The Boy in the Attic
folder
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Snape/Hermione
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
5
Views:
8,238
Reviews:
62
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female › Snape/Hermione
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
5
Views:
8,238
Reviews:
62
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter and make no money from writing this story.
Prophets and building blocks
Chapter 2
At seven o’clock on Saturday morning, Harry flooed over to Hermione’s cottage, a copy of the Daily Prophet clutched in his hand. The paper crackled as he closed his hand tightly around it, as if begging to be let free, but if anything the noise only made Harry’s fist clench tighter. “Hermione?” He called softly as he made his out of the fireplace.
He found her sitting at the kitchen table, her own copy of the Prophet spread out in front of her; holding a cup of tea that had long since gone cold. She looked up as Harry entered the room, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy, she gave him a sad smile. “Have you come to take him away from me?” She asked her voice raw from crying.
Harry shook his head. “No, I’m not here to take him away. I don’t know who ‘he’ is, why he is in your house, or why you have never told me about him; but I’ll listen if you’ll talk to me.” He pulled out a chair across from her and sat down. He placed the paper he had been holding on the table and reached out to take her hands in his.
“I tried to tell you once.” Hermione began, “I tried to tell all of you, but… I gave up. I wanted you to know, but you didn’t need to know so I dropped it. I never imagined that this would happen.”
“Hermione, you know how Ron is. He accuses first and thinks later, I’m sure he didn’t realise how much his actions would affect you.”
“He was going to turn me into the ministry, Harry.”
“But he didn’t, he couldn’t because-“
“Because the Minister is in Bulgaria, I know, I read the paper.” Hermione snapped, cutting him off. “He didn’t turn me in because he lacked the opportunity, not because he thought better of it. You know that if Kingsley had been in his office, Ron would have marched right in there and told him anything and everything.
“I would have forgiven him too. Even though he invaded my privacy and betrayed my trust, I would have forgiven him. I know he has been having some trouble at work and that he’s stressed; he’s been falling in your shadow again Harry. He was in shock after what he saw and he probably felt betrayed too. I was his girlfriend,” Harry opened his mouth to cut in but she shook her head and he stayed silent. “I was his girlfriend and I had been keeping secrets from him. It was partially my fault that he reacted so strongly. I’ve been feeling bad about it, but then he went and did this! I don’t think I ever want to look at him again!”
“Hermione,” Harry said slowly, “I’m sure he didn’t mean for this to happen.”
“Didn’t mean for this to happen?” Hermione exclaimed hysterically, “Harry, he went to Rita Skeeter!” She pulled her hands out of his grip and grabbed the paper in front of her, shaking it violently. “This… This story is in every home in Wizarding Britain!”
She slammed the paper back down on the table, and from the crinkled pages a photo of Rita Skeeter looked up and glared at her. The headline ‘War Hero Harbouring Dangerous Beast in Her Attic,’ screamed out at her from the top of the page, Hermione’s stomach rolled every time she looked at it. “Everyone is going to read these lies. ‘It came toward me like it was going to attack, but I hit it with a quick stinging hex and it retreated to the corner of the room.’ To attack? He was probably just trying to say ‘hi,’ and then Ron hexed him, hexed a defenceless boy! And this, ‘I don’t know what it is. She tried to tell me that it was human but how could it be? She was always experimenting with potions and spells when we were in school, maybe this is just her latest project.’ I’m experimenting!”
“Hermione, calm down please.” Harry said, reaching for her hands again, but she recoiled from his grasp.
“Calm down, you want me to calm down?” Hermione exclaimed. She pushed away from the table and began to pace the length of the kitchen. “Harry, he accused me of using humans as test subjects, I could lose my job over this. I could lose my job, the ministry could raid my house, I could go to Azkaban…”
“Hermione,” Harry said slowly, “Send a letter to work and explain that what this article is saying is untrue, and-“
“I already did, that was one of the first things I did after reading these lies.”
“Alright, so you deal with your job, and I’ll see what I can do at the Ministry. Kingsley is getting back from Bulgaria on Friday, so I’ll try to stall until then.”
Hermione paused in front of the table and let out a breath as she ran a hand through her dishevelled hair. “Six days,” she said finally, “Do you really think you can stall for that long?”
