3,778Chapter 7: Letter from Father
"If men could only know each other, they would neither idolise or hate." - Elbert Hubbard
Chapter 7: Letter from Father
The post-owl dropped an envelope in Hermione's lunch-time fruit salad and wobbled off, and Hermione's eyebrows went up into her hair. She wondered if it was some relation to Errol, bless the old or possibly currently young dysfunctional owl.
She blotted the fruit juice off the envelope and opened the letter with curiosity.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
My Dearest Daughter,
Ah, my young chick, it pleases me greatly that you accepted the Apprenticeship with Minerva McGonagall. Your last letter expressed your conflict at being in a different House and wondering if that would affect it, and I am glad you took my advice to heart.
There is no shame at all Apprenticing to Minerva. She, of all the Gryffindor, has the mark of integrity upon her, and there is no one worth their salt in Slytherin that would dare think otherwise. The witch once caused a hat-stall of the greatest order between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, and I will be the first to say that either House would have found her a grand edition. She is as noble as she is wise, and you should not ever treat her differently because that old hat tossed a coin and shoved her into Gryffindor's House! Her skill at Transfiguration is top notch, and you will learn well from her, my chick. Of this, I have no doubt at all.
I have placed galleons in your account at Gringotts to cover your Apprenticeship robes, as it is tradition for family to support their child in a bid for an Apprenticeship. Seeing as there was no bidding and even more surprising, no competition, it is only fair that we show solidarity to your new Master by covering your first robes. I have, as is expected, paid the necessary registry fees as befits the honour of our House, and I shall leave to your Master, as is her sovereign right, the rest of the mountain of paperwork that shall undoubtedly come of it. I do not envy the witch that in the slightest, but do not tell your Master that!
Do you find it odd, my chick, that while there is a Headmaster and and a Headmistress that when you are an Apprentice, it is always a Master, regardless of gender? I suppose it is one title that never differentiated between male and female. Who can say for sure? Surely not I. I am not so curious as to dig so closely into the history of Masters and Apprentices. Now, I do not wish to hear from your brother that you spent the next month digging through the library intent on discovering the discrepancies in the English language! I am pointing my finger at you, my daughter. I am also shaking it fiercely.
Your mother sends her love, my chick, and she is most approving that you are showing initiative in taking the school by storm. Some of us had no doubt in you, but do not tell your mother I said so. I still haven't finished repairing all the China from her explosion over your twin's placement in Gryffindor.
I have to admit that Sirius' personality has always been more bold and daring to a fault. I am not sure who he got it from. I would blame your mother's side of the family, but I'm sure she would start yelling again, and I'm enjoying a spot of peace and quiet at the moment in the library.
Did Regulus tell you that one of his classmates made the mistake of making fun of his scarf you sent him? Your wrathful brother jelly-leg hexed the impertinent boy without a wand in his rage and raw magic. I swear to you that he will be a menace once he gets a wand and proper training. The Ministry had to come and do some select Obliviating to cover up the magic use. I believe they made up some sort of excuse along the lines of "poor boy had hypoglycemia and just couldn't hold himself up due to hunger." I'm not even sure what that means, to be honest, as Muggle terms always seem so strange to me, but Regulus isn't being picked on, so I am satisfied. My friend Marcus at the Ministry of Magic was laughing all the way to the Improper Use of Magic Office. He said the use was quite "proper" if you asked him. No person, wizard, witch, or Muggle should mess with a man's accoutrement!
The point of that entire story was to remind you to keep a good eye on your little brother once he starts Hogwarts. The last thing we need is him getting in trouble getting into duels with students over how he dresses! Not that he wouldn't win the duel, but I fear he would not be setting the example your mother wishes him to exude, and we both know how well that will go.
Congratulations, again, for accepting your new Apprenticeship, my young chick. You do us proud, my daughter.
Love always, your father,
Orion Black (his seal, the Belt of Orion)
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Hermione smiled at the letter from her father. He never failed to make her feel better, and it seemed even his letters always sent the kind of understanding that Walburga had trouble expressing to her daughter.
"Long letter," Severus said, eyeing the long cascade of parchment in Hermione's hands.
Hermione rolled it up and stashed it in her robes with a chuckle. "My father sent his regards."
"If my father sent me two words on a slip of paper, I think I would check for an eclipse," Severus said grimly.
