Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Borrowing some of JKR's characters for a bit of fun. No money is coming to me though.

Thanks go to my love beta, Charmed_Nay, who has taken to harassing me to get my arse in gear and to get this out.

"Snape?"

Hermione's voice was quiet, not wanting anyone else to hear her, but she hoped it was loud enough to rouse the snoring man. Leaning closer to peer at his face in the darkness, she opened her mouth to speak again.

"What is it?" he asked quietly, voice laced with sleep.

"I need to use the loo."

"Now?"

"For a long while now, but I just can't hold it any longer."

She'd been awake for at least an hour she was certain and had been debating on waking him up for the last thirty minutes. However, she worried that he would insist on being in the room with her while she relieved herself. It was a moot point, as there was no way she'd go to search it out herself in the dark. Not with the others out there.

After a sigh, he said, "Very well." The bed shook and sprung up once he got up. There was a slight rustling of clothes before a candle lit, showering their room with a light glow.

Her eyes widened as she took in his appearance. His normally sleek hair was disheveled, one side of his face had creases where the pillow had been pressed against it, and a grey nightshirt replaced his usual black clothing, leaving his calves and feet bare. Keeping her eyes towards the floor, she whispered a quick thanks and tried not to think about how he looked. It wasn't appealing. No, it was just that she'd never seen Snape look so normal...like an ordinary man... less severe.

"Come on," he snapped.

When she saw his feet turn and move away from the light and into the dark outer room, she looked up and followed him, getting as close as possible, not wanting to make any noise or lose her way. The only noises in the room were light snoring from a distant corner and the light patter of their feet on the cold floor.

Snape stopped to open a door, and Hermione bumped into him. "Sorry," she whispered.

"Never mind that. In here," he said, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the room. He used his wand to light the sconce and closed the door behind them. When she simply stared at him in horror, he asked, "What?"

"I'd like to do this without an audience."

He made a face and stalked out. Once the door clicked closed, she quickly went about her business, glad he'd retreated and left her in peace.

This won't be so bad if he keeps his word. So far, all's well. I can stand to hold on a bit longer. I'm strong. I'm clever. I'll get out of this.

A tap on the door stopped her thought flow. "Almost done," she said quickly, darting over to splash water on her face and to rinse her mouth out. Her reflection startled her as she took in her appearance: eyes bloodshot and puffy, cheeks swollen and pale. What had Snape thought when he'd looked at her?

"Not that I care," she muttered. And she didn't. She simply hated looking so frightful. She supposed, though, that fair was fair. She'd seen him looking unkempt, and she was certain she'd see much worse. "Well, I hope I don't see much worse anyway."

"Talking to yourself again?"

"Oh!" Turning around, she saw him standing in the doorway, hair tidied somewhat. "What time is it?" she asked, hoping she sounded calm.

"Just past four."

With that, he beckoned for her to go to him and flicked his wand to rid them of light. Hands stretched out before her, she moved in his direction and found him when her hands touched his nightshirt. Silently, she followed him back to their bed. She said nothing as she hurried beneath the duvet, slid as far away from his side of the bed as possible, and turned her back to him. He blew out the candle and made himself comfortable.

For a few moments, she feared he might make a move to touch her, but nothing happened, and she soon sensed he was falling asleep, as his breathing had begun to even out. They were so far apart that she couldn't even feel the heat of his body. Relief flowed through her. So far, he'd kept his word.

Sleep wouldn't come to her no matter how hard she tried. Thoughts of Ron and Harry, completed with worried expressions on their faces, kept surfacing in her mind. What were they doing to find her? Would they trust the information Snape had given them? Would Snape truly keep his word?

Snape, she thought bitterly. This is his fault. A shiver passed through her as she thought of the night he'd been Polyjuiced as Ron. What if they hadn't been interrupted? Would he have truly gone through with it? Hermione realized that he preferred a woman such as Narcissa, but he had seemed interested that night. Had it been an act?

