Triumvirate

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the songs included in this fanfic nor do I make money off them. These stories are for entertainment only


Sorta Fairytale
~


And Im so sad

Like a good book

I cant put this

Day back

A sorta fairytale

With you



Sorta Fairytale - Tori Amos



~



She heard the grumbling and the grousing before she even reached her door. She bit back a smile as she walked in to find the house elves carefully installing Severus’ portrait in it’s temporary home.



Black eyes lifted from the canvas and locked on her. “Hermione” he said flatly, “Pray tell why am I being brought to Mafloy Manor?”



The house elves vanished and Hermione drew a chair close to Severus and sat down. She stared up a the man who had been her Potion’s Master and her second lover.



Once the door was closed, the stern expression relaxed a degree and she smiled. “We will be staying here for the time being. We have brought Draco back home at last.” she informed him.



She knew that Severus retained a soft spot for his godson. “He is well?”



“He is. Well, as well as can be expected. He took some pretty nasty torture from the death eaters in Paris.”



“I can imagine”



Of course he could. He’d suffered the same in his lifetime.



“He’s a lot like you” she whispered then.



Severus narrowed his eyes as he studied her, “Like me?”



She nodded, “Well yes. He’s been the one to play both sides for Harry. Like you did for Dumblebore.”



“Not like me” Severus corrected stiffly, “Potter at least cares about who has to be sacrificed for this war. Something the famed Dumbledore only pretended.”



This was true, she knew. It had come as such a shock that in the end Dumbledore hadn’t really cared about Harry’s life or death, or that of Severus. To this day it left a bitter taste in the mouths of many.



Harry refused to even speak of the former headmaster. His anger far too great. He didn’t like speaking of Snape either, his regret at not knowing the man better was also too great. Life in the Order held a high level of loss and regret. All for a glorious cause. Ah yes. Small comfort that. Sometimes.



“No” she said finally, “ I guess not. But he tries very hard.”



Severus shifted slightly in the dark ornate frame of his portrait. “Come now Mia” he said softly, “It isn’t like you to dance around issues like this. Something troubles you.”



She nodded and Severus sank into the high backed chair in the picture. He folded his hands and waited. Knowing it would come in a rush as it always did.



“I think I’ve made a mistake” she blurted out, “And now I don’t know how to fix it.”



He raised one dark eyebrow.



She blushed crimson, “I’ve been….with Draco.”



Severus didn’t smile at her shyness, it wasn’t in his nature but he did feel the spark of amusement.



“Of course you have” he intoned, “You had to travel from Italy with someone.”



She lifted her troubled eyes to him and scowled, “You are being deliberately obtuse Sev” she said then.



He waved a hand dismissively, “You don’t say. So let me get this straight Mia, you had a relationship with Lord Potter before and again after my demise.”

She nodded.



“And now you’ve been…intimate with Draco? Is that what you are trying to say?”



She nodded again, suddenly feeling like an idiot for not having just said so in the first place.



Severus was quiet for a long time.



“And now you are confused?”



“I am” she whispered, “I know I shouldn’t be. And it’s wrong, and -”



“Says who?”



She blinked, “What?”



“Who says that it is wrong?”



Hermione thought for a moment, “Well no one….and everyone… its what they would think”



Severus sighed, a long suffering sound and all for her benefit she knew. “And when has Hermione Granger, brightest witch of her age ever given two figs for what others think? I am disappointed Mia.”



Her hands clutched on her lap and she stared that knuckles that were going white now.



“Do you remember what I said before we began our affair?” he asked her.



She thought back to that stormy night and nodded, “You said that if I wanted to cast off girlish things, then I must understand that I would never be able to revisit them.”



He nodded, “And when I said that, what do you think I meant?”



“That I had to grow up. Not be a child anymore.”



“Yes, but there is something else. Something you understood at the time but seem to have forgotten” his voice was like a black velvet purr. Even his death, he had the power to arouse her. And he knew it.



“What have I forgotten?” she asked.



“You have tasted of darker things Mia. Passion, want, desire. These things change a person as deeply as all the loss of your war does. They leave scars as well. You are no longer that girl at Hogwarts.”



She knew that and she told him so.



“You were different after Potter had you”



She looked up at him.



“And you became someone else after I took you.”



She began to see his point.



“Being with Draco has changed you just enough that you feel out of place in your old places. Every person, every experience changes who you are fundamentally. Your past self can never be revisited wholly.”



She understood now. She raised her eyes to her mentor, teacher, lover. “What do I do now?”



He shrugged, “You alone can answer that Mia” he replied, “What do you want to do?”



She shook her head, gave a helpless shrug of her shoulders.



Severus tried again, “Who do you want? Potter or Draco?”



