Secrets Revealed

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any related characters; they are the property of JK Rowling. I am merely obsessed and like to borrow them occasionally, so please do not sue me. I am making absolutely no profit from this story.

A/N: Poor Hermione, I've been giving her a really hard time in this story. But the girl is persistent; she hasn't walked out on me yet. Things will get better for her soon though, I promise. Thank you so much to those who left reviews; they have really motivated me to write faster! And hugs to my beta, Nom de Plume. EnJoY!

Chapter 6

Secrets Revealed

The sunrise found Hermione sitting in an armchair, blankly staring at the fireplace. She had cried for a long time after Severus had left, but the early morning found nothing but dry eyes. The past week's events had been running through her head all night, yet her hazed mind failed to produce any answers. A knock on her door stirred her from her thoughts, and she turned around to look at the door. For a moment, a flash of Severus standing on the other side went through her mind. She shook her head; there was no way he would come back after last night. The knock came again, and with a heavy sigh, Hermione realized she had to get it. She stood up and found her wand, casting a few quick spells to change her clothes, fix her hair, and cover the redness and dried tears on her face.

Once she was sure she looked presentable, she went to open the door. Harry and Ron's smirking faces met her on the other side.

"Guess what Hermione?" asked Ron cheerfully. Before she could respond, though, Harry continued.

"There were no attacks last night!" he said in high spirits. "Nothing broken, burned, slashed, or destroyed! Isn't that great!" Hermione, however, just stood there, looking like she had just been hit by lightning.

"Oh dear Merlin!" she squealed. "I can't believe I missed something so obvious!" The two boys looked at her dumbfounded.

"What are you talking about, Hermione?" asked a very puzzled Harry. "What did you miss? What's obvious?" She opened her mouth to answer, but thought better or it. She waved at them as she ran out her door and disappeared down the hall. Ron and Harry were so stunned that they just stood there and watched her retreating back.

"What do you suppose Snape did to her during her detention?" asked Ron. "She's acting absolutely bonkers!"

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Hermione ripped through the halls, bumping into students and professors alike. She had to tell Severus! She had to let him know what was going on. Having finally reached his research lab, where he usually was on weekends, she began pounding madly. She was afraid that if he heard her voice, he would purposely ignore her, so she didn't say anything. The sound of a door opening came from her left, and she realised he was in his office.

"Who in the bloody hell is making all that noise!" came Severus' poisonous hiss. As soon as he stepped out into the hallway and saw Hermione heading towards him, he did a double take and tried to retreat back into his office. It was too late, though, she had been too close to the door and managed to get inside before he could stop her.

"Miss Granger," he spit, "get the hell out of my office!"

"Please," she begged, "you have to hear me out! I know..."

"I am not feeling particularly tolerant today," he growled, "and I suggest you leave before I kill you and give Dumbledore a reason to fire me!"

"I know why you've been so tired!" she continued as if he hadn't even spoken. "I figured out why you've been acting so strangely and..."

"Miss Granger, if you are not out of my office in three seconds, I will drag you out!" The tone of his voice was more venomous than she had ever heard it, and in any other circumstance she would have run in the opposite direction. But she had to tell him; no matter what he did to her, he had to know. She stood her ground and just stared at him.

Having had quite enough, Severus grabbed her arm and started dragging her out by force. Hermione was determined not to go down without a fight. She tried to pull herself in the opposite direction, but he was too strong, she only managed to have him tighten his grip. Hermione frantically kicked him a few times, but he didn't even flinch. He was succeeding in moving her, and he nearly had her out in the hallway. Hermione was desperate. He was obviously refusing to let go of her arm so she turned and did the only thing she could think of: she bit him.

Severus let go of her so abruptly that she fell backwards onto the floor. His hand moved to the place over his arm where she had sank her teeth, but his murderous gaze was on her.

"You. Will. Regret. That." His voice was low and dangerous, and despite her best efforts, Hermione was terrified. Tears were welling up in her eyes, and she tried desperately to hold them back.

"Please... Severus," she whispered, as a single tear fell down her cheek. "You have to listen... please... just listen to me." The hardened look on Severus' face was slowly fading, and the regret in his eyes was evident. With a heavy sigh, he turned around and closed the door to his office. He looked back to Hermione, who was still on the floor, trembling.

"Pull yourself off the floor, Miss Granger," he said, but there was no hint of menace in his voice. Hermione slowly stood up and wiped her eyes.

