She Said What?

well, well.... here we all are once more. i\'ll turn down the lights whilst you gather up a cushy pillow and your favorite blankie. when we\'re all ready, i\'ll spin us a yarn.... bloody hell, does anyone even really say that anymore? now that i have your attention, please allow me to state loudly and without hesitation that i do not own any of this. i\'m borrowing nearly everything from the wonderful and talented j.k. rowling. i plan to, at some point, give everything back to her. but not now. i\'m having too much fun torturing innocent souls with my twisted visions. also, i make no money from this. more\'s the pity. i do this strictly because my cocoa crispies tell me to.

i don\'t know if there will be smut or not. i\'m not entirely certain. i guess we\'ll find out together. i mean, if snape jumps out at hermione, bare assed naked and sporting a huge erection whilst grasping a rather deadly looking dildo in his hands, i think it would be safe to say that there will be smut happening. best to be warned, so that you can have your favorite toy handy. not to mention the ice, the fan, the cigarettes and the chocolate. all i can say is proceed around those corners with extreme caution.

finally, if you find that you like what i\'ve got going on here, please feel free to drop me a line and let me know. reviews are appreciated. not absolutely necessary, but appreciated none the less. thanks for reading.

Chapter Fourteen: Putting A Big Mouth To Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Filch dragged Harry and Hermione along the halls, spewing off a mountain of punishments befitting their crimes. Both of them wisely remained silent, simply staring at one another helplessly. They were supposed to be meeting with Severus and Draco now. Not being pulled along like errant school children, which they weren\'t, to be put on the rack and stretched until they\'d admitted and confessed to every sin there ever was. The caretaker was taking great joy in their discomfort if the nauseating smile on his face was anything to go by.

The castle was silent around them, as if offering up its condolences and respects to a doomed prisoner on their death walk. It made both Harry and Hermione distinctly uncomfortable to know that they were all alone with Filch in a situation that he deemed called for punishment. Neither one of them could forget the wistful quality to his voice their first year when he\'d gone on and on about the old punishments. The idea that this sadistic son-of-a bitch was in charge of doling out punishments for student\'s misdeeds, real or imagined, was the stuff that the Geneva Convention had been written about.

By the time they reached a plain, unmarked door, both of them were feeling terribly anxious. Harry was of a mind to Obliviate Filch, grab Hermione and run for the Outer Hebrides. Before Harry could think of going for his wand, Filch had the door shoved open. It seemed as though they would have to meet their fate.

\'Look at what I found skulking about the halls, Professor,\' Filch sneered gleefully as he shoved Harry and Hermione through the opened door. It was, until that exact moment, an office neither of them had ever seen before. Filch kept a hold of their shoulders so that they couldn\'t worm away from them, crushing Harry\'s hopes that he could knock the git to the floor and run like hell, his hand curled tightly about his best friend\'s arm. \' I expect they were looking for someplace to hide so they could go at one another like mad rabbits.\'

\' Is that so?\' Hermione cringed at the tone of voice her husband used. The look on his face told her plainly that he was not impressed with what he\'d just been told. \'Then it was perhaps a good thing that you brought these two to me.\'

\'Look, Professor Snape,\' Harry began. The man snapped his black gaze sharply to the Boy-Who-Lived-To-Be-A-Pain-In-His-Arse. Harry immediately fell silent.

\'Mr. Filch,\' Snape drawled, still pinning Harry with his harsh stare. \' I believe I saw Mr. Malfoy heading for the Slytherin Common Rooms. Please fetch him here.\'

\'Of course, Professor,\' Filch nodded. His release of Harry and Hermione was slow, as if he really didn\'t want to do it. But he was soon gone, leaving the two Gryffindors alone in the Potions Master\'s presence.

\'Severus,\' Hermione began, only to be halted by one of Snape\'s hands, lifted up in a gesture meant to stop her words. The three of them stood in silence, a clock hidden on the wall some where loudly ticking off the seconds as they dragged by. It seemed like an age had passed before Malfoy strutted into the office with a snarl on his face worthy of his father.

\'Potter! I should have known you and the Mudblood were up to no good,\' he snapped, leveling his gaze on Harry. Hermione wanted to snarl a reply back at him, but she saw Filch behind him and kept her mouth shut. No need for him to hear any of what was to come.