"I hope so," she whispered. If Snape went back on his word and tried to use her...or if Rabastan ever followed through with his initial plans...she was uncertain if she could truly handle it. No. There had to be a way to get out. Her mind then pictured Draco's face. She'd been so certain that he'd sympathized with her... until Rabastan had joined them. Then he became the petty Malfoy she'd always known from Hogwarts. Still though. Maybe I can convince him to help. Maybe his mother can be reasoned with. She didn't seem so hostile to me. Only Bellatrix had intended her harm. Another shiver flowed through her body. She'd have to keep an eye on that woman as well as on Rabastan. A great pair they made. She only hoped that Rodolphus Lestrange wouldn't be joining them anytime soon. If he were anything like them, there was no telling what might transpire...whether she had Snape's protection or not!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Get up, girl," Snape said gruffly, shaking the bed with his booted foot.

"Whazzat?"

"I've told you twice to get up. I've things to do, and I won't have you lazing about in bed all day. You are to assist me."

When she sat up, she saw that he was holding out a dingy white, sheet-like dress for her to slip on. Gazing at it in horror, she realized that she'd have to go about dressed in something fit for house-elves. She snatched the dress from his grasp with burning cheeks, realizing that Narcissa and Bellatrix had probably thought it fitting for her.

Snape cleared his throat, causing her to look up. Dangling from the tip of his index finger was a pair of large, crudely made knickers.

"I believe you are forgetting these," he said, one eyebrow arched in amusement.

Hermione took the offensive garment from him without meeting his eyes again and opened them up completely in front of her. "I could fit someone else in these with me!" she said indignantly.

"Allow me," he said, flicking his wand.

Instantly, the material began to shrink to a size she was certain she could fit. "Er... thanks," she mumbled.

"You saw my workspace last night on our way in here?"

She nodded.

"You will reply to me with words."

"Yes," she said bitterly.

"And you will also look at me, Hermione."

At that, she looked up, defiance in her gaze. "I don't see why I have to go in there." Though her voice was no louder than a whisper, it carried her frustration and fear well.

With his arms crossed in front of him, he gazed at her a long time before speaking. "I thought we cleared this up last evening. You agreed to do as I say without question. We have a plan...if you'll remember." Raising his voice, he added, "This is not a vacation. You are my prisoner here, and as such, you will do as I say. Now, get your little arse up, get dressed, and meet me outside."

He strode off, leaving her to hurry to do his bidding. She was certain he'd said the last so that the others could hear them. He was right. If they thought he was coddling her too soon, maybe they would realize that it was all a rouse.

The instant she walked out from behind their curtains, she was accosted by Bellatrix. "Bout time you get your lazy lump up. How about a spot of breakfast?"

"The stove's just there," Narcissa added, pointing across the room. "All that you need as well."

"She is not a house-elf... regardless of how she might be dressed," Snape said, coming into her line of sight. "She'll cook if I say she does," he added, crooking a finger at her. "For now, I have something more important I need her for."

Wanting to put space between herself and the two women, she immediately followed him. She could hear them muttering from behind, but she didn't spare them another glance. Instead, her gaze was drawn over towards the fire where Draco sat with Rabastan and... Pettigrew. Hermione stopped and glared at the man who'd betrayed Harry's parents. If he'd never got away that night at Hogwarts, none of this would be happening.

"Come along, Hermione. Don't make me repeat myself."

"I hate him," she said when she was again at Snape's side.

"As does everyone here," he replied snidely, pulling out a small silver cauldron. "The instructions are just there on that parchment, but I must warn you, any mistakes may cost you a limb. Be very careful." He arched an eyebrow. "I trust you won't try anything foolish."

"Of course not," she said with a slight frown as she glanced at the parchment. "I've never seen this before. What is it for?"

"I am not at liberty to say at this moment. I'm sure you can understand that."

She set out to work and became engrossed in what she was doing, paying no attention to anyone else in the room...not even Snape. By the time a purple vapor was rising from the bubbling potion, two hours had passed. Having a few minutes to spare before she had to remove it from the fire, she glanced over to where Snape had been working only to find that he was no longer there.

