FAGE 14. Escape From Reality

Title: Mistaken Truth

Written for: SopranoStewart

Written By: 4CullensandaBlack

Rating: M

Summary: Hermione decides to step out of her comfort zone for one night and ends up in a case of mistaken identity. Having a former foe at her side, will it be her downfall or her saving grace?

Prompt used: Hermione/Snape:

Just when things were starting to look great, the main character can't help but develop feelings when they are involved in a case of mistaken identity and (2) An unlikely hero, the main character struggles to adjust to life when a stranger enters their life with an intriguing proposal that results in a man being kidnapped.

If you would like to see all the stories that are a part of this exchange visit the Facebook group: Fanficaholics Anon: Where Obsession Never Sleeps, or add the C2 to get all the stories direct to your inbox.

.../FAGE-14-Escape.../130805/

A/N: Trigger warning, mentions of sexual assault. This story is not beta'd, please excuse any errors in tenses or grammar.

"HERMIONE JEAN GRANGER…you can not be seriously thinking of wearing that" screams Ginny from the foot of the bed in Hermione's small bedroom.

"Why? What is wrong with what I wore to work?" says the shy muggle as she looks down at her outfit. I looked cute today. She thought.

"This is an after-hours drink with Viktor" swoons Ginny as she picks up the stuffed teddy bear off of the bed and hugs it to herself.

Rolling her eyes, Hermione turns to the floor-length mirror away from her friend. It was times like these when she missed Luna the most. Next to Harry, she considered Luna her best girlfriend. She would let Hermione wear whatever she wanted. Whatever made her feel comfortable. She was already stepping out of her comfort zone by agreeing to go out with her ex after all these years. She had books she could be reading, spells she could be mastering, and recipes she could be trying for her mom's upcoming birthday.

Looking at herself in the mirror, she didn't understand what it was about her that made men not last long in a relationship with her. After the war, she and Ron were hot and heavy but he let the fame get to his head. He had finally gotten what he always wanted, to step out of Harry's shadow and claim fame and fortune for himself. She knew that her feelings for Ron were just a crush mixed with trauma. The trauma of trying to survive at Hogwarts with a dark wizard trying to kill her best friend. When the relationship ended she was not as upset as others believed that she should be; but, she was still lonely.

Taking a deep breath she went into her closet and pulled out this gray body con dress that was gifted to her by Lavender Brown, a few years ago. After getting dressed, Hermione agreed to let Ginny style her hair; but, of course, she had serious plans for Hermione and chopped off a large amount of her hair. The muggle was furious but a quick styling spell helped to turn it into a solid pixie cut. Hermione not so nicely asked Ginny to leave after that. She made it to the restaurant just in time or so she thought.

Viktor left word at the Fair Fortune restaurant that an emergency had come up and so he would have to reschedule for their "friendly drink." Hermione understood, things happen but "friendly drink" she shaved for this. She let Ginny get into her head that she might be getting laid for this. A "friendly drink" was no longer in her plans, she was ready to turn and leave but the maitre'd told her that Viktor had left access to his account and that she could order whatever she liked on the menu.

Sitting in a booth in the back of the restaurant, Hermione observes the couples around her and she yearns for the love and commitment that she saw before her. It doesn't help that Valentine's Day has just passed. Even though the holiday was not typically celebrated in the wizarding world, she still feels some kind of way about being single around this time. After finishing her meal she is ready to leave; but, then her waiter brings her a drink that she had not ordered, "I didn't order this. I am leaving, the bill has already been settled, correct?" Hermione is confused about why she is being given a glass of champagne.

The waiter addresses this by saying, "the gentleman in the corner booth also wanted me to ask if you would join him." Hermione glances over at the table, she can not make out the man's face but she decides to throw caution to the wind. Hermione is a skilled and trained officer of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, after all.

After years of being stuck in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, she finally got an opportunity to work closely with the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects, thanks to Mr. Weasley. It was because of her time in those two divisions that she was hand-selected to be a part of the elusive Ministry of Magic's Witch Watchers division of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I got this, thinks Hermione.

She knows that she will be able to handle herself even if the man got too fresh for her liking. Hermione decides to embrace the unexpected invitation and to be someone different tonight. She decides to take an escape from her reality. She was longing for a change from her personal life or lack thereof. Slipping into the booth opposite the handsome, older, brown-haired, and olive-skinned gentleman, Hermione thinks of the possibilities of being someone different than who she is.