She thought and thought about it. After several long minutes had passed in silence she shook her head again. “I don’t know. Neither? Both?”



Severus surged to his feet, “You are never to see Draco again!”



Hermione stared at him in shock, “Why?”



“Why should you?”



“Because….I…I want to see him again.”



“and Potter?”



“Yes.”



“So you refuse to choose?”



“Oh Sev!” she cried bursting into tears, “I don’t think I can!”



The Potion’s Master soothed her as best he could. With soft words and gentle looks. It was a damnable shame that he was limited by the portrait.



“It’s wrong to want them both!” she wailed.



Severus shook his head, “Not wrong” he assured, “Simply complicated.”



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Hermione felt better after her talk with Severus. No less confused by what she should do, but as least she had some direction. She didn’t feel like the cheap wanton she’d convinced herself she was. Just a woman with needs.



She had promised Severus that she would take one day as it came and make her decisions based on what she wanted, not what she thought other people would prefer for her. So now, here she was.



She ladled some of the steaming stew into a deep bowl, added several thick slices of bread and butter and a square of cake. Then she poured a hefty amount of pumpkin juice in to a glass and made her way upstairs.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Draco lay quietly, trying to focus on the tingling burns of his overwrought nerves. He had tried several things to keep his mind off the feeling. Accio’ing several books from his father’s library did little to help.



When he heard the movement in the hall, his ears tuned to the sound. Light steps, a woman. Hermione. Then the door opened and the savory scent of her stew hit him and he was salivating like a mad man.



“Merlin that smells good Mione” he rasped to her.



She set the tray down and then used her wand to lift him firmly against the pillows before settling the tray across his lap.



He dropped the spoon several times before he managed to force his fingers to work.



“Impressive” she noted.



“Get Crucio’d enough and you can learn to manage… a little.”



Draco ate slowly, not quite trusting his stomach not to rebel. Additionally, he wanted to savor his first true meal in weeks and Hermione would stay and visit as long as he was eating.



“S’good” he said around a bite of potato.

Hermione laughed, “I’m glad. There is plenty of it in the kitchens. If your stomach can hold it we can try some more later this evening. You will also need your potion won’t you?”



He nodded, “They didn’t allow me to have it much in Paris” he confessed, “Forced a second transformation on me. Wanted to see if the Cruciatus worked on such a large body. It does… much to my dismay”.



Hermione met his silver eyes, “How many times Draco? How many times can you transform?”



“ Three times more” he replied stiffly.



“And then?” she barely wanted to know.



“I lose my human form for the rest of my life” he answered honestly.



His words hit her like a rogue wave of icy water. “You mean you won’t be able to become human again?”



He leveled her with a look, “I am always human” he insisted, “I am just trapped inside a form not my own.”



She was silent for a long time, “Erm, Draco?”



He lifted one brow.



“What is it like?” she knew the question was bald and regretted as soon as it slipped out.



Draco set his spoon down in his nearly empty bowl, “Like drowning in fire”.



Hermione winced at the mental image he’d given her. “I’m sorry”



“What?” Draco asked with feigned brightness, “Wasn’t you. Was that git of a father of mine.”



Draco stabbed into his cake and then looked at the piece on his fork, “Um Mione” he said softly, “There is something green and squishy looking in my cake.”



She nodded, “Zucchini” she offered.



He blanched, “You put a vegetable in my cake?”



She chuckled, “Never had carrot cake? It’s green. I thought a Slytherin like you might appreciate it.”



“This sounds like something from Snape’s lab! Who would make such a thing?”



Hermione was silent for a long moment, “My mother.”



He blinked. Her parents were gone. Long gone. “Muggle food?” he asked.



She stiffened, “Yes.”



He stared at the cake oddly, “ My mother once gave me peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Said I should try some muggle foods for excitement. I love it of course. I asked for another a few days later and my father heard. He took his anger out on my mum for a good long while. After that I never thought of muggle food again.”



Hermione saw his sad expression, “Draco” she said, “You can have all the muggle food you want now”.



He gave a small smile and bravely bit into the cake.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Three hours and two slices of cake later, Draco was vastly happier. He’d been given his potion and Hermione’s promise of many muggle goodies. Something called macaroni and cheese was next on her menu for him.



He could hardly wait.



Harry arrived sometime later and after asking Draco if he minded, brought his meal to the bedside and chatted with them both while he ate.



Hermione was indulging in a second small bit of cake, laughing as Harry recounted Ron’s reaction to Draco’s place in the hierarchy.



“It came as quite a shock to him” Harry finished.



Hermione laughed again, and then Draco lifted his finger to her mouth and wiped a bit of frosting from the curve, bringing it to his mouth and licking the sweet.



