Chapter 28: The Shattering Of Intellectual Boundaries
{A/N: Here's another update...First Chapter of 2019...Happy New Year to the lot of you...plans and work unfortunately interfered for a while but alas the next chapter is here...}
My Thanks To My Readers and Reviewers...Enjoy-S.S.
Gryffindor Table, The Great Hall, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
Idle chatter filled The Great Hall as Hermione Granger found herself once more surrounded by students and back in her usual Hogwarts house robes. She had been unusually silent, even where her housemate Ronald Weasley's less than savory eating habits had been concerned. Between running her virtually unused fork over untouched spaghetti and glancing rather frequently up at the staff table where the "dreaded" Potions Professor often sat during meals and finding herself treated to the sight of an empty chair only made her more withdrawn as it were.
"Are you alright Hermione?" asked Ginny Weasley with an inquisitive expression filed across her face. "You've been quiet all evening even with Ron eating like a manner-less pig."
Her question seemed to have gotten more than Hermione's attention as both Harry Potter and Ron Weasley looked up at her from their respective meals.
"I wasn't aware that pigs have manners...and it's not my fault I enjoy good food..." said Ron in his own defense while biting into the side of an enlarged turkey leg.
Harry seemed to note his friend's lack of table manners as well but said nothing as he looked upon the silent Hermione wondering why she had not bothered to reprimand the red head wizard as she had often done so many times before over his habits.
"I've...got a lot on my mind." replied Hermione answering Ginny's initial question before looking back down at her untouched plate.
"Does it have to anything to do with our absentee Potions Professor?" asked Ginny with an arched brow. "It is a bit strange that he disappeared after summoning you to his office the other day and then Dumbledore stormed out after the two of you."
"What happened that day anyhow you didn't say anything when you came back and you looked a bit...distant ever since." said Harry observing her more closely than he had before.
"Professor Snape gave me detention I was just wondering when he would return for me to serve it and get it over with." replied Hermione before turning her attention back to her plate.
Her friends seemed to buy her excuse given how she loathed getting into trouble despite her willingness to bend the rules when she needed to to assist her friends. She much preferred to keep a low profile whenever possible and it was understandable that a detention would soil her rather stellar reputation.
"I don't know why you two are being so nosy...Hermione's just freaking out because she's got a detention with Snape to serve...and let's face it...any time spent outside of the library is a distressing time for her and it's with Snape who wouldn't be bummed about such an outcome." said Ron continuing to chew his food as if he'd been raised by cows.
Hermione rolled her eyes trying her best not to give up on her meal due to Ron's gross habits but it seemed that had been the final straw and she got to her feet more interested in the activity of her newly acquired husband than the idle gossip of her friends and housemates.
"I've got to catch up on my reading..." she said getting to her feet and making her way out of The Great Hall without another word leaving everyone to stare after her with even more unanswered questions to content with.
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The Corridors, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
Moving rather briskly through the vast stone corridor leading out of the Great Hall, Hermione Granger looked down at her hand noting the silver band that had been the only indication of her marriage to the Potions Master, concealed via magic from the prying eyes of her friends and those whom had not known of the arranged union.
The young witch's thoughts drifted back to her most recent carnal lesson with her talented Professor and the ache he left behind following it's conclusion. It had only been four days since that encounter yet it lingered so vividly along the darkest recesses of her mind despite her attempts to manage it and go about her life as she had before.
So much had changed in so little an amount of time that she hardly knew what to make of it. Professor Snape had been right of course, when he had told her she was a mere child before hand and knew nothing of life beyond the comforting shield of her books and exploratory imagination.
The image of the harsh speaking wizard came back to her in the form of the man towering above her in the bed that had once belonged to him as a mere lonely teenage boy. Despite the gossip about him in recent years, Hermione found herself surprised at just how warm and secretly compassionate he had been to her that fateful evening when he had taken control of the situation pertaining to keeping her from harms way due to the marriage law and she was quite grateful.
Lost in her thoughts, Hermione found herself with the urge to check on the ailing wizard and decided that it couldn't do any harm to look in on him given what she knew he suffered in the wake of keeping her from the dark lord's clutches.
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The Infirmary, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
The pain that seemed to make itself known the longer the Potions Professor remained conscious had been to the point of being unbearable, but he refused Madam Pomfrey's various attempts at offering him a healing potion. Their use had been ineffective for his means of wounds and were better suited to remaining in stock in case a student needed healing. Even more so with his condition rendering him unable to brew for quite some time before the tremors ceased and his hands could perform the simple task of stirring a cauldron again.
Snape stared up at the ceiling trying his best to block out the pain mentally as he began his slow crawl toward progress in healing from his wounds. He decided he wouldn't linger in the infirmary, a dangerous place to be with the number of wondering children around with death eater and Auror parents alike.
Knowing all too well that his status would be called into question, he could not afford to be seen in a weakened state. Alas Snape found himself unable to move on his own and even more so at the mercy of Madam Pomfrey's infirmary doors with their lack of concealment.
