Chapter 20: History of Magic and Hermione Granger

Sage still could not figure out how he could manage to help Harry with the dragon. He could easily just hit the dragon for Harry, but if he aimed for the dragon's eyes, it would surely be obvious that Harry did not produce the spell. This was especially true if Harry never pointed his wand at the dragon's eyes and did not say the words.

Damn! And I cannot tell him what I am doing, or he'll never let me help. This isn't going to be easy, but I cannot let him get eaten by a dragon, which is exactly what Karkaroff wants.

Snape cleared his throat from the doorway. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest, looking down his nose distastefully. Sage knew this posture. This was the you-are-in-so-much-trouble-young-man-I-am-so-disappointed-in-you look.

Not now, Sage's mind whined.

His uncle moved his hands out from their place and uncrossed his arms, bringing into view a paper he was holding. Slowly he walked into the room, dragging out Sage's unease.

"Do you know what this is?" The professor asked.

"No…" he answered, uncertain of what was coming.

His uncle stared at him and raised a brow.

"…sir," he tacked on.

"I have just come into possession of your latest History of Magic test. Do you know why?"

"Er…no, sir." Really, he did know.

"I shall read the comments for you."

The man cleared his throat once more, this time giving Sage a sideways glance over the paper.

Continuing, "Clearly no effort towards the subject matter at all…" He glared hard at Sage, causing Sage to gulp. "Cannot touch on even the basics mentioned in lecture…" He smacked the paper for dramatic effect. "Surely did not read the chapters out of the book…" His glower could have burned the paper if he hadn't lowered it first to look at his nephew. "Did not manage to even answer half of the questions…" He stopped again and looked at Sage in aggravation and addressed him, "Not even half of the questions? No effort? Disgusting! No-don't even open your mouth. There's more." The professor looked back down at the paper. "The most abyssmal performance… Shocking… A result of not paying attention in class and not completing homework… No choice but to give a failing mark…" Snape looked back down at Sage. "Then, of course, there is a big, red 'D' here."

He threw the paper down onto Sage's lap and once again crossed his arms. Sage held the paper between his hands and looked up at his uncle. His face rather blank.

"It is very evident you did not even study for this exam, why not?"

Sage stared at the man's disgruntled expression and pursed his lips before finally saying, "It just didn't, erm, seem very important sir, and I guess I, erm, forgot."

"YOU FORGOT!"

"Yes, sir," he said quietly.

"You forgot an entire test? And you had been paying so little attention and doing so little work that you couldn't even manage a passing mark?"

"Yes," he answered, his voice wavering between being boyish and being deep. "…sir."

Snape let out a biting kind of a sigh and closed his eyes, bringing his hand to his forehead. Apparently he was trying to calm himself down a little bit, so as to not drag Sage out of the bed and toss him across the room. Which is exactly what he wanted to do, he had been having visions of it since he came into possession of the test.

"This is-," he stopped and put his hand back up to his forehead. He growled and put his hand back down. Taking a deep breath first he asked, "Do you know what would have happened if your father or I brought home such a paper, with those comments and a failing mark?"

"No sir, I don't know," he answered, though he did know, again. Looking at his uncle's disappointed face was painful enough that he was fighting the desire to look away or, better yet, down.

"Our father would have thrown us into the dungeons with our books and our notes for a few days without food, after properly giving us a few bouts of the Cruciatus, until we learned all the material perfectly."

Sage blinked.

"I know because it happened to me a few times, and that was for bringing home a Acceptable. I would likely be crippled or dead if I even brought the likes of that home!"

The Professor paced around for a few seconds before stopping in his place again.

"Do you have anything to say?"

"I'm sorry, sir, it's just that there has been a lot of things going on and I've been sick-."

"Don't whine to me, Sage. You could have done better, passable at the least. Sick or not, you're not a fool!"

"Yes, sir."

The aggravated man started pacing again, only to stop once more in front of Sage.

"And what is this you said about not thinking it was important?"

Sage's face was as blank as a chalkboard, but his eyes conveyed his unease. Severus could always read the boys expressive eyes.

"I just thought that it was more important to concentrate upon what is happening, instead of what has happened. You've been so irritated with me not being able to perform any wandless magic, that I thought that was more important. And my other, er, more applicable lessons."

Severus's eyes grew wide with impending fury, but he tried to hold it back.

"It is all equally important at the basic level. You should know better than to think that History of Magic is not important. There are many things about what you are that have to do with things that have passed."'

Sage's face fell, ashamed of both his test score and the lecture he was being given.

"I know, sir, I'm sorry. It's just, difficult, to manage everything. I'm trying."

"I am growing weary of you saying that you are sorry all of the time. I have your books and notes in the other room. I will bring them here to you, and you will study to retake this exam until you are well. I do not want to come into this room and see you doing anything other than reading, writing, or sleeping. Not only will you pass this exam, which will not ask exactly the same questions, you will get an 'O'. I expect nothing less than what you are completely capable of. Do we understand each other?"