Hermione flushed red as fire and she nervously glanced to Harry.



“Tasty Draco?” Harry asked evenly.



Draco nodded, “Oh yes.”



Hermione watched the exchange with uncertainty.



“I’ve always thought so too” Harry agreed with a wink at Hermione.



She got to her feet, gathering plates and glasses. “I should clean up” she said in a whisper.



Harry vanished everything swiftly, “No Mione” he said quietly, “I have something to say.”



She looked at Draco then back at him.



“To both of you”



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Hermione stood in the shower spray a long while later. Her heart still thundering madly in her chest, her voice locked somewhere in her throat.



Harry had laid clean the prophecy. Well prophecies. The second dealing with his heir. Everyone has always assumed Ginny would bear his young. Now that she was gone….



Harry had made it very clear that he would not force either of them into the Triumvirate but that as three powerful casters united that they could reshape the wizarding world both during and after the war.



The powers in Harry often grew too strong and Draco knew only too well what siphoning some of them meant. He also knew that a successful triumvirate would hinge upon absolute trust and respect.



He assumed that Harry would prefer a triumvirate in every sense of the word. When he mentioned it, Harry had agreed, but stressed again, that he would never force anyone to such a thing.



Hermione wasn’t entirely certain what they had been talking about. Every sense of the word? She supposed from the hot gleam in Draco’s eyes that it was something risqué. Tonight was rough. So much information passed to them both.



In the end Harry had gone to find Madame Pomfrey as the first of Draco’s treatments would start tonight.



Hermione knew it would be painful and she had no intention of letting him face it alone. He had held her while she had screamed and clawed. She could do no less.



Stepping out of the shower, she dried and put on a loose robe before striding past Severus.



“Someone looks positively edible” he purred from frame.



Hermione blushed and glared at him. “Behave Severus” she admonished.



“Why?” the contrary man asked, “Feeling damp? Worried Potter or Draco will smell the scent of want on you? I recall that smell you know. That taste.”



She groaned. Severus was in a playful mood tonight. “Not now Sev”



“You understood what Potter was asking you?”



She didn’t but she wasn’t going to admit it. Not yet. They were men. They’d slip up and give her the hint she needed. She could wait until then.



She tied the sash of the robe and pulled on fresh knickers, casting dark glances at the smug wizard on the wall. Then she pulled her door open and entered Draco’s room.



Madame Pomfrey had just handed him the vial and he tossed back to the contents. “I know what to expect” he told her.



She nodded, her pinched lips thinning. “I shall check on you tomorrow then”.



Hermione made her way to the bed, where Draco lay tense. “I’m ok Mione” he assured her.



She nodded, “I know”. She lifted the covers and crawled in beside him.



Draco didn’t ask. Didn’t need to. He merely drew her against him tightly and waited for the pain to start.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione was so glad when the pain subsided. Draco had been nearly silent for a long time before the screams were torn from him. She had wrapped her arms around him, drawing him down to her. Soothing him with soft whispers and gentle hands.



He’d thrashed about the bed for hours, sometimes clutching her so tightly she knew he’d left bruises. She didn’t care. He’d begged her to go, afraid he might hurt her. But she refused.



Now he was slowly coming back to himself. His breathing slowing. Her gentle strokes on his back lulling him. He rested his cheek against her hair and sighed.



“How are you Draco?”



“Shitty” came the blunt reply.



“Get some sleep then”



He nodded against her. “Mione, you smell hot”



She blushed again and mentally cursed Severus Snape for all she was worth.



“You can just take care of it later” she snarked.



Draco’s eyes slid shut, “I will witch. I will”



She felt his form relax into the heavy form of sleep, “That’s what I’m afraid of” she whispered.



When she was certain he was asleep, she untangled herself from him and made her way across the hall.



A shadow detached itself from the corridor and she looked up to see Harry striding toward her.



“Harry. What are you doing here?”



“Staying the night.”



She nodded, reaching for her door. He caught her hand and drew her away.



“What is it Harry?” she asked.



He stepped closer to her, his form towering over her. “I’ve been dying to give you a proper hello.”



He dipped his head and caught her lips with his own. She gasped as his hand slid around her waist to cup her bottom. Just the way, he knew, she liked it. His mouth set that teasing pressure for long minutes before his tongue slipped in to slide against her own.



Her knees went to jelly and Harry laughed into her mouth as he grasped her pert cheeks in both hands and lifted her against him. Those slim legs locking at his waist.



“Come to bed Mione” Harry breathed against her mouth, and she found herself nodding.



What was she doing? Draco lay just a few feet away, her former lover was hanging on her wall and she was soaking wet with the thought of Harry. Merlin, she was sick!



