Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the Harry Potter Universe. It all belongs to the Queen, J.K.

Beta Love: Dreamingofstars85

A/N: Alright my patient and wonderful lovelies, this chapter gave me hell, so I hope you enjoy it! I worked, and reworked it, and ended up changing a major plot point :0 but all is good! It's here and it's finished and that's that! Anyway, I want to give a shoutout to Gryff_inTheGame, girl you are amazing and you brighten so many people's days! You are a bomb writer and I am sending extra love to you this week!

Xoxo, L

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Proper Introduction

"Deep breaths, Hermione. If he wanted to kill you, you would already be dead." Finn paused outside the double doors of the room where the Dark Lord was waiting for them, giving her one last moment to ready herself. She checked her mind for what seemed the millionth time since they left the relative safety of their room, making sure it was properly occluded.

"So reassuring, Finn," she said through clenched teeth. Her hands were shaking, her breath was shallow, and her heart felt like it was pounding out of her chest.

"Are you ready?"

"Do I have a choice?"

He let out a short humourless laugh, said "No," and opened the door.

xXxXxXx

Hermione was very focused on not falling on her face. Finn had insisted she wear heels, and walking in shoes designed to make you unsteady while you were already overly nervous was really no easy task. She focused on each step, one foot in front of the other, as she made her way to the front of the very large room.

After a quick glance around, Hermione recognised it as the room she was initially brought into, and subsequently tortured inside of. She shuddered, barely suppressing her desire to cower behind Finn, or at the least hold his hand for support.

Funny how the man who was torturing her only a few weeks ago was now the one who she turned to for safety and comfort. Captivity was having a strange effect on her, that was for sure.

Scanning the room once more, Hermione spotted Rodolphus and Lucius standing off to the side of Voldemort, looking both tense and relaxed at the same time; like they were slightly uncomfortable, but also used to feeling that way. She wondered if anyone was really comfortable in this man's presence.

Bellatrix probably was, she thought. That woman was crazy.

Finn slowed before stopping completely and Hermione walked the remaining few steps to stand along side him. She kept her gaze downcast but saw Finn bow slightly as he addressed Voldemort.

"My Lord, may I introduce you to Hermione Granger," he said, taking Hermione's hand and holding it up as if she were an offering.

"My Lord," Hermione said quietly as she curtsied slightly, just as Finn had instructed her to do.

Her stomach dropped when the man took her hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing the back of it ever so lightly. A chill washed over her as every hair on a her arms stood on end and she fought the burning instinct that was screaming at her to pull back and run.

"I am delighted to finally have a proper introduction, Hermione. Though I think from now on it would be Hermione Lestrange, would it not?" he asked in a voice that made her blood run cold.

Hermione timidly glanced up, forcing a smile across her face. "It would, My Lord." The words felt like acid in her mouth.

"Wonderful," he said with much more enthusiasm than Hermione had thought possible. He let her hand go gently and turned to sit on the throne like chair he had been in when they entered.

"Now, gentlemen, I think Miss Lestrange and I have some… private matters to discuss. Rodolphus, Lucius, I do believe you have tasks to attend to this morning. Rowle, you may wait outside for Miss Lestrange."

If Hermione's heart had been beating rapidly before, it was nearly exploding out of her chest now. She was positive that it could be heard by the others in the room. Finn hadn't told her Voldemort would want to speak with her alone! What was he going to do? What could he possibly want with her alone?

Hands uncontrollably shaking at her sides, she clasped them behind her back in hopes of hiding her nerves. Hermione looked at Finn, who hadn't noticeably reacted at Voldemort's request. She could tell he was uneasy but knew that no one else would be able to. Spending nearly every waking moment with only one person for an extended amount of time meant you were keyed into their subtle responses in a way that others were not.

Lucius and Rodolphus bowed quickly and left the room, the latter giving Hermione's arm a gentle squeeze as he passed. She assumed it was meant as reassuring, but fatherly touches from Rodolphus were still something that made her want to cringe. Finn turned to her and placed a hand on her lower back—which really was comforting—before he leant in and kissed her cheek, whispering "breathe" as he did.

