Chapter 4: When Pride Is Not Enough
{A/N: For those of you recently getting to this story, this particular chapter is a repost...it has come to my attention that due to being under the influence of cold medicine, much needed at the moment, that I made quite a few blunders in the recent blunders addressed my quite a few guest reviewers, I would like to thank the said guest reviewers who have brought their concerns with the direction of the story to my attention...and I apologize for said past blunders and graciously accept the constructive criticism...however, I will not be giving away plot points, not that have access to them with this story being written on the fly, so be patient...that having been said...let's address the For the Slytherin-Gryffindor thing. I am simply keeping in tune with the already placed stigma in the stories main characters...it is very much apart of their Hogwarts identity and thus it makes up the brunt of their personality, literally every action at Hogwarts in the books and movies was Slytherin this Gryffindor that so it's hard to work around when one is in Hogwarts it's just there like Dumbledore's not so well hidden arsehole nature...but not to worry once the changes that were a mere glimpse in the prologue come into effect they will only be as relevant as passing insults..Hopefully, all the right corrections have been made this time around.I seemed to have skipped quite a few things in the previous posting of this chapter.}
My Thanks To All My Readers and Reviewers...Enjoy S.S.
Snape's Potions Classroom,Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
Another late afternoon in his dungeon classroom saw Potions Master, Severus Snape's condition take a turn for the worst. He had been out of his usual stock of calming draught as well as dreamless sleep for what the muggles would deem to have been seventy-two hours now. Due to the constant trembling of his hands, he had not even attempted to brew any more this week for fear of his trembling hands causing an unwarranted accident. Once more feeling the constant presence of knots in his stomach. Snape doubled over in agony just as the door to his classroom opened and the concerned amber eyes of a certain bushy haired witch took in the sight of the formidable wizard's anguish. Without giving it a moment's thought, Hermione Granger immediately entered the room casting a quick silencing charm and kneeled beside the ailing man clad in ebony. His obsidian eyes met her amber ones showing a bit of surprise before the sensation of pain made him grimace.
"W-What are you doing back here, Miss Granger?" asked Snape through gritted teeth in the wake of his pain. "Have you nothing better to do than torment me even after class has come to an end?"
Hermione didn't seem all that bothered by his snide remark.
"Professor, you're in a good deal of pain." she said half in shock.
Snape rolled his eyes still gritting his teeth.
"You'd think that part would be obvious." he muttered not at all hiding his annoyance.
Again the young witch took no offense.
"Tell me what can I do to help." she said dutifully recalling her promise to Dumbledore to look after him.
"You can turn around and walk out that door right now." replied Snape still grimacing. "I do not need you meddling in affairs that are none of your concern."
"Professor." said Hermione paying him no mind. "Is there some sort of potion you need?"
"There are two potions that I require Miss Granger." said Snape bitterly. "But alas, I am unable to brew them in this horrid state...such is the curse of being the only one capable of mastery with even the simplest of potions."
Hermione sighed.
"What are the potions that you require?" she asked. "Perhaps, I could brew them for you...I mean they won't be as good as yours..."
"Well that's for sure." muttered Snape interrupting her.
"But my skill level should be adequate enough so that you could function and brew yourself." she finished disregarding his rudeness due to his pain.
"Miss Granger..." he began attempting once more to shoo her away before a very painful stab of agony ripped through him. "A-Alright...I...I have to get to my quarters...my...my private lab is there."
Hermione nodded understanding that Snape had resigned himself to her assistance given he had no other possible choice at the moment.
"L-Let me help you." she said as he worked himself to his feet despite his stomach giving him hell and his trembling making it hard to keep his balance.
She walked toward his right side mindful of his left arm, which he seemed to be favoring by pulling it against his ebony clad chest. Although, the cautious teen witch thought his arm wounded, it was simply a matter of preference not to have a girl of muggle birth get to close to the dark mark that had been on his left forearm.
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Snape's Quarters, Slytherin Dungeons, Wizarding World...
Snape sighed as Hermione supported his tilting weight on the right side of his body. She cast a quick disillusionment charm and muffled their foot steps as she and The Potions Master slowly made their way toward Snape's office. There had been a secret door in which the older wizard often used to get to his private quarters much quicker, without drawing attention from the students.
He had often used this ill lit passages as a means of travel when he had been badly wounded on one of his summons. That was if he had been fortunate enough to make it to the office before he completely lost consciousness.
