Chapter Ten

"Good evening, Ms. Granger. I trust you're doing well?" Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling.

Hermione quickly got over her shock, walked over to the fire, and knelt before it. She had a hard time hiding her annoyance. She could have used his company before this. Why had he waited so long to visit her?

"Good evening, Headmaster. I'm doing well, thank you." she replied rather coldly.

If the Headmaster noticed the chill in her tone he didn't let on.

"I'm glad to hear that. Professor McGonnagall and I have been very concerned for you. How are you and Professor Snape getting along?" he asked, with a small smile.

Hermione snorted, in a very unladylike manner. She found it infuriating that the Headmaster didn't explain why he hadn't come sooner. If he wasn't going to mention it then it was up to her.

"Professor Dumbledore, why haven't you or Professor McGonagall come to see me before this?" she asked, with a slight glare.

Dumbledore sighed deeply, and the twinkle in his eyes slowly faded away.

"I thought you might wonder about that. It seemed best to give you some time to adjust to your situation, on your own, before receiving visitors. Perhaps I was wrong, but you do seem to be doing better than the last time I saw you."

Hermione stood up at that, angrier than she had ever been with Hogwart's beloved Headmaster. Openly glaring down at Dumbledore, she unleashed her fury upon him.

"Perhaps the reason I look better than I did that night is because I had just been kidnapped and raped not an hour before you saw me!" she yelled, her voice quivering in anger."

Dumbledore didn't respond right away, but simply stared, compassionately, into Hermione's eyes. Hermione suddenly felt tired and slowly her anger disappeared. She knelt back down and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Professor. I'm sure you knew what you were doing. I have been getting on better down here. It was just very difficult and lonely in the beginning."

Dumbledore smiled softly.

"My dear, it is I that should apologize. Professor McGonnagal tried to convince me that you would need us more than ever the first few weeks. I foolishly ignored her advice, completely sure that I was right. Please forgive an old man's mistake?"

Hermione, slightly taken aback, nodded her head mutely.

"And now, Ms. Granger, as much as I hate to cut this visit short, I must bid you goodnight. Professor McGonagall will no doubt come see you tommorrow. And I will see you again very soon. Goodnight, my dear."

Then with a loud pop he was gone. Hermione didn't get up right away but remained kneeling in front of the warm fire. She had lost track of time, staring into the captivating flames, when she felt a a large hand touch gently on her shoulder. She turned around to find herself face to face with Rosie.

"Yes, what is it, Rosie?" she snapped, startling even herself. It took her a moment to realize that she had hoped the hand would belong to Professor Snape. When had she started to desire his company so immensely? She was jolted back to reality when she realized that Rosie was speaking.

"I'm sorry, Rosie, what did you just say?"

"Rosie said that it is almost ten o' clock. Miss has been sitting here for hours."

Hermione stared into the house elf's face blankly. How had she lost track of time so completely? It seemed to her that the Headmaster had just left. She slowly got up, painfully remembering that she had just been on her knees for a long time.

"Rosie, has Professor Snape returned yet?"

"No, Miss, he was due to arrive five hours ago."

Hermione felt panic begin to rise. He would never go somewhere without, at least, telling Rosie. She swiftly started for the lab and opened the door. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw a dark figure adjusting his robes in front of the fire. She started walking towards the figure when suddenly he looked up. Hermione gasped and stopped dead in her tracks. Her blood chilled as she recognized the face of Lucius Malfoy. A grin slowly formed on Lucius' face.

"Just the person I was seeking." he said, his voice low and velvety.

Hermione slowly started to back away.

"What do you want, you Bastard!" she asked through clenched teeth.

Lucius laughed softly.

"My dear, is there something wrong with a father wanting to visit the mother of his unborn child?"

Hermione's hands went unconsciously to her belly.

"You will never be a father to this child!"

Lucius clicked his tongue and shook his head, as if she were being a naughty child.

"I must say, I'm surprised." he said, sardonically. " After all the trouble I went through getting Snape out of the way just so I could see you."

Hermione again gasped. Tears began to form in her eyes.

"What did you do to him?" she asked him softly.

Lucius again grinned and began walking slowly toward her. Hermione, in turn, continued backing away from her intruder. Suddenly she felt her back hit a hard surface and realized that she was trapped. Lucius smirked and placed his hands against the wall, on either side of her body. He studied Hermione's face, his eyes lingering on her lips. Their faces were only inches apart. His hand rose and cupped her face and their eyes met. Hermione was startled at the desire she found there and quickly averted her gaze. Lucius leant in and lightly brushed his lips against hers. Hermione shivered and tried to pull away but she was no match for Lucius' strength. He roughly grabbed her arms and pushed her back against the wall. Tears began to flow down Hermione's face. Suddenly there was a loud crash in the fireplace. Lucius and Hermione both jumped and turned to see who it was. Hermione gasped in relief as she saw the potions master emerge from the fire. Lucius groaned and reached into the folds of his robe, pulling out his wand. Snape, however, was one step ahead, and pointing his wand at Lucius, he uttered the binding spell. Lucius' body became stiff and still.

