Another Kind Of Magic - A Severus Snape Fanfiction

Hagrid's Hut

Hagrid was busy stacking firewood onto a large pile next to his hut. He was humming his favorite tune, when suddenly the soft rustling of grass caught his attention. It sounded like someone was slowly approaching, stalking through the damp grass. He turned his head into the direction the sound was coming from, but there was no one.

Now fully alert, he straightened himself clumsily, overlooking the large field that separated his home from the castle. And there, in the distance, he spotted two shadows in the thickening fog, one much taller than the other, steadily marching towards him. The sound, however, was much closer. Whoever it was, they must have been nearby.

And then, with a graceful jump, a big black cat leapt out of its hiding. Hagrid's eyes grew wide in shock as the animal raced to him, bright yellow orbs glowing in the misty haze. Hagrid tried to escape, but tripped over the firewood pile and landed painfully on top of it.

The panther elegantly closed in on him, nudging his arm gently as if to check if he was hurt.

"Oh, aren't you the sweetest creature?" Hagrid grinned, utterly fascinated by the predator's unexpectedly soft demeanor. He petted its large head, not noticing that two visitors had just arrived.

"I see you've already met your new fosterling." With arms crossed in front of his chest, Professor Snape towered over the game keeper.

"Oh," Hagrid quickly stood, brushing the dirt off his pants. "Severus. I didn't know you were coming." His gaze fell onto the witch who accompanied the Potions Master. "Lena!" he smiled widely, obviously happy to see her. "What a nice surprise! It's been a while."

The student's face lit up at this warm welcome. "I'm sorry I haven't visited you sooner. School work has kept me quite busy." She glanced over to her Head of House, before turning her attention right back to Hagrid, whose friendly face was overshadowed by a frown.

"What has that grouch been doing to you?" he nodded into Professor Snape's direction.

"Trying to keep her alive," said grouch scowled. "Which is quite the challenge, given her habit of blowing up cauldrons on a regular schedule."

Lena hung her head at the professor's remark, and Hagrid shot him an irritated glare but thought it best to change the subject. "So, what brings you two here?"

"As I said." Severus pointed his wand at the black feline that was chasing after a noisily complaining bird. "We were hoping you could foster him for a while. At least, until we have figured out a way to undo the spell."

"Spell?" Hagrid asked, not quite understanding. "Is the cat cursed?"

Lena giggled at that, immediately drawing her teacher's gaze upon her. "No, he's not cursed. He is my familiar. Professor Lupin taught us the familiar spell. For some reason, though, the counterspell doesn't work with him."

"Hm." Hagrid brushed over his beard, apparently contemplating what she had just said. "Very strange," he murmured under his breath.

"Yes," Lena confirmed. "And since he can't stay in the castle, Professor Snape thought you might be able to take care of him."

" Very strange indeed." The tall man didn't even seem to have heard her as he kept staring into space.

"Hagrid? Did you listen?" Severus growled impatiently.

"What?" Finally he looked at his two visitors again. "Oh. Yes, yes, that's fine. I'll be happy to keep him. You know I love animals."

Without a hint of amusement, the Slytherin teacher's mouth twisted into a smirk. "Especially the man-eating kind."

"They are just misunderstood," Hagrid defended himself. "If you live with them, nurture them, spend time with them, you,'ll know just how loving they can be."

"If you say so." Severus rolled his eyes.

"No, really!" He insisted. "Just the other day I took in an orphaned fanged Puffskein. Poor thing. It's breeder had apparently made a fortune selling them, but then the ministry found out and he had to get rid of them. Don't know what happened to the others, but fortunately I was able to at least save one."

The Potions Master huffed. "Yes. Very fortunate, Hagrid."

"Oh, a Puffskein?" Lena shouted excitedly, grinning from ear to ear. "Can I see it? Please?"

"Did you not hear what he just said?" Severus hissed angrily. "It is fanged. As in ..." He thought for a moment but couldn't come up with a better word. "As in fangs".

"Please?" Lena completely disregarded his warning, much to Hagrid's joy.

Eager to show her the fluffball, he motioned for her to follow him inside. "Sure. But be careful, it is rather skittish."

As the three of them entered the hut, Fang greeted them with happy barking and viscious tail wagging. After he had been sufficiently cuddled by Lena, Hagrid led her to a corner, where a box was sitting. It was covered with an old blanket.

"The Puffskein is calmer when it's dark," he explained. "So, remember. Don't scare it."

"I won't," Lena promised with shiny eyes that grew wider as she watched Hagrid lift the blanket, revealing a small creature with yellow fluffy fur.

"Oh, it's so cute!" Lena couldn't help it. The Puffskein looked so innocent and adorable that she forgot all about the warnings. She reached out to touch its soft fur, but instantly, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist, roughly pulling her back.

"Why can't you just listen?" Professor Snape snapped, rage was written all over his face. "You have two functioning ears and a brain, why don't you use them for a change?"

Lena first turned pale before she blushed furiously under his scrutinizing stare. "I'm sorry, Sir. "

"You should be," he shot back, his fingers still tight around her arm. "What if it had bitten you? They look harmless, but their teeth can do quite some damage."

"I'm very sorry, Professor. I didn't think, it is just... just so cute."

"I would give you detention, if you didn't already have it for the rest of the year," he raged on, subconsciously tugging at her wrist, pulling her a bit closer. "Things that look cute are often the most menacing, potentially fatal creatures because their looks attract all sorts of enemies." Heavy silence filled the room for a couple of incredibly stretched-out seconds.

Lena bit her lip as she noticed that something in her professor's gaze shifted. She couldn't tell what it was, but the hard, cold blackness of his irises seemed to gradually soften.

When he eventually spoke again, his voice was unusually silky and not much more than a whisper. "Even if it is tempting, we mustn't touch what isn't ours."

Hagrid stood in astonishment, his eyes wandering from Severus to Lena, from Lena to Severus, and back again. Was that wizard still talking about the Puffskein?

Then, as if he had burned himself, the Potions Master withdrew his hand at once and stormed towards the exit. "Don't be late for my class," he growled before slamming the door shut behind him.

"So," Hagrid said casually as he put an arm around Lena's shoulder. "What's going on between the two of you?"

Startled, since her mind had been somewhere else completely, she flinched slightly. "Nothing."

"I see," he smirked knowingly. "Tea?"