Absolute Power

5 - The Seeds

The next week passes in a stupor of research, insomnia, and training, and before Hermione knows it, another Monday has arrived. Her session with Snape is tense. In all honestly, tense is an understatement. 

"Wrong again, Miss Granger." He spits from his seat behind the desk, sending her a dark look. "I didn't expect this level of incompetence from you. Perhaps we've given you too much responsibility."

She blushes furiously, once again trying to extract the seeds from a wendigo flower without damaging their fragile veins. 

"No!" She cries, before taking a deep breath. "No, I'm fine. Just distracted. I'm sorry, it won't happen again." She uses her wand to tie her hair into a severe bun that would make McGonagall proud and once again sets about her task. 

"A distracted existence leads us to no goal." Snape quips. 

"Johan von Goethe." Hermione wipes the sweat building on her forehead. "He's a muggle poet."

"Unlike most of my peers, Granger, I don't discriminate my literary preferences based on the merits of a wand." He drawls, standing from the desk. He watches as she finally extracts the correct amount of seeds unscathed and dumps them into the potion. He doesn't note her success, nor did she expect him to. 

"We had a few Slytherins at the first meeting, as you know. Well, last week they told me they might bring some more this week. I'm hopeful." Hermione reports as she begins to stir counterclockwise, counting exactly four times. Now, they must let it sit until it turns a vibrant violet. 

"And you think it wise to invite them into the inner circle, these Slytherins?" Snape asks. "How do you know they won't go running back to their parents, ready to spill any and all information to the Dark Lord?" 

"I've got some precautions in place. Trust me, I'll know if they do." She shoots a look up at Snape, who is now towering over her. His look is threatening. 

"And if they do?" 

"I'll handle it." Is all she says. 

He nods after a second of consideration. 

Her mind drifts to the same place it's been drifting so often since last week. Draco Malfoy. As his disheveled appearance and haunted eyes swim in her mind, she misses the potion turn violet until it's too late.

"Attention, Miss Granger!" Snape snaps. "Where is that thick head of yours?" 

"I'm- I'm sorry!" She cries, battling tears of frustration. She scours the book for what to do in this case, and quickly adds an extra mandrake root. Thankfully, it turns the preferred shade of purple and she stirs it clockwise this time, counting to twelve. 

"Already cracking under the pressure, are you?" He sneers. "My my, maybe the others were right. So much responsibility for a young girl. Naive, they called you. Foolish. I disagreed, obviously, but it seems I was wrong..."

"No! You're not." A stray tear slips out and she wipes it away furiously with the sleeve of her jumper. Hearing what others in the Order have said about her brings her fears and doubts bubbling to the surface. "I'm just worried about Harry. I haven't heard from him in over a week, and last I heard from him he was heading somewhere potentially very dangerous." She explains, wringing her hands. Last week, there had been yet another attack on a muggle community. Another thirty dead. It had sent her deeper into her spiral.

"Perhaps it's time for him and Mr. Weasley to give up on this foolish quest of theirs and return to Hogwarts," Snape states, raising an eyebrow. 

"But they need to -" 

"Others far more accomplished than them can see to it that their task is complete, Miss Granger. Your ability to be so narrow-minded astonishes me, as always." A sneer is now permanently etched onto his harsh features. "The Order and I have been discussing matters, and we agree it's time for the adults to step in."