Part I, chapter 7

AN: Patience is not one of my strong suits. I tried waiting a little longer between updates, but Southern was wonderful enough to beta this for me, and I couldn't resist any longer. *hugs SW and offers her chocolate*

But enough of that and on with the... plot movement?

After dinner, she was having a hard time remaining calm. Anxiety, anger and hunger were warring within her, and her concentration was the casualty.

She was furious at Snape. She had followed all the rules he'd laid out, and then he not only prevented her from eating but had also made her sit there and watch while they devoured the meal in front of her, knowing that she was starving. And then he'd mocked her. If she were able to do wandless magic...

Wormtail wasn't much better. He hadn't said anything, but the self-satisfied smile he'd worn as he took the last helping of food had almost been enough to make her cry with fury. And on top of that, he'd been leering at her whenever he could, though he seemed hesitant to do so in front of Snape.

Their dynamic was strange. Snape obviously despised the rat, and Wormtail feared Snape. Whenever Snape wasn't looking, Wormtail would shoot him the blackest glares. But Snape reacted to Wormtail's presence as well. It was almost impossible to tell what he was thinking or feeling, but she sensed that Wormtail made Snape uneasy. He certainly never exposed his back to him if he could help it.

If it were someone other than Wormtail, she might have expected it to be a power struggle, but her brief time with Voldemort and his followers showed that Snape was definitely favored over the rat. Was Wormtail simply jealous, or was there more to it than that? From what Harry had told her and Ron about Voldemort's return, Wormtail probably felt entitled to Voldemort's esteem and was bitter that Snape had one-upped him. But why Snape's unease?

She looked at the two men from under her lashes and shuddered. They were both despicable traitors. They were both callous murderers. And they both were her captors.

Wormtail looked her way again, and she quickly averted her gaze. She really didn't like the way he looked at her. It brought to mind things she'd rather forget, not to mention it made her grateful for Snape's presence.

She really wished she knew what Snape had done when he'd knocked her out. Despite what he'd said at breakfast, she didn't trust him. She wished she could feel safe from molestation from at least one of them.

“Hermione... You're the girl Ronald fancies, right?” a high-pitched voice said to her left, startling her out of her numb thoughts.

She wanted to tell the rat off, to tell him to get away from her, but she didn't dare. She didn't know much about Peter Pettigrew, but she suspected that he was the type to store up resentments and take out his frustration on anyone who was weaker than him, which, at the moment, she was.

“Yes.”

He hummed in agreement and sidled around to stand in front of her, twisting his hands and nervously glancing in Snape's direction.

“Hmm. Ron has obviously grown up since I last saw him. He used to talk of nothing besides Harry Potter and Quidditch and what prats his brothers were, all but Bill and Charlie, that is.”

He paused, and Hermione shuddered. It was still horrible to think that this rodent had been so close to them. Even more than horrible, given the lecherous vibes he was radiating. The last time he'd seen her, she'd only been a child.

“It was my idea, you know, keeping you alive,” Wormtail squeaked, glancing nervously over his shoulder as he moved to sit down next to her. She scooted over, trying to make space between them.

“I know.” She tried to keep the bitterness out of her voice, but knew she'd failed when she saw him flinch minutely out of the corner of her eye.

She refused to look at him, continuing to stare at the bookcase as if it were the only thing in the room she could see.

He shifted in the seat next to her, but she couldn't tell what direction he was moving until she felt his breath on her cheek.

“You've no hope of rescue, you know. No one is going to find you here – it's Secret-Kept. No one knows about this place besides me and Snape – and the Dark Lord, of course. ”

“I'm guessing the Dark Lord didn't choose you as the Secret-Keeper.” The words slipped off her tongue before she could stop them, but as soon as it was said, she froze, waiting for his retaliation.

To her surprise, he laughed, and to her relief, he relaxed back into the sofa, away from her.

“No, he didn't. As a matter of fact, he's the Secret Keeper. He likes to keep things close to his chest, if you know what I mean.”

She turned to look at him, making sure she had eye contact before saying, “He doesn't trust anyone.”

He gave another high-pitched squeak of laughter and turned to Snape.

“She's a clever one, isn't she, Severus?”

Snape looked up slowly, gave both of them a bored glance and went back to his parchments he was poring over. “She gives that impression, yes.”

Wormtail chuckled again and then winked at Hermione playfully. “Don't mind Severus. He's just a sourpuss.”

Hermione almost smiled at the scowl that crossed Snape's face at that. To hide her amusement, she turned back to face the bookshelves, unconsciously sighing as she did so.

“If I remember right, you like reading, don't you?” he said quietly, leaning toward her once again. There was a nasty quality to his voice that gave her goose flesh. She nodded.

“I'll tell you what I'll do then,” he whispered and leaned closer, placing a hand on her thigh as he did so. She froze and clenched her teeth, positive she didn't want to hear what he was going to say, but unsure how to get him away without angering him. “Severus is rather chary with his precious books, but I bet if I could convince the Dark Lord to keep you alive, I could convince Snape to loan you a book here and there. You don't seem the type to mark books, after all.”

She turned to look at him and found him closer than she expected. Their noses were barely an inch apart, and his shallow breaths were assaulting her nose. There was no doubt as to what he wanted from her, based on his leer. She automatically recoiled in disgust, but that's when it occurred to her: Wormtail knows the password. In that instant, she decided her course. She took a deep breath and tried to relax, although she was still far too nervous to pass for 'at ease.' She lifted her lips slightly, trying to smile in a way that would seem nervously grateful, and nodded her head just barely. “I'd like that.”

Judging by the slow smile that spread across Wormtail's face, she thought she might have a chance if she played her hand well and didn't underestimate the wiliness of the rat before her. Without thinking, her eyes flicked to Snape to see if he was observing them. Wormtail noticed and patted her thigh with a smile.

“Don't worry. I'll deal with him.”

Hermione didn't bother to hide her fears but tentatively smiled back anyway.

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Perhaps she is clever after all.

I think Wormtail actually has a good idea, though, offering her reading material. I don't want her getting restless.