Chapter 19: Love Bizarre

Snape's Quarters, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts...

The amber eyes of Hermione Jean Granger glinted at the prospect of being able to play teacher to her Potions Professor. Snape had still been quite annoyed at his less than savory side's attachment to the insufferable know-it-all. She was smug as she ventured close to him. His heart beating thunderously in his chest at her approach. His body screamed in need for him to grab her and force his aching cock into her warm little body and be done with it, but he would not stoop so low as to defile a young witch, especially a bloody third year.

Her idea to spend time with him worked for short term encounters but by the second afternoon together they started to think bigger. Lupin had told her how the spirits of wolves thrived off the already established traits of the men who's bodies they inhabited. Snape had been an affection starved since the moment of his birth. A weakness he had tempered as he grew becoming the stoic and cold Potions Professor, everyone had come to know.

Now here was this wolf spirit feeding off his hunger for human contact and rewriting it in the form of sexual desire.

Snape rolled his eyes as Hermione ran her smooth little finger across his ebony clad chest. She had been hell bent on proving to "Mr. Stone heart" that he had been severely affection starved and it was why he was so aggressive as of late.

"Miss Granger." said Snape growing impatient.

"You're supposed to be relaxing." said Hermione with an innocent smile.

"Miss Granger, I don't think actively provoking the beast-within is a wise decision." said Snape bitterly.

Hermione removed her hand and shrugged.

Snape had been quite annoyed when he found himself dropping to his knees before the young witch in a bid to get her to touch him again. She smiled noting how desperate he had been for her to touch him.

"This is wrong on so many levels." he said bitter still.

"It's the only way to keep you from attacking someone...or did you forget what you almost did to poor Harry?" asked Hermione.

Snape rolled his eyes. He nearly whimpered when she moved her hand from his raven hair down to his shoulders.

"The things I've been reduced to." said The Potions Professor annoyed.

Hermione could sympathize, it must have been hard for him to become dependent on someone like her for comfort. He had usually been a very private man with ample control over his emotions. The wolf was reducing to little more than attention seeking dog. It flattered the young witch to some degree that all the years of wanting his attention and some form of affection from this wizard had come to this.

"If you are done petting me, Miss Granger I believe we have a plant to see to." said Snape getting to his feet.

"Oh." said Hermione more than a little disappointed that he had recovered so quickly. "I'll get the plant book."

"Would you?" asked Snape in a biting manner.

The bushy haired witch didn't seem to notice. She was all too happy to get back to The River Mist Plant.

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Snape's Private Labs, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts...

The River Mist plant had been a strange discovery to say the least. It's leaves continued to change color based on the apparent mood of the surroundings, Snape and Hermione had discovered this when he got near it in one of his foul tempered moments and the plant changed to the color of crimson. Hermione got near it and it became a strangely vibrant blue color. When Hermione got near Snape when they stood in front of the plant it became a very bright pink hue. Snape had thought it a curious aspect for a plant.

They each took turns recording new and interesting changes in the plant's appearance as well as Snape's extracting a sample from the main source. It still changed hues like before so the theory that Hermione had concluded with it being due to the root or rather main stem of the plant causing the change was incorrect.

"Anything new?" asked Hermione excited as she returned with the plant book.

Snape looked up from the sample he was studying.

"No." he replied. "It seems to be doing the same thing it did before."

"Let me see." said Hermione making her way over toward him.

The sample turned bright pink.

Snape rolled his eyes not at all liking the implication the plant was giving.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" he asked bitterly.

"No." replied Hermione with a grin.

She reached over and tried to get the sample out of his hands and they ended up touching rather intimately. Snape glared at her with heat behind his obsidian eyes. It wasn't the rage that he had been exhibiting thus far in the presence of the plant. Hermione took notice of the hungry look in his eyes and attempted to back up. Snape caught sight of the base plant sitting in it's jar, apparently the bushy haired witch sparked some type of change in it as it became in full bloom, sprouting beautiful white flowers with sleek green seedpods.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." he said stunned.

Hermione blushed still not use to the vulgar language coming from her Potions Professor.

"It's apparently a...love plant?" said Snape moving away from Hermione and looking back n forth between her and the new bloom in the jar. "So that's why it's so elusive...it only responds to..."

He looked at Hermione with his eyes wild.

"How did you find this?" he asked suddenly.

"Well I kind of found it after you gave me that gross deer heart..." said the bushy haired witch. "You didn't seem to mind me gathering potions ingredients and then it was just...there by the river."

"The River Mist plant was only a legend until you got your grubby little hands on it." said Snape. "Now I find that even the legendary title doesn't fit it."

"Well...we'll just have to come up with a better name then." said Hermione with a smile.

She thought for a moment and then suddenly an idea came to her.

"How about "Amor prodigiosum?" she asked hopeful.

Snape had been ready to shoot down any idiotic phrase she came up with but found that he couldn't do so. The name had been rather perfect considering if he had been correct in his assessment of this plant it would make one hell of a love potion.

"Yes." he said surprising Hermione, who had been second guessing her idea. " Love Bizarre is quite an interesting name for this plant...fitting given the circumstances surrounding it's discovery."

The bushy haired witch smiled. She had finally seemed to score some points with her snarky Potions Professor.

"Then it's settled then." she said pleased.

"I believe it is." replied Snape looking at the witch as she ventured over to the book.

He watched her make notes for a while then turned back to studying his plant sample. With seeds now so readily available, it would be wise to figure out what it was truly capable of. Perhaps this strange partnership with Miss Granger would not be so bad after all. She was proving to be a valuable asset and she was no where near ready to become a potions apprentice. However, if he had to take one on, he would surely look no further than the bushy haired know-it-all.