The Truth Hurts

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that I am up to no good. JK Rowling owns it all, but I promise to return her characters in 'like-new' condition when I am done with them.

Hermione let out an audible groan when she realized the exact words she'd just uttered and the company in which she'd uttered those words. Squeezing her eyes shut and gulping down the bile that had begun to creep up her esophagus from her churning stomach, Hermione wished that the bed she was still lying on would swallow her whole.

"Hermione!" she heard Ron shout. "What did you just say?"

In an attempt to fight the Veritaserum, Hermione tried to block all her thoughts, but the dull senses caused by the alcohol made Occlumency nearly impossible and only caused the quivering in her stomach to increase. Finally giving up and opening her mouth to answer Ron's question, Hermione promptly vomited all over the floor.

"Weasley!" barked Snape. He pulled out his wand, held it inches from Ron's face and began speaking again in a threatening whisper. "If I hear you utter another question anywhere near Miss Granger, I shall make sure you are turned into the Weasel that you have proven today you truly are. Only an utter imbecile would mix Veritaserum with alcohol."

By the time Snape finished speaking with Ron, Hermione was done heaving the remains of her evening meal onto the floor, and Molly was dutifully attending to her, and the mess, with a quick wave of her wand. As soon as Hermione was able to breathe normally again, she felt the urge return to answer Ron's earlier question. The Veritaserum was still affecting her.

"I had said that I don't love you the way that Harry and Ginny love each other." Hermione gulped and squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to cry out from humiliation. She continued, "I said that I fancy Professor Snape."

This time, after she admitted her feelings for the dour man who was now standing in the room, she heard him sneer in disgust at her words.

"Spare me your accolades of love, Miss Granger. I can assure you that your silly little schoolgirl crush is in no way reciprocated."

"Now, Professor Snape, see here," cried Mrs. Weasley, standing up from the bed.

"Oh, stuff a sock in it, Molly," Hermione snapped, her eyes now wide-open, staring at the older woman. Hermione had surprised herself at her own rudeness, although she felt that she was now beyond the point of caring. She was quite irked at the woman for taking advantage of her situation several minutes earlier.

Mrs. Weasley stood next to the bed, a shocked look on her face as she stared down at the younger witch. Pursing her lips, she inhaled sharply through her nose, opened her mouth to speak and then promptly closed it. The Weasley matriarch gave a cursory glance to both wizards and, with nothing more than a huff of indignation, turned on her heel and stormed out of the room.

Hermione sat herself up in the bed as Ron stared after his mother. "Honestly, Ron, you look as if you lost a puppy. What do you want? You can't possibly think that I want to see you right now."

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a sound, Snape interrupted, "As interesting as your little lover's quarrel no doubt is, I have more important things to do." He pulled out two phials from his robes. Unstoppering them, he handed them to Hermione, who drank the first and then the second in quick succession. Snape took her face in his hands, his fingers lightly caressing her chin, and Hermione found herself lost immediately in his penetrating gaze.

Of course, he was merely examining her reaction to the potions she had just consumed. Hermione knew this. She could rationalize this on an intellectual level. However, an entirely different part of her was ignoring the logical portion of her brain. Butterflies began tap-dancing in her belly and slowly tickled their way to her spine. What the hell is the matter with me? I've never felt like this before, she berated herself. You've also never admitted to liking the man before, she reminded herself quickly.

Snape's hands dropped from her face, but he held her gaze. "How are you feeling, Miss Granger?"

"Like I've been run over by a Hippogriff," Hermione answered.

The Potions master studied her face a bit longer and hummed sourly in reply. Shooting a snide look at the other occupant at the room, he asked, "And, Miss Granger, what are your feelings for me?" When Hermione started to answer his question, he added, "And let me be clear, I welcome the term 'greasy git.' It is a reputation that I have spent years perfecting and I have no intention of changing it, especially for the likes of you," he snarled.

Hermione opened her mouth to call him exactly that, as well as a few other choice names that Ron and Harry had come up with during their school days. "Severus Snape, I find you to be one of the smartest, bravest, and most loyal people I have ever had the privilege to know. I love the color of your eyes and your..."

"I think I'm going to be ill," Ron interrupted.

"Shut up, Ron," Hermione snapped.

"Obviously, the antidote did not work," Professor Snape snipped. "Mr. Weasley!" he bellowed, although the young man was merely steps away from him. "What exactly did you mix the Veritaserum with?"

"I-it was house-elf wine, sir," Ron stammered.

"I KNOW THAT!" he shouted and then took several breaths to reign in his temper. Though the next words were barely audible, Ron could feel the anger behind them more powerfully than from the shouting. "From whom? Which house-elf?"

"Winky, sir."

"That ruddy excuse for a house-elf is pissed more often than she's sober. There is no telling what the hell she put in that wine! Go back downstairs and get me whatever is left of it!" Ron nodded his head in understanding and turned around to go out the door, pausing only when Snape added, "And give me what is left of your Veritaserum; who knows which half-witted dunderhead brewed it."

