Chapter Fifteen
Hermione rubbed her eyes as she ran her hands through the large pile of recently collected coins. Most just seemed so small and trivial, or were all encompassing problems. None of them grabbed her attention and made her feel like it was what she should be tackling at the moment. She sat at her desk with her feet propped on a pile of books, tossing the coins into a nearby basket.
"No, no, no, definitely not, who cares, not it, not yet, which one is it?" she asked, aggravated, throwing more coins with mediocre accuracy.
"Aha," she said with a coin in her hand. "It's time to banish a Boggart."
~~HGSS~~
"Neville?" she asked the next morning. "What are you doing later?"
"I think I've got some Mandrake to harvest later for Pr-Professor Snape," he nervously told her.
Perfect, she thought. "I have the afternoon free and haven't been out to the greenhouses in ages. Do you need a hand?"
"Sure!" he said with joy. It was a tough job harvesting the shrieking buggers and even tougher to find help. "We've got a rather feisty group this time so some help would be great. Meet me later?"
"Absolutely, I need the fresh air. Just let me get changed."
Hermione went to change into some greenhouse-appropriate clothes, excited about the prospect of working with her hands outside in the budding spring air. And possibly for the chance to watch the interaction between Neville and Severus, or at least to ask him about his current thoughts on their old professor.
Once they met up, they wasted no time in getting their hands dirty. It was difficult to talk with their earmuffs on, so it wasn't until they took a break that she was able to ask him about Severus.
"So Professor Snape should be stopping by later?' she asked.
"Go ahead, Hermione," he told her with a self-deprecating smile.
"And what?"
He sighed. "I know you call him S-S-Severus. That you're allowed to call him Severus."
"We've gotten to know each other since I've been researching here, that's true. I guess we're kind of friends. You haven't been able to get to know him more?"
He huffed. "You know I haven't. The man is bloody terrifying."
"Not really," she told him. "Only sometimes, and mostly to dunderheads."
"Well, I've always been a dunderhead!" he said.
"Do you think you still are?" she asked.
He waved his hand at the room. "Not out here. But in there, probably. And I'm sure he still sees me that way."
"I thought the same about me," she confessed. "That he would still think I'm just an insufferable know-it-all. But I just tried to give him a chance to see the other side of me. Just like we had to see the other side of him. There are certainly things I learned during the last year that I never would have guessed about him."
"No kidding there," he agreed. "He must have been really brave to defy Voldemort all those years."
"You showed your bravery too. Who would have guessed shy Neville would go after Nagini and yell in the face of Voldemort himself? You couldn't even say his name when I first met you."
"Yeah, well. He is still scary. Just like you. Probably why you get along."
Hermione laughed. "I'm sure you have things in common too, if you ever give it a chance."
"He never will, so there is no point in trying, is there? C'mon, let's get back to work."
Hermione felt discouraged listening to Neville. He had no confidence in himself when it came to his old professor. He'd had a good reason to avoid him in the past, but wasn't he sorted into Gryffindor?
Before they could say much more, Severus himself came swooping in, arms crossed, waiting for Neville's acknowledgement and almost completely ignoring Hermione.
"I trust these are ready to be added?" he asked.
"Y-Yes," stammered Neville.
"Chopped, not diced?"
"Of-Of course."
"You know they are," Hermione interrupted with a challenging look to Severus. "Neville is the best person we have in the greenhouses and he has me as his assistant. You trust him to do it or you wouldn't have let him do it in the first place."
Neville gaped at his friend who stood with her tiny frame tensed in annoyance at her...boyfriend? Partner? At her...whatever he was. She didn't think that Severus should rattle Neville's chain just because he knew he could. She knew he got a perverse enjoyment out of watching him squirm but it wasn't fair to Neville.
"As you say," he simply told her before taking the sack of Mandrake parts and leaving.
"What does that mean?" Neville asked, almost quaking. "Did you just tell him to do something?"
"You kind of have to learn Slytherin when talking to him," she explained. "He is agreeing that he trusts you. It's a veiled compliment, but it's the only kind he knows how to give."
"Professor Snape trusts me," whispered Neville in awe.
Hermione saw herself out and let Neville stew on that thought for a while. She had made enough progress for one day.
After a few dayshad passed, she invited him up for a cuppa after dinner when she knew Severus would be stopping by.
