Tea.
It was very odd and bizarre, but there Hermione was, having 'tea' with her most loathed professor. Snape himself was very quiet, though he seemed to be eating a more than proprietary amount of the tiny tea sandwiches.
Hermione nibbled on a cucumber sandwich, more for the novelty of it and for something to do than out of hunger.
"This is a most disturbing set of events." Snape drawled slowly, followed by downing his tea a bit too briskly. His face was blank but Hermione could feel that he was on edge.
"I'll say." Hermione wrinkled her nose, attempting to wrestle her hair back into a ponytail. "First I find out you're a playboy, then I get branded by some weird Malfoy Mark, then next thing I know I am yanked through the air and now I am drinking tea with professor Snape." She grunted, her hair finally tied back. "Who lives in a mansion no less!"
"Manor." He corrected, then started, "What's this about me being a playboy?"
"Witch's Weekly Most Eligible Bachelor." Hermione rolled her eyes. "That was disturbing."
"I am sure it was." Snape stiffened, mutilating a scone. "I suppose we should begin our research into this series of dark events by comparing our versions of events."
"Sensible." Hermione agreed.
"Am I ever not?" He sneered, refilling his tea.
Having never seen her Professor eat much, Hermione was a bit surprised at the the almost ravenous manner he was attacking his tea and crumpets. He did it with elegant grace and perfect etiquette, but at such a speed she could quite tell he was not very settled. On the other hand, what they were eating was not very filling. How 'sensible' could he truly be, choosing an attempt at etiquette over actual food when he was hungry?
"You go first." She laughed lightly at the absurdity, biting into a second sandwich.
"This is no laughing matter." He bristled. Pushing his food away, sensing it was the source of some foul bemusement for her, he stared out the window and composed his thoughts. He could hear a rustle as Hermione pulled out a quill and parchment and immediately adopted 'earnest pupil' mode.
"Taking notes?" He asked, not turning around. "You really are perpetual student." He did not know whether to be impressed that she was not just studious for grades, or extremely annoyed that he could not accurately call her a 'Dunderhead'. He opted for the latter. Turning back to face her squarely, he began. "A little over seventy minutes ago, I entered the Three Broomsticks to pick up some firewhiskey."
"Firewhiskey?" Hermione queried, with a slightly disapproving look he did not much appreciate.
"For a potion." He amended, looking down his aquiline nose at her. It wasn't entirely false, he always did get an extra bottle to bring back for potions. "Malfoy, Avery, McNair and another were gambling in one of the back corners. On closer inspection, the fourth man I had not seen before, though his features were oddly familiar. I questioned Rosmerta, and she identified him as a squib who sometimes frequented the tavern – one Arnold Granger."
"Dad?" Hermione squeaked, then took a sip of tea to recover. "A squib? I suspected, but he never said anything."
"Apparently his magic level is so low that he only barely meets the qualifications to be considered a squib." Snape added with some smugness. He sat straighter, intimidated by Hermione's glare. "And as I was saying, he was gambling with a crowd that could only politely be called 'unsavory'."
"I thought dad kicked his gambling problem years ago." Hermione sighed, letting the pause drag on until Snape pointedly set his cup down a hair too hard. "Oh, please continue."
"Please maintain focus on the subject at hand." Snape admonished, pleased as Hermione blushed bright red in shame. She really did live to please her teachers. He grimaced - that train of thought seemed to go someplace very dark very easily. Hermione, apparently believing him very angry, cowered in her seat. He decided to let her squirm for a moment, then went on, "Avery and McNair left – I believe Lucius had upped the stakes too far for their liking. In avoiding their notice, I ended up closer to the table. They were gambling with bone dice, a particularly fine set that radiated with dark magic. I was only mildly curious, until I heard your name mentioned."
"My name?" Hermione asked with wide eyes.
"No, Bhudda's." Snape rolled his eyes. Hermione blushed again. He smirked: sometimes, it was almost too easy. "I eavesdropped. They were betting with unusual stakes. Lucius was offering payment for intense medical care on his end, and Mr. Granger was offering your 'tutoring' services as collateral on his end. I assume it was Lucius's idea, he claimed to want you to tutor Draco."
"Tutor – Medical bills?" Hermione stuttered. "What medical bills? And why…"
"We will get to questions later." Snape sternly interrupted her.
"Yes sir." Hermione bit her lip.
"Right now lets stick to our individual experiences. Granger was losing terribly, and Lucius seemed to want to stop. Granger begged him for one last roll, and Lucius laid terms. If Granger won, Lucius would pay for all of Mrs. Granger's medical costs until her death."
Hermione looked at him intently, nearly bursting. He could guess the question she was fighting with all her pride not to ask.
"If he lost, you would become his ward."
Hermione jumped up, knocking over one of the trays. "Can -" She clamped a hand over her mouth. He almost laughed, she really was trying.
"Can what?"
"Can Mr. Malfoy make a bet like that? Regarding me?"
"Not usually, but due to the binding nature of bone dice – yes. This is where I come in. I joined the table to watch."
"And I am guessing my father lost."
"Without question." Snape took an uncharacteristic swig of tea, and Hermione wondered if he had spiked it when she was not looking. "He lost so completely, it was if the dice were rigged."
"But that's impossible…magic gambling prevents cheating…"
"You would think." Snape agreed. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he noticed that she was rephrasing her questions into statements. "I could only surmise Lucius had some dark plot in mind, so I offered to play. He made some –comments I took issue with, but agreed." Snape paused, recalling Lucius's jibe that the Granger girl would be a 'good lay'. He snorted, she probably had sex like a textbook. A very boring but well bound textbook.
"That must have been when I received Lucius's mark." Hermione shivered, putting two and two together. If she was now with Snape, that must mean that originally, she would have apparated to where Lucius was. The thought was somehow even less welcome than her current situation. Better the devil you know, perhaps?
Snape cleared his throat. "Most likely. Considering you did not appear immediately at the table, the bi-the apparation must have taken a few minutes."
"We had time to get from the Hog's Head to Flourish and Blott's before Mr. Malfoy's mark disappeared. Your's was...faster."
Snape got the sense that he should keep talking, as Hermione was flushing in a peculiar way. He doubted she even noticed it, and he would prefer it to stay that way. "Interesting." He commented, "Perhaps your body adapted faster the second time."
She now looked startled, interested, and curious, which was preferable to shy and embarassed.
"Lucius was completely certain he would win." Snape continued his tale, "He again rolled a very high score, the same set he had beaten Granger with. I admit I had very little chance of winning." He added pointedly, "Nor did I have the desire to, beyond foiling whatever Lucius's plans were. I am not quite sure how it happened really, but I won. The bet was on single roll. I rolled the highest score possible."
"So you won…..me…" Hermione breathed at last.
He hadn't realized she'd been holding her breath. Was that acceptance of the situation, or something else? He was tempted to use legilimency on her.
She looked up, her eyes a bit bigger than they usually were when he was around. "So, I am your ward now?"
"I think it goes beyond that." Snape tapped his thigh where it itched. "Being an adult, 'ward' can have a different meaning. An old meaning, one your father probably would not have known."
"Which is?"
He steeled himself for the coming reaction. "Given the mark on your chest, I believe we are bound."
The moon has waned
The river has dried
The sun has bloomed
The blood is high
Found in "Riddle Ryhmes of the Elder Houses". This handwritten manuscript is held in a vault at Gringott's when not temporarily loaned out on request to a wizarding scholar or group of proper credentials.