Amour

INSIGHT

"Every wizard in history had started out as nothing more than what we are now-students.If they can do it,why not us?"Hermione went about the room correcting people."A patronus is like a shield between you and the dementor.The stronger you are ,the bigger and more powerful your patronus will be.Conjure up the happiest memory you can."Ginny's unicorn erupted out of her wand and neighed loudly."Fantastic Ginny!"Hermione commented, noting what a good witch she was.She had made tremendous progress in Defense,much to the jealousy of Harry and her brothers.In a few moments Luna's rabbit patronus started hopping around,Ron's eyes widened when his patronus hound jumped out and barked while Fred and George's cheshire cat patronuses encircled and entwined with each other in midair.Harry finally managed to form a stag,which earned him a kiss from his girlfriend,Cho's hedgehog brought tears to her eyes cause she wished Cedric was there to see it,Seamus and Dean chest-bumped when their respective otter and beaver erupted from their wands."Mine's a fox!It belongs to the wolf family,does it not?Your patronus is a coyote right?"Colin Creevey asked excitedly."Indeed.Good job Colin!"Hermione squeezed his cheek and he turned red.Ginny nudged her at her ribs then."What was Professor Snape's patronus again?"Hermione blushed before replying,"Grey wolf.""Oooooooh!Your patronuses are complimentary to each other."Ginny giggled.At the back of the room,Neville was having problems.He had difficulty in mustering the simple expelliarmus charm so it was obvious he would be having trouble with such advanced magic.Only white wisps of smoke was coming out of his wand-tip and he fell back to the ground,exhausted.Hermione came and sat beside him.He shook his head,"I don't think I can do this..."Hermione gripped his shoulder,"You got this Neville."He looked at her and realised she was not kidding."I can't concentrate.I read the news-about the breakout.She got away from there-Bellatrix.I just can't think properly when all I can think about is that the person who made my parents go insane is out there."Hermione sighed,"I know how you feel.But the only way you can right the wrong done to them is in this way.You fight for your parents,you fight the darkness that consumed them."Neville nodded,"I knew,if someone could understand,it'd be you." And he rose up with a new vigour."Expecto Patronum!" he went and an elegant and proud lion strolled out of his wand and let out a lazy roar.He was extremely proud of himself and everyone came forward to congratulate him and slap his back.He looked at Hermione and prompted a thanks.She looked at her room full of soldiers and beamed widely................................................
"Legilimens!"Snape shouted with full force but he failed to perforate Hermione's mind.She had gone red and puffy with the force it was taking to block him but she grinned when she succeeded."Excellent work,Hermione."He said smiling.Hermione had perfected occlumency but she was ambitious to do legilimency too.She saw that Snape's defenses were down and at that moment she so wanted to try entering his mind that miraculously she performed a non-verbal spell and broke through his barrier to enter the depths of his mind.Images flooded through her head;although she was aware there was a presence of Snape who trying to block her out but she had grown powerful and she had caught him off guard so that she managed to carry on...............
........(Inside Snape's mind)...........
She saw a little black-haired boy looking innocently up at his arguing parents,who were almost at each other's throats.A Snape in his first year at Hogwarts getting shoved by Sirius(in a senior year) in the corridor so that all his books fell down.A frantic Snape desperately banging on the bathroom door where he was locked in by Sirius and Pettigrew.A teenaged Snape secluding himself and locking himself inside his room as his parents fought outside.Hermione saw his hands reach for the shelf that contained books on the dark arts.He was peeking from behind a wall as he saw Sirius,Lupin and Pettigrew talking and laughing with a couple.They were Hermione's parents.Her mother appeared to be pregnant.Hermione realised she was technically there when this happened.Her mother noticed the little boy watching them and called him."Sneaking on us are you Snivellous?"Sirius accused."Expecting to rat us out to the Headmaster?""You're the one associating with muggles.You're a disgrace to the wizarding world!"Snape said,looking extremely intimidated on confronting his seniors."How dare you say that to Sirius?"squeaked Pettigrew,who looked equally fearful,but he hero worshipped Sirius.Hermione's father,Patrick asked Sirius,"Can't you do some magic to teach a lesson to this sneaky bastard?Show em what you got.""I think we should all just calm down.Severus mind your own business."came the authoritative voice of Lupin but Sirius had already whipped out his wand and before the frightened little boy could even think of taking out his wand,Sirius had yelled,"Petrificus totalus!" and Snape went completely rigid.Sirius hung him upside down and taunted,"Who wants to see me take off Snivellous's trousers?""Yeah!"encouraged Patrick and a few other onlookers."That's enough!Let him go."cried Hermione's mother,Catelyn.Sirius jerked the incantation off him and Snape landed as a heap on the floor."Mudbloods,werewolves and blood-traiters--the lot of you!I curse you all.I curse you muggles and I curse the unborn baby inside you."he yelled and sauntered off while Catelyn held her baby bump and dissolved in tears as her husband and friends consoled her.Hermione couldn't believe what she was seeing.Then she saw the marauders again,coming out of Hogwarts jingling their graduation caps in front of Snape's eyes as he looked on,thinking himself to be a failure in front of them.Then,a rainy day,the rain coming down in splits,Snape's tears getting lost in the rainwater,his parents' graves at his feet,a white hand with long nails, grasping his shoulder.Then everything went black and Hermione felt a hand grasping her arm and pulling her out.She was willing to come out herself,struck by the deep insight she had just had....................................................Hermione looked up at Snape.But instead of looking angry,he was upset.Upset because she had seen all this.She even detected tears in his eyes.Both of them remained silent,with only their heavy breathing cutting through the quietude.Hermione looked at her lover and she felt empathy-it wasn't pity,but she was sad that her godfather and father had been so terrible to him.She knew he was like this because of his parents,there was a dark past in there and also he had every reason to hate them.Moreover,she was astounded as to how this man,who was most likely to be devoid of being capable of any form of love,could pour his heart out to her with all the love he had so much so that he almost ran dry.Snape didn't know what to say and he looked completely resigned.Hermione stalked upto him and pulled his lips to hers.He was reluctant at first but then surrendered to her control.She kissed him tenderly,wetting his lips with her tears along with her saliva,trying to kiss away all these memories,all the hurt.She pushed her tongue into his mouth and tasted the very vulnerable and fragile man behind the facade of sterness and uptight attitude.She finished and wiped a tear away from the corner of his eye with her thumb.She held his face as he softly kissed her palm."I'm sorry.Your mother was kind to me and I was so cruel to her.I cursed her child..I unknowingly cursed you."Hermione stopped him from speaking by kissing him again and saying it was okay,it was all in the past now.They sat in the couch,she running her fingers through his hair as he went down memory lane."My mother was a witch,my father a muggle.It was my mother,who was the brat.She was prejudiced against everything muggle and it was under her influence that I learned all those terrible words...I still rue the day I said them to your mother.I was taught to hate what my mother hated.Hate is what killed my parents too."Hermione asked him,"Then how could you possibly love me?""I have long since shedded my old skin.I'm not what I used to be.During the process of purgation I fell in love with you.I'm thankful to that day and whatever coincidence brought us together.And anyways,this was destined to be."he said,lost in thought."Destined?"she asked,quirking up an eyebrow."Yes.It must be.Because there was no other way someone like you would fall for someone like me."he said,quickly but Hermione was still thinking over what he had said."Hey,you managed to do legilimency and occlumency.And you did a non-verbal spell.You are developing day by day."he said changing the topic.Hermione was glad that because of her ability he was a little more open with her,while Snape was actually relieved that he had managed to pull her out at the right moment before she saw the things that could ruin their relation forever.