Disclaimer: 1The characters and canon situations in the following story belong solely to JK Rowling, Scholastic and WB. I am not making any money from the publishing or writing of this story.
AN: Thank you to all who have read and reviewed. The reviews I have received are truly amazing. Sorry for the bit of a delay in getting this chapter up; weekends are generally the only time I have to sleep (insomnia is wonderful…)
Just a little warning: the 'action' in this story takes a little while to get to…but we're getting there…just stick with me!
Also, I do not have a Beta, so any/all errors or inconsistencies are mine alone.
Chapter Nine:
The summer waned, and soon enough, it was the first of September. Hermione stood on the platform of 9 ¾ with wizards that, months before, would not be standing together anywhere near each other, let alone tolerate or see as friends.
All the Weasleys had come with Ginny; even Charlie. The young red-haired witch was currently trying to snog Harry without Molly noticing. Draco was saying good-bye to his parents, who had already wished Hermione well, and invited her to their Christmas party. She also made arrangements to have tea with Narcissa whenever she visited Hogsmeade. Sirius, who was still getting the shocked look on occasion from passers-by who recognized him from either his wanted poster or obituary, was standing off to the side with his hands in his pockets and a smirk on his lips. As soon as Hermione was free of well-wishers, the Marauder strode over and swung the witch around and into his arms.
"You take care now, love, and give Sev a lot of trouble for me!"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I shall do no such thing, Mr. Black. I am practically faculty this year, and I shall behave with the utmost discretion and decorum." The haughty and offended look she had on her face lasted mere seconds before they both dissolved into laughter.
"Decorum my foot, love, unless that was the name of the song you were trying to sing from on top of the bar that one night. How much did you have to drink?"
"That was your fault! If I had any clue that each one of those fruity things had five shots of liquor in them, I never would have had more than a taste!"
"Sure, just blame it on me," Sirius said with a chuckle. "Still, I shall never forget the look on Snape's face when you serenaded him and Charlie. I wish I brought a camera."
Hermione groaned and hid her face in her hands. "I shall never live that down...and I have Professor Snape for potions all year long!" She felt a strong arm circle her shoulders.
"Don't worry... if he's a bastard about it, just remind him that I definitely didn't forget a camera a certain night," Sirius said with a wink.
Hermione shook her head then gave the Marauder a huge hug and a kiss on the cheek. "I'll miss you, Padfoot. I'll be home for Christmas, and I'll write as often as I can."
"Miss you too, love. It's just me and Harry now; even Crooksy is leaving me," he said with an exaggerated pout.
"Ron will probably be over often, and you have the other members of the 'grown-up boys club' to go visit...you'll be fine," she said, referring to Lucius, Kingsley, Bill and Charlie. Along with Sirius and Severus, the men got together quite often during the last bit of summer to socialize and play Quidditch. Narcissa and Hermione had coined the name of the group, as the men often degenerated into behaving like schoolboys after five minutes.
Everyone waved as Hermione, Ginny, and Draco boarded the train. The young wizard looked uncertain as his eyes drifted toward the front of the train. Turning to Hermione, he said, "I should probably go up there. See you later…"
"Hey, you can sit with us if you like…" she said, smiling and tugging on his hand. Ginny had already entered a compartment, so no one heard her huff.
"Really? Your friends would not mind?"
Rolling her eyes, Hermione said, "You're one of my friends too…come on, Ferret," she tugged his hand even harder and he nearly stumbled into the compartment.
She looked around the cabin and squealed, "Neville!" Her fellow Gryffindor smiled widely and held out his arms.
"Hermione! You look so much better…how was your summer?"
"You look good too," she said smiling up at her friend. Neville towered over her now, and he retained his slimmer build, although he had filled out more from decent meals and working in his greenhouses that he built at the Longbottom estate. "Summer was interesting…and a bit busy. I took some of my NEWTs so I can assist in classes."
