Chapter 34

.

There were several reasons why Hermione felt quite disoriented upon waking, not the least of which because she found herself tightly wrapped in her professor's arms. His hold on her loosened as she stirred, pushing herself back to look at him in confusion. He looked as though he might've been crying.

"What's going on? What happened?" She asked in a small voice, looking at him with concern.

"You were unconscious for a little while," he replied in a gravelly voice, his eyes searching hers strangely. "What do you remember?"

"I... I was in the bathroom, I think..." Hermione answered, rubbing her head as the muddled fog began to clear. "But there was something... after that..."

She could see that Snape was hanging on her every word, but she struggled to recall whatever it was that seemed to linger at the edges of consciousness. "I'm sorry, sir, but it's too hazy. I just have this vague... feeling... but I'm not sure what it means."

"It's alright," he said quietly, though she detected a trace of disappointment in his voice that made her furrow her brows in response. "I take it Nina's been back?" she asked with uncensored bitterness.

Severus looked at her in that indecipherable way of his, and she suspected her question was more loaded than it was intended to be.

"There's something you should know," he started slowly, clearly reluctant to disclose whatever it was he had to say. Hermione felt a knot of anxiety in her stomach as all sorts of ideas fluttered through her mind. She carefully pulled herself out of his lap— still wondering what she was doing there in the first place— and settled beside him on the sofa, waiting for him to continue.

"I was mistaken before," he spoke with difficulty, looking down at his vacant lap, "...you were right all along, I just never imagined..."

"Never imagined what?" she softly prompted, when he broke off to fidget with the seam of his trousers.

"All this time... you were... that is, you still are... a virgin."

He'd uttered the last word so quietly that she'd barely heard him, and she almost asked him to repeat himself until her brain caught up with what he was saying. Surely he couldn't mean...?

"I'm still a virgin?" she nearly whispered, completely bewildered. She knew she should be feeling something... elation, perhaps... but for the moment she only felt immensely confused.

"But I thought that..."

"I thought so, too," Severus supplied, when she was unable to finish her thought out loud.

"...but how?"

"That's what I need to find out," he told her gently, "I managed to communicate with another part of you while you were unconscious — the part of you that remembers being taken by Dolohov, and what came afterward... — a part that's still there, but deeply buried. You told me that you've been helping me find the relevant memories during my Legilimency sessions, and that you'd try to help me find a particularly enlightening one if I entered your mind again. I'd like to do so as soon as you're comfortable, if you don't mind."

"Wait a minute... there's another personality inside me?" Hermione asked meekly, clearly reeling from the thought.

"She's more... the real you... than a separate personality," Severus clarified, trying to be tactful. "Whereas Nina is the personification of your more sensual side, and you, likewise, are the embodiment of your own innocence, the Hermione I communicated with is... how to put this... your rational side, I suppose."

"You're saying I'm not rational?" Hermione countered a little defensively, causing Severus to cringe at his own mistake.

"No, that's not what I meant. You're all connected in a way, and just because you're more innocent than Nina doesn't mean that she doesn't have any innocence, or vice versa. It just means that these aspects are expressed more fully in one personality over the other. I think you're all fusing together slowly— or trying to, but..."

Hermione watched the expression on his face with great curiosity as she struggled to put the pieces together, herself. At length, she began to understand.

"There's an obstacle."

Severus glanced up at her for a moment, nodding gravely. "Your fractured self called it a 'psychological paradox,' which I think is apt."

Hermione gave this some thought, before quietly musing aloud, "Two disparate personalities... a virgin, and a whore. Neither can accept the other, so one has to go."

"I'm not sure it works like that," Severus protested, but Hermione continued,

"It seems the most likely solution to me, sir. We have to merge somehow if I'm going to be a normal person again, and since you can't undo what happened to make Nina who she is, you'll just have to sacrifice the virgin," she said rather coldly, making Severus flinch.

"I won't do that," he quietly assured her.

"Why not?" she insisted, looking down at her hands and blushing, "It's what you're trying to tell me, isn't it? That this is the only way?"

"Of course not," he muttered. "I would not ask that of you."

"Then you're not as committed to this as I thought you were," she whispered, somewhat dejectedly. "It doesn't have to be me, you know," she whispered further, barely audible; "...it would probably be easier if it were Nina..."

Easier for whom? he wondered. Severus gulped, knowing he was supposed to start telling her the truth, but unconvinced that now was the best time to tell her about what had been happening (almost) with her counterpart.

"I think this discussion should be curtailed until I've seen whatever memory I'm meant to find," Severus gently deflected. "There may yet be more to this than we're aware of. Are you opposed to having Legilimency performed on you at this time?"

