Goodnight, Demon Slayer

Goodnight, Demon Slayer
Chapter Twenty-One:
An Anticlimactic Climax

Severus' eyes grew wide in fear, and he approached the Dark Lord with all the humility he could muster.

"My lord, is that really necessary? I have been your faithful servant for nearly two decades, and this whelp has just joined our ranks. Surely my word carries more weight than his!"

But Voldemort simply smiled a cruel, joyless smile, and at the snap of his fingers, both Hermione and Severus were grabbed by his goons. As the Death Eaters held him still, Severus was forced to watch in torment as the men holding Hermione began to violently undress her. Reaching out all of his power as a legilimens, Severus searched Hermione. She was scared but defiant and refused to so much as whimper as the men tore her pants from her legs, leaving her completely naked. The once-silent crowd grew rowdy at the sight of her, commenting, snickering, and jostling each other for better viewing positions.

Voldemort could not have been happier.

"There she is, Severus," he hissed. "Do what you will."

With that, Severus was thrown toward his naked companion. It was only this close to her that any physical manifestation of fear was visible. As he moved forward to embrace her, he tried to silently communicate to her how proud he was that she hadn't broken down in front of Voldemort and how much he truly loved her. Wrapping his arms and long robes around her, Severus' heart broke to feel her hot tears against his chest as she finally broke down. He held her close and caressed her tenderly, but he knew the Dark Lord would only allow too much foreplay.

Without a word, Severus carefully laid Hermione down on her back and covered her shivering body with his still-clothed form. Leaning down as if to kiss her, Severus used his hair as a shield from the other Death Eaters.

"I'm sorry, Hermione," he murmurred, close to tears himself. "Say the word and this is over. Tell me to stop and I will."

After searching his eyes for a moment, Hermione kissed him deeply.

"You stop, and giv give me to Malfoy, and if by some miracle they didn't kill you, I would!"

Severus smiled a little at her words, brushing a stray lock of hair from her eyes. Always outspoken. That was his Hermione.

"I love you," he whispered as she slowly unzipped his pants, allowing his erection to spring free. When he had first become a Death Eater, he had often questioned how a man could maintain arousal when he knew what he was doing was wrong, but as Severus had advanced among their ranks, the answer had made itself unquestionably clear.

He was a man.

There was a naked girl underneath him.

Sometimes morality is just overruled by nature.

Hermione whimpered a little bit at the thought of what was to come, but soon kissed him slowly.

"I love you, Severus."

And so Severus did what was expected of him by the Dark Lord. It was not how he had ever wanted to be with Hermione, but it was what he had to do to keep them both safe. Still, he knew he would never forgive himself and was reminded about how wrong it was at every tiny wince that crossed her face or whimper that stole from her throat. This was rape, he knew it- no matter if Hermione consented or not. She tried to comfort him; his guilt was etched on every line of his face, but she could not help the fact that he was hurting her. It would have been different if they were at home in her bed. It would have been different if they were alone. It would have been different if she had been ready for him, but as it was, she could feel him tear through her with every thrust. She was not aroused; she was not wet. There was no part of her body that wanted to accomodate this intruder, and no matter how she tried to tell herself that this was Severus, the man she loved most in the world, her body would only focus on the fact that there were so many others watching her every move. Couldn't shake the thought even though they were going through with this, she was bleeding- a sure sign of her recent bout of virginity.

She could not stop thinking that they were going to kill him.

He whispered to her several times during the act, trying to soothe and encourage her, and she smiled at him, kissed him, but could not bring herself to whisper back. Her heart and mind ached to tell him how much she loved him, but her traitorous body would not let her say it. This was all her body's fault, really. Her body was what would not accept Severus. It was her body that would not allow her any enjoyment in this, and it was ultimately her body that would give away their entire charade.

Stupid body! My mind's never let me down! It's always this stupid, stupid body!

Severus was pulled from her the second he finished by the same Death Eaters who had undressed Hermione. Voldemort never even passed a formal judgement on the question of Hermione's virginity, but at his signal, a steady round of Cruciatus Curses hit the Potions Master, reducing him to a shaking, vomiting mess in front of them. Suddenly Severus was sure Voldemort had known all along and had just made Severus "perform" for the sheer fun of it. The realization (and the constant torture) made Severus sick, and though he loved Hermione more than anything, he could only wish for death. He knew that was where the steady stream of Crucios heading towards, and as long as it was coming, he wanted it to be now. Closing his eyes, Severus Snape gave
H
Hermione had pulled herself into a standing position and was watching the torture with a detached horror. She knew that she should be worried about Severus, but she really couldn't make herself feel anything at that point. It was like the old unfeeling, only thinking Hermione. Everything was suddenly black and white. Her life was over. Severus would be tortured terribly, probably for a great while longer before they killed him. After the novelty of beating on one of thein won wore off, the Death Eaters would turn on her. She guessed that gang rape would be a probable possibility, and even if they all didn't, the Malfoys would. Then she would either be killed for lying to Voldemort or would be given to the Malfoys. In which case, she would commit suicide. It was as simple as that. Her life was over. It was all black and white.

That is, until she spotted a bright streak of red shoot across the sky behind the gathering of Death Eaters. She glanced around quickly to check if anyone else had seen it, but all involved including the Dark Lord were concentrating on Severus' shaking form. Gazing up in the direction she'd seen the flash, Hermione narrowed her eyes and concentrated. There had to be something there. Red flashes did not appear in the sky for no reason.

And there was a reason. She had to look twice to be sure she saw what she thought she saw, but she did indeed see it. Her concentration torn between Severus and what was going on behind the assembly, Hermione somehow managed to come up with a plan.

"Lord Voldemort!"

All torture and merriment stopped at her rusty voice, all attention suddenly once again focused on her naked body. The Dark Lord himself turned toward her, his red gaze sinister. She did not wait for him to respond. Walking calmly up to him, she gathered all her nerve and spit in his face.

"You are a pathetic fucking bastard! Do you actually get off on girls being deflowered by force? I mean, just because that's the only way you cold ever get laid, doesn't mean it's a good idea! You are a sad wanker, you know that? I know you have no self esteem! People with self esteem don't have minions-"

"Avada Kedavra!"

Voldemort was dead before any of the Death Eaters could even comprehend what had gone on, and their assembly was surrounded by the Order of the Phoenix before any of them even realized they were done for.

And in the center of the mess, above Voldemort's body, stood the man who had killed him. And slowly, Harry Potter pulled off the Death Eater hood he'd been wearing as disguise. Now face to face with Hermione, Harry smiled weakly.

"Well, that's done," the Boy-Who-Lived-Again said dryly, his eyes falling to Severus, who was being attended by several members of the Order. He tried very hard not to look over his best friend, naked and streaked with blood. Hermione's blank and exhausted eyes met Harry's equally stressed ones before she spoke.

The naked and shaking girl could only manage a weak "Can I have my clothes now?" before fainting.


**********A/N***********
Sorry it's been so long, and sorry it's short, but there has been TONS of drama going on lately. I PROMISE I'm updating as quickly as I can, and I will not be giving up on this! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, and remember- you can always look for updates on my livejournal http://www.livejournal.com/users/potionmistressm/

Thanks so much for all the reviews! PLEASE keep 'em coming!