Darkness
by Iejasu
Chapter Two - Pawns
Days passed by, Snape was working on various projects interrupted
only by short hours of rest on the couch in his laboratory. He still
inhabited the dungeons at what had once been Hogwarts. The proud building
was reduced to ruins but the dungeons had survived. He found it fitting to
live among the rubble and the echoes of the past. Some of the powerful
old wards and spells still worked inside the dungeons and provided more
security than any other place these days. The rats and other animals hardly
disturbed him as long as he could keep them from his ingrediance.
His long fingers played with the needle, idly turning it, looking at the
soft glitter of the metal. He detested himself for his weakness, but
there was so many things he detested himself for, this one thing
hardly mattered anymore.
Snape tightened the strap around his biceps and injected the seven
percent solution into his veins. Like a numbing mist the drug coursed
in his body, placating his pains, first the physical and after
reaching the brain, also his mental pains. He sighed deeply and
sank back onto the couch, staring up to the cracked ceiling with
cold empty eyes, resembling more the glare of a dead fish
than that of a living human being. The cat haunted his memories.
Those cinnamon eyes that had become so dull. But there was nothing
he could do. He was in no position to help her without harrassing his
own position. There was more at stake. One life more or less destroyed
hardly mattered anymore.
*****
"You know what to do?" It was not a question but a statement.
Draco Malfoy licked his lips in anticipation. His father suspected
that Snape was not entirely faithful to their Master, he seemed more
and more listless and had never shown the same enthusiasm compared
to other deatheaters. If they could proof that he was a deceiver,
they would gain the ultimate trust of the Dark Lord, maybe making
him, Draco even his heir to the throne.
The Cat nodded. "I will tell you everything I see, everything
he says and everything he does _not_ say. I will gain his trust and be
his slave." Her voice sounded even, almost like a recording.
She kept her eyes to the floor, it was not good looking Master Malfoy
into the eyes, especially not after he had had his ways with her.
Sometimes she wondered if he felt soiled by her attentions.
"When you get evidence, I might be even grateful. There are ways to get
to the muggle world. I could open the borders for you, allowing you to leave."
He grinned as she looked up with a faint glimmer of hope.
"Yes, Hermione, you can go home then, back to your muggle world. Just be a
clever little Gryffindor and suck him dry."
Her breath caught in her throat. Going home? Being free again? Never again to
see a wizard or a witch again? Not being used by anybody? Freedom? A part of
her mind wanted to tell her that it is nothing but deceit, but the other part
clung desperately to that possibility. They had plenty of girls like her,
maybe they would let her go. They had enough whores.
"Yes, master." Kneeling on the floor, head bowed she waited motionless
until he left.
She would get to know everything she could about Snape. She would gain his
trust. She would see if he was faithful or not. What was there to loose?
She had already betrayed everything, this hardly mattered anymore. It was
not as if she would endanger Harry or Ron. Snape had never shown any pity,
why should she cover for him if he was a traitor? Her head spun. A traitor,
but to which side? Which side was the cat on? Was she still with Harry or Ron?
They had not even looked for her after she had fled. They knew that all
mudbloods were slaves. But the resistance hardly did anything to help them.
Did she owe them anything? She owed herself something and if she had any
chance of being free again she would grab it and run.
Tears rolled silently down her cheeks. She realized that she would betray
even Harry and Ron, just to get away from all this. Her strength was used
up, she had to utilize the little that was left to rescue herself.
****
Standing outwards the lifeless ruins that were once known as the "Hogwarts
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry", Draco Malfoy and a companion waited
patiently. Snape had numerous hidden wards and traps placed around the ruins
and it was suicidal running around without his guide. Draco was not willing
to risk any damage just for delivering his little "present". Snape had even his
own floo connection booby trapped. So Draco had informed Snape by owl that
he was arriving. It was clearly a sign of dismissal that the old potion master
refused to be on time. He arrived almost 10 minutes later, staring at both from
some distance.
"Who is that?" Snape glared at Draco, pointing his pale long index finger at the
cloaked figure. "I do not like visitors. Another lab rat? I don't need them and
I do not feed unnecessary spares." The sneering cold voice was every bit the
feared Potion Master.
Draco smirked. "My father sends you a little gift. He told me it is
your birthday and he wanted to cheer his old friend up."
