CHAPTER 65
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 65 ~ A Desperate Measure
After the shock of learning that Severus had to marry her within forty-eight hours and getting into a huge row with him that lasted through their getting dressed, exiting the library, returning to the house and having dinner, Hermione managed to rein herself in…somewhat.
“Severus,” she said, “When I said I wanted to get married and have children, I meant five or ten years down the line for marriage, and maybe twenty years before having children.”
The wizard scowled at her.
“Well, you didn’t exactly give me a timeline, Hermione. All I knew was that every time I would be with you, it would be in the back of my mind you wanted a husband and children and were looking for a wizard to fulfill that wish. I didn’t want to lose you, witch,” Severus said frowning at her blackly, his expression a definite counterpoint to the words he spoke.
He fell silent for a moment. Hermione could see the light going out in the wizard’s eyes.
“You don’t have to marry me. I won’t force you into a marriage you don’t want,” the Potions Master said quietly. “As I told you before, Hermione, I’ve always been an observer in these matters of human interaction. Now you can understand why. My heart has been taken by you…now the pain begins. You’re free to do as you wish, witch.”
Severus turned and began to walk out of the living room. Hermione jumped out of the armchair and ran after him, pulling at his shoulder to stop him. The wizard shrugged her hand off of him and spun on her quickly, his eyes empty and cold.
“Don’t touch me,” he hissed, stalking off into his bedroom and slamming the door.
Hermione stood there a moment, stunned. The wizard had sounded as if he hated her. He had never told her not to touch him before. Gods, what had she done? Severus was new to all this and he had taken a chance on love, only to find that he had jumped the gun. Now he felt Hermione had rejected him.
She had given him the pain he had expected all along.
Hermione walked swiftly down the hallway and began to bang on the wizard’s door.
“Severus, open the door. I never said I wouldn’t marry you. I was just…just shocked. I didn’t expect it,” she said to the door.
Severus sat on his bed with his head in his hands, listening to the witch. Now she was making excuses. He pulled out his wand and cast a silencing spell on the door so he couldn’t hear her. He didn’t want to hear her. He had only been in love for an hour, and already Hermione had broken his heart.
He sat there for about fifteen minutes, then suddenly disapparated.
After about forty-five minutes of trying to talk to Severus through the door and hoping he would open it himself, Hermione used her wand to gain entry. She looked around the bedroom, then checked the bathroom. The Potions Master was gone.
“Oh no,” Hermione breathed, sitting on the edge of his bed. “No, Severus. No.”
From his citadel in the heavens, Eros looked down, shaking his head. He had seen everything.
“Foolish, foolish mortals,” he sighed.
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Two days went by without the Potions Master returning. Severus wasn’t at Hogwarts or his home. The time to fulfill the requirement had passed and the wizard’s soul belonged to the demons now.
Hermione was beside herself with worry and guilt. She should have known to be more understanding with the wizard. He had given her his heart, something he had never done before. The man was fragile and more than likely a bit frightened at his situation. It was hard to imagine Severus Snape frightened of anything, but this had been different. He was in love with Hermione, which meant he was invested and at her mercy. When she said she didn’t intend to marry right away, he took her words as a rejection. His love had cost him his soul.
She was still at his house, hoping he would return. Suddenly Eli appeared with a note in his hand. He held it out to Hermione.
“From Hogwarts,” he said sadly. The elf was also very worried about his master, though he knew he was fine and didn’t want to be contacted. His mood was blacker than the elf could ever remember. Eli couldn’t tell Hermione where he was because she was no longer his Mistress and besides…it was his Master’s secret.
Hermione took the note from Eli and opened it. It was from Albus. She had gone to Hogwarts in search of Severus, and when she didn’t find him, went to the Headmaster explained what happened. He was very sober.
“Severus has never been in love, Hermione. When you told him what you did, he took it to mean he had made a mistake. He did what he did because he wanted to give you what you needed. He thought he knew what that was. He didn’t understand it wasn’t an immediate need. He is too proud a man to marry you to save himself. I’m afraid his soul is lost now. A man cannot love without a soul, Hermione,” the wizard said sadly.
“No. No,” the witch said miserably, beginning to cry. “They said they wouldn’t take him until the end of his life.”
”No. He will not be tormented, but they do have his soul. When he dies, that will be when his torment begins. But now, he cannot feel love…it is a feeling that wells up from the soul. Without a soul, he feels nothing. Dealing with the powers of Darkness is a dangerous business, Hermione. Severus took a great risk, and so has to pay for it,” Albus said gently.
Hermione’s eyes watered. The note said two words.
“He’s back.”
Hermione grabbed her cloak and apparated to Hogwarts immediately.
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Severus was in his office when Hermione knocked on his door.
“Come in,” he said as he shuffled through some parchments. Hermione opened the door and entered, her eyes glistening. Severus looked up at her and his face contorted.
