January 2000
"HAPPY NEW Y-"
There was a loud explosion that shook the entire room. For the second afterwards, everything was deathly quiet. And then the ceiling began to crumble, and people started screaming.
Hermione was one of several people who drew her wand and cast a hovering charm to prevent rubble from raining down on the crowd below. While the combined spellwork did slow the ceiling's descent, it was certainly only a temporary solution. Severus, who was standing only a step away, grabbed her free arm.
"We need to leave!" He shouted over the noise. "There's nothing we can do."
She knew he was right, but she was reluctant to end the spell all the same. Guests were Disapperating right and left, but there were plenty more who, clearly either uncomfortable or unskilled with Apparition, ran towards the doors and the nearest fireplaces. She looked around frantically for any sign of Ron or Harry. Knowing them, they wouldn't leave before the room had been evacuated.
"Granger!" Severus shouted, gripping her arm tighter. "Now!"
"I have to find Harry and Ron!" She shouted. "I can't leave without them!"
Hermione pulled away from Severus and ran, looking for her boys. As more and more people left, the ceiling began to fall in larger and larger chunks. One fell so close that it tore the hem of her skirt. She heard Severus curse behind her as he ran after her.
Just then, she saw Harry. He was tossing an unconscious guest over his shoulder, and as he stood up, their eyes met. Harry shouted something at her, and even though she couldn't hear him, it was clear what he said.We need to go.
There was an enormous crack overhead, and the floor beneath her feet shuddered. It felt like the entire building was going to collapse in a matter of seconds.
"GRANGER!" Severus seized her arm again. Before Hermione had a chance to react, she felt the familiar sensation of being wrung out like a wet rag that accompanied side-along Disapparition.
They Apparated into chaos. People everywhere were screaming, and some were covered in blood. It took a moment for Hermione to place where they were, but then she heard the sound of the building crumbling behind her. Severus had Apparated them just outside where most of the party guests had gathered. It took her a moment more to register the sounds of spells being cast, barely audible over the hysterical crowd.
Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen, and she watched in horror as the building fell completely in on itself. A series of shrieks came up from the crowd and people ran from the billowing cloud of dust and rubble. Hermione was separated from Severus by the jostling crowd, and she looked around frantically for him oranyoneshe knew. It was then she heard the growl.
A werewolf was tearing through the group of people with startling ease, clearly of the mind that it was better to maim many than to take the time to kill only a few. It was not the full moon, so he hadn't shifted. While not as lethal as he would have been in his wolf form, he was still a fierce wizard with enormous physical strength.
Heart pounding, Hermione cast a stunning spell. The werewolf turned in her direction and growled, his breath visible in the frigid air. His hair was matted, and even with the distance between them, she could smell the scent of stale blood. He prowled towards Hermione, expression changing as he recognized her.
"Hermione Granger?" He tilted his head almost playfully as a slow grin spread across his face. His beard and teeth glinted with blood, a sight that made Hermione's stomach lurch. She stood her ground and did not answer him, fearing that the tremor in her voice would betray her fright.
"Fenrir Greyback sends his regards," he said before lunging for her.
Over the years, Severus had learned that regardless of how bad a situation appeared, it could always be worse. It was something he had reminded himself of often in life, not as a source of comfort, but rather as a warning to heed. Though it might be a paranoid notion, it had kept him alive.
For this reason, when he and Granger had Apparated outside the building and into a frenzied crowd, he knew that the situation could get worse. Indeed, it got worse only moments after their arrival. Granger was knocked out of his grasp by the horde of people in hysterics. When he heard an unfortunately familiar howl, he knew that the night would only be going downhill from there.
Ignoring the cold, spidery feeling that sound sent down his spine, Severus forced himself to run towards instead of away from the sound. Within seconds he found himself face to face with a werewolf. She snarled at him and charged at him. He dropped her with a spell before she took more than a couple of steps. From distance, he heard a loud snarl coming from the opposite direction of the werewolf in front of him. Ofcoursethere was more than one. He spun around, heading in the direction of the second werewolf.
