Author's Notes: Many huge hugs and Snape kisses to my Beta for this chapter, and someone I feel very blessed to have as a friend, the talented Slytherin-Me! I wanted to apologize, as well, to the readers for the time it took for this update. I hope you continue to enjoy my story! Please review, it means a great deal to me.

H~S~H~S

Hermione had forgotten how lengthy the walk to Hogsmeade was. She hadn't been back in so long, it seemed. So much had happened since leaving Hogwarts that her past seemed like a blur. And she regretted that. She'd love to be able to, as the Muggles would say, "Stop and smell the roses." Perhaps that was why she was now trudging through the thick snow alongside Severus Snape.

She really hadn't had such an enjoyable night in ages. She thoroughly loved being able to just settle down in a lovely restaurant, and discuss different subjects with someone who seemed to know where she was coming from. Admittedly, the best part had been listening to him. That voice did something wicked to her senses, as did his dark eyes that seemed to caress her with every gaze. And come to think of it, she'd rather walk with no one else up the long path to Hogwarts except for him.

But he hadn't spoken a word. On the other hand, neither had she. The situation was surreal; there couldn't be any doubt of that. She was treading beside her old Potions Master whom she never thought would even give her the time of day – regardless that she was his savior – with intentions of going to his private quarters. At the thought of that, she stopped. She had never even considered what might be going on up in that conniving, Slytherin mind of his.

Severus turned toward her, both of their feet sinking into place in inches of snow. He raised an expectant brow.

Hermione bristled at the look she knew so well and demanded, "What were your intentions when you invited me to dinner last night, Severus?" Her voice suggested he hadn't given her as much an invitation as he had a command, but that was beside her point.

"Intentions?" A smirk curled the corners of his mouth, and he crossed his arms over his chest in an intimidating stance.

"Yes, your intentions. You've been awfully presumptuous with me, I've just realized. What if I had a boyfriend?" Her chin jutted up in defiance.

Severus threw his head back and laughed, but it was a dark and almost triumphant sound. Hermione's eyes widened at the sound of it.

He stalked toward her then, and took pleasure in seeing her stiffen. Her kohl-rimmed eyes were so large it was almost comical. She tried to step backward in the snow as he approached, but her feet were in too deep, and she started to fall.

He caught her around her waist, and his fingers sunk into her long, wavy strands. He imagined the silky texture was an added benefit of the "New Hermione" as she called herself, but it turned him on just the same.

"That mind of yours never did stop ticking, did it?" His voice was low, as he felt her hands curl around his shoulders. Her robes had fallen open, and the deep blue dress she wore underneath was hugging her luscious curves. He couldn't help himself as his head descended, and his lips caressed the tops of her breasts.

Hermione's eyelids fluttered as pleasure coursed through her body. She clutched at his shoulders, her nails sinking into his robes. Her head fell back, and in that moment she couldn't think at all.

"How are my intentions now, Hermione?" he asked her, lifting his head to peer down at her. She was bent back over his arm, and there was a flush creeping up her neck to her cheeks that had nothing to do with the cold temperature. He found himself unable to resist once more as the flush drew attention to her graceful neck. His hand tightened around her waist, and he eased her up while his other hand kept her head tilted back.

"You don't know how long I've waited for you," he murmured, before his lips traveled over her throat, to the side of her neck just beneath her earlobe. He nibbled, making her squirm, and then sucked at the spot, intending to mark her as his. Four long years he'd waited to ensnare the woman who'd saved him, and now that he had her, he didn't intend on letting her go. He couldn't.

And to his great relief – though he hastened to bury such hopes, because in his life, all his hopes had been for naught – Hermione didn't seem to want to be let go. Her hands entangled in his hair, and she stretched her neck to the side, offering easier access for him.

"Kiss me, please," she begged, and her honey brown eyes opened to settle on him. Her lips parted breathlessly, and who was he to refuse such an invitation?

"If I kiss you, Hermione, I may have you out here in the snow." His voice came out hoarse. He was having a hard time keeping himself under control, and all he could think about was discovering all the secrets hidden underneath her heavy robes. But he wanted their coming together to be a special occasion. And, a perverted part of him wanted to see her stretched out and flushed all Gryffindor-red on his silk, Slytherin-green sheets.