Quickly, she looked about the room and found him near the fire with the others. He must have cast something to keep her from hearing what they were saying, and she desperately wanted to know. From the way Bellatrix was pacing excitedly to the way Rabastan smiled manically as he sharpened his knife, she could tell that something was about to happen. What? She tried to think back to all that she'd heard.

It was then that Draco's pale, pointed face shifted to gaze at her. She could see the fear and horror in his expression. Swallowing hard, she looked away, not wanting anyone to see her interest. There had to be a way to talk to him. From the look of it, he seemed to need someone to talk to. Had she misread what he'd done and said the previous day? Were his insults veiling something else?

She had only a few minutes to ponder on it and to remove the potion from the flame when Snape appeared at her side again.

"It's done then?" he asked softly.

"Yes." She leaned closer to the cauldron. "Smells just as it says and the color is right."

Snape nodded. "Very well. Leave it there to cool. I shall bottle it myself."

"I'd like a bath," she blurted suddenly. "The potion, the vapors feel as though they're clinging to me."

"Are you not hungry?"

"Well, I'd prefer to be clean when I eat, thanks," she retorted testily. When he arched an eyebrow, she added, "Sorry, it's just that I ache, and a hot bath would help."

"Come along," he said and led her to the room they'd gone to during the night. A flick of his wand had the bath filling, and another one conjured a fresh set of clothes.

Her mouth gaped open as he walked over to the counter and hoisted himself up on it, nonchalantly pulling an old Prophet up in front of his face.

"I'd like some privacy."

"I'll not leave you alone in here," he said without even looking at her.

"Well, you can certainly sit outside the door if you intend to guard me, but there is no way I'm going to undress and ..." Her voice trailed away as one corner of the newspaper folded down.

"I am reading this from front to back. Be done before I am, and I'll not see anything you don't want me to see," he said with a stern glare. When she didn't move, he said, "Though I have seen some of you before, haven't I? Maybe you want me to watch you."

"What? No! Just... just read!"

As quickly as she could, she disrobed and slipped into the bath while keeping an eye on him. Keeping his word, he didn't try to glance her way. She lathered the fresh flannel and began scrubbing away, fuming that he'd brought up that humiliating night. As she thought of what they'd done... what he'd made her feel... her stomach tingled and the feeling spread through her body, leaving goosebumps on her exposed flesh.

In hopes of changing her train of thoughts, she softly said, "I would appreciate it if you wouldn't bring up that night again."

"Does it make you feel uncomfortable?"

She could hear the amusement in his voice. "It does indeed." When he said nothing, she went on. "I guess I can understand why you want to be in here. First, you don't want anyone to bother me...I thank you for that. Second, you want it to look as though you and I are... well, you know, make it look as if..."

"'As if' what?"

"You're being difficult on purpose!" she snapped. Deciding against washing her hair, she began to rinse the soap from her body. "You know very well what I mean. I am trying to work through this situation with you, so I would appreciate it if you did your part. It's the only way this will work for us."

He flipped a page in the paper and didn't reply. Although she was annoyed with his silence, she didn't speak again until she was about to get out to dry off.

"I'm... don't look."

"Not even tempted," he replied dryly.

Once she was finished, they ventured out into the common room to find the others glancing knowingly at them. Rabastan appraised her with a smirk and lewd stare until he saw that Snape had noticed. Draco seemed shocked and turned away.

Together, they ate lunch in silence. Her stomach growled appreciatively as she hungrily devoured the sandwiches and crisps. Covertly, she watched the others while she chewed. Bellatrix and Rabastan were playing a game of chess while Narcissa and Draco were sitting quietly together, both reading, and Wormtail was off to the side alone and obviously displeased about it. His beady eyes met hers, and a small smirk curved his lips.

"Been a long time, girl," he said, breaking the comfortable silence.

