Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Severus rapped on the door of the Headmistress' office and entered without waiting.

"You wished to see me, Headmistress?"

"Yes, Severus, please have a seat."

Severus sat in the seat placed in front of Minerva's desk. He sat rigidly, awaiting whatever it was Minerva had to say to him.

"I would like you to consider taking the Deputy Headmaster position, Severus."

Severus scoffed. "What does the Ministry say about that?" His tone was bitter and a sneer had suddenly come across his face.

"I don't care what the Ministry says about it, Severus. This is my school, and I will appoint whomever I see fit in whichever position I desire."

Severus softened slightly at her defiant declaration. Sitting back, he put his hand up to his face and rubbed his finger against his mouth. Minerva waited silently for Severus to work through his thoughts.

"You trust me in this position?" he asked finally.

"Absolutely."

More silence and thinking ensued.

"There will be no restrictions on my position from either you or the Ministry?"

"None whatsoever!" Minerva replied adamantly.

Severus continued to trace his lips with his finger. Suddenly, he sat forward. "All right, I'll do it."

Minerva smiled at him. Severus almost believed it was genuine.

"Wonderful," she said. "There is one order of business we need to discuss immediately. The rest can wait until tomorrow."

Severus' eyebrow rose curiously.

"I have appointed Hermione Granger as my replacement in Transfiguration. She arrived yesterday and is acclimating to life at the school. I will take care of her training if you would be sure to see that she understands the rules and regulations of the school."

Severus' eyes had grown wide at the announcement of Minerva's appointment. "Isn't Miss Granger a bit young to be taking on such a position? She hasn't even finished her training here."

"The field work that Weasley, Potter, and she have done has given them all enough credits to have passed the seventh year. She took the few weeks before arriving to study for her Transfiguration NEWT and passed it with an 'O' last week. She is fully accredited and qualified for this position."

"She's only a couple years older than most of the entering seventh-years," Severus chided. "Surely that will be a challenge for her."

"Of course it will be, Severus. She is aware of that and will be fine. I didn't call you to debate my decision. I want you to train her in anything she needs to know outside of her immediate professorial duties, which I will handle."

"Very well," Severus said as he rose to leave.

"Severus?"

"Yes, Minerva?"

"You seem to be a little more at peace with yourself. I'm happy for that."

Severus harrumphed at her and stalked out of the room. Blast it all! I thought I would be free from memories of Potter, being that he is off to Auror school to become the World's Greatest Auror. So much for peace and quiet. With Granger here, I'll have a constant reminder of Potter, his perfection, and his blasted mother, who has deserted my thoughts as of late.

The emptiness that Lily's abandonment had left in his life was a gaping wound. Her constant presence, which he'd felt throughout most of his life, was now gone. A gaping hole sat in its place. Even she had deserted him. Emptiness filled his soul. He pushed it away. He had things to do. He needed to instruct Granger on conduct befitting a professor at Hogwarts. Rolling his eyes, he heaved a huge sigh. She had probably read all about it already.

Severus made his way to Granger's quarters. He knocked lightly and tapped his foot while awaiting her answer. He didn't have to wait long. The door opened, and Hermione looked up at him.

"Oh, Professor Snape, it's good to see you."

Severus frowned. "You must be delusional, Granger, if you think it's good to see me!"

Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but then shut it again. She stared at Severus for a moment before inviting him in. Severus stalked past her and into the room. He turned to gaze at her, with his arms folded in front of him.

"Minerva has asked me to go over the rules of being a professor here at Hogwarts."

Hermione's eyebrows rose. "Oh! Well, please, have a seat." She motioned to the couch.

She settled herself and waited for Severus to do the same.

He looked tentatively at the place next to Hermione and then decided to seat himself in the chair facing the couch instead. He thought he saw a smirk flit across the know-it-all's face as he sat down and made himself comfortable.

"I assume you've read everything you can about being a Hogwarts employee?"

Hermione gave him a quick nod.

"Then perhaps you can tell me what kind of conduct is expected of you."

Hermione tilted her head. "Contact with the students is to be on a professional level only. Mentoring is acceptable, but close friendships with students are discouraged. Relationships with students are strictly forbidden and can be grounds for dismissal. Punishments of unruly students will consist of points taken and detentions. No spells are to be placed on students as punishments." Hermione stopped for a moment and scrunched her eyes up as she thought. "Grading policies are to be fair and equal among houses. If a faculty member has a social life, it is to be kept private. Have I forgotten anything, Professor Snape?"

Severus gritted his teeth. "As we are colleagues now, Professor, you may address me as Severus."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Then I suppose you may address me as Hermione."

"You forgot, Hermione, that breakfast and dinner is required to be taken in the Great Hall daily."

"Oh, yes. That just seemed like an obvious one."

"They're all obvious if you want to take that route."

Hermione smiled at him. He scowled back.

"How are you feeling, Severus? Have your injuries healed fully?"

Severus' hand went absently to his neck. "I am recovered."

"I'm glad." Hermione stared at him for a minute. "I'm sorry we didn't do more for you in the Shrieking Shack. We thought you had died. Between your apparent demise and all that was on Harry's mind at the time, we didn't really think to check to see if you were still alive. I've regretted that ever since the battle."

Severus scowled. "I did not come here to speak of the past. I came here to ensure that your training is completed."

"Of course," Hermione responded. "I just felt the need to apologize. I'm glad you survived."