Neville rolled his eyes and was about to same something when he was interrupted by Luna's quiet voice, "Hello, Draco…you seem to have gotten rid of the wrackspurts."
The blond wizard arched a brow and looked at Hermione in confusion. She just shrugged her shoulders and said, "Hey, Luna…how have you been."
"Father and I went looking for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack this summer, and I found a charm to help locate my shoes," Luna said in her dreamy voice. Everyone looked at the witch and smiled. Luna went back to reading an issue of the Quibbler, holding it upside-down.
Neville went over to Draco, and Hermione bit her lip anxiously. "Keep your nose clean and we will not have a problem, Malfoy," Neville said, staring at the Slytherin intently.
Draco straightened to his full height and sneered down his nose at the Gryffindor. They were nearly the same height, as the Slytherin had a growth-spurt over the summer. "I fully intend to, Longbottom, as I have more important things to do…such as study for the NEWTs…and hone my shield spells and dodging abilities... you are taking potions this year, are you not?"
Hermione snorted and pushed Draco into a seat. "Behave, Malfoy, or I will revoke your TV privileges."
"You would not dare!"
"Of course I would."
"You are a hard-hearted woman…"
Hermione was about to retort when Neville blurted out, "What on earth are you talking about? Have you been hanging around Malfoy?"
"Yes…his family stayed with us at Grimmauld Place this summer, and he and the boys watched movies all the time in my room."
Neville looked back and forth between Hermione and Draco in shock. He then turned to Ginny incredulously, who just rolled her eyes and frowned slightly.
Once again, Luna interjected, "Did you bring them any peaches? The ones you gave us whilst we were staying at your house were delightful. I love peaches."
"Er…no, um…Luna," Draco stammered, embarrassed and guilty.
Hermione was already aware that the Malfoys had done what they could for those were placed in the dungeons underneath the Manor; especially for Ollivander, who would have perished were it not for the extra food and blankets that were smuggled down to him.
The curly-haired witch bumped her shoulder against Draco's and smiled at him. The Slytherin relaxed slightly, and although he was uncomfortable amongst those who still disliked him, he at least had one friend by his side, and it seemed that a certain Ravenclaw who had cause to hate him for what happened under his roof had forgiven him as well.
The rest of the ride to Hogwarts was quiet, especially after Draco left with Blaise Zabini and Theo Nott, two Slytherins who were repeating the year at the requests of their families. Although Nott Sr. had been a Death Eater, his son had managed to escape receiving the Dark Mark by going to Italy with his mother and Blaise.
"Good riddance," Ginny said under her breath. Hermione picked it up, though, and shot the red-haired girl a stern look.
"He is different now, and my friend. Please keep those comments to yourself in my presence."
"Hermione," Neville said, "everyone knows that you love adopting causes. Are you sure that Malfoy's just not another attempt for you to 'save' something?"
The curly-haired witch scoffed. "It's not just Draco who has changed, but his parents too. I've had tea with Narcissa and many discussions with Lucius whilst he allowed me to peruse his library. Harry and Ron play Quidditch with Draco at the Burrow often, and Sirius hangs out with Lucius and their friends all the time...are you going to ask everyone else if they're just adopting a cause?"
Neville muttered "Sorry", and Ginny just huffed and looked out the window.
The train stopped, and after greeting Hagrid, Hermione made her way to the carriages. She noticed how many students gaped at the thestrals, and shook her head sadly. The castle had been rebuilt and looked exactly as it did before, but had a far grander and stately atmosphere. It had been the scene of the worst battle many had seen in generations, yet had survived and stood once again as a beacon of hope for the wizarding world and a home for many. Hermione could see new statues and tributes to the many that had fallen in the battle, and she made a promise to visit them in the daylight.
The sorting had taken place, with Professor Flitwick acting as Deputy Headmaster. Headmistress McGonagall waited for everyone to take their seats before she began her opening speech. Hermione had glanced around the hall and noticed that quite a few seventh years had returned to repeat.