"No, go ahead," Hermione sighed, sounding somewhat defeated. She'd only just gotten her virginity back, and was already preparing to have it taken from her all over again — and by her former professor, of all people... she couldn't deny that she'd harbored a crush on him at one time or another, but she never imagined anything like this would happen between them. The entire scenario was hardly romantic.

Turning to face him fully, Hermione steeled himself as he took up his preparatory stance.

"Ready?" he asked, waiting for her nod of consent. "Legilimens..."

...

Severus lingered about the chamber of Hermione's mind, watching her distant memories as they slowly approached. Again he could feel the elusive presence that he'd noticed the last couple times, though he now understood that this was Hermione herself— his Hermione— attempting to reach him. Although it had only been a short time since he'd communicated with her in his half-dream, he already longed to be with her again, missing her rather fiercely. Unlike the others, this Hermione knew him as he was; understood him better; trusted him implicitly; even sympathized with his ordeal. No one else had ever done as much. He briefly wondered if she'd feel the same way if she knew the whole story; knew what he kept from her... but he quickly suppressed his anxiety, knowing this was no time to dwell on such thoughts.

As he refocused his attention, a slowly-drifting memory coiled around him, caressing his consciousness almost lovingly before pulling him down into it. He didn't resist its pull, though it would've been futile to do so, anyhow; he knew that this was the memory Hermione wanted him to see.

...

Landing in an unfamiliar place, he took a moment before identifying his location as the inside of a ship; Hermione was across from him, as young and innocent as she'd been the day she was taken from him. She looked frightened, but he could tell she was doing her best to appear composed. There were three men in the cabin with her, one of whom was casting a familiar charm over her, reading the results with a look of greedy satisfaction.

"You're right, Alexei," the man grinned. "She's a virgin."

"Of course I'm right," answered the man beside him. "I can always tell."

"This is good," the third man muttered lazily from the corner, "she'll fetch a high profit, with that pretty face. I know exactly the right buyer. When he's done with her, I'll send her over to Nikolai's people. They'll put her to good use."

"What should we do with her in the meantime?" asked the first man.

The third man stared at her absently for a moment before replying, "Perform the contraceptive procedure, and have Ingrid do something about that hair. Don't Obliviate yet— this buyer likes them to know what's happening. Then keep her away from the others; we don't want them soiling the goods. This one's too valuable to go to waste."

"Yes sir," the first man replied, reaching down and pulling Hermione up by the arm.

"Gently, Grigor..." the third man admonished, smiling cruelly as he continued, "...let's not bruise our little princess, hmm?"

Severus watched with immense fury as the scene dissolved, realizing that another was linked to it. Swallowing down his pointless frustration, he stewed uselessly as another difficult memory played out before him. Hermione was alone in an extravagantly decorated room with a much older man, who looked startlingly normal— genial, even— at first glance. He could tell by the style of the room and the man's dressing robe that this was a rather wealthy, Pureblooded wizard. Hermione was completely naked on the edge of an enormous bed, wide-eyed and on the verge of tears as the man approached her.

"Konstantin certainly wasn't exaggerating about you, my dear," the man muttered, eyeing every inch of her with obvious pleasure before reaching inside his robe to stroke himself.

"We're going to have a lot of fun, you and I..." he continued, his voice hitching as his hand continued working himself under the ruby red fabric, "...but unfortunately, I will have to make this rather more quick than I'm accustomed to... no rest for the wicked, I'm afraid..." the man gasped, his eyes flashing energetically before he slowly peeled the dressing gown off his narrow shoulders. "Just lie down on your back like a good little Mudblood, and let me show you your rightful place in this world..."

Something in Hermione's eyes changed as she listened to the man's directions, and Severus watched as her breathing went from the shallow breaths of terror to the deeper draws of rising anger. The man looked momentarily taken aback at her expression, smirking evilly before asking, "What's this? Konstantin never told me you were uppity... my, my... it's a shame I don't have more time... how I'd love to break that fiery spirit of yours; I do have such creative ways of training Mudbloods to behave properly... but, alas... tonight I'll just have to fuck you to submission. Now: On. Your. Back."

When Hermione just stared back at the man defiantly, he drew his wand and shot a spell at her that sent her slamming backwards onto the mattress, pinning her by her arms and shoulders. She struggled in vain as the man mounted her, laughing viciously.

"Not so uppity now, are you little one?" He teased, stroking his cock as he prepared to fuck her.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione closed her eyes and seemed to concentrate hard, ignoring the taunts.

"What, are you praying?" The man scoffed, "Pray all you like, little fool. The gods won't intervene for dirt like you."