"Hello, beautiful. I saw you were dining alone and I thought to myself. 'Self, why is that beauty by her lonesome maybe she needs this beast to comfort and tame her.'" The man finishes with a laugh as he reaches his hand underneath the table to rub on Hermione's knee. "Are you alone?" he asks and before she could even get out a word about the uncomfortable way he was making her feel, two people approached the booth.

"So, is this what you have been doing with the money that you stole? Wining and dining old men" came the deep voice of a woman. Hermione was confused, 'are they talking to me? Who do they think that I am?'

"Excuse me," she says as she turns to see one of her former classmates Millicent Bulstrode.

"Oh shit, Granger, I am so sorry I thought you were someone else" she slowly starts to back up as she reaches her hand for her wand; however, before Hermione can grab for hers, royal blue sparks fly above her head.

"Shit, it's him. Let's bounce" screams the guy next to Millicent after trying to throw and failing at a petrifying spell. At this point, Hermione has uncapped her wand and is aiming it in the direction of where the first set of sparks came from.

"I don't need this shit, not over a piece of ass. I am out of here, doll" rudely whispers, the older gentleman as he moves quickly out of the booth and to the exit. The waiter runs after him since he had not paid his bill.

"Granger," says a voice under a thick hooded cloak, Hermione barely makes out the person when all at once the voice finally registers in her mind as her former professor.

"Snape" she viciously utters and then remembers herself and what Harry had learned about him from the Battle of Hogwarts in which he had survived Nagini's attack. Once a potions master, always a potions master, thinks Hermione as she lessens her battle stance.

"I'm sorry. I mean Professor S…"

"Severus. After all, we are colleagues now."

"Yes, we are. Why did you leave Hogwarts, anyway?" Hermione knew the answer to this question but wanted confirmation about the rumors. It was said in the Daily Prophet that he had snapped and no longer wanted to work for the school that he helped destroy during the Second Wizarding War. However, Harry said that Snape felt unworthy and knew that he needed to make up for his crimes against Harry and the students of Hogwarts. He didn't feel comfortable with any former Death Eaters still roaming the grounds of our beloved school. Of course, Harry and the professors at Hogwarts did not want Snape to leave, they felt that he was invaluable to the current and future students.

"I needed a change. I needed to write some of the mistakes that I made, starting with your classmate, Millicent. She has aligned herself with the wrong crowd. This new generation of wannabe Death Eaters is trying to restart the chaos that we have fought so hard to overcome. It is my mission to reform and save them or slam the gates of Azkaban in their faces. Whichever they choose!" Severus finishes his thoughts and grabs Hermione's coat from her chair where it rested prompting her to turn around allowing him to help her place the garment onto her body.

"Thank you," she says as they turn to exit the restaurant when the waiter rushes back inside frantically, "THEY TOOK HIM" he screams with tears running down his now bruised face. "I tried to fight them off but they started to attack me so I ran after the first punch."

"Who did this? Took whom?" asks Hermione as Snape cautiously looks around the both of them ready to strike at a moment's notice. He pulls his wand out again ready for battle.

"The ones that were in here earlier. They took the man that you were sitting with Ms. Granger" he said as the news hit Hermione hard. When she left her apartment this afternoon she did not expect to have to rescue a creepy old man that she sat down in a booth with for less than five minutes.

Hermione sits the waiter down trying to get as much information as possible while Snape goes and makes a call to the Aurors, she can only assume. After producing a sedative from her bag, she joins Snape at the main entrance.

"We got a name. Clemmie, apparently the guy said and I quote, "if it wasn't for the Clemmie look alike we would not be in this mess." Hermione says as Severus turns to her as she continues, "then Millicent said, "yeah her and Granger look dangerously alike."

"Clemmie as in Clementine Waters, interesting" answers Snape as he pulls out a small notebook.

"O…kay…well that is not all. You know that I am now over my division as of six months ago?" she asks.

"Yes," he says, wondering where she is going with this. He never liked Hermione, especially her self-righteous, know-it-all attitude. "The entire department, outside of yourself, got killed during a raid for stolen weapons and spells in Knockturn Alley" he concludes.

Shaking her head in agreement, she continues with her explanation, "my superior didn't want the 'new booty' to get her ass handed to her, so they left me in the office to do paperwork. But, the reason that led to the searching of Knockturn Alley was due to them receiving a tip that came into the Ministry about kidnapping and an attack. The waiter, Craig, over there just said that one of the assailants had gold sparks coming out of his wand and that he could smell a foul odor, like squid oil that's gone bad. It is the same thing that the tipper reported in the area of Knockturn Alley."

