A Sense of Obsession

Disclaimer: All these fabulous characters belong to J.K Rowling. I do not own them in any way nor am I making any money from them.

Summary:

A/N: This is my first try at writing a fan fiction based on the extraordinary Harry Potter series of novels. I don't know if the plot line I have is clichéd or not as I have only recently began reading fan fiction for this series. So, I'm not sure if I have written everyone entirely in character, they may be slightly OOC.

Reviews are appreciated immensely, they let me know how good or bad my story is and they allow me to improve my writing.

I have no beta...as of yet anyway...so mistakes are solely my fault.

I hope you enjoy!

"Crucio!"

Sparks shot out from the end of the wand held by long, thin fingers. The curse hit its intended target, causing the victim to drop to his knees with his face contorted in agony. Yet, he refused to scream. No matter how much pain he was in, he would not scream.

"You dare not scream?" shouted his torturer. "You will scream! Crucio!"

He braced himself, knowing the spell would hit him soon. When it did, he clenched his teeth, determined to bear the pain. It would be over soon, he knew. The Dark Lord would soon relinquish his torment.

He did not scream.

"You impress me," hissed the Dark Lord as he broke the connection. "Your strength is admirable."

His victim remained on his knees, he dared not stand. Not from fear, no, he was not afraid of Lord Voldemort. He knew his place; he had to bear the pain, for that was his job.

"I will not tolerate failure," he heard Voldemort say. "You will give me what I want. I want that potion by the end of the week."

He bowed his head in response and stood. He then turned and left the creaky, old building that his Master was using as a lair.

xXxXxXxXxXx

It was a typical day at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Term was in full swing as students from all houses scurried the corridors, some heading for their designated class for that period, some heading for their common rooms and others heading to the Great Hall.

The "Golden trio" as some called them, were headed for double Potions, much to the dismay of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley and delight of Hermione Granger.

"Double Potions?" exclaimed the red headed boy. "I hate Potions, never mind having to suffer double Potions with Snape. It's torture!"

"Honestly, Ronald." Hermione replied, "N.E.W.T. level Potions is a fantastic subject to have, especially if you wish to be an Auror."

"Doesn't mean I have to like it." The boy snipped back.

Hermione rolled her eyes as they descended the staircase to the dungeons. She was beginning to find Professor Snape to be an extraordinary teacher, especially now that they had entered their seventh year at Hogwarts. He was still mean, and still favoured Slytherin above Gryffindor, however; he was no longer making as many snide remarks towards her person. He did occasionally, but never as much as he used to.

That didn't mean he had changed his behaviour towards Harry and Ron however.

As they entered the classroom, they each took their respective seat and removed their text books from their backpacks. The class was full; everyone was there...well almost everyone.

Severus Snape was nowhere to be seen, Hermione noticed. At least, nowhere to be seen... at the moment. He could come barging through that door any second.

Her inner musings were confirmed soon enough, when a loud bang came from the entrance way to the class. The door had slammed against the wall, but much to the shock and surprise of many students, instead of the usually powerful stride Snape had when walking into his class, it was rather slow.

And weak, Hermione thought.

The room fell silent as they watched their usually fearsome professor move to the front of the room and, with a flick of his wand, place instructions for that day's work on the board.

He had not said a word, and it was frightening. Snape usually said something.

And he finally did, "By the end of class today, you will all brew an acceptable Draught of Peace. This should be relatively easy for you all, however; I'm sure there will be some exceptions to this." His black eyes were fixated upon Harry and Ron as he spoke his last few words.

Hermione smiled, class should go well for her, yet again.

As the class sprung to life, gathering their ingredients and cauldrons, Snape walked to his desk, grimacing as he did. He sat down and winced as he leaned back against the chair.

This went unnoticed by every student bar one.

And it concerned her.

Snape had never looked as bad as he did then.

She sensed something was wrong, something was horribly wrong.

She turned her attention back to her cauldron and the task at hand. She brewed her potion, adding all of the right ingredients at the correct times and ensuring to stir it when necessary and in the correct direction.

She knew she had done well, even for her standards.

She continued to sneak glances at her Potions Master, and her worry intensified.

He was in pain.

Many reasons as to why crossed her mind, each one more terrible than the last. She knew of his spy status. He was a double agent; pretending to spy for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named while actually relaying information about the Dark Lord to Albus Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix.

Class ended. Everyone bottled up samples of their potion and placed it on Snape's desk. Harry and Ron were eager to get out of the room, so when Hermione told them she would be staying behind for a few minutes they said their goodbyes and promised to meet in the Great Hall later.

So, soon enough, Hermione was the only student left in the class.

This didn't go unnoticed, "Yes, Miss Granger, what it is?"

She stepped forward, "I...I couldn't help but observe that...that you, uh..."

He raised an eyebrow, "That I what, Miss Granger?"

