Chapter One

Restless

Something wasn't right. Hermione Granger, seventh year prefect, sat in the sill of her dorm room in an uneasy silence. She wasn't sure what it was, but tonight felt almost... ominous. Leaning her head against the cool, cut glass window Hermione gazed out at the Dark Forest just below her perch. Noting the way the forest seemed a little more menacing than usual tonight. Hermione wrapped her arms over her belly as it twisted itself into a tight knot. She just couldn't shake this nervous feeling that had been building in the pit of her stomach since late that evening. It had been such an unusually quiet night. Even Lavender had been silent. That in itself was rather unsettling. Especially since the girl never seemed to shut up. Closing her eyes Hermione tried, very unsuccessfully, to convince herself that she was just being paranoid.

It was a futile attempt.

Sighing she jumped down from the window sill, and turned to her four poster bed. It was well past her bedtime. She could already feel the allure of sleep taking it's toll on her. Sinking into her mattress Hermione pushed all her senseless worrying out of her mind, and decided to try and get some sleep tonight. After all she had a rather important Transfiguration test tomorrow, and she would need all the sleep she could get. So pulling the covers over her head she allowed herself to fall under the weight of her dreams.

Severus Snape studied his surroundings with a concentrated silence. Watching and waiting for any diminutive change.

So far he had been here for nearly two hours, and nothing had changed. Yet he continued to stand still at the water's edge of the Black Lake with that unwavering obedience he had perfected over the years. It had been a hard lesson for him in his youth. Conformity was not something that came easily to him, Severus was simply not the submissive type, but he had quickly learned upon his position at the Dark Lord's side that obedience was essential.

Recollecting the night Voldemort had installed obedience into his young mind, Severus felt a faint twinge from the scar just below his collar bone. It was a reminder of what the Dark Lord did to those who defied him, and a warning that he had never forgotten. Briefly, as to clear his thoughts, Severus dared a glance at the starless night sky overhead. Taking only a second to re-focus on the task at hand. The Dark Lord would be here at any minute now, and Severus could not afford to appear distraught.

Carefully Severus eased his mind back into the blank, impenetrable slate he enforced for all of his meetings with Voldemort. Tucking away any emotions or memories into a tightly sealed box in the depths of his mind. Just as he did for every meeting, Severus would maintain calm, cold, calculative thoughts when face to face with the Dark Lord. It was a necessary exercise used to prevent Voldemort from discovering where Severus' true loyalty lied, and to keep the Dark Lord from information that he had no business knowing.

A soft caw brought Severus from his thoughts, and had opaque black eyes searching the sky.

For a single moment a collage of crimson red, and shimmering gold flashed in-front of the pale luminous moon. An assortment of color Severus could easily identify as Fawkes. The phoenix made one last appearance, sweeping down toward the shadowy depths of the lake, and then vanished. Obviously he was making sure that he had been seen.

A sudden piercing pain made itself known in the pit of his stomach at the sight of the bird, a feeling in which Severus quickly restrained before it could grow. He knew Albus had been more riled about this particular meeting, and with good reasoning. This was the first meeting the Dark Lord had appointed so close to Hogwarts boundary. At less than a half a mile away from the protection spells, Voldemort was moving too close for comfort to the school. Albus knew that this would be dangerous. Not only was this meeting putting the school at risk, but the students as well. Not to mention most importantly, Potter. This kind of exposure was putting the very future of the Wizarding World at jeopardy. Albus and Severus had known that the moment he had informed the headmaster of Voldemort's recent instructions... But this had to happen, there was no other way around it. They would simply have to take their chances.

Severus drew in a sharp breath as a burning pain in his forearm alerted him to the Dark Lords approaching presence. Once again shoving those unwanted thoughts into that neat little box, he slipped that ever familiar obsidian deatheaters mask over his face. Voldemort was very close.

Abruptly an ebony cloud erupted overhead, vanquishing any light from the moon, and seeping down from the sky in thick, inky swirls. The darkness spread smoothly over the surface of the lake, and flooded the banks.

