Chapter 7: Hermione

Chapter 7:

Hermione:

Hermione Granger knocked on Professor Snape's door reluctantly. She no longer knew what to expect from the professor she had learned to respect and whose company she had even started to enjoy.

"Come in."

Hermione walked in to find an odd array of potion ingredients on the table. In the midst of the potion ingredients was a Muggle bottle of valerian root. Confused, Hermione opened her mouth to ask what was going on when the memory of what happened at breakfast silenced her. Instead, she sat down at the table and waited for Professor Snape to explain.

"I am not angry with you, Miss Granger. But your outburst at breakfast has added some unnecessary complications to my life."

"Professor, I'm sorry about that, but–"

"Your apology is accepted. I am merely trying to explain my actions. It is essential to my well-being that the students here believe that I am the Dark Lord’s most faithful servant. Surely you can see the truth in that?" There was an odd hitch in Snape's voice as he voiced his question, almost as if he was truly concerned that Hermione might not believe him.

"Of course, Professor. But do you mean to say that I was right?"

Severus Snape paused for a moment, leaving Hermione worried that she had overstepped her bounds.

"Yes, Hermione. My appearance as the Dark Lord's faithful servant is just that: an appearance only." An unwanted flutter rose in Hermione's chest at the sound of her name being voiced by the lips of Severus Snape. He paused here as well, and she dared to hope that he was relishing the moment as she was. He continued, "And to prove my loyalty to you—” Not to Harry or Dumbledore, but to me! “—I have something to share with you. You’ve no doubt noticed the ingredients on the table and the oddity of their assortment. They are ingredients to a potion I am trying to create.”

Hermione looked at the ingredients more carefully, trying to discern their purpose. Fluxweed, often used in metamorphosis potions… What do the rest of the ingredients have in common? And what of the gemstones?

“Sir? What would this potion do, exactly?”

“If it worked properly, it would allow the user to travel through stone as easily as one could travel through water.” Here, Severus looked at Hermione intently, as though testing her.

“That would be… But the complications involved! How would one breathe? But if it were possible, that would mean uninhibited travel.” She looked at Severus meaningfully. “You could travel unnoticed and without worry of being followed. It’s the ultimate escape potion!”

A grin slipped across Severus’s lips. “I see you understand me. However, I have not been able to perfect it.”

Hermione listened in awe as Severus explained the theory behind the potion: how each ingredient except the fluxweed came from a plant or animal that thrived in rocky terrain, how the potion should function similarly to polyjuice potion but that he couldn’t figure out the last ingredient…

“Have you tried taking a sample from the walls of the castle?” Hermione interrupted.

Shock sprang into Severus’s eyes. Then, with a startling ferocity, Severus Snape began to laugh.

Moments later, the scrapings from the wall dutifully deposited into the potion, they sat down to wait.

Thoroughly convinced now that Severus was truly on her side–why else would he tell me about that potion?–Hermione made the decision to tell Severus about the Horcruxes. Perhaps he would know where they were…

“Sev–Professor, do you know anything about Horcruxes?” Surprise flickered across Severus’s face at the word.

“Yes, I know of them… and you may call me Severus in private, Hermione.”

“Well, Severus,” It was such a pleasure to say his name! “Voldemort has made six of them. Dumbledore–he’s been speaking to us from one of those collectible cards?–is convinced they’re hidden here at Hogwarts. That’s why we came back this year–Harry, me, and Ron, I mean. Do you know anything about them?”

“That explains much.” He paused here, forehead creasing with the weight of his thoughts. “Yes, Hermione, I know much about them, including where they are hidden.”

Relief flooded into Hermione. They could stop their futile search for them!

“But I cannot tell you where they are. I’m sure you understand why…”

“No, Professor, I don’t. If you’re on our side, why not tell me where they are? We’ve been searching for months and haven’t found any sign of them!” Hermione replied icily.

“Because, as I said earlier, appearances must be kept. I am the only one who knows where they are hidden. If suddenly the Dark Lord were to discover they’d been destroyed, who do you think would take the blame? No, Hermione, I can’t tell you. All I can say is that Dumbledore is correct: they are hidden within the castle walls.”

A small grey puff of smoke rose from the potion.

“Ah, it’s done then. I hope you’ll forgive me for cutting our conversation short–I do enjoy our talks, truly, Hermione–but I cannot bear waiting any longer to sample this.”

With that, Severus Snape drank the potion and walked into the wall.