“What do you want?” he asked her coldly, “I thought you would have moved into your flat by now.”
Hermione walked up to the desk.
“Severus…Severus why did you leave? Why didn’t you come back?” she asked him.
The wizard looked at her, his black eyes hard.
“You didn’t want to marry me. Why should I have tormented myself by remaining in your presence, Hermione? I did what I felt I had to do. I didn’t feel like listening to you play the Gryffindor and sacrifice your dreams to save me,” he said.
A tear fell from the witch’s eye.
“Severus, I never said I didn’t want to marry you,” the witch began.
“You might as well have!” the wizard snarled. “It doesn’t matter now. I’m lost. As I feared, love has destroyed me. I want you out of my house by the end of this week. When I return Friday, if you are there, I will cast you out myself. Now leave me to my misery witch,” he said.
“Severus…I don’t want to leave you. I still love you,” Hermione said in a pleading voice. Severus laughed, a cold, harsh laugh.
“Well, I do not love you witch. There is nothing in my heart for you or anyone. But if it is any consolation…I don’t blame you. It was my own fault I believed that you could bring me happiness. I was never meant to be happy…to live a normal life. Have a wife or children. It was a madness that came over me because…because I allowed myself to be caught up in your charms. I should have treated you as a plaything. I would have been better off. You have made me a richer man, witch…but the price was steep. Now, leave my sight. Our association is ended.”
When Hermione didn’t move, Severus stood up, walked around his desk and opened the door.
“Get out witch,” he hissed, his eyes narrowed.
Hermione could see nothing in his eyes but emptiness. Not even pain.
“Severus…” she began.
“OUT!” he roared at her.
Several students who had been passing his office, started in surprise as Hermione came flying out of the Potions Master’s office and the door slammed shut behind her. The students looked at her as she wiped her eyes and straightened her robes.
She began to walk up the hall, fighting her tears.
Severus no longer loved her and wanted nothing more to do with her. How had things gone so terribly wrong? Now his soul was lost, and it was her fault. Her fault.
She had to do something.
Albus was standing in the main hall when Hermione appeared. He looked at her sadly. He knew what was going to happen when she met the Potions Master.
“I’m so sorry, my dear,” Albus said.
Hermione looked at him, her eyes flashing.
“Don’t be sorry, Headmaster. I’m not done fighting yet,” she said, “I’m not going to let him be damned for eternity because of a misunderstanding. I still love him, even though he no longer is capable of loving me. I’m not going to let them have him.”
Hermione walked swiftly to the main doors and out on to the Hogwarts grounds, the Headmaster looking after her.
“Oh Hermione, I hope you don’t do anything foolish,” he said to himself, shaking his head.
In his citadel, eating some peeled grapes, Eros watched the witch walk across the school grounds, shaking his head. Like all mortals, she was going to do something even more asinine than the first time. He lay on the duvet, pondering the situation. The gods rarely involved themselves in the lives of mortals any longer. They were avenues of entertainment for the most part. Most in the magical world didn’t even believe in them any longer, though demons were well recognized.
But Eros had been aware of Severus Snape for quite some time, and considered it quite a coup for love when the wizard began falling for Hermione. The dark wizard was practically a poster child for “Love Conquers All.” The god of love hadn’t expected Severus to use Dark Magic to divine his love for the witch. He thought the mortal would recognize it when it hit him. It hadn’t worked out that way. He was just too thick, too mistrusting of his own heart.
The god sighed.
More than likely the witch was going to end up losing her own soul. He watched as Hermione apparated to Severus’ home and made a beeline straight outside to the entrance to Severus’ dark library. Yes, she was just as much an idiot as the wizard.
But it was love that motivated her, and that was Eros’ department. Stupid acts done in his name meant technically he was responsible for them. But he hadn’t interceded on a mortal’s behalf in over a millennia.
Yet, things were pretty boring in the heavens with nothing to do but watch mortals. Besides, he couldn’t stand those two perverted demons that had the Potions Master’s soul. He’d love to give them a bad time. The god smirked evilly.
Eros sat up and stretched, adjusted his toga, then picked up his quiver and slipped it on. Next he picked up his bow. He wasn’t sure if he were going to help the witch, but he could at least be present when she did whatever insane ritual she chose to try and get the Potions Master’s soul back. More than likely it would be a sacrifice play.
Eros shook his head again at the insanity of mortals, walked to the edge of his cloud and leaped off, heading for earth.
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Hermione was leafing through the catalogue, looking for the first book Severus showed her, the one that listed demons who would assist witches and wizards. She finally found the card listing the protective spell.
Eros watched as she cast the protective circle and said the incantation that made the book remove itself from the shelf and float down to her. She carried the book over to the table, and stepping back, opened it. The boar-faced demon emerged roaring and breathing fire. It didn’t scare the witch this time. She was expecting it.
