Short chapter here. You'll notice that I've got a bit of writer's block. Not fun.

And I'm not getting many reviews. Come on, guys! Show me some love! I know that more people are reading than that! Don't be afraid to speak up! What do you love? What do you hate? Have a voice!

I don't own Harry Potter!

Hermione opened and closed her mouth several times. Like everyone else in the castle, she knew that Snape was a former Death Eater but to hear him announce it to her in so frank a manner took her off guard. Severus must have gathered the awkward vibes that were emanating from her because his smile faded away.

"You knew I used to serve the Dark Lord, Hermione, yes?"

She nodded as she sat down on the edge of her bed. He couldn't read the look on her face.

"I have long since been reformed. Albus would not allow me to set foot in the castle otherwise. You know this." When she didn't speak, he added. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Severus' voice was gentle and Hermione couldn't help but notice how uncharacteristic the tones sounded in her ears. Unsure of how to phrase her questions, she hesitated and his spirit seemed to sink a little lower. With a little less pep, he approached the bed and sat down.

When he rolled up the sleeve of his left arm, his pale skin shone in the moonlight. At first, she noticed nothing but her took her hand and guided it over the very slight scars that raised his skin. "I bear little physical evidence to show that I ever stood on his side, but that doesn't mean that my mind has forgotten his secrets." In saying this, Severus sounded almost bitter.

"Why did you ever join Voldemort?" Unable to find another way to word it, Hermione came out with her thought. "What did he offer you?"

"I wasn't raised like you were. You grew up with Muggles, unaware of the dangers of our world." He paused and then waved his wand in a lazy circle. The candles dimmed and it took the Seventh Year a few moments to realize that he was hiding his face from her, as though he was ashamed. Though she was nervous, she moved closer to him and took his hand. He held onto it.

"Think of the last two years… hearing rumors that he's been gathering strength and forces again… encountering him… witnessing the deaths he causes and the fear that rises. That was my childhood. For fifteen years, that's all there was. Everyone was terrified, wizard and Muggle alike. Even from behind the walls of Hogwarts, we knew what was going on outside."

"When I graduated, I had nothing. Voldemort promised me power." His gaze on her grew darker. "I had never known the love of another. The only thing that mattered to me was strength. He gave that to me."

His last note rang in the silence and Hermione suppressed the shiver that threatened to run up her back. Clearly, she pictured the events of the past two years and tried to imagine that going on for 15 years.

"It was the winning side. The ones who opposed him died. They always did. I wanted life so I choose to side with him. No one saw an end to his reign until Harry Potter."

"But even before Harry," she blurted out, "You had your misgivings, right? Something told you that it wasn't the life you wanted?"

Severus shook his head. "No. It took a year after his downfall for me to truly denounce who I had been. The others ran and hid. Some were caught and they confessed my name and the names of other men and women but the mark was long gone. Albus worked on my side when I was tried and almost convicted. By some miracle, they let me go under the pretense I would stay and work in the castle. I think that the Ministry assumed that Albus Dumbledore would be able to keep a former Death Eater in line."

She swallowed the lump that had formed in the back of her throat. "Did he always trust you?"

"No. But in time he did. Though, when word arose of Voldemort's return, I thought I could see him look at me differently. That feeling has since dissipated."

"You haven't… considered… going back to him, have you?"

"No. There's no reason to."

"There was no reason to then, either." She set her jaw into a stubborn line.

He let go of her hand. "You're too intelligent to be naïve on the topic. You don't understand yet I don't expect you to."

Hermione didn't respond, feeling very tense. With a sigh, the Potions master leaned forward, kissed her lips and then stood up. "I'll leave you be for tonight then." With that, his body disappeared again, the door opened and then closed.

Judging by the still air in the room, Hermione could tell she was alone.

She let out a breath of air and then laid back onto her blankets. When Severus had exited the room, the candles had come back to life and Hermione was now watching the shadows dance across the walls.

A biting paranoia or strange worry was sitting in her chest. If Severus had been a Death Eater, he had been part of the evil plots of the Dark Lord. He had murdered people and probably tortured the ones he spared.

…But… that's not who he is anymore…

If he remembered all the "tricks" that Voldemort had taught him… shouldn't he remember the victims he took?

She shivered at that thought and extinguished the candles in her bedchamber. Rolling over to try to sleep, she could feel the raised skin of the scar under her fingertips, haunting her mind. She closed her eyes and clenched her fists until the sensation went away. After a few moments, she breathed again, telling herself that she was being ridiculous.

He's on our side… And he'll stay here… I'll make sure of it. I'm not sure how… but I will.

She got up from her bed and began to dress herself in the dark.