“I’ll do what I can; though I think I’m going to have a bit of a rough time, seeing as Ron is part of my Auror division.” Harry said, sighing as he leaned back in his chair and pinching the bridge of his nose.
Hermione snorted. “Yeah, you think?” A smile bloomed on her face for a moment, but quickly fell. She pulled out a chair and sat back down at the table facing Harry. “Does this mean you are going to want to hear the story? Are you going to want to see him?”
Harry shook his head. “Only if you’re ready to tell me Hermione.”
“But aren’t you going to need to know something in order to stall?”
“Is he human, Hermione?” Harry asked abruptly.
“What? Yes, of course he is.”
“Would he ever attack anyone?”
“No, never, he’s far too gentle.”
“Are you, in any way, using him as a lab rat?”
“Harry!” She cried, outraged that he would ask such a thing, but as he levelled her with a glare she shook her head. “No, I am not.”
“Alright, that’s all I need to know. I’d like to know the whole story, and I’d like to see him, but only when you’re ready to tell me. There’s obviously a reason why you haven’t told me about him before, so I’m not going to pry, though I can’t promise that other people won’t.”
“Oh Harry,” Hermione cried, her eyes filling with tears. She rushed over to him, and he stood, pulling her into a hug. She rested her head on his shoulder and squeezed him tightly. “I love you.”
“Don’t let Ginny hear you talking like that,” Harry laughed. “She’ll kill us both.”
“Hey!” Hermione giggled, giving him a hard slap on the shoulder. “Not like that you jerk.”
Harry chuckled, “I know, I love you too.” After a moment he pulled away, running a hand through his hair. “Well, I have to go; damage control and all.”
“Yeah,” Hermione nodded, “Thank you so much, Harry.”
“Don’t mention it. You saved my ass so many times at school, this is the least I could do.” He grabbed the copy of the Prophet he had brought over with him and began walking over to the fireplace so he could floo home before going to the Ministry. He was halfway there when he turned back to look at her. “What’s his name?”
“Norton.”
“How old is he?”
“Nineteen.”
“Nineteen? In the article it sounded like he was so much younger.”
“I know… It’s complicated, but I promise to explain later.”
“Alright…” Harry said slowly before walking to the fireplace. “I’ll owl you soon.” He promised; with a pinch of floo powder and a shout of ‘Grimmauld Place’ he was gone, leaving Hermione alone in the living room. She quickly turned back to the kitchen and tidied up before slowly making her way up the stairs to the attic.
She opened the door, and was greeted by the sight of a room permeated by streams of sunlight. The pale blue walls and plush carpet, bathed in the light streaming in through the skylights, lifted away some of the gloom that had been fogging Hermione’s mind. A plain bed, an old wardrobe, and a small TV stood against one wall. The door opposite was cracked open, showing a sliver of the silvery white tiles on the bathroom floor. The rest of the walls were covered with scribbled drawings, tacked on every available surface, and the floor was dotted with toys. In the very centre of the room sat Norton, playing happily with a pile of blocks.
“Good morning Norton, has Moppy fed you breakfast yet? Did she give you your medicine?”
“Hi Hermy!” He said happily. “Yup, I had cereal… with marshmallows! And I had medicine too…” He smiled up at her, but Hermione noticed that he was keeping the right side of his face turned slightly away from her.
“Wow, I bet that was really yummy.” She said as she sat next to him on the floor. She ran her fingers through his hair, frowning when some of it came off in her hands. “I have to go get the potions for your hair,” she murmured, but she stopped when he put his hand on her knee.
“No, later. Play blocks with me?” He held up a block for her to see and pouted.
“For you,” Hermione smiled, “anything.”
A.N: I hope that this showed you a little of what Norton is like, but sorry if it didn’t. Everything will be explained in a few chapters (I won’t leave you hanging). Also, Snape will be making his grand entrance in the next chapter, Ron will be a prat, Harry will be arguing, and Hermione will be stressed, so you have that to look forward to.
Special thank you to my lovely reviewers:
anncee, Mrs_Helene_Snape, ilovehaggis, diamondmouse, neelix, Sampdoria, Sureves Epans, Narcissas Sister, Heidi191976, Emmylovedraco, catysmom, RedWritingHood, SnapesPet30, and angelnomiko
Please keep reviewing; my muse loves those things. They’re like cookies without the calories.
