A Tale of Two Wizards

Disclaimer: Not mine but that wonderful goddess Jo's.

Pinkwands: I always thought that Tom and LV were one and the same, and even if they were two separate people, I still won't write that, slash is not my scene, sorry. But I will write a HG/LV one if you like...

beeky63: Thanks and here's the next chapter.

Tense Reunions

Lucius walked into the Breakfast Parlour; Hermione shuddered at the blatant evil that was present in this room. She looked at Lucius wondering if the charm he had so long maintained was going to drop now. She was beginning to wonder if maybe it was all just an elaborate trap. Lucius turned his gaze towards her, and then she looked away. He got closer to her and patted her back gently.

“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “A beauty such as yourself cannot linger in an ugly place like this for too long.”

Hermione looked back up and he held her gaze. Oh Merlin, she thought, he doesn’t even HAVE to touch me. All he needs is to look at me. She smiled weakly.

“Malfoy?” Rodolphus Lestrange had wondered into the room. He was wearing his night robes and Hermione was shocked as to how good-looking Rodolphus Lestrange actually was. But then, she mused, Bellatrix Lestrange would not exactly entwine herself with an ugly husband. She turned back to Lucius.

“Rudi?” He asked as he turned around, and walked up to the other wizard shaking his hand.

Rodolphus turned his gaze to Hermione, and she immediately looked away from his dark brown eyes. He had blonde hair like Neville Longbottom but her sort of brown eyes.

“A Mudblood in my house?” He asked in a normal voice. “Honestly, Malfoy, we knew you cracked a few braincells in Azkaban, but we didn’t think you’d gone completely loopy.”

Hermione decided the best thing to do would be to keep quiet and let Lucius do the talking, although anger was building inside of her. She had to keep calm, as Death Eaters surrounded her, and she could not be stupid here.

“She’s not just any muggleborn, Rudi,” Lucius said. Some small part of him wanted to protect Hermione. She was valuable to him; she was his ticket back to his mansion, and the only way his name would survive. “She’s the best friend of Harry Potter! Her name is Hermione Granger.”

Rodolphus’ eyes widened and then turned to look at her with a different expression in his eyes. He brushed past Lucius, and walked up to her, and circled her like he was sizing her up. He looked over every curve. He even reached out and touched her hair. Lucius noticed Hermione fingering her wand in case Rodolphus got too far, Lucius knew that he would. He was waiting with baited breath, waiting for her to show Lestrange EXACTLY what a witch she was.
Rodolphus stepped closer and stroked his hands across her cheek, and then turned her face using her chin, so that they could look into each other’s eyes. She felt his hot breath on her.

“Well, since you have had my wife once or twice I say that it’s about time you return the favour,” he smirked at Lucius. THAT DOES IT!

She stamped on the Death Eaters foot, and bit his hand, and then turned around, and pointed her wand directly at Rodolphus Lestrange’s heart. She committed to the nonverbal before anyone could stop her. Rodolphus Lestrange found himself convulsing on the floor in sheer agony. Lucius Malfoy was smirking, and was trying very hard not to chuckle. Hermione stopped the spell, and then put her wand back in her robes, as if she had performed a mandatory cleaning charm.

“Now, are you sure about that?” She asked.

Rodolphus got up and looked at Malfoy grumpily.

“I bet my wife didn’t do that?”

“Your wife is a right cow that would sleep with anyone I’m sure. I am more fussy when it comes to whom I sleep with!” Hermione exclaimed.

Lucius was collapsing almost on the floor trying not to laugh so much. No one had done that to Rodolphus Lestrange, as he was generally accepted as the second best looking Death Eater. Even the Daily Prophet acknowledged that.

“Aunty Bella told me you were here dad,” a voice said from the doorway. “She forgot to mention that you had brought someone with you.”

Hermione turned around and saw Draco stand in the doorway; she looked at him, and then at his father. She had not realised it before, but they were almost an exact copy of the other.