"Welcome to all students, new and returning, to another year at Hogwarts. As you know, the battle of the Second Wizarding War was fought at this very school. The castle was severely damaged, yet it has been rebuilt…much like our world is being rebuilt. Let us not forget those who we have lost, as it was their sacrifices and bravery that helped ensure that we have a school and a world to enjoy. May I please have a moment of silence as we remember."
"Thank you. Now, I have two notices; Mr. Bramberry, our new caretaker, has a full list of all products banned from Hogwarts. Basically, if it is from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, consider it prohibited. Also, the Forbidden Forest is not to be entered at any time unless under the direction of a member of the staff. We also have some changes to the curriculum. There is a revised Muggle Studies course that shall be mandatory for all Pureblood students, and a revised Wizarding Studies course that is mandatory for all Muggleborn students. Those students who are Halfbloods should speak to their head-of-house about which class they wish to enroll in," McGonagall intoned. Hermione looked over to the Slytherin table and saw Draco smiling at her. She smiled back and returned her attention to the Headmistress.
"For these classes we have two new Professors; Captain Jonathon Westingham, Royal Air Force, retired, for Muggle Studies, and Madame Inara Pewn, for the Wizarding class. We also have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, former Auror Declan McCabe. Professor Snape has elected to return to teach Potions. That is all, enjoy your meals."
"Merlin, we have to deal with Snape again?" Ginny said, which was echoed by several at the table. "At least Filch is gone."
"What's with the new classes?" Dean Thomas asked.
"I made a suggestion over the summer to have a new Wizarding class. Half of the reason why there is prejudice against Muggleborns is due to our lack of understanding of Wizarding traditions...the other half is because most Purebloods have a very limited and false understanding of the Muggle world. They're trying to change those things through education," Hermione said as she filled her plate.
"Royal Air Force? What is that?" Neville asked.
"Part of the Muggle military. He would know a lot about the Muggle world then, and would probably be strict...which would be good considering he'd be teaching a lot of recalcitrant Purebloods."
"Can't believe you're back...would have thought you'd take the exception," Seamus said to Hermione.
"What? And miss school?" she said in mock shock. Laughs erupted around her. "I thought about it for a moment, but I really couldn't take something that I didn't earn for myself. I've already taken some of my NEWTs though, so I'll have a reduced schedule this year."
"Blimey...you've already tested out?" Dean asked.
"Yes, and for some of those classes I'll be assisting the professors, like an intern. I don't know which field I'll be trying for mastery in yet, so I thought this way would help me narrow things down."
Everyone just shook their head and looked at the witch in wonder.
The prefects helped the new students to their dorms, and the head boy and girl this year were a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff respectively. Everyone thought that Hermione would have been distressed to not receive the position of Head Girl, but she stated that she had enough of running around after students and ensuring they behaved, and she had plenty on her plate as it was this year.
Due to her status as a part-time assistant, Hermione was given her own quarters near Gryffindor tower. If she were to be correcting students' work, it would not be a good idea for her to do it where those students could see, so she moved into her own small suite of rooms, complete with an office. This suited Hermione just fine; she didn't think she could deal with dormitory life anymore. The few friends she had at the school could visit her here, especially Draco, as she didn't think he'd be welcome in the Gryffindor common room. 'Too bad I'm still Professor Snape's student,' she mused, 'I think I'll miss our chats...have to wait for the holidays, then.'
As she settled into her room, she took out several sheets of parchment to write to Sirius, Harry, and Ron. She even sent notes to the Malfoys. After she sent her letters by owl, she changed into pajamas and curled up in front of the fire with Crookshanks.
"It's good that I'm going to be doing something to keep busy, Crooks," she said as she ran her fingers through her familiar's fur, "without the boys here, I don't know what I'd do with myself otherwise. Still, it shall be nice to just study without worrying that something terrifying will happen."
