Books And Aconite: The Adventures Of A Potions Apprentice by JAWorley
FeatureSummary: Uncle Vernon’s acting weird, and Snape has designs on making Harry the most obedient student Hogwarts has ever seen. Harry just wants a quiet summer to himself and to earn the money he needs for his school supplies, but he could only hope for something so simple. Entry into the Bingo Card Fic Fest.
Categories: Healer Snape, Teacher Snape > Trusted Mentor Snape, Master Snape > Apprentice Harry, Fic Fests > Bingo! Fic Fest, Teacher Snape > Professor Snape Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required), Hermione, Original Character, Other, Ron
Snape Flavour: Snape is Angry, Canon Snape, Snape Comforts, Snape is Controlling, Snape is Kind, Snape is Stern
Genres: Action/Adventure, Angst, Canon, Drama, Fantasy, General, Hurt/Comfort
Media Type: None
Tags: Hospitalization, Injured!Snape, Runaway, Snape-meets-Dursleys, Werewolf!Harry, Werewolves
Takes Place: 5th summer, 5th Year
Warnings: Abusive Dursleys, Bullying, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Physical Punishment Non-Spanking, Violence
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 25 Completed: No Word count: 176255 Read: 71091 Published: 05 Nov 2022 Updated: 29 Dec 2022
Student Apprentice by JAWorley
Working an apprentice so hard that he or she ended up in the Hospital Wing went against the spirit of apprentice masters in general, but especially in the potions community. Severus couldn't remember a time when any of his masters during his three apprenticeships had done such a thing to him. On the contrary, as an apprentice Severus had often worked himself hard to the point that he forgot to eat or stayed up late studying. There had been several times where he had been running on nothing but potions fumes and caffeine. His second potions master, the one that had taken him on as a third year apprentice and taken him through his sixth year and his own potions mastery, had often had to set break times for Severus and enforce them. "You look rough Severus," Master Gerrin would say to him. "You didn't sleep, did you?" It was never really a question because the two of them both knew when Severus hadn't slept. "Better sit and rest then. You'll be no good to me if you fall face first into a potion. We were going to brew a complicated potion with an acidic base today. Can you imagine what they'd say if I had to take you to St. Mungos because your face had melted in an acidic potion?"

Even Minerva had looked after him when he'd come to Hogwarts to teach at Albus' insistence. He'd had to do a one year teaching apprenticeship and had been assigned to Minerva. Granted, teaching apprenticeships were different than Potions apprenticeships, especially if done at Hogwarts. He was teaching his own classes that first year, making his own lesson plans, grading the papers of his students, but Minerva had checked in with him daily at breakfast and then again at dinner, and had had meetings with him once a week on Fridays to ensure things were going well, to give him pointers on how to handle difficult students, and to make sure he was following all the rules. Minerva had told him frequently that year to relax... to make sure he made time to take care of himself and do things he enjoyed. "No teaching on Sunday's, that's my rule. That's my day for myself. I'm a head of house and the deputy headmistress, so I don't get to take the day off if there's an emergency, but I make sure I don't schedule detentions or tutoring on Sunday and I try to get all my grading done by Friday evening so I can have Saturday off as well. Be sure to do that Severus. You need to make time for yourself or you'll burn out."

Severus knew Potter needed time to himself and with his family, and had made it a point not to monopolize the child's entire summer. What he'd failed to do was realize the boy was hurt on multiple occasions or had been overworked to the point he'd needed two days of mandatory rest. He shook his head. It was against everything that being an apprentice master stood for, especially with an apprentice under the age of majority. He'd been 17 the first year he became an apprentice and his apprentice masters had all looked after him. Potter was only 15 and Severus felt like he was doing a poor job of being his master. That would have to change. Potter had done all the work he'd been asked to do and hadn't complained once, even when in discomfort or pain. He'd done the same with a broken arm earlier in the summer.

