For the Potions Master's Amusement

Chapter 78: Her Way Clear

It wasn't easy. She hadn't supposed it would be—not really—but she wasn't prepared for how difficult it was to open herself up to Master Claudius' presence in her life. She thought of Severus Snape every day and longed for him with her whole being, but he had all but pushed her into the arms of another Dominant. Fine. She was determined to demonstrate her willingness to learn, so by Circe, she would make a good job of training with Claudius. She was thankful that she spent four days a week out of the presence of her training Dominant, for in the beginning, she often felt resistant and resentful, and such emotions were much harder to hide in person.

Her first week of journal entries went well enough, but over the weekend, staying with the Claudius family in their rooms at Roissy House, she was confounded by how emotionally intrusive he was. Oh, it wasn't as if he walked in on her in the bathroom or interrupted her heart-to-heart conversations with Vi. It was, instead, in their long conversations together about her life before she had agreed to wear the red patent leather training collar. In these discussions, he found a way to quiz her and demand further detail and explication until he brought her face to face with the same question, over and over again: What had been her error, her fault, in every situation where she had come away dissatisfied? And this intensive scrutiny was not confined only to her past interactions with Severus Snape, no; it was given to every situation from her previous experience in which she ever expressed disappointment to Master Claudius.

Simply put, it made her as cross as a bear.

'Oh, what does it matter?' she demanded one Saturday afternoon, lunging to her feet and pacing to the door and back again in front on the desk where he sat, looking as serene and unruffled as ever.

'Is it your contention that I ask you questions for the purpose of hearing myself talk?' he inquired, and his tone held enough warning for Hermione to stop in her tracks and look dispiritedly into his face.

'No, of course not, sir,' she said. He didn't have to do this, she reminded herself. He was giving up his free time, time he could be spending in some more pleasurable way than listening to her whinging. 'But what can it possibly matter, all this raking up of old grievances?'

His head tilted slightly to one side, his grey eyes intent. 'If it is your purpose to blunder through life feeling like a perpetual victim, there can be no useful purpose served by examining past experiences,' he said evenly. 'But in that case, you can scarcely have need of my services. I do not train victims, Hermione.'

She flushed angrily, her fists clenching at her sides. 'I'm not a victim!' she responded shrilly, conscious that she was raising her voice more than was strictly necessary.

'Then perhaps all of these instances of ill treatment you have endured in the past have their genesis elsewhere,' he said calmly, disregarding her defiant posture and less than respectful tone. 'It is not uncommon for a young person to be easily silenced by an adult, Hermione. We are taught from the cradle to respect our elders, and it is a difficult thing to make the leap from childhood to adulthood and to make our voices heard.'

Hermione sagged into the armchair she had deserted, her brow furrowed, and she picked at the fabric of her cotton skirt, pleating it and smoothing it, pleating and smoothing, her mind working over what Master Claudius had said. Could it be as simple as that? Could her feelings of ill-usage be no more than irritation caused by having her thoughts and opinions disregarded or worse, discounted, due to her youth?

'But that wouldn't make sense with Harry and Ron,' she said, raising her eyes to his face. 'They frequently ignored me, too.'

Claudius' eyebrows arched. 'Surely you're not of the opinion that age discrimination is the only problem you face?'

Hermione stared at him, her jaw dropping in indignation. 'Are you suggesting sex discrimination?' she demanded.

He inclined his head minutely. 'Very good, Hermione,' he said quietly.

'They wouldn't do that!' she cried. 'Well,' she amended conscientiously, 'Harry wouldn't. Ron has some odd ideas.'

'I will have to bow to your knowledge of your friends' personalities, for I know only what I have read in the newspapers,' Claudius remarked. 'Still, in my conversations with young women who wish to be submissives, this is a recurring theme: They have been disregarded all of their lives because they are female.'

Hermione frowned, leaning forward. 'But sir,' she said, 'isn't that part and parcel of being a submissive, as well? To be …' She shrugged, not knowing how to finish her sentence.

Master Claudius' eyes never wavered from her face. 'Please,' he said courteously, 'complete your thought.'

Hermione took a breath. 'All right,' she said. 'It seems to me as if the women in this community are, by and large, treated almost like children, or like brainless ornaments, by the men. The men retire to the Dominants' Study and talk about manly things while the women are left to discuss women's concerns in the parlour, as if we were living in the nineteenth century, or something. And Severus expected me to join the other submissives and sit idly by while the war went on—how could he have expected me to do that?'

