and she walked up the stair case, knocking on the door.
"Come in!" a way to cheery voice sounded.
"Professor." She greeted, trying to sound awake.
"Ah Ms. Granger, take a seat, some tea? Or a lemon drop?"
"No thank you sir, might I ask why I'm here?" she finally got a form of thought working in her mind.
"Ahh yes, I have a proposition for you. You know that last night Voldemort attacked Surry, correct?"
"Yes, sir," she wondered what this had to do with her.
"Well, I wanted to tell you that Harry's aunt and Uncle are now dead. I felt Harry might need Ron this morning, and he definitely didn't need to be reliving such things."
Hermione nodded understanding, but still lost. "And you merely wished to inform me sir? Truth be told I had a fair idea when Ron and Harry woke me last night."
His eyes sparkled "Wonderful! I had hoped you might." He stood, "You see Ms. Granger, Professor Snape explained to me about the Aurora draft he placed on your Raven, and in turn you," he faced her dead on, "I take you understand all of your auroras?"
"Yes, I do, I looked them up after class."
He smiled, and took his seat looking very imposing and formal, "Then you'll take it as no shock that I wish you to be trained as an assassin? Or even a spy if the need arises?"
Hermione sat still for a moment thinking over what the professor had just told her, "Sir, I can't spy, I'm in no position to take the place of a death eater.. .."
"You are wrong there, not all spies have to be double agents. Some spies can work undetected, following certain people. I already have Severus for the inside job, but I believe that you'd be perfect for the outer job. Do you accept?"
"Why ask now sir?" she had to distract him while she thought. Assassin? Spy? Those weren't things you thought of when you heard 'Hermione Granger'. But then again, that could very well be part of the reason she was perfect for it.
"Because of the events of late. Voldemort must have realized the protections I placed upon Harry if he attacked and killed his only family. Therefore, I need someone to make sure Harry is safe, and we can't trust Voldemort to give Snape all the information. Tom is much to smart for that."
"Sir-."
Albus stopped her with a hand, "Don't decide now, I'm having Severus train you, if you don't like it, then you may quit. If you decide to do the work, I must inform you that there is no backing out."
Hermione thought for a moment, "I'll give it a go, and let you know when I decide."
Dumbledore stood and clapped his hands together, "Perfect!"
After another offer of tea, which Hermione refused, she left the office, feeling slightly taller.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Albus," Snape said slowly, laying in his bed in the hospital wing, "Tell me you didn't."
"I did, and she looked rather pleased." The head master informed the man he thought of as a son.
"Of course she would! Its in her personality, we know that! But why did you? You know she's innocent!"
"Well, that's your job isn't it, you're going to be the one training her, also she hasn't accepted yet." He took a sip of his tea, "You can make her training hard so that she becomes disinterested if you really want, but I want you to at least attempt to train her."
Snape grumbled to himself. When it came to Albus, things either were, or he'd make them. "I'll do it, but don't expect me to be happy about it."
"Of course not!" he finished his tea and left the wing.
"Gods." He muttered, pulling his fingers through his hair, he could just feel the dread.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione walked briskly down to detention, Her Harry and Ron separating at the main stair case.
She knocked on the large door, receiving a 'Come in' bark from inside.
He wasn't in a good mood tonight, she realized, wondering why.
"Sit, the headmaster wants me to train you during your detentions as a spy." He growled.
"Professor, will you tell me your views on the subject?"
He wasn't expecting that, he looked at her, "Why do you ask?"
She sighed, "Well, Dumbledore wants me to do the work, but I'm not sure, so I was asking your opinion on the subject. As a spy yourself, you should know best whether I'm capable of such work or not."
He really wasn't expecting that, then again, she always was considerate. "I believe that with much vigorous work, you may be capable of such tasks, right now, however I'm questioning the headmasters decision."
"I see, well shall we start then?" she looked hopeful, "Perhaps I can give you a better idea of my skills if we begin training?"
"I suppose, Now stand."
She did as told, Snape walked around her, shut your eyes.
She shut them and noted how he turned off the light. "we are going to work on seeing the unseen, Open your eyes and point at me."
