T R Y
Chapter 1: Street Urchin, Cathouse Owner
Hermione Granger was a street urchin. She had lived on the streets, foraging and begging for food, for 6 years; since she was twelve years old. She had no friends. She had no enemies. She had simply herself, and that was how she wanted it to stay. Sometimes she entertained the notion of being pulled out of the cold and being brought inside to a warm home with plenty of food, and plenty of clothes. She would be cared for by a loving mother, and a good father. Sometimes she entertained those notions.
But then she shook her head and went on with her day.
This current day was cold, gray, and rainy. Hermione shivered a little and pulled her ragged coat around her a little more tightly. On days like this, she usually loitered around (or inside) bakeries in hopes of receiving some warm bread. She was small for her age, with bushy brown hair and warm amber eyes. She had freckles dusted across the bridge of her nose and her cheeks. Her features were soft and welcoming, albeit a bit bony due to the fact that she was not eating properly on a regular basis.
She entered the normal bakery she hung around with a sigh as the warmth enveloped her. She took a seat in the farthest corner, trying too hard not to watch customers buying bread. Her eyes fluttered closed for a minute as she inhaled the scent of freshly-baked bread. When she opened her eyes again, a tall man had seated himself in front of her.
Severus Snape was a cathouse owner. He had been so for 6 years; since he was 32 years old. He ran a cathouse that contained fifteen trainees and thirteen fully-fledged prostitutes. He trained all of the prostitutes himself, but occasionally hired male prostitutes to assist him. The prostitutes he had now had been with him for five years total; the trainees for a range of time, from three years to three months.
Sometimes Snape sold trained prostitutes to men he knew as submissives or sex slaves. Sometimes he kept one or two for his private needs.
Sometimes the girls he trained were orphans from the street. Sometimes the girls he trained were being trained by him as a favor to one of his friends, if you could call them that.
Severus Snape did not have friends. He had acquaintances, some closer than others. These acquaintances were of the mean kind; men who delighted in torturing girls and women and using them merely as sexual toys.
He had no positive feelings; he was a cold-hearted man. He had never had friends. He had never been in love. He had never felt dismay, guilt, or shame. The only thing he felt now was a tinge of anticipation as he watched the small, bushy-haired girl enter the bakery. He knew she was an orphan - the look on her face and her less-than-plain clothes told it all. Nobody would miss her. And she would do well in the cathouse.
He went into the bakery and seated himself at her table. She opened her eyes. 'Good morning,' he said, in what he hoped was a pleasant tone. The girl shrieked slightly, and scrambled out of her chair. He caught her arm quickly. 'Please, sit down,' he requested. 'I only wish to speak with you. If it may help, I will purchase a meal for you.' She softened, and sat again. Don't be so trustworthy of strangers, Snape thought. 'Stay here. I shall return in a moment.' He stood up, and went over to the counter to buy a sandwich for her.
While the stranger was buying food for her, Hermione stared at him curiously. Nobody had ever approached her wanting to buy food for her; much less talk to her. She narrowed her eyes at him as she examined his clothes from the back. He was wearing a long black overcoat. It was not too fancy, and yet not too plain, which told her that he had enough money to live comfortably. Her gaze dropped to his feet. He had on a pair of black boots.
'What is going on?' Hermione muttered. The strange man returned to her table and slid a warm sandwich across to her. Hermione picked it up and bit into it eagerly.
'What did you want to talk to me about?' she asked, once she had swallowed her first delicious bite. He leaned back in his chair and placed his hands in his lap.
'My name is Severus Snape,' he started. 'I run an organization, in which we rescue children from the street. I've noticed you hanging around this bakery quite often, without an adult around you, and I have deduced that you live on the street. Am I correct?'
'Yes,' she replied.
'In the organization that I run, we feed the homeless children, care for them and keep them safe, until a family for them can be found.'
'I'm not a child,' Hermione objected. 'I'm eighteen years old.' One of Severus Snape's (what an odd name, Hermione thought) eyebrows went up.
'Then do you wish to be left alone? Do I understand correctly that you want no part in this organization?'
'No, no,' she said hastily. 'I was just...putting that out there,' she finished lamely, as his gaze bored into her.
'So you would be interested in coming to live with the other children I run this home for until you have been taken into a foster family.'
'Yes,' Hermione agreed.
'Very well. Come along.' He stood up from his chair and was halfway out by the time Hermione realized what was going on.
'Wait, wait!' she cried, stumbling along after him. 'Are we going now?'
'It's now or never,' he said. 'Which shall it be, Miss Granger?'
'Now,' she said decidedly.
And Severus Snape held open the bakery door for her silently.
First chapter, done. Just a fair warning, this story will be full of sexual material. If you don't like reading those sorts of stories, please don't read this.
Coming up next: they return to the cathouse, Hermione learns of her grave mistake, and we meet some more important characters.
Heads up: the only Harry Potter characters in this story will be Severus, Hermione, and some of Severus's 'friends' (Death Eaters). Other than that, all the characters will be OCs.
That's all for the first chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Please, don't hesitate to give feedback, I'd like to know what you think of this story (:
Until next time!
-SeverusandHermioneAlways