\'That will be enough, Mr. Malfoy. Thank you, Mr. Filch. That will be all,\' Severus told the caretaker. Filch leveled a glare at Harry and Hermione, then slipped out of the office, pulling the door shut behind him. Before anyone could open their mouths to speak, Snape had his wand out and was casting a series of privacy ensuring spells. Then he turned back to the three young adults before him. \'Kindly explain the emergency that has ended up in you both getting caught.\'

\'Well, we wanted you to know what was going on before you heard it from the entire school instead of us,\' Hermione began hesitantly. Draco had moved over to stand near Harry and the two of them were looking at one another in such a way that, had she thought Harry\'d been pulling her leg about his relationship with Draco, told her very loudly that the two of them were indeed a couple.

Snape lifted an eyebrow at her, his only indication that she could go on. Hermione drew a breath and pointed at Harry. \'He knows,\' was all she said. The look that crossed her husband\'s face was so dark, she thought for a moment that the world was coming to an end. \' I had no choice. I had to tell him. I literally fell over him this morning!\'

\'Do tell,\' his gaze flicked to Draco a moment and she thought she saw the slightest uplifting at the corner of his lips. Hermione took that to mean that he knew about Draco and Harry\'s meetings, but had said nothing about it to either of them.

\'As we were returning to Gryffindor Tower, we heard Ron arguing with the Fat Lady. He was apparently not ready to believe that she didn\'t know where either of us were. When we came round the corner, we told him a story that Harry found me in the library and convinced me to go out to the Quidditch Pitch and fly with him,\' Hermione explained.

\'But you hate flying,\' Draco pointed out. She flashed a glare his way before returning her attention to the man before them.

\'Which is what he said. So we told him that, just because I hated flying, that was no excuse to keep me from going out and watching Harry fly. I mentioned we\'d gone to the locker room and I was going to say we\'d spent the night talking. Ron took it to mean we spent the night doing other things and he naturally interrupted with his illogical conclusion. He thinks Harry and I were shagging in the locker rooms last night.\'

Draco burst out into laughter, bringing three pairs of eyes over to him. His cheeks were flushed with his mirth, his hands clutched tightly about his abdomen as he laughed and chortled. The room echoed with his laughs until they finally died down into a soft series of chuckles. When he was as composed as they thought he could get, he spoke. \'You and Granger? Shagging? Of all the moronic things!\' he chortled again. Hermione, Harry and Snape remained silent until he finished.

\'Whether or not you find it probable, the fact is that Ron thinks its what\'s going on,\' Harry added softly.\'Which could be potentially bad for all concerned.\' It took a moment for that to sink in, then the room fell silent for a moment.

\'Bloody hell!\' Draco snarled.\'That bastard! I\'ll make the Weasel learn to watch his mouth. I\'ll make him use it on my backside!\'

\'There\'s no need,\' Hermione put in, watching Draco seethe with anger. \'Harry and I think we have a solution that will be beneficial for all parties involved here.\'

\'And that would be?\' Snape finally spoke, drawling the words out slowly. Hermione swore she could hear the accusations in his voice. But there was interest there, as well. He was curious about what she and Harry had come up with. He just wasn\'t willing to admit it.

\'Let him spread the word. Let Ron tell the entire school that Harry and I are an item. That will blind everyone to the real truth. That will make it easier for us to conduct our liasons. Harry and I can be seen trying to move about the castle in an unobtrusive manner, as if we\'re off in search of a place to snog and shag in private. But we\'ll actually be meeting, erm... you,\' Hermione informed them.

\' I am well aware of Draco\'s little meetings with Potter,\' Severus sniffed, his voice laced with no small amount of venom. Malfoy had dutifully gone a pale shade of pink in embarrassment.

\'Well, don\'t you think that this is an answer that will suit our purposes?\' Hermione asked him softly. Severus watched the three of them for several moments in complete silence as he pondered what he should do.

