Things changed after that. He felt that he finally been given permission to pursue Hermione. He wasn't aggressive, especially when she woke. He moved slowly, presenting her with the occasional bouquet of flowers, a tin of her favorite biscuits or a book he thought she'd enjoy. He certainly wasn't overly flirtatious, but he did hope that his intentions were coming across. She seemed to enjoy his gestures. He opened up to her as did she to him. They grew closer every day.

When she slept though, his approach was quite different. He craved the feel of her skin like a drug. They'd kissed and petted and moved a little further each day. At this point, he wanted to do more than touch her, he wanted to taste her.

Severus padded into her room as he often did. It was early afternoon, and the room was drenched in sunlight. He removed his clothes and set them on a chair before getting in bed with his angel. He carefully removed her clothes. They'd never gotten this far before. Always they'd remained clothed.

Today was special though. That morning Hermione had walked from her quarters to his unaided. He was so proud of his witch. She was strong. She was a fighter. He removed her dress. Her breasts were becoming fuller. He grazed a hand over them, causing both her nipples to harden. At that he could resist no more. He took one nipple into his mouth as he teased the other. He suckled at one then the other before moving on. He licked and nipped his way down her body eager to savor every inch of her. Severus peeled off her knickers to find her already wet. "Beautiful, so perfect," he murmured.

He lowered himself between her thighs and gently opened her lips. He took a moment to admire the sight before leaning in for a taste. Dear Nimue, she was sweet everywhere, he thought as he feasted on his love, lapping at her essence.

He moved up to flick her clit with his tongue and was gratified when he heard her start to pant. His angel was always so responsive, so encouraging. Severus set about his task to bring his love to completion. His ministrations bore fruit a few minutes later when Hermione shuddered and she became impossibly wetter.

Severus stimulated her through her orgasm and lifted himself up to his knees. He brought a hand through her remaining fluids to slick up his cock. He stroked himself while looking upon the beautiful sated form of his angel. He was impossibly aroused. So, it took little time before he spilt himself between her thighs.

He took a moment to catch his breath before he cleaned and righted the both of their clothes. He then left the bed, kissed Hermione's forehead and left her once more to sleep.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

The days came and went, turning to weeks, turning to months. All too soon, six months had passed. His allotted time was up. Severus went down to retrieve their breakfast as he always did. As he made his way to her sitting room he could only pray to whatever deity that cared to listen that his angel would still be willing to fight.

He found Hermione already dressed and at her dining table. Her wheelchair sat abandoned beside the door. She didn't need it anymore to traverse her own rooms. "Good morning, Miss Granger," he greeted her setting the tray before her.

They were uncharacteristically quiet as they ate. It confirmed that she too, knew the significance of the day. Although, neither seemed eager to broach the subject. Their meal was all but completed before Hermione spoke.

"I know what today is," she said. Severus looked up from his plate but remained silent, giving her time to speak. She took a deep breath. "I've thought about it a lot and..and I want to keep fighting," she stated and the wizard let out a sigh of relief. "I've gotten stronger, regained some of my autonomy, the sleeps haven't been as long lately. Professor, I'll admit I fully expected you to fail, but you have given me back so much…." Tears started to slip from her eyes. "I can't even begin to thank you for your sacrifice, your generosity, your kindness."

"Your gratitude is appreciated but not necessary. This has been no sacrifice. I must admit that I have gotten much out of this experience as well," he responded, then quickly returned his attention to his plate. His cheeks pinking slightly at the confession. Still, he was able to see the genuine smile she graced him with before she too returned to her meal.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

It was a few days later before Severus could spend time with his sleeping angel. She had accepted his confession and had chosen to stay with him, to fight. It was a pledge of love of which he felt unworthy, but humbly and gratefully accepted. Today they would finally consummate their love. It was a moment that he'd longed for and dreamt of for years.

As always he reverently stripped his goddess. He knew that she hadn't had a man in years now, and that her experience was rather limited. He took care to be gentle, to prepare her, to ready her for him. He kissed her lips until they were swollen, then moved down. His tongue exploring her body once more. He let his nose trail through the curls over her mound then moved to taste her once more. He couldn't get enough of her. He worked her up until she came with a gasp.

