A Maid in the Devil's Manor

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 10 ~ Seeing the Potential

Severus looked around the large empty room.

“These rooms are not empty, Miss Granger. They are full of potential. I had everything removed so we could have a clean start. I brought you here so you could get a look at the rooms and then make your list of equipment with which to fill it. This will not be a dream or wish list, Miss Granger. Every item of equipment that can further your research you will purchase and place in this room, from counters on.

Hermione’s eyes began to glaze over. Severus gave the witch a smirk.

“Now you see it, don’t you?” he purred.

“Yes,” Hermione said, her eyes shining. She was to fill this space with lab equipment. Any type that she needed. She began to walk around the room, the Professor watching her as she mentally calculated the area with which she would have to work. She strolled into the other open space, slightly smaller than the first and walked the perimeter, dragging her hand across the wall as she made her rounds. Severus watched her, his black eyes glinting. She was being seduced by what he was offering her. This was good. She walked back to him.

“I don’t know what to say, Professor,” Hermione said, looking up at him.

“Then it is best you say nothing,” he responded, “Now come, I want to show you the rest.”

They returned to the hall and opened another door on the left. It also was a huge room, but it was rather humid and a huge pile of rich, black earth was in the corner. The room was illuminated softly, but Hermione could not see the source of the light.

“I would like to turn this room into a kind of terrarium, of great size. Here you can breed, nurture and harvest your plants. The light and temperature can be adjusted to create the ideal conditions for growth, and it can be divided if necessary, to form different types of environments which can coexist side by side. If you need a swamp-like environment you can place it where you like, and an arid environment next to it, separated by magic if that is what you need. Sort of an inside greenhouse or garden. You will have house elves to help you tend to this area. If you like, I can employ Mr. Longbottom as a consultant in the setup of this part of your lab,” Severus said.

Hermione stared at the room. It was a fantastic idea. She could grow her own pitcher plants and test them at different cycles, find out if they had the resistance to the killing curse their entire life cycle or did the ability develop over time. If it developed over time, then she could isolate the enzyme that caused the resistance at the proper stage of growth and…

Severus watched as Hermione slipped into her contemplative mode. Her amber eyes glazed over as her internal dialogue emerged. When she was like this, the outside world ceased to be. It was like the world of thought absorbed her, and only a living, breathing shell remained. Severus remembered this aspect of her in Potions class. It would often happen during a lecture she found particularly interesting. Hermione would latch on to a thought and run with the possibilities it contained, tuning out everything else until he’d swoop up silently and slap her desk loudly, startling her back to the matter at hand.

He smirked at the memory of her looking at him, wide-eyed and out of sorts, then scowling as if he had interrupted some important work. He probably had, but it had been his class, and he demanded her undivided attention when he spoke. Now he was witnessing it again. The inquisitive girl inside the young woman making herself apparent once more. He let her continued this way for a few minutes before clearing his throat. Hermione turned her eyes slowly on him, her eyebrows raised as if surprised to see him.

“Are you back, Miss Granger?” he asked her with a smirk.

“Back?” she responded, looking a bit confused.

“Yes, back, Miss Granger. Ever since you were a student you would zone out into your own little world when an idea hit you. I see that aspect of you hasn’t changed much over the years,” he said. There was no disapproval in his voice however.

Hermione blushed a bit. Yes, she did have a tendency to become very focused on her thought processes…to the exclusion of all else. She would do it at work sometimes, accidentally walking into others like an absent minded professor, or spilling her coffee as she apparently stared into space. Her coworkers thought her a bit daft at times, and it was a source of conversation among them. They thought she might be a bit shell-shocked from when she participated in the final battle. She was one of the few employees of the Ministry who had actually participated in the battle that finished Voldemort. Harry, Ron and Lucius being a few of the others. The Ministry did not send Aurors until the battle was almost over, not believing Dumbledore’s assertion on when the battle would occur, and dismissing the information provided by Severus as untrustworthy. The Professor’s Order of Merlin First Class Medal had been given grudgingly.

Hermione blinked up at Severus. “Yes, I guess I do have a tendency to zone out once I latch on to an idea or train of thought,” she admitted.

