[HERMIONE]
The train ride was excruciatingly slow. While the others were energized by the recent events, aside from Harry who was mourning the death of his Godfather, I was suffering with PTSD. Loud or sudden noises and physical contact made me jittery.
"…Yeah, and when Ginny hit that Death Eater with her Bat-Bogey Hex!" they laughed, Ginny blushing and laughing good naturedly. "It was the first thing that came to mind!"
"Not to mention that it's kind of a trademark of yours. Bloody brilliant!" Added Ron.
It was odd that no one seemed to remember the magic shield I unleashed. It was as if they had no recollection of it at all.
"Are you okay, 'Mione? You're awfully quiet and you haven't even taken out a book! Not that I'm complaining, you read way too much. It's good to live a little, yeah?" said Ron.
"I'm fine, Ron. Just looking forward to being home for a while."
"Not too long though, right? Mum wrote to tell me we would all be going to Headquarters earlier this time. It's safer what with You-Know-Who being out in the open now. The Order is expecting them to wreak havoc during the holidays."
"I'll have to see, Ginny. I may be visiting other family with them this holiday."
"Just be careful, Hermione." Cautioned Neville, who seemed genuinely concerned about my safety.
I hung back as we filed out of the train upon arrival at Platform 9 ¾. I didn't fancy being caught in the boisterous crowd, all of whom were eager to push through the barrier and greet their families.
When it was my turn to walk through the barrier, I barely had time to register that someone had grabbed hold of my hand before feeling the pull of side-along apparation. I re-appeared in a park. It was oddly familiar, I felt like I had been here before. Then I saw the swings and knew just where I had seen them before. I whirled around in time to see Professor Snape remove his disillusionment.
I whipped out my wand and held it steady as I aimed it straight at his heart. "Professor?" I asked cautiously.
"Too slow, Miss Granger. And you need to ask a security question to verify my identity. Something only the real Professor Snape would know, but not too revealing that you could give away key information if I were an imposter."
I thought for a minute. "How do I know these swings?"
"Adequate. I showed them to you, it helped you re-focus your breathing."
I slowly lowered my wand. "Aren't you going to ask me a question, Sir?"
"Know-it-all" he muttered. "what year were you in when you set fire to my robes?" he smirked.
I gasped. "How did you-"
"The answer, Miss Granger."
"First year. Sir." I said, embarrassed. "But how did you-"
"I know many things, Miss Granger. Let's not waste time reminiscing on old infarctions."
"Okay. Might I ask the whereabouts of my parents and why you have kidnapped me?" I asked.
"Your parents are away in France and believe you to be with the Weasleys for the first 2 weeks of the holidays. Thereafter, you will be joining them in France for a fortnight before departing for Headquarters. Kidnapped is a bit harsh, I prefer, detoured."
"And I'm to have no say in these arrangements? Why not just tell me before I left for the Leaving Feast?" I probed.
Professor Snape sneered.
"Does anyone else know of these arrangements?" I pressed.
"A fair question, but not the most pertinent. To your first question, no, these arrangements were made in the early hours of the morning, and to your second, no, I did not see fit to include others in this decision."
"And what decision might that be?"
"To spend the next 2 weeks researching and training. Just because you cannot back out of the position you find yourself in in this war, it does not mean you cannot be suitably prepared."
"Why me? Why not the others? Harry, Ron?"
"Your friends have no control over their minds or their mouths. This needs to be kept quiet. I cannot risk either of my masters finding out that I have…interfered."
"What makes you think I have control? I've read about Occlumency, but I've never even tried it beyond the introductory exercises. I never even got to the visualization section, I haven't sculpted a mindscape or-"
"None of that will be necessary-"
"But then how am I to defend-"
"Do not interrupt me again, Miss Granger. You do not need to learn Occlumency, you are a natural Occlumens. I have mastered both Occlumency and Legillimency. If I was not able to breach your defences, neither will Professor Dumbledore, the Dark Lord or any of his followers."
I stared in astonishment.
"How is that possible?"
"I believe the answer to that will also be the answer to how you have an innate ability to cast wandlessly and non-verbally, not to mention your 'magical shield' as you called it."
"And not to mention my elemental magic." I muttered quietly.
Professor Snape stilled.
"Your what?" He whispered.
In for a penny, in for a pound. "My elemental magic." I said louder. "It was my first bout of magic, I've had control of it since I was a small child. When I first arrived at Hogwarts I was shocked that wands were used for even the simplest spell, when for me it was far easier to use the magic that existed all around us. For a while, I found it tricky to use my wand, I would spend hours in hidden alcoves of the library learning to channel my magic through my wand instead of my hand."
"That…surprises me. Your teachers all reported you to be the fastest at learning new spells and charms, often on your first or second trial."
"Yes, that's true. But I had to think so hard about it at first. Magic never used to require so much thought and consideration before I arrived at Hogwarts."
Professor Snape looked, puzzled. Like I had actually well and truly stumped him.
"I believe, Miss Granger, that the best place to start would be with your elemental magic. It seems the most logical."
"What do you need me to do?"
"Of the few witches and wizards who possess elemental magic, all had an affinity for one element. Which element do you have an affinity for?"
"Fascinating! I've only ever been able to find research describing each element, but no case histories describing the lived experiences of magical folk. You mentioned having only one affinity though? Were there no cases that held an affinity for more than one?"
"Only one." Professor Snape whispered. "What elements do you possess an affinity for, Miss Granger?"
I hesitated. "This will be a very long 2 weeks indeed if you insist on me dragging every piece of information out of you, Miss Granger." He snapped.
"All."
"All?" He confirmed, eyes widening slightly. His cold mask was in place, so I had no idea what he thought of this newly revealed information.
Instead of answering him, I reached out to the wind and created a light breeze and pulled on the earth to pluck petals from nearby flowers which I made dance along the breeze. I pulled on water to create dew drops on the petals, which blew off as the petals danced and created small rainbows as they spun around us, caught in the breeze.
"You forgot fire." He said slowly, his eyes still watching the magical display, with a look that on any other face could be described as awe.
"But you've already seen it, Sir. Was it not just a moment ago that you revealed you knew the identity of the student who set your robes on fire?" I believe I was the first person alive to have heard Professor Snape laugh. He had a rich, baritone laugh which carried on the breeze I had created. How odd it was to be in a deserted park with my laughing Professor as wind, petals and rainbow dew drops whirled around us.