Redemption

16

I woke up in my bed, wrapped in my blankets. I glanced at the clock on my dresser. 6:30 am. I should be getting ready. I slowly stretched out my arms, raising them high above my head.

I stepped into the washroom, deciding on a hot shower. It was so very chilly in the dungeons. How had the Slytherins ever managed?

Satisfied that I had properly steamed the entire bathroom, I stepped out wrapped in a towel, my hair pinned up out of my way.

I had never expected something of the sort to ever, EVER happen to me. It was beyond anything I could have ever fathomed to possibly happen to me. In the existence of anything. Mother of Merlin.

There I was, dripping all over my now carpeted stone floor, tiptoeing back to my bedroom to get my clothes when I stopped cold.

Oh Gods. What is happening?

I was standing face to face with a very sleepy Professor Snape who'd just stood up from an armchair in my sitting room.

Once again, I wasn't sure which one of us was more surprised.

I felt my face flush. I knew I was blushing like mad in that instant. We stood like that a few moments, trying to figure out what we should say to the other. "I wasn't expe-"

He cut me off. "You were restless last night." He seemed to realise his words and his own face reddened a little. "I couldn't just leave you to fend for yourself."

I pulled the towel tighter around me. "Of course! Erm, thank you, sir. You really didn't ha-"

"I was happy to." Snape said, turning away, grabbing his robes off the chair as he left, leaving the ones that were on my bed. "I'll see you at breakfast, Miss Granger."

Once he had left, I bolted to my room, hopping onto my bed. Merlin, how did that sort of thing even happen? What if the roles had been reversed?

My face became the colour of a cherry at the thought of seeing the Potions' professor wearing so little. Talk about inappropriate. What would he saw had he known I was thinking such things?

I didn't even want to start thinking on it. What had happened was bad enough as it was.

I hid my face in my pillow, letting out a shrill cry, before bursting into a fit of giggles. My instructor had seen me half-naked in my living room.

What would Ginny say?

She didn't have to know. I could keep it to myself. I got dressed and left my chambers, heading to breakfast.

I sat next to Snape, pulling up a bowl of porridge and eating slowly. I tried to keep from snickering, it was extremely difficult not to. He met my eyes a few times, brushing my hand when reaching for something.

Whether or not it was intentional was beyond me. I admit I appreciated it all the same.

I suppose it's the little things that truly count.

"What's in store for today, sir?" I asked, looking up. It was Saturday. He normally didn't teach those days, but occasionally a few students would come in to ask questions on their homework.

He gave me the look he reserved for especially daft pupils. I frowned in question, and he explained with a sigh. "You are resting today, Miss Granger. Unless you'd rather I have you clean the classroom again?"

I shook my head quickly, he smirked. "Just as I thought."

I bowed my head shyly. "I was wondering if you needed any assistance with what you're doing today." He raised an eyebrow and I finished my thought before he could get a word in. "I really wouldn't mind if you needed me to correct assignments, or something of the sort."

He thought a moment, eyebrows creased, as they so often were when he turned pensive. Finally, he looked up at me, meeting my eyes. "I think it high time you started brewing, Miss Granger." With that, he left the room.

I jumped up from my seat and raced after him. I caught up to him in the corridor, my heart beating wildly. So many emotions coursing through my veins at once. "Brewing, sir?"

He nodded, offering me his arm. I took it timidly, not having yet recovered from our most recent incident. "I have a few forms to fill out regarding ministry affairs, it would be quite helpful if someone could make the potions the infirmary are in need of."

My first actual time brewing something other than the students' potions. How exhilarating! I suppose I must have tightened my grip on his arm because he looked down at me, worry in his dark eyes. I smiled up at him. When he realised I wasn't in any sort of discomfort, he straightened up and kept walking, leading me down the stairs.

He pushed open the classroom door, allowing me to step in before him. Snape summoned a list from his desk, sending it over to me. They were fairly simple concoctions, though there were two I knew I'd have trouble with. One of them I'd only done once, with difficulty and the other, I'd never before heard of. How was that even possible? It appeared there were indeed things I didn't yet know regarding the fine and subtle art.

I got to work on the ones I was certain of, completing them efficiently. I lined them up on his desk, before clearing my throat. He looked up from his work, raising an eyebrow. He was going to berate me for disrupting him. I gathered my courage, steeling myself. "Sir, there are two potions I can't do on my own."

He smirked. "The insufferable know-it-all has finally come across something that challenges even her wits?" The man in black stood and came around his desk, gesturing that I return to the work table. He read through the list quickly, nodding and turning to the bookshelf across the room. He accioed a large, old book that seemed to be falling apart. It appeared older than the castle itself!

He flipped in open, presenting it to me. The ingredients of the first potion were all listed, along with the directions. Good thing I had asked. If have been looking through his books for hours. Never would I have thought to look in one of the older tomes. I suppose I should have.

He watched as I cut up the ingredients and put them in the bubbling cauldron at the right moments, raising or decreasing the heat. I got to the more tricky part and turned to him for help. He spared me from having to ask and glanced at the book. "It appears you seem to have difficulty with the stirring pattern when adding the mugwort." He took my hand, the one holding the stirring stick, and led it to make a large X through the the soft mint green liquid.

Soon enough, I had completed the concoction without so much as a hiccough in the process. Please with my work, I turned to my mentor who nodded approvingly. "Alright then. Off you go, Miss Granger. You've worked hard enough today."

I was about to argue with him, when I realised how tired I was. I had been on my feet longer than I should have been, my head spinning a little. I agreed, turning away and leaving the room. I hadn't known hypothermia was so draining. If I did, I wouldn't have stayed out so long.

As a matter of fact, I wasn't entirely sure why I had stayed out so long in the first place. I think it was because I was sleepy. Why was I sleepy? I had gotten a good night's sleep the day before, and I hadn't felt tired earlier. Why all of a sudden? Had arguing pulled all of my energy from my body? That didn't make sense.

Deciding not to think further on it, I changed into my pyjamas and climbed into bed, pulling the covers up over my head.