El Tercero

Forbidden Obsession

El tercero

A week later Hermione, Ron, and Harry were making their way to Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Lupin. He had been re-hired by Albus Dumbledore with full support from the Ministry. Cornelius Fudge was no longer entrusted with the office of Minister of Magic since his denial of the return of Voldemort. It was felt amongst top-level officials that had Fudge acknowledged the return of the Dark Lord and aided Dumbledore when the first rumors of Voldemort's reappearance arose, he might not have been the threat to the wizarding world he was today.

Griselda Marchbanks was the new Minister of Magic. She had been head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority and had administered the N.E.W.T.s for so many years that she even administered them to Albus Dumbledore in his seventh year at Hogwarts. The only break in her many years of service had been her protest to Delores Umbridge's appointing herself Hogwarts High Inquisitor. Griselda refused to tolerate such nonsense and resigned to show her full support for Albus Dumbledore. The Ministry of Magic saw this action as a display of true integrity and therefore appointed her Minister of Magic.

Severus was quite resentful that he had not been offered the DADA position, and he took a rather depraved pleasure in taunting Remus about the werewolf's value, or lack thereof, to the Order. He knew full well the way that it sent Lupin into a cycle of self-condemnation; and his emotions were barely restrained while he was in the company of the surly Potions Master at the best of times. But the animosity Severus bore the man was not solely born of his opinion of him. Over the years that he had contributed to the Order and to Hogwarts, Albus had assured Severus that he held full faith in him. The Headmaster's continued denial of Severus' request for the Dark Arts position, however, confirmed in Severus' mind that he was considered an expendable pawn. His pleasure, enjoyment, desires, and ambitions were held in escrow, easily taken from him if doubt or suspicion ever fell upon him. His life was a mere game for those higher powers who would use him to help them divide, defeat, and conquer, but he would be lucky to end as fodder for Hippogriffs if he should ever fail or become redundant.

As his class entered for their DADA lesson, Remus stood quietly outside the door, collecting his thoughts, when Severus glided to his side. Hermione knew of the almost tangible animosity between the two wizards, and inwardly cringed when she noticed her Potions Professor's appearance.

Speaking just loud enough for Remus to hear, Severus hissed, "Always an observer, Lupin. Your usefulness is wearing thin." Severus continued walking as though nothing had occurred, but inwardly satisfied that it was just enough salt to rub in the wounds he had scraped into Remus' thoughts and feelings, bleeding him slowly of his confidence and purpose.

Letting out a low growl, Remus stormed into the classroom, slamming the door behind him. He had spent a great deal of his life trying to search for a place to belong, finding it once in his illicit adventures with James, Sirius, and Peter, but it had been short lived. The seven years they had spent together had blessed him briefly with a sense of belonging and acceptance, but it was only a memory now. His friends had been picked off one by one, and now he was left alone, more so than he had been in his entire life.

The seventh year Gryffindors and Slytherins watched Professor Lupin storm into the room, a gesture, that until now, they had been under the obviously mistaken assumption was trademarked by Snape. There was no warm greeting today as Professor Lupin spoke in a tone that none of the students had thought him capable of. His voice was low and menacing.

"For your N.E.W.T.'s Defense Against the Arts Class, you will write a 20 foot essay on vampires." Hermione's hand shot up in the air, but Remus ignored her. "I am aware that you wrote an essay on vampires, but this time you will explore them in depth, researching specifically the Romanian Vampire and how this particular vampire feeds upon its victims and how it can be destroyed." He emphasized the last word, leaving a chill in the room. "Contrary to common belief, not all vampires are dead, but I will leave the rest for you to discover on your own. It will be due in one month." The class groaned, not because of the topic of the essay, because the length was beyond reasonable. Not even Snape assigned a paper that long. Class continued with the lecture they had begun the previous week, the topic of vampires left for another lesson. Having already read in depth the subject of discussion, Hermione allowed her mind to wander to the vampire essay. It was so uncharacteristic of Professor Lupin to show hostility at all, let alone while he was teaching, but then again, Professor Snape had that effect on people. Still, Hermione sensed that there was more.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A few nights later Hermione was in the library with a stack of books, including a few on vampires, when Ron and Harry reluctantly entered the library. They would have rather been practicing Quidditch than doing homework, but they had promised Hermione that they would follow the study schedule she had created for them.

Hermione and Harry, as Head Girl and Boy, had less time for studying. Their responsibilities as Hogwarts student leaders took time, increasing their need to focus when they did have studying time available to them. When they were first notified about being selected as Head Boy and Head Girl, Ron initially displayed years of suppressed resentment towards Harry, having lived in his famous friend's shadow his entire Hogwarts experience, but his anger was extinguished when Harry persuaded the Gryffindor Quidditch team that Ron would make a fine captain. Ron, being the Quidditch fanatic he was, felt this station to be at least as important as being Head Boy, and stopped holding any grudge against Harry. The Golden Trio were proud of the status they held at school, but didn't let it get in the way of who they really were - best friends.

