A/N: Finally managed to get this chapter the way I wanted it. I apologize for the exceptionally long hiatus on this, but I hope this new installment makes up for it.

o.o.O.o.o

Hermione woke with a start, something in the darkness of her bedroom jolting her into instant awareness. She felt the edge of the bed dip and her heart pounded against her ribs. Warm breath tickled the back of her neck, and she could smell fire whiskey on it.

"Severus?" she whispered, shivering a little.

"Why did you invite me here, Hermione?" he whispered into her ear, so very close but not touching her…not yet.

Hermione swallowed thickly, knowing that in this moment only truth could be spoken.

"You know why," she answered, closing her eyes tightly. Admitting the truth was both humiliating and arousing all at once.

"Tell me anyway. I need to hear you say the words," Severus replied.

"Because I wanted you. I hoped that being here, alone, we might…" She stumbled over her words, cheeks burning in embarrassment.

"Did you want me to touch you?" A little bit of amusement leeched into his voice, and he trailed his fingertips along her arm.

"Yes." The touch was like a line of heat that shot straight through her. "What changed your mind?"

"It seems pointless to cling to this particular moral high ground when I'm going to be corrupting you so completely in other areas." He sighed and let his hand drop. "This seems like such a small thing, compared to training you for the Dark Lord's purposes."

Hermione turned to face him, shadows obscuring most of his expression. "It's not a small thing to me." She hesitantly lifted a hand and rested it on his chest, taking the initiative. This scared her more than anything else from the last year, it felt like reaching out over an abyss and hoping that he wouldn't let her fall.

"I know." He reached out and cupped her cheek in his hand, his thumb tracing along her cheek bone. "You deserve more than I can give you," he said, voice thick with emotion.

"Let me decide what I deserve," she shifted closer and brushed her lips against his, heart hammering against her ribs. There was a moment where he didn't respond, and then it was like a dam burst and his hand buried itself deeper into her hair. The sudden hunger of the return kiss caught her off guard, and she moaned softly into his lips. He dragged her closer, his hand leaving her hair to travel down her back. He tasted like fire-whiskey, and his tongue was demanding as he controlled the kiss.

He broke the kiss, nipping and kissing along her jaw. He paused, nuzzling against her throat. "Please tell me you've done this before," he whispered raggedly.

"Yes, I have." Hermione's cheeks burned with embarrassment, but she understood why he was asking. Her few limited experiences with Viktor had been awkward, but enjoyable…for the most part.

"Good." He began to flick open the buttons on her pajamas, and pressed soft kisses against the newly revealed flesh.

Hermione could feel the tension radiating off of him, as he forced himself to slow down and take his time. She gasped, arching under him when his tongue flicked over her nipple. He took his time, teasing her with a single-minded focus that left her utterly breathless. Methodically, he moved from one breast to the other, nipping and sucking until she was seeing stars and when shifting his attentions back to the side. She craved more, her hips moving restlessly under him, but she also didn't want this delicious agony to end.

"Severus," she gasped, fingers gripping the sheets under her in a white-knuckle grip.

"Mmmm?" He looked up at her, an eyebrow raised teasingly.

"Please…" She'd never felt like this before, so hot and needy.

"Touch yourself for me," Severus said, gently untangling her fingers from the sheets and guiding it to the waistband of her pajamas. "Show me what you like." He moved back, dark eyes unreadable as he began to unbutton his white shirt.

Hermione shivered and slipped her hand down, fingers grazing hot wet flesh. Her curls were soaked and she drew her fingers teasingly over her lower lips, shivering a little. Her fingertip traced her clit, and she closed her eyes, moaning softly. Knowing he was right here, watching her, seemed to magnify every single touch.

"Don't close your eyes, look at me," Severus said.

Hermione opened her eyes, watching as he tossed his shirt away. Under all those layers of clothing, he was surprisingly fit. He was composed of long lines of hard muscle and a mural of old and new scars. The hard realities of his life laid bare to her. His hands drew her eyes to his pants as he unbuttoned them carefully. Sweet Circe. Apparently there was something to the saying about big noses. Her eyes widened a little as she got her first look at him, properly.

"Are you sure you want this?" he asked.

"Very sure." Hermione watched raptly as he moved off the bed enough to finish undressing. Her fingers teased herself, building up to the edge, but never enough to tip over. She wanted him to touch her like this, make her fall apart.

He knelt back on the bed and hooked his thumbs into the waistband of her pants and dragged them down her legs. His eyes never left hers as he did it, making her feel even more exposed. They were discarded off to the side as Severus move up onto the bed, her legs parting eagerly for him. He paused to brush a kiss against the inside of her thigh, a feathery caress on his slow journey up her body. Only the soft huff of his breath touched her sex as he continued up, as if mapping every inch of her skin.

Hermione slid her hands into his hair, feeling each kiss like a brand against her skin. Everywhere he touched her set her nerves on fire, and burned her up from the inside. She cried out as he licked a hot line up the curse scar, his magic inside of her swelling under his touch. Her back arched up, caught off guard by the intense sensation. It sent a shock straight through her that seemed to pool instantly into her core, her hips rocking up against him. The strange shimmering energy between them seemed grow darker, hungrier. His hands slid under her back, pulling her closer, and holding her still as he explored her breasts with lips and teeth.

When he kissed her this time there was no gentleness, her hands dislodge as he pinned her wrists to the bed. A whisper of magic kept them in place as his other hand slipped down to tease her, while their lips and tongues battled in their shared kiss. She gasped into his mouth as his fingers plunged inside her, not tentative at all as he thrust them inside her, testing her readiness. She was so wet, and his touch made her whimper wanting more.