"He doesn't sound like a very nice person, Severus," Hermione noted.
Severus shook his head. "He is not. He spends most of his time in a bottle as often as he can."
Hermione frowned. "I am sorry, Severus. Truly."
Severus shook his head. "Not your fault my father is a git. No need to be sorry."
"As awful as my mother can be," Hermione said. "She does care for me. I just have to read between the lines and carry a very large magnifying lens sometimes."
Severus chuckled. "Is her picture under the entry for "tough love" in the dictionary?
"Right next to 'militant love,' I think," Hermione said with a smirk. "Practically gladiatorial."
Severus snorted. "Did you finish your essay on dragon blood for Slughorn?"
"Ugh, yes," Hermione replied. "I would never have thought of using blood as an oven cleaner or spot remover, to be honest. It's blood, for Merlin's sake. Everyone knows blood normally stains… well everything."
"I'm trying to figure out how Dumbledore figured out that dragon blood cured verrucas," Severus grunted. "What did he do? Have a vial of it, break it, and then accidentally step on it and go 'oh my foot wart is gone?'"
Hermione snorted. "You would focus on the verruca."
Severus huffed.
Hermione grinned back at him until the corners of his lips curved upward, unable to restrain his own amusement.
"We should get to class. Lily has that look about her," Severus said, gesturing with his chin.
Hermione turned around and stared at Lily who was giving her bug eyes and bouncing impatiently at her seat. "Subtle… isn't she?"
"Very," Severus said with a smirk.
The two of them got up for their next class and exited the Great Hall. They had barely managed to get past the doors when Lily latched onto them both from behind, carrying a large pile of books.
"How many books to do you need for potions class, Lily?" Hermione clucked.
Lily pshed. "I left the rest on my desk."
Severus arched a brow at Lily.
"Stop it," Lily whined. "You know Slughorn always asks the extra credit questions. I want to be prepared!"
Hermione smirked. "There is prepared and there is overkill, Lily."
Lily glared at her, but there was no heat to it.
As they went around the corner, someone slammed into the lot of them, sending their books flying in multiple directions, and just as they were leaning down to pick them up, someone else slammed into them, knocking them off their feet.
Hermione exchanged embarrassment with rage as she stood up once more, gathering up Lily's pile of books and handed them to her after Severus helped her up. Lily had her own version of a death glare on her face, and Severus had a look that reminded Hermione so much of his older and more bitter self.
Hermione's hand clenched as she stared at James Potter and Peter Pettigrew, both of which were giving her arrogant looks of "well, what are you going to do about it."
Hermione's hair began to rise with the intensity of her scorn, and her eyes flickered with fire, the silvery grey colour of her irises bled into the shifting inferno of true fire. Orange, white, and blue shifted through her eyes.
Suddenly a warm arm went around her waist.
"Hey sis," Sirius said, handing her the books she had dropped and had yet picked up. "These your books?"
"There are, but the one on top is Severus'," Hermione said, her voice tightly reined as her eyes glared at where James and Peter were skulking back at them.
Sirius took the top book off the stack and handed it to Severus. "Severus, is it?" her brother seemed to be scanning Severus with his eyes like a scanner from the Muggle grocery store. He watched Severus closely as the boy took his book from his hand.
"Thanks," Severus said softly.
Sirius stared from Severus, his twin, and Lily. There was a strange dynamic shifting under the surface. He looked at his twin with a slight furrowing of his black brows. "You're angry. Why?"
Hermione flicked her eyes to where James and Peter had turned and left, snickering to themselves.
Sirius followed her eyes. "I'll talk to them," he began.
Hermione shook her head. "Don't. If they can't treat me with respect on their own, they are not worth my breath."
Sirius touched her shoulder. "Sis… they have their good points."
"You let me know how that works for you," Hermione snapped bitterly.
Sirius engulfed his sister with his arms suddenly. Hermione stiffened at first, but relaxed. Her body remembered the comfort of her twin's embrace. He had always been there for her. Through countless temper tantrums, broken toys, and her mother's almost bipolar mood swings… Sirius had always been the rebel she couldn't be. He had always been a safe place to run to when she didn't give a flying fig about propriety and just wanted a hug in public.
"I'll talk to them," he said softly into her hair.
Hermione nodded silently.
Sirius pinched her chin with his fingers and smiled. He looked to Lily and Severus with a sad smile. "Take care of her," he said firmly.
