Severus had begun the needed work on his theories for the conflicting
stories once Hermione was given the OK from Poppy to leave the Hospital
Wing a few days after the interrogation. She was under strict orders to
'take it easy', which Severus interpreted as 'keep your ass in bed'. He
had even placed a spell on her chambers to let him know if she left her
bed. Although, after a few times of arriving just as she came out of the
bathroom, he added another charm to give her some time before being
alerted. He only added the charm after she near hexed him to bits the
third time he arrived to scold her. She was becoming restless with so
little activity. But she had to rest.
While waiting for Bill to arrive in the lab, he contemplated his reaction towards Hermione's near demise. And the truth had come out - he said those three words he thought he would never say. And he had meant them. Now, whether Hermione had heard him or not, he wasn't sure. But she had to have some suspicions after his more than friendly actions after the rape.
That kiss.
He just let go and did what his heart was pulling him to do without thinking. Could the timing have been worse? If only he had told or shown her sooner. If only he hadn't been so stubborn and denied it so much. Now he didn't know what to do. As much as he hated to admit it, Korun had been right. He had it bad.
His musings had been interrupted by a knock on the laboratory door. "Professor?" Bill called.
"Enter." Severus said. As the Auror approached the table, Bill asked, "What theories do you have thus far?"
"Well, for starters, I believe that Korun still has a certain immunity for Veritaserum. Even though he claims to no longer maintain it, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him."
"Very possible." Bill said, taking out a pad of paper and a pen to write down everything they discussed. Severus looked at the items. "Muggle manufactured. They have some really good ideas when it comes to organization. I was surprised. My father always said that they were very handy." Severus nodded.
"Secondly, it's possible that he had someone tamper with his memories. Veritaserum forces the drinker to tell the truth as they know it. If his memories were altered, he would be able to hide the truth without making it seem as if he's hidden anything." Severus continued. Bill wrote that idea down as well.
"Another is that the Veritaserum was tampered with before we received it, or before it was administered." Severus continued. "I have requested that Poppy keep the residue that she retrieved from Hermione's blood stream in her possession."
"Why is that, Headmaster?" Bill asked, receiving a glare from his former teacher.
"Think, Weasley." Severus snapped. "Wouldn't you say there is a 'conflict of interest' in my case as Creevy put it?"
Bill, realizing the stupidity of his question nodded. "Someone could accuse you of tampering with the sample to find incriminating evidence against Korun."
"Very good, Weasley." Severus replied sarcastically. "A brain that works among the ministry. It's truly a rare thing." He almost laughed at the pathetic glare Bill shot back at him.
"It's possible that they'd say that you were doing it to curry favour with the community. Capturing death eaters and saving yourself." Bill thought out loud, writing it down. 'Or,' he thought. "Sir." Bill said. "What exactly is the nature of your relationship with Hermione?"
"We are colleagues, and friends." Severus replied, unable to effectively conceal the disappointment in his voice.
He felt a hand clasp his shoulder. "I understand." Bill replied. "I won't pry." Severus nodded in appreciation. "How much residue is there to work with?"
"Enough for a dozens of experiments. Which should be adequate to finding anything suspicious." Severus replied. "Let's get to work. Any more theories, and we can throw them on that list." He got up from his stool, and summoned the mediwitch to bring the residue from Hermione's blood stream.
~@~
"Bed! Now!" Severus snapped. Out of boredom over a few days, Hermione had worked past his spells on her room, dressed, and walked down to the lab to find Severus and Bill working.
"Severus. I'm fine." Hermione said. "I want to help, and I feel a lot better."
"Hermione. Get to bed." Severus said, more calmly. "Or I'll take you back myself."
"I'll go if you go to your own and sleep." Hermione said, crossing her arms to her chest in an act of defiance. "You both look like you need to rest as well. The dark circles under your eyes are starting to make you look as if you've been in a fist fight."
"I am not negotiating with you. Be reasonable, Hermione." Severus said. "Let us handle this."
"I can help."