Once again, she had grown shrill, but Master Claudius' gaze had grown only more intense as he listened to her. 'Have any of the women of this community ever communicated to you dissatisfaction with the things of which you speak?' he asked her.

'No, but I wouldn't expect them to. Wouldn't they be in trouble if they did?'

'Not one submissive in Roissy House is held against her will, Hermione—such a thing would never be tolerated here. Each submissive is with her Dominant of her own choice. Have you discussed these matters with one of them? With Violet? Or Taffy? Or Elinore?'

Hermione shook her head, and the untidy knot of hair at her nape threatened to spill from its confining pins. 'No, I haven't. I don't have to. It's obvious to me that they're content with matters as they stand.'

'Is it your belief that these women are not permitted to voice contrary opinions or beliefs to their Dominants?'

Hermione paused. Did that make sense? No, it didn't. She had seen Elinore voice contrary thoughts to Hadrian, and she knew that t and Kell had engaged in discussions with their Masters about things upon which they disagreed—but they had those discussions in private, where such license was permitted. Just because Hermione did not witness disagreements between the other couples did not mean that such disputes did not take place.

'Well?' Claudius said, insistent.

'No, I know better than that. Of course they voice their opinions and beliefs to their Dominants.'

'And do you look down on these women for behaving submissively in public?' he asked, his voice mild, as if he had asked after her health.

'No!' Hermione gasped … but did she? Did she think she was somehow superior to her friends because she thought of herself as less submissive—more independent-minded? Did she think she was more intelligent than they were?

Master Claudius nodded, as if he had been reading her thoughts. 'Yes, that's what I suspected.'

Hermione dipped her head, feeling a touch of shame. 'I know I'm not better than they are,' she said miserably. 'I just hadn't thought it through all the way, before.'

Several minutes passed in silence, marked only by the ticking of the fine old clock in the corner of the room, and Hermione fussed with her skirt again, mulling things over. After a quarter-hour, time during which Claudius did not appear to move a single muscle, Hermione looked up at him.

'Each submissive has an agreement with her Dominant,' she said slowly, and Claudius gave her an equally slow nod of agreement. 'Each couple has their own agreement; no two are the same.' Another nod. 'Just because I don't know all of the particulars of another couple's contract doesn't mean they don't have disagreements and work through their differences like other men and women all over the world.' Nod. 'The fact that the Dominants at Roissy House customarily take a glass of brandy or have a cigar in the Dominants' Study after dinner does not mean they have no respect for the opinions of their submissives.'

Claudius stood and came around the desk, taking the armchair beside her as he had done once before, adjusting it to face her before sitting in it. 'And what does this mean to specifically for you?' he inquired.

Hermione closed her eyes. 'This is hard,' she complained.

'What does it mean, Hermione?' he persisted.

She sighed, concentrating and considering her words before she spoke. 'Severus didn't lack respect for me or my ability to reason,' she said, her head aching a bit, as if in protest of the hard work. 'He was more guilty of age discrimination than anything else; we had made the transition from teacher/student to Master/submissive without finishing the transition of relating to one another as adults, rather than as adult to child.'

She opened her eyes, looking into the grey eyes watching her with complete attention.

'I must have a contract with—' she swallowed and continued doggedly on 'with my n-next Dominant. I must voice my absolute necessities—my deal breakers—as well as my needs and wants, and I must negotiate with my Dominant. I must not allow myself to be bowled over by his personality, because I must begin with him the way I mean to finish.' She wet her lips and sat up straighter. 'I have to speak up and ask for what I want and not expect my Dominant to read my mind, because he is only a man, for all my admiration of and attraction to him. I have to be sure of myself—sure of my personhood—because the Dominant who is intimidated or put off by that part of me is not the Dominant for me.'

The smile which graced Claudius' face then was a thing of beauty, and Hermione found herself smiling in answer. She felt as if she had just passed a difficult oral examination.

'Good girl,' Claudius said warmly, and Hermione felt a surge of gratification. 'I am very proud of the work you've done today,' he added. 'You may have the evening to do with as you will, providing you are in bed by midnight. And tomorrow morning, please hand in a two thousand word essay summarising what we have discussed today and what your conclusions are.'

He stood and offered Hermione a hand to pull her to her feet, and they shared a spontaneous hug, after which Hermione left the study with a lighter step, feeling as if she had just moved a mountain, stone by solitary stone.


