They appeared in the dark sitting room of Spinner's End and he kissed her, not even waiting to remove the Disillusionment Charm. Ziggy leapt from her shoulder onto the armchair but Freddie hardly noticed. Snape's kiss was warming her from head to toe and slowly she became aware that his wand was pressed to her back and he was removing the charm. He tossed his wand onto the coffee table but it rolled off and clattered to the floor, sending a shower of red sparks across the carpet.

"Damn," he said, breaking the kiss and releasing her to retrieve his wand.

"You're drunk," she said, bemused. He placed his wand on the table carefully then turned back to her, a hungry look in his eyes. She felt herself flush and she unconsciously took a step towards him. He grabbed her again, wrapping his arms around her beneath her jacket. He slipped his hands beneath her shirt as he kissed her and she moaned. Something broke loose between them and she was slammed with a wall of strong emotions and memories that weren't her own – thoughts of Lily Evans, Lily Potter, her red hair, almond-shaped eyes, her headstone in a cemetery that was empty except for Snape and a bottle of scotch, the date of her death on the headstone-today, Halloween- the sound of children laughing in the distance, trick-or-treaters. Another memory, older, more fuzzy, holding Lily's body in a house with the side blown out, crying her name. Strong emotions of sadness, grief, and love, sadness, grief, and love. For Lily. For her. It was disjointed and confusing and overwhelming.

Freddie felt her legs give out. He had not stopped kissing her the entire time and now he pulled her back with him to sit on the couch, pushing her jacket off her shoulders. She wanted to stop, but at the same time she really didn't want to stop. She was confused. She didn't know if he'd intended for her to see his memories or if he even knew that she had. All she could feel from him now was desire and lust, the need to have her closer, closer, closer, to devour her.

She dropped her jacket to the floor and he broke the kiss just long enough to pull her shirt off over her head. His kiss was hot and rough and he nipped at her bottom lip while he reached around to unhook her bra. He discarded it carelessly then moved his hands down the bare skin of her back, inflaming her. She could feel his cock straining against his trousers beneath her and that pushed all other thoughts from her mind. She snaked her hands between them to unfasten his pants. At the same time he pulled her fishnet stockings down roughly. They were down around her ankles, hung up on her boots, when he entered her. She let out a strangled moan and he moved his lips to her throat, nipping her, causing her to gasp and squirm. His hands were on her hips, controlling her movements, pushing her up and down on his cock. It had been too long – weeks – and finally being reunited was magical. It didn't take long for her to climax and he was right behind her, pulling her down firmly as he exploded inside her, burying his face in the crook of her neck.

Freddie collapsed on top of him, spent. He had his arms around her, holding her loosely, as he kissed her shoulder, her hair. He buried his face in her hair and breathed deeply. After a moment he shifted slightly and she felt his cock slip out of her, along with a gush of cum. He reached around her to pull her boots off and drop them to the floor, along with her stockings. Then he lay down on the couch, pulling her on top of him.

They lay like that for several minutes, catching their breath, not speaking. His mind was still open to her and she kept getting rushes of emotion so strong from him they almost made her cry. Grief and love, grief and love. When she couldn't stand it anymore she put up her own walls of Occlumency to block him out. He felt the difference, she felt him stiffen for a moment, then relax.

"Are you okay?" he asked and she could feel the vibration of his voice rumbling in his chest beneath her.

"Yeah," she said softly, then buried her face in his chest. He pressed a long kiss to the top of her head, his fingers skimming the small of her back.

"I care about you," he murmured, so softly she almost didn't hear him.

"I know," she said, swallowing heavily. Her heart felt like a hummingbird in her chest.

"I wanted you to know."

"You're only saying that because you're drunk," she said. Not accusatory, just accepting.

"I'm not – I mean, I am, but that's not what I meant. I care about you. You should know. I thought I couldn't, thought I shouldn't, but..."

He trailed off, but Freddie didn't prompt him to continue. She stroked his chest with her fingernails and felt him shudder pleasantly.

