A/N Chapter Warnings: Thank you for all your positive feedback! i'm glad you all enjoyed the first chapter of this new story. Story is rated M for a reason, this chapter may contain: bad language, sex, violence, mentions of rape, and general adult themes.
Chapter 3: Going Home, Summoned and Draco Visits
Severus returned back to Grimmauld Place just after dinner had been cleared away. He hated to admit it but, his home had been extremely lonely all afternoon, he missed his Hermione's presence. This worried him, how was he going to cope not seeing much of her for the next school year? It was going to drive him mad.
"Boo" Severus jumped and rounded on the intruder with his wand poised.
Hermione looked thoroughly shocked to be facing Severus' wand.
"I didn't mean to scare you that much! In fact, I didn't think I would scare you at all!" Hermione exclaimed.
Severus lowered his wand and let out a breath.
"I apologise, I was in a world of my own and wasn't expecting that" Severus admitted bashfully.
Hermione suppressed a giggle as she heard footsteps approaching them.
Harry was stood a few paces behind them and paused.
"Are you leaving again Mione?" He asked.
Hermione nodded and went to her friend and hugged him.
"I've said goodbye to the others, you were in the loo, but I promise Harry, contact me whenever you like" she said as she showed him a necklace that had her DA coin attached to it.
Harry grinned in understanding.
"I will see you next Friday then" Harry stated.
"We can go to Flourish and Blotts together" she laughed.
"Anywhere but there!" Harry groaned.
"Anytime tonight would be nice" Severus drawled, snapping the pair out of their own world.
Hermione flushed red and Harry looked angry.
"I am ready now sir, I apologise" Hermione said as she moved towards Severus.
Before she could take a step, Harry lightly grasped her wrist.
She turned and Harry leaned in to whisper in her ear.
"If you could shag him to loosen that stick that seems to be permanently lodged up his arse, it would be greatly appreciated by the whole of Hogwarts" Harry said cheekily.
Harry quickly turned away and ran off chuckling to himself.
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, blushing furiously, even though her oldest friend had probably already barricaded himself in his room by that point.
Hermione turned and saw that Severus had a similarly stunned look in his face and then looked at Hermione.
"Anything you wish to tell me?" Severus asked her.
Hermione grinned.
"I will explain at home" she stated.
Severus took her hand and the two headed back to the apparition point and disappeared with a bang.
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"Minerva gave me these to give to you" Severus said once they had arrived home.
Hermione looked at Severus who was holding out a couple of letters to her. She walked over and took the two envelopes out of his hands. Were these her OWL scores? She practically snatched the envelopes and ripped the first one open. Hermione's heart thumped and she took a deep breath and unfolded the paper. She stared wide-eyed at the piece of paper for a moment and then a look of disappointment shone in her eyes.
Severus panicked for a moment. Surely Hermione hadn't done badly?
"And…" Severus asked impatiently.
"All O's, except one" She murmured disappointedly.
"That's amazing! Congratulations my love" Severus went over to her and kissed her on the lips.
"I'm so proud of you! But why do you look so disheartened?" he asked her.
"I only got an E in Defence, we worked so hard towards the end of term, and I thought I would have had something more to show for it than just an E" she said.
"Hermione, listen to me. You got that E even though the Weasley twins bombarded your final Defence exam and even though you had been assumed dead and missed the final tiny part of the practical examination. Everyone else was lucky to get an A for both those exams combined with everything that was going on. You got an E and you were not even there for one exam" Severus beamed at her.
Hermione smiled up at him, she accepted the results, knowing that she would have smashed it had she not been practically bleeding out at the time of the exam. She hugged Severus back.
"If it really means that much to you, and you really are disappointed, there are re-takes that are being offered to student's whose exams were disrupted at the end of last term" Severus told her.
Hermione nodded. She would re-sit the practical part of the exam, she was only a few marks of the O grade anyway.
"And, your second letter?" Severus queried.
Hermione had nearly forgotten about that one and she opened it to find her welcome back to Hogwarts letter, along with a list of supplies that she would need for this school year.
"Good thing we're going to Diagon Alley soon" Hermione mused as she stared at the very long list.
Severus nodded in agreement. The pair was silent for a moment when Hermione spoke, without thinking, eyes still transfixed on her letter.
"So, who is Horace Slughorn?" Hermione slipped out. She was too focused on her letter to notice that Severus had practically frozen.
Then, a moment later, Hermione froze, she just realised she had confessed that she had been eavesdropping again, she blushed scarlet as Severus turned to her with a raised eyebrow.
"What is it about being with those boys that brings out your mischievous side?" Severus asked amusedly.
Hermione stared at him as she considered her response.
