Watching with a short lead

"Rennervate!"

Hermione stirred slightly and blinked her eyes. She found that she was laying on Daphne's lap, both of them on a couch with a small table between them and a warm fireplace. She sat up and looked around to see green lamps and chairs. A great wall of glass showed that this room was under the lake. Instead of the squishy armchairs of the Gryffindor common room, the chairs here were of black leather with green buttons. Skulls sat in dark wooden cupboards in the room. Hermione swallowed. Based on what she had heard from Harry, it was clear that she was in the Slytherin common room.

"Welcome back to the waking world!" Daphne crooned, scratching behind Hermione's ears. "Don't worry, just relax... we're just doing our homework is all... You'll even get a chance to earn some clothes back, if you're good!"

Hermione could see that that the table was had chairs on either side, parchment, quills, and books scattered across it.

Just as she was wondering where Millicent and Pansy were, they came into the room from down the hall, carrying a trunk.

"Alright, Granger, since you're here, we want to help you study, so we're going to play a little game with you." Pansy's malicious smile put Hermione on edge.

The two girls set the trunk in front of the fire and opened it. Hermione got up to see what was in it, but found that the lead was tied down around the leg of the couch, keeping her from going to far. She strained here eyes and could just barely make out that all the clothes the Slytherins had won from her were in there.

"Here's how it will work, Granger!" Millicent said. "We ask you a question, you answer us. Get it right, and you'll earn a piece of clothing back. Get it wrong..." She picked up a blank piece of parchment and threw it into the fire to give Hermione the idea.

Hermione's eyes widened. How was this fair? If she couldn't speak at all, she wouldn't be able to answer any questions!

Daphne spoke up. "See... I know you've been trying to do some occlumency, Granger. All the basic blocks are in your head, the obvious barriers meant to keep me out. But... If you just let me into your head, I can give them your answers for you... Sure, I'll get to see everything else, but don't you want to win?" She giggled.

Hermione was torn. She couldn't risk Daphne knowing everything she had planned... Ginny bringing the robes? All it would take is one owl to their friends outside the castle to steal from Ginny's trunk on the way back. Wandless magic? Who knows what they'd do to her if they figured out she could cast magic without a wand.

"First question..." Pansy began. "What plant is required to transform a witch or wizard into an animagus?"

Hermione knew the answer. It was simple. A mandrake. But she couldn't let Daphne see inside her head. As she tried to say the answer, all that came out was "gurph."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, that's wrong!" Pansy said. Using her finger and thumb. she lifted the waistband of one of Hermione's panties out of the trunk, dangling it a little bit before tossing it into the fire where it burnt to mere ash in seconds.

Hermione tried to jump forward to save them, but her neck was caught by the lead. She let out a **** sound before she tried to tug on the lead to get it loose.

"Question two," Millicent continued. "What is the incantation that turns vinegar to wine?"

Hermione didn't answer. She was trying to undo the knot that held the lead in place.

"Tut tut, Granger. These knots can only be undone by those wearing the control rings!" Pansy sneered, flashing the the ring she had on her finger.

"Times up!" Millicent boasted, picking up Hermione's muggle jeans and tossing them into the fire.

Questions Hermione knew the answers to kept coming Hermione kept her mind and mouth closed, watching as each article was thrown into the fire until...

"Last question, and last bra, Granger." Pansy bragged. "I'm amazed they make them for chests that small... Since you're so inferior to us, what is the weakness of an inferius?"

Hermione felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Fire!" She was screaming in her mind, but she didn't dare let Daphne in.

"Not as clever as you claim, eh, mudblood?" Millicent swaggered. Pansy threw the bra into the fire.

Hermione looked to Daphne for support, but Daphne looked somewhat disappointed. Evidently, she was hoping Hermione would open her mind to her. Well, that was one small victory, but now she didn't even have the option to steal her clothes back if she wanted to. She was down to only having the little footwear she had won in that chess game, and she wasn't even allowed to wear that until the start of term, not that it would cover up anything important.

Somehow, even though those clothes didn't belong to her anymore, she felt even more naked knowing that they'd never be worn by anyone ever again...