A Secret Worth Keeping

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.


A Secret Worth Keeping


Chapter Forty- A Disastrous Flashback


Hermione sat in her rocker next to the faux window, quietly reading to Sebastian. The night sky twinkled with stars and the bright full moon shone down, casting shadows over them. The small oil lamp on the table next to her shone brilliantly, chasing the unwanted shadows away with its fierce flame. The room had a nice, cozy feel to it. Along with the small oil lamp, a fire was burning in the fireplace. As she read to her son, Hermione tried not to notice the time. It was starting to grow late and she was determined not to let it get to her. It was bad enough knowing where Severus was at the moment, but not knowing what he was doing was what she was trying not to think about.

She was startled when the outer door flew open, allowing Severus to stride inside. Immediately she could tell that something was wrong by his gait. There was an intensity in his eyes as he purposely crossed the floor and bent to scoop Sebastian up into his arms. The baby didn’t squawk as he suddenly found himself in his father’s powerful arms. Hermione simply sat the book of Muggle fairy tales aside and pondered the man’s actions.

“Severus?”

Instead of immediately answering her, Severus paced back and forth between her and the blazing hearth. She could hear a muttering coming from him but couldn’t tell what he was saying. After a few minutes of his strange actions, she finally stood to her feet and crossed to him.

“What happened? Are you all right?”

He stopped in mid step and hugged Sebastian to his chest, whispering softly to his son. He didn’t want to let his son go for any reason. Instead, he turned to gaze on the woman he loved.

“It was awful,” were the only words he could summon.

Hermione placed a hand on his arm and guided him over to the sofa where she could get him to settle. “Sit down and tell me what happened.”

“Not yet. Just let me hold our son,” he replied as he avoided sitting down and continued to pace the floor with their child clung desperately to his chest.

Hermione stood to the side as she watched her fiancé frantically walk the floor. Something had happened tonight and, whatever it was, had thrown him for a loop. As she continued to silently watch, his erratic pacing seemed to slow into a more moderate stride. His broad, tense shoulders finally relaxed enough to sink back from around his ears. As she watched him go from stressed to calm, she once more attempted to try talking to him. “Sit down, love. I’ll get you a glass of sherry.”

He tore his gaze from Sebastian to Hermione with a small smile of gratitude. “Thank you. I feel that I may need it to finish off this day.”

Hermione watched as he finally settled himself onto the sofa carefully, so as not to disgruntle the baby, before she removed the bottle of alcohol from the cabinet. She poured him a generous amount of the alcohol and carried it back over to the sofa. “Are you ready to talk about it yet?” she asked as she handed him the glass.

He unwound one hand from Sebastian and gently laid him against one shoulder so to free up a hand for the drink. “I don’t know where to begin but it nearly ended drastically,” he stated, throwing back the drink that was meant to be sipped. “Another?”

“That bad, was it?” She took the glass and refilled it.

“Yes, it was.”

“Tell me about it.” She offered the drink to him again and he took the glass, but this time merely sipped.

Severus closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the leather of the sofa. “They had a surprise for me after dinner. I had no idea they would attempt to tempt me like that.”

Hermione sat down next to him but remained silent knowing that he needed to get his thoughts in order first. Although she longed to comfort him with soft words, she didn’t want to interrupt his train of thoughts to soon. Gently she reached out to rub Sebastian lightly on his back as Severus cradled him. She could see the pain in his face and felt a bit worried. If it was that bad then things were going to get worse for them all. She had a feeling that she wasn’t going to like what ever it was that Severus had to say. But, keeping silent and lending only her listening talents to him, she watched his face as he remembered.

With his eyes closed, he tried to recall exactly had what happened from the moment that he'd confessed to Lucius that he remembered taking Hermione.

~*Previously that evening*~

His senses were reeling at the sight of his fiancée standing in the doorway. Something was wrong. Definitely wrong, Hermione would not be here voluntarily. Not in her right mind. Then it hit him. This was not ‘His’ Hermione. This was an imposter. And there was only one person that could do it and get away with it. Then Lucius confirmed his suspicions.

