Anti-lawyer spell: Only borrowing, not making any money with it, promise to
return ( although condition should have improved no guarantee is given).
Please review in abundance, it's the only thing that keeps me going. If there are any beta readers who wouldn't mind giving some constructive crits I would really appreciate it.
Finally found a way of making my computer give up the files it had stored for me with crashing..so this story may eventually get finished, depending upon the reviews.
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He had not realised that she had apparated with him, so consumed with the pain that he had not felt her hand clenched in the fabric of his cloak. He turned in shock to stare at her face, only to find her eyes fixed upon the face of the Dark Lord. She was surprisingly calm, the widening of her eyes and the whiteness of the knuckles still holding his cloak giving lie to a calm exterior. She moved closer to Snape, unconsciously drawing courage from his presence and he felt his chest constrict with concern for her.
"Hermione?" came the hissing voice of Voldemort, " You came at last" he murmured, his red eyes eagerly sweeping over her, lust and longing evident on his features.
Hermione was in shock, she had figured out what had happened within seconds of her arrival, but to be face to face with Voldemort was the stuff of nightmares. She had huddled closer to Snape, knowing that their lives were now in mortal danger, but not knowing what actions he would require from her to get them through this. That she would have to disseminate as well as the Slytherin she knew, she was just not sure what to say, if anything. She would just have to follow his lead, she thought, straightening her back and trying desperately to control her trembling. She was a Gryffindor and would show them that she had courage. She would make him proud of her, she would survive.
"My Lord, I." Snape started, desperate to drag his master's attention from Hermione, her safety uppermost in his mind.
"Quiet! You have done well Severus. I will spare you a punishment for your tardiness" he breathed, " but don't test my patience." His eyes had never left her form. He held out his arm, motioning for her to sit in one of the chairs seated before the fire in the waiting room. "Please, have a seat. You will come to no harm here Hermione" he hissed.
The sound of her name on Voldemort's lips shocked her, how did he know her name. She wasn't the famous one, at least not outside Hogwarts, he shouldn't know about her. She heard Snape's voice, could hear the fear in his usually silky tones, but found her attention held by his movement, subtle but unmistakable. He moved in front of her, positioning himself between his Lord and her, placing himself in a direct path. He was protecting her again and she felt her heart tug as she stared at his shoulders, knowing at that instance that she could never hate him again.
She was being ordered to sit, an order wrapped in a velvet request, but Hermione was under no illusions that Voldemort expected her to comply. She unclenched her hold on Snape and brought her head round to look deeply into his eyes, to reassure him, to gain comfort. What she saw reflected in their black depths held her, suspended in an eternal ambered moment of time. She took a step forward, unable to drag her eyes from his until she had moved several steps. Please, she prayed to all the deities who could hear her, please let us get through this. Give me the strength to play this part, just a little of his courage and I can pull through.
She turned reluctantly to face Voldemort. He stood, his frame thin, his face a grey reptilian mask stretched over bones whose shape showed far to clearly through the papery skin. The body he had finally managed to inhabit had once been human, had had it's own soul. All these finer feelings which made it human had long since left, replaced by the evilness that was the Dark Lord. He was motioning towards the chair, an expression of impatience on his features. Hermione walked to the chair, moving as far as she could from him, angling her body away from him, her arms wrapped tighly across her stomach.
He sat, sighing and tilting his head to one side as he regarded her.
"You were not planning on being here" he stated, watching her reactions to his nearness.
"No" she whispered,
"How" he demanded
"I saw Professor Snape, I was walking, he looked in pain so I put a hand out to stop him and offer my help. That was the moment he apparated and I sort of come with him." She said a little disjointedly.
"I see. Fate is a strange being Hermione. She may play the same game of life, but her rules are different and she indulges her whims." his pointed tongue licked the dry lips, making Hermione shudder. He started, apparently annoyed at the look of disgust he could quite clearly see in her green flecked eyes.