Crookshanks just rumbled his approval and dozed off. "That's what I think too...time for bed; I've classes in the morning."
Hermione rose early as was her norm, and went down to the Great Hall for breakfast. As she went to sit at the Gryffindor table, she saw McGonagall wave her up. She approached the head table with a smile. "Morning, Headmistress!"
"Morning, dear. I would like to inform you that you are welcome to sit up here with the staff for your meals. As you are interning with several of us, the professors have elected to grant you staff benefits. You shall still defer to those professors you are taking classes with, certainly, but due to your age, status, and experience, you are recognized as a peer, now."
"Oh," Hermione said, blushing. "Well, thank you. Thank you so much, it is an honor," she said to the staff. "Would it be alright if I sit at my house table on occasion? I wouldn't want to ignore my friends."
"That should be fine, just do not spill any of our secrets," Minerva said with a wink.
Hermione laughed and found a new chair at the table, positioned between Snape and the new Muggle Studies professor. As she sat down, she heard, "So, you are the illustrious Miss Granger. Captain Westingham, at your service," the man said with a bow.
"Good morning, Captain. Pleasure to meet you."
"Pleasure is all mine. Thanks to your suggestion of revised classes, as I've been told, I now teach at Hogwarts."
"I don't mean to be indelicate, but are you...?"
"Muggleborn, like yourself. Graduated from Hogwarts in '75."
"But you were in the RAF?"
"Always loved planes, ever since I was boy. Even though I could fly a broom, it wasn't the same to me, so after I graduated from here, I enlisted. A few squibs I met in the service helped me with records and such, but I passed my exams and got into flight school. Been a pilot until very recently. I would have joined in the war but I was on my last assigned mission in the middle east, and I couldn't get out of it,' he said grimly.
"I'm sure you'll do a great job, with your knowledge of the Muggle world and its history," she said with a small smile.
Professor Westingham nodded and went back to his breakfast. Snape sat and nursed his tea as he went over schedules. "It appears that I shall be graced with your presence first thing this day," he said to Hermione in his deep voice. "Thank Merlin I have enough headache potion in stock."
"Good, I shall need it from putting up with you for two hours," she quipped, drawing the incredulous gazes of the other professors.
"Do be sure you keep that hair of yours under control. It would not do to have it contaminate all the potions...or, excuse me, is that your kneazle on your head? I cannot tell this early in the morning." The staff continued to look on in shock at the banter; not believing that Severus would converse, let alone joke with a student...especially one he always appeared to loathe in the past.
"I shall tell him you said that. Just look out for presents left in your boots from now on."
"I heard what he was doing to Potter's room these last weeks," Snape said with a barely-discernable smile. "I find myself becoming quite fond of that creature."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Between you and Sirius, I think my familiar picked up some bad habits." She shook her head and drank her tea, noticing that the other students had begun to file into the hall. Draco looked like he had spent a restless night; his pale skin clearly showing the circles under his eyes.
Neville and Ginny entered, both looking for Hermione and stopping when they spied her at the head table. Hermione waved and went back to her breakfast. She would tell them about the staff's invitation later. The Heads-of-House got up to distribute the schedules. Professor Sinistra was the new head of Gryffindor, and she handed Hermione her schedule. As she opened it, she saw that double potions was her first class.
Hermione head down to the dungeons after her meal, and found Draco walking toward the classroom. She hurried up to join him.
"Morning! How are you feeling?" she asked, concerned.
"Just had a late night. Stayed up with Theo and Blaise and talked about everything that happened," he said, sounding tired.
"It's good that you have some friends here."
"What about you?"
Hermione smiled. She had been somewhat apprehensive that Draco would ignore her when they went back to Hogwarts and he was around fellow housemates. "Of course I'm your friend, but I meant other Slytherins."
"Yes, but I was never all that close to either of them before. Still, they are better than Pansy," he said with a sneer. "I cannot tolerate her at all, anymore."
"Well, if you ever want to, you can come up to my room. It's the portrait of Paracelsus before Gryf tower...password is 'Boba Fett'," she whispered.
Draco barked a laugh and smiled. "Thanks, Granger."
They entered the potion classroom and picked a table near the front. As they sat down, other students filtered in. Ginny and Neville arrived together, followed shortly by Luna. It was a mixed class, with a few students from each house. Both Blaise and Theo showed up, as well as Dean, Padma, and Justin Finch-Fletchley and Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff. Everyone sat at an available table and waited for Snape to arrive.
They were talking amongst themselves and did not notice, at first, that Severus had entered through the door connecting to his office by the front of the class. It wasn't until he cleared his throat that most students looked up to see him standing in front of his desk.
"Good morning, students. Nice to see that I finally have your attention," he said dryly. A few gaped at him, and looked behind them at the door he normally burst through with a loud bang.
"Welcome to NEWT-level Potions. You shall come to find I teach this class differently than previous years. As you have made it this far with your limbs intact, I think it is safe to say that you are not entirely dunderheads; thus, you will be granted more leeway in your studies. The focus of this class shall be advanced potions and techniques, and you are expected to utilize all the knowledge you have gained in the art of potions. To this end, you shall work with a partner for the year. Each term you shall be given a list of advanced potions. You and your partner shall choose four potions off of the list to complete. Three of the potions shall be completed as instructed by your textbooks, and the fourth shall be done in two parts. You shall complete the fourth potion as instructed, accompanied by a detailed summary of the entire process. Each step and ingredient shall be listed, as well as the significance of each, and how they interact with each other and the whole. The second step shall be your own variation of the potion; hopefully an improvement. Most students do not succeed in their endeavors; however, it is still a useful learning experience."
He began to pace through the aisles. "Now, the student that you are sitting next to shall be your partner for the year. Mr. Thomas, as you do not have a partner, you may join another table. It is imperative that you work with your partner as a cohesive unit, so I will not tolerate any bickering that does not involve the potion you are working on, is that clear? " When the students murmured their assent, he turned to Neville.
"Mr. Longbottom. Why are you in this class?"
Neville squared his shoulders and looked up at the man who used to be fuel for his nightmares. "I hope to become a Herbologist. As so many species of plants are used for potion ingredients, I thought that having more of an understanding would only be beneficial to my future career."
Snape looked down his nose at the young man. After a time, he finally nodded and said, "There are many books written about the specific plants used, especially the more rare varieties. I would concentrate on those compiled by Wildsmith and Slug; those penned by Phyllida Spore are rubbish." Neville nodded, somewhat shocked, and wrote the names down on his notes. Snape returned to stalking around the classroom.
"If anyone is having difficulty with a potion or has any questions, I shall be in my office," he said, indicating the open door. "At this point in your education, I do not anticipate that I need to hover over all of you to prevent you from blowing up yourself or a fellow student. Here is the list of advanced potions," he said, spelling the parchments to deliver them to each student, "you may have the rest of the class to discuss which potions you will be completing with your partner. Leave your chosen potions on my desk before you leave. Good day," and with a swirl of his robes he disappeared into his offices.
"That's a spot of luck," Ginny said with a large smile. "We barely have to put up with the greasy git this year!"
Hermione frowned and Draco glared. "Be careful of how you speak of my godfather, Weaselette," he said with a sneer.
"Calling it like I see it, Malfoy. You weren't here last year...neither were you, 'Mione, so don't look at me like that. You don't know what it was like here with him as Headmaster," the red-haired girl snapped as she planted her fists on her hips. She reminded Hermione of Molly at the moment, and she quelled the urge to roll her eyes, for she knew the younger Weasley could be just as stubborn and judgmental as her mother.
"I can only guess that it was horrid. I've heard the stories, Ginny, but he..."
"But nothing! You weren't here...you don't get to say anything about it."
"Forgive me if I was not here last year, Ginny, but I wouldn't have been allowed to attend even if I wasn't doing something else at the time," Hermione said, trying to calm herself and her friend. 'I like Gin...I don't want to fight with her...so why is she being like this?'
"If you have such a problem with Professor Snape, why are you in this class?" Draco said, stifling his own temper as he didn't want Hermione to get too upset with him, or Harry and Ron, for that matter.
"I guess that I don't have to be, then. I'll tell McGonagall that I quit the class," she said, grabbing her books and walking out of the class. Hermione just shook her head sadly, and Neville looked out the door as his partner left. Dean had been the odd student of the class, so he picked up his books and joined his fellow Gryffindor at the table.
Draco looked apologetically at the witch sitting next to him. "It's not your fault," she said, patting his arm. "She's been touchy ever since the start of the summer. I really don't know what her problem is. I hope she snaps out of it..."
"She is absolutely infested with wrackspurts. Would you like some Spectrespecs to help you avoid them?"
"No, thank you, Luna," Hermione said with a smile.
Draco and Hermione decided to focus on their potion lists for the rest of the class. They ended up selecting the three potions they would do according to instructions, yet argued about what they would choose for their final potion.
Hermione read over the list, and at the end, found one that she knew would be a challenge. "How about Wolfsbane?"
"Granger, that potion is nearly impossible to brew correctly even whilst following all the directions, and you wish to alter it? Improve upon it? I know Snape said that students do not succeed at that assignment, but if you choose that potion, our failure will be a foregone conclusion!"
"I have an idea for it, though. Remember that he also said it's the attempt that is important, and something just came to me. Remember all the vitamins and such he'd bring back from the health food store? What if there is something we could use from there? I really think that something like the B vitamins might work out."
Draco listened to Hermione as she ran through her ideas. Finally, near the end of the class, he agreed that they would try the potion. "We shall have to see if we can get permission to go to a health store to get the ingredients," he pointed out.
"I don't think that would be a problem, but we could go ask right now," she said, getting up and heading to Snape's office. Draco rolled his eyes and followed.
Hermione knocked on the doorframe and entered when Severus looked up from his office desk. "Problem already? I am surprised, Miss Granger," he drawled.
"Actually, we were just wondering if it would be possible to get permission to go to Muggle London to get some ingredients for our altered potion?"
"What potion have you decided on?"
"She wants to try the Wolfsbane," Draco said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Of course she does," Severus said, rolling his eyes and sitting back in his chair. "You do realize that several potion masters have tried to alter the potion to no avail, myself included? Why are you attempting the impossible?"
"Why not? Besides, it would still be interesting and fun to try...isn't that the point of the assignment?"
Severus nodded and wrote out a permission slip for the first Hogsmeade visit. "You may go then. I would expect that you will return quickly after your errand. No dilly-dallying about London."
"Oh. Of course not. Neither a dilly nor dally in sight, Sir."
"Do not forget you are back in school, Miss Granger; I can deduct points for cheek once more," Snape said with a smirk.
"You could, but I have been told to remind you that Sirius had a camera one particular evening," Hermione said with an identical smirk. Draco looked at his godfather in surprise.
"Oh ho! I have not heard about this! Should I write to father for details?"
"Blackmail is rather Slytherin of you, Miss Granger. I am impressed. Of course, I could always counter that with a Pensieve of your attempts at vocal performances sent to the Prophet...or any prospective employer," he chuckled at Hermione's glare. "Now, be gone with you. Class is nearly over and I have first years next...oh...the joy. It is nearly overwhelming me."
Hermione and Draco sniggered as the left the office and gathered their books. The bell chimed and they left the classroom for their next lesson. As Hermione stepped out of the door, she didn't notice the potion master standing by his desk and shaking his head with a rare grin on his face as memories of a certain songbird flashed through his mind.