The Great Hall had broken out in a mass of whispers which turned into full out loud gossiping as soon as Umbridge and Ron were out of the Great Hall. Both had to go to the Hospital Wing, one making a return trip.
"Hermione! What was that all about!?" Dean asked, leaning in close.
Hermione looked at him sideways. Dean was just as much of a hypocrite and a gossip as Lavender and Pavarti, but at least the witches were able to suss out what was true and what wasn't. Somehow. It was a gift of theirs.
"Ronald Weasley thought it would be a good idea to try to hit me with a spell from behind while I was on the stairs. Apparently he thought it would, in his own words, 'Take me down a peg since I am not Miss High and Mighty, and I'm too big to talk to you peasants'. Harry saw it and punched him in the face after he asked why Ron thought it was a good idea. Umbridge only saw Harry punching Weasley. Harry has to serve detention with her, but since I was there I somehow 'allowed' it to happen, which made me unfit for my position. Then she snatched my apprentice badge and you saw the rest," she informed the nosy wizard.
It took her all of a few seconds to decide it was better to answer him than allow the rest of her classmates to speculate. At least it came 'from the horse's mouth'. They would surely make up other speculation, but as they saw what happened with her badge, it would hopefully curb their tendency to make more wild accusations. It was a slim hope, but a hope nonetheless. Thankfully the gossip queens were also listening carefully so most of the truth would make its way around.
"What are you going to do about DADA?" Neville asked.
That was something she would have to take up with Severus. She had insulted Umbridge to her face, in front of the whole school. She was too angry to really think that part through.
"I will speak to my master about taking that OWL early and dropping the class," Hermione said, quickly spooning some mashed potatoes into her mouth to avoid further conversation.
After dinner Harry and Luna escorted Hermione to the Great Hall where she met up with her master. They were good buffers she realized as no one wanted to be near loony and Harry had on his 'angry' face. It looked more like sulking to her, but she was more privy to his emotions than not, especially with their bond.
The pair walked quickly and silently into the dungeons, Severus scaring all who were in the halls, including his Slytherins. Once they reached the dungeons he opened the door for her for both the potions classroom to his private lab.
He nodded at her and then turned around and used his wand to put up many spells in quick succession to prevent entry and eavesdropping. Hermione was amused. What he and others did with charms and spells she could do with a simple ward. However he hadn't asked that of her yet and she wasn't going to offer on the odd chance that their esteemed Headmaster decided to pop in for a visit that lead to questions they didn't want to give answers to.
Once they were set the dark wizard turned around and calmly gestured to one of the stools.
Somehow the curly haired witch could tell her master wasn't angry and that calmed her. She knew that while Umbridge had pushed the wrong buttons she too was somewhat out of line when she was supposed to do the opposite of cause waves.
With a soft sigh Severus looked at his apprentice and placed his hand on her head.
"I am not angry with you, nor am I displeased with how things turned out. I do want to know what happened before we discuss how to proceed," he said calmly.
He knew there was more to the story than what that fat sow claimed and there was more than what his witch could say in public.
Making a small face of displeasure thinking about the events Hermione had planned on telling him anyways.
"Harry and I decided it would be nice to dress nicely for the evening considering it's my birthday and we can't celebrate by going out to dinner or the like. Weasley decided to make rude comments about me being 'tarted up', his words. I ignored him. He yelled at me and I looked at him before asking if anyone else could hear something that sounded rude. I said I couldn't place where it came from and then left for dinner."
Severus's lips twitched.
"Of course he didn't like it. That deplorable excuse for a wizard decided he would try to teach me a lesson by stealing Harry's invisibility cloak and shoot me in the back while I was on the stairs. Thankfully I managed to duck out of the way, but then he shot again and I had no place to go but down and rolled down the stairs to avoid it. I… don't know what spell he was using," she said her face clearly uncomfortable with that, "It was a dark orange, almost sickly in color. It was… muddy, if that makes sense to you," she said looking at him.
He nodded having an idea, "I will be sure to check his wand. If it is what I think it is, he will at least be on probation with Albus at the helm. With the Weasleys being his greatest supporters he tends to overlook what they do."
"I noticed, he helped them financially as well," she grumbled, still upset with how they were stealing from her brother.
With a quick roll of her eyes and a breath she continued, "Anyways I managed to hit him with a stunner. Harry made his way over and reached down, clearly finding the menace, and stuffed his cloak into his pocket. I revived him and asked him, quote, 'what is the meaning of this?' he was a prat and shouted 'oh now you notice me?"
"Harry of course did not like that someone was trying to hurt me and yelled at him for shooting spells at me and stealing his cloak. He said that he wasn't using it and that he was going to take me down a peg since apparently I'm too big to talk to said peasants now. Harry didn't like that at all and socked him in the face. That's when Umbridge waddled her way over and caught Harry. She ignored Neville, not sure if I should be grateful or not for that since he had nothing to do with it. He's actually been a really good about everything this year, considering."
"Yes, he's also improved greatly in class. Frankly I am surprised, but pleasantly so," he said.
She nodded in agreement then tilted her head, "Then she gave Harry a week's worth of detention with her starting tomorrow at 7 for punching assaulting a prefect. Which… I understand. I want to make sure he's okay though, she's been trying to get him into detention with her since she got here. I have… a bad feeling about it," she admitted with her eyebrows furrowed, "After that she apologized to Weasley for that hooligan for assaulting his person, load of tosh, and told him to go to the Hospital Wing. It was then that she looked at me and said she was shocked that I allowed it to happen and was just standing there. Granted, I was going to just let it happen, but considering it did just happen and wasn't premeditated I was also taken by surprise."
He nodded in understanding.
"Then that toad said I was unfit for my position, said I was a muggle pretending to be a witch, an apprenticed witch, then said she'd talk to the headmaster and snatched my badge off my cloak. Ripped it too," she muttered the last part with more irritation than the rest of the story, "You saw the rest."
