Dumbledore's lips curved upwards in a smile as he walked softly over to the chair he'd sat in for so many years, and sank down in it, somehow keeping his eyes upon the two the whole time. Nymphadora is so good for Severus, he reflected for what was probably the umpteenth time, but he couldn't help it, it was true. This fact was brought home harder than ever as he took in the shocked and disbelieving expression on the Potion Masters face. No one should ever doubt that someone could love them…and as Severus reach a hand up to caress Tonks' cheek and leaned in to kiss her, his mind shifted gears to…I wonder if I'll be invited to the wedding? Maybe godfather to their chil—Just then the younger man took a step backwards, and turned on his heel, leaving the room at a brisk clip, colour high in his cheeks, the headmaster sighed.

His eyes went over to Tonks, who was staring at the door from which Severus had exited, her eyes wide and filled with self-recrimination. "Why'd I have to go and open my big mouth?" She whispered sadly and reach up to swipe at tears that were falling down her cheeks. When he'd touched her cheek, his black eyes had shown with warmth that warred with the shock and other emotions she couldn't quite figure out, she'd thought that everything was going to be okay, and her mind had flitted forward to what it would be like once he'd acknowledged that he loved her too. Then, though, for some reason he'd fled, and it felt like her world had collapsed around her. Sniffling, she sank down in front of the fire, never taking her eyes from the door.

"He does love you, child." Dumbledore said quietly as he got to his feet, and came over near the metamorphmagus, and lowered his creaking frame to the floor beside her. Anguished eyes locked onto his own blue ones, but before he could say another word, Tonks nodded.

"I know he does…" She said. "I…he has to. I mean, I'm the only one that can argue with him like I do…and he actually seeks me out, which I know he doesn't voluntarily do too many other people, and I'm not nuts, when he kisses me, I know he feels the same thing I do. It feels like there's no one in the world but the two of us, and my toes start tingling, and my breath hitches and all I want is for him to put his-"

Dumbledore coughed gently just then, and murmured, "I assure you, I understand, Nymphadora." before she could give him too much information. Instantly colour rose on the young woman's cheeks and she ducked her head, giving a half-hearted giggle.

"Sorry."

"Quite alright…I remember what its like to be in love." He patted her comfortingly on the shoulder, heartened by the fact that even when she seemed so sad, she could still laugh. She really was a rather resilient, unique type, he mused as he studied her surreptitiously before speaking again. "You know, Nymph—" at her glare, he faltered and changed his wording wisely, "Tonks, its mainly just shock. I don't believe Severus has ever thought that anyone could love him. He probably just needs time to adjust."

She nodded, and looked down at the floor. "I know….I know I should give him time…I kno—NO!" She suddenly said strongly, and got to her feet. "No. He's not gonna run and hide until he gets used to the idea that someone can love him. NO ONE should have to get used to that idea. I'm not gonna give him Merlin knows how long, in hopes that he can deal with it, and come to me…not when this war is on and he could die at any time. I mean, he'll have a price on his head now like you wouldn't believe...and just NO!" Frowning, she slipped back into her natural form, and ran her fingers through her silky black hair. "Even if I have to hogtie that man, and kiss some sense into him…" Without so much as a by your leave to the man who was hailed as the most powerful wizard in the world, the metamorphmagus started out of the room, and began using the knowledge she'd acquired of Severus to hunt him down.

Up in the office, Dumbledore got to his feet slowly, putting a hand at his back as it cracked, and laughed softly. "Bright child…" he murmured, pleased. "I have no clue why she wasn't a Gryffindor to begin with." Just then, the hat spoke up.

"Because, Headmaster, her loyalty is of the strongest kind you can find. Its not the loyalty of the blind, or the helpless, but of the strong that can orient on the most important things, and give loyalty not for their protection, but for the best reasons you can find."

