The Punishment of Secrecy

Just like anything else you\'ll see on this site, I don\'t own the characters, the places blah blah blah. You know the drill. This story is littered with BDSM issues; spanking, whipping, domination, paddling,sadistic behaviours etc. If you don\'t like this sort of thing...TURN BACK NOW and DON\'T READ! If this is your cup of tea...continue and enjoy. The chapters will be continually longer the further into this story I get. I\'ve finished it and would just put the whole thing on one damn page, but gah! 85+ pages is too much! Enjoy, check back for updates!

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It was over a week after their meeting before Malfoy tried to contact either of them. Hermione was sitting in the library when an owl started pacing in front of the window. Hermione let it in, along with a cold wind that made her receive many glares from fellow students, and it dropped the roll of parchment at her feet before flying out into the fierce cold of November. She picked it up and looked at it, her anxiety doubling when it bore her name. She walked between two rows of books and opened it. It was Malfoy telling her that he wanted to see her that night at nine and that all she would have to do is meet him in Snape’s office. Her heart plummeted as she stuffed the note into her pocket and returned to her studies. Harry and Ron noticed a dramatic drop in her enthusiasm to do school work as she stared out of the windows.
“What’s wrong Hermione?” Harry asked.
“Nothing. I just have a lot to do, a lot on my mind,” she answered quickly.
“Hell with that,” Ron interjected. “You never balk at doing homework, and you have never NOT had it done before us. Judging by the looks of your paper, we’re going to be done before you. Something is going on.”
“No really. I’m just thinking about a few things and I have a lot to do tonight. Snape told me after class that he needed to talk to me about that bloody essay he assigned us; said he was going to give me a detention because he figured I’d been helping the two of you with your work. I have told you not to copy my work directly,” she lied. She hated lying to them, they were her best friends, but she had no choice. She knew they wouldn’t understand why she was in love with Severus and they certainly wouldn’t comprehend what she was about to do. She loved them both but knew it was out of the question to fill them in. Ron was hot tempered and would go after Malfoy himself and Harry would probably think Hermione unbalanced for falling in love with a professor. She was torn between keeping her secret life hidden and trusting her friends. At this point, she chose the former, thinking it was safer.
“Well, if you ask me,” Ron said with a sneer, “Snape has been riding your ass all year about nothing. He’s gotten to be a royal pain. You should tell him to piss off.”
“I can’t do that Ron!”
“Yes you can. You walk right up to him and go, Professor, forgive me, but piss off. It’s that easy.”
“If it’s that easy,” Harry said mockingly “then why have you not done it yet?”
The three of them laughed quietly and she let Harry and Ron continue joking about what they’d like to tell Snape. She laughed when she needed, nodded or answered when she was cued, but her head wasn’t with them. That knot of fear and unease was winding itself tighter in her stomach and no amount of joking would alleviate it.

Severus received an owl in the early evening. It was from Malfoy explaining that he and Hermione would be meeting in his office tonight at nine. His stomach lurched, not having anticipated Malfoy acting so soon.
“Little bastard,” Severus spat at the parchment before him. He crumple int into a ball and tossed it into the roaring fire. After watching the fire reduce it to ashes, he opened a journal and began writing. He was going to record everything about this incident. He wanted to leave nothing to chance. There had to be something they could do about this without destroying them, but he didn’t know what. He jotted some things down in the journal, put a special book locking charm on it and stuffed it in a drawer before locking that too. His anger was welling up and he didn’t know how much more of this he could take. The idea of Draco’s hands on Hermione at all was enough to disgust him, but his having sex with her? He didn’t know if his heart could take it. He thought no less of her, because she was willing to do this for him, but his loathing of what was supposed to be his favorite student was growing into an inconceivable monster. He pushed the evening out of his mind for a while and tried to concentrate on the essays and vials he was grading.

Nine o’clock came quickly and Hermione and Malfoy met in Snape’s office. She sat timidly in a chair in the main chamber as Malfoy walked haughtily into the office. There were words exchanged and moments later; Severus came out to Hermione’s side.
“My love,” he started as he took her hand “this is your last chance. Please, I’m begging you to let me resign. We can give him the satisfaction of knowing he won without him having to lay a hand on you. You can finish school and we can start our life together somewhere far from here. If he tells, he tells. No one would care once I’m gone. Please Hermione.” He knelt before her, a torn man. His eyes were glistening with tears as she ran her hand down his cheek.