"Sadly I must admit it is something I would do, but never to an apprentice. If you were a prefect I might have tried to have your badge removed, however I would never go so far as to touch your person to do so. I would go through the proper channels. Then again I'm nowhere near as disrespectful or dense as that toad."
Hermione nodded slowly, she too could see her master doing something like that before her apprenticeship. She agreed not to that extreme, but making Harry suffer detentions was something he was well known for.
"His detentions are earned, despite for a good cause, however if you have a bad feeling I want him to report to me afterwards."
"Yes, master," she said deferentially.
"She was making quite a scene before you walked in and stole the show. I cannot be upset with you as she took it upon herself to get somewhat physical with you and then tried to have you expelled."
Hermione looked at him sharply, "She did what now?" her voice was dangerously silky. It sent a thrill down his spine.
"It would appear that you were one of her targets all along. We are both aware of the prejudice that runs rampant and unchecked in our society, how she managed to get so high up…"
"Probably blackmail. Her poor excuse for honey probably smells like vinegar. Others she probably gave them enough lip service," she growled.
"Was that… a double entendre?" he asked with a slight uncomfortable sneer, his eyes showed disgust at the mere idea.
"It wasn't meant to be," she looked at him with wide eyes, her face also twisting in disgust.
"Why would you do that!?" she asked him incredulously, "Now it's burned into my mind! I want nothing of the sort anywhere near my mind. Is there a potion that acts as mental bleach?"
"I didn't mean to. You said honey. It has multiple meanings! And sadly, no. There is not. As tempted as I am to make one now," he looked at her, "it would probably be too dangerous and bleach out the wrong things."
They both shared looked of disgust.
"Moving on!" the witch pushed through, "I feel the need to take my Defense OWL sooner rather than later so I may drop her class."
The tall wizard blinked, dispelling the horrid image to focus on the petite witch in front of him.
"Considering you insulted her to her face in front of all of Hogwarts, it would be the safest thing for you to do…"
"How though?" she looked at him imploringly, "I know how to fight, I know counter curses, I know a few auror tricks as well. She was right about one thing, the teaching in the subject has been rather lacking. Professor Lupin taught us how to defend ourselves against mostly creatures. Barty was more hands on. I hope I know enough for the practical, but I'm not so sure on the written."
Severus sighed through his nose. Her fears were not unfounded. Quirrel was a stuttering mess when he was teaching, despite the whole mess that ended him that year. Lockhart was a strutting peacock that told them nothing but dragon dung and what not to do. Lupin however was one of their best, actually taught the students what they needed to know for the year. Barty and Moody were more focused on the practical than the theoretical. This year's lot would be lucky to learn anything with the propaganda they were being forced to read.
"Lupin did teach you what you were supposed to learn for your third year. It was appropriate. The rest of the school also learned what they were meant to. Out of the last few years, he was honestly the best to have taught here, despite my personal feelings. Strictly from an educational standpoint those that were taught by him that year did excellent on their OWLs and NEWTs. Barty was a close second. So that is one less thing to worry about. We will temporarily switch our main focus from potions to defense," he tried to reassure her.
"We will withdraw you from her class immediately and you will be taking private lessons with me. She should not have a legitimate leg to stand on, but she does not seem to be one of reason," he said, "We will inform Minerva once we're finished here."
With a breath of relief Hermione nodded.
"Before we do begin however, happy birthday my apprentice," he murmured.
He silently and wandlessly summoned a gift from the back of the room. The package was medium in size not giving away what it was. It was wrapped in metallic green paper with a black bow. He carefully handed it to her.
"As it is your day, so to speak, we will not be doing anything that could be considered work," the wizard said with a quirk of his lips.
"Thank you, master," she whispered, taking the gift and smiling back at him.
She undid the ribbon, wrapping it around her wrist so she could keep it for later, and then tore the paper off revealing a brown box. Ever curious she quickly opened the box to see what was inside.
She bit to lip to try to stifle the grin that wanted to burst forth. It was a series of things within the box. The first she pulled out was on top was a choker necklace, black in color, roughly half an inch thick. It was soft lace. In the middle hung a black pearl.
"It has many meanings and properties, but the main ones that stood out to me were protection, strength, prosperity, and balance. I was not aware that Miss Lovegood was also getting you jewelry."
"Both her and her father. Luna made me these," she said jiggling the earring on her lobes, "Mr. Lovegood gave me the studs," she finished, fingering her new cartilage piercing.
The witch lifted another present out of the box, a bubble tea kit, which caught her interest. There were tea leaves, bobas, a wide glass straw, and a cutely crafted glass cup in the shape of a potion bottle complete with a glass latch top. Thankfully it also looked like sea glass, so it was impossible to mistake for an actual potion bottle.
"It's a relatively new drink originated from Taiwan. Serendipitously created in the early 80s. It's better served chilled, in my opinion. I like it and thought it wouldn't hurt if you had your own set." He explained.
She smiled shyly at him, a twinkle in her eyes. It was another facet of Severus that was kept from the world. A drink that wasn't of England or wizarding orientation? She never would have guessed, and she was sure not many others would either. Especially since she'd never heard of it until he gifted it to her.
"How did you come by it?" she asked.
He looked mildly surprised for some reason.
"I was traveling one summer and happened to go to Taiwan. I was looking to harvest potion ingredients not native to Europe that year for personal projects. I figured I'd be able to see some of the world where people don't know me on sight and gather some ingredients that would otherwise be lucratively expensive."
"Did you like it?" she inquired.
"I did," he answered.
"What about it?" she pressed.
"I didn't stay there long, I was on holiday to collect as many Asian ingredients that caught my fancy, but I enjoyed some of the wilderness. In the locations I stopped by the wildlife was in abundance, even some of the ingredients harder to come by in Europe. Mostly the plant life since it would appear most Northern Europeans don't know how to preserve more… tropical ingredients. I gathered a few bugs, but I stayed away from snakes and such. I wouldn't want to harvest them alone."