"Yes, you can." Bill chimed in. Severus glared at him, and Hermione smiled at the show of support. "For starters, you can go back to bed so we don't have to worry about you getting hurt again." Severus smirked at him in amusement, and turned to see Hermione's jaw drop.
"William Oscar Weasley!" Hermione said, exasperated.
"You're in trouble now, Weasley. She used the full name." Severus whispered, not trying to hide his amusement. Hermione shot him a glare.
"You can't keep me locked away forever ("Pity." Severus muttered) to keep me from getting hurt. If you want me to get my life back, you have to let me take a few risks." Hermione said.
"You can take a few risks, Hermione." Severus replied. "As soon as Madam Pomfrey says you are 100 percent." He got up from his stool and walked to her. "You're going back to bed now." He said, grabbing her hand to escort her back. She tried to pull her hand away, but was pulled up against him. Next thing she knew, she was slung over his shoulder, heading in the direction of her rooms.
"I don't see how this will improve my condition. And what would the students think of the Headmaster carrying the Arithmancy professor over his shoulder like a barbarian?" Hermione said.
"Well, if you stayed in your room or at least went back without a fight, I would let you use your own legs. For now, mine will have to do." Severus replied. He got to her rooms, and muttered the password. When he entered the bedroom, he placed her back on her feet, only to sweep her up to cradle her in his arms, and place her on the bed.
"There's nothing I can do and no one to talk to. You haven't been around much and Robin still isn't speaking to me. I asked a few of the other teachers to come by and visit, but they said they are under strict orders to leave me so I can rest. I don't understand it And with you working so hard on this investigation, I feel so useless just sitting here." She muttered. Severus sat down on the bed beside her. "I only want to help."
Severus grabbed her hand, feeling slightly guilty at not stopping by and keeping her company. The investigation had taken up so much time, and they had little of it left. The sooner Korun was out of the castle and locked up, the better. "You have helped, and you don't know it." He said. Hermione looked at him in confusion. He sighed. "Hermione, I have been so worried about you. It's been so long since I've seen such a fire in your eyes, such a determination to do something, besides hide yourself away from everyone and everything. It's good to see that you're becoming a bit more like yourself."
"And the first thing that I choose to do that doesn't involve hiding, you lock me away from." Hermione whispered.
"We have to make sure that this investigation goes smoothly. So that there isn't a shadow of a doubt of what has happened." Severus explained. "Since you have formally accused Korun of attacking you, aiding in the investigation besides testimonial could result in suspicion of tampering. Even my own involvement there could be some risk. Not as much as there would be with you, but considering the amount of evidence that we currently have, we cannot risk too much."
Hermione nodded finally. "I understand. When can I leave my prison?" She asked flippantly.
Severus smirked. "As soon as Poppy gives the OK, as I said." He got up from the bed, and made his way to the door.
"Severus?" He turned around. "Will you come visit later? There's something I want to speak with you about."
"If it's not too late, I will come by." Severus replied. "Perhaps dinnertime. In the meantime. . ." He grabbed a book off her shelf, handing it to her. Hermione took it and nodded, and he left her rooms.
~@~
"This is odd." Bill said as Severus entered the lab once more.
"What is?" Severus asked, approaching the bench.
"I was examining the residue from Hermione's blood stream." He began, muttering an incantation. The residue sample turned a pale shade of red. "Although the concentration is high, looking at Hermione's blood sample, her body shouldn't have had such a violent reaction to the potion."
Severus stared at the red light. "Perhaps it was an allergic reaction. It's possible that a lower concentration may not produce a noticeable reaction, but the larger dose may have pushed it to manifest itself."
"I was thinking the same thing. But I looked at the blood sample again, and there was no evidence of an allergic reaction." Bill said, not looking away from the sample. "Could there be a possibility of added ingredients that may have caused a near fatal reaction?"
"It's possible." Severus replied. "I would need to filter out some or all of the ingredients and examine them separately. But even if there was an extra or missing ingredient, it would have had some effect on Korun." Both men were silent as different possibilities ran through their heads. It seemed that every one of their ideas would run into a brick wall. "I think I will need to speak with Hermione about the events once again."