Severus still didn't know why the Gryffindor was like that. He wasn't sure if he was trying to project the image of a stoic hero who never flinched, or if he just wasn't good at taking care of himself. He was probably used to his aunt and uncle seeing to his every scrape and bruise. Severus shuddered to think about having to cater to the child for such small injuries, but then reminded himself that he'd taken on this responsibility in taking Harry as an apprentice.

He would definitely have to keep a closer eye on the boy if he wasn't going to take care of himself or speak up when he was hurt. He appreciated for the first time perhaps what it must have been like for Minerva and master Gerrin, having to tell him to eat, sleep, and take a break because he'd worked himself too hard. He didn't think Potter was the type to overwork himself... no, the boy's past work showed that he was prone to doing the bare minimum required of him. The only problem was that since Severus had taken him as an apprentice earlier that summer that that view of the boy had been dashed. He was a hard worker. He worked efficiently and without complaint. It was a mystery Severus didn't want to spend the mental energy on unraveling, at least not now when he only had a couple of weeks left until the start of the school year and he had mountains of paperwork to do and an apprentice to keep both eyes on. Or maybe never. He only needed to get the boy through his apprenticeship books and ensure he kept himself out of trouble this year.

* * *

Madam Pomfrey must have gotten after Snape to ease up on him. Harry had been surprised when he returned to the Dungeons the day after the sight came back into focus in his left eye when the Slytherin head of house told him they'd be making potions in the mornings Monday-Friday for the next two weeks, and that Harry should spend his afternoons in his common room studying there. "Do not study after dinner for the next two weeks."

"Am I supposed to return to the dungeons for more brewing after dinners?" Harry asked.

"That time is yours to do with as you will."

Harry mulled over the new schedule in his head. Brewing until eleven didn't sound so bad, and getting to go back to his dorms or common room after lunch to relax on a couch or in a comfortable chair or on his bed to study by himself sounded even better.

Snape didn't say anything else about the new schedule or his stay in the Hospital Wing, so Harry figured the issue was settled, and was grateful he wasn't spending the next two weeks on an uncomfortable wooden stool studying in the dungeons.

That morning, and for the next few mornings, Severus had Harry brewing a number of easy potions that the Hospital Wing needed. Harry brewed a base for an antifungal potion that they then split into three cauldrons and used as the base for a variety of other antifungal potions. Madam Pomfrey told Harry later that the magical world was full of all sorts of funguses that liked to attach themselves to witches and wizards. He also brewed cases of calming potions, a potion for the sniffles, a single phial of an anti-hiccup potion that Madam Pomfrey said was to cure hiccups caused by a curse that some unlucky student was always hit with once a year, and several other potions Harry hadn't realized students might need in the year.

One morning he brewed a fast potion that only took twenty minutes, and Snape told him to spend the rest of the morning in the Hospital Wing learning the name and use of every potion in Madam Pomfrey's cabinets. Harry wondered if the medi-witch would give him a hard time about it, but it seemed Snape had already set this up with her ahead of time, and Harry spent the morning learning about other potions he hadn't brewed, but might need to in the future if she ran out of them. There was dreamless sleep, which he'd had, potions to treat Dragon Pox, headache potions, stomach ache draughts, heartburn potions, Skele-grow and dozens more. Harry wrote down each potion and its use in one of his black potions journals and hoped Snape wasn't going to quiz him on the information later.

While Harry would have preferred to have all day every day to himself since it was summer, he was glad that he was so busy five days a week that he had no time to stop and talk to Professor Umbridge. He ran into her frequently and she always wanted to stop and talk to him. Having his arms full with a heavy crate full of glass potions phials or ‘rushing' back to the dungeons to take care of a ‘potion in a critical stage' were great excuses to give her though. Snape was giving him Saturday and Sunday off each week until the school year started, but Harry stayed in Gryffindor tower those days unless he had to venture out to the library to get a new novel to read. Once his friends were back in a few days and school started again, he would have even more excuses to use not to talk to her as he'd have classes to go to and to study for.

Friday, two days before the rest of the students were to return, Snape wrote down the name of a book and sent Harry off to the library with the note. "I need this to brew a potion. You may not be able to find it right away. It will be in the potions section, but that section is large and may take you some time to look through."

