Chapter 22

Disclaimer: These characters are not mine. Anything that seems vaguely familiar in this chapter has been quoted, paraphrased, or just plain old summarized from The Chamber of Secrets. Oh, and if it's not here, it happened just as it did in Canon.

Chapter 22

Hermione's second year:

Severus threw the paper down and glared at the two second-years standing before him.

"You were seen by no less than seven Muggles. What were you thinking?"

Harry looked down sheepishly. "Sorry, sir."

Severus eyed him in annoyance. "I expected more from the two of you."

"But, sir!" Ron sputtered. "We were trapped! We couldn't get to the platform. My parents had gone through without us. We had no choice."

Severus sat back in his chair and thrummed his fingers on the desk.

"Mr. Weasley," he said finally. "There are always choices. You could have waited for your parents at the car. You could have sent an owl here. There were numerous things that were much less stupid for you to choose from. Why did you decide to do the most foolish and dangerous thing that came to mind? I did not take the two of you for dunderheads!"

"Sir," Harry piped in. "We didn't think. We just acted."

"I believe that's obvious, Mr. Potter," Severus stated evenly. "Not only were you seen, but you did considerable damage to a tree that has been on school property for longer than you've both been alive."

"I think it did more damage to us," Ron muttered.

Severus glared at Ron. "Do you not know when to shut it, Mr. Weasley?"

Ron looked sheepishly to the floor.

"I am not your head of house, so I will not be involved in your punishment, but I assure you, Professor McGonagall will not be lenient with you. You will both be lucky to be a part of this school when she is finished with you. You will stay here while I fetch her."

Severus got up and rigidly stalked out of his office. A few minutes later he returned with Minerva.

She listened to the whole tale, frowning all the way. The Headmaster then made an appearance, and the tale was retold. More frowns were displayed by the Headmaster and the two Professors. Harry wished he could disappear into the floor he was so embarrassed. All three teachers were looking at Ron and him with such disdain. He was sure they would be expelled.

Harry almost fainted when he finally did hear the punishment. No expulsion, no house points taken, only a detention and a note to his Aunt Petunia and one to Ron's parents. Although the latter disturbed him as he didn't want to let his aunt down, he was thrilled that he wasn't heading home this minute.

The three teachers regarded the students sternly. Minerva waved her wand, and a plate of sandwiches and two drinks appeared.

"Eat in here and then go straight to your rooms," she ordered. "We must get back to the feast."

Harry and Ron sputtered their thanks and watched the three teachers leave the room. Harry could have sworn he saw smirks on all of their faces before they turned and left the two boys alone.

oooOOOooo

Harry watched as the bright red howler yelled ferociously at Ron. He looked down at the letter in his own hand and was thankful that his aunt had not chosen the same type of correspondence for him. He would have deserved it, of course, but he would rather not have the entire school know of her displeasure. Unfortunately, even though this wasn't a howler, he knew it would be different from her other correspondence to him which he had received the previous year.

Ron's howler destroyed itself after blowing a raspberry at him. Ron grimaced and looked like a lost puppy. Harry almost laughed, but then remembered the parchment in his hand. He opened it tentatively.

Dear Harry,

Aunt Petunia

It would have been better if she had sent the howler. Harry felt even worse with her kind words and inference about his mother. He folded the letter and stuffed it in his robes. Ron and he exchanged sad glances.

"Not happy, was she?" Ron asked Harry.

"No, but she didn't say anything mean."

"Lucky," Ron mused.

"Yeah," Harry said thoughtfully.

oooOOOooo

Lucius sat with Severus in the Three Broomsticks. The two were sipping butterbeers and were deep in conversation.

"Draco has been griping about her all summer," Lucius drawled. "I think it's more that she's friends with Potter than anything. I finally saw her at Flourish and Botts before term started. Why didn't you tell me last year that she had arrived at Hogwarts?"

Severus narrowed his eyes at Lucius.

"I didn't know you were interested in the arrival of a child who would have no recollection of knowing you."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "She was my friend too. I would have liked to know that she was here again."

Severus leaned in to Lucius.

"Listen, Hermione is not who you remember and won't be for years. She would be puzzled to have any interest from you. And what of the Dark Lord? He never met Hermione and didn't know what she looked like. What happens if he is not truly dead? What if he returns? We would not even be able to think about her in his presence or he may figure out that this young girl is the same woman who bested him so long ago. If he ever found out, he would kill her before she even had a chance to travel back in time."