Three weeks after her training with Master Claudius began, there was a party weekend at Roissy House. Hermione arrived early on Friday afternoon.

'What did you bring to wear to dinner tonight?' Vi asked, shifting baby Marcus from her right breast to her left.

Hermione removed her red cocktail dress from her belongings. 'I have my black one, as well, but I like this one better.'

Vi nodded; she remembered the dress. 'That will be lovely,' she said. 'Now, are you ready to discuss the rules?'

Hermione nodded.

'Master is waiting in his study to review them with you,' Vi said, and Hermione knocked on the door before entering the now familiar room.

She advanced to Master Claudius' side and knelt respectfully, her eyes on the floor. 'Hello, sir,' she said quietly.

Claudius took her chin and tilted her face up, keenly surveying her face. 'Your eyes are bright, no dark smudges, your skin is clear—you look well, Hermione,' he pronounced.

Hermione smiled gratefully. 'Thank you,' she said with genuine pleasure. 'The time of quiet reflection before bed is helping; I'm sleeping much better.'

He gave her cheek a careless caress and nodded toward the armchair. 'You may sit,' he said, and she obeyed. 'Let us review the rules for tonight's dinner and dancing. You may interrupt if there is anything unclear to you.'

'Yes, sir,' Hermione answered, and she listened carefully.

'You will follow the rules which Kelly gave you before your first party at Roissy House. In addition, you will remember that you are appearing tonight for the first time under my protection. There may be questions from people about the end of your relationship with Master Severus. You may answer any questions you feel comfortable with, but you are not required to discuss anything you don't wish to. You may say that questions can be directed to me, and I will deal with whatever it is. Do you understand?'

'Yes, I do,' Hermione answered promptly.

'You have permission to dance with anyone who asks you, but you are not required to dance. It would be very unusual for a Dominant to approach you regarding play or sexual activity tonight, but if it happens, you will decline. No play will be permitted tonight.'

'Yes, sir,' Hermione answered.

'Good girl,' he said, standing and smiling. 'Then you may go to begin your preparations. I will see you before we go down to dinner.' He opened his desk drawer and removed a flat black jeweller's case, which he held out to her, and she came forward to take it. 'This is the collar you will wear for party weekends,' he said.

Hermione opened the case, immediately recognising the gold collar with the platinum disk inscribed Trainee, which she had seen Kell wear at parties during her training with Claudius. 'Thank you,' she said.

'You're welcome,' he said soberly. 'And as a special treat, you may wear your hair down tonight, if you wish.'

'Thank you,' Hermione said, genuinely touched. She knew how much he disliked her messy hair. Master Claudius was a man who prized orderliness in all things.

'Before you join us to go downstairs, spend ten full minutes in quiet repose,' he instructed her. 'Centre your thoughts, and you will make us very proud tonight.'


Downstairs at Roissy House on the Friday night of a party weekend! Hermione had been afraid she would feel out of place, but she need not have worried, for all of her friends were present. Taffy flew up to her before she had taken two steps from the staircase and wrapped her up in a fragrant hug.

'You look beautiful!' she whispered in Hermione's ear. Taffy held her at arm's length and looked her over more carefully. 'You look better than you've done in a year or more,' she added. 'Master Claudius is a good influence on you, I think.'

Hermione turned shining eyes on her two mentors, Claudius and Vi, who stood together, cool and beautiful, in conversation with Rafe. 'They're both good influences,' she said.

In his turn, Rafe lifted her from her feet and twirled her once before setting her down again, his broad grin split his bearded face. 'You look good,' he told her seriously. 'Are you … with them?' He nodded meaningfully toward Claudius and Vi.

Hermione shook her head. 'Not like that,' she said quietly. 'It's all very much hands-off.'

Rafe seemed relieved. 'Whatever you're doing, it's agreeing with you,' he said.

Hermione tilted her head slightly. 'Are you … information gathering?' she asked, feeling a bit hopeful. 'Does he know?'

'I'm not gathering information for anyone but myself,' he told her, 'and if he knows, it's not because I've told him. It's not as if we owl every week, or anything.'

Hermione took a step closer to him. 'Will you tell him?'

'I can't let him come back here in the summer unaware—and if I don't tell him, you can count on Hadrian to do it. It would be a dirty trick not to tell him.'

And with that, Hermione had to be content.

