Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction ❯ Six Gifts ❯ Six Gifs 2 ( Chapter 2 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: IncaShine 
She was going to simply murder him.
Non Anime: Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Psychological | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.04.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 3.8K | Visits: 159 | Status: Completed
She was going to simply murder him.
Non Anime: Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Psychological | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.04.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 3.8K | Visits: 159 | Status: Completed
A/N: Ok, well I wanted to do this in only two chapters. Like always, things didn't come out as planned, so here's the second half.
I want to thank all of you who left reviews on the first chapter, and I apologize for the confusion. Yeah, I didn't post anything to make it seem like it would be more than one chapter.
Ok, here's the second installment! Enjoy!
-IncaShine
----------
For once in her life she was glad that she wasn't forced to share a room with the other girls. When she got into the room she warded the door soundly and called for an elf to bring her a kettle of water. After Dobby delivered the water to her took off her uniform and put on her comfy pajamas, the ones that her mother had gotten for her when she spent a week in the hospital with appendicitis when she was thirteen. "This better work," she said to herself.
Carefully she removed the teacup from the box. As soon as the water hit the small flower the calming aroma washed over her and her nerves finally calmed enough for her tears to stop flowing. The 'blooming' of the flower was almost fascinating to her. As the water soaked into it's dried petals it began to regain it's purple color and return to it's original shape. Her eyes moved over the parchment.
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
"That greasy git!" The urge to throw the teacup was strong.
The urge to throw the teacup in his face complete with tea was strong.
After a few deep breaths Hermione composed herself and sipped the tea.
She was going to murder him. Simply murder him.
-----
Just like clockwork there was another gift at her bedside the next morning. This one wasn't as hideously wrapped as the previous packages, instead being covered in a simple blue paper that didn't sparkle or shine. Today there was no bow, which almost disappointed Hermione in a way.
Inside the box was a set of hair clips. Hermione snorted. Yes, give hair accessories to the girl that has such curly hair that the accessories would probably get lost. Upon further inspection she noticed that they weren't just accessories: they were mini replicas of ribbon candy that shimmered as the light caught them. Each row of color was marked by a different stone, in green, white, red, and pink to be exact. It was a thoughtful gift, but who on earth in the castle would be able to afford these shy of Draco Malfoy? If he was going to buy anything that glittered Pansy Parkinson would be the one wearing it, and bragging all over school that 'her Draco' treats her like a bloody princess. Even though she was sure it was Snape that sent the tea, she doubted that he would ever be able to afford such a lavish gift for her.
She pulled the small hair clasps out of the box and picked up the parchment that was underneath.
"There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved."
"Yeah right."
It took Hermione almost until breakfast to tame her hair enough to put in the clips. Thanks to the bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion that Lavender insisted that every woman should have her hair was now in manageable curls with her bangs clipped to the side using the clips. Hermione smiled at herself in the mirror. The little improvement made her feel really good. On a whim she pulled out the small makeup bag that Lavender also insisted that she have and applied a bit of lip gloss and a hint of mascara. There. Presentable. At least she didn't feel so plain in comparison to the clips.
When she did finally enter the Great Hall she felt like a million galleons. The boys that would have never given her a second glance were actually paying attention now, and the girls that said that she was hopeless whispered to each other. She took a seat next to Ron, Ginny and Harry and started to fill her plate with her favorite breakfast treats. "Morning, guys!"
"What the hell happened to you?" Ron asked her, his mouth full of food.
Hermione pursed her lips. "Is it a crime for a girl to want to look nice once in a while?" she snapped.
Harry put a hand on her shoulder. "I think you look good."
"Yeah," Ginny added, smiling at her friend. "It's about time you started to think about yourself."
"She looks like....like...a girl!" Ron still wore a wide eyed expression.
"I am a girl, thank you for finally noticing!" Ron's reaction made Hermione lose her appetite totally and she pushed away her plate. "You found out I am a girl during fourth year, if I recall correctly. Then you screamed at me."
"Yeah, but the next day it was gone so I figured it was a glamor or something! Oww! Gin!" He ducked away from Ginny's swatting hands.