He was not the only one heading towards the conflict. Aurors were arriving in droves, and appeared to be directed by none other than Tonks. Even in the high intensity of the moment, Severus was able to appreciate the revival of her spirit. As she shouted orders, he knew that she would not be teaching for much longer. This was a taste, a reminder of what her was life before Lupin, the child, and teaching. She was an Auror again, and she was damn good at her job. This brief renaissance would not satisfy her for long.
Another werewolf entered his line of sight, and he dealt with it as quickly as he had the first. He lowered his wand a fraction, hand shaking slightly. He hated werewolves.
The appearance of the cursed creatures had whipped the crowd into an even worse shape. Severus moved through the crowd, looking for anyone was acting completely useless. Honestly, for a ball attended by dozens of war heroes, the reaction to an attack should have been better. It was slow moving, and he bumped into people multiple times. Even with several wands offering light, the frozen ground outside the manor remained shadowy and uncertain, illuminated occasionally by the flash of cameras. The vultures at the Daily Prophet were having field day.
In a flash of camera light, Severus spotted Granger. Her white dress practically glowed in the dim light, and he followed it like a beacon.
"Werewolves!" She shouted when she saw him.
"I'm aware," he replied grimly.
They split once again, following the perimeter in opposite directions, looking for signs of more fighting. When they met again, they were joined by Potter who shook his head. "I think the rest ran. I didn't see anything."
"We need to find the others," Granger said. Potter nodded.
It seemed almost second nature to call the Order together again. By the time they had gathered at Grimmauld Place, the scene at the Estes Estate had been contained by the Aurors. The guests still wandering around had been sent home. Several werewolves had been captured, though none were saying anything. Tonks had stayed at the estate with the other Aurors. Potter and Weasley were still technically in training and thus were sent home, proving that fame did not buy Potter an entrance intoeverycircle.
"It's bloody ridiculous," Weasley muttered. "We've handled far worse with far less training or stuff than the Aurors have. And besides, if we'rein training, you'd think they'd want us to be there."
Potter grunted, though whether it was a sign of agreement or not was lost on Severus. The Order was gathered around the large table in the dining room. Even around the large table, they were cramped for space. Severus sat on one side along with Granger, Minerva, Hagrid, Shacklebolt. Lupin, Potter, and the Weasleys sat around the other. Molly and Lavender had left to check on Andromeda and the children, though for the sake of space, Severus half wished that Hagrid had gone instead.
"I thought I was going to go blind from the camera flash," George said. "Really, you'd think they'd have something better to do, what with werewolves running around and all. No offense, Lupin."
"None taken," Lupin said.
"I'm just glad that you're all alright," Hagrid sniffed. "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to any of you."
"Yes, well, as much as I echo Hagrid's sentiment, I believe we have more relevant matters to discuss. There was a staged attack at a Ministry hosted event with some of the most prolific names in the wizarding world in attendance. We need to figure out why and how this happened," Minerva said.
There was a mumbled of collective agreement from around the table. Severus tapped his fingers silently along the underside of the table. His index finger brushed the soft, white dress that was bunched under the table and he quickly retracted his hand.
"First thing, we've got to figure out who we're dealing with," Bill said. "Obviously these werewolves were at one time in alliance with Voldemort-," Severus flinched at the name, "-but we have no idea whether their motive has changed. If there's someone else that's directing them."
Granger shifted beside him, perched on the edge of the bench. None of them had spared a moment to change, putting her in the precarious position of remaining upright sitting in a sizable skirt. She shuffled over a bit more, nearly tipping over in the process. Severus reached out to steady her.
"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Hermione muttered, reaching for her wand. There wasn't much she could do with the expansive dress robes, but she was not the Transfigurations professor for nothing. Severus felt the press of fabric against his calf fade away as she altered the shape of the skirt, allowing her freedom of movement without fear of toppling over.
