Evil Personified

Eight

"Now darling, stop pouting and tell me what the source of your aggravation is."

Valencia stalked back and forth, disrobing herself as she did so and dropping her clothing into careless heaps on the floor. She was fuming. How dare Severus banish her from that stupid school? It had to be that nasty mudblood's fault. That was the only reason she could think of that would cause him to reject her so soundly. She'd noticed how possessive the girl had looked at Severus. It wouldn't surprise her if he'd been shagging the child. A disgusting thought to be sure, but it was not unheard of in their circles for some of the male Death Eaters to accost younger girls or even boys for that matter.

Valencia was not one to give up when she decided that she wanted something or someone. If she had gotten Severus into her bed as she'd planned, she wouldn't be having this problem. A mudblood girl was no match for her feminine prowess.

"I was banned from that school today," she slid onto the bed, tracing a long nail across the chest of the naked wizard that lay upon it.

"Do tell." He began playing with a strand of her hair.

"Severus practically threw me out the door. Were you aware that he has closeted himself with a mudblood?"

"Mudblood? Severus?" Lucius Malfoy leaned back and with a snap of his fingers, produced two steaming goblets, one of which he gave to Valencia. "Severus is highly unlikely to take an interest in a mudblood."

"This one is an ugly child. Supposedly she is his apprentice, but I know better."

"Afraid of being beat out by a younger witch, my pet?" Lucius smiled with mild amusement at the glare that Valencia gave him.

"Don't be ridiculous, Lucius. You know very well that my skills are unequaled both in magic and in the bed."

Lucius lazily sipped his wine, appreciating the flavor before he spoke.

"I think you are wasting your time with Severus. He is not as carnally inclined as we are, pet. Our raids proved that. I have seen him avoid sexual congress more than once."

"Yes, but he isn't a Malfoy," Valencia purred, tracing the dark blonde line of hair down Lucius' groin, her lips closing over him.

~*~

3 Weeks later:

Severus watched as Hermione moved capably about in her work area. An uneasy truce seemed to be in place between them since he'd thrown Valencia out of Hogwarts. She still asked more questions than he wished to deal with, but he was also demanding perfection of her in her potions work.

He'd been giving thought much as it plagued him, to the fact that she'd touched his face. What he remembered most was the look in her eyes. Liquid and soft, she'd been looking at him with a look that could be classified only as tender. Tender was not a word in his vocabulary.

The past few weeks were proving her dedication to him. She worked long hours in the lab, not complaining if their brewing continued on into the night. Often, he would catch her looking at him only to lower her eyes when his met hers. She still said little to him and he could not help being sarcastic and rude. Every time he felt compassion or a kind word springing to his lips he tempered it by being nasty.

Hermione knew what she was getting into. She'd known before agreeing to the apprenticeship that he would be difficult to get along with. Even Minerva and Rolanda both had sat her down and warned her about Severus and his moods. Neither woman suspected that she had real feelings for him; they just felt that they were doing her a good turn by telling her what was what.

She was regarding the bitter wizard through the eyes of someone in love that had never experienced what it was like to have that love reciprocated. With the ignorance borne of inexperience, she was determined to doggedly stay after him until he looked at her as a woman and not the child she had once been.

The two years she'd been in love with him had given Hermione plenty of time to think and think about him she had constantly. Maybe it was his bad boy tactics that made him appeal to her. Whatever it was, she knew that if he were kind that he would not be as interesting.

Only at night alone in her rooms would she sometimes occasionally cry when his remarks had been particularly hurtful. Only at night would she lay in bed, longing to feel him lying there next to her. And when dawn broke, she would rise up and the confident mask she wore during the day would be back in place for another round of chase-the-Snape.

~*~

It was Friday night, and Hermione was carefully ladling the last batch of contraceptive potion into the small vials and corking each tightly. The contraceptive potion was made only in small batches and given to Poppy for use in the infirmary if a student happened to request one. Even then Dumbledore would be informed and the situation looked into, as having a pregnant student was not completely unheard of but must be prevented if possible.

If we make love, I will need some of this.

Hermione felt a slight blush creep up her cheeks as she thought about those sensual hands of the Professor's touching her.

Severus glared at Hermione as he saw her hands suddenly tremble.

"Be careful," he snapped. "It would be a waste of our time and stores to have to re-brew additional potion."

"I didn't drop it," Hermione said defensively, corking the vial and placing it in the holder with the others.

"I have told you before, Miss Granger, that the mind should not wander while you are working." A flick of the wand and his workspace was clean.

"That was the last of it, anyway, Sir. I will be happy to carry it up to the hospital wing and put it in the medicinal closet."

"There is no need for that. The house elves will take it and the last of the hangover remedies up for us," Severus began.

"Good evening, Severus."

Hermione looked up, pushing a stray curl back from her face as Lucius Malfoy walked in.

"Lucius."

Lucius was dressed impeccably in silver pants and coat. His cape of black was lined in deep silver, and his gloved hands rested on his cane. Cold pale eyes narrowed as he looked at Hermione.

"I thought that you might be interested in having a drink this evening at the Three Broomsticks," Lucius said to Severus.

"I am sorry Lucius, but I am busy and would prefer to finish my tasks," Severus replied. Since the final battle, Lucius had tried to renew their long-standing friendship. Lucius had managed yet again to weasel his way out of trouble with the Ministry. While a number of the other Death Eaters were imprisoned in Azkaban, Lucius walked free. Severus did not trust him, and had not trusted him since he'd come to help the Order.

