Severus Snape woke up refreshed and sated from his evening activities. He had lost track of the last time he had been able to tie a witch to his bed, his years of service to two megalomaniacs had hindered his ability to seek out the more pleasurable aspects of life. With the threat of having anyone he would remotely hold dear; he had distanced himself in order to have no visible weaknesses. He had seen how the Dark Lord had dangled Narcissa and Draco in front of Lucious as a way for him to comply. His thoughts drifted back to his most recent memories, especially those towards the end of the evening. Little did he know that his young apprentice was also thinking about what she had seen.
Hermione had not been able to block out the image of her Potion Master fucking the new Herbology Professor. She had not stopped picturing his hands on the professor's throat, the look of pure bliss she seemed to have, and how she had begged him to continue. What made it worse was the fire between her legs as she recalled those images, she was near the point of desperation in the early hours of the morning, unable to sleep and unable to find relief by her own hand. By 6 am she had decided to take action, she flooed Ron to see if he was awake. Finally, the flames turned green as Ron stumbled into her room, clearly having just woken up.
"Hermione? Are you ok? I just wok-" Before he could finish his sentence, Hermione crushed her mouth to his in a passionate kiss. Surprised, Ron grabbed onto her shoulders and looked into her eyes.
"What's going on Hermione, I thought we were on a break? Last I heard you wanted distance and space..."
"Ron, I need you. Now." Hermione said as she fumbled with his belt
"Hermione we should probably talk befor-"
"Ron do you want to fuck me or not?"
Taken aback by her language, Ron felt as if he were in a losing battle between his mind and what his body had been craving. Finally, his body won and they both fell into Hermione's bed. As Ron proceeded to take off her clothes Hermione needed more, she began tearing at his buttons, desperate to quell the fire between her legs. As Ron took off her underwear Hermione could feel just how soaked she had been.
"Do you need me to uh...do anything before I...you know?"
Eloquent, thought Hermione. "No Ron I just need you inside me." Hermione sighed, clearly impatient and frustrated.
Ron crawled up to her face and started to gently kiss her as he finally entered her. His rhythm was excruciatingly gentle and slow.
"Faster Ron" Hermione huffed, feeling the fire quell not by satisfaction but by boredom.
Ron picked up the pace, but it felt awkward and rushed, there was no rhythm to his movements, just blind pounding. She could tell he was getting close by the sound of his grunting in her ear. "Ron could you do something for me."
"Anything Hermione" Ron said panting.
"Wrap your hands around my throat and just lightly squeeze."
At this point Ron stopped abruptly, climbed off the bed and stared at her in horror.
"You want me to do what?!" Ron exclaimed, outraged as he searched for his pants before putting on his trousers.
Hermione sat up, slightly in shock at his reaction. "Ron...I just wanted you to-"
"Choke you Hermione! You wanted me to choke you!"
"I just...I just wanted to try something" Hermione stammered, feeling her tears welling up watching Ron angrily dress himself.
"I don't know what's wrong with you Hermione but what you're asking for is sick and twisted. You haven't written to me in months, you say you want space for you to 'think' about our relationship, whatever that means. Then you call me out of the blue, begging for me to fuck you only for you to ask me to choke you?! I love you Hermione, but you clearly need help."
Ron took a breath before grabbing his coat, looking back at Hermione as he grabbed floo powder. "I was going to tell you later but now seems a good a time as any. I'm leaving on a mission. I can't tell you where I'm going or when I'll be back. What I can say is by the time I come back I expect an answer from you about us."
And with that, he was gone, disappearing within the green flames. Hermione sat there, shocked at what had just transpired between her and Ron. Finally, the tears came as Hermione cried herself to sleep only to be jolted awake an hour later by her alarm. Dragging herself out of bed, Hermione tried to get rid of the puffiness from crying but to no avail. As she made her way to the labs, her mind kept re-playing what Ron had told her, how sick and unstable he thought she was for wanting him to be rougher, for wanting him to give her the same pleasure she had seen the previous night. She would need to dissect her newfound desires in correlation to her mental stability, but for now she needed to get to work.