"It's thewhythat's got me concerned," Potter said. "Without their motivations, we have nothing."
"Motive and opportunity are peripheral issues at best," Severus said, still feeling the absence against his leg. "Both can easily be assumed."
"And what are we to glean fromassumptions?" Fleur cried. "We need facts, we need to know exactly the who, and the why, and the how."
"We can assume that the motive is a protest against systematic discrimination," Hermione said. "Voldemort gained their support using a platform of inter-creature unity and equality. While we all know that was completely unfounded, it's something that was important to them, and not entirely unwarranted. Now we claim to have solved all of our problems. We claim that we are ready to enter a new era- an era that promises additional prejudice and discrimination for those affected by lycanthropy." She paused. "There's yourwhy. As for the how, most of the senior level Aurors wereinvitedto event, and security was low. There was little to prevent them from staging the attack."
"So basically what you're saying is that it's a fuck you to the Ministry," Ron said. "I guess that's pretty safe to assume."
"What about the who?" Potter asked. He was watching Granger carefully, clearly weighing what she had to say.
"Fenrir Greyback," Granger said. "I'm sure of it."
There was collective intake of breath from around the table.
"He's in Azkaban!" Minerva said.
"Is he?" Severus asked sharply. He turned towards Kingsley, who up until this point had been largely silent. "When was the last time you received an update from Azkaban?"
Kingsley was already standing and heading for the door. "Yesterday," he said grimly. "I will send word when I find out for certain."
"What are we supposed to do until then?" Potter said, half rising from his seat.
"Stay here," Kingsley ordered. While he could have been addressing the group, it was clear that the comment was directed only at the person who had posed the question.
Kingsley had hardly left the house before Potter was ready to leave as well.
"Patience, Potter," Severus said.
"I don't have a lot of that," Potter replied tightly. Both Granger and Minerva gave Severus pointed nudges before he could respond.
For a while, they waited, tense and quiet, in the dining room, still crowded around the table. Eventually, Hagrid had to return to Hogwarts to check on the state of the school personally, though Aurora had assured Minerva that nothing had been amiss the entire night. The rest of them began to spread out around the house, most of the Weasleys heading to the kitchen.
Severus claimed a chair near the fireplace, keeping out of the way of the others. Arthur dozed in an armchair nearby and Potter alternated between pacing and sitting in a stony silence beside his fiancee. Granger disappeared upstairs, presumably to her room.
Meanwhile, Ron and Minerva sat steely-eyed across from each other as they examined the chessboard in front of them. They were still playing when Granger reappeared, wearing a green sweater with a largeHand jeans. She took one look in at the chessboard, frowned, and crossed to the other side of the room. Severus noticed that she had the book he had given her tucked under her arm.
When the chess game concluded in stalemate, Severus replaced Minerva as an opponent. Despite Weasley's lack of sense in every other discernible aspect of his life, he was a surprisingly shrewd opponent. Both of them were restrained, remaining on the defensive for most of the game, which also ended in a stalemate after a considerable amount of time.
When Severus arose from the table at last, Potter, appearing to have calmed somewhat, asked, "How'd he do?"
It was unclear to Severus whether this was addressed to himself or Weasley, but Ron replied with a decisive, "Well, he's no Aragon or Gagwilde or anything, but he's alright, I guess."
"High praise," Potter observed. "I won't even tell you what he said about me," he confided to Severus as Ron castreparoon his chess pieces.
"Ron envisions himself as one the next Brian Gagwilde," Hermione added from her spot across the room. "So he can be a little stingy when it comes to praise."
"That's rich coming from you!" Ron said, sweeping his newly mended pieces off the board and putting them away. "Are you sure that's a real spell? Well it's not very good, is it?" he mimicked in a high sing-songy voice. He yelped when she wordlessly sent a spell hurtling his way.