Hermione shivered as he drew his fingers out and brought them up to his lips, tasting her and holding her gaze while he did it. He dropped his head down and kissed her again, deeper and slower this time. She could taste herself on his lips, but it wasn't as unpleasant as she'd thought. He shifted a little and she could feel his cock pressing against her now. His kiss swallowed her cry as he thrust smoothly into her. Her hurried fumblings with Viktor could never have prepared her for this. Severus filled her completely, the full length of him almost too much. There was the shimmering edge of discomfort as he thrust deeply into her, but it only made it more intense and fed the pleasure building inside her.

He broke their kiss, looking down at her as he fucked her willing body. Hermione was caught there in the bottomless black of his eyes, unable to look away as he saw every reaction and feeling wash over her, unfiltered and unedited. She'd never felt so perfectly vulnerable and yet powerful at the same time. Here was the real Severus Snape, with no masks or walls to hide behind. He was stripped bare, and she could see he was as just as caught as she was.

He reached up, releasing the magical bind on her wrists and slipped his fingers through hers, as if he wanted to be as close to her as he could and touch as much of her skin as possible.

"Severus," she gasped as his thrusts grew rougher. It hurt, but felt so good too. She brought her leg up, hooking around his hip and moaned as it shifted her just a little and he started rubbing against her just right. Her orgasm caught her off guard, hot and all encompassing. Her head fell back and she could feel his teeth against her neck as he bit down, marking her as his. As his breathing grew more ragged, his hips lost their steady rhythm, coming undone. She could hear him whispering something, almost too soft to make out. It sounded like 'mine'. The possessive word made something darkly satisfying curl inside her.

He buried his face into her shoulder, stifling his cries as he came inside her, releasing her hands to gather her tightly in his arms. It was almost too tight, but she didn't protest. He seemed to need this, as if reassuring himself that this was real. She wrapped her arms around him, just stroking her fingers through his sweat dampened hair and lying quietly as they both came down from their intense high. She knew instantly that she'd be feeling the effects of this encounter tomorrow, a dull ache settling between her legs, and a twinge of muscles that had been overused. She didn't care though. She'd wanted this, and there was no way she could ever have imagined just how good it would feel.

o.o.O.o.o

A few cursory cleaning charms and a slight adjustment of their positions, and Hermione and Severus had curled up to sleep. There had been no words exchanged, both of them hesitant to shatter the fragile moment. Hermione had fallen into an exhausted sleep and when she woke, she realized with a start that she was in the bed alone. Her heart dropped like a stone and she sat up. The door opened and the bit of panic gripping her eased. Severus was standing in the doorway, a tray in his hands. His chest was bare and his pants not entirely buttoned.

"I thought you might like something to eat," Severus said cautiously.

"Only if you join me," Hermione said boldly. She wanted him to know that she didn't regret last night, and given his behaviour now…she knew that was probably what he was worrying about.

"I would like that." He approached and laid the tray on the bed between them and sat down. He poured her some tea and handed it to her, fixed just the way she preferred. He sipped his own coffee, black with a little sugar.

There was a plate of warm scones, a little bowl of Devonshire cream and some strawberry jam. It was a light breakfast, but exactly what she wanted right now. The silence between them was easy, and she relaxed as they enjoyed their breakfast together.

"I should apologize for last night," Severus said as they lingered over the crumbs.

"I don't think you have anything to apologize for, and I don't regret what happened," she said, meeting his eyes.

"I don't regret it either, but I should. I'm in a position of authority over you and seen in a certain light, I have taken advantage of that." He looked down at the bed for a moment.

"I brought you here because I wanted this to happen. With the war gaining hold, I think we deserve to have whatever small bits of happiness we can find. It's no one else's business what we do," Hermione said quietly. "None of this is a normal situation and normal rules don't apply. Not to us."

"Foolish Gryffindor," he lifted his face and met her eyes, the reproof sounding more affectionate than chiding.

"Your foolish Gryffindor." She smirked.

"Careful, I've never been good at letting go of things that I see as mine." Severus did warn her.

Hermione reached over and took his hand, guiding it up to the darkened bite he'd put into her neck last night. "I think I'm already yours, and you're mine." She needed him to see that it went both ways.

"I can live with that." He moved his hand to cup her cheek, his thumb tracing over her bottom lip. "I don't like the idea of dragging you deeper into this."

"I know, but I'm already in deeper than we thought I would be. I'm not going to stand by and let him kill you, just to keep my hands clean. Teach me what I need to learn, and we'll worry about the rest later."

"Very well. I'll leave you to have a shower and get dressed and I'll prepare your first lesson downstairs in the reading room. There is a lot for you to learn, and we don't have much time." Severus withdrew his hand reluctantly. "Once we start, there's no going back."

"There was never any going back." Hermione said sadly. "But even if there was, I don't think I'd want to." She leaned forward and stole a soft kiss before withdrawing and disappearing into the bathroom. Here, away from Hogwarts and the rest of the wizarding world, she could indulge in her wants. Once they returned, she knew the rules would change. She couldn't risk anyone discovering the truth of their new relationship. It would be too easy for someone to use it to destroy him and that was something she would not allow.

The water of the shower was blissfully hot and eased the small aches and pains from last night. She scrubbed herself clean, wincing a little as she was more careful with the tender area between her legs. It would be a day or two before she was ready for a repeat of that. It had felt amazing at the time, but now her body was protesting the hard use.

There was clean clothing folded neatly on the side when she came out of the shower. She dried off quickly and got dressed. She gathered her wet hair up into a messy bun, enjoying that it displayed her love bite quite prominently. She ghosted her fingertips over it, feeling a rush of renewed desire. A quick shake of her head, and she left the bathroom. Today, she needed to focus and try to absorb whatever Severus was planning to teach her. There would be time later for more enjoyable pursuits.