Promptly ignoring the raging pain in his arm Severus concentrated on the pinnacle of the storm. There the Dark Lord emerged in prominent, flowing black robes. He stepped lightly across the lake followed by a good portion of his followers dressed in similar attire.

"Severuss." Showtime. Severus dropped to one knee, bowing low to the ground for his Lord. Voldemort brought a scaly, inhuman hand to the crown of his deatheater's head "Legimenss." Immediately Severus could feel the push against his mental shield, the vicious probing for new information. He knew what the Dark Lord was looking for... Carefully Severus released the image of Dumbledore's weakened state since Voldemort's encounter last year. It wasn't the most information he had ever allowed to be seen, but it was substantial. Enough to intrigue him. Enough to keep him satisfied. Enough to keep Severus alive after this meeting.

The Dark Lord retreated his hand and ordered Severus to stand "My Lord." He murmured as he moved to his feet with all the grace of a well trained spy.

"Is this all the information you have?" Voldemort asked. Severus noted how those wicked red eyes analyzed his face. They were on high alert for any slip up in his impassive mask.

A few long moments passed before the Dark Lord broke his gaze, and decided to engage a different tactic. He circled his deatheater slowly in a unnerving fashion that would have any simpleton groveling at his feet. Severus, however, never once wavered from his collected facade "That is all I have." He confirmed.

Voldemort studied his deatheater once more with sharp intensity before relenting his investigation "So it is." He agreed, his ugly face twisting up in an amused sneer. Obviously he was hoping for more information. What was given to him was enough to keep Severus alive, but not enough to save him from punishment. The Dark Lord turned his back on his deatheater, taking a few steps toward the lake, and then swinging back around to unleash his wrath "Crucio!"

There was no time to react as that streak of green energy shot through the space between them, and struck Severus square in the chest. The sheer pain brought him to his knees as his muscles contracted and spammed painfully under his skin. Shot nerve endings shattered his will to remain on his knees, and the spy sunk to the rocky bank in a heap of convulsing agony. Pain that could only be described as thousands of tiny knifes burrowing into his flesh, and being turned in full circles was what he felt as he laid vulnerable on the cold ground. This torment continued for what seemed like hours before it ended.

When the pain began to subside Severus was barely aware of the Dark Lord knelt down beside him, warning him that when he called another meeting he would not be so generous. Delirious from pain Severus was not really sure if what he had heard was correct. In-fact he was pretty sure that he may have passed out at some point. Either way the next time Severus woke up Voldemort had left.

Hermione bolted upright in her bed. Perspiration sliding down her face, her brown eyes wide and wild, and her breathing labored, she fought to regain control. She placed a hand over her pounding heart trying to collect herself. Slowly, breath by breath, she began to clam down. Breathing steadily Hermione released her heart, and leaned back against her headboard.

"Mione, you okay?" Lavender mumbled half-asleep.

Glancing to her right in the general direction of Lavender's bed Hermione murmured a soft "Yea, I'm fine."

"Kay." It was a barely audible reply.

Running a shaky hand through her damp hair Hermione tried to focus on the reason she was in such a frantic state. A daunting image of Professor Snape lying on the rocky bank of the Black Lake, his silent body convulsing in pain came to mind. Her hand fell from her hair to cover her gaping mouth. Merlin... Her shoulders trembling Hermione knew that the scene she had witnessed was not a dream. It was too vivid, too real to simply be a dream.

Taking a slow, deep breath Hermione decided that she would have to alert someone. Whether it was just a dream or not, she would not take that chance. Harry had a dream about Mr. Weasley which happened to be vision. Who was to say what she saw wasn't the same?

After a few long minutes of contemplation Hermione pushed her covers to the end of her bed, snatched her robes, and was half running to the Headmaster's office. Right or wrong it would be better on her conscious to make sure.

(A/N): Thank you for reading, and if you will, leave any comments in the reviews below :)