Tonks finally made it to Grimmauld Place. She sent Lupin on to the Burrow to relieve Andromeda of babysitting duty, and Fleur tagged along so that she could pick up her daughter as well.
Hermione closed her book, and left the room. Severus followed her into the library where she placed the now-read book onto a new shelf.
"Granger," he said.
"Severus! What did you need to tell me earlier?"
Severus opened his mouth and paused. He looked at her. Hair once more untamed, clothing as predictable as his own, brown eyes that looked at him with unwavering trust. Trust that he did not want to lose.
The pause lengthened until Granger tilted her head. "Severus?"
Hedidhave something to tell her. It just was not what he planned on saying only hours before.
"Don't make me do that again," he said finally. So saying, he returned to the sitting room.
It was past four in the morning before Kingsley returned to inform them that there indeed had been a prison break at Azkaban and that Greyback, along with several other prisoners, was missing. The tone of the room, which had gradually mellowed since their arrival, sharply changed.
"This is the second Azkaban break in less than five years!"
"We can help. We can track them down," Potter was on his feet once again immediately. It was clear why Kingsley had opted to deliver the news in person rather than send his patronus.
Kingsley sighed. "In spite of everything that has happened, none of you have been officially trained in any capacity. You have all proved yourselves, but let the Aurors handle this. We don't want any of you to become a target, either for Death Eaters or for the media. It's for your own sake."
Seeing that Harry still looked mutinous, Kingsley continued. "Stay at home, Harry. I promise that we will wrap this up as quickly as possible."
"That's what you said last time!" Potter said sharply. "And 'as quickly as possible' was over a year later. Me, Ron, and Hermione spent ayearbasically stuck here under house arrest, because there were still Death Eaters on the loose! We had to argue with people from the Ministry for days just to attend funerals."
"It was for your protection, Harry," Kingsley said gently. "And yours as well, Hermione, Ron. The Ministry is well aware of the sacrifices the three of you have made. We are not going to restrict your movement this time, but I do ask that youall-" he turned to face the rest of the room"-use discretion. Until we find these criminals, there is an increased risk of attacks."
The room was dead silent until Lavender stumbled through the fireplace, sending ash flying onto Severus' robes. Like the most of the others, Lavender had not yet changed, and her dress was looking worse for wear.
"Go home. Get some rest," Kingsley said. "Who knows what tomorrow will bring."
"Well isn't that reassuring," George commented.
"Certainly," Kingsley said, giving him a slight nod before he bid them all goodnight. Severus and Minerva waited no time to leave. Minerva was tight-lipped and pale, and Severus was sure he did not look much better. They said nothing as they exited the house, though they knew exactly what the other was thinking.
When the Apparated back to Hogwarts, Severus felt too wired to fall asleep, but he returned to his rooms anyway. Athene would be waiting for him.
Severus's words rattled around in her brain long after the man himself had left.Don't make me do that again.It wasn't as if she hadaskedhim to chase after her, nor had she expected him to. If there was some deeper meaning, it was lost to her, probably due to sleep deprivation. It was nearly five o'clock in the morning, and Hermione was still wide awake. Luckily, she was in good company. Ginny, Harry, and Ron were also up and about; the four of them had been talking for almost hour. Lavender was sleeping on the sofa. Most of the conversation had been in efforts to convince Harry that there was no point in leaving Grimmauld Place early in the morning on New Year's Day.
It was Ginny that finally suggested that they go to bed. Hermione had gently shook Lavender awake before giving her friends a hug. She felt dead on her feet, and none of them looked much better.
Lavender stretched and sat up slowly. "Ugh!" She suddenly shot up, brushing at herself frantically. "There's a bug!"
Hermione turned so fast that her vision swam for a moment. "What kind of a bug?"
"I- I don't know. A-a bug, like a roach or a-"
"Beetle," Hermione said grimly. Harry and Ron were on their feet too.
"I don't see anything," Harry said. "Do you think she's already gone?"