"I'm really sorry, sir," she said in an uncertain voice. "I didn't mean to bite you, it's just that... "

"Don't lie to me, Miss Granger. Your bite was quite deliberate." As he said this he raised his eyebrow, as if daring her to argue. "But regardless, you came here to tell me something so I suggest that you get on with it. I don't have all day." His snark was quickly returning, so Hermione decided she needed to tell him quickly before he tried to force her out again.

"Well, sir, I believe you are responsible for all the destructive acts that have taken place at Hogwarts in the last week." When she saw the look on his face darken, she realised that that had not been the right way to start, so she quickly added, "Please let me finish before you say anything, sir! I swear it will all make sense soon." Severus narrowed his eyes at her, but didn't say anything. Instead he moved to sit behind his desk and crossed his arms over his chest. His eyes settled on her, staring at her intently, waiting for her to continue.

"Well, sir," she said with a little more confidence than she felt, "like I was saying, I think you are behind all the strange things that have been happening in the last week. But I don't think you were conscious while doing these things. I think you were sleepwalking." Hermione looked at him expecting a reaction, but when she didn't get one, she took a deep breath and went on.

"The attacks all seem to be somehow connected to your emotions. When you go to sleep at night, those emotions somehow surface, and you act on them without really intending to. I haven't figured out exactly why you are sleepwalking, but you are. The attacks have all happened overnight and have taken place every night this week. The first attack was discovered on Sunday morning when... "

"Miss Granger," hissed Snape, "the first attack was discovered Tuesday morning, not Sunday! I suggest you get your facts straight before you start making up your preposterous theories." Hermione shook her head and went on.

"I beg to differ, sir; you see, Professor Sprout woke up on Sunday morning to discover that her four Baboru plants had been ripped out of the ground. She thought that an animal had been responsible, and so she did not bother to report it. I, however, don't see how an animal could rip out four plants without doing damage. Most animals would have to use their teeth or claws, and the plants would have been ruined." She looked at Severus to see if her explanation was acceptable, and seeing that he didn't argue, she continued.

"I couldn't figure out exactly how this first one related to you personally, but all the other attacks can be linked to you."

"I can probably assist you there, Miss Granger," he said coolly. "Going on the assumption that your theory is correct, of course, which I still doubt that it is. I can tell you that Professor Sprout and I had a disagreement on Saturday. I needed a single Baboru plant for my sixth-year Potions class, and the unbearable wench insisted she needed them all."

"That would explain it," said Hermione with a nod, hiding a small smile at his reaction. "Now, on Tuesday morning it was the Gryffindor trophies. That one is rather obvious, I mean, Gryffindor and Slytherin have a huge match coming up, and Slytherin will probably lose, which..." Hermione had just been speaking her mind, so she hadn't really realised what she had just said, but Severus hadn't missed it.

"Miss Granger," he barked, "I assure you Slytherin will not only win that match, but all of your little Gryffindor friends will wake up in the hospital wing!" Hermione allowed herself a small chuckle, truly amused at his behaviour.

"Sir, that is beyond the point," she giggled, "besides, I promise you that with our new Beaters, there is no way your house could win."

"I would be willing to bet anything that Slytherin will win that match!" Severus quickly retorted.

"Anything?" asked Hermione in a teasing voice. She was certain Gryffindor would win, and if she could get something out of Severus in the process, victory would be all the sweeter.

"Name your price," growled Severus, "but be warned, Miss Granger, if you play this game, it also means that I get to make a request of you when Slytherin wins."

"I'll do whatever you ask, sir," purred Hermione. "As for what I want: I want you locked up with me in your private rooms for an entire night." She realised she was pushing her luck, but she had to at least try.

"When I win our little bet, I want you to swear you will never speak to me again." He said this without a hint of hesitation. "I suppose the question now is: how confident are you that those Gryffindor dunderheads will win the match?" Hermione was shocked at his request. She could feel her heart breaking all over again. Not now, Hermione! she scolded herself. You have more important things to worry about.

"Very well, sir." She smiled as she extended her hand to Severus. "You have a deal. If Slytherin wins, I will never speak to you again. And when Gryffindor wins, you are mine for an entire night." Now it was Severus' turn to be shocked, but he never turned down a bet, so he extended his hand, and they shook on it. Hermione turned and sat in the chair facing his desk.