“Ah, true… not a student under your care but this, my friend, is an inimitable situation. You see this is not who you believe her to be.” Lucius’ voice melted with butter.

“Narcissa.” Severus’ voice dripped with disdain in response.

“Well, that was a mood killer. I was hoping to get you into mid coitus before you figured out that I was not your Miss Granger.” Narcissa’s false voice rose his hackles. Severus didn’t like that voice coming from Hermione’s body. He allowed himself to give her the obvious once over.

“Not bad. I assume you used Polyjuice? I am not going to even think about where and who you got to brew that particular potion. Since it is a very restricted potion and only Potion Masters have access to the rarest of the ingredients. However, it seems that we have an interesting development here. Where did you get a sample of Miss Granger’s hair?”

“That is not of any importance right now, Severus. We are really on a tight time limit here. I suggest that we all retire to the boudoir and entertain ourselves. After you, our little Miss Granger?”

Severus frowned as Narcissa smiled and in an un-Hermione like action, tossed her hair over her shoulder and glided out of the room.

“This should prove fruitful, my friend. Can you imagine sinking yourself inside of that?”

Here was the test, the place where what he said would either make or break him. His eyes never wavered and his voice lowered in what he knew was his deepest, silkiest voice ever. “Oh I don't know. I seem to remember it quite well.”

He was immediately rewarded as his friend appeared to be surprised, then wary. “Ah, so you do remember after all.”

Severus forced himself to laugh heartily and say the one thing that he hated to say in his life. “Like I would be able to forget the best fuck I have ever had.”

Lucius’s laughter rang out among the both of them. “I was wondering if you recalled that fate filled day.”

“Indeed. It was a night that is very hard to keep out of my head. If I wasn’t sure that that child of hers was indeed Potter’s… I would have been worried.”

“So, you are dead sure that the child is… in fact… Potter’s and not yours?”

“Trust me in this fact, Lucius. There is no chance at all that that child is mine.”

“Glad to hear that, because I think that that brat will come in very useful to the Dark Lord. He was absolutely thrilled to know of Potter and his new found family.”

Severus felt his blood run cold but kept his face neutral. “How so?”

“Blood, Severus… Blood will tell.” Lucius stood and walked casually to the fireplace to look up at the portrait of his own family. “I don’t know exactly what the Lord wants with him at this moment in time, but I do know that whatever it is… it will not be pleasant for the Potters.”

“Blood.” The word was forced out of his mouth in a deep, disgusted voice. “Who’s blood? Potter’s or the…?”

“Why, the brat of course. Severus. Just think of the pain that it will cause that impudent child and his Mudblood wife. The mixed blood of the boy’s powerful parents will bring more power to the lord.”

“I don’t see how.”

“Well, truthfully, I don’t see it either. But ours is not to question his Lordship. Ours is to just do as he orders and avoid the pain of his displeasure.” Lucius’ hand crept up to his own chest and massaged it unconsciously. An obvious reaction to a past infliction.

Severus frowned but allowed a head nod. “True. I do not wish to be on the receiving end of another Crucio. I have had my monthly quota of that this month.”

“Then let’s stop all this unimportant information and get down to the nitty gritty. I do believe we have a fun time awaiting in my bedroom to pleasure the both of us.”

Reluctant to partake in Lucius' notion of a fun time, Severus dragged his feet as he followed Lucius to his room. He was not looking forward to this evening. He didn’t like the idea of Narcissa in Hermione’s form, nor did he have any inclination to lay with her. He had to think of something… and fast.

Lucius opened a large door and moved aside for Severus to step through. Once through the archway, a sound caught Severus’s ears and he turned towards the noise. To his dismay another person was there, or to be more precise… another Hermione. Another one, he knew, because he felt the first faux Hermione step up beside him.

“What is the meaning of this, Lucius?” he voiced rather angrily as he stepped away from the Narcissa/Hermione on his left, working his way over to the other Hermione that he could now see was chained to the wall. “Why is there another Granger here? Wasn’t one enough for you?”

“Calm yourself my friend. Once more, this is not your charge. This is merely… another replica. A Muggle, if you will. Useful and disposable.”

