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Necessary Sacrifices	By : magentasouth Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Hermione/Voldemort Views: 31254 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I neither own nor profit from any part of the Harry Potter universe

Chapter List
- 1-Ch 1
- 2-Ch 2
- 3-Ch 3
- 4-Ch 4
- 5-Ch 5
- 6-Ch 6
- 7-Ch 7
- 8-Ch 8
- 9-Ch 9
- 10-Ch 10
- 11-Ch 11
- 12-Ch 12
- 13-Ch 13
- 14-Ch 14
- 15-Ch 15
- 16-Ch 16
- 17-Ch 17
- 18-Ch 18
- 19-Ch 19
- 20-Ch 19b
- 21-Ch 20
- 22-Ch 22
- 23-Ch 23
- 24-Ch 24
- 2
- 3
- 4
He strode to his desk.�
He needed to summon Severus and visit his vault here in the mansion, but
the chit could not be present for either of those meetings. �

He would have to leave her warded in here.�

He turned as the girl stepped past the bookcase.� She was dressed in her flattering robes but
her curly hair still looked sex-tousled.�
There was no mistaking that she had been thoroughly shagged.

He suppressed the smirk that threatened to break out on his lips.� These feelings were peculiar and quite unlike
him.�

�Sit down, Hermione� he ordered distractedly while he opened his desk once more
and sought a keychain with strange keys.�
Silver and amethyst, malachite and iron. Lapis
and tungsten The dozens of shapes and materials varied
wildly and some keys were not entirely within the visible spectrum.� His vault was exceedingly intricate.� Its lock altered according to the cycles of
the moon and the time of day.� The six
locks needed to be opened in the correct sequence. �Any error was quite dangerous to the one
wielding the keys.�

His silken rope was a unidirectional portal of sorts into the vault.� It was impossible to remove things from it
but the Gordian cord allowed him to deposit at will.�

Slipping his keys into the pocket of his robe, which
continued to lie flat due to dimensional enhancements, he strode to the
bookcase nearest his desk and perused the tomes thoughtfully.� He didn�t want to task the girl with anything
that required a wand or could prove dangerous to her in his absence.��

Eventually he settled upon Agamentis� �potions of
control.�� It was a useful text, rare and
fairly dark, despite its amiable appearance.�
He leafed through it with fond memories as he strolled to the girl.�

When his eyes wandered from the pages to her face he found her looking at the
text with burning longing.� He sniffed,
amused and passed her the book.�

If it had been a dog with a treat she�d have had his fingers
off with the enthusiasm with which she claimed the book.

�Read, Hermione.� I
will return soon. �You shall not be
taking that particular tome with you when you depart, so make the most of the
time you have with it.��

He did not have to tell the girl twice.� The book was already open in her lap as she dove in without hesitation.�
She did not even look up when he departed.�

He appeared in the great hall that he usually used for his
meetings and snickered to himself at the image of the frantically reading girl
that reminded him of himself when he was a child, so very long ago.� He would
enjoy watching her change as she learned the arts, he realised.�

Summoning Severus he took a seat in his silver throne tarnished black with age
and dark magic and set about to wait for his errant servant to appear.��

While Hermione gasped in fascination at the interesting if
rather questionable things one could apparently do with fairly readily
available ingredients, and the Dark Lord waited on his throne lost in thought, Severus
Snape cursed under his breath in the headmaster�s office at Hogwarts.�

Several Order members were meeting to discuss the situation with the Ministry
of Magic, that, while admitting the Dark Lord�s
return, was reticent about reacting to it, afraid that to institute protective
measures in public areas would erode public confidence in its control. �At the same time, those in power considered
Albus Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix almost as dangerous as the Death
Eaters. �Minister of Magic Scrimgeour was terrified of a coup d�etat
by the great wizard.�

When his mark burned and he cursed, clapping a hand over it,
the room turned to him with mixed expressions.�
Sympathy and regret in the eyes of the Headmaster and Remus Lupin, suspicion and
outright hostility in the eyes of Kingsley Shacklebolt,
Alastor Moody and Nymphadora
Tonks.�

�If you would excuse me, Headmaster..� he began.�

�Yes, yes, Severus.� Quite alright� Albus
reassured him. �Go, my boy.� Be
safe.� I will speak with you later��

The words sounded amiable but the meaning was never unclear to him. Albus was
ordering him to report back the moment he returned.� He schooled his expression, cut a clipped bow
and retreated from the room.� His arm was
starting to ache already.� He took the
shortest passage to the entrance of the castle and set off for the Forbidden
forest at a swift pace.�

No sooner did he pass the blue mark fifty metres into the forest, than he disapparated for the Dark Lord�s current base of
operations, a muggle estate on the coast of Ireland.�

�My Lord..� he acknowledged, noting
he was the only one present in the great hall, and dropped to one knee, bowing
his head.�

The man seemed to be in an excellent mood today, he observed through his
eyelashes.� He lounged languorously.� Whatever had caused this state of affairs was
probably not good for the Order, he supposed.

�Ah Severus.� I trust I did not interrupt something
important?� The Dark Lord tossed lightly.�
He could feel him probing at the corners of his mind and showed him an
image of five cauldrons brewing.�

�There is nothing more important than my service to you, My
Lord..� he countered, almost automatically.�

The man�s smile widened. �Indisputably� he agreed.

�Tell me what you have learned this week, my most favoured servant� he purred, slouching low and resting his chin
upon one hand propped upon the armrest of the throne.�

Severus very nearly displayed his internal disarray at the
image before him.� The man looked
positively post-coital!� That was
probably the reason for his manner � Severus wondered which innocent witch would be found tortured and bled out tonight.�

This was a fairly rare occurrence, admittedly, in the face of the dozens that
the death eaters killed each month, but it was disturbing all the same.� He remembered how it had felt when the man
had..�

He shut the thought down before it could completely unfold.� It did no good thinking about that.�
It was entirely counter-productive in fact.� He began his briefing to the Dark Lord,
selectively presenting old and strategically irrelevant information about Potter
and his friends and about the Order.�

The Dark Lord nodded but his mood seemed to cool slightly.

�Ah Severus.. whatever
would I do without your loyal service..� he said, a thin smile on his lips.�

The phrasing and the regretful little expression sent
painful chills over Severus.� �He knows
he knows he knows� his mind screamed within its occluded little cell.� The silibant voice
spoke again

�Come closer.� Kneel at my feet, my boy.�

Severus tried not to flinch at the use of the phrase.� The Dark Lord never called him his boy. That was Dumbledore�s habit.�

With the greatest possible reluctance he approached the snake-faced despot and
knelt beside his feet at the foot of the throne.

The red eyes glinted at him, their expression unreadable. The
Dark Lord reached forward then and brushed his hair away from his face gently,
only to actually cup his jaw in a cool palm, tilting his face up and appraising
him.�

He forced himself to meet the gaze and show no distress.� The Dark Lord was not a physically affectionate man.�

That was putting it mildly.�

There was only one time that he had ever felt the man�s hands on him and
that was...some time ago. (don�t think about it!) �He actually could not stop himself from
swallowing nervously.�

�What would make you happy, Severus?� the Dark Lord wondered
aloud.

Somewhere in the back of Severus� mind a dark little voice muttered
�your violent death my Lord.�

The man�s thumb stroked over his cheek in cruel tenderness.� �If I could bring the witch back, Severus..� If I had realised
she meant this much to you..�� The Dark Lord
sighed.�

Severus could not prevent his eyes from widening in surprise.�

�My Lord, it was necessary. �She meant
very little to me and I am quite content� he lied numbly, automatically.�

The hairless brow furrowed and his master�s voice was almost
regretful �No Severus.. It was not necessary.�
It was merely expedient and, as it turned out � a grave error on many
levels.� If I could repeat the evening, I
would take both mother and child alive and we would all be better for it.�� He paused and then seemed to shake
himself.� �Alas..
some things cannot be undone.� But I
would not have you suffering.� Is there
no other you desire?� Is there no boon I
might grant you?��

Severus tried not to gape in shock.� What was wrong
with the man?� What had this person done
with the real Lord Voldemort?!�

But it would be extremely foolish to pass up such an open ended offer.�

He answered cautiously.� �I...will think
upon it.. if I might my
Lord.� Perhaps there is something.�

The wan smile was displayed again and he felt the Dark Lord�s
thumb brush over his bottom lip fleetingly before he released him.� �Do that, Severus. We will speak on the
matter again when next I summon you.��
The Dark Lord blinked and seemed to remember something. �Ah yes.. that reminds me.� Lucius requires
your attention.� I was forced to punish
him this morning.� He is resting at the
manor now.� See to him before you return
to Hogwarts.��

And just like that � The Dark Lord is back, Severus thought
wearily, wondering vaguely what Lucius (or Draco,
more likely) had done to piss the man off so early on a Saturday morning.

�At once, my Lord� he acknowledged, bowing his head once more.

He felt a wash of relief when he heard �Very good Severus. That is all � you
may go�� and
backed down the low steps, bowing more deeply and then disapparating
to the manor.�

Hecates saggy tit that had been a
strange summons, he reflected.

Lucius, when he found him in his
bed at the manor, seemed to be in tolerable shape.� He had obviously received some form of
healing draught already.� Severus frowned
when his old friend greeted him with unusual reticence and further seeds of
suspicion and doubt grew in his mind.�

As he dispensed several different muscle relaxing and nerve
regenerating potions one after another from the hidden extended pocket in his
robe, and they conversed about idle topics, he began to get the strong
impression that Lucius was labouring under some piece
of information that he obviously desperately wanted to share with him.�

When he asked him what he had done to warrant this rather harsh round of
cruciatus, the man blew him off with a flippant joke.�

He frowned down at his sometime lover and sat on the edge of the bed stroking
his perpetually-silky white mane gently.�
Lucius looked pained and sheepish. �Don�t ask
me� he bit out.�

His fears crystallizing further, Severus sighed and finally
shook his head. �If you cannot tell me, then I will not press the matter.��

He tilted his head, looking down at the man he knew better than
any other. After a moment�s hesitation he leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss
to his lips. �Lucius
readily returned the kiss.�

It was clear to both of them that he was not strong enough for a tryst at
present, but the comfort was appreciated.

When the Dark Lord returned to his study several hours after
he had left it, he found Hermione reading an entirely different book from his library.�
The potions text had been put away.�

A small flush of anger washed through him.�
The presumptuous little chit!�

She looked up guiltily when he appeared and lowered the book, which was a
compendium of compulsion and possession charms. �Another very useful text..
but then most of his private library consisted of
useful (and rare due to their forbidden nature) texts.

�I finished the other book� she informed him weakly.� �I�m sorry.. I..shouldn�t have taken another.��

He smirked.� Had he
been in her position he would almost certainly have been unable to prevent
himself from reading a different book too.�

�How much of what you read have you retained?� he enquired curiously. ��It is a fine thing to read quickly, but if
the knowledge is not internalized, it is a wasted endeavour.��

He moved to the opposite armchair and lowered himself gracefully, crossing his
legs.�

Hermione frowned and bit her lip. �I don�t know how much I
retained. It�s hard to really appreciate potions information before you�ve
tried it out.��

He nodded, agreeing.�
�Name three ingredients in Haberforth�s
enticing elixir� he demanded.�

She looked off to the right and said slowly. �wormwood, kale liver, ashwinder
eggshell..�

He smiled, pleased, but she continued

�renlock root, prewitt foot
scales, raspberry seeds, macadamia oil, kola nut, powdered copper, morrigen eye..��

He raised a hand to stop her, delighted with her
retention.� �am
I to assume you have retained as much of every
potion in that text?�

She frowned.. �I ..dont know..� she answered carefully.� �I paid less attention to the ones
about...um... well about causing impotency.��

He smirked.