Hermione nodded. It was smart to only harvest what you could alone, anything that had potential risk without a party seemed foolhardy.
"Now open the rest of your gift," he sniffed, causing her to smile.
She pulled out a dark gray robe, almost black, and it was so soft, but wasn't thin like most of her newer robes. Hermione couldn't help but roll her fingers across the fabric.
"It's Egyptian cotton," he answered the unspoken question.
She looked at him quickly in surprise, before pulling it fully out of the box. It was a bit heavy, but she knew she would appreciate it in the coming months. Scottish winters were no joke, they were tolerable with their constant exposure, but still biting cold, especially in the dungeons.
At the very bottom of the box was a book.
'1001 Obscure Potions'
It smelled old, it felt worn and well read.
"Thank you, Sev. I love them so much," she said, "Put the choker on me please?"
He blushed lightly and nodded taking the lace and walking behind her. She lifted her hair and he purposely clasped it. Making a quick decision once he was done he leant over and pressed a light kiss to the back of her neck.
She left out a sigh of pleasure.
"Thank you."
"Would it be possible… to give you a nickname?" he asked.
"Like a pet name?" she questioned, curious.
"No, not yet. I mean like… something special, a nickname only for your closest ones. They're usually given," he said, stopping after he found himself rambling.
"What did you have in mind?" she probed, afraid to turn around, much like he was to look at her while asking.
"Mia," he conferred, his tone held a simplicity that was congenial in and of itself.
'Mia, Mia, Mia,' she whispered in her head.
"Mia," she mused aloud, annunciating the vowels feeling the way it rolled off her tongue pass her lips.
"Yes. You may call me Mia," she answered.
He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and gently wrapped her in his arms, placing his face lightly into her curls.
"Happy birthday, Mia," he said.
Something clicked in Hermione and she smiled. She was never one for nicknames before since she didn't like her name being butchered. Hermy, Herms, etcetera were all… she disliked them, with a passion. 'Mione was acceptable, if barely, but she knew it made some people feel better to call her something other than Hermione, which she knew was a mouthful for others. Harry, for example, was allowed to call her that. Mia though… was one syllable, pleasant, and impossible to make fun of.
"Thank you," she mumbled.
Barely a second later Hermione looked up as though it would allow her to see the potions master.
"Sev?" there was a slight tilt in her tone.
"Hm?" he intoned.
"Would you mind if… if other people called me Mia?" she intoned.
Severus looked at her curly mane.
"It's not a pet name, but a nickname, I would assume someone else would eventually try to call you that if they heard me."
"But would you mind?" she pushed.
He felt a flutter at her consideration, "No Mia, I would not mind."
She smiled and leaned into him.
They stayed like that for a few more moments, enjoying the moment. It was nice to… snuggle, although neither of them would ever admit to such a thing this early in their relationship.
With a final squeeze Severus let go of his petite witch and walked to the other side of the lab table.
"I know the plan is to drop your Defense Against the Dark Arts class, but will you resume the class once the jinx takes her?" he inquired.
"I'm not sure. I suppose it'll depend how far I get in my personal studies," she admitted.
"Sev? Everyone knows you're constantly asking for the Defense position. If you know about the jinx; why do you continue to ask about it?" she asked trying not to sound unduly curious.
The dark wizard raised his brows at her before answering, "Because it's not really the position that's jinxed but the paperwork."
"The paperwork?" she asked incredulously.
"Every contract is gone over with the headmaster, signed, and once it's placed in the proper file a duplicate is made and files itself in the board of governs' files. The filing cabinet that's strictly for the Defense position is jinxed. No one is aware of that before they sign the papers since the papers themselves are not jinxed."
"I don't understand," she pressed.
"You confusion is understandable," he admitted before continuing, "When people with magic use a natural writing instrument, like a quill, our magic goes through it and lightly imbues itself in said instrument. When we use ink, after the quill has been dipped and a moment has passed, our magic is subtly fused with the ink."
"Like a fingerprint," she breathed.
"Yes. Our magical signature is then lightly in the paper."
"And magic is alive," she said making the leap.
"In its own way, yes. So when it is filed in the jinxed cabinet…" he said drifting off looking at her.
"It jinxes whoever's magic is in the file until it carries itself out," she concluded, "Like the Goblet of Fire?"
"Yes. It was for that exact reason that Mr. Potter had to compete."
"Because the artifact only read Harry's magical signature, not caring who exactly put his name in there, but that it was his magic itself that was in there."
"Exactly," he affirmed.
"That makes so much more sense now," she continued, "I always wondered why we didn't use pens, or even fountain pens."
"They don't carry our magic onto the paper as well as quills and the people must be comfortable doing so," he said.
"What about for note taking and such? Dictaquills?" she asked "Not going to lie, I do miss pens."
"Dictaquills must learn your signature first and require that you use them for a minimum of a week, and you must at least write down the alphabet once," he lectured, "As for note taking, it is alright to use a fountain pen. After the Goblet fiasco I would even recommend it for homework…" he drifted off as his mind started working.
"From now on you're to use fountain pens for everything short of your main exams and official paperwork. Ministerial, Gringotts, and the like," he stated firmly.
"Yes, master," she reassured, knowing he made the decision in his official capacity.
"We will see about your brother as well seeing as he's already been the victim of such an abuse," he informed her.
She beamed at him, "Yes, my Master."
"Change of plans. Now gather your gifts, we'll make our way to Minerva's office now."
"Yes, sir," she said, already putting the rest of her new things away.
Severus knocked firmly on Minerva's office door, Hermione was standing off to the side behind him. He knew she didn't have patrolling duties tonight and it was early enough that she allowed herself to be accessible to the students should they want to talk about anything.
"Enter," came the Scottish brogue.
Both master and apprentice's eyebrows rose. The accent wasn't thick, but noticeable, which meant she was already a bit emotional.