“I am sure she did,” Lucius said. He walked up to his son and patted his son’s head, Draco then turned to look at Hermione.

“What is she doing here?” He asked. “Is she here to be tortured?”

Draco’s eyes glinted harshly and he made a step toward Hermione, and Hermione immediately brought her wand out.

“Are you sure you want to play with me, Malfoy?” she asked. The light in her eyes made the younger Malfoy falter a little, but he had been waiting for this moment ever since she spoke against him in their second year.

“Why don’t we play, Granger?” He asked her.

Hermione moved quickly, and set a spell on him, and his front teeth immediately began to grow down and past his collar. He looked in the mirror his eyes widened, and then he turned around and glared viciously at the girl he had always hated.

“Right, now that I have silenced you, your father and I have an announcement to make, and we thought that you might like to hear it, as you’re going to be affected by it.”

Hermione walked up to Lucius who raised his eyebrows, as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him; longily, lovingly, and passionately.

“So what, you kissed my father,” Malfoy Jr drawled after Rodolphus kindly performed the counter-curse. “You’re not the first, you know.”

“I’ve done more than kiss your father, Draco,” she sighed stroking Lucius lips with her fingers and looking deeply into his eyes.

“What Hermione is trying to say, Draco, is that we’re going to get married!” Lucius exclaimed.

Draco walked furiously up to Hermione and yanked her hair so hard she fell on the floor and he dragged her.

“A Mudblood Cow like you will NEVER replace my mother! You hear! How could you even THINK of marrying my father you dirty little gold digger?”

Hermione winced when Draco was about to kick her, but Lucius sent a spell his son’s way, and Draco got knocked against the wall, and he slid down. Hermione was strongly reminded of the time when she, Harry and Ron had done the same to Snape in the Shrieking Shack.

“Come on, Hermione, let’s leave shall we?” Lucius asked as he picked her up in his arms. Draco groaned in the corner, and he rolled his head from side to side, as he got up and saw his father take more care of her than him… his own flesh and blood.

Lucius was about to leave the house when his Mark started burning. He dropped Hermione gently on the floor, and he grabbed at the Mark.

“He’s calling you?” Hermione asked.

Lucius nodded. Rodolphus felt his Mark burn, as did Draco. Bellatrix ran into the room.

“Our Master calls!” She gasped. “We must go.”

Lucius looked uncertainly at Hermione. Hermione shrugged her shoulders.

“You go, I’ll go to see my friends all right,” she said.
“Are you sure?” Lucius asked.

“Are YOU sure you want to anger him needlessly? You best go.”

Her sensible response made Lucius smile, as he walked up to his fellow Death Eaters, and they walked out into the garden. They picked the spot where Lucius had brought Hermione to begin with.

Hermione waited for them to leave first whilst looking at Lucius, and found to her surprise that she was actually worried about what might happen to him.

*********************

She apparated outside the gate to The Burrow and opened the gate. She walked up the garden path and the first thing she saw was Snape’s back. He was standing against a tree looking at something. Her heart raced and her first impulse was to run to him and wrap her arms around him. She hadn’t kissed him in ages but then she looked down on her hand. She saw the silver glinting in the pale autumn sunlight. She gulped, not sure how to approach him, she was about to turn around and think of somewhere else to go when Snape turned around and saw her.

He had felt a burning sensation on his back and experience told him that was when he was being watched. He saw her! His heart leapt and he felt an extra spring in his step, as he ran up to her, and he ran around her. She looked up, as she was in confrontation with yards and yards of black fabric. She saw his dark eyes glinting with a happiness she had never seen there before. Could it be that? Did he truly love her then? Oh gods, no, no not that, she could not take that. How could ANY girl take that? Two completely strong natured men in love with her, how could anyone take that?

