Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction ❯ Six Gifts ❯ Six Gifts ( Chapter 1 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: IncaShine 
Valentine's Day at Hogwarts approaches, Hermione is miserable. And who on earth is sending these damn gifts?
Non Anime: Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Psychological | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.04.2008 | Pages: 4 | Words: 5.6K | Visits: 212 | Status: Work In Progress
Valentine's Day at Hogwarts approaches, Hermione is miserable. And who on earth is sending these damn gifts?
Non Anime: Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Psychological | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.04.2008 | Pages: 4 | Words: 5.6K | Visits: 212 | Status: Work In Progress
A/N: Written in response to the Granger Enchanted Valentine's Challenge. Of course, as usual, I was a little late.
Enjoy, and let me know what you think!
-IncaShine
------
February at Hogwarts was always magical, more magical than any other month one could say. It was the only time of year that decorations that looked like Gildory Lockhart had created himself covered every corner of the school, the cuisine in the Great Hall more festive, and when Dobby decided to dress in only a diaper and his mismatched socks with the claim that he was a cupid elf. It was the only time of year that Hermione Granger hated with a passion. Everyone around her walked around like they had blinders on, only concerned about whether or not they were going to have a date to the annual St. Valentine's Day Ball. Of course she never did since Harry and Ron didn't see her as a girl, only as a walking book. Not saying that Ron didn't try, oh no. He just happened to choose the totally wrong time. An hour of missed study time, a few sloppy kisses, and a lot of fumbling gropes later he had ruined his pants and left her wholly unsatisfied. To top it off she got a 'B' on the charms test that she was supposed to be studying for when he decided to 'seduce' her.
Ron never touched her again after she blew up on him, waving the parchment with a 'B' on it in his face. Needless to say he no longer approached her if she had a book in front of her.
Her misery began on February first. Hermione thanked her lucky stars that she was in her seventh year and wouldn't have to put up with such foolishness again. Decorations were up overnight it seemed. There were little floating hearts in the hallways and pink streamers up the banisters. If you were lucky you could catch a glimpse at a few little 'Cupids' that had been darting all over the school, anxiously awaiting Valentine's Day so they could deliver warm love and cheer to all.
Even though she would never admit to doing it, she would blast a few of the hearts down if the hallway was empty. Stupid Valentines day and stupid boys. It was all stupid.
On the day of the ninth strange things began to happen.
Hermione's day started as usual at 6AM. She had just pulled the curtains around her bed when she noticed a little pink package on her night table. It was rather small, she noted. It didn't look like the box would have very much in it; but she had to remind herself that she was at Hogwarts and looks could be very deceiving. The package itself didn't look very threatening, with it's sparkling pink wrapping and frilly bow on the top, but Hermione was still was anxious. As Moody used to pound into their heads, constant vigilance.
"Oh, not again," she mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She hadn't received any 'love gifts' since her 'relationship' with Viktor, and even then everything he gave her was rather odd. How many men would give you an action figure of himself and think it was the greatest gift in the world? Having a little Viktor wasn't all that bad since he would pretend to listen when she was angry and needed to talk, but he was permanently banned to her trunk the moment she caught him checking her out as she undressed.
Cautiously Hermione reached for the small parcel. It was moderately light weight and rattled a bit as she shifted it. She gave it a nice shake for good measure. So far it hadn't exploded, and it didn't sound like it was alive. That was a good sign.
She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but she actually thought the bow on top was rather pretty, so much so that she almost felt bad about untying it to get to the contents. With a shaking hand she pulled at the bow. The bow began to come undone almost on it's own in slow motion, falling open neatly. She set it aside and pulled the top off the box.
She put her hand to her mouth and giggled. "Who on earth would send me this?"
Inside the box sat a tiny box of Sweet Hearts, the Muggle sweet of the season. They tasted like chalk, had the dumbest 'romantic' sayings on them, and were the most hideous pastel colors. If they weren't sold as a supposed food, she would have written them off as inedible.
Underneath the sweets was a small piece of parchment. Hermione pulled it out and read it. "Love is a friendship set to music. - E. Joseph Cossman"
Hermione couldn't help the small grin that came to her face. Who would send her something like this? Especially with Muggle sweets?
In her mind she made a quick catalog of the Muggle-borns that resided in Gryffindor. It wasn't much, but it was a start. Plus the few pure blood wizards that had knowledge of the Muggle world. That made her list a bit longer, but not enough to make much of a difference.
As Hermione sat through breakfast, she tried to think of who would send her Muggle sweets and a Muggle quote, both revolving around love. Things like this just did not happen to her! It was strange, it was unusual, and she was determined to get to the bottom of this before it got out of hand.
-----
On the day of the tenth, there was another parcel on her bedside, this time a bit bigger than the first. "Not more sweets," she moaned. Being the daughter of two dentists, she immediately gave the boys the box of candy hearts. Harry had seen them before and refused to eat the chalky things, but Ron thought they were the greatest invention of all time.
"Not as amazing compared to Wizarding sweets, but great Muggle invention!" he beamed, followed by him picking out the sugariest sayings and giving them to Lavender in small intervals throughout the day. Of course she squealed each time and planted a sloppy kiss on Ron's cheek. Seeing him turn as red as his hair made it worth handing over her gift.
Today's package was purple, and a shocking shade at that. It wasn't a royal purple like she preferred unfortunately. The best way to describe the color was neon. Topping it off was an equally as shocking bow, accented with glitter bits that seemed to be woven right into the fabric.
Today she didn't care about pretty. Like a kid on Christmas she ripped the paper off of the box and flung off the top. Inside sat another small box, which she opened without hesitation.
"A candy necklace!" she giggled. As a child her parents would buy her the sugar free candy jewelry sets, and in her six year old mind she was the height of fashion while she wore them. Gleefully she pulled the candy necklace out of the plastic and put it on. She felt like a kid again, and it made her feel damn good.
