Hello again my lovelies :)


They sat in surprisingly comfortable silence for a few hours, Snape's conjured flame never failing to keep them warm despite the snow. Every once in a while she would look up at him and start to open her mouth to speak but the look of concentration on his face stopped her every time. No point in disturbing him. Except the next time she went to look at him and say something, she found he was already looking at her which startled her.

"Something to say?" He asked coolly as though she hadn't just caught him looking too.

"Do you think we should talk?" She asked, trying to fake the confidence she didn't feel, "We keep kissing each other and bumping into each other."

Snape turned his eyes back to the book he was reading, but she could see the corner of his mouth turn up in a smirk, "Is that how you've been spending these last hours? Thinking about snogging me?"

"Of course not!" She responded, indignant, "it just occurred to me so I thought you might like to talk about it."

"Ah," she could hear the sarcasm dripping from his every word, "so that's why you've been shooting glances my way this whole time. Because you didn't want to talk about snogging me."

"You're impossible," Hermione sighed.

Hermione looked at the sky and realized it was later than she thought. Since it was clear that she wouldn't be talking anything over with Snape, she started to pack up her books and notes. It would be dinner soon and Lily would notice if she didn't show up.

"Going already?" Snape asked.

"It's getting late, they'll be starting dinner soon." Hermione nodded her head in Snape's direction, "Can you get up so I can grab my blanket?"

She watched as Snape gathered his things in his bag and stood up. She bent down to grab her blanket and as she got back up to put it in her bag, she saw that Snape was much closer to her than he had been. His eyes met hers and he opened his mouth as though he was going to say something but then he quickly looked away and took a step back. Hermione gave him a small smile before turning around, but felt Snape catch her hand gently in his.

He wasn't holding on tightly and when she looked back at him he was staring intently at the ground, but what she could see of his face seemed softer than normal. She stood there for a moment, waiting to see what he was planning on doing and when he finally did speak it was so soft and gentle she almost didn't recognize his voice.

"I enjoyed today," He paused and met her eyes, "I enjoyed your company."

His vulnerability caught her off guard, this was a side of Snape she never thought she would see. She had even doubted it's existence. But she had to admit to herself that it was nice.

"I enjoyed your company too," she responded quietly, a small smile forming on her lips.

She gave him a few more moments before assuming he had nothing more to say. She tried to let her hand fall away from his but as she relaxed her hand out of his, he responded by holding it tighter. Still not so tight that she couldn't pull away if she wanted, but tight enough to signal he didn't want her to leave just yet.

"What is it?" She asked, a small chill creeping into her voice. His fire had ended after they had stood up and it wasn't long before she felt the cold creeping back into her bones.

She searched his face as he remained silent. He wanted her there, clearly, or he would have let her go but his silence was frustrating. He couldn't have done this while they were inside and warm?

"Snape i-" She started before she was cut off.

His lips had found hers and before she could catch herself she began to melt into him. He had let go of her hand and his hands found their way to her waist, his grip once again firm and gentle. She had expected him to be just as cold as she felt, but as he pulled her close she found comfort in the warmth that radiated from him. Her hands found their way under his big, bulk coat and wrapped around to his back. He seemed to take her movements as a signal and his kissing intensified. Leaving all rational thought behind, she responded. The deeper he kissed her, the more intensely she responded, her hands pulling him as close to her as she could.

She wasn't sure how long they stayed in their embrace or who had been the first to pull away but gradually their kissing became less intense, their grips on one another lessened, and they let one another go.

As she looked up at him she couldn't believe her eyes, he was actually smiling back at her! She only wished she had a camera, no one would ever believe her if she got a chance to tell them. Severus Snape actually knew how to smile!

"This doesn't mean I like you," Snape smiled down at her, his tone not matching the look on his face.

"This doesn't mean I like you either," She smiled back.

"See you tomorrow night for the lesson?"

"See you tomorrow," Hermione nodded before pulling away completely and turning so she could walk back to the castle.

The chill on her face had vanished, replaced by a radiating warmth no doubt caused by Severus. Her brain hadn't quite caught up with her heart but she wanted to enjoy the lighthearted feeling while she could before her rational side caught up with her. She'd just had a nearly perfect day so far of studying, silence, and snogging and she wished she didn't have to walk back in the castle and into her reality.

She let her smile fade as she made her way back into the castle, brushing off the light snow that had started to fall on her way back in. Lily was already waiting for her as she sat down in the dining hall, thankfully she had chosen a spot far away from Remus as Hermione had no intention of letting their tension ruin her mood.

As Hermione grabbed at the food in front of her she felt Lily's eyes burning the side of her face. Her friend had obviously noticed the difference in her mood and was waiting for the details, but Hermione was not going to give them freely. If she was honest, she still wasn't sure what exactly had happened between them. She heard Lily start to speak when she caught sight of Severus walking into the dining hall and Hermiones cheeks burst into a bright red blush too obvious for Lily to not notice.

Her friend must have followed her eyes and noticed who she was watching because she lowered her voice and whispered in Hermione's ear, "You're going to tell me all about it tonight, right?"

All Hermione could do was nod her head in response as she fought to control her blush and tear her eyes away as Severus found his seat. The last thing she wanted was for anyone else to notice.

…...

"Merlin's beard, did you see the way her face turned red when he walked in?" James failed to whisper, "Maybe you were right!"

"I told you," Remus answered pathetically, frowning into his potatoes.

"I don't understand why she would snog someone like him when she had you around. I don't understand how she can get within 50 feet of the git without retching!" Offered Sirius.

"There has to be a better explanation," James continued still trying to wrap his mind around the idea, "Maybe he caught her doing something embarrassing and that's why she's blushing?"

"Why would she smile if she was embarrassed," Peter chimed in trying to be helpful before Sirus smacked him in the back of the head.

"You're not helping." Sirius snapped as Peter rubbed the back of his head in pain.

"Lily swears Hermione never cheated and they're girls, so they tell each other everything. Hermione must have been looking at someone else."

"That doesn't exactly make me feel any better James," sighed Remus, "whether she was looking at him or someone else, she was still looking and smiling and it wasn't at me."

"You need to snap out of this, you're the one who decided to end it," Sirius snapped at Remus, "so you have three choices. You can wallow in your misery forever, you can beg her for forgiveness and try to win her back, or you can move on and set your eye on someone else! You're smart and annoyingly sweet so I'd guess you have a decent chance at someone in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw."

Sirius voice trailed off as he let his eyes wander down the other houses tables. He needed to find someone else for Mooney to pine over, since everyone knew he would never pluck up the courage to do anything about whatever new crush he developed. Remus was just about to respond, probably with something negative, when Sirius found her.

"There you go!" He exclaimed, "I see her! Hufflepuff, looks to be a 6th year, and she's got nice wavy brown hair and a pile of books next to her so she's just your type. She's the one sitting near their house's seeker, can't remember his name."

All of the marauders turned to look in her direction, some more discreetly than others, while all Remus could do was glance vaguely at her before the bright red look of embarrassment exploded across his face. And while his face did eventually calm down to a more normal, if slightly tinted, color the friends spent the rest of their meal happily talking about all the ways Remus could possibly embarrass himself while attempting an introduction.