She opened her mind, but to her dismay it was pitch black, and she couldn't see a thing. "How am I suppose to point to you if you can't see me?"
"I can see you just fine, Ms. Granger, the task is whether you can see me or not." He drawled.
She felt where it came from, deep and soothing, Shutting her eyes again.
"Open you eyes." He ordered.
They snapped open.
"You must concentrate with your eyes open, other wise if you see flashed of anything you can be prepared, now point at me."
She pointed in the direction of the voice.
"Very good, if I weren't throwing my voice, I would indeed be right there. Don't underestimate me, Ms. Granger, try again, and this time concentrate on the task."
She couldn't relay on his voice, as he was throwing it, and his movements were still so she started to move.
"Stay still." He snapped, and she recoiled. It had been ages it seemed since he sounded so angry, "Now point at me, you know where I am."
Strangely, Hermione found upon thinking about that for a second, she did know where he was.
And she pointed at his desk.
"Very good, Lumos." The light returned and she was indeed pointing at him "Not explain to me how you knew where I was."
"I don't know sir, I just did." She sat down again.
"Stand, and shut your eyes." He ordered softly this time. He had seen her wince when he snapped earlier, and didn't wish for it to happen again.
He moved. "Point at me." The sound still came from his desk.
"My arm can't reach behind me sir, your at the door to the classroom." She answered.
"Good, now how did you know."
"I felt you there." She said simply, not understanding.
"Perfect, now try again." He had moved, but his voice stayed in front of her.
She couldn't know where he was now.
"I don't know." She whispered.
"Try, don't give up so easily." He encouraged her, and he didn't know why. He was supposed to be discouraging her.
She focused on her thought of him, remembering when he had saved her, when he touched her hair, when he hummed.
Her arm pointed without a second thought, and she was answered with a "Marvolus."
The lights were turned on again and she was pointing at him, "How?" she whispered.
"You just doused, Ms. Granger. I hid my presence, as most death eaters will do, and you still found me, good job."
She felt his pride swell up in her, along with her own joy of accomplishment.
"Now I believe Ms. Granger, that you are indeed capable of being a spy." He responded returning to his desk, "Not that I think you capable of being one right now, you need loads of work, but you have the right drive and you proved that you can perform under stress and uncertainty."
He swept his wand in front of him and a list appeared. "Your training schedule, follow it to the 'T' and I may bring you along to the Malfoy's winter feast."
She looked over it. During the day she was to practice walking in abandoned hall ways until she couldn't hear her feet, or robes, and while doing obscure tasks. She was also to know where Harry and Ron were at all times of the day and report the findings to Snape when she can for detention.
She also had a huge list to read, including such books as 'The Prince' and spell books that came form the restricted section.
She was to study and do all this without letting Harry and Ron figure out that she was doing anything amiss.
At nights she was to practice clearing her mind and shutting off her emotions, for occulomency, she guessed.
"Sir it doesn't explain what I'll be doing during my detentions."
"That's because I'll be here so I needn't write it down." He explained.
"Now, I also want you to do a series of fifteen pushups ten crunches once you enter this room at eight, and I expect you to run down here. A spy must be quick and strong to evade attack or notice. Your reading is for your mind, a quick wit and a planners mind is needed for our work."
Hermione glanced up at the word 'our' she felt slightly happier.
"Oh, and," he pointed at the list, "I forgot about Mr. Weasleys talents."
The last thing appeared on the list and read 'Duel Ronald Weasley in Chess at least twice a day. While observing his pieces moments.'
"Sir, once school starts up again," she started but his hand was up.
"We'll wait before looking into this to far, Ms. Granger, you may want to quit after the first week, though maybe not, we'll see. If you are found to not be able to work with your tasks I may stop tutoring you, so lets wait this out first."
"Yes, sir." She looked at her list again, it was going to be hard.
"I expect you not to work at all the tasks the first day, until you are sure you can evade your two friends at least."
"Yes, sir."
"Now," he stood, "I want you to copy all these signatures, and you can't leave until there are perfect copies. No magic." He placed two sheets of parchment in front of her, one clean, one with about twenty different signatures on it. He also gave her an ink well and a quill. "By the way Ms. Granger, you may make more paper, also I believe that your teacher abilities are at par with mine, so I don't believe we need to worry about working on that."
