When Hermione came to, she was lying in Severus's room. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at her concernedly, but on seeing that she was awake, stiffened slightly and moved back.

"What happened?" Hermione said, sitting up

"I believe you had a panic attack, brought on by stress no doubt" he replied seriously

Hermione shook her head in disbelief, a panic attack? She'd never had one of those before.

They just looked at each other for a while, the tension increasing between them, until Hermione decided it was probably time to make a move

"Well, I suppose I'd better go then" she said flatly, swinging her legs off the bed, "Erm...I'm sorry about your arm...and your leg by the way"

Severus just shook his head a little, looking down, as if to say it didn't matter. Hermione shuffled closer to him, nervously biting her lip. They were silent for a while, then Hermione felt she had to do something to break the tension and gingerly reached out a hand and let it come to rest on top of one of his. He looked up at this touch and as their eyes met, it was like they were locked in a stalemate, many thoughts going through both their heads.

Hermione eventually decided she would have to do something before he suddenly remembered that, he had previously told her to go. She shuffled up even closer, then pulled her legs up underneath her into a kneeling position on the bed, so she could face him. With a tummy full of butterflies and a pounding heart, she brought a shaky hand up to hold his cheek; then leaning forward, planted a soft kiss on his lips.

To her delight she felt him return the kiss, making her tingle with a mixture of fear and anticipation. She pulled away, then rested her forehead against his, feeling his hand sliding up around the back of her neck.

Hermione felt the tension between them increase even more, her breathing becoming more audible as her fast beating heart made her pant gently. She was still worried that at any moment Severus was going to get up and ask her to leave, so she dared not move a muscle.

But he didn't ask her to leave; instead, he turned himself slightly and moved forward kissing her this time, then pulled back. He reached up to hold her face in one hand, like she had done with him. Closing her eyes with pleasure she turned her head slightly to kiss his warm palm, then she reached up her own hand to hold it in place over her lips.

He looked away, then shook his head, blowing air of his mouth gently, but did not remove his hand.

Hermione reached out again, this time to slide her arms around his neck, he responded by sliding his, around her waist. They kissed again, Hermione was nervous, but not as scared as she thought she would be. She pushed against him gently and he allowed her to lie him back on the bed. At first their kisses were soft and light, lips just brushing against each other, but then passion began to take over. She felt his hands move slowly up and down her back, squeezing gently now and again, as their tongues and lips caressed.

Feeling lost in the moment, Hermione gradually relaxed and started to enjoy herself, being with him almost felt like coming home to a warm familiar place, which was somewhere she felt safe, but at the same exhilarating and excitingly unpredictable.

Her questing fingers found the buttons to his tunic and she undid them deftly, then did the same to his shirt and slid open both garments to the sides. She began planting soft kisses all over his chest, noticing that his heart was pounding like a drum too. After a while she opened her eyes and saw that several new, jagged scars now marked the skin over his rib cage and after tracing them with her finger, wondering exactly how he got them, kissed them too.

She kept on kissing downwards, enjoying the sensation of his warm skin against her lips. She stopped at his belly then rested her head there for a while, the softly curled hair that grew there, tickling her cheek. She felt him brush her hair gently back off her face, then just stroke it for a while and she closed her eyes in ecstasy, as she loved having her hair played with.

Then he brought himself back up to a sitting position, pulling her up with him. Very carefully he leaned over and began to kiss her neck, making her tingle with pleasure. She felt tears spring to her eyes then; she wanted this, but she felt so nervous and worried that she would panic again. But as he worked on her neck, with his lips and tongue, she soon began to relax.

After a while he sat back on his legs, to take off his jacket and shirt, revealing his pale, lean, lightly muscled body. Hermione noticed that even though he was still slim, he had put on a little more weight since she had last seen him like this, which made him look much better. His body was surprisingly youthful for his age, his chest was still firm and his belly only had a cute little bulge, when he was sitting down. He leant forward again, pushing her back gently this time. She put her hands on his upper arms as he did so, then remembered the burn she had inflicted on one of them. She felt rather guilty, as she stroked her fingers across the still raw patch of skin on his upper arm. How could she have done that to him? Maybe she had acted like a spoilt child, like he had said, stamping her foot and lashing out in uncontrolled anger, because she couldn't have what she wanted.

