The dress was beautiful. Gold embroidery danced in swirling patterns of leaves and vines over the shimmering red fabric that clung to Hermione's form. It was almost a sin the way the color complimented the skin of her shoulders. The collar was the same golden ribbon of dancing leaves. It criss crossed over her chest before wrapping around her neck like a halter. A little pink scar peaked out from her collarbone, but Severus wasn't going to point that out. He wouldn't do anything that could make her uncomfortable. Tonight was about her and her happiness. No need to ruin it with something as trivial as a noticeable scar, especially when she was so stunning in that gown that no one would give the scar a second thought.

He shook off any thought of his love hurting herself and the reasons behind it. Those reasons wouldn't exist after tonight anyways. He would never distance himself from her again… at least not willingly.

He stood behind her as she admired herself in the mirror, trying not to smile too brightly at the sight before him. Her face was bright and happy, and her thoughts were filled with love and joy. She knew she looked good and he could tell that it had surprised her. Hermione had never been fond of her own appearance. Tonight, in that dress though, she felt like a princess… and Severus heard her thoughts more than once envisioning him as her prince.

Severus was truly amazed by the way she saw him. He couldn't believe she felt that way about him but rarely had a positive thought about herself. How could she look at herself and think she wasn't worthy of him? How could she look at him and think that he was too good for her? How could she when he knew that the opposite was true?

Her eyes flicked up to his in the mirror as he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the top of her head. He loved the way his head felt lighter with her in his arms. Her heart swelled and he chuckled when her mind became foggy. The only clear picture he could get was a flicker of images of the moment running through her overactive brain.

One second her focus was on the feeling of his hands grazing over her hips before resting one over the other on her belly. Then she was swooning over the sensation of his body pressed up against her back. Then it was the gentleness of it all when he finally rested his chin on top of her bushy head. The last picture he saw was his own face… his black eyes softer than usual, his thin lips upturned hinting a smile, the blush on his own usually pale face. He felt her love and he knew that he was doing the right thing, and that put his mind at ease.

At this moment his conscience went silent. He felt no guilt for loving the girl before him. He didn't feel wrong for wanting her. There was no longer a weight sitting on his shoulders when he heard her longing thoughts. The things that held him back before became irrelevant at that moment. Screw propriety, screw age, screw morals, screw everything but his undying love for her. She was everything. His student, his friend, his family, his bonded, his… Hermione.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by her lovely voice.

"The dress is quite lovely, Severus… but what is it for?" The ever-curious Hermione Granger asked of his gift.

Severus smiled. He couldn't help it. She was just so damn perfect.

He buried his face in her hair and began swaying. Of course, he was nervous. How could he not be? He'd never asked someone out before. Oh, but as nervous as he was, he was even more so determined.

"There's this ball," he said in a sing-song voice, his face still hidden in her unruly locks.

"A ball?" She questioned back.

"Mhm. With music and dancing," he answered in the same dreamy tone as before. It was quite unlike him.

"And you want to go?" She asked skeptically.

"It would be good to make an appearance, prove I'm not dead and all…. But mostly, I would really like to go… with you that is." He couldn't help the nervous shake to his voice as he answered.

She pondered for a moment before speaking again.

"People would see us together," she didn't want to say no to him, but they couldn't risk being noticed.

His face brightened again as he reached into his coat pulling out a gold wire-wrapped half masque. The design matched the embroidery on her dress, and it sported a webbing of rubies right where it would sit above her brow.

"Did I mention it's a masquerade?"

Her jaw dropped and her eyes went wide. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. It would most definitely put her dress to shame if it didn't compliment it so well. She swooned as he put it over her face. She'd never looked as lovely as she did now… a true Gryffindor princess.

Severus was fuming. What he thought would be a small thing for the order was actually a huge ordeal with hundreds of people in sparkling gowns and formal robes. He recognized most of the younger couples as current Hogwarts students, their parents watched them with dazzled eyes as they spun with their partners. Cringeworthy puppy love at its finest. He also recognized various shopkeepers and Hogwarts alumni. Order members conversed in groups near the edges of the room. This was definitely not a celebration for the order.

He stood in a large arched doorway in his usual black robes and coat without a masque. Only a scowl donned his face when he noticed Albus's twinkling eyes watching him from across the room. His gaze shifted to Hermione who sat alone and unnoticed at an elaborately decorated table at the edge of the dance floor. His face softened as he remembered why he was here.

'Just a few more minutes and I can be with her,' he thought to himself. 'I just need to make my presence known, then I can change.'

"Hello Lucius." Snape greeted his childhood best friend. Of course, he couldn't stand the man now.

"Oh, look who's here, Cissy," Lucius called over his wife who was contentedly watching her son waltzing with a lovely Slytherin lass. "Severus, have you finally come out of hiding?" the man teased.

Severus bit his tongue to keep his face. It wouldn't do him any good to snap at the man whose trust he needed the most.

"Only for a few more moments old friend. I have a treatment scheduled for tonight," he lied.

"Ah yes. The mysterious ailment that has kept you out of class and out of meeting with you know who. Tell me Severus, what is this 'ailment' that has you so tied up and so-- vulnerable?" He questioned skeptically.

"Draco didn't tell you?" He teased back.

"Tell. Me. What?" The blonde seethed.

"Calm now, Lucius. At the beginning of term, your son threw an unknown curse at the Weasley spawn and his little girlfriend. It would have been quite brilliant had it not hit the lass and me instead. Of course, she took the brunt of it and is now… let us say… 'out of the picture'," he explained half-truthfully.

"You mean to say that that scum of the earth mudblood is dead?" Lucius was almost giddy.

"No, not dead. In sort of a 'residential' treatment until they find a cure. The life draining aspect of Draco's curse was bloody brilliant," he lied again. To really sell the story he was weaving, he started to sway as if he were becoming dizzy and silently cast a warming charm on his robes.

Beads of sweat gathered along Severus's forehead and upper lip and he faked a shiver. The swaying really was making him dizzy, so he didn't have to fake that. He didn't miss the worried look Narcissa Malfoy was giving him and he almost couldn't help the little smirk ready to tug on the corners of his mouth at his little triumph.

"Maybe you should get going then, Sevvy. You aren't looking too well."

Severus liked Narcissa. She really was a kind woman, nothing like her deranged sister. Of all the Black family, she was the only one Severus found any worth in talking to, even before her marriage to Lucius. That wasn't her choice either. She was bound to Lucius Malfoy the moment the spell confirmed she was female. She fought the bond for years before finally giving in. A bond is a bond. Severus could understand that because of the one he has with Hermione. Though admittedly, theirs was at least ten times stronger than the one Cissy's parents forced upon her and Lucius. Even though the blonde man thought he held the title, his wife was truly Severus's best friend, and just as she had asked him to protect her son, he would soon be asking her to do the same for the woman he loved.

The professor took his leave after a few more moments of conversation with the Malfoys, purposely stumbling on his way out. It was time to enact Albus's plan, and he couldn't be more nervous.

AN: Special credits to my wonderful beta reader @Glass-NotCannon

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