Harry had never been in the potions section of the library before. Hermione had, but Harry and Ron had spent their time browsing through books in the Quidditch and Defense sections, and every once in a while in the Charms section to finish essays for class.

Madam Pomfrey directed Harry to the back left corner of the library after verifying that the book Harry wanted was checked in. Harry passed rows and rows of books on Transfiguration, Arithmancy, History and other subjects. Finally he came to the start of the Potions section and looked at the name of the book again. It looked like it had to do with the fifth class of potions. The Hogwarts library wasn't organized like Muggle libraries. He had to find the section with books on the fifth class of potions first, then he had to narrow down any subsections within that section before he could start looking in alphabetical order by name of the book, not by author.

 

It was twenty minutes before Harry determined that the book he wanted wasn't in that first potions section he'd come to. He went down a long row of potions books, then came back up another aisle with shelves towering on either side. After several more rows Harry came to a funny little nook in the corner of the library. The walls jutted out creating a little square room with a booth on three sides and a table in the middle. There were tall windows in three of the walls, and these were surrounded by bookshelves. It was tucked away in a section he wagered students rarely ventured to, and Harry thought it would be the perfect spot to sit and study without Umbridge being able to find him as there was no direct line of sight to the library entrance and it was tucked away. Hermione would love it, and he hoped Ron wouldn't grouch too much about having to sit with them surrounded by Potions books.

Harry entered the nook and quickly browsed the shelves inside before determining the book he needed wasn't there either. He went on his way, but not before turning back to give the cozy nook one last look of appreciation and deciding that he'd come back here for the next two days to study on his free time instead of hiding in the common room. A change of scenery would be nice.

* * *

Harry had really been hoping he'd be allowed to take the train to school, but Snape had shot that idea down rather quickly.

"I have staff meetings all day Sunday. I do not have time to apparate you to London," Snape informed him Saturday afternoon.

Harry bit his lip, wanting to say that he'd never not ridden the train to school with his friends, and that he hadn't really gotten a summer holiday this time around, but knew it wouldn't make a difference to the stern potions master. He didn't care about Harry's personal life at all or what he wanted. He only cared that Harry did as he was told and continued studying for the apprentice exams.

They didn't have any brewing to do that morning or on Sunday, so Harry retreated to the corner nook in the potions section of the library. He had decided to give himself that day and the next off of studying altogether, so instead he went and found a novel about an auror on the hunt for a murderous banshee. He'd already been through three novels about apprentices since he'd gotten back to Hogwarts and wanted a change of pace. Madam Pomfrey had been right, there were half a dozen novels about potions apprentices, but Harry had decided not to read them for now. He had to live the life of a potions apprentice every day and didn't need to read about others suffering in the same way.

The cream colored cushions on the benches in the library nook were soft and comfortable so Harry settled himself in between two bookshelves on one of the benches in the window well and alternated between reading and staring out the window which looked out over the West Wood. This forest was smaller than the Forbidden Forest and much less wild, but still nice to gaze out at when he grew tired of reading.

Harry didn't bother checking the novel out, and instead left it in the nook so he could come back and read it Sunday.

He rose early Sunday and got breakfast in the Great Hall, sure Umbridge wouldn't have time to pester him if there were staff meetings all day, and then retreated to the potions nook in the library again to finish his novel, which he did by lunch. After another quick meal, Harry returned again and let his eyes wander around the books in the nook. The potions books here didn't seem to be organized by any specific topic like they were in the rest of the library. There was a book on apprenticeship next to one on ingredients that could be gathered from animal waste, and next to that a book of common household potions. Curious, Harry pulled the book on animal waste down and flipped through it for a few minutes before putting it back and pulling another book off the shelf. He didn't enjoy reading factual books like Hermione did, but found that he didn't seem to mind whiling away the last few hours of his summer holiday there in the sunny nook looking through potions books that seemed to be based around interesting facts more than a dire need for knowledge. After all, who would need to know that elephant dung contained nutrients required in 17 base potions, or that you could substitute fly saliva into any potion that needed to be made sticky?