She smiled, knowing that he had been tutoring her in teaching, "Thank you,"
"Now work, I don't want to be here all night." He whined, then smiled.
Professor Snape had just made a joke.
Kind of.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~
As he watched her work he realized that maybe he was wrong, maybe she could do this.
And it made him fill with pride.
There was something he could still teach her, and it might be the very thing to keep her alive.
He didn't realize exactly how proud he had been when she had doused for the first time in front of him, he saw her magic aurora reach out and touch him before she had pointed.
Unlike the potion, this one didn't have colors, it was merely a white essence of her.
Next lesson he would teach her how to read auroras and minds. That would be needed.
He continued to work diligently until about 11 when she came up and presented her work to him.
At the bottom of the paper, on the back, as she had used the entire front, were twenty perfect copied signatures. "Very good, observe all signatures you see from now on, and practice copying them, you may go, good night Ms. Granger."
She nodded and left.
The pride he felt just doubled. But he knew that she was far from being capable of being in situations like the Malfoy party.
Why he had brought it up, he didn't know, but it seemed right, and it gave her a goal.
But he wasn't sure why he wasn't fighting this plan anymore.
Maybe it was because he felt a kind of kindred in her now.
A close connection that he didn't know he craved.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
AN: Ok I haven't updated in the longest, will this suffice? I hope so and for those who thought the last chapter was a filler, read again and then realize why it was needed.
I hope you all aren't to lost, I am keeping some secrets in this story but not nearly as many as in ODAF.
For those reading that story, you understand why you all are lost right?
I hope so.
Review and give me hope that I haven't lost you all yet! RelenaS
P.S. BTW this was written and posted, I didn't go through it so if things are horrible that's why. Next chapter this one will be updated and you will have it corrected.
When Hermione woke, stretching out her sleepy muscles on the couch, she saw Munin above her, with a letter in hand.
"You do realize you aren't an owl." She informed it with a slight mumble, taking the note.
'Ms. Granger,
Please join me in my office once you wake.
Dumbledore'
"Fancy that." She yawned an in doing so woke the boys.
"Morn'in Mia," Ron mumbled standing and walking to the loo, Harry went upstairs, without a word.
Once gone, she transfigured her sleeping robes into day wear. Then she left.
Still half asleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Altoids." She mumbled and she walked up the stair case, knocking on the door.
"Come in!" a way to cheery voice sounded.
"Professor." She greeted, trying to sound awake.
"Ah Ms. Granger, take a seat, some tea? Or a lemon drop?"
"No thank you sir, might I ask why I'm here?" she finally got a form of thought working in her mind.
"Ahh yes, I have a proposition for you. You know that last night Voldemort attacked Surry, correct?"
"Yes, sir," she wondered what this had to do with her.
"Well, I wanted to tell you that Harry's aunt and Uncle are now dead. I felt Harry might need Ron this morning, and he definitely didn't need to be reliving such things."
Hermione nodded understanding, but still lost. "And you merely wished to inform me sir? Truth be told I had a fair idea when Ron and Harry woke me last night."
His eyes sparkled "Wonderful! I had hoped you might." He stood, "You see Ms. Granger, Professor Snape explained to me about the Aurora draft he placed on your Raven, and in turn you," he faced her dead on, "I take you understand all of your auroras?"
"Yes, I do, I looked them up after class."
He smiled, and took his seat looking very imposing and formal, "Then you'll take it as no shock that I wish you to be trained as an assassin? Or even a spy if the need arises?"
Hermione sat still for a moment thinking over what the professor had just told her, "Sir, I can't spy, I'm in no position to take the place of a death eater.. .."
"You are wrong there, not all spies have to be double agents. Some spies can work undetected, following certain people. I already have Severus for the inside job, but I believe that you'd be perfect for the outer job. Do you accept?"
"Why ask now sir?" she had to distract him while she thought. Assassin? Spy? Those weren't things you thought of when you heard 'Hermione Granger'. But then again, that could very well be part of the reason she was perfect for it.
