A/N- This is set a year after Hermione leaves Hogwarts. All the stuff with Voldemort has happened, but Snape is alive (obviously)! Snape took over from Slughorn after Hermione's seventh year (in this story). Does that make any sense?
"Come in," Snape drawled from inside his office. Hermione pushed the door open shyly. She was no longer scared of Snape- a year out of school had toughened her to men, and while she would have been trembling a year ago, she was now excited at the prospect of her future. However, she didn't know how Snape would react to her returning to school as his assistant for a year. Dumbledore had told her she could leave if ever she felt uncomfortable, or she could stay longer than a year if she wanted to. This gave her a sense of freedom, which had in turn allowed her to start this year confidently.
A year had dramatically changed Hermione, and Snape was astounded to see the difference in her looks. Her hair was not bushy and thick, but wavy, falling around her face gracefully. Her features were no longer marred with childish innocence which made it so easy for him to provoke and upset her. She had seen the world, he could tell, and she was practically glowing with confidence. It took him a few seconds to get over this shock.
"Ah, Miss Granger, it's good to see you again," he said, with a quick smile that did not reach his eyes.
"You too, Professor. I'm sorry I'm a little late, I got held up in the staff room..."
"No matter. Today I just wanted to go through some ingredients; we need to sort them for tomorrow's first lesson. If you'd just like to come over here, please, take off your coat and have a seat."
He hung her coat on the hook on the back of the door. He then gestured to the part of his office where there was a potions desk, covered with all sorts of concoctions, parts of dead animal and cut up plants.
"How have you been, Professor?" Hermione asked politely, not wanting to give Snape a reason to get angry.
"Please, call me Severus. This year has been no different to any other- I am still stuck here as a mere Potions master." He said bitterly. "Although, our little know-it-all has been missed. I have certainly missed you in my lessons, there is nobody to the standard of even being called "clever" in this year's NEWT class," he added, with a glint in his eye.
Hermione smiled, he was obviously not as unfeeling as he preferred people to think he was.
"So, Miss Granger, what have you been doing this year? I am sure that your year will have been much more eventful than mine," he said, busying himself with opening a jar of something that looked oddly like frogspawn.
"Call me Hermione, Severus," she said with a grin, "I haven't done much actually- I've done some work experience with Arthur Weasley at the Ministry, but I think teaching is more my thing."
"Brains like yours are much more suited to developing other people, rather than stuck in a dead end job that helps nobody. If Arthur Weasley can do it, many more people below your standard would find it easy. I'm not being rude," he added, seeing the frown on Hermione's face, "but not many people get all Outstandings at NEWT level like you did, believe me."
Hermione smiled as he beckoned for her to go over to the table. She stood up eagerly and went over.
"Now, I doubt that you will have come here unprepared without reading the books I sent you, am I right?"
"Yes, I have read the books. I thought that's what you wanted me to do," she said, worried that he was going to call her a know-it-all again. Her friends had grown out of calling her that now, after all, she was no longer being compared to them because they all had different jobs now, and were all doing what they did best. Hermione would remain a source of knowledge but could not overtake them in their own fields of work.
"Of course you were, I was just checking that you hadn't changed too much."
Hermione rolled her eyes as he asked her, "Now, you know what this is, don't you?"
"Felix Felicis! Harry had some in our sixth year- that stuff really works," she said. She was standing at the edge of the table, Snape behind her. She turned round to ask him a question, but he was closer than she thought he was.
"Oh! Sorry," she mumbled as he caught her from losing her balance backwards. He closed the gap between them and suddenly, but gently, pressed his lips against hers. She was taken aback by the speed at which he did this and she pulled away, eyes wide.
"I'm so s-sorry, Herm- Miss Granger," Snape stuttered, looking horrified at Hermione's reaction.
"No... Don't be sorry. It was my fault," she said, moving closer to him again. She held his hands and they both relaxed, feeling just awkward enough to be comfortable. Hermione's heart was beating faster than she had ever felt it and her stomach was doing somersaults. She could see herself reflected in his deep black eyes until he closed them, taking in the moment.
They broke apart at the same time. Snape was smiling.
"So, umm... are you ready to go through some ingredients now?" he said, with an emotion on his face that Hermione had never seen there before.
She raised her eyebrows. This year wasn't going to be as uneventful as either of them had anticipated.