"I've been alone for too long," he said, again barely audible. "And...she wouldn't want me to be alone."

She lifted her head to look at him. His eyes were warm and brown in the lamplight, but they looked sad as well and maybe confused.

"You shouldn't be sad," she murmured and kissed his lips. He smiled slightly and hugged her tight. She buried her face in his chest again and he kissed the top of her head. They stayed like that for several more minutes, with him hugging her hard against him. He shifted beneath her and when she looked up he kissed her.

"I missed you," he said, his lips moving against her mouth.

"I noticed," she said with a chuckle. "...Do you want to go upstairs? We might be more comfortable on a bed."

"Mmm now that sounds like a fine idea..."

Several hours later they still had not returned to the castle. They were laying naked together on his bed with a quilt thrown over them, having discarded their remaining clothes somewhere between the sitting room and the bedroom Snape had dragged her into – his bedroom, not hers. She didn't think much of it at the time, she was too distracted by his mouth and hands on her body. But now he'd exhausted himself and he was wrapped around her in his usual possessive sleeping position. His face was buried in her green and black tresses and he was snoring in her ear. Not his usual soft snoring either. This was loud snoring. Like a freight train. Drunk snoring, she thought with a smile.

Without moving she looked around his room curiously. It was unusual for him to bring her here for their activities. They usually did it in her bed, in her room down the hall. She didn't see his room that often. It didn't look much different than the first time she'd seen it – minus the exploded cauldron, the burns on the floor, and the hole in the wall. All of that had been repaired. There was no longer a cauldron in the middle of the room and from what she could see the books on his desk weren't books on Necromancy. Did that mean he'd stopped trying to bring her back?

Her eyes drifted to the framed photo on the bedside table. Lily waved at her and smiled. She had a beautiful smile. I can see why he's so obsessed with you, she thought silently.

Her wand was on the bedside table beside Lily's photo. She'd brought it upstairs when they'd come up from the living room. She didn't like being without her wand in any circumstance. She knew Snape was the same way, usually, but for some reason he had left his on the table downstairs. He was defenseless – naked, wandless, and without a care in the world it seemed. His guard was totally down in a way that she had never seen him. He really does trust me, she realized.

She shifted slightly so she could check the time on her watch. It was after 4 a.m. Already. Sunrise was just a few hours away and she would need to go outside to do the Animagus enchantment. She lay there for a few more minutes then squirmed and rolled over in his embrace. He grunted softly but didn't wake, just hugged her tighter to him. Smiling, she kissed him on the nose. His face scrunched up and she chuckled before kissing him again.

"You might want to wake up," she said.

"I don't think so," he mumbled, eyes still closed.

"It's very late," she said, kissing his face once more.

"How late?" he grumbled, sounding not-totally-awake.

"Almost morning."

After a few minutes his dark eyes blinked open, looking confused and unfocused. When he saw her he smirked slightly then kissed her mouth. She melted into his kiss and he pulled her on top of him, keeping his arms wrapped around her.

"What time is it?" he asked, kissing her forehead.

"After 4 in the morning."

"Mm."

"Shouldn't we have gone back...hours ago?"

"Maybe."

"What if someone saw us? Saw you kiss me in the sundial garden or saw us leave?"

"Could have."

"Aren't you worried?"

"Mm...no," he said, kissing her again on the mouth. He wrapped his legs around her and she could feel his cock twitching against her thigh. "I have far more pressing emotions at the front of my mind right now." His lips brushed against hers as he spoke, sending shivers through her. His mind was open to her again and she felt no grief or sadness there, only love and desire – for her. She could feel he had a slight headache from his hangover, but it was quickly fading as he busied himself beneath the covers, his fingers skimming down her back, across her hip, then dipping between her thighs to touch her-

"Ohhhh," she moaned softly. "That does seem a little more...pressing."

He chuckled softly then flipped her over with a soft growl, burying his fingers inside of her.