"We think you look fine, don't we Harry?" Ginny gave him the 'agree or die' look.
Harry nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. "Totally smashing."
The rest of the meal went along with few things spoken. Well, few words that interested her. Ginny, Harry, and Ron spent the entire time talking about Quidditch, which Hermione didn't care about one way or another.
From time to time she could feel someone's eyes on her. She glanced around, trying to shake the feeing. Her eyes gravitated toward the head table and for a brief moment she met Snape's. Just as quickly as the moment came about it was over. Snape leaned over and began to speak with Professor McGonagall, the glaze that had covered his dark eyes immediately going away as he spoke to the older woman.
She still wanted to kill him. Unfortunately that would have to wait, at least until after their brewing session. If they even had another one. After the way he kissed her she figured he would be a coward and push her away. His declaration of not being a coward fell on deaf ears when it came to Hermione; Severus Snape may have been a war hero, but he failed miserably when it came to matters of the heart.
'What do I care?' she asked herself. 'He's my professor and I'm just a student.'
Hermione had another reprieve from the love crazy masses in Herbology. Apparently Professor Sprout felt the same way about the holiday and decided that they would be doing something simple yet disgusting: harvesting bubotuber puss. Neville sat happily next to her.
"You look really good today, Hermione," he commented, ducking to avoid a stray bubotuber that had slipped away from another student.
She smiled. "Thank you, Neville. It's nice to hear someone say that without it sounding forced."
At her reply, Neville squeezed the bubotuber in his hand particularly hard, sending the disgusting petrol smelling pus flying. "If they had to lie then they don't know what real beauty is."
The girly girl in Hermione swooned. Looking at Neville now, she noticed exactly how much he had changed since first year. Instead of a slightly chubby tongue tied boy with no confidence, a handsome confident man with a lean body and fabulous smile sat next to her. Before she knew it butterflies were raging in her tummy.
She didn't know exactly how to reply to that, so instead she blushed and muttered a quick 'thanks'.
After class Neville offered to walk her to her Arithmancy class, which Hermione thought was odd since his next class was on the other side of the castle, and walking there would possibly cause him to be late. Instead of making any argument she smiled and took his arm, ignoring the gasps and surprised looks of the other Gryffindor that were present.
Not even half way to the Arithmancy classroom the pair was stopped by the sound of someone loudly clearing their throat.
Hermione's stomach dropped. Only one person could sound that irritated even when clearing their throat.
"Miss Granger, Mr. Longbottom."
They both turned around to face a very irate looking Potions Master. All of the confidence poor Neville had gained was suddenly gone and he just stared at Snape with his mouth trying to form words.
"Yes, Professor Snape?" Hermione stepped in and asked, trying to save Neville from any more embarrassment.
Snape's scowl became even deeper than normal. "I am sure you are both aware that it is against school policy to show public displays of affection."
Neville just nodded dumbly, while Hermione was ready to tell him that student/teacher relationships were also prohibited yet it didn't stop him from throwing her onto his kitchen table and kissing the hell out of her. She narrowed her eyes. "He was escorting me to class, sir."
He seemed to smirk, which looked like just lesser version of his scowl. "It looks like you both will be escorting yourselves to detention this evening," he said, almost looking as if he was taking great pleasure of punishing the two Gryffindors. "Longbottom, you will report to Mr. Filtch at seven. Miss Granger, you will report to the lab promptly after dinner."
"But that's not fair, sir! Why do I have to come so early?" Hermione demanded. Instantly she knew it was the wrong thing to say.
"You will also report tomorrow after dinner, Miss Granger, and twenty points for questioning my judgement of your punishment. I will see you this evening." He stepped around them and continued on his way, leaving the pair seething.
"I can't believe that he did that," Neville groaned, the confidence back now that Snape was out of range. "That git!"
Hermione sighed. "You don't have to walk me any further," she said. "I'll see you tonight in the common room after detention."
Neville shook his head and grabbed her arm. "I told you I would walk you to class, so I am going to walk you to class!" He smiled at her brightly and the tummy butterflies came back.
