A/N Okay so I know this won't ever happen but a girl can dream can't she? For any who wish to read my other fiction, my website is posted on my profile, as well as my e-mail if you wish to get in touch.
Disclaimer I (of course) don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters within this fic. This is simply my interpretation of these characters and what I wish them to do. Enjoy the story, and review if you like. Constructive criticism is invited and, as always, Flames will be ignored.
A/N2 This story will be a multi-chapter SS-HG romance. However, I don't know quite how long it will take before I get to the romance part. At the beginning of the story, Hermione and Severus are friends. They also work together. The story will explain itself as it unfolds.
I Can't Believe ItBy
Tigress Burning
June 16th, 2012
Professor Severus Snape sat glaring at Hermione Granger, one of his disgustingly happy students from Gryffindor. /Ex-student/ he thought to himself. Now seeing her face beside him, Severus wondered how he could classify their relationship to properly convey the annoyance he was feeling towards her. Ex-student? Former apprentice? His colleague perhaps? Or even friends? Because really, she was making this entire experience unbearable.
'And why, Hermione, do you feel the need to annoy me as much as possible; as only one in your position could?' he drawled finally, perversely enjoying the way her head snapped up at him in shock.
Hermione looked down to where she was digging her fingers into his arm and recoiled, as though slapped. Hastily pulling the offending limb to herself, she looked at him in anger.
'Severus really, why wouldn't you have informed me of what I was doing earlier?' she snapped, her eyes flashing in the embarrassment that hurting a friend had caused.
'I hadn't noticed. I was merely trying to find a single fortuitous item about this entire escapade that Albus has cooked up. It is an utterly ridiculous notion. The entire situation is unacceptable.' Looking to Hermione as he finished his small tirade, Severus saw, in shock, that she was nodding her head to his every word.
'I can't help but agree Severus. The entire debacle is simply a chance for Albus to mess with our lives. I love him, he's like a surrogate father, but sometimes I think he's gone completely mad with these half-cocked ideas!' she said.
Snape frowned at the thought.
'He's not mad, just a bit batty, I suppose. And he did say that we could Apparate back for a quick jif if we needed to.' he sighed at the sudden realization that the reason Albus had sent them was simply because he knew both of them would do anything for him.
'I wonder if he knows we know he sent us?' Hermione mused to herself. At the very least she hoped Albus had at least that much confidence in his Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions teachers. The entire plan stank of having come from Dumbledore's office, only an idiot would assume otherwise. You had only to know the man for three days and he would already be attempting to mess around with your life.
Severus looked down at his arm, massaging it gently at the spot Hermione had been grasping so intently. His gaze swept towards his hand and he drew a quick breath even though he knew what he would be seeing. His wedding band shone in the light with a soft platinum glow. He had observed Hermione's set doing the same. He continued his perusal, looking down at his arm, encased in the Muggle shirt Hermione had purchased for him. He had desperately wanted to wear his own soft linen shirts at least but she had quickly outlawed them until they got to their new home, explaining gently that Muggles wouldn't understand their clothes. So he had been handed a pair of black dress slacks, and a sweater that was a soft cotton/poly blend.
/Completely unacceptable/ he thought again, and gently rolled the sweater's sleeve up his arm to reveal what he knew would be hidden there. As he'd expected there were five small half-moon indentions from Hermione's nails clearly visible against his pale skin around the fading remembrance of what once had been a Dark Mark. Glancing to her, he saw how she resolutely kept her face turned from his. Smoothing down the sleeve, he turned her face towards his while picking up one of her hands.
'Hermione, I'm fine, really I am. You didn't even break the skin.' he said softly, enjoying the way her chin lifted slightly at his soft tone. 'What I am more concerned with is this distinct aversion to flying you seem to suddenly possess. I don't recall it being in evidence when you were at Hogwarts.'
'The reason it wasn't in evidence, is because it doesn't exist.' she replied grinning.
'Well, then why?' he said, gesturing to his forearm impatiently. Her odd sense of humour didn't amuse him all of the time, after all.
'I have no aversion to riding and flying my own broomstick. However,' and here she sat up straight whilst turning towards his upper body more intimately, 'I do have a certain aversion to being flown about in a giant metal tube by an incompetent Muggle pilot. I would have much preferred riding a broomstick, or just Apparating to our new school. I simply don't see why we had to fly.'
Severus nodded in understanding. He too, had not appreciated their mode of travel when Hermione had described it for him on their way to the terminal in London. Because at that moment, at the behest of Albus Dumbledore, Hermione Granger, Mistress of Potions and the House of Gryffindor, and Severus Snape, Master of Defense Against the Dark Arts and the House of Slytherin; possibly the two youngest people to have ever taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, were sitting side by side, married, on a British Airways airplane bound for North America; Indiana if you wanted to get specific. Although I doubt either one of them did.