"You forget, you also bring out my mischievous side" she replied huskily as she donned a sultry expression.
Severus gulped and loosened his collar; the room felt like it had been notched up a few degrees in temperature. Hermione grinned; she had his full attention now.
Severus moved towards her, fully intending on dragging her to bed but Hermione had other ideas.
"Uh, uh, uh" she shook her head and her finger at him in the negative towards his actions.
Severus halted immediately and looked at her confused.
"Give me the information that I seek and I will reward you Lemon Drop" she grinned at him as she slowly stroked his hardening cock through his trousers.
Severus groaned. She really was the devil incarnate.
"Slughorn used to be the Hogwarts Potions Professor before I took over" Severus began once he had regained control of his body.
"He's been invited back this year to teach potions. Dumbledore believes that Slughorn has some key information that could help us and is going to use Potter as a way of trying to get the information" Severus continued. He paused, knowing that his Hermione would have a million questions about this. She didn't disappoint.
"Why does Dumbledore think that Harry can help? What information does Dumbledore think this Slughorn has? Most importantly, what does that mean for you? Where do you fit in this year?" She asked without pausing for breath.
"I do not know the nature of the information, only that Dumbledore believes it will benefit us in the coming war. Slughorn likes to 'collect' students, any student that has a promise of being something special, or someone famous, ends up being invited to his own personal social club and has their picture put up on his famous shelf. Potter being Potter can manipulate that and help Dumbledore get the information he is after. It also means that this year, I am going to be the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor" he told her.
Hermione beamed at him.
"Congratulations Severus! It's just what you have always wanted" she smiled, then looked at him and frowned.
"But you don't seem happy about it" she mused.
Severus sighed.
"I have been given this position because I am no longer needed as the Potions Professor, not because of my talents or abilities. This was a last resort situation, I had always imagined this moment to be a lot grander than what it actually is" Severus admitted.
Hermione moved towards him and hugged him tightly.
"Oh Severus, you could teach every class in that school singlehandedly, both you and I know it. Just because some old fool still harbours a grudge against you, doesn't mean that your skills are not recognised and respected by everyone else around you. I'm happy for you but also scared shitless, you do realise you have the jinxed teaching position this year?" She said.
Severus raised an eyebrow in question.
"The jinxed position…you've never heard of it? Every year since I started Hogwarts the DADA professor always ends up fated to leave, in one way or another. I don't really believe in fate but I'm still terrified for you" she said.
"Yes but, Quirrell, Lockheart, imposter Moody and Umbridge were all idiots, they all got what was coming to them" Severus told her.
"What about Lupin? I know you had something to do with that" Hermione smirked at him.
Severus flushed red. Yes, he had been involved in ensuring that Lupin be outed as a werewolf to the parents of the students. It was petty but he had been angry at the time. Not that it mattered now anyway.
"Lupin ia returning this year" Severus stated.
"What?" Hermione gasped in shock.
Severus nodded.
"Hagrid is needed to try and get support and followers for the light again this year, so Lupin will be teaching Care of Magical Creatures. The parents have been informed that, he is what he is, and have reluctantly agreed to his return this time round" Severus said.
"How did Dumbledore spin that?" Hermione asked perplexed.
"Now that everyone knows that the Dark Lord has returned, they also know that Lupin was part of the original Order for the first wizarding war, or he played a big part in it at least, they ironically feel that their children are safer knowing that more of the staff are members of the Order and are in a position to protect the children" Severus explained.
Hermione digested the information, it made sense, she agreed with herself. She was kind of excited that Remus would be teaching again and it did make her feel safer knowing that he was there.
"Ok, thank you for telling me Severus, I know you shouldn't be really" she smiled at him. She then moved forward kissed his cheek and made her way upstairs. She had been upstairs a good couple of minutes before Severus thought of something else.
He went to the bottom of the stairs.
"What about my reward sex?" He shouted up to her.
"I'm already naked for you love" Hermione hollered back.
Severus ran up the stairs like a teenage boy about to get his first handy. Hermione giggled as she heard his desperate stomping up the stairs and she prepared herself to be thoroughly fucked.
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Severus made his way to the iron gates, he was a little nervous although he would never admit it to anybody else.
Hermione knew how he was feeling, she had been there when his mark burned for the first time in weeks, she had seen the look of shock that crossed Severus' face and then she looked at him worriedly as he donned his Death Eater garb and headed out.
"Severus, welcome, how has your summer been?" the Dark Lord asked him.
"Fine my Lord, and yourself?" He asked politely.
"We are making progress Severus, my Azkaban breakout was successful and plans have been made for the new recruits. Draco has made me extremely pleased and has been given his next task of murdering the old fool who currently leads that contaminated school. When he falls Severus, you will take over as headmaster, I trust you old friend. I know that both you and the young Draco will succeed" he grinned evilly.