To add to those butterflies, her mind was reeling. Could Neville be the one who sent those gifts to her, minus the tea? But why would he skip the day the tea arrived, unless he saw the package and figured someone had beat him to the chase? She quickly put the thoughts out of her mind as they arrived at the classroom door. Her full concentration would be needed today, and she didn't think that Professor Vector would be very forgiving if she slacked off.
-----
Hermione never said a word through dinner. There was no reason for her friends to suffer because she was in a bad mood. Because of him. She shot a glance at the head table and gave Snape her best 'I loath you' look. Of course he saw it and smirked, holding up his hand and wiggling three fingers, silently telling her that her two days of detention was now bumped up to three.
In a way, she didn't see the big deal about detention other than it was going to be on her record. She spent every night with him in the dungeons regardless. 'He's up to something,' she thought.
Immediately after the food was cleared from the table Hermione dashed off to the dungeons. Knowing him he meant as soon as she finished eating and would assign her another detention for being 'late'.
Just like every other night she left her belongings in his office and tied her hair back. Snape was already in the lab when she walked in. "I am here for my detention, Professor Snape."
Snape waved his hand through the air, dismissing what she said. "I am not assigning you detention. I am just making it look like it. We will complete our brewing sessions earlier so you may retire earlier."
"Pardon?" She was rather flabbergasted. It wasn't like Professor Snape to actually care for someone who wasn't a Slytherin, or care at all for that matter.
He walked over to her and took her face in his hands. "Dark circles are not becoming on a young witch such as yourself. You need more rest." He dropped his hands. "Tonight we will be brewing contraceptive potions," he informed her as he rounded the work table. "I am betting that almost half of the seventh year and possibly a dozen sixth year girls will be beating down Poppy's door the morning after the ball." He started arranging bottles that were already set out. "I don't know about you, but I don't want to be dealing the offspring of these dunderheads anytime soon. Especially any more Longbottoms," he said tightly, glaring at her.
Hermione's mouth dropped open. "What exactly are you insinuating, sir?"
"I know you aren't one to bestow your affection on anyone other than Potter or Weasley. You looked rather cozy with Longbottom this morning," he said without looking up at her.
She slammed her hands down on the table. "So that automatically means I'm sleeping with him?"
He finally looked up. "Unless girls of this generation are any different from those of my generation, it's an easy conclusion to come to."
"Why are you being such a bastard?" she shouted. "The past two days you have been crueler than usual!"
"I never said I was nice," he countered.
"When would I have any time to have sex with Neville? I'm always here with you! If anything that means, by your twisted point of view, that we are sleeping together!"
He raised an eyebrow. "It wouldn't be entirely unheard of, you know. Masters using their assistants for sexual gratification is common place in the Wizarding world."
Hermione sighed. There was no winning an argument with Severus Snape. "Fine. Let's begin so I can leave early, and follow through with your suggestion. There are perks to having your own room, you know." She snatched a baggy of dried rue herb off of the table. "Reserve a strong bottle of this for me, would you? You know us teenage girls, always shagging everything that moves. I'd hate to have to spend nine months and six weeks with my knees together."
-----
Hermione left the dungeons at eleven, which was a lot earlier than normal. When she got into the common room Ron, Harry, and Neville were all sitting around one of the chess boards watching Ron murder a fifth year boy. Using all of the Gryffindor courage that she could muster she walked up to Neville. "Neville, will you go to the ball with me?"
For a moment Neville looked almost surprised and he adopted the mumbling slack jawed look that he normally reserved for Snape. Hermione smiled. She had expected a reaction, just not this one.
It took nearly a minute for poor Neville to recover, but when he did he gave her a near blinding smile. "Sure, Hermione! I'd be delighted to be your date!"
She returned his smile. "Great! See you in the morning!" She kissed him on the cheek and dashed to her room.
When she made it in she slammed the door and leaned on it, breathing hard. "What did I just do?" She moved to her bed and laid down, thinking about the interactions that she had with Neville over the years, how he had grown from a bumbling boy to a confident man. He wasn't bad to look at, either! At least she was guaranteed for some good intelligent conversation and some dancing. She giggled when she recalled that Harry had caught Neville dancing by himself in the boy's dorm at night, practicing so he wouldn't disappoint Professor McGonagall when it came time for the Yule Ball. Of course it didn't do much, if Ginny's complaints of aching feet had anything to say about it.