He was not happy that the Potter brat knew of his not so happy nuptuals to Gryffindor\'s resident Know-It-All. He was not happy to know that his star pupil was presently banging the Golden Git. There were many things he wasn\'t happy about at the moment. But there was merit to Hermione\'s suggestion. Everyone would be expecting to see Harry and Hermione wandering about the castle together after Weasley spread his tale to the entire population of the student body. They would not expect that Hermione would be slinking down to the evil Potions Master\'s chambers to shag herself senseless. Nor would they expect that their hero, Bloody Annoying Harry Potter, was scurrying off to the dungeons to meet up with his most hated enemy and bugger the blonde ferret into oblivion.

He studied the three students before him. The three young adults. He\'d spent the better part of the last seven years doing his best to shape them into the kind of young Wizards and Witches who could carry on the Magical World in place of the older regime. While he might not like his students, he took his duties seriously. He was there to teach them. That was what he did. He was still adjusting to his status as Hermione Granger\'s teacher and husband. Their marriage went against every single ethic he\'d worked so hard to regain after his return to Dumbledore\'s side from the Death Eaters.

And yet, he\'d found a certain amount of willingness with Hermione. She didn\'t appear to judge him for his mistakes. She really never had. In point of fact, she had always defended him to her friends. She was not unskilled in the pleasure department and she was intelligent enough to hold a deep and meaningful conversation. Not like some of the spawn that crossed his classroom threshold. He doubted they could manage to rub two sticks together and create friction much less handle a full curriculum of Potions, Transfigurations, and Ancient Runes with any kind of efficacy.

Yes, her idea was certainly something he could work with. Seeing as there were very few days of the school year left, it wouldn\'t hurt to allow the entire populace of the student body to think that Harry Potter was banging the shite out of Hermione Granger. Then the school year would be done and they would all go their merry own ways. He took up pacing, not for any other reason than to be annoying to the three of them. His mind was made up, but he wasn\'t going to let them in on his decision quite yet. He was just going to make them sweat a little longer.

Hermione shifted anxiously from one foot to the other, her gaze moving from her husband to her best friend to his lover. Harry looked slightly concerned and Draco had a smirk on his face that was entirely too Malfoy-ish for her liking. There was a pensive look on Snape\'s face, as if he were unsure of what he had been told. She knew it wasn\'t the best situation, but it was one they could make the best of for the remainder of the school term.

The silence stretched out before them in a long, uncomfortable pause. It seemed that Snape was thinking this proposition over in great detail. She didn\'t believe that he needed so much time to consider the pros and cons of her suggestion. She wanted to go over and shake him so that he would at least change expressions. Say or do something. Finally, after what seemed hours, he heaved a long suffering sigh and stopped pacing to stare at them. \' I have given this... idea of yours intense thought.\'

He fell silent and it was only a few moments before all three of them looked at him and blurted out the same single worded question anxiously simultaneously. \'And?\'

\' I believe it has some merit to it. So, since the term is nearly completed and you three will be graduating from Hogwarts at the same time, I do not see that it will be of any consequence or create any trouble to allow Mr. Weasley to spread about the castle that our dear Mr. Potter and Miss Granger are...\' he paused as his lips twitched with thinly veiled mirth. \'Shagging away like mad rabbits in the darkened corners of all the building\'s broom cupboards.\'

Hermione gave Severus a rather sour look while Draco snickered in a most Malfoy-like manner and Harry looked at the Potions Master as if he were a deer caught in the headlights of a fast moving lorry.

\' Its settled, then. Ron can tell the entire castle about our little affair,\' Hermione nodded, then looked to Harry. \'You realize, of course, that you\'re going to have to act as if you\'re in love with me. I mean, we\'re both going to have to do that. And we\'re going to have to attempt to be somewhat covert about it. So that it looks as if we don\'t want everyone to know how we feel about one another, but simply can\'t hide our feelings any longer.\'

\'Should be easy enough to manage. I\'ll just imagine Draco giving me...\'

\'That will be quite enough, Mr. Potter. I believe, if there is no further need for discussion, that we can safely adjourn this meeting,\' Snape interrupted. He flicked his wand casually and the wards and spells were gone. The three young adults in his presence nodded and turned for the door. \'Miss Granger, if you would be so kind as to stay, there are things I wish to discuss with you.\'

\'Of course, Professor Snape,\' she nodded, the dropped a hand on Harry\'s shoulder. \'Thanks for being such a good sport about this, Harry. And you, Draco. Fortunately, we won\'t have to keep up the pretence for long. I shall see you both later. I don\'t imagine the impact will hit until sometime later today. So spend it thinking of ways to make this as realistic as possible.\'

Harry nodded, then looped his arm in Draco\'s and led him to the door of the office. Draco turned his head a moment and looked at Hermione as if he\'d never seen her before, then gave his attention back to the man at his side. \'What did she mean, you know?\' he asked, a bit obtusely in everyone else\'s opinion.

