Full Summary:

They had failed, the war was lost, and blood supremacy reigned with a madman as its king.

Those who could had escaped and were on the run, choosing to live to fight another day.

Those who couldn't were corralled and brought to the Ministry to await judgment.

Some were deemed pure enough to be spared and sent for re-education, others were deemed too much of a risk despite their blood status and were publicly executed beside the abominations: mudbloods, half-breeds, and creatures.

Hermione Granger is only spared from the same fate when the executioner takes an interest in the exposed birthmark on her shoulder.

Trapped within his manor, she's forced to coexist with the man who had betrayed them all... Severus Snape... her soulmate.

To survive she will have to be broken, to thrive she will have to be remade, and to conquer she will have to accept his claim.

AN:

Some of y'all may recognize this from it's original time up on AO3 and FFN from several years ago. I took it down with several others fics more than a year ago and pulled several details from this work to use in Devil's Angel. However, since taking it down, it continuously tugs at the back of mind, whispering, "What if you pick this back up?" So here we are, the first chapter re-posted.

However before we begin, please be advised of a few things before reading as I do not want anyone to experience distress while reading:

- Severus is a Death Eater; he was at not point ever loyal to the Order so what you are about to read in this first chapter is NOT an act, there will be NO "surprise we're not really dead" moments for the people killed later on

- This is a Voldemort Wins AU, so it is going to be dark. While all sexual acts between Severus and Hermione will be consensual, this is a DARK ROMANCE and the plot surrounding the romance will reflect that

- There will be moments of GRAPHIC VIOLENCE to include TORTURE against Hermione-NOT by Severus-as well as towards others that will be done by Severus. Again, this a Voldemort Wins AU and the nature of the new world order will reflect that

- Severus's is not a good person. His only redemption will come in how he treats his elves and his loves and cares for Hermione. He is a villain in this story but he isn't her villain-well not entirely

- Major Character Death does NOT apply to Severus and Hermione. They will both live to see a version of HEA that is befitting to the story line. No one else in this story will be safe so prepare for at LEAST one of the major supporting cast characters to be killed

I know this may seem excessive but despite the tagging and clear nature of the story, there was lot of upset the last time this was posted and I just want to set clear expectations for what you will find inside. The best comparison I have amongst my works, would be The Resurrection Witch. While this is not reverse harem fic, this and that both have present much darker, bloodier, obsessive, unapologically villainous undertones.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the return of Soulful Surrender. I have about ten chapters already written which are being reviewed, edited, and in some cases re-written. Once those steps are complete per chapter I'll update. Expect one to two a week as I am currently working on fresh content for other fics as well.

Love,

S.L.a.G.

Chapter One

Consciousness flooded her and all at once everything was both too loud and too bright as well as muted and too dark. Her head was pounding with an accompanying feeling of a cleaver having carved her brain in two. Squinting her sensitive eyes against the light, Hermione brought her hand up to help further shield her from the blinding assault. Cringing at the piercing voices that seemed to be calling to her, she tried to focus on assessing her body for injuries. Her muscles were sore eliciting the sensation of being bruised all over. Her joints protested every move she made, cracking and popping as she slowly stretched each one. Her throat was raw and her mouth full of cotton, but everything felt to still be in proper, working order.

The incessant voices around her increased in urgency, making her wave them away as she tried to recall the missing time from before she awoke with sensory overload. Her recollection of what had happened as the sun was cresting the mountains surrounding Hogwarts was hazing at best, leaving her confused as to why she couldn't remember. All she had were fragmented flashes that made her reassess her catalog of injuries, adding a self-diagnosed concussion to the list. She blindly patted around her hips in search of the beaded bag that had held their life for the last nine months, to pull out the scarce remnants of her medicine kit to attend to her head. Finding it absent her eyes shot open upon remembering what had happened.

Hermione had been trying to reach him among the chaos that had ensued upon Voldemort announcing Harry's death. They had waited on bated breath to see if it was all a farce, no one wanting to believe that The-Boy-Who-Lived had finally succumbed to his enemy. As the seconds ticked by and he didn't awake to catch them all off guard, everyone knew this was the end for them. They had failed, the war was lost, and the only way to survive was to escape and live to fight another day.

Looking down at her empty hands, she noted black iron cuffs on her wrists before seeing the dried blood under her nails. They had pushed and shoved through the dueling sides to get to one another. Reaching out they had clasped forearms but before they could Disapparate, a Death Eater had yanked her back by the strap of her bag.

