Two months previous…

New Year's Eve

"Why do you waste your time with such frivolous activities, Granger?" The dark, sneering voice behind her sent a sudden chill down her spine. Hermione frowned and turned toward the voice, meeting Severus Snape's obsidian eyes.

She folded her arms across her chest. "You're doing a good job of wasting your own time, Professor." She tilted her chin up haughtily. "And it's Mrs. Weasley now, as you well know." She turned around so that her back was to him.

Severus moved closer to her, coming to rest beside her where she stood, alone, at the wall. He peered out over the crowd with mocking eyes, his disgust for such a party evident. He was expected to be there, as it was Dumbledore's New Year's Eve party for members of the Order, and in truth he hadn't minded attending since he knew Hermione would be there. But her frosty attitude toward him had him feeling more sinister than usual.

"Mrs. Weasley," he sneered, the title tasting sour on his tongue. "Pity."

Hermione spun around, indignant. "Excuse me?"

"I said it's a pity," he murmured, as his heated gaze rested on her puzzled face. His voice lowered as he dipped his head and spoke in her ear, "That I did not claim you first."

Hermione tried desperately to not be affected by his voice, but it washed over her, drowning her in sensation. It'd been so long since he'd spoken to her that way…

"You could never have made me yours," she lied, and then winced at the challenge she heard in her voice. She was a married woman! And the longing for her ex-Potions master should have been wiped from her system long ago, after his rejection of her love. "You don't have half the qualities Ronald does," she forced out between clenched teeth, hating herself for her defense mechanisms. She had to distance herself from Severus. She was angry at him for not claiming her, all those years ago, and even more upset that Ronald hadn't turned out to be quite how she'd hoped.

Severus glared down at the top of her head, his fists clenching so that he wouldn't grab her and force her to look at him. She was ever so brave when she didn't have to face him head on. "I know how he treats you, Hermione. I would never treat you that way." His eyes found Weasley in the crowd, where he was laughing with a blonde-haired trollop. The little weasel didn't even bother to try to hide his affairs from the public, much less from his broken-hearted wife. Severus was disgusted.

"You don't know the first thing about our marriage," Hermione groused, her small frame shaking in anger. "We're… very happy…" She was choking on a sob she was trying to suppress, as two tears rolled down her left cheek.

"Who would want another woman when he had you in his arms?" His chin just barely rubbed over the top of her head. He knew she was watching her husband in the crowd, and all he wanted to do was wrap his arms around her now-shaking frame.

"It's the fame," she whispered, hoping he wouldn't hear. Because she was finally admitting it, and she knew that it would only get worse, if she faced it.

He did hear her. "Indeed," he agreed, clenching his fists again to stop himself from taking her into his arms, and far, far away from the insensitive people around her. Her husband was one of the biggest Quidditch stars in the world, and his overdone proposal to Hermione at one of his games two years ago had made Severus abhor the boy even more than he already had. He was no Divination professor, but he could see the future laid out quite clearly; Severus had known the boy would never appreciate his quiet, book-loving wife properly. "You don't belong with him," he murmured against her curls, closing his eyes briefly as he inhaled her scent.

She turned to him then, more tears trickling down from her cinnamon eyes. Weakly, almost afraid of his answer, she asked, "Where do I belong then?"

His eyes were so intense in that moment, her breath was stolen away. He took her by the upper arms, dragging her up against him. "You've always known you belong right here," he spoke, his deep voice enveloping her. "With me… in my arms…."

"Hermione?"

The witch in question jumped away quickly from the Potions master, hugging herself as she peered at Harry. The Boy Who Lived Twice narrowed his eyes at Severus, and then held his hand out to Hermione.

"Is he bothering you? Come here, and try Ginny's punch."

Hermione bit her lower lip, and didn't take her friend's hand. "I… Professor Snape has asked me to help him with a potion," she improvised, rubbing her arms as if cold. "So, we… er, we need to go work on that now." She didn't know what in the world she was doing. She had priorities here, even if she was being ignored by most of the people at the party having their own fun. But she felt like Severus had unleashed something inside of her, perhaps the more risk-taking side of a Gryffindor, and for once she actually felt like she deserved some enjoyment, too.

Harry frowned. "It's New Year's Eve, Hermione. Surely it can wait." He sent another furious glance at Severus, who was ignoring Harry completely and focusing entirely on Hermione.

"It can't, actually. Very volatile, and all that." She moved back to Snape's side and tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow. "I'll be back before the party is over," she assured Harry, and lifted her eyes to meet Snape's. He led her away, leaving Harry feeling uncomfortable.

H~S~H~S

"Oh… I shouldn't be here," Hermione squeaked, gazing around at Severus' small home in Spinner's End. "I'm no better than him, going off with you; this is madness!" She made for the door so that she could exit and Apparate back to the party, but Snape grabbed her hand and pulled her back around to face him.

"This is entirely where you should be. Mr. Weasley is in the arms of some tramp, and you're in the arms of the man you should've been with from the beginning." His voice was hard, as unyielding as his grip.

"Two wrongs don't make a right, Severus," Hermione admonished, though her voice was weak. She thought she'd felt empowered, leaving the party, but she realized as she gazed around Severus' Spinner's End home that she felt defeated for the first time in she couldn't name how long, and the pain was nearly unbearable. Admitting to herself that Ronald was straying had been hard enough, but admitting it openly to the man she still loved had opened up a floodgate of emotion that was proving to be her undoing. And it didn't help that he'd brought her to the place where they'd shared so many incredible memories.