Kisses!
At seven o’clock on Saturday morning, Harry flooed over to Hermione’s cottage, a copy of the Daily Prophet clutched in his hand. The paper crackled as he closed his hand tightly around it, as if begging to be let free, but if anything the noise only made Harry’s fist clench tighter. “Hermione?” He called softly as he made his out of the fireplace.
He found her sitting at the kitchen table, her own copy of the Prophet spread out in front of her; holding a cup of tea that had long since gone cold. She looked up as Harry entered the room, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy, she gave him a sad smile. “Have you come to take him away from me?” She asked her voice raw from crying.
Harry shook his head. “No, I’m not here to take him away. I don’t know who ‘he’ is, why he is in your house, or why you have never told me about him; but I’ll listen if you’ll talk to me.” He pulled out a chair across from her and sat down. He placed the paper he had been holding on the table and reached out to take her hands in his.
“I tried to tell you once.” Hermione began, “I tried to tell all of you, but… I gave up. I wanted you to know, but you didn’t need to know so I dropped it. I never imagined that this would happen.”
“Hermione, you know how Ron is. He accuses first and thinks later, I’m sure he didn’t realise how much his actions would affect you.”
“He was going to turn me into the ministry, Harry.”
“But he didn’t, he couldn’t because-“
“Because the Minister is in Bulgaria, I know, I read the paper.” Hermione snapped, cutting him off. “He didn’t turn me in because he lacked the opportunity, not because he thought better of it. You know that if Kingsley had been in his office, Ron would have marched right in there and told him anything and everything.
“I would have forgiven him too. Even though he invaded my privacy and betrayed my trust, I would have forgiven him. I know he has been having some trouble at work and that he’s stressed; he’s been falling in your shadow again Harry. He was in shock after what he saw and he probably felt betrayed too. I was his girlfriend,” Harry opened his mouth to cut in but she shook her head and he stayed silent. “I was his girlfriend and I had been keeping secrets from him. It was partially my fault that he reacted so strongly. I’ve been feeling bad about it, but then he went and did this! I don’t think I ever want to look at him again!”
“Hermione,” Harry said slowly, “I’m sure he didn’t mean for this to happen.”
“Didn’t mean for this to happen?” Hermione exclaimed hysterically, “Harry, he went to Rita Skeeter!” She pulled her hands out of his grip and grabbed the paper in front of her, shaking it violently. “This… This story is in every home in Wizarding Britain!”
She slammed the paper back down on the table, and from the crinkled pages a photo of Rita Skeeter looked up and glared at her. The headline ‘War Hero Harbouring Dangerous Beast in Her Attic,’ screamed out at her from the top of the page, Hermione’s stomach rolled every time she looked at it. “Everyone is going to read these lies. ‘It came toward me like it was going to attack, but I hit it with a quick stinging hex and it retreated to the corner of the room.’ To attack? He was probably just trying to say ‘hi,’ and then Ron hexed him, hexed a defenceless boy! And this, ‘I don’t know what it is. She tried to tell me that it was human but how could it be? She was always experimenting with potions and spells when we were in school, maybe this is just her latest project.’ I’m experimenting!”
“Hermione, calm down please.” Harry said, reaching for her hands again, but she recoiled from his grasp.
“Calm down, you want me to calm down?” Hermione exclaimed. She pushed away from the table and began to pace the length of the kitchen. “Harry, he accused me of using humans as test subjects, I could lose my job over this. I could lose my job, the ministry could raid my house, I could go to Azkaban…”
“Hermione,” Harry said slowly, “Send a letter to work and explain that what this article is saying is untrue, and-“
“I already did, that was one of the first things I did after reading these lies.”
“Alright, so you deal with your job, and I’ll see what I can do at the Ministry. Kingsley is getting back from Bulgaria on Friday, so I’ll try to stall until then.”
Hermione paused in front of the table and let out a breath as she ran a hand through her dishevelled hair. “Six days,” she said finally, “Do you really think you can stall for that long?”
“I’ll do what I can; though I think I’m going to have a bit of a rough time, seeing as Ron is part of my Auror division.” Harry said, sighing as he leaned back in his chair and pinching the bridge of his nose.
