Disclaimer on Chapter 1 – Don't own them, just enjoy playing with them!
Time Does Not Heal All WoundsWendyNat
Chapter 9
~~~~~~~
Hermione woke earlier than normal, feeling a vague disquiet. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she had the sneaking suspicion that it was guilt. Sighing, she put her hands over her eyes. What was she doing? She was a married woman. She shouldn't be consumed with thoughts of another man. She knew she shouldn't be kissing him… no matter how much she tried to justify it to herself, she knew deep down that it was a betrayal. And she certainly shouldn't be in love with him; there was no doubt that that was a betrayal of the highest order. But… how do you keep yourself from loving someone? She had tried the past seven years – she had spoken quite sternly to her heart on a number of occasions – and it had had no effect, even with the hurt she felt from what she had thought was Severus' betrayal. And, now that she knew the truth, she didn't think any amount of talking-to would convince her heart to suppress its craving for him.
Or my body, she admitted, stretching. It was still reacting from another evening of dreams about him. Recalling what Severus had said about not being able to control dreams, she felt marginally better. It's just my subconscious running away with itself again. It's not a betrayal if I can't control it. Memories had been resurfacing in her dreams for months, and of late many had been decidedly erotic. The one last night, however, she knew had not been a memory.
The Dream Hermione had been the Hermione of today, not of seven years ago. And Severus… had been perfect. Beyond perfect. She blushed at the memory. Forget Dreamless Sleep Potions… I need to develop a potion to make me have more dreams like that! She giggled a little at the thought, and threw the covers back, shaking her head and tucking the memory of the dream into the farthest reaches of her mind. She had agreed to meet Hestia early this morning to get the Ministry tables set up, and didn't need that type of distraction.
~~~~~~
An hour later, Hermione stood outside of Hestia's room, tapping her foot impatiently. She told me to meet her here at seven… it's almost a quarter after! Hestia was normally quite the taskmaster when it came to punctuality. Shaking her head, she knocked again – this time feeling a tingle on her knuckles when her hands touched the wood of the door. Silencing charm being dropped, hmmm? From within, a voice yelled out, "Who is it?"
She rolled her eyes. Who else would it be? She yelled back, "It's Hermione – remember me? We were supposed to meet early to set up the tables." She heard the faint sound of shuffling and some muffled voices before the door opened and the rumpled form of Remus Lupin greeted her. "Weelll, good morning Remus! Should I come back later?" Hermione said with a wide grin. Remus ran his fingers through his hair in a vain attempt to straighten it – and failed miserably.
Hestia appeared behind him, tying her dressing gown and smiling. "Don't be silly, Hermione. Come on in! We were just… getting ready."
"Mmm-hmmm. Sure," Hermione commented as she stepped into the room. Remus excused himself to go freshen up, and Hermione winked at Hestia once the bathroom door was safely closed behind him. "So… I guess the 'tea date' yesterday went well?"
Hestia grinned broadly. "Well, we never did get the tea, so yes – it went very well. Very well indeed." Hestia nudged her with an elbow, commenting, "And I suppose a thanks is in order to you and Severus for bowing out… I appreciate it."
Hermione smirked. "Well, I guess you didn't see the death glare Remus sent us when you asked if we wanted to accompany you." Both women laughed, and Hestia walked to the wardrobe, pulling out some fresh robes.
"If you don't mind waiting, I'll be back in a minute," Hestia said, heading for the bathroom where Remus had disappeared a few moments before.
Hermione shook her head at her friend. "Fine, fine, but do try and keep the snogging down to a bare minimum; we don't want to be late!"
"Yes, Mum." With a sarcastic roll of her eyes that would rival any teenager's, Hestia slid into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
Hermione laughed a little to herself. She was glad her two friends seemed to be having a good time, but she had been serious about not wanting to be late. She tried to convince herself it was simply in order to get the tables set up, but in truth she was anxious to see Severus. And watching Hestia and Remus had made her even more eager to see him.
