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A Drop in the Ocean	By : AndreaLorraine Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Snape/Hermione Views: 3498 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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�The
last time I checked,� Dumbledore said, staring at his Potions Master over the
rims of his spectacles, ��internal bleeding� and �fine� were not synonymous.�

�� Snape said nothing, settling for looking as annoyed as
his exhaustion would permit him.� He felt
like a herd of hippogriffs had trampled on him.�
He really didn�t care what Albus had to say; this wasn�t the first time
he�d dragged himself back to Hogwarts with his insides weeping, and he was sure
it wouldn�t be the last.� He would have
been fine if he�d just stayed in bed.�
Well, he really wouldn�t have had much of a choice, considering that
upon his awakening sometime around noon,
he couldn�t even raise himself two inches off the mattress without feeling like
someone had a firm grip on his intestines and was having a fabulous time
twisting them into a horrible convulsive ball.

�� Dumbledore was looking at him sternly, obviously
expecting some kind of answer.

�� Albus,� he sighed, grimacing slightly as the muscles in
his back screamed, �believe me, this morning I felt
nowhere near as bad as this, or else I would have accompanied you to Madame Pomfrey.� I was
operating on adrenaline.� I didn�t feel
it.�

�� You were limping.�

�� You�d probably be limping, too, after a few kicks in the
kidneys,� he muttered darkly.

�� A few?� Yesterday you said one.�

�� My brain was addled, Albus.� Pettigrew could have been kicking me for a
half hour and I wouldn�t have been able to tell.�

�� He must have been, Severus, because Madame Pomfrey tells me one of your kidneys was nearly detached.�

�� Well that explains a lot.�

�� Dumbledore sighed.�
He was not getting his point across.�
Even half-dead with his abdomen hard and full of blood, Severus stubbornly
refused to admit he needed help.

�� You need to take care of yourself, Severus.�

�� I do.�

�� No, you don�t.�
What if he had summoned you again tonight?� You would not have been able to move, and if
you had somehow managed to get out there, one Cruciatus
would have finished you off!�

�� Snape winced.� It
was not often that Dumbledore raised his voice.

�� You know how important you are, Severus.� You are our eyes and ears in this time.� You are the only thing that can keep a Revel
from becoming a massacre!�

�� Dumbledore took a breath, and when he spoke again, his
voice was back to its usual volume.

�� You know I do not like to impose my will on you too
much, because I failed you as much as the opposite.� But if you are not in the infirmary after
every gathering from this moment forward, I will do something�unsavory.� I don�t know what, but take my word, Severus,
there will be consequences.�

�� I am not your student any more, Albus, and I really do
not appreciate being treated as such,� Snape said, his tone dangerously
soft.� Anyone who had ever heard him use
that tone of voice knew that they were in for trouble.� The Potions Master did not yell�oh no, very
much to the contrary.� The angrier he
got, the softer and silkier his voice became.

�� No, you are not a student.� But you are my employee.� And if you will not take responsibility for
yourself, I must treat you this way.�
Don�t force me to think up punishments.�

�� It could have been worse,� Snape protested.� �I would have healed.� It is ridiculous to waste time on every new
scrape and bruise I bring home.� Save
your efforts for the Potter boy.�

�� Not another word, Severus, or you will be running around
the Quidditch field dressed as the Gryffindor
mascot.�

�� Nothing had ever shut Severus Snape up so fast.� Dumbledore could not resist a smile as he
breezed out of the room.� In a way, he
was no better than his Potions Master.�
It was ridiculously entertaining to provoke that silent, simmering death
glare out of the younger man.� It was
good to keep him on his toes, he reasoned.�
Yes, every now and then someone had to remind Snape that he was not the
only man in the world with a sharp tongue.

��

*�� *�� *�� *�� *�� *

�� I can�t believe that ratty old hat serves any kind of
purpose except looking ugly,� Lucius Malfoy said, making a disdainful face.

�� You better shut up,� the dark-haired boy next to him
warned.� �It can probably hear you.�

�� It�s just some old stupid hat, Severus,� Malfoy drawled,
rolling his eyes.

�� Just some old stupid hat�,� Severus replied, mocking Malfoy�s tone so well that several people in the long line
giggled to themselves.� �You say that
until it sticks you in Gryffindor.�

�� Ugh,� Lucius said.�
�It wouldn�t dare.�

�� And what would you do to it if it did sort you into
Gryffindor?� a third voice asked, the tone clearly amused.

�� Why, simple, Selena, I would hex it until it got things
right.�

�� She chuckled and shook her head.