Severus smirked in return whilst trying not to show that he was seconds away from vomiting on his own shoes.
"Any news from you Severus?" the Dark Lord asked.
Severus nodded.
"I have been informed that I will be the Defence professor at Hogwarts this year and Slughorn will be taking up potions teaching once again" Severus informed him.
The Dark Lord breathed in sharply.
"Do you know why?" He asked Severus.
Severus noted the defensive tone in the Dark Lord's voice. He replied with caution.
"I have no idea my Lord; however, he has also invited back the werewolf to teach classes. So, my guess would be that the current headmaster wants more members of the light teaching in the castle. As long as all the professors are 'qualified', for lack of a better word, to teach then the headmaster wants them on the school grounds. In other words, it is more protection for the school. Which means he sees you as a threat" Severus tried to appease him.
The Dark Lord chuckled maliciously, clearly believing every word.
"That is fantastic news Severus. However, does this mean that the old fool is doubting you as he is taking you away from a position in which you are notorious for?" the Dark Lord mused.
Severus thought of a quick reply to stop him from being crucioed seven ways to hell.
"On the contrary my Lord, everyone knows that I have wanted to teach Defence for years. Instead of getting rid of me completely, it seems that the old coot is finally recognising my skills. Also, it will be an advantage for you as I will be in control of teaching the students how to 'defend' themselves" Severus stated gleefully.
The Dark Lord laughed darkly.
"Congratulations Severus, it seems you have achieved quite a lot this summer and without my assistance at all. You are gold dust my friend and you have clearly proven your worth to that foolish old coot" the Dark Lord praised Severus.
The two shared another glass of fire whiskey before the Dark Lord spoke once more.
"I am extremely happy with your efforts my friend. I must ask you to make your leave soon however, I have other matters in which I need to attend to. Is there anything you require of me at this time?" He asked Severus.
Severus hesitated.
"Go on" the Dark Lord encouraged.
"I was wondering if I may see my godson before term resumes. I know what the potions and defence syllabus' are going to be and I thought I could practise some of the classes with him. That way, when the school year starts, it will seem that he is still on top of all his classes, as he should be, but he can dedicate more effort to his task of killing the old coot" Severus said.
Severus could see the Dark Lords mind ticking over.
"I hope I haven't overstepped my bounds my Lord. It's just, if Draco gives anything less than the high quality standard of work that he has always given, his teachers will notice and they might start asking questions. Once that happens, Dumbledore will be watching him like a hawk" Severus said.
"Once again, you are right Severus. Young Draco shall spend the remainder of the holidays with you Severus. I have no more use for him this summer. He knows his task, he knows what to do, and it's all up to him now. He knows what failure means for him" the Dark Lord stated.
Severus nodded as the Dark Lord called for a house elf.
"You are to pack all Master Malfoy's things for his school year and you are to send him down here to me. You have two minutes" the Dark Lord snapped at the elf.
The skittish elf disappeared with a pop and almost instantly reappeared with all Draco's luggage. Draco came rushing into the drawing room moments later looking slightly put out. He bowed at the Dark Lord.
"You sent for me my Lord?" Draco asked, looking surprised at Severus' presence.
"Draco, you are to go with your godfather now, I shall inform your parents of the arrangements. I will see you during the Yuletide period, do not disappoint me Draco" the Dark Lord warned and then disappeared with a loud crack.
"Severus?" Draco asked, trying not to show that his eyes were welling up with tears. He had truly missed his godfather.
Severus moved to embrace Draco. The two shared a quick manly hug before quickly separating, they did not want to risk being seen being affectionate.
"Come on son, let's go home" Severus said as he shrunk down all Draco's belongings, except for one bag that would last Draco the week, and put them in his pocket.
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Upon walking up to the front door, Severus could hear music playing. He instantly knew Hermione had put the record player on because he knew that she loved muggle pop music.
He could hear her singing that song by Bryan Adams.
Draco looked up at Severus hopefully at the unmistakeable voice that he could hear on the other side of the door.
The two men entered unbeknownst to the young woman who was currently dancing in just her underwear and a strap top and singing off key at the top of her lungs.
"The only thing I want, the only thing I need, the only thing I choose, the only thing that looks good on me...is you"(1) she sang.
She promptly stopped when she had turned to face the entrance hallway of the house and noticed both Severus and Draco staring at her. Severus looked like he wanted to take her right there and then and Draco was not sure whether to cry at the fact she was alive or laugh at how hilarious she looked at that moment.
"Ummmm...hi?" She said unsure of herself.
