I'm still working on figuring out how the formatting works here, so I do apologise if it doesn't look as nice as it should. I should also mention that this is a slow-burn tumultuous romance and while I wholeheartedly ship Snape/Hermione, but I don't believe for once Hermione would ignore her feelings for Ron. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 2. Jobberknoll feathers

Hermione's first instinct was to quickly back out of the Apothecary, but as the door had already closed behind her with a soft thud, she found herself stuck in a situation she hadn't anticipated. Running into a group of Death Eaters would've been less of a surprise than facing Snape in Diagon Alley, and she wasn't entirely sure which she considered more frightening. Thankfully, Snape, who was quietly conversing with the shopkeeper, hadn't noticed Hermione. She considered turning around and returning later, but she also knew it would've been too obvious if Snape decided to investigate the movement in the store. And as a proud Gryffindor with a slight tendency (Hermione kept telling herself that) for defiance, she would not give Snape the satisfaction of knowing she was avoiding him. And it was not like he could reduce house points for visiting an apothecary.

So Hermione quickly shuffled towards a shelf close to Snape, hoping she could avoid detection by remaining on Snape's blind side should he turn to leave. She kept a low profile and tried to casually blend into the background by inspecting the display on the walls. Standing in front of a nasty-looking jar with its label saying "caterpillar slices," Hermione side-eyed Snape and noticed that despite it being a moderately warm August day, he was still meticulously dressed in black robes. His infamous black cloak, which made him resemble an overgrown bat (Ron's words, not hers), fell from his broad shoulders onto the dirty floorboards. Snape looked as intimidating as ever, even with his back turned to her, and Hermione couldn't help but feel uneasy in his presence.

As Snape seemed completely oblivious to what was going on around him, Hermione's curiosity got the better of her, and she tried to focus on what he was saying, hoping to find out why the man, who clearly preferred solitude, bothered visiting Diagon Alley. Snape kept his baritone voice low but spoke with such articulacy and intent, Hermione could hear every word he said.

"Jobberknoll feathers," said Snape to the shopkeeper, who seemed uncomfortable and replied almost pleadingly, "I'm telling you, we're out."

The younger man glanced around in the shop anxiously and lowered his voice even more. "Ever since …You Know Who returned…" He paused, unable to finish his sentence, and then made a poor attempt at sounding more confident than he was. "I'm afraid you'll have to go elsewhere. Have you tried the Spiny Serpent on Knockturn Alley?"

"I have," replied Snape curtly, irritation clear in his voice. "Do you think this"— he made a small gesture with his hand towards the store—"is my first choice for shopping?"

"I can't help you," said the shopkeeper, shaking his head nervously, and Hermione realised the man was not uncomfortable but scared.

"Mr. Bilbrough, I'm afraid you're not following," said Snape silkily, his voice suggesting a hidden stiletto blade, and for a brief second, Hermione thought she saw Snape making a strange movement towards his arm. The shopkeeper's eyes widened, and Hermione realised she had been holding her breath when suddenly something very sharp landed in her ribs, making her yelp and forcing air to escape her lungs. She had been so focused on the two men, she hadn't noticed an old witch trying to get to the jars in front of Hermione. At least not until the woman had angrily snapped, elbowing Hermione out of her path. "Are you a dimwit? Get out of the way!"

This was more than enough to stop Snape from doing whatever he had next planned to do as he turned around swiftly towards the noises. In that short, dreadful moment, Hermione thought his sharp movements resembled a quilliotine blade cutting through the air before chopping someone's head off. Snape's black eyes landed on Hermione, who was having a hard time staying on her feet since the blow she had received from the old witch was stronger than one would've expected from such a tiny woman. It took Snape a short moment to analyse the scene before him, and when he seemed to realise the young, blundering witch before him was Hermione, his eyes narrowed. Hermione's heart dropped somewhere irretrievably as she met the icy gaze of the menacing man.