"My Lord," he said, bowing once more to the man before turning and leaving Hermione alone with Lord Voldemort, the Darkest Wizard there was.

Remaining silent and trying to control her breathing, she waited for the monster in front of her to speak. Hermione watched as he stood from the throne-chair again and slowly walked forward, circling her in silence. She did her best not to tremble but knew he must be able to see her shaking limbs.

He slowly made a full circle before stopping to face her.

"I must say, I am surprised that you have chosen to stay, Hermione." His voice was quiet but icy.

Straightening up, Hermione looked up into his eyes. "I wasn't aware I had a choice."

He laughed.

Lord Voldemort laughed, and it made her so incredibly uneasy. This man was supposed to be abhorrent and monstrous and revolting, and Hermione knew all of that was true, but—but here he was, laughing and smiling as though she had just said the most amusing thing he'd heard all day. Laughter hadn't even been on her radar of things to expect when she walked into this room.

"Well aren't you a delight, child. I must say, I am surprised you turned out so favourably; Rodolphus isn't one known for his looks. You must get that from your mother." He gripped her chin with one hand, much gentler than she would have thought him capable of, and turned her face to the sides, examining her.

He looked directly into her eyes and Hermione felt it right away when the icy tendrils began to poke at her barriers. How could she not feel it? It was more painful than any other time she'd experienced Legillimency. It felt like ice picks drilling into the crevices of her mind. She closed her eyes briefly and took a breath. When she opened them the room around her was blurry and she was sure the headache that was steadily increasing in measure would last several days, at least.

She was so wrapped up in the pain that it startled her when he spoke, causing her to jump slightly.

"A good Legillimens should be able to penetrate a mind unbeknownst to the subject, or so they say. I could certainly get the same results without any pain but I find watching someone struggle against me quite… intoxicating," he paused to look directly into her eyes.

"I find myself rather intrigued by you, but know that I do not trust you, child."

Hermione felt her stomach turn to knots and a paralysing fear washed over her body.

"You would be a great asset to our cause, Hermione. I can sense that your magic is powerful and you are wise beyond your years. You will learn great things here but they won't do you any good if you simply plan to betray us and return to the Order. Dumbledore's people will not allow the use of anything you learn here, and you will be forced back into the box that they have created for you—no room for any real growth or development."

When he finally released her mind, Hermione nearly sagged with relief. She managed to stay mostly still though, watching as Voldemort returned to his chair once more. She felt confident, though, that he had not been able to gain access past her barriers. Hermione felt herself stand just a little taller at that thought.

"Why are you allowing me to stay, if you think I am going to run back to the Order the first chance I get?" she asked.

Seeming to ignore her question, he smiled as he replied. "I think I will quite like having a Gryffindor among our ranks, assuming you make it a permanent stay. Rodolphus is quite fond of you. Narcissa and Rowle as well, it would seem, though I am not entirely sure why. Were it not for their disgusting pleading, I would have had you done away with quickly. As it stands, you will be trained by Narcissa to be a proper pureblood wife and married off as soon as you are fit. Our male numbers outweigh our females, and we will need to continue the bloodlines if we wish to be successful in the long run. What a happy coincidence for you, that you perfectly fit that bill."

He was smiling, one leg crossed over the other, and looking completely comfortable and at ease. Hermione, on the other hand, felt nauseous.

Nauseous and angry.

"Why have Rowle spend so much time training me then, if the end goal is simply procreation?" she demanded, fists clenched at her sides. "Why use the resources to train me to be a Death Eater, only to cast me aside when it's time for the continuation of the bloodlines."

"You will not be asked to raise the beasts." He dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand. "I simply need your lineage and your womb. Once you have fulfilled that duty, you will be welcome to rejoin the ranks as an active member, assuming your merits qualify."

"Wonderful. Do I get any choice in this at all?" Hermione rolled her eyes as she spoke, her anger overriding her fear momentarily.

"You can choose to stay and fulfil these duties, or, alternatively, you can choose to die. I myself find the choice quite simple." The man shrugged slightly when he said this as if they weren't discussing slavery and execution.