Ignoring the advice he'd been given not to ask the house elves in the kitchens for snacks, Harry went down the Hufflepuff corridor at five and knocked on the portrait of the prickly pear. The feast started at seven and Harry was hoping to find Dobby and convince him to give him an apple to tide him over. Instead of Dobby or one of the other house elves opening the portrait door however, Harry found himself face to face with Professor McGonagall.

"Oh Harry," she said, surprised. "I thought perhaps it was Hagrid knocking. The password was just changed and I thought he may have forgotten."

"Sorry," Harry said, but she waved him inside anyway. "I was going to ask for an apple. I had an early lunch." The kitchen was a flurry of movement and noise as over two dozen house elves prepared food for the feast.

"I will be putting you to works for that apple," said an aging house elf from his stool at a counter as he directed other house elves where to go and what to do. "We is busy and cannot be giving snacks to just any student who comes by."

"I'm sorry," Harry said again.

The elf pointed to a sink full of potatoes and said, "Wash those, then you can have your apple. Be quick about it! The feasts is starting in two hours!"

Harry looked to Professor McGonagall helplessly but she only winked at him so Harry went to the sink and began washing potatoes. He made a quick job of it, and after another house elf overlooked his work to be sure he'd done a good job, he was handed an apple and told that if he came back asking for snacks again he'd be doing more work for them.

Harry took a bite of his apple and listened for a few moments as his Head of House conversed with a tiny house elf with a squeaky voice about deserts and the chickens Hagrid was supposed to be delivering any time now. Deciding he didn't want to be yelled at for hanging around the kitchens longer than he had to, Harry made for the door, but Professor McGonagall called out to him.

"Harry."

He turned and paused, apple in hand. "Maam?"

She came over to him and gave him a small smile, but then her face grew serious. "I know the Headmaster and Professor Snape have both spoken to you about Professor Umbridge. I want to caution you again however. I know you've been doing your best to avoid her, but starting tomorrow that won't be entirely possible as you'll have classes with her three days a week. She's already informed Albus that she won't be having students use the regular textbooks this year. Instead she'll be handing out ‘Ministry approved' books. If you give her any reason at all to punish you or malign your character, she will."

"What does that mean... books approved by the Ministry?"

She sighed and looked displeased. "The Headmaster, Professor Snape and I looked through them Friday evening. They teach the ‘theory' of defense, but nothing practical. You won't be learning practical defense at all this year. There is value in what the books are teaching, but not the same sort of value that students are used to in Defense. They take a very passive stance on the subject and won't teach you any sort of spells."

"And you want me to not push her on it," Harry said seriously.

"That is the idea, yes Mr. Potter," she said. "I can't imagine Severus will be happy if you've been assigned detention on your first day back to classes, and neither will I for that matter since you've been warned beforehand about this. In fact, I'd appreciate it if you'd warn your classmates as well. I'm certain she'll target you directly, but that doesn't mean your classmates will be out of the line of fire if they object too much at the change in teaching materials or agenda."

Harry sighed quietly. "I'll tell them. Wish I could have ridden the train to school with them."

"Yes, well, perhaps after Christmas you can ride it back to the castle with them."

"I never go home for Christmas," Harry reminded her.

"I'm aware. I assumed you would be going home with Severus this year." Harry gave her a horrified look and she frowned for a moment and then laughed. "If he brings it up, I'll see what I can do to keep you here for the holidays. I'm sure I could use your help brewing some potions that could help my advanced 7th year students attempt their animagus forms."

Harry gave her a thankful look and finally smiled. "I missed summer holiday. I'll be grateful if you can convince him to let me have Christmas."

She told Harry to stay out of the way until six forty five and then to come to the Great Hall to greet his friends, so Harry went up to his dorm for the next hour.

There were some teachers in the Great Hall when he went back down at six forty, but luckily Umbridge wasn't around, so he took a seat at Gryffindor table and waited for the throng of students to come in. A few minutes later he heard the Great Oak front doors open in the Entrance Hall and a wave of voices and laughter as students came in. Ron and Hermione were among the first students to come into the Great Hall, and they looked relieved to find Harry already there.