Now she was lying back on the bed, her head resting on a pillow, he returned the favour she had done him, by unbuttoning her shirt. After sliding the shirt off, he leant over her, kissing her chest around the collarbone and then moving down to her belly. She closed her eyes, enjoying the tingling sensations from his soft gentle touch. She pushed her belly up and reaching underneath her back, undid her skirt and slid it off, leaving her in just her underwear.

He smiled at her then, looking her up and down, then stood up and undid his trousers, letting them fall and pulled down his boxers just enough for her to see his now swelling manhood.

"You always have this effect on me now, whether I want you to or not!" he said, looking down and pursing his lips playful derision

She leant up reaching out her hand, then after first looking into his eyes smiling uncertainly, she began to stroke the large tumescent length he had produced gently and marveled at how deliciously silky the skin felt.

Nerves jangled in her tummy again, as she thought about what she wanted to do, but then she realised that there was really no comparison between Draco's violent assault and her older lover's skillful touch. Severus had never forced himself on her, he had only not been afraid to push her in the right direction and she had only been too willing to let him.

Reaching around her back, she undid the clasp of her bra and slid it off slowly, down her arms. Then standing up, she removed her lace g-string, letting it fall to the floor, Severus not taking his eyes off her once as she did so. After watching her, he finished undressing too; removing his trousers, socks and shoes. She lay back down on the bed and he lay down next to her, propping him self up on his elbow, his erection nudging at her thigh

"Would you like to go on top this time?" he asked, tracing a finger lightly down her body, between her breasts.

Hermione answered this question by sitting up and straddling her self across his belly, then lifting up her bottom and moving back a little to get into the right position. With his help she eventually managed to take him in, then began to move slowly up and down his length, leaning forward on her hands. It felt strange to her to be the one on top, but she rather liked the feeling of control it gave her. She could go as fast or as slow as she wanted and he could only penetrate as deep as she allowed him to.

Soon she got into a rhythm and now and again, leant down to kiss him, all the time keeping her hips in motion. They carried on like this, until Severus could hold back no longer and he came inside of her. After a quick anti-pregnancy spell, they got comfortable, with Hermione lying on her side up against him, her leg bent up over his and her hand resting on his chest.

After a while Hermione asked the question that had been burning inside of her, ever since he had got back.

"Severus...what happened to you? Where had you been, while you were away?" she enquired nervously, hoping he wasn't going to somehow avoid the question, as he usually would.

After a few moments tortuous silence, he sighed deeply before deciding to tell her

"I was in Greece and was captured by their Ministry of Magic; the O.P. Some other deatheaters and I were meeting in secret, but it seems we were being watched, we must have been informed upon. I took on the three aurors that attacked us, but it seems my friends were not so keen to do so and I was left to tackle them alone. I managed quite well until one of them used a very powerful spell on me. I don't know what it was but I was knocked unconscious and woke on the floor of a darkened cell. My captors spoke good English and for days they questioned me about Voldemort and his activities, I refused to answer their questions of course, I could not compromise my position as a spy, so they began to use torture and beatings to break me. They also deprived me of food and water and made me drink foul tasting potions. They were frustrated though, as I am, fortunately, thanks to my own skills in that area, immune to truth serums of any kind. One day they left me alone for some time and I began to think of a means of escape. In my cell there was only a high barred window, but it was that or nothing. I waited as long as I dared, to allow it to get dark outside first and weak as I was, I managed to crawl up the stone walls, using the little wandless magic I had left in me. Then with as much concentration as I could muster, I melted the bars enough to be able to snap them and push them out. I looked through the hole and saw that there was a drop of some twenty feet below, but the walls were very rough-hewn, so I thought it might be possible to climb down them, as I had climbed up inside the cell. I managed to squeeze myself through the small gap, which thanks to their starving me, I slipped through fairly easily. I managed to get half way down the wall, before I was spotted and shot at with wandfire, coming from many directions. The next thing I knew I was falling and I tried in vain to keep a grip on the wall that I was climbing down. I fell hard on the ground below, breaking several ribs and also breaking my arm, when I landed on it. Suddenly I was aware of more wandfire coming from within some trees surrounding the stone fortress they had imprisoned me within. It was Aurors from our Ministry; I heard them approach and then talk to the Greek ministry men for an indeterminable length of time, as by then I was drifting in and out of consciousness. I only woke up properly when we got to Hogwarts, they must have used a port-key, then they conjured up a stretcher and brought me up to the hospital wing." he said, concluding his story

Hermione was amazed he had told her so much, but was still curious, "why didn't you just apparate away, why did you try and fight them?"