But Harry was making his way to the bedroom, clutching her to his chest, his mouth hot on her throat.



When she felt the linens at her back she opened her eyes. Noting that he had vanished her clothing and his. He came down atop her, his mouth, hot sleek and sliding against hers. His flavor like dark chocolate and red wine.



She moaned as he lapped at her palate. Her finger slid into his inky hair. She slid one leg from his waist to his hips and pulled him closer to the wetness she couldn’t hide.



Harry growled in response. His mouth moved from her mouth to her ear and nipped down her throat. His hands palmed her breasts, tweaking the rosy tips to a near painful level before pulling the taut beads into his mouth one by one and suckling them like ambrosia.



She moaned against him, her restless legs moving against the linens.



Harry slid his hand down her stomach to cup her boldly. “So wet Mione” he breathed against the underside of her breast. “Not just for me I think”.



She tensed slightly at his words.



His seeking hand slid to the wet slit of her heat, teasing the sensitive lips of her folds. His thumb dove sure and true to the bundle of nerves hidden there. She cried out at the stroke, her hips rising to meet his hand.



“Is it me?” he asked nipping her hipbone.



“Is it that old bat hanging in your room?” another stroke.



“Is it Draco?” he dipped his tongue into her navel and she shuddered.



“Please Harry..”



“Maybe it’s a little of all of us.” he said wickedly.



Her head thrashed as he slipped two fingers into her channel, massaging her inner walls gently, even as his thumb swept of her pearl.



“Answer me” he said softly, “No matter your answer it will not make me angry.”



She nodded slowly, feeling tears well in her eyes, “All”.



Harry smirked, “Thought as much”. His fingers pushed deeper, curling up to abrade that ridge of flesh even as his mouth attacked her breasts again.



Harry had always been a gentle lover, yet dominant in his own way.



“You’ve been together I know” he murmured against her, knowing it wasn’t fair to have this talk now, but not caring.



She stiffened against him, “Harry..”



He lifted up pressing his lips to hers, “Shh, it’s fine with me. Draco is a sexy thing”.



She blinked, shocked.



Harry nodded, even as he teased her to the edge of orgasm, “He was my first.”



Her hips rocked mindlessly now. Her mind somehow grasping that Harry and Draco had been lovers.



He moved lower, keeping his fingers planted firmly in her, fluttering, wriggling, teasing, tormenting. Not giving her a chance to pull away.



“I want you to want us both Mione” he purred against her thigh now.



“Wrong” she whispered, “It’s wrong.”



He shook his head, “Look at me”



She opened her eyes to meet his green gaze from between her thighs. Gods what that image did to her.



“Think about it” he urged, “Imagine him”. His lips formed a nearly silent incantation against her skin and she felt a second mouth move against her throat. “Feel me”.



She cried out harshly when his mouth found her. Teasing her to greater heights, the wicked image he’d planted in her mind making her crest with such force that she sobbed from it.



“Harry!”



He slid up her body, fusing their mouths together, his sex fitting into her opening and he slid easily in. Feeling her legs slid high on his hips as he began to move. “Merlin you feel good” he growled against her mouth.



She cried out when he rotated his hips against her, every thrust bouncing his pelvic bone against her pearl.



“Will you come for me?” he demanded, grasping her hair and tugging her head to the side so he could feast on her shoulder, “Will you come for us?”



He lunged forward against her, feeling her tighten on him. Her keening cry swallowed by his mouth as he rocked against her for a moment more before spilling himself within her.



Hermione came back to herself slowly, stretching languorously, feeling Harry shift within her body. “Oh Harry” she moaned.



He kissed her softly, “Think about it Mione. Together we could be brilliant.”



She knew that. And try as she might to put such thoughts aside, the whispers of the wizarding world haunted her.



“It’s taboo” she murmured.



He chuckled into her neck, “No, actually it isn’t. Not common, but not taboo. Stop applying muggle morals to magical bonds.”



“But it’s Draco. The others….”



“Will hate it” Harry agreed, “At first. They don’t see him as you and I do.”



She chewed her lip, “I can’t believe I had sex with two poufs” she muttered.



Harry rolled then, pulling her atop him to smack her bottom, “Oi! We are not poufs. We just like to experiment sometime. But with you, that would be the common bond.”



Hermione rolled her eyes, “I doubt it. Talk more later?”



Harry nodded as she nibbled her way across his chest, “Mm. What’s up?”



She giggled, “Soon enough, you.”



And she made love to Harry Potter the boy who lived, the boy who grew up and had become the dark lord. She touched him and kissed him and caressed him. But time and time again her mind turned to the golden wizard sleeping down the hall. To the thought of having both of them.



Could she do it?



Would they do it?