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He practically ran down the steps, and his robes billowed out behind him like he was in the face of a gale-force wind as he headed not for his chambers, but for the restricted section of the library. It would be too easy for anyone to locate him if he did. Instead he wanted the library. Where quiet was enforced, where he was surrounded by calm, and could spend untold amounts of time during nothing but poring over information, without being able to stop every three seconds to work on a potion. He managed to slow down as he got to the library, and remembered to give the shrew of a librarian a cordial nod before heading straight for the restricted section without a word to anyone. Once he was safely ensconced in the rows of dangerous books, whether that was by hexes on them, or information, he leaned his head against one shelf, and took in a deep breath, then let out a quiet "Bloody hell."

It had been one hell of a night. And it had all actually happened within the space of a half hour, although it seemed to have been dragged out over hours, at the time. He shook his head in disbelief, still not quite wanting to deal with the fact that Tonks had been so stupid as to attend a death-eater meeting as Lucius of all people. What in the world could drive anyone to do something so stupid? He wondered bitingly, but the answer almost immediately popped into his head. When someone you love is in danger, you don't necessarily think about stuff like that first, Sev! Those words, even in pure remembrance, made him feel slightly dizzy. Someone you love…you love…love…I adore you, when you kiss me I melt inside. His chest clenched as her face came to mind as she was saying the words. His study of people made him realize that she had been telling the truth; there was no real doubt about that. He only had to look at how surprised she'd looked when she said it.

And she hadn't meant to say it. He had realized that too. Realized it, and been hurt by it. Why hadn't she said it before? /Would you have accepted it before?/ His conscious inquired, and he thumped his head against the shelf. I can't even accept it now. The Potions Master groaned and mentally reviewed the conversation in the library, with her last words ringing in his mind. Why would someone like her even think that they could love him? He was the ultimate Slytherin /That's why you stick your neck out for the light side/, he didn't care for anyone /That's why the idea of her getting hurt made you feel like you were going to have a heart attack, he served the Greatest Bastard of all time /Yes, that's why you risked everything for so long to spy on him and try to help bring about his downfall./ No one even liked him. /Except Dumbledore and Tonks./ He was unworthy of any affection, let alone hers.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even hear the rather loud footsteps behind him, and had to stifle a cry of alarm when he felt two hands come to rest on the slightly protruding bones of his pelvis, followed by a warmth that pressed itself to his back. His heart hammering, he took in a deep breath, and it was then as her scent struck him, that he calmed as he realized who it was. Relaxing slightly without realizing it, he turned around slowly, and looked down at the natural—this registered with some surprise—face and features of Nymphadora Tonks. "Why'd you follow me?" He said after a moment, his expression guarded even as he had to clench his fists to resist the urge to smooth the frown line from her brow.

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Tonks blinked at the unexpected statement. She'd expected to be yelled at, to be questioned bitingly, but not this surprisingly soft question. It threw her off for a moment, but she quickly regained her mental balance, and plunged forward, not giving herself time to think, trusting her heart to guide her right. "Because I love you, you big idiot, and you need to realize that. Stop acting like a pure Slytherin, Sev, and trust me."

He raised a brow, and said sardonically, "In case you didn't realize it, I AM a Slytherin." To which she merely shook her head.

"I said pure Slytherin, Sev. None of us are pure Slytherin, pure Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Gryffindor." This surprisingly wise statement coming from someone who looked so young and vulnerable at the moment took him aback for a second, and he nodded before he realized what he was doing. "I love you." She said again.

He tried to step back, and came up against the shelf behind him. "So you said…" He tried coolly, and she shook her head again.

"I love YOU, Severus." Her hands came up to rest on the front of his robes, and she raised herself up on tiptoe.

He swallowed hard. "I believe you think you do."

Her eyes flashed that molten gold colour that caused an instant stirring in his body. "You're a pain in the ass. Rude. Sarcastic. Intolerant of bra—I mean kids. Self-pitying." Her lips were a mere inch from his as she said this. And it seemed like each word caused an arrow of pain to shoot through him. His eyes hardened, and he brought his hands up to her shoulders to push her away from him, but before he could, she pressed her lips to his briefly. "Is there any of some of your more trying aspects that I'm missing?" Tonks asked coolly, and he shook his head.

