Chapter Two: The First Day
Hermione walked into a circular room, where Snape stood in the center. Despite being surrounded with fumes and glass tubes, she could still see him.
"Come closer, Miss Granger. I don't bite. I am not a vampire, despite what all you students used to think," he said as he poured a liquid from one vial to another.
"I was smarter than the other students, Professor Snape. Surely you knew that?" she replied pointedly.
He walked out from behind the curtain of smoke and strode to his desk. He took a seat behind it and beckoned Hermione to come closer. She sat down in the chair opposite his and set her bag down next to it.
"There is no need to call me Professor, Miss Granger, seeing that I am not your teacher anymore. I am merely your adviser and guide during this time. You shall watch what I do, and imitate, in hopes that one day you will take over this post," he said to her.
"Sir," Hermione said with uncertainty, "am I to understand that I am to take over your job when you retire? I didn't think that this was the purpose of this apprenticeship, I thought I was just here to learn what I could from you, not become your successor."
"Well, you don't have to do anything you don't wish to do. Since some seem to think you are actually intelligent and not just an insufferable know-it-all, then it would only be logical for you to head this department when I am gone." He spoke as though he were annoyed.
"Gone, Sir? What do you mean gone? You must have many more years to live I'd think. Why should you not continue a job that you are so good at, and that no one can compare to?" she questioned him, purposely ignoring the jibe he had made at her.
"Miss Granger, you asking pointless questions won't make this year go by any faster. Please refrain from opening your mouth more times than needed, even though I know that is a very hard task for you. If you must know some truth, then know that there are still many people out there who don't trust me, even after the amazing Harry Potter cleared my name. So I will do this job for one last year, and then retire into solitude where I won't be bothered any longer. Understand?" he asked contemptuously.
Hermione stared at him for a moment before she nodded in agreement.
"Good, now you may start your duties. Basically, you will do what I tell you and fetch me things when I need them. Fail to do this and I will not be happy. Now first you shall organize all the potions supplies in those cupboards--" He pointed. "--in reverse alphabetical order. I regret to say that they have been getting more and more disorganized over the years and I do not have the time to do it myself," he said.
"But, Sir, why reverse alphabetical order? Surely the proper way to do it would be to-" She was interrupted.
"I would like you to do it the way that I asked, and without complaint, Miss Granger. Even though your school days are long over, you still don't realize the fact that your ideas are void to me. Everything will be done my way, and my way alone. I don't need some incompetent, inexperienced witch telling me what is proper and what is not. If you keep this up, Miss Granger, then we are going to have a problem. Are you able to comprehend what I have said?" he added with a glare.
"Yes, Sir," Hermione muttered through clenched teeth.
She set to work right away. The unnerving tension in the room was so palpable that it was smothering. She couldn't stand to work that way, but she must if she wanted to complete the job properly. She started rummaging through the potion bottles and struggled to find one labeled with a "Z".
Two hours had gone by before Hermione had finally finished the "Z" shelf. She wiped the sweat off her brow and sighed. She looked around for a chair to sit and rest in, but much to her displeasure, the closest chair to her was one right beside Snape.
She looked over to where Snape was standing. He was measuring out two vials of a strange looking liquid that she had never seen before. Snape seemed to know that she was watching him, because he began to speak.
"Now that you've finally finished the first shelf, you may start working on the next one if you please. The "Y" shelf, if you've already forgotten what letter comes before Z," he said with a taunting manner in his voice.
Hermione didn't appreciate the snide remark and reacted aggressively.
"Is this how it's going to be, Sir? Are you going to be rude to me this entire year? The Minister has told me that if at anytime I am unhappy with what is going on, to owl him and request to drop out of this program. I will gladly take him up on his offer if this is what I am going to have to be dealing with every day."
"No!" he snarled. "You must not do that."
"And why not?" she huffed.
"Beca-because you can't! You mustn't leave, not until you have learned," he bellowed.
"Learned what, Sir? I don't know what could be important enough to make me stay and be abused in this way," she asked, confused by the urgency in his voice.
"I have things to teach you, things that you will learn in due time, as soon as I know I can trust you. Stay… please." The 'please' was barely audible, and when he said it, a slightly embarrassed flush rose on his cheeks. There was a strange, yet wonderful, sincerity to his voice that Hermione had never experienced before now. He sounded almost as if he was pleading. He looked down at the floor - and away from Hermione's face. She wished he would look at her, but to her great frustration, he didn't. They stood there in silence for a couple minutes before Hermione finally spoke.
"I will stay, Sir, for the time being. But know this, if you keep mistreating me, then I will leave, with or without what you have to teach me. I am not the little schoolgirl that I once was. I have grown up and can defend myself now."
Snape looked up at her, but only for a moment. He took what she said to mind. She isn't a little girl anymore; she is a young woman, and a lot different from her schooldays, he thought to himself, but he quickly removed that thought from his head. It's not right to think that way, you old fool, think of other things.