Harry cast a look at Draco that involved alot of lowered eyebrow and a faint scowl. It only took a moment for comprehension to blossom on the blonde\'s pale face. \'Oh. OH!\' he said, then shot a look over his shoulder at the two people behind him. \'You mean Snape and Granger.\'

There was silence for a moment then, from the other side of the closing door, they both heard. \'Merlin\'s shriveled pecker! Snape and Granger!? Ye flipping gods! I shall now be forced to scour my brain with the strongest cleaning potion known to mankind.\'

The door closed on the two, leaving Hermione alone with her husband. She glanced up at him, a faint smirk on her face. She noted he had a similar, if less noticable, expression on his face and surmised that he was as amused by Draco\'s parting remark as she was. When the two were gone, he flicked his wand once more. \'Severus?\' she asked, wondering what this was about. He now wore an intensely unnerving expression on his face, his eyes gone predatory.

\' I believe, Miss Granger, that Mr. Filch brought you here for detention,\' he drawled silkily, idly fingering his wand. She watched him a moment, her eyes widening slightly in mild surprise when he flicked his wand in her direction and silently divested her of every stitch of clothing she wore. One hand motioned to a chair. \'Hands on the back of the chair with your back to me. I wish you to bend over and spread your legs.\'

\'Yes, Professor,\' she said dutifully, moving to assume the given position. She grasped the chair with her hands and bent at the waist, her bottom presented to him. She gave off a yelp when the first blow of the switch came.

\'You will not be able to sit comfortably when I am through with you, wife,\' he hissed near her ear, one hand roaming over the curve of her heated ass cheek. \'And you are going to love each and every moment of it.\'

\'Of course I will,\' she told him, whimpering when he pressed up against her and ground his thick erection into her backside. She decided that she really liked serving detention with Snape. She liked it alot.

~*~*~*~*~

Hermione skipped lunch so that she could soak in the bathtub. The sex was nice, but she felt it was not all there should be. Not that she was complaining. Not that at all. But she really didn\'t know much about her husband beyond his prediliction for dominance and the smallest measure of pain. And that he was hung far more admirably than a hippogriff. Still, she was starting to think that it was perhaps time to extend their relationship beyond the sexual side and move into a less physical, more verbal area of communication. She just needed to come up with some way to broach the subject with Snape.

She spent the remainder of her afternoon locked away in her private rooms, studying for her upcoming N.E.W.T.s. Truth be told, she was in some way avoiding everyone else. She wasn\'t ready for the deluge of questions that were sure to rise given that she was reported to be Harry Potter\'s girlfriend. She needed time to compile a list of suitable replies and facial expressions so she wouldn\'t tip the scales and inadvertantly let it slip that their relationship was nothing more than a well played farce. It only needed to be carried off for a few more weeks. Once the school year was done and they all went their separate ways, they could let it slip at some point that they\'d broken up.

How she would explain that Harry had left her for none other than Draco Malfoy was a mystery. As was how she would explain the situation between her and Snape. Not that she felt anyone but close friends and family deserved any kind of explanation. But she couldn\'t just tell them it had been one large hoax. Could she? She was pondering the implications of that when there was a smart rap at her door. She found, when she looked up, that the hour was growing late and dinner was about to be served in the Great Hall. Hermione slipped from the chair at her desk and moved to answer the door. She couldn\'t believe the relief that struck her when it was only Harry there and no one else.

\'Come on, love. Its time to face the music. Not to mention I doubt like hell you\'ve eaten anything today. You need to keep your strength up if you\'re going to be shagging me,\' he gave her a cheeky grin. Hermione laughed at that.

\'Thanks, Harry. You always know just how to make me smile,\' she hugged him. He returned the gesture, his arms squeezing her tight for just a moment before he let go.