"That you seem to be... seem to be in pain, sir," she stuttered. Her hands clasped her Potions textbook against her chest as she came to a stop a few feet away from him.

He appeared to be shocked at her apparent alarm, "That is none of your business, Miss Granger. My well-being is none of your concern." His voice was cold. He continued to scribble remarks on the essays he was graded, fully expecting her to leave.

She didn't.

"Miss Granger, as you can plainly see, I am busy. Please leave."

"Professor," she began, "perhaps I could alert Madam Pomfrey for you?"

Her sweet tone irritated him, "I do not need the services of Madam Pomfrey, Miss Granger. Do you honestly think that I am incapable of brewing a pain relieving potion?" His voice was raised slightly out of frustration. "Now please, leave."

Ah ha! He just admitted it.

"So you are in pain, Professor?"

"Miss Granger!" He snapped. "I find your persistence to be incredibly annoying. I am busy and do not need nor am I asking for your help. Now, leave!"

She sighed in defeat and swiftly left the class. Snape exhaled a long breath, attempting to calm his temper and control the aches coming from all over his body.

She was only trying to help you. An inner voice taunted.

I do not need her help.

You clearly do. Or at least you need someone's help. You can barely walk, and the agony you feel is overwhelming. You have certainly never received a Cruciatus curse as powerful as that before.

Maybe not, but I do not need Granger's pity.

She was being friendly.

I saw pity in her eyes!

No, you saw concern.

They are the same thing!

No, they are not.

Yes, they are.

No. They are not.

He argued with the inner voice for what seemed an eternity before he came to the realisation that he needed to apologise to his star pupil.

Since when do I refer to her as that?

Since now, clearly.

He growled and decided to make his way to his private chambers. He had no classes for the rest of the day, so thought it best to try and rest. He would request a talk with his worried pupil later.

xXxXxXxXxXx

As they had agreed, Hermione found her friends in the Great Hall, sitting at their usual places at the Gryffindor table. She plopped herself down on the bench, huffing her anger as she did so.

"What happened?" asked Harry. "What did Snape say?"

"What did you ask him anyway?" added Ron.

"It doesn't matter," she replied. "I can honestly say I have never met a person as stubborn as Severus Snape is, I assure you."

Harry and Ron glanced at each other, "Okay." Harry said, clearly confused.

Ron's curiosity was piqued however, "What did you say?"

"I said it doesn't matter," she hissed. "You wouldn't care anyway," she muttered under her breath.

"What wouldn't we care about, Hermione?" Harry wondered.

"It's nothing!"

"It is something if it's bothering you so much." Harry argued.

"It's Snape, okay? Didn't either of you notice how he was behaving in class?" At their bewildered looks, she continued, "He barely spoke a word, nor did he insult us for the entire class. He was walking as if his whole body was in agony. Does that not worry you, even a little bit?"

"No, not really." Ron replied quickly but when he spotted Hermione's disgusted look he hastily added, "It's Snape, isn't it? He's a strange bloke."

"Why are you so worried, Hermione? This is Snape we're talking about. I think he is perfectly capable of taking care of himself." Harry added.

Her voice was low and laced with something they couldn't quite place, "He places his life on the line every day, for the Order, for Dumbledore, for us... for you, Harry. Are you not worried that his role could be discovered at any moment? If Voldemort finds out that Snape is a spy for the Order..." she trailed off, suddenly finding herself unable to speak those words.

Harry gave her a look of assurance, "As much as I hate him, I'm sure he knows what he is doing. Though, I'm still having trouble trusting him..." He sighed, "But that is probably due to my dislike of him."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Hermione began to study her Potions textbook, while Harry and Ron read over their Defence against the Dark Arts notes. All three were startled when they heard the shriek of an owl.

They looked up and watched as an owl swooped into the room from a window at the end of the Hall. The bird gracefully landed in front of Hermione, dropping an envelope onto the table.

She studied the animal; its feathers were as black as the midnight sky while its eyes were large and the colour of amber. It was a truly beautiful creature.

The bird then extended its wings and took to the air, flying from the room, leaving an echo of its call behind it.

The three young Gryffindors were stunned...it was past the time for the arrival of mail, so who had sent Hermione a letter?

"Go on then, open it," urged Ron.

She pulled the flap back and pulled the parchment from the envelope. She read it silently.

Miss Granger,

I request that you come to my classroom at 6pm this evening. I have some things to discuss with you.

Consider it... extra credit. And I know how much your studies mean to you.

S. Snape

She glanced upward from the piece of parchment. Harry and Ron waited impatiently for her to tell them who had sent her the letter.

"Well?" said Harry.

"Professor Snape wants to see me this evening. That's all it really tells me."

"That git!" Ron screeched. "He sent you a detention by owl? Now that's a new low, even for him!"

Hermione smirked, "I don't believe it is a detention, Ronald. I think it may be an extra credit Potions lesson."

"Oh God, even worse," he mumbled.

xXxXxXxXxXx

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