Revelations

A/N: w00t! My chapter title says 'part one'! lol. Sorry, I've just always wanted to be able to put 'part one' on the end of a chapter title. Hmmm...not much to say in this author's note. Just want to thank everyone for reviewing. Oh, and I'd like more reviews! Please! Thanks! ^.^ - FallenAngel

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"Harry, please just answer one question for me." Hermione pleaded. "Then I promise I won't bring it up until your detentions are over. Alright?" She peered over at him, her golden-brown eyes wide and sincere.

Harry sighed, then closed his Transfiguration book and put it in his bag. "Fine, Herm. One question."

Without hesitation, she inquired bluntly. "Is this what you were asking Malfoy about? I mean, it would make sense, considering how well he knows Professor Snape." She frowned, then observed thoughtfully. "It would also explain why you were so irritated by whatever he said to you. Did he tell you to wait, or not to wait?"

"That was more then one question, Herm." Harry admonished, standing up and stretching. "But to answer you, yes, that's what Malfoy and I were discussing." He started towards the portrait hole and added. "And he told me to tell Snape that I love him." Before Hermione could reply to that truthful, and somewhat misleading, statement, Harry exited the Gryffindor
Common room.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Harry stared at the door to Snape's office, afraid to knock. 'Oh grow up.' He told himself. 'Are you a man, or a mouse?' When the door to the office suddenly opened and Harry jumped a foot in the air, he muttered softly to himself. "A mouse, then."

"What are you muttering about, Mr. Potter?" Snape's silky voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Um..." Glancing up, Harry saw that his professor was wearing black jeans and a dark blue, button-up tee. It was half-unbuttoned, revealing the white tee-shirt he was wearing under it. 'Casual Friday, I forgot...' His mind supplied. 'Must not cut classes next Friday, no matter how embarrassed I am.'

"Well?" Severus growled, wondering why Potter was just staring at him. "What were you muttering about?"

"Oh, um..." His mind struggled for a suitable reply. Unable to come up with anything plausible, he simply blurted out the very first thing he thought of. "I was just thinking about kissing, that's all." Quickly deciding that since he was in a position to, he might as well have some fun prodding Snape's temper, he leaned closer to his teacher. "You know, just wondering how it would feel, pressed up against y..."

"Into my office!" Severus ordered sharply, effectively cutting Harry off. With an inner-laugh, Harry slid past Snape and into the man's office.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Almost twenty minutes later, Harry was struggling not to laugh out loud. He and Severus were seated in rather comfortable armchairs on front of the fire, sipping an almost impossibly strong mint tea. After a long and awkward silence, Severus finally began lecturing Harry around in complete circles, apparently feeling it was his duty to set the confused boy straight.

"As I'm sure you know," His teacher counseled. "It is perfectly natural for students to...develop feelings for...for teachers..." He sort of trailed off. 'Come on, Severus, you told Albus that you would let Potter down gently.' His mind chided him. 'You are calm, controlled. You can handle this.' "However, Mr. Potter, it is much wiser for the student to...to keep their feelings private...and not...not let anyone know. Also...students much...well, that is, they shouldn't...shouldn't act on these...these feelings they have."

Harry smiled slightly, realizing his teacher was extremely uncomfortable, and deciding to continue playing the part of the infatuated teen. "But, if the student never says anything, then how can they know if their teacher feels the same or not?"

"Student-teacher relationships," Severus said in a slightly tense voice. "Are not...ethical."

Harry nodded, then promptly contradicted Snape. "But if the student were to, say, kiss their teacher, and the teacher kissed them back, and they never told anyone, then..."

"Mr. Potter." The older man broke in. "Let me ask you a simple question." When Harry nodded again, he continued. "Have I ever, ever given you the impression that I like you?"

"Well..." The Gryffindor stopped, then looked down and stared at his lap, shaking his head and saying softly. "No, sir, you haven't, but..." He stopped again.

Severus sighed to himself. 'Teenagers are so damned irritating!' His mind snarled, but when he spoke, it was in a calm, level tone. "Since I have never appeared to like you, Mr. Potter, why would you think I did?"

Harry sighed softly and responded in a mumble. "I just sot of hoped you were...well, you're so...so controlled and...and you never really let your feelings show, so...so I thought..." He trailed off, deciding he'd managed to put just the right amount of desperation and hope into his tone.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Potter, but your feelings are..." He stopped himself before he says something nasty. 'Be gentle, Severus. You promised the old man.' There was another silent sigh from Severus, then he continued tactfully. "Your feelings are one-sided. I don't feel that way, nor have I ever pretended to."

Harry nodded, and Snape gestured to the door. "You may go to bed now, Mr. Potter. Be here at the same time tomorrow."

~*~*~*~*~*~

On Tuesday night, after five nearly identical detentions with Snape, Harry couldn't sleep. Staring up at the canopy over bed, he talked to himself.

"It just doesn't make sense." He said aloud. "I've pushed and pushed, with comments and hints and looks, but all he does is calmly tell me no! Where the hell is his temper? Why isn't he being mean?"

'Maybe he's not the snarky bastard you've always viewed him as.' His mind supplied. 'Maybe,' Said the irritating voice in his mind that's starting to sound like Remus. 'You are wrong about him.'

"Bullshit." Harry muttered darkly. "That is absolute bullshit. He's got some reason for trying to be nice, and I won't stop pushing until I get him to act like his normal, arsehole self! No way is he going to be able to pull off this 'noble' act. No way."

Now determined to prove that his teacher truly was a sadistic prick, Harry managed to fall asleep, still thinking up ways to make his teacher drop the nice act that, for some unknown reason, bothered him.

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A/N: Oooh, that took me ages to write! Don't worry, I know Snape is OOC, but I fix it in the next chapter, I promise! And I tried to explain why he's acting that way without actually having to explain. If I have enough time to type,you may get two chapters for tonight. I dunno yet, but I'll try. I'm having fun with this story. Are you all enjoying it? I hope so! A special thanks to the lovely Minx, who always leave me such nice reviews! And a thank you to all my other reviewers as well! Please rate and review and don't forget your e-mail so I can tell you about updates! Thanks again! - FallenAngel