Just then the Aurors appeared, "Snape, Granger, report."

The head of the Aurors questioned them both individually for hours back at the Ministry. It was determined that an undercover operation would be established to infiltrate this new organization. Severus disclosed that Clementine Waters was a recent casualty of a secret raid done by combined departments but that her name and several others had not been released to the public as of yet. According to the underground dark wizarding web, her organization believes that she has gone underground to evade the Ministry and their other enemies.

After reviewing the photographs of Clemmie, it was determined that Hermione would go undercover with Snape as her lead-in. He has been working as a spy for months trying to get information from this group.

Hermione always wanted to be active in the field; but, her aversion to flying and to the use of the Avada Kedavra curse, also known as the Killing Curse, stopped her multiple times from speaking up. She knew that it was one of the reasons that the team hadn't wanted her to be a part of their last operation. She decides to step into her fears and embrace this new opportunity.

She agrees to the challenge presented to her and Snape was not surprised by that fact, she was a Gryffindor after all. Hermione and Severus decide to use a PortKey to the last known location of Ms. Clemmie Waters. They found themselves outside of the Nurmengard, confused but unwilling to speak to lessen their detection. They move quickly to conceal themselves with a cloaking spell; but, for some very odd reason, it did not seem to be working.

"Clemmie, oh my God…you're safe," said a young, handsome man. He grabs her into a bear hug, "I was so worried."

"Um," moans Hermione as the young man's hands slip lower down her back, causing her to look at Snape in worry. Before she can fake awareness, the young man leans back and kisses her on the lips. Opening his mouth, he uses an increasing amount of tongue as the kiss continues for several moments.

Clearing his throat, Snape tries to gain the new couple's attention.

"Dude, WHAT?! I am trying to show my girl how much I missed her and you are killing the mode" says the young man. "Who are you anyway?" he questions.

"Who are you?" counters Severus trying to gain the knowledge that they needed for this ruse.

"Chandler Dankworth, but my friends call me Dank, and my girl Clemmie calls me Chanie" he counters as he stands in front of Hermione protectively.

"I need no introduction but since it seems you are not the most refined, I am Snape" answers Severus as he waits for acknowledgement.

"So the former Death Eater and trader," he says, "and how did you hook up with my sexy baby."

"Chanie, he saved me just in time before the Aurors showed up. He had been helping out some of the other factions get out as well" Hermione sells the explanation that they had rehearsed beforehand. "We went underground until it was safe to resurface," she concludes, reaching out and turning Chandler's face to hers. She smiles seductively, getting closer to him and purring.

"Babe, let's get you inside so that I can warm you up" Chandler whispers in her ear and then licks her earlobe afterward.

"Hermione shivers in disgust, but the young man thinks that it is in pleasure. Severus observes the exchange in annoyance and irritation as he moves to the entrance Nurmengard.

"Hold on old-timer," says Chandler as he grabs Hermione's hand and moves them in front of Snape. Now standing in front of the door, he speaks "Tenebris Aperire Artes" (translates to Open to the Dark Arts).

Looking down at Hermione, "we changed the password when you didn't come back" states Chandler as the door opens. Snape tries a wordless spell that allows him to communicate with Hermione through telepathy.

'Can you hear me? Don't speak, just answer in your mind,' he says quickly when it looks as if she was about to start talking.

'Yes, I can hear you. I see that our magic is back to working' Hermione answers in her mind.

Walking into the foyer of the prison, Hermione and Snape are surrounded by at least fifty individuals covering the space. The majority of them do not pay attention to the new arrivals; but, one person does, the older gentleman that the waiter said was kidnapped. The man that tried his hardest to hit on Hermione. The undercover individuals realize this quickly, 'he does not seem in distress to me, thinks the female muggle to her former professor.

"My Clementine," says the old man as he kisses Hermione on the cheek and cops a field by grabbing her boob, "my sugar-tits. I missed you so much."

"Watch it, Villaver. I told you about being handy on my girl," says Chander angrily as Villaver raises his hands in surrender. Motioning to the left, all three of them follow the older gentleman down the narrow hallway into a cell that has been transformed into an office.