\'You\'re welcome. Now,\' he grinned and took her hand. \'Let\'s go down to dinner and find out what kind of trouble Ron\'s mouth has gotten us into, shall we?\'

\'Right. Hopefully, I\'m not pregnant,\' she muttered. She wouldn\'t put it past Ron to say something like that. Harry sniggered at her comment.

\'What? You don\'t think I\'d make a very good father?\' he asked her, managing to compose himself.

\' I\'m quite certain you\'d be a wonderful father. I\'m also quite certain that I\'m more sensible than to just go off and have unprotected sex,\' she snapped, immediately putting the kibosh on the little voice that was going to happily point out that she\'d been doing just that with Snape.

\'You mean that, don\'t you?\' Harry seemed a bit stunned by her statement, then gave her a sappy smile and hugged her close again. \'Thanks, `Mione. That means alot to me. Come on. Let\'s go.\'

He led her from the room and down through the main part of Gryffindor Tower, then out through the portrait hole and down the hall. The two of them were silent as they made their way up and down the corridors and stairs until they came to the Great Hall. The doors were closed but the sounds of the student body dining and talking could be heard through the shut panels. Harry and Hermione gave one another a look that shared a multitude of feelings, then pushed the doors open to step in.

Every head turned their way. Silence fell over the gathered throng for several long moments, then the whispers started. Some students attempted to be discreet by at least speaking behind their hands. Others were outright rude and turned to their neighbor to whisper and stare. Both parties that were targets of the whispers and looks held their heads high and did their best to pretend it wasn\'t going on. They moved over to the table to take their normal seats next to Ron. He was beaming at them as if he were terribly proud of what he\'d done. Hermione had to think he was precisely that.

\'Oi, Harry. Missed you at lunch. You, too, `Mione,\' he said, his voice full of a knowing quality that had Hermione\'s hand itching to draw her wand and hex him with something painful and long-lasting. Harry seated Hermione, then sat beside her, before giving his attention to the red-head loud mouth next to them.

\' I wasn\'t very hungry. I\'ve been studying for my N.E.W.T.s,\' Harry informed him in a slightly frigid tone of voice. \'Something I\'m sure you\'re devoting astoudning hours to, given your penchant for forgetting everything.\'

Ron flushed a moment, then grinned and glanced to Hermione. \'And what about you?\'

\' I was in my rooms, studying,\' she gave him a pointed look. It only dampened his spirits for a moment or two. Then he was grinning at them knowingly again.

\'Really? Both of you studying? For your end of year exams? Together?\' he sounded hopeful.

\'No, Ron. Not together,\' Harry returned, loading his plate down with copious amounts of food. Hermione slipped out of the conversation for a moment, allowing her gaze to move about the Hall. Her first stop was Ginny, who seemed to be staring at Hermione in a manner that suggested that she didn\'t really know who her friend truly was. She offered Ron\'s little sister a small smile, then moved on to the staff\'s table.

The Headmaster had a look in his eyes that had Hermione wishing she wasn\'t so dignified. She wanted to scratch his eyes out. She had the sneaking suspicion that the man knew positively everything that was going on in the castle and had absolutely no inclination to put and end to all of the speculations. Next was Snape, who was scowling. She wasn\'t sure if he was actually scowling or merely pretending to scowl. At this point in time, she wasn\'t sure she wanted to know. She let her gaze leave the staff\'s table and, to her extreme displeasure, they ended up moving to the spot where Draco Malfoy sat with his little gang.

Draco was scowling, too. But this was a different scowl than the one Snape wore. She thought he was merely acting for acting\'s sake. How was it two Gryffindor\'s had ended up with two Slytherins? Something told her that the Headmaster might be responsible there, too. She would have to remember to ask Harry later. For a moment, there was a flash of something in Draco\'s eyes that led her to think he wasn\'t as adverse to her company as he once might have been. But it was gone the moment Goyle glanced her way and then nudged Draco. The blonde said something that brought forth a round of laughter, then his scowl was once more fixed in place. He waited a moment, then gave her an imperceptible nod. She returned it and then gave her attention back to the table.

\'.... but I told Dean that there was no way that would have happened,\' Ron was saying, his face animated with emotion.