Disappointed, the boar demon returned to the book, muttering.
Hermione sat down and began studying the names of demons and their attributes.
Hm. Necromenon, raises the dead. No. Severus wasn’t dead, just soulless.
Castratus.
Hermione grimaced. No…she definitely didn’t want that demon anywhere near Severus.
Vulvatia. Oh gods, no. Female demon no less.
Hermione continued leafing through the names.
Finder. Returns lost or stolen items to their proper place.
Hermione paused over this name. Hm. Well, Severus’ soul wasn’t exactly stolen, but it was lost to the demons. She wondered if demons split hairs over such distinctions. Finder sounded like the best bet so far. She flipped to the page that told more about him. There was a picture of a demon with an elephant head, and two sets of tusks, one set in the normal place, and another set like a boars. He had large red eyes, a scaled body and a dragon-like tail with spikes on the end. He carried a wicked looking sword and a sack in which to place the items he recovered. What he would accept in payment could be negotiated. He didn’t deal strictly in souls.
Hermione looked at the protective pentacle that would have to be drawn to contain him, and the invocation. She was a bit frightened to summon the demon, but she had to help Severus. He was all that mattered right now.
Hermione quickly drew the pentacle, careful to focus on what it was meant for…to contain a vicious demon. The pentacle remained where she drew it. It was not absorbed into the larger circle. She stepped back and said the incantation.
Nothing happened at first, then a cloud of noxious black smoke funneled up, and disappeared, leaving the demon in the circle, his back to the witch.
“Oh, what the fuck is it now?” the creature griped. Finder’s voice was like a chorus of voices of all different timbres.
“Um, excuse me…I’m behind you,” Hermione said timidly.
The demon spun, its trunk raised threateningly and brandishing its sword. Finder’s red eyes rested on the witch, and his trunk lowered, his sword dropping to his side.
“Well, now. You’re not gnarled or grizzled,” the demon said appreciatively. Hermione felt cold as ice under its gaze. Obviously the creature had an appreciation of human females.
“I want to know if you can return a soul,” the witch said.
“Whose soul?” the demon asked.
“A wizard’s soul that I love,” the witch said.
“Ah, love. Yes, that’ll make you mortals do ridiculous things like this. Yes, I can return a soul, though it is complicated…and expensive,” the demon said, whirling his red eyes at her. “I have to face down other demons. Try to negotiate with them first, and if that doesn’t work, then fight them. They are usually very protective of their souls.”
“What would it cost?” Hermione asked him.
The demon looked thoughtful, his eyes washing over the witch slowly. Then he smiled lasciviously.
“A go at you,” he replied, his trunk writhing sensuously. “You look like your pussy is worth fighting a demon or two for.”
Hermione blanched. That would be bestiality at the least and horribly revolting at the most.
“Couldn’t you take something else?” Hermione asked him. “I’m not enthusiastic about fucking a demon.”
Finder frowned at the witch.
“Then you’re not too enthusiastic about getting your wizard back,” he growled. “I want pussy and nothing less.”
“Will it hurt?” she asked the demon, who laughed.
“I’m a demon, of course it will hurt,” the creature said as two, snake-like appendages with little spikes on the heads emerged from between his legs. Hermione brought her hand to her mouth as they wriggled about, then pointed straight at her.
Eros had enough. He materialized.
“Finder, put those things away,” the god said, grimacing at the sight. Hermione looked up at the handsome winged man. She recognized him immediately.
“Eros?” she said as the god floated down, landing on his feet lightly and approaching the witch. Hermione immediately felt as if she would swoon at his closeness. She wobbled.
“Oops. Let me turn off the juice,” Eros said, snapping his fingers, “Mortal women go bonkers over me at full power.”
Hermione felt she could breath again.
“What are you doing here, Eros? What I want to do to this mortal has nothing to do with love,” Finder said in his chorus of voices.
“No, but what she wants you to do does concern love, so falls under my domain, Finder,” the god said.
Finder looked surprised.
”Don’t tell me after millennia of sitting on your ass and wanking off to the lives of mortals, you’re going to actually do something?” the demon asked in disbelief.
“Possibly,” the god replied, looking at Hermione appraisingly. “It all depends on her. She’s been walking quite the gray line here, trying to use dark magic to bring about good. I need to decide whether she is worthy of being helped.”
Hermione’s eyes went wide. There was hope.
“How can I show I’m worthy?” Hermione asked.
”I need to review your life,” he replied, looking into the witch’s eyes. Hermione went stiff, unable to move.
Finder watched with his red eyes. He’d like to fuck the witch…but damn, if Eros got involved, he could get something much, much better.
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A/N: Wow, what a sad turn of events for Severus and Hermione…and an opportunity for more OCs, though Eros is hardly original. Still, it’s interesting. Finder is something else. Let’s see what happens. Please review.