Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or anything affiliated to it.
*Chapter Three*
That night, Hermione had a terrible dream. She was trapped in a cold, dark room made of stone. There was no doors, and no windows to allow her to escape, but she remembered crawling around on the floor searching for a way out. The worst part though, was the horrible screaming that seemed to be coming from nowhere and everywhere all at once.
When she awoke to the sound of her alarm, she gasped, and sat up pin-straight in her four-poster bed. It felt as though she hadn't slept at all, but by the time had dressed and brushed her teeth, she was starting to feel a bit more energized and tried to put the nightmare behind her.
She wasn't the only one who had been having bad dreams that night. On the way to breakfast she met up with Harry and Ron, who were both talking in hushed tones. "What's wrong?" she asked them in a whisper.
"Harry had a nightmare." Ron answered.
"I told you, it wasn't a nightmare. I mean, it was but…it just felt so real." Harry said. "It was like the one I had before, where I was going down some sort of hallway and found a door. Only this time, I walked through it."
Hermione bit her lower lip, trying to make sense of what Harry was saying. He seemed pretty upset, but part of her wanted to believe that it was only a dream. "Harry are you sure, that is…how can you be certain these are more than just nightmares? Stress can cause them, and I know you're upset about Dumbledore and the DA." She had tried to say all of this as reassuringly as she could, but Harry shook his head.
"No, Hermione. I don't know how I know I just…I just do, alright?"
"Speaking of nightmares…" Ron spoke as they entered the great hall. Standing at the lectern was the acting headmistress donned in a grotesquely pink blazer and matching pencil skirt. Umbridge also wore something Hermione found even more disturbing: a wide toad-like smile that accentuated her thin lips.
She stared out into the crowd of students, watching as they all ate their breakfast. Behind her he could see the other teachers sat at their table, breaking their fast with bowed heads. They were not behaving as they usually did in the morning, turning to each other in conversation, or giving animated waves to some of the students as they passed by. The only one who was not staring down at their plate was Snape, who Hermione noticed with confusion—was looking directly at her.
Their eyes met for a brief moment, but Hermione quickly broke the eye contact and hurried over to the Gryffindor table with Harry and Ron. After they sat she risked another quick glance at the head table; Snape's attention was now directed to Umbridge who had turned her back to the room and was now speaking something to Snape directly.
Maybe you imagined it, she thought, suddenly glad that they did not have potions class on Wednesdays. It would buy her a little more time to think of an excuse for what happened in the library. Not that she thought Snape would ask her anything about it in the middle of class, but she found herself unsettled by the look in his eyes; it was almost as though he were plotting something. She hoped it was not another trip into the forbidden forest after dark.
The day passed by in a blink of an eye, and Hermione once again found herself standing before the door of Snape's study. She was feeling a bit more confident tonight then she was in her previous detention the night prior, and she gave the door two solid knocks. "Enter." Came the voice from within.
She stepped in and walked up to the desk. Sensibly, she had brought her jumper which was layered over the schoolbag tucked beneath her arm, in anticipation of another chilly night outdoors. Snape looked up at her and eyed the bundle she carried.
"That won't be necessary, miss Granger. We will be remaining indoors this evening." He stood and headed toward the door. "I have something in mind that I believe you will find rather illuminating. Come this way."
She followed him out of the office and down to the potions classroom. Against all odds, the atmosphere of the room managed to feel even more oppressing than it usually did without the hustle and bustle of other students. "Have a seat." Snape instructed. He flicked his wand and in a flash there was a portable blackboard beside them, complete with wheels at the bottom for easy maneuvering and several fresh sticks of chalk sitting on the tray beneath it. Hermione took the seat nearest herself and waited.
Snape picked up a piece of chalk and stood in front of the board as he wrote. When he moved he fixed his eyes on her, gauging her reaction with a smirk. The board read 'The homonculus charm.'
Hermione sucked in a sharp breath as her eyes scanned the board.
"I thought you'd rather enjoy some private-tutoring, Miss Granger – tell me – what do you know about this particular charm?"