She was about to throw out the box when another small piece of parchment caught her eye. If I know what love is, it is because of you.
The girly girl in her melted into a puddle, but the rational part of her mind was still trying to figure out who on earth would send her such gifts? So far her findings were minimal, though she managed to cross off the older Muggle-born Gryffindors off of her list. Most of them were already seeing someone, or they were gay and seeing someone.
That left the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaw, since it was a known fact that there were never any half bloods or Muggle-borns in Slytherin. Quickly she reformulated her list and dressed to start her day.
-----
"Even though it is the time of year that everyone thinks they should have a mate, I do assure you that we will not be brewing any love potions."
Hermione watched as Professor Snape walked up and down the isles of the classroom, lecturing those seventh years that were qualified enough to take advanced potions.
He stopped as he reached the head of the classroom. "To be perfectly honest, we should be making contraceptives," he said harshly, eyeing the Slytherin corner of the room where Pansy Parkinson sat with Draco Malfoy. "In honor of the season, you will be brewing Hate Potion." He calmly sat down. "I have a feeling that it will be in high demand later in the month." Snape looked up at the class. "Begin."
Hermione wrinkled her nose. Typical Snape, making them brew a Hate Potion around Valentine's Day. That was fine with her though; a potion that breeds hatred for a season she hated most. Immediately she read the instructions that appeared on the board the moment Snape said begin and got to work.
The potion was a dreadfully easy one and Hermione finished a bit earlier than the other students. Of course Snape took notice when she placed the bottled potion on his desk and dismissed her to her seat with a simple nod. She had turned to return to her desk but Professor Snape stopped her.
"Miss Granger," he said quietly.
Hermione turned to face him. "Yes, Professor?"
"What is that you are wearing around your neck?" He craned forward a bit to examine the jewelry.
"It's a candy necklace, sir," she replied, sincerely hoping that he wouldn't take it from her.
Snape nodded. "I will tolerate your sugar quills," he said in the same low tone, "don't think I haven't noticed them. But you will remove that necklace. It's a distraction."
She frowned, clearly not understanding how it was a distraction. Instead of voicing her opinion now she would wait until that evening when she returned to assist him brew potions for Madam Pomfrey. "Yes, sir." She turned and returned to her desk, then took the necklace off and put it in her bag.
When she sat down again she pulled out her notebook and began listing all of the Muggle-borns and half-bloods she could think of, at least the ones that would possibly send her any sort of Valentine sweets.
Justin Finch-Fletchley was a candidate, since they did work closely when they were both involved in the D.A., though she doubted that he would be sending her any sweets. He was a nice boy, yes, but he had actively been pursuing a sixth year Ravenclaw with a nice smile and a killer sense of humor.
Terry Boot was also another option. He did seem to be sweet on her. She held a ray of hope that it wasn't. He was a fine person but he had a knack of getting under her skin.
Hermione sucked on the end of her sugar quill thoughtfully, shooting a glare at Professor Snape every once in a while as she gave the quill a nice long lick. She smirked at him when he raised his eyebrow at her. Over the last six months they had developed a working relationship that quickly moved from teacher/student to banter and bicker. Of course that was countered just as well with intelligent conversation that flowed just as easily as their bickering.
She glanced at her watch. The bell would sound in less than one minute. Quickly she put her notebook and quill back into her bag and pulled the necklace back out. The moment she was out of the door it would be right back around her neck Snape be damned.
The rest of Hermione's day passed quickly enough. She wasn't fond of the new Transfiguration teacher, but she didn't think anyone could fill the shoes of her mentor and head of house. Professor McGonagall had helped her out more than anyone would know. Few of the students knew this, but Hermione wasn't able to find her parents after the final battle. About six months before the battle she had discussed the possibilities with them. With the Death Eaters becoming more and more bold they came to the conclusion that they would give the appearance of going on a nice tropical summer holiday, when in all actualities they would be going to the city of Perth, Australia, where they would be staying for the duration of the war. The Order explained to them that all of their memories of Hermione and magic would be completely erased and they would be simple Muggle dentists that had no children. After a tearful goodbye Hermione saw off her parents at the airport. When the war finally concluded some members of The Order traveled to the address that they had for the Grangers, and they were nowhere to be found. She had expected them to stay in one place in Australia, not pick up and move a month after she left them there. The Order stepped in and tried their best to find the missing Grangers but it seemed that they had disappeared without a trace.
In the months since her parents had disappeared, Professor McGonagall had stepped in as a surrogate mother. It was something that Hermione was extremely grateful for. So far she had come to her more than once for advice, especially where boys were concerned. Of course, being a single woman well into her later years, she had told Hermione that boys were nothing but trouble and that she should concentrate on her studies. After the Ron experience she decided that following that advice would be for the best. Somehow Professor McGonagall had convinced Professor Snape to take her as an assistant, which brought her to the present.
Just like every night, at seven thirty on the dot Hermione walked into the potions classroom and headed toward Professor Snape's office, where she immediately tossed aside her cloak and robes on a chair like she owned the place. She then quickly tied her hair back, which she decided she had to do after a rather nasty incident during their first brewing session, and headed into his personal lab.
"Good evening, professor," she called to him as she walked through the door.
Snape, who was knee deep in notes, nodded at her in greeting. He wasn't wearing his robes this evening, just a dress shirt, slacks, and his normal boots that Hermione swore up and down he had modified so they would amplify his footsteps as he patrolled the halls, all in the name of intimidation.
When he didn't vocally respond Hermione walked up to him and peered down at his notes. "I thought we were brewing more medicinal potions for Madam Pomfrey, not trying to find a cure for acne, sir."
He scowled at her. "Poppy has requested this potion. I don't feel it falls into the medicinal category by any means, but if it will keep the woman off of my back..." He trailed off as something on the page caught his eye.