“Severus, I can’t let you do that. You love you job. Your loyalties are with this school. I’ve already detached myself from the situation. I just want it to end and the more we put it off, the harder it’s going to be. I can’t let him ruin our lives. After it’s all said and done, we’ll just forget it ever happened. You know that I love you and you alone.”
“Ah hem.” They both looked at the doorway where Draco stood staring at them both. “I believe this is my time Severus.”
Severus nodded and kissed Hermione quickly on the cheek. He then walked out of the room, pausing only at the doorway long enough to smile weakly at Hermione. In moments, they were alone.
“Awfully nice of him to allow us to use his classroom wasn’t it?” he asked her as he approached. She turned away from him in her seat and stared down at the top of the desk.
“Come on Hermione. I know you can’t be all that disappointed. Who knows, you might find that you will enjoy yourself. We’ll learn together,” he said, running his hand down her hair. She shuddered from his touch but didn’t attempt to pull away. “See, we’re both rather inexperienced. Perhaps we will teach each other the finer points of pleasing the opposite sex. Perhaps,” he said, turning her face towards him, “you’ll come to find that I’m not such a bad person. Of course, if you start chasing after me, then I’d have to refuse you. As brilliant as you are, you’re still a mudblood. I can’t be seen in public with the likes of you. However, we could make arrangements…”
She jumped out of her seat, the anger bringing a fierce glow to her eyes.
“Understand this Draco,” she spat. “herehere for one reason. I don’t want you to destroy Severus’ life, and I’ll do anything to keep you from doing it. I’ll be your little toy, your puppet, but as far as enjoying this, you’re insane. As soon as this is over, you can bet we’ll run as far as fast as we can. You won’t be able to hold it over our heads anymore and I’ll be glad. The idea of your hands on me is disgusting. Even being in your presence is enough to make me vomit, but I will restrain myself so that you might have your thrills. Do what you will with me, but you’ll never turn what Severus and I have into something dirty like you want to.”
He stood smirking at her. She didn’t know what point he was trying to make but she was suddenly more frightened than she had been up to this point. His gaze was burning into her very soul, his eyes undressing her in his mind. She didn’t want to release her gaze from his; she was afraid what she would find.
“This is going to be more fun than I ever imagined,” he said, after sizing her up for several minutes. He took her hand roughly and led her to Severus’ room. She stopped, hesitant to enter.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she gasped. He grinned evilly at her again and shook his head. “I can’t do this, not here. This is wrong for so many reasons.” She tried to free herself from his grasp on her, but he was too strong.
“No Hermione, that’s where you’re wrong. This is what exactly makes it so right. Severus has agreed to let us use his quarters. That way you both have a constant reminder of the reason you are here with me instead of him.”
He continued to pull her into the small room when she noticed that it was entirely wrong. The four-poster bed was gone, as was the rest of the furniture that had occupied the room only a week previous. In their place was a simple bed, a desk from the classroom and many things that she couldn’t place a name to, however, she didn’t like the looks of them. They reminded her of the descriptions of the old tortures that Filch was so fond of. She felt her body tense and fear cutting off her ability to speak. Tears started to work their ways to her eyes although she tried her hardest to keep them in their place.
“You’d think that a professor, especially one that didn’t leave the castle for more than a couple weeks of the year, would have more elaborate furnishings. He lives like a common pauper. Really kind of sad isn’t it?” he said, looking around.
She understood instantly. He’d removed everything that had any meaning behind it and replaced it with something cold and impersonal. She dared no smile, although, the thought that he’d prepared for this to make it as easy on her as possible made the fear diminish considerably.
“Of course,” he said as he turned to face her “I’ve had a few things…. how should I say this…borrowed from our dear friend Filch. I told him I was doing a study on the old methods of torture and punishment and wanted hands on research materials in order to make it more descriptive. He bought right into it. Hell, he went so far as to show me how each of them work and told me stories of how he used to be able to use them. It was dreadfully hard to get away from him. He could ramble for hours.”