She saw Kell and Reg at dinner, but had no chance to talk with them until they found her in the room where the dancing would take place. Kell was radiant in blue satin, her hair shining beneath the candlelit chandeliers. 'Are you happy?' she asked, squeezing Hermione's hands. 'Are they kind to you, Claudius and Vi?'

Hermione returned the pressure of her hands. 'I'm content,' she assured Kell. 'And I haven't been able to say that before—not ever in my life. He's helping me in ways I didn't know I needed to be helped.'

The musicians began to play, and Reg took her hand. 'It wouldn't be a party weekend if I didn't dance with Hermione and have my ego deflated,' he said gaily. He nodded to the chairs along the wall. 'Wait for me there, pet,' he said to Kell, and she went willingly, pausing only to give them each a kiss on the cheek before leaving.

Hermione waited for Reg to begin their conversation, and he did at last, after dancing in silence for what seemed a long time.

'Claudius taught Kell a lot,' he said. 'He's not a jolly sort, but he's a serious Dom.' He looked down into her face. 'Are you glad to be here? To be training?'

Hermione smiled. 'I'm very glad, Reg—thank you for caring enough to ask. Master Claudius is giving me exactly what I need, right now. I couldn't ask for more.'

He looked at her sharply. 'I can't put my finger on what it is, but you're different. Calmer, somehow. Restful. It suits you, Hermione.'

The song ended, and they stopped dancing and applauded politely, but before they could cross the floor to where Kell sat waiting, a tall blond man stepped up to them. Reg's lips compressed into an annoyed white line, and Hermione found herself looking up into the smiling eyes of Master David, the Quidditch-playing Dom.


Saturday afternoon found Hermione curled up in a chair in the Roissy House nursery, with Vi and t in rocking chairs opposite her, their babies at their breasts, and Kell sitting on the floor, holding a soft pastel teddy in her hands. Popkin, the nursery house-elf, folded nappies in the corner as the witches talked over the happenings of the weekend.

'Master David danced with you three times last night,' t said to Hermione. 'You looked as if you were having a good time.'

Hermione nodded. 'He can be very charming—didn't you think so, Kell?'

Kell put the teddy aside and nodded. 'He can be, yes. In the end, I just couldn't forget about Reggie, though.'

The other three smiled at her affectionately, and Vi said, 'And you were right to keep on hoping, weren't you?'

Hermione's eyes dropped at this, and although she could feel her friends watching her, she didn't look up. Kell had very nearly contracted an alliance with Master David before she and Reg had worked out their problems. If it had been right for Kell to keep on hoping, wasn't it right for Hermione to keep on hoping, as well? It had felt odd permitting David Osborn to pay court to her, however mildly. He was younger and handsomer and fitter than Severus Snape—but he wasn't the man she loved, and her heart wasn't really in the light-hearted flirtation.

'It's not disloyal,' t said gently, and Hermione looked up directly into her t's soft, pretty eyes.

'It felt wrong, somehow,' Hermione admitted.

'Taffy is right,' Vi said serenely, moving baby Marcus onto her shoulder and beginning to pat his back. 'It's good practice, Hermione. You're taking the lessons you're learning from Master and applying those lessons in real life situations. It's not disloyal at all.'

Little Marcus uttered a resounding burp, earning fond praise from his mama and from Popkin, the nursery elf. Vi surrendered the blue-wrapped baby to Popkin and stood, extending a hand to Hermione.

'Come along, so we can determine what you'll wear for the Dungeon party tonight,' Vi said. 'Master prefers skin, but I know you aren't comfortable with that idea.'

Hermione blanched, holding tightly to Vi's hand. 'Please don't make me go naked,' she said shakily. She had been able to endure the humiliation—just barely—with her Master at her side. She didn't think she could stomach it on her own.

'It's not so terrible,' Kell said, standing and coming over to hug her. 'It was hard the first time, but after a while, you don't think about it so much.'

Taffy slipped from her chair onto the rug at her feet, where she settled baby Daisy in a sitting position with the teddy bear, which Daisy promptly put in her mouth. 'It's not as if you don't have a lovely body, Hermione,' she said gently. 'And it's only the envelope, you know—your true self is within, and no one can touch you, physically or otherwise, if you don't permit it.'

Hermione nodded miserably. 'I know that's true,' she said, 'but I can't get over my childhood training, you know? Nice girls don't show their knickers, much less their naked bums!'

Vi wrapped an arm about her waist and led her toward the door. 'Master will most likely set a date by which you will agree to appear at the Dungeon party naked, and we'll both help to prepare you for that day. But he will expect it eventually, Hermione, so you must resign yourself to it.'


