Professor Snape Loses It

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 2 ~ A Little Service If You Please

Severus Snape had a very uncomfortable feeling of being watched as he sat at breakfast in the Great Hall the next morning. He looked down the table and it seemed as if every female staff member were sneaking looks at him. With the exception of the annoying Spells Mistress, Hermione Granger, who was eating her breakfast of bacon and eggs with gusto and ignoring him completely, which suited him just fine.

Severus continued eating his meal, aware that the women were definitely watching him. What the hell was going on now? He had always thought of the female staff members as a clutch of noisy, nosy hens and now they were focused on him as if he were a newly laid egg they were waiting to hatch. He sped up eating. Whatever the fowls were up to, he wasn’t going to hang around and find out.

He finished his meal and with a billow of robes, hurriedly exited the Great Hall. He was aware of tittering as he left. Damn women. He strode down the corridor and turned into the Main Hall, heading for the sanctity of his Potions office. No clucking there.

He unwarded the door and entered his office, then walked into his lab and stared at the bubbling cauldron he had set on low. This potion he had been developing had been proving to be quite a trial. It was a private project, a potion that would make a person traceable for seventy-two hours that did not have to be imbibed, simply rubbed on the skin. The remaining potion was then poured over parchment and it would create a map, similar to the infamous Marauder’s Map and show the location of the person who carried the rest of it on their person. He wanted to market it to the Ministry, for Auror use. It would be helpful in tracking the activities of suspected deatheaters and their supporters. Severus would make a nice residual off the potions if he could get it to work. The tracking properties were in evidence, but they faded within half an hour. He was trying to find the proper ingredient to stabilize it, to no effect. It was driving him crazy.

He walked over to his desk and pulled out a large tome of ingredients and began to study it for the umpteenth time. He heard a knock on his office door and scowled. Putting the book down, he stalked through the lab and into his office. He hated anyone to disturb him on the weekends. He opened the door and immediately rolled his eyes to the ceiling. It was Hermione.

“Yes, Hermione?” he asked tiredly, holding the door rather close so she would not enter his office. He was not in the mood for her today. He had things to do and potions to brew.

“Good morning, Severus,” Hermione said, smiling at him brightly.

“To some it may be a good morning, Hermione, but not for me. I am working on a puzzling potion and really need to be about it. Now what can I do for you?” he said, trying to remain polite.

“A puzzling potion?” Hermione said excitedly, “Can I see?”

Severus looked at her, bouncing on her toes in excitement and considered. Hermione was a Spells Mistress, but she had an associate degree in Potions, and she still was the most intelligent witch he had ever known, with the ability to think outside the box. Maybe she could be of some use. He opened the door wider.

“Certainly. Come in,” he said, and watched as the curly-headed witch dipped under his arm and walked through his office like she owned it, and straight into his lab. He followed her. Hermione walked over to the simmering cauldron and peered into it.

“What is it supposed to do, Severus?” she asked, looking down at it.

The Potions Master explained what the potion would do, and how he was having difficulty sustaining its effects for the seventy-two hour period. Hermione wrinkled her brow as he talked, drumming her fingertips on the counter as she listened. She then asked him a few questions about the ingredient he tried, and he showed her a list of them. Her brow furrowed again. She asked to see his research and he hesitated.

“Severus, I am NOT going to steal your research for crying out loud,” she said. He made her take a wizard’s oath anyway before he pulled out the notebook containing all the research about his potion. Hermione took the book and settled down on a stool in the corner of the lab and fell silent as the Potions Master worked. Two hours later, she closed the book, and carried it back to Severus, who was once again staring at the potion as if waiting for it to speak to him and tell him what it needed.

“I may know what the ingredient is you need, Severus,” Hermione said. The Potions Master fixed his eyes on her.

“What?” he asked.

“I would rather go ahead and try it first before I revealed it to you. Could I have a bit of the potion to take to my labs and experiment with?”

Severus quickly dipped a good amount of potion into a container and handed it to the witch. He understood she would rather make sure it worked than fail in front of him.

“There you go, Miss Granger,” he said, handing her the container. She took it and headed for the door with that quick walk she got when focused on a project. She didn’t even say good-bye as she left. Severus looked after her, glad she had dropped by. If she did come up with the stabilizer, he would share residuals with her. That should satisfy her. He went back to the book of ingredient and continued to sift through them, just in case.

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Hermione quickly set up her lab and set the potion to boiling in a cauldron, increasing the heat to insure the bonding process would take. She then walked to her ingredients stores, which rivaled Severus’. She kept potions ingredients as well since she did have a minor degree in it, and occasionally brewed potions for Pomfrey when Severus was too busy. She searched through her stores until she found the bottle she was looking for. Severus would never have thought of adding webbing to the potion to bind it. She doubted if he even had it in his stores. She lowered the heat on the cauldron and added the dried strands, which immediately melted, the liquid in the cauldron coalescing into a ball, turning blue, then liquefying again. She scooped out a bit and poured it into a bowl and let it cool. After an hour or so, she dabbed a bit on her skin, then took the rest and poured it over a parchment. Immediately a map showing her location in the Spells lab appeared. She picked up the parchment and exited her rooms, walking Hogwarts castle and eventually the grounds, tracking herself on the map as she walked. She headed for the gates, unwarded them, warded them back and apparated to Hogsmeade village.

