A/N: SPOV

She had pulled him out of the darkness, and made him see who she truly was. He didn't know what he was going to do if she had refused him. As he lay spent, he had a wave of anger towards The Dark Lord and Dumbledore for pitting him against each other, slipping deeper into the darkness.

"Nymphadora..." He began, trying to ignore the what would you have done to her if she had said no? "...thank you for assisting me. I wasn't myself last night. In my many attempts to disassociate myself from the victim that had been chosen to suffer at my hands, this was the first that had known me so intimately."

"I'm just glad I have you back from that." She replied, running her fingertips down his chest.

Severus caught her hand on him and stilled it. "I'm not asking for your absolution. Perhaps you should leave. In the future I will ward my door shut so that I won't take advantage of the first person who comes along after I've been so affected."

As Severus tried to sit up, she pushed him back down, narrowing her eyes. "No you don't, Severus."

"Have you forgotten whom you are speaking to? Whose quarters you are in?" As he steeled his resolve and summoned her clothes to hand to her, she whipped out her own wand and... removed his door.

"Sir, I'm not about to get dressed so you can chuck me out when you need to deal with what happened last night." She turned her head towards where he door was, now simply a continuous stone wall. "Besides, I can't even leave the room now, can I?"

How did she do that? "Fine. We'll talk. How did you replace my doorway with a brick wall?"

"Each founder had their own specialty here in the castle. Ravenclaw made the moving staircases and her students know how to work them, while Hufflepuff worked out the doorways and how to make portraits control them. Gryffindor made the statues of armor quicken in times of peril, and Slytherin's contibution was..."

"...the dungeons and the catacombs, being able to extend under the lake." Severus finished, knowing the lore from Hogwarts, A History.

"I saw who she was to you, when you forced yourself into my mind. Add that to my hard limits list; I don't want you in my mind like that." She replied, looking squarely at him.

"Very well, I will not penetrate your mind... without permission." He added, his eyes flickering over her lithe, naked body. "I'm not sure I'm comfortable trying to negotiate limits like this. I fear you have an unfair advantage, my sweet." He smirked somewhat, putting a bit of humor in what would otherwise be an all too serious discussion.

"Well, it beats us having an argument. Not like you're going to hold my naked body against me, are you?" She took his hands and cupped her breasts with them, grinning.

"Impudent witch." He smiled, but it faded as the reality of the night's assignation hit him, and he pulled his hands back. "I was scared that I'd have taken you against your will if you had denied me the much-needed release from the Dark Magic."

"I was scared too. I needed to know that you realized that I wasn't her. That I was someone else, still alive, and trusting you to do the right thing. I accepted this collar of consideration that you willingly gave me."

"I'm sorry for having almost raped you." He chortled sarcastically. "How many Death Eaters are willing to say that?"

"It makes you better than them. Besides, you weren't yourself. And you didn't poison her. If anyone needs to make amends for last night, it's You-Know-Who. And Albus." She thought for a moment, looking at where he had glamoured away a black eye, poking it. "And Remus. The prat lied to me about where he saw my mother and my aunt, and gave me a giant bouquet of flowers as if he needed to compete in size against you." Severus winced slightly when she poked it, confirming her suspicions.

"If you use the proper stasis charms on it, you can prolong the flower's eventual demise by weeks. I've never seen the rationale that says cut flowers symbolize affection. Except for the aesthetic value, it is essentially a plant that survives a botched amputation only to slowly wither and die." Both of them quietly laughed at that.

"Last night's Dark Revel was supposed to be a gift to me. The Dark Lord believed that I would enjoy taking the woman and then watching her die. Instead it turned out to be a test in order to make sure that I was more loyal to him than to a witch I had taken a fancy to." He glanced over at her, and saw her understanding.

"Nymphadora, I fear future Dark Revels. I lost control last night by having to appear apathetic to her pain. I don't want to lose myself in an orgy of sadism like the Carrows and the Lestranges do. Specially around my current Slytherin students. I would rather translate that into something constructive and meaningful."

"I'm not complaining about being tied up and flogged by you before a good bout of sex." She said, curling up next to him. "Just as long as you're here and wanting me."

"May I have my door back?" He asked impudently, nuzzling her while conveying sarcasm.

"Not yet, Severus. I want to know what and how you expect me as your submissive, so I'm not surprised with bondage in complete darkness."

"Ah, I do believe we should have a bit of ritual before we play and have 'a scene', as it is called. When we begin, I will want you naked and in the kneeling position I have showed you. This will help you change your mindset and remember a few things: you will address me as Sir, keep your eyes downcast unless I specifically tell you to look at me, and after a session, we will speak about what you liked about it so I can be a better Dominant with you."

She nodded her agreement as he fell asleep, his arms embracing her. As Severus slept, he dreamed that maybe Albus was right about love defeating darkness.