"No, there! Look!" The beetle slipped into the crack in the wall.
Hermione cursed. "She knew I would see her! She knew it! I've been looking for her all evening!"
"So she picked the person that didn't know about her!" Harry groaned. "God, she must have been impossible to spot on Lavender's dress."
"You mean to tell me.. there's been a BEETLE crawling on me all night??" Lavender said.
"Of sorts," Hermione said. She got her hands and knees, examining the crack closely. "If you're not aware, Rita Skeeter is an unregistered animagus. She has the very fitting form of a beetle."
Lavender made a gagging sound. Hermione stood up and pulled out her wand. "Homenum Revelio!" Nothing.
"She's already gone?" Ron asked.
"Yeah. If she shows her antennae again, I'll be ready for her," Hermione said. "And this time she won't be left in a jar."
After the disastrous events of New Year's, the tension from that night bled over into the first few days of January. Hermione locked herself in her bedroom at Grimmauld Place perfecting her lesson plans for the upcoming term and didn't come out for a few days. The last day of the holidays rolled around before she knew it.
Lavender returned to Hogwarts early that morning, but Hermione, anxious to squeeze out every moment she could with her friends, decided to head back that night. After the past few days in her room at Grimmauld Place, she was more than ready to get out of the house, and thus accompanied Ginny and Harry for some shopping at WWW.
Both Ron and George were already there, pushing merchandise out at an alarming rate. Signs were posted outside the shop with phrases such as "Weasley's Blow Out Sale! 50% off All Explosives" and "Everything Must Go!"
"It's a new year, which means it's time for new ideas," Ron said as he rang up an order. "It's also the start of a new school term, so all these kids are looking to stock up." He passed the bag off to the waiting Gryffindor who looked a littletooexcited about his purchases. Hermione gave him a wary look.
"I better not see those in the hallway, Mr. Brisk," Hermione warned.
"Yes, Professor Granger," Oliver mumbled, quickly shuffling away.
"Oi, kid!" Ron called. When Oliver turned back around, Ron tossed a couple of puking pastilles to him. "Don't let mean old professors get you down," he said with a wink.
Hermione gave him a sharp jab to the side once Oliver was out of sight. As the next customer stepped up just then, Ron was not given an opportunity to retaliate. When he got a chance, Ron stepped away from the till and beckoned for Hermione to follow him.
"There's not a queue right now, so why don't I show you around some?" Ron said. They barely taken a few steps when Hermione spotted where her missing friends had gone. Ginny held Harry in a Hydra Headlock with the help of multiple snakes protruding from her shoulders.
"Oh! That's our new Quidditch-inspired line," Ron pointed at his sister. "Not intended for intramural use, of course."
"Of course," Hermione agreed blandly. There was already a list of students running through her mind that she suspected would be in possession of the Weasley-brand Quidditch products when classes resumed in a couple of days.
"Herm-i-ne, help mne," Harry rasped.
"Help yourself, Chosen One," Ginny said, flexing her arm.
"Sorry, Harry," Hermione said. Just then she saw a familiar looking mustache with an equally familiar face attached to it. "Elias?"
Elias, halfway up the stairs to the second floor of the shop, did not hear her.
"Odd bloke, isn't he?" Ron asked as they tracked Elias' progress up the stairs and over to where George stood by the railing. "He's been by a few times now, but I don't think I've ever seen him buy anything."
Even from a floor below, Hermione could see that George's face lit up when he saw Elias.
"Oh," She said, surprised as everything clicked into place. Ron glanced over at her, and thus missed what happened next.
George pulled Elias in for a quick kiss before saying something that made Elias laugh. Hermione cringed as she remembered her conversation with George and Elias at the ball.
"What?" Ron asked, frowning at her.
"Nothing," Hermione said quickly. She moved over to a display that provided a poor view to the second floor. "What are these?"
