Disclaimer: Anything recognizable from the Harry Potter universe does not belong to me, but to J.K Rowling and a bunch of really rich publishers and film production companies. I make no money from writing this or any other fanfic.

They stood in a circle, twelve glossy masks reflecting the firelight of the light sconces on the wall. Aside from the occasional rustling of robes, the only sound in the room was the laboured breath of the Mudblood girl who lay bloodied on the floor in front of them.

Pain darkened her honey-brown eyes as a whimper escaped her split lip.

Severus tried to keep his expression impassive under his mask, even though he knew none of the others would see it. If he allowed himself for one second to let his face slip, he may not have the fortitude to commit the egregious act that he knew would be asked of him later. When the doors of the great room opened, he steeled himself.

The Dark Lord had arrived.

Twelve masked faces turned towards their leader, each bowing their head slightly as a sign of respect. The serpentine man who entered did not acknowledge their obeisance, but instead fixed his unearthly red eyes on the wounded girl who lay in their midst.

She was shuddering; whether that was from pain, fear, or merely from laying on the cold marble floor, Severus couldn't be sure.

In all likelihood, it was a combination of the three.

Voldemort licked his lips in anticipation as his slitted red eyes roamed the expanses of her flesh left bare by her tattered clothing. Her denims were torn up one leg, exposing a bruised thigh. Her left hand was clenched around her right wrist, which was visibly swollen and abraded, most likely broken in the tussle that preceded her capture. The simple cotton vest she wore was soaked in blood and clung to her heaving chest.

Wordlessly, the twelve Death Eaters in the circle each stepped back, making room for their leader to approach the girl's crumpled form.

He crouched beside her, chuckling softly to himself.

"It is unfortunate for you that your lineage does not meet our standards, Mudblood, for you are almost wondrous enough to be kept." His voice came out in a rasp, and the over-accentuated 's' sounds reverberated through the marble room. Crouching, he dragged a jagged yellow fingernail – a talon, almost – across her delicate jaw, leaving a thin scratch that beaded with tiny droplets of blood.

Severus proudly noted that the girl did not even flinch, but instead stuck out her jaw and hissed a single word in reply.

"Never."

The Dark Lord smirked and rose to his feet smoothly before issuing a swift kick to her obviously broken wrist, causing tears to well in her eyes and her stomach to heave. She did not cry out, much to Voldemort's obvious displeasure.

"Severus!" he barked, spinning to locate the man in the circle of masked followers.

"My Lord," came the soft reply, as the man in question took a single step forward.

"This," he accented the word with another kick to the girl's body, her ribs this time, "this Mudblood, she was a student of yours?"

Severus kept his voice slow and steady as he replied with a simple, "Yes, my Lord." He did not allow his eyes to flicker down to the poor girl who was writhing in his peripheral vision.

"What did you think of her, Severus? "

The professor chose his words carefully, "She was impertinent, My Lord. Highly intelligent, but stubborn. Loyal follower of the Potter boy; like him, she was not one to obey rules."

Voldemort sneered as he began to circle his prey, slowly. The girl had stopped squirming and was now laying as still as possible.

"I think perhaps this particular Gryffindor needs to be taught her place, wouldn't you agree, Severus?"

Exhaling slowly, Severus blinked once before assenting. A familiar feeling of dread and revulsion caused his stomach to turn into knots, and bile to rise in his throat. No matter how much he had prepared himself for this, he wasn't entirely sure he could bring himself to do it. It was only when he looked down at her, and saw the understanding and silent encouragement in her eyes, that he gathered himself enough to begin disrobing.

Two Death Eaters tore her clothes off roughly. The jerking movements caused her to wince in pain, but once more she refused to cry out. With flicked of their wands, they levitated her naked body a few feet off the ground, so that Severus would have complete access to her battered form.

They had both known this was going to happen the moment she was captured not two days ago. Rape was among the more common methods of torture employed by the Dark Lord's minions, and victims like Hermione Granger did not come along often. Severus had suspected that he would be asked to commit the act himself, as another test of his loyalty to the Dark Lord, and it was that realization that had allowed him to come up with a plan.

It was certainly not a good one. In the end, he would have to violate the girl, to inflict incredible pain on her and to humiliate her in front of her enemies.

Though, if his plan worked, at the very least he could spare her some of it.

At best, he could spare her very life.

He took a step towards her magically suspended body and silently cast legilimens. She allowed him access to her thoughts, although the look in her eyes said everything he needed to know.

I forgive you.

Thankful he'd had the foresight to take a potion to aid in his arousal, he pulled her bruised body towards him and waited for the command from his leader.