"Because of the events of late. Voldemort must have realized the protections I placed upon Harry if he attacked and killed his only family. Therefore, I need someone to make sure Harry is safe, and we can't trust Voldemort to give Snape all the information. Tom is much to smart for that."
"Sir-."
Albus stopped her with a hand, "Don't decide now, I'm having Severus train you, if you don't like it, then you may quit. If you decide to do the work, I must inform you that there is no backing out."
Hermione thought for a moment, "I'll give it a go, and let you know when I decide."
Dumbledore stood and clapped his hands together, "Perfect!"
After another offer of tea, which Hermione refused, she left the office, feeling slightly taller.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Albus," Snape said slowly, laying in his bed in the hospital wing, "Tell me you didn't."
"I did, and she looked rather pleased." The head master informed the man he thought of as a son.
"Of course she would! Its in her personality, we know that! But why did you? You know she's innocent!"
"Well, that's your job isn't it, you're going to be the one training her, also she hasn't accepted yet." He took a sip of his tea, "You can make her training hard so that she becomes disinterested if you really want, but I want you to at least attempt to train her."
Snape grumbled to himself. When it came to Albus, things either were, or he'd make them. "I'll do it, but don't expect me to be happy about it."
"Of course not!" he finished his tea and left the wing.
"Gods." He muttered, pulling his fingers through his hair, he could just feel the dread.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione walked briskly down to detention, Her Harry and Ron separating at the main stair case.
She knocked on the large door, receiving a 'Come in' bark from inside.
He wasn't in a good mood tonight, she realized, wondering why.
"Sit, the headmaster wants me to train you during your detentions as a spy." He growled.
"Professor, will you tell me your views on the subject?"
He wasn't expecting that, he looked at her, "Why do you ask?"
She sighed, "Well, Dumbledore wants me to do the work, but I'm not sure, so I was asking your opinion on the subject. As a spy yourself, you should know best whether I'm capable of such work or not."
He really wasn't expecting that, then again, she always was considerate. "I believe that with much vigorous work, you may be capable of such tasks, right now, however I'm questioning the headmasters decision."
"I see, well shall we start then?" she looked hopeful, "Perhaps I can give you a better idea of my skills if we begin training?"
"I suppose, Now stand."
She did as told, Snape walked around her, shut your eyes.
She shut them and noted how he turned off the light. "we are going to work on seeing the unseen, Open your eyes and point at me."
She opened her mind, but to her dismay it was pitch black, and she couldn't see a thing. "How am I suppose to point to you if you can't see me?"
"I can see you just fine, Ms. Granger, the task is whether you can see me or not." He drawled.
She felt where it came from, deep and soothing, Shutting her eyes again.
"Open you eyes." He ordered.
They snapped open.
"You must concentrate with your eyes open, other wise if you see flashed of anything you can be prepared, now point at me."
She pointed in the direction of the voice.
"Very good, if I weren't throwing my voice, I would indeed be right there. Don't underestimate me, Ms. Granger, try again, and this time concentrate on the task."
She couldn't relay on his voice, as he was throwing it, and his movements were still so she started to move.
"Stay still." He snapped, and she recoiled. It had been ages it seemed since he sounded so angry, "Now point at me, you know where I am."
Strangely, Hermione found upon thinking about that for a second, she did know where he was.
And she pointed at his desk.
"Very good, Lumos." The light returned and she was indeed pointing at him "Not explain to me how you knew where I was."
"I don't know sir, I just did." She sat down again.
"Stand, and shut your eyes." He ordered softly this time. He had seen her wince when he snapped earlier, and didn't wish for it to happen again.
He moved. "Point at me." The sound still came from his desk.
"My arm can't reach behind me sir, your at the door to the classroom." She answered.
"Good, now how did you know."
"I felt you there." She said simply, not understanding.
"Perfect, now try again." He had moved, but his voice stayed in front of her.
She couldn't know where he was now.
"I don't know." She whispered.
"Try, don't give up so easily." He encouraged her, and he didn't know why. He was supposed to be discouraging her.
She focused on her thought of him, remembering when he had saved her, when he touched her hair, when he hummed.
Her arm pointed without a second thought, and she was answered with a "Marvolus."
The lights were turned on again and she was pointing at him, "How?" she whispered.