"Do you think she's ready to talk about it?" Bill asked.
"I'm not sure. But I think it would be a good idea to use a pensive. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, but I'm sure that it would be a good idea to have the clearest picture possible." Severus replied. He thought back to the scar he had tried and failed to heal on her torso. He wondered if it was still there. "It's about dinnertime. I think it best if we take a break. We may come out with new ideas."
"Of course, Headmaster. Are you going straight to the Great Hall?" Bill asked.
"No. Actually, I will be spending dinner with Hermione. I believe that her defiance is an act of boredom." Severus replied.
"Aren't you worried about the students acting up?" Bill asked with a smile.
"Not at all." Severus said. "After all, I have my eyes on everything. It's a neat spell that I found years ago. It helps me to catch students off guard. I believe it was how Albus had seemed so damn omniscient in his years as headmaster here."
"So that's how the old dog did it." Bill muttered. "I sure do miss him."
"As do I." Severus said, making his way to the door. "I will set up the wards so it will only recognize yourself and I. No sense in allowing the experiments to be out in the open, waiting to be tampered with."
"Of course Headmaster. Tell Hermione that I say Hi." Severus put up the wards, and both left the room.
~@~
"So he hasn't a clue, has he?" A voice from a robed figure asked as Bill entered his chambers.
"Not one. He's hit a brick wall. Led him right to it." Bill answered, walking to the figure and kneeling before it.
"Very good. What's the traitor up to now?"
"He's spending his time with Hermione." Bill replied. "He says that he will extract Hermione's memories into a pensive to see if he can get any more details that may assist him."
"Ah. By the time he realizes what. . ." The voice stopped as Bill began to struggle on the floor. Falling into the fetal position, he began to scream as his form was changing. When it was over and done with, Colin Creevy stood in the place where 'Bill' had been only moments before.
"Damnit. Did it have to be that painful?" Colin asked, brushing his robes off.
"It could have been worse." The robed figure said, lowering the hood and revealing the identity. "I could have made it rather than uncle Korun." Robin said. "I probably would have poisoned you. After all, you are the same as her." A struggle started to sound at the back of the room. "Lumos."
The real Bill Weasley was chained to the wall, gagged and silenced with a charm. Robin approached him. "Aww. Bill." She said, running a finger down his cheek. He forced his face away form her touch. "If you were more cooperative, we wouldn't have to bind you. You could've been involved with the fun. But no. You would never do anything that would help to purify our world from mudbloods. Your damn family is so muggle loving." She spit in his face. "It makes me sick."
"Now Robin." Korun said, coming into the room. "Be nice to our guests. After all, without them we wouldn't be able to keep an eye on Severus' progress."
"What about your connection to the mudblood?" Robin asked. "You could keep an eye on him that way."
"Not with the way things are going. He's so obsessed with having me sent to Azkaban that he's not around her as often." Korun replied. He then turned to Colin. "A pensive, you say."
"Yes, Korun." Colin replied, bowing before him. Robin eyed him suspiciously.
"Why do you trust him so, Uncle. He's below us and is not deserving of it." Her look of disgust went from Bill to Colin.
"Ah, my dear." Korun said, turning to his niece. "It is because he accepts that his place is to serve us. And I do so love an obedient servant." He smiled. "Tell me more."
"He's hoping to get the details of the attack on Hermione. Hoping to find something that would make a difference in his experimental findings." Colin said. "I'm curious. Why did you revive her? She's an unpredictable variable, therefore a threat. Even came by the lab today after getting past Snape's wards."
"Because she is his weakness. I thought that a quick death would be satisfactory. But to draw it out would be so much more rewarding." Korun replied, walking to the bar and pouring himself a drink. "He has a fierce need to protect her. And just before the connection with her would have expired, I found that she is something that he treasures most in the world. I want to torture and kill her in front of him. It is simply one of the best ways to break him."
"So you'll wait until you kill her to kill him." Colin said, smiling. "I like it."
