Long time i kow, but its back. After some hard thinking i have a general idea where to take this. Being as i have left it for so long my style of writing has changed too. So i do hope you enjoy it, drop us a review of your thoughts. thanks! sammis
Disclaimer: Don't own them at all, not a sausage.
Chapter 5
Hermione mouth fell open as she finally saw her reflection, no wonder why the professors didn't believe her. She looked totally different, her bushy hair had gone and in replace was golden blonde straight long hair. Her skin had a healthly looking tan and no freckles, moles or blemishes, she was floorless. Her lips looked less plum but still full and had a red tint to them. Her neck was long and slim. It looked like she had lost a few pounds and her bust had expanded a few more inches. Her nose was smaller and had a slope any skier would admire. Even her voice sounded different to her ears, it was softer. The only thing that was the same was her eyes.
Sighing Hermione decided she would have to research more about these Infelixicis. Why had her appearance changed so much and not to that image she saw in the Room of Requirements? Why did her eyes remain the same? If Bess could change her to what she wanted to be then why did she look like she did? Not that she was complaining. Maybe she this was actually what she wanted to look like and she just didn't know…
She defiantly needed to research this.
Putting the hand mirror down on the bedside table Hermione moved so that she was under the cold starched sheets of the infirmary bed. Tomorrow was going to be interesting day, it was going to be hard facing Harry and that but she would get through it. She hoped her year believed the story, it was a good thing potions was first, nobody would risk asking her about it in while Snape was there, even Draco would have trouble finding something to insult her about.
Draco…
She would have to face him, be in the same room as him. How could she do it? Could she just pretend the whole thing didn't happen? Could she live with the knowledge of what he had done?
She looked at her 'tattoo' count down and watched as the seconds ticked passed.
'27 days, 22 hours, 4mins, 27 secs
Not In love.'
It would seem she would have no choice but to pretend it didn't happen if she wanted to beat Bess.
But if she asked herself if she wanted to live or not, she didn't think she would be able to answer.
0000
She was wrong to think that the threat of being punished by Snape would stop the questions and whispering. She had arrived early as normal and was already in her sit before any of the other students entered the class room. The Slytherin's idly walked in first, thankfully Draco wasn't with them, and being coy as they were they didn't disguise their shocked at seeing her very well. The boys looked her over as if she was some sort of priced meat and the looks from the girls was full of hate. Did they even realize that she was just plain Hermione Granger?
When Harry, Ron and the rest of the Gryffindors finally made it into the classroom then noise level rosed to deafening level. The questions all came at once. Who was she? What was she doing here? Where had she come from? It was getting too much, everyone was crowding her. Hermione tried to speak but panic filled her. Was this what it was like to look perfect? To have all this attention, none of it being for the person she is or the work that she does.
"I-I-II--" Hermione opened her mouth and struggled to find the answers. She was saved from having to do so from Snape no less as he came barging into the room.
"Silence! I will not tolerate this amount of noise in my classroom! This is a place for learning not for idle gossip. Now return to your seats!" Proffessor Snape scanned the room as everyone made for their seats. His eyes finally setterling on Hermione. "Ah, Miss Granger, I see you are the cause for this. 20 points from Gryffindor. A further 30 for your lack of care and respect for the School and all that it stands for."
Hermione winced as she read between the lines of his words. Lack of care and respect for the school? He meant life and he wanted her to know it too.
"Thats Hermione? No way!" Plug-face-Pansy screeched. Taking the attentions off her to the other girl. The room errupted again and Hermione hung her head and wished to be anywhere else but there.
"I said silence! Save the questions for your free time and not mine. I am here to teach you lot of whiney snott-nose dunderheads how to make potions even the retarded of house-elfs could make." The room fell silent again as Proffessor Snape snapped at them. "If you lot are all we have for the future of the wizarding world I think I might just top myself now."
As soon as the words left his mouth their eye's meet. Hermione blushed a deep red as Snape snarled and his bad mood increased. For the rest of the lesson Hermione kept her head low and didnt answer any questions. She cleaned up her worktop and handed in her brewed potions without saying a word, but Proffessor Snape did.
"Stay behind after class if you'd be so kind too."
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Severus avoided looking at the Gryffindors as much as possable during the lesson. Ever since finding Miss Granger in the tower he had been filled of thoughts of her. Before that he had just seen her as another student, another one of the crowd. Known only for her being the know-it-all third party of the golden-trio, loved by all and annoying to him. Wasn't that all that was to her? Clearly not. What demons where eating away at her? Why did she detest living so much that she would take the next step he was always too stubben to make? Sometimes even too scared too. why would she want to kill herself?
He looked up to see Miss Granger still sat at her desk, her head bowed. Her perfect face hiden by that long blonde hair. Everthing about her was a vision of pure beauty but it wasn't her. Just a clever mask to hide behind. It wasn't the Miss Granger he thought he knew. The room was empty apart from them, the silence was deafening. He stood up, the chair scrapping along the stone floor. He actually felt unsure of what to do next. It wasn't every day you dealt with something like this. He almost felt sorry for the girl. "Miss Granger. I have asked you to stay behind so I may gather the last item necessary for the potion."
"I-of course Proffessor." She answered finally looked up at him. There was the Miss Granger he knew, the one who would always look the person she was speaking too in the eye's, even if she would rather gouge them out first. Her eye's had not changed, Severus noted. "What is it that you need?"
