AN: A bit of Christmas fluff. I hope you like it. I'm not quite sure yet, but I think it might be three chapters long.

I don't own Harry Potter and don't make any profit.

Hermione huffed in annoyance. It was the perfect end of a perfect week. The students had been inattentive and overexcited the whole week and she had to deal with melted and exploded cauldrons all week. She even had to send a couple of students to the hospital wing. And now she was walking through the deserted castle, her feet soaked and freezing cold. With every step she felt the water in her shoes, making slurping noises. She could see her breath and even three layers of clothes didn't help the chill. The young teacher made her way down to the dungeons. It was her only option. It was Christmas Eve and there was nobody else around, except for him. All the students and all staff had gone home for the holidays.

When she arrived at his quarters, she took one deep breath and knocked. No reaction. She knocked again, harder this time. Still no answer.

"Look I know you are home. I will be knocking for the rest of the evening. You might as well open up," she said loudly and added a mumbled, "Git!"

After another minute she heard some steps behind the door. It opened and a warm draught caressed her face for a second, before the coldness of Severus Snape's voice made her realise how idiotic her idea about coming here to seek shelter for the night had been. Seek shelter with the man who loathed her. Who had let her known every single day for the last two years how much he despised her. It was ridiculous.

"What do you want?"

"Nothing, it's fine. I thought you might be able to help me. I don't know what I was thinking. It's ridiculous," she replied turning around, about to leave.

"Since you made me abandon my book and my warm place in front of the fire, you may as well tell me how I can assist you," he said.

Looking down at her feet, he added sneering, "For a know-it-all you are not so clever after all. You are supposed to take your shoes off, before taking a footbath."

"You are such a bugger, it's unbelievable," she mumbled and walked away head held up high.

"Miss Granger come back at once," he barked.

She turned around with stubborn pride showing on her face, her eyebrow raised, "Did you forget something? Maybe another insult? Please be my guest."

"How can I help you Miss Granger," Severus asked through gritted teeth.

"My quarters are flooded, at least one pipe broke, maybe two, it's coming through the walls. The elves said it will take them at least till tomorrow to fix it."

"So?"

"I need a place to stay."

"So?"

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Do you really think you are my first choice? Everybody else is away. Ginny and Harry are at the Delacour's with Arthur and Molly, the other Weasleys are with Charlie in Romania. Neville and Hannah are on their honeymoon. I've no idea where Luna is at the moment. Maybe she still is in Chile, maybe not. Who knows?"

"What's with your parents?" he cut across her.

"They died." She thought she saw something flicker in his eyes, but it was gone before she could decipher what it was.

Severus sighed, "Come in. You might wanna dry your feet, before you catch a cold," he commented.

"Thank you Professor."

"Not your Professor anymore."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "How should I address you instead."

"Mister Snape will be fine."

"Thank you Mister Snape for having me."

Severus just harrumphed, gestured to her feet and said," Dry your feet."

"Oh right I forgot," she mumbled and with a flick of her wand dried off her shoes, socks and feet.

Suddenly the chill she still felt, made her shiver. Severus casually waved his wand and Hermione felt a sudden warmth around her.

"Thank you," she mumbled.

"It's for my own good, I've no interest in nursing you back to health. Do you want some tea?"

"Yes please."

While Severus tended to the tea Hermione had a look around in his living room, which also seemed to be his study and his library. The walls were covered in bookshelves and there were two comfy looking armchairs in front of the fire, one looking quite worn, the other one not as much. Next to what looked like an enchanted window, was an old bureau, which was pernickety tidy. Snape seemed to be obsessively tidy, she observed looking around. There was another working table, where he neatly had stacked essays and books. But Hermione was drawn by the books like a moth to a flame. She was standing in front of a bookshelf mumbling title after title, her hand hovering in mid-air ready to pull out a book.

"Don't touch them," Severus growled.

"I wouldn't dare," she replied still looking at the books.

"It doesn't look like it."

Her hand fell back to her side instantly. But she still mumbled title after title. Severus was standing a couple of feet away from her, his head tilted watching her, a small smile tucking at his lips.

"Why do you hate me so much Mister Snape," she asked not daring to look at him, instead still looking at the books.

"I don't hate you," he mumbled. Hermione spun around, her face contorted with anger.

"Excuse me? What's that supposed to mean? You don't hate me. You loathe me. You humiliate me in front of others nearly every day. Everybody knows you despise me. You think I'm an incapable teacher and researcher. You said my work is laughable. You said that in front of my colleagues and my students, if I may remind you. If that's not hating me, I really pity the people you do hate."

She couldn't help the tears, which gathered in her eyes. She angrily brushed away the one, which had the impertinence to escape her eye. How dare her eyes betray her in front of the man, who made her life miserable over the last couple of years?

Severus shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't hate you," he said stepping closer. There was something in his eyes, which startled her.

"Prove it!" She looked straight into his eyes, there still was this new expression on his face. He came closer until he was mere inches away from her. He gently brushed away another tear that had started running down her cheek and then he cupped her cheek and placed a soft kiss on her lips.

This change of atmosphere threw Hermione completely off balance and she didn't know how to react, except to slap him hard across the face. Severus stumbled back, his eyes cold again.