Take that, Snape.
------
The next morning Hermione's eyes immediately flew to the night table, where another gift was waiting for her. To her surprise there were two boxes today; a delightful box of pink and white and then a box wrapped totally in green. Since the pink and white one caught her eye immediately she reached for it first.
She removed the lid and a beautiful emerald ring sat inside. It was just a simple gold band with emeralds set in the metal. Who on earth would spend the money on such a lavish gift for her? Didn't this person ever wonder if she was going to just turn him down?
Instead of putting it back she slipped it onto her ring finger of her right hand. The band that looked a bit too large magically shrank to fit her dainty finger.
She looked into the box, hunting for the note that normally would be there, but there was none. Her features scrunched in confusion. Could this be a gift from a different person?
Putting the thought aside she reached for the other box, the almost ugly green one. She yanked the lid off. A bottle of potion and a piece of parchment.
She pulled the bottle out and set it on the night table, then unfolded the piece of parchment.
Here is your 'strong bottle' of contraceptive that you requested. For the love and health of every cauldron in Hogwarts, remember to take it.
-Professor Snape
"That bastard!" She balled up his note and threw it into the fireplace. She was about to put the potion back into the box when she noticed another note inside. "What else could he feel is vital to tell me?"
She opened the folded parchment and her breath caught.
"I love you - those three words have my life in them."
No way. No bloody way!
Hermione slammed her fist down on the table a few times in anger and frustration. Snape had been sending the gifts? She was his special witch? She couldn't believe that he was distracted enough to send his little love note in with the potion instead of with the ring.
She took a few deep breaths and composed herself. There was no way that she was about to let Snape know that the kneazle was out of the bag. Instead she was going to attend the ball with Neville and pray in the back of her mind that he didn't have his heart set on them being an item.
On the day of the ball, Severus Snape was going to get a piece of her mind.
That didn't take away the horrible feeling that she was almost using Neville to get back at Snape.
After she dressed she walked slowly down into the common room, hoping Neville hadn't decided to wait on her. She still needed to figure out a plan. Unfortunately, he sat on one of the plush chairs, his face lighting up as he saw her coming down the staircase. He stood and approached her. "Hermione! I'm glad you are an early riser like me. Would you like to walk to breakfast together?"
Hermione dumbly nodded, almost wanting to tell Snape to shove off so she could go on and be a regular teenage girl and date the attractive boy that had his hand lovingly on her lower back, almost as if he were guiding her to The Great Hall to eat. She was in and out of her thoughts, but she did hear bits and pieces of what he was saying.
He wanted to color coordinate their outfits for the ball?
"I think I'm going to wear green this year," she said, already imagining the robes she had gotten a few months ago in case any formal event popped up.
Neville raised an eyebrow. "Green? Isn't that a little... Slytherin?"
She shook her head. "Isn't that a little narrow minded?"
He seemed to clam up. "You're right. I'm sorry."
From that point on he was silent. When they reached the Great Hall he led her over to their usual spot and they had a silent breakfast. Hermione assumed that Neville thought he had offended her, which in a way he did. She still wouldn't give up her Gryffindor pride for anything, but after Dumbledore's death and the end of the war Professor McGonagall had pressed the issue of inter-house unity.
After breakfast Neville walked her to the potions classroom and they parted ways.
Hermione refused to look at Snape during the lesson. Possibly because she was ignoring him Snape seemed more and more intent on putting her on the spot and calling her out more than usual. It was like he never seemed to see anyone else in the room. Oddly enough Draco was the one waving his hand in the air seeking the professor's attention. If she hadn't been so angry Hermione would have been wondering exactly how the roles had gotten reversed.
At the end of the class period she approached Professor Snape's desk with her bottle of Exploding Fluid in hand. When she handed him the potion she made sure to hold her hand in a way that the little light in the room would catch the stone in the ring she wore. She watched as his eyes momentarily settled on the ring. His expression was empty and almost cold.
"That is a very pretty ring that you are wearing, Miss Granger," he said quietly.