"I do believe you've quite catalo-"

"Yes would have been fine, Severus." She kissed him again, and he had to struggle to keep his lips firm, and not respond to her kiss. "Now, you're brave..." She kissed him again. "loyal...intelligent...you've got hands that a girl can dream about." Each complimentary listing of his character was followed by a short, sweet kiss.

"You make me sound like a dog." He murmured, resistance ebbing away.

"Mmm, maybe, but I certainly don't have the thoughts about dogs that I do about you." She nibbled on his lower lip, and then whispered in his ear. "I do dream about your hands, Severus, that and your voice…and the way you can move…" She was keeping this honest. She didn't dream about his face, and wasn't going to insult him by telling him something like he was drop dead gorgeous or something. The metamorphmagus eased back a half step, and smiled up at him. "You make me want to smack you, you make me laugh, and you bring out some…interesting parts of me." She kissed him again, putting all she had into it, until he finally gave in to the feel of her hips rubbing against him, and her tongue begging entry into his mouth.

His hands slid down her shoulders, to the small of her back, and finally settled on her buttocks, which he squeezed as he pulled her tightly against him and returned the kiss. When their lips finally parted, and they were panting for more reasons than just lack of air; and she grinned at him. "I love you. What does it take to convince you of that?"

His obsidian eyes fell to her lips and then rose to her eyes. "I just cannot grasp any one reason why you even feel attracted to me." He said, his throat dry.

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Then I guess its up to me to show you, isn't it?" He raised a brow again, and she cast a cushioning charm on the floor around them, followed by a quick silencing charm, and suddenly he was on his back before he even registered that he was leaving his feet. Then her lips were against his, her hands roaming over him, and it didn't take but a second for him to begin responding whole-heartedly.

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Twenty minutes later, she placed a gentle kiss onto his sweaty brow, and grinned playfully at him. "That, Snape, is one of the reasons why I feel attracted to you…and this…" She bent her head and gave him a kiss that wasn't feel with passion, but with what he'd derogatorily said were "warm, fuzzy imbecilic feelings" at one time, "is why I love you. We argue constantly, laugh at each other, annoy each other, and yet when I'm around you, I'm not uncomfortable. Often quite frustrated, yes, but not uncomfortable." She wrinkled her nose for a brief moment. "Now, do you need me to get sappy? Because I can."

His color high, he rose to a sitting position, and shook his head. "No need to for that." He said firmly, and she laughed as she too rose up to a sitting position. However, that laugh was cut off abruptly as her eyes focused on something at the end of the row, and she immediately went red, hurriedly adjusting at her clothing.

Frowning, he looked round to see what had caused such a reaction, and gave a blush that rivaled any that he'd ever seen on a Weasley.

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From the end of the restricted section row, three teens had frozen like they'd been caught in an immobulis spell, eyes on the two professors, faces disbelieving. As Tonks took down the silencing charms and headed toward her to try to explain, the shocked trio squeaked, coughed, and mouthed a curse simultaneously before turning as one, and practically flying from the library, completely ignoring Madam Pince.

It wasn't until they got to the safety of the Gryffindor common room that they said anything, and then it was all of them talking at once.

"I'm going to have nightmares!"

"She's nutters!"

"How could they do something like…that…in the school library?"

"Who? Do what?" Parvarti Patil enquired as paused from reading the latest teen witch weekly in front of the fire.

Brown, Green, and Blue eyes widened and the trio went beet red as they squeaked out, "Nothing!" and suddenly found reasons to depart from the common room, all heading in different directions.

The end.

Thank you to everyone who's reviewed I hope you enjoyed it. I may do an epilogue, if anyones interested? Just let me know.