"Humph." Hermione wrinkled her nose at him. "If you are going to waste time just because you want to get the sweetest woman in the castle off of your back, that's fine with me. I, for one, will be working." With that she whipped around and went into the ingredients closet.
She was rather surprised that he hadn't responded like he usually would have. Her snarky potions professor had been kidnapped and replaced by this more mellow version, and she was determined to figure out what his problem was.
Hermione emerged from the closet with her arms full of bottles and baggies filled with the items that were needed for this evening's session. Instead of beating around the bush she dove in head first, which he reminded her on a nightly basis was a Gryffindor trait through and through.
"You know, I would figure it would be Professor Trelawny that you would want to get off your back," she commented as she fished the ginger root out of the pile. "You would think that after the Christmas party that she would have given up by now."
Snape rose an eyebrow. "Is that really what you think?"
Hermione laughed. "After you not so politely told her to jog off, I would have gotten the picture pretty quick."
He finally looked up at her. "She finally got the picture after I told her I had another witch in mind."
She wasn't quite sure why, but the comment stung. He was her professor, not some possible romantic interest. Plus, she had a secret admirer. What would a grown man want with her anyway? All future snarky comments were out the window, leaving her with nothing more than a dumb sounding 'oh'.
The idea that he had another witch in mind seemed to kill all conversation for the evening. Before either one knew it, it was close to midnight. She heard her stomach growl and tried to make some sort of noise to cover up the sound coming from the irritated organ.
Apparently it wasn't enough. She felt him behind her, almost brushing up against her, as he peeked down over her shoulder and into the cauldron that she was working with. It sent a heat through her like wildfire, and for a moment she tossed around the idea of leaning back into his chest and inhaling his scent of patchouli and other mysterious scents that were just pure Severus Snape. "That will be enough for tonight," he said. "You are hungry."
Hermione shook her head. "No, I want to finish." She continued stirring the potion. "And, for your information, I'm not hungry."
Snape shook his head as he moved to the other side of the table. "Tell me another one," he said, with a light chuckle. "After the last six months, I know your body fairly well. Normally it's about eleven that your stomach begins to growl."
"If I eat, will you let me finish the potion?" she asked. Something was definitely off. He laughed, and he was trying to care for her.
He cast a quick stasis spell on the cauldron and took her by the arm. "Yes, if you eat I will let you finish." He pulled her out of his lab and into his personal quarters, sitting her at a modest dining table. To add insult to injury he added sneered at her and added, "We can't have you falling into the cauldron and ruining the batch because you are too stubborn to eat."
For what seemed to be the millionth time that day Hermione wrinkled her nose at him as he walked away. Before she had time to ponder what was wrong with him Snape reemerged with a tray of sandwiches and tea.
"It's not much, but enough to keep you satisfied until breakfast." He sat across from her and started to serve her a cup of tea and a ham sandwich.
"So, tell me about that special witch," she said offhandedly, as if she was talking about the weather.
Snape's usual scowl returned. "I don't think that is any of your business, Miss Granger."
Instead of leaving the subject alone she continued, just to get under his skin. "Knowing you she's nothing special." She took a sip of her tea.
He slammed his hand down on the table. "I assure you she's special," he shouted. "Not that it is any of your business!"
Hermione gave him her 'I'm going to find out' stare and dropped the subject. "Why did you ask me to remove my necklace earlier?" In the back of her mind, Hermione knew she was beginning to irritate him. She found that when he was irritated he would actually give her more straight answers instead of dancing around the truth.
"As I told you in the classroom, it was a distraction."
After months of working together he had dropped his emotional walls, but Hermione could feel him putting them right back up once more. She finished her sandwich and tea, then returned to the lab to finish her work for the evening.
-----
Hermione opened her eyes and grumbled after her alarm went off. She didn't finish brewing until almost two in the morning, followed by Snape giving her an ear full about not finishing promptly, which she immediately countered that she would have finished if he wouldn't have forced her to eat. He had walked her back to her dorm in silence, walking in front of her with his robes billowing.
When they finally made it to the portrait he had attempted to offer her something in form of a goodnight but she ignored him completely and slammed the portrait in his face. She was tired, she was pissed, and she still had that nagging feeling about his 'special woman'. There was no reason for her to feel so crushed, but for some awful reason it tore at her and made her chest feel like it was being crushed in an enormous vice.
She pulled back the curtains that hung around the bed and winced as the early morning sun hit her full force. Just as she expected, there was another package next to her clock on her bedside table.
Today's was a hideous yellow color that glittered. It was wrapped in a matching yellow bow that was equally as hideous in color. The two previous looked like the sender had taken precious time to construct the frilly things, while this one looked like it was done in five seconds flat and sent away. The box itself was quite large compared to the other two she had received.
This time she took no time to admire anything about the gift and pulled the lid off of the box. Instead of any sweets there was a single china tea cup with a strange dried flower inside. Slipped in beside the cup were two small pieces of parchment that looked like someone had hastily ripped them off of a larger piece.
Hermione read the first one.
In this cup is something to help you sleep. I assure you it is not harmful. Pour boiling water over the flower and let it steep for a fragrant and relaxing tea.
After last night's fitful sleep, Hermione was grateful that her admirer would think of her sleeping habits.
She sat the first piece of parchment in the box next to the cup and read the second.
"When love is your greatest weakness, you will be the strongest person in the world."
Hermione sighed. If only that were true in her case. She had seen it happen; after all, Voldemort was defeated by love, and Harry was alive because of the love of his mother. She slipped the quote back in with the cup and other parchment and replaced the lid on the box. In the back of her mind she hoped that her night with Snape wouldn't be as turbulent as the night before. In just a matter of hours she had gone from craving his company and intelligent conversation to mildly loathing the man.
The only way to find out was to get the day over with.
