Spoilers: Order of the Phoenix
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The following morning, before Severus could ask any question, Hermione brutally sat on the bed.
"They're looking for me! I have to go!"
"How do you know?" he asked, confused and still sleepy.
She blushed and didn't answer, throwing her clothes on hastily. Just before putting on her cloak, she came back to his bed and leaned toward him.
"Thank you," she murmured, lightly kissing him. "I slept well and I totally forgot everything for the night."
He was glad to see that she had found some new energy to go on and rose with a sigh to dress and follow her to the door. She hesitated briefly at the door.
"For the potion…"
"Trust me," he said. "I will make it and you'll be able to dress as a houri to present it to him."
She had a small smile.
"How long to make the potion?"
"Two weeks once all the ingredients are gathered."
She nodded thoughtfully.
"Alright. DA meeting this evening?"
"Naturally. We have to intensify the lessons about resisting to Imperius and it would probably be a good idea to give you some notions in Occlumency. And also how to resist Veritaserum."
"Heavy schedule! I'm not sure how Harry will feel about Occlumency."
"I'm more concerned about you."
"Two weeks, huh? Means I have to… that I have to go!" she added, half-panicked. "Thank you again, Severus!"
And she left running.
"Now someone explain to me how she knows they're looking for her so early in the morning?" he muttered. "Or else I really understood what it meant when she said she just had to open her mind. Scary."
His last class of the morning was just over and he was in his private laboratory, already working on the reversing potion when he heard someone enter.
"Severus?"
"Pansy," he groaned, looking up, "for the last time, do not call me by my first name!"
The blonde girl came near him and he could tell she was nervous. He frowned; Pansy was never so obvious. She took his hand and put something in his palm. He looked down and saw a silver ring.
"Tell Terence… tell him that I can't see him ever again."
"What? Pansy, what does–?"
"It's the price to pay, Severus. Gregory and Vincent like the attentions I gave them and don't want to lose them. I'm part of what they want as a reward for their help for getting… you know what."
He almost couldn't believe his ears. He grabbed Pansy by her shoulders.
"It's out of question!" he hissed. "I will not let you be sold to them!"
She shrugged sadly.
"It's not as if we have the choice."
"Since when do we have to pay them for something they chose to do on their own?"
"Since they know what we intend to do with it, their fathers know also and they still haven't denounced us. It's the price of silence."
He began to pace nervously.
"Simply because they work for themselves and won't decide which side they are on as long as the conflict isn't resolved."
He came face to Pansy and pulled her to him, feeling her need for comfort. She was trying to be strong and was failing.
"Promise you'll tell Terry," she mumbled against his chest, swallowing back the sobs blocking her throat.
"Oh, he'll know alright. Pansy, don't do anything foolish…"
Suddenly he looked up. Hermione was standing on the threshold, her eyes unreadable. Pansy turned her head and saw her. She gently pulled away from Severus's embrace.
"I have to go."
He tried to give her back the silver ring.
"Keep it. You don't know what might happen."
"No. I don't want them to see it. Keep it for me, please."
She left and Hermione entered the laboratory, curiously making no comment on Pansy's presence, nor the situation she had found them together.
"You are already making the potion? Where did you find Nagini's venom?"
"I had some left," he mumbled, for once embarrassed by his lie. "I had to make a potion of the venom mixed with unicorn blood to sustain his body."
She nodded, apparently not questioning him.
"What are you doing?" she asked curiously.
"I need to prepare the ingredients in the order they were put in his body. First the unicorn blood and the virgin blood, then Gryffindor blood and Nagini's venom and finally Helga and Rowena's blood. For the moment, I'm separating the different bloods composing yours. I have to take away Potter's blood first, if not it will react with Rowena's."
She peered at the test tubes and the dark red solution.
"I put a reactive to Potter's blood in the tube; it will make it heavier than the other cells and I just have to allow it to settle."
"Won't that change the composition of the blood and render it ineffective?"
"No. I have the counteragent, which will cancel the first agent in its entirely, without leaving any remnant."
She took a small vial and looked at it, trying to define what it was.
"Be careful! It's Nagini's venom and that's all I have left."
She put the vial back on the workbench and her face took a curious faraway look, as if she was staring in space. Slowly, she said:
"Severus, you lied to me. Nagini's venom is not left from when you made potions for Voldemort."