Snapes face twitched a little. His birthday? He had ignored his birthdays
for decades. This was clearly some sort of trap. Reluctantly Snape approached
the two persons, weary of any attack. In these days one was wise not only to
fear his enemies but also his friends. Especially his friends.
"So get done with it, Malfoy. I've got work to do."
Draco pulled the cloak from his companion to reveal the girl from the brothel.
Snapes eyes narrowed. "I don't need any homeworker." Draco started giggling in
a most unbecoming way. Obviously he found the remark amusing.
"Well, she is yours. You can fuck her, you can kill her and you can do
anything in between. Your own private Gryffindor, all yours."
Snape saw that there was presently no real way out of this "present".
He stared at the former Gryffindor know-it-all. Her blank expression told him
far more than he wished for. Roughly he grabbed her by the short brown mob of
hair, dragging her roughly towards the ruins, gracing Draco with his back.
A calculated risk. He did not even bother to regard Draco with any response.
After guiding her though a maze from invisible traps and twisted debris, he
finally reached the core of his dungeons, the laboratory. Without hesitation
he shoved her in one of the storerooms and locked her in.
Tired he sat down, covering his face with his hands. What was he to do? This
was a trap, he could feel it in his marrow. He should kill her instantly and
be done with it. But if he killed her, Malfoy would make sure that the resistance
would become aware of it. If he kept her, he would be under constant surveillance.
Where were her loyalties? This girl was not the Gryffindor he used to scare, she was
a creature of Malfoy's making. This woman was not really Hermione Granger anymore,
she only shared her memories. And letting her go would blow his cover even if she
remained silent.
Working on his latest project, he threw all else aside. Work was the best remedy
for anything.
***********************
The next day a dull bouncing at the storeroom door reminded him of his guest.
Opening the door he saw her sitting on the floor, covering her eyes from the faint
light of his laboratory.
"You are still alive. How ..", he paused a bit, "..unfortunate."
All she could croak was a request for water. He gave her something liquid, careful
not to hand her any potential weapon like a breakable glass.
"Now we will talk a little." Without allowing her to regain some sort of defence,
he pulled her up by her hair and dragged her to the couch, literally throwing her
onto the dusty cushions.
"Why have you been sent here?"
She looked at him with dull, tired eyes. The reply was automatic, the drugs he had
given her, one of his muggle/wizardry combinations, relaxed her and made her speak
the truth at the same time.
"I am here to bring you pleasure, Sir." She wanted to reach out and touch him but he
slapped her in the face, hard. That seemed to have the desired effect. Her eyes focused
for a while.
"You will not touch me without my consent! I repeat my question. What are the orders
Draco has given to you? What has he promised you when you obey."
She seemed to struggle for a while and for a moment he thought that he had miscalculated
the dose but she kept awake, even though her eyelids were fluttering.
"He wants to know if you are loyal or not. If I find out...home." Her voice became
more and more slurred.
Snape leaned back. Just as he had anticipated but just as the Malfoys had forseen,
this revelation changed nothing. He could keep her, he could kill her. If he killed her,
his position at the resistance would become lethal. If he kept her, he had to watch his
back constantly. A no win situation for him, like so often.
She was about to fall asleep. He grabbed her by her shoulders and shook her hard, giving
her some slaps in the face for good measure. "Just one question, then you can go to sleep.
What do you think of Harry? Is Harry your friend?"
The girl looked at him with a quite stupid glance.
"Harry? He has not helped me, he has forgotten me. He has not even looked for me...."
Snape nodded. This confirmed his last suspicion. Her loyalties were destroyed.
It would not change anything if he would tell her differently. That Harry and
Ron had looked for her, that even he had tried to find her, that Hagrid had
given his life in search for her. That poor, stupid, simpleminded, kind Half Giant.
His heart had been bigger than the whole of Hogwarts. Now his remains rested in
the Forbidden Forest, wild flowers guarding his last refuge. He let her go and
she fell back onto the cushions, falling in some sort of drug induced
unconsciousness. He sighed at the sight of this sparely clad female on his couch.
She was oblivious to the thoughts of the sinister man sitting opposite of her on
a lab stool.
The decision was quite clear. Hermione Granger had to die.