Severus scoffed. "Surely, Professor Granger, you don't think that I believe that? I know that you hate me. You probably did a dance when you thought I had passed on."

Hermione gazed at Severus levelly. "I never hated you, Severus. Part of me actually felt sad at the thought of your death. Despite thinking that you were a murderer at the time, I was saddened to see your loss. You are brilliant, and your contributions to our world would be sorely missed if you had truly perished."

"Enough of your hogwash, Professor Granger."

"Hermione."

"... Hermione then."

"It's not hogwash, Severus. It was extremely upsetting to see you lying there, apparently dead. I'm glad we were wrong and that you survived."

Severus glared at the carpet. He was uncomfortable speaking of his death. He preferred to forget the snake attack, but his nightmares never let him. He certainly didn't want to rehash the incident during his waking hours, and the last person he would want to be chatting to about the attack was Hermione Granger.

"I see that I'm making you uncomfortable," Hermione continued finally. "I won't bring it up again. I would, however, like to thank you for all you've done for us. You're an incredibly brave man, Severus, and everyone finally knows it. I know we would have lost the cause were it not for you and all you've done."

"Granger, I am not in the mood for your hero worship."

Hermione smirked. "Hero worship is a bit of an extreme description. I am thankful for all you've done, though."

Severus stared at her. She didn't shrink or grimace from his gaze, she simply gazed back. What was she up to? He had been the most hated teacher at the school and had treated her as if she were a pariah, yet she had the audacity to thank him for it?

"You are grateful that I insulted you at every turn?" he retorted with a snort.

Hermione tilted her head and regarded Severus thoughtfully. "I can't say that I enjoyed any of that, to be truthful. Do you really find me unbearable, Severus, or was that part of your undercover charm?"

It was Severus' turn to smirk. "That, Hermione, is my secret."

Hermione's mouth tightened and she regarded Severus. "I was hoping, Severus," she said tentatively, "that we could be amicable towards each other. Maybe even become friends."

Severus scoffed. "Why would you want a friend in me?"

Hermione looked to the ground. "I respect you. I would like to prove to you that I'm more than just a book-spouting know-it-all, as you like to call me."

"You do hold grudges, Hermione. I don't believe I have given you that name since you were quite young."

"Actions speak louder than words, Severus."

A raised eyebrow was her only answer.

"Is there more I need to know about my position?"

The next half hour was spent in going over the duties that were expected of Hermione, including rounds rotations and staff meeting attendance. Finally, Severus sat back, his arms folded in front of him, regarding her expectantly.

"You might find that the students have little respect for a professor so close to their age, Hermione."

Hermione folded her arms as well. "I've thought of that. I'm not quite sure what to do about it though. You began here when you were quite young, didn't you? How did you handle it?"

"I was a few years older than you are now." Severus got a faraway look in his eyes. Snapping out of it, he continued. "In any case, you must be strict and unyielding. Tell the students your expectations from the first moment the class begins. Do not try to be their friend. You can be less stern as term goes on, but you must show them that you are capable of keeping order and teaching them what is necessary."

Hermione nodded her head. "That makes sense. I will strive to do that."

"You will either do it, or you won't. If you don't succeed, your first year here will be a disaster."

Severus rose to leave. Hermione stood also. She hurried over to Severus and reached out for his arm. Her hand grasped it, forcing Severus to turn stop.

"Severus?"

He turned and gazed at her hand on his arm before looking up into her eyes.

"You're not alone. You have friends. Please let us in."

Severus frowned and pulled his arm from her grasp. "You know not of which you speak!" he growled.

Glaring at her, he swung around and stalked from the room without a backward glance.

That went well, Hermione thought as she watched the door slam behind him. On reflection, most of the meeting had gone well, she had just messed it up with her declaration at the end. He was obviously not ready to receive sympathy or comfort from the likes of her. She should have realized that before she opened her rather large mouth. I'm constantly trying to fix everything, whether it wants to be fixed or not.

Going up to the door, she placed her hand on it. "Severus Snape, you deserve to feel better about yourself. You may not appreciate my interference now, but I won't rest until you stop berating yourself and quit feeling unworthy. I'll just have to do it differently." She looked away thoughtfully. "Perhaps my falcon form can help in this."

She had been about to tell Severus that she'd been the falcon on his arm earlier that day, but when she'd looked at him to tell him, something had stopped her. The encounter with her bird-form had seemed to cheer him somewhat, but with the knowledge that he had exposed himself to one of his colleagues, she knew he would be enraged. Any peace he had felt from her appearance would be lost. In that instant, she'd decided to keep her other identity a secret.

Her stomach had done a small twist when she had decided that, but she'd chosen to ignore it. She'd rather be on good terms with Severus than have to deal with his wrath and possibly see him withdraw within himself even more. She wasn't one for keeping secrets, but she felt he would benefit more from her unassuming presence as the falcon than from the truth at this time. Maybe she would tell him later on. Much later on.

Hermione shook her head and turned from the door. She hoped her intense need to help wouldn't backfire on her. She'd been down this road before with less than stellar results. She couldn't help herself, though. She hated to see people miserable, and Severus Snape, of all people, did not deserve to feel such awful feelings about himself and those who cared for him. He deserved much more than that, and Hermione was bound and determined to help him get to a point where he was happy with himself and his lot in life.

A/N: Thanks to Lilith Kayden for her beta work. Thanks to you for reading.