"I have enjoyed our little talk my dear, but I have a dark revel to control tonight. I had not anticipated your arrival here." He paused, as if searching for his words, " I would welcome your company in future though, we could talk without this audience" he said, a sweep of his arm indicating the 30 or so deatheaters in the nearby room. Hermione turned to follow his gesture and met the eyes of the potions master waiting for her. He had not moved from his position of attention, his eyes riveted upon her form, studiously ignoring the other deatheater arrivals.
"I will see you in two days then?" he questioned, noticing with annoyance how she stared at Snape. "Hermione!" he raised his voice slightly, causing her to jump and break eye contact with Severus. She turned to Voldemort,
"I don't think.." she began only to have his voice cut across hers
"Oh, I think that you can my dear, I wouldn't want anything to happen to your potions master because of my anger at your lack of an appearance " He intoned silkily, smirking at his persuasion.
Hermione's eyes widened at the perceived threat and knowing no other way to appease him she nodded once, curtly. She would come again; she had given her word to a creature of darkness.
"You may go now my dear. Take your teacher with you, I don't suppose that you can apparate on your own?"
She shook her head, not trusting her voice not to scream her rage at his threats.
"Then I will simply call Severus and you can come with him." He decided, and apparently satisfied with the course of the evening he rose from his seat offering her his hand to kiss.
Hermione stood and stared at his hand, willing her body to move but fear freezing her limbs. She knew that not only her life but Severus's too was in danger, but she could not will her muscles to move.
Voldemort sighed, reining in his anger at her seeming defiance,
"I am not surprised that you don't recognise me Hermione, but I had thought that after talking you may have recognised my heart." He said sadly.
Her head shot up to look at him in horror, "I don't know you! We never met until tonight, I would definitely have remembered." She stated, her voice trailing off towards the end, sick to the core with a premonition of his identity "No, no you can't be!" she stated, wringing her hands in her distress, " No.."her voice died
"Yes," he hissed, " You do know me my love. " he cackled triumphantly, his grotesque face pulled into a wide grin.
Please review, it makes my day...and like Snape, I hate to grovel.
Please review in abundance, it's the only thing that keeps me going. If there are any beta readers who wouldn't mind giving some constructive crits I would really appreciate it.
Finally found a way of making my computer give up the files it had stored for me with crashing..so this story may eventually get finished, depending upon the reviews.
ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
He had not realised that she had apparated with him, so consumed with the pain that he had not felt her hand clenched in the fabric of his cloak. He turned in shock to stare at her face, only to find her eyes fixed upon the face of the Dark Lord. She was surprisingly calm, the widening of her eyes and the whiteness of the knuckles still holding his cloak giving lie to a calm exterior. She moved closer to Snape, unconsciously drawing courage from his presence and he felt his chest constrict with concern for her.
"Hermione?" came the hissing voice of Voldemort, " You came at last" he murmured, his red eyes eagerly sweeping over her, lust and longing evident on his features.
Hermione was in shock, she had figured out what had happened within seconds of her arrival, but to be face to face with Voldemort was the stuff of nightmares. She had huddled closer to Snape, knowing that their lives were now in mortal danger, but not knowing what actions he would require from her to get them through this. That she would have to disseminate as well as the Slytherin she knew, she was just not sure what to say, if anything. She would just have to follow his lead, she thought, straightening her back and trying desperately to control her trembling. She was a Gryffindor and would show them that she had courage. She would make him proud of her, she would survive.
"My Lord, I." Snape started, desperate to drag his master's attention from Hermione, her safety uppermost in his mind.
"Quiet! You have done well Severus. I will spare you a punishment for your tardiness" he breathed, " but don't test my patience." His eyes had never left her form. He held out his arm, motioning for her to sit in one of the chairs seated before the fire in the waiting room. "Please, have a seat. You will come to no harm here Hermione" he hissed.