Lucius' smug look fell from his face, and he appeared to be concerned.

"Well," he said pensively, "I wouldn't want to endanger Professor Granger in any way."

"Then say nothing of this again. When she returns, I'm sure she'll make herself known to you."

Lucius nodded his head to Severus.

"Alright. I'll keep quiet," he acquiesced.

Severus gave him a terse smile.

oooOOOooo

Severus entered the classroom wearily. It had been a long day, and he was looking forward to curling up in his nice warm bed for a good night's rest. He just needed to check the supplies for the classes in the morning before turning in. He stopped abruptly when he saw a light coming from beneath the doorway to his private stores. He wandered up silently and threw open the door. He was surprised to see Hermione, Miss Granger, taking some bottles down from the shelf.

Hermione jumped at his noisy entrance. She spun around, looking guilty. Severus narrowed his eyes at her and demanded an explanation. Anger coursed throughout his body. Love of his life or not, this young girl was stealing his stores. That was something he had no patience for.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I..." she looked down. She had no explanation for her actions whatsoever.

"Just what do you mean by pilfering my stores, Miss Granger," he asked angrily.

"I'm sorry, sir, I should have just asked you," she said remorsefully. "It's just that I'm sure you'll say no."

"Say no to what?" he snapped

"Polyjuice potion, sir. I'm brewing some."

"Why would a second-year student need to brew Polyjuice Potion? Besides, what makes you so sure you are capable of brewing it correctly?" he asked tersely.

She told him everything. Hermione explained how they suspected Draco Malfoy of being the Heir of Slytherin and how they wanted to get near him and see what he knew. She spoke of the plan to transform into his best friends so he would be open with them. Then she looked at him sheepishly and asked him not to be too mad at her. Her pathetically sorrowful face made his anger lessen a bit as he thought about what to do.

"Draco Malfoy may be a braggart, but I do not believe he has anything to do with the Chamber of Secrets," Severus said finally.

"How can you be sure?" she threw back at him.

In reality, he couldn't. However, that would not stop him from arguing his point with Hermione.

"He does not have any great hatred for Muggle-borns," he said finally. Although Draco's mother was prejudiced against everyone and everything not pureblood, his father had been able to instill in Draco a more even regard for those in the world around him.

Hermione huffed at him. "That doesn't mean that he's not involved. He hates Harry. Perhaps he's trying to frame him or something."

"Miss Granger, that's absurd. Why would he go to such great lengths just to frame Mr. Potter?"

Hermione pursed her lips and looked to the ground. "I don't know. But if he's not the Heir of Slytherin, who is?"

Severus regarded her thoughtfully. "I don't know, but you are just a student, Miss Granger, a second year student at that. It is not your place to play detective."

Hermione looked at him pleadingly. "Professor, please? We'll bring anything we find straight to you."

"You seem to think that you are invincible, Miss Granger. I know you are very smart, but you cannot do everything. I assure you, you are not invincible. It would be remiss of me as a teacher to allow you to dabble in things you are not prepared for."

"Could you oversee my continuing with the potion, then, sir?"

"It is not the potion that is the problem. It is what you plan to do with said potion."

Hermione studied him. "Perhaps you could look on it as a harmless prank?"

Severus' eyes narrowed at her. "There are no harmless pranks, Miss Granger."

"Well, do you have a better idea?" Hermione snapped.

"Mind your tongue, Miss Granger! Ten points from Gryffindor."

Hermione softened her tone. "Please, sir. No harm will come of it. The worst that can happen is that Malfoy finds out we're trying to get information from him. But if it works, we'll know if he's to be trusted or not."

The direness of the situation, and the fact that Dumbledore was perplexed as to who may have opened the Chamber, drew heavily on Severus' mind. If even the old gray wizard who knew everything did not know who this particular culprit was, then they were at a serious disadvantage. He seriously doubted that the Malfoy child had anything to do with the Chamber, although he had been quite cheeky in his boastings as of late. Perhaps Hermione was right in wanting to question him. If he wasn't the culprit, perhaps he knew who was. He shook his head as to the lengths to which he would let this girl go. He seriously had a soft spot in his heart for her.