�� You�re ridiculous, Lucius.� I wouldn�t worry.� You�ve got Slytherin
written all over you.�

�� So what are we going to do tonight?� I think we should go exploring.� I�m sure this old castle has all kinds of
hidden rooms and secret passages,� Lucius said, rubbing his hands together.

�� And how are we going to do that?� Severus asked, raising
an annoyed eyebrow.

�� I don�t know.�

�� Lucius, the last thing we need is to get in trouble the
first night at school,� Selena warned.

�� Oh, quit the innocent act,� Malfoy said, crossing his
arms and lifting his chin haughtily.�
�You know you�re just as curious as we are.�

�� Who said I was curious?� Severus asked, looking back and
forth between the two of them.

�� I don�t suppose anyone�s ever told you that you suck at
lying,� Malfoy said.

�� He does not,� Selena refuted.� �You don�t live with him.�

�� I probably will soon, though.�

�� Well then don�t let that quiet exterior fool you.�

�� Now whatever are you talking about?� Severus asked,
putting on his best innocent face.�

Selena
snorted and rolled her eyes.� At least Sev and Malfoy seemed to be getting along.� Severus was not very social, and though
neither of them knew anyone coming in, it was likely that she would have a much
easier time of making friends.� They�d
stepped onto the train together, sticking close to one another.� Most of the compartments had been full
already or only had one spot available, and she knew Severus would never forgive
her if she forced him to separate from her.�
But she refused to stand with him; the ride was much too long for
that.� And, by Merlin, if he didn�t make
friends now, it would only go downhill once they got to school.� She�d dragged them all the way to the back of
the train, intent to turn around when she found the last compartment full, and
nearly ran over the expensively dressed, blond-haired, blue-eyed Malfoy.� He�d spent a moment appraising them down his
long nose, his glance mostly lingering on her.�
And then he�d invited them into his compartment, apologizing and asking
if she was all right.� She hadn�t really
liked him much, even after the gesture of kindness.� He was arrogant and spoiled � that much was
obvious.� But she supposed she would just
have to overlook that.� He�d befriended
Severus instantly, and for that she had to be thankful.

�I�m
sure we could find a way to---� Lucius was saying,
just before he was interrupted.

�Malfoy,
Lucius!�

The
person in question looked confused for a moment, but quickly recovered and
marched proudly up to the stool that held the Sorting Hat.� He could not resist keeping his eyes on the
tattered old thing as McGonagall lowered it towards him.� It had just barely touched his hair before it
yelled,

�SLYTHERIN!�

�Got
that one right,� Severus mumbled, returning the grin that Lucius beamed at him.

�I
wonder if that hat has ever put someone in the wrong house just to spite them,�
Selena mused.

�It
would be obvious, so probably not.�

�Do
you suppose it�s�what�s the word�sentient?�

�I
don�t know.�

�I
guess we�ll just have to wait �til it�s on our head,� she said, giving her
brother a crooked grin.

�I
guess,� he agreed absently, his eyes busily taking inventory of the Slytherin table.� She
let her eyes wander as well, sweeping first up the lengths of Hufflepuff and then Gryffindor�s
tables.� Her eyes settled on a certain
boy who had just been sorted into Gryffindor.�
He sat towards the end of the table, surrounded by people but not
talking to any of them.� He was pale and
delicate-looking.� He could have been a
porcelain doll if not for his faded, shabby robes.

She
remembered him from the train.� He�d been
in a compartment with two other boys, both dark-haired and both currently
sitting across from him at the Gryffindor table.� His deep eyes had held a shy invitation when
he�d pulled open the door.� They�d told
her that she could sit with them, if she wanted.

�Hey,�
she said, poking the boy in front of her.�
He was a bit chubby and mousy-haired, and seemed surprised that she wanted
to talk to him.

�What?�
he asked, surveying her carefully.

�You
went in the compartment with those boys,� she said, pointing toward the
Gryffindor table.� He nodded rather
dumbly.� �What�s that one�s name?�

�Oh,�
he said, looking relieved.� �Remus Lupin.�

�Hm,� she said, letting her eyes linger on Lupin for another
moment before returning them to the chubby boy in front of her.� �What�s your name?�

�Peter��

�Pettigrew,
Peter!�

�That�s
me,� he said, smiling.� �Here goes.�

The
Hat answered as quickly for him as it had for Lucius, screaming out a hearty,

�GRYFFINDOR!�

�This
is annoying,� Severus muttered.� �Why
couldn�t we have a name closer to the beginning of the alphabet?�

�There
aren�t too many more before us.� Having
all these people staring at us just makes it seem to take forever.�

�What�d
you ask that boy�s name for?� he questioned, settling his intense gaze on her.

