Part I, chapter 12

AN: Thanks go to Southern for her fabulous beta work, though she's not to blame for any mistakes herein.

She was setting the meal on the table when Snape let out a hiss and clutched his arm. Wormtail looked up at Snape, his expression worried at first, then confused.

Snape saw his confusion and scoffed. “Are you really so dim, Wormtail? Nagini is obviously hungry. We all know how difficult it is to distinguish you from all the other rats.”

Wormtail flushed with either embarrassment or anger, though probably a mixture of the two, as Snape stood up and looked at the two of them disdainfully.

“I know it goes against your nature, Wormtail, but do try and refrain from doing anything stupid.” He then waved his wand, clothing himself in his Death Eater costume, and disappeared with a very quiet 'pop.'

Hermione looked at Wormtail warily. He'd been avoiding her for most of the week, and she didn't know if that was because Snape had kept her by his side most of the time or because Snape had been getting extremely nasty toward Wormtail over the past week, even going so far as to hex him if he coughed too frequently. She knew that she was doing everything she could to avoid upsetting Snape.

Wormtail didn't look at her, though. He kept his eyes focused on the food he was eating. He looked to be in a sulky mood, and she wasn't sure how to use this opportunity to her advantage. It wasn't until he finished his plate that she saw an opening.

“Would you like some more?” she asked, forcing herself to sound tremulous.

He did look up at that, surprised and possibly pleased. “Yes. I'd like that.”

She offered him a shy, nervous smile as she refilled his plate. She opened her mouth to say something, but then decided it would be better to wait for him to make the next move.

As it turned out, that in itself was the perfect move.

“What were you going to say?” he asked.

She cast her eyes down in what she hoped was a demure fashion. “I just wanted to say thank you, sir. I really appreciate your getting Snape to lend me his books.”

It was a gamble, as she was fairly certain he hadn't actually asked Snape for that favor, but this gave him an opening. She was hoping he would stick to his slimy self and take the credit.

He did seem to debate it for an instant before his eyes took on a shrewd look. “You're welcome, Hermione.”

She smiled at him again, and this time it was genuine, though she struggled to rein it in. She ducked her head and looked longingly at the food on Snape's plate knowing she wouldn't be able to eat until after Snape returned.

Wormtail picked up on that and decided it was in his interest to act chivalrously. “Here. I doubt I'll be able to finish all this,” he said as he put a good portion of his second serving onto her plate. She thanked him heartily, and they ate in silence, though she felt him looking at her throughout most of the meal.

When he finished, he pushed his chair back a little and gave a little sigh of satisfaction.

“It's good to have you cooking for us again,” he said, rubbing his belly contentedly. “Not only does it taste better, but with you cooking, I don't have to worry about him slipping something into the food.”

He couldn't have given her a better opening if they'd rehearsed beforehand.

“Oh, Snape's just horrid! I can almost understand him treating me the way he does – after all, I am his prisoner – but the way he treats you is abominable!”

Wormtail looked at her sharply, and for a moment she feared she had laid it on too thick. Subtle and slow were the keys here, and that hadn't been either. She hoped he would overlook it, but she'd have to be extra careful from here on out.

“How does he treat you?” Wormtail finally said, still giving her a hard, searching look.

She only barely managed to keep herself from smiling too happily, restraining it to something that might look like a brave smile.

“Oh, you know... He... he's just his normal, cruel self. I think he actually enjoys the power plays he makes to lord it over me, like those potions by the stove while he was cooking? Those were for my punishment. He just... he uses the normal head games to control me, to make sure I remain compliant.”

And I hate that I do comply, she added mentally. The bitterness must have shown on her face, however, as Wormtail reached out and patted her hand with a wry smile.

“That's how he does things. He didn't have the weight to throw around bodily as a kid, so he mastered the fine art of fucking with your head.” He sounded as bitter as she felt. He absently patted her hand again.

They sat there silently for a few minutes. Hermione didn't quite know where to go from there without being too obvious. Finally, she decided that maybe some basic hosting was in order.

“Would you like some tea, sir?”

He withdrew his hand rapidly and looked up, obviously startled. He looked around the room for a moment until he realized that she had been talking to him.

“Er, yes, please. That would be nice.”

She smiled at him again and got up to make the tea, glad to get away from his sweaty hand. Once again she was having doubts that she could go through with her plan. If his touching her hand grossed her out...

“Hermione,” Peter called out from the table. She turned to find him watching her with that shrewd look on his face again.

“Yes, sir?”

He flinched. “Please don't call me 'sir.' It makes me think of either my father or... other authority figures.”

Hermione smirked to herself. “Then what should I call you?”

“Most people just call me Wormtail,” he replied in a sulky tone.

She carefully avoided his eye. After a few moments, she said in as timid a voice as she could fake realistically, “Would you mind terribly if I called you Peter?”

If she hadn't needed him for her plans to work, she would have given up right then thanks to the scheming, self-satisfied smirk that crossed his face.

“Peter would be fine,” he said, trying for charming and falling well short. His tone reminded her of that night in the Shrieking Shack – oily and smarmy, only without the desperation. She didn't grimace in disgust, though it was a close thing. Instead, she smiled.

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I wish I didn't have to leave Wormtail unsupervised in my house. I hate the thought of that dirty little animal crawling over my belongings.