Beneath the Surface

Beneath The Surface By: Sharkdiver Disclaimer: These characters belong to JK Rowling. They are NOT MINE. I'm just borrowing them for a good time. No profit is being made from this. Rating: NC-17 Summary: Severus Snape is currently researching a potion that could serve as protection from the effects of the Cruciatus curse. After Harry and Ron are sent to the Auror Academy, Albus Dumbledore arranges for Hermione Granger to assist in the research of this invaluable potion as an apprentice to Severus. Will they be able to overcome their differences for the greater good? (SS/HG) AN: thanks again for the reviews!! Enjoy ;) *********************************************************************** Chapter 10 - Dinner Hermione scrubbed her hands in the kitchen sink and set about investigating the contents of the refrigerator. Right away she spotted lettuce, tomato, mushrooms, onion and fresh cucumbers. She pulled them out and set them aside for a tossed salad. She also found some chicken breast fillets, an thn the pantry she found some wild rice. Hermione's mother had taught her how to cook when she was young. Once she began attending Hogwart's at the age of eleven, she hadn't used her cooking skills since the house elves prepared all of the food. She set a pot of water on the stove to boil to cook the rice in, then found a skillet she could use to stir fry the chicken. She opened the cupboard, and noticed that Severus had a wide variety of spices and seasonings in there; it seemed appropriate for a potion's master, as cooking and potion making were very similar arts. She chose Rosemary, Thyme, and Basil for the chicken, along with a dash of salt and some fresh ground pepper. She tapped her chin with her finger and looked through the fridge again for something else that would accentuate the chicken, and noticed an opened bottle of wine. She splashed some wine over the marinating chicken and set about chopping onions and mushrooms to sautŽ with it. **************** Severus was in the living room researching what he wanted to do for the following day's work, when he heard a soft tapping on his living room window. A large white owl had two scrolls attached to his leg; one for Severus, and the other addressed to Hermione. Severus recognized the owl as Harry Potter's own owl Hedwig. He removed both scrolls from the owl's leg, and opened the one that bore his name. It appeared blank upon first inspection, which told Severus that this was a letter bearing news from the Order of the Phoenix. He tapped the parchment with his wand, and uttered the revealing charm specific to all Order members. This was a safeguard tactic, lest the owls are intercepted. Words began to form on the parchment in Albus Dumbledore's tidy script: "Severus, As you are aware from our last meeting, Alastor Moody had discovered the hidden location of a large group of known Deatheaters. I am pleased to tell you that the raid has been successful, finding all 8 Deatheaters captured and awaiting trial. All will be going to Azkaban, and no doubt some will be sentenced to the Dementor's kiss for their Heinous crimes. The disappointing news, I'm afraid, is that Bellatrix LeStrange has once again eluded our Aurors. No doubt she is with Voldemort at this very moment. We are continuing our raids, and with luck, we will soon be able to uncover the secret location of Voldemort himself. In the meantime, I ask that you use extra caution, and keep Miss Granger out of harm's way. You have my full confidence in this endeavor, Severus; I will contact you again soon. ~Albus Dumbledore P.S., I believe Mr. Potter has included a note to Miss Granger, please see that she gets it." Severus stood and picked up the scroll for Hermione with a look of disdain. He made his way toward the kitchen to give her the letter, and a delicious aroma invaded his senses. As he crossed the threshold into the kitchen, he saw two place settings laid out neatly on the table, both with a small salad. Hermione had her back to him, and she was transferring the chicken and rice into a serving dish. He cleared his throat just as she turned around to set the dinner on the table. "Severus. I was just about to let you know dinner was ready." She said nervously "Yes, well, this letter has just arrived for you; I believe it is from Mr. Potter." He said in clipped tones as he thrust the scroll towards her as if the parchment itself was contaminated with some vile disease. Hermione studied him for a brief moment before she reached out and took the scroll from him. 'Does he look...Jealous?' she thought to hers As As quick as it appeared, it was gone and his usual sneer was back in place. "Thank you." She offered quietly as she took the scroll from him and set it aside until after dinner. "Would you like some wine?" came Severus' silky voice from behind her. She turned to face the direction she had heard his voice, "Pardon?" "Would you like some wine?" he said again if not slightly irritated. She saw that he was standing in the entrance to a small stairwell she hadn't noticed before. "Please." She answered shyly. She saw him descend the staircase and disappear into the darkness for a minute before he reappeared with a bottle of Merlot. She supposed the door led to a small wine cellar. He pulled two crystal glasses from the cupboard, and set them on the table with a small 'clink'. "Miss Gra..." he began as he noticed the smirk that suddenly graced her lips, "Here. Me. May I ask where you learned to cook like this?" She smiled realizing he was impressed with her cooking skills, even though he hadn't come out and said it. "My mother taught me how to cook when I was young. Unfortunately, I rarely get the chance to do it these days with the house elves around." He lifted his fork and took a bite of the chicken and rice and was pleasantly surprised. Not only had she cooked with chicken and the rice to the perfect tenderness, she had an impeccable taste for choosing spices as well. She looked at him quizzically for a moment while she nibbled her salad, confused as to why he skipped right past the salad andaighaight to the chicken. Did he not like vegetables? He saw her studying him and glanced over at his untouched salad. She was dying to ask; he could see it plain as day on her face. He wanted to chuckle at her predictability, but instead he met her eyes and sighed, "In Italy, it is customary to eat salad after the main course. They believe it cleanses the palette." She smiled meekly at him and concentrated on her dinner. She had to admit; she had done rather well with dinner. The chicken was excellent, and the merlot Severus had chosen complimented it perfectly. The rest of dinner was eaten in a sort of companionable silence. She could see that it would certainly take some time for him to warm up to her; although she could see he was already being civil, which was a start. *************** After dinner, Severus had taught her a quick clean up spell he knew so that they could retire to the living room to discuss the following day's work. He handed her a few texts that contained information on the potions they would be brewing, and he asked that she be familiar with them by morning. She had never realized that just being an assistant would be so much work! Before heading to her room for the evening, she picked up the letter from Harry off of the kitchen counter and opened it. Like Severus' letter, it appeared blank. She tapped the parchment with her wand and uttered the incantation. Within seconds, Harry's unruly scrawl formed across the surface: "Hermione, How are things living with Snape? Auror Academy is amazing. Ron and I have learned so much, and both of us are getting on really well with the other trainees...only Ron Broke his wand again on the first day, it was embarrassing. I wanted to let you know that we have a free weekend this week, and we were hoping you would able to escape Snape's clutches to meet us at the Three Broomsticks on Saturday. Talk to you soon. Love, Harry" Hermione went into her bedroom and saw that Hedwig was settled on her windowsill, obviously instructed by Harry to wait for a reply. She took out a piece of parchment and a quill from her trunk, and wrote a quick reply to Harry letting him know she would be glad to meet them on Saturday. She attached the note to Hedwig's leg, scratcthe the feathers behind her head before sending her on her way. She watched as the large owl swooped out of the window and disappeared in the night sky.