“You are welcome to zone out as much as you like, Miss Granger,” the Potions Master replied, walking through the door and back into the hall. Hermione followed him. There was one more area to show her, and here Severus’ belly tightened. He walked down to the final door on the left and opened it, gesturing for Hermione to enter. There was a small foyer, with a stand on which to hang cloaks and other door. Hermione hesitated.

“Go on, open it,” Severus breathed, standing close behind her.

Hermione placed her hand on the door and opened it. She gasped as she walked into a brightly lit study. Books lined the walls from floor to ceiling. There was a large desk and swivel chair in one corner, a fireplace with two comfortable armchairs, and a well stocked liquor cabinet in the other corner.

“Is this the library?” Hermione asked, trailing her fingers across the book spines and gasping a little at some of the titles on the shelves.

“Actually, no. This is your study,” Severus replied, staring at her to see her reaction.

She turned to him wide-eyed. “My study?” she repeated.

Severus nodded and pointed to several doors off the study.

“And over there is your kitchen, your spare room and …” Here he faltered a bit. “Your bedroom,” he concluded.

Hermione disappeared through the kitchen door. Severus remained in the study. She came out of the kitchen, smiling a little.

“There’s a lot of spaghetti in the cabinets,” she said, “and canned sauce.”

Severus rolled his eyes. The house elves obviously knew her preferences.

“That was not my doing, believe me. Thank the elves for that,” he said. “But I will be having a word with them. I distinctly told them to stock healthy food. Obviously, they went for what you ate the most,” he said, frowning a bit.

“Even if they had put healthy food there, I would have eaten the spaghetti. They are very perceptive,” Hermione replied as she walked into the spare room.

“This is very spacious. I have no idea what I will use it for,” she said, looking the room over.

“I’m sure you will find something,” the Potions Master replied, a little tense as she approached the bedroom.

Hermione peeked into the bedroom.

“Oh my,” she said.

The bedroom walls were made of stone, but richly appointed with lacquered wood trim moldings. The four-poster bed was king-sized, obviously hand carved and painted with gold leaf accents on crackle paint. Cupids were carved in the posts.

Hermione looked at Severus.

“Cupids?” she asked.

“My house elf Eli decorated this room, Miss Granger. Do you really think I would have cupids carved on your bed?” he asked her, raising one eyebrow in distaste. He looked at the opulent bed. “Actually, it is highly inappropriate…”

“It’s fine,” she chuckled. “I guess Eli figured I needed all the help I could get. The cupids are fine.”

Severus scowled a bit as he looked at the bed and considered her words. He hoped she didn’t plan to entertain any wizards in her rooms while she was here. Of course, it would be her right, but still…the thought disturbed him. But she was a young witch. He imagined she had her needs, just as he did.

Hermione surveyed the rest of the room. A small end table with a drawer sat next to the bed. Against the far wall was an elegant hand hewn French chest made of walnut, with bronze pulls. A mahogany bench with a sateen cover sat against another wall. A wardrobe stood next to it. Hermione opened the wardrobe. It was stocked with robes of varying colors, all in her size and there were several white lab coats as well. She pulled open the drawer and found several pairs of denim jeans, an assortment of tee shirts and pullover shirts. In the lower drawer was lingerie, bras and panties, all in her size. Hermione held up a lacy little sheer number in red that had a matching bra attached to it. Severus’ eyes went wide.

“That Eli has some taste,” she commented, smiling broadly, “I would have bought this for myself at a shop if I had seen it.”

The lingerie was quite pretty. What a color, red. Severus tried not to imagine Hermione wearing the bra and panty set as he looked at her. Why didn’t she put the items back in the drawer? He cleared his throat.

“Miss Granger, as pretty as your ah…delicates are, I think it would be better if you would peruse them at another time,” he suggested as she pulled some black lace panties out of the drawer. These had garters attached.

“Oh my gods,” she breathed, then burst out laughing, “what in the world does your house elf think I’ll be doing down here? Putting on a burlesque show?”

She opened another drawer. In this one there were nightgowns. A few sensible flannel ones, but also some short silk varieties, and even a negligee. This she held up too, inspecting it, much to Severus’ discomfort. The negligee was sheer and green and silver. It had matching crotchless panties. Slytherin colors. Hermione frowned at it a bit and turned to the Potions Master.

Before she could speak, Severus cut her off.

