The Gryffindor/Slytherin Cooperation Initiative

“What do you mean, there’s nothing you can do about it?”

Hermione actually spat out a piece of her Ginger Newt in anger. She had spent an hour in the library researching last minute changes to examination rubrics, all of which were supported by better reasons than a student giving a teacher a flirty look. Of course, Hermione had kept this last bit of information to herself and assumed that Snape would also. The case that she had intended to present to her Head of House was that the Potions master was acting entirely irrationally, yet she was not even three strides into the room before McGonagall had thrown up her hands and claimed the whole stupid situation was out of her control.

The head of Gryffindor sighed and offered Hermione another Ginger Newt, which was vehemently refused. As well as boasting the traditionally-known calming effects of ginger, McGonagall always added a small quantity of Soothing Draught into her famous biscuits. She usually offered them to the troubled students that came into her office, safe in the knowledge that soon they would calm down and be prepared to apologise to whatever poor teacher they had offended.

Hermione, however, looked like she would need fifty Ginger Newts before she was willing to apologise to Snape.

“Do you think that you’re the first student to come and see me about this matter?” McGonagall said, looking weary. “I’ve had a number of students – Gryffindor and Slytherin alike – in this office making the exact same complaint. Except,” she continued, looking slightly interested in spite of herself, “they seem to believe it is your fault that Professor Snape decided to make this lesson part of your NEWT examination”.

“He was looking for an excuse!” Hermione exploded, banging her fist on McGonagall’s desk, causing several Ginger Newts to leap out of their tartan tin. “He was annoyed because I fell asleep in his lesson and instead of giving me a detention like he would any other Gryffindor, or ignoring it like he would a Slytherin, he punished me far too severely for the one time I’ve ever misbehaved! There HAS to be something you can do, I have ten excellent reasons why Snape can’t do this –”

“And Professor Snape,” said a deep, rich voice behind Hermione, “has ten excellent reasons why he can”.

Dumbledore had noiselessly entered the room, causing both Hermione and McGonagall to jump. He looked flustered and was holding a roll of parchment filled with the angular black writing that was unmistakeable Snape’s.

“Hermione, I don’t know why Professor Snape chose to punish you and your peers so severely. He claims it was because you took it upon yourself to have a snooze in his class –”

“Yes!” She exclaimed. “I fell asleep for ten seconds and Snape seems to think that ruining my life is the only appropriate punishment!”

Dumbledore let out a low rumbling sigh and gazed earnestly at Hermione. She was flushed and her eyes were unusually bright… symptoms which would typically indicate a fever. Or was it something else?

“Is there anything,” the Headmaster said, wearily, as if he already knew what the answer would be, “that you would like to tell me, Hermione?”

Hermione flushed further, but shook her head.

“No, Professor Dumbledore. I fell asleep and ruined my potion because I wasn’t concentrating. When I asked Professor Snape if I would be able to make it again, he failed me and that’s when he decided to make it impossible for anyone to pass their NEWT”.

“In that case,” said Dumbledore, no longer looking at Hermione, “there is nothing I can do about it”.

“How can that be!” Hermione could now barely get the words out, she was so choked with rage. “You’re the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Order of Merlin First Class, how can you not overrule Snape!”

“Professor Snape, Miss Granger, is an incredibly well-respected member of the academic community. I needn’t remind you, also, of how well connected he is amongst the board of governors. The people responsible for ratifying his changes will not see his decision as irrational and will certainly take his word over that of even a whole class of students”.

“This doesn’t mean that we won’t try to prevent Professor Snape from making what we consider to be a bad choice,” McGonagall interjected, anticipating another outburst from Hermione. “We just can’t promise anything”.

Hermione was shocked to the core. She had been through more than the average Hogwarts student, but had always been able to count on the shrewd, Scottish Head of Gryffindor and the Headmaster to provide support and understanding. It seemed bizarre to her that Dumbledore could repeatedly rescue her best friend from the clutches of Voldemort, yet he was unable to prevent his employee from making an unfair and frankly ridiculous academic change.
She had a brief flashback to the night where she, Harry and Ron had come face to face with Peter Pettigrew, only for him to escape from their clutches. She remembered the terrified look on Snape’s face as Lupin began to transform into a werewolf and how his first reaction was to leap in front of the trio, despite his renowned dislike for them.

Hermione straightened up so quickly that McGonagall and Dumbledore jumped.

“Alright,” she said. “I understand. Thanks for your time. I think I’m going to get some sleep now. Good night”. Hermione’s “Good night” floated through the door as she walked briskly down the corridor. She had finally realised that ultimately, and despite anything that he said, Snape’s first duty was to his students. He didn’t want to fail his entire class – it would reflect badly on him and on Hogwarts. Snape was just too stubborn to back down without some… persuasion.

Hermione set off from the office at a brisk walk, her footsteps echoing so loudly in the empty corridor that she failed to hear McGonagall’s shriek;

“Is the foolish girl going to challenge Snape? Albus, we have to stop her, this is what caused the whole mess in the first place!”

“Let her go, Minerva”.

McGonagall looked incredulously at the Headmaster, wondering what on earth was going on in his mind. When Dumbledore did not acknowledge her pointed stares, she sighed heavily.

“Alright, we’ll give her five minutes, then we must find an excuse to go and check on them. The last thing we need is our Head Girl and Potions master killing each other!”