"You may proceed,"

Lining himself up with her entrance, he cast one more silent incantation – 'Novam veritatem'–before thrusting roughly inside her.

/\\/\\/\\/\\

He laid her down gently on the bed, covering her small, curvy body with kisses that started at her neck and finished at her delicate, painted toes. She moaned underneath him, trailing a foot across his cheek and down his shoulder.

A smirk graced his severe features as he observed the lithe body squirming before him.

"Professor," she breathed, her voice husky with need.

"Severus," he corrected, with a low chuckle, tracing a line of kisses back up the inside of her leg. She gasped in alarm as his mouth made its way to the soft flesh of her inner thigh, and his gentle hands slowly pulled her legs apart.

"Pro-Severus?" her breathy voice held a strange combination of alarm and need, and her head jerked up slightly so she could observe the unfamiliar act her was about to perform on her.

He hushed her with a low, "Shhh," before dropping a line of soft kisses into the crease between her torso and thigh. She bucked her hips towards him, subconsciously trying to maneuver his tongue and lips to the junction between her legs. Acquiescing, he slipped his long, slender fingers into her folds, and lowered his mouth onto her wetness.

A fervent cry escaped her throat as he traced his tongue around her clit slowly, before drawing it between his lips and sucking on it gently. His fingers moved in conjunction with his mouth, coaxing her to the brink of climax.

Leaving his fingers in place, he slid up the bed and kissed her ardently, taking the cries of her orgasm into his mouth as he allowed her to taste herself on his tongue.

When he fucked her, it was with care and enthusiasm. He could still feel the aftershocks of her climax rippling through her as her hot slickness enveloped him. He moved carefully, allowing her previously unspoiled body to adjust to him.

Her small fingers clasped at his back as her legs wrapped around his lean hips. His thrusts increased in pace, the slow, methodical strokes replaced with shorter, jerking motions. He pressed his lips to hers, their tongues seeking each other out as his own climax neared.

A moan of sheer pleasure escaped him as he came deep inside her body. With a final shudder, her collapsed on top of her, revelling in the feeling of her soft breasts pressed against his chest.

As their heartbeats slowed, he lifted his head and propped himself up on an elbow, his softening cock still inside her.

"Listen to me, Granger-" he began.

"Hermione," she corrected, with a sly smile.

He reached up to turn her chin towards him, so that his dark brown eyes were locked on her golden ones. "-Hermione. I need you to listen to me very carefully. You are to fall asleep, but you cannot forget this moment. Any other memories you have of being intimate with me are just bad dreams. You must forget them and hold on to this. Do you understand me?"

She stared at him in puzzlement, but her eyes were beginning to droop in exhaustion.

"Hold on to this? Of course, Professor, I-" she yawned daintily, "I could never forget this. Forget you..."

She felt him brush an errant curl off her face before she slipped into nothingness.

/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\

Severus stared down at the limp body in his arms, his face expressionless.

The expectations of the group surrounding him had been clear; he was to hurt her as much as possible. Having borne witness to these events before, Severus had known what he'd needed to do to satisfy the desires of the sadistic man who lead them. He now stared down at the broken and bloodied young woman whose eyes stared lifelessly ahead.

Laying her on the floor, he donned his shirt and trousers, noting with revulsion that he had her blood smeared across his abdomen.

"If it pleases My Lord, I should take her back to Hogwarts so she may serve as a warning to those who do not share in your views."

Something akin to a smile passed across Voldemort's lipless mouth as he nodded in assent.

"Excellent, Severus. "

Desperately willing his body not to tremble, Severus carried Hermione's limp and naked body safely out of view of the others before gently wrapping her in his outer robes. With a sharp crack, he disapparated.

/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\

"You can't blame yourself, Severus, if it had been one of the others, she surely wouldn't have survived the ordeal." Minerva laid a comforting hand on the man's shoulder as he leaned against the doorframe in Hermione's room in the infirmary.

The tall man refused to meet her gaze, instead focusing on the young woman in the hospital bed.

"She was a virgin, Minerva. Untouched. Unspoiled. Now look." His eyes roamed the girl's damaged body where the angry bruises were already fading to a vile yellow hue, but were darker around the broken section of her jaw. Her shattered wrist was bandaged and rested on her stomach.

Minerva squeezed his shoulder gently, "You did your best, Severus. You prevented her from knowing what was truly happening by giving her fond memories. When it comes to this," she gestured to the bruise on the girl's jaw, "she won't even remember."

His reply was nearly inaudible,

"But I will."

A/N Thanks to Breezy for beta reading this fic, despite her computer's attempts to sabotage her!