Hermione marveled at the strange stone passage complete with hanging moss, soot, dirt, grime, and of course spider webs. She steeled herself from her disgust with the eight legged cretins and continued to guide the ailing Potions Professor, who's weight had been considerable until she cast a quick weightless charm on him.
They reached his secret entrance and Snape found himself lazily waving his wand amazed that he didn't manage to let it slip through his slick, clammy, pale fingers. After some minor pomp and circumstance, they were admitted into his private quarters. Hermione had been stunned to note this exit lead to the Potions Master's bedroom, a convenient thing given she didn't have far to drag him. Weightless or not, her arms were beginning to tire after their long trek to this place.
"My lab is just through that door." said Snape, his lengthy raven locks dripping with perspiration. "Touch only the ingredients needed for the calming draught and the dreamless sleep potions...do I make myself clear?"
Hermione nodded silently in reply. She had no intention of abusing the privilege of using his private lab, especially given his reluctance to even allow her to know about it. Having no choice in this matter what so ever, Snape once again resigned himself to allow her unwanted presence inside his quarters.
"And Miss Granger." he added before she set about doing her assigned task. "Not a word to anyone about this...or my lab."
"I won't say a word." replied the small Gryffindor witch meaningfully. "I swear it."
Snape seemed satisfied with her Gryffindor loyalty to a promise and waved her off to brew the potions. The bushy haired witch took her leave of him. And the dour wizard sat for a moment in the comforting darkness of his bedroom. He didn't doubt that she could brew decent enough potions to enable him to function, Miss Granger was always at the top of his potions class, in truth her work had been extraordinary. It was simply his dislike of anyone else using his blasted private lab that sent him into a state of unbridled rage.
Choosing to bare the minor violation of his private space, Snape simply lied back in the center of his rather large black four poster bed stripping down to his ebony trousers in a bid to keep his sweaty attire from soaking the crisp black sheets that covered his mattress.
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Snape's Lab, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
The moment Hermione Jean Granger stepped into Severus Snape's private lab, she had been rendered speechless. There were numerous shelves and containers both made of glass and wood lining the stone walls, as well as books of every kind on any kind of plant, ingredient or potion. There were cleaned cauldrons and burners, and even a pre-built station for potion-making. To say that she had been impressed with the pristine condition of everything in this place would have been an understatement. She had been completely flabbergasted to say the least. In all her years of attending Hogwarts she never imagined a place as wonderful as this.
As she took a step toward the pre-built station, she felt her fingers tremble slightly at the thought of Snape spending countless hours brewing all of the schools much needed potions supplies in this very magnificent place. Despite her impressive surroundings however, Hermione's Gryffindor sense of duty took over and she found herself moving about the lab in a bid to gather the correct ingredients.
The large potions book with a light brown binding that had been set upon a lone pedestal, was extremely helpful as she carefully read the instructions before setting about to make each brew.
She had only gotten through the calming draught when she heard the unfamiliar sound of the Potions Professor screaming rather hoarsely in the darkness of his private bedroom. Placing the potion on stasis with a quick spell so as not to ruin it while she checked on the ailing wizard, Hermione climbed the stairs that led to his enormous front room, she had been astounded even now by the feats of magic the school readily showed, as she then ventured rather tentatively into his darkened bedroom.
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Snape's Bedroom, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
Upon Hermione's arrival, she had noticed Snape's pale exposed chest tense as his arms bent in the wake of his fit. The lack of sleep had been causing vivid hallucinations and his overly exhausted body seemed to be trying it's best to induce much needed sleep in a bid to survive. Unable to take the sound of the agonized man's cries, Hermione attempted to wake him. He had not after all been sleep walking and seemed to be truly terrified. Perhaps it was the fact that he had not been use to having company in his private quarters, or the fact that she had awakened him from a very fresh nightmare, but Snape with a speed unheard of lept off the bed forgoing his agonized stomach and aching muscles like a pouncing jungle cat and pinned the unsuspecting Hermione onto his bed.
A node of panic rose in Hermione as she found herself face down across his bed with him trapping her body between his knees as he kneeled on the bed. His eyes bloodshot and wild in the wake of his fight stage. His unassuming ebony wand pressed at her jugular before she could let out even a fraction of a scream.
"Trespasser." he hissed with his obsidian eyes narrowed on the young witch as she did her best to remain still in a bid not to set him off. "How dare you invade my home."