�Those can be very useful, my dear.� Tell
me about Emmerson�s dreadful deflating draught, if
you please.��

Hermione�s forehead creased.�
�It has... caramel in it that you have to make first with raw brown
sugar?� she said uncertainly. �and..it
has... narccius leaves.. and...uh.. beech sap?��

He frowned in mild reproof. �beech?��

She corrected herself �birch then..� he nodded.� �How is it stirred��

She strained to sort out the two dozen potions in her mind. �It...� she closed
her eyes trying to see the page before her.�
There was a sketch of a rather sad looking man on the page. She scanned
down her internal image. �it isn�t stirred after the
caramel is added� she said decidedly. �it�s just left
to stew and then its strained��

The Dark Lord looked visibly impressed and that look made her inexpressibly
proud.� She had done something that Tom Riddle considered estimable. That
was almost certainly the greatest compliment one could possibly receive.�

He looked at the girl, frankly quite astounded.� He himself did not have a photographic
memory, merely an extremely good one.� It
appeared the girl could retain large amounts of information after very little
time with it.� That was extraordinarily
useful.�

For a moment he wondered how she was at brewing and whether she might replace Severus.. but that thought was abandoned
reluctantly.� He himself was an excellent
brewer but Severus was something else entirely.�
The man simply had an innate instinct for creating potions.� Such a thing was rare indeed.� The girl might be an unusually clever little
chit but he highly doubted she could match Severus in brewing.�

He turned to her. She was glowing with pride.�
Once again her adoration pleased him.�
He decided that her retention of the potions text was probably more than
adequate and turned his mind back to the real matter at hand.�

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gold
necklace.� It had a tear drop shaped
garnet pendant in deepest burgundy.� It
was very old and very valuable, not for the stone, but for the properties imbued
within it.� �Come here, Hermione� he said
softly.��

The girl looked inquisitively at the necklace in his hand. �what
is it?� she asked curiously, rising and moving to his side.� She knelt before him without being told,
which again sent a brief flicker of approval racing through him.�

�It is a protection for you� he informed her.�
�It protects the wearer against legilimency. Come closer and I will put
it on you.��

Obediently she bowed forward over his lap and lifted her curls.� When she sat up, the necklace rested gently
at the top of her cleavage.� It suited
her complexion well. ��

He probed at her mind questingly and found nothing of
interest.� He knew this was the entire
effect of the jewel.� He had not been
able to penetrate her mind at all but it felt exactly as if he had gained entry
and found nothing interesting � he felt ..satisfied.� The sensation convinced one that it would be
a waste of time to probe further.�

Knowing the unavoidable effect of the jewel he was tempted to remove it again
immediately until he released her, but since that was to be quite soon, it was
probably not worth the trouble.� He did
make a note to himself to remove it first thing, whenever she came into his
presence from now on.�

�It works perfectly� he assured her and the girl smiled, relieved.
�He stroked her cheek with a finger and
she leaned into it like a cat.�

�The chain does not belong to the necklace� he said, looking at her intently to
focus her attention.� This was important.

�I have placed charms upon the chain.. not the stone. �If you are in peril and the chain is touching
your skin.. I will know.� If you need to come to me, it will function
in a way not entirely dissimilar to the dark mark. I will be able to apparate to your side, assuming there are no wards
preventing this, however you will not be able to apparate to me.�

You may call upon my attention by placing your wand to it and incanting
�praetor�� Hermione smiled, recognising the reference.� �

�You do not need to speak it aloud provided you think it coherently.� If you call upon me I will come and retrieve you if I am able or will send someone to do
so � therefore you must ensure that you will not be discovered wherever you are.�

He hesitated� �You..may.. also
call upon me in the dire situation that you have been discovered and cannot
salvage things.� If, under those
circumstances, you are unable to get
to a position of safety outside warded areas � for example you are about to be
restrained � you should activate the necklace with the incantation �esito�.� I will know
what has happened and...be assured.. i will reclaim you.��

The wonder in the girl�s eyes spoke volumes.

He held out a slender hand and when she took it he pulled
her gently up and seated her in his lap, curling an arm around her waist
possessively.� She immediately took the
liberty of leaning into him and placed her head on his shoulder, nuzzling into
his neck.�

Once again he attempted to reason how he had moved from the serene and
controlled position he was in this morning to the present state being ..snuggled.. by the
Gryffindor mudblood ally of his enemy � his new apprentice apparently.� It was bizarre.�

Her warm breath on his throat was not entirely unpleasant however.� He felt himself starting to respond and
sighed internally. �He would have to send
the tempting little chit back shortly.�

He looked at his bookshelves thoughtfully and, drawing his
wand, summoned three books.� In light of
the enthusiasm with which the girl had chewed through the potions text he
doubted these would fare any better.� He
had selected therefore, several more advanced texts:� Cardimon�s
�Forgotten Curses�, Prince�s �Unabridged Herbological
Guide� and Senatus� �On Power and Sacrifice�.�

The last was a complex philosophical treatise, however he felt the work which
had greatly impressed him in his younger years might find fertile ground in the
young witch.�

Hermione watched the books stack themselves on the table
with great interest. �A swish later and
she was looking at a historical account of ancient Rome, a generic herbology text and a dusty tome on defense
against the dark arts.�

She curled herself in tighter against the strong frame.� �You�re going to send me back now, aren�t
you� she asked sadly, already knowing the answer.

The Dark Lord turned his head slightly, his red eyes peering
down at her in the crook of his neck.� �Yes,
my dear.� It is already nearing four in
the evening.� You have been out shopping
for a considerable length of time by yourself.��

She felt a pang in her chest.�

�When may I come back?��

He hesitated. �You will be communicating with me in the
diary, Hermione, and I shall see that your texts are replenished from time to
time...��

She swallowed. �Yes.�
..thank you My Lord� she mumbled
appreciatively.� How could she explain
that she wanted more than that now.� More than her
greatest desire; how greedy could one be?!�

She wanted to be able to touch him, like he was allowing her to do right now.. and leaving � she might not get
to do this again at all.��

He seemed to understand. �I will find a way to keep you here during the break�
he assured her. �Come now.. what
did I tell you about whining?!��

She swallowed and nodded, then, with extreme reluctance pushed herself up and
looked into the unusual face with a stoic expression.� The Dark Lord smiled, pleased with her response.

�Much better, my
little apprentice��

She looked at him in surprise.� Saying that made it real.� Was she really
that?.. was she his
apprentice?� He said he would teach her but.. to call her that made it so much
more.. would he really offer that?! �

He summoned a quill from his desk while she inspected him, her mind abuzz with
that word.� It was so much more than
being his servant.. it was
more than she would ever have expected.

He was creating a portkey from the quill. �

It was a fine quill; Long and slender, silver dipped point, black feather with
grey tip.� She wondered what bird it was
from as he pressed the quill into her hands, the portkey
complete and ready to be activated.�

Hermione looked up at him sadly and leaned
up, tentatively pressing a soft kiss to his jaw.� He gifted her with an indulgent expression
and surprised her by delving his fingers through her hair and wrenching her
head back to kiss her roughly.� Then he
released her hair and swished his wand in a familiar pattern.� She felt her hair braiding itself upon her
head.�

�You still look so delightfully
despoiled my dear.� Allow me to assist you
to obscure our afternoon�s activities from your housemates.��

Her hair braided he urged her up onto her feet.� �Enough.�
Take your books..� her diary sailed onto the
top of the pile and he shrank them all down to pocket size for her.�

She had no sooner pocketed them than she felt the portkey
activating, tearing her away.� She didn�t
even have time to look up before the room and the Dark Lord was gone.�

Nausea gripped her as the string wrapped around her
intestines yanked her in dizzying spirals, dropping her roughly in some bushes.�

She righted herself slowly, sad that she hadn�t had a chance to look at the Dark
Lord (Tom... he told me I could call him
Tom!) �before
she had been dragged away.�

Looking down at the quill in her hands, she wished she could keep it - �It was a lovely
thing and a shame to waste � but it would only be a risk to Tom if she had
it.� Possibly someone could track the
port spell on it if they knew.. She incinerated it
with great regret and stood up to find out where she was.�

Venturing forth she found herself in the scrub along the road just past Hogsmeade.� Nobody really wandered any further than
Dervish and Bangs and it was unsurprising that the road was empty.�

She brushed herself off and set out for Hogwarts.