"Now, where was I?" she mused. "Ah, right. Your obvious Quidditch frustrations led you to destroy the Gryffindor trophies. Then on Wednesday morning we found the house-elves bound in the kitchens. Now it's no secret that you don't let the house-elves into your rooms to clean. And on top of that, you are constantly seen yelling at the poor things for giving food to the students. You really shouldn't be so hard on them, they..."

"They are rewarding students who are out of bed past curfew with snacks!" Severus barked. "They deserve to be yelled at!" Hermione giggled at his response; as bad as she felt for the house-elves, she was amused by the fact that he just kept verifying her theory.

"You are just proving my point," she continued, trying to ignore the annoyed look on his face. "That is why I believe you bound the house-elves. Now, on Thursday morning, Trelawney woke up to find her classroom in shambles. And seriously, Professor, you should have invited me to that little party. I would gladly have helped!" Again Hermione giggled, and again she was met with a stone-hard glare.

"Anyway." She tried her best to straighten her face. "Everyone knows you hate Trelawney and her entire subject. On Friday the Gryffindors woke up to find their common room ripped apart and the words 'Potter Stinks' written on the wall." Hermione realised that Severus was smirking at that one, and she shot him a nasty look before continuing.

"Again, far too obvious what that one has to do with you, and being a professor, you could have easily gained access to the Gryffindor common room. Then, very early on Saturday morning, Hagrid found the Whomping Willow on fire. I remember my third year very clearly, Professor, and I'm fairly certain I know why you hate that tree." Hermione stopped at this point because she knew that the next part of her theory was going to be awkward. After a short pause, she continued.

"There have been no gaps or breaks in your attacks, sir. Every night since last Saturday there has been an attack, including last night."

"Miss Granger," he snarled, "you either do not know your days of the week or you are avoiding something. Your list is clearly missing Monday morning and this..." Severus suddenly froze. His mind was piecing the puzzle together. If her theory was right, then he knew why there had been no attack last night – not any that the school knew about, anyway: because it had happened behind closed doors. One look at Hermione's low head and uncomfortable expression only confirmed his fears.

"Do you mean to tell me... " he said, afraid of what her answer would be, "that last Sunday night I was in your room?" The question hung in the air for a few minutes while Hermione tried to find her voice.

"You were," was all she managed to say.

"Oh, Merlin," Severus muttered into his hands as he let his head fall. After a minute, he looked back up at her, concern etched all over his features. "Miss Gr... Hermione... did I hurt you? ...What did... what did I do to you?" Hermione had never heard him sound so nervous before, he almost sounded scared. She wanted so much to go over to him and comfort him, but she knew he would never allow her to do that.

"Please don't worry yourself," she said softly to reassure him. "I'm fine, really."

"I know this must be difficult for you, Hermione," he said softly, "but I need to know what happened. I need to know that... that I didn't force myself on you... There were no attacks last night, and I woke up in your room. This can only mean that twice in one week I have possibly forced myself on you. That means that two of my attacks were directed at you... and I am honestly terrified of what I could have done to you. I am capable of doing horrendous things, Hermione... and I need to know that I didn't harm you." Hermione once again had a tear rolling down her cheek, but she still managed to give Severus a small smile.

"That is not how I see things, Severus." She paused to see if he would object to the use of his name, but when he didn't, she continued, "Your attacks this week have all been destructive, coming from pent up anger and resentment. But when you came to me, it was not out of anger, it was out of passion. Your need to be close to someone, to feel another's touch, is what brought you to me. Severus, I can't even begin to tell you how grateful I am that you came to me, over anyone else." The tears in her eyes were falling freely now, and her vision was so blurred that she had a hard time making out Severus' face. "I've never been the kind of woman that a man would desire... and for the first time in my life, you made me feel like a real woman. You made me feel needed and desired.

"I'm begging you, Severus; don't regret what you and I did. I promise you I was a willing participant, and I am still a virgin. We never got that far, so you have nothing to feel sorry for." Hermione then realised that she had told him everything she had come to tell him, and she didn't want to hear his response to her confessions. Her heart wouldn't survive any more harsh words. She got up and moved to leave, but as her hand reached for the doorknob, she realised she had something else that she needed to tell him. She stopped, but didn't turn around.

"I love you, Severus," she whispered before opening the door and walking out.

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A/N: Poor Hermione, love can be so hard, and Severus can be such a bastard. Let me know what you thought of this chapter, I'm looking forward to your reviews. (Please feed my muse!)

Lotsa Love, CyanaWhite