They were enjoying a quiet evening of chatting when Severus showed up. He was startled to see Neville as Hermione hadn't warned him that Neville would be there but he hid it quickly.
"Longbottom," he said.
"Professor," greeted Neville.
"Neville, Severus. Severus, Neville," said Hermione, pointedly using the first names of both men.
"You know, I really should be going," Neville told her quickly, rising from his chair and replacing his cup. "Professor Sprout has a long day planned for me tomorrow and I should probably get to bed. Thank you though. Good night, Hermione. Professor."
Severus nodded at him as Neville swiftly made his exit.
"That was rather rude, Severus. You chased away my company," said Hermione, cross.
"But I bring you better company," he countered, leaning in to give her a soft kiss. They really should have a talk about what was going on between them at some point, but for now, it could rest. Hermione had enough to deal with between him and poor Neville.
"You should be nice to him," she admonished.
"And I respectfully disagree," he said as he cleansed Neville's empty cup and proceeded to pour one for himself.
She frowned at him. "He really respects you-"
"As he should."
"-and you delight in terrifying him. I know what it's like to admire someone and work your tail off for no gratitude," she continued with a glare that made her point perfectly clear. "No, he'll never be a master Potioneer, but he excels in Herbology and you should respect him for that."
"Whatever makes you think I don't respect him?"
"Severus," she whinged. "You know what I mean. Just be civil. Once. Help build him up instead of tearing him down all the time. I think he's proven himself."
Severus grudgingly admitted that the boy had performed admirably when faced with Nagini almost a year ago, but it was easy to keep in the same roles of student and professor. Soon, he would have to start treating him as a fellow colleague. That was easy with Hermione, but she was much more forward. Longbottom was timid and easy to make a target of his ill humour. And Severus still hadn't forgiven him for ruining Severus's perfect summer, though Hermione was more to blame than Neville was. She was much more of a nuisance.
"Once," he agreed. "If for nothing but the sheer novelty. He probably won't believe it happened anyway."
"No, probably not," she mused
After Severus left that night, Hermione shut the door and ran her fingers across her kiss-swollen lips, still coming to terms with the fact that she was kissing her ex-professor. The Professor Snape. No one was going to believe her, even if she did come into a position to say something publicly. Ron would throw a tantrum, Harry would probably be right behind him. Who knew what his employer would think, though something told her Minerva might not be as unsuspecting as she thought.
And at some point, she was going to have to explain being a Fairy Godmother. It was a part of her that wasn't going anywhere, and she was definitely going public to the rest of the world about it when the time was right. Something had been in the air the night she went to the ball and when she touched Severus's hand for a dance, it almost had felt like she was being claimed. That they were claiming each other. She obviously didn't have much experience in this realm, but something told her he wasn't going anywhere for a while. And if that were the case, there was some things he needed to know. Hopefully he would understand. Hermione felt he would.
The next day after breakfast, Hermione was following slowly behind Severus as they exited the hall to go about their day when Neville walked in. He shifted his glance from Severus to Hermione as Severus looked back at her himself and saw her give him the look.
"Good morning, Neville. I hope you're having a pleasant morning," said Severus in what would be a completely nonchalant voice coming from anyone but Professor Snape, who had no nonchalant voice.
Neville's eyes grew wide...then rolled back into his head as he promptly passed out, his head hitting the floor with a crack.
"Severus!" Hermione screamed, gathering the attention of everyone in the hall. She immediately squatted down by Neville and tried to ascertain if anything was broken. "That is not what I meant by being civil! Civil! Don't you think you laid it on a little thick?" she hissed.
"The only thing lying thick is Longbottom," he told her back archly.
"Severus!" came her shrill reply. "Check him please!"
The headmistress ran over as he cast a few diagnostic spells over the body.
"He'll be fine," Severus told her. "Renervate."
Neville began to slowly shift and move as he woke up with a moan.
"Mr. Longbottom!" said a worried McGonagall. "What happened?"
Neville sat up, propped by both hands, with the help of Hermione and Minerva as Severus stood by watching. He looked up at his old professor, who arched a brow in return. "Professor Snape was nice to me..." he said, a bit bewildered.
"Come on, Mr. Longbottom. Let's get you up. I think you need to see Poppy. Hermione, please inform her of our imminent arrival."