"Just one kiss… Please, Severus." She moved against him, and her pelvis connected with his, making him shiver. "It's such a long way to the dungeons…"

Shoving both of his hands into her hair, he brought her lips to his, and gave her the most passionate kiss she'd ever received in her entire life. He literally plundered her mouth, kissing her so deep she thought she might come in that instant. All she could do was hold on tight and reel at how talented the man was with his mouth.

"Professor Snape?" a squeaky voice interrupted, and Hermione struggled to pull her mouth away.

Severus kept his hands in her hair as he released her lips, and stared angrily in the direction of the new voice.

The tiny Professor Flitwick was about fifteen feet away, a frown on his face. He held up his Lumos-lit wand.

"Severus, is that you?" Flitwick was squinting, but he seemed confident it was his colleague, as he moved toward them with difficulty through the snow.

Hermione slapped Severus' hands away, and closed her robes quickly. She fussed with her hair for a moment, and then realized her former Charms professor probably wouldn't recognize her, anyway.

"Ah, Severus. It is very late to be stalking around the grounds…" Flitwick's high voice trailed off as he spotted Hermione. "Who's this, Severus?"

Severus was in a right state, and had a terrible urge to kick his colleague and send him flying. He should've taken her to the castle before he started kissing her. It was his mistake, and at that moment, he wanted to kick himself.

"Surely you remember Miss Hermione Granger," he ground out, through clenched teeth. His hands made fists as he stood there, trying to coax his aching erection to stop throbbing.

"Miss Granger?" Flitwick blinked rapidly. "Why, it's been ages!" He seemed to have forgotten what position he'd found them in, or else he just hadn't been able to make it out in the darkness. Either way, Hermione was glad.

"I'm delighted to see you again, Professor." Her voice was still slightly breathless, and Severus' head snapped her way to watch her.

"Oh, but you must call me Filius now! Word has it you, Potter and Weasley are revolutionizing the Auror Office!" He was the only delighted one, it seemed. Hermione was very aware of Severus' glare.

"We do try," Hermione managed, her voice glum. "I'll have to tell them I saw you."

"Oh, please do, please do." Flitwick's teeth chattered then, and he glanced up at Severus. "It's a might cold out here, isn't it? We should probably head back to the castle!" He looked at Hermione. "Were you on your way there, as well, Miss Granger?" His smile was generous, and Hermione tried to return it, but faltered.

"I'm afraid I should probably get back." She didn't look at Severus, but she could feel his stare boring a hole into her head. "It was so nice to see you again," she said politely, reaching down to shake Flitwick's hand. She turned to Severus. "And you, Severus," she added, holding out her hand.

He was not in a good mood at all, but he knew they must accept defeat tonight. Taking her hand, he lifted it to his lips and brushed a kiss along her knuckles, like he had when she'd met him outside of the restaurant.

Flitwick decided to stay with Severus as they watched Hermione return to the Apparating point. She waved at them, and was gone.

Severus was disconcerted to realize his lower half wasn't the only part of him aching at the loss of her. While he wanted to pretend it was the steep walk to the castle, he was sure his heart was throbbing because she was gone.

S~H~S~H

"So… how did it go last night?" Ginny was sitting across from Hermione on an overstuffed pouf, eyeing her speculatively. Harry and Ron were eating breakfast in Hermione's kitchen, and she could hear them talking excitedly about Hermione's upcoming undercover mission for the Aurors.

Keeping her voice low so the men in the next room couldn't hear, Hermione answered, "It was… interesting."

"Interesting?" Ginny was outraged. "You've got to give me more than that!" Ginny's expression turned smug and she crossed her arms over her chest. "Besides," she said in a haughty tone, "I already know something happened; you've got a love bite on your neck!"

"Keep your voice down!" Hermione hissed, glaring at her. She pulled the turtleneck she wore beneath her work robes up higher. After glancing at the door to the kitchen, she said, "I thought he was going to make love to me in the snow outside of Hogwarts!"