"You just doused, Ms. Granger. I hid my presence, as most death eaters will do, and you still found me, good job."
She felt his pride swell up in her, along with her own joy of accomplishment.
"Now I believe Ms. Granger, that you are indeed capable of being a spy." He responded returning to his desk, "Not that I think you capable of being one right now, you need loads of work, but you have the right drive and you proved that you can perform under stress and uncertainty."
He swept his wand in front of him and a list appeared. "Your training schedule, follow it to the 'T' and I may bring you along to the Malfoy's winter feast."
She looked over it. During the day she was to practice walking in abandoned hall ways until she couldn't hear her feet, or robes, and while doing obscure tasks. She was also to know where Harry and Ron were at all times of the day and report the findings to Snape when she can for detention.
She also had a huge list to read, including such books as 'The Prince' and spell books that came form the restricted section.
She was to study and do all this without letting Harry and Ron figure out that she was doing anything amiss.
At nights she was to practice clearing her mind and shutting off her emotions, for occulomency, she guessed.
"Sir it doesn't explain what I'll be doing during my detentions."
"That's because I'll be here so I needn't write it down." He explained.
"Now, I also want you to do a series of fifteen pushups ten crunches once you enter this room at eight, and I expect you to run down here. A spy must be quick and strong to evade attack or notice. Your reading is for your mind, a quick wit and a planners mind is needed for our work."
Hermione glanced up at the word 'our' she felt slightly happier.
"Oh, and," he pointed at the list, "I forgot about Mr. Weasleys talents."
The last thing appeared on the list and read 'Duel Ronald Weasley in Chess at least twice a day. While observing his pieces moments.'
"Sir, once school starts up again," she started but his hand was up.
"We'll wait before looking into this to far, Ms. Granger, you may want to quit after the first week, though maybe not, we'll see. If you are found to not be able to work with your tasks I may stop tutoring you, so lets wait this out first."
"Yes, sir." She looked at her list again, it was going to be hard.
"I expect you not to work at all the tasks the first day, until you are sure you can evade your two friends at least."
"Yes, sir."
"Now," he stood, "I want you to copy all these signatures, and you can't leave until there are perfect copies. No magic." He placed two sheets of parchment in front of her, one clean, one with about twenty different signatures on it. He also gave her an ink well and a quill. "By the way Ms. Granger, you may make more paper, also I believe that your teacher abilities are at par with mine, so I don't believe we need to worry about working on that."
She smiled, knowing that he had been tutoring her in teaching, "Thank you,"
"Now work, I don't want to be here all night." He whined, then smiled.
Professor Snape had just made a joke.
Kind of.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~
As he watched her work he realized that maybe he was wrong, maybe she could do this.
And it made him fill with pride.
There was something he could still teach her, and it might be the very thing to keep her alive.
He didn't realize exactly how proud he had been when she had doused for the first time in front of him, he saw her magic aurora reach out and touch him before she had pointed.
Unlike the potion, this one didn't have colors, it was merely a white essence of her.
Next lesson he would teach her how to read auroras and minds. That would be needed.
He continued to work diligently until about 11 when she came up and presented her work to him.
At the bottom of the paper, on the back, as she had used the entire front, were twenty perfect copied signatures. "Very good, observe all signatures you see from now on, and practice copying them, you may go, good night Ms. Granger."
She nodded and left.
The pride he felt just doubled. But he knew that she was far from being capable of being in situations like the Malfoy party.
Why he had brought it up, he didn't know, but it seemed right, and it gave her a goal.
But he wasn't sure why he wasn't fighting this plan anymore.
Maybe it was because he felt a kind of kindred in her now.
A close connection that he didn't know he craved.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
AN: Ok I haven't updated in the longest, will this suffice? I hope so and for those who thought the last chapter was a filler, read again and then realize why it was needed.
I hope you all aren't to lost, I am keeping some secrets in this story but not nearly as many as in ODAF.
For those reading that story, you understand why you all are lost right?
I hope so.
Review and give me hope that I haven't lost you all yet! RelenaS
P.S. BTW this was written and posted, I didn't go through it so if things are horrible that's why. Next chapter this one will be updated and you will have it corrected.