That night, wearing her pink corset and the black satin knickers that went with it, she was alarmed when Master Claudius rejected her ensemble.

'This isn't a proper garment,' he said, frowning as he surveyed the knickers, which knotted at her hips. 'It won't do. You'll have to go without.'

Hermione gasped in consternation. Go without? Go downstairs bare below her corset? Oh, no, no, she wasn't prepared for that!

'Master, may I make a suggestion?' Vi said quietly.

Claudius turned his frown to Vi, who wore a silvery blue negligee, in deference to recent childbirth. She would be expected to revert to her former Dungeon wear—or lack thereof—when she had time to recover a bit, she had confided to Hermione. For now, she took Hermione's hand and said, 'She has a negligee ensemble which includes a tiny black thong. Would it be permissible for her to wear it, instead?'

Claudius gave this suggestion some thought. 'It is a proper garment?' he asked.

'It is, yes,' Vi answered, and Hermione would have gladly kissed the other girl's feet in gratitude. The thong knickers were barely there, but compared to going naked, they were a huge relief. What a near miss!

'Then is will be acceptable,' Claudius agreed, and when Hermione had made the change, the three of them descended to the Dungeon.

Hermione had scarcely made it to the bottom of the staircase when she was rushed by Jacquie and Diana, Professor Snape's first student trainees. They were spectacularly nude, wearing matching platinum collars edged with diamonds and trailing leads in the hand of their Master, Robert.

'It's been an age!' Diana said, looking her over closely. 'We were so sorry to hear …'

'But not terribly surprised,' Jacquie added, giving Hermione's hand a squeeze. 'Still, we've been worried about you—and we're so glad you're here!'

Master Robert nodded at Hermione's respectful greeting. 'You would be welcome to spend time with us in Dorset, if Claudius gives you leave,' he said, and Hermione knew without being told that she had just received an invitation to join in a foursome with the red-haired goddesses and their portly Master.

'Thank you—you're very kind,' she responded, keeping her eyes averted and trying very hard not to show revulsion.

'She's not bi,' Diana murmured to Master Robert.

'She's young,' Master Robert replied, giving their leads a tug and beginning to escort them away. 'She just may not know it, yet …'

The Dungeon was, as ever, humming with excitement, and Hermione felt her libido stirring. She was surrounded by people in various stages of undress, with exhibitions going on all around her. Someone was receiving a whipping on the St Andrew's Cross, and she felt the heat in the pit of her stomach, wanting to experience the sting of the leather on her flesh. Further along, a Dominant was giving a demonstration of proper preparation for anal intercourse, his lubricant-slick fingers working into his submissive's arse, her head thrown back, as if the sensation were deeply arousing. Hermione remembered the times she had worn the anal plugs, preparing for this sort of activity, and though it had never been her favourite thing, she would have willingly completed the training for her Master's sake.

She moved on to the waxing station, where three different submissives were being decorated with coloured candle wax, including the girls Hermione had met the month before—the two who had been there for sessions with Severus. What were their names? Chassity and Ava? Each of them was playing with a Dom Hermione did not know, and she felt a vicious stab of jealousy to think these two nobodies had enjoyed the attentions of Professor Snape more recently than she had done. Her fists clenched at her sides.

'Is there a problem?'

Hermione looked over her shoulder to find Master Claudius standing there, his cool eyes intent on her.

'No,' she lied, making an effort to relax her tightly clenched fists.

'Of what possible service can I be to you if you persist in hiding your emotions from me?' he said quietly.

Hermione felt her resistance melt in an instant, and she reached for him gratefully, wanting to feel his comforting, calming arms around her. Instead, he took her by the wrist and escorted her to one of the darkened areas. She sat down as he indicated, and he sat beside her.

'Tell me,' he suggested.

'Those girls,' she said, and the mere thought of them curled her hands to fists again. 'I hate them.'

'That's a very strong reaction,' Master Claudius said. 'Why, may I ask?'

'They were with him—with Severus—and I hate them!' she said, her breath coming in short pants.

'Were they?' Claudius said curiously.

'I told you they were!' she said crossly. 'Over Easter—they had sessions with him!'

A faint crease appeared on his brow. 'Are you certain?'

Hermione wanted to hit him. 'Why are you questioning me about this?' she demanded, her voice rising with her agitation. 'I told you all about it when I came to you for help!'

