It Happened One Hallow's Eve

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 2 ~ The Truth of Hermione’s Situation

On the Hogwarts Express, Harry sat silently staring out of the window as Ron sat across from him, his brows furrowed in thought. The door was slightly ajar.

“What do you think got into Snape?” the red-headed wizard suddenly asked Harry.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like it. It’s like he went crazy,” the wizard replied, “He was like a madman.”

“Maybe…maybe he was just concerned,” Ron suggested doubtfully.

Harry snorted.

“If he were concerned, most likely it would be concern about Hermione escaping, not about her getting hurt,” Harry said, “He never liked her. He’ll probably let the ghosts get her.”

“What idiots you both are,” an unwelcome voice drawled.

Harry and Ron looked up to see Draco Malfoy standing in the doorway, accompanied by his goons Goyle and Crabbe.

“Go wank yourself, Malfoy,” Ron spat as both Boyle and Crabbe bristled, punching their fists into their hands. “You too, you bloody gorillas.”

Ron was bristling a bit himself. He wasn’t scared of either of Malfoy’s toadies. Ron had bulked up over the years. He was tall, strong and definitely a scrapper. Harry was no slouch either.

The handsome blonde wizard looked down his nose at the two, his ice blue eyes glittering with delighted malice. He had let his blonde hair grow to shoulder length, like his father and he was quite the good looking young rake. He had quite a few conquests under his belt as well.

“You can bet the Professor won’t be wanking off when he finds Granger,” the young wizard said in a gloating voice.

Harry looked at the wizard sharply.

“What the fuck are you talking about Malfoy?” Harry asked the wizard, his green eyes narrowed.

“You two pudding dicks have no idea what’s going on. You haven’t dipped your wands enough to know when a wizard wants a witch. The Professor has wood for Granger,” Malfoy announced. Boyle and Crabbe grinned nastily.

“You’re lying,” Ron spat.

Draco looked at him coldly.

“I’m lying am I? Well, what other reason could there be for him to blow a torch like that? He almost strangled you, Potter. Other than smacking you two dolts with a book now and then, he’s never actually put his hands on you. Rather out of character, don’t you think? And it was because of Granger,” the wizard said, a lewd little smirk on his face. “Now they’re alone in the castle together, and he’s ‘protecting’ her. Supposedly from ghosts…but I ask you two rotters…who’s going to protect Granger from him?”

Both Harry and Ron stared at Malfoy, who started to laugh as the realization hit them that he was probably right.

“Come on you two,” the blonde wizard said to Crabbe and Goyle, “My work here is done. Looks like Granger is going to be Slytherinized, but good. I heard the Professor has a huge cock too. She’ll be walking like she rode a hippogriff for a week come tomorrow morning.”

Crabbe and Goyle laughed as Malfoy slid the door shut. The three wizards walked away.

“So Snape wants to shag Hermione,” Ron said, his fists clenched helplessly. “I swear if that greasy git touches her, I’ll challenge him to a duel.”

Harry looked at him.

“He’d love to turn you to a pile of ash, Ron. You can’t beat him,” the wizard said.

“I can try. I’ll hex him from behind if I have to,” the wizard seethed. Ron was sweet on Hermione though she made it clear she was only interested in being his friend. The idea of Snape even touching her drove the young wizard wild.

Harry sat there for a moment, then stood up.

“Let’s go see the Headmaster,” he said, pulling the door open and exiting. Ron followed him, his nostrils flared.

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Albus and the rest of the staff were seated in the first car of the train. The Headmaster was sharing his booth with Professor Flitwick, Filch and Mrs. Norris. The caretaker was not about to leave his precious cat with soul-stealing ghosts. No amount of talk could convince the grizzled squib that Mrs. Norris didn’t have a soul.

Albus was drinking a glass of iced pumpkin juice and nibbling on a pumpkin pastie he had purchased off the tea trolley when Harry and Ron appeared at the door. Filch made an even uglier face than usually as he looked up at them.

“Get out of here you pups,” he growled at the wizards.

“We need to speak to the Headmaster,” Harry said, looking at Albus with pleading eyes.

“Let them in, Argus,” the old wizard said, seeing the worry in both Harry’s and Ron’s eyes.

Filch grumbled and shifted his knees so Ron and Harry could pass. Mrs. Norris spat and snagged Ron’s robes with her paw, claws extended.

“Hey, let go you natty old furball!” Ron yelled.