"P-Professor...I..I only came here because you allowed it." she said softly. "I did not dare trespass...you-you requested my assistance with potions."
Snape narrowed his eyes once more pressing the wand further into the soft exposed flesh of her neck.
"I have no assistant." he said coldly.
"I-I am your student Professor Snape...not...not your assistant.." explained the bushy haired witch. "You needed my help sir...your hands wouldn't allow you to brew a potion to stop the night terrors."
"Night terrors?" he asked with an arched eyebrow. "What do you know about night terrors...did they send you...are you working with them?"
He pressed his wand against her neck once more after easing back to question her.
"P-Professor Snape please..." said Hermione terrified but expertly keeping her cool lest she set Snape off. "If you would come with me to the lab I can show you the calming draught."
A dark chuckle broke the eerie silence of the darkened room. From the angle she had known it was definitely from the deranged Potions Professor. As strange as this evening was, there was a good chance Snape could hurt her given his degree of sleep deprivation.
"You're a muggle." he said in an almost bitter tone. "I can tell...the dark lord won't be pleased you've escaped from your holding cell."
Thinking quickly she decided upon another approach.
"But I didn't escape, Severus." she said picking a course of action and sticking with it.
He seemed surprised that she addressed him by his first name.
"How do you know my name?" he asked suspicious.
"Why wouldn't I?" she replied tactfully. "I've been getting your coffee and fixing your drinks for several months now."
"Drinks?" asked Snape suddenly becoming relaxed.
"Of course." replied Hermione seeing the opening and seizing it. "I was just on my way to get you a firewhiskey."
She had thanked her lucky stars that she had been nosing about in a bid to find the lab. Otherwise, she never would have known he liked to drink that awful stuff, it was simply in human. Given his collective monikers at the hands of the Hogwarts students, it seemed fitting that he'd like something so foul but also sad.
"But...you're a muggle." said Snape not at all wishing to use that forbidden word even in this state of mind.
"I am..." replied Hermione still running with her story. "A servant...a gift from your dark lord."
Snape smirked.
"Right." he said with a lazy expression upon his sallow pale face.
"Would you like that drink now sir?" asked Hermione playing her part.
Snape simply nodded letting the seemingly nervous witch get to her feet.
At first, the teenage witch's instincts told her to run while she had the chance. Then her logical mind took over and pointed out that he could not only out run her but he had been faster with a wand despite his mental state. In the end she decided against it. She quickly returned from the lab and Snape had been in bed, she turned bright red noting that he had been completely naked with his important bit hanging about. The young witch tried not to instinctively shield her eyes and keep with the servant story.
As she neared the bed, Snape seemed to be relaxed with his pale lids closed and resting his head against the headboard with his arms tucked behind his head. His pale pallor had been quite the contrast against the darkness of the black sheets and the dim lit room. Taking a breath Hermione brought a tray forward with a bottle of firewhiskey and a small glass.
"You smell good." said Snape opening his obsidian eyes to take her in.
Hermione tried not to blush at the first comment he had ever paid her.
"You're so good." he said in a strangely dark tone. "My good little muggle girl."
Hermione had attempted to give him the already poured glass of firewhiskey but he simply smirked.
"You first." he said suspiciously. "It could be poison for all I know."
The bushy haired witch's eyes widened. Her Potions Professor was seriously forcing her to participate in underage drinking due to his deteriorated mental status.
"Well." he said with that familiar arched eyebrow as if he were awaiting her demonstration for an assignment. "Go on...unless you are willing to admit that you tried to poison me."
Hermione steeled herself and grabbed the glass of already poured firewhiskey. She narrowed her amber eyes in determination and drank down the disgusting swill. Snape smirked once more.
"I don't believe I'm satisfied." he said. "How do I know you haven't poisoned the whole bloody bottle?"
Hermione barely resisted the urge to scream some sense into the insane wizard. Instead, she poured another glass from the bottle right in front of him and drank it down quicker than the first ignoring the burn in the back of her throat as a result, and the "Merlin awful" after taste. Why would anyone drink this swill without the expressed goal of torturing themselves?
Snape continued to watch her his dark eyes seemingly content that she had not poisoned his limited stock of firewhiskey and snatched it from her grasp. Hermione had not known how long it would be before the potion took effect or when she could venture down to the lab and complete the dreamless sleep draught, but she dared not make any sudden movements until then. There was of course the fear that the potion would lose it's effectiveness given it had not been a pure batch due to the alcohol.
