Tension in the Laboratory

Hermione was fuming by the time she reached her classroom.

"Right! Peters, Byington!" she barked. "Ten points from Slytherin for--" existing--"whispering! Liu! Ten points from Ravenclaw for tardiness! Queue up! Right here in the middle of the room!"

Warily, the students got in queue. Hermione had planned a sedate lesson introducing the students to the Unforgiveable Curses. Well, that was out the window. Something more bracing was what the occasion called for.

"Wands out!" she commanded. Nonverbally, she summoned a vast array of rotten vegetables onto her desk. The class groaned as the smell of the cabbages began to waft through the air. "We're going to learn about the Protego charm, excellent for deflecting hexes. Right, who's up first? Jones, you're up. I'm going to send the produce at you as fast as I can, and you say 'Protego'. Clear? Brilliant. Oi!"

And she flicked her wand at a putrid tomato, then pointed at Jones. The tomato sailed past his ear to splat into the wall, drizzling him with runny pulp as he let out a belated, "Protego!"

"Well done. Next!" Hermione shouted. Flick at the cabbage, flick toward the student. Smash! The squishy smack of decaying vegetables hitting the wall was so satisfying, she almost forgot to praise the students' efforts. She went through the queue twice before she realized only two minutes were left in class.

"Right, back to your seats."

The students scrambled for their benches, some picking limp cabbage leaves out of their hair and wrinkling their noses.

"Read chapters 1 and 2 of Dark Magic: Its Origins and Permutations for tomorrow. I shall expect a six-page summary of the major points by tomorrow." General moaning. The bell rang. "I did not dismiss class!" Hermione shouted over the din. The students seemed to freeze in their seats, muscles tense. Obviously, they could hardly wait to get out of her classroom and probably, use the showers. "Dismissed," Hermione said after a 10-second pause. The students were out the door like bullets from a pistol.

And so it went throughout the day. Just when Hermione thought her hurt and anger had been spent, a fresh class began, and her fury erupted anew.

At last, the final class departed, amid much grumbling. Hermione stood alone at her desk, waving her wand this way and that to clean up the incredible mess and stench and from time to time letting out a half-hearted "Scourgify". She sighed. Again, the scenes with Snape intruded on her thoughts. Just the memories made her legs felt weak and melting, especially when she recalled where he had put his fingers and tongue-- She shook her head slightly. No sense thinking of that now. Stupid, stupid.

The door opened, and Hermione glanced up indifferently. Severus Snape stepped through the archway.

"Oi!" In a flash, Hermione came to her feet, silently summoning as much rotten cabbage she could think of. No warning for Snape. She flicked her wand at a cabbage, took aim at the middle of his chest and pointed.

"Protego!" he barely had time to shout before the cabbage exploded before him, leaves and rotting pulp flying everywhere.

She pointed twice more, sending cabbages whizzing across the room in his general direction. No words, just blind, buzzing, crimson fury.

"Blood hel--Protego!"

More exploding cabbage. The smell was almost unbearable.

"Expelliarmus!" she cried.

"Compello!"

She hadn't heard that one before. Instead of Snape's wand being wrested from him (and his being thrown into the wall for good measure), the wand stayed firmly in his hand.

More enraged than ever, Hermione sent three jars of enormous, white, blindly grubbing larvae over his head.

"Cassio!" she shouted, pointing her wand at one of the jars.

"Protego!"

The jar exploded. Shards of glass and the huge, vile grubs flew everywhere.

"Cassio!"

"Protego!"

The second jar shattered over his head. More glass and grubs rained around his feet and over his head, though not on him because of the spell.

They stood facing each other across the room, panting, wands raised. Snape stood braced for her next assault, but didn't make any attempt at an offensive of his own. His black eyes glittered.

At this sight, Hermione felt her throat tighten painfully and hot tears slide down her cheeks. With a particularly violent swing of her wand, she sent the remaining vegetables flying off her desk at him and shrieked, "Cassio!" a third time.

Snape just put his arms in front of his face and withstood the onslaught as best he could.

When it was over, Hermione darted across the room and pushed her tear-stained face as close to his as she dared. Bits of vegetable matter and the odd slug were now in his hair and all over his clothes. He watched her expression, ready for anything. "And another thing," she shouted, although there hadn't been a first thing, "The next time you want to have a private conversation in the corridor, try whispering!"

She slid past him into the corridor beyond, walking as quickly as she dared, her heels clicking on the flagstones, her sobs choked back in her throat.