Hermione gave him a weak smile and nodded. He gripped her face roughly and began to kiss her. She tried to resist at first, but found that the more she pulled away, the tighter he gripped her so she eventually resigned to letting him do what he would. Soon, he was pulling at her robes and pushing her towards the bed with his body. She moved quickly, hoping that he would soon find himself spent and let her leave. When they made it to the edge of the bed, he stopped.
“Ok, Granger, I want you to take off all of your clothes,” he said, matter-of-factly. She nodded and turned her back to him.
“Ah hem,” he coughed. “Turn around.”
She turned slowly; her hands shaking on the remaining buttons of her robes, which she let fall to the floor in a heap before kicking to the side.
“Everything,” he said. She nodded and continued, her mortification not showing in the least. When she had finished and was standing naked before him, she chanced looking at him. He’d removed his robes and was sitton ton the edge of the bed, where his excitement was obvious to her. His pants bulged at the groin, he was breathing heavily, and sweat was beading up on his forehead.
“Can I ask you something Draco?” she chanced. He nodded but didn’t speak. “Have you ever been with a girl before? I mean, seeing as we’re going to be spending some intimate time together, we should at least know a little about each other don’t you think?”
She had an idea and just hoped he was thick enough not to see through it. If he wanted to fuck with her life, she was going to fuck with his mind. It could work both ways.
“No. I’ve never been with a girl. Hell, the only girl I’ve ever seen naked is Pansy. She’s such a slut I doubt there is one guy in Slytherin that hasn’t had a go with her. Well…” he thought for a moment. “Maybe not Crabbe or Goyle, but they aren’t exactly up to speed are they?”
“Well, now that I’m here, what will you do with me?” she asked. She was starting to feel like she was under a microscope with his penetrating stare. He didn’t answer her right away so she walked towards him and took his hand. She placed it on her hip and that seemed to be the only encouragement he needed. He let his hands explore her body. She felt the urge to vomit return but tried to suppress it long enough to get this over with. He ran his hand up her side to her breasts where he fondled them as though he were juggling oranges. He was clumsy and most definitely unskilled in the area of women.
“What exactly are you hoping to get out of this Draco?” she asked, sitting down next to him as he continued to explore her breasts.
“I want to build my skill as a lover. I’ve heard it told that my father was once one of the most sought after men in his class. He had a way of pleasing women that left them begging. I’ve also heard he has had several mistresses in the many years he’s been married to my mother. I guess it’s something that some wives almostect.ect.”
He pushed her down on the bed and they moved so both of their heads were resting on pillows. She never offered to touch him but thought if she were here to teach him something, she might as well start.
“I have an idea,” she said, leaning over him and undoing the clasp on his pants. He pressed himself back into the mattress, not knowing what to expect. She slid his pants down and off, tossing them to the floor. She then worked on his shirt and soon, they were both naked he bhe bed and just staring at each other.
“You know Draco, if you weren’t such a pompous git, you’d be rather handsome.” Her mother had always told her, honey draws more flies than vinegar and she finally understood what she meant. She would make him think that he was better than he really is and hope that soon, he would grow bored, leaving her and Severus to do what they wanted.
“You’d be rather pretty if you weren’t such a mudblood know it all too,” he replied. She frowned quickly but hid it from him. “Matter of fact, if not for that one little detail, I’d have probably asked you out ages ago. However, we’re not here to discuss niceties, we’re here to teach me to be a great lover.”
She had delayed as much as possible, but the inevitable arrived and she smiled coyly at him.
“First thing we need to do is teach you how to control your excitement,” she said, as though this was a class she was teaching. He looked at her in puzzlement.
“Control it? I ght ght all I had to do is contain it until she was ready to go.”
“No silly. If you just jump on and get off, she won’t enjoy it at all. You have to learn to build yourself up, resist the urge to just hurry and get it done. Ok, let’s see how well you can resist.” With no warning, she grabbed his cock firmly and rotated her hand around it several times. Within seconds, he was howling from the orgasm that overtook his body, causing him to convulse with pleasure. She released him and sat back, quite amused at the quickness of his climax, although hiding it behind a disapproving frown.
“Well for one thing, you’re not concentrating,” she said, laying down on her side and looking at him, still shocked at what had just happened. “Do you think a woman is going to enjoy something in thirty seconds?”