�I
was just curious.� He looks like he could
use a friend.�

�You
like him,� Severus said, his lips curling into a smile.

�I
do not,� she said flatly.

�Yes
you dooooo.�

�Do
not.�

�Do
too.�

�Not.�

�Too.�

�Not.�

�Too.�

�Oh
for the love of crap Severus shut��

�Snape,
Selena!�

She
spared only a second to give him a withering glare, which only made his smile
grow even wider.� Then she pushed the
thoughts of how annoying her twin brother was out of her mind and strode
confidently up to the stool.� She sat,
still half-glaring at Severus, and waited for the Hat to settle on her
head.�

She
hadn�t expected to feel anything, just to hear it shout that she was a Slytherin and be done with her.� But when the wide, faded brim hooded her
vision, she gasped.� She felt it in her
mind.

�You�re
a tough one,� the hat said, in its raspy voice.�
�So many layers.��

She
could feel it in her brain, jumping to and fro between synapses like a nervous
flea.� Her head began to hurt
intensely.� What was going on?� No one else had seemed to
be in pain or shown any indication that the thing was invading their mind.� And then suddenly something new was touched,
something that made her feel like a white-hot poker had just been jammed
through her skull.� She wanted to scream,
but only managed a shaky inhalation.� She
held onto the edges of the stool for dear life, so tightly that it actually
hurt. �She could see Professor
McGonagall�s face in her peripheral vision.�
The kindly witch was quickly becoming worried

The
pain subsided gradually, but left her with a strange buzzing in her mind � sort
of like ringing ears after loud music.�
And then the hat sighed and withdrew from her consciousness.

�RAVENCLAW!�
it boomed.� McGonagall pulled it off her
head quickly, catching her as she almost toppled off the stool.

�Are
you all right, dear?� she asked, her concerned face swimming in Selena�s
vision.

�Yes,
I�m�I�m fine,� she said, blinking to try to will away the dizziness.

�Are
you sure?�

�Yes,�
she said, avoiding a nod because she was sure it would set her head aswim again.

�All
right,� the witch said, pointing to the Ravenclaw
table.� �There is your house table.�

�Thank
you,� she murmured, concentrating very hard on the steps down to the floor
level.� She could feel McGonagall�s eyes
on her back as she went, and then as clear as day the woman�s voice was in her
head.

�That�s
never happened before.�

She turned and looked back at the wizened witch.� She was looking at the hat that rested in her
hands, a slight frown on her face.�
Selena�s glance moved to Severus, who now made his way to the
stool.� His eyes caught hers and they
shared a glance of resigned confusion.�
She shrugged very slightly, and he smiled.� He wasn�t angry.

Not
unexpectedly, the hat bellowed just a second after being placed on his head.

�SLYTHERIN!�

�Hey,�
a voice interrupted her thoughts.� She
turned and looked up into a tall, brown-haired boy�s face.� He was easily six feet tall, most likely a
seventh-year.� �You
going to come sit down?�

�Oh,
yes, I just wanted to watch my brother, is all,� she said.� He smiled what could only be described as a
contagious smile.

�Well,
I�m Ludo Bagman,� he said as he led her toward the
table.� �And welcome to Ravenclaw.�

�Thank
you,� she said softly, feeling her cheeks heat.�
Boy, did that smile have wattage.�
She sat where he�d pushed a girl and boy apart, staring fiercely at her
hands as he patted her on the back and shuffled off to the other end of the
table.

She
raised her eyes a few minutes later, when applause broke out as the sorting was
finished.� She found herself caught
directly in the gaze of Lucius Malfoy.�
He was staring at her, unblinking, his eyes glittering like the Caribbean Sea.� Something
about the way he looked at her made her feel oddly special and alarmingly
unsafe at the same time.� Slowly, his
eyebrows went up and he shrugged.� He
smiled, revealing his perfect white teeth.�
For no good reason, she felt her nerves relax.� He wasn�t angry, either, although why it
should matter to her was a complete mystery.�
She did know one thing, though.�
There was as much of an invitation in Malfoy�s
eyes as there had been in Remus Lupin�s.

Lupin�

Her
eyes broke their stalemate with Lucius and flickered to the other side of the
room.� Lupin was now talking with Peter
and the dark-haired boys, laughing at something one of them had said.� He was cute when he smiled.

Stupid Severus.� He was too
sharp for his own good sometimes.

For
a second, Lupin�s eyes met hers.� He lifted his hand in a very subtle
wave.� And again, as clear as day, she
heard a voice in her head.� She had not
heard him speak, but she was sure it was Remus Lupin�s
voice.

�I�m
glad she wasn�t put in Slytherin.�
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A Drop in the Ocean