The Potions master held out his hand until Ron handed over a small phial containing a tiny amount of the clear liquid. Ignoring the young man who had given it to him, he gave it a closer look.

Ron looked over his shoulder at Hermione. "Will you be okay with him?"

"Yes, Ron. I'm quite sure that after being drugged and humiliated, I can survive being alone with Professor Snape for all of two minutes," she snapped, grateful that her answer, though truthful, could still be snide.

Hermione barely heard the mumbled apology that came out of his flushed face as he turned and left the room. Burying her face in her hands, she breathed deeply and tried to regain her composure.

"Oh, do spare me your Gryffindor dramatics, Miss Granger. I have more important things to do than sit around here all evening. Get up and follow me." His sneering tone grated through to her bones, causing her to cringe, and reminding Hermione of the years spent as his student.

Ensuring her face bore a mask of indifference before she dropped her hands, she slowly stood up from the bed and followed him out of the room. "How much longer am I going to feel like this?" she mumbled.

"Tell me, what do you know about the attributes of Veritaserum when it is mixed with alcohol?" he asked as he began traversing the stairs slowly, as she was still tipsy.

"It initially causes inebriation, regardless of the amount of alcohol consumed, which often lowers the level of inhibitions for people who would normally be 'on-guard' to protect themselves from Veritaserum via Occlumency. The Truth Serum portion is highly unpredictable and can last anywhere from several hours to several days, and at any number of levels from a full very revealing 'truth' to something much more 'generic.' My truths are bordering more on the revealing side," she added unnecessarily.

Snape paused momentarily and glanced at Hermione. Arching his eyebrow, he sneered, "You state the obvious, failing to note the subtle but more important facts, Miss Granger. You have just consumed the antidote, which works in over 96% of the cases. When it does not work, it is typically because of a reaction between an added ingredient in either the Veritaserum or the alcoholic beverage. Seeing as the wine was made by none other than an alcoholic house-elf, there is no telling what she may have done to alter the vintage."

"Then I'll just have to wait for the Veritaserum to wear off," Hermione replied, trying to wrap her brain around the idea of being a slave to her answers for the next several hours. "I'll just go home and sleep it off. I'm sure that..."

Her words were cut-off mid-sentence as his hand came up in front of her. "That is not an option, Miss Granger. As you stated, the length of time is an unknown factor; it could be a few hours up to several days, or longer. I am certain that you do not wish to be under its influence for that long. Nor do any of us. Despite the war being over, the Order still holds a great many secrets," he lectured.

"What am I going to do?" Hermione asked, suddenly feeling overwhelmed as the repercussions of Ron's actions finally sunk in and she realized that this went beyond just a few minutes humiliation.

Snape never answered her question because they reached the bottom of the stairs and the Weasley living room, where they were met by Professor McGonagall, Lupin, Harry, Ginny, and Ron.

Ron immediately handed a glass bottle to the professor. "Sorry, sir," he said. "There isn't much in there, but that's the stuff." He looked to Hermione, giving her a pleading look, but she only shot him an icy glare in return.

Professor McGonagall came over and helped Hermione the rest of the way down the stairs, protecting her cub. "Severus, has anything worked at all, yet?" she asked hopefully.

"No, nothing," he said while glaring at Ron. "I need to go back to Hogwarts. I'm certain that once I can analyze the wine then I will be able to brew an appropriate antidote."

"Of course," said the headmistress, nodding. "Hermione, it would likely be best for you to go with him. I'm certain that you understand that not only do we want you to be comfortable, but you are also a security risk for some of us. Not everyone knows some of the more... er... creative things that we had to do during the war, and it would be safer if you were someplace secluded. Besides, you'll want to take the antidote as soon as it's ready," she reasoned with a small smile on her face.

"Hermione, we'll... uh... talk to you about... everything after Snape gets you the antidote," Harry stammered, looking between his two best friends while Ginny looked on encouragingly.

Biting her lower lip slightly, she nodded, feeling a bit nervous at the thought of accompanying Snape, especially given her recent confession. "Yes, of course."

Professor Snape was already walking towards the door, and once he reached it, he shot her only a cursory glance and clipped, "I haven't got all night, Miss Granger."

Seeing the uncertainty on her face, Professor McGonagall led Hermione to the door and whispered, "Don't fear, child. Just remember that he can't deduct House points or give you detention."

"Not unless you want me to," he murmured silkily in her ear. Before she could respond, Snape firmly grabbed her arm, pushed her out the door and outside of the household wards of the Burrow, then Apparated them to the gates of Hogwarts.

A/N: I realize that this chapter was short. I'm sorry about that, but the Muse said to stop there. She really is demanding. The next chapter, if all goes as planned, will be longer.

Thanks go out to my wonderful betas SnarkyRoxy and JuneW, they're priceless. :)