Filch’s face grew black.

“Hey now, don’t you be insulting my cat. I’ll beat you within an inch of your life,” Filch hissed, petting the little beastie.

“Argus, calm down,” Albus said placatingly. He looked up at Harry.

“How can I help you my boy?” he asked kindly.

Harry and Ron looked at Filch and Professor Flitwick uncomfortably. Filch was listening closely.

“I’d rather talk to you in private, sir,” Harry said softly.

Filch snorted.

Dumbledore’s blue eyes shifted from Harry to Ron.

“Very well, sit on either side of me and move in close,” the wizard said.

Harry and Ron did so, and Albus waved his hand, casting a silencing spell much to Filch’s disgust. He wanted to know what was going on.

“You can talk freely now, Harry. What is on your mind?” Albus asked him.

Harry colored a bit. Accusing one of the Headmaster’s staff of having designs on shagging a student was a bit much. But Harry had to say something.

“Um, Headmaster…Professor Snape seemed really upset when he found out Hermione was in the castle. Didn’t you find the way he acted a bit…well…strange?” Harry asked the Headmaster…deciding this was the best approach.

“Yeah, he went bloody bonkers,” Ron interjected, staring at Albus with his eyebrows raised.

Albus nodded soberly.

“Yes, he was quite upset. Miss Granger is a very intelligent student who may be very valuable in the war against Voldemort once she graduates. Her safety is imperative,” the Headmaster replied carefully. “Professor Snape is of the opinion she is just as valuable as you are, Harry.”

Both Harry and Ron took this in. So Professor Snape thought Hermione could be of help fighting against Voldemort, as much of a help as Harry himself. Yes, that could explain why he was so upset she was locked in the castle, but there seemed to be more to it.

Harry looked at the Headmaster soberly.

“Draco says the Professor is…is attracted to Hermione. Do you think that’s true?” Harry asked Albus, whose eyes went dark. Ron noticed the change immediately.

“It is true,” he said, his voice quaking. “He wants to shag her and you sent him in there to spend the whole night alone with her.”

Ron scowled at the Headmaster, who looked at him rather severely.

“Professor Snape was the only one who could enter the castle without being stopped. Since he is always facing death, the castle doesn’t put up the protections it would for one of us. The castle would keep us from danger. But not the Potions Master,” the wizard said.

“But still, he wants Hermione…doesn’t he?” Ron asked accusingly.

Albus sighed.

“Professor Snape admires the witch very much. He is not a man given to chasing witches down, and stays to himself for the most part. Miss Granger has caught his attention for several reasons, Mr. Weasley. He is no randy seventh year. Believe it or not, he is an honorable man,” the Headmaster said.

“I don’t care how honorable he is…I don’t want him touching Hermione!” Ron blurted out.

“The matter is not in your hands, Mr. Weasley, and I will remind you I am your Headmaster and will not be spoken to in such a manner,” Albus said darkly. Harry could feel the wizard’s power manifesting. Ron could too. He dropped his head.

“Sorry sir,” Ron said, though his stomach was churning horribly at the thought of the Potions Master shagging Hermione.

“He’s too old for her,” Harry said, “And too ugly too,” he thought.

“That is Miss Granger’s decision to make whenever he approaches her,” Albus replied evenly. “You cannot control the witch’s life. She’s an adult now. You are her friends, not her fathers.”

Ron looked at Harry.

“She can’t be interested in him, Harry. He treated her like shit for the longest time,” the red-headed wizard said, then covered his mouth as he looked at Albus, whose brow was furrowed. “Sorry sir.”

Harry looked thoughtful.

“Not so much this year,” Harry said, thinking. “He’s been giving her proper grades and hasn’t taken any points from her in ages. She got perfect marks on the last two tests. He never gave her perfect marks before, even though she deserved them.”

Albus gave a little smile.

“The Professor is hardest on his best students. He doesn’t give them perfect marks because he wants them to continue to strive to do their best. He doesn’t want them to become complacent. He also gives his lesser students slightly higher marks to keep them encouraged. There is a method to his…madness,” the wizard said, “Though he still favors his Slytherins as all Heads of House favor their own.”

Ron and Harry looked at each other. Professor Snape helping bad students? They wouldn’t have believed it possible.

“Still, it just seems wrong that he wants Hermione,” Harry said. “He knows so much more about life than she does…particularly the dark side.”

Albus looked at Harry.