"Not long enough," she quipped, glaring at him hostilely. She loathed him more than she'd loathed anyone before. He had betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort. He alone enabled Voldemort's return by helping to complete the potion. She wished that she'd allowed Harry to use the Time-Turner to capture him after all. Perhaps things would have been different for them all.

Bellatrix's loud laughter erupted, shocking Hermione.

"Even the Mudblood knows you're a worthless lump, Wormtail," she commented, drawing Rabastan's laughter.

"Bella, you will show respect to my... friend," Snape said coldly.

In return the dark woman snickered. "Friend indeed, Severus. Why you always choose these worthless types is beyond me."

"Bella," Narcissa chided.

"What? Why should I not say how I feel? The Dark Lord agrees with me, you know. Mudbloods... all the same, coming into our world accidentally and thinking they deserve the same treatment."

BANG!

A jet of light zapped Bellatrix and knocked her out of her chair, leaving her prone form motionless.

"Now then," Snape said as if nothing had occurred, "shall we retire to our room, Hermione? I happen to have a book that I think might interest you."

"All right," Hermione said, trying to keep her voice even. She wanted nothing more than to comment snidely to the others, but she knew she had to play her part. Without looking at anyone, she began to move towards the curtain that separated them from the others.

"Oi, Severus," Rabastan called. "How long do you want to leave her like this? We've a game going, see. Bout have her arse beat."

Snape flicked his wand and released his spell on the woman, and she angrily bounded up and pulled out her wand, muttering foul words at the lot.

Hermione ducked behind the curtain, not wanting to be involved or to have a stray hex hit her. Before long, and after much yelling, Snape joined her.

"The brown book on the third shelf."

"What are you going to be doing?" she asked when she saw him sit at his makeshift desk and pull out a quill and inkwell.

"I've some things to record," he said. "No more questions."

The afternoon stretched into the evening time before they ventured out, and Narcissa approached Hermione as she waited for Snape to come out of the loo.

"We're having guests tonight," she said. "You and Draco will be in charge of tidying up while I get the meal ready." She nodded towards Bellatrix. "She'll not bother you."

Hermione was certain she heard the woman add the word "much" as she walked away, but she couldn't be sure. So she was to be paired off with Malfoy and forced to clean up after them all? Things didn't look too bad, but she knew instinctively that she'd have to do the dirty, manual work.

"Go on then," Snape said from behind her, obviously having overheard the conversation.

She made her way to Draco, who was frowning in distaste. "Well? Where do we start?" she asked.

"You can start by sweeping," he said, nodding to the broom propped against the wall.

"And what will you be doing?"

"Making sure you don't miss a spot," he said snidely.

She narrowed her eyes and grabbed the broom, sweeping crossly. Why did she have to do it manually when they all had wands and could easily have the broom sweeping the floor on its own with a flick of a wand? She resented the fact that they were simply making her do the work because they thought she was less worthy. Each time she looked towards Snape, he was conveniently in conversation with Rabastan and Bellatrix and not paying any attention to her or the fact that Draco wasn't doing his share as indicated by his mother.

Wanting to strike out, she nastily asked, voice low, "So... is being a Death Eater all you thought it'd be?"

"Keep your mouth shut, Granger."

"No, I don't think I will. You see, I may have been told to help out in tidying up, but I've not been restricted to silence, have I?"

"If you know what's good for you..."

"What? What will you do?"

"Just do your work."

Stopping, she asked the question that had been burning in her mind for a long time. "If the others hadn't shown up, would you have went through with it?"

The look he gave her was unmasked and raw. Without his uttering of a word, she knew that his truthful answer would be a definite "no." However, she was certain that he thought himself a failure for not doing it.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, you know," she went on. "Harry saw it all. Told everyone that you'd lowered your wand, wanting to listen to Dum..."

"Shut your filthy mouth," he roared suddenly, interrupting her.

"What? Truth hurts, does it?" she returned, continuing to sweep as if he'd not just yelled at her.

"Is the M... er... girl giving your problems?" Rabastan asked as he strode towards them.