“Lucius, I barely have time for one Granger let alone two. I do have to be back soon.”

“Oh no, my friend. That one up on the wall is mine. Narcissa belongs to you tonight.” Lucius stepped around his friend and up to the cringing woman. The poor Muggle struggled against her taut chains, trying to get away from the mad man before her. Her brown eyes wide with terror.

Severus had to turn away before he could see Lucius run his hand up the young woman’s arm almost caressingly. Immediately he nearly ran into the other Hermione. Narcissa.

“Come, Severus. We haven’t played in some time and my husband told me that you, for whatever reason I prefer not to wonder about, favor this form. I did hear once that you took her quite forcibly.” Her eyes darkened with lust. “Perhaps you would like to relive that time? Its been a long while since I’ve been taken like that.”

Severus blocked the sounds from the woman on the wall and the man doing whatever it was that he was doing to her. Keeping his eyes forward and trying to keep in mind that the woman before him was not his Hermione, but an imposter. In his mind, he kept searching for a way out. Some little idea that would give him an excuse to exit this debacle. He didn’t want to do anything with Narcissa but if he didn’t think of some way out of this, he would be forced to do what she wanted or else face the consequences later.

Think, Severus! Think! He raised a hand to cup Narcissa’s face. Perhaps if he tried to distract her with a kiss and a few handling techniques he could pass some considerable time until he could claim that he had to get back. A loud clanging alarm interrupted his line of thinking, also tempering the screaming that Severus now recognized as coming from the other Hermione on the wall.

“Shit!” From Lucius. “The wards were crossed.”

“MOTHER!”

Severus’s head snapped to the side at the sound of a bellowing voice coming from the library. A voice that Severus swore that he would happily give at least two hundred points to once he got back to Hogwarts.

Narcissa jumped back from him in a state of semi-alarm. “Shit. What is he doing here?” Her voiced hissed to her husband.

Severus stepped to the side and watched his friend tie his robe and steadfastly march back to the library. Thankfully, Severus didn’t give the bedroom door another look before following. He stopped at the doorway to witness Lucius standing before his son, Draco.

“What is it boy? Can you not tell that I have company? Why aren’t you at the school?”

Draco’s gaze drifted boldly over his robed father. In a slightly disapproving tone, he stood to his full height and glared his father straight in the eye. “I need to speak with Mother. It is… personal.”

“Surely it could wait until morning when it would be a more prudent time to call?”

“Under normal circumstances, yes. But this is very important. I need to talk to her.”

“Now is not…”

Draco’s eyes widened as he caught a movement by the entrance. His eyes darted between the figure and his professor before he turned ugly, angry eyes back to his father.

“Granger? What is SHE doing here?”

“She is not who you think she is, boy. Do not bellow in this house. It is undignified and distasteful."

“Undignified? Distasteful? This coming from you who wouldn’t normally sully himself with a Mudblood. And here you are… fraternizing… with one. It’s disgusting.” Draco turned hate filled eyes towards the younger woman and took a step forward. Only a hand on his arm stopped him in his tracks.

“Careful, son. You do not want to harm one hair on her head. If you do… you would be very, very, regretful.”

“Oh really? Tell me why.”

“Because, Draco…” The woman spoke in the voice the young man was familiar with. “I would then have to punish you. And you know how you hate me to punish you.”

Draco’s eyes widened more then looked around at the other men. “You are all disgusting. Is this what you do? Change my mother into… into… I cant even say her name right now, it tastes foul on my tongue.” He allowed his gaze to settle on his mentor. “You participate in this?”

“What I do outside of Hogwarts is no other’s business than my own, Mr. Malfoy.” Severus rose up to his full height, glaring down at his student.

“You’re disgusting.” Draco turned his back to the men and let his eyes fall to the nearly naked woman standing in merely a silk sheet. “Do you mind dressing? It’s bad enough to see you in her skin, but seeing so much skin and knowing its my mom…it’s…not right.”

Narcissa chuckled and took her son by the hand and led him away from the bedroom and the other woman, still incarcerated. “Come on, son. Tell me what the problem is. My hour is almost up anyway.”

