In an Alternate Universe

Chapter 7 ~ A Randy Severus is a Determined Severus

Severus took a seat in the first row and sat there looking at Hermione as she paced back and forth, her robes billowing, pinching her nose.

Merlin’s short hairs. How the hell was she going to deal with this? Severus Snape was one of the most, if not the most intelligent young wizards at Hogwarts. Even as a youngster he had shown more maturity than other students his age, but this was a bit too much maturity as far as the Potions mistress was concerned. Finally she turned to him.

”Mr. Snape, you are intelligent enough to know that there is no way I would ever ‘date’ you,” she said to the wizard.

Severus blinked at her. Date? He hadn’t ever thought about dating her. That would be . . . awkward. Plus he didn’t have enough money to take a witch out on the town.

”Yes, Professor. I know that,” he replied.

”If you know that, why do you persist in allowing yourself to feel this way?” she snapped at him.

”Because we don’t have to date to . . . to . . .” he began, reddening as he tried to tell his teacher they didn’t have to date to shag. People did that all the time.

Hermione stared at him, unable to believe what the boy was trying to say.

“Are you saying, Mr. Snape, that you don’t want a relationship. Just a tryst?” she asked him, her eyes narrowed. The nerve of the boy.

”Well, not just one tryst. At least two,” he replied honestly, “Though I’d really like as many as I could get.”

Hermione stared at the boy. Was he a complete idiot? That’s nothing to tell a witch you wanted to woo. As she looked into those dark, honest and rather innocent eyes she realized that it wasn’t idiocy, but honesty he was sharing with her. He had a physical attraction to her, he wasn’t in love with her and instinctively knew the difference. Since he was a young wizard, he didn’t know how to play the game and thought that honesty was the best policy to get into a witch’s knickers. Oh, Mr. Snape had so much to learn.

“Well you won’t be getting any from me, Mr. Snape. Really, I am twice your age. You aren’t a bad-looking wizard, despite that huge honker of a nose. Surely there are witches your own age that find you attractive enough to give you a tumble,” she said to him.

Severus sighed.

”I need an older witch. The younger ones are too scared and have . . . have hang-ups. They won’t let me do what I want to do,” he complained

Hermione blinked at the boy. What could he possibly want to do other than shag at his age? That’s all any young wizard thought about.

“What do you want to do, Mr. Snape? Tie them up? Urinate on them? What?” she asked him, her face twisted.

Severus made a face himself. Urinate on them? Ew.

“No! Nothing like that. I just want to . . . to taste them. Down there,” he said, looking a bit embarrassed.

Hermione slumped back against the desk. Oral sex? Severus Snape was a muff diver at seventeen? Or was he eighteen? All right. All right, she could handle this.

“Mr. Snape, have you ever considered just sticking with the basics at first?” she questioned him, “You will be more successful. Maybe afterwards, a witch will consent to be more ‘experimental.’

Severus shook his head.

“They won’t let me do that either,” he said despairingly, “They’re scared.”

Hermione stared at the young wizard. Was there some deformation? No, he must mean they were scared to have intercourse for the first time.

”You’ll have to bone up on your powers of persuasion, Mr. Snape. Reluctance is natural for a virgin,” she said.

”Two of them weren’t virgins, Professor. That has nothing to do with it,” the boy said, letting out another sigh.

“Are you . . . you . . . er . . . deformed in some way, Mr. Snape?” the witch asked, unable to help her curiosity about this.

”Sometimes I think so,” he replied, “They say I’m far too big to shag.”

Hermione’s amber eyes flicked downward for a moment, though the Gryffindor was seated behind the desk and the view of his lap not visible. Too big? Oh Circe’s Sailors.

“So I thought, maybe an older witch would be more . . . understanding,” he continued, looking at her hungrily.

All right. Maybe that made some sense in his universe. Actually, his thinking wasn’t far off the mark. He was a good looking young wizard and a lot of older witches wouldn’t mind him for a boy toy. But not her.

“Mr. Snape, I have to ask you this. Why in the world would you focus on me? I have never given you or any male student the slightest inclination that I would welcome such advances. Most run from me as if I were a basilisk,” the Professor said to the wizard.

Severus looked at her, his eyes getting a bit glazed.

”I admire you, Professor Granger. You are the most brilliant witch I have ever met. And you’re just so, so . . . I don’t know how to put it. You’re like . . . like . . .” he began, stumbling over his words.