"I should have known, Hermione. You're already starting the essay Remus gave us," grumbled Ron, but Hermione did not acknowledge him, nor stop her note taking.

"Hermione!"

"Did you know that some vampires are born vampires, while others are created?" she asked, not looking up. She had heard every word they had said, but prided herself in her ability to ignore them. The book she had checked out from the Restricted Section on vampires was too fascinating for her to be drawn from it to respond to their never-ending complaints about her studying.

"Don't waste your time reading, love. If you want to know about vampires, ask Snape," said Harry flatly gesturing over his shoulder. They looked up to see that Snape had just entered the library, heading directly toward the Restricted Section with his black robes billowing behind him.

"He might look like a vampire, but he can't be one," whispered Ron, "Vampires can't survive in the sunlight, and you know that Snape hasn't missed a Quidditch match in years."

"Only the Strigoii cannot tolerate sun, because they are dead vampires. The Moroii are living vampires and can tolerate the sun, though they are more comfortable in the shadows," stated Hermione, proudly sharing the information she had discovered. Ron and Harry were less than impressed as they covertly watched Snape walk out of the Restricted Section and over to Madam Pince. Although the boys were fully aware of the role Snape played within the Order, they preferred not to turn their backs on him, and they watched him closely as he crossed his arms, wrapping his robes around himself.

"Bloody hell, you mean he really is a vampire?" choked Ron, as the implication of Hermione's words finally registered with him. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"If that were the only characteristic that qualified someone to be a vampire, then half the wizards and witches we know would be vampires too."

"She's right, Ron, don't read so much into it," said Harry. "If I honestly thought he was a vampire, I would have sprayed him with holy water by now." Ron laughed nervously as Snape's head snapped around in their direction, both boys feeling intimidated at the thought that he had heard their conversation.

"I suggest that you two stop watching vampire movies and start researching the facts, then perhaps you will find out that Hollywood portrayals of the vampire are based on unsubstantiated rumors and fables," Hermione interjected in a vicious hiss.

Wanting to avoid an intellectual debate they were clearly under-prepared for, Ron and Harry sat down and each pulled out a project to work on, neither of them acknowledging the vampire essay that Hermione was so evidently enthralled in. They were, in all honesty, a little resentful that Remus had assigned such a difficult essay.

Draco Malfoy entered the library a short time later with his two cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. All three had grown noticeably in the past two years, but whereas Malfoy had grown taller, Crabbe and Goyle had merely become thicker and more feebleminded. Draco looked very much like his father now that his hair was longer and pulled back. He was almost as tall, but not as muscular, as Lucius. It was Malfoy who noticed the Gryffindor trio and led Crabbe and Goyle over to them.

"Well, what do we have here?" sneered Malfoy, "The Boy Who Lived, or should I say, an obedient watchdog, just like his useless mutt of a godfather." Crabbe and Goyle let out a few grunts that could only be interpreted as laughter.

Harry began to stand up, but Ron placed a hand on his shoulder, holding him down. Malfoy glanced down at Hermione's book on vampires and snorted. Turning to Hermione, he smirked at her, "You are supposed to be such a know-it-all, yet you can't even see what has been in front of you all these years."

Hermione's eyes narrowed, her mind working quickly, attempting to interpret Malfoy's meaning.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Ron hissed as he jumped to his feet, and stood to face off with Draco. Ron was slightly the taller of the two, and resembled a bulldog with his chest puffed out, ready to defend Hermione's honor.

Crabbe and Goyle again grunted at Ron, while Draco ignored him, instead turning to Harry as he hissed maliciously, "It's nice having father back after all this time. But I guess that is something you will never understand, hey, Potter?"

In one smooth move, Harry stood, drew his wand, and aimed it at Draco's throat. Annunciating each word slowly, Harry spoke in a dangerously low voice. "One. More. Word. Malfoy. And. It. Ends. Here."

"Harry!" hissed Hermione.

"Twenty points from Gryffindor, Potter, and put your wand down," said the deep voice of Snape, who had approached the group. The sneer on his face made it clear that the Potions Master was enjoying the situation. "And another twenty points from Gryffindor," his eyes flashed to Hermione. "You are Head Girl, Miss Granger, needless to say I am disappointed in your lack of ability to take charge. I do believe I shall be obligated to discuss with Professor McGonagall your apparent inadequacies as an effective leader."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all fuming with anger, but they managed to refrain from saying anything else, thinking of the number of points Snape would take off if they retaliated. Narrowing her eyes again and glaring, Hermione was the only one to make eye contact with Snape, but when he raised an eyebrow as if challenging her to reciprocate, she quickly backed down and turned to Harry and Ron, fearful that her own temper would result in her expulsion from Hogwarts.

"Let's go to the Gryffindor common room where we can study in peace," said Hermione in a pretentious voice. Harry and Ron glared once more at Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle before gathering their things and leaving.

Severus turned back to Draco and hissed, "What the hell was that all about?"

Draco snorted while glancing at Crabbe and then Goyle. "Just having fun, sir," but before Severus could comment, Draco continued, "Sir, there is something you should know..."

~TBC