A/N: Once again, I apologize for where the last chapter ended. It was just not coming at all. I think I can wrap it up here in a flash back, and then we're going to get moving again. And thank you all for reading. I love getting to read your comments after posting. Btw the way….WE GOT A NEW KITTEN! I'm so excited. In fact as I finished typing this chapter she was laying on my chest purring away.

Chapter 29

Severus enjoyed the peaceful times at home while Hermione was at rehearsal. He wasn't looking forward to a bunch of students butchering a musical he cared for, but it made her happy and so he let her keep it. But as he worked on plans for the school, as a new headmaster, he thought back to when they struck that deal. The night she saw her first real death-eater celebration.

As Hermione brought him the woman, Severus held back a laugh of relief. She couldn't have known that she was the woman he always took. She was experienced, and he didn't have to hurt a young girl. He always passed it off as refusing to have bad sex with an inexperienced girl.

But what happened next wasn't what he was used to.

"Now sit down, Hermione. Sit down and watch him. Severus, I command you to ravage this woman, chosen by your own wife."

And Severus did as he was told, casting a non-verbal spell on himself to make the pain go away for just a little while, and ripping the woman from Hermione's grasp. He dragged her over to a couch, vanishing their clothes and pushing her down. He didn't know if Hermione was watching at this point or not, but he took the whore with a fever caused by pent of sexual frustration. His mind kept flashing between Hermione and Lily.

He had blacked out the rest of the night. The last two weeks had flown by. He had managed to regain some of her trust, but things weren't where they had been before the wedding. And she was barely home with rehearsals, but when she got home, she had an exhausted smile on her face and spent her time reading the books he had bought when they first found out she was pregnant.

He heard her come through the door and then run upstairs. The bathroom door shut, and a few moments later the water was running. He was going to ask her if she wanted to go out to eat tonight. They had to discuss moving to Hogwarts and how she would spend her school year. She wouldn't be able to work with most potions, and might not be able to partake in some other classes, including the replacement course, The Dark Arts. He would not have her in that class. But it would be easy enough to avoid that. He listened to the water run and had to force himself to not imagine her showering. Then the water stopped, and after a moment the bathroom door opened and her bedroom door closed. He waited a minute before getting up from the kitchen table and heading upstairs. He knocked gently on her door.

"Just a moment!" She called from within.

He listened to her kind of hop around a little, probably getting into some jeans, and a small bang as, what he thought, was her banging her elbow on something throwing on a shirt. The door opened with a towel sloppily thrown on her head, getting ready to fall off anyway.

"Would you like to go out tonight. I got a little caught up in my work, and we have some things to discuss."

"Well, I could really go for some escargot, know any good French places?"

"I think I could arrange something."

"Thank you. And shall I dress up?"

"Maybe a casual dress if you like."

And with that the door closed and Severus headed back down stairs. He knew a small place and called ahead, where they promised to have the back room ready for him.

Hermione came down shortly, not in a dress like he had suggested, but wearing slacks and a nice blouse. Her hair was pulled back with a barrette. He took her hand, and they disappeared in a puff of dark smoke.

"Severus, I know what you're going to say," Hermione said after they had been seated, "We have to move into our quarters at Hogwarts."

"Well yes, but that's only a small part of it. I don't think you should go to classes. The other professors can give you your classwork and you can work in our quarters, the library, anywhere you wish. Maybe you could get ahead, do some extra credit. I know you want to put on a brave face, but there will be days you're sick, days you're sore, days-"

"Severus, I agree. I've been pretty sick lately and I know, as much as I hate the idea of it, I would miss a lot of class. Not to mention after I give birth, going to class would be almost impossible."

"There's also the matter of sleeping arrangements. Even moving into the headmaster's quarters, there won't be much space, and I'm afraid we'll have to share a bed."

To that, Hermione didn't have a response. She wasn't sure how she felt about him now. Although she no longer distrusted him, she wasn't sure she trusted him enough to sleep next to him every night.

"And to be quite honest with you, I don't want to find a way to make that not happen. I want you close to me. The Carrows will be teaching there this year, and I do not want them near you. And if anyone tries anything, I want to be right there. I don't want to fail you again."

"Fine, but I want pillows between us."

"I don't like it, but I understand it."

Hermione nodded. Honestly, she couldn't look at Severus the same way. Not since she watched him take that woman. She forced herself to, knowing she had to. And it was such a strange feeling.

They ate dinner in a strangely comfortable silence and returned home. Each returned to their rooms, planning to sleep well and pack tomorrow before moving into the castle.