TBC.....
by Iejasu
Chapter Two - Pawns
Days passed by, Snape was working on various projects interrupted
only by short hours of rest on the couch in his laboratory. He still
inhabited the dungeons at what had once been Hogwarts. The proud building
was reduced to ruins but the dungeons had survived. He found it fitting to
live among the rubble and the echoes of the past. Some of the powerful
old wards and spells still worked inside the dungeons and provided more
security than any other place these days. The rats and other animals hardly
disturbed him as long as he could keep them from his ingrediance.
His long fingers played with the needle, idly turning it, looking at the
soft glitter of the metal. He detested himself for his weakness, but
there was so many things he detested himself for, this one thing
hardly mattered anymore.
Snape tightened the strap around his biceps and injected the seven
percent solution into his veins. Like a numbing mist the drug coursed
in his body, placating his pains, first the physical and after
reaching the brain, also his mental pains. He sighed deeply and
sank back onto the couch, staring up to the cracked ceiling with
cold empty eyes, resembling more the glare of a dead fish
than that of a living human being. The cat haunted his memories.
Those cinnamon eyes that had become so dull. But there was nothing
he could do. He was in no position to help her without harrassing his
own position. There was more at stake. One life more or less destroyed
hardly mattered anymore.
*****
"You know what to do?" It was not a question but a statement.
Draco Malfoy licked his lips in anticipation. His father suspected
that Snape was not entirely faithful to their Master, he seemed more
and more listless and had never shown the same enthusiasm compared
to other deatheaters. If they could proof that he was a deceiver,
they would gain the ultimate trust of the Dark Lord, maybe making
him, Draco even his heir to the throne.
The Cat nodded. "I will tell you everything I see, everything
he says and everything he does _not_ say. I will gain his trust and be
his slave." Her voice sounded even, almost like a recording.
She kept her eyes to the floor, it was not good looking Master Malfoy
into the eyes, especially not after he had had his ways with her.
Sometimes she wondered if he felt soiled by her attentions.
"When you get evidence, I might be even grateful. There are ways to get
to the muggle world. I could open the borders for you, allowing you to leave."
He grinned as she looked up with a faint glimmer of hope.
"Yes, Hermione, you can go home then, back to your muggle world. Just be a
clever little Gryffindor and suck him dry."
Her breath caught in her throat. Going home? Being free again? Never again to
see a wizard or a witch again? Not being used by anybody? Freedom? A part of
her mind wanted to tell her that it is nothing but deceit, but the other part
clung desperately to that possibility. They had plenty of girls like her,
maybe they would let her go. They had enough whores.
"Yes, master." Kneeling on the floor, head bowed she waited motionless
until he left.
She would get to know everything she could about Snape. She would gain his
trust. She would see if he was faithful or not. What was there to loose?
She had already betrayed everything, this hardly mattered anymore. It was
not as if she would endanger Harry or Ron. Snape had never shown any pity,
why should she cover for him if he was a traitor? Her head spun. A traitor,
but to which side? Which side was the cat on? Was she still with Harry or Ron?
They had not even looked for her after she had fled. They knew that all
mudbloods were slaves. But the resistance hardly did anything to help them.
Did she owe them anything? She owed herself something and if she had any
chance of being free again she would grab it and run.
Tears rolled silently down her cheeks. She realized that she would betray
even Harry and Ron, just to get away from all this. Her strength was used
up, she had to utilize the little that was left to rescue herself.
****
Standing outwards the lifeless ruins that were once known as the "Hogwarts
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry", Draco Malfoy and a companion waited
patiently. Snape had numerous hidden wards and traps placed around the ruins
and it was suicidal running around without his guide. Draco was not willing
to risk any damage just for delivering his little "present". Snape had even his
own floo connection booby trapped. So Draco had informed Snape by owl that
he was arriving. It was clearly a sign of dismissal that the old potion master
refused to be on time. He arrived almost 10 minutes later, staring at both from
some distance.
"Who is that?" Snape glared at Draco, pointing his pale long index finger at the
cloaked figure. "I do not like visitors. Another lab rat? I don't need them and
I do not feed unnecessary spares." The sneering cold voice was every bit the
feared Potion Master.
Draco smirked. "My father sends you a little gift. He told me it is
your birthday and he wanted to cheer his old friend up."