As Hermione stood in front of Professor Snape's office door, her heart started to pound, her palms began to sweat, and her mind started to reel. Before she could lose her nerve, the door swung open to find Professor Snape standing in front of her, looking impatient.
"What are you waiting for Granger? Come in, we have work to do." Snape said with his trademark sneer as he stepped aside, letting her enter his office. Relief coursed through Hermione as nothing had changed, he had not noticed her peering into his bedroom.
Professor Snape sat by the fireplace and gestured for her to sit in the chair facing him.
"I trust that you are feeling rested? Are you still feeling any pain in your shoulder?" Asked Snape.
"Yes sir, thank you. My shoulder is in the late stages of healing, I am ready to resume our work."
"Excellent, in that case our first order of business is for you to tell me where you learned the Incedio curse." Professor Snape leaned back into his chair, clearly waiting for her to respond.
Hermione twisted her hands in front of her, looking down. She couldn't quite meet his eyes just yet, instead she chose to look down at her feet as she responded. "As you can probably guess, I've ventured into the restricted section after hours using Harry's cloak. The last time I went there was this book...I've never seen it before and I'm not sure why it stood out to me but it did. It looked to be handwritten notes from a duelist who specialized in defensive spells, quite frankly it looked harmless"
"No book in the restricted section is harmless Miss Granger. There is a reason it stood out to you, these books are as alive as you and I. They possess an awareness, especially to those who have an affinity towards dark magic. I ask that in the future, should you desire to break into the restricted section, come to me and I will arrange for us to go together." Professor Snape fixed her with such an intense stare, Hermione felt forced to look into his obsidian eyes.
In that moment, Professor Snape caught something in her regard towards him. Something had changed, however he could not pinpoint what exactly made him think or feel that way. Before he could analyze further, she had cast her eyes down again. Deciding to let the feeling go for the time being, Snape squared his shoulders, ready to move on to their next topic.
"I've spoken to Headmistress McGonagall and we have both decided it's time you take your NEWTS and finish your schooling in order to assist me better. Your apprenticeship will therefore be accelerated, making you one of the youngest potion mistresses should you succeed."
Hermione was speechless, on one hand she was relieved to end her schooling early, on the other hand she felt almost bereft to lose her status as a student, an identity she had held on to for so long. Deciding she felt more relieved, Hermione raised her eyes to meet Professor Snape's.
"I'm honored sir, thank you. When will I be taking my exams?"
"In a month, we will need to go on another excursion in order to procure some more ingredients. Which brings us to our next topic of discussion, we will be leaving for Albania in two days' time. I'll warn you Miss Granger, we will not be able to use magic through most of the trip as we need to be undetectable by both our ministry and the one in Albania."
Professor Snape stood and reached into the drawer within his desk and took out a map as well as a few files.
Professor snape walked back to his seat, handing Hermione the files. "You will need to study these before we leave, the flower we need will be hard to find as it only grows in very specific magical environments."
"Sir, I don't think I've asked you this but what is it that we are brewing with the eggs and the rest of the ingredients we are looking for?"
"Ah yes, I was wondering when you were going to ask. Truthfully Granger, I have a...theory, one that needs to be tested with this potion I am creating. I dare not say for what exactly, as I do not wish for anyone to know quite yet. The time will come, and I will explain everything, but for now I need your assistance in procuring a few more ingredients. You've proven yourself capable of holding your own, I expect you to maintain that capability throughout our missions."
"Thank you sir...that means more than you think." Hermione said slightly blushing while looking down, still unable to meet his gaze.
"One last thing Miss Granger, you are not to tell your friends where we are going, you may tell them something vague. I trust you will be able to use your judgment regarding what you share with them." Professor Snape said sternly while getting up from the chair and regarding his vast library, seemingly looking for a specific book.
"Yes sir I understand, will you need me before we leave?"
"I do not believe so Miss Granger, if need be I shall owl you" Professor Snape said, clearly distracted in his pursuit to find what he was looking for within his personal library.
Hermione took this as a dismissal and gathered the files and left his office, firmly shutting the door behind her. As soon as she reached her room, she decided to pay a visit to Gryffindor tower to see if Ginny or Luna were around. She was in desperate need of 'girl talk' which was rare for her, but her encounter with Ron had shaken her and she was curious as to what her friends had to say. As soon as she entered the room, she saw Ginny and Luna sitting by the fireplace engrossed in their conversation. As she walked over to the couch the two girls simultaneously exclaimed her name in excitement.