She was acting as if it was for a class project. What was it that the headmaster had said? That she was pushing what had happened to the back of her mind, repressing it. It was something that he wasnt a stranger too. Most of his memories were ones he'd rather not rememeber at all. Severus moved to stand in front of her desk, the hard wood acting like a barrier, "Just a drop of blood. From your pulse point. Your wrist will do."
"With your wand?" She asked.
"Yes, I dont want to put any ideas in your empty head about self multulation." Severus picked up her hand from where it was resting on the table and turned it palm up. Even the small patch of skin there was pleasent to look at. "Quick, painless and not barbaric."
He held her wrist with his left hand while his right reached for his wand. Summoning an empty vile to the desk he turned the wand point to her wrist. Placing the tip on her pulse point they both watched as a small patch of her skin turned blue and the vile began to fill up. Severus ended the spell and put his wand back in his robe. He still held on to her wrist and he examined it closely. He ran his thump against the small blue mark as if trying to rub it away.
"Looks like an ink stain." Her voice was a whisper but he heard her. It did look like an ink stain. What was worrying about this though is that no mark was meant to be left. She shouldnt have a stain there at all. He had never incounted it before. What curse had this creature put on her?
He dropped her wrist without warning, turning away and taking the vile with her blood back to the front of the room. "Thank you Miss Granger, that will be all."
He sat down and rearranged the scrolls on his desk as she left the room. What did this all mean? In a few hours he would find out who her soul mate is but at what cost? Why had that stain appeared? Severus sighed and pitched teh bridge of his nose. He would need to speak to Albus about this. He would do so while he found out what had happened to Draco. The boy had been missing all night.
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When Hermione entered the common room everyone turned and stared at her. Harry and Ron came rushing forwards, seeming to forget that she was no longer talking to them. They reached her side both taking hold of an arm and pulling her across the room to an empty corner. Harry and Ron looked at each other and then at Hermione waiting for her to speak. Wanted to be up in her room rather than with those two she snapped "What?"
"Gawd Herm's, I just wanted to know why you didn't tell us about this new potion of your's. I thought we always did everything together?" Ron spoke alook of sad betrayal on his face. How selfish could they be? The first words out of their mouths was about themselves.
"It was extra credit for Potions. It was work not a scam." Hermione narrowed her eyes and scowled at them both. At least Harry looked bashful.
"You look hawt Hermione!" Someone shouted from across the room. Harry and Ron both went red and turned so that they blocked hermione from the view of others.
"How long will it last for?" Harry asked staring at his feet. He wouldn't make eye contact.
"I'm not too sure, i mis-calculated, it was only meant to last 30minutes, so it could last for hours, days, months even years." Hermione said in a quiet voice, she never did liked lieing.
"Years?" Ron cried his eyebrows raising making him look like his eyes were budging out.
"Yeah." Hermione answered. She didnt want to be there, it felt so uncomfortble and awkward being around them now. "Look guys, im feeling pretty tired. I'm gonna go to bed. Get a nap before dinner."
"Oo! That reminds me. Dumbledore wants you to go to his office after dinnner. Are you getting in trouble for this?" Ron asked handing Hermione an opened scroll.
"Ron, this was seeled and addressed to me! Did you open it?" Hermione stared at the crumpled note in disbelief.
"Yeah, i wanted to know what was going on being as you didn't tell us in Potions this morning." Ron said shrugging, not looking like he felt any remorse for his action.
"You little shit!" Hermione spat.
"What!?" Ron spluttered his ears going bright red.
"How dare you read my letters. They have nothing to do with you! Maybe if you two wasn't such pricks all the time and actually paid some notice to me instead of bitching non-stop, I would have told you what I was doing! It wasn't like you cared yesterday. Why now? Why are you even here?" Hermione said in a low angry whisper. Ron was too shocked to speak and smaked his chops about like a fish out of water. Where as Harry just stared at his feet. "I've had enough of carrying you two through school, from now on your on your own. Dont even bother to ask me to come to dinner."
Hermione turned on her heal and marched up the stairs to her room. How could they be so uncaring. Even now all they was thinking about was themselves. She pulled her robe off and threw it on the bed. Sighing she flopped herself down next to it. Why did she agree to do this in the first place. Nothing had changed. She was still alone. At least she will find out if its worth fighting for or giving up when she goes and sees the Headmaster. Her soul mate will be known by then. Her life was not in her hands anymore.
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"Please tell me you've finally gone mad." Severus said as he stared at the albino ferret. "He is a student Albus! You cant keep him like this for ever!"
"Oh I'm quite sane Severus." Albus smiled as he sucked on a sweet. "Mr Malfoy and I desided that it would be very educational for him to be a ferret for awhile."
"You can be locked up for this you know." Severus said but didn't change the boy back himself. Just put him back in his cage. "I've completed the potion Headmaster."
"Oh jolly good and what are the results?" Albus looked over his specticals and at the man standing before him.
"Now that is a very good question indeed and I was hoping you could tell me." Severus took out the vile of eth potion and placed it before Albus. "For some strange reason when ever I cast the spell for the answer i get this lovely little note saying i do not have the permission to be told so."
"Indeed, aht is quite interesting." Albus sat forward and looked at the vile. "Well let me try."
Pulling out his wand Albus hit the side of the vile three times. Nothing happened for a short while and then all of a sudden the cork flew off and a streams of smoke poured out. Hovering in the air above it, shifting so it made clear letters. Until it formed a name only Dumbledore could see. "Very interesting..."