Hello!
I am awfully sorry about the long wait, I lost a bit of faith in my writing skills but I pushed myself and i'm back!
I hope you all like it.
Not mine. x
December soon flew by and it was the Christmas holidays before the students knew it. The Trio had returned to Grimmauld Place to celebrate with the Weasley's and Sirius who were spending Christmas at the Black ancestry home.
Hermione walked downstairs, looking forward to Christmas day that was a few days away when she saw Harry and Ron stood in the Kitchen doorway, nudging one another and smirking. She crept up behind them and whispered, "What's happening?" Causing the two to jump, proving to Hermione that they were up to no good.
Harry turned his head slightly, grinning as he whispered, "Sirius and Snape are fighting again. We didn't think it would be a good one but then Sirius mentioned you. I don't know what he said but it looked like Snape was going to grab his throat before he controlled himself once more."
Hermione's furrowed her brow before standing on her tip toes to look over their shoulders to witness the confrontation herself.
She watched as Sirius paced himself in a darker mood, his face twisted into a mask of fury and bitterness. Severus was just as angry, his stance was rigid and his hand gripped his wand tightly, causing his fingers to turn white at the pressure.
"Aw poor little Snapey! No one to call your own so you have to take somebody else's kid. Hermione was a good kid until you got your claws into her. I would hate to know what you do to her in that dungeon of yours. Does she scream Snape?"
"Shut up you idiotic mutt! All these sickening ideas...She is my goddaughter for goodness sake!" Severus hissed, green sparks jumping from his wand as his anger rose.
"I bet it's you that causes her to go to the other side. You taint everything you touch. Lily was lucky to get away from you. She often maintained breaking her friendship off with you was that best thing she ever did, she often laughed that you were so pathetic you didn't even realise she wasn't your friend."
Severus stood there, shaking with suppressed anger and emotion. His breathing hard as he tried to control his emotions, not show his weakness in front of the mutt. He knew Black understood how to make him angry, he had used them both in the argument. Black seemed to be lost in his madness or fury to even hear what he was replying to his ridiculous statements. It took all his willpower and self control to not curse the mutt.
"I bet Voldemort loves that you have Harry's friend so under your thumb. People believe you're on our side but you continue to protect her. I think we should throw her to the dogs, the only reason she is here is so Dumbledore can keep an eye on her. Not a favour for his little lacky." Sirius said with a sneer. "You keep showing that you're Voldemort's man every time you protect her."
"Oh not this old rubbish again. I am out there doing a job unlike you who is hiding in his mother's house, cowering under the kitchen table begging that the war doesn't come to you." Severus said, his voice layered with darkness and spite, resisting cursing the man into the floor.
"Sirus has to stop in this house." Harry all but blurted out, causing Hermione and Ron to look at him in shock and annoyance. Now they wouldn't get a chance to hear more of what was happening in the Order. It was obvious neither knew they had an audience as both men jumped before recovering. Sirius looked with pride at his Godson's defence whereas Severus just looked on in disgust.
"I am in this house for Harry. To insure he has a family to look after him." Sirius said, lifting his head up arrogantly
"Indeed. Nothing to do with the fact you can't curse anyone without it being three on one. In a battle situations those sort of odds are very rare." Severus said blandly before sweeping out of the kitchen, past Ron and Hermione.
Hermione shook her head slightly as though to clear it before rushing after Severus.
"Russ?" Hermione called out, just as he reached the door.
He paused in unlatching the door before slowly turning around, raising an eyebrow in enquiry.
"What was Sirius going on about?" Hermione said in a whisper, causing her to sound more like a small child than the teenager that she was.
She watched as he battled with himself, wondering if he would tell her the truth or fob her off as one would expect an adult to do.
"He is simply bias towards you due to your connection to me Miss Granger. As he considers me to be on the side of the Dark Lord so he believes you are to. Narrow mindedness that comes with being a bull-headed Gryffindor I'm afraid." Severus said, his expression turning to a smirk at the end of his statement.
Hermione looked at him, mildly offended for a brief moment. "Hey! Not all of us are narrow minded!"
"Alas Miss Granger, there is no point in fighting it. You will succumb to it in the end. Such a shame." Severus said with a shake of his head.
Hermione blustered for a few seconds before pausing at their conversation. Such an absurd conversation after the conflict in the kitchen a few moments ago she couldn't help but laugh. She pushed him lightly in the arm before continuing, "It could be worse, I could as arrogant as a Slytherin. I simply don't have the chin to rise into the air nor the nose to look down upon those lower than me."
"It isn't arrogance; it is simply knowing who you are above." Severus said with a sniff.