Lily gave a look that conveyed "of course I will, you dolt" while Severus settled for a grass wilting "I'll do what I want, and I'm not going to tell you what that is" expression.
Sirius brushed his sister's hair back. "See you in class," he said, turning on his heels and hurrying down the corridor after his two friends.
Lily tugged on Hermione's sleeve. "Let's go."
Hermione nodded and allowed herself to be dragged along to class between Lily and Severus.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Professor Slughorn stalked around his classroom, tutting, clucking, and practically channelling his inner mother hen as he brooded over his potion students.
The potion of the day was the Forgetfulness Potion, and Hermione prayed silently that no one in the class had the aptitude of a certain Neville Longbottom when it came to potions. The last thing she wanted was half a classroom of amnesiac students who couldn't remember who they were.
After Hermione had dropped in required two drops water from the River Lethe, Severus had added in two sprigs of fresh Valerian. Hermione wondered if Hagrid still had his garden of Valerian out on the grounds near his hut. Hermione stirred the cauldron careful clockwise three times, making sure not to over stir, and Severus waved his wand over it. Now it was the waiting game. Hermione waved her wand, causing a timer to count down in the air.
Taking the time in between to prepare the rest of the ingredients, Severus and Hermione divided and conquered. He took to mixing up a batch of the standard ingredient mixture while Hermione picked through the jar of mistletoe sprigs, looking for four idea berries. Most of the berries were sadly old and shrivelled, and Hermione glared at them as though it would suddenly cause them to hydrate. They both threw the ingredients into the mortar.
Hermione started pulverising the ingredients with the pestle and then handed it Severus, who continue the act of mercilessly grinding the ingredients into a fine powder. They alternated back and forth until the powder was significantly fine, but there were still a bit of roughness about it thanks to the mistletoe berries.
Sagacity hooted softly from the perch she had been allowed to transfigure and set in the potions lab. Slughorn seemed to know the difference between the animals his students brought in because they could and actual familiars, and the familiars were allowed to stay, as long as they were well behaved. One of the Gryffindor witches had an black and white tuxedo cat with bright white boots for feet. He curled up on the side of the desk, tail flicking lightly as his mistress tried to follow the recipe.
Sagacity, the ultimate example of owlish manners, perched sleepily overlooking their work.
"Do you think this is 'medium-fine' powder enough?" Hermione whispered.
Severus peered at the mixture. "We might have gone overkill upon it," he admitted.
"Well here goes," Hermione said, taking two pinches of the mixture and flinging it into the cauldron.
Severus stirred five times, anti-clockwise, looking as though he were waiting for it blow up in his face.
Hermione waved her wand over the potion and the colour shifted from green to bright purple before settling on a dark blue.
"Think it's done?" Severus asked.
"Well it changed colour and didn't blow up in our faces," Hermione said with a half grin.
Sagacity hooted approval.
Slughorn, who seemed to appear out of no where, clapped his hands together. "Excellent work!" he exclaimed. "That is a fine example of the Forgetfulness Potion. Five points to Slytherin for the each of you for such an excellent quality potion.
Hermione and Severus nodded in approval, moving to decanter their potion and clean their desk off.
Piercing glares from the Gryffindor side of the room dug into Hermione and Severus' back.
Hermione turned her head to stare toward the Gryffindor side of the classroom, flames flickering across her grey eyes as she saw their heated glares.
Lily waved her wand over the cauldron she was sharing with Remus and the potion shifted colours much like Hermione's and Severus'. Hermione smiled at her in encouragement.
"Excellent work, Miss Evans and Mr. Lupin," Slughorn praised. "Two points to Gryffindor for the each of you for also completing your potion without complications. The rest of you must continue until your finish, but there will be no more extra points. Get to it, everyone."
Lily beamed, elbowing Remus. The shy wizard flushed and turned his eyes away, not comfortable with eyes upon him.
Lily and Remus getting points seemed to lessen the glaring coming from the Gryffindor side.
Sirius winked at Hermione as he jabbed his thumb at his lab partner and shook his head with a "it's hopeless" expression. The hourglass on his desk was still counting down before he could work on the second part of the potion.
Hermione finished bottling the potion and handed to Severus to go place on Slughorn's desk. She smiled at him. They had done well with their brewing and Hermione saw a bit of her elder Potion Master peaking out during their brewing session.
