Chapter 34
It was mid-afternoon on the third day that Remus had been at the mansion. In those three days Remus Lupin had endured an emotional agony so brutal that his soul was permanently affected. In a mere 72 hours, Remus had lost a part of himself that would never be regained.
The man he'd been a week ago, before he'd been forced into this hellish reality was gone forever.
At the present moment, He lay naked next to the heartless bitch who had coldly murdered Sirius.
The one man he'd loved more than anything else in this world.
Demanding female hands reached for him, nails scoring his flesh in insistent need.
In three days he'd had sex with Bellatrix more than a dozen times.
How many times exactly? He didn't know. The instances of the act itself had all blurred together in his mind, new scratches and bite marks on his body the only things that marked how many times he'd serviced her.
Deep inside his soul was still screaming, though of course there was no outward sign of it. One of Bellatrix's hands moved down to clutch his cock.
The very core of his soul shuddered at the touch.
The fact that she could make him hard at all filled him with an intense self-loathing. The fact that he pretended to actually enjoy what she was doing to him sickened his heart far beyond most men's breaking point.
Remus stared at her, forcing himself to somehow feign lust for her.
It would be so easy just to snap her neck.
The one thing that prevented him from doing exactly that was the knowledge that if he killed Bellatrix, Voldemort would know that Severus had deceived him and Hermione would surely fall into Voldemort's hands.
When Severus had warned that Bellatrix would want to have sex with him, Remus had mistakenly thought that it would be a one time thing.
If it had been one time, he could have forced his mind to lock the memory away and forget about it.
But this? No, he could never forget.
He'd spent hours rutting with her, satisfying her sexual hunger. And her lust for him didn't appear to be diminishing any time soon.
Draco stood on the balcony of Malfoy Manor's master bedroom, his eyes fixed on the horizon where the tops of the old trees met the skyline. It was mid-twilight and facing west, only a mere sliver of sun was visible to his eye. A soft summer breeze blew against his hair. Draco lifted a cup of tea to his lips and watched as two deer emerged from the trees to graze in the meadow below the balcony.
Taenara stood behind him. Her simple dove grey gown appeared darker than it really was in the growing shadows.
"I've done as much as I can," Taenara said very softly. "It is now out of my hands,"
Draco turned to meet the goddess's gaze.
"The Muggles have a saying; the die has been cast, derived from the original Latin 'alea iacta est'."
Taenara smiled slightly.
"So they do, Draco."
"One way or another, things will have changed by tomorrow night."
"Yes, either Severus will succeed in killing Voldemort, or he will fail and the three Fates will make sure that Voldemort destroys everything I've fought so hard to preserve."
Draco knew that Voldemort was a weapon created by the Fates to destroy everything Taenara held dear in Magical Britain.
The Fates also had tried their damndest to prevent Severus Snape and Hermione Granger from becoming two of Taenara's most powerful allies.
At this moment, their future was still up in the air.
The Fates had made a spectacular attempt at stopping Severus and Hermione from falling in love. For together, Severus and Hermione would be ten times stronger than they could ever be alone.
Taenara had countered the Fates' every move with a strategic move of Her own.
She had given Hermione nightly dreams that would cause her to suspect Severus's innocence in Dumbledore's cold blooded murder.
She had made Albus promise to prevent Severus from taking the life of his phoenix, for if Severus had first killed Fawkes and then Dumbledore when Hermione was not yet an adult, Severus and Hermione would never have fallen in love.
She had asked Draco to shield Fawkes from Severus's locating spells until he had decided to bond his soul with Hermione's.
And sadly, Taenara knew full well that when Voldemort was dead and gone the Fates would not hesitate to send Her magical world another powerful enemy.
Even if Severus succeeded in ridding the world of Lord Voldemort, the Fates would quickly send another evil being to take his place.
Taenara feared that the next dark force the Fate's unleashed would be a dozen times more powerful than Voldemort.
No matter what happened, she could not win the battle right now. Though she hated the thought of facing something stronger and far more intelligent, to do nothing was equally detrimental to the safety of Her world. If she had not subtly manipulated events so that Severus and Hermione were brought together, the Fates would not have suddenly relented on their attack on everything She'd created.