The potions master opened the door, letting his apprentice in before him before allowing himself entry.
The transfiguration mistress was sitting at her desk with papers strewn about her desk. She had carefully placed her quill down and was looking at her latest interlopers.
"Severus, Apprentice Granger, what do I owe the honor?" she inquired.
"We are here in the official capacity in regards to some scheduling changes," Severus said slowly.
"Schedule changes?" she scrutinized.
"Yes. Apprentice Granger will be dropping Defense Against the Dark Arts immediately and will be taking private tutoring sessions with me," he intoned.
"I see," she said noncommittally, "It will be done."
Severus nodded at her and turned around before she cleared her throat. Slowly the wizard turned back around to face the Scottish witch.
"I have a suggestion, you make acknowledge it at you leisure," she started, "While I'm sure you will take your OWL soon, the sooner the better," she grumbled, "I'm sure our esteemed Ministry liaison will try to make further trouble for you for this evenings incident. I would recommend that you fill out the paperwork for the room extension in your private quarters. Should she press that Apprentice Granger is receiving… favoritism or some rot or other, it would be better to have her removed from the tower and further under her Master's protection. Should push come to shove she can then merely relocate herself."
By the accent that only got slightly heavier while she was talking it was clear that something had already been mentioned to her and she was not happy to be losing one of her cubs in any way. Severus sneered and nodded, sitting in front of her desk.
Hermione stayed quiet throughout, her face grim. She hadn't meant for any of this to happen. She was just enjoying her birthday and refused to let that sour excuse of a wizard ruin her day, and it ended with just that, but worse. She didn't end the day by crying but by stirring up the hornets' nest. Ron was a prat and Umbridge was just… a bitch. It helped that most of Gryffindor saw Ron's behavior before she left for dinner, but still….
"I apologize Professor McGonagall if I've made your life more difficult with this recent situation," Hermione lamented, taking a step forward to stand next to her master.
Minerva's eyes softened, "It's not your fault. She's been heckling the staff, but mostly the Headmaster and myself about you since you were first introduced as an apprentice. She's been trying to find out how to remove you from your 'position' and give it to someone 'more worthy' as she says," she snarked the last bit, "We've been trying to tell her that it's not possible and the decision has already been made. I'm sure now that she wasn't aware of the ceremony or magic that goes into the forming of an apprenticeship. It wasn't the best way to come about it, but I must commend you Apprentice Granger, for being blunt. Perhaps now she'll stop trying to have your 'position'," she rolled her eyes, "given to another."
"Instead she'll try to have me expelled or removed in another way," Hermione finished.
With her own sneer Minerva nodded.
"Master Snape, since I will shortly be moving into your quarters and receiving my own room, may I make a request?" Hermione asked with amusement dancing in her tone.
Both professors looked at her.
"Can you see if the house-elves will install a cat tree and rafters for Crookshanks?" she pleaded.
Minerva smirked at the younger witch. She may be Gryffindor, but she was an ambitious opportunist.
Severus blinked slowly at her, "I suppose I can make the request."
"Thank you, Master," his apprentice practically purred.
"Hn."
"Apprentice Granger, why don't you head up to the tower and get some rest?" Minerva suggested.
"That sounds like a fine idea," Hermione admitted, "Master?"
"You may go, Apprentice. I will see you tomorrow," he said.
"Apprentice Granger?" Minerva called after her before Hermione reached the door.
The witch turned around and looked at the elder witch curiously, "Yes?"
"Happy birthday," she smiled at the younger witch.
"Thank you," she replied with a grin.
"Goodnight, Mia," Severus said, dismissing her.
"Goodnight, Sev," she answered shyly before leaving.
Meanwhile Albus sighed at the Undersecretary's stupidity and consigned himself into writing a letter to the Minister and the Daily Prophet about Umbridge trying to forcibly dispel the apprenticeship bond between Severus Snape and Hermione Granger. Even he knew it wasn't a matter of choice once the vows were made. He had no choice but to accept it or else he would have already dissolved it.
Better he write it first than that damnable woman.
Dolores Umbridge scowled at her bandaged hands. They were badly burnt according to Poppy. The Weasley boy was also badly burnt and had to stay overnight to make sure his eye healed properly. Thankfully he blink at the last moment.
She was so sure an apprenticeship was just a paper agreement between one to another. She didn't know there were magical oaths and vows involved. That little uppity bint made her look like a fool.
She should have been able to demote the muggle from apprentice to student. She'd rather not even have that, but at least as a student she wouldn't have any power. Chances are even if she had the bint expelled she wouldn't have her wand snapped. She already had an OWL which was the minimum a real witch or wizard needed to keep their wand. She wouldn't even be kicked out of the school, having to stay close to Snape.
At least she had Potter in her grasp now. It was merely a stroke of luck on her part, but she would use it to the fullest. Potter would know to respect his betters.
Elsewhere in the castle Luna was writing an article for the Quibbler about tonight's events and planned on owling it to her father. The people deserved to know what was happening at Hogwarts, especially with dark witch in the castle. She was a well-known Ministry official after all, it would only look more damaging. Luna wanted to keep Hermione's status a secret, but knew that it would be an open secret now that Malfoy knew and outed her in the Great Hall. Still the blonde was aware that she could, and would, omit that small tiny detail.
Unbeknownst to her a majority of the Slytherins were also writing to their parents.
One Draco Malfoy was carefully detailing everything that happened to his father. Once again he was glad that Pansy was one of his best friends and that she was a gossip. Of course she called it networking through her connections, but he decided not to get into that discussion again. The Malfoys were full supporters of the Monarchy, the old ways, and traditions. Umbridge personally attacked two of the three in front of him.
Once Hermione was in the tower she noticed Harry sitting in his favorite chair by the fire. She smiled lopsidedly at him. He was clearly sulking, glaring into the fire.