"Not much, professor." Hermione replied. It wasn't a lie, necessarily. She didn't know much about the technicalities of the charm in question, but what she did know was that it was used by Harry's father; James Potter and his friends had managed to learn and perform this bit of magic when they created the marauders map.
"Oh, come now—You expect me to believe that you: Hermione 'know-it-all' Granger, have never heard of this spell? Are you not the girl who, at any opportunity, raises their hand in hopes to gift the world with their magical prowess?"
The jig was up. Hermione had prepared for Snape to ask her indirectly about her methods of seeing Dumbledore's location, and had a well thought-out, if not a tad unbelievable, story about how she had the gift of divination; an idea that had struck her as she watched professor Trelawney earlier that afternoon, pacing the courtyard, carrying a long scrying pendulum that she swung back and forth for the better part of an hour.
Rather than let this game go any further, Hermione decided her best course of action would be to tell the truth, or as much of it as possible without incriminating herself or her friends.
"You know about the map." Hermione said, not bothering to pose it as a question.
"Yes, I know about the map." Severus replied. To Hermione's surprise, he did not look angry. In fact, she could almost swear there was a touch if concern in his eyes. "and I trust you understand how dangerous a map like that could be with so many dark forces threatening to breach these walls at any given moment."
"Don't you mean your friends?"
Ah, she thought, There's the anger. Snape flicked his wand and the board disappeared. "Mind your tongue, Granger."
"I'm sorry I…I didn't mean-"
"I knew full well what you meant. You, like Potter, do not trust me. It is of very little consequence. However...I suppose you are old enough now…"
He turned away then, a look of contemplation washing over his features. Hermione fidgeted in her seat. She hadn't meant to accuse him, it had slipped out almost as a defense. Over the years, it was Hermione who often defended Snape to Harry and Ron; remaining the voice of reason where they were quick to pass judgment.
"You are old enough now for me to say this on the matter: My position in this war is on the side of those who would see the dark lord defeated. My friends as you call them-I find them all to be nothing short of repulsive, and exceedingly dim-witted."
"Yes of course…I shouldn't have said that I…" Hermione was beginning to feel flustered, but she gathered her courage enough to reply. "I do trust you, professor."
He stared at her, searching her eyes for something Hermione was not sure of. After a few quiet moments he gave her a quick nod.
"I'm glad to hear it. Now, I need you to give me the map."
"I can't!"
"You must."
"It's not mine to give, sir."
Severus frowned, and waved his hand nonchalantly. He watched as the girl shifted her gaze from him to the bag beside her, and then back to him. It was fast, but it gave him enough information. She had it with her. That would make this even easier.
"You needn't tell Potter. I'll even return it once I've made use of it." He said. "So, as it stands – you have two options; you can lend me the map, for, say—no more than a month? I return it to you no worse for wear, and you bring it back to Potter who can use to, I don't know…sneak to Honeydukes, or something equally mundane. Or…I could exercise my authority and confiscate it."
He saw the girl shift in her seat, now staring down at the desk before her instead of looking at him. It was clear to see that she was uncomfortable; he had counted on that. If she gave him the map willingly it would make things marginally easier for him, but whether she offered it up freely or he used his power to take it from her did not ultimately matter; he was not letting her leave the room with the map in her possession.
He wasn't even entirely sure he would give it back once he used it, but she didn't need to know that. He wasn't lying when he said that a map like that in the wrong hands could be disastrous. It was beyond him how the 'marauders' even managed to charm the parchment the way they did. He was eager to get his hands on it so he could try to study the mechanics of it.
The homonculus charm wasn't simple magic, that much he did know. What bothered him the most was that he himself had not been able to master the charm, at least he could not duplicate the results at Hogwarts. It was, quite simply, too big. Severus had not learned all of its secrets, certainly not to the extent that James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter had back in their days.
"Well," She began, interrupting his thoughts. "It seems as though I don't have much of a choice."
"It does seem so."
Slowly, she reached down into her bag and pulled out the map; to him appearing as nothing more than a bit of folder parchment. She placed it on the desk and slid it forward in his direction. Calmly, he reached down and picked it up, turning it over in his hand once before putting it away in the pockets of his robes.