"You are dancing around in your knickers because..." Severus grinned playfully.
"I was nervous about you having to leave...I may have turned to Bryan Adams and a couple of glasses of wine to calm myself" she admitted.
"I can see that" Severus chuckled.
Draco cleared his throat.
"Oh! Draco! I nearly forgot you were there!" Hermione exclaimed as she approached him.
Draco picked her up and spun her round.
"I thought you were dead!" He yelled, still in shock.
"Not quite, I was injured though. Severus healed me" she said.
She gave Draco a kiss on the cheek and he put her down so that she was standing once again.
"Will you tell me what happened?" Draco asked both Hermione and Severus.
Severus nodded in response.
"Only when she is wearing more than just her knickers" Severus stated. She was very tempting in just her knickers, and Severus knew he would be completely distracted.
Hermione blushed having forgotten that minor fact and went over and grabbed a pair of Severus' clean boxers. They were like a pair of shorts on her anyway. She turned to Severus with her eyebrow raised, silently questioning if he approved.
"That's right! Wear MY underwear, because that's less distracting!" Severus said sarcastically.
"I'm not going upstairs just to get some trousers, you'll just have to restrain yourself" she smirked at him.
"You drive a hard bargain witch" he replied.
The three of them sat down and Hermione and Severus filled Draco in on everything. He looked surprised that so much had happened in such a short amount of time. The conversation then shifted to Draco.
"How's your summer been Draco?" She asked him.
"I have had a psychotic megalomaniac traipsing around my home with a snake that just wants to eat you, how do you think my summer has been?" He asked.
Hermione grimaced.
"Sorry Draco, I didn't think before I asked. Are you alright?" She asked him.
Draco was about to reply when there was a sudden knock on the door. The three froze.
"Quick, you two, upstairs now and keep quiet until I tell you" Severus hissed quietly and waited until the two unlikely friends were out of sight.
Severus opened to door and found the aged headmaster stood in his doorstep.
"Severus, I need to speak to you, it's urgent. Meet me at Hogwarts immediately" Dumbledore said as he walked off to the apparition point.
Severus was stunned and went to the bottom of the stairs and shouted up.
"It's the headmaster and he wants to speak to me at Hogwarts, I will be back later. Don't destroy my house" he told them.
Draco and Hermione had appeared at the top of the stairs and nodded at his words.
"Ok Severus, stay safe" Hermione replied as Severus headed out the door and for the apparition point.
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Severus walked quickly through the grounds of Hogwarts and to the headmaster's office. Upon entering, he found the aged headmaster sat looking forlornly into the distance.
"Albus?" Severus asked quietly. He had never seen the old headmaster look so put out.
Albus silently held up his blackened, withered hand.
"What the bloody hell have you done?" Severus exclaimed in disbelief as he examined the deteriorating hand.
"The vanity of an old man Severus" was the headmasters only reply.
Severus ran some spells and diagnostics over the hand...the outcome was bleak.
"Albus..." Severus trailed off unsure of where to begin.
"Just tell me Severus" Albus replied.
"It's bad, it's cursed, I can slow it down but it will kill you eventually" Severus said gently.
Dumbledore nodded in understanding.
"I'm a foolish man Severus, I tried on Grindlewald's ring and now I shall pay the price with my life" Dumbledore said as he nudged the cursed ring towards Severus with a quill.
Severus looked at the ring and cast some spells over it.
"It's dark Albus, just like your ex-lover" Severus stated.
"How long have I got?" Dumbledore asked.
"Perhaps a year, maybe a little less" Severus said.
Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully.
"I will brew you some potions" Severus said.
"Thank you my boy, leave me now please and do not tell a soul. We both know Draco has been ordered to murder me...this might be a blessing in disguise" Dumbledore said.
Severus nodded in agreement and turned and fled the castle. As much as Severus hated the old man he agreed that without him, they were all fucked.
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Back in Severus' home, Draco and Hermione were sat waiting in anticipation for Severus' return.
"I know what you've been tasked to do Draco" Hermione admitted, her words echoed loudly in the silence of the house.
Draco felt ashamed.
"I'm not a murderer Hermione; I'm not a Death Eater either. I can't do this and he will kill me for it. I have a year left of my life but I'd much rather die with my soul intact" Draco confided to her.
"Oh Draco" Hermione said as she cuddled up to him and the pair cried themselves to sleep on the sofa.
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Severus walked through the door some time later and paused at the sight of his lover and his son curled up asleep on the sofa. The tear tracks gave away that they had been crying and he felt sorry that two young people were in that position. Severus always thought that war was cruellest when it made children cry.
Severus shook his head and retreated to his study where he proceeded to begin brewing some potions for Dumbledore.