“That wasn’t fair!” he protested. “You just expect a man to contain himself when you go and grab him like that?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Well that’s bloody cruel.No. No. That’s sex. You need to learn to take your mind off of what’s going on. Just relax, don’don’t let your orgasm be the center of your thoughts. Worry about how she’s feeling. Concentrate on her peak. Ok, we’ll try this,” she said, sitting up again. “I want you to picture the thing that is furthest in your mind from sex. Something that would instantly turn you off if you were to see it.” He pondered this in his mind for a few minutes before she continued. “Okay, do you have an image?” He nodded. “Good. Now keep picturing that image, no matter what is happening to you,” she said, moving herself closer to him. He kept his eyes closed, focused on an image in his mind. She slid her hand up his leg, and grabbed him again, using the same amount of pressure as she did before. His excitement built quickly, but she saw him almost trying to will himself into submission. Regardless of how hard he tried, moments later, he was peaking again and she sat back, letting him expel himself.
“Well, that was a little better,” she said. “However, I don’t know if we should continue much more tonight. You’ve spent yourself twice and much more than that could leave you hurting later.” He stared at her, wide eyed.
“Are you serious?” he asked with incredulity.
“Yes.ean,ean, your body can always produce more, but physically, I think a man’s body isn’t supposed to act as a fountain erupting every half hour or so.”
He nodded and rose from the bed. She watched as he moved clumsily around the room, gathering his closes and dressing. He was none to graceful. She noticed he was extremely self-conscience about his appearance. His blonde hair, short and stylish, was also rather thin. He was constantly swiping the longer strands in front towards the back to cover what some might call premature balding. He was skinner than she’d ever imagined. He was barely bigger than she. His legs were bony, almost skeletal, and his ribs and spine seemed to protrude grotesquely from under his skin. She found him repulsive, but felt sorry for him at the same time. He knew he was unattractive but tried to cover it with his cocky attitude and demeanor. Almost instantly, she had an idea that nearly made her burst with excitement. She dismissed her enthusiasm, knowing he would probably turn it into something about him. He finished dressing and stared at her.
“Well…” he mumbled. “I guess I’m done with you for the night. I’ll let you know when we can do this again.” She saw him flush with embarrassment as he left her sitting in the now soiled bed. She rose quickly, starting to dress, when she heard the door open behind her. When she turned, she saw Severus standing in the doorway. He looked disheartened and melancholy but glad to see her. She ran to him and kissed his cheek before bouncing back to the edge of the bed to finish dressing. He looked at her oddly, and shook his head.
“I knew my experience would not hold a candle to youth and good looks. You look as though you’ve fallen in love all over again,” he said as he dropped himself into one of the remaining chairs in the room. She strode over to him and sat in his lap, lavishing kisses on his neck.
“I am in love Severus…with you. Nothing happened tonight, not really,” she said blandly. He looked at her, the pain dissipating from his face.
“What do you mean nothing happened? Weren’t you two in here for over an hour?”
“Yes, but nothing really happened. Let’s just say…” she considered how she was going to tell him. “Let’s say I gave him a hand and he didn’t like the results.” She giggled hysterically as she rest her head on his shoulder. He tried to turn her around and she jumped as though a fire were under her. She straddled his lap, working each leg to one side of him and through the back of the chair. She kissed him repeatedly, licked his ear and whispered suggestions in his ear.
“Hermione, what the hell are you babbling about? You gave him a hand? What the fuck is that?” he said impatiently. She sat back and smiled lovingly at him.
“Well if you’d like me to be blunt…” she started.
“Yes. I’d like you to be blunt.”
“Okay, I gave him a couple of very, very quick hand jobs and he seemed satisfied with that,” shid, id, now almost falling off of him with laughter. He grinned slightly before joining her in laughter.
“What do you mean very, very quick?” he asked.
“I mean, in the twice I did it, the total time couldn’t have been over a minute and a half. The boy has no control at all.”
Severus nodded and finally returned her kisses. Again, she hopped off of him. This time, she pulled him from the chair and over to the bed. He tried to resist but she wouldn’t have it. She pulled the sd tod top cover off of the bed and pushed hiwn own on top of the fresh sheet below.
“I believe it’s my turn to punish you,” she said throatily. He grinned but said nothing. She removed his clothing and explored his body at the same time. When he chanced a look at her, she was naked again, and moving herself over him.