The Dark Lord sat and stared pensively toward his desk for
some time.� He was perturbed at his own
behaviour with the little witch.� Lucius� and the Lestranges
had not been wrong to react so to his treatment of her.� It was unprecedented.�

He could justify it with her irreplaceable utility as a spy but it did not
fully explain his reluctance to curse the chit..the
affections he had bestowed upon her.� It
certainly didn�t explain the small feeling of melancholy he was experiencing
now. �It was entirely unlike him.� Had she somehow hexed him?� Was he suffering the effects of some
potion?� Something
airborne perhaps?��

He scowled.� It was a nice idea but less
plausible in light of the fact that his wand had accepted the girl.� Her magic was compatible with
his own.� Such things could not be
simulated with potions or spells and magical compatibility would account for
his aberrant behaviour more parsimoniously than hexing or poisons.� He had intentionally bound her to him.�

He groaned at the problems this would no doubt bring.�

He could never let it be known that Potter�s mudblood was a potential
mate.� He would probably have to kill her
in the end.� He didn�t require a mate, merely a spy.� He did not even possess the requisite
physical capacity to reproduce anymore.�

That was the advantage of immortality
� one did not have to be concerned with heirs, one could simply continue on
without the burden of attachments.

Severus had just left the headmaster�s office and was in a
foul mood.� Telling Albus that the Dark
Lord at least suspected him of betrayal and in all probability was certain of
it had made virtually no impact on the man.�
Albus had steepled his fingers and looked
thoughtful.

Severus wondered whether it was simply taken for granted
that one day he would be discovered and executed.� What had he really expected?!..

When as a young man, he had thrown himself upon the headmaster�s mercy and
asked for help, after the potters (after lilly) had been killed, he had
been willing to give up his own life in repayment for his transgressions.�

Over a decade down the line, however, he found he had become more circumspect
about that sacrifice.�

He had already given up his life.. His world consisted of idiotic brats and enslavement to
two harsh masters who each demanded things of him day in and day out.� We require more polyjuice,
veritaserum and nerve replacement potion, Severus and I am running low on my
elixir.� The infirmary
requires pepperup, blood-replenishing-draught and skelegro, Severus, and have you the wolfsbane ready?� The
list of mindless busywork went on and on. �He would never have the chance to work on the
things that truly interested him and one day he would simply be killed as a
matter of course while the world went on unaffected.

...He thought of Albus as his friend.. almost as a father in some ways.. Somewhere inside his heart
he had convinced himself that the man would not truly sacrifice him for the
greater good � not after everything he had done..� but the bald
resolution on the old man�s face tonight told him otherwise.� Albus would easily send him off to his death
if need be. ��

He was crossing the foyer in front of the great hall when
Miss Granger walked in the main doors.�
She was wearing a flattering deep blue robe and looked to be lost in
thought.� It seemed she didn�t even see
him.�

He positioned himself direction in her path, looking into the great hall as if
considering entering.�

To his satisfaction the girl promptly walked into him and bounced off, landing
on her bottom on the ground at his feet with a yelp.

�Miss Granger! Have
you stuffed yourself so full of meaningless twaddle that your brain is unable
to process basic sensory information?! Pay attention to your environment.� Ten points from Gryffindor!��

She frowned up at him but her expression shifted almost immediately
to one of contrition. �I�m sorry Professor Snape.� You�re right.�
I was miles away. It won�t happen again, sir.��

He smirked internally and loomed over her.�

�I do not imagine you will alter your entire trivia-squirrelling,
daydreaming nature from this moment forth and I doubt you truly intend to.� Ten points for lying to a member of
staff.� Now get up before someone trips
over you and ends up in the infirmary.�

Leaving her on the floor, he turned on his heel and strode away, his cloak
snapping behind him.� The warm rush of
satisfaction actually successfully banished Albus from his mind for a moment.

He had almost reached his quarters when the thought occurred
to him.� The little know-it-all was quite
adequate in potions.� Not inventive.. not particularly instinctive or insightful
but certainly up to the task of brewing pepperup and
blood replenishing draught. Polyjuice too, obviously,
however to ask her to brew that would be to invite unwelcome questions.�

Perhaps he could request Albus for...an assistant, of sorts.�

He didn�t admit to himself that the
girl had developed quite a lot in the last year and had become an attractive
little slice that he wouldn�t mind tasting.�
It was a pointless line of thought.�
The girl was an underage student and therefore untouchable.� She was also Potter�s little tool and hence
doubly untouchable � the boy would lose his mind if he did anything to
her...and realistically speaking, even ignoring the regulations regarding
student teacher relations, it was unlikely an attractive, highly intelligent,
extremely young girl would want
anything to do with him voluntarily (Lilly hadn�t, after all), so anything that
might occur would be grounds for deportation to Azkaban.�

That idea neatly sublimated he entered his quarters and
immediately flooed Albus to request Miss Granger
assist him with brewing potions for the infirmary.� He had an excellent case prepared in his mind
for why he needed an assistant and why it should be her.. however Albus
seemed quite content to approve his request without argument.