She needed two allies such as Severus and Hermione. And if the Fates were more angry at Her than usual for bringing them together so that they could fight for Her, that was a small price Taenara would have to pay in the grand scheme of things.
At present she had precious few witches and wizards working to restore what She created to what it once had been. If she had Severus and Hermione among those who fought for Her, it would certainly level the playing field a bit more.
Though the Fates already hated Her, they would hate Her even more if she succeeded in bringing Severus and Hermione to her fighting force.
If Severus was able to kill Voldemort and he survived to tell the tale, Taenara would make herself known to him and Hermione.
She would restore Severus's ability to sire a child.
As Voldemort was the Fate's personal weapon against Her, Severus, Hermione and their children would be Taenara's own personal weapons against them.
But in exchange for that victory, what would the Fates throw at her in retaliation?
Taenara feared that an epic war was in the future.
When that war would come she was not certain, it might be a decade or a century. But it would come.
"Have you any idea what the Fates will do next if Severus proves to be successful?" Draco asked.
"No, Draco. In this I am not omniscient. Your guess would be as good as mine. All I can tell you is that they surely won't wait long before striking again."
Taenara didn't say anything more for a few seconds.
"I honestly hope that my efforts will pay off."
Draco looked into Taenara's eyes.
"I believe they will."
The night on which Severus and Hermione bonded their souls was clear and moonless. Just past midnight, the two of them knelt facing each other on Severus's bed, Hermione at the head and Severus at the foot.
Both were nude for the powerful spell.
Severus's gaze was fixed on Hermione's face.
She smiled at him.
"Shall we begin?" she asked.
"I'll create a shield around your spell as soon as you start it,"
Hermione raised her left hand, palm towards Severus and Severus placed his left hand against hers.
In her right hand, Hermione held her wand. She pointed it at their wrists.
"On this night, at this hour I seek to bond my soul with yours. I willingly give my heart to you. It is yours forever."
As soon as Hermione spoke those words, a thin band of white-gold light came out of the end of her wand and wrapped itself around both their wrists.
The Soul Bonding was not all that dissimilar to the Unbreakable Vow. The basic magical principles involved were the same.
"My soul shall strengthen yours when facing Darkness. My love for you is eternal. It shall never weaken and never die."
After these words the band of pearlescent light settled onto the surface of Hermione and Severus's skin.
Hermione gracefully lowered her wand and Severus continued the spell.
He held his wand at their wrists.
"On this night, at this hour I seek to bond my soul with yours. I willingly give my heart to you. It is yours forever."
Another thin stream of light encircled their wrists.
"My soul shall strengthen yours when facing Darkness. My love for you is eternal. It shall never weaken and never die."
It was now Hermione's turn again.
"Severus Snape, do you accept this spell as being irreversible and binding?"
"I forever do," Severus said firmly, reciting the required words of the spell.
"Will you honour this sacred bond between us above all else?"
"I forever will," he said with conviction.
The two bands of light settled into Severus's skin.
"Hermione Granger, do you accept this spell as being irreversible and binding?" Severus asked clearly.
"I forever do,"
"Will you honour this sacred bond between us above all else?"
"I forever will," Hermione told him, speaking from deep within her heart.
The light merged with her skin.
The spell was now nearly complete.
Severus immediately leaned forward, capturing Hermione's lips with his own.
And as they deepened their first kiss the twin bands of light twisted around each other like two strands of a rope.
Hermione opened her lips to admit Severus's tongue. She let out a wordless murmur as his tongue swept into her mouth, teasing her mouth and tongue without mercy.
She equaled his passion in her response, her tongue boldly playing against his as their lips moved together in what Severus had promised would be pure, unadulterated passion.
It was unrestrained, undeniable ecstasy.
The twisted band around their joined wrists broke into two, a perfect circle glowing on their skin.
They moved their hands to each other's bodies.
Severus gently leaned Hermione back against the pillows and moved his body over hers. Her hands moved down the front of his chest, over his nipples and down his firm sides. Her hands splayed to explore his back, as he focused all his energy on kissing her senseless.