“We don’t have much time. I keep getting sent to your office and returning in the wee hours of the morning, people are going to get suspicious. I’ll save your punishment for another time,” she said, mounting him slowly. She bit at his chest and shoulders, the whole time gyrating her hips on top of him. He laid back and let her do what she would, not interfering in the least. When he did finally chance to touch her body, she smacked his hand away.
“No touching,” she moaned.
“Why not?” he questioned.
“Because I said you couldn’t.”
“But I crave your body. I need to touch you, to feel your soft skin under my hand,” he pretended to pout. She grinned wickedly down at him as if daring him to chance another touch. He did and she smacked his hand again. Every attempt after received the same result but he refused to give up. When he finally did manage to get a hold of her, he gripped her hips tightly and pushed her down on himself hard. She moaned loudly as she threw her head back. He continued like this for a few moments before grabbing her roughly by the shoulders and pulling her off of him. He swiftly made his way out from under her and worked his way behind her, his hands reaching for her. She put her hands in his as they caressed her body, giving the illusion that she was feeling what he was. He pushed her down and in one graceful movement, lifted her rear and penetrated her from behind. She screamed, burying her face in the pillow. He did not restrain her hands this time, but let them do as they would. She gasped as he continued to push himself deeper inside her.
Without warning, he pulled his hand back and slapped her gently on her thigh. She turned to give him a cheering smile and he did it again, harder this time. She pushed herself against him, in rhythm with his momentum as he continued to slap her. After a few moments, her thighs and ass were reddened with his handprints. She didn’t discourage him in the slightest but insisted that he maintain his level of ferociousness. Chancing to take it a step further, he ran one of his hands up her back to her neck, where he grabbed a handful of her hair. She was now gasping as though the air in the room had become thin and theye boe both covered in sweat. He pulled her hair back towards him and she screamed pleasurably. He carried on, alternating between spanking and pulling, the end result being a climax that had them both shaking violently and screaming each other’s names. They collapsed in a heap of sweaty limbs and bodies, neither of them daring to speak. He finally rolled off of her, minutes later, and pulled her still shaking body towards his own. She spooned herself against his contour and reached back to stroke his face.
“My god Severus. Are you ever going to stop surprising me?” she said hoarsely.
“I hope not,” he replied, equally out of breath. “I want to keep you coming back for more.”
“You have nothing to worry about there. I doubt that two people in this world have ever felt so complete when they are with the other. I believe I would love you even if you stopped surprising me.” She turned around and kissed him lovingly on the mouth, her tongue dancing on his lips. He rolled her to her back and laid his head on her chest.
“I’m sorry if I shocked or hurt you tonight,” he said softly.
“What did I tell you the other night?” she said.
“Which time?”
“About the trust? I said it’s all about trust. I trust you with my life Severus. I cannot fear anything you do to me because it’s out of love that you do it. I know I can trust you not to take oo foo far, or let it get out of hand. I know that you would take my cues if you did hurt me and you’d stop. That’s part of what I love about you.” She ran her fingers through his thick, dark hair and kissed the hand she held in her own.
“Part? You mean there’s more?” he teased.
“Much more. There is too much to explain in the short times we have together. It’s all very complicated. I could love you for something one day and hate you for it the next. We women are very complex creatures but I’m sure you knew that.”
“Yes and no. I’ve not been involved with a many women in my adult life, but enough to know that what you just said is true. However, the little complexities of how a woman’s mind works are beyond me. I just play it by ear and hope it turns out for the best.”
“Men will never understand women fully,” she stated, nodding in agreement with herself. “Tell me something Severus,” she asked.
“Almost anything dear,” he said, feeling rather sleepy.
“How many women have you been with in your life?”
He laid back, his hands laced behind his head in deep thought.
“Well, to tell you the truth, it’s not very many. Seems I’m not nearly what most women consider to be a good catch. Four other than you,” he whispered.
“Four? And you know how to please a woman like that?” she said surprised. “You’re brilliant you know that don’t you?”
“No. I just find it easier to do because I have a lot of self-control. I can’t speak for other men. It’s not something that was usually talked about with me.”
“That’s terrible, considering you’re probably the best out of all of them,” she said kissing the top of his head. “So were you in love with these women?”
He lifted his head and rested his chin on his hand.
