Part III, chapter 8

AN: Thank you, Southern!

“Wake up, Granger.”

She sat up instantly, forgetting her lack of clothes until her brain caught up with her body. She pulled up the sheet to cover herself automatically before she remembered the events from the night before. She looked up at Snape with a smile that withered at his look of cold fury.

“You are my prisoner.” His voice was cold and threatening.

She nodded hesitantly in confusion, not sure why his demeanor had changed so radically. “Yes, I am.”

“My word is law.”

She nodded hesitantly again. “Yes, it is.”

He moved forward until he was looming over her in his most dominating pose. She found herself leaning away from him as far as possible, unnerved by the malevolence radiating off of him.

“And you have not obeyed me, so you will suffer the consequences.”

Her eyes went wide as she reviewed what she had possibly done recently that could warrant punishment. Before she had a chance, however, he pulled her roughly from the bed and then pushed her face first onto the floor. She tried to get up, but his boot came down on her back, preventing her from moving.

“You disobeyed me last night, Granger.”

Hermione focused on remembering the night before, and there it was. She had asked him two questions. She stopped struggling against his boot, going limp in defeat.

“Yes, sir,” she whispered.

“It's all very well and good that you can admit it, but that will do nothing to lessen your punishment.”

She nodded her head in acceptance, scraping her forehead against the rough carpet. Suddenly his boot was gone. She rested where she was for a moment before turning to look at Snape. Before she could turn more than halfway, however, she heard him hiss, “Crucio!”

Pain exploded throughout her body, and she felt as if her body was trying to split itself apart. All her nerve endings were burning in the fire, dampening all her other senses. She felt blind and deaf as the spell ravaged her body.

She had no concept of time and felt as if it had been hours of hell he'd put her through by the time he lifted the spell. She lay on her back, panting and twitching, vaguely aware that she was crying, but knowing it was pointless to try and stop.

Snape came into her field of vision, his face hard with hatred.

“Next time, I won't be so lenient. Now get up.”

Hermione struggled into a sitting position but found her body was being less than cooperative when it came to standing. She heard Snape huff in impatience, and she had to work hard to repress the rising panic. She was trying to obey him, but her body just wasn't letting her.

Suddenly, his hands were on her body, and he was lifting her up to her feet. She tried to struggle, but he merely tightened his grip. She let out another sob, not knowing what was coming.

“Hush,” he murmured softly. She didn't know if it was an order or not, so she tried to calm herself, despite the dreadful feeling of having been torn apart from her heart out.

Without another word, he half walked, half dragged her down the hall to Wormtail's room. Without bothering to knock, he blasted the door open and shoved her into the room.

Wormtail was already at attention, giving her a worried glance before looking to Snape.

“Better take her while you can, Wormtail. She's been a naughty little girl, and you won't be getting her back after I return.” He then conjured his work robes and was gone.

She wanted to be strong, she didn't want to show Peter how terrified she was, but Snape's parting words shredded what little hope she had left, and she collapsed by the bed in tears.

“Are you alright?” Peter asked, rushing over to her and taking her into his arms. “I heard you screaming, and I... What did he do to you, love?”

She was still shaking from the curse and the betrayal and was unable to answer.

“What did he do to you?” he repeated, tightening his grip on her protectively.

The real concern and anger in his voice brought her mind back into gear, and she thought of what Snape had told her about how he used the truth to manipulate people. If she hadn't been so miserable, she would have smiled at the irony of using Snape's advice against him.

She felt her throat constrict again at the thought of Snape and vowed more fervently than ever that she would get out or die trying. If using Peter was the only way, then she would use Peter, no matter how wrong it now felt.

“He... he...” She was suddenly glad she was so distressed. “He wanted me to... he wanted me. Wanted to... I was so powerless... He... so terrible.”

Peter's arm tightened painfully until she whimpered, when he hastily relaxed.

“Don't worry. I won't let him hurt you again. I'll protect you.”

She laughed, but fortunately it sounded hysterical even to her ears. “He's going to kill you, Peter! I'm sure of it! He just Crucioed me, and I'm sure his next punishment is going to...” She hiccoughed miserably. “He said he wanted to kill you.”

“I'll just get to him first,” he said with an odd note to his voice. She looked at him and saw his expression was murderously pale.

“Peter, he's gone to see Voldemort,” she said, grabbing his robes for emphasis. “He saw us yesterday. He knows how you feel about me – how I feel about you.”

Peter's expression faltered at that. She could see fear and panic seize him, but then he looked at her and something changed. He set his jaw stubbornly and took a deep breath.

“Well then, I guess I've got to get you out of here.”

“What?”

“I know the password, and I can get us out of here. I'll take you to your friends; you'll be safe there.”

She could almost taste the freedom, but there was too strong an undertone of guilt to make it sweet.

“What about you? Voldemort will be after you.” She knew she shouldn't be pointing it out, but she found she didn't want him to die. She didn't want to be the death of him.

But he just nodded his head and scratched his arm, the stubborn set to his jaw firming. “My life is forfeit anyway, Hermione. At least this way I can try to make-up... I can save at least one person I love.

“After you're safe, I'll make a run for it. I'll get as far away from here as possible. I'll lure them as far away from you as possible.”

Hermione found herself unable to say anything for a long moment as tears of genuine gratitude gathered.

Exhaling a shaky breath, she asked, “Are you sure?”

“Positive.” His looked turned mean. “I'm not letting him hurt you ever again if I can help it.”

Hermione looked at Peter with new eyes and felt sick to her stomach. She was condemning this man to death by using his love for her against him. It was wrong. It was terribly, terribly wrong. And it was the only way for her to escape. If she didn't go, everything would blow up in her face. Either he would find out she'd been using him and would kill her, or Snape would... would torture and kill her. At the very least, Voldemort would find out eventually, and both she and Peter would die horrible, painful deaths.

Tears overcoming her again, she nodded.

“We'd better go now,” Peter said, taking her hands and helping her up before digging out a robe for her to don. “I don't know when Severus will be back.”

She nodded again, slipped the robe over her head and leaned against him as they made their way downstairs. At the front door, he stopped and said, “The password is 'traitor.' The trick is to really feel it, like with Apparating. Do you think you can do that?”

She almost laughed at the grim irony. “Yes, I think so.”

He extended his real hand. She took it, and he gave her hand a sympathetic squeeze. “Let's go.”

///////////|\\\\\\\\\\\

She escaped.

The Dark Lord will not be happy about this. He'll be even unhappier that Wormtail successfully defected. I almost pity Peter.

She did it, though. She's gone!

Only one chapter to go.