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An Hour or so later...
Snape seemed to have passed out, mostly due to the consumption of firewhiskey. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief and very carefully ventured back into his private potions lab to finish the dreamless sleep draught he instructed her to brew. She remained nervous about his unstable condition but it seemed to migrate to the back of her mind as she got into brewing.
Before she knew it, she had been so wrapped up in completing the adept level potion that she had totally forgotten about Snape's insane personality disorder. She had known people who operated on low levels of sleep tended to be very dangerous not only to themselves but to others as well but Snape had been much worse by comparison. His mind shifting and changing in a bid to adapt for his survival, he must not have been too sure he had even been back at Hogwarts and given the gruesome nature of his meetings with Voldemort.
Hermione had seen Snape return from his missions a time or two while returning from numerous late night studying sessions in the library. She had always been careful to steer clear of him knowing how he detested pity. The result of his selfless sacrifice night in and night out had only furthered her already known admiration for him. Neither Ron nor Harry really saw what had been in store for them all in the wake of the war, their views of the world based off their own sub-par opinions, but Hermione wasn't quite as closed minded as that. She had often wondered how all of this spy work effected the Potions Professor given his day to day attitude it was hard to see the emotional devastation he had endured.
Having finally completed the dreamless sleep draught, the inquisitive young witch made her way back to Snape's bedroom. It startled her to find that he had been awake sitting rather quietly in the darkness. Her amber eyes had been heavy from the late hour and total concentration on brewing but she had been rather proud to lend the obviously ailing man a hand. He had after all, saved her life and the lives of her friends repeatedly over the course of their being at Hogwarts.
Snape watched her with a most unusual expression on his sallow pale face.
"You are a very good little muggle." he said with a sleepy grin. "Try not to die like the others."
Hermione's widened only briefly before she approached the demented wizard and helped him drink the dreamless sleep draught. She had expected a fight like before or some way she had to outsmart him but he didn't seem all that bothered that she would feed him a potion. Then she noticed the look in his eyes that indicated adept concentration despite the mood he had been in.
The gentle prodding sensation in the back of her mind indicated that he was invading her mind or at the very least, he was getting a sense of who she had been as a person.
Snape smirked catching her unawares as he pried rather unabashed into her deeply concealed fantasies. Evidently, she often thought about him a great deal, sometimes in a not so professional manner. Her cheeks reddened at the images flashing through her mind that he had sent in a bid to feed her curiosity.
"So...you and your friends sit about at night and imagine what my cock looks like?" he asked in an inquisitive tone.
"I-well I...we..." stammered Hermione.
Snape having calmed did not seem too bothered by this, mostly due to being a bit drunk. It had been flattering that the mystery behind his ebony robes often ensnared the imaginations of hormonal teenage girls.
Having an air of mischief about him, he continued to tease her about it.
"I can assure you silly girl, neither you nor your little giggling girlfriends are ready for that kind of...realism." he said in a low tone. "Make no mistake, if I were the sort to indulge my primal nature, none of you would be able to take it."
Hermione's mouth dropped at the implication in his tone.
Ginny Weasley often joked that, Snape had been such a huge tool because he had a huge tool tucked beneath his trousers.
"Be off with you now little muggle girl." said Snape feeling the effects of the various potions in combination with the firewhiskey make him drowsy.
Without a word, Hermione left the man to his own devices content to have leave without further incident.
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The Corridors, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
As Hermione took her leave of the sleeping Potions Professor, she found herself face to face with none other than Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. It had been quite late since she had aided the man to his private rooms and even later still while she brewed the much needed potions to allow him to function.
"I trust that all is well Miss Granger." said Dumbledore with concern in his tone.
"It is now Professor." replied Hermione exhausted and slightly tipsy from the firewhiskey Snape forced her to drink. "Professor Snape is sound asleep as of five minutes ago."
"Then it is good that I sent you to assist him when I did." said the Headmaster.
Hermione nodded not wishing to recount the last few hours as Snape's guest.
"Hopefully the potions do the trick." she said. "If you don't mind sir, I'm quite tired and I have classes in the morning."
Dumbledore nodded.
"Of course Miss Granger." he said pleasantly. "And thank you again."
Hermione simply nodded and headed toward Gryffindor tower. She had been blissfully unaware of the wheels that were turning with the Headmaster's mind as she faded from his view. Yes, she would be quite useful to this cause indeed.