Check Mate

Lets Talk

Hermione didn't know when she had been so angry in her life, or hurt, or disappointed, or confused. They had left Lavender's house in a flurry of fire and smoke, with Hermione trying to pretend that the tears stinging her eyes came from the ashes and not from the daggers Snape had thrown at her while at Lavender's.

I had thought my future pretty bleak before now, but you have made being killed by revenge seeking Death Eaters seem almost appealing.

Why had she let herself become so attached, so close? He was a hateful, loathsome, mean, despicable, vile man who obviously detested her. She had been wary to work with him when Dumbledore suggested it would be wise to have more than one person around who knew how to brew the Wolfsbane potion, as well as the other Potions the Order required. She worried that even though they had discussed the Leaving Feast that he would find someway to make her life hell for having called him Sevie. But that hadn't been the case. Instead, she found herself enjoying working with him. Sometimes they bickered, but even then Hermione found herself trying hard to keep up with his caustic wit. It helped during those times to think of him not as Professor Snape, or even Severus, but as Sevie. She could argue and come close to winning with Sevie, (no one really won against him unless you counted a scowl and petulant silence as victory.) She could gently poke fun and laugh with Sevie. And slowly she found that she could be attracted to Sevie.

But the man who had dragged her to Lavender's this afternoon was certainly not Sevie, and she learned once again that Professor Snape had the power to make her cry. She had ended up in the kitchen, sobbing incoherently while Molly had made her some tea and gave her some biscuits. When she finally calmed down, she had a new resolve. He did not like her. He would never like her. And she would stop caring.

Her plan worked right up until he had asked her to forgive him. She hadn't even succumbed when he had kissed her, (well a part of her did, but she had tried valiantly to hide her surprise and pleasure by resorting to sarcasm.) She tossed and turned all night, and anxiously awaited his appearance at the breakfast table. He had said that he wouldn't regret things in the morning but he had been quite drunk so she didn't know what to think. A part of her knew that it was dangerous thinking like this, that her original plan was indeed the safest, but her mind was fighting a losing battle with her heart. Ironic really, that a girl who had let logic be her guide her entire life suddenly chucked it out the window. To her mild shame she had become like Parvati or Lavender.

Sitting next to Ron, she looked up when he entered the room. Dark circles ringed his eyes and he hadn't shaven. She wondered if he had taken the hangover remedy she had left for him.

"Good morning!" Molly chirped, setting down a cup of tea in front of him as he took a seat across from Hermione.

She suddenly became very interested in buttering her toast, her cheeks flushing red. All morning she had wanted nothing more than to see him, but now that he was here she couldn't bring herself to look at him. What if she saw regret or rejection? Was this Professor Snape, the horribly mean and strict teacher who insulted her and made her cry? Was this Severus, her lab partner? Or was it Sevie, the man who let her call him embarrassing nicknames and kissed her?

"Yes, it is," he murmured. She looked up at him. He never spoke in the morning, just grunting and scowling at Mrs. Weasley's attempts to get him to eat something more than a couple slices of toast. His eyes caught hers and she could see acceptance if not a little warmth. It wasn't love or even affection, but she could see that he was entertaining, at the very least, the idea that she might be his happy ending.

"What is everyone doing today?" Mrs. Weasley asked cheerfully.

"More defense spells this morning," Harry answered grimly. He had been almost unbearable recently. Though Hermione had tried her best to be supportive, secretly she would rather put up with Snape's snarling than Harry moaning about his fate. Maybe she should send Harry to Lavender. Maybe he would realize that Fate had more in store for him than just Voldemort and being the 'Boy-Who-Lived.' His reaction certainly would be better than Severus' had been.