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Hermione arrived at Snape’s door out of breath and covered in a fine sheen of sweat. Whilst the evenings at Hogwarts were nowhere near as hot as during the day, it was still far too warm to be running around the school in thick, black robes.
She paused for a second to regain her courage and then knocked firmly on the dungeon door three times. When no response came from within, she lifted her fist to knock again.

Snape opened the door so quickly that Hermione’s raised fist nearly connected with his face. He seemed momentarily taken aback, but soon regained his normal composure and leant lightly on the door frame.

“What do you think you’re doing here, Miss Granger?” Snape asked in his smoothest voice.

Hermione had meant to speak – she had been planning a cacophony of witty retorts as she walked to the dungeon – but instead gaped stupidly at the Potions master. He was framed impressively in the doorway, the flickering candlelight in the background highlighting his silhouette. Hermione noted that he had stripped off his frock coat and was now clad only in a simple pair of black trousers and a thin white shirt, unbuttoned to the chest. Even more shocking to Hermione was the fact that Snape looked as though he was feeling the heat, tiny beads of sleep pooling around his collarbones. Sensing that she was beginning to stare, Hermione forced herself to meet Snape’s eyes.

“I’ve come here to discuss the changes you intend on making to the NEWT examination rubric,” she said, as firmly as she was able. “I do not intend to leave until we have reached a conclusion which we are both happy with”.

Snape sneered derisively and, to her immense surprise, motioned Hermione in with a mock bow. Unsure of where to sit, she perched nervously on the edge of his great mahogany desk. He closed the door and, locking eyes with Hermione, produced a large silver key from his pocket. Not breaking eye contact, he slid the key into the lock and turned it. The sound of the bolt turning was akin to a crash in the absolute silence of the dungeon. Snape pocketed the key and, still smirking, strode slowly over to his desk.

“Please, Miss Granger, have a seat,” he said, whilst pulling out a chair for her to sit on. His chair, carved from the same mahogany as his desk. “We wouldn’t want you overexerting yourself and being forced to take another nap in my classroom”.

“About that,” Hermione squeaked, very aware that Snape had moved and was now standing directly behind her. “I’m truly sorry, I didn’t sleep well due to the heat and-”

“Ah, the Hogwarts summer!” Snape spoke softly into her ear, causing her to jump about a foot out of her chair. “The heat is rather… distracting, no?”

Hermione breathed heavily. She could hear him pacing behind her but did not dare turn around. There was a warm feeling spreading rapidly throughout her that she knew was entirely unrelated to the hot weather. She became acutely aware that her nipples were growing hard and kept brushing lightly against the material of her bra. It was imperative she kept a clear head, it was her only chance of undoing this whole mess.

Turning around, she found herself inches away from Snape for the second time that day. Being in such close proximity to a man who was able to physically arouse her by his voice alone began to rapidly cloud her judgement once more.

“Sir!” she exclaimed, losing all control of the situation as Snape firmly planted his thumb over her lips, lightly holding her jaw shut. Hermione remained utterly silent as Snape slowly circled her, looking her up and down in a way that only intensified her feelings of arousal. He suddenly reached around from behind to unfasten her cloak and, when met with no resistance from a stunned Hermione, unbuttoned her shirt almost unbearably slowly. Tossing both cloak and shirt to the floor, her dropped to his knees, running both hands down her soft curves to her hips.

Hermione was throbbing at his point and didn’t even attempt to stop the soft moans
escaping from her parched mouth. Now gripping the edge of Snape’s desk, she gasped as he ran his tongue from the base of her spine to the nape of her neck. This, and the fact that she was now slightly cold without her shirt, caused her to shiver hugely.
Snape began kissing her neck, all the while murmuring in her ear how she was a bad girl, who deserved everything that was coming to her. He slid a hand into a cup of her bra, gently fondling her nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

“Take it off,” he said, as calm as ever. Hermione obeyed – it had only just left her back before Snape cast it off into the pile of her other clothes and instantly resumed his ministrations.

The combination of all of these sensations caused Hermione to buckle slightly. Snape took this opportunity to bend her completely over his desk, her nipples sliding along the mahogany surface as she involuntarily trembled. He slid his hand slowly, far too slowly, up her thigh until he could feel the dampness seeping through her thong. Slipping it aside, he slipped a single finger inside her and watched her writhe as he began to move it slightly.

He withdrew the digit, paused for a second and then moved to the front of his desk, over which Hermione was still splayed.

“I want you to taste yourself, Miss Granger,” Snape said, brushing his finger against her lips. When she looked at him hesitantly, he smirked. “Just pretend that it’s me in your mouth. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”
Hermione obeyed, sucking her own juices off the finger of her Potions teacher.

“As I expected, Miss Granger, you love the way your pussy juice tastes. I will grant you the privilege of sucking my cock, but not until I’ve taken you from behind over my desk”.
Hermione stopped abruptly and looked up at Snape, shocked.

“But… Professor? Why? I-”

“What do you mean, why? I’ve wanted this twice as much as you do for as long as you have! Wake up, Miss Granger!”

“But… What? I don’t –”

“I said, wake up, Miss Granger!”

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A/N: A much more substantial update, during which I realised the first section would have been so much better with chapter two after all. Nonetheless, smut, yay!
Although, as intelligent people you’ll probably figure out what’s going to happen next and please, don’t let that put you off.
UnBETAed as always, and I finished writing it at around 3am. I'd meant to go to bed, but the hot sex ran away with me. All mistakes are, therefore, my own.