He picked her chin up and wrapped his arms around her. Her heart immediately warmed up and it beat fast. She felt his heart beat too, beneath the folds. She sighed, as she looked up; their lips were close, so close. Oh, how she needed the comfort now! He pressed his lips on hers no, he sighed, as he kissed her it weren’t a dream. She was here. His tongue rolled inside her mouth, as he tasted her, his favourite flavour. He missed her and he wanted to take her now. She moaned inside his mouth and she felt his hands explore her sides and then he bumped her into the wall of the shed.

“Hey Snape!” someone yelled. It was Harry, and his tone was friendly. Snape rolled his eyes.

“What is it, Potter?”

“You said you wanted to talk to me about something so here I am.”

Hermione was obscured by Snape’s back and Harry could not see her hands as she had moved them from his hair.

“Can’t it wait?” Snape asked.

“Why?”

Snape turned and looked at Harry, his glare was malevolent.

“Hermione is back. Can’t I have a bit of time with her first?”

Hermione rolled her eyes, and she pushed him gently away, and stepped out in the light, so that Harry could see her.

“Hermione, where did you go after you visited the twins?”

“Er, went back to Malfoy Manor,” she said. “This morning we decided to tell Draco about our relationship and he, um, didn’t take to it too well.”

“I bet he didn’t,” Harry said sourly.

“What did he do?” Snape asked. He looked back at Hermione with a concerned expression in his dark fathomless eyes. It was enough to make her heart melt.

“He, um, he pulled my hair and dragged me on the floor, and he was about to kick me had not Lucius stepped in and taken a hand and saved me. The reason why I’m here on my own is because Voldemort called them all to his side.”

“All?” Harry asked.

“Lucius, Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Draco. Lucius was reluctant to go without me, but I said I’d go and see my friends. He’ll know where to find me if he’s that bothered.”

Snape gripped onto her shoulder and then stepped up closer to her.

“No,” he said sharply. “He won’t take you.”

“Don’t be silly, Severus,” she said turning around.

“What is so silly about that?” he asked.

Hermione looked again into his eyes, and did not know how she could say this. That her heart was divided, that she felt like she was being played into a game of piggy in the middle with two very brilliant players.

“I – I – I think I might be falling for him, Severus,” she whispered her eyes brimming with tears.

“Potter,” Snape said slowly and dangerously. Harry knew the tone well, Snape wanted to be left alone with Hermione.

Snape squeezed her shoulders harder, and he backed her against the shed wall. His gaze continuing to look deeply into her eyes, she felt her knickers get wet. Oh no, not again! She felt his hands hover just a few inches away from her skin, but she closed her eyes in anticipation. She opened her mouth, as it had become dry. Snape took the hint and drove his tongue deep and down into her mouth. She moaned and he was about to lift her robes up when she pushed him away and began to cry. She fell onto her knees and cried so hard that she felt she could not take the emotion anymore.

“Don’t do this, Severus, please,” she begged.

“What the heck do you think you’re doing to me, Hermione? How do you think I’ve survived the past few days?”

She shook her head.

“Leave me alone I CAN’T DECIDE WHOM I LOVE!” She ended up screaming. The chickens clucked and ran away.

Snape picked her up, and held her close to him, and she sobbed on his chest clutching hold of his comforting robes.

“I can decide whom I love and I love you, Hermione Granger!” He exclaimed.

“He says he loves me though. I can’t decide! I think that both of you are right for me.”

Severus held her fiercely. He had been so selfish! He knew that. Lucius Malfoy had done it. He had been successful in driving Hermione away from him.

“Don’t go back with Malfoy, Mia, do you hear? Don’t go back with him. Stay with me. Stay with me.”

Hermione buried her head further into his chest, and he turned around, and she continued clutching hold onto him, as he led her into the house.

“Molly, a cup of good strong tea,” he said.

Molly was sitting down knitting. She got up and put a spell on her needles, and immediately drew Hermione away from Snape where Hermione fell into the motherly bosom, Molly smoothed Hermione’s hair, and Snape stroked her back.

“What was the matter?” Molly asked Severus when they were alone in the kitchen.