"Sit" demands Villaver but before Hermione could sit down, he grabs her hand and walks her over to his desk. Sitting he places Hermione on his lap, "now why is Severus Snape with you, love?" asks the obvious leader of this group. Chander was fuming as he sat opposite his "girlfriend" and his boss. Sitting beside him, Snape looks just as uncomfortable and ready to pounce on Villaver if his hand continues to wander any further up Hermione's leg.

"He" she begins as the older man's hand rises higher up her thigh. 'Think goodness I wore leggings under my dress,' she thinks to Snape but as soon as the thought was in her head; the garment was magically removed. "Oh," she begins but is interrupted.

"You know my rule, sugar-tits, only skirts or dresses" comes the stern whisper of Villaver into her ear.

"Sorry, I forgot…my head injury…" she goes on to continue when the man's hand reaches under her dress but is stopped from entering her female region by her panties.

"Tsk, tsk, sweetie- you keep breaking my rules…no panties either" before her underwear could be removed a blue spark of magic stings him dead in the eye. His body slumps in the chair and Hermione jumps up, she looks at Severus and sees that he has knocked out Chander as well. Sadly, his rescue did not come fast enough to save her panties as she feels a breeze when she stands, turning quickly. She looks at Villaver in disgust and then sees her panties, crumbed in his hand.

"Sick pervert," she screams.

Snape grabs her and hugs her to him, "are you okay? When I realized what he was doing I had to act. I could not wait for the Aurors." he says into her hair.

"Thank you, but I was trying to use my magic and it was not working," she says as tears fall down her eyes. Hermione knew that this mission would be dangerous and that she could have gotten hurt, but she never thought that she would be assaulted.

"Shh, it is okay. I locked the door and they will be out for a while. I think that the reason why your magic didn't work is that Villaver has dark objects around the building that are specific to knocking out women's magic. I noticed similar objects outside of the building." he says as he releases Hermione and goes over to the desk and breaks a glass dog figure with the word, 'BITCH' engraved on it.

"I think I hear the Aurors," she whispers as she feels her magic coming back to her. Her first spell restores her missing clothing and then she uncaps her wand as the fighting and arresting gets underway.

"GRANGER, SNAPE" screams Harry from the other side of the door. The door opens and Harry looks at his best friend with relief, he was out on a mission in another country when Hermione was sent out undercover.

Running to hug him, she felt comfort in his embrace, "We rounded everyone up and we will get these two assholes. You two can head out." He says after releasing Hermione and nodding at Snape. He returns the nod to his former student and newest friend, grabbing Hermione's hand as they move to the Floo that is located in the office.

"Thank you, Severus, but I am fine. Just like I said at the Ministry. You did not have to bring me home" she continues to rant as he carries her inside of her home placing her on her couch. Ignoring her, Severus goes into her kitchen, opening her refrigerator he sees the fixing for his Gran's homemade soup.

Hermione decides to take a nap, well it was not a choice, her body was extremely tired. While asleep, Snape ends up moving Hermione to her bedroom once he came into the room and found her asleep. Having a window into the young woman's life gave Snape a sense of familiarity as he was met with several muggle items that he had not seen in years.

"AHH," a scream comes from Hermione's room causing Snape to run to her room. Shaking her awake, "Lily, please wake up" he yells with tears in his eyes.

Hermione wakes with a start from her nightmare, "I'm sorry" she says as she realizes what he called her. Reaching her hand up to his face she caresses his cheek, "shh, it's okay. I am okay" she continues to say as Severus' shoulders shake in his anguish. Pulling him into the bed with her, she moves over giving him room to lay down.

They cuddle together for about an hour, it was during this time that Hermione realizes that the both of them were hurting in different ways. 'Thank you' says Snape in his head to Hermione.

"You are more than welcome," she says out loud. "I would have been in a worse situation if it wasn't for you. Thank you." She kisses his cheek, a thought pops into her head, that Severus would make the perfect partner and newest member of the team she was building in her department.

"Everything is going to be okay" she whispers in his hair as she rubs his back. He reaches up and runs his fingers through her hair. She shivers with excitement, however, Snape believes it is because she is uncomfortable so he moves to get up but she tightens her hold on him.

Hermione never thought that agreeing to go out with her ex-boyfriend would lead to cuddling, working with, and possibly developing feelings for her former professor.

But, if wanting to step into her fear and take a leap of faith could lead to a possible mistake then it is a mistake that she is more than willing to make.

FIN