He'd nearly given up any hope of being able to make his way down to the dungeons to lick his wounds so to speak when the most insufferable of witches walked into the infirmary intent to meddle in his private affairs once again.
"Y-You shouldn't be doing that." said Hermione attempting to keep him in bed despite his attempts otherwise. "You're too badly hurt..."
"I didn't ask you for a status report." hissed Snape narrowing his obsidian gaze at the young witch before him. "And what the hell are you doing here?"
"I came to see how you were faring...the last time I saw you...you were barely conscious." said Hermione attempting to show compassion for the man that suffered so much to keep her safe.
"Like I need reminding of that." said Snape sounding a good deal embittered. "As you can see Mrs. Snape I am quite alright and would like to simply return to my quarters to recover in peace."
Hermione seemed shocked by his intentions.
"But...you haven't recovered wouldn't it be prudent to wait for Madam Pomfrey to dismiss you...?" she attempted only to be met with an intense hostile glare.
"Just because you found yourself enjoying riding my cock it doesn't give you the right to tell me what I can and cannot do." hissed Snape attempting to get away from her.
His rush to climb off the bed resulted in him missing a pained step and nearly tumbling to the floor before Hermione attempted to catch him. He ended up resting his head against her chest as she sought to lessen his fall or at the very least prevent it all together.
Frustrated by his lack of mobility, Snape had no choice but to lean against the meddling young witch.
"I cannot stay here...if my enemies even suspect of my weakness..." he began attempting reason despite his mood.
"Let me help you." she said meeting his eyes for the first time since she arrived. "Despite your manner and your apparent feelings on the subject, you can't move from this room on your own."
"Lot you know." muttered Snape recalling having returned in quite a similar condition a time or two.
"Professor, the last thing you need is to cause yourself unnecessary pain." reasoned Hermione in return. "I am to blame for your present condition so allow me to make amends by assisting you to your quarters."
Snape glared down at her for a moment or two before he noted the arrival of two students coming to seek the aid of Madam Pomfrey.
"Fine." he muttered in annoyance. "Let us be off then before I am discovered."
Hermione seemed at ease nodding in agreement before using her magic to levitate the wizard toward the floo and including a minor healing spell to ease his aches in the process. They managed to make it to the floo before the students and Madam Pomfrey could enter the main part of the infirmary leaving hardly any trace of having been there at all.
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Snape's Quarters, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...
A burst of emerald green flames saw to both Snape and Hermione being thrust into the darkened front room of Snape's private quarters within Hogwarts Castle. The scent of herbs and fresh earth hit the young witch almost immediately as well as the onset of a rather biting draft as she assisted the ailing wizard toward the center of the room. It seemed he had been of the mind to dismiss her from that point but she had other ideals as she continued to lead him toward his bedroom believing he'd be more comfortable in his own bed.
Snape rolled his eyes when she took in the sight of his bedroom and the large black four poster bed he spent hardly any time in. The room had looked like a place where a grown man would retreat from the cares of the world and slip into the relatively peaceful silence of his own dwelling and a far cry from the room he had as a boy back in Cokeworth.
Shelves of books lined the walls here as they had in the front room but not oppressively so. The decor had been ideal for a Slytherin Head of house and of course he was given to dark wood when one noted his taste in furnishings.
Snape groaned as she helped him toward his bed his battered bones creaking in the process making him more aged in his injured state than ever she thought possible before hand.
"You're assistance is no longer required." said Snape as he attempted to latch onto the poster closest to him before losing his footing as she attempted to catch him.
Luckily for them, they were close enough to the bed for it to break their fall but Snape's battered body landed on top of the witch effectively trapping her between himself and the mattress below them not so unlike when they were consummating their arranged union.
Hermione let out a soft moan despite herself as those strange feelings that had over taken her that afternoon seemed come flooding back due to the memories and Snape for all his gruffness stared down at her seemingly blank in his expression.
She had no doubt he had been recalling the same thing as his body grew tense before he once more seemed to return to his senses. The scent of jasmine had lingered in her unruly brown hair and it only intensified the rather vivid memory.
"So this was your plan?" he asked as a dark chuckle resignated from deep within his throat. "Is it an encore you wanted witch?"
Hermione had not known what to say as Snape continued to taunt and belittle her in his usual sneer.
"I...I only wanted to help you sir." she said a bit nervous about their bodies being so close together once more.
"And help me you shall." he replied in something of a cold tone. "Sooner or later...you are going to know exactly what it means to help me...and when the time comes you will recall just how foolish you are for even suggesting something so idiotic."
Snape summoned his own magic and launched himself off the witch and into the bed properly.
"As I've said, your assistance is no longer required." he repeated before turning his back to her.
Hermione caught her wayward breath and climbed off the bed wanting to say more to the wizard whom had been adamant about taunting and terrifying her. Resigning herself to his petty attempts at restoring the balance between them, she took her leave of The embittered Potions Professor contented that he could at least recover properly in the peace of his own quarters.