“Miss Granger, I told Eli to furnish this room with everything a young, twenty-four year old woman could need and left it at that. I guess he took me at my word,” he said, clearly embarrassed at the intimate, erotic items the elf provided her.

Hermione wanted to laugh, badly at the Potions Master’s discomfiture.

“It’s fine, Professor Snape. It seems Eli has high hopes for me,” she said, folding up the garment and replacing it in the drawer, closing it. Next she opened the closet. There were three cloaks there. An everyday cloak, a waterproof cloak, and a very elegant dress cloak. There were also several dresses in varying colors. In the bottom of the closet, were several pairs of shoes, ranging from low-heeled to high heeled. They were matched to the dresses. There were also three pairs of trainers and two sets of rubber boots, one pair thigh high. Obviously the elf had provided these for her work in the terrarium.

There was also a dressing table with a chair and a mirror. She walked up to it.

“Hello dear,” the mirror said, “You have the most beautiful eyes.”

A talking mirror. Hermione wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Talking mirrors could be quite critical. Well, she could spell it to silence if it annoyed her. She wandered into the loo. It was decadence itself. A beautiful sunken marble tub that could easily hold four people was the main fixture. Several scented spigots surrounded it. She noticed the jasmine scented one right away. On the shelves was a large assortment of washes, shampoos, lotions and oils. There even was a loofah. She picked up one of the bottles of oil and read the label. Hm. Supposedly it heated up when applied to the skin. This Eli was a hoot. An assortment of candles were set in strategic locations, ready for lighting. There were two marble washbasins topped by a long lighted mirror, and a closet full of soft fluffy towels and washcloths. A shower large enough for four people with a sliding glass door was cut into the wall, tiled with marble. And of course there was the loo itself. Hermione looked up at the ceiling. Her jaw dropped. There was a replica of Michelangelo’s painting from the Cistene Chapel. She drew the line there.

“Professor Snape, that has to go,” she said firmly, pointing upward.

Severus stepped in the door of the loo, looked up and smirked. He pulled out his wand and removed the painting, leaving a white ceiling behind.

“Thank you,” Hermione breathed.

”You’re welcome,” he replied, backing out of the loo. Hermione followed him into the bedroom and back into the study. She looked around once more. Severus watched her, waiting for her overall reaction.

She looked at him thoughtfully.

“You certainly went all out, Professor,” she said.

“I want you to be comfortable while you are here, Miss Granger. If you are at ease, you will be able to focus on the work. It is all about the work. You will have the best so you can do your best.” He hesitated. “So do you like your rooms?” he asked her, the tenseness returning to his belly. This was so important.

Hermione looked at him again with those shrewd amber eyes, as if trying to read him.

“The rooms are beautiful, Professor. A little overstocked for the time I shall be here, but they are more than adequate. Who wouldn’t like them?” she replied, looking at the study again.

Severus sighed in relief. Good. She approved of her rooms. He walked over to the desk, opened the draw and retrieved a parchment and quill, setting it down on the desk and pulling out the chair.

“I think this would be the perfect time for you to begin on your equipment and supply list, Miss Granger. Tomorrow morning we will go into Hogsmeade and make our purchases, and have them ready for delivery. As soon as the lift is completed, the labs will be set up and stocked according to your specifications,” he said.

Hermione walked over to the desk and sat down. Severus went over to the liquor cabinet and removed a bottle of wine and a glass. He sat these on the desk beside her.

“I will have some food sent down. What would you like?” he asked her.

Hermione pulled the parchment towards her, her eyes glowing.

“Oh, a couple of sandwiches,” she said absently as she started writing.

“Any particular type?” he asked her.

“Ham with lettuce and tomato. Mustard,” she said shortly. She was in mode again.

“I will leave you to it then, Miss Granger. Use the mirror to contact me when you are finished,” he said.

“Um hmm,” Hermione responded absently as she wrote.

Severus smirked. She was settling in nicely.

“I will be back,” he said. Hermione didn’t respond.

Severus walked up the hall and back to the wall that led to the staircase. He performed the spell that would let him out and climbed the staircase back to the Manor’s upper levels. As he walked, he thought about the provisions Eli had made for Miss Granger. Obviously, the elf felt the young woman would have a need for pretty underthings, nighties and so forth. Was she going to be sexually active while staying at the Manor? She said she had no current love interest. Did this mean she would be bringing casual lovers to the Manor?