"Now these are truly incredible. We've been working on them for some timeā¦"
That afternoon, Hermione and Harry continued to renovate the house. In comparison to the last day of remodeling, it was a mostly quiet affair with only the two of them, as Ron and Ginny had stayed at the shop to help their brother with the post holiday sales.
It was the first time that Hermione and Harry had truly gotten a moment alone together since Christmas Eve. They were currently working in the sitting room. It had been the room Harry had first tried to fix up, evident by the new-yet-outdated sofa and a clashing rug on the floor.
Hermione sighed. "I think you should leave color schemes up to Ginny and Lavender."
Harry surveyed the room and agreed. "The least we can do today is get the tapestry down."
They both examined it. It was a ghastly sight, both because of most of the names listed, as well as the scorched sections fabric. It was stuck to the wall in a similar fashion to Mrs. Black's portrait, although the repeated burning of disowned names had loosened it somewhat.
"I was thinking about asking Luna to paint a mural," Harry said as they began to take down the tapestry. "Like the one we saw in her room."
"Oh, Harry, that's a wonderful idea!" Hermione said. "A painting by Luna instead of an homage to a problematic and frankly incestuous heritage is probably one of the best things you can do to this place."
Harry snorted, but his face looked serious as they managed to tear down the final bits of the tapestry, and Hermione was reminded of Harry's glances in the graveyard a few days prior.
The remains of the tapestry were incinerated in the fireplace before Harry spoke again.
"Why do you think McGonagall didn't ask me to come teach as the D.A.D.A. professor this year? She must've known that I would have done it," he said, continuing to stare into the flames.
Hermione frowned.. "I think that's exactly why she didn't ask, Harry. It's time for you to take care of you. It's time to put yourself first. Becoming an Auror has been a dream of yours for almost as long as I've known you. McGonagall knows that. I don't think she wanted to distract you from what you truly wanted to do."
"Is teaching whatyoutruly wanted to do?"
It was a simple question, and a fair one, but it certainly felt difficult to answer.
"I don't knowwhatI want to do," Hermione said. "I'm trying to figure it out."
"Yeah," Harry said. "I guess I am too."
In the last hours before her return to the school, Hermione funneled all of her stress and anxiety into preparing for the new year, throwing out old clothes and papers. Her room was pristine, and all of her lessons in order. As always, she hated to say goodbye to Harry, Ron, and Ginny, but they were also gearing up for their return to work. Harry and Ron would return to Auror training, and Ginny's next match was in a matter of weeks.
After giving each one a hug and a kiss, she left Grimmauld Place and returned to Hogwarts just in time for the staff meeting. Classes would resume the following morning, much to Hermione's relief. Merlin only knew how little revising they had done over the past few weeks. The rest of the staff seemed to be ready for the return of classes as well, though to varying degrees. Filius looked relaxed and blissful, perched on a footrest near the fire. Other faculty members had gathered as well, including Lavender, who looked more like her old self than Hermione had seen in the past year. It was certainly a welcome change.
She and Lavender shared a mauve settee that had clearly seen better days. Elias had snagged the chair that Severus typically occupied, though as Severus had not entered the room yet, the outcome of that decision remained unknown. While they waited for others to arrive, Hermione and Remus commiserated over the troubles that came from spending the holidays with Aurors.
Crookshanks padded around irritably, weaving between chairs and tables. He had followed Hermione to the staff room, though it was clear that it was not her company he was seeking. When Severus entered the room, Crookshanks kept his distance at first. He eventually meandered over, hopping into Severus' lap as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Severus, after shooting Elias a withering look, had taken one of the last remaining seats on the settee beside Hermione. She frowned as her cat.
"Traitor," Hermione told him. Crookshanks flicked his tail, and Severus scratched behind the cat's ears approvingly.
"He likes to remind me that I can't tell him what to do," Hermione said to Severus with a sigh. "Where's Athene?"
At the mention of this "Athene" Crookshanks ears twitched. He was a notoriously jealous cat, and Hermione reminded herself to keep an eye on him.
