A Puzzling Professor

When Headmaster Dumbledore had asked Hermione if she would mind having Madame Pomfrey keep her company while some of the Order members discussed her predicament, Hermione had readily agreed. She'd thought the kind Mediwitch would be easy company. Nimue's spandex knickers! Had she ever been wrong! Obviously the mediwitch's calm bedside manner was a horrible pretense. Madame Pomfrey practically seethed with unchecked emotion and, when Hermione tried to distract herself from this by conversing with the mediwitch, she found they had absolutely no common ground. Madame Pomfrey turned out to be about as interesting as the other seventh year girls in Hermione's dorm. The older woman kept up a constant and rambling dialogue of catty gossip, fashion advice, and numerous suggestions about how Hermione should style her hair. Hermione didn't know what was worse, the inflow of riotous emotion or the insipid prattle. After politely attempting to be agreeable for the first thirty minutes of this torture, Hermione had taken to pacing about the tiny room, trying to dispel some of her nervous energy. She had to repeatedly ignore Madame Pomfrey's suggestions that she try to rest. Honestly! If this continued much longer she was going to start climbing the walls!

Hermione's ordeal ended abruptly when the door to the small room banged open to admit a stern-faced Professor Snape in a flurry of black robes. Hermione had never been more relieved to see anyone in her entire life. She felt better as soon as he strode through the doorway. She felt protected. She felt safe.

Severus took one look at the very flustered, pacing young woman and found himself fighting back the urge to hex the blasted mediwitch. He settled for a brusque dismissal. "Poppy, I will take over your duty here for the present; you may go."

Poppy looked startled, by both his sharp tone and the way he stared at her, as he resolutely held the door open for her immediate exit. Finding herself intimidated by his abrupt manner, she forwent arguing with him in favor of rather overdone fussing over Miss Granger as she bid the girl goodbye. The moment Poppy left, Severus shut the door firmly in her wake and turned to Miss Granger. He found himself completely at a loss when the girl walked right up to him, rested her cheek against his chest, and wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight hug. Merlin's balls! Students did not hug the evil, Death Eater, Potions master! Hell, women in general didn't wrap their arms about his person and hug him as though...well...as though they wanted to. He didn't know whether to hex her or hug her back. Damn and blast! He couldn't hex her; the poor girl was trembling like a leaf. An hour with Poppy must have been nearly more than the girl could stand. Exactly what was he supposed to do with the chit? He had no experience calming distressed young students. With the expression on his face a mixture of confusion and discomfort, Severus raised a hand to pat awkwardly at her shoulder.

The clumsy pat made Hermione suddenly realize exactly what it was she was doing. Merciful Heavens! She was hugging the most feared and abrasive professor at Hogwarts! What in the world was she thinking? What in hell was he thinking? She would be lucky if he didn't assign her detention for the rest of the year. Yet...he wasn't pushing her away...he was sort of...patting her. Severus Snape! Patting her! Perhaps she was insane after all. Abruptly withdrawing from the now uncomfortable embrace, Hermione found herself staring at Professor Snape's black booted feet while she blushed to the roots of her hair. Her tongue stumbled around an apology. "I'm sorry, Professor, it was...rude of me...to fly at you like that. I was very glad to see you, sir. Madame Pomfrey was...er...difficult."

Severus could not restrain a short bark of laughter. Hermione's eyes flew up to his in wide-eyed shock. "Miss Granger, while I am normally unwilling to speak ill of a fellow Hogwarts staff member before a student, I must admit I am quite aware Madame Pomfrey is a gossip-mongering imbecile. I half expected to find you a gibbering wreck after an hour in her forced company. My apologies, Miss Granger--had I been aware whom the Headmaster had stuck you with, I'd have arrived sooner."

It required all Hermione's concentration not to gape at her normally foul-mouthed git of a Potions Professor. First he had patted her shoulder, then he had actually laughed, now he was speaking to her like a human being. In fact, he was being rather wickedly witty and inconceivably kind. It struck Hermione that she really didn't know this enigmatic man at all. She was going to do some serious thinking about that. Hermione knew Professor Snape was a spy, but she'd never truly considered all the ramifications of his work for the Order.

