Disclaimer: I do NOT own these characters or this world. All credit goes to J.K. Rowling (sorry that I forgot to write this on the first chapter)
Chapter Two: Obeying the Whip
She awake slowly, but afraid of opening her eyes. All she wanted was to lay there on the cold stone floor and die. Emptiness was all that could be felt. She had not the energy to kill herself, nor was there anything to do it with. Finally she found the last of her strength and sat up to look around the room she was in.
It was a bedroom, lit by a few candles, with a large bed in the middle. There were three doors, but no one window. Looking down at her clothes she noted that they were not the ones she had on before she had blacked out, which repulsed her deeply. She was wearing simple robes in a rich dark green color with a low neck line.
Slowly she stood up and went to a long mirror and looked at her appearance. She was cleaner then she had been in months and her hair looked elegant as it fell past her shoulders in smooth brown curls. While fighting she had not had the time to make herself look pretty. She would go days with bathing for the Order contently needed her help in the matters of forming plans on how to best strategize against the enemy.
"Why don't you just look so fancy, Miss Granger," A voice sneered from behind her. Hermione swirled around instantly to see a tall figure standing in the shadows.
"Who are you? I know your voice from somewhere." Hermione spoke to the mysterious figure.
"You do, do you?" The man stepped into the dim candle light. It was none other then Severus Snape. He could not be mistaken for anyone else with his chin-length black hair, hooked nose, and black eyes.
"What do you want, you filthy traitor," Hermione's voice full of venom.
"It's not what I want, you stupid girl," He spoke pretending to have not heard the fact that she had called him what he hated being called most. "The Dark Lord has asked me to keep and eye on you while he is off on some business."
"Fine!" Hermione didn't think she could stand being in a room with this man that always taunted her, but she would rather be with Severus Snape then Lord Voldemort. Time began to move slowly as neither of them said a word to the other. At one moment during there silence they made eye contact for the briefest of moments. Hermione could see the shame in his eyes, even if it did not appear on his face.
He should be ashamed, the bastard! He betrayed them all to there deaths and yet we never saw it. He lead everyone to believe he was trustworthy and now because of him Dumbledore is dead, Hermione thought this all savagely in her mind as she continued to glare at him.
"Why did you betray them?" She couldn't take the silence any longer. He looked up at her astonished that she would ask such a question, but he should have know by now that she always asked questions, it was in her nature.
"I do not know what you speak of, Miss Granger, so I advise you to keep that questioning mouth of yours shut." He hissed the words at her angrily.
"You know perfectly well of what I speak, Severus. You betrayed the Order for which you promised with your life to serve! Now Dumbledore is dead, you selfish bastard!" She was now yelling right in his face. They were only a few inches apart from each other. "I hope you die a slow painful death, long enough so that you can hear yourself scream and remember all those whose cries still plague the battlefield!"
He wanted to slap her, she could see it written all over him, but he knew she was right. The words in which she spoke cut him worse then any blade could ever do. There was nothing he could say to all of it unless he wanted to sound the fool.
"Have you nothing to taunt me with? No name calling?" She asked.
Severus Snape said nothing. This disappointed Hermione a bit. She continued to gauze at him until the door at the far end of the room creaked open, in which she jumped and stared at it. An oversized snake slithered into the room and went and curled up on the hearth rug near the empty fireplace. Then a dark figure slowly stepped into the room.
"My Lord," Severus had stood up and was now bowing low towards the figure.
"Stand up, Severus," The cold voice hissed. "You may leave now."
Hermione watched as her old professor left the room, shutting the door behind him. The figure now for the first time since arriving turned his attention to her. She hadn't realized that he was right in front of her. His hands slithering up and down her arms like deadly snakes.
"So have you changed your mind about helping me? I could give you anything you will ever want. I could make you my Queen and you would have all the power you desired, Hermione," he hissed all of this in her ear as his hand continued to wonder. She shivered at his touch. She said nothing in response to his words. She couldn't die yet, not until she had avenged the death of her loved ones.
"What do you say, my pet?"
"No!" she whispered harshly. He pushed her aggressively down onto the bed, and then stood over her.
"You will be broken soon! I will give you the rest on the night to think about it. Either way you will be helping." He then left her to herself in the cold, dark room. The snake stay put on the rug watching her as she cried herself to sleep.