Luckily, she didn't have to wait long. The two emerged from the bathroom rather more quickly than she had expected, and they all went down to the exhibition hall.
Hermione was impressed despite herself. The hall was huge and well lit, decorated tastefully in the host country's colors. She was pleased to note that each country had its own section – most conferences placed the universities and schools in one area and Ministry research displays in another. It appeared that the Hogwarts table would be next to her Ministry table. How convenient, she thought.
"Good morning, Hermione, Hestia," a silky voice said behind her. She turned around, smiling to see Severus staring at Remus with a raised eyebrow, a knowing smile playing on his lips. "And a good morning to you, Remus. I suppose you forgot we were to meet this morning?"
Remus began to apologize, but Hestia stopped him, putting an arm around his waist and telling Severus, "He was otherwise occupied, Sev. I do believe it must have slipped his mind."
Severus smirked at the two, enjoying Remus' look of discomfiture. "Well, I imagine your company would be far more enticing than mine – so, apology grudgingly accepted." Turning to Hermione, he asked, "And how was your evening, Mrs. Krum? Did you have… pleasant dreams?"
She blushed furiously. She hated the fact that her face showed her emotions so obviously, and she hated even more that the man in front of her took advantage of that fact so readily. He was smiling at her faintly, seeming to know exactly what she was thinking. Getting herself under control, she answered, "Why, yes, Professor Snape. And you?"
He maintained that small smile as he looked her in the eye. "Very pleasant, thank you for asking… Hermione." She shivered a tiny bit at the intense look he gave her. How could someone affect her so much with just a look? And why wasn't that person her husband?
Hestia cleared her throat. "Ummm, okay – well, now that that's been established, should we start setting up these tables?" Shaking her head and giving Severus a glare that clearly said -Quit distracting me! - Hermione got to work.
~~~~~~
A few hours later, she was exhausted. She also was holding a parchment of contact requests over three feet long. It seemed as if everyone had a potion they were working on that needed an extended shelf life. Luckily, most appeared to be far less complex than the lycanthropy cure, so the adjustments should be rather simple. Hestia had offered to sit with her when she returned to the Ministry offices and learn the method of adjusting the Manere potion. The offer had come after she noticed Hermione starting on the second foot of contact names, which gave Hermione the suspicion that she had offered her aid more to get her name bumped up on the list than from a true desire to help. Shrugging inwardly, Hermione decided that she didn't really mind – the help would be appreciated, whatever the motivation. Although it did make her curious about what House Hestia had been in at Hogwarts. She would have made a perfect Slytherin, Hermione thought with a small smile. Watching the woman flirt once again with Remus, she added silently, In more ways than one.
At the table beside them, Severus was equally exhausted. His contact list was a bit shorter than Hermione's, but unquestionably more urgent. It seemed that many of the Potions Masters at the conference were in contact with at least one werewolf – not very surprising, since only a qualified Potions Master could brew the Wolfsbane potion. It's certainly a good reason for a werewolf to become sociable with the nearest Potions Master, Severus considered silently. Looking over at Remus, he almost smiled. Once one of the banes of his existence, Remus was now one of the few people he would consider a friend. And, he admitted silently, that was almost entirely due to one Hermione Granger. He had been polite with Remus prior to his relationship with Hermione, but after hearing her talk about her friend with such heartfelt praise he had decided that the man must have changed. And he had to admit that it had really been Remus' friends that he despised, not Remus himself... that is, once he realized that Remus was almost as much a victim of Sirius' murderous prank as Severus had been. Granted, it had taken some time, but Remus had eventually become one of his closest friends.