In the silence that followed, Hermione realised that she was not as nervous as she had been upon entering the room. Yes, she was still anxious and on edge, but the downright fear had left her. The Dark Lord, Voldemort, darkest wizard of their time, was a man. He was a man. And men were not infinite.

Hermione's thoughts were interrupted when Voldemort spoke again. "If you prove to be a good asset, however, I might let you have a say in your husband." He let half a smile spread across his face as he spoke, getting to his feet once more and moving to stand directly in front of her. He gripped her chin again, tilting it up until her eyes met his. "You have a choice here, child. I know right now you are planning on running back to the Order the first chance you get, and when that chance comes, I will not stop you."

Hermione's mouth opened slightly as her eyes grew wider.

"I am Lord Voldemort. You think there are things that I do not know? You think there are things you can hide from me? Do not be so foolish, girl. Of course you want to go back to the Order right now. You have a lifetime of morality to overcome before you will be able to accept yourself here. Once you do that, however, you will be able to rise above your wildest dreams. Your magic will have no limits—you will be unbound, released from the restraints of a society determined to keep you from your potential. You have more potential, Hermione, than I have ever seen. Your power vibrates beneath your skin, waiting to be released, you just have to let go. Don't you want that power?"

"Power destroys people."

"It can, yes," he said, nodding his head. "But it doesn't have to. You are smart, young, and your inherent ability is staggering, Hermione. Use that. Use it to become something. You can amount to much more than you'd ever dreamed. Do you think you could have been anything more than a glorified secretary, or professor, before this? As a mudblood?"

Hermione glared at the man in front of her, but he spoke again before she had a chance to reply.

"You could change the world, Hermione. By my side, you will be able to do that. Dumbledore's people will only hold you back."

Her mind was racing, trying to process everything that was being said. Trying to drown the ideas being laid out to her before they had a chance to grow.

"Do not get me wrong, Hermione. I do not trust you. You are a spy behind enemy lines and everyone knows that. You have an opportunity, however, to become something greater than you'd planned; to develop your magic and turn it into a truly great force. I believe that you just need time to see that for yourself. Let us show you what you can become—your future promises a greatness that you are yet unprepared for. Give in to the darkness. Let yourself thrive here—see what dark magic can do for you."

Hermione glared at the man. He was still standing only inches from her, looking smug as he watched her begin to process this.

"Come back to me when you are ready to accept yourself here, child. I can offer you a life beyond your wildest dreams, you just have to be willing to take it." He gave her one last meaningful look before turning from her and walking toward his chair. He threw one hand up, almost absentmindedly, and Hermione heard the doors behind her fling open, crashing into the walls on either side. She saw Finn standing there, a worried look on his face before he concealed it under a mask of indifference, and tilted his head sideways, one arm extended slightly, questioning her.

Hermione turned back to the throne-chair. Voldemort was seated, watching her, a smug look on his face. "My Lord," she said, curtsying once before straightening and turning away from him, walking steadily out of the room. She took Finn's proffered arm and let him lead her down the hall and back to the seclusion of their room where she let out a breath it felt like she'd been holding since those doors opened.

xXxXxXx

"What if I were able to alter your perceptions a little bit? A spell that would help you get over the moral dilemma—let you just be who you need to be here?" Finn had his fingers steepled and was looking at her with a glint in his eye that made her a little nervous.

"What exactly are you thinking? There's no way you're going to be meddling around in my mind with some half-cocked plan, Thorfinn Rowle." Hermione raised her eyebrows at him, waiting for an explanation.

"Well, I was thinking…your problem is that you can't let go of your morality. You can't get yourself in the right mindset to drop into this role because it feels too wrong to you. What if we were able to override that?"

"Make me forget I'm a good person?" Hermione scoffed and shook her head. "That sounds like a terrible idea, Finn."

"No, not make you forget, exactly. I need to do some more research, but I remember seeing a spell in one of the old books, and I think we might be able to alter it enough to make it work here. Just to give you the push you need to be able to do this. Because as it stands, well…" He trailed off and Hermione looked up at him incredulously.

