A/N: This story is dedicated to my best friend Mxya, who gave me the stimulus 'Romeo' for a Snape/Hermione story. She loves it, and I hope you do too =]

Hermione smiled as Harry turned to her, checking to make sure she was enjoying the party that they were attending. He was always looking out for her now, ever since her fallout with Ron that had left her standing on shaky legs. No one was entirely sure what had happened between the two of them, except now it was painful for either one to be in the same room as the other and Harry found himself constantly torn between the two friends.

As Harry nodded slightly to himself and turned away again after seeing Hermione's smile, it faded quickly from her face. She tried so hard to keep herself together but felt so weak and drained of life. She didn't know if she'd ever be fully revived again. She had truly thought Ron was the one.

Sighing and putting her glass down on an empty tray that floated past, she quickly made her way from Harry and out through a door to the side. All the couples standing around talking were making her nervous and she needed to get away for a moment. Besides, Harry was happily distracted talking to Ginny and she thought they deserved some time without her tagging along behind all the time.

Turning a corner, she sighed as she saw another couple pressed up against the wall, devouring each other eagerly.

She couldn't blame Ron entirely, though, because it hadn't really been his fault. It was her fault for thinking he was someone that he wasn't. She had fantasised about their life together and about how great it would be to finally have a family of her own. But she had forgotten that Ron was still just a boy at heart. He still hadn't managed to fully grow up and it was this which had been the cause for their fallout.

The couple up ahead had suddenly stumbled into a private room and slammed the door behind them, reminding Hermione how alone she was and making her feel even worse, if that was at all possible.

What she needed, she thought to herself as she turned and headed the opposite way down the corridor, was a true man. A man who could take care of her and provide her with everything she needed. A man who was mature and didn't put eating at the top of his list before anything else – even her.

Hermione paused as she reached a door that was already partially open. There was a light on somewhere further inside and as she cautiously peered around she noticed that it looked like a library. Biting her lip nervously she stepped through, drawn on by the books. The light she had seen was glowing out from behind a book shelf and Hermione thought it resembled the light made by a wand when Lumos was cast.

Not wanting to intrude if someone else was already escaping the party in order to read, Hermione went to leave again. She thought it best to leave the books even though they did appear incredibly tantalising as she also didn't want to accidentally startle someone terrible should they suddenly notice they were no longer alone.

She had just reached the door again when she heard someone clear their throat and spun around to face whoever it was.

Severus Snape, her former Potions Professor, stood at the end of one of the aisle's between the book shelves, one eyebrow raised as he looked at her. She blushed fiercely, embarrassed beyond belief at having stumbled upon an old school Professor in this small library.

"I'm so sorry," she apologised. "I didn't know anyone was in here. I was just leaving again."

"There's no need," Severus said with a small shake of his head, closing the book in his hand and slowly walking toward her with his wand still lit. "It looks like you caught me, Miss Granger. It is still Granger, yes?"

Hermione ducked her head, refusing to cry in front of the older man.

"Yes," she admitted softly. "I've not had the privilege of marrying anyone yet."

Cautiously, Hermione lifted her head again to see how he was reacting to this information. To her surprise, there was a smile on his face and he stepped even closer so that he could lift his wand to light the space between them.

"If you had already married," he said softly. "I would be forced to think you were not so smart as you showed yourself to be in school."

Hermione blushed again, unsure of how to take his statement. Was it a compliment or an insult?

"Never mind," Severus said then, noticing her confusion at what he had said. "What are you doing away from the party? I thought you would have been one to stay with your friends at a function like this."

"I needed some time alone," she explained with a small shrug. "I'm sure you are familiar with the feeling."

Severus inclined his head in a nod and then stepped even closer.

"I am also very familiar with the feeling of needing someone else to spend my time with other than myself," he whispered. "How about you?"

Hermione swallowed and took a step back, unsure of what was happening and wondering why her entire body was burning up feverishly.

"I- I know the feeling."