There was a snickering coming from behind her, and Hermione felt a tingle as the hairs on the back of neck rose.
"Colloshoo!" a voice behind her whispered, and a beam of light went zinging along the floor towards Snape.
"Severus stand perfectly still!" Hermione hissed, barely registering that the black-haired wizard did exactly as he was told, freezing in place as those her words had done it.
The curse hit his feet, gluing his shoes to the ground and coating them in sticky hardening gunk.
Hermione was half out of her chair and ready to hex the desk behind her when Slughorn was towering over her, blocking her view. "What is going on here?" he growled. There is no curse flinging in this classroom. This is a potions classroom, not a dueling platform! Who flung that spell?" he demanded. "Miss Black please see to your friend."
Hermione rushed over to Severus and took the potion he had a death grip on and placed it on Slughorn's desk. She gave Severus her arm so he could slip out of his ruined shoes one by one.
Severus looked down at his ruined shoes with a scowl. They had looked well worn and possibly well loved, an if his expression meant anything to Hermione, she knew he didn't have another pair to replace them with.
Slughorn was scowling around the classroom. "Well if none of you are going to confess as to who decided to fling that curse in my classroom, and I cannot simply confiscate your wands to find out, then I will have to put you all in detention. All except Mr. Snape, who was the obvious victim here, and Miss Evans and Mr. Lupin, whom I was speaking with when it happened. If you cannot stand by and take the consequences for what you have done, then you will learn that one action done in malice will hurt everyone. Now. Finish your potions. The lot of you will have detention with Professor Kettleburn tonight and every night for a week's time or until the culprit is exposed."
There was a hard silence after Slughorn announced the mass detention. It was perfectly acceptable as a Slytherin to look out for yourself, but at the same time you were also supposed to have a great amount of solidarity with your House. Doing something that would bring down the hammer on your entire class, was something that was frowned upon. The chances of a Slytherin having done the deed was about as likely as there being karaoke singing contests in the Slytherin Common Room each night after dinner.
That left the Gryffindor, but while Slughorn may have known full well on of those not of his House were the culprit, the fact was he couldn't prove it as he had been communicating with Lily and Remus over their potion at the time. The mass detention, unfortunately, was the only way to drill home the idea that such behaviour was not to be tolerated in his classroom.
Suddenly a dark blond student in the back stood up. "I saw you do it, Potter. You may be in my House, but I am not going to have to write my parents to explain why I've gotten a week's worth of detentions for something I didn't do!"
James pshed, "I didn't do anything."
"You're a liar," another Gryffindor accused. "I saw you do it, giggling with Pettigrew as that beam came out of your wand. You're just trying to get us all into trouble to save your own face. Well, I'm not going down for you!"
Shouts of agreement went through the classroom as Hermione and Severus took their seats.
Hermione exchanged glances with Severus, Lily, and Sirius. Sirius look resigned. Lily looked scornful, and Severus looked ready to set someone on fire.
Slughorn finally singled out Mr. James Potter, and asked, or rather demanded, him stay after class. The rest of them, once their potions were done, were excused.
And for once, both Gryffindor and Slytherin students hustled out together in solidarity.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
"The boy is a toe rag, Severus," Lily fumed. "Don't let him get to you. Just because he can't find anything better to do than to pick on you doesn't mean you have to lower yourself to meet him."
Severus stared into the sunset. "Those were my favourite shoes. My mother gave them to me."
"She must be an amazing person," Hermione said thoughtfully, staring off into the darkening sky.
"She cared for me," Snape said softly. His voice was full of emotion. "There was a time when she wasn't afraid to show it before… before my father beat it out of her."
Hermione touched his shoulder, squeezing it gently. Lily touched his opposite shoulder, her face twisted in sympathy.
Severus' black eyes smoldered, but as Hermione and Lily leaned into him, something changed within him. He had friends. Not just one… and they weren't judging him. And while it had only been a month, he couldn't imagine his life without them, nor did he want to.
There hadn't been a time that Hermione had judged Lily for being a Muggleborn witch, and she was a pure-blooded as it came. In fact, if she looked down at someone at all, it was because of their deeds or lack thereof. It wasn't really that she was looking down at them as much as she looked through them. He imagined if he were to stand to have his heart weighed before he could pass into the Underworld, it would be her eyes that stared him down as it happened.