Korun turned to him. "Oh you simple creature." He said, walking casually towards the auror. "It's not a simple matter of killing him quite yet. Not physically anyway. I will allow him to live for a bit, knowing that the one spark of light in his life is extinguished. I will have him begging for death before I finally put him out."
"Even better."
"Is there anything else?" Korun asked, sipping at his drink. Colin remembered one detail of the evening that had him extremely worried.
"Snape says that there is a spell that helps him to observe students." Colin said. "It's possible that he could find out about what we're doing here as well."
"It's possible." Korun said, holding his drink up to the firelight. "But it's doubtful that he'll get beyond the wards on this room. Robin is so handy with charms."
"Thank you, uncle." Robin said. "I have warded this room to appear to be a holding cell for uncle Korun. In reality, it shows him with his guards, but no direct observation is able to penetrate them."
"What happens if he questions his inability to check in on this room?" Colin asked.
"Good question, Colin." Korun said. "One I'm sure that you'll be able to answer. You are, after all, quite intelligent for a lower life form."
Bowing again, Colin replied in the affirmative before leaving the room.
"Ask your question, Robin." Korun said, turning to his niece.
"I know I should have asked you this before, but why not use the same spell the headmaster uses? Why have a connection to Granger at all?"
"Simply because the user of the spell must have absolute mind control in order to not be driven mad. Although I do possess a great deal of concentration, I do not want to unnecessarily risk losing my mind." Korun replied. "Besides, it's more fun this way."
~@~
"So you'll allow me?" Severus asked Hermione.
"I think it's better this way. I'm not ready to talk about it right now, and later when I'm ready to confront what has happened, I have the tools to use ready." Hermione replied. Severus grabbed the pensive off the shelf, and brought it to the table at Hermione's bedside.
"Hold still." He said, pointing his wand at her temple and extracting the first memories.
A/N:
Thought I'd lighten things up a bit this chapter with something kinda amusing between Hermione and Severus. Hope you enjoyed it.
Thank you to all of you who reviewed.
Ezmerelda: I'm hoping too. But now my computer keeps freezing on me. Well, at least it's working again.
Amethyst9: Interesting theory. But one thing that I ain't is constant.
TaHua: You're English is good. No worries.
A thank you to my betas for this chapter:
Sandra
Rebelplayboybunny
Michelle
While waiting for Bill to arrive in the lab, he contemplated his reaction towards Hermione's near demise. And the truth had come out - he said those three words he thought he would never say. And he had meant them. Now, whether Hermione had heard him or not, he wasn't sure. But she had to have some suspicions after his more than friendly actions after the rape.
That kiss.
He just let go and did what his heart was pulling him to do without thinking. Could the timing have been worse? If only he had told or shown her sooner. If only he hadn't been so stubborn and denied it so much. Now he didn't know what to do. As much as he hated to admit it, Korun had been right. He had it bad.
His musings had been interrupted by a knock on the laboratory door. "Professor?" Bill called.
"Enter." Severus said. As the Auror approached the table, Bill asked, "What theories do you have thus far?"
"Well, for starters, I believe that Korun still has a certain immunity for Veritaserum. Even though he claims to no longer maintain it, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him."
"Very possible." Bill said, taking out a pad of paper and a pen to write down everything they discussed. Severus looked at the items. "Muggle manufactured. They have some really good ideas when it comes to organization. I was surprised. My father always said that they were very handy." Severus nodded.
"Secondly, it's possible that he had someone tamper with his memories. Veritaserum forces the drinker to tell the truth as they know it. If his memories were altered, he would be able to hide the truth without making it seem as if he's hidden anything." Severus continued. Bill wrote that idea down as well.
"Another is that the Veritaserum was tampered with before we received it, or before it was administered." Severus continued. "I have requested that Poppy keep the residue that she retrieved from Hermione's blood stream in her possession."
"Why is that, Headmaster?" Bill asked, receiving a glare from his former teacher.
"Think, Weasley." Severus snapped. "Wouldn't you say there is a 'conflict of interest' in my case as Creevy put it?"