“Harry, you’ve known Hermione for a long time now. Do you really think she would be happy with a wizard her own age? She is a brilliant, knowledgeable witch. Doesn’t it seem likely she would be attracted to someone with more knowledge than she? Someone older and more experienced? Someone who would challenge her? She is no ordinary witch. I am sure you both know that. In fact, Miss Granger has as much intolerance for dunderheads as the Potions Master does,” the Headmaster said.

This was true. Hermione couldn’t stand idiots of any type. Most of the students at Hogwarts thought she was stuck up and a cold fish. All she was interested in was books and study. She didn’t chat with witches. She didn’t date any wizards. All she did was curl up with her books night after night while life went on around her. Ron and Harry liked her that way too. The thought that she might go for the wizard who had made their lives miserable for the past seven years was disturbing.

But Professor Snape was intelligent, skilled and even courageous. He was a spy in Voldemort’s ranks and a member of the Order. He also was as mean as a basilisk, but he had proven himself time and time again. A witch as logical as Hermione could look past his appearance and see him as being attractive in other ways.

“Looks aren’t important,” the witch would preach to Harry and Ron when they talked about wanting the prettiest witches in the school. “It’s the character that really counts.”

Ron and Harry shuddered at the same time. Gods, Hermione might really go for Snape.

“Headmaster, what’s to keep Snape from trying to put the moves on Hermione while they are alone all night?” Ron asked the wizard.

“Firstly, that’s Professor Snape, Mr. Weasley. And he is an honorable man as I said before...” the Headmaster hesitated.

Harry frowned.

“What aren’t you telling us, Headmaster?” he asked the wizard. Albus was good at hiding truths rather than lying about them as Harry found out in his fifth year when the Prophecy was finally revealed to him. It had taken Harry a long time to get over the fact that Dumbledore hid that knowledge from him for so many years.

Albus looked at Harry and Ron for a long moment, then drew in a deep breath as if he were about to embark on something that required extra strength.

“You are both adults. I expect you to handle what I have to say to you as adults. Miss Granger’s life is in very real danger, due to her innocence. She will draw the ghosts to her like a muggle magnet. Professor Snape will be hard put to keep her safe,” the wizard said.

“Her innocence?” Ron repeated.

“Her virginity, Mr. Weasley. Evil always goes for the innocent first. Miss Granger is an innocent in that she hasn’t been intimate with a wizard yet. She is still ‘pure.’ Taking a pure soul is a coup. Every ghost at Hogwarts will be pursuing her. If the situation gets too bad, the Professor may be forced to…remove her innocence in order to save her life,” Albus said with a sigh.

Both Ron and Harry looked horrified.

“That git will shag her the moment a ghost shows up!” Ron exclaimed, jumping up from his seat and gesticulating wildly.

“I highly doubt that, Mr. Weasley, and sit down!” Albus ordered.

The wizard sat back down, his leg vibrating angrily.

“I imagine it will be quite difficult to deflower the witch while trying to escape ghosts. It will put them both at a disadvantage, and Professor Snape is very much into self-preservation. It will be his last resort,” the Headmaster said.

Both Harry and Ron looked extremely doubtful. They thought the wizard would jump Hermione’s bones the moment the opportunity presented itself.

“Hermione won’t let him do it,” Ron said, though in his heart he wasn’t sure about this.

Albus looked at the red-haired wizard kindly.

“Mr. Weasley, your feelings for Miss Granger are widely known, and I know this disturbs you greatly. But the truth is that Miss Granger is a very logical witch, and faced with either death or deflowerment, I am quite sure her instinct for self-preservation will kick in, and she will do what is necessary to survive,” the Headmaster said gently.

“Even shag the Professor,” Harry said glumly.

Albus nodded.

“Now you two return to your booths. There is nothing you can do about Miss Granger’s situation but wait until tomorrow. Hopefully Professor Snape will save her and himself. Only time will tell,” the Headmaster said, waving his hand and removing the silencing spell.

Filch looked at the two wizards, who had the demeanor of beaten dogs. He grinned horribly. Whatever the Headmaster said to them, they didn’t like it. That tickled the old caretaker to no end.

Ron and Harry exited the booth silently, Albus looking after them, his eyes dark.

“Welcome to the real world,” he said softly, then stared out of the window watching the landscape roll past.

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A/N: Now Ron and Harry know what’s going on. Of course they aren’t happy about it, but that’s life, boys. Please review.