“I was in love with one, yes. Two of the others, while I cared about them a great deal, I don’t think they could have committed the time and energy it would have required to get to know me. I would go so far as to say that I actually detested the other. Flighty, conceited, and so worried about what other people thought coulcouldn’t relax, very uptight. Her family was prominent and she didn’t want people to get the idea that she couldn’t do better. It all ended very badly. She showed her true colors when I took her home to meet my mother. Mum was very proud of me for having found a pure blooded witch from a wealthy family, but as soon as she saw that we were not of the same class as herself, she bolted and the last I heard from her was a letter explaining that she was too good for me.” He chuckled at the me as as Hermione frowned, her brow furrowed in anger.
“That’s terrible. What a…. bitch.” she said. He laughed heartily and pulled her to him.
“It’s all in the past and not something I will lose sleep over. However, you will be losing sleep if you don’t get your arse back to your dorm soon. People will start wondering where the hell you’re at.”
“People are already starting to ask,” she said glumly.
“Who? Why?” he asked.
“Just Harry and Ron. They know howm; tm; they’re my best friends. They’ve noticed that I’ve not been around as much at night and how I seem to be getting into an awful lot of trouble with you this year,” she said, rising from the bed.
“Well, hopefully, Malfoy won’t be asking for your attention too much. I hate making it seem as though you’re being punished and by me no less.”
“I’m going to think on some other things that I could do to make excuses. I can’t use my Head Girl duties as an excuse or Ron will know. Harry wouldn’t believe me if I told him I were taking some extra flying lessons because he knows I hate a broom. I’ll think of something, don’t worry about it.”
She finished dressing and sat on the edge of the bed, playing with his hair. He smiled sleepily up at her and reached for her hand.
“I love you Hermione. Never forget that,” he said softly.
“And I love you Severus. Don’t ever forget that,” she said. She leaned over, kissed him softly and his hands went to her face. He held her there for a long moment, and then released her.
“Good night my love,” she said, slipping out of his room and into the darkness of the classroom and corridor.
He lay awake for a few more minutes thinking about how cruel the fates were to have delivered them such a blow after they realized and confessed their feelings for each other. He’d been in love before, yes, but never anything like this. His heart ached when he saw her with her friends, wishing it were he she was talking to. His body craved hers, wishing he could sleep beside her at night. Knowing none of this was possible for a few more months dropped a dark veil of sadness over him and he fell into disturbed slumber.

Again, Hermione made her way through the castle and up to the common room. She stood outside the portrait hole, adjusting her robes and hair when someone spoke to her.
“You’ll never get away with it you know,” the woman in the portrait said. Hermione startled and stared at the picture disbelievingly.
“Beg pardon?” she asked.
“Everyone knows what is going on with you and,” she paused as she looked around, making sure no one was listening, “that professor. Everyone is talking dear. If you really think you can get away with something of that magnitude in this castle, you’re sadly mistaken.”
Hermione stepped closer to the portrait so she wouldn’t be overheard.
“Who exactly is everyone? I mean, I’ve not heard one single student talk about it, and my friends haven’t told me they’ve heard anything, so who is everyone?”
“We portraits know and see more than you will ever realize. However, we tell our secrets amongst ourselves and do not involve staff or students. Your secret is safe with us, but I’m begging you dear, you should be more careful.”
Hermione nodded and muttered the password. The portrait swung open and she climbed through the hole into the common room. It was only a little after eleven and there were still several people in there, studying and reading. Harry, Ron and Ginny were sitting in their usual place, all of them staring up at her from behind books.
“There you are,” Ginny said quietly. “We were getting worried thinking that Snape was going to keep you all night again. What on earth did he have you doing this time?”
“Scrubbing cauldrons,” she said shortly, sitting down hard on one of the remaining chairs at the wobbly table.
The three of them nodded and Harry and Ginny returned their attention to their studies. Ron continued to stare at her, disbelieving her story. She diverted her eyes from his and opened her bag, searching for some homework. When she placed it back on the table, Ron was still staring at her, his eyes narrowed.
“Why is it that you keep getting these detentions with Snape, but he’s not mentioning it in class? Every time any other Gryffindor gets in trouble, he goes out of his way to humiliate them in front of the whole class.” Harry and Ginny slowly lowered their books and peered between the two of them nervously.
