Addicted to You

VII

"What have we got here?"

Snape had arrived downstairs seeking his usual cup of coffee, when he found that Hermione was nowhere in sight. Usually she would be preparing to go out but today, she was busy with something else. There was a noise coming from the basement- a place he had previously overlooked and didn't even know existed. He climbed down the stairs to where she had set up a make-belief potions lab, tinkering away with different equipments.

"Hi," she greeted his surprised face and went on to explain, "Some of the potions in your books are VERY tempting." Which was true. She had one of the books from his personal collection opened in front of her and hoped he didn't mind that she had borrowed it.

"I didn't think you were much interested in this, Ms. Granger." Out of habit he came closer to examine the cauldron.

"Ah well, it's something to do. I get bored even more easily than you do..." She grinned lopsidedly at him. "You are talking, you know, to a girl who taught herself to read medieval French over one summer holiday. I ran out of homework."

He looked startled again, and then smiled, amused. "Medieval French? Why?"

"My Aunt Michele teaches it," she explained. "She loaned me her textbooks. I wanted to learn German, but mum and dad wouldn't buy me the books." she added, a little disgruntled. "They instituted a policy when I was eight. No schoolbooks - or textbooks, or anything like that over the holidays. I was only allowed to have them for school. I think they were afraid my brain would explode or something."

He laughed softly at that. "No wonder you were always so... overenthusiastic... when you returned to school."

"Dear God, yes! You have no idea what kind of sentimental dribble people think teenage girls ought to read." Hermione shuddered. "Thank God for the classics section of the local library. If it's got pretty pictures of centaurs and half-naked heroes on the front, it's easier to look like you're not learning anything."

"On the contrary, I have a very good idea of the precise kind of sentimental dribble." He looked like he was trying his utmost to hide a smirk, if it can't be called as having gone all the way to a blush. She blinked at him, and he smiled wryly. "In my years as a teacher, I confiscated a small mountain of the stuff."

She snickered, understanding what he must be referring to. "I hope you disposed of it safely. I'd hate for it to leak out and start contaminating the school."

"I gave it to Filch for burning. Though, I suspect he saved a few of the more...lurid...romance novels for his own perusal." Snape shuddered slightly.

Hermione shuddered too. "That is a mental image I NEVER needed to have!" He readily joined in on her amusement.
"Oh, I bought you something from the Apothecary," she said fervently, changing the subject. Grinning, she tossed him a small, square package. "I owed you for that."

He blinked, opening the package, which contained Boomslang skin, lacewing flies and powdered bicorn horn. "Why would you owe me..." he trailed off, and his eyes snapped up to give her a look of dawning comprehension.

"You didn't really think Harry took those out of your office back in second year, did you?" she asked, giving him an impish little grin. "I mean, what would he do with them? Eat 'em all?"

***************************

Hermione stared at the tip of her quill, from which a big blue drop of ink was hanging, just on the edge...and with a plop it dropped down on the parchment at her desk. Blinking, she shook her head and scourged away the blob with a flick of her wand and started again. And again her mind wandered, leaving the quill dry in her hand.