As the man laughed at her efforts, Severus sensed a change in the air around them; a primal thrum, as if faint drum beats were pulsing through his very blood. It was not unlike what he'd experienced before with Nina, only this time he was not too distracted to pay proper attention to it, and the sheer power was undeniable. Something was happening. The man, however, seemed completely oblivious to it, laughing darkly as he stroked himself over Hermione's prone form.

Suddenly Hermione stilled as her eyes shot open, fixing the man with a wildly disconcerting stare. The thrum in the air seemed to be sucked out all at once, and Severus watched in amazement as the man's smirk fell, glancing down to find that his cock had gone limp in his hand. With a disturbed frown, the man started stroking himself more vigorously, cursing when he couldn't get his erection to return. He looked to Hermione with a half-furious, half-humiliated expression, struggling vainly to pump his cock back into form.

"What the hell is this?" The man muttered, struggling further before giving up with a hiss.

"You were a waste of my time, Mudblood," the man spat dangerously; "if anyone finds out about this, you'll be dead. Do you understand?"

Hermione didn't answer, but lay on the bed with a blank expression as he canceled the restraints, angrily pulling his robe back on before storming out of the room.

The scene began to dissolve, and when it was clear that there were no more memories following this one, Severus gently pulled out of Hermione's mind.

...

Severus sat still with closed eyes for a moment as he willed his anger to dissipate. When he opened them he sighed heavily with relief, knowing that the girl across from him was safe. Getting better at recognizing their subtle differences, Severus could tell that he was now facing Nina as he focused on the familiar surroundings. He was not surprised; after a memory like that, Hermione surely wouldn't have been able to cope. This was why she had Nina to take over for her. While such an unconscious symbiosis between the two sides undoubtedly sustained her equilibrium, it also supported her pathology. He wondered what it would be like for her when she had to face these traumatic memories on her own... would she hate him for taking away her sense of security, however unsustainable it may be?

As he collected his thoughts, Nina was watching him from the corner of her eye, reaching over to pick up his copy of Olde & Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes, idly flipping through it as she waited for him to speak first. She knew what he'd just seen, though she hadn't been aware of that particular memory until now. For the moment, keeping silent on the matter seemed to her the best course of action; if she admitted to having witnessed it, she'd just as soon have to admit that everything he'd been saying about her was true, and that her existence as she knew it was a lie. To admit as much would be to let Hermione win, and she couldn't let that happen just yet. At the same time, she felt a little guilty for reasons that didn't make perfect sense to her.

Severus knew that what he'd just seen was significant: Hermione had obviously invoked some kind of primal, wandless magic that first time, though without knowing her explicit intentions, it would be difficult to identify just what that magic had been. It was protective, certainly, but that hardly narrowed it down for him... Had it been spontaneous, or did she know what she was doing? ...Hadn't Hermione told him that she didn't know what had happened? Was she directly controlling the man's sexual responses, or was that a side effect of whatever she'd unleashed? Was it fueled by her anger? Fear? ...something else? ...He needed to speak with Hermione again.

At length, Severus finally spoke. "I'd like to try something with you."

Nina looked up with some surprise, setting the open book on the coffee table as she turned toward Severus expectantly.

"I wonder if it would be possible to... call Hermione back... to speak with her, now."

Nina frowned at him, replying, "I don't get it; what are you asking me to do?"

"I just want you to try and focus; to allow Hermione to come through... don't fight her, but help her..."

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Because I'm asking you to; because it's important," Severus replied with as much patience as he could muster.

Nina thought about it for a moment, realizing that bringing Hermione back would get her off the hook, so to speak... this way, she wouldn't have to answer any questions he might put to her otherwise. On the other hand, doing so might set a precedent that she wasn't too keen on...

"If I do this, how do I know you won't just try calling Hermione back all the time? How do I know you won't use this as a way of getting rid of me?"

Severus sighed, giving her a flat expression before answering, "Contrary to what you believe, I don't want to 'get rid of you,' Nina. I want to help you, as far as I'm able to. You're part of Hermione, whether you like it or not; I don't believe that fixing her means destroying you. It just means that both sides will have to compromise."

"And then what?" Nina asked quietly, "Who will be left standing if we do 'compromise'?"

"I don't know," Severus sighed, "but I'm sure that you'll have your place in the final picture. You'll just have to trust me."

Nina looked back at him speculatively, wondering how much he believed in what he was saying. She thought it was just as likely that he was attempting to reassure himself, as well as her.

"It probably won't even work, 'calling' Hermione," Nina murmured.

"We won't know that unless we try," Severus insisted. "Just, please, do try."