He moved back up to kiss her lips. He lay on his side, holding her body to him, her back against his chest. He couldn't believe the time had come. Severus was gentle. He knew Hermione hadn't been with a man in such a long time. He only prayed he didn't disappoint her. It had been a while for him as well. He didn't mind his chastity though. He was faithful to a fault. He'd forgone all other women the moment he fell for her.

He reached between them and positioned himself at her entrance and slowly began to work his way in. A frown creased her brow and Severus stopped his progress. He teased her clit until she started panting, then resumed pushing. he sank deeper and deeper into her hot, wet quim. She was almost painfully tight, but Merlin, she felt like heaven.

Severus was panting himself when he finally fully sheathed himself in his love. He kissed her tenderly as he fought to contain himself. He didn't want to embarrass himself before he'd even started.

Once he'd regained control, and Hermione's frown had melted away, he started a lazy pace. He rocked into her over and over savoring her tight heat. This was beyond what he'd imagine. It was absolutely perfect. So engrossed he was that he almost didn't hear it when Hermione started to pant and mewl at his ministrations. They'd never experienced pleasure at the same time. By the gods, he had never felt so whole in all his life, not even with Lily.

Severus quickened his pace, thrusting with ever greater force, teasing her clit and bringing them both closer and closer to ecstasy. He watched as her breasts bounced in pace with his movement. Unable to resist, he leaned forward and ran his tongue up her back to her shoulder. He felt her inner walls flutter around him. Fuck, she always loved his mouth on her. It was almost his undoing.

Feeling his angel on the precipice of release, he redoubled his efforts. When she came with a shuttering gasp, he felt her clamp onto him, massaging him. He held off as long as he could until he could take no more of this sweet torcher. He joined her in ecstasy. He buried himself deep inside her as he came. He peppered her shoulder and neck with kisses and whispered words of love and gratitude. His angel was perfect.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

He took great care in bathing her after, and if they ended up making love in the bathtub. Well, who could blame them? They were in love. After he finished washing and drying her, he took her back to bed. He examined every inch of her skin, looking for any blemishes that he may have caused in his fervor . He found a few bruises on her thighs and breasts and gently applied bruise paste to each one. He massaged a salve into her passage and labia to ease any discomfort she may experience. He ended by having her take a mild pain potion to ease any remaining aches and a contraceptive.

He redressed her lovingly being sure to right her bonnet before placing her between the sheets once more. He hated leaving her. He wanted to sleep with her in his arms, but knew now was not the time for that. Instead, he kissed her forehead and made his way back to his rooms.

*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*S*

As her strength returned, Hermione spent more time outside of her rooms. While stairs were still an issue, she could move about fairly easily on whatever floor she was on as long as she took frequent breaks. She continued to fall into unnatural sleeps, but they came less frequently and were shorter.

While she was still not able to do magic. The degradation of her core had halted. Even her healers were positive about her improvement. The potions master could almost feel her hope grow as her health improved. Her former caretakers would visit often. They too grew more hopeful with every day.

Severus could truthfully say that he'd never been so happy, so content in his entire life. The once solitary man had gained a multitude of genuine friends. As Hermione had warned, it seemed the Weasleys had adopted him, and to his surprise, he didn't mind one bit.

When she was awake, they spent a good deal of their time together. She loved watching him work. As her condition improved, she had taken to helping him in the lab. Snape never knew that working with a partner could be so rewarding. He preferred creating her potions on his own, but welcomed her help with the rest of his brewing. She was incredibly bright. He was able to share theories and ideas with her and have an actual intellectual conversation.

When she slept, he cherished her, made love to her over and over. He was tender and eager to bring her to incredible heights of ecstasy again and again. He worshipped her flesh, memorized the feel and taste of every inch of her. He learned how to make her mewl and cry out. He never left her bed without thoroughly satisfying his witch. He was a gentleman after all.

After he would reverently wash her body and ensure she was unmarked and unblemished from their union. He never wanted to cause her even an ounce of pain. She'd been through so much already; he had no desire to visit more hardship on her.