“I don’t know why he’s not doing that to me,” she said, trying to contain her anger. “Maybe it’s just you and Harry he does that to.”
“Come off it Hermione! We’re supposed to be your best friends. If we’re such good friends, why is it you’re hiding something from us? You’ve been different almost this whole year. You don’t even complain about having to do detention with Snape. In fact,” he said, scratching his head, “The more I think of it, you actually seem glad to be getting so many detentions. Now tell us what the hell is going on or you might just find yourself friendless.” He sat back, his ears blazing red and his brow knotted.
“Well, I don’t know what the hell you’re on about, but it sounds like a load of bullshit. You know what it sounds like,” she said, leaning towards him, “It sounds like someone is jealous. If you’ve got something to say Ron, just say it. Don’t dick around, just say it. I’m sick to death of your hateful glares and insinuations. Be a man for once and fucking SAY IT!” she hissed at him.
They now had the attention of everyone in the common room. Ron’s face was reddening and his hands were shaking. He actually looked like he wanted to hit her. When, after a few moments, he didn’t say anything, Hermione rolled her eyes and shrugged, returning her attention to her studies. This infuriated him even more and he stood so fast his chair went toppling over behind him. He stormed over to her and pulled her roughly from the chair.
“What the hell?” she screamed. He dragged her to the furthest, darkest corner of the common room and pushed her into the shadows.
“I’ll tell you what the hell. I think I’ve figured out what’s going on, but I’m not going to ask you in front of everyone. If I’m wrong, then forgive me but I have to know,” he whispered. She nodded, never having seen him this angry and frustrated. “Are you having an affair with Snape?”
She felt the blood rush from her face. Her hands went cold and it seemed her entire body shut down for a moment. He nodded and smirked.
“Well your silence answers my question. Although I have no idea what might attract you to him, you could have at least told Harry and me. We’d never give you up to anyone, you know that.”
Hermione released her breath and smiled at him gratefully.
“Well Ron, it’s not really that easy. I mean, if we were to ever get caught, Severus would lose his job and I’d be kicked out of school. I didn’t want to tell you because I thought for sure that you’d start judging me and questioning my common sense. I’m sorry for not trusting you,” she said.
“Well, apology accepted, but you know, now that I know, I can help cover for you,” he paused. “Do you want to tell Harry?”
She thought about it for a second then nodded.
“Yes. I guess he should know too.”
Before she could continue, Ron was walking towards Harry. He bent over and whispered something in his ear and the both of them returned to the dark corner.
“So were we right Hermione?” Harry asked.
“Yes. I’ve already told Ron everything. I’m really sorry I didn’t think I could trust you with something like this. You’ve both entrusted me with so much more before this, but seeing as it involves Severus too, I didn’t want too many people to know.”
Harry and Ron were grinning at each other.
“You’re on a first name basis with him?” Harry joked. She smiled and suppressed a giggle.
“Yes, we’re on a first name basis.”
“And you’re seeing him regularly?”
“Yes.”
“When did this start?”
“First day of term”
They bombarded her with questions for the better part of an hour. Finally, she confessed to being exhausted and they both snickered.
“I’m not even going to ask what it is you did to be so exhausted. I’m just going to smile and nod and say good night Hermione,” Ron said, amusement in his voice.
“Well, why don’t we have a good talk about this on Saturday. That way we can find out all the dirty little secrets you’ve been keeping from us this year,” Harry added.
She smiled appreciatively and left them standing there to discuss it amongst themselves. When she arrived in the dorm she shared with some of the other girls, it was empty. She hadn’t seen any of them downstairs, but that doesn’t mean that they hadn’t been there. Her mind was swirling as she undressed. Suddenly, behind her, the door opened.
“What the hell happened to you?” Lavender shrieked. Hermione pulled her dressing gown on quickly and turned to face them.
“What are you talking about?” she asked, pretending that she was totally clueless.
“I’m talking about those bruises on your leg. It looked like someone beat you. Are you alright?” she asked.
“Oh that. I was standing behind a door when someone opened it. I bruise easily. Doesn’t even hurt,” she said, turning away from them again so she could laugh to herself. If only you knew, she thought. The other girls in her room chatted for a while before finally turning off the light, leaving Hermione alone with her thoughts and memories of another night spend in the arms of her lover. She drifted into a deep sleep, a small smile playing on her lips.