"Just tonight," Severus appeased her, even though he knew it was a false promise. He would have every night from her, whether he had to go through every Weasley to accomplish it. "Just let me show you what it could've been like for us, just this one night."

"Severus…" Hermione half-protesting, half-accepting sigh was cut off as his mouth sealed over hers, driving every thought from her mind but how good it felt to be kissed so passionately, held as if she was the most important being in the world. One of his hands was deep in her curls, massaging her nape as he angled her head for a deeper kiss, and his other hand was at the small of her back, pressing her against him firmly. He pulled back, stroked her cheek as he murmured her name, and then wrapped his arms tightly around her, gathering her close as he pressed kisses to her jaw and throat.

He tried to focus on her seduction, but found himself growing increasingly irate at himself for letting such a treasure walk out of his life nearly three years previous. For about a year's time, after completing her degree at a Wizarding university in Luxembourg, Hermione had lived at Hogwarts, filling in for Madam Pince whose husband had fallen gravely ill. She'd been studying and applying for jobs at the Ministry in most of her free time, and for some reason Severus still wasn't able to fathom, had taken to seeking out his advice and his opinions. It had been easy to form a rapport with the adult version of the insufferable know-it-all he'd taught; surprisingly, it had been even easier for him to grow attracted to her. She was startlingly bright, deliciously curved in all the right places, and had so much compassion inside of her that sometimes, fancifully, he thought he could feel the love pouring out of her.

But it had been too soon for him to commit to something more than the physical with her, even as he knew he felt something for her he hadn't felt since his days at Hogwarts. And foolishly, he'd lost her, let her slip through his fingers as she'd left Hogwarts and taken on her new prestigious position at the Ministry. He hadn't been surprised – only livid – to hear that the youngest Weasley male had taken advantage of her lonely, distraught state, and proposed to her. A day hadn't gone by in which he hadn't felt the knife of regret twisting into his gut. And it was with a steel will that he had decided to take her back, and finally claim her for himself. He supposed, if the bloody boy hadn't hurt Hermione so much, he would be thanking Weasley for ruining their marriage.

Forcing those thoughts from his mind, he bent to slide his hand under Hermione's knees, and swung her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, a sad smile on her face, recalling the many times he'd done the very same thing years ago. She couldn't stop looking at him, touching him… loving him. But he had denied her love so long ago…

"I don't love you anymore," she informed him, staring at his greasy black hair.

Severus grinned as he perched her on the end of his bed. "Liar." He removed her shoes, strappy high heels that didn't seem to fit her personality. His hands slid up her thighs to the tops of her stockings, and she placed her hands over his, halting him.

"I mean it." Her voice was firm, even as her toes rubbed circles on his calves.

"I hope not." He ripped her stockings off and discarded them on the floor, then reached back under her dress to remove her knickers.

"Why not?" she questioned, pressing her bum down onto the bed so that he couldn't remove the fabric between her legs.

Changing tactics, Severus inched his fingers up underneath her knickers, tickling the crease of her thigh and hip, drawing tiny circles on the mound of her womanhood. He bent and breathed her in, then palmed her buttocks and held her to his face as he slid his tongue up the slightly damp fabric.

Hermione's thighs clenched together at the incredible sensation, but she reached down and cupped his face to make him focus on her as she repeated, "Why not?"

He stared at her intently for a few moments, and then took a deep breath as if unsure. His behavior puzzled Hermione until he completely blew her away by saying simply, but intensely, "Because I love you."

She wasn't sure she believed him. He was about to get some, after all. And she didn't dare let her hope flare up inside her again, hope that he could save her, than he could love her forever. "Would you be content to just hold me tonight? The way you used to when I wasn't feeling well?" Her voice hitched, because the memories were too much.

Without a word, Severus gathered her up from the bed and pulled down the coverlet, then pushed her gently back and covered her up. He removed his coat, climbed in beside her, and pulled her close. "You feel so good against me," he murmured against her curls, and caressed them soothingly as she wrapped her arms around him.

"I was just testing you, Severus," she said against his throat, and pressed tiny kisses to his Adam's apple and chin. "I want you to love me. It's been so long, and I've been so lonely…" She didn't want to cry again, didn't want to think about how joyless life had become, and she definitely didn't want to think about the fact that she was about to be unfaithful to her husband, however unfaithful he was on a regular basis to her.

Severus felt her stiffen, and could practically hear the thoughts rushing through her brain. He stroked a hand down her spine, and then patted her bum lovingly. "Don't over think this, Hermione. For tonight, we are husband and wife." And for all time, once I set things straight, he added to himself.

Hermione took a deep breath, then met his gaze, and stroked his face. "Then come to me, husband," she whispered, and pressed her lips to his.

Severus rolled her onto her back, not breaking their kiss, which had become so deep and ardent they were running on pure instinct now. Her hands ran through his raven hair as he inched her dress up her smooth legs. She lifted for him to remove it completely, but not before reaching into the hidden folds and pulling out her wand. Before he had time to wonder, she had pointed her wand at his body and whispered a spell, and his clothes vanished off his body and onto the top of his chest of drawers.

He smirked down at her innocent face, and captured her wand hand to press a kiss to her wrist. "Ever my brilliant witch," he praised, before kissing her wrist once more and making her drop her wand to the side of the bed.

"Make love to me," she demanded softly, cradling his body between her thighs, wrapping her calves around his.

And, gentleman though he was not, he gave in to his lady's demand.