Harry was leaning back, sitting in a devil may care pose, with his chin resting on his fist. Hermione felt through the bond and was able to see that he was a bit more angry than normal and wasn't sure why.
Walking over with purpose she propped herself on the opposite armrest.
"Hey," she started.
"Hey," he replied mulishly.
"Don't be like that. I spoke with Master Snape and a few things came up you might be interested in."
The green eyed wizard's brows rose as he looked at his sister through the corners of his eyes.
"Yeah? Like what?" clearly intrigued.
"First, when you're done with detention he wants you to see him immediately. Not because he's mad but…" the witch hesitated, "I have a bad feeling about it and he said to have you see him after."
The Boy-Who-Lived turned to face her fully. Hermione was a witch that rarely let herself be led by her gut instinct. If it was bad enough that she was that concerned he would do so.
"Okay. As soon as detention is over with Umbitch I'll go see Professor Snape," he said slowly with a nod.
His sister grinned, not even correcting his language, and it looked as though a heavy weight was lifted off her shoulders.
"What else?"
"Two more things. I know you won't really care about the schematics, but we're going to stop writing with quills immediately for homework and notes. Apparently using a natural instrument, like a quill, helps our magic transfer onto parchment leaving a small amount of our magical signature in it. After last year's incident with the Goblet, since your name could have been ripped from your homework, it's a safety precaution," she explained without going into further detail.
Harry nodded with an impressed look on his face, liking the sound of that. If he could keep someone from doing anything like that again, he would be more than willing to do so.
"Am I going to like the last thing more than that one?" her brother asked cheekily.
"Prat," she said with a playful nudge, "Maybe…" she nibbled on her lip knowing she didn't want other people calling her by her new nickname who she didn't trust and leaned in.
"He gave me a nickname. I asked if he was okay with other people calling me it, and he said since it was a nickname it was fine. Of course only my closest ones can call me it," she whispered.
Harry looked at her, his bad mood forgotten, "What is it?" he asked quietly.
"Mia," she said with a smile. The name clearly made her happy and it was less of a mouthful than Hermione. It was short, simple, and it made her happy.
"Mia," he nodded again, "I like it. It suits you," the wizard smiled.
"Thanks," she grinned.
"Who else are you going to let you call you that?" he asked, curious.
"Mum and Dad of course, Luna, Neville, and maybe Goyle if he'd like," she answered.
"Goyle?"
"Mhm. He's been much better this year and he's very respectful when he's not being a prat. We're study buddies. I was kinda hoping that… he would be okay with being a friend instead of just a buddy," she fiddled with her hands.
Harry had also seen the difference in Gregory Goyle and approved of them. It helped that the chubbiness that once described him was now more clearly toned muscle. Being in close proximity with the Slytherin, he could admit, at least to himself for now, that Gregory Goyle was physically appealing.
He still had big feet, but everything else was not how Harry originally pegged him when they were younger. His eyes were grey, he was just a bit taller than Ron, definitely burlier. His eyebrows were defined, his hair was dark brown and short, but was long enough that he had some fringe on his forehead. Some days he could tell that the other boy also shaved frequently. Once in a while Goyle had what some would call 5 o'clock shadow.
"I think he'd like that," Harry said, not giving away what he was thinking.
Although Hermione could feel his slight embarrassment through their bond and had to hide her smile.
After the paperwork was filled out Severus made his way to the Hospital Wing. That Weasley whelp not only fired a spell at his apprentice's back, but with a gray curse.
'Sickly orange indeed…' he growled in his mind.
Opening the doors to the Hospital Wing, the dark wizard made his way to Poppy's office. He knew she kept all of her patients' wands in her office before she discharged them. Thankfully it wouldn't be seen as anything odd. After all he was the potions master and in charge of the medicinal potions that were kept in stock. He would be sure to leave with a list of potions that would be needed. With the evening's incident he was well aware he would be making more than just burn healing paste.
"Poppy," he announced himself.
"Severus what do I owe the pleasure?" she asked with wry amusement.
"A few things, first being that I would like the potions list needed now rather than later so I can get started on it tomorrow. Second being Mr. Weasley's wand. I have suspicion that it needs to be checked. Lastly, I would like your support if what I think was his last used spell was indeed that. It's dark gray and was aimed at my apprentice. I know Albus would never expel him, but would at least put him on probation," he said.
Poppy sighed but nodded. With a wave of her wand she unlocked the drawer in her desk that she used to keep her patients' wands. It wouldn't do for a patient to sneak off in the middle of the night. Aside from keeping them from using magic, especially when their magic was helping aid their healing, it essentially kept them hostage. They need their wand to participate in classes and the professors needed them for daily life.
She handed the wizard the wand in question before she went to grab a quill and parchment to write the list.
"Prior Incantato."
The tip of Ron's wand glowed a rusty orange and made Severus sneer.
"As I thought," he spat in disgust, "Suffocat Pirum Totum."
Poppy looked at him concerned, her quill stopped moving, "What spell is that Severus?" her voice wobbled a bit.
"Total Choak Pear. The Choke Pear hasn't been used in decades. How Mr. Weasley found it… unless he didn't think and merely let his magic do the talking."
"Severus I don't know what that is," she murmured.
"The Choak Pear was a muggle torture device. Of course wizards found a way to improve," he scorned, "it. It was pear in shape with sharp metal leaves. The muggle would turn the key, much like a music box, and it would open like a flower. It was never meant to be opened fully since it was only meant as a punishment and used for torture rather than death. It would severely mutilate the victim as their body would be stretched beyond their limits. Wizards found a way to make it so the main human orifices would be subjected to this torture," he explained.
The medi-witch's eyes widened. Used correctly it would have severely tortured the young apprentice. Her vagina and anus would be stretched wide at the same time causing multiple lacerations as she would literally be torn apart internally and all the while her mouth would be subjected to the same torture guaranteed to break her jaw until it unhinged in a most disturbing way.
"You have my full support Severus, I'll inform the rest of the Head staff immediately," she said as firmly as she could.
