Sleepless Nights

Sleepless Nights
By CyanaWhite

A/N: Hiya again everyone! Thank you to my amazing beta, Nom de Plume! EnJoY!

Chapter 2
Hermione’s Mistake

The morning went by in a blur for Hermione. She couldn’t even remember what they had done in Transfiguration just an hour ago. Now she was sitting across from Ron and Harry, eating her lunch and desperately trying not to look at the staff table at the end of the hall, where, no doubt, Snape would be sitting.

“Oi! Hermione! Are you in there?” Ron’s voice suddenly brought her back to reality. She looked up to see her two friends staring at her as if her hair had suddenly turned pink.

“What’s the matter, Hermione?” asked Harry. “You look flushed today, and come to think of it, I don’t think you’ve said a word all morning. Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m fine, Harry. I just didn’t get much sleep last night. Maybe I had too many sweets yesterday, but I’ll be fine.” She could see the worry on their faces, and the last thing she needed was for them to make a fuss over her. Her explanation must have satisfied them though, because Ron went back to his food, and Harry gave her a small smile.

“You know, Hermione,” said Harry, “just because Ron and I can pig out on candy without getting sick, doesn’t mean you should try to do the same. We’re big strong men, and you’re just a fragile little girl. You shouldn’t try to keep up with us.” He gave a small chuckle, just to make sure she knew he was joking.

“Ha!” she laughed. “If you and Ron are ‘big strong men,’ then I’m a Slytherin!”

“Hey!” protested Ron. “Now that isn’t fair, Hermione!” He lifted his eyebrow and gave her an evil grin. “If you want, I can prove to you how much man I really am.” He added a wink just for effect. Hermione shot him a nasty look, but before she could do or say anything, Harry noticed the coming storm and thought it wise to intervene.

“Guys, will you look at the time!” Harry exclaimed as if with sudden awareness. “We should get moving, we’re gonna be late for Potions, and you know how Snape gets when we’re late!” At the mention of Snape’s name, Hermione completely forgot about killing Ron. She mindlessly picked up her book bag and followed Harry and Ron out into the entrance hall. The three of them made their way to the dungeons while Harry and Ron argued over their strategies for the upcoming Quidditch match with Slytherin.

Hermione was starting to get nervous. The closer they got to the Potions classroom, the faster her heart pounded. I can do this. It’s no big deal, right? she asked herself. I mean, it’s not like he’s going to stand in front of the class and tell everyone what we did last night. Right? As she rounded the corner, she saw the door approaching, and she took in a deep breath to steady herself.

As the three friends walked into the classroom, they noticed they were the first ones there. They quietly sat down in their regular seats in the back of the classroom. Snape was sitting behind his desk with his head bent over papers. He showed no signs of having noticed them. Hermione found herself staring at his hand as it quickly moved over the papers. His fingers, carefully wrapped around his quill, were causing shivers to run down her spine. She was so caught up that she hadn’t even noticed that the room had filled up.

Snape abruptly stood up and swiftly moved to the front of his desk, cape billowing behind him as he did so. Merlin, the man knows how to move, thought Hermione. She blushed, realising how she was feeling. As Snape began to talk, Hermione wasn’t even paying attention. She was staring intently at his lips: his soft, delicious lips. That voice of his was vibrating through the classroom, fuelling the flames that were quickly building between her legs. Why didn’t he use that tantalising voice last night? she mused. I would have come much faster. She allowed herself a small giggle at this thought, but as it broke the relative quiet of the room, she knew she had made a mistake.

“Do you find my lectures amusing, Miss Granger?” The deep growl of Professor Snape brought her back to reality once again.

“No… no, of course not, sir,” she said hesitantly, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Then may I ask as to the subject of your inconsiderate interruption?” The bark in his voice told her that he was definitely not in a good mood today, and her small giggle may have been suicide.

“I… I apologize, Professor,” she stammered, “I did not mean to interrupt you.” She hoped that he would not push for an explanation because she certainly didn’t have one. Not one she could give out loud, anyway.

“You, Miss Granger, have just lost your House ten points for failing to properly answer my question,” he hissed. Snape then waved his hand at the blackboard, and a list of ingredients appeared. “Get to work, now! I want your potions on my desk by the end of class.”

The whole class began setting up their cauldrons and retrieving the needed ingredients from the supply closet. Snape sat at his desk and continued grading papers. While she worked on her potion, Hermione’s eyes kept wandering up to him, wondering what he was thinking. Did he enjoy last night as much as I did? she found herself wondering. He couldn’t have; after all he didn’t have an orgasm. All of a sudden, an idea sprang into her head. Next time, I’ll make sure he really enjoys himself! Gods, I hope there’s a next time.

Snape looked up at that moment, and their eyes met. She gave him a small smile and turned back to her work. Had she kept looking at him, she would have noticed the confused look on his face, quickly turning to anger. He stood up and started stalking through the rows of students. In pure Slytherin fashion, however, he did not make his way straight to her.

Snape finally stopped behind her; she had not noticed his indirect approach. He slowly bent down so that his mouth was a mere inch from her ear, and in low growl he whispered, “What do you think you are doing, Miss Granger?”