Bill, realizing the stupidity of his question nodded. "Someone could accuse you of tampering with the sample to find incriminating evidence against Korun."
"Very good, Weasley." Severus replied sarcastically. "A brain that works among the ministry. It's truly a rare thing." He almost laughed at the pathetic glare Bill shot back at him.
"It's possible that they'd say that you were doing it to curry favour with the community. Capturing death eaters and saving yourself." Bill thought out loud, writing it down. 'Or,' he thought. "Sir." Bill said. "What exactly is the nature of your relationship with Hermione?"
"We are colleagues, and friends." Severus replied, unable to effectively conceal the disappointment in his voice.
He felt a hand clasp his shoulder. "I understand." Bill replied. "I won't pry." Severus nodded in appreciation. "How much residue is there to work with?"
"Enough for a dozens of experiments. Which should be adequate to finding anything suspicious." Severus replied. "Let's get to work. Any more theories, and we can throw them on that list." He got up from his stool, and summoned the mediwitch to bring the residue from Hermione's blood stream.
~@~
"Bed! Now!" Severus snapped. Out of boredom over a few days, Hermione had worked past his spells on her room, dressed, and walked down to the lab to find Severus and Bill working.
"Severus. I'm fine." Hermione said. "I want to help, and I feel a lot better."
"Hermione. Get to bed." Severus said, more calmly. "Or I'll take you back myself."
"I'll go if you go to your own and sleep." Hermione said, crossing her arms to her chest in an act of defiance. "You both look like you need to rest as well. The dark circles under your eyes are starting to make you look as if you've been in a fist fight."
"I am not negotiating with you. Be reasonable, Hermione." Severus said. "Let us handle this."
"I can help."
"Yes, you can." Bill chimed in. Severus glared at him, and Hermione smiled at the show of support. "For starters, you can go back to bed so we don't have to worry about you getting hurt again." Severus smirked at him in amusement, and turned to see Hermione's jaw drop.
"William Oscar Weasley!" Hermione said, exasperated.
"You're in trouble now, Weasley. She used the full name." Severus whispered, not trying to hide his amusement. Hermione shot him a glare.
"You can't keep me locked away forever ("Pity." Severus muttered) to keep me from getting hurt. If you want me to get my life back, you have to let me take a few risks." Hermione said.
"You can take a few risks, Hermione." Severus replied. "As soon as Madam Pomfrey says you are 100 percent." He got up from his stool and walked to her. "You're going back to bed now." He said, grabbing her hand to escort her back. She tried to pull her hand away, but was pulled up against him. Next thing she knew, she was slung over his shoulder, heading in the direction of her rooms.
"I don't see how this will improve my condition. And what would the students think of the Headmaster carrying the Arithmancy professor over his shoulder like a barbarian?" Hermione said.
"Well, if you stayed in your room or at least went back without a fight, I would let you use your own legs. For now, mine will have to do." Severus replied. He got to her rooms, and muttered the password. When he entered the bedroom, he placed her back on her feet, only to sweep her up to cradle her in his arms, and place her on the bed.
"There's nothing I can do and no one to talk to. You haven't been around much and Robin still isn't speaking to me. I asked a few of the other teachers to come by and visit, but they said they are under strict orders to leave me so I can rest. I don't understand it And with you working so hard on this investigation, I feel so useless just sitting here." She muttered. Severus sat down on the bed beside her. "I only want to help."
Severus grabbed her hand, feeling slightly guilty at not stopping by and keeping her company. The investigation had taken up so much time, and they had little of it left. The sooner Korun was out of the castle and locked up, the better. "You have helped, and you don't know it." He said. Hermione looked at him in confusion. He sighed. "Hermione, I have been so worried about you. It's been so long since I've seen such a fire in your eyes, such a determination to do something, besides hide yourself away from everyone and everything. It's good to see that you're becoming a bit more like yourself."
"And the first thing that I choose to do that doesn't involve hiding, you lock me away from." Hermione whispered.