Hermione nodded before leaving, shooting another glare at Severus. He now knew what Lucius had meant when he said he was "in trouble." It was clear Minerva thought Longbottom had been hallucinating, and Hermione was not impressed.
The thought of Hermione being upset with him bothered him more than he cared to admit. If it bothered him this much what her opinion of him was, then she had a very weighty power in her hands. He could still keenly recall the last Gryffindor female who'd had the power, and he felt it had been abused greatly. As much as he loathed lending it again, he felt as though he didn't have a choice in the matter. It had been decided before he knew that backing out was an option.
The more he thought about it though, the less he minded. As he stood at the bottom of the spiral stone staircase, watching Minerva assist a protesting Longbottom, it occurred to him that Hermione had kept every one of her friends from Hogwarts, and some of them were blundering imbeciles. She clearly had the gifts of patience and understanding. Perhaps she would extend those gifts to dealing with him as well. He would find out soon enough, he thought, as he followed Minerva up the stairs, his long cloak trailing behind.
When he reached the top, he saw Hermione standing outside the hospital wing, watching as Neville was examined inside by Poppy.
"He said Severus was being friendly," said a worried McGonagall.
"I see why you're concerned," Poppy told her while waving her wand over the boy.
"But he was!" Neville insisted.
"Just hold still, Mr. Longbottom."
Hermione was uncomfortable going back into the hospital wing, so she saw Severus as he came up the stairs.
"You really had me worried, you know," she told him. "I just wanted you to treat him with neutrality, not try to scare the pants off him."
"He'll be fine," Severus told her, not willing to admit that he may cherish the sight of Longbottom fainting at his feet for quite some time.
"But what if he wasn't?" she shot back. "You can't just toy with people. And I really hope you don't try anything like that with me. I think I've been toyed with enough, thank you."
"And what does that mean?"
"You know how you were when I was in school. Favouring the Slytherins and looking for reasons to punish the Gryffindors. I know you said some things that were out of line to keep your cover. I know. I get that. But that time in your life is over. It's time to put that away and find out who you really are." She stepped close and laid her hand across his heart. "Who is in here? I don't think that's who I saw downstairs. But I have met him a few times, and I'm interested in getting to know him better."
"Oh, are you?" he asked, not quite believing what Hermione was telling him.
"Yes, I would," she purred. "But only if he is good."
"I think you'll find he can be very good."
"I'm glad to hear it. That means you can apologize to Neville."
"I am not apologizing," he told her in a voice meant to convey its finality.
She stepped back with her arms crossed. "I think you are," she told him. "You did that on purpose and out of spite. He deserves an apology."
The two were squabbling back and forth when a freshly released Neville came out of the hospital wing doors. He saw what was going on, each of them in the other's face, Severus obviously the much more imposing figure.
He stepped up to the two of them to break up the argument. "You leave her alone!" he yelled at the man, for the first time realizing they stood almost eye to eye. "Hermione only wants to help, and you always want to interfere! And you shouldn't yell at a woman like that! If you have something to say to her then you can say it to me first!"
Neville was almost ready to push him away when Hermione grabbed his hand.
"Neville! Stop!"
"Congratulations, Mr. Longbottom," said Severus wryly as Hermione began a nervous giggle. "It seems Hermione is correct after all."
"About what?" asked a confused Neville.
"She has been trying to convince me that you have grown up, under my nose as it would appear, and that you are deserving of a bit of respect. Is that true?"
"Y-yes, sir," Neville said meekly.
"What was that?"
Neville stood up tall, tilted up his face, and took a composing breath. "Yes, sir," he said with more confidence. "I think I do, and it's time for us to bury the hatchet."
"And the melted cauldron," Severus added, making Hermione giggle again. "Perhaps in your herb garden."
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief as Severus guided him down the stairs, talking about raising a new hybrid of Mandrake for the potion Severus was making.
Later that day as she added a few more paragraphs to her book revision, she realized that it was almost complete. A full year she would be spending on this project and then it was likely to be finished. That thought struck a little fear into her chest. What would become of her after? And what of her and Severus? And the fountain? Would she still have access to it, or would it follow her or something?
There were too many questions to answer this late in the day. She still had a few weeks before the final touches would be complete, and she could figure out everything then. Until then she would revel in the successes of the year. A book revised and updated, a new identity discovered, a few wishes granted, and possibly a new relationship on the horizon.