Ginny's eyes widened, and Hermione couldn't help but bite her lower lip to keep from grinning. She felt giddy about the idea, like a silly little school girl, and it was liberating, in a way. With all the responsibilities she had in her life now, she had hardly felt giddy recently.

"But that's so fast, Hermione," Ginny responded, her fingers on her lips as she continued to gape in surprise. "I didn't even know Snape could… well, you know… want anyone, in that way." Ginny blushed briefly, but her eyes locked on Hermione's and she whispered, "Tell me everything!"

Hermione laughed softly. "If a gentleman doesn't kiss and tell, why should a lady?"

"Bullocks! I told you about everything Harry and I did when we first got together." Ginny's tone was petulant.

"If you breathe a word of this to Harry," Hermione warned, her eyes serious, "I will curse your first-born child!" Of course she was only jesting, but the thought of Harry or Ron knowing of she and Severus' intimate encounter made her cringe. For as long as she could remember, Hermione's theory had been, "What the boys don't know won't hurt them." She could only imagine Harry trying to defend her honor by marching right into Hogwarts and telling Severus just what he thought.

Ginny waited expectantly, watching Hermione closely.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione began, "Well, he was suggestive with me all night." She frowned in thought. "I suppose this new look really does attract men. At least we know for sure that it will work for the mission. If it beguiled Severus Snape, surely it can beguile my assignment," she added ruefully. Then her frown disappeared, and she grinned. "He more or less invited me to his quarters, and on the way there I realized that he had been so presumptuous with me, so arrogant. I guess my feminine hackles rose, you know."

At this she glanced up at Ginny to see if her friend did understand what she meant, but the redhead just waved her hand in an eager, circular rotation to urge Hermione on.

"He… well, he laughed when I questioned his intentions. Oh, Ginny, that man's voice is like pure sex, and I couldn't help but to be spelled…" She trailed off as the kitchen door creaked open, and Harry and Ron entered the room rubbing their stomachs.

"That was delicious, 'Mione. It's going to be a good day at the office," Harry announced, striding over to Ginny and pulling her up from the pouf. "Ready for work?"

Ginny began to protest, but Hermione smiled brightly and picked up her bag. "Let's go," she said, and Ron followed her to the door.

"You never mentioned about last night, Hermione. No doubt because Snape was a git to you," Ron supposed as he followed her to the door. Hermione smiled inwardly.

"Yeah, Hermione. I was kind of wondering about it, myself," Harry joined in, though his voice was slightly hesitant.

"Well, if you must know," Hermione started, as she turned to address them all, her hand on the doorknob. "It was magnificent. He was charming," she told them, and she smirked at the thought of Severus hearing anyone ever referring to him as charming. "And, he even paid for my dinner." She raised a brow at Ron, who looked sheepish. "It was the best date I've ever been on!" she informed them cheerfully, and then walked out the door.

Ron looked back at Harry with his mouth hanging open. "She's barking."

Ginny kicked her brother over the threshold.

S~H~S~H

Severus sat in front of a roaring fire, his fingers curled around a bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhiskey. His eyes were hooded as he stared unseeingly into the flames.

He could still smell her perfumed neck. He could still feel the softness of her hair on the pads of his fingers. Hell, he could even hear her soft moans as she leaned back to give him access to her throat. He feared the very moment was going to be burned into the back of his brain for the rest of his days. She was magnificent. A little spitfire, if truth be told. And he wanted more.

But his old insecurities, as well as his old dark emotions, came rolling over him. That he could feel so strongly about her disturbed him; he hadn't even been able to sleep the night before, just laid in bed recalling the glossy look in her beautiful eyes after he'd kissed her. It was maddening, to feel this way again. He was jealous she was returning to Potter and Weasley to work alongside them all day. He recalled all too well trying to fight for the attention of Lily Evans while James Potter and Sirius Black fought even harder.

Except the urge to keep Lily's attention had never been as strong as what he felt in regards to Hermione. He wanted her at his side, wanted it so badly that he was sure he'd even be content to be wherever she was. It scared the hell out of him.