-----
All Hermione wanted was one normal school day, but it seemed that the whole of Hogwarts was set on having one big love-fest. In Advanced Transfiguration Professor McGonagall's replacement had decided that they would be making decorations for the upcoming ball. To add insult to injury the woman had decided to use Hermione to demonstrate, since she was the only one in the class that had the skills advanced enough to do all of the transfigurations on the first try. Hermione didn't see what was so bloody difficult about transfiguring colored paper into lengths of paper chain. She remembered making them faster by hand as a child in primary school than some of the dunderheads in the class were doing it with their wands.
Her mood became even darker when Professor Flitwick also decided that they would be doing charms that were seasonally appropriate.
"Love is the reason for the season!" he announced brightly.
Hermione thought about asking what in Merlin's name did ancient girls getting slapped to fertility with bloody pieces of sacrificial goat skin have anything to do with love, but she bit her tongue and did what was required of her. Her grade still hurt because of that one test she failed to pass one hundred percent, and if charming hearts that would float and throw confetti every thirty seconds made the little man happy she would make an entire room of them. When the room started filling with hearts of all shapes and colors, Hermione threw a random bat that tossed small skull shaped confetti into the mix just to make herself feel better. Flitwick never suspected his prize student for a moment and immediately pointed the finger at Slytherin, which pleased her greatly.
Thankfully Firenze had something different in mind for them. Hermione hated Divination with all of her being, but having Firenze as a teacher made it bearable. He was always mysteriously soft spoken, and never made a class more exciting by scaring the students by tales of their demise.
Instead of gushing about love as the other professors seemed to do, the Centaur kept his normal schedule. For two hours they sat in a lovely recreation of the Forbidden Forest staring at the stars. Of course there were those few girls in the class that thought it was all dreadfully romantic, sitting under the stars with such a handsome creature. Lavender asked her what she thought about it, and it took everything she had not to just scream at her.
Instead she tightly smiled. "I am not into inter-species erotica, thank you very much."
After the bell rang she stood and collected her things, intending on following the rest of her classmates to the Great Hall for dinner. A cool hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned around and faced the chilly blue eyes of her professor.
"Yes, Professor?" she asked. 'Please don't tell me he heard what I told Lavender,' she thought fiercely.
She was pleasantly surprised when he didn't scold her. "Your dark mood will be lifting soon, child," he said, in his normal soft raspy voice.
"Thank you, Professor," Hermione replied, smiling kindly. "After this holiday passes I will be right as rain." She had almost made it out of the classroom when he called for her.
"Miss Granger," he said, his voice just as quiet as it was when he stood next to her.
Hermione turned to face him.
"Do not worry, I am not, as you say, into inter-species erotica either." He winked at her before going off into his own little world once more.
-----
That evening Hermione waltzed into Snape's personal lab feeling better than she had since the whole Valentine's Day fiasco had begun. "Evening, Professor," she called out to him, even though he was nowhere in sight.
Snape emerged from behind a bookcase in just his shirt and trousers. "Good evening, Miss Granger."
She took in his state of moderate undress. At least undressed for him. His coat and vest were missing, as were his boots. The pale feet that stuck out of the end of his trousers seemed to glow in the firelight, and Hermione had to stifle a giggle.
"If you are finished gawking, I have something a little different planned for this evening." That said he opened the bookcase wide enough for her to enter his private rooms.
"Please don't tell me it's something romantic," she said, sounding mildly exasperated. The vice that had a grip on her chest seemed to loosen a bit when he chuckled warmly.
"I do assure you it is not harmful, nor does it have anything to do with romance," he told her. "It has more to do with food."
Hermione stopped and looked at him like he had grown a second head. "Food?"
He nodded and offered her a small smile. "Yes, food. Have you not noticed that the fine art of brewing potions is much like the art of preparing and cooking food?"
"But what does cooking have to do with brewing potions?" she asked, skittering behind him as he walked into the small apartment kitchen.
Snape stopped abruptly and she ran into him. "Actually, nothing at all." He ran his hands through his greasy hair. "Can you not enjoy a break at least once in your life?"
Hermione's eye's widened. 'Uh oh. He's in rant mode.'
Snape started to pace back and forth across the tiny kitchen. "Day after day you come here and we brew until midnight, sometimes later. You come in on the bloody weekends too! Do you ever just rest? You are losing weight, you have constant bags under your eyes, which aren't attractive on a young witch by the way, and you are beginning to snap at people who look at you wrong!" By the time he was finished with his little tirade his hair was mussed from running his hands through it, his cheeks an abnormal shade of red (at least abnormal for him), and his black eyes had a wild look in them. "Don't think I haven't noticed, Granger."
She narrowed her eyes. "What else do you expect me to do with my life? I haven't got parents, I haven't got many friends, and the ones that I have are wrapped up with girls and Quidditch, and the only time I'm at peace is when I am making myself useful! But what would you know about that?"
He stepped closer to her, close enough to feel the heat that radiated off of her angry body. "My parents were horrible people, I have no use for friends, women have never given me a second glance, and I wasted twenty years of my life for two basket cases that fancied themselves God! If you don't learn to stop for even just a few minutes you are going to kill yourself."
Hermione held herself higher and moved in closer so she was almost nose to chest with him. "I wouldn't look twice at you either! You don't pay any mind to your personal hygiene, you always have some smart ass comment to say regardless of the situation, and you swoop around the castle like an over grown bat! Did you charm your cloak to billow behind you?"
"Stooping to petty insults!" he yelled. "Your hair is such a mess it looks like a rats nest no matter what you do to it, I'm surprised your nose isn't completely flattened into your face from the hours you keep it in books, and I still see no difference in your teeth!"
She wasn't quite sure how it happened but the next thing she knew she was pressed against the small dining table, her professor kissing her with so much passion she felt it was going to consume them both. The vice on her chest had completely released and she kissed him back, threading her hands through his hair in case he had a sudden change of heart and tried to pull away from her. When he ran his tongue over her bottom lip all rational thought was lost. The only thing that existed in the world was him and his wonderful lips, and his hands that ran down her back and gripped her waist. At that moment, she was his.