He was disturbed. House elves were noted for their ability to anticipate what was needed before their Masters realized what was needed. That Eli felt such…erotic items should be a part of Miss Granger’s wardrobe was a cause of concern. He had never thought of the young woman’s sexuality, only her intellectual attributes. Now that his mind was forced to face the reality that Miss Granger was more than a brain, he realized that she was … well ….quite lovely. Even desirable. His mind went back to the incident in her bedroom when she had exited the loo covered by nothing but a towel. She certainly was well proportioned. He had got a glimpse of hip…softly rounded, flaring from her small waist in a perfect curve…

He wondered how long it had been since Miss Granger actually had a sexual encounter. He knew how focused she became, tirelessly applying herself to her projects to the almost total exclusion of all else. Her love life must have suffered because of this. He pursed his lips as he remembered her saying she would probably end up an old maid. With her drive for knowledge, that was a distinct possibility. That she would spend all her time pursuing new discoveries. Yet she had shown an obvious delight in the items Eli had selected for her, so that showed she had some interest in the more carnal aspects of life. He found himself wondering if she applied herself to sex with the same intensity she applied herself to research. If she did, she would be truly amazing…

Severus caught himself. He shouldn’t be having such intimate thoughts about the woman who was going to help him find peace, help him make progress in his search for redemption. Plus, Miss Granger was much younger than him. There was an eighteen-year age difference between them. Hm. He remembered Albus telling the staff one evening that there was a twenty-one year age difference between Miss Granger’s mother and father, who were still happily married.

Severus was forty-two. He was still rather young by wizarding standards. Wizards could live to the age of two hundred, if they took care of themselves. In ratio to muggle years, he would be considered to be in his early to mid-twenties. It was his association with the Dark Lord that added years to his appearance and demeanor. He thought a little more about the witch in the lower levels of his Manor. When she had attended Hogwarts, she was more concerned with her studies, than the hormonal young wizards that surrounded her. But then again, she had been considered an odd duck, and hadn’t yet grown into her own. Now she was lovely. Then, she had been…well in muggle terms, a nerd. By her seventh year however, she began to attract the notice of the young wizards, but they had treated her so dismissively in the earlier years, that she was not the least bit interested in their advances.

Miss Granger always had a formidable mind, and would require a mate of equal or greater intellect to be truly happy. Sex was a great incentive to make a connection, but a meeting of minds was necessary to maintain that connection beyond the confines of the bedroom. Severus really couldn’t imagine a young wizard of Hermione’s age able to feed her need for knowledge and growth. Perhaps that’s why she remained unattached. For his purposes, however, unattached was good. She could devote her time to finding the solution to the killing curse. But still, Eli’s treatment of her wardrobe was disturbing. It implied that Miss Granger would be actively engaging her libido while at the Manor. And this could detract from her work. He would have to find a way to discreetly observe her while she was there, and if necessary, find a way to keep her libido in check. Then he smiled evilly. He already had the means to observe her. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his mirror.

“Observe Hermione Granger,” he said to it. The mirror showed Hermione sitting at the desk, writing. A glass of wine sat beside her. The witch paused, took a sip from the glass, and then continued. Severus smirked. When he had the mirrors made, he had a spell placed on his that would locate Hermione anywhere, and let him see was she was doing. It was a bit underhanded, but he had to protect his interests.

He pushed on the wall in front of him. It moved back and slid to the side. He entered the corridor of the Manor.

“Eli!" he bellowed. Quick as a flash the elf was in front of him, bowing deeply.

“Yes, Master?” the elf asked.

“Have a plate of ham sandwiches with lettuce, tomato and mustard brought down to Miss Granger. She is in her study.”

“Yes sir,” Eli said, bowing again. Then the elf looked up at him inquisitively.

“Yes Eli?” Snape asked him, knowing the elf would not speak without permission.

“I was wondering sir, if Miss approved of her rooms?” the elf asked meekly.

Severus arched his eyebrow at the elf.

“Miss Granger approved of many things you provided, Eli,” he responded. The elf did a little dance of joy.

Severus considered the creature, then said, “You provided her with quite a few…personal items. Very personal.”

