Thank you for reading and reviewing, it is much appreciated.

Here we have chapter three; as we get more into the story, the lengths are growing along with the scale of events. I hope you enjoy it.

Normal warnings apply: I own nothing. violence ahead.

Once again thanks to DraconisMalfoy14 for working magic on my sloppy typing.

Hermione was locked in a windowless room. For how long she did not know. The lack of zeitgebers or external interaction was doing a great job of keeping her guessing. The entire room was encased in a grey stone, and it changed the somewhat pleasant temperature to a dank chill. There was a simple wooden bed with a mattress, a blanket, and a pillow in the corner, and a matching wooden table towards the centre of the south wall. A glass of water and a small plate of bread and pork sat upon the table. In the beginning, Hermione was careful with her rations, not knowing when they would be replaced, but she soon learned that upon draining the liquid or completing the meagre meal, the plate and glass would automatically be replenished. She had used meals as an indicator of time passed, but eventually she realised she was eating solely out of boredom, so this could not be counted upon as an accurate method.

She felt as though many days were passing in the outside world as she sat in the monotonous space. She was left to contemplate events, left to become ever more angry at Snape's betrayal, and, most of all, left to grow ever more fearful of his intentions. He had not spoken to her since they had apparated to this room. Upon landing, he had simply released her and disappeared again. She had not seen him since. Her rational side had lead her to the conclusion that he was either busy or trying to frighten her. Her emotional side, which had become increasingly anxious with the passing hours, reasoned that he had indeed deserted her there to die.

She spent much of her time thinking of Harry and Ron. With no way of knowing what had become of them since her capture, Hermione tried to imagine them, along with the other surviving members of the Order, valiantly pushing forward with their mission, spurred on by her disappearance rather that hindered by it. She sat on the floor in the corner, arms clutched around her thinning knees and chin resting upon them. She tried to black out the persistent logic that she has once relied too heavily on. Hermione had new knowledge. She saw now how naive and silly they had been to think that three seventeen year olds could take on the Dark Lord and triumph. Chosen one or not, they had grossly underestimated Voldemort's power and influence. They had survived for so long on confidence and sheer dumb luck, but now she had been captured, and her companions were sure to follow. She kicked herself mentally for allowing herself to become so complacent with her life. She had never stopped to question how the most powerful wizard the world had ever seen could have been defeated so easily, and now she knew why. He hadn't been beaten at all, merely employing dirty tricks to gain an advantage before delivering his final, fatal blow. Harry Potter was target No1. Without him the Light would fall and darkness would descend over the wizarding world, condemning the weak and the muggle borns to a life of misery at worst, a quick death at best.

During her time in solitude, her anger, rather than ebbing, grew more fierce. She scolded herself for the fact that she had yet to say a word to the man she had once held in the highest respect. He was now likely under the impression that she would be easy. Docile and ready to accept her fate. It pained her to imagine that he might have the idea that beneath the surface of her intellect, she was, in fact, weak. She bitterly regretted her earlier foolish tear, and resolved it would not happen again if she could help it.

Hermione Granger was a lot of things, but she was not weak. She had already fought in one wizarding war and suffered at the hands of those who considered her a second class citizen because of her blood. Yes, she had always been safe in the company of the Golden Trio, as they had been called, but she knew how to stand on her own two feet as well. Perhaps a well-earned kick between the legs would remind Snape of that should he ever decide to make an appearance. It would do nothing to help her escape and would possibly impede her cause in the long run, but if Severus Snape was testing her, she was going to show him all she had.

She was snoozing best she could when she heard sounds of activity beyond the walls. Quickly shaking off her slumber, she stood just in time to see the heavy wooden door swing open and the tall, dark figure of her ex-professor step over the threshold.

He stood in the centre of the room and didn't pause to regard her.

"On your knees, girl." he barked.

Git. fucking haughty weasel of a man.

She remained standing, willing herself to stick to her earlier resolve. Much more confidently then she felt, she let out a firm "No."

He didn't react. He simply remained in his position, appraising her and waiting to see what she would do next. She took the opportunity gladly. Feeling a little more confident, she took a step forward.

"I don't know who you think you are, Snape," she spat his name, "or what you think is going to happen here, but I assure you-"

"Crucio!"

First, she fell to her knees, but then the remainder of her body made contact with the floor as the waves of contorting agony took her. She could barely hear her own tortured screams over the buzzing in her ears as reality began to collapse around her writhing form. It was a long time before he let the curse end. By the time the pain receded, Hermione was a quivering, crumpled pile at his booted feet.

"On your knees, girl." he repeated.

Another round of the cruciatus curse would surely give her a heart attack, or so she felt. Though she wanted to be strong, without her wand and with no other way to defend herself, she had little choice. No human could withstand the curse for long, it was illegal for a very good reason. Even the most noble of gods would destroy worlds to escape its strangling hold, and Hermione was just a girl. Defeated for the moment, Hermione mustered all of her strength and complied. She was shocked that she was even able to move, but fear of the curse easily coaxed her aching limbs into action.

And so there she was. Kneeling at the feet of a sinister man. Completely at his command.

She could feel his satisfied grin, though she could not see it. His sheer elation at her yielding echoed silently through the room. Finally, Griffindor's princess was where she belonged, at the mercy of her superiors.

"You're lucky to be alive, mudblood. There aren't many of your kind who don't find themselves on the wrong end of an Avada Kedavra these days."

She stared resolutely at a crack in the ground.

"Furthermore, you might like to count yourself fortunate that it was my hands you fell into and not those of Lucius Malfoy." He paused dramatically. Always the fucking theatrics. "Though he may well pop in for a visit at some point." he said, amusement colouring his tone.

The crack was long, it spread through several of the stone tiles, as if there had been a gravity related accident there at some point.

"Are you listening to me?" he demanded. Her head shot up and she looked directly into his dead, black eyes. He took this as affirmative and continued. "Pay careful attention, Granger, I shall only say this once. If you are to survive, you will follow my words without question. You will obey. Attempts at mutiny will not be tolerated. Please me, and your life will be marginally easier. Defy me," he paused one again and emphasised each word, "and you will suffer. Am I clear?"

What could she do? Surely he'd be aware that she wouldn't submit so easily. This was the start of a long journey, she could feel it. When she nodded in response, they both knew it was a lie. He knew she would try to escape at the first opportunity. She knew with absolute certainty that he was eagerly awaiting the punishments that would ensue.

Thanks for reading. Please do stick around for chapter four.