The potions master could only nod at her. There was such rage boiling inside his body he had to leave. She finished the list with a flourish and handed it to the wizard. He took it carefully making sure not to snatch it from the medi-witch and left with the signature billowing of his robes.
Morning came swiftly along with Umbridge's release. Umbridge needed her bandages changed and was informed that she would need to return to the hospital wing every 3-4 hours to have them redressed. There was nothing more she could do for her and was aware she couldn't keep the professor from teaching. Not that she would really need her wand considering it was all theory. Poppy was aware that her class was a farce and didn't want to see the whining witch more than she had to.
Poppy didn't get to leave the Hospital Wing often, but that didn't mean she wasn't aware of the happenings in the castle. Portraits reported to the portrait of Helga Hufflepuff that was located in her office and ghosts reported any incidents that happened in the Great Hall to her. They did so in shifts and it was a general consensus that no news was good news. A few would come and talk to her about something funny or some student drama so she was aware of such things. She knew before they arrived that they were instigators.
Umbridge practically declared her stupidity for all to see trying to break apart the apprenticeship between Severus and Hermione Granger. Never mind the fact that she tried to have the girl expelled for witnessing an act of violence. From what the Helga told her Harry had just punched the youngest Weasley when Umbridge turned up.
Poppy huffed at the large witch. The sooner she left the better.
Weasley however was being kept. She talked to the other heads through Helga, who was thankfully more than willing to help, and they agreed to wait until the witch was discharged before doing anything about Weasley. The medi-witch kept his wand safe in her drawer and waited for the other staff members to arrive to handle the situation. She was tempted to just call the aurors, but knew Albus would twinkle his arse through the 'misunderstanding'.
Weasley was just informed he needed to stay in the Hospital Wing for further care and observation. It helped that she had to dress his burn just as frequently as Umbridge's, but his was in a more delicate location.
Barely an hour after breakfast the Heads staggered into the Hospital Wing, one at a time, to avoid suspicion, heading straight to Poppy's office.
"Poppy I know you couldn't say much last night, much like I couldn't. It's deplorable how Albus uses the portraits to keep tabs on our conversations after serious incidents," Minerva scoffed, "Thankfully Helga is a founder's portrait and loyal to the school only. As odd as it is, I am often thankful that the founder's portraits don't have to answer to the Headmaster as though his word were law."
The rest nodded in agreement.
"What exactly happened?" Filius inquired, jumping straight to the heart of the matter.
"Before Miss Granger entered the Great Hall, where of course I'm sure you know is where Madame Umbridge stupidly confiscated Apprentice Granger's apprentice badge, Mr. Potter punched Mr. Weasley for firing two spells at Apprentice Granger's back."
The Head's faces were grim.
"Of course Apprentice Granger informed Severus. She didn't know the spell but remembered the color. Severus had a hunch and checked his wand last night… Mr. Weasley shot a torture curse at Apprentice Granger that would have done horrible things to her. How it is not a dark spell is beyond me!" she growled.
"It fell out of favor and slipped through the cracks," Severus informed her.
"What spell?" Filius pressed.
"Total Choak Pear," Severus annunciated.
The half-goblin sucked in a breath. Minerva and Poppy frowned deeply, not knowing what it was beside bad.
"Like Severus said it fell out of favor, it's old and very medieval. Depending on how long Mr. Weasley held the spell Miss – Apprentice Granger would have either suffered internal tearing the least or been in critical condition the worst," Filius explained to the two witches.
Minerva paled even as her eyes turned flinty.
"I am unsure how Mr. Weasley learned the spell, but I'm sure it was more his magic doing the talking rather than him doing any thinking," Severus drawled.
The others felt as though they had to agree. Ronald Weasley was many things, studious was not one of them. He was prone to anger and fits of jealousy. The wizard was also known to fling spells first in his highly emotional states.
"I think we should call the aurors," Poppy stated, "Umbridge and Albus be damned."
The Ravenclaw Head quickly agreed.
Minerva's face was pinched and Severus's was stuck in one of disgust.
"Sadly I don't think that would be very feasible," Severus said.
"Why not?" Pomona asked, knowing there was something more going on if Severus thought it wouldn't go well.
"Albus has close personal ties with the Weasley family. He would be more than willing to use his silver tongue to get Mr. Weasley out of any serious trouble," he explained as though it pained him to admit it.
Minerva nodded and proceeded, "Albus has been paying favoritism to the family for many years now. I'm not sure why, but Mr. Weasley's behavior has gone unchecked every time I've brought it up with Albus or Molly. Whenever I try to get a hold of Arthur Molly seems to redirect him and says she can handle it."
"So what do we do," Pomona demanded, crossing her arms.
"We file papers under Albus Dumbledore's crooked nose," Minerva replied with a small sneer.
"What kind of papers?" Filius prodded.
"Probationary ones," she asserted, "Should he receive detention or detentions on three separate occasions any time throughout this school year, he is hereby expelled."
"I can't expel students without Albus's final say, but I can file those papers and document them with dates as well as dates of any and all detentions afterwards. They go into the file that duplicates itself with the Board of Governs. Albus can't do anything after that point," she explained.
Filius thought about it, rolling it around his mind. Albus had prevented aurors from being called many times during his reign as Headmaster. Even when cases called for it, he swept the issues under the rug with mere detentions with dragon dung excuses to go with them. Aurors weren't even called when Quirrel died! Granted it was his fault, but the aurors should have still been called. Instead Albus said he died of natural causes, which… the magic that surrounded Mr. Potter was a natural defense, but he waved it off as schematics.
He nodded solemnly, "That's the best we can do without Albus interfering."
The group there all made faces at what they had to do. A good Headmaster would normally be right with them and call the aurors when needed. For some reason Albus never wanted the aurors to be called for any reason…
The day passed by with an undercurrent of tension. Harry was distracted and barely able to focus whereas his sister kept a close eye on him. They shared small comforting touches, Harry was unaware that he needed it until she gave them. Somehow she just seemed to know. Neville kept close to the duo while also trying not to impose.