"Hermione! Where have you been!? We've been looking everywhere for you, we even ventured to the dungeons." Said Ginny standing up and giving Hermione a hug.
Hermione winced slightly at the contact as her shoulder had not yet healed completely. Ginny had not noticed but Luna regarded her suspiciously, having caught Hermione's reaction.
As the girls sat down, Hermione quickly and vaguely explained how she had gone on a day trip with Professor Snape to get ingredients for a potion they were brewing, which in her mind was not a complete lie.
"Is he treating you well? Is he being a complete git? Tell us everything!" exclaimed Ginny.
"He still has his moments; I don't think anyone would ever categorize Professor Snape as 'nice' but he hasn't snapped as much, nor has he been cruel. I find our research to be fascinating and so far, it's exactly what I want."
"We're happy for you Hermione" said Luna warmly, giving Hermione's hand a squeeze. "Is there something on your mind? I can't help but notice you look slightly...troubled" said Luna as she pulled her hand away.
Hermione took a breath, deciding to confide to her friends. "I saw Ron this morning...I was feeling particularly antsy this morning if you get my meaning..."
"Anyways, it was going well until I asked him to do something...please don't judge I just thought it could be fun to spice things up."
At her clear reluctance to completely share, both girls took Hermione's hand. "Hermione we won't judge you we promise, besides it couldn't have been that bad." Said Ginny while Luna nodded along.
Hermione sighed, "I asked him to put his hands around my throat and...choke me a little"
At her statement both girls eyes popped out slightly, clearly surprised. Ginny removed her hand from Hermione to run her hand through her hair, a clear nervous tick.
"You said you wouldn't judge!" Exclaimed Hermione pulling back from her friends.
"I'm not! I'm just a little...surprised is all. You just don't seem the type Hermione, you can't blame us for being a little shocked when you've had your head permanently embedded in books instead of getting caught snogging in broom closets" Said Ginny.
"Maybe I found the idea in a book Ginny, did you ever consider that?" Said Hermione to a sheepish looking Ginny.
"Did you?" Asked Lune. "Find the idea in a book I mean?"
At this point Hermione decided lying was the best course of action by the state of her friend's reaction.
"I did, I happened to be in a muggle bookstore and came across the erotic section. I just thought it could be fun to try something else, be a little more adventurous." Hermione said while looking at her intertwined fingers, unable to meet her friend's gaze.
"Oh Hermione I'm sorry, I didn't mean to judge you or react poorly. Mum just always sheltered us, sure she's had a few dozen kids but sex is still so taboo in the wizarding community. We don't really...talk about it as openly as muggle families seem to be able to do. How did Ron react?" Asked Ginny grabbing Hermione's hand once more.
Hermione looked at her gratefully for the support "Not well, he said I was sick...perverted even and stormed out saying he wanted an answer about us when he gets back from his mission."
"You shouldn't be made feel guilty for your urges Hermione. Sure, this might be a little out of our realms of experience but that doesn't mean you're sick or perverted. Have you ever done that with someone else?" Asked Luna.
"No, Ron has been my one and only so far...it's just been so stale and boring, the same thing over and over again. Sorry Ginny I know he's your brother and all."
"I'll just need to scrub my brain of the images this is conjuring. Maybe you can cast an obliviate before you leave?"
All three girls laughed, feeling relieved for the tension to be broken. Hermione smiled for the first time in a long time, feeling lighter having unburdened herself.
"I'll need to go and prepare, Professor Snape and I are leaving for another day trip soon. We need to travel a little further to get our next ingredient."
"Where exactly are you going Hermione?" Asked Luna, her gaze once again suspicious, especially with how she had seen Hermione wince.
"I uh...can't quite say. It's all quite hush hush, I promise to explain once I can."
"Be safe Hermione, come visit us anytime. We miss you here." Said Ginny.
"I will I promise I'll come up more, I'll see you later" Hermione rose and left feeling relieved she could retreat into the dungeons and think, desperately needing a cigarette.