"Do we have an understanding?" Hermione said as she held out her hand for the man to shake.
He didn't take her hand, but merely said, "That will do, Miss Granger. Please continue with the organizing."
He strode back over to the table with the chemicals and got straight to work without a word. Hermione walked back over to the cupboards and began to search through the mess of ingredients for one starting with a "Y". She picked up one labeled "Young Blood of a Werewolf" and felt compelled to ask Snape why this would be under "Y" instead of "W" for Werewolf, but decided against it, seeing that she didn't want to raise another fight.
Another four hours passed and Hermione looked at her watch only to see that it was finally six o'clock and time to leave. She looked over in Snape's general direction and saw that he was sitting at his desk, writing something down. She started towards the desk and passed the table that Snape was working at earlier.
On the worktable she saw papers scattered everywhere and leaned down to look at some. All the papers were written out in some kind of code she could not understand. She looked even closer. These were not ancient runes; they were something different, a secret code that Snape seemingly developed for himself.
Sehsiw ruootmeh tegn ahcd natifo stnemel eeht evome rotwoh tuoderug ifts ujewf ilortn ocylisa edluoc ewt ahter utanfon isahcus otdetc ejbus ebewdlu ohsyhw osev omy reveru oslortn ocna iptn aron gioselp oeper ayhw…
She picked up the paper and stuffed it quickly into her pocket. She wanted to decode it at home. She kept on walking over to Snape's desk so she could retrieve her bag. When she got there, she saw that Snape was writing down more of his code. She couldn't help herself, so she began to speak.
"Sir, if it is not being too bold, may I ask what is that you are writing, and what the potion is that you are working so steadfastly on?"
"That is none of your business, Miss Granger. Now, return to here tomorrow morning at 10:00am. You may leave now, Miss Granger, and before you do, you may want to put that paper that you stole back, or I may have to press charges, and that's a lot of tedious paperwork that I don't enjoy doing. Good night," he said quite drearily, without looking up at her.
Hermione quickly pulled the paper out of her pocket and set it down on Snape's desk. She then picked up her bag and rushed out of the room without a word.
Snape smirked slightly to himself. That should teach the little know-it-all not to steal from me again, he thought.
Hermione ran through the corridors and into the elevator before it closed on her. She was stuffed into it with seven other grumpy looking wizards. They all eyed her suggestively. Hermione, feeling uncomfortable, squirmed a little and kept her head down. At level one, all of them got out, Thank God, she thought to herself when she was alone again. The elevator then stopped again at level two, and to her surprise, Harry got on.
"'Lo Hermione. How was your day?" he asked politely.
"Er…Let's just say it was, -awkward." She replied. She decided not to tell him about her potions internship just yet.
"Interesting. Why are you here today, anyway? I forgot to ask earlier."
"No real reason, just catching up with some people, you know. That sort of thing. Why are you here?" she said all the while trying to sound genuine.
"Didn't I tell you? I'm the Head of the Auror's Department. Kingsley saw promise in me after the war, and he offered me the job about a year ago. Can you believe it? I am the youngest ever to head the department!" he exclaimed.
"Well of course you'd get it, Harry, especially after you were the one to defeat Voldemort. No one else is more worthy of the job," she told him sincerely.
"Thanks. Well uh, I've been thinking a lot today. Do you want to maybe come over for dinner tonight? Ginny has finally gotten the whole cooking thing down and is making something really nice for supper. And I'm very sure that she would love to see you after all this time."
"Of course I'd like to come, Harry," she said, though she felt slightly unsure.
"That's great! Then follow me," he said, as he walked out of the elevator and into the atrium.
Hermione followed him. They walked passed the Fountain of Magical Brethren, that had been rebuilt last year, and Hermione looked at her reflection in the water. It was hard to distinguish, but she could see that her face had lost a lot of the happiness that it once had a couple of years ago. Life was lonely now, and without her old companions, she felt emptier inside than ever.
She kept on following Harry until they reached one of the regal fireplaces in the entrance part of the atrium. Harry grabbed a handful of Floo Powder out of the basin on top of the hearth, and threw it into the warm fire below. Immediately the flames turned emerald green and flickered brightly.
"Hermione, I know I was wrong to not side with you before, but you could always trust me in the past, and you can still trust me now. Just take my hand and I will never betray your trust again." Harry held out his hand to her and she looked at it suspiciously.
"Come home with me," he added, and she could see clearly that he was genuine.
Hermione looked into his eyes and knew instantly that this was the same Harry that she'd always known and loved, and that a single mistake shouldn't have made her react the way she did. She took his hand in hers and smiled at him.
He looked at her for a moment and then turned back towards the fireplace and said, "Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place."
Then they stepped into the fireplace together.