Supporting himself on his hands, Severus began to lower some of his weight onto Hermione's body.
She spread her legs further and arched beneath him, the tips of her aching breasts brushing against his smooth, hard chest.
She pressed herself firmly against his hardened shaft and lifted her hips in wanton desperation.
This time there was no playful foreplay. There was only the here and the now, and after waiting an entire fortnight for this moment, neither one had the patience or the desire to prolong the wait for what they truly wanted.
Severus thrust into Hermione, burying himself deep inside her.
Hermione let out an inarticulate exclamation and dug her nails into Severus's shoulder blades.
Severus's took his lips away from Hermione's mouth and brought them down on her skin again just above her heart. He then began to move within her dripping heat. His pelvis grinded against hers with each of his powerful thrusts as his teeth, lips, and tongue toyed with her body.
Each kiss on her skin was a different combination.
Lips, tongue, teeth. Tongue, teeth, lips. Teeth, lips, tongue.
And all the while, he thrust into her, masterfully driving her to the edge.
This went on for an indeterminable amount of time. In her current state, Hermione could not judge the time.
Hermione leaned her head back in overwhelming pleasure, running her hands down the length of his spine and then back up to the top of his back to tangle her fingers in the strands of hair behind his neck.
Her body tensed in pleasure and she stretched her left leg out into the air as her grip tightened on Severus's hair and skin as she reached her breaking point.
She shuddered against him as her orgasm rocked her to the core, Severus's name coming from her lips as a breathless shout.
She could not think past the burning white-hot sensations of raw ecstasy. It was as if her brain had completely shut down except for her awareness of the mind-numbing pleasure. In that moment, it was all she knew.
Severus joined her a scant few seconds later.
Hermione gazed at Severus with hooded-eyes as his orgasm ripped through his body.
I love this man.
Still inside of her, Severus managed a small smile.
"I trust that I made it well worth the wait?"
"Mm, what do you think?"
Severus let out a low laugh.
"You're not allowed to answer a question with question,"
Hermione raised a delicate brow.
"Oh, I'm not, am I?"
"No, you're not."
Hermione let out a light snort.
"You really want to know what I think?" Hermione asked him, a positively wicked grin upon her lips.
"Yes, tell me."
"If this is how you perform after abstaining from sex for two weeks, I think we should abstain for the same amount of time more often, perhaps even longer."
Hermione giggled girlishly.
"Why on earth are you laughing? That's not funny."
The look on Severus's face made Hermione laugh even harder. It was a rare mix of perplexity and horror.
Hermione smacked him playfully in the chest.
"I'm only jesting, I assure you!"
Severus still did not join her in laughter or even crack a half-smile.
Hermione lifted her head and gave him a quick kiss.
Only then did the faintest of smiles grace Severus's lips.
He withdrew from her body and settled on his back.
"Severus, look at your wrist!"
Severus held his left wrist up to his face and noticed that there was a glowing band of pale gold on his skin. It looked like two twisted gold wires had been fused into his skin.
"Is yours the same?"
"Mine's identical to yours. It's a symbol of our bond."
Severus looked at Hermione and saw that there was a question in her eyes.
"No, there was never anything like this regarding Lily and me."
"It's because our bond is a love bond," Hermione said.
Severus nodded.
"There is a much more powerful connection between us," he told her.
There was a period of several seconds' silence before elther one of them spoke again.
"What will happen today?" Hermione asked softly.
Severus held her gaze without blinking.
"You and I will summon Fawkes. I will kill the phoenix, rendering Voldemort unable to use magic, and then I shall put the same cross bow bolt that kills Fawkes in the blackened heart of the creature downstairs."
So many things could go wrong. The day you've been waiting for is finally here and yet it seems to me like it is much too soon in coming, thought Hermione.
Don't do anything without thinking, Severus. I . . . I couldn't bear to lose you.
The Soul Bond between them enabled Severus to hear Hermione's thoughts without using Legilimency.
I will do everything in my power to ensure that today's events go according to my plan. That I promise you.
A/N: How will the day's events really play out? Only two or three more chapters left!