She smiled sweetly. "You would know, wouldn't you?"
"I wouldn't know what you are talking about, Miss Granger."
"Like you wouldn't." She turned to return to her desk. "I will see you at the ball tomorrow night."
I want to thank all of you who left reviews on the first chapter, and I apologize for the confusion. Yeah, I didn't post anything to make it seem like it would be more than one chapter.
Ok, here's the second installment! Enjoy!
-IncaShine
----------
For once in her life she was glad that she wasn't forced to share a room with the other girls. When she got into the room she warded the door soundly and called for an elf to bring her a kettle of water. After Dobby delivered the water to her took off her uniform and put on her comfy pajamas, the ones that her mother had gotten for her when she spent a week in the hospital with appendicitis when she was thirteen. "This better work," she said to herself.
Carefully she removed the teacup from the box. As soon as the water hit the small flower the calming aroma washed over her and her nerves finally calmed enough for her tears to stop flowing. The 'blooming' of the flower was almost fascinating to her. As the water soaked into it's dried petals it began to regain it's purple color and return to it's original shape. Her eyes moved over the parchment.
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
'I do assure you it is not harmful.'
"That greasy git!" The urge to throw the teacup was strong.
The urge to throw the teacup in his face complete with tea was strong.
After a few deep breaths Hermione composed herself and sipped the tea.
She was going to murder him. Simply murder him.
-----
Just like clockwork there was another gift at her bedside the next morning. This one wasn't as hideously wrapped as the previous packages, instead being covered in a simple blue paper that didn't sparkle or shine. Today there was no bow, which almost disappointed Hermione in a way.
Inside the box was a set of hair clips. Hermione snorted. Yes, give hair accessories to the girl that has such curly hair that the accessories would probably get lost. Upon further inspection she noticed that they weren't just accessories: they were mini replicas of ribbon candy that shimmered as the light caught them. Each row of color was marked by a different stone, in green, white, red, and pink to be exact. It was a thoughtful gift, but who on earth in the castle would be able to afford these shy of Draco Malfoy? If he was going to buy anything that glittered Pansy Parkinson would be the one wearing it, and bragging all over school that 'her Draco' treats her like a bloody princess. Even though she was sure it was Snape that sent the tea, she doubted that he would ever be able to afford such a lavish gift for her.
She pulled the small hair clasps out of the box and picked up the parchment that was underneath.
"There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved."
"Yeah right."
It took Hermione almost until breakfast to tame her hair enough to put in the clips. Thanks to the bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion that Lavender insisted that every woman should have her hair was now in manageable curls with her bangs clipped to the side using the clips. Hermione smiled at herself in the mirror. The little improvement made her feel really good. On a whim she pulled out the small makeup bag that Lavender also insisted that she have and applied a bit of lip gloss and a hint of mascara. There. Presentable. At least she didn't feel so plain in comparison to the clips.
When she did finally enter the Great Hall she felt like a million galleons. The boys that would have never given her a second glance were actually paying attention now, and the girls that said that she was hopeless whispered to each other. She took a seat next to Ron, Ginny and Harry and started to fill her plate with her favorite breakfast treats. "Morning, guys!"
"What the hell happened to you?" Ron asked her, his mouth full of food.
Hermione pursed her lips. "Is it a crime for a girl to want to look nice once in a while?" she snapped.
Harry put a hand on her shoulder. "I think you look good."
"Yeah," Ginny added, smiling at her friend. "It's about time you started to think about yourself."
"She looks like....like...a girl!" Ron still wore a wide eyed expression.
"I am a girl, thank you for finally noticing!" Ron's reaction made Hermione lose her appetite totally and she pushed away her plate. "You found out I am a girl during fourth year, if I recall correctly. Then you screamed at me."
"Yeah, but the next day it was gone so I figured it was a glamor or something! Oww! Gin!" He ducked away from Ginny's swatting hands.
"We think you look fine, don't we Harry?" Ginny gave him the 'agree or die' look.
Harry nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. "Totally smashing."
The rest of the meal went along with few things spoken. Well, few words that interested her. Ginny, Harry, and Ron spent the entire time talking about Quidditch, which Hermione didn't care about one way or another.