Ending the floo call he deflated somewhat.�

He moved to his liquor cabinet and poured himself a neat firewhiskey,
then sat himself in his wingback nursing it and staring into the flames.�

Should he summon her tonight?� It was a
Saturday night, perhaps she had plans for the
evening?�

He snorted at the idea of the (pretty) little bookworm having plans.� She would be in the library studying
needlessly or in the Gryffindor common room listening to tweedledum
and tweedledumber babble on about quidditch
no doubt.� Perhaps she would appreciate a
break from the routine.� �He sipped the firewhisky
slowly and sighed to himself.� He knew
that he would appreciate a break from
the routine..

It was wishful thinking to imagine that Miss Granger would be happy to come
down and spend her Saturday night brewing� fourth and fifth year potions.��

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door.�

Placing the firewhisky on the
sideboard he strode irritably to the door and flung it open, glaring out at
whoever stood on the other side.� He
nearly flinched back, seeing the object of his speculations on the other side
of the door.�

�Yes, Miss Granger?� he said uncertainly.�

Had Albus contacted her already? He had only gotten off the floo with the man
ten minutes ago.� He hadn�t seemed particularly interested either
way in the idea of Miss Granger brewing for the infirmary.�

The girl was shifting from foot to foot nervously.� He could see her flicking her nail with her
finger nervously. �um.. Professor Snape.� Can I talk to you please?� she asked tightly.�

He raised a curious eyebrow �...by all means, Miss Granger.� He stepped aside
and gestured impatiently for her to come in. ��

When she entered he looked down the corridor quickly, wondering whether anyone
had seen her go into his private chambers and then closed the door
quietly.�

The girl was looking around the room as if on a different
planet.� She seemed to lock on to his
bookshelves and be sucked into their gravity, drifting toward them slowly. �He snorted wryly.� Typical! �

�Well! sit down then� he snapped and stalked back to
his chair and his firewhisky.�

Her eyes widened slightly, seeing him drinking.�

He rolled his eyes and sniped�
�Oh do wipe that look off your face, Miss Granger. I assure you,
one firewhisky does not a raving drunkard make and it
is Saturday.� Why have you darkened my door this
evening?��

She frowned slightly and then the former nervousness returned to her face.� �Um.. I was
wondering Sir... that is.. do
you think that..� She dithered.�

�Spit it out, girl!� he demanded.

�willyouletmeworkonpotionsoutsideofclass�
she blurted rapidly.�

He blinked.� �Repeat that
more slowly� he requested, although he had heard her question and was now quite
certain that Albus had not spoken
with her yet.� It was a fortunate
coincidence that their desires in this area aligned. �

Miss Granger took a deep breath and started again, looking down and blushing �I
was wondering, Sir, whether you might allow me to work on private potions
projects outside of class.� I�d be happy
to help prepare whatever you might like, if you would let me brew other potions
as well for experience..��

He tilted his head curiously.� �Which other potions, Miss Granger?��

The girl�s blush deepened.�

�um.. a number of different
ones sir..Haberforth�s Enticing Elixir, Emmerson�s Dreadful Deflating Draught, Renwhit�s
Solution, Blusterbus Drops, Gren
and Gables Geas, the Brilliant Bond Breaker, Liquid Confidence, Ashcroft�s
Beauty Cream... and.. um... some others�

His eyes had widened involuntarily.� Almost all of those potions were categorised
as dark.� Liquid confidence was
definitely a darkish shade of grey due to the rather nasty things that users
tended to feel confident enough to do while under its influence � it was
classified as a potion of abuse � a drug, as it were.��

Admittedly he had brewed each of
those potions when he was younger than she, but that was beside the point.� They were all present inside one particular potions book and that
book was not part of Hogwarts
library.� it was part of his private collection.. in fact his eyes drifted to it on the bookshelf.�

The girl continued.�
�But.. I don�t need to keep the finished
potions, Sir.. you can have
them or I can destroy them.� I just.. I just want to try to brew them..
if.. if you�ll let me.�� She swallowed nervously, her eyes fixed on
his flagstones. �

He was not sure what to do.�

Well of course what he should do was
give the girl a firm talking to and then inform Albus.�

What he wanted to do was agree and
then use the evidence of her illicit behavior to
blackmail her into bending over his desk for him on a regular basis.�

He cleared his throat.�

If he did the �right� thing.. He�d
be brewing all the kiddy potions by himself day and
night for the rest of the year.� If he tried
to blackmail her into sex..Azkaban waved him in with
open arms..�

�...How, may I ask, did you come to know of those particular potions, Miss
Granger?� he asked quietly.�

The girl flinched and then admitted tentatively �Fred and George Weasley.��

He nodded slowly.. He had no doubt
that those two had brewed a large
number of dark potions.�

�Why do you wish to brew them?� Hopefully
not for anything connected to the dunderheaded duo..�
He frowned at the idea. If there was one thing Potter could do without, it was
more confidence... although he might pay a tidy sum to see him slipped the
dreadful deflating draught.��

The girl shrugged.. �I read about
them and wanted to try them.� Potions
aren�t really comprehended until you have brewed them.�

He nodded again thoughtfully.� He felt
the same way.�

After a moment he decided.�
�Against my better judgement, I am going to allow you to brew the potions
you have listed Miss Granger.. and
perhaps others if you discuss them with me beforehand.. on
the condition that you speak of your private brewing to no one...not Potter or Weasley or any other student, not your
parents, not the other Professors � not even
the headmaster.�

It is important that you understand that we both
will face serious punishment if you are caught brewing those potions.� You will give me a wand oath to speak to no
one of what exactly you are brewing with me.��

Miss Grangers wide startled eyes
flicked up to his.� �A
wand oath, Sir?!�� She said
fearfully. It appeared the girl had
intended to tell someone or other, probably Potter or the twins. �Yes Miss
Granger.� That way, we are both protected
from your indiscretion� he needled unnecessarily.�

Her expression turned indignant.� �Certainly Sir. Now?��

He assented and she extended her wand and swore not to speak of any particular
potions she would brew in the potions classroom of Hogwarts outside of class
this year.� He smirked at the degree of
specificity she had used.� The girl would
have made a decent Slytherin.� The small
glow informed them both that the oath had taken.�

He lowered himself deeper into his wingback. �There is..one.. other small matter, Miss
Granger..��

Trepidation again washed over the girl�s face. �Yes sir?�

He inspected the last mouthful of firewhisky
in his glass. �I cannot very well have you brewing goodness knows what after
hours in my potions lab.� There would be
questions.� Therefore you will assist me
in brewing the potions for the infirmary.. and anything else I might need�� He added the last part in a low voice as an
afterthought.� If he had the girl over a
barrel anyway, there was no reason not to require her to also brew the simpler
requirements of the Dark Lord. �He threw
back the remainder of the firewhisky, letting it burn
a warm path down his throat slowly.�

�That�s an excellent Idea Sir� the girl said, surprising the
hell out of him �I�d be only too happy to help you with brewing in any way you
please.�

He cocked an eyebrow at her.�
�Indeed.. Miss Granger?� If that is the case you will not mind
immediately beginning the preparation for two gallons of pepperup
and one gallon of blood replenishing draught.��
He held his breath waiting for her to make a trite little excuse and run
back to whatever she had planned for her Saturday night.�

�...Of course, Sir.�
But.. I�m not exactly sure about changing the
ratios of ingredients and I�ve never made that much of any potion before.� If you could help me once, I promise you
won�t need to again.��

He allowed a small smile to grace his lips.� Not only would she stay here for the next few
hours, he would have ample reason to hover over her and monitor her
progress.�

�I believe that would be acceptable Miss Granger.� He said
with great satisfaction.

Author note.

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Necessary Sacrifices