Warning: out of character, angst, character death, dark but not serious fic.
Summary: Severus Snape trusted Hermione. He never expected her to betray him to Voldemort. Written pre-HBP. SS/HG, LM/HG
Disclaimer: the Harry Potter universe belongs to J.K. Rowling.
"Why did you betray the Death Eaters?"
He is stunned by the question, spoken so nonchalantly.
"Don't you trust me, Severus?" The tone is sharp and challenging. Never let it be said that Hermione Granger was not a bossy witch who was not always kind or tactful.
"Of course I do, Hermione."
"Then tell me," she insists, emphasising her point by kissing him briefly, then pushing him away. Not until you tell me.
Finally, reluctantly, he speaks. "I felt that the Dark Lord had lost sight of his earlier goals. I could never approve of his mindless killing of not only Muggles, but pure-blood wizarding families as well."
A smile of triumph.
The rustle of a cloak.
Snape pulls out his wand, alarmed. She continues to smile, not even bothering to reach for her wand. Instead, she moves to take his out of his hand. "You won't need that tonight."
She wrenches the wand out of his grasp and pockets it.
Then she turns in the direction the sound had come from and calls in a loud voice, "My Lord? You can show yourself now."
His entire body freezes in shock. The look in his black eyes says it all. Betrayed. The traitor has been betrayed.
Her triumphant laughter sounds unusually harsh and unlike the rare, nervous laugh of Hermione Granger. This is the laughter of a Death Eater.
"Well done, girl," says a high, cold voice. "Your valuable services will be rewarded."
"Thank you, my Lord." She bows gracefully.
"How could you do this to me, Hermione?"
"I was just following orders," she says flatly.
"So it was all an act?" Snape asks in disbelief.
The woman he loved … had been deceiving him from the start. This is worse than betrayal, because in truth, she has never been his. It never occurred to him that her every word could be a lie, that he was the object of a long-prepared plan of seduction, a plan to expose him as a spy. It never occurred to him not to ignore the strange sensation he occasionally felt where the Dark Mark resided on his arm when she touched him, the same sensation every Death Eater felt when in contact with one of their own. It never occurred to him that she could actually have the Dark Mark – but he had checked; there was no tattoo on her left wrist or anywhere else on her body, in fact. He would know; he had seen, touched it all...
Of course, he never expected her to be an Occlumens either … and such a good one at that. But he should have, for she is Hermione Granger. The know-it-all who has always aimed to excel at every potion, every spell. The girl who used a Time Turner to travel back in time to amass the maximum amount of knowledge like an obsessed collector. What a fool, he silently berates himself, what an utter fool I have been!
"Of course it was an act!" she exclaims, looking disgusted. "Have you seen yourself in a mirror? How could you think a woman would actually want to look at you, Severus?"
Yes, he should have realised it. In the past, she had only been attracted to and dated good-looking men: Lockhart, Krum, McLaggen, Boot … Next thing he knew, she would – No. Don't think of that, he tells himself. She might have joined the Dark Lord, but she isn't that insane …
But why would she possibly join the Dark Lord?
"But the Mark?" he says, baffled. "You don't have it. I have seen your arm."
She pulls out her wand. "A simple Concealment Charm," she replies, pulling up her sleeve and pointing her wand at her bare forearm. "Finite Incantato!"
The Dark Mark appears, painted in bright red on her skin.
"Let me prove to you just how much of an act it was," she continues.
There is a gleam in her brown eyes as she aims her wand straight at him, then turns her head towards the Dark Lord, as though remembering his presence. "May I, my Lord?"
"Very well, go ahead."
He is still dazed from shock, but of course, he knows what to expect, as much as he does not want to believe it. He did not know she was capable of this. Obviously, he has underestimated her. He had placed too much faith in the fact that she was Muggle-born, and thus could not possibly turn to the Dark. But he had been wrong. He should have seen it long ago, when he had first noticed to what lengths she went to attain recognition, to prove herself worthy despite her blood.
"Crucio!" The vile word sounds odd coming out of that sweet mouth, but he can think no more as he is hit by waves of merciless agony. His ears register a vindictive laugh, which he realises is hers, soon joined by another, more high-pitched cackle. The Dark Lord and his newest recruit stand side by side as they laugh at the traitor's pain.
"You proved yourself beyond my expectations tonight. I am proud of you, my prodigy," the Dark Lord's hissing voice praises, and she beams in pride. Being praised by the Dark Lord is a rare occasion, and one desperately sought after by every Death Eater. And this amazingly brilliant and powerful wizard finds her, a Muggle-born girl, worthy of his praise. It is the happiest day of her life.
The Dark Lord lifts the Invisibility spell, revealing the circle of Death Eaters watching like a band of hawks surrounding their prey. From his position on the ground, Snape sees her walk into the waiting arms of a tall, masked wizard, who whispers what he can imagine is commendation in her ear. She grins.
The Dark Lord lifts his wand. The last thing Severus Snape sees, before the green light that steals his life, is the gleam of triumph in the cold grey eyes of the man holding his beloved Hermione around the waist. A man he used to call friend.