Groaning, Sage looked up at his uncle with pleading eyes. That look quickly faded when Severus intensified his glare tenfold. There would be no negotiating.

"Yes, sir."

With that Severus stalked out, only to return with Sage's black leather shoulder bag. He deposited the bag on the bed next to Sage and proceeded to sit down and start grading his third year exams.

Sage looked up at him frowning.

"Are you going to sit there and watch me study?"

"Yes, and drop that tone with me unless you wish to be in worse trouble."

Again Sage frowned. Staring at the books with a look of loathing on his face, he scowled. Then he turned his glare to the man on his right.

His uncle raised an eyebrow and without looking away from his papers said, "I would cease to stare at me and start to stare at those books."

Reluctantly, he picked up one of the books and turned to the first chapter that would be on the exam.

With all the strength in the tiny muscles surrounding his eyes, Sage fought to keep his eyelids from drooping shut. The result was that his eyes felt so dry and chalky, he then had to fight to see the words in the book clearly.

Just for a moment he closed his eyes, just to let them relubricate so that he didn't see the world through a fog. In a few seconds his breathing slowed and his face relaxed. It felt so good to just close his eyes, to relax just for a moment. He thought, only a moment longer, just five minutes. The book dropped into his lap, his hands still loosely attached to it.

Without warning, a stackful of parchment impacted with his head as his uncle hit him with the exams he had been grading, "Read," the man ordered.

"Uncle it's been hours. My eyes can't read any longer," Sage answered half whining, half in exasperation.

Severus looked at his pocket watch at glared back at his nephew, shaking the parchments in the air, "It's been two, two hours. Don't tell me you can't read for longer than two hours boy, you used to read for upwards of half the day. I don't need a break and I have been reading these dreadfully disappointing exams!"

"But you haven't just had a vision! Or been near death!"

"If you don't close your unceasing mouth and read, I have a vision of you being near death once more!"

Sage shut his mouth and fumed, picking the book back up off of his lap and turning onto his side. Perhaps a change in position would make him last a while longer.

Faintly, Sage heard a knocking on the door to his uncle's chambers. He jerked his head up, hoping his uncle would be called away so that he could rest.

The Professor also looked up, cursing, and then shot a threatening look at Sage.

"If you so much as close one eyelid whilst I am gone, by Merlin I swear that I will curse your eyes open for the next two days," he hissed.

Sage watched the man walk out of the room, his mouth discourteously hanging open.

From the sound of his uncle talking in the next room, whomever had been at the door was not a very welcomed guest. Severus's voice was raising gradually to booming, while Sage could not even hear the other person speaking.

Curiously, he raised his blue eyes innocently from the book and looked at Severus as the man walked back through the door. His uncle looked rather purterbed.

"Miss Granger is here. She has the rest of your assignments."

Sage raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips.

"Can you ask her to leave them for me, sir? I'm reading."

His uncle threw his hands up in the air, swearing under his breath before pointing his long finger at Sage.

"You are pretending to read, do you really think me that much of a fool? As I am reminding myself, I shall also remind you that without her constant prying and annoyance you might have been in far worse shape, if not dead. It is only proper for you to speak with her as well. Especially since you spoke with Miss Macnair."

"Do I have to, sir?"

"Yes, you do. I won't have both an imbecile and an unmannered wretch for a nephew. In addition, I told her that as punishment for bothering me, she must help you with this exam. No doubt her constant shrill reproaches will keep you awake and concentrated on your task!"

Sage scowled darkly and loudly, in an exact imitation of his uncle. Why did these girls feel the need to make sure he had more work to do? It was not as if he was eager to get his missed assignments. Couldn't they just send a card and some toffee and be done with it? Or not bother with him whatsoever?

The Professor had insisted that Sage get up and move around a bit, so Sage and Hermione had moved into the living room to study.

"When was the first United Magical Council held," asked Hermione in her best teacher mode.

Sage, his head resting in his hand and his hair touseled all over the place from the bed, answered monotonously, "1013."

"Why was it held?"

Sage lifted an eyebrow drowsily.

"I. Don't. Care," Sage answered dragging each word out.

"Sage, really, can't you be serious. I cannot believe how absolutely difficult you are being. This is like pulling teeth. Now, I know that you know the answers, so stop fooling around."

From his position in the kitchen, Severus almost spat his tea out over his cup. He had always known the girl was a know-it-all, but she had just sounded exactly like Professor McGonagall.

He held his snort in and swallowed his mouthful of tea, before shaking his head in amazement. Forcing Hermione into drilling Sage had been a brilliant way to make his nephew suffer even more. The Professor smiled slightly. If the boy was not possessed of some propriety he would have strangled the girl by now. One thing was for certain, the boy would never fail a test again, out of fear of having Hermione Granger as a tutor.

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