"I suppose she's in my rooms," Severus replied. "Unless she's suddenly managed how to open doors."
"Do you not let her wander around the castle?"
"Not all of us have a mammoth creature capable of taking on the likes of Mrs. Norris."
"Or a cat as smart," Hermione cooed at Crookshanks who was throwing Severus a dirty look over his shoulder.
Severus and Lavender shared an exasperated look as Minerva swept into the room. Hermione pretended she did not see it.
The morning of the first day of classes, there was a flutter of activity in the Great Hall. Students were scrambling downstairs for breakfast and reading through their textbooks that had been left untouched for the entirety of the Christmas holiday.
The Daily Prophet landed on the teachers' table with afwump. Draco Malfoy's pointed face was gracing the front page yet again. Severus glanced down, hiding his interest in this development from both students and colleagues. A decision had been reached: Draco Malfoy was exiled from Wizarding Britain for the next ten years.
It was sure to be a controversial decision with supporters and opponents in equal numbers. It was the perfect conclusion to the Malfoy drama, and in Severus' opinion, the best chance Draco had of ever having a normal life. He had had no contact with his godson, though he suspected that might change, one day, when Draco was ready.
Granger, who sat to his right, also glanced down at the paper. While not quite as skilled in presenting a placid demeanor, she remained a relatively bland expression. Good.
"Glad to see that your ability to catch on extends beyond basic recitation," he commented, adding butter to his toast.
"It extends well beyond that," Granger said, stealing the butter dish from him and sending him a hopeful look.
As he had expected, Granger had not forgotten that he had wanted to discuss something with her, but she would have to remain sorely disappointed. The moment to tell her about the alarm being tripped had passed. She had settled into her rooms without a single complaint as far as he knew, and the alarm had not been raised again. He would just have to keep a closer eye on her until he could find out what was going on. And if a happy side effect of her ignorance was that her trust in him remained untarnished, then so be it.
Granger was not the only one that Severus planned on keeping an eye on, albeit for different reasons. Elias Biswas, the mysterious man that had somehow managed to fill a non existent job opening, had caught Severus' attention and suspicion. The man was the only member of the current faculty that Severus had no prior knowledge of. Not to mention that despite his obvious lack of sense, he seemed to be weaseling his way into everyone else's good graces with minimal effort. Just then he was chatting with Granger without a care in the world. Stupid man.
Severus' ruminating was interrupted by a sudden bustle as a new a group of owls entered the room, all carrying newspapers with a green scrawl. Copies were dropped across the Great Hall. One landed on top of the butter dish between himself and Granger. She cursed, loudly enough to draw the attention of other faculty members, and at first he thought she was reacting in surprise. Then he read the front page.
The Emerald Quill
Hello, readers old and new. In your hands, you are holding a complementary publication to announce the launch of a brand new newspaper, edited by the fabulous Rita Skeeter, known for her juicy pieces in the Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly, as well as her book:The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. After years as a successful journalist in her own rite, Rita is expanding by giving the Daily Prophet a little competition. The Emerald Quill relies on fast journalism and truthful tales, aspects that are highlighted in the paper's motto: Veracity and Veritaserum. We know that our excitement and enthusiasm will be shared by all of you, our dear readers.
As a special treat, Rita will be dropping a new scandal every month. Secrets will be spilled, and heads will roll. Turn to page 5 to read about the this month's top secret gossip!
"I don't think that veracity is the word that they wanted to use," Granger said, frowning.
"I would have thought that your criticisms would surpass the vocabulary," Severus said, holding up the offending paper.
Granger shrugged, took the paper from him, and passed it down so that other professors could read it. "She'll get what's coming to her," she said calmly, cutting an apple into perfectly even slices.
Of that, Severus had no doubt. One look at Granger told him that theThe Emerald Quillwould not be around long. She bit into the first apple slice with a crunch