The sound of her name on Voldemort's lips shocked her, how did he know her name. She wasn't the famous one, at least not outside Hogwarts, he shouldn't know about her. She heard Snape's voice, could hear the fear in his usually silky tones, but found her attention held by his movement, subtle but unmistakable. He moved in front of her, positioning himself between his Lord and her, placing himself in a direct path. He was protecting her again and she felt her heart tug as she stared at his shoulders, knowing at that instance that she could never hate him again.
She was being ordered to sit, an order wrapped in a velvet request, but Hermione was under no illusions that Voldemort expected her to comply. She unclenched her hold on Snape and brought her head round to look deeply into his eyes, to reassure him, to gain comfort. What she saw reflected in their black depths held her, suspended in an eternal ambered moment of time. She took a step forward, unable to drag her eyes from his until she had moved several steps. Please, she prayed to all the deities who could hear her, please let us get through this. Give me the strength to play this part, just a little of his courage and I can pull through.
She turned reluctantly to face Voldemort. He stood, his frame thin, his face a grey reptilian mask stretched over bones whose shape showed far to clearly through the papery skin. The body he had finally managed to inhabit had once been human, had had it's own soul. All these finer feelings which made it human had long since left, replaced by the evilness that was the Dark Lord. He was motioning towards the chair, an expression of impatience on his features. Hermione walked to the chair, moving as far as she could from him, angling her body away from him, her arms wrapped tighly across her stomach.
He sat, sighing and tilting his head to one side as he regarded her.
"You were not planning on being here" he stated, watching her reactions to his nearness.
"No" she whispered,
"How" he demanded
"I saw Professor Snape, I was walking, he looked in pain so I put a hand out to stop him and offer my help. That was the moment he apparated and I sort of come with him." She said a little disjointedly.
"I see. Fate is a strange being Hermione. She may play the same game of life, but her rules are different and she indulges her whims." his pointed tongue licked the dry lips, making Hermione shudder. He started, apparently annoyed at the look of disgust he could quite clearly see in her green flecked eyes.
"I have enjoyed our little talk my dear, but I have a dark revel to control tonight. I had not anticipated your arrival here." He paused, as if searching for his words, " I would welcome your company in future though, we could talk without this audience" he said, a sweep of his arm indicating the 30 or so deatheaters in the nearby room. Hermione turned to follow his gesture and met the eyes of the potions master waiting for her. He had not moved from his position of attention, his eyes riveted upon her form, studiously ignoring the other deatheater arrivals.
"I will see you in two days then?" he questioned, noticing with annoyance how she stared at Snape. "Hermione!" he raised his voice slightly, causing her to jump and break eye contact with Severus. She turned to Voldemort,
"I don't think.." she began only to have his voice cut across hers
"Oh, I think that you can my dear, I wouldn't want anything to happen to your potions master because of my anger at your lack of an appearance " He intoned silkily, smirking at his persuasion.
Hermione's eyes widened at the perceived threat and knowing no other way to appease him she nodded once, curtly. She would come again; she had given her word to a creature of darkness.
"You may go now my dear. Take your teacher with you, I don't suppose that you can apparate on your own?"
She shook her head, not trusting her voice not to scream her rage at his threats.
"Then I will simply call Severus and you can come with him." He decided, and apparently satisfied with the course of the evening he rose from his seat offering her his hand to kiss.
Hermione stood and stared at his hand, willing her body to move but fear freezing her limbs. She knew that not only her life but Severus's too was in danger, but she could not will her muscles to move.
Voldemort sighed, reining in his anger at her seeming defiance,
"I am not surprised that you don't recognise me Hermione, but I had thought that after talking you may have recognised my heart." He said sadly.
Her head shot up to look at him in horror, "I don't know you! We never met until tonight, I would definitely have remembered." She stated, her voice trailing off towards the end, sick to the core with a premonition of his identity "No, no you can't be!" she stated, wringing her hands in her distress, " No.."her voice died
"Yes," he hissed, " You do know me my love. " he cackled triumphantly, his grotesque face pulled into a wide grin.
Please review, it makes my day...and like Snape, I hate to grovel.