"Harry!" Hermione said, throwing her arms around him as she sat down on his right. Ron sat on his other side. "We were so worried about you when you didn't show up on the train!"

"What happened? Mum and Dad said you probably wouldn't be there and that we'd see you at school, but didn't say why."

"It's a long story," Harry said. "I've been here for a few weeks already. I didn't really get a summer break."

"You didn't?" Hermione asked.

He shook his head. "I can't talk about it here. I'll tell you when we get into the common room."

Half of the Gryffindors had come in and taken a seat now and the noise was at a comfortable enough level that Harry didn't fear being overheard by Umbridge who had just gone up to the Head table to take her seat.

"Why not?" Hermione asked.

Harry nodded his head sideways towards the Head table without looking and said quietly, "Don't look up there. There's a new teacher. The Ministry put her here to try to get me and Dumbledore in trouble. I've been warned three times since I got here to stay out of her way and not do anything that could make her give me detention."

"That squat woman in pink?" Ron asked with a frown.

"Umbridge," Harry said. "She's teaching Defense this year and isn't going to teach us anything practical. She's going to make us use books she brought with her. Professor McGonagall wanted me to tell you and the rest of our classmates not to put up a fuss about it because she'll throw anyone who does into detention." He paused, making sure to look around him just in case someone was listening, and then said, "There's something else." Ron and Hermione leaned in and Harry said, "Dumbledore said she was almost thrown out of school for using dark magic when she was a student. He didn't say it outright, but he implied she was dangerous."

"Why is it always the Defense teacher?" Ron asked, looking wary despite it being their first evening back at school.

"And the potions professor," Harry grumped. "Master Snape's been after me all summer."

"Master?" Ron asked loudly.

"Nevermind," Harry said. "I can't talk about it here." He tried to ignore the surprised look Hermione had and the frown Ron was wearing as the rest of the students finally came in and settled down as they waited for the sorting to begin.

The sorting started a few minutes later and went by quickly with Gryffindor gaining ten new members who all sat nervously down at the far end of the table nearest the head table. As they tucked into the feast that had been prepared for them, Ron did his best not to push Harry to answer more questions, and Hermione sat quietly in thought, ignoring Lavender Brown, who kept trying to pull her into a conversation about summer romances. After seven or eight minutes Hermione said quietly, "You can't tell anyone else about Defense."

"What?" Harry asked.

"If she's here to get you in trouble, you can't be the one to tell others. It'll have to be me and Ron."

"McGonagall said you'd be in the line of fire too. If she's after me she'll be after my friends."

"Yes, but Professor McGonagall told you specifically to warn others, didn't she?"

"Yeah..."

Hermione gave him a serious look. "Then that's what I'll be doing for the rest of the evening. I'm a Prefect so I have cause to go talk to other Prefects. Ron too."

"That's going to go over well," Ron said. "Hey, by the way, don't cause any trouble tomorrow in Defense or else."

"You could talk to them with a modicum of decorum Ronald," Hermione said seriously.

"What's going on?" Neville asked from across the table. He'd been talking to Ginny and Dean, but now all three of them stopped to listen in.

Ron, Hermione and Harry exchanged nervous glances.

"I was asked to tell you all something," Harry said. "Tomorrow in Defense, things will be different. They're not going to teach us practical Defense this year. Professor McGonagall said not to cause trouble or argue with the new teacher about it because she'll put you in detention right away."

"And she's a crazy nutter," Ron finished.

"Ronald," Hermione scolded him.

"Fine," Ron said with a sigh. "She's been known to use dark magic. Harry was warned specifically not to piss her off, and then told to tell us the same. Now you know."

"Sorry, but who told you this?" Dean asked.

"Professor McGonagall, earlier today," Harry said.

"Earlier? When?" Neville asked.

"Harry was here before us," Hermione filled in, still not knowing the details herself. "He didn't ride the train to school."

