Yuletide Potions
Title: Yuletide Potions XV
Team: Order of the Phoenix
Word Count: 11X100
Rating: PG
Challenges: Broken Memory Charm, Comfort and Joy
Characters: Severus Snape, Hermione Granger, Wendell & Monica
It all began here.
Read part 14 here.
“Dolores? As in Umbridge?” Hermione asked with bile climbing up her throat.
“Yes.”
“What are you two talking about? Who is this Dolores person?” Wendell demanded to know.
“Dolores Umbridge is the witch responsible for you and your wife’s memory problems.”
“But that doesn’t make any sense. You both said that was Hermione’s fault. What does this Dolores person have to do with anything?”
Hermione sighed. “It’s not even important, Dad. She just doesn’t like me very much.”
Severus rolled his eyes. “That would be putting it mildly.”
“Someone doesn’t like you, so they destroy your parents’ lives?” Wendell shouted.
*
“I believe that it is more than simple dislike,” Severus replied.
“Fine. She hates me. I lured her into a forest to face a herd of Centaurs who despise humans.”
Wendell and Monica both looked at her surprised. “Did we raise you to do something like that?” Monica asked hesitantly.
Hermione sighed. How should she explain this?
“What Hermione did was not without cause. Dolores is a dreadful woman who tormented and tortured the students under her care.”
“Students? You mean she was a teacher that we had entrusted our child to?”
The conversation was just getting worse and worse.
*
By the time she was able to extract herself from the room, Hermione had a headache. Though whether it was from trying to explain her rash and childish reactions to her parents, or if was from sleeping on the cramped sofa all night, she couldn’t say.
“Probably a little bit of both,” she muttered to herself as she began rummaging through her parents’ cupboards.
Finding what she was looking for, she got herself a glass of water and popped the pills into her mouth.
“What do you think you’re doing?” came a voice from behind her.
“I have a headache.”
*
“You do realize that Headache Relief is far more effective than…” He picked up the bottle on the counter and made a face. “Paracetamol.”
“I don’t have any Headache Relief, Severus. I threw so many things into my bag trying to anticipate what all I would need; and I forgot to bring any Headache Relief. Not only that, but I didn’t bring any feverfew, so I can’t brew any Headache Relief. And my parents think I’m a horrible person. And Umbridge has taken her revenge on me in the worst possible, and I don’t know what to do about it!”
*
Severus’ arms were around her for what seemed umpteenth time in the last few days. He hushed her and soothed her and when her tears finally began to slow, he released her and gave her his handkerchief to dry her tears.
“I can’t even imagine what you must think of me,” she said after recovered. “I’m not usually like this, but I’ve spent more time crying these last several days than I have in the last few years.”
“It’s all right. It has been a trying week for you,” he said before presenting her with a vial of Headache Relief.
*
She gratefully took the vial in her hands, flipped the stopper off, and eagerly drank the bitter contents. Closing her eyes, she waited the few minutes necessary for the potion to begin to take effect. As the first tendrils of tension and pain began to ease, she took a relieving breath and said, “Merlin, Severus, I don’t know how to thank you.” She took another deep breath and sighed as she rotated her neck and shoulders, encouraging the last of the pain was gone leaving her with only a slightly euphoric feeling.
“Oh, I think I love you,” she muttered.
***
Severus stared, dumbfounded at the young woman, wondering if he’d heard her correctly. The paling of her features, however, told him that he had.
Hermione brought her hand up to her mouth and her eyes grew wide. “I didn’t mean…. I….” She swallowed hard. “I was thankful for the potion and….”
Despite the kisses that they’d shared the night before, and the bonding that he’d felt since then, he felt his heart plummet into his chest. It was a ridiculous to even think that she’d have such strong feelings for him already, but that didn’t make it hurt any less.
*
“It’s quite all right, Hermione. Think nothing of it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find the nearest apothecary and see what I can do about filling the shopping list I’ve written.”
He spun on his heal and made his way towards the door.
“Severus! Wait!” He felt Hermione tug on the sleeve of his robes and he couldn’t bring himself to continue on his mission to walk out on her.
“You have a list? That means you have some idea of how to help them, is that right?”
The hope shining in her eyes lifted his heart.
*
“Yes. I do. There is no guarantee, but it is a starting point.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I want to help. What can I do?”
Of course, she wanted to help. And that meant that he would have to put even the vaguest ideas he had onto paper so it didn’t look like he was making things up as he went along-which, of course, he was.
He had some ideas… and then suddenly one of them began to form clearly in his mind and he knew what to do. It was so uncommon that it was easily overlooked.
*
“There is a spell that the Dark Lord was fond of teaching his followers for when they wished to abuse Muggles. It impeded memory by literally rerouting the neuropathways in the brain. It was a simple spell, but very complex to reverse.”
“How do we undo it?”
“The bridges-the pathways need to be rebuilt. Where is that book you had on reversing Memory Charms?”
“Is it in there?”
“No, not exactly. But I need to verify something first before we do anything else.”
Hermione smiled at him and before he knew it, had her arms wrapped around his neck.
*
“I knew it! I knew you’d figure something out!” she squealed as she stood up on her tip-toes and gave him a chaste kiss. When he didn’t respond, she pulled back and gave him a puzzled look.
Leaning down, he gave her a quick kiss on her nose and her smile returned.
“The book is in my bag,” she said. “I’ll run and fetch it.”
Just as she ran out of the kitchen she turned her head and looked over her shoulder at him and said, “I really do love you, you know.”
And then she disappeared through the door.