Finally he pulled away from her, panting for breath. "I think that you should return to your dorms now, Miss Granger."
Hermione looked at him, mildly confused. "I think you are right, professor." She dashed out of the apartment, almost blinded by the tears in her eyes that were beginning to run down her cheeks.
Enjoy, and let me know what you think!
-IncaShine
------
February at Hogwarts was always magical, more magical than any other month one could say. It was the only time of year that decorations that looked like Gildory Lockhart had created himself covered every corner of the school, the cuisine in the Great Hall more festive, and when Dobby decided to dress in only a diaper and his mismatched socks with the claim that he was a cupid elf. It was the only time of year that Hermione Granger hated with a passion. Everyone around her walked around like they had blinders on, only concerned about whether or not they were going to have a date to the annual St. Valentine's Day Ball. Of course she never did since Harry and Ron didn't see her as a girl, only as a walking book. Not saying that Ron didn't try, oh no. He just happened to choose the totally wrong time. An hour of missed study time, a few sloppy kisses, and a lot of fumbling gropes later he had ruined his pants and left her wholly unsatisfied. To top it off she got a 'B' on the charms test that she was supposed to be studying for when he decided to 'seduce' her.
Ron never touched her again after she blew up on him, waving the parchment with a 'B' on it in his face. Needless to say he no longer approached her if she had a book in front of her.
Her misery began on February first. Hermione thanked her lucky stars that she was in her seventh year and wouldn't have to put up with such foolishness again. Decorations were up overnight it seemed. There were little floating hearts in the hallways and pink streamers up the banisters. If you were lucky you could catch a glimpse at a few little 'Cupids' that had been darting all over the school, anxiously awaiting Valentine's Day so they could deliver warm love and cheer to all.
Even though she would never admit to doing it, she would blast a few of the hearts down if the hallway was empty. Stupid Valentines day and stupid boys. It was all stupid.
On the day of the ninth strange things began to happen.
Hermione's day started as usual at 6AM. She had just pulled the curtains around her bed when she noticed a little pink package on her night table. It was rather small, she noted. It didn't look like the box would have very much in it; but she had to remind herself that she was at Hogwarts and looks could be very deceiving. The package itself didn't look very threatening, with it's sparkling pink wrapping and frilly bow on the top, but Hermione was still was anxious. As Moody used to pound into their heads, constant vigilance.
"Oh, not again," she mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She hadn't received any 'love gifts' since her 'relationship' with Viktor, and even then everything he gave her was rather odd. How many men would give you an action figure of himself and think it was the greatest gift in the world? Having a little Viktor wasn't all that bad since he would pretend to listen when she was angry and needed to talk, but he was permanently banned to her trunk the moment she caught him checking her out as she undressed.
Cautiously Hermione reached for the small parcel. It was moderately light weight and rattled a bit as she shifted it. She gave it a nice shake for good measure. So far it hadn't exploded, and it didn't sound like it was alive. That was a good sign.
She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but she actually thought the bow on top was rather pretty, so much so that she almost felt bad about untying it to get to the contents. With a shaking hand she pulled at the bow. The bow began to come undone almost on it's own in slow motion, falling open neatly. She set it aside and pulled the top off the box.
She put her hand to her mouth and giggled. "Who on earth would send me this?"
Inside the box sat a tiny box of Sweet Hearts, the Muggle sweet of the season. They tasted like chalk, had the dumbest 'romantic' sayings on them, and were the most hideous pastel colors. If they weren't sold as a supposed food, she would have written them off as inedible.
Underneath the sweets was a small piece of parchment. Hermione pulled it out and read it. "Love is a friendship set to music. - E. Joseph Cossman"
Hermione couldn't help the small grin that came to her face. Who would send her something like this? Especially with Muggle sweets?
In her mind she made a quick catalog of the Muggle-borns that resided in Gryffindor. It wasn't much, but it was a start. Plus the few pure blood wizards that had knowledge of the Muggle world. That made her list a bit longer, but not enough to make much of a difference.
As Hermione sat through breakfast, she tried to think of who would send her Muggle sweets and a Muggle quote, both revolving around love. Things like this just did not happen to her! It was strange, it was unusual, and she was determined to get to the bottom of this before it got out of hand.
-----
On the day of the tenth, there was another parcel on her bedside, this time a bit bigger than the first. "Not more sweets," she moaned. Being the daughter of two dentists, she immediately gave the boys the box of candy hearts. Harry had seen them before and refused to eat the chalky things, but Ron thought they were the greatest invention of all time.
"Not as amazing compared to Wizarding sweets, but great Muggle invention!" he beamed, followed by him picking out the sugariest sayings and giving them to Lavender in small intervals throughout the day. Of course she squealed each time and planted a sloppy kiss on Ron's cheek. Seeing him turn as red as his hair made it worth handing over her gift.
Today's package was purple, and a shocking shade at that. It wasn't a royal purple like she preferred unfortunately. The best way to describe the color was neon. Topping it off was an equally as shocking bow, accented with glitter bits that seemed to be woven right into the fabric.
Today she didn't care about pretty. Like a kid on Christmas she ripped the paper off of the box and flung off the top. Inside sat another small box, which she opened without hesitation.
"A candy necklace!" she giggled. As a child her parents would buy her the sugar free candy jewelry sets, and in her six year old mind she was the height of fashion while she wore them. Gleefully she pulled the candy necklace out of the plastic and put it on. She felt like a kid again, and it made her feel damn good.
She was about to throw out the box when another small piece of parchment caught her eye. If I know what love is, it is because of you.
The girly girl in her melted into a puddle, but the rational part of her mind was still trying to figure out who on earth would send her such gifts? So far her findings were minimal, though she managed to cross off the older Muggle-born Gryffindors off of her list. Most of them were already seeing someone, or they were gay and seeing someone.