Running up the inside of her right arm were the marks from where they tried to hold on to each other as she fought them off. Tugging against their hold on her, the strap had broken, leaving the bag to fall to the ground. She tried to reach for it without letting him go but it had provided the Death Eater with the moment they needed to get both arms around her waist.

She was pulled free from his arms, their blunt nails ripping down each other as he frantically tried to pull her back to him while keeping a rain of defensive spells pouring around them. Whoever had grabbed her, lifted her off the ground, wrenching her backward to be thrown with the rest of those being corralled. Unable to stop her trajectory, her head had made a cracking impact with the stone pavers of the courtyard sending her into darkness.

Oh God, please let him have gotten away, she silently begged, knowing that wherever she was, it was no place for a blood traitor.

It was no place for her either but she had survived under Bellatrix's wand, even if just barely. Whatever the depraved monsters that were no doubt lurking nearby had in store for her, it wouldn't compare to what she had already suffered. She just had to hold out long enough for him to find the others and get them organized. They would come for her if she didn't escape first, she just needed to wait for the right moment and seize it.

"Hermione, focus. We need you to pay attention," someone said with urgent agitation.

"Hermione!" another voice snapped when she didn't respond.

"Forget it, Kingsley, just help me cover up her shoulder."

"What's going on?" she rasped, looking to her left and placing Lupin as the other voice.

"Remus we're awaiting execution, I think it's better to try and find a way out of here for her," Molly said, as she paced the room they were in.

"Execution?" she dumbly questioned, her voice falling on deaf ears as Remus responded.

"Molly, we are without our wands and even if we had them our magic is suppressed, there is no, 'breaking her out.' The best thing right now is to ensure none of them see her mark and report it back. A swift death for her is the best we can hope for now."

"But are you sure?" Kingsley asked. "They've become nearly nonexistent over recent generations. And what are the chances her—"

"I'm positive! I've seen it before..." he cut off ominously.

"Seen what? What the hell is going on?" Hermione croaked, her eyes darting around the room faster than her injured brain could process, making her dizzy and nausea swell up within her stomach.

"The marking on your shoulder, dear," Molly explained, looking at her with a mix of pity and fear.

"You mean my birthmark?" she replied in confusion, wondering just how hard the others had been hit to be obsessing over the constellation of freckles on her shoulder blade that surrounded the silvery white mark that looked like a shooting star.

"It's not a-" Kingsley started only to be cut off again, this time by an echoing bang as the door that trapped them inside slammed open.

Though his features were hidden behind the mask he wore, Hermione knew a malicious smile graced the Death Eater's face as he scanned the occupants within the room. His gaze tracked over each of them, lingering first on Molly who was pushed into a corner as Arthur came to stand in front of her acting as a human shield before his vicious gaze could land on her. Remus and Kingsley did the same, closing in around her doing their best to keep the unknown man from observing her and whatever had Lupin so worried he would rather her be prepared for death than allow anyone of them to see it.

"Ah, Harry Potter's little mudblood," the voice drawled with twisted glee. "It's a shame you and your kind are to be culled. Personally, I think you would be more useful to us alive. That blood traitor boyfriend of yours can't be too far away, you could draw him out of hiding for us, so we can break him by having him watch you get tortured before he's sent off for re-education."

With confidence she didn't feel, Hermione scoffed in response, "I see Voldemort has drastically lowered his standards over the last year if he allowed you into his ranks. Only an idiot would think he would fall for that, he's a blood traitor, not stupid."

"You insolent little whore!" he roared, stomping into the room with his wand brandished.

Despite the spontaneity of their attack, Remus and Kingsley moved as a cohesive unit as they charged the Death Eater. Remus bent over as he braced his body for the impact that came with tackling the other wizard, his assault fast and hard. As they collided with the ground Kingsley was there to pin his wrist down with a hard knee as he began to try and pry the wand loose from his tightened fingers.

They were making headway in their attempt at a take over with George jumping in to help Remus restrain the wizard while Kingsley struggled to maintain his hold on both the wrist and wand. Hermione scrambled across on her hands and knees to help, making the room spin around her. She felt the churning bile from earlier rise up in her throat too fast for her to be able to turn her head away from her path before she expelled the acidic contents of her stomach. Not caring for the sickening mess she was in, she continued over, wiping her mouth on her shoulder as she took over for Kingsley.

