Love is Blind

Chapter 13

Hermione was sitting on the couch in her common room
when she heard a faint knock. Albus had brought her to her room and walked her
around so that she would be comfortable with where everything was placed. The entrance
to her chambers was in an alcove, easy for her to find without her sight. She
did not have to think long when setting her password.

“Roses,” she said and the portrait opened.

Severus smiled when he heard her choice of
passwords. “I hope, Miss Granger, that it is all right that I heard your
password? If not you will have to change it,” he said in his silky drawl.

She chuckled lightly as she stepped aside to let
Severus enter. “I do believe Professor Snape, that since we are working so
closely together, that at one time or another you may find yourself in need of
said password.” She couldn’t help but smile at the many implications that could
be read into that ambiguous statement. She hoped he might use it for more than
just their work.

She steadily walked across the room and felt for the
furniture. Severus instinctively went to grab her hand to guide her, but she
pulled it away at his slightest touch. “I’m sorry Severus, I need to do this on
my own. I can’t expect you to be with me 24 hours a day.” ‘No matter how
tempting that sounds’ she thought and smiled as she found the couch and sat
down. She reached for the table and found that he had brought some sandwiches.
She brought one to her nose, “Corned beef?” she thought out loud.

“You do have a good nose, Hermione. I also have ham
along with peanut butter and jam. I wasn’t sure what you would prefer.”

She took a bite of the sandwich in her hand. “Thank
you, Severus this is delicious. Do I smell apples too?”

He chuckled once more, “You are amazing, Hermione. I
can’t get anything past you. I brought us some fruit to nibble on later.”

“Later?” she looked toward him smirking.

“Well, I was thinking that maybe we can go down to
the lab and you could keep me company as I start our next test potion for
Remus.” He caught the smirk fading from her face and she nodded.

“That sounds all right. I know we need to make up
for the last time. I have had a lot of time to think over the past few days and
I have some theories I want to run past you.”

“It’s settled then. After lunch we will work in the
lab.” She nodded as she bit into her sandwich again. The two of them ate in
silence. When they were finished Severus put a freshness charm on the fruit and
escorted Hermione out her door and down the stairs to the dungeons.

She loved the smell of the lab. It was what Severus
smelled like. Wood and spices. She heard the scraping of a chair and then
Severus put her hand on the back of it so she could seat herself. He quickly
retrieved the equipment and ingredients he needed for the Wolfsbane base. He
would unstopper the viles and have Hermione smell them and tell him what they
were. She didn’t get one wrong. “You could brew this potion with your hands
tied behind your back, of course you know all the ingredients. We will try some
harder ones in a moment,” he said as he added the last ingredient to the
cauldron. He handed her a wooden spoon, “I need you to stir this for me,
please. We are at the counterclockwise stage,” he said as he walked back in the
storeroom.

“I thought you said I could brew this potion with my
hands tied behind my back? If that’s the case, why did you tell me what stage
we are currently at?” she laughed, knowing that he was not used to someone with
potions knowledge comparable to his own.

“I’m sorry, I keep forgetting, that you are not one
of the normal dunderheads that I teach,” he answered sarcastically. The banter
continued as he took over the stirring of the potion. As the cauldron simmered,
he asked her about some of her theories. He had to agree that some were quite
feasible, but they would have to either wait to test it until later in the
brewing process or when the ingredient in question would be ready from
Professor Sprout.

“So are we going to continue to test the
capabilities of my olfactory sense?” Hermione teased as she heard him tinkling
around with a few viles.

“If you are up to it?”

“Am I a Gryffindor or not? I am always up for a good
challenge,” she said proudly.

“All right, then. Number one…” he held up a small
vile of liquid that smelled like a cross between garlic and dung.

“Vampire blood.”

“Very good, that one was easy. Number two…” another
liquid, she sniffed. It was familiar, pleasant. It smelled like spring rain but
had a metallic undertone.

“Moon drops.” (Moon drops are drops of rain collected
during the spring on a full moon.)

“Very good, I thought I could slip you up on that
one. Number three…” this was a powder. This one was difficult, for most powders
smelled alike, if they had any smell at all. She could smell a sweet, clean
smell.

“Unicorn horn?” she knew she sounded unsure. This
one was hard.

“Yes. I cannot believe this. I was always proud of
my own sense of smell, but I would have missed the last two.”

“Are you trying to make me slip up?

“No, I am just giving you a challenge,” he said in
the sweet singsong voice he used when he was being facetious. “Now, number
four…” Another liquid. Strong. Alcohol, not the rubbing alcohol, but like
liquor.

“I am not
much of a drinker, but it smells like brandy.” She smiled when she heard him
sigh.

“Damn. All right only two more. Number five…” this
was a solid brick of something. He wouldn’t let her touch it, but she knew it
was solid, because she didn’t hear the liquid or inhale any powder. It smelled
woodsy, but not like what you would find in the forest. This was definitely
something from the greenhouses. It was too strong to be mandrake root, but was
similar.

“Fernalite Root?” her voice belied her
unassuredness.

“Almost… Fenneline Root. Not bad only one missed. All
right, last one…” A liquid, but a thick liquid, it sounded smooth, not watery.
It smelled sweet, but had a sensual smell, like raw… sex. Her mouth opened in
shock.

“Where did you get that? It’s illegal!”

“All that matters is I have it, and I have never
used it. I hope I never have to. Human pheromones can be very dangerous if used
incorrectly and if I tried to use them it would mean that whatever happened was
not fully consensual.” He was speaking in his scientific potions professor
voice, trying hard to hide the aroused huskiness that was tryinrd trd to escape
his lips. He had brought this particular ingredient out, not just to test her
knowledge but to see what kind of reaction he got. She reacted just as he
expected, being the rule-abiding ex-Head Girl that she was.

“What if the subject gave you consent first?” she
said breathlessly. That is when Severus realized that Hermione was always full
of surprises.