\'You did not!\' Dean exclaimed loudly. \'You\'re the one who said that you wouldn\'t be surprised if there were a little one on the way already!\'

His words brought Hermione\'s head whipping around until she was looking square at Ron. He was blushing, telling her that it had indeed been he who\'d said something about children. She snarled at him and stood, slamming her hands down on the table top. \'Ronald Weasley!\' she nearly shouted at him. As it was, her actions had brought silence to the entire Hall and she was unaware that everyone present was staring at her, anxiously awaiting her next words. \' I will have you know that I am not pregnant. I do not intend to now, or ever, have children! I\'m hurt that you would even suggest such a thing about me!\'

\'What a pity, Miss Granger,\' the low drawl sent a shiver of something that wasn\'t entirely pleasure skittering up her spine. \' I can say with all honesty that I was looking forward to teaching an entirely new generation of Potters and know you have crushed that hope utterly under your sharp boot heel.\'

Hermione whirled to look at Snape. She was at a complete loss for words. She could hear the venomous sarcasm dripping from each and every word that had passed his lips. While some small part of her had decided that it was best for both of them to avoid procreating at all costs, another part of her was utterly devastated that he\'d be so callous and cruel about his desire to not have children with her.

\' I should hate to subject them to your particular brand of poision, Professor,\' she snapped. Ignoring her untouched plate, she turned on her heel and marched up the aisle to the doors. She didn\'t care that she was being stared at and she didn\'t care that there were already whispers flying in regards to her sudden, erratic behavior. She only cared about getting away from men. All of them.

Hermione was glad of the privacy afforded her by being Head Girl. She had never been so grateful for private rooms before. She had never before been so hurt and so angry in her life. It was bad enough that everyone in the school was talking about her. The fact that they had started talking because of Ron was painful. Oh, she knew he\'d run about and tell everyone he could that she was banging Harry. But to suggest that she was pregnant was not only ignorant but blatantly hurtful.

She couldn\'t understand what was going on with Ron. She would have never believed him capable of such stupid thinking. Oh, he had his moments of blinding idiocy. She\'d come to expect that from him. But to first spread rumors about her and Harry, then suggest that perhaps she was pregnant was just too much. She\'d never known Ron to act so damned stupid before. She wanted to hex him with so many curses. How could one boy be such a flaming moron?

And then there had been Snape\'s comment.

It wasn\'t as if she\'d expected him to come out and tell her that he would love nothing more than for the two of them to bring forth a new crop of dark-headed little Snape gits. She knew that he only tolerated her presence. Not that she didn\'t think he wouldn\'t do away with her if he thought he could get away with it. She knew he didn\'t like her very much. And that was alright with her. But to hear the blatant sarcasm as it had fallen from his mouth had been too much. She didn\'t know why his words bothered her so much. She only knew they did.

Hermione tossed herself down on her bed in an attempt to stop walking in circles and avoid putting holes in her carpeting. Not that she found much solace in laying down. But it had to be better than making herself dizzy by turning circles for hours on end. So she was still very much naïve when it came to matters involving the opposite sex. Before now, she\'d never really needed to know what it was that happened between a pair of consenting adults when they were behind closed doors. It made working out the mess that was her emotions that much more difficult.

She honestly wasn\'t sure how she was supposed to feel. She had never particularly cared for Snape beyond a student/teacher way. She respected him even when she didn\'t agree with him or when she didn\'t like the things he did or said. But that didn\'t explain why his words should be so painful for her. It wasn\'t as if she were developing feelings for the uncaring bastard. She knew precisely where she stood with him. He despised her for being anything other than a Slytherin even while he enjoyed using her body for his pleasure. So why did his sarcastic comments constantly make her feel small and insignificant?

\'Damn all men!\' she snarled into the silence. \'He can bloody well go without!\'

Hermione stalked to the bathroom, determined to take a bath and soak her troubles away. She decided that she was going to avoid Snape at all costs. Classes were the only time she planned on seeing him. He could spend his nights alone in that wonderfully big bed of his, wanking on his pecker. She would stay here. She still had her N.E.W.T.s to study for and she had so many books on her list that she still had to go through. It would do her some good to get her mind out of her husband\'s trousers and back into the books that were the one constant in her life.