"They must have had some sort of anti-apparation shield up, for I tried and found that I could not" he answered

"They must have taken your wand, how did you get it back?" she asked

"Truthfully I don't know, Kingsley and Harley must have retrieved it for me somehow."

"Well, now I know" Hermione sighed, "You wouldn't believe how I felt when I saw you being carried in to the hospital! When I saw the state you were in, I was really shocked, but at the same time I was just glad you were back in one piece!"

"What were you doing in the hospital, were you ill?" he questioned, creasing his brow in concern.

Hermione looked down sadly, before speaking, "I had collapsed, Draco's attack had left me in a right state and I was in delayed shock, but Madame Pomfrey gave me a potion that took away the worst of the trauma. It seems like the attack happened a long time ago now, but the memory of it still hurts."

Severus sighed deeply again

"Draco would have made a fine wizard if it had not been for his father. He has an excellent mind and much talent, but he lacks the discipline and concentration to use them effectively. All he thinks about now is becoming a deatheater like his father, he believes it will give him what he wants, more power. His father has made him think he is invincible and not subject to the same laws as everyone else, like he believes of himself, but Draco is a young fool, like the rest of us were; he doesn't understand that we Deatheaters are merely pawns in Voldemorts sick game" Severus said reflectively, then he turned to her and said

"You had better go now, it is almost dinnertime"

Hermione merely snuggled into him and put her arm further around his chest.

"I don't want to go, can't I have dinner with you, like I did before?" she asked hopefully, then she heard him sigh and begin to shake his head, "Please?" she added

"Very well, but then you will have to go, I have a meeting tonight in Dumbledores office" he answered eventually, giving in.

He got dressed, but she found his black robe and put it on thinking she would get dressed later. After calling the house elf to make his order, he conjured a table and chairs, just as he had done before, all those weeks ago. Once the food and drink arrived they sat down and began to eat. This time he had only ordered water to drink, as he said he needed a clear head for the night ahead. The meal was as delicious as usual, grilled fish with vegetables and sauce then fruit sorbet for afters. Hermione was just tucking into her sorbet and thinking how to tackle the thorny subject of her and Severus's strange relationship, when a shout outside the door brought her out of her reverie.

"Snape!" then what sounded like the pounding of a fist, "Snape! You bloody bastard! I'm gonna' kill you!"

Severus did not look at all worried by these threats and merely raised an eyebrow, before going to the door. Hermione on the other hand looked absolutely horrified, putting her hand to her mouth in shock. "Oh my god! RON!" she exclaimed as quietly as possible

Severus indicated that she should go back into the bedroom and she quickly did as she was told. She sat down on the bed, shaking with worry and feeling a cold sweat of fear creep over her. It was obvious that either Ginny or Harry had told him, but why? Then she remembered Harry's warning, that if it came down to it he would not lie to Ron about her relationship with the potion's master, so it had probably been him. She saw the wall close over in front of her, which Severus had obviously done to hide the room and her within it. After a while she was dying to know what was being said, so after finding her wand, she used it to cast a hearing enhancement spell. She leant her head against the cold wall, pressing her ear as close as possible and heard a heated argument.

"Where is she? You pervert! I'm going to tell my Dad, they'll come and arrest you! There's got to be a law against it! Now what have you done with her!" she heard Ron's voice shout

"I don't know what you are talking about, you've gone quite mad! I think you need to go and see Madame Pomfrey, for a calming potion, before you land yourself in a great deal of trouble" Severus's voice said calmly, but with a dangerous edge.

"What? Come on, I'm not stupid! I know what's been going on, you filