Disclaimer: I own nothing. Oh well…

Author Notes: I hope you liked the first two chapters. As I said before, I'm writing the Hermione/Snape parts. My friend is writing the Ginny/Draco parts. It's her first fanfic ever so please… read and review. I really like getting reviews. So, here's my next chapter.

Chapter Three

Detention

The next day seemed like a blur it happened so fast. She was pacing the floor of the common room as Ginny watched her back and forth motions. "If you don't stop it, you're going to make me dizzy," she stated.

"Sorry, Gin," Hermione replied. "Just my nerves… I'll be alright, I guess."

"Anyone would be nervous if they had to serve detention with Snape."

Hermione sighed for the hundredth time and glanced at the clock over the mantle. "Well, I better go if I want to be on time," she said to Ginny.

"Watch your back," Ginny replied. Hermione watched her friend continue with her homework as she turned and headed out of the tower.

Hermione started her long trek to the dungeons, carefully avoiding the last students as they made their way to their perspective houses. How she wished she could just sit by the fire in her own common room and laugh with her friends. Instead, she would be in the drafty dungeons with the most hated professor doing Merlin knows what. As she passed by the Great Hall, the door opened and Ron stepped out. Oh, just great, she thought to herself.

"Um… Hermione… can we talk?" Ron stuttered, clearly nervous.

"Now?" she asked. "Ron, I'm on my way to detention. Can't this wait?" Hermione really didn't want to do this… especially not now.

"Oh… right… I didn't…"

Hermione rolled her eyes. She did not have time for this. "Look, I'll be back later. If you're still in the common room when I return, we'll talk." She didn't wait for an answer but instead, walked around Ron and continued on her way. She made it to the classroom ten minutes earlier than she expected. She ran her hands down her school uniform, straightening every inch. She breathed deeply, willing her nerves to calm, and knocked on the closed door.

"Enter," Snape's voice drifted to her from the other side of the door.

Hermione opened the door and was met by a blast of heat coming from the normally cold room. She looked around and noticed several large cauldrons… their contents were steaming and bubbling furiously. Then she saw her professor. He was leaning over one of the cauldrons, intently stirring it's contents counter-clockwise. His greasy black hair had fallen forward, concealing his face. Hermione waited patiently for Snape to finish… all the while silently wringing her hands. After a few minutes, Snape stopped stirring and straightened up. He stretched a kink out of his back and pushed his hair away from his eyes. It was a purely innocent action but Hermione felt herself staring at him. She wondered what he'd look like without a shirt on… if he had muscles on that lean frame. It was then that his dark eyes met her brown ones. She couldn't see any emotion in those eyes and she silently cursed herself for having such inappropriate thoughts about a professor… especially Snape. She broke eye contact first as she looked at the floor.

"You're early," he stated flatly.

"Yes, Sir," she replied plainly.

"Tonight, you will be helping me brew some potions for Madame Pomfrey. It seems she is running low on certain ones in her stores. You will be tending and brewing the Dreamless Sleep Potion. The last three ingredients need to be prepared and added accordingly. If you need the steps, there is a book next to the cauldron." He finished giving the orders and went back to the cauldron he was currently standing near.

Hermione couldn't believe her ears. Snape had told her she would be helping him! She was sure she'd be cleaning something or other, without magic. She cautiously made her way over to where he had pointed earlier and looked down at the table. She knew instantly what the last three ingredients were. She pulled her hair back and secured it with the hair elastic she had on her wrist. She went straight to work, carefully slicing the tiny yellow flowers of the Maythen plant. After she put them in she started on the small Ocimum Americanum leaves. A hint of lemon filled her nostrils and she felt her nerves calm a bit. She finally squeezed the juice of the berries from the Arkenthos plant into the mixture and watched the potion turn a calming blue color. All that was left was to stir the potions clockwise then times and wait until the color disappeared… turning clear.

Without her knowledge, Snape watched her work. He noticed that during the whole time, she never once looked at the book. She brewed a perfect Dreamless Sleep potion from memory. He was quite impressed but would never acknowledge the fact. He walked over and stood behind her, peering into the cauldron.

Hermione stiffened when she felt the professor standing extremely close to her. Her pulse started to race and she inhaled deeply. Her sense of smell was flooded with freshly turned earth, pine needles, and mint and she realized they were coming from him. She tightly squeezed her eyes shut and willed her rapid breathing to slow. Why is he affecting me this way? She thought. He's mean, greasy, and horrible… and he's a professor! He had leaned over her shoulder so far that his hair tickled her cheek… and she realized it wasn't greasy at all. She felt her knees start to shake and she desperately needed something to hold on to before she fell to the floor. Without thinking, she grabbed hold of the lip of the cauldron. Big mistake, as she burned her hands.

She jumped back, crashed into Snape, and sent them both crashing to the floor. She landed on his lap and felt his arms holding on to her waist. Her hands were in pain and a sheen started to appear. "Merlin's beard!" Snape shouted. He pushed her off his lap, stood up, and started dusting himself off. Hermione just sat on the floor crying and looking at her hands. Snape noticed her and knealt down, taking her hands in his. "Why on Earth did you grab a scalding hot cauldron?"

"I… I don't… know," she sobbed.

Snape helped her to stand and led her over to the sink. He turned the cold water on and placed her hands underneath. "Keep them there," he started as he walked out of the room and into his office. He returned a few minutes later, turned off the water, and gently dabbed at her hands with a soft cloth. Then he opened a small bottle and smoothed an ointment all over. Her hands instantly cooled as she felt the ointment absorb into her palms. "It's late. You should head back to your house now. Take this and apply it once more before bed and again in the morning."

Hermione took the bottle and as their fingers brushed, she felt a tingle in her stomach. She swallowed and shook her head. "Thank you, Sir."

"I suggest you be more careful tomorrow. Goodnight, Miss Granger." Without waiting for a response, Snape wandered over to her potion and started filling vials. Hermione quietly left the classroom and made her way back to Gryffindor. It was indeed late as there was no one around.

After a while, she climbed through the portrait hole thoroughly exhausted. She saw a mop of red hair on the couch and winced as she remembered her run in with Ron earlier. She readied herself for the confrontation when she heard snores. She breathed a sigh of relief as she knew Ron would be passed out for the rest of the night. Nothing could wake him up now not even if Hogwarts was burning down. She crept up the stairs to her room, once again locking the door. She stripped off her school uniform, changed into shorts and a t-shirt, and took down her hair. In the bathroom, she spread the ointment again on her hands and set the bottle on the sink. Then she climbed into bed, extinguishing the candle on the table next to her. As she drifted off to sleep, thoughts of how hardened calloused hands could feel so good next to her own. A smile crept across Hermione's face as she fell asleep.

"Idiot Child!" Snape finished bottling the potions and with a wave of his wand, cleared the classroom. He stormed into his office, slammed and locked the door, and sat down at his desk. Opening a drawer, he pulled out a flask and unscrewed the top. "What was she thinking?" he asked himself as he took a large swig from the flask. The liquid inside made him wince as it left a burning trail down his throat. Snape took another gulp, winced again, and set the flask down.

He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes. Images of her ran through his mind and he could have sworn he smelled a hint of vanilla in the air… the same smell he remembered coming from her earlier. The images that came to him next were not what he had expected. Images of losing himself into her caramel-colored eyes and feeling the softness of her skin against his rough hands. He snapped open his eyes and downed the last of the flask. He should not be thinking like this. Hermione was a bratty know-it-all even if she did have long beautiful legs.

Snape stood up suddenly, mentally smacking himself out of his delusions. He would have to rid his mind of these thoughts no matter what. He walked briskly over to his bookshelf, took down a rather large book, and brought it back to his desk. He opened the book and inside it was hollowed out to fit a bottle of brandy within. He removed the bottle, took off the top, and drank deeply. He would figure out what to do with the brainy girl tomorrow. Right now, he had to forget… it just wasn't right thinking of his student like this. Snape drank almost half the bottle before he slumped forward and fell asleep at his desk… drunk.

Author Notes again: Please, read and review. The next chapter is my friends. Thanks for reading. Again, thanks to JessMess for the review. It means a lot to me and my friend.