Part 24

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A/N: It's a steamy chapter with added fluff cough.



Hermione experienced a mixture of relief and excitement - relief that the bracelet would not be a shackle as part of her mind had feared, and excitement of having these extra abilities granted to her (it would be interesting to see if she could Apparate with other people if she held their hands).

The bracelet seemed to feel lighter on her wrist - now she could venture to admire the gleaming silver links and the enigmatic sparkle from the green links.

"Certainly the protection from curses will come in handy," she mused, although she knew of several people now dead who could have benefited from that in the dark years when Voldemort terrorised the wizard world. "The ability to Apparate anywhere in Hogwarts will be useful as well," she said, a gleam in her eyes.

"I do not like the look in your eyes," Severus said suspiciously, his eyes narrowing. "That is the 'I'll be up to no good with Potter and Weasley look!"

"Look, if we three got into trouble over the years it was for good reasons at the time!" Hermione retorted lightly.

Severus raised an eyebrow at her. "Really? Rule breaking..extreme nosiness...unauthorised use of time-turners..stealing from my store...setting me on fire?..."

Hermione flushed. "Oh. That. Well, I thought you were trying to put a hex on Harry at his first Quidditch match.."

"Ah, so it *was* you!" Severus growled, leaning close in a threatening manner though there was a gleam in his eye. "A colleague of mine afterwards remembered hearing a young female voice recite a spell before I was distracted by the minor matter of my robes being set on fire. I could not find out who it was, though I believed you were probably responsible."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said sincerely, "though as I said I thought I had a good reason at the time!"

"Good reason or not, I cannot let that go...unpunished," he murmured, his eyes dropping to the curves of her body that his white shirt on her failed to hide, with Hermione feeling herself blush. His voice was a sensual weapon he had no qualms about using. "You will be staying here in bed until I am sure you have regretted your misdemeanour."

His tone altered slightly and there was a faint smile on his face as he tilted his head and looked at her. "I believe I could get used to waking up beside you in the morning, Hermione."

Hermione smiled shyly back. "I could as well - I'm tired of all this sneaking about."

"Even if you do snore," he continued.

"I do not snore!" Hermione protested.

"You most certainly do. Not that loudly though," he conceded. "It would be separate beds indeed if that was the case."

"Oh you..you.." Hermione said, half-laughing and silenced his next comment by kissing him soundly.

Wanting her, Severus deepened the kiss, urging her mouth to open to him. "It has been too many days since I have had you," he muttered between kisses. "Don't deny me now.."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere right now," Hermione assured him, her breathing coming faster like his. There were too many clothes between them..she reached and pulled his shirt out of his black trousers while he pushed a long leg restlessly between her thighs with the intention of pushing her on her back.

However, she anticipated this and moved back over the bed, sitting up. His eyes that gleamed at what he deemed her provocative avoidance of him widened when she slowly unbuttoned her shirt. No, he wouldn't be washing that shirt in a hurry he thought as she took it off and cast it aside, revealing herself to his hungry gaze.

He could never get tired of seeing her this way, and after her near-tragic 'accident' at the hands of Malfoy this act of love took on new layers of meaning. So it was that his hands were tender when he reached out to draw her to him. He was not good at telling her he loved her - he had always mocked the romantic nonsense between lovers and so found it hard to say the words to Hermione. But he believed he understood the other ways in which he said "I love you."

Shifting their tangling bodies so that she was lying over him, Hermione removed his shirt slowly, kissing her way down his chest, enjoying the taste of his skin. Severus shifted his long body under hers in a way that was both a demand and a plea. But she wanted to take her time...after she had seen him diminished and helpless as a child in Dumbledore's office, part of her wanted extra conviction that he was restored to his usual sardonic, brilliant, impatient self...oh yes, he was definitely impatient she thought as he removed the last of her undergarments with a satisfied growl, his black eyes glittering up at her. She smiled and leaned down to kiss him.

However, when the mutual demands of their bodies could be refused no longer, it was his turn to shift her over to her back, casting aside his trousers and after claiming her mouth fiercely, claimed her as well, their bodies moving together in a frantic rhythm, gasps and muffled cries coming from both of them when they reached their completion.

Afterwards though they were tempted to stay in bed longer, they nevertheless went to get dressed, mock squabbling over who got to use the bathroom first (Severus won). When they were both dressed, Severus made himself a strong cup of coffee in his office as was his habit in the mornings, then came back to stare out of his bedroom window meditatively at the distant mountains. Hermione suspected that you could probably make a spoon stand in his coffee with the strong, bitter smell filling the room.

"So, does that coffee double as paint remover?" she remarked wryly as she went to stand beside him.

"Insulting my morning coffee results in an automatic removal of twenty points," he remarked dryly. "It helps me get up in the mornings to face all those hormone-driven horrors in my classes - present company excluded; perhaps. I hope you see your refusal to like coffee as a serious flaw on your part."

"If it's not hot chocolate I'm not interested," Hermione smirked.

He grimaced. "She only likes sweet drinks, Merlin help me!"

Hermione wished she had her comb with her as her hair felt and probably looked a mess. "I suppose my hair looks a real fright," she sighed.

"You're right, it does," Severus said bluntly, running a critical eye over her hair.

Hermione pulled a face. "Thanks."

"Well, you did ask me, you silly girl," Severus said dryly. "Sit down," he said in his 'command' voice, pointing at the bed. Surprised, Hermione did so, watching as he swept over to his dresser, putting down his coffee cup and picked up his comb that was carved from black wood. He looked at it critically, frowned and then spoke a few words. The comb flared brightly for a second and as a result Hermione saw the strands of black hair in the teeth of the comb disappear as if they had been burnt away.

One way to clean a comb, Hermione thought, then she looked quizzically at him. "You want to comb my hair?"

"Yes. You see, this gives me another reason to touch you," he murmured as he came over to sit on the edge of the bed beside her. He picked up lengths of her hair and steadily yet gently began to comb her long brown hair.

Hermione had to admit to herself that it was nice having someone else comb her hair for once, and there was something sensual about Severus doing it. Well, she could think of worse things than being in his bedroom having her hair combed by him. She had grown fond of his quarters, and as a concession to her he had put an extra towel in the bathroom and another wing-backed chair by the fireplace. She had even introduced him to the Muggle custom of toasting marshmallows on the fire (although at first he hadn't seen the point!).

Having momentarily wondered what had possessed him to do something so..domestic as to comb Hermione's hair despite his earlier comment, Severus did have to admit it was soothing to do so. It was something pleasant to distract him before he set out to do his main objectives of the day - dealing with Malfoy and a suitably annoying revenge on Sirius..