With one hand she held the tip of the ash wood wand, pulling on it to wiggle it free as her other hand worked to lift the fingers from their death grip around the base. She could feel it start to slide out as her nails began to draw blood from him, the red liquid helping to lubricate her efforts.

"I almost have it," she announced, bringing her foot down to crush the two fingers she had already freed.

Their captor turned prisoner, screamed out at the pain making George throw himself over his mouth to muffle the sound before someone could hear it and come investigate.

Hermione used the wizard's pain-addled mind to her advantage, pulling the wand free the rest of the way. However, her triumph was short-lived. Before she could even try to silence and bind the Death Eater beneath them despite the cuffs on her wrists, the wand went sailing out of her hand and into the waiting palm of another that stood in the door.

With their black robes and silver masks, they were all shadows in the night, imposing figures whose very presence was terrifying to any who crossed their paths, but the one who stood in the doorway was something else entirely. The light coming in from the corridor seemed to recoil from his tall frame as though it too coward when faced with his presence. Even the one they had pinned to the floor so full of bravado earlier, shrank back, the smell of fear cloaking him as he began to stammer out his defense.

Power radiated from the second Death Eater, with waves of danger and intimidation pulsing out. He was a lethal predator that made the adrenaline within them burn to life as they warily tracked his subtle movements like caught prey. With a lazy wave of his hand, he silenced the other's words, making him cower even more as he quickly complied with the gesture. Turning his newly acquired wand towards the remnants of the Order, he murmured a curse too low for them to hear.

In an instant, George removed himself from the Death Eater, and with vacant eyes he turned on Remus and punched him in the face, pulling him off and shoving him back towards the rest. Molly screamed and tried to lunge from behind Arthur as they realized the remaining Weasley Twin had been Imperiused.

Kingsley quickly stood up of his own volition and helped Hermione to her feet. Both of them slowly raised their hands before George and his puppet master who had yet to move from the door as they backed up. Reaching the group, a hand curled over Hermione's still exposed shoulder, pulling her further back into their ranks, hiding her small frame and the birthmark that everyone but her recognized as something more from sight.

She felt a deft hand working on the fragments of her battle torn shirt. They quickly knotted together the loose strips, giving a tug on the fabric to adjust its placement so it settled over the silvery-white, freckled marking.

"You will be okay and one day thrive for I have seen it," Professor Trelawney reassured, with a squeeze to her shoulder, giving one final adjustment.

Hermione had never put much stock in Divination. From her first lesson in her third year, she had pegged the Professor to be an outright fraud, her predictions nothing more than an elaborate performance. But as a coldness slithered into her blood to see how the others were reacting to Lupin's fear for her, she clung to the false hope that maybe this was one of her rare prophecies that had made Dumbledore hire her and keep her safe within the stone walls of Hogwarts all these years.

The silent Death Eater in the doorway issued another command with his hand to the one still on the floor, beckoning him forward. When the one whose wand they tried to steal was within arm's reach, he shot his hand out like a lunging snake and gripped him closely. His words could barely be heard across the room as he dressed the other down. A final hiss of disgust was the loudest noise he had made since entering before shoving him through the door and up a set of stairs. Looking to a bewitched George, he issued another silent command, using their friend to easily gain their compliance.

Everyone in the room fell into line, none of them wanting to harm him in a last attempt at freedom as he turned around to pick up the conjured chains and shackles. He worked his way through them with rapid efficiency, binding their cuffed wrists to each other with heavy chains. He looped the links down to connect to their ankles and the added cuffs that had appeared on each of them as they were pushed into a single file line. His final step was to link each person together through their legs, securing himself at their front awaiting his next order. The Death Eater gave a short jerk of his head towards the door in response and with no other choice while compelled, George followed him out, forcing everyone behind him to follow with a quick shuffle.

They made their way up the stairs and crammed into a Ministry elevator, packed so tightly that when it jerked to life and rocketed them forward and up, they merely swayed with the movement as opposed to falling over. Hermione looked to the ceiling, closing her eyes as she drew in a shaky breath. She had hoped that they would be held prisoner, buying her time to formulate an escape for them all or for the others to stage a rescue but with words like, execution, culling, and re-education getting thrown around, she knew it was futile to cling to it any longer.

With another breath, she forced the new wave of nausea down and stamped out her fear. She would not cower before Voldemort and his followers. They wanted a show filled with them begging for their lives and pleading for mercy, but she would refuse to play along. Filtering every last emotion and thought from her mind, she opened her eyes as the elevator car jerked to a stop and the cheery voice announced their arrival at the atrium.