Knowing she had been discovered, Hermione figured she could pretend to be surprised and managed to produce a weak "Oh, good morning, Professor," along with an apologetic smile that looked like she was suffering from constipation. Truthfully, Hermione would've preferred the Cruciatus curse to the cold stare of the Potions' Master, and she couldn't shake the feeling he was using Legilimency on her. Hermione herself struggled to understand if Snape was surprised or suspicious by her appearance, but one thing was certain: he was just as disgruntled as she was terrified.

Snape didn't reply but slowly, almost theatrically, approached Hermione until he was staring down at her. Hermione, like Ron, had grown over the summer but was nowhere near Snape's eyeline, so she stared up at him, wishing she could melt away and escape his scolding presence via the cracks in the dirty floorboards beneath her feet.

After what felt like an eternity, Snape spoke, his voice low and dripping with sarcasm.
"Miss Granger, I see you've been busy over your summer holidays... perfecting your hand-to-hand combat skills."

Hermione blinked in confusion, as she couldn't understand what Snape was implying. Not until she realised his stare was fixated on her left eye and her face burned with embarrassment. She had completely forgotten she had been smacked by a punching telescope Fred and George had invented as a joke product for Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Mrs. Weasley had had little luck with healing the ugly bruise below her eye, so she was stuck with it until it healed in its own time. Before she could think of anything clever to say, Snape continued mocking her, clearly enjoying Hermione's discomfort.

"Nine Outstandings in your O.W.L. exams. Impressive, I suppose…" - Hermione knew there was no way he would finish this with a positive note - "…for someone who only managed an E in Defence Against the Dark Arts." All Hermione could do was bite her tongue and pretend the words didn't have an impact.

"Tell me, did your extensive reading not cover the practical aspects of Defence Against the Dark Arts, or did you think you could simply swing your fists and fight your way through the exams?"

Hermione couldn't remember if Snape had ever engaged himself in such a long conversation with her and wondered if it was his tactic to distract her from whatever had been going on between him and Mr. Bilbrough. The latter had escaped into the back rooms of the apothecary, Hermione noted, wishing she could follow his lead.

But instead she found her voice and replied rather confidently, "Well, you would know all about the Dark Arts, sir," and nearly clasped her hands over her mouth, realising it sounded more arrogant than she had intended.

"Given your expertise in teaching how to defend against them," she then quickly added, hoping the reference to their third-year Defence Against the Dark Arts classes would make her words sound less insulting. Not that she cared for his feelings, but she had no wish to aggravate him more than she already had, given that she would have to attend Potions for another two years.

However, flattery didn't work, as Snape's nostrils flared and his face transformed with resentment. He leaned towards Hermione and spoke slowly, each word so venomous he reminded her of a spitting snake.

"If you are quite done eavesdropping, I suggest you find something more productive to do with your time. Perhaps there's a book you haven't read, yet." With that, he straightened himself and looked down at Hermione for another brief moment before he strode past her towards the exit. He opened the door a little too forcefully, stepped outside, and disappeared from sight, his cloak billowing behind him.

oooOOOooo

Hermione found Harry and Ron at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, but only after she was scolded by panicking Mrs. Weasley when Hagrid had returned carrying a bag of kittles but with no sign of Hermione. And by Hagrid's defeated looks, Mrs. Weasley had probably given him a lengthy lecture on abandoning his duties to discuss steelers.

"Don't worry," said Ron, as they had found a more secluded corner in the shop to talk. "Last week, she was angry with me because she had forgotten she had sent me to de-gnome the garden. She was ready to report me missing." Ron rubbed the back of his neck, and even though he was trying to be funny, he appeared apologetic. Hermione knew what Ron meant. She had witnessed Mrs. Weasley become increasingly edgy over the summer and couldn't blame her. With all the reports of missing people and impending danger, any mother would lose it.

"It's fine, Ron," she replied emphatically.

"So?" Harry looked at her quizzically. "Where were you?"

Hermione told them how she had run into Snape at the Apothecary and both of the boys seemed surprised. Harry was more suspicious than Ron.