All of the kids in their vicinity at Gryffindor were giving Harry curious looks now, but he looked down at his food instead.

"I'll pass it along," Neville said quietly, and rose to go sit further down the table. At first it looked like he was there to strike up a friendly conversation with Collin Creevy and the third year boy he was sitting with, but as Harry and his friends watched, they could tell when the conversation turned serious by the look on Collin's face.

Ten minutes later Hermione rose to visit two of the Prefects at Ravenclaw table, and just before the end of the feast Ron went over to Hufflepuff to talk to Ernie McMillan. None of them went to Slytherin table, but Hermione told Harry as they exited the Great Hall that one of the Ravenclaws was going to pass the message along.

"Well this has been an odd night," Ron said after they made it into Gryffindor tower twenty minutes later and headed for the stairs to the boy's dorms. "Never had to pass a message on from a Professor like that to other houses before. You sure you're not putting us on Harry?"

"Her exact words to me were, ‘I'd appreciate it if you'd warn your classmates as well.'"

"Well, we're warned," Seamus snapped as he passed them hurriedly on the stairs and went into the dorm.

"That was weird," Harry said quietly in the dimly lit spiraling stairwell.

"He was in a mood on the train when I stopped in to see him and Dean to ask if they'd seen you."

"Is he not feeling well or something?" Harry asked, but Ron only shrugged.

When they got into the dorms a moment later, Seamus looked angry as he changed out of his robes and into his pajamas.

"You ok?" Ron asked. "Dinner hit you funny or something?"

"Fine," Seamus grouched, back to them. He didn't seem to have anything else to say about it though, and Dean gave Ron a warning look not to push, so he turned back to Harry before moving for his own trunk to start putting his clothes away in their shared wardrobe and to change into pajamas.

Twenty minutes later they went back to the common room to meet with Hermione. Hermione was already down there and it seemed she had been for ten minutes, ushering students under fourth year off to bed and answering questions from first years. As a result the common room was mostly empty aside from a small group of seventh years sitting by the fire and chatting about their summer holiday, and two sixth years holding hands by the entrance, looking as though they had catching up to do as well.

"Well?" Ron asked, sitting at a little study table in the corner nearest the stairs to the boy's dorms. "What happened? Why weren't you on the train?"

"You're not going to like it," Harry said, flopping down into a seat. Ron and Hermione looked ready to hear whatever he had to say though.

"I got apprenticed to Voldemort over the summer. I'm going to be spending the next two years learning the Dark Arts."

Harry tried to keep a straight face, but he couldn't, and at the moment he broke out laughing so did Ron and Hermione.

"Come on Harry!" Ron said. "I thought this was going to be something serious!"

"It is actually," Harry said, trying to continue smiling even as he grew nervous and rubbed the back of his neck. "I did actually get apprenticed, just not to Voldemort. Maybe that would have been better," he said quietly.

"Harry." Hermione put her hand across the table and on top of his wrist. "You're a potions apprentice now aren't you?"

"What?" Ron asked, shocked and angry, though Harry was glad he'd asked in a heated whisper and not a shout.

"He called the Professor ‘Master Snape' earlier. I'd wondered then. That's what apprentices call the person they've been apprenticed to, isn't it?"

Harry nodded. He could always count on Hermione to figure things out and stay calm, so he didn't look at her at all. It was Ron who he locked eyes with.

"Snape?" Ron asked. "How?"

"He and my uncle set it up. I didn't get a choice."

"Yeah but- you're not even 17 yet!"

Harry sighed. "That's what makes it worse. To be an apprentice under the age of 17 the master has to basically take custody of the apprentice. Snape has say over my entire life now. He makes medical decisions, education decisions... technically he could make me leave Hogwarts if he wanted."

"And your uncle just agreed to this?" Hermione asked quietly.

Ron snorted. "Of course he did. Dirty muggles." He realized what he'd said and looked at Hermione apologetically. "It's nothing against muggles," he said, "just those ones. They're the worst."

"I know that," Hermione said. "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't spit out muggle like a dirty word though."