That left the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaw, since it was a known fact that there were never any half bloods or Muggle-borns in Slytherin. Quickly she reformulated her list and dressed to start her day.
-----
"Even though it is the time of year that everyone thinks they should have a mate, I do assure you that we will not be brewing any love potions."
Hermione watched as Professor Snape walked up and down the isles of the classroom, lecturing those seventh years that were qualified enough to take advanced potions.
He stopped as he reached the head of the classroom. "To be perfectly honest, we should be making contraceptives," he said harshly, eyeing the Slytherin corner of the room where Pansy Parkinson sat with Draco Malfoy. "In honor of the season, you will be brewing Hate Potion." He calmly sat down. "I have a feeling that it will be in high demand later in the month." Snape looked up at the class. "Begin."
Hermione wrinkled her nose. Typical Snape, making them brew a Hate Potion around Valentine's Day. That was fine with her though; a potion that breeds hatred for a season she hated most. Immediately she read the instructions that appeared on the board the moment Snape said begin and got to work.
The potion was a dreadfully easy one and Hermione finished a bit earlier than the other students. Of course Snape took notice when she placed the bottled potion on his desk and dismissed her to her seat with a simple nod. She had turned to return to her desk but Professor Snape stopped her.
"Miss Granger," he said quietly.
Hermione turned to face him. "Yes, Professor?"
"What is that you are wearing around your neck?" He craned forward a bit to examine the jewelry.
"It's a candy necklace, sir," she replied, sincerely hoping that he wouldn't take it from her.
Snape nodded. "I will tolerate your sugar quills," he said in the same low tone, "don't think I haven't noticed them. But you will remove that necklace. It's a distraction."
She frowned, clearly not understanding how it was a distraction. Instead of voicing her opinion now she would wait until that evening when she returned to assist him brew potions for Madam Pomfrey. "Yes, sir." She turned and returned to her desk, then took the necklace off and put it in her bag.
When she sat down again she pulled out her notebook and began listing all of the Muggle-borns and half-bloods she could think of, at least the ones that would possibly send her any sort of Valentine sweets.
Justin Finch-Fletchley was a candidate, since they did work closely when they were both involved in the D.A., though she doubted that he would be sending her any sweets. He was a nice boy, yes, but he had actively been pursuing a sixth year Ravenclaw with a nice smile and a killer sense of humor.
Terry Boot was also another option. He did seem to be sweet on her. She held a ray of hope that it wasn't. He was a fine person but he had a knack of getting under her skin.
Hermione sucked on the end of her sugar quill thoughtfully, shooting a glare at Professor Snape every once in a while as she gave the quill a nice long lick. She smirked at him when he raised his eyebrow at her. Over the last six months they had developed a working relationship that quickly moved from teacher/student to banter and bicker. Of course that was countered just as well with intelligent conversation that flowed just as easily as their bickering.
She glanced at her watch. The bell would sound in less than one minute. Quickly she put her notebook and quill back into her bag and pulled the necklace back out. The moment she was out of the door it would be right back around her neck Snape be damned.
The rest of Hermione's day passed quickly enough. She wasn't fond of the new Transfiguration teacher, but she didn't think anyone could fill the shoes of her mentor and head of house. Professor McGonagall had helped her out more than anyone would know. Few of the students knew this, but Hermione wasn't able to find her parents after the final battle. About six months before the battle she had discussed the possibilities with them. With the Death Eaters becoming more and more bold they came to the conclusion that they would give the appearance of going on a nice tropical summer holiday, when in all actualities they would be going to the city of Perth, Australia, where they would be staying for the duration of the war. The Order explained to them that all of their memories of Hermione and magic would be completely erased and they would be simple Muggle dentists that had no children. After a tearful goodbye Hermione saw off her parents at the airport. When the war finally concluded some members of The Order traveled to the address that they had for the Grangers, and they were nowhere to be found. She had expected them to stay in one place in Australia, not pick up and move a month after she left them there. The Order stepped in and tried their best to find the missing Grangers but it seemed that they had disappeared without a trace.
In the months since her parents had disappeared, Professor McGonagall had stepped in as a surrogate mother. It was something that Hermione was extremely grateful for. So far she had come to her more than once for advice, especially where boys were concerned. Of course, being a single woman well into her later years, she had told Hermione that boys were nothing but trouble and that she should concentrate on her studies. After the Ron experience she decided that following that advice would be for the best. Somehow Professor McGonagall had convinced Professor Snape to take her as an assistant, which brought her to the present.
Just like every night, at seven thirty on the dot Hermione walked into the potions classroom and headed toward Professor Snape's office, where she immediately tossed aside her cloak and robes on a chair like she owned the place. She then quickly tied her hair back, which she decided she had to do after a rather nasty incident during their first brewing session, and headed into his personal lab.
"Good evening, professor," she called to him as she walked through the door.
Snape, who was knee deep in notes, nodded at her in greeting. He wasn't wearing his robes this evening, just a dress shirt, slacks, and his normal boots that Hermione swore up and down he had modified so they would amplify his footsteps as he patrolled the halls, all in the name of intimidation.
When he didn't vocally respond Hermione walked up to him and peered down at his notes. "I thought we were brewing more medicinal potions for Madam Pomfrey, not trying to find a cure for acne, sir."
He scowled at her. "Poppy has requested this potion. I don't feel it falls into the medicinal category by any means, but if it will keep the woman off of my back..." He trailed off as something on the page caught his eye.
"Humph." Hermione wrinkled her nose at him. "If you are going to waste time just because you want to get the sweetest woman in the castle off of your back, that's fine with me. I, for one, will be working." With that she whipped around and went into the ingredients closet.
She was rather surprised that he hadn't responded like he usually would have. Her snarky potions professor had been kidnapped and replaced by this more mellow version, and she was determined to figure out what his problem was.