The suddenness of his appearance startled her, and she spun around so quickly that her hair flipped, hitting him in the face. “Pro… Professor… I’m sor…” But before she could finish, she realized that she could not pull away. Her hair had gotten caught in the top clasp of his robes. She was stuck. Snape was really getting angry now; he roughly pulled her hair from his robes, leaving a few hairs hanging where they had been caught. Hermione moved her hand to rub her head where the hairs had been ripped and slowly looked up to Snape’s face. By now the entire class had stopped working, and every head was turned in their direction.

“I’m so sorry, Professor! I… I didn’t mean to… You startled me.”

“Are you actually blaming me for you inherent clumsiness?” hissed Snape as his eyes narrowed at her. “I suggest that if you cannot control that mess you call hair, you shave it off!” Hermione looked down at the floor, unable to look at him. She had gotten used to his yelling over the past years, but after last night it was just too much.

“Miss Granger, what exactly is it that you have on your cutting board?” His voice was an angry whisper. Hermione turned to look at her cutting board and couldn’t figure out what he was getting at.

“Those are the roots for the potion, Professor,” she said, the confusion in her voice evident.

“Those, Miss Granger, are NOT the roots you are supposed to be using. How is it that a know-it-all such as yourself could make such an enormous mistake? I would expect such a thing from Longbottom!” Hermione turned to look at the blackboard and back again to look at her roots. It struck her so fast that she slapped her hand over her mouth. How could I have made such a stupid mistake! I’m using White Miani roots when I should be using simple onion roots! Her eyes slowly and cautiously wandered up to Snape’s eyes, and she saw how angry he really was. He’s going to kill me! White Miani roots are very rare!

“You stupid little girl!” Snape was now screaming, no longer able to contain his rage. “You, Miss Granger, will serve detention with me every night until I am satisfied, which may take a long time! If I were you I would clear my schedule for the next ten years!” He then turned and made his way back to the front of the class, stopping only long enough to add, “Be in my office at eight o’clock tonight.”

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“Merlin, Hermione, I don’t think I’ve seen the git that angry since Sirius got away!” exclaimed Ron moments after they got out of class. The remainder of the class had been quite uneventful. Snape hadn’t even looked up from his papers for one second.

“What happened, Hermione?” asked Harry. “I’ve never seen you mess up like that; it’s not like you.”

“I’m not sure,” she replied, sadness evident in her voice. “I guess I just wasn’t concentrating today.”

“Yeah, but Hermione, that’s a horrible excuse. Snape is gonna kill you tonight.” Ron slowly shook his head and added in a softer voice, “You used White Miani roots; everyone knows how rare those are.”

Harry, however, looked slightly confused. “I don’t get what the big deal is; it’s not like she put them in the potion. They can still be bottled up and reused, right? So how rare they are is irrelevant.”

“Honestly, Harry, you should try reading your textbooks once in a while,” Hermione said, exasperated. “White Miani roots have to be bottled in a very specific way so that they retain their magical properties. Once the bottle is opened you have less than twenty-five minutes to use them, or they are lost forever.”

“And that’s not the worst of it, Harry,” added Ron. “White Mianis disappeared off the face of the Earth fifteen years ago. Most people believe that they are completely extinct.”

Comprehension suddenly struck Harry. “Bloody hell, Hermione. Snape is gonna kill you.” Then as an after thought, he added, “Wait a second… you don’t read, Ron! How is it that you know about all this?”

“I’m wizard-born, and any wizard that was alive nine years ago remembers the huge controversy there was over the remaining stock of White Miani roots,” Ron said. “My dad was involved in it, and I remember him coming home every night talking about it.”

“I knew you didn’t read!” Harry said with a small grin.

“’Course not, Harry,” Ron replied. “Why bother reading when you’re best friends with Hermione! She knows everything that was ever written in a book.”

“Yeah, some bloody brilliant know-it-all I am,” Hermione said miserably. Ron and Harry wrapped their arms around their friend comfortingly.

“Don’t worry, Hermione,” said Harry. “No matter how bad Snape is tonight or tomorrow night, he’ll get over it eventually.”

“Yeah, Hermione,” agreed Ron, “and if the greasy git makes you cry you can come to us. We’ll always be here for you.”

“Besides, I doubt he’ll actually kill you,” said Harry with a reassuring smile. “Dumbledore would be way too angry if his prize student was harmed! Not to mention he’d have to deal with McGonagall if he so much as lays a finger on you.” Hermione managed a small smile at this.

“Thanks, guys.” Of course, there was no way her two friends could have known what she was actually thinking. She had disappointed Snape and made him extremely angry. I doubt he’ll ever kiss me again, she thought sorrowfully, but then another thought cheered her up. But then again, I am going to be spending a lot of time with him. After all, he did say that my detentions would last ten years. Maybe I can still turn this around; maybe I can still make him like me.

With that new purpose, Hermione made her way out of the dungeons with Harry and Ron at her side.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! Reviews are greatly appreciated, I love to know what the readers think. The next chapter should be up soon, I promise.

Lotsa Love, CyanaWhite