I understood her obsession, lust, and loyalty. What I could not understand was her desperation. I might have assumed that by offering to "please" me, she hoped to gain something: more interesting assignments, praise, or a promotion, maybe. But that wasn't the case, she had willingly- and enthusiastically -shown me that having sex with me- submitting to me- was something she'd fantasized about for some time.

There was a tiny section of her mind that she was safeguarding; it was so small that it probably contained only a single thought. I could have easily broken through her Occlumency barrier to see it and the only reason why I didn't do just that was because I half-suspected that was what she wanted me to do.

The last time I'd looked deeply into her thoughts, I'd found out-of-control obsession and lust that she didn't have the decency to deny or even try to hide. What else was there was a matter that I had neither the curiosity nor the patience to bother with or even acknowledge. I let her have her secret.

What I did instead was address the issue I hadn't dismissed.

"You asked for this- begged for it," I reminded her in the aftermath of what she called a "tryst." In all reality, it was a meaningless fuck, but her terms for the act changed almost constantly. "I'm indulging you, not the other way around. So, if you think that your 'pleasing' me is going to earn you anything…"

She shook her head.

"This is the way you want it, then?"

A nod.

She wasn't usually so non-verbal with replies, especially under our current circumstance and attire- or lack thereof –she would normally have a lot to say.

"Why so silent, Bella?"

She looked up at me though watery black eyes. She was biting her lip, I guessed, to keep from crying, or from saying something to humiliate herself.

"You never explained yourself," I pressed mercilessly. "Why were you so insistent on… why do you want to be my whore?"

She blinked, swallowed, and then spoke timidly. "It's what you'll allow me to be."