Snape then transported his body to the fireplace and flooed Lucius back to Malfoy Manor. Snape turned around and studied Hermione, making sure she was alright. It was then that Hermione noticed the state the professor was in. His robe was torn in many places and there was blood running from most of the tears. Her eyes traveled to his face and she tried not to gasp at what she saw there. He looked exhausted and there was a large gash on one of his cheeks. Hermione rushed toward him and taking one of his arms helped him to his bed. Snape sat down hard onto the bed and immediately passed out. Hermione sat on the edge of the bed and brushed some hair from his face. She watched him sleep for a moment. He looked so different in his slumber, so peaceful and innocent. Hermione carefully got up and went to find Rosie. But the house elf was nowhere to be found. Hermione, confused, headed back toward the lab. She went to the storage shelves where the various potions were kept and did her best to select the right remedies. When she was satisfied with her selection she went back to Snape's bedside and, setting down the bottles, began to administer them to the best of her ability. When she finished she pulled up a chair and sat down to watch the potions begin to take their effect. Slowly the color began returning to his cheeks and Hermione found herself breathing a little easier. A little later Hermione heard a knock on the door and found Rosie holding a tray of food and staring up at her as if nothing were wrong. Hermione glared down at her.

"Rosie, where on earth were you! Have you any idea what has gone on here tonight!" she hissed.

"Please forgive me miss, I was frightened and hid myself in the castle." her lips quivered and her eyes brimmed with tears.

Hermione sighed and shook her head.

"Alright, Rosie, please don't cry. I was frightened, too. You go to bed now. Thank you for the food."

She took the tray and headed back to the professor's bed. She found him awake and propped up on his elbows, watching her intently. He still looked weak but the sight of him awake made Hermione's heart jump. She timidly set down the tray and sat back down on the chair.

"How are you feeling, Professor?"

Snape grimaced and laid back down.

"I feel like I was hit by a train. What on earth did you give me?" he asked grumpily.

Hermione listed off the various potions and added the reasons why she chose each one. Snape tried to hide the fact that he was impressed, but finding that to be impossible, looked at Hermione and gave her something close to a smile.

"Ms. Granger, if I ever decide to take on an apprentice I hope you'll consider the job." He looked away then and his face grew serious. "I think you may have saved my life."

Hermione felt somewhat dazed by that statement and blinked back the tears that were threatening to flow anew. She then grasped Snape's hand and looked him in the eyes. Snape, surprised, started to pull back, but then changed his mind.

"Professor, what happened to you tonight?"

Snape relaxed and looked away. For a moment Hermione thought he wasn't going to answer, but then he turned around and looked into her eyes.

"It started out as a fairly typical evening. After dinner I felt the familiar burning on my arm and hurriedly made my way to the Dark Lord. He was only surrounded by the inner circle, which as I think you know, includes Lucius. The Dark Lord questioned me about you, how your pregnancy is coming along, whether or not we can expect any complications, etc. He still has not mentioned what his exact plans are for you and the child when the time comes. Anyway, the rest of the Deatheaters were questioned after me and then we were dismissed. As I was readying myself to depart Lucius stopped me and took me aside. Right away I knew what it was about. I could see it in his eyes. He asked me if he could see you tonight, his intention, of course, being to.." he awkwardly cleared his throat and looked away."have his way with you," he finished. "I told him it was out of the question. I told him that it would be dangerous for the baby and that Voldemort would surely not approve. He got angry at that and said that there was no reason the Dark Lord would ever need to know. And given that he is already a father, I suppose he understood that it most likely was not dangerous for the unborn child. When I persisted, he lost control and attacked me. We fought for what seemed an eternity before I stumbled and fell, leaving myself completely open for attack. He hit me with a spell that I'm not familiar with and I passed out. When I woke up I was terrified that I had been out for hours and would be too late to save you. However, as it turned out, I was just in time."

He looked at her then with an expression that Hermione had never witnessed before on her protector's face. It was a look of uncertainty and fear. She felt a gentle squeeze on her hand. She looked questioningly into the Professor's black eyes and he opened his mouth as if to say something but quickly stopped himself and looked away, pulling his hands free. Hermione watched him in confusion and then slowly got up.

"You must be tired. I'll let you get some sleep then. Goodnight, Professor" she said softly.

Then without waiting for a reply she quickly left the room, and as soon as she was safely behind her own door, she broke down and sobbed. The entire evening had simply been too much for her, and in exhaustion she slipped into bed and surrendered to oblivion.