Claudius' patience was unruffled. 'What, exactly, can you do about it if they were with him?'

'Nothing!' she spat, the jealousy twisting through her insides like a malevolent worm.

'Do you have any say in what Master Severus chooses to do or whom he chooses to see?'

Her throat ached suddenly, and she closed her eyes. 'I have no control over what he does,' she managed in a trembling voice.

'And what are you learning about situations in which you have no control?' Claudius asked, finally drawing her attention to him fully.

'That it's pointless to squander my energy fretting over them,' she said, her voice stronger now.

'What do you have control over?' he asked, his voice gentle but insistent.

'I have control over what I do—over my reaction,' she replied, her voice calming, her breathing slowing as she repeated her lesson aloud to him.

'And how does your anger and frustration over a situation in which you have no control benefit you?' he continued.

Hermione turned her face and looked at him. 'It doesn't benefit me at all,' she said. 'What benefits me is being serene and remaining centred,' she added. Peace began to seep into her consciousness, and she breathed deeply, welcoming it.

Master Claudius smiled at her. 'Very good, petite,' he said, using the endearment which she seldom earned from him. 'Now, go sit with Chassity and Ava. Inquire after their sessions with Master Severus. And when you've finished your conversations with them, go up to your room and write two thousand words on what you've learned tonight.'

Hermione tensed. Go sit with them? Show friendliness to the girls who rated more attention from Severus than she did? Invite them to gloat about it? Her lips parted to object, but Master Claudius watched her as if he fully expected her to do as he asked.

And with nervous perspiration breaking out on her forehead, Hermione stood to do just that.


Excerpt from the journal of Miss Hermione Granger:

… I suppose the most illuminating realisation for me in this exercise came when Chassity and Ava told me they had neither of them been in a session with Professor Snape. I was gobsmacked. All of the agonies through which I have put myself since the night I last spoke with him—at least those related to Chassity and Ava—have been unnecessary, and I suspect, Master Claudius, that you are fully aware of this. It is probably the reason why you gave me this assignment. It is certainly a crystal clear illustration of why it is counter-productive for a person—no, for me—to make assumptions based what I think I know. Those two girls had been reintroduced Professor Snape here, at Roissy House, and they had been present with him at meals. They said that, to their knowledge, he had not been involved with any submissive in any way during his stay over the Easter break. They were under the impression that he spent his time with Hadrian. They said neither of them had received any individual attention from him, though they intimated they would not be averse to the opportunity. For that, how can I, of all people, blame them? I certainly have experienced the power and intensity of those attentions, and though I am loath to see another submissive receive them, I cannot condemn a woman for desiring him. It would be the purest hypocrisy, coming from me.

In the end, I think I probably answered more questions with Chassity and Ava than I asked. They had heard I had been the professor's submissive, and they were keen to know what it had been like. I answered them as politely as I could and excused myself to complete my assignment.

So, has Severus Snape been 'sessioning' submissives? I don't know, do I? And it's a pointless exercise in futility to waste my energy on speculation. First of all, it's none of my business. Second, regardless of how he chooses to spend his leisure time, my well-being and development are not furthered by making him my focus. He is my past. He has not chosen to be part of my present, and I do not know what the future holds. It is my business to make of myself the best possible submissive I can be, for that is my desire. If I am fortunate enough in the future to engage the attention of Professor Snape, it will be his good fortune to have attracted the attention of a woman who knows her own mind, who is fully cognisant of who she is and where she wants to go. I will be able to meet him, or any other Dominant who interests me, on an even plane, as his equal, which will make my offer of submission all the sweeter to him, should I choose to tender it.

I thank you for this writing assignment with all my heart, sir. It has been of monumental benefit to me, for I see my way ahead more clearly. I have learned from you that self-knowledge and self-worth are the most powerful tools a submissive may have in her personal armoury. I am better prepared now to go forward in my training with a refined purpose.

Respectfully,

Hermione

Hermione put aside her quill and knelt on the rug beside her bed in her room in the Claudius family flat. Assuming the submissive's pose, she closed her eyes and breathed deeply, beginning the process of clearing her mind for sleep. She was an intelligent woman, successful in her career, sure of her wants and needs, and preparing herself to make her way through the world in quest of her heart's desire.


A/N: I know I said the professor would be back in this chapter, but I was wrong. Please forgive me. He will definitely be back in Chapter 79. Thank you for your patience, and be sure to tell me what you think!