Of course, Hermione had not been able to sway him very far in his opinion of Potter or Weasley – though not from lack of trying. He admittedly had gained a certain grudging respect for Potter during the war. The boy was an amazingly strong and intuitive wizard, there was no doubt there – but still far too impulsive and reckless in Severus' opinion. He firmly avoided thinking about Potter's involvement in the situation with Hermione – public was not the place for such thoughts. His anger was still too great. If he had encountered Potter in the last couple of days the Boy-Who-Lived most certainly would now be the Boy-Who-Lived-Only-To-Be-Killed-In-A-Murderous-Rage-By-The-Man-Who-Had-Saved-His-Life-In-The-War. Severus gave a smile at the thought, and then turned his attention back to the people milling about the table.
~~~~~
When Hermione finally returned to her room late that evening, she was beyond exhausted. The interest in both the Manere potion and the lycanthropy cure was tremendous, so she and Severus had not had much time to talk – and the exhibition hall had remained open late into the evening. Remus and Hestia had taken over the tables long enough for them to grab some lunch and dinner, but other than that Severus and Hermione had been in charge of their respective tables the entire time.
Thinking about Severus, she smiled. The man could say so much with just a look or glance. In fact, he had had a strange gleam in his eye when he wished her good night that she was still a little curious about, but she was just too tired to analyze it. She changed into her nightshirt quickly, whispering Nox as she slid into the sheets. She fell asleep quickly.
At that same moment, Severus lay awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling. Directly above him, Hermione lay asleep. He could almost sense her presence, her breathing. Closing his eyes, he breathed in deeply, clearing his mind and relaxing.
**~**~**~**~
Hermione knew she was dreaming. She always knew.
She walked the halls of 12 Grimmauld Place, smiling in memory. She had been happy during her time there, the happiest she had ever been.
She rounded a corner, and saw an open door that beckoned her. Curious and heedless of any danger as only a dreamer is, she floated to the door and looked into her own memory.
She was lying in his room at Grimmauld Place, and he was beside her. They were simply holding each other, enjoying the closeness and warmth. He had been Summoned by Voldemort the previous night, and was withdrawn as he often was following a Summons. Her eyes looked at the Dark Mark on his arm that had burned so brightly the night before. It was now faded to a dull gray.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Jerking upright in the bed, she looked at Severus questioningly. He nodded to her and she quietly moved into the corner of the room, well hidden by shadow. He went to open the door, and she could see his shoulders tense in foreboding. She understood. In her experience, late-night visitors were generally not the bearers of good news. When Severus cracked the door open slightly, she was surprised to see Harry standing outside, holding an orange ball of fur. "Here," he said, pushing the cat at Severus. "He's been outside Hermione's door yowling, I think he misses her." Yawning, he looked past Severus. "Come on out, Hermione. You're lucky no one else is around – this beast would've woken the dead." Hermione came forward and grabbed Crookshanks from Harry's arms when she saw Severus was making no move to take him.
"Thanks Harry – sorry about that," Hermione said, cuddling her cat close to her body. Harry just yawned again, his jaw cracking, and left with a lazy wave. Hermione went back to the bed, lying down with Crookshanks on her chest, cooing at him and rubbing his fur. Severus lay down next to her on his side, facing her.
"Vile beast."
"He's sweet!"
"He hates me."
"No, he doesn't! He's just a little jealous… he's been the only man in my life for quite some time – it's hard to be knocked aside like that," Hermione said, smiling and continuing to coo at the cat who now lounged on her torso, writhing in pleasure.
"That miserable ball of fur has no reason to be jealous. I'm the one who should be jealous," Severus declared with a gleam in his eye. "He's got the best seat in the house."
"Oh, really?" Hermione asked in a low voice, pleased that Severus was pulling out of the dark mood that he had been in and wanting to encourage it.
He shifted closer to her, eyeing the cat warily as he put an arm over her waist. "Well… maybe the second best seat."
Hermione felt an excited flutter in her stomach. Severus didn't often flirt per se, but when he did it had an amazing effect on her. Shifting closer to him, she played along. "Hmm. And what would the best seat be?"