"Miss Granger, I cannot allow you to proceed with this plan. I can neither condone your making of the Polyjuice Potion nor the use of it. You will vanish what you have so far and not attempt to brew it again. You have detention tomorrow night with Mr. Filch for breaking into my private stores. Turn off the light when you are done putting my ingredients away."

With that, he turned and swept from the room, leaving a very curious Hermione staring after him. She wondered why he had left her to herself, knowing she had been trying to take what didn't belong to her. She turned back to the shelves, pulled the bicorn horn and Boomslang skin off the shelves and stuffed them under her robes. She quickly escaped from the store room, making sure the light was off when she left.

From the shadows, Severus watched the young girl make a quick escape from his storeroom, her cloak bulging. He raised an eyebrow at her cheek. He was not surprised, however. He knew that the minute he left her she would take the Polyjuice ingredients. The girl was rash and headstrong, much like her older self.

oooOOOooo

Dudley came up to the Gryffindor table towards the end of dinner. He tapped Harry on the shoulder. Harry looked up at Dudley expectantly.

"Can I ask you a question?" Dudley asked.

"You just did," Harry joked.

Dudley gave him a quick smile. "It's a private question. Can we go somewhere and chat?"

Harry nodded to Hermione and Ron and got up. "Sure, Dud, let's take a walk outside."

The two boys headed for the door and soon found themselves walking down the pathway towards the lake.

Dudley looked uncomfortable. Harry turned to him and became worried.

"What's wrong, Dudley?" he asked.

Dudley furrowed his brows. "I've heard some... things about you, Harry. Some things about this Chamber of Secrets too."

Harry looked back at Dudley with concern.

"What have you heard, Dud?"

"That you're the Heir of Slytherin."

"I can assure you, I'm not."

Dudley looked over at Harry, searching him for the truth.

"Don't you believe me, Dudley?"

Dudley heaved a huge sigh. "I don't know what to believe, especially after the dueling class! What was all that with talking with the snake? Why did you send it to attack Justin?"

"Dudley, I was telling that snake to be nice. I told it to leave Finch-Fletchley alone. I didn't realize at the time that I was the only one who could understand what I was saying. I know it seems suspicious, but I was trying to help!"

Dudley watched Harry closely as he explained himself. His shoulders finally sagged in relief.

"I'm sorry I thought badly of you, Harry, it's just that everyone is talking about you. Even Susan and Hannah are suspicious. Justin is scared to death that he'll be petrified before the week is out."

Susan Bones, Hannah Abbot, and Justin Finch-Fletchley were Dudley's best friends. Most of the time they were inseparable, but he also spent a bit of his spare time with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

"Not much of what anyone is saying is flattering," Dudley went on.

Harry shook his head. "You know how the rumor mill is here. The story now probably says I arm wrestled the snake and then wrapped it around Fletchley's body and told it to kill."

Dudley thought about that for a moment. "Yup, that's pretty much what I heard."

The two boys chuckled and continued their walk, discussing the finer points of school gossip. After a long while they had circled around and returned to the school.

"I still think you should have gone out for the Quidditch team, Dud," Harry mused.

"Quidditch is your thing, Harry, not mine," Dudley retorted.

"So, what is your thing?"

Dudley grinned from ear to ear. "I'm a ladies man," he drawled.

Harry laughed at his pudgy cousin. He had to admit, though, Dudley didn't have much fear when it came to talking to girls. Even though his body wasn't perfect, he never let that stop him from flirting with the ladies of Hufflepuff. He especially spent a lot of time with Susan Bones. She seemed to enjoy his company and always had a smile for him. Maybe his cousin's joke wasn't as much of a joke as Harry had first thought. He pondered that as they went into the school together with Harry patting Dudley's shoulder appreciatively.

oooOOOooo

Severus shot the spell and watched Harry crash into the wall. He lowered his wand.

"Whatever is wrong with you today?" he asked. "You have been distracted throughout our entire session."

Harry got to his feet and furrowed his brows. "I'm sorry. I just have a lot going on."

"Yes, and I don't," Severus shot back.

"You don't understand. The entire school hates me," Harry griped.

Severus raised an eyebrow at Harry's comment. "And why, pray tell, do they hate you? Are you not the Golden Child?"

"Stop making fun of me!" Harry yelled.

Severus regarded Harry with concern. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be offensive, only to lighten the mood. Why don't you tell me what's going on?"