"Thank you."
"Right."
"Come now, don't be cross. In fact, I'll allow you to cut this detention short and return back to your dormitory. I know—I am nothing if not benevolent."
The girl picked up her belongings and swiftly left the room without a word. He thought he saw tears in her eyes as she departed, leaving him feeling just a tinge of regret, which he quickly dismissed. There was no sense in that at this point, considering he would be using the map to kidnap someone; making a student cry was part for the course of being the most hated teacher at Hogwarts.
Still, it lingered in the back of his mind. In a way, he and the girl were connected. In the same way that he and Harry were connected. They were all just playing their part in this war.
Once the door closed, Severus pulled the map back out from his pocket and placed it onto the desk. "Revelio!" He spoke, giving the surface a solid 'tap' with his wand.
The words spread across the page in inky blots, illegible at first, but forming into clear script on the parchment.
Messrs. Mooney, Wormtail. Padfoot, and Prongs proudly, (and humbly,) present: The Marauders Map.
Severus rolled his eyes and opened the pages, folding out further so he could see the full pages inside. Again the ink flowed and webbed until it formed another sentence:
We thought we told you already Snivelus…Keep your slimy hands off of our stuff!
Severus grimaced and turned the page over. There was no map to be found. He resisted the urge slam his fists onto the table. It was shocking how even after all these years the dunder-headed quartet still found a way to make his life difficult. It was going to be a long night.
Hermione avoided Harry most of the next day. At breakfast, she ate quickly and told her friends that she wanted to get to class early to do some revisions. In potions class she hardly said more than a few polite 'hello's' to everyone except for Neville.
Once she had completed brewing her potion, the draught of peace, she buried herself in ensuring the Neville was able to complete his as well—in part as a distraction, but also due to genuine concern that he would miss a step and find himself stuck in a never-ending sleep due to the potions sedative qualities.
She skipped lunch entirely, and told Ron and Harry to go on without her "There is only so much time before O.W.L.'s so I have to study as much as I can!" She had said, heading toward the library.
By dinnertime her stomach was growling and she knew she would need to get some food in her or suffer until breakfast the next day. To her relief, Harry still hadn't brought up the map or the cloak; one of which she still had, but she couldn't exactly give up one without producing the other.
"What's wrong Hermione?" Ron asked between bites of turkey leg.
"Nothing, just—tired. A lot of late night studying."
"You wouldn't be stretched so thin if Snape hadn't gone and given you detention" Harry spoke, nodding his head in the general direction of the teachers table.
"Yeah, and a right git he was for doing it too!" Ron added. "I mean, if you hadn't told him about Dumbledore he wouldn't even have known to come looking for him. Who knows what Umbridge would have done to Harry then."
"She doesn't scare me." said Harry.
"She scares me." Neville, who was sitting beside Ron, joined in the conversation. He shuddered and continued, "Not as much as Snape though. I'm glad I haven't got detention with him."
"He's your boggart, mate. I don't know how you can even sit through class with him. If I had a giant spider trying to teach me about the effects and benefits of moonstone I'd run out of class screaming." Ron said. They all laughed and the conversation swiftly turned to lighthearted conversation, much to Hermione's relief. With Harry already on edge due to prophetic nightmares, occlumency lessons with Snape, interrogations from Umbridge, Dumbledore's disappearance, and O.W.L's coming up, she knew that learning that Hermione 'losing' the marauders map could just be the catalyst to him snapping.
Yet still, she couldn't ignore the feeling she had that she had somehow made the right decision. Snape was, for all intents and purposes, an ass. He was a bully, and had been since the first day they walked into Hogwarts; but Hermione meant what she had told him the night before, about trusting him. She did trust him. Call it intuition, call it optimism…whatever he needed the map for had to have been important, or he would not have bothered to ask her for it.
As she made her way to Snape's study, she had already settled on her next course of action. Whatever it was that Snape was doing with the map, so long as it was to help Harry defeat Voldemort, she would support it. She would even assist him, if it came down to it.