Hermione emerged from the closet with her arms full of bottles and baggies filled with the items that were needed for this evening's session. Instead of beating around the bush she dove in head first, which he reminded her on a nightly basis was a Gryffindor trait through and through.
"You know, I would figure it would be Professor Trelawny that you would want to get off your back," she commented as she fished the ginger root out of the pile. "You would think that after the Christmas party that she would have given up by now."
Snape rose an eyebrow. "Is that really what you think?"
Hermione laughed. "After you not so politely told her to jog off, I would have gotten the picture pretty quick."
He finally looked up at her. "She finally got the picture after I told her I had another witch in mind."
She wasn't quite sure why, but the comment stung. He was her professor, not some possible romantic interest. Plus, she had a secret admirer. What would a grown man want with her anyway? All future snarky comments were out the window, leaving her with nothing more than a dumb sounding 'oh'.
The idea that he had another witch in mind seemed to kill all conversation for the evening. Before either one knew it, it was close to midnight. She heard her stomach growl and tried to make some sort of noise to cover up the sound coming from the irritated organ.
Apparently it wasn't enough. She felt him behind her, almost brushing up against her, as he peeked down over her shoulder and into the cauldron that she was working with. It sent a heat through her like wildfire, and for a moment she tossed around the idea of leaning back into his chest and inhaling his scent of patchouli and other mysterious scents that were just pure Severus Snape. "That will be enough for tonight," he said. "You are hungry."
Hermione shook her head. "No, I want to finish." She continued stirring the potion. "And, for your information, I'm not hungry."
Snape shook his head as he moved to the other side of the table. "Tell me another one," he said, with a light chuckle. "After the last six months, I know your body fairly well. Normally it's about eleven that your stomach begins to growl."
"If I eat, will you let me finish the potion?" she asked. Something was definitely off. He laughed, and he was trying to care for her.
He cast a quick stasis spell on the cauldron and took her by the arm. "Yes, if you eat I will let you finish." He pulled her out of his lab and into his personal quarters, sitting her at a modest dining table. To add insult to injury he added sneered at her and added, "We can't have you falling into the cauldron and ruining the batch because you are too stubborn to eat."
For what seemed to be the millionth time that day Hermione wrinkled her nose at him as he walked away. Before she had time to ponder what was wrong with him Snape reemerged with a tray of sandwiches and tea.
"It's not much, but enough to keep you satisfied until breakfast." He sat across from her and started to serve her a cup of tea and a ham sandwich.
"So, tell me about that special witch," she said offhandedly, as if she was talking about the weather.
Snape's usual scowl returned. "I don't think that is any of your business, Miss Granger."
Instead of leaving the subject alone she continued, just to get under his skin. "Knowing you she's nothing special." She took a sip of her tea.
He slammed his hand down on the table. "I assure you she's special," he shouted. "Not that it is any of your business!"
Hermione gave him her 'I'm going to find out' stare and dropped the subject. "Why did you ask me to remove my necklace earlier?" In the back of her mind, Hermione knew she was beginning to irritate him. She found that when he was irritated he would actually give her more straight answers instead of dancing around the truth.
"As I told you in the classroom, it was a distraction."
After months of working together he had dropped his emotional walls, but Hermione could feel him putting them right back up once more. She finished her sandwich and tea, then returned to the lab to finish her work for the evening.
-----
Hermione opened her eyes and grumbled after her alarm went off. She didn't finish brewing until almost two in the morning, followed by Snape giving her an ear full about not finishing promptly, which she immediately countered that she would have finished if he wouldn't have forced her to eat. He had walked her back to her dorm in silence, walking in front of her with his robes billowing.
When they finally made it to the portrait he had attempted to offer her something in form of a goodnight but she ignored him completely and slammed the portrait in his face. She was tired, she was pissed, and she still had that nagging feeling about his 'special woman'. There was no reason for her to feel so crushed, but for some awful reason it tore at her and made her chest feel like it was being crushed in an enormous vice.
She pulled back the curtains that hung around the bed and winced as the early morning sun hit her full force. Just as she expected, there was another package next to her clock on her bedside table.
Today's was a hideous yellow color that glittered. It was wrapped in a matching yellow bow that was equally as hideous in color. The two previous looked like the sender had taken precious time to construct the frilly things, while this one looked like it was done in five seconds flat and sent away. The box itself was quite large compared to the other two she had received.
This time she took no time to admire anything about the gift and pulled the lid off of the box. Instead of any sweets there was a single china tea cup with a strange dried flower inside. Slipped in beside the cup were two small pieces of parchment that looked like someone had hastily ripped them off of a larger piece.
Hermione read the first one.
In this cup is something to help you sleep. I assure you it is not harmful. Pour boiling water over the flower and let it steep for a fragrant and relaxing tea.
After last night's fitful sleep, Hermione was grateful that her admirer would think of her sleeping habits.
She sat the first piece of parchment in the box next to the cup and read the second.
"When love is your greatest weakness, you will be the strongest person in the world."
Hermione sighed. If only that were true in her case. She had seen it happen; after all, Voldemort was defeated by love, and Harry was alive because of the love of his mother. She slipped the quote back in with the cup and other parchment and replaced the lid on the box. In the back of her mind she hoped that her night with Snape wouldn't be as turbulent as the night before. In just a matter of hours she had gone from craving his company and intelligent conversation to mildly loathing the man.
The only way to find out was to get the day over with.
-----
All Hermione wanted was one normal school day, but it seemed that the whole of Hogwarts was set on having one big love-fest. In Advanced Transfiguration Professor McGonagall's replacement had decided that they would be making decorations for the upcoming ball. To add insult to injury the woman had decided to use Hermione to demonstrate, since she was the only one in the class that had the skills advanced enough to do all of the transfigurations on the first try. Hermione didn't see what was so bloody difficult about transfiguring colored paper into lengths of paper chain. She remembered making them faster by hand as a child in primary school than some of the dunderheads in the class were doing it with their wands.