"What, Finn? As it stands, what?" she asked, raising her eyebrows and daring him to answer.

"You want the truth? You suck at this, Hermione."

"Excuse me?!"

"You're trying, I know you are, but you just aren't built for this. There's nothing wrong with needing a little help, especially with this."

"I don't—" Hermione started to argue, but was cut off by Finn, who just kept talking over her.

"Hear me out, Hermione. Dark magic, it's—it's alive. It works in your body, you can't just use it like you can Light magic. You have to mean it. If you resist Dark magic, Dark magic will resist you. We just have to get you past your own resistance. That's all the spell will do. Help you help yourself."

"And you just happen to know of a spell that will do that?" she asked doubtfully.

"Well, not exactly. I would need some of your brain power to tweak the spell I'm thinking of, but I really think it could work."

"What spell are you going to tweak?" she asked.

Finn seemed to fidget just a little before he answered, looking down at his glass rather than in her eyes. "Well, there is a spell that has been used to, uh, coerce a woman into, uh, marrying a man—to do it willingly," he finished, looking like he was waiting for her to yell at him.

Hermione glared at him. "You think that it's willing if you've put a spell on the woman to make her do it?!"

"I don't think that, no, but technically, that is how magic works. The spell just makes the witch seem to think it's a good idea, and sort of pre-bonds her to the wizard. Now if we modify it just enough, we could eliminate the pre-bonding, and expand the notion to more than just a wedding. Make it more of an overall thing. Focus it on the idea of Dark magic. That way you'd be less reluctant. It's worth a look, Hermione."

"Yeah, sure. Best idea ever, Finn. Just mess around in my mind with some spell we alter, likely turning me into a mindless drone who does whatever she's told." Hermione huffed and glared across the table.

It had been three days since her meeting with Voldemort, and three days that Finn had been trying to come up with something that would gain her trust around here. If she was being honest with herself, this almost sounded like a good idea, and that was what really scared her. Because if she did go through with it, if she let him do whatever it was that would make things easier for her, there was no telling what would happen. Would she still be able to keep her mind occluded? Would she be able to keep her secrets, or would she become a mindless drone? Would she forget why she was there; what her job was? There were just too many unknowns and modifying a spell was a very risky idea.

"Well, you need to do something, Hermione. You can't keep going on like this. No one is going to believe you and that is going to get you killed." Finn's voice was soft, but harsh. He obviously felt strongly about this and Hermione could tell he was worried.

"Get me the spell, Finn. Get me the books I will need to figure out how to modify it. I'd like to make sure I won't be giving up Order secrets if we do this."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you," she said softly.

Finn winked at her. "Anything for you, doll."

Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head at his antics. "So what is on the agenda today? I know I have lessons with Narcissa in the afternoon, but anything this morning?"

"You need to run more. You're getting fat."

"Finn!" She gasped and threw an orange at him, which he easily dodged. "You are so rude!"

"Kidding, kidding! Salazar witch, have you seen yourself lately? You're still far too skinny. But you do need to work on your endurance and your strength. So we're going to be running." Finn wiped his mouth with a napkin and stood from the table.

"Finish up and get dressed, doll. I have a desire to watch you lose today," he said, laughing when she threw an apple this time.

"Why are you such an arse, Rowle?" Hermione stood from the table and made her way to her dresser, pulling out her running clothes and changing into them.

"Have you noticed how much better you do when it's a competition?" he asked.

"What?"

"When you're competing with me—trying to out do me—you perform much better. I'm realising it's your best motivator." He only smirked when she scowled at him.

"Well now I'm not sure if I want to let you win on purpose just to prove you wrong, or if I want to beat you even more," she said, laughing as they left the room.

xXxXxXx

Uncomfortable. Ridiculous. Suffocating.

These were the words Hermione would use to describe herself right now.

It seemed these lessons with Narcissa were just getting worse and worse. The woman had clearly thought to ease her into things, which on one hand was considerate, but also meant they kept getting harder and harder, and she really had no idea what to expect each time she came.