"I'm sorry," he apologized again. His sincere tone seemed to appease her, at least for the moment, and they both looked to Harry to continue.

Harry told them about the deal his uncle had made, about spending a few days at a time off and on with Snape in London and trekking cross country to collect ingredients, about meeting a few other people in the potions community, and finally about coming to Hogwarts early and brewing the easier potions for the Hospital Wing.

"I have a separate trunk full of potions supplies now. There's a bunch of books I have to memorize to pass a big test the summer between sixth and seventh year."

"I wouldn't study at all if I'd been sold into slavery."

"It's not slavery," Hermione said, though Harry seemed to agree that it was. "What did the Headmaster have to say about it?"

"That he didn't want me to be an apprentice but that it was a good thing for now because if I get in trouble all my punishments are to be handled by master Snape."

"Stop calling him that," Ron said.

Harry played with his hands on top of the table. "I can't. Or at least... I'm supposed to call him that. I'll make him look bad if I don't, and then I'll be the one in trouble. I'm supposed to call him and any other potions masters ‘master' until I'm out of the apprenticeship or have a potions mastery of my own."

"The others are gonna ask if you're calling him that."

"I didn't figure I'd have a chance to hide it from anyone," Harry said. "Everyone will find out because I have different rules to follow."

Hermione made him explain what the Headmaster had told him, including about Snape getting to choose if he lived in Gryffindor tower or not.

"Definitely don't piss him off then," Ron said. "This really sucks. I can't believe the Ministry lets this sort of thing happen."

"It was more common a long time ago," Hermione said. "I read about it. Sometimes kids skipped Hogwarts altogether and just went into an apprenticeship. Some kids were apprentices as young as seven years old. It was a good way for orphans or poor kids to have their needs met while learning a skill that could earn them money. I just didn't realize that the Ministry never changed those laws. I thought you had to be 17 to take an apprenticeship or out of Hogwarts at least."

They sat in silence for a minute, and Harry expected them to ask more questions, but instead was surprised when Hermione leaned over and pulled him into a hug. Ron was too manly to hug him, but he did it anyway, coming over to wrap Harry and Hermione both in a tight squeeze. Harry was stunned and bit his lip to keep himself from tearing up. He'd missed them, and hadn't realized just how much he'd needed them that summer until this moment... how much he'd needed friends to just agree with him that this whole situation sucked and to let him know he wasn't alone.

"C'mon," Ron said. "It's getting late. If Defense or Potions is first thing in the morning and you're late, you'll be in big trouble."

Harry laughed. "I'm always in big trouble."

"Maybe this is the year that'll end," Hermione said hopefully, standing too.

"Yeah," Ron said, not sounding as though he was hopeful at all. "At least you have school supplies and clothes this year."

They parted ways for the night and when he and Ron got back up to their dorm the other boys were already asleep.

Harry lay in bed for almost an hour trying to fall asleep himself, but his thoughts kept swirling around his uncle shipping him off to work for Snape, his friends hugging him, and what he was going to say in the morning if Umbridge confronted him in class. Nothing, he told himself, I'll say nothing at all.

 

To be continued...
End Notes:
I’m pleased to announce I can make scenes from my stories in Blender as 3D scenes now. Usually I’ve drawn little maps to go with my stories because that’s easy enough. I’m excited to bring these stories to life even more visually now as with the library nook I made for this chapter :p Let me know what you think of the library nook image I created for you guys! (Consequently, making this 3D render delayed me from posting chapter 10 for a full day so I could learn Blender and get this made up). Note: I did not make the book cases or table. I downloaded those and put them in my scene as needed, but everything else I did myself including the benches and lighting. I just really wanted to show visually what I had imagined this cozy little spot to look like. Right clicking on the image and selecting 'open in new tab' will open up a crisper less blurry image if it happens to be blurry on your screen.

Made a quick video walking into the nook. Here it is: https://youtu.be/QxTi-ZssDk4 Will post on the next ch as well as some have already read this chapter and will have missed this link.


This story archived at http://www.potionsandsnitches.org/fanfiction/viewstory.php?sid=3813