As Luna was only there at meal times she ate and absently stroked Hermione's hair as though she were able to give Harry comfort through that. Honestly Hermione found it odd, but acknowledged that the blonde probably needed to feel as though she was doing something as that was often how she felt when things were tense. Harry was uncomfortable with most touches and as he wasn't close to Luna as he was to her, Luna did the next best thing. Somehow it did help as Harry was able to feel some of the comfort through their bond and was even bemused to see his sister being petted by their friend.
Before they knew it Harry had detention with the toad like witch.
"Don't forget to come see Master Snape after," Hermione softly reminded the green eyed wizard.
Harry couldn't do anything but nod, his mouth was dry. Hermione pulled him in for a quick tight hug before she let him go and moved a piece of hair out of his face.
With a sense of dread the two split up. Both held their heads high despite their internal turmoil.
Harry made it to his destination first. With a deep calming breath he knocked on the door.
"Enter," came the sickly sweet voice.
Harry sneered at the door before letting himself fall into his firm set of mind. With a cool head and a blank expression, Harry Potter opened the door.
Umbridge was giddy all day. At long last she got Harry Potter into detention with her! Her hands were still badly burnt, but as she didn't really need her hands for most of the day, it was fine. Eating was a chore, but she willfully chose to forget that. When her classes ended she went into her office and reached into her desk petting her blood quills. Soon.
Even with her routinely bandage changes the day sped up. If anything she used them as an earmark for how many hours passed and how many more she had left until her first detention.
Finally! It was nearing 7o'clock. She took her blood quill from her office desk and walked into her classroom where she muttered some spells, swishing and flicking as needed.
Dolores Umbridge wanted Harry Potter to feel intimidated, like the degenerate he was.
She moved all of the other desks and chairs to the side, leaving one set for him in the middle 8 paces from her desk. She wanted to see him take his punishment. It was because of him and that mudblood that a pureblood was kissed. The witch willfully ignored that neither teen were the ones to vote on whether he was sentenced to Azkaban or kissed. It was there fault he was there to begin with.
As far as she was concerned, aside from the subsequent death of James Potter and framing of auror Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew did nothing wrong. There was the technical of him being an illegal animagus and casting magic in front of muggles, but those were usually crimes that received a slap on the wrist.
He took up the banister with the rest of the purebloods to cleanse their world of filth. Again, she didn't like He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's way of going about it, but she agreed with him. All he did was kill 12 worthless muggles, indirectly kill a mudblood (who was now considered a hero, the thought always left a bad taste in her mouth), and hide out for a few years. Helping resurrect the dark lord was inconsequential to her. She personally voted for him to be placed in Azkaban.
With the waited knock finally arriving she grinned.
"Enter."
Harry Potter, The-Boy-Who-Lived, walked into the classroom and took note of the room's sudden change.
"Good evening, Professor Umbridge. What will I be doing for detention tonight?" he asked politely.
"Oh nothing too bad," she said in her high pitched voice, "Just writing lines."
Harry sat down at the desk that was obviously there for him and pulled out parchment. As he was going back for his quill he heard the witch clear her throat.
"Hem, hem."
"Yes, Professor Umbridge?" he asked, his face neutral.
"You won't be using your quill Mr. Potter, but instead one of mine," she said, holding out the seemingly innocent black quill.
With a quiet sigh Harry stood up and went to the fat witch's desk. She handed it to him delicately giving Harry the impression that she was trying to pretend to be a lady from a higher class. His face remained impassive. As soon as he touched the quill it felt different, dirty. The feather was soft and clean, sharp even, but somehow it felt… dirty.
"Thank you, Professor Umbridge," he said. He was trying his damnedest to follow her annoying expectations to prevent her from doling out any more punishment.
"Of course, dear," she replied with a disturbing smile.
Once seated he went back to look through his bag.
"Oh, no, no, no," Umbridge started, "You won't be needing any ink, Mr. Potter. My quill will take care of that."
"Yes, Professor Umbridge," he replied, sitting straight in his seat, "What will I be writing this evening?"
"You will be writing 'I will respect my betters'," her following grin was something that could only be classed as evil.
"How many times, Professor Umbridge?"
"Until it sinks in Mr. Potter," she purred in her high voice. It didn't come out as a purr though, but sounded more like she was choking on spit.
Harry was very suspicious at this point, but didn't let on to it. He wrote the first line of many and hissed at the surprising pain on his left hand.
Looking at it he saw the words he had written on paper on the back of his hand. The 'ink' was shiny and red, and clearly not ink. His hand healed just as fast as it was cut into.
"Is anything the matter, Mr. Potter?" she asked sweetly.
"Of course not, Professor Umbridge. My apologies," he said as smoothly as he could.
The messy haired wizard bit his tongue to prevent anymore noises escaping his mouth. Unfortunately after the 20th line he couldn't help but wince. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction however and kept writing.
Dolores was mildly put out that he wasn't putting on as much of a show as she'd be hoping for. She was satisfied however knowing that he was being forced into mutilating himself in a sanctioned manner. A forcible reminder that he was less. Then again she would ensure he didn't go telling anyone with a mild warning. She couldn't really cast any spells on him like that, they weren't her forte, blackmail however was. With a few words she would ensure that he wouldn't go to the Hospital Wing and that no staff member would see it.
After 5 hours she called to a halt. She didn't really know how long he would have to write until it stayed permanent, but she was guessing.
"Let me see your hand, Mr. Potter," she said.
Harry put down her quill and went up to the dark witch, holding out his hand for her to see. She grabbed his hand with her greedy pudgy fingers and inspected it carefully. Harry suppressed a shudder. Her touch was as ugly as the gaudy rings on her fingers.