"What do you mean?" he asked, startled, putting Pansy's ring on the table.
"Pansy gave it to you. Yesterday."
"How do you–?"
"How do I know? The question should be: how could I not know? I know of every little thing that happens in this castle. Want some taste of it? Use your Legilimency skills on me and I promise I won't block you… as long as you stay confined to what I want you to see."
Reluctant, but curious, Severus cast the spell and gasped as he was suddenly caught in a whirl of images. People walking in the corridors, first year classes, the owlery, Albus in discussion with the former Headmasters' portraits, Minerva taking a nap as a cat late in the evening, Pansy giving him the little vial and retelling him the conversation between Vincent, Gregory and her on Samhain, himself telling her to keep it from Hermione… He pulled out of her mind and looked at her, aghast.
"How do you bear this permanent maelstrom in your mind?"
"It's not as if I have the choice, anyway! Funny how this seems to become my answer to every question in my life. I can't choose whom I love, because I'm bound to you, I can't choose my own thoughts, because I have a whole castle in my mind!" she shrieked.
She breathed deeply, holding up a hand to silence him, and she continued a little more calmly:
"You ask me to trust you like I never trusted anyone, not even the Headmaster, and when I do, the first thing you do is to run to Pansy to tell her everything! Just tell me why I should trust you now! Why didn't you ask me for Nagini's venom? Why didn't you tell me of your plan beforehand?"
"And how was I to know that you didn't know about Nagini's venom? I trusted Potter to have spilled it to you!"
"You could have made sure he had told me! Or that I hadn't forgotten! Last time I heard about it was two years ago!" she yelled. "Or is the great Severus Snape afraid of trusting his allies?"
"You will watch your tone with me, young lady! I'm still your teacher!"
"And what a teacher! Ten Ways To Get Yourself Killed, How To Lose The Last Bits Of Self-Confidence You Ever Had! You know what? You taught me that just fine!"
"Hermione…" he growled lowly, warningly.
Suddenly she sobered, her eyes on the silver ring glittering on the table, and she looked at him sadly before shaking her head.
"Pansy. How could I be so blind? And to think that… Of course, Pansy. A pure-blood Slytherin, one of your own, knowing so much more than I ever will on Death Eaters, implicated in the same fight as you… No comparison with a boring know-it-all Gryffindor…"
Severus frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Don't worry. I'll tell Rowena so you'll be fine."
She disappeared before he could say something and then his breath caught. She couldn't possibly mean…
The small device allowing him to watch over the Slytherin common room turned a rather ugly red and his attention was taken from Hermione's words. He had spelled the spying device to alert him when Vincent and Gregory were together. He looked at the image of the common room; they were indeed there, alone, chatting animatedly. He had a small smile. It could be interesting to overhear what they were saying.
When he came out of the Slytherin common room only half an hour later, he was pale. He couldn't believe what had just happened, what he had just done. He had to find Hermione and explain to her before Vincent and Gregory could come near her. But it was late and he had to go to class. He could only hope that Hermione's next class wasn't with the Slytherins.
He was more ruthless than ever during this class, but released his students five minutes before the end. He tried to remember what was the class Hermione had at the beginning of Friday afternoon. Then he breathed a bit more easily. There. He had just seen her head at the end of the corridor, with the annoying Terry by her side. He quickened his pace when he saw the two burly Slytherins coming near her. But it was already too late. Only a few words and her eyes were already shining in anger.
Without a word, he closed his fingers on her wrist as soon as he reached her side and dragged her into the classroom she had just left. Freya Thurisaz, the Ancient Runes teacher, looked at them in surprise but, seeing the tension between the two of them, she left quickly. Severus waved his wand and the door closed itself, locked and with a silencing charm. Not a moment too soon.
"You told them what?" Hermione yelled, yanking free from his grip. "You sold me to them against Pansy's freedom?"
"It's not exactly that. It's just homework," Severus said, desperately. "Herm–"
"It's just homework, my foot! As if I didn't know what they do with Pansy! So you decided that I was yours to do whatever you wanted, huh? I may be a slave and a pawn just like you are, Professor, but I'm not the slave of a slave!"
He tried to calm her but she wouldn't listen.