"We have to make sure that this investigation goes smoothly. So that there isn't a shadow of a doubt of what has happened." Severus explained. "Since you have formally accused Korun of attacking you, aiding in the investigation besides testimonial could result in suspicion of tampering. Even my own involvement there could be some risk. Not as much as there would be with you, but considering the amount of evidence that we currently have, we cannot risk too much."
Hermione nodded finally. "I understand. When can I leave my prison?" She asked flippantly.
Severus smirked. "As soon as Poppy gives the OK, as I said." He got up from the bed, and made his way to the door.
"Severus?" He turned around. "Will you come visit later? There's something I want to speak with you about."
"If it's not too late, I will come by." Severus replied. "Perhaps dinnertime. In the meantime. . ." He grabbed a book off her shelf, handing it to her. Hermione took it and nodded, and he left her rooms.
~@~
"This is odd." Bill said as Severus entered the lab once more.
"What is?" Severus asked, approaching the bench.
"I was examining the residue from Hermione's blood stream." He began, muttering an incantation. The residue sample turned a pale shade of red. "Although the concentration is high, looking at Hermione's blood sample, her body shouldn't have had such a violent reaction to the potion."
Severus stared at the red light. "Perhaps it was an allergic reaction. It's possible that a lower concentration may not produce a noticeable reaction, but the larger dose may have pushed it to manifest itself."
"I was thinking the same thing. But I looked at the blood sample again, and there was no evidence of an allergic reaction." Bill said, not looking away from the sample. "Could there be a possibility of added ingredients that may have caused a near fatal reaction?"
"It's possible." Severus replied. "I would need to filter out some or all of the ingredients and examine them separately. But even if there was an extra or missing ingredient, it would have had some effect on Korun." Both men were silent as different possibilities ran through their heads. It seemed that every one of their ideas would run into a brick wall. "I think I will need to speak with Hermione about the events once again."
"Do you think she's ready to talk about it?" Bill asked.
"I'm not sure. But I think it would be a good idea to use a pensive. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, but I'm sure that it would be a good idea to have the clearest picture possible." Severus replied. He thought back to the scar he had tried and failed to heal on her torso. He wondered if it was still there. "It's about dinnertime. I think it best if we take a break. We may come out with new ideas."
"Of course, Headmaster. Are you going straight to the Great Hall?" Bill asked.
"No. Actually, I will be spending dinner with Hermione. I believe that her defiance is an act of boredom." Severus replied.
"Aren't you worried about the students acting up?" Bill asked with a smile.
"Not at all." Severus said. "After all, I have my eyes on everything. It's a neat spell that I found years ago. It helps me to catch students off guard. I believe it was how Albus had seemed so damn omniscient in his years as headmaster here."
"So that's how the old dog did it." Bill muttered. "I sure do miss him."
"As do I." Severus said, making his way to the door. "I will set up the wards so it will only recognize yourself and I. No sense in allowing the experiments to be out in the open, waiting to be tampered with."
"Of course Headmaster. Tell Hermione that I say Hi." Severus put up the wards, and both left the room.
~@~
"So he hasn't a clue, has he?" A voice from a robed figure asked as Bill entered his chambers.
"Not one. He's hit a brick wall. Led him right to it." Bill answered, walking to the figure and kneeling before it.
"Very good. What's the traitor up to now?"
"He's spending his time with Hermione." Bill replied. "He says that he will extract Hermione's memories into a pensive to see if he can get any more details that may assist him."
"Ah. By the time he realizes what. . ." The voice stopped as Bill began to struggle on the floor. Falling into the fetal position, he began to scream as his form was changing. When it was over and done with, Colin Creevy stood in the place where 'Bill' had been only moments before.
"Damnit. Did it have to be that painful?" Colin asked, brushing his robes off.
"It could have been worse." The robed figure said, lowering the hood and revealing the identity. "I could have made it rather than uncle Korun." Robin said. "I probably would have poisoned you. After all, you are the same as her." A struggle started to sound at the back of the room. "Lumos."