Hermione snorted. “Yeah, you think?” A smile bloomed on her face for a moment, but quickly fell. She pulled out a chair and sat back down at the table facing Harry. “Does this mean you are going to want to hear the story? Are you going to want to see him?”
Harry shook his head. “Only if you’re ready to tell me Hermione.”
“But aren’t you going to need to know something in order to stall?”
“Is he human, Hermione?” Harry asked abruptly.
“What? Yes, of course he is.”
“Would he ever attack anyone?”
“No, never, he’s far too gentle.”
“Are you, in any way, using him as a lab rat?”
“Harry!” She cried, outraged that he would ask such a thing, but as he levelled her with a glare she shook her head. “No, I am not.”
“Alright, that’s all I need to know. I’d like to know the whole story, and I’d like to see him, but only when you’re ready to tell me. There’s obviously a reason why you haven’t told me about him before, so I’m not going to pry, though I can’t promise that other people won’t.”
“Oh Harry,” Hermione cried, her eyes filling with tears. She rushed over to him, and he stood, pulling her into a hug. She rested her head on his shoulder and squeezed him tightly. “I love you.”
“Don’t let Ginny hear you talking like that,” Harry laughed. “She’ll kill us both.”
“Hey!” Hermione giggled, giving him a hard slap on the shoulder. “Not like that you jerk.”
Harry chuckled, “I know, I love you too.” After a moment he pulled away, running a hand through his hair. “Well, I have to go; damage control and all.”
“Yeah,” Hermione nodded, “Thank you so much, Harry.”
“Don’t mention it. You saved my ass so many times at school, this is the least I could do.” He grabbed the copy of the Prophet he had brought over with him and began walking over to the fireplace so he could floo home before going to the Ministry. He was halfway there when he turned back to look at her. “What’s his name?”
“Norton.”
“How old is he?”
“Nineteen.”
“Nineteen? In the article it sounded like he was so much younger.”
“I know… It’s complicated, but I promise to explain later.”
“Alright…” Harry said slowly before walking to the fireplace. “I’ll owl you soon.” He promised; with a pinch of floo powder and a shout of ‘Grimmauld Place’ he was gone, leaving Hermione alone in the living room. She quickly turned back to the kitchen and tidied up before slowly making her way up the stairs to the attic.
She opened the door, and was greeted by the sight of a room permeated by streams of sunlight. The pale blue walls and plush carpet, bathed in the light streaming in through the skylights, lifted away some of the gloom that had been fogging Hermione’s mind. A plain bed, an old wardrobe, and a small TV stood against one wall. The door opposite was cracked open, showing a sliver of the silvery white tiles on the bathroom floor. The rest of the walls were covered with scribbled drawings, tacked on every available surface, and the floor was dotted with toys. In the very centre of the room sat Norton, playing happily with a pile of blocks.
“Good morning Norton, has Moppy fed you breakfast yet? Did she give you your medicine?”
“Hi Hermy!” He said happily. “Yup, I had cereal… with marshmallows! And I had medicine too…” He smiled up at her, but Hermione noticed that he was keeping the right side of his face turned slightly away from her.
“Wow, I bet that was really yummy.” She said as she sat next to him on the floor. She ran her fingers through his hair, frowning when some of it came off in her hands. “I have to go get the potions for your hair,” she murmured, but she stopped when he put his hand on her knee.
“No, later. Play blocks with me?” He held up a block for her to see and pouted.
“For you,” Hermione smiled, “anything.”
A.N: I hope that this showed you a little of what Norton is like, but sorry if it didn’t. Everything will be explained in a few chapters (I won’t leave you hanging). Also, Snape will be making his grand entrance in the next chapter, Ron will be a prat, Harry will be arguing, and Hermione will be stressed, so you have that to look forward to.
Special thank you to my lovely reviewers:
anncee, Mrs_Helene_Snape, ilovehaggis, diamondmouse, neelix, Sampdoria, Sureves Epans, Narcissas Sister, Heidi191976, Emmylovedraco, catysmom, RedWritingHood, SnapesPet30, and angelnomiko
Please keep reviewing; my muse loves those things. They’re like cookies without the calories.
Kisses!