"But of course, it's for Pansy," she continued, her eyes narrowed, her hands curled into fists. "Loyalty to your own, huh? House loyalty and what's not Slytherin is just trash. Never mind me, I'm just a bloody Gryffindor! Anything to save your precious Pansy. You see a Slytherin in danger and you will do anything to save her, including trading her against a Gryffindor. Who cares for Gryffindors anyway? They're just stupid! You knew I was bound to you, so you thought that you could give me to whomever you thought worthy? Maybe I'm your little toy, Professor, but you will discover that the little toy still has some tricks of her own."
"Hermione, it's not–"
"You're dead. You're so dead," she said coldly. "I can't believe how blind I've been. If I ever said or did anything nice to you, forget it. I'm going to shoot down what was left of your reputation, trust me on that."
Seeing as he couldn't explain and stop her, he reverted back to his usual cold self.
"And how will you do that without destroying your own reputation?" he mocked.
"My reputation? What reputation? You already destroyed it!"
"But doing so, you would expose Pansy's role as a spy!" he roared.
"Call me stupid while you're at it! Believe me, master, you taught me well enough. I'm sure lots of people will be delighted to know you sold me to Crabbe and Goyle for saving Pansy of what she was doing, especially Fudge. He wants you in Azkaban. I can't believe I tried to stop him from doing so; I think I'll provide him with everything he needs for that now."
"Hermione, you–"
"Don't call me Hermione! I don't have anything to lose anymore, especially considering I'll be flanked with Crabbe and Goyle till the end of the year! Maybe you fought hard for me not to be Head Girl, choosing Susan instead, but believe me, I know the students here well enough to get straight to the gossips and set some tongues loose."
"If you really want to know, I didn't object to your nomination. Minerva and Albus did, as strange as it sounds."
"Never mind that. Gods, when I think that I even tried to stop Harry and Ron from calling you names! They are right, you really are a greasy git and an insufferable bas–"
"It's not what you seemed to think during that weekend," he cut her. "Or the eve of Samhain. Or only yesterday."
"Forget everything about the eve of Samhain," she hissed. "Or else you didn't listen to yourself. And as for yesterday, I was needy and you took pity on me. There was nothing more, was it?"
He smirked.
"What, afraid you'll have to thank me for something?"
"Yes, for taking something that I should have given to someone of my choosing! I truly do have to thank you for this one. Oh, and for the fact I'm barren too. Good job, Professor. Enjoy your last hours of peace!"
Still shaking with rage, she strode out of the room, opening the door as if there had never been a locking charm on it, and banged the door behind her.
"Oh Gods, I think I messed up badly this time," he muttered, falling on Freya's chair rather than sitting.
"Badly?" shrieked a new voice. "Badly? Is it how you call that? You couldn't have done worse!"
He opened his eyes and sighed when seeing the ghost of Rowena Ravenclaw floating in front of him.
"I can't believe you treated her so callously! It's hard to believe that there is something of Salazar in you!"
Severus rubbed his temples wearily.
"Was I supposed to let Pansy in their clutches?"
"I didn't say that! But you could have found another way; you're a Slytherin! It's not because you spent most of your life alone that you have to condemn her to the same life! If she doesn't have you, she doesn't have anything!"
"Pansy also has a right to a normal life!"
"And of course, you think you are the only one to think of Pansy, huh? You egoistic, conceited… Do you know that she thought you were in love with Pansy and she came to me, pleading with me so I would leave her and go to Pansy? She was ready to spend her life alone if only you were happy, but no! You had to screw it all! Salazar, come, leave this pitiful excuse of a wizard. He doesn't deserve our presence."
The two ghosts left the room and Severus buried his head in his hands.
When he walked in the Great Hall for dinner, whispers followed him. He looked at the Gryffindor table, but Hermione wasn't there. But at the Slytherin table… she was seated between Gregory and Vincent, her jaw set, and when she noticed he was looking at her, she raised her wrists and he saw the leather strings wrapped around them. Then she raised her chin defiantly and her throat was circled with a green and silver collar. Gregory smirked at him and tugged at the leash fixed at his wrist. Hermione didn't protest and stood up, following him outside the Great Hall. All eyes were on Severus now and he could feel the reprobation in Albus and Minerva's. Pansy was looking at him also but he couldn't read her eyes from where he was.