He was inevitably tied to Lucius because he was Draco's godfather. Draco had turned tail at the last minute and helped the Order, disappointing the elder Malfoy and instigating a big fight, which resulted in Draco finding a flat of his own rather than returning to the family mansion.

"I won't take no for an answer, old boy," Lucius watched Hermione from the corner of his eye as she busily cleaned up her work area. Just as he suspected the mudblood that Valencia spoke of was none other than Granger. He'd glimpsed her at the final battle, but she had been filthy and covered in dirt. She'd changed since he'd seen her in the bookstore in Diagon Alley years ago. Her face had lost some of the roundness and that ugly hair of hers was pulled back with a ribbon. She wasn't bad looking if one could overlook the fact that she was a mudblood, which Lucius would not.

She might be worth bedding once or twice, he considered. Someone as young and ignorant as she probably was would be vulnerable to his well-honed charms. Since he had promised to help Valencia out with Severus, he might as well indulge himself by playing with the mudblood, he decided.

"Miss Granger is also welcome to join us," he nodded in Hermione's direction.

"No thank you, Mr. Malfoy," she said. She hated Lucius Malfoy. He was evil, despicable, and god only knows what else. She couldn't think of enough words to describe him. She did not want to sit at a table and have to tolerate his company all evening.

"Miss Granger and myself have committed to helping the Headmaster with a project this evening," Severus lied smoothly. He might be forced to have minimal contact with Lucius, but he was not going to allow him access to Hermione. He knew better than most what Lucius had been known to do to young, inexperienced girls. He'd seen him in action many times over the years. He also knew that Lucius still despised mudbloods, and that alone was enough to make him suspicious.

"Albus can wait. He's a blundering old fool and hardly worth your efforts."

"I thank you for the invitation Lucius but as I said, my answer is no."

"I don't know what's gotten into you, Severus. Ever since you were talked into fighting for the wrong side, you've scorned your friends. You're above all this." He gestured with his cane. "You belong at Snape manor. Your parents would be disappointed in you."

"I do not care what my parents would think, were they still alive. What I did or did not do made little difference to them, and as for Snape manor, it is well taken care of by the groundskeeper they employed. As for my scorning my friends, then so be it. I will leave Hogwarts whenever I decide to do so but it will be on my terms and my terms only, not someone else's."

Hermione was startled when Severus walked over and took her by the arm.

"Come along, Miss Granger, Albus is expecting us. Do excuse me Lucius, but my time is running short and I must be prompt."

Lucius did not believe Severus for one minute; the other wizard was hiding his reasons for refusing to have a friendly drink with him. At least he had accomplished his purpose: to find out if the mudblood in question was Hermione Granger. He'd promised Valencia that he would see that the competition for Severus was done away with. However, having seen the powerful witch in action during the battle, he was rightfully cautious. He had seen few females with as much magical ability as she had displayed. Lucius had sense enough not to doubt her abilities.

He was not afraid of her by any means and while Severus had found a plausible excuse for both avoiding his company and dismissing him, this was not the last time that he would make a visit to the potion's lab.

~*~

Hermione let out a breath, not having realized that she'd been holding it in. Try as she might, she was trembling, remembering all the trouble that Lucius Malfoy had caused in the past.

Severus felt the girl trembling under his hand as they walked up the hall, leaving Malfoy to stare after them. He said nothing until they had arrived in the upper hall where he stopped and peered down at her.

"Do not let him frighten you," he said. "Lucius knows that he cannot cause trouble in here."

"He doesn't really frighten me," Hermione admitted. "He just makes me want to hex him into oblivion." She glared in the directions of the dungeons.

"I am certain that you are not the only one in our world who feels that way. Lucius is still a dangerous wizard despite the fact that he nearly lost his standing with the Ministry after the war."

"Draco said that he could not stand the sight of his father any longer."

"I am glad that Draco began to see that being one of the Death Eaters was not at all what he thought it was. The boy always had more potential than his father ever did."

"You went to Hogwarts with Mr. Malfoy, didn't you, Professor?"

"Lucius Malfoy and I were once close friends. However, that friendship no longer exists."

"I would be afraid for you if you were," Hermione blurted out before she thought.

"You would?" The sardonic raise of a brow made Hermione look down at the floor. "Come now, Miss Granger, you are not the shy type. Why is it lately that you are prone to keeping your tongue?"

She didn't know what to say. His hand was still on her arm, and it felt as if the heat from his fingers were burning through her work robes.

"Know-it-alls never change," he prodded, changing his tactics to get a reaction from her.

"We may not change, but we do grow up," Hermione pulled away from him, her eyes snapping fire.

Ah, so she did have some fire left, he thought. Good. He'd missed the verbal sparring.

"You are hardly grown yet."

"In case you haven't noticed, Professor, I am considered an adult by wizarding standards."

"I assure you, Miss Granger, that I miss very little."

"So I noticed after you bit me."

"I, bite you? Highly unlikely."

"Far more likely than you think, Sir since it was you who marked me whilst you were in the infirmary."

He stared at her and she smirked in triumph.

"Yes, Professor. The hickey that you accused me of getting from Ron was your own work," she hissed, turning and stalking off towards her rooms downstairs. She left Severus standing in the upper hall, gaping after her and trying to digest what she'd just said.