The mirror wisely said nothing when she entered the bathroom. Hermione knew that the bloody glass was afraid of what she\'d do to it if it mouthed off to her once more. With rough, angry motions, she jerked her clothing off and tossed it haphazardly to the floor. She wasn\'t concerned with what kind of house keeper she was at the moment. Her hands turned the knobs with as much force as she could muster, sending water crashing down into the porcelain tub with as much violence as she was feeling.

She settled into the tub, letting the warm water soak into her bones and ease her tenseness away. Yes, she would ignore her husband for a while. She\'d been spending far too much time rolling between the sheets with him. He needed to understand that she wasn\'t going to just jump when he told her to. She wasn\'t going to tumble into his bed as easily as she had before. She was going to do what she did best. She was going to study. And she was going to let Snape stew in his own juices.

\' It\'ll be a cold day in hell before I give in,\' she promised herself. \'A cold day in hell.\'

end chapter fourteen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

thanks go out to the usual crew. they all know who they are and why they get the thanks. i love you guys and gals muchly. ~huggles~

please don\'t hurt me if there are any mistakes. i am my own beta.

finally, if you find that you like my offering, please feel free to let me know. comments and suggestions are always welcome.

to Pearle: sorry about the plot. it jumped up and smacked me over the head when i wasn\'t looking. .:grins:. hmmm. a foursome.... i wonder.... i\'ve updated Leather not all that long ago and will be getting to it again in like three more fics. i think. unfortunately, i can\'t see my list at the moment. and i\'m glad to know you\'re feeling better. that\'s a really good thing. keep on track! oh yeah... i like my Snape, too. my best comment on him came from Zee. she said he was terribly in character.

to Miki: glad you like the story and see my humor. i can\'t help it. its just who i am. so the humor will pop up, even when i\'m busy working on something dark. i try very hard to keep Snape in character. well, hell... all of them in character. its not entirely possible, but i do my best. and i don\'t see Hermione\'s looks changing so drastically. i mean... its likely that she\'s a really pretty woman, but her hair and her bookishness would kind of counteract that. at least, in my opinion.

to Amber: i\'m glad you loved that last chapter. the bunnies truly are evil and there\'s nothing i can do but write what they tell me to. i must obey the bunnies.

to JTBJAB: yes. it was mean, wasn\'t it? .:evil grin:. hope this is good.

to Tris: i\'m glad to know you\'re enjoying this. i seem to like writing it, too.

to Bambu: you must have blinked, because i\'m posting to this fic like once every month or so. i hope you like this chapter. and i think Ron will continue to be dense. i don\'t know. maybe some day hell get it. you never know....

to Cristie: i have no intentions of abandoning this fic. i\'m simply spreading myself too thin and i don\'t know any other way. i\'ve got six fics running now and i alternate them so that each one gets an update. as for the plan... so far, the bunnies say it will work.

to Adriana: .:blushes:. wonderful? thank you so much. that means lots to me. i know what you mean about finding stories to enjoy. i find that i don\'t read as much as i used to. not to fear... i will see this out to the end. promise.

to SteffieSnape: here\'s what happens next. does it work for you? i\'m sure hotness will be coming soon. and i couldn\'t help that bit with Harry and Draco. i first wrote the line that Hermione thought about them shagging in the brooms cupboards and the bunnies went to town with it. blame them for that.

to mysticslave: glad to know you\'re enjoying it.

to jesse: glad to find you like it. i was invited to join the group and mostly lurk, but i do post to mention updates. as to what they were doing... that will be revealed at a later date. when, i can\'t say. but you will find out. the wedding bit... that will likely be explained later, too. keep reading.

to Morgenstern: .:bows:. thank you. hope you like this chapter, too.

to Carmella: here you go. more for you.

to Echo: thanks, hon. hope you like this one, too.

to funky_faerie87: i think Ron will remain clueless for a while longer, if not the rest of the story. i think i can manage an angry sex scene....especially after the set up at the end of this chapter. and i\'m sure that things will get more interesting as the days go by. and don\'t fret, there will be more smut soon.

to queenp: glad to know you\'re enjoying this. and, as for the proofreading... yes, i know i\'m bad. some days are better than others. please don\'t hurt me.

to mariteri: thank you and see? no jealous fits here. hope this is okay.