"Would you like to dance?" Severus asked impulsively, making Hermione gasp at the question. "We can still hear the music from where we are."

Hermione couldn't believe what she was hearing. Severus Snape wanted to dance with her? Was he only doing it to try and cheer her up or was there another reason for it? No. She didn't want to think about that. She didn't want to think about anything right now.

"Yes," she said quickly, throwing caution to the wind and stepping closer to him. Severus lowered his wand and whispered, "Nox," before pocketing it and reaching out to take her hand in his, slowly winding his other arm around her waist.

Hermione giggled nervously as she had to step even closer to him and then put her arm around his neck, biting her lip as they began to sway to the music that they could hear coming from the ballroom.

"Thank you," she said softly.

Severus didn't say anything in reply but smiled, spinning her away from him and then pulling her in again tightly, drawing in a sharp breath as she collided with him and let out a shrill laugh, allowing her head to rest against his chest.

"Hermione," Severus murmured, staring down at the top of her head with a frown fixed to his face.

Hermione heard something strange in his tone of voice and quickly moved back slightly so that she could look up at him. He had also called her by her first name, which was a change, and she was curious as to what had brought it about.

"You are better than him," Severus said quietly. The surprise on Hermione's face told him she knew right away that he was talking about Ron and he was thankful that he would not need to explain that to her.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked in a murmur, barely trusting herself to speak any louder than that at the moment. Her hands tightened involuntarily in his suit jacket as she waited for him to respond, feeling her heart rate speeding up.

"I have felt lonely for far too long," Severus said in a whisper, leaning down so that his lips grazed her ear. "It is not something that you should have to feel for even a moment in time."

Hermione would not have known what to say in response to that even if she had a chance to respond. As it was, she barely had time to take in his words before he had moved his head and suddenly had his lips on hers, his arms holding her tighter and more desperately than before. She gasped against him and her hands jerked, pulling him closer against her better judgement.

What was happening? What was she doing? This was her Potions Professor!

Somehow managing to disentangle her hands from the back of his suit jacket, Hermione began pushing at him to try and make him step away. She could feel her resolve dissipating and tried to cling to it, gasping again as he suddenly stepped away and removed his own mouth from hers. Her eyes were closed and she trembled where she stood, hands pressed against his chest defiantly.

"I'm sorry."

She shook her head, not wanting to hear anything that he had to say right now. She couldn't believe what had happened still and was trying to work out in her mind how it had happened. Of all people, why had it been with her old Potions Professor?

"Hermione, please-" he began to say more and she knew she had to get away before he said something that made her reconsider. She couldn't allow him the chance to keep her there with him, not when she needed time alone to think this over. So much had happened in so little time.

So she fled. Out the door and down the corridor, past Harry and Ginny who stared in surprise at her as she raced along, her dress trailing behind her. She wouldn't stop for anyone.

But finally she made it to a balcony, gasping shakily as she gripped the railing and allowed the cold night air to wash over her. She had just kissed Severus Snape. And she had liked it. She wanted to do it again.

Closing her eyes tightly again and shaking her head to try and dispel the thoughts which twirled through her mind, she felt tears prick her eyes. After everything that had happened with Ron she had wanted to badly to meet someone else who was everything she wanted in a man. She just hadn't counted on that man being someone she already knew.

Gasping as sobs wracked her body painfully, it took all of her effort to keep herself on her feet. He was a gentleman, he was mature, he was thoughtful, he was kind and he knew when to stop eating.

The door she had come through creaked slightly and she took a deep breath, trying to stop all of her tears so that she could face whoever it was that had come after her. Her heart twinged as it longed for Severus to come to her rescue, although she knew it was much more likely that Harry or Ginny had come to see what was wrong.

"I should have asked," came a low, regretful voice. "I'm sorry if I have done something you did not want."

Hermione found herself suddenly smiling through her now silent sobs and before she knew what she was doing she turned from the railing and ran into the arms of Severus Snape.

Into the arms of her Romeo.