"I have something for you, Severus," Hermione said as she stared upward. She pulled a package out from her robes and tapped with her wand, enlarging it. "It's been a week since that idiot decided to glue your bloody shoes to the classroom floor, and I think it's about time we rectified you running around in your night slippers."
He and Lily looked at her with wonder, pondering how Hermione did magic with such casual ease. It was, strangely, becoming normal to expect it and sometimes it still turned their heads.
Severus tugged on the ties around the parcel and yanked it free of the bindings. He peeled back the wrapping of dark green paper and froze. Nestled in the parcel was probably the most amazing pair of tailored knee-high boots he had ever seen. His hand touched the leather and he gasped. "Is this… what I think it is?"
"What do you think it is?" Hermione said with a smirk.
"Dragonhide," Severus whispered. He stroked the boots with his fingers, attempting to absorb the magnitude of the gift.
"I…" Hermione started to say. "I wasn't sure what you'd like, so I guessed. I really hope you like them. I enchanted them you see… they'll resize for you… I hope you don't think me presumptuous… I didn't…"
"They're wonderful," Severus said, cutting her off. He looked at her with such a haunted expression. No one, short of his mother, had ever given him something before. Nothing like this. Nothing so… meaningful.
He took the slippers he was wearing off and slid the boots on. They wrapped around his legs and up his calves like a warm blanket, hugging him like an long lost friend. He looked up at Hermione, unsure what to say or what to do. What was appropriate? What wasn't?
As if sensing his conflict, Hermione smiled warmly and drew him into a hug. Severus stiffened at first, unsure and unpractised. Then, deciding that it was well and truly time to accept that someone honestly cared for him, he leaned into the hug, pulling Hermione close in a genuine leap of faith.
As he withdrew, Hermione was looking at him with her grey eyes, flickers of flames seemed to dance within them.
She startled herself, reaching into her robes and pulling a small box out and handed it to Lily. "This is for you, Lily."
Lily looked startled, and for a moment, Severus saw the twinge of jealousy in her eyes flicker and then be replaced by relief as she realised that Hermione had not forgotten her either. It was a petty thing to be jealous of, replacement footwear, but Lily seemed to realise that Hermione had done something significant, even though she wasn't quite sure what that significant thing was.
Lily unwrapped the box and gasped. "It's beautiful…" she boggled. "Did you… did you make it?"
Hermione nodded silently.
Lily frantically combed her hair with her hands and lifted the hair clip out of the box and put it in her hair. The clip was gold, but mounted upon it was a flame lily, its blazon red and yellow petals spread like a goblet. The flower looked delicate, but the colours accented her hair as well as the Gryffindor colours.
Lily squealed and hugged Hermione tight.
The torches were starting to light themselves as the night lights were flickering from the castle.
"We better get back before one of the professors catches us out wandering after hours on the grounds," Hermione said with a grin.
They quickly got to their feet and scrambled back to Hogwarts, their robes flickering behind them like flags.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Dear Father,
Thank you ever so much for helping me order the boots for my friend via owl-post. He loved them, I think, and I'm pretty sure it was the first set of tailored dragon hide boots to grace his feet. I remember your lessons when you had me pick out my very first set with Sirius. I remember the look on your face when Sirius accidentally picked out women's boots and you tried to tell him he couldn't have them. The expression on your face, papa… I will remember it forever.
It made me so angry that they picked on my friend in the middle of class in front of so many other people. Not only picked on, but ruined his shoes in a manner that could not be repaired by magic. That ectoplasm is nasty stuff, and I swear the first enchantment that I'm going to figure out is how to repel it from shoes.
It seems odd telling you that you raised me to be better than these people since you are the one that taught me, after all, but the problem I am having is realising that I may know better, but others seem to be slower in their lessons. Be patient, I know. I hear you in my head telling me to be patient. I'm trying, papa, I swear. People just make me so… angry sometimes.
Sorry for sending this letter so late, but I had to write you before I fell asleep. Please give my love to Regulus and mother.
All my love,
Hermione (her seal, the phoenix)
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
A/N: Had to take a break from case studies. ABALHFHGHGHFFFFF! (Ok I'm good) Posted this chapter early because it was sitting here half done, so I finished it and figured I'd post it. I promise the next chapter will be for Looks! It's even half written, I swear! *ducks vegetables*