Snapes face twitched a little. His birthday? He had ignored his birthdays
for decades. This was clearly some sort of trap. Reluctantly Snape approached
the two persons, weary of any attack. In these days one was wise not only to
fear his enemies but also his friends. Especially his friends.
"So get done with it, Malfoy. I've got work to do."
Draco pulled the cloak from his companion to reveal the girl from the brothel.
Snapes eyes narrowed. "I don't need any homeworker." Draco started giggling in
a most unbecoming way. Obviously he found the remark amusing.
"Well, she is yours. You can fuck her, you can kill her and you can do
anything in between. Your own private Gryffindor, all yours."
Snape saw that there was presently no real way out of this "present".
He stared at the former Gryffindor know-it-all. Her blank expression told him
far more than he wished for. Roughly he grabbed her by the short brown mob of
hair, dragging her roughly towards the ruins, gracing Draco with his back.
A calculated risk. He did not even bother to regard Draco with any response.
After guiding her though a maze from invisible traps and twisted debris, he
finally reached the core of his dungeons, the laboratory. Without hesitation
he shoved her in one of the storerooms and locked her in.
Tired he sat down, covering his face with his hands. What was he to do? This
was a trap, he could feel it in his marrow. He should kill her instantly and
be done with it. But if he killed her, Malfoy would make sure that the resistance
would become aware of it. If he kept her, he would be under constant surveillance.
Where were her loyalties? This girl was not the Gryffindor he used to scare, she was
a creature of Malfoy's making. This woman was not really Hermione Granger anymore,
she only shared her memories. And letting her go would blow his cover even if she
remained silent.
Working on his latest project, he threw all else aside. Work was the best remedy
for anything.
***********************
The next day a dull bouncing at the storeroom door reminded him of his guest.
Opening the door he saw her sitting on the floor, covering her eyes from the faint
light of his laboratory.
"You are still alive. How ..", he paused a bit, "..unfortunate."
All she could croak was a request for water. He gave her something liquid, careful
not to hand her any potential weapon like a breakable glass.
"Now we will talk a little." Without allowing her to regain some sort of defence,
he pulled her up by her hair and dragged her to the couch, literally throwing her
onto the dusty cushions.
"Why have you been sent here?"
She looked at him with dull, tired eyes. The reply was automatic, the drugs he had
given her, one of his muggle/wizardry combinations, relaxed her and made her speak
the truth at the same time.
"I am here to bring you pleasure, Sir." She wanted to reach out and touch him but he
slapped her in the face, hard. That seemed to have the desired effect. Her eyes focused
for a while.
"You will not touch me without my consent! I repeat my question. What are the orders
Draco has given to you? What has he promised you when you obey."
She seemed to struggle for a while and for a moment he thought that he had miscalculated
the dose but she kept awake, even though her eyelids were fluttering.
"He wants to know if you are loyal or not. If I find out...home." Her voice became
more and more slurred.
Snape leaned back. Just as he had anticipated but just as the Malfoys had forseen,
this revelation changed nothing. He could keep her, he could kill her. If he killed her,
his position at the resistance would become lethal. If he kept her, he had to watch his
back constantly. A no win situation for him, like so often.
She was about to fall asleep. He grabbed her by her shoulders and shook her hard, giving
her some slaps in the face for good measure. "Just one question, then you can go to sleep.
What do you think of Harry? Is Harry your friend?"
The girl looked at him with a quite stupid glance.
"Harry? He has not helped me, he has forgotten me. He has not even looked for me...."
Snape nodded. This confirmed his last suspicion. Her loyalties were destroyed.
It would not change anything if he would tell her differently. That Harry and
Ron had looked for her, that even he had tried to find her, that Hagrid had
given his life in search for her. That poor, stupid, simpleminded, kind Half Giant.
His heart had been bigger than the whole of Hogwarts. Now his remains rested in
the Forbidden Forest, wild flowers guarding his last refuge. He let her go and
she fell back onto the cushions, falling in some sort of drug induced
unconsciousness. He sighed at the sight of this sparely clad female on his couch.
She was oblivious to the thoughts of the sinister man sitting opposite of her on
a lab stool.
The decision was quite clear. Hermione Granger had to die.
TBC.....