"Fine," Nina said, closing her eyes, "I'm trying..."

Severus watched her for a moment, wondering if she was really cooperating.

"I want you to relax... focus on the sound of my voice..." Severus started, attempting to soothe her into a state of complacency.

"Focus... imagine yourself drifting away, into a place of peace and tranquility... a place where you are safe... a place where you can rest for a little while... when I count to three, you will open your eyes again, and Hermione will be back... there is nothing stopping her... nothing for her to be afraid of... just allow her to come through... are you ready?... one... two... three."

As she blinked her eyes open blearily, focusing on him with a look of confusion and concern that was unmistakably Hermione, Severus was a little surprised to find that it had worked. That was easier than I thought it would be...

"What just happened?" she asked.

"I called you back," Severus replied, looking a bit surprised, "Nina allowed you to come through..."

"Why?" Hermione asked, furrowing her brows.

"I needed to speak with you."

"No... I meant, why would she cooperate like that? I thought she was... I don't know, kind of belligerent..."

Severus shrugged, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly as he suppressed a smirk.

"I'm just as astonished as you, I'm sure," he replied. "But I need to ask you something; it's rather important." Seeing that he had her full attention, he continued, "What do you know about primal magic?"

Hermione looked confused, replying, "Not very much... it hasn't been covered in any detail in the Hogwarts curriculum, but surely you already knew that, and I haven't read any extracurricular works on the topic..."

Severus frowned, having expected a different answer. "You don't know anything about primal, non-verbal, wandless incantations?"

"Do you mean spontaneous magic, like the kind Wizarding children will sometimes display as they're developing? I know a little bit about that, but only because I was looking into Harry's history as a Parselmouth..."

"No, that's not what I meant," Severus murmured, with slight exasperation. "I thought you might have learned something... some kind of defensive, primal magic."

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm sure I don't know what you mean..." Hermione replied, glancing down at the open book on the coffee table. "Why do you ask?"

Sighing, Severus explained, "I managed to view that memory I told you about, and in it I watched you perform a kind of magic that I wasn't familiar with. It was in self defense, and it had a... sexual component, that was rather mystifying. I'm certain that it was primal in nature, and I'm almost certain that it happened spontaneously, given what you've just confirmed about your lack of familiarity with the subject... but without knowing your explicit intentions at the time, I can hardly narrow it down to—"

"—a chastity spell..." Hermione interrupted.

Severus looked up at her in confusion, seeing that she'd pulled the book into her lap and was reading the page it had been opened to.

"What did you say?" he asked quietly. That could be it...

"It sounds like you're describing an ancient chastity spell, sir... it's written right here in your book..."

"How did you find it?" Severus asked in astonishment, taking the book from her and scanning the page rapidly.

"It was left open to that page, sir," Hermione replied, surprised he hadn't realized it. "Wasn't that where you left off reading it?"

"No, it wasn't," Severus muttered, pausing in his reading as something occurred to him. "Nina..." looking at Hermione in surprise, he continued, "You said you'd try to help me... it must have been you! You were working through Nina, unconsciously!"

"Me, sir?" Hermione asked skeptically.

"The other you!" Severus insisted, "Hermione did this! She was trying to help..."

Hermione felt strange hearing him use her given name in reference to some mysterious third personality of hers, but understood his meaning plain enough. "I see..." she replied, "...then that must be the answer you were looking for, after all... it was a chastity spell..."

Reading aloud from the book, Severus elaborated, "This most ancient form of magic was invoked in times of great upheaval, when young witches were captured by their country's foes. When separated from their beloved, young witches of pure heart would invoke this ancient protection so that only he whom their hearts had chosen would be able to release the spell. By invoking their beloved's name in a time of turmoil, their powers would concentrate on maintaining their virtue to the extent that no other man would be able to take from them that which they had so profoundly promised to another. Thereafter the spell would hold, maintained by the primal energies until at last the witch's beloved came to claim her; once he is recognized as her heart's keeper, the spell would be released upon the consummation of their reunion. Should the beloved go unrecognized, as in cases where such men were killed before reuniting with their promised ones, the witch would live out the rest of her days as a spinster. For more on this topic, see: 'The Spinster's Curse,' page 447."

Severus' voice had faded off near the end of the passage, though Hermione's attentive ears had still heard every word. Having gone quite pale, he lowered the book to glance at Hermione, unsurprised to see her blushing profusely. He swallowed nervously before asking, in a small voice, "...I don't suppose there's any chance you promised yourself to Mr Weasley?"

...

A/N: More will follow, soon; the next couple of chapters are almost finished...