Hermione Snape and the Divergence Point: Volume #1

Chapter 13: Trials, Tribulations and Trapdoors

"Yes, sir," Hermione nodded, keeping as much distance as she could.

"Is that all you have to say?" Severus asked.

Silence, her gaze fixed on the floor and rather than shrinking into the nearest wall, she stood rigid and erect, more like a little soldier than a girl speaking with her father. He had expected her to have some kind of emotion, to either be upset at being sent away or excited at the prospect of going to Japan. Perhaps a mixture of the two, but this dead reception was nothing short of eerie.

"Do you have any questions?" he asked.

She shook her head, the only part of her body language giving away a hint of an emotion was the sadly familiar clawing at her own hands. He had agreed to something quite major without asking for her input, and she had staggeringly little to say about it. Though Hermione had been expert at avoiding him by now, it seemed her decision not to speak to him extended to such criticisms. He doubted she understood that sending her away was the last thing he wanted to do; he also imagined that she didn't understand he was doing this for her own safety.

He had planned to explain those things to her, but he started to doubt anything more he had to say would be processed. It was as if she were counting the seconds until he excused her. Now that he knew that she knew about his modifying her memory...well, he couldn't blame her, could he? Maybe he should have waited for Yamato's reply. But what if he agreed? Could he just say 'pack your things you leave for Japan Saturday week'? There was no winning...

"I will let you know what's going on as soon as I get a reply about what will be going on," he sighed. "You may leave."

"Yes, sir," she said in a detached voice. "Thank you, sir."

He watched her leave the classroom knowing she would return to the shadows only appearing in classes and expertly slipping out before anyone had a chance to speak with her. At least this meant Quirrell would have trouble getting a hold of her even if he couldn't send her away before July. He returned to his desk and wondered if there was more to her new cold demeanour than his admitting to using a memory charm on her. Such a grim child, as if she possessed some cursed knowledge...that worried him.

As the week progressed he noticed a dread shared between Hermione, Potter and Weasley, each trying as hard as possible not to acknowledge his existence in classes. How often had he spied the boys whispering in the corridors with grim expressions on their faces. He had no clue how they knew, but it was evident the boys knew about the stone, as well as Hermione...all he'd done was for naught. And now there was the additional challenge of Potter being involved. Was the boy trying to get himself killed?

Mid-week, he finally got his reply from Yamato, and he couldn't say he was surprised to see that Yamato was unable to accept her earlier than July. Moving forward without that option was something he prepared for. He cast a sideways glance at Quirrell who chased his lunch around his plate, looking quite pale and frail. Perhaps he cracked under the pressure or realised just what he had gotten himself into...though he knew that was wishful thinking. He followed him everywhere when he could. The message was clear, Quirrell would have to get past him or face the wrath of his supposed master...Quirrell was bound to do something stupid and soon.

Until then, he would proceed as he had been in the upcoming weeks.

As the weeks progressed Hermione poured herself into revisions and spent her time out of class in the library, choosing to retreat back to the secret passage she discovered in the summer and hid away from anyone who might want to speak with her. After the episode in the broom cupboard, she didn't know how to talk to Harry and Ron. Every time they saw her she could see the damn pity in their eyes. How often had she bumped into Ron only to see him open his mouth before pressing his lips into a thin line. Harry was no different. Both of them seemed so torn between giving her space and talking to her...Hermione made the decision for them.