In truth, he'd never wanted to feel so strongly about another human being again. Lily, though it had never been her fault, was the source of his closing himself off against others, of never trusting, of always expecting the worst to happen in regards to what he hoped for. He couldn't let someone have that power over him again; he couldn't bear it. Not when he now had a second chance at life.

Though of course, when his thoughts turned to his second chance, Hermione came to mind. She had been the one to give it to him, and he'd set his sole purpose on finding her – even if he hadn't known it was Hermione Granger – he'd wanted to find the one who'd saved him. Find her, and, if he admitted it to himself, make her his.

But he wasn't sure he could abide Hermione. She made him feel something so raw, so deep, that it unsettled him. She was like Lily, in a way: Muggle-born, extremely bright, compassionate… she even kept company with the troublemakers like Potter and Weasley. Perhaps that was why the thought of pursuing her left him disquieted – he feared that she would be exactly like Lily in the end, and leave him alone to rot for the rest of his days.

There was something about Hermione, though; something that separated her from Lily entirely. He wasn't sure if he knew what it was, but for the similarities, he felt, deep down that Hermione was different. She knew that he was a moody, oft-times bad-mannered git, and yet she had still met him at the restaurant. She'd laughed at his stories, given him small, shy smiles. She had let him worship her with his lips… trusted him enough to go limp in his arms and take the pleasure he offered…

Severus sneered down at the bottle in his hands. He wondered how he could sit and pry into his own mind as he never had before. He knew, inside, that it was necessary he sort himself out, if he ever wanted to make his second chance worthwhile. But he was so torn. How could he open himself up to Hermione when he knew that if she rejected him down the line, he'd be left in the same shape he had been in when Lily's rejection had come?

Gritting his teeth, he stood from his well-worn spot on the sofa and set the bottle of Firewhiskey down resolutely. Damned if he was going to let Hermione Granger slip through his fingers.

He hadn't heard from her all day, but perhaps she was waiting on him to write to her. He strode to his desk and extracted quill and parchment from within, and set to his task.

Dear Miss Granger, he wrote, then murmured, "Evanesco," making it disappear. He wasn't sure if it was appropriate of him to use an endearment just yet.

Miss Granger, he started again, but just as quickly Vanished it. Since when had he started addressing her by her surname again? She was no longer his student, and thank Merlin for that, because if she was, he wouldn't be able to hear another of her sweet little moans.

Hermione, he wrote, but cursed and Vanished it angrily. Her first name alone was too curt, as if he hadn't left a love nip on the side of her neck the night before.

A knock came at his door, and he set his quill down. Pulling out his wand, he brought down the wards around his dungeon, and he opened the door to find Headmistress McGonagall waiting with a raised brow.

Severus raised a brow back at her as he held open the door. He was unsure why she had such a look upon her face, but he didn't like it…

"Shame on you, Severus," Minerva admonished him, her hands going to her hips.

"Was I supposed to patrol tonight?" he queried, frowning. Had he really been so consumed with thoughts of the little sorceress that he hadn't remembered his duties?

"No, Filius is on patrol." She swept past him into his quarters, and turned to look at him. "He informed me that last night he found you on the trail to Hogwarts with Hermione Granger!" Her hands went back to her hips, and she narrowed her eyes at him. "Is this true?"

Severus folded his arms across his chest. "What of it? You knew I was taking her out to dinner." He scowled to try to get across that he didn't wish to speak on the matter.

"It is so selfish of you to keep the girl to yourself, Severus!" Minerva reprimanded, the bun at the back of her head shaking. "You should've invited her back to my office – we could've had tea!"

Severus smirked at the thought. If he had successfully brought Hermione back to the castle, the last place they would've ended up was the Headmistress' office. No, he would've had her in his quarters, arching her lovely little neck for him and calling out his name…

"You must write her." Minerva's features were set, just like those withered hands at her hips.

Severus snapped out of his reverie. "I beg your pardon?"

"You must write to her, and invite her to come have dinner with us in the Great Hall tomorrow evening." Minerva was moving toward the door now, as if she expected him to carry out her orders without question.

"But I…" He tried, but Minerva cut him off.

"You must share her, Severus," Minerva snapped, exiting his quarters haughtily.

Like bloody hell he would.