Severus retreated in his quarters as quickly as he could. There had been murder in Harry and Ron's eyes; in fact, there had been murder in the eyes of all the members of the DA – especially the boys. He wondered how long he would have to wait for products from George and Fred Weasley to find their way in his potions. He sat down in his favourite armchair, his elbows on his knees, his hands rummaging through his hair, trying to think a way out of this mess, a way to get Hermione from Gregory and Vincent's clutches.
He didn't have to wait long before Albus burst in. Minerva was following him and, at the same time, Pansy arrived by the secret door he had showed her. Before any could say a word, Pansy exclaimed joyfully:
"Terry!"
She ran into the arms of a tall wizard who had entered the room just after Minerva.
"Just make yourself home," muttered Severus, already feeling defeated.
"You alright, Pansy?" Terence Higgs asked quietly.
"Excuse me, Terence, Pansy, but we have urgent matters to discuss now! Severus, do you have an explanation? May I know why Hermione Granger entered the Great Hall with Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe, led on a leash and with her wrists bound?"
"She saved me," said Pansy before Severus could even open his mouth.
Everybody looked at her, taken aback.
"Well, on Samhain, Gregory and Vincent helped me to get some of Nagini's venom and part of the price they asked for their help in defeating the Dark Lord was that I stayed with them. I was ready to comply but Hermione… She had heard about Terry and me – probably thanks to Professor Snape – and she decided it was unfair. So she traded places with me. Naturally, when she entered the Great Hall, everybody wondered about it; Potter and Weasley were ready to kill Gregory and Vincent. She couldn't say the truth, because it would have meant to reveal my role as a spy. So she invented a story, which of course went wild with additions. I think that now, the story is that Professor Snape grew tired of her and offered her to his Slytherins as their plaything."
Severus winced; he doubted that Hermione had formulated it like this. She had learnt much and had probably used more subtlety. It was only more efficient. Pansy beamed at Terence who clasped her hand.
"It's unbelievable," he murmured. "We will have to thank her."
"Yes. I truly owe her my freedom, Terry."
"It's horrible!" exclaimed Minerva. "We have to do something!"
"What do you think I was thinking of when you barged in, Minerva?" barked Severus.
Both Albus and Minerva looked sheepish.
"Sorry, Severus. Do tell us if you have an idea."
"We can't do anything," said Pansy sadly. "Not until the Dark Lord is defeated. They know what we want to do with Nagini's venom and if we try to free Hermione, they will tell the Dark Lord everything."
Albus had a defeated look in his eyes and Minerva's shoulders slumped. They retreated, Terence following them, after a small nod in Pansy's direction.
Pansy looked at Severus and shrugged.
"I still can't believe you did that."
"I still can't either. And I can't believe what you just told them."
"That was not that bad a story."
"Quite good actually."
"Yes, especially considering that she would probably have done just that if you had given her the opportunity. She's a Gryffindor, after all."
"Yes, especially considering that she thought I was in love with you and that she's bound to me for the rest of her life. She would just have sacrificed herself, wouldn't she?"
"Gryffindors!" said Pansy, rolling her eyes, but Severus noticed that it lacked the usual bite.
There was a moment of silence.
"We could set Potter and Weasley lose on them," she suggested.
Severus smiled.
"As much as I like the idea, it wouldn't do. Hermione would hate for them to end up in Azkaban because of her. In a certain way, I'm tempted to let her get herself out of this, I'm sure she can manage it quite beautifully. But I'm afraid my conscience won't let me. Damn thing. Spying for the good cause actually forces you to develop some of those bothersome feelings."
"Not to mention that you're responsible for her being in that situation."
"Yes, that too."
"I have to go. I'm really tired of all this and I'm looking forward for my reward."
"Which is?" asked Severus, raising his eyebrows.
"Being in Terry's arms," replied Pansy simply, her eyes filling with longing.
She had left for several minutes and Severus was still on the same spot, frozen, his thoughts running wild. Six years at Draco's beck and call and the only reward she wants is being in the arms of the man of her choosing. He couldn't help thinking that he wanted much more than that for his seventeen years of spying and he was almost ashamed to admit it, if only to himself. He wanted Hermione. But he didn't just want her; he wanted her love. Not that there's a chance of you ever having it after what you just did. You'll be lucky if she ever speaks to you again.