Interesting

Please R&R. I'm much more inclined to write more when I get some feedback. :)
Merry Christmas!

Hermione felt a little embarrassed as she showed Dobby around her new apartment. It was even more filthy than she had described. Dobby, however was delighted that he had something so challenging to clean and he went straight into the bathroom to start working.

Hermione went downstairs and opened the door to the lab. “What a mess…” she mumbled as she rolled up her sleeves and went to work. It was no wonder that the old apothecary had gone out of business… in his senility, his potions must have been awful. She with the nearest cauldron. She scourgified the smelly potion and then said, “repairo” to restore it to a rust-less condition.

The afternoon waned and the stubby candles in the chandeliers lit themselves, as Hermione found treasure after treasure lost in the messy lab. There were silver stirring rods, rare ingredients, and old books, which she placed on a special shelf nearby. There were also dead birds, rat shit, and strange bones stuck here and there… she hoped they were from a big dog or something…

Her stomach growled, but she ignored it. Snape hadn’t given her any money yet and she couldn’t afford to do any shopping without going all the way to Gringotts in London, which was almost certainly closed for the day. She stopped working to stretch the kinks out of her back and she surveyed the clean work table. It would take at least another full day in here to finish, and then she’d start on the shop itself.

“For heaven’s sake, Miss Granger, I didn’t expect you to start on this mess before you had a place to sleep,” Snape said from the doorway.

Hermione jumped in surprise. “I didn’t hear you come in,” she said.

He pulled the doorbell out of his cloak pocket and showed it to her. “It fell off this afternoon when I left,” he said. He went over to the cauldron where Hermione had been collecting the bones. “Well, well,” he said. “At least half of these are illegal… it’s a wonder the old fool didn’t wind up in Azkaban.”

Hermione went to his side to look. “What are they from?” she asked.

“Vampire, dwarf, wolf,” Snape said as he pointed some different ones out. He picked up a large rib and turned it over. “I think this one’s actually a cow,” he said.

“What potion do you use that in?” Hermione asked.

Snape tossed it back in the cauldron. “None,” he said. “He must have been mad as a hatter.” The floorboards creaked upstairs and Snape glanced quickly up. “Who’s here?” he asked. “Not that idiot Weasely boy, I hope.”

“No,” Hermione said, quickly. “I never want to see him again. It’s Dobby. He’s my assistant.”

Snape raised an eyebrow and her and went to the stairs. “You have to be the only potions apprentice in the history of the subject with her own assistant,” he said.

“He was lonely,” Hermione said, defensively. “And frankly, so am I. I thought the company would be nice for me… and he can stir potions while I help your customers,” she added, quickly, trying to sell the wizard on the idea of having the house elf around.

“It’s fine, Miss Granger,” Snape drawled. “I’m not a complete monster, you know. That’s actually why I’m here… to bring you to Hogwarts so you don’t have to sleep in this dump tonight.” He opened the door at the top of the stairs and stopped so abruptly that Hermione ran into his back.

“Sorry, Master Snape,” she said. She could smell the scent on his cloak again and she shut her eyes for a moment to breath it in.

“It’s alright, Miss Granger,” he said. “I was just surprised.” He stepped aside and she gasped as she saw her sitting room.

Crisp lace curtains hung over the window. The couch and chair had been re-upholstered in a creamy blue fabric, and the walls were covered in a cheery white jacquard wallpaper. Dobby sat in the middle of the freshly-cleaned, red rug, repairing the pretty Persian pattern that the rats had damaged. It looked like new.

“Oh Dobby!” Hermione breathed. “It’s wonderful!”

The little elf ducked his head shyly and smiled. “Dobby is not finished yet, Missy Granger. Still needs to fix pipes and clean bedroom and kitchen.”

Hermione knelt down by the house elf and hugged him. “Oh thank you, Dobby,” she said. She wiped a tear from her eye and looked around the room. “I’ve never had a place of my own before… you’ve done such a lovely job!” Her stomach rumbled loudly and she put her hands over it to quell the hunger pains.

Snape looked at the still-dirty kitchen and sighed. “Would you care to accompany me for dinner at Hogwarts, Miss Granger?”

*****

Severus and Hermione stamped the snow from their boots as the big doors opened to let them in. The Hogwarts students were still home for their Christmas break and the candlelit hallways were peaceful in their absence. Dobby left them to go to the Gryffindor tower, where he insisted on staying, and they strolled down to the dungeons in companionable silence. Hermione’s hand was still tucked in the crook of her master’s elbow… he’d offered her his arm as they’d left the shop, and she didn’t really want to let go. He was a gentleman and she liked it.

He helped her take off her coat before he removed his black cloak and he instructed her to sit at the table by the fire to warm herself. He went to his bedroom and emerged a moment later with ten galleons. He conjured up a small coin purse and dropped them inside before giving it to her. “Ten more will appear in the purse every week from now on,” he said. “Use it for whatever you like… but until your apartment is fit to eat in, you are more than welcome to dine here.”

“Thank you, Master Snape,” Hermione said, shyly. “You’ve been very nice to me.”

“Yes, well don’t tell anyone,” he grumbled.