Today she had been squeezed into a dress Narcissa had provided upon her arrival—apparently, the one she had worn was too casual—and her shoes had been changed. Hermione was now in death trap shoes and a dress she was sure was meant to crush her ribs.

Nevertheless, Narcissa was certain this was the perfect time to recite what Hermione now referred to as the 'Scope of the Stupid twenty-eight.' In other words, the Sacred twenty-eight and any relevant information on those families such as Heads of House, heirs, estates, political leanings, affiliation with the Dark Lord, etc. So much information that Hermione found tedious and absurd, yet Narcissa insisted would be invaluable for her to know.

Not only did she have to recite the information. Oh no. She had to do it while walking around the room in the highest heels ever and making sure it looked like she was "gliding."

"Come now darling, you are stomping again. You must have a gentle stride, glide across the floor," Narcissa chided for the umpteenth from her seat at the table, where she was sipping tea, comfortably. "Ladies are meant to be seen, not heard."

Hermione blinked repeatedly and forced a smile in order to keep from rolling her eyes at the maddening woman. Who would really care if she made a little noise when she walked? Or if she didn't have every stupid pureblood custom down? It's not like she was being treated like a legitimate pureblood anyway. She was to be sold and bred, and that was that.
Huffing, Hermione started back on her recitations, trying to push the thoughts from her mind. It did not do to dwell.

"The Notts. Thorous Nott, eldest of the name, no living wife. Marked supporter with many political ties. Lives in his home in Waverley, Surrey, joined by his only son when school is out of session. Theodore Nott, only son of Thorous and Elladora Nott. Unmarked, as of yet. Graduates Hogwarts this year. Currently in a self-appointed courtship with Daphne Greengrass." Hermione finished off her list of facts and looked to Narcissa who nodded slightly, satisfied.

"Very good. Now, come sit for tea and tell me how your other training is going," she said, flicking her wand at the chair across from her which gently slid out from the table.

Hermione did her best to glide to the table and perch herself in the chair, crossing her legs at the ankle, not the knee. She had learned quickly that ladies do not cross at the knee.

"Tell me, how is it going with Mr. Rowle? The truth," Narcissa said, smiling kindly at Hermione.

The woman was intimidating and clearly tough as nails under her perfect exterior, but she had a way of making Hermione feel at ease and welcome.

Hermione took a moment to think. She didn't want to tell the truth, but she didn't want to lie, either. She went with, "Things are progressing."

"Darling, do work on your poker face. Women often have reason to keep their cards close to their chests, but we must make sure the men are still under the assumption that we have no cards." Narcissa raised her eyebrows and took another sip. "What are you two working on?"

"Duelling, mostly," Hermione said.

"And are you any good?"

Narcissa must have been able to tell that she was slightly offended because she quickly waved her hand and spoke again. "I know you are a very talented witch, Hermione. What I'm asking is specifically in reference to the darker magic. How are you handling that?"

"It's… not great," she admitted, dropping her gaze into her lap. Admitting defeat was something that had never been easy for her.

"I would imagine not. Dark Magic is not for the weak of heart. Thorfinn is a wonderful teacher, however, and I have no doubt you will succeed in this, the same as you have in everything else you set your mind to," she said. Hermione looked up and saw the woman smiling genuinely at her.

"Oh, my," Narcissa said looking at the clock on the wall. "I'm afraid I have another appointment today, and I mustn't be late." She set her cup down and dabbed her napkin delicately along her mouth.

Hermione stood from the table and accepted the hug and pecks to the cheeks.

"I am trying," she whispered.

"Of course you are. This is a new life for you, it only makes sense that it would take some time to adjust. Just, don't take too long, dear."

Hermione walked to the door with Narcissa and smiled at Finn, who greeted them upon its opening.

"Lady Malfoy, Hermione," he said, bowing slightly.

"Thorfinn, always a pleasure. I must be off. Next week, Hermione, we will be practising duelling. I expect you to wear the dress and shoes." Narcissa pointed one finger up and down at Hermione's ensemble, smiling mischievously before turning and gracefully hurrying off.

Hermione groaned loudly and Finn laughed.

"She is going to whoop your—"

"Finn!"

xXxXxXx