From time to time she could feel someone's eyes on her. She glanced around, trying to shake the feeing. Her eyes gravitated toward the head table and for a brief moment she met Snape's. Just as quickly as the moment came about it was over. Snape leaned over and began to speak with Professor McGonagall, the glaze that had covered his dark eyes immediately going away as he spoke to the older woman.
She still wanted to kill him. Unfortunately that would have to wait, at least until after their brewing session. If they even had another one. After the way he kissed her she figured he would be a coward and push her away. His declaration of not being a coward fell on deaf ears when it came to Hermione; Severus Snape may have been a war hero, but he failed miserably when it came to matters of the heart.
'What do I care?' she asked herself. 'He's my professor and I'm just a student.'
Hermione had another reprieve from the love crazy masses in Herbology. Apparently Professor Sprout felt the same way about the holiday and decided that they would be doing something simple yet disgusting: harvesting bubotuber puss. Neville sat happily next to her.
"You look really good today, Hermione," he commented, ducking to avoid a stray bubotuber that had slipped away from another student.
She smiled. "Thank you, Neville. It's nice to hear someone say that without it sounding forced."
At her reply, Neville squeezed the bubotuber in his hand particularly hard, sending the disgusting petrol smelling pus flying. "If they had to lie then they don't know what real beauty is."
The girly girl in Hermione swooned. Looking at Neville now, she noticed exactly how much he had changed since first year. Instead of a slightly chubby tongue tied boy with no confidence, a handsome confident man with a lean body and fabulous smile sat next to her. Before she knew it butterflies were raging in her tummy.
She didn't know exactly how to reply to that, so instead she blushed and muttered a quick 'thanks'.
After class Neville offered to walk her to her Arithmancy class, which Hermione thought was odd since his next class was on the other side of the castle, and walking there would possibly cause him to be late. Instead of making any argument she smiled and took his arm, ignoring the gasps and surprised looks of the other Gryffindor that were present.
Not even half way to the Arithmancy classroom the pair was stopped by the sound of someone loudly clearing their throat.
Hermione's stomach dropped. Only one person could sound that irritated even when clearing their throat.
"Miss Granger, Mr. Longbottom."
They both turned around to face a very irate looking Potions Master. All of the confidence poor Neville had gained was suddenly gone and he just stared at Snape with his mouth trying to form words.
"Yes, Professor Snape?" Hermione stepped in and asked, trying to save Neville from any more embarrassment.
Snape's scowl became even deeper than normal. "I am sure you are both aware that it is against school policy to show public displays of affection."
Neville just nodded dumbly, while Hermione was ready to tell him that student/teacher relationships were also prohibited yet it didn't stop him from throwing her onto his kitchen table and kissing the hell out of her. She narrowed her eyes. "He was escorting me to class, sir."
He seemed to smirk, which looked like just lesser version of his scowl. "It looks like you both will be escorting yourselves to detention this evening," he said, almost looking as if he was taking great pleasure of punishing the two Gryffindors. "Longbottom, you will report to Mr. Filtch at seven. Miss Granger, you will report to the lab promptly after dinner."
"But that's not fair, sir! Why do I have to come so early?" Hermione demanded. Instantly she knew it was the wrong thing to say.
"You will also report tomorrow after dinner, Miss Granger, and twenty points for questioning my judgement of your punishment. I will see you this evening." He stepped around them and continued on his way, leaving the pair seething.
"I can't believe that he did that," Neville groaned, the confidence back now that Snape was out of range. "That git!"
Hermione sighed. "You don't have to walk me any further," she said. "I'll see you tonight in the common room after detention."
Neville shook his head and grabbed her arm. "I told you I would walk you to class, so I am going to walk you to class!" He smiled at her brightly and the tummy butterflies came back.
To add to those butterflies, her mind was reeling. Could Neville be the one who sent those gifts to her, minus the tea? But why would he skip the day the tea arrived, unless he saw the package and figured someone had beat him to the chase? She quickly put the thoughts out of her mind as they arrived at the classroom door. Her full concentration would be needed today, and she didn't think that Professor Vector would be very forgiving if she slacked off.
-----
Hermione never said a word through dinner. There was no reason for her friends to suffer because she was in a bad mood. Because of him. She shot a glance at the head table and gave Snape her best 'I loath you' look. Of course he saw it and smirked, holding up his hand and wiggling three fingers, silently telling her that her two days of detention was now bumped up to three.
In a way, she didn't see the big deal about detention other than it was going to be on her record. She spent every night with him in the dungeons regardless. 'He's up to something,' she thought.
Immediately after the food was cleared from the table Hermione dashed off to the dungeons. Knowing him he meant as soon as she finished eating and would assign her another detention for being 'late'.
Just like every other night she left her belongings in his office and tied her hair back. Snape was already in the lab when she walked in. "I am here for my detention, Professor Snape."
Snape waved his hand through the air, dismissing what she said. "I am not assigning you detention. I am just making it look like it. We will complete our brewing sessions earlier so you may retire earlier."
"Pardon?" She was rather flabbergasted. It wasn't like Professor Snape to actually care for someone who wasn't a Slytherin, or care at all for that matter.
He walked over to her and took her face in his hands. "Dark circles are not becoming on a young witch such as yourself. You need more rest." He dropped his hands. "Tonight we will be brewing contraceptive potions," he informed her as he rounded the work table. "I am betting that almost half of the seventh year and possibly a dozen sixth year girls will be beating down Poppy's door the morning after the ball." He started arranging bottles that were already set out. "I don't know about you, but I don't want to be dealing the offspring of these dunderheads anytime soon. Especially any more Longbottoms," he said tightly, glaring at her.
Hermione's mouth dropped open. "What exactly are you insinuating, sir?"
"I know you aren't one to bestow your affection on anyone other than Potter or Weasley. You looked rather cozy with Longbottom this morning," he said without looking up at her.
She slammed her hands down on the table. "So that automatically means I'm sleeping with him?"
He finally looked up. "Unless girls of this generation are any different from those of my generation, it's an easy conclusion to come to."
"Why are you being such a bastard?" she shouted. "The past two days you have been crueler than usual!"
"I never said I was nice," he countered.
"When would I have any time to have sex with Neville? I'm always here with you! If anything that means, by your twisted point of view, that we are sleeping together!"
He raised an eyebrow. "It wouldn't be entirely unheard of, you know. Masters using their assistants for sexual gratification is common place in the Wizarding world."
Hermione sighed. There was no winning an argument with Severus Snape. "Fine. Let's begin so I can leave early, and follow through with your suggestion. There are perks to having your own room, you know." She snatched a baggy of dried rue herb off of the table. "Reserve a strong bottle of this for me, would you? You know us teenage girls, always shagging everything that moves. I'd hate to have to spend nine months and six weeks with my knees together."
-----
Hermione left the dungeons at eleven, which was a lot earlier than normal. When she got into the common room Ron, Harry, and Neville were all sitting around one of the chess boards watching Ron murder a fifth year boy. Using all of the Gryffindor courage that she could muster she walked up to Neville. "Neville, will you go to the ball with me?"
For a moment Neville looked almost surprised and he adopted the mumbling slack jawed look that he normally reserved for Snape. Hermione smiled. She had expected a reaction, just not this one.
It took nearly a minute for poor Neville to recover, but when he did he gave her a near blinding smile. "Sure, Hermione! I'd be delighted to be your date!"
She returned his smile. "Great! See you in the morning!" She kissed him on the cheek and dashed to her room.
When she made it in she slammed the door and leaned on it, breathing hard. "What did I just do?" She moved to her bed and laid down, thinking about the interactions that she had with Neville over the years, how he had grown from a bumbling boy to a confident man. He wasn't bad to look at, either! At least she was guaranteed for some good intelligent conversation and some dancing. She giggled when she recalled that Harry had caught Neville dancing by himself in the boy's dorm at night, practicing so he wouldn't disappoint Professor McGonagall when it came time for the Yule Ball. Of course it didn't do much, if Ginny's complaints of aching feet had anything to say about it.
Take that, Snape.
------
The next morning Hermione's eyes immediately flew to the night table, where another gift was waiting for her. To her surprise there were two boxes today; a delightful box of pink and white and then a box wrapped totally in green. Since the pink and white one caught her eye immediately she reached for it first.
She removed the lid and a beautiful emerald ring sat inside. It was just a simple gold band with emeralds set in the metal. Who on earth would spend the money on such a lavish gift for her? Didn't this person ever wonder if she was going to just turn him down?
Instead of putting it back she slipped it onto her ring finger of her right hand. The band that looked a bit too large magically shrank to fit her dainty finger.
She looked into the box, hunting for the note that normally would be there, but there was none. Her features scrunched in confusion. Could this be a gift from a different person?
Putting the thought aside she reached for the other box, the almost ugly green one. She yanked the lid off. A bottle of potion and a piece of parchment.
She pulled the bottle out and set it on the night table, then unfolded the piece of parchment.
Here is your 'strong bottle' of contraceptive that you requested. For the love and health of every cauldron in Hogwarts, remember to take it.
-Professor Snape
"That bastard!" She balled up his note and threw it into the fireplace. She was about to put the potion back into the box when she noticed another note inside. "What else could he feel is vital to tell me?"
She opened the folded parchment and her breath caught.
"I love you - those three words have my life in them."
No way. No bloody way!
Hermione slammed her fist down on the table a few times in anger and frustration. Snape had been sending the gifts? She was his special witch? She couldn't believe that he was distracted enough to send his little love note in with the potion instead of with the ring.
She took a few deep breaths and composed herself. There was no way that she was about to let Snape know that the kneazle was out of the bag. Instead she was going to attend the ball with Neville and pray in the back of her mind that he didn't have his heart set on them being an item.
On the day of the ball, Severus Snape was going to get a piece of her mind.
That didn't take away the horrible feeling that she was almost using Neville to get back at Snape.
After she dressed she walked slowly down into the common room, hoping Neville hadn't decided to wait on her. She still needed to figure out a plan. Unfortunately, he sat on one of the plush chairs, his face lighting up as he saw her coming down the staircase. He stood and approached her. "Hermione! I'm glad you are an early riser like me. Would you like to walk to breakfast together?"
Hermione dumbly nodded, almost wanting to tell Snape to shove off so she could go on and be a regular teenage girl and date the attractive boy that had his hand lovingly on her lower back, almost as if he were guiding her to The Great Hall to eat. She was in and out of her thoughts, but she did hear bits and pieces of what he was saying.
He wanted to color coordinate their outfits for the ball?
"I think I'm going to wear green this year," she said, already imagining the robes she had gotten a few months ago in case any formal event popped up.
Neville raised an eyebrow. "Green? Isn't that a little... Slytherin?"
She shook her head. "Isn't that a little narrow minded?"
He seemed to clam up. "You're right. I'm sorry."
From that point on he was silent. When they reached the Great Hall he led her over to their usual spot and they had a silent breakfast. Hermione assumed that Neville thought he had offended her, which in a way he did. She still wouldn't give up her Gryffindor pride for anything, but after Dumbledore's death and the end of the war Professor McGonagall had pressed the issue of inter-house unity.
After breakfast Neville walked her to the potions classroom and they parted ways.
Hermione refused to look at Snape during the lesson. Possibly because she was ignoring him Snape seemed more and more intent on putting her on the spot and calling her out more than usual. It was like he never seemed to see anyone else in the room. Oddly enough Draco was the one waving his hand in the air seeking the professor's attention. If she hadn't been so angry Hermione would have been wondering exactly how the roles had gotten reversed.
At the end of the class period she approached Professor Snape's desk with her bottle of Exploding Fluid in hand. When she handed him the potion she made sure to hold her hand in a way that the little light in the room would catch the stone in the ring she wore. She watched as his eyes momentarily settled on the ring. His expression was empty and almost cold.
"That is a very pretty ring that you are wearing, Miss Granger," he said quietly.
She smiled sweetly. "You would know, wouldn't you?"
"I wouldn't know what you are talking about, Miss Granger."
"Like you wouldn't." She turned to return to her desk. "I will see you at the ball tomorrow night."