A/N: SPOV

This will pass. This has to pass. This must pass. The mantra had continued while he trembled in the dark confines of his room, his body tight and magic unsatisfied by the weakest of his dark spells.

He had been loved; he had his chance at redemption, and that damned fool of a man intervened. Love was a power that he proclaimed was powerful and restorative, yet denied to him.

Instead, he was flustered and in a cold sweat as his door opened, but no light could come in. Not here, not now. He was the cold, the darkness. He fucked Catherine to alleviate her of her torture in front of his current students, only to then watch her burn since he had no antidote. The Dark Lord made sure of it.

"Severus! Where are you? Are you okay?"

His aching cock and need to unleash himself was so great; he had her suspended in rope restraints and disarmed her of her wand before he even realized it himself. He heard the gasp of surprise, followed by a warm chuckle.

"Did you know I was coming? Give me some light so I can see you, Sev." Nymphadora said casually, trusting that he was just in a playful mood. Severus' hand was firmly clamped on her throat and she could smell him but started to realize that something was wrong.

"You will not speak tonight, else I will silence you." His hand clamped upon her jaw roughly, wand tip pressed dangerously to her cheek. "Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir." she replied, and saw that the room was growing brighter. There was still an aura of darkness surrounding his hand and wand, but she could make out that he had been distressed from the Dark Revel. His robes were undone and open; a stripe of flesh shone from his neck to his trousers. Usually his body was framed only by the white collar at his neck and the cuffs at his wrists, but the bold white linen framed his torso as he stood before her, his eyes wild and his trousers puckered.

He saw her eyes widen at the sight of him analyzing her. "No, something's different here…" He waved his wand and changed her hair to be long, red, and curly, and bound it up in rope as well. He looked at her some more, and divested her of her clothing.

"You were naked and wanting me even as your blood was boiling. Said that you loved me all those years ago when I refused your offer of submission!" His wand directed her to experience pain and agony as he remembered from last night.

He watched her as she suffered, bound and helpless, and couldn't figure it out.Something was different here.

"You were given that potion, the one I perfected that… has no antidote." His face contorted in rage. "WHY DID YOU SAY THAT YOU LOVED ME AS YOU KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO DIE?!"

He summoned his whip and brandished it in her face. Her eyes weren't resigned as they were last night; they were terrified as they looked at him. "I fucked you repeatedly to delay the torture until I couldn't bring you again through pleasure and used a whip to flay your flesh before you burned to ash."

His hand clamped on her face, his knuckles white with rage. "So why are you still haunting me, witch?! You had your release, over and over, until the Desiderio Bollente immolated you and I got NOTHING!"

His eyes bored into hers and he tried to make sense of it all; why she said she loved him, why she had to die, and why he was the one to ensure it. The thoughts that came up weren't making sense, and he pulled himself out of her head and didn't like the pleading look in her eyes.

"Severus… it's me… its Nymphadora… please listen…" she said before him. Severus pulled off his cravat and tied it around her eyes as a blindfold. Pausing for a moment, he also silenced her so she wouldn't interrupt him again.

"Don't look at me like that, Catherine. I didn't want you then because you reminded me too much of her, but you couldn't give up until Albus took any choice out of our hands. I thought that I'd be fine with it, until I saw you begging with your fingers in your quim for me in front of The Dark Lord!" Severus used his wand again, making her write in pain as his fingers ran the length of her glistening cunt, soaking wet with desire.

"I tortured you, and still you want me. I could just slide my fingers into you with no resistance after all of this. After all that happened." Severus stepped away from her and cracked the whip over her shoulder, letting the sound surprise her as he tossed the whip aside for his preferred leather flogger.

"I didn't want to hurt you; I wanted to spare you as well as myself. But you were dead as soon as you consumed my potion." The flogger hit its mark on her upper back, and she arched into the blow and moaned receptively.

"I couldn't find release last night with you in front of all of them, Catherine! I couldn't let myself say that I was sorry that I had pulled you into my life by going to the events and then putting the word out that I wanted someone new. Why did you come after me?"

Strike after strike landed on her thighs, her ass, and her back. The skin reddened and began to welt as he kept up with his rhythm.

"Why are you here tonight? To deny me release again?" He asked, throwing his flogger recklessly away, pulling her eyes free to see his.

Her eyes were glazed over as she panted. "Severus, I'm Nymphadora. Look at my wrist."

Severus pulled himself out of his reverie, glancing over to her wrist where a silver bracelet hung. "This has to be a trick of The Dark Lord's. I watched you die." He took her eyes into his and cast, "Legilimens!"

Remus Lupin was having a drink with her at The Three Broomsticks. He said that he ran into her mother and aunt, but Severus could tell he was lying. Remus had barged into his room, followed by the Black sisters because of his date with Tonks… He saw her worry over him having to be at the Dark Revel at the Solstice, wondering if he would be tortured again. His torture was completely psychological this time; he was bound by oaths upon oaths for 'the greater good' which caused his body to be coursing with this Dark Magic and bodily frustration.

Severus was tired of being the puppet of both mad men on opposing sides of this conflict. He wanted to rest, to be done, and to end this torment. He didn't want Lily dead, or James dead, or even Catherine dead.

He couldn't hold it in any longer, and shoved his own thoughts out of his mind and into hers. Remus punching him in this very room, barged in on by both her mother and aunt. He let her see the entire Dark Revel, and feel his disgust at seeing Fenrir there. To understand his hopelessness as he was required to teach the Slytherin recruits how to torture Mudbloods and steal their magic. To watch as Greyback and Bellatrix enjoyed eating a boy alive, piece by piece.

And he let her see Catherine. The submissive who offered her service so long ago and was denied, and he was subsequently denied his own wishes ever since. He let her see what he had to do to her, and tried his best to delay the inevitable. And how her last gazes into his eyes were with melting eyes.

He needed to share this, to release himself of the burden of enjoying the dark ribbon swell as he absorbed the magic from the sacrifices, and didn't remain afterwards to burn off the excess energy and had tried to calm himself down with a mantra. He was damned, he killed an innocent tonight, and Albus would tell him that he did the best job he could of the situation. As he let go of his pent-up frustrations, he was able to see the witch he had strung up naked in his room.

And he let her see his need as he released her from the rope restraints.

"Severus…" Nymphadora said, speechless at what had happened. He was sure that she was horrified at what had happened, and would be running out of the room and out of his life forever.

If I am to be a condemned man for my deeds, let me commit them first. He thought as a blaspheme prayer, grabbing her by the hair and wrenching her onto the bed, binding her wrists and ankles to each of the four posters of the bed.

He yanked his own pants down roughly and positioned himself at her opening, gritting his teeth with all of his restraint stopping him at that final point. He clenched his hand over her throat, wand pointed at her face, and let his voice utter three words, albeit shakily.

"Permit me release."