The elf gave him a rather self-satisfied look.

“I gives her what she be needing, sir. That is what house elves do,” he replied.

“I see,” Severus said, “and how do you know what she needs, Eli?”

“It is part of our magic, sir. It helps in our service,” the little elf replied, bowing a little.

“Do you know exactly when she will be needing those things you provided?” Severus asked, trying to pump the elf for information.

“Not exactly sir. I only knows she needs them, sir,” Eli said, his ears flattening slightly at being unable to answer his Master’s question satisfactorily.

“All right, Eli. You may go,” Severus said turning to go. Then he remembered something. He turned back to the elf, who had been on the verge of disappearing. He looked up at the Potions Master as he spoke to him.

“Eli,” Severus began, frowning a bit, “I know Miss Granger has a liking for spaghetti and canned sauce, but I want some good food placed down there for her. Meat, fish, vegetables, breads and the like. Do I make myself clear? And take away most of that spaghetti, so she’ll eat something else.”

Eli bobbed nervously before his Master’s displeasure.

“Eli will see to it personally, sir,” the elf replied.

“Very well, you may go,” Severus said, walking up the hall and turning into his study.

The Potions Master walked over to his liquor cabinet and poured himself a firewhiskey. Carrying the glass he sat down in the armchair in front of the fire. He took a sip of his drink and swallowed, enjoying the burn of the liquid going down. He had started the ball rolling tonight. Rita Skeeter was sure to blast them across the pages of the Daily Prophet’s early edition. He felt no particular anger about this. He was used to the periodic accusations made against him. Every few months his name came up whenever there was some spectacular rogue deatheater action, as if to remind the wizarding world that there was one deatheater who got away. Then that article would be softened by some slight remembrance of his sacrifices, his Order of Merlin, and being considered a hero.

He was also the subject of constant debate. Did his role as a spy absolve him of the cruelties he inflicted on others while in the service of the Dark Lord? Publicly, he was absolved, forgiven. But he knew in his deepest soul that he was not. The acts he committed were atrocious and not able to be washed away by the public presentation of a medal, and the weak absolution the Ministry reluctantly provided. Even the death of the Dark Lord did not free him. As far as he was concerned, he was a cursed man, cursed to have survived the death of Voldemort, and forced to live with himself. Then, he bumped into Hermione, and an opportunity to abolish the most deadly spell ever created in the history of the wizarding world. This would give his continued survival meaning and purpose. He would not just be a man who tortured, murdered and got away with it. He would be someone who helped put an end to a nightmare that had existed for centuries. And this was the reason he put Hermione on the chopping block. This was the reason he had to take away her world and insert her in his own. Redemption. She would be serving the greater good.

He took another sip of firewhiskey, swallowing reflexively. He hoped the witch was strong enough to face what was coming Monday morning. He had a feeling she was. The Ministry would probably convene a meeting of department heads and board, call her in, ask her a few questions, then fire her despite her answers. He didn’t think she would take it lying down. She would most likely have a few choice words for them. She still was a spitfire. He wasn’t looking for sympathy or pity from the young witch when he told her of how meaningless his kindness had proven to be, but he felt he might have reached her. At least, he hoped he did. She did not yet have time to consider his words, but he was sure she would when she had a quiet moment. She would probably figure out also that his part in this arrangement was an act of repentance for the lives he had taken with the blessings of Dumbledore and the Order. No doubt she would bring his service and sacrifice up to the Ministry officials when she was accused of consorting with a deatheater. But they would still let her go.

But the repercussions wouldn’t stop there. Hermione would most likely be blacklisted and unable to find work in her field. Until she cracked the Killing curse, at least. Then she would be considered a hero, and they would suck her back into the machine as fast as possible. But maybe, she wouldn’t go back. Maybe she would retain her sense of outrage at the unfairness of it all and reject them. Maybe she would continue her private pursuits, and allow him to help her.

Severus finished his drink and set the glass down on the small table beside the armchair. His black eyes caught the flame of the fireplace as he stared morosely into the glow.

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A/N: Well, Hermione has seen the lab area and her rooms. Eli really hooked her up. And Severus is starting to get the lemony stirrings we all want soooo much. It will probably still be some time before any actual lemons happen between them, but I hope you will stick with the story until then. Please review.