Aftermath

Chapter Four: Invasions of Privacy

"Hermione Granger."

At the sound of her name, Hermione stopped dead in her tracks, only half-way into the room. She observed the tall man before her with calm eyes, despite the feverish speed of her thoughts. He said my name. My full name. What have I done? Perhaps he's just surprised. Surely, he wasn't expecting me to barge in on him. At least, he wasn't expecting me!

Her mind calmed slightly, she allowed her eyes to wander away from the figure that was Severus Snape and surveyed the room he had attempted to hide himself away in. On the wall to her right hung a life-sized portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw. The Founder gave her a quick amused look with her deep blue eyes before resuming what appeared to be a conversation with a bird whose pinions nearly matched the darkness of the woman's hair.

"Miss Granger," Snape's voice snapped, returning her attention to him.

"Professor," she replied, unthinkingly.

"Yes, Miss Granger, that is what I am."

"No, Professor Snape. I am a professor, and I would ask that you honour me enough to use my proper title if you are unwilling to call me by my first name." She watched his eyebrows rise marginally, but refused to back down now that she'd made her stand. I can't let him think that he can still intimidate me, as he could when I was a student here, she thought to herself. If we're to work together, he must respect me as an equal. There's no other way things can work.

As though he sensed her thoughts, Snape's eyes flickered with a trace amount of respect, and his next words were slightly less caustic.

"Indeed, Professor Granger. Now, would you be so kind as to tell me why you have sought me out when I so clearly desired solitude?"

The acidity of his voice was still there, she noted, but it seemed less disconcerting that it had when she was a student. Either he's losing his touch, she mused, or I'm not as frightened by him as I used to be.

"I need to know what your lesson plans are, sir," Hermione said respectfully, keeping her eyes fixed on his. "The last Transfigurations professor wasn't very good at keeping things organized, and I believe it would be easier for me to rewrite my lesson plans entirely rather than attempt to sort hers out."

"And you need to make sure that you don't attempt to draw on knowledge the students don't already have?" His eyes were dark enough to make her feel as though she were gazing into a black hole. A gravitational pull, almost. She blinked and looked back at the portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw swiftly. The haughtily beautiful woman was watching the two of them out of the corner of one eye. Noting Hermione's glance, she winked one blue eye at the young professor and gestured encouragingly.

"Very well, Professor Granger," Snape said, drawing her attention back. "Accompany me to my office where I will give you an extra copy of my lesson plan. If you have any questions in the future, however, I would ask that you simply ask a house-elf to bring me a message rather than intruding upon my privacy yourself." Hermione ducked her head and blushed, only now recognizing how foolish she had been.

"Yes, sir," she murmured, keeping her eyes fixed on her shoes as she followed the intimidating professor through the school hallways. Indeed, she was so fixated on the sensible black leather that she didn't notice him stopping until she walked into his chest. Withdrawing speedily from the wall of black cloth, she flushed and looked swiftly up at him, only to look back down at the floor in seeing the blank disapproval in his eyes.

"Sorry, Professor Snape," she mumbled to the silver buckles holding her shoes closed. She heard his snort of derision then one long cool finger lifted her chin.

"As much as I appreciate an apology when it is deserved," he said, his cool voice dry, "I do think that you should accustom yourself to treating other staff members as your equals, Professor Granger. It wouldn't do for the children to see you as having any sort of weakness, after all." He chuckled at her as her eyes snapped up to his, fury burning in their depths. She'd show him weakness, she vowed.

Yes, little lioness, an unfamiliar voice whispered in her head. I'm sure you will. She could feel her eyes widening in shock and focused all her fury on the man in front of her.

"That, sir, is a blatant violation of my rights as a witch. I would ask that, in the future, you keep your prying mind to yourself!" Her tirade finished, Hermione glared once more up into startled black eyes then whirled about on her heel and stalked away, unconsciously imitating the professor currently standing staring at her in complete shock.

However, her departure wasn't fast enough to miss his whispered, "But I didn't..." before she turned the corner and marched off to cool her fury in her rooms.