Her mood became even darker when Professor Flitwick also decided that they would be doing charms that were seasonally appropriate.
"Love is the reason for the season!" he announced brightly.
Hermione thought about asking what in Merlin's name did ancient girls getting slapped to fertility with bloody pieces of sacrificial goat skin have anything to do with love, but she bit her tongue and did what was required of her. Her grade still hurt because of that one test she failed to pass one hundred percent, and if charming hearts that would float and throw confetti every thirty seconds made the little man happy she would make an entire room of them. When the room started filling with hearts of all shapes and colors, Hermione threw a random bat that tossed small skull shaped confetti into the mix just to make herself feel better. Flitwick never suspected his prize student for a moment and immediately pointed the finger at Slytherin, which pleased her greatly.
Thankfully Firenze had something different in mind for them. Hermione hated Divination with all of her being, but having Firenze as a teacher made it bearable. He was always mysteriously soft spoken, and never made a class more exciting by scaring the students by tales of their demise.
Instead of gushing about love as the other professors seemed to do, the Centaur kept his normal schedule. For two hours they sat in a lovely recreation of the Forbidden Forest staring at the stars. Of course there were those few girls in the class that thought it was all dreadfully romantic, sitting under the stars with such a handsome creature. Lavender asked her what she thought about it, and it took everything she had not to just scream at her.
Instead she tightly smiled. "I am not into inter-species erotica, thank you very much."
After the bell rang she stood and collected her things, intending on following the rest of her classmates to the Great Hall for dinner. A cool hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned around and faced the chilly blue eyes of her professor.
"Yes, Professor?" she asked. 'Please don't tell me he heard what I told Lavender,' she thought fiercely.
She was pleasantly surprised when he didn't scold her. "Your dark mood will be lifting soon, child," he said, in his normal soft raspy voice.
"Thank you, Professor," Hermione replied, smiling kindly. "After this holiday passes I will be right as rain." She had almost made it out of the classroom when he called for her.
"Miss Granger," he said, his voice just as quiet as it was when he stood next to her.
Hermione turned to face him.
"Do not worry, I am not, as you say, into inter-species erotica either." He winked at her before going off into his own little world once more.
-----
That evening Hermione waltzed into Snape's personal lab feeling better than she had since the whole Valentine's Day fiasco had begun. "Evening, Professor," she called out to him, even though he was nowhere in sight.
Snape emerged from behind a bookcase in just his shirt and trousers. "Good evening, Miss Granger."
She took in his state of moderate undress. At least undressed for him. His coat and vest were missing, as were his boots. The pale feet that stuck out of the end of his trousers seemed to glow in the firelight, and Hermione had to stifle a giggle.
"If you are finished gawking, I have something a little different planned for this evening." That said he opened the bookcase wide enough for her to enter his private rooms.
"Please don't tell me it's something romantic," she said, sounding mildly exasperated. The vice that had a grip on her chest seemed to loosen a bit when he chuckled warmly.
"I do assure you it is not harmful, nor does it have anything to do with romance," he told her. "It has more to do with food."
Hermione stopped and looked at him like he had grown a second head. "Food?"
He nodded and offered her a small smile. "Yes, food. Have you not noticed that the fine art of brewing potions is much like the art of preparing and cooking food?"
"But what does cooking have to do with brewing potions?" she asked, skittering behind him as he walked into the small apartment kitchen.
Snape stopped abruptly and she ran into him. "Actually, nothing at all." He ran his hands through his greasy hair. "Can you not enjoy a break at least once in your life?"
Hermione's eye's widened. 'Uh oh. He's in rant mode.'
Snape started to pace back and forth across the tiny kitchen. "Day after day you come here and we brew until midnight, sometimes later. You come in on the bloody weekends too! Do you ever just rest? You are losing weight, you have constant bags under your eyes, which aren't attractive on a young witch by the way, and you are beginning to snap at people who look at you wrong!" By the time he was finished with his little tirade his hair was mussed from running his hands through it, his cheeks an abnormal shade of red (at least abnormal for him), and his black eyes had a wild look in them. "Don't think I haven't noticed, Granger."
She narrowed her eyes. "What else do you expect me to do with my life? I haven't got parents, I haven't got many friends, and the ones that I have are wrapped up with girls and Quidditch, and the only time I'm at peace is when I am making myself useful! But what would you know about that?"
He stepped closer to her, close enough to feel the heat that radiated off of her angry body. "My parents were horrible people, I have no use for friends, women have never given me a second glance, and I wasted twenty years of my life for two basket cases that fancied themselves God! If you don't learn to stop for even just a few minutes you are going to kill yourself."
Hermione held herself higher and moved in closer so she was almost nose to chest with him. "I wouldn't look twice at you either! You don't pay any mind to your personal hygiene, you always have some smart ass comment to say regardless of the situation, and you swoop around the castle like an over grown bat! Did you charm your cloak to billow behind you?"
"Stooping to petty insults!" he yelled. "Your hair is such a mess it looks like a rats nest no matter what you do to it, I'm surprised your nose isn't completely flattened into your face from the hours you keep it in books, and I still see no difference in your teeth!"
She wasn't quite sure how it happened but the next thing she knew she was pressed against the small dining table, her professor kissing her with so much passion she felt it was going to consume them both. The vice on her chest had completely released and she kissed him back, threading her hands through his hair in case he had a sudden change of heart and tried to pull away from her. When he ran his tongue over her bottom lip all rational thought was lost. The only thing that existed in the world was him and his wonderful lips, and his hands that ran down her back and gripped her waist. At that moment, she was his.
Finally he pulled away from her, panting for breath. "I think that you should return to your dorms now, Miss Granger."
Hermione looked at him, mildly confused. "I think you are right, professor." She dashed out of the apartment, almost blinded by the tears in her eyes that were beginning to run down her cheeks.