"Everyone thinks that I'm the Heir of Slytherin! They all avoid me like I'm a pariah. When they do talk to me, they are nasty, or afraid. I can't take it anymore!"

Severus' shoulders sagged. "Unfortunately, you will have to take it until this whole thing is solved. Your little Polyjuice incident uncovered nothing and only managed to send Miss Granger to the infirmary for weeks. Now, of course, she is trapped there again."

"Everyone's saying I'm the cause of her being petrified. Why would they think I would petrify my own friend?" Harry cried.

"The students don't think things out like that, Harry. They just hear a rumor and believe it. You could be petrified yourself, and they'd still think you were the Heir of Slytherin."

Harry chuckled at the stupidity in that.

Severus waved his wand, and two chairs appeared next to them. They both sat down.

"Harry, you said before that I didn't understand what you were going through. You're wrong. I understand all too well."

Harry looked at Severus curiously.

"Unlike you, I was never liked at school, so the silence from the other students never bothered me much, as I was used to it. I was also used to the frightened glares and the avoidance from them."

"You weren't popular at school?" Harry asked.

"I just said that, didn't I?" Severus asked back.

Harry looked embarrassed. "Sorry," he muttered. "But didn't you have any friends? I thought you were friends with my mum."

"She was my only friend for most of my time at Hogwarts. I was also friends with Lucius Malfoy, but they were the only two people, save one professor my seventh year, who ever treated me like a real friend."

"You just said you were friends with my mum most of the time you were at Hogwarts. What does that mean?"

"I said something offensive to her during an embarrassing incident in our fifth year. That ended our friendship."

Harry looked startled. "What did you say to her?"

Severus looked down to the ground. "I called her a Mudblood."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Wow. Malfoy called Hermione that a few months ago. She was really upset when she found out what it meant."

Severus looked livid. He wanted to go up to Malfoy this instant and have a stern talk with him. The boy had been taught better than that. Of course, if he did speak to Draco, the young man would wonder why he had come to Hermione's defense. Lucius would find out, and questions would be asked. He sighed to himself. Being a spy had great disadvantages.

"I would expect more from Mr. Malfoy," Severus commented. "His father has taught him better than to say such things."

Harry shrugged. "He was just annoyed with something Hermione had said. He said it more to hurt her feelings than anything else, I think."

"Nonetheless, it was a crass thing to say." He got back to the topic at hand.

"I said what I did to your mother because I was angry and embarrassed about something very vulgar some other student had done to me. Lily had come to my aid. I was even more embarrassed that she had seen what had happened, so I lashed out at her. I was not what you would call a sociable person at the time. I didn't know how to react to people, even when they were looking out for me."

"What happened that made you so angry in the first place?" Harry asked.

Severus regarded Harry thoughtfully. He was uncertain whether to divulge the nastiness of Harry's own father to him.

"There were a group of students who sought me out to tease me at school. I was not completely innocent in the matter, but they were usually the instigators."

"What did they do?"

"On this particular occasion one of them had strung me up in a tree and removed my trousers."

Harry gaped at Severus. Even Malfoy wouldn't be that cruel, would he?

"That's awful," Harry muttered.

Severus nodded. "So, as you can see, I can understand fully how it feels to be ostracized by an entire school. You just need to move forward and not let it bother you. Things will settle down eventually and be back to normal. You need to work on concentrating on the things at hand. Your dueling today has been abominable. If you were involved in a real duel with your current mindset, you would be dead ten times over."

"I can't believe someone would do that to you, Professor, it's awful." Harry said. He was still in shock at Severus' revelation.

"Yes, well, life is not often fair," Severus mumbled.

"Who did it, Professor?"

"No one you know, Harry," Severus sighed.

"Is he a Death Eater now?"

Severus laughed. "No, he is not a Death Eater now. He is not alive now."

"What happened to him?"

Severus looked at the young boy in front of him. He was so unlike his father. Severus couldn't think of an instance where Harry would lash out at someone unprovoked like his father had. He knew Harry had an unusual protective feeling toward his father. He did not want to shatter that love and respect that he had for him.

"I would rather not go into it," Severus said finally.

"Sir, please. I want to know."

Severus again studied Harry. He was no longer a little boy. He would learn about this story eventually and then maybe resent Severus for not telling him about it right away. He could not shelter him. The boy had too much to do in his life to be sheltered.