“She feels like she is playing piggy in the middle to two really good players,” Snape explained. “But this player here LOVES her!”
Molly chewed her lip carefully, as she poured the boiling water into a cup.

“Lucius might say the same thing,” she said in pragmatic tone.

“What do I have to do to prove I love her more than Lucius?” He asked. “He’s played every Malfoy trick brilliantly and I don’t have any tricks.”

Molly gave Severus the cup of tea.

“Take her the tea and sit with her,” she said. “Hold her hand, take her in your arms and comfort her. And if Lucius turns up then let her go to him with your whole heart. If you love her, prove it by letting her go to the other man without a fight. Believe me that speaks more volumes than it would if you offered to duel for her.”

Snape sighed.

“I was hoping a duel might solve the problem.”

“Not always,” Molly said. “Go and spend as much time with her as you can.”

Severus held the cup of tea and walked into the living room. She was sitting talking in whispers with Ginny who kept darting playful looks across at Harry who caught them and blushed heavily, Ginny giggled, and then she nudged Hermione.

Hermione took the tea from Snape and her fingers brushed his and immediately her blood pressure went up.

“Th – thank you, Severus,” she stuttered. He hitched his trousers up and then she looked down and saw a red mark on his legs. She put the tea down and hitched the trousers up further.

“Do you mind?” Ron exclaimed through gritted teeth.

“I’ve seen it before, Ron,” she snapped. “But they weren’t red when I last saw them. What happened?”

“When I heard news of your engagement I dropped a hot cup of tea it’s nothing, it really is nothing!”

Hermione sighed and then she took his trousers off with a spell. She saw how far the burn went.

“NOTHING!” She screeched. Her eyes flashed dangerously, as she took in the sight of his burnt legs. “I was in a muggle hospital for weeks with a burn like this one!” She looked at Snape with a dangerous expression on her face. “Upstairs! Now! I know the very thing that’ll get rid of that. It’s best you’re naked as well!”

Snape smirked.

“Anything you say, darling,” he said in a tone just as dangerous as her expression. Ginny looked between the two of them and she had to fan herself. It weren’t just the tea that was hot.

He walked up the stairs holding his trousers in his hands.

“You’re not going in his room, Hermione,” Ron said.

“Oh, shut up!” Hermione snapped.

She walked into the kitchen and opened the cupboard Molly kept her potion ingredients. She nodded; domestic potions were Molly’s speciality. She was bound to have had the ingredients. She took the ingredients out to the garden shed, and brewed the potion, and it only took half-an-hour. She levitated the cauldron out of the shed; into the house, and up the stairs. By the time it reached its patient it was cool enough for external application.

Snape was lying naked on the bed; it was Bill and Charlie’s old room, and he brought the two single beds together. Hermione raised an arched eyebrow and smiled. She began applying the lotion to his legs, immediately the red colour faded and he began to feel better.

“I don’t know why you, the great Potions Master, didn’t think of this one,” she grumbled.

“Because I thought it would have gone by now,” he said a little spitefully. “It is not this burn that is hurting me!”

Hermione stopped rubbing the lotion on his thigh, and looked in his eyes. She gulped. Ever since she saw him this morning a small part of her just wanted their first and only night to be repeated. Hermione stepped away from the bed. She took her robes off, and then her underwear, he looked at her goddess form, and she smiled, as his eyes twinkled playfully. She then started working in the cooling lotion, and she gasped, as she saw his manhood respond to her massaging.

When she finished with his legs she crawled on top of him. She kissed his stomach and circled her tongue in his belly button, he held her head there gently stroking and twirling the coils of her hair in his fingers. She sighed, as she put her hands on his chest. She felt his heart beat so fast she thought it would come out of his chest.

“We’ll have to be quiet,” she said.

“And quick!” he exclaimed.

Hermione kissed him again. She put her legs over his waist, and he began circulating his warm capable hands around her bottom.


A/N Hmm, do you think she's only made the situation worse for herself?