She spent several hours there, picking up a few books, have lunch at the Three Broomsticks and window shopping, referring to the map and finding herself precisely where it said. Finally, she returned to Hogwarts, items and map in hand. She returned to her rooms and put away her purchases, then took the map and walked over to the Potions office and knocked. Severus quickly opened the door.

“May I come in?” she smiled at him, waving the map under his large nose. The Potions Master looked at it.

“Yes,” he said, opening the door wider. Hermione walked through once again going straight to his lab. She pulled a stool up to the counter and laid the map out flat on the countertop. Severus pulled up a stool and looked at it.

“So?” he asked her impatiently as Hermione sat there with a grin on her face.

“What time is it?” she asked him.

“Eight o’clock,” he responded, “Why?”

“Where does the map show me at,” she asked him.

“In my lab, of course,” Severus responded.

“This map has been tracking me since twelve noon,” she said.

Severus’ eyes widened. “Eight hours? This map has tracked you for eight hours?” he repeated, lifting the map and staring at it with amazement.

“Yep,” she said, a self-satisfied smile on her face.

The Potions Master looked at her, his eyes narrowed.

“What did you do? What did you add to the potion,” he demanded, excited now.

Hermione gave a sly smile.

“Why don’t we just wait and see how long the map works, then we’ll talk about what I added,” she said, standing up and heading for the door.

“But…but…” Severus stuttered as the Spells Mistress was leaving. He had so many questions. Hermione turned to him.

“You hold on to that, Severus. We’ll talk when the potion fades,” she said, that sly smile still on her face. Severus watched her go, his brow furrowed.

“Irritating witch,” he breathed as he watched her walk from his office into her rooms via the map. “But definitely the most brilliant witch of the age.”

A week later, Hermione was exiting her rooms on her way to breakfast when she was snatched into the Potions office by a very, excited Potions Master.

“It just stopped working this morning,” he said to her, “the map lasted an entire week. Tell me, Hermione, what did you use?”

Hermione looked at him consideringly.

“This is valuable information, Professor. What’s in it for me if I tell you?” she asked him.

Snape frowned at her. There’s the rub. Self-interest.

“You will receive credit, and residuals,” he responded.

Hermione rubbed her chin a moment, cocking her head up at him.

“No…I don’t want that. You can keep the credit and all the residuals,” she said.

Snape looked at her. She didn’t want credit or residuals? What in the world did she want then?

“Surely you aren’t going to just tell me without receiving anything,” he asked her, his black eyes sweeping over her, trying to divine what she wanted.

“Of course not. I might be a Gryffindor, but even I’m not that generous. There is something I want however. Only you can give it to me,” she said slowly.

“What is it, Hermione?” he asked her.

“I want a Wizard’s Oath of Service that I can invoke anytime,” she said.

An Oath of Service. Severus looked at her sharply.

“What kind of service?” he asked her.

“Oh, I don’t know. Probably your help with something. I haven’t decided. But it won’t be anything you can’t handle. I’d just like to know I can get your help if I need it,” she said.

She had a point. Severus was not very helpful and usually Albus had something to do with him providing any assistance to other staff members. What she was asking for wasn’t terrible. It was basically insurance.

“Very well,” he said, “I give you my Oath of Service to assist you in whatever capacity you need me,” he said. Powerful magic swirled around them, securing the Oath. Hermione smiled, a bit wickedly.

“Webbing,” she said.

“Webbing?” the Potions Master repeated.

“Spiderweb. That’s what I added to stabilize the potion,” she said, smiling up at him. “It is extremely strong, one of the strongest materials in the natural world, pound for pound.” Hermione reached into her robes pocket and pulled out a piece of parchment. She had calculated the potion would work for a week, and had prepared her notes to give him. She handed the parchment over to him. He scanned it, then looked at her.

“You are brilliant, Hermione. Thank you,” he said as she turned to go.

“You will, Severus,” she said obliquely, exiting.

The Potions Master stared after the departing witch. That was a rather strange reply. He shrugged as he looked down at the answer to the puzzle that had plagued him for months and smile. Whatever service she had in mind for him, this was worth it.

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Hermione was actually whistling as she walked down the dungeons corridor, dragging her hand along the cool wall. She had secured Severus’ Oath of Service, which meant he was bound to do what she asked of him. Now, what would she ask of him? The witch let out a delighted little laugh and headed for the Great Hall, a broad smile on her face.

Madam Hooch would be very pleased with this new development.

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“You secured his what?” Madam Hooch exclaimed as Hermione shushed her. Severus had just walked in, a small, uncharacteristic grin plastered on his pale face.

“His Oath of Service,” Hermione repeated.

“A Wizarding Oath?” Rolanda asked, amazed.

Hermione nodded.

“Oh my Quidditch pitch,” Rolanda breathed, “You really are going to fuck him, aren’t you?”

Hermione looked down the table at the unsuspecting Potions Master, who was cutting into a sausage.

“Till he drops,” she said wickedly, her amber eyes hot.

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A/N: Smart, smart Hermione. A Wizarding Oath of Service. Absolutely brilliant. Won’t Severus be surprised when she cashes that in. lol. Please review.