Hermione smiled slightly, looking at the dark man in the shadows of the hallway. He might not know it but he really was shaping up to be a good guardian. When she compared him to Sirius, she knew Russ was more responsible. She had nothing against the Sirius but she couldn't help but witness what being cooped up was doing to the man. He was becoming more frustrated and flighty. She knew she saw moments of madness creeping into the man's grey eyes as he ranted about Severus or not being allowed outside. She didn't fear Sirius, it was more she feared what he could do.
Severus was responsible for her. He ensured she was safe, discouraged her from bad decisions and tried to protect her from Umbridge, rejected any ideas that could lead to repercussions from the toad like woman.
Sirius on the other hand seemed to delight in encouraging Harry into bad ideas, seeming to want to live through his Godson. Sometimes she wondered if Sirius was even seeing Harry but seeing Potter Senior.
"Are you alright Miss Granger?" Severus said with a frown, his eyes tracing her face for signs of discomfort.
"Sorry Russ. Lost track of my thoughts then. I was wondering if you were coming to see me Christmas?" She said with a beaming smile.
He nodded the once in reply to her question, the concern in his eyes for her not leaving.
"Brilliant." Hermione said with a smile. "I look forward to seeing you then."
"Merry Christmas boys." Hermione said with a beaming smile as she pushed over two gifts over the kitchen table towards Ron and Harry.
She hoped they both liked their gifts; she had gotten Harry a pair of thick winter gloves and some broom wax. She had gotten some wax for Ron as well but instead of some gloves she had gotten him some chocolate frogs instead. She knew he would prefer the chocolate over the gloves any day.
She briefly wondered if buying broom wax for the boys would be rubbing salt into their wounds after being banned by Umbridge. However she came to the decision that even if they were banned, they would still want to keep their brooms in condition for the summer.
"Merry Christmas Hermione." Ron and Harry said in Unison, grinning broadly with excitement.
"You get anything nice?" Ron asked politely, his eyes still blurry looking as he slowly woke up from the early wake up call. He yawned widely before looking at Hermione sheepishly.
Hermione laughed slightly at the tired red head before nodding, "I got a few books, quills, a nice black scarf off Harry and chocolate of course."
Both Harry and Ron smiled briefly nodding towards her before munching upon their Christmas breakfast of a bacon and egg sandwich.
Soon the table filled up with people as people began to wake up, Christmas songs floated across the air and cheers of merry Christmas filled the air.
Hermione looked around and smiled sadly to herself, watching all the smiling faces as they thanked one another for their gifts, smiling and hugging their family as each one of them silently thanked the gods that their family was still with them.
She had never seen Harry looking so happy, laughing and joking with Sirius. It was his first Christmas with his Godfather, he finally had their family he had always wanted. She couldn't be happier.
Ron was pretending to grumble as his parents and then siblings hugged him tightly, kissing his sloppily on the cheek but she could tell he was enjoying himself.
Each had their family, all of them safe and sound and happy to be with one another. Hermione looked at the table intently as she tried to push back the tears. The scene around her only highlighted how alone she was in the world right now. She missed her parents dreadfully. She remembered last Christmas where it was just the three of them. They had a long lie in, opened their presents, watched the Queen's speech before having a turkey dinner and finally lounging in front of the Christmas TV.
She couldn't imagine that happening this Christmas, first of all they didn't have a TV and second of all, they all had their own family to be with. They wouldn't want the poor orphan child to interrupt their day.
Her head full of self pity and remorse, Hermione slipped out of the kitchen and moved upstairs to her room.
She shook her head to try and remove the dark thoughts. She wasn't an orphan, her parents were alive and she had Russ. She could spend Christmas how she wished.
She smiled as she planned her day as she moved upstairs. She would read her books, eat as much chocolate as she could and do some homework. It might not be some people's cups of tea but to Hermione it sounded like heaven.
"Arthur." Severus said in a curt tone, eyeing the tipsy red head with distain.
"Ah Severus!" Arthur said with a broad grin and glassy eyes from the fire whiskey, "Come to join the Christmas party?"
It was now ten O'clock in the evening, a small number of those in the order as well as the children had been letting their hair down, the adults were drinking and dancing. The children had tried to get alcohol but Molly had caught on quick, so they were sat in the corner laughing and joking.
Severus eyed the group, frowning when he noticed Hermione missing from the group.
"Where is Miss Granger?" Severus said with a frown and furrowed brow.
Severus watched as Arthur opened his mouth and looked in the direction of the children before swiftly closing his mouth once more. He didn't see this as a good sign, he was later coming over than expected. It seemed as though Hermione hadn't been privy to the celebrations.
Arthur looked up from his seat towards Severus and frowned, the small twinkle in his eye from the drink diminishing briefly. "I haven't seen her since breakfast."
Severus scowled before taking off out of the room and upstairs towards Hermione's room, praying she was, as the small voice in his head whispered that she could have been kidnapped and nobody would know...
Sorry for the cliffie folks. It just felt like a good time to end the chapter. reviews please? :)