She tossed her head and winked at Severus. “Perhaps next time, Severus.”

Draco grinned at the look of relief in the Potions Master’s face. The look was brief, but it was there. In that instant, the young man knew that the Professor really, really didn’t want to be there any more than he did. But when Hermione had come to him earlier for his help, he'd had no choice but to come to the Professor’s aid. And from what he'd just seen, it was none to soon. Seeing his mother in Hermione’s body wasn’t something he would like to see again in some time. But then… if that was what Hermione did look like minus her clothes, he could see Snape’s interest.

“Damn!”

Severus turned to look at his friend and frowned. Lucius held his left forearm with the hand of the other. “Summons?”

“Unfortunately, yes… are you being..?”

Thankfully Severus shook his head. “No, It seems I am not of use this evening. Perhaps you should go.”

“Yes, I do apologize for the inconvenience, my friend. Perhaps we can do this another evening?” Lucius spoke as he walked back into his bedroom, ignoring the whimpers from the woman still chained to the wall. “Oh, if you wish, you can still have this one. She is still ripe for the plucking. I haven’t taken her as of yet. Her maidenhead is still intact.”

“Thank you, but no. I really must get back.”

“Suit yourself.” Lucius answered as he donned the usual black robes of the Death Eater's garb. “I can just kill her when I get back. Or save her for another time.”

Severus looked back at the girl, faking a renewed interest. “No, on second thought, I think I will have a bit of sport with her after all. I think Narcissa will be busy for a while with Draco.”

“As I said, suit yourself. As it is, I must go. Good evening, Severus.”

“Good evening, Lucius.”

Severus watched as Lucius left in the swirl of black robes before turning his eyes to the terrified girl on the wall. Her eyes wide in her terror. She looked completely uncomfortable pinned to the wall like a butterfly in someone’s collection. The school robe that she'd had on previously was now laying in a heap at her feet. The white blouse she wore was ripped up the front, its now useless buttons scattered around. Covering her breasts was a scant, lacy white bra barely big enough to cover their swell. Although the face and body was of his beloved, the woman before him was not she.

He moved forward, which brought forth more scared whimpering from her. Her tired body still had a bit of fight in it. Her arms struggled to be released from their captivity.

“Calm yourself, woman. I will not harm you.” Severus removed his wand and held it up to the girl's face. “In fact, you just may be very lucky this evening. You will not remember a bit of this and still live to give your innocence to another more worthy man.” His voice was soft as he spoke the words that knocked her out then…”Obliviate.”

Once he had her removed from the wall, he simply walked out. The only thing on his mind was to get this girl back to the Muggle world and return to his beloved and son. The son who was now threatened. Threatened by the one man that could do the harm that he spoke of. The one man that could take one of the things that he held dear to his heart.

His own son.

~*back to current time*~

“Oh Severus. How awful it must have been for you,” Hermione whispered softly, allowing her hand to pet his arms comfortingly. “I know how it must have bothered you to go through that knowing it was not me there.”

“Its not only that. I had no interest in them, my love. I prefer the way you are not compared to the image they showed me.”

“The way I am now?”

Severus turned his gaze to his beloved and let his eyes rake over her now fuller figure. “Yes, you are not as thin.” He noticed her eyes narrow and he quickly spoke up. “Now don’t go getting upset with what I just said, because it is the truth. And honestly, I prefer you like this. I love my lady with more to her. You now have the body of a woman. Not the child that you once were.”

Slightly mollified, she let that one pass by without too much complaining. It was comforting to think that maybe her weight gain wasn’t as bad as she thought. No matter how much Harry or Ron teased her about it.

“Why do you think you-know-who called Mr. Malfoy and not yourself?” She worried.

“I don’t know, and I’m afraid that I don’t want to know.”


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A/N: Thank you all for your encouragements. I do have this completed and will be posting it every day until complete.

Utopia: Blessed be, come from me in the Wiccan form. I am a practicing Wiccan and use it accordingly. Thank you for your lovely review. I love it.

Blessed Be

RWH