Defiantly holding her head high, she stepped out with the others, meeting the jeering crowd head on, her steps as steady and confident as her shackles allowed. She didn't spare a glance towards a single spectator, ignoring their calls to her of mudblood and whore, drowning out the sickening threats of what they would do to her if they got their hands on her and the pieces her body would be left in for the blood traitor scum who was her boyfriend to find. Even when one spit on her, she still refused to give them anything, allowing their saliva to trail down her cheek instead of showing even the smallest of cracks by wiping her face clean on her shoulder.

George led them up a short series of stairs onto a platform and forced them to turn so they were lined up to face those that had gathered head on. Cameras flashed from all angles commemorating Voldemort's win and the subsequent squashing of those who remained from his enemy's side.

Across the crowd was another platform, its stairs and floor draped in black velvet. Wrought iron pillars stood tall from each of the corners with candelabras atop, their flames bright points of light. Hanging from the atrium ceiling was a massive silver crown that had yards of emerald fabric cascading to the floor creating a jewel toned backdrop to the high backed, silver throne that Voldemort sat upon, like a king holding court. Raising her head just a bit more, Hermione met his eye across the room with an unwavering glare.

"Silence!" he hissed out, his acolytes and supporters falling to a hush instantly, turning to bow before him.

He rose from his throne with a graceful ease that was befitting of his self given title of Lord. Gliding to the edge, a shark-like smile contorted his face as he spread his arms out.

"Rise my faithful and see before you what remains of Dumbledore's pathetic Order," he commanded. "See for yourself, Harry Potter's faithful little mudblood shackled alongside the Weasley and Shacklebolt blood traitors, their werewolf abomination, and the disgusting goblin that has been allowed to educate our children for so many years."

The crowd of witches, wizards, and masked followers cheered and stomped with renewed excitement at the coming bloodshed in response, their roars for mass slaughter beginning with her, Undesirable Number Two, deafening.

His cold laugh rang out in the room as he once more met Hermione's glare from opposite the atrium with a malicious smirk.

"So be it!" he yelled.

Not a moment after he gave the word did the chains binding her to the others, clatter to the ground. The Death Eater who had George under his control grabbed a hold of the smaller links connecting her wrists together and began to drag her to the center of the stage.

"Get your fucking hands off of her!" Remus yelled, yanking on his own chains, dragging Percy and Bill with him who were at his flanks.

The masked wizard only spared Lupin a passing glance over his shoulder as he continued to drag Hermione to center stage.

"Hey fucker, I can walk you know," she seethed, yanking her arms back from him.

Her determination to keep what remained of her dignity intact had him halting his steps as he turned around to fully face her. His head cocked to the side in appraisal from behind his ornately decorated skull mask. After a moment he straightened himself back out as he dropped her chains and gestured for her to go ahead of him. Squaring her shoulders back, she took her first semi-free step only for him to reach out and yank even harder on the chains, making her fall to her knees having been caught unaware.

Laughter rang out at her perceived embarrassment as he dragged her, her knees burning through the rips in her jeans as the splintered wood broke off and embedded itself within her skin. With a hard shove, she was forced into a low bow in Voldemort's direct line of sight, who eagerly watched the final moments of her life play out. Her executioner kept her bent over, in a forced show to the Wizarding World's new leader his due reverence before his large hand twisted the braid that fell over her shoulder around his fingers. He used it to wrench her head back and force her up into a kneeling position as he pulled on her scalp.

Hermione went stock still as she felt a brush of cold air graze over her skin. She didn't know what it was about her birthmark that had set everyone on edge in the holding room but the renewed yells and struggles of Remus and Kingsley left her caught between what to pray for. If Remus was right and the mark would spare her life, she half hoped the man behind her would recognize it so she would have the time she needed to escape and help the others regroup. At the same time, Remus had always been frank with her, Harry, and Ron about the war and his voice rang clear in her mind saying a swift death was the far better fate for her.

It felt as though time was suspended as she awaited some sort of movement from the Death Eater holding her in place by her hair. Another shot of adrenaline raced through her blood, cranking up the speed at which her heart was beating and the amount of air her lungs demanded so she could breathe. With her show of strength forgotten, she curled her fingers into her thighs, her body tensing as she felt calloused fingers sweep down her neck, removing the rest of her hair off her shoulder.