Umbridge looked at the back of his hand carefully. It looked like it was carved in, as it was supposed to, still bleeding lightly, but she wanted more. She knew it would probably scar just as is, but she wanted to be sure that it would stay that way as a permanent reminded, not just one that would fade with time.
With a tut she let go of his hand, "I don't believe it's sunk in just yet. We'll simply have to try harder. I will see you same time tomorrow, Mr. Potter."
"Yes, Professor Umbridge," he said dispassionately.
He started to clear up his desk and returned to the Undersecretary's desk.
"Your quill, Professor Umbridge," he acknowledged, handing it to her.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter," she said with a false smile.
As he pulled his hand back she struck.
"Mr. Potter, I would like to remind you that this is a punishment. You are forbidden to go to the Hospital Wing to see it treated."
Harry quickly bit his cheek to curb his instinctual reaction and instead answered as he was expected, "Yes, Professor Umbridge."
"Oh! And a pass so you can get to your dormitory. We wouldn't want you to get into any more trouble, would we?" she grinned.
"No, Professor Umbridge. Thank you," he replied dutifully. With a slight nod of his head he walked back, rolled up the parchment, and took his leave.
He had a stop to make before going to bed.
While Harry was in detention Hermione and Severus were making the potions Poppy needed replenished for the Hospital Wing. While Luna was a regular visitor she didn't go to every session and that was fine with them.
Although she was nervous, Hermione knew she had to focus on the potions in front of her lest she ruin the potions or waste her master's time. The two worked comfortably waiting for Harry to finish his detention. As the hours went by Hermione's nerves were starting to fray and her hair started to spark.
Thankfully they had just decanted the last potion of the night. At least as far as Severus was concerned. They could brew more tomorrow. Right now his witch needed consoling. It didn't even cross his mind to send her to her tower until her brother showed up.
It was while Hermione was cleaning the lab that he noticed she was spacing out and nibbling on her bottom lip.
"Hermione," he called.
She continued to clean, clearly not hearing him.
"Hermione?" he tried again.
Still no response. If he hadn't been working with her for the past few hours he would have been more concerned than he currently was.
"Mia," he tried.
"Hm?" Hermione responded and looked up at him.
"I called you twice. What's on your mind?" he asked.
He was prickly by nature but he wanted this to work. His witch was distracted and clearly wound up. He knew he would be the one to guide her in most things, as that was the basis of an apprenticeship. As Minerva constantly told him, he needed to be a bit more approachable when dealing with witches.
Thankfully he had some experience soothing young witches. It wasn't a secret per se, but he was Head of Slytherin and he had to be there for all of his students. It wasn't unusual for first and second years to come seek him out when they were homesick. It wasn't unusual for some witches to come confide in him when they were surprised by their menarche, afraid they were dying. It was just something Slytherin House kept to itself.
"I'm worried about Harry," she said heavily, "Barely 5 minutes into his detention and he felt like he needed to take a shower. The feeling hasn't gone away. He's also…" she looked for a word, "disturbed, but…," she chewed on her bottom lip again, "I can feel him holding himself in check."
"He will be here after she's done with him," he reminded her gently.
He walked up to her, grabbed her gently, but firmly by the arms and pulled her into his chest.
"As much as it pains me, I know how much he means to you, and we will take care of the aftermath," his voice was just as firm.
He was sure he said the right thing as he felt her sag, tension leaving her body.
The petite witch turned herself around in his arms and looked up at him as though she were searching for something that could only be found in his face. She gently cupped his face, lifted herself up on the tips of her toes and placed a soft kiss on his chin as it was the closest she could reach.
Severus leaned down to give her more access to his face, giving her silent permission. She stood back up, wrapping her other hand on the back of his neck and kissed him solidly, pressing her lips against his. Severus returned in kind, wrapping his hands around her waist and hoisting her up onto his lab table, walking in between her legs and kissed her back.
Tension left both of them as they lost themselves temporarily in their own world that consisted only of each other. Once Hermione no longer felt the pressing need to mold herself into her dark wizard she kissed him softly once, twice, thrice, and pulled away, putting her forehead on his lips.
Severus placed a light kiss there, wrapping his arms around her.
"Potter may not be my favorite person in the world, but he's important to you. Umbridge is her own special kind of witch and we will take care of the aftermath together," he reaffirmed.
Hermione nodded relieved that she wouldn't be alone taking care of her brother this year.
They stayed like that for a long time, just enjoying each other's presence until there was a knock on Severus's office door.
"That must be your brother," he said filling in the space.
His apprentice nodded and slid off the lab bench. With one more kiss to her crown the dark wizard walked purposely to open the door. He glanced at the clock and was surprised to note it was after midnight.
Opening the door revealed one Harry James Potter holding his bag as though it held an important treasure.
"Mr. Potter, come in. We've been waiting for you," he said baldly.
Harry let himself in and looked for his sister before his heart rate lowered. Walking over to her he placed his head on her shoulder.
"That witch is sick in the head, Mia," he said.
"Professor, I brought the lines she had me write," Harry said, "They weren't just lines though. She had me use a weird quill. She said I wouldn't need any ink. The quill didn't use ink. It used blood," he rushed.
The dark wizard sucked in a breath and made his way over to the pair.
The messy haired wizard quickly placed his back on the lab table and pulled out the rolled parchment, opening it. Severus leaned over and looked at it concluding that it was written in blood.
"Mr. Potter, I have to ask… when you wrote with this quill did it look like it was cutting into the back of your opposite hand?" he asked carefully.
Harry nodded and lifted up his hand, pulling up his cloak's sleeve. There to see was an agitated hand with pink letters on the back of them spelling out 'I will respect my betters'.
"A blood quill," Severus growled glaring at Harry's hand.
"We won't let her get away with this Mr. Potter. I swear."
Severus looked into Harry's eyes as he said this firmly impressing on Harry that they would do something about it. For once when Harry looked at his potions professor he was glad that he knew the man.