"The man was your father, Harry. You know his story. He was killed by Voldemort."

Harry's eyes grew wide. "My... my father! But he was a great man!"

Severus sighed. "He may have been a great man, but he was a swine of a student."

"He was part of that group you were speaking of, the ones that would torment you endlessly?"

Severus nodded.

"I can't believe it," Harry said angrily. "Why would he do that?"

"He did it because he was a smug, show-off."

Harry cradled his head in his hands.

"I always thought he was a hero for standing up to Voldemort the way he did."

Severus leaned forward in his chair. "Harry, he was a hero. He tried to protect both you and your mother. About the things he did as a youth; kids do horrid things to one another." Severus swallowed hard, not believing that he was going to admit to what he was about to utter. "I'm sure if he were alive now, he would be the great man that you thought he was."

Harry looked at Severus with incredulity. "How can you defend him? He was horrid to you."

"I have found that hating those who have wronged me in the past is a waste of time. I probably would not be friends with your father were he alive now, but I do not hate him."

Harry looked upon Severus and thought about all he had said. He was quite surprised to find that his Professor could speak of such nasty events so nonchalantly. Of course, Professor Snape had lived with the knowledge of all of it for a long time. Harry had just heard it. Harry was embarrassed. He was embarrassed to be the son of James Potter. How could his father have been so awful? He was worse than Malfoy!

Harry looked to the ground. "I can't believe that my father was so cruel to you. I'm sorry that he was."

"Your father's sins are not on your head, Harry."

"I know, but I feel horrible just the same," Harry confided.

Severus smirked at him. "And there is the difference between you and your father. Your father never felt guilty about the things he did. He just did them and moved on. He felt justified in everything that he did."

"There's no justification for being so cruel," Harry said with a grimace.

"I agree," Severus said. He had a far away look, as if he was reliving the past.

"Thank you for sharing that with me, Professor. I'm sure it wasn't easy to talk about."

"If it will help you to realize the importance of not letting things affect you to the brink of destruction, than I am glad to have done so. Are you ready to continue?"

Harry looked at Severus gratefully and nodded. "Thank you for not holding my father's actions against me," he said finally.

Severus smirked at Harry. "You are not him, Harry. You are kinder, like your mother was." He stood, signaling the end of the conversation.

Harry stood also, and the two chairs disappeared. Before Harry even had a chance to get ready, a silent spell came at his head.

Harry cried, "Protego." He barely got the shield up in time.

Severus smiled. "Nicely done, Mr. Potter. That's more like it."

oooOOOooo

Severus waited until past midnight to go to the infirmary. He certainly didn't want to be seen here by anyone, including Poppy. He sneaked in and silently moved to the young girl's bed. Hermione lay there petrified. She stared vacantly at nothing. He bent over her and caressed the young girl's cheek, wishing there was something he could do for her. He supposed that she would be fine once the Mandrake Draught was made and administered, but he still was worried. It seemed like Hermione had spent half the year in the infirmary between the Polyjuice incident and this petrifying. Foolish Gryffindor, he thought, always getting into trouble.

If she kept going like this, she would never live to travel back into the past. Severus put his hand on hers and squeezed it. How he wished the years would pass quickly, and this young girl would emerge as the beautiful woman he knew she would become. Having to watch her as she matured had been harder than he had expected. He enjoyed their encounters in and out of class, but they were constant reminders of what he couldn't have. At least, what he couldn't have now. His heart ached for her return to him. Sometimes it strained within him so tightly, he thought it would burst. Those were the times he would quickly escape to his room and hide away while pining for his lost love.

What he wouldn't give to have her back in his arms again. What he wouldn't give to see her smile at him with her eyes filled with love. What he wouldn't give to be able to tell her how much he loved her. But none of those things were possible now. She was just a child, and her return to him was years in the future. At times, it felt like her return would never come. But looking down at Hermione now, he knew that it would. He knew that if he patiently held out, she would return to him. He would need to wait for her to grow up, but it would happen, just as surely as he was holding her hand right now. He gathered his thoughts and leaned over her, whispering in her ear.

"Just get better, and grow up, my love," he murmured to her before he straightened and silently exited the infirmary.

A/N: Next up: Third year: Werewolf Watching

I'll cover any important changes with Petunia and Harry's summers too. But if you ever have questions about anything, please ask. I love hearing from you and answering what I can without spoiling the future plot.