"Snape?" He asked, "What is he doing in Diagon Alley, shopping for shampoo at Madam Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions?"

Ron snorted, and Hermione resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the boys but understood perfectly well what Harry was implying. Snape didn't seem to be the kind of person who would trouble himself with casually strolling Diagon Ally. Not unless he had ulterior motives.

"So you think he was up to something?" asked Ron.

"Isn't he always?" Said Harry, his voice bitter.

"Well, I did overhear him asking about Joberknoll feathers," said Hermione and paused, unsure if she should share her suspicions with Harry, who was very distrustful towards Snape to begin with. "He seemed very intent on getting his hands on them." Harry and Ron both stared at her, completely lost.

"Oh, don't you two ever read? Joberknoll feathers are essential ingredients in Veritaserum and a wide variety of memory potions. It appears they're hard to come by after Voldemort returned. Professor Snape seemed pretty desperate."

"How very convenient. As soon as Voldemort returns, Snape wants to brew a potion that makes people spill their most guarded secrets. It can't be a coincidence." Apparently, Harry had already decided Snape was brewing Veritaserum for Voldemort.

Hermione regretted saying anything at all and made a mental note not to nourish Harry's hate towards Snape any further "Harry, we can't know for sure if he's using the feathers for those potions specifically. I'm sure they have other uses as well. And he teaches Potions so it's possible he was trying to fill the reserves at Hogwarts."

"Yeah, but why not just send an owl? What I mean is that Snape doesn't seem like the type to spend his time shopping" Harry was becoming more irritated, and Ron stepped in to support Hermione.

"Perhaps he had other errands to run, mate? Perhaps he needed new pyjamas?" Ron snickered at his own joke, and Hermione looked at him appreciatively but also a bit amusedly. They were so used to seeing Snape in his black robes that they had never thought of him wearing anything else—not even to bed.

But Harry was relentless. "Think about it. Veritaserum is a Ministry-regulated potion, right?" He looked at Hermione to look for confirmation, and she nodded reluctantly. "So it can only be brewed and sold with the Ministry's permission, correct? And considering everything going on right now, it's likely the Ministry is keeping an eye on owl mail, which is why Snape can't risk placing orders for ingredients that might suggest he's up to something. It would look suspicious if his mail got caught. But why would he worry if he's operating under the Ministry's jurisdiction?" Harry seemed triumphant "Ergo, he isn't!"

Hermione looked at Ron, who looked as sceptical as she did. "Harry, it's a long shot, and it doesn't explain why he would risk showing up in person."

Harry also had an answer for that. "Because he's a Death Eater. Always has been." He looked at his friends, and Hermione saw that he really wanted it to be true. "You walked Diagon Alley with me. You saw what Voldemort and his minions do to people who get on their wrong side."

Hermione couldn't deny that Mr. Bilbrough had been downright terrified of Snape, but who wasn't? And she wanted to believe that Dumbledore knew what he was doing when he placed his trust in Snape. Hermione tried to remain as neutral as possible as she voiced her concerns.

"Harry, I know you don't trust Professor Snape, and I know you want him to be the bad guy, especially after Sirius' —" she stopped, noticing how Harry tensed up at the mention of his godfather. "Dumbledore trusts Snape, and we can't overlook that he has helped us more than once since we started school." She lowered her voice into a whisper. "Don't you think that if he really worked for Voldemort, we'd all be dead already?"

Ron nodded solemnly, but Harry's expression still spoke of disagreement. But since he didn't say anything, Hermione took this as a win and added, "That doesn't change the fact he's a greasy git, though. And in desperate need of a good head scrub."

The three of them burst into laughter, earning condescending looks from the people around them.

"Who are you, and what have you done with Hermione Granger?" Ron said when their laughter had finally subsided. Hermione blushed and was thankful when Fred came to bring her some of their bruise removal paste she could apply under her eye. She wished they had had something against her growing feelings for Ron too.

Working towards the actual storyline!