He was surprisingly gentle as he trailed his hand down to further expose her shoulder, his fingers lightly tracing the oddly colored mark, making her breath hiss out of her nose as the fine hairs along her body stood on end in reaction. He rested his palm flat against her shoulder blade, his fingers softly curling over the top as warmth bled out of him and into her. She could feel him draw closer as he breathed in her exhales. The hand that was holding her hair released its grip allowing her matted tendrils to fall through his fingers as he leaned into her neck. The cold metal of his mask kissed her now heated skin as he drew an even deeper breath along her neck, the satisfied hiss of his own exhale sending a shiver down her spine, as she freely offered him more.

"YOU MURDEROUS SNAKE!" Remus roared out from behind them, shattering the trance she had fallen into under at his touch, making her jerk away from him, scrambling back on her bottom.

In a too fast and unbelievable move that jarred her injured head, the Death Eater set to serve as her executioner, put himself between her and Lupin as he charged with the Weasley boys. She didn't even hear him utter the curse before a shot of green light left his wand and landed dead center with his chest, his body dropping to the ground dead, before she could even blink, the crowd erupting with malicious laughter.

Hermione screamed and went to lunge at the wizard in front of her only to be enveloped within his robes as he turned on the spot and Disapparated across the room to stand before Voldemort. He exuded grace and old world training as he dropped into a kneel with her still tucked into his side keeping her hidden from the others. After a moment he raised his head to the madman who fancied himself their king and stared unblinkingly into his eyes. She watched as Voldemort silently slipped into the mind of his Death Eater and scanned whatever it was he wanted him to see.

"Well isn't this an interesting turn of events," Voldemort mused, after several minutes of thick silence. "Of course even with her inferior blood, she will be spared. Long before the decline in matched pairs started occurring, soulmates were seen as a sacred occurrence, now they are near above the law with their rarity. I'll keep her at my side while you carry out your duties. But make no mistake, she will be your responsibility," he warned.

The entire atrium filled with whispers at hearing Voldemort's exception and the reason why. Their eyes once again focused on Hermione only this time it wasn't in disgust but in fear as they glanced from her to the man who had just claimed her. They were terrified of incurring his wrath she realized as each person whose eyes she met nodded in deference to her before hastily looking away.

Shaking the terrifying thought from her head she looked at Voldemort, "Soulmates? You can't be serious, there's no such thing."

"How wrong you are, child," he responded, dismissing his follower back to his task.

The Death Eater gave a reverent bow of his head before turning to Hermione and draping his cloak over her cold body. He fastened the clasp at her neck offering her the same bowed head he had given his leader before his crack of Apparation rang out as he went back to the other platform.

She felt the cold hand of Voldemort wrap around her covered shoulder as he pushed her down to his feet. As she sank, the chains connecting her wrists released and lengthened before bolting themselves into the ground, holding her prisoner.

"It's going to be a joy to watch him bring you to heel, little mudblood," Voldemort observed as evenly as if he was saying he was enjoying the weather that day.

Hermione didn't like being at a disadvantage in anything but especially when it came to her knowledge of the wizarding world. After seven years she had learned there were some things that were kept as closely guarded secrets from her kind even by those who had stood up to fight for her right to be educated and live among them. Even in the moments before they were taken from the room they were being held in to die, Molly had only looked at her with pity, not offering up an explanation for Remus's crazed antics.

However desperately she wanted to be informed though, she did not want to have to concede to Voldemort of all people to provide her with an education in the impossible existence of soulmates and what it meant for her. Nor did she want to learn from the vile man who had just claimed her as some sort of spoil of war.

"You yearn for knowledge," he said in a cold drawl. "It's an admirable trait. One that no doubt has led to you being such a formidable force over the years and that aided you in keeping Potter alive and hidden these last months.

"Don't be shy in asking your questions, little mudblood. There are very few who share my deep passion for the history of our world, your mate being one of those few. He and I share the same belief that knowledge is power, whether it be dark or light. Those are only terms and ideals coined by those who were too afraid to pursue a deeper understanding.

"He'll train you well and if you are receptive to his tutelage you will learn far more than you ever imagined. You have so much untapped power because of what you perceive to be right and wrong.

"I look forward to the day you come to me for further expansion."

Hermione remained quiet, fearful that if she spoke the scathing comments she had for him upon walking out of the elevator would be replaced by her desire to know more. Minutes at his feet and he was already manipulating her and priming her to be bent to his will without objection.

Remus was right, she thought. This is far worse than death.