”I see why you aren’t successful with witches, Mr. Snape. Your ability to explain yourself is dismal,” the witch said to him.

Severus scowled.

”I can usually explain myself,” he said with a bit of an edge, “But this is different. It’s something I want so badly I can’t find the words to say how I feel. You’re just so unreachable, and I want to be the one to reach you. You’re so controlling and it’s like I want to be controlled. You never seem to appreciate anything I do, Professor. Maybe you’d appreciate me that way . . .”

His voice faltered. He sounded like a little wimp.

Hermione stared at the boy. He wanted to be controlled. Good gods. It sounded like he wanted to be her . . . her slave. She had known Severus Snape since he was seven. He always enjoyed being the first to discover something no one else knew, to solve a puzzle before anyone else. Did he see her as something to be broken open and examined?

“Mr. Snape, what you want is impossible. I am not interested in you in such a way. I’m not interested in any wizard. I live a celibate life by choice. You do know what celibacy is, I’m sure,” she said to the young wizard.

“Yes, I know what it is,” the Gryffindor replied, “But I don’t think you live that way because you want to. I think it’s because of what you’ve gone through. I know you were tortured and mistreated by Voldemort. And you’re a witch, so . . . you probably weren’t just crucio’d . . .”

”Shut up!” Hermione suddenly screamed at him, her eyes wild, “Don’t try to figure out ‘what’s wrong’ with me. There doesn’t have to be anything wrong for me to make a life choice of this nature, you stupid boy!”

Severus just sat there. He didn’t look abashed at all. His black eyes were calm, knowing and for a moment he looked much older than what he was.

“You’ve been hurt, Professor,” he said softly, “And you continue to live with your pain. I might not know much, but I know that much. There has to be a reason you’re so cold and cruel to people.”

“People are cruel. Thoughtless, thick-headed, cruel and ungrateful,” she hissed at him, dark memories returning to her.

“I wouldn’t be,” Severus said, his voice becoming rich with emotion, “I’d never be cruel to you. There’s been enough cruelty . . .”

”Get out!” Hermione suddenly cried, startling the wizard, “Get out of my classroom, Mr. Snape. This entire conversation is over. There will never be anything between us! And if you ever try anything like this again, you’ll be very, very sorry! Now get out of here!”

Severus slowly stood up and met the glaring witch’s eyes.

”Professor, I still feel the way I feel. You yelling at me isn’t going to change that. I like when you yell at me, and I really want . . . I really, really want . . .”

Suddenly the wizard drew a deep breath and a look of determination filled his eyes.

”If you won’t accept me, then I won’t go for anyone else!” he declared in a fit of adolescent emotion. And it was enough to set what happened next in motion.

Hermione’s eyes widened with horror as she felt the swirl of magic that announced a Wizard’s Oath. Oh gods! No!

Hermione ran up to the wizard and grabbed him by the lapels of his robes, shaking him roughly.

”What did you do, you idiot! You took a Wizard’s Oath! Of all the stupid, insane things for you to do! You’ve relegated yourself to the life of a celibate!” she hissed at him.

A Wizard’s Oath could not be broken until the terms under which it was invoked were met. In this case, that meant Hermione would have to engage him or he would never become sexually involved with any other witch for the rest of his life. The Oath wouldn’t let him.

Severus looked at her calmly.

“No I haven’t,” he replied, “You have. Unless you accept me, Professor Granger.”

Shocked, Hermione released the young wizard, staring at him as if it were the first time she’d ever laid eyes on him.

“Why you little manipulative bastard!” she hissed at him, “You’re not going to put this on me! You wicked, evil . . . how can a Gryffindor do something like this?”

”I didn’t do it on purpose, Professor, but it’s done now. I’ll have to live with it if you don’t release me,” he responded, “I might not be a Slytherin, but I know I have to deal with the consequences of my actions. I have no choice. Good night, Professor.”

With that, Severus turned and left the classroom, leaving a stunned Professor Granger behind. Severus Snape might not be a Slytherin, but he certainly had a few Slytherin-like tendencies.

Hermione stood there a good five minutes before slowly gathering her things and heading for her private rooms. She placed the parchments and books on her desk, then walked over to her liquor cabinet and fixed herself a Firewhiskey.

A double.

She knocked it back and rasped as the fiery liquid coursed down her throat, then sat down in one of the two armchairs in front of the fireplace and stared into the flames.

What a fucking mess this was.

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A/N: Woo hoo! Thanks for reading, ya’ll.