"Nothing I can't handle," Draco retorted, puffing out his chest and squaring his shoulders.

"Aye, looks like it at that." Giving her a small smile that made her nervous, he flicked his wand and charmed the broom to sweep for her. "There you are. Will give you time to help the lad polish things up right nicely. The Carrows are coming for the night."

"Them?" Draco commented in distaste. "Thought they weren't coming till tomorrow?"

"Plans change."

"Why wasn't I told?" Draco's tone was indignant, expression tight.

"You don't need to know everything."

"Rab, leave the children to play," Bellatrix said, drawing Hermione's attention to her.

Her dark hair seemed wildly disheveled, and there was an excitement about her that wasn't there before. Hermione wondered what plans had changed? Why did Draco seem to dislike the Carrows? It was then that Hermione noticed that Snape was no longer in the room. Suddenly feeling unsafe, she swallowed thickly and lowered her eyes, hoping nobody had noticed her discomfort. He'd said he wouldn't leave her unprotected.

Where is he?

She hated depending on him for safety. When she finally found a way to escape, she'd make certain to never leave herself in such a vulnerable position again. And she would escape. Yes. She and Ron would work past this, and she'd have to reassure him that nothing had happened at all.

Will you lie to him? The nagging voice within her mind whispered words that conjured the memory of Snape touching her intimately. She'd chosen to not let anyone know about that, wanting to deal with it on her own. She'd hated him for doing that to her, but now, it seemed to have happened in a far off time. More pressing things mattered now... like surviving while living with the enemy.

"You wipe down everything, and I'll get rid of the rubbish," Malfoy said, breaking into her thoughts. They were once again alone, and Snape had returned to his seat next to the others.

"All right," Hermione said, agreeing to the unspoken truce Malfoy had offered. "Shouldn't take long."

An hour later, they were done and parted company without a word. When the Carrows appeared, Hermione understood why Draco had seemed to abhor the thought of their company. Brother and sister, the horrid pair was alike in every way. They openly taunted her at first (the sister with nasty words, the brother with disgusting leers) until Snape forced them to keep quiet. After the meal was gone, she was excused, as they had something important to discuss. She could see that Draco was allowed to remain with them and burned to know what was being said.

It was late into the night before everyone retired and Hermione felt the bed move with Snape's weight as he joined her. She stiffened immediately, half expecting his touch.

"Well?" he asked.

"'Well' what?"

"How was your first day in captivity?"

"Are you mocking me?"

"I? Indeed not."

After a long silence, she finally replied. "It wasn't as bad as it could have been, I suppose."

"Relax."

"What do you mean?"

"You're tense."

"Well, that's because..."

"You are quite safe, Hermione. What happened between us..."

"Just don't," she said. "I just wish that I wouldn't be here. My place is with Harry... and Ron."

"Curious."

"What's curious?" she asked, turning towards him in the darkness slightly, though she couldn't truly make out his outline, as someone had doused the fire in the other room and her eyes had yet to adjust.

"Do you always think of your young lover as an afterthought?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Answer the question."

"I do not!"

"Good night."

"You can't just go to sleep after saying something like that!"

"I can and I will. I trust you can make your own way to the loo if you've need of it?"

"With them out there? I don't think so."

"You are safe with me here. I've warned them all to stay away from what's m... from you."

"Where did you disappear to today? I didn't feel very safe when I noticed you'd gone," she grudgingly admitted.

Silence.

"Snape?"

"Within the next few days, when the time is just right, we will set a plan into action that will bring our friends out of Azkaban," he said quietly.

"Will you warn the Ministry or the Order?"

"No," he said flatly.

"But..."

"Enough."

"Do you think of me as a Mudblood?" she blurted, uncertain where the words came from.

"Why are you asking me this?"

"I just want to know." And she did. Had to know what he thought when he looked at her, but she couldn't fathom why it was important to her.

"No," he said softly. "Now, let me get some sleep. I've an early morning."

"Good night," she whispered, smiling into the darkness.