With difficulty, she kept her head forward watching as the Death Eater they claimed to be her soulmate, slashed his wand through the air, ending the life of Arthur Weasley before his wife and their children who had not managed to escape. Whether the noise was real or imagined, she could swear she heard his body hit the ground over the riotous uproar of the spectators. The Weasley sons were spared the same fate as that of their father, their sentencing coming down for re-education instead of death due to their vast skills and intellect. Voldemort's reasoning being he did not want the sins of the father to be paid by his sons, nor did he wish to spill so much Sacred blood, or lose such talents. Molly had remained stoic as her husband was cut down but sobbed and clung to her children as one by one, Bill, Percy, and George were ripped from her arms and transferred to a new keeper.

Her stomach rolled as she watched the man who had swung from handling her with a rough and uncaring manner to gentle and reverent, easily raise his wand and kill Molly Weasley. He didn't even spare her lifeless body a second glance as she stared unseeing at the bright sky that shone through the atrium's ceiling.

The division and sentencing continued on as she remained bound to the floor, helpless to stop it all from happening.

Kingsley—despite his family's Sacred Twenty-Eight positioning—had been found as too much of a liability to send with the others, given his training as an Auror and work as a spy and soon his large, imposing body joined the others on the ground.

She forced herself to watch the fate of each person who had been captured, committing their names and what they had given to memory. Now trapped among these monsters she would need the reminder of their final moments to keep her vengeful spirit alive.

Kind and gentle Professor Flitwick was the last to fall, like her, his only crime being that he had existed.

Watching his small body fall and disappear among the others, her strength finally wavered. A single tear rolled down her cheek as the depraved followers of Lord Voldemort cheered and celebrated his victory and the death of those that had opposed him. Closing her eyes against the sight, she worked to center herself and box everything from the day's events away for later.

Upon opening them she looked up to see the tall figure of the Death Eater she now belonged to, offering her his hand. With a show of Gryffindor defiance and stupidity, she refused to take his hand, turning her face away from him to further drive the message home.

She would not allow him to command her or to own her. He thought she was a sacred prize that would bend to his every touch and whim but she was going to prove him wrong. She would make sure he lived to regret ever claiming her as his soulmate. Make him wish he had killed her instead.

With a huff through his mask, he reached for her, pulling her to her feet with a harsh grip. He bowed once more before his lord, opening his arm to her as he rose. When she again didn't move, she could feel the way his eyes rolled at her as he jerked her into her new place at his side.

She didn't have time to adjust before he spun on the spot, sucking their bodies through a tube within time and space that deposited them at a set of gates. The iron had been welded with the most intricate of designs adorning its edges as it scrawled up and curved at the top, a pointed crown taking the center stage with an ornate "P" in the center. He gave a solid push on the gates, the old hinges creaking as they made to admit them, sealing closed the second he had crossed the threshold behind her onto his land.

He grabbed her hand and proceeded to lead her up a dirt and gravel path surrounded by overgrown shrubbery. After several moments, a lane opened up before them to reveal a hauntingly beautiful manor. The grass and flowers grew with a wild beauty across the property with vines slowly growing up to encompass the home itself. He didn't give her much time to take in her gilded prison however before once more dragging her along as she stopped to admire the area.

Coming up the manor's steps, the front door opened of its own accord to allow them entry. Waiting to greet the master of the home, was a house elf. Taking in her filthy state, he quickly removed the cloak she still wore and her tattered outerwear, as well as the robes of the monster he served before disappearing with an unimpressed final glance upon her. Beside her, the Death Eater turned away as he removed his mask, casually tossing it onto the round table that was in the center of the foyer where it vanished before hitting the marble top.

Then, the first time that day, he spoke directly to her, his voice making her freeze as cold hatred and fiery betrayal filled her veins.

"For the time being, you may go anywhere within the manor, to include the stables and surrounding property. Avoid the forest and the lake out back unless you wish to earn my ire by having to come save you from the creatures that lurk within. You will also earn yourself my ire and a punishment if you enter my chambers without my express permission.

"I will have a proper suite outfitted for your needs in the coming days but until then, you may take any one of the numerous guest rooms as your own."

"You'd have to drag me kicking and screaming to get me into your bed," she spat, glaring daggers up into his eyes.

"Miss Granger, it's only a matter of time before you are crawling and begging to come into my bed," Severus Snape said, with a smile that would have made the devil himself feel the need to watch his back.

Beginning to ascend the grand staircase before them, he added over his shoulder, "Dinner is served promptly at seven in the family dining room, do not be late. And please, do something about your abhorrent appearance before then."