He gave her that slow, sexy smile that made her heart quicken in anticipation. "You're about to find out," he murmured, pulling her to him and kissing her fervently, hands moving over her body in that delicious style of his.
Crookshanks, miffed at being ignored, leapt off the bed and sat, twitching his tail irritably. Humans.
When she next opened her eyes, she was no longer in the memory, although she knew she was still dreaming. Severus was still beside her, and they were now in what appeared to be the hotel room's tub. Vanilla and honeysuckle with an added woodsy scent was wafting from the water, and the jets were working their magic on her skin.
Reaching over, she kissed him. The feel of wet skin over wet skin was extremely arousing, and her breath caught. Pulling back slightly, she took a good look at him. This appeared to be the Severus of today – his hair- ends wet from the bathwater – was a little longer, the worry lines on his face not quite so deep. She allowed her eyes to wander, drinking in the sight of him. His shoulders and chest still had the crisscrossing scars, but they were slightly more faded. His arms were still smooth skin over wiry muscle. She ran her hand up one of his arms, and gasped. The Dark Mark… it was gone! She looked up at him questioningly.
"When Harry defeated Voldemort, it burned one last time and disappeared. That's how I knew he was really gone this time. There is still a scar from the burning – if you look closely." She inspected his arm intently, and could barely make out the silvery scar tissue outlining where the Dark Mark had been. She leaned down and kissed the scar gently. Wrapping his arms around her, he whispered, "I've missed you."
She wound her arms around his neck and pulled his lips down to hers. "I've missed you, too."
Those were the last coherent words uttered in her dreams that night.
**~**~**~**~
Hermione woke in the middle of the night from a most delicious dream. Looking at the clock, she sighed with pleasure at seeing the time. Still five more hours before I have to get up, she thought drowsily. Closing her eyes, she willed herself back to sleep.
~~~
In the room directly below, Severus also checked the time and sighed, satisfied. Lying back, he threw his left arm over his head and sunk into slumber.
The left arm that now bore a silvery scar where the Dark Lord's Mark had once been.
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A/N: Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who reviewed!
Shem – Thanks!! I'm glad you're reading - I loved your Hepatic Hex, and the new fic you're working on is also on my list of stories to check each day. Alas, I don't think I reviewed yet, so lemme go find a nice big candlestick to hit myself with…. ;)
Tegan – Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad that you can empathize with the characters… that's what I'm going for. I'm married and am having a hard time with some of the things going on in the story… since I agree that you don't have to have sex to cheat. But Hermione wants this so much, she's trying to justify things to herself… and that's something I've known people IRL to do.
Maddy-Riddle – Thanks! Remus is my favorite "good-guy" in the HP books, so I hafta take care of him :)
Electryone – Thanks! Severus is going to keep making things difficult for her. And Hestia – I thought Remus needed someone outgoing and fun-loving (those are the polite words for that type of personality, I think ;) ) to bring him out of his self-imposed shell. Susan is modeled after my best friend IRL, so I'm glad you like her!
LJ Yolo- Thanks! I've tried to make her reactions realistic, I'm glad you think I've nailed it!
Samantha – Thanks! And thanks for the heads up – I uploaded a replacement chapter to fix the italics problem. Stupid computer ;).
Kjay – HI! So neat to have someone I know IRL review online ;). I'm glad you're liking the science interwoven into the fic… I actually did do some electrophoresis work many moons ago, but I had to look it up online again for the specifics. I have more research to do before the lab scenes… more science coming up there (among other things grin).
Deb & Lizzie – The weekend talk is coming up… if not this coming chapter, then the next one.
Kate – Nope –Hermione's not pregnant right now… I thought she had enough to deal with ;)
Andrian – Thanks!! It was actually your fic "Comfort" which made me fall in love with Remus (second to Sev, of course). I'm glad to make you, and him, happy :).
Feed the author – review!