Go on to Part 16.
Team: Order of the Phoenix
Word Count: 11X100
Rating: PG
Challenges: Broken Memory Charm, Comfort and Joy
Characters: Severus Snape, Hermione Granger, Wendell & Monica
It all began here.
Read part 14 here.
“Dolores? As in Umbridge?” Hermione asked with bile climbing up her throat.
“Yes.”
“What are you two talking about? Who is this Dolores person?” Wendell demanded to know.
“Dolores Umbridge is the witch responsible for you and your wife’s memory problems.”
“But that doesn’t make any sense. You both said that was Hermione’s fault. What does this Dolores person have to do with anything?”
Hermione sighed. “It’s not even important, Dad. She just doesn’t like me very much.”
Severus rolled his eyes. “That would be putting it mildly.”
“Someone doesn’t like you, so they destroy your parents’ lives?” Wendell shouted.
*
“I believe that it is more than simple dislike,” Severus replied.
“Fine. She hates me. I lured her into a forest to face a herd of Centaurs who despise humans.”
Wendell and Monica both looked at her surprised. “Did we raise you to do something like that?” Monica asked hesitantly.
Hermione sighed. How should she explain this?
“What Hermione did was not without cause. Dolores is a dreadful woman who tormented and tortured the students under her care.”
“Students? You mean she was a teacher that we had entrusted our child to?”
The conversation was just getting worse and worse.
*
By the time she was able to extract herself from the room, Hermione had a headache. Though whether it was from trying to explain her rash and childish reactions to her parents, or if was from sleeping on the cramped sofa all night, she couldn’t say.
“Probably a little bit of both,” she muttered to herself as she began rummaging through her parents’ cupboards.
Finding what she was looking for, she got herself a glass of water and popped the pills into her mouth.
“What do you think you’re doing?” came a voice from behind her.
“I have a headache.”
*
“You do realize that Headache Relief is far more effective than…” He picked up the bottle on the counter and made a face. “Paracetamol.”
“I don’t have any Headache Relief, Severus. I threw so many things into my bag trying to anticipate what all I would need; and I forgot to bring any Headache Relief. Not only that, but I didn’t bring any feverfew, so I can’t brew any Headache Relief. And my parents think I’m a horrible person. And Umbridge has taken her revenge on me in the worst possible, and I don’t know what to do about it!”
*
Severus’ arms were around her for what seemed umpteenth time in the last few days. He hushed her and soothed her and when her tears finally began to slow, he released her and gave her his handkerchief to dry her tears.
“I can’t even imagine what you must think of me,” she said after recovered. “I’m not usually like this, but I’ve spent more time crying these last several days than I have in the last few years.”
“It’s all right. It has been a trying week for you,” he said before presenting her with a vial of Headache Relief.
*
She gratefully took the vial in her hands, flipped the stopper off, and eagerly drank the bitter contents. Closing her eyes, she waited the few minutes necessary for the potion to begin to take effect. As the first tendrils of tension and pain began to ease, she took a relieving breath and said, “Merlin, Severus, I don’t know how to thank you.” She took another deep breath and sighed as she rotated her neck and shoulders, encouraging the last of the pain was gone leaving her with only a slightly euphoric feeling.
“Oh, I think I love you,” she muttered.
***
Severus stared, dumbfounded at the young woman, wondering if he’d heard her correctly. The paling of her features, however, told him that he had.
Hermione brought her hand up to her mouth and her eyes grew wide. “I didn’t mean…. I….” She swallowed hard. “I was thankful for the potion and….”
Despite the kisses that they’d shared the night before, and the bonding that he’d felt since then, he felt his heart plummet into his chest. It was a ridiculous to even think that she’d have such strong feelings for him already, but that didn’t make it hurt any less.
*
“It’s quite all right, Hermione. Think nothing of it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find the nearest apothecary and see what I can do about filling the shopping list I’ve written.”
He spun on his heal and made his way towards the door.
“Severus! Wait!” He felt Hermione tug on the sleeve of his robes and he couldn’t bring himself to continue on his mission to walk out on her.
“You have a list? That means you have some idea of how to help them, is that right?”
The hope shining in her eyes lifted his heart.
*
“Yes. I do. There is no guarantee, but it is a starting point.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I want to help. What can I do?”
Of course, she wanted to help. And that meant that he would have to put even the vaguest ideas he had onto paper so it didn’t look like he was making things up as he went along-which, of course, he was.
He had some ideas… and then suddenly one of them began to form clearly in his mind and he knew what to do. It was so uncommon that it was easily overlooked.
*
“There is a spell that the Dark Lord was fond of teaching his followers for when they wished to abuse Muggles. It impeded memory by literally rerouting the neuropathways in the brain. It was a simple spell, but very complex to reverse.”
“How do we undo it?”
“The bridges-the pathways need to be rebuilt. Where is that book you had on reversing Memory Charms?”
“Is it in there?”
“No, not exactly. But I need to verify something first before we do anything else.”
Hermione smiled at him and before he knew it, had her arms wrapped around his neck.
*
“I knew it! I knew you’d figure something out!” she squealed as she stood up on her tip-toes and gave him a chaste kiss. When he didn’t respond, she pulled back and gave him a puzzled look.
Leaning down, he gave her a quick kiss on her nose and her smile returned.
“The book is in my bag,” she said. “I’ll run and fetch it.”
Just as she ran out of the kitchen she turned her head and looked over her shoulder at him and said, “I really do love you, you know.”
And then she disappeared through the door.
Go on to Part 16.