The real Bill Weasley was chained to the wall, gagged and silenced with a charm. Robin approached him. "Aww. Bill." She said, running a finger down his cheek. He forced his face away form her touch. "If you were more cooperative, we wouldn't have to bind you. You could've been involved with the fun. But no. You would never do anything that would help to purify our world from mudbloods. Your damn family is so muggle loving." She spit in his face. "It makes me sick."
"Now Robin." Korun said, coming into the room. "Be nice to our guests. After all, without them we wouldn't be able to keep an eye on Severus' progress."
"What about your connection to the mudblood?" Robin asked. "You could keep an eye on him that way."
"Not with the way things are going. He's so obsessed with having me sent to Azkaban that he's not around her as often." Korun replied. He then turned to Colin. "A pensive, you say."
"Yes, Korun." Colin replied, bowing before him. Robin eyed him suspiciously.
"Why do you trust him so, Uncle. He's below us and is not deserving of it." Her look of disgust went from Bill to Colin.
"Ah, my dear." Korun said, turning to his niece. "It is because he accepts that his place is to serve us. And I do so love an obedient servant." He smiled. "Tell me more."
"He's hoping to get the details of the attack on Hermione. Hoping to find something that would make a difference in his experimental findings." Colin said. "I'm curious. Why did you revive her? She's an unpredictable variable, therefore a threat. Even came by the lab today after getting past Snape's wards."
"Because she is his weakness. I thought that a quick death would be satisfactory. But to draw it out would be so much more rewarding." Korun replied, walking to the bar and pouring himself a drink. "He has a fierce need to protect her. And just before the connection with her would have expired, I found that she is something that he treasures most in the world. I want to torture and kill her in front of him. It is simply one of the best ways to break him."
"So you'll wait until you kill her to kill him." Colin said, smiling. "I like it."
Korun turned to him. "Oh you simple creature." He said, walking casually towards the auror. "It's not a simple matter of killing him quite yet. Not physically anyway. I will allow him to live for a bit, knowing that the one spark of light in his life is extinguished. I will have him begging for death before I finally put him out."
"Even better."
"Is there anything else?" Korun asked, sipping at his drink. Colin remembered one detail of the evening that had him extremely worried.
"Snape says that there is a spell that helps him to observe students." Colin said. "It's possible that he could find out about what we're doing here as well."
"It's possible." Korun said, holding his drink up to the firelight. "But it's doubtful that he'll get beyond the wards on this room. Robin is so handy with charms."
"Thank you, uncle." Robin said. "I have warded this room to appear to be a holding cell for uncle Korun. In reality, it shows him with his guards, but no direct observation is able to penetrate them."
"What happens if he questions his inability to check in on this room?" Colin asked.
"Good question, Colin." Korun said. "One I'm sure that you'll be able to answer. You are, after all, quite intelligent for a lower life form."
Bowing again, Colin replied in the affirmative before leaving the room.
"Ask your question, Robin." Korun said, turning to his niece.
"I know I should have asked you this before, but why not use the same spell the headmaster uses? Why have a connection to Granger at all?"
"Simply because the user of the spell must have absolute mind control in order to not be driven mad. Although I do possess a great deal of concentration, I do not want to unnecessarily risk losing my mind." Korun replied. "Besides, it's more fun this way."
~@~
"So you'll allow me?" Severus asked Hermione.
"I think it's better this way. I'm not ready to talk about it right now, and later when I'm ready to confront what has happened, I have the tools to use ready." Hermione replied. Severus grabbed the pensive off the shelf, and brought it to the table at Hermione's bedside.
"Hold still." He said, pointing his wand at her temple and extracting the first memories.
A/N:
Thought I'd lighten things up a bit this chapter with something kinda amusing between Hermione and Severus. Hope you enjoyed it.
Thank you to all of you who reviewed.
Ezmerelda: I'm hoping too. But now my computer keeps freezing on me. Well, at least it's working again.
Amethyst9: Interesting theory. But one thing that I ain't is constant.
TaHua: You're English is good. No worries.
A thank you to my betas for this chapter:
Sandra
Rebelplayboybunny
Michelle