TITLE: Swallow My Pride
AUTHOR: Susan / apckrfan
E-MAIL
DISTRIBUTION: My site, AO3, FanFiction.net, LiveJournal.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any characters. They are owned by JK Rowling, Scholastic, Warner Brothers, etc. No profit is made from this fic.
RATING: FRK
SPOILERS: Through Sorcerer's Stone
SUMMARY: Hermione has something on her mind so visits Snape in his classroom before leaving Hogwarts
CHARACTERS/PAIRING: Hermione Granger, Severus Snape (no relationship at all!)
DATE STARTED: September 2022
STATUS: Complete
WORD COUNT: 1,000 +/-
FEEDBACK: Please, I can't write better without it.
NOTES: Just an idea that came to me.




June 1992

Hermione glanced behind her, ensuring she wasn’t being followed. Or seen. It’d be just her luck that Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, or one of the Slytherins would spot her walking through the dungeons when she had no business being here. It was so dark down here. Really creepy alone as she was currently. Coming alone was probably stupid of her. It was necessary, though, for this task.

Task. She scoffed at that.

This wasn’t a task. No one was making her do this.

She was a fool is what she was.

Honestly, she knew she had no business being here. Forget the Slytherins. Their head of house could make her scrub cauldrons tonight for her being brazen enough to come here. He’d do it, too. She just knew he would.

And yet, she was here. She was taught to admit when she was wrong. And she had been wrong. Harry would never apologize.

She’d allowed Harry’s … biases and the events of the months prior to influence and warp what she’d actually seen. She should never have assumed it was Snape after the sorcerer’s stone. Looking back at the year’s events, it was so obvious it was Quirrell and Professor Snape had been trying to help Harry all along.

She had seen no actual evidence Snape was evil. Was he a bit scary? Absolutely! Was he a bit of a git? Absolutely again.

She heard her parents’ voices in her head for almost thirty-six hours now. She could hear their disappointment that she wouldn’t do the right thing.

That was what led to her being in the dungeons the night before they were slated to return home for the summer. She wasn’t even sure he’d listen to her!

She knocked on the door leading to his classroom, hoping against hope he was here. Professors would have to put last minute touches on grades and such. Wouldn’t they? Someone like him, though, who seemed very … prepared. Maybe he wouldn’t need to?

In actuality, a part of her was hoping he wouldn’t be here. Then she could say too bad, she tried, better luck next time.

"Enter," his stern and authoritative sounding voice came through the door. She took a deep breath, blowing on her bangs a bit as she pushed the door open.

He was here. She could do this! She had to do this.

He stared at her, clearly she was the last person he expected to see here tonight.

"You do not have class until September, Miss Granger."

She couldn’t help but give a slight smile at that. His scowl made it so the smile was short-lived.

"I’m aware of that, Sir. I just wanted to apologize."

"For?"

She took a deep breath. How to say this? She didn’t want to sound as if she was trying to suck up.

"I should have believed in you."

He stared at her, eyes narrowed. He didn’t believe her. She wasn’t sure how she knew that, but she did.

He cast a spell of some sort, nothing she recognized. He didn’t use magic often in their potions classes, so it was rare for her to … feel his magic as he cast. And that intrigued her, but that wasn’t why she was here. As much as she’d like to ask him about it. She did know that it wasn’t aimed at her. Instead, it appeared he’d cast it behind her. Where there was nothing but his empty classroom.

Ah.

He thought she was playing a joke on him. That she hadn’t come alone. She felt bad that that was where his mind went instead of believing she was genuinely here to apologize.

Why? Why did his mind go to a prank being played on him?

Not your purpose, Hermione! Focus. In and out. You don’t want to irritate the man. The last thing she needed was to start next year with him angry with her for taking up more time than was necessary on her last night here.

"I’m alone, Sir," she said simply. Whether he believed her or not was another story.

"Very well," he said. "Apology accepted. That will be all then."

The last bit was phrased with a bit of a lift to his voice, as if he was asking her if that was all. Yet he gave a small wave of his hand then, clearly encouraging her out of his classroom so he didn’t want to know if that was all. He wanted her out of his classroom. And away from him.

She’d said what she’d come to say. He’d accepted it even. Why didn’t she feel better then?

She paused at the door, regarding the man. How had he known to try to protect Harry from Professor Quirrell? Why? None of the other professors did. Why him? He clearly didn’t care for Harry very much.

She sighed. There was one more thing she had to get off of her shoulders.

"I’m also sorry about your robes, Sir. If they are exceptionally costly to replace or fix, please send a bill to my parents. I’ll make sure they pay it."

His eyebrows arched at that. She’d surprised him. Why? How?

" You set my robes on fire, Miss Granger?"

"Yes, Sir, I thought you were trying to curse Harry."

He narrowed an eye, seeming to think over her explanation.

"To which I just apologized for doubting you, Sir," she added for good measure. Reminding him he’d accepted her apology.

Did his lips just twitch? Was he amused or irate? She couldn’t tell and really shouldn’t stay long enough to find out.

He nodded then. "Not to worry about the cost of the robes, Miss Granger. It’s too late for detention as well as to assign points. So," he said with a slight lift of his shoulders, "your punishment is to attempt to decide which I’d do under the circumstances."

Assigning points? Was he for real?

"Any other infractions you wish to admit to?"

"No, Sir," she squeaked. "Have a good summer." This she said quickly, leaving the classroom immediately afterward. She stood with her back against a nearby wall, breathing heavily.

Would he have assigned points? And if so, why?

Oh, Merlin, he knew exactly what to say to punish her, didn’t he?

~The End~

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