Severus did not like the calculating way in which Miss Granger was now regarding him. Damn and blast! Some Head of Slytherin, über-spy he was! One ridiculous hug and he'd slipped up in front of one of the brightest minds at Hogwarts. Well...she was indeed one of the brightest minds here, as well as an Order member. As slips went, he didn't see that it was all that dangerous. He would ignore it for now and attempt to be more careful in future. Perhaps he could throw her off-track. No time like the present...

"Have you just been lounging about in here?" Severus said in a disdainful tone accompanied by a raised eyebrow. "I would imagine catching up with your studies would be a more suitable way to pass the time you will remain stuck in this abysmal room?" To Severus' surprise, the young witch neither grew angry, nor rolled her eyes. She simply continued to study his face for a moment before replying in a calm tone.

"Actually, I would quite like to have something to do and I am worried about keeping up with my classes, seeing how I may be here for some time. Unfortunately, I do not have my books here, nor would Madame Pomfrey send for them. Would you be so kind as to arrange someone to collect them for me, sir?"

Severus forced a sigh of resignation. "I suppose, Miss Granger, it is not enough that I am to be your babysitter, I may as well be your social secretary as well," he said in a tone both dry and acidic. He was disconcerted to find that Miss Granger simply smiled at him.

Hermione was getting quite a speedy lesson in What Makes Severus Snape Tick. Though untrained, she could easily tell that Professor Snape was not irritated. She still felt his protectiveness, which was very strong. Now the static noise of a crowd's emotions were no longer overwhelming her, she could tell her professor had other emotions swirling around beneath that swell of protectiveness, but she could not quite identify them. Still, it was extremely apparent his outward manner had very little to do with what he truly felt. It occurred to Hermione that he wore that abrasive persona like a costume; sort of an 'aren't I a nasty, evil, Death Eater' costume. Hermione was not quite sure what she thought of all that, but it certainly was an intriguing puzzle. Hermione loved a good puzzle.

"Thank you, Professor. That would be most kind," she replied with a smile.

"I assure you, Granger; kindness had nothing to do with the matter," Severus continued, with all the abrasive snark he could muster in the face of her gentle smile. "It is pure selfishness on my part. The sooner you have some sort of task to occupy your time, the sooner I shall be able to have some peace from your endless prattle." Though his expression did not change, Severus was startled that the only effect his performance had on the girl was a slight widening of her amused smile. He's obviously made a complete bollocks of this impossible situation already. Bloody hell! Severus could only hope the intelligent young witch never plumbed the depths of his most carefully guarded secret.

Realizing he'd been staring at the girl, Severus turned abruptly to the door and opened it to glare into the infirmary beyond. He was relieved to see Minerva chatting with a ruffled Madame Pomfrey. Interrupting them with a sharp "Professor McGonagall, if I might have a word," Severus rolled his eyes in exasperation as Minerva turned to regard him--a twinkle of mischief in her eyes that rivaled Albus'.

"What can I do for you, Professor Snape? I trust you have found Miss Granger well?" Minerva addressed Severus with a soft chuckle at his obvious aggravation.

In clipped tones, Severus replied, "Nothing about this repugnant situation is well, Minerva. Miss Granger would like her schoolbooks and I would like the red book on the desk in my study. In addition to that, perhaps you might want to consider the fact this horrendous room has nothing in it but a bed and a chair; at the least you might provide the girl a desk to study at. Not to mention the fact that Miss Granger and I have not had a thing to eat since breakfast, nor do we seem to have access to a lav. I don't know what the hell you all were thinking when you created this detestable cage."

Minerva knew him too well to be put off by his caustic tone. It was obvious that he was concerned more for the comfort of the student presently in his charge than in his own. After all, the Potions Professor would only have to do shifts in the room; Miss Granger would be stuck there for at least a week. "We were in a bit of a rush before, Severus. I will see about your books and then ask the Headmaster what else we can do to see to your comfort."

"See that you do," Severus replied, sulking. Why was it that despite his best 'Death Eater' act, suddenly everybody kept smiling at him? Fucking hell! Was he losing his touch? While Minerva strode off, Severus remained a moment in the open doorway to give an experimental glare at Poppy. Biting back a satisfied smirk when the mediwitch paled and turned away, Severus at last closed the door.

During the twenty minutes that passed before any deliveries were made to the warded room, Severus sat in the chair, glaring at Miss Granger. When she politely tried to engage him in conversation, he answered her queries in monosyllables, if he answered at all. Severus was completely baffled by the young witch's response to his gruff treatment. Far from being discouraged, she persisted in smiling at him and continued chatting animatedly despite his lack of response. He did not know whether to admire her tenacity or worry about the state of her sanity. Severus was still musing over that quandary when there came a brisk knock on the door. Opening it, Severus was faced with a small army of house-elves bearing platters of sandwiches, tea, pumpkin juice, Miss Granger's book bag, and the book he was currently reading--Disappearing Ingredients: the Effects of Muggle Deforestation of the Rainforest on Modern Potion Making. Severus was hesitant to allow them entry; he was unsure what effect they would have on Miss Granger. He was considering asking them to leave everything at the door when Miss Granger spoke.

"Professor Snape, I believe you may let them in. I was fine with Madame Pomfrey when...when you were here. They should not be here for very long at any rate."

Studying her intently for a moment before replying, Severus said, "As you wish, Miss Granger. However, I trust you will inform me if you experience any difficulty?"

"Certainly, sir. Thank you," Hermione replied with a smile.

Would the thrice-damned girl never stop smiling at him? If he wasn't more cautious, this ridiculous situation was going to get out of hand very quickly. Now that he was stuck in this closet sized room, face to face with the smiling young woman, he wondered what had possessed him to accept this torturous fate. Oh, he knew it seemed reasonable at the time, but Hermione's warm smile was convincing him he'd made a grave error in letting himself get trapped in close quarters with a female student that he found inappropriately alluring. Merlin's teeth! Was he a Slytherin or a blasted Hufflepuff? Surely one Death Eater spy was more than match enough for any student, no matter how enticing.

The troop of house-elves traipsed in. After conjuring a small table on which to put the lunch, they gave Hermione her knapsack with much friendly chattering. An uncharacteristically silent house-elf gave the Potions Professor his requested book and fled squeaking from his answering scowl. Within minutes, the noisy gaggle of house-elves had left as suddenly as they'd arrived. Closing the door behind them, Severus grabbed a sandwich before plunking back down in the chair and opening his book.

Serving herself from the table, Hermione sat cross-legged on the bed with her knapsack. Pulling out her Transfiguration text, she munched happily on a sandwich while she read. Thirty minutes later found Severus having difficulty remaining focused on his reading. Having finished her meal, Hermione was now lying on her stomach with her head propped on one hand as she continued to read. Knees bent, feet in the air, with ankles crossed, she swung her feet gently back and forth in unconscious motion as she studied. Severus had never seen her so relaxed and unguarded, nor so quiet. She made a pretty picture, lying there with her book. Fucking hell! Was he torturing himself on purpose? There could never be anything between them, even if the young woman was willing. Why in hell was he sitting here watching the chit read as if he was a love-sick schoolboy? With an unconscious sigh, he dragged his eyes from her bare calves and tried to focus on his book.

Hearing his soft exhalation, Hermione peeked up at him over the top of her book. Seeing he wasn't looking at her, she took the opportunity to study his face intently. Puzzling. His attention was focused on the book, yet his eyes were not moving, nor did he turn a page. Professor Snape just stared at it, lost in thought. His eyes held none of the coldness she usually found there. Their black depths gazed unseeing at the book before them, as if the world they examined was far away from this dingy room. Hermione thought Professor Snape looked a trifle wistful; it was an expression much softer and infinitely more sad than she'd ever seen on his chiseled features. Strange, without the acid tone of voice and the habitual sneer, his face--thus softened--looked almost handsome...well...perhaps more striking than handsome, but it was rather appealing. Nimue's bustier! What was she thinking? Did she actually just find the 'bat of the dungeons' attractive? Hermione's shocked eyes snapped back down to her textbook. Calm down, girl, calm down! I've had a rough couple of days; it's probably just the stress talking. I had a trying time with Madame Pomfrey and then Professor Snape burst in like a snarky knight in black wool armor. Little wonder I'm feeling better disposed towards him. Hermione risked another peek over the top of her book. Damn! Despite all my creative rationalizations, I still think he looks quite appealing. I need something to distract myself from this until I have a chance to think about it. Reluctantly, Hermione tore her eyes from the inky depths she had been contemplating and glanced down. Pausing at the curve of his lips, which she noted looked very different without being twisted into their customary sneer; she then looked at the red cover of the book he was (not) reading. Now there was an interesting subject, she thought as she read the title. It was also a subject she knew a bit about, from a Muggle standpoint at least. Perhaps a discussion would distract both Professor Snape from his wistfulness and herself from her inappropriate thoughts.

"Professor Snape," she called, when he looked up she continued, "are you aware Muggle scientists estimate that 137 plant, animal, and insect species are made extinct every day by the deforestation of the rainforest?"

Severus was intrigued despite himself. "That is amazingly similar to the data gathered by wizards studying the phenomenon. Muggle scientists study this?"

"Indeed they do. I have several Muggle books on the subject. I would be happy to lend them to you if you wish."

"Miss Granger, if Muggles are aware of the problem, why is it that they have not put a stop to the destruction? It is the Muggles who are causing it."

"Some Muggles are aware of it and they are trying to educate others. There is only so much they can do about the situation when the governments in charge of the land sell the forest to any lumber company that wants to chop it down."

"Why in the world would they want to do something which will only cause future harm, and possibly drastic harm at that?" Professor Snape looked completely flabbergasted by the thought.

"They are poor countries, Professor. I suppose it seems more important to them to try to improve their lot now and let the future care for itself. One can hardly fault people--concerned with where they'll get their next meal--for not worrying overmuch about the future of the planet. This is a worldwide problem; it needs a worldwide solution. Smacking them on the hands and saying 'don't do that' while offering them no real alternative simply isn't good enough."

Severus was enchanted by the intelligent witch's views on the subject. It was intriguing to listen to a debate on the matter from a Muggle standpoint. "It is indeed a worldwide problem, for wizards as well as Muggles. Why then don't the Muggle governments band together and find a solution to the trouble?"

Hermione snorted. "We have a devil of a time getting the wizards of a single country to band together against a common foe. Do you think it is much different with Muggle governments?"

Smirking in amusement, Severus conceded that Hermione had a point. The pair continued the discussion, to the great enjoyment of both, until they were at last interrupted by a knock. Striding to the door, Severus opened it to see Albus regarding him with madly twinkling eyes. What new hell had the old man planned for him now?

"Severus," Albus greeted him. "Miss Granger, do you think it would be all right for me to come in for a moment?"

"I'm sure it would be fine, Headmaster," Hermione said with a smile.

Albus walked into the room and softly closed the door. "We've been working on a much more comfortable place for you to stay, Miss Granger, and I daresay you will find it more convenient as well, Severus. It is better furnished and we've also warded its adjoining lavatory. I decided it would be easiest to take you there by portkey, so if you will both take hold of this..."

Albus Dumbledore held out a rather worn Altoids tin. When Hermione reached out to touch it, she felt the familiar queasiness associated with portkey travel. It lasted for but a moment. Feet once again firm on the floor, Hermione looked around with interest. It was a lovely room. There was a black leather sofa with two matching chairs arranged around a large hearth, fire blazing merrily. A beautiful mahogany desk stood near one wall, on the adjoining wall was a huge window looking across the lawn. The window had a charming seat, which Hermione immediately decided would be her favorite place to sit. Best of all, the room was absolutely filled with books. Hermione had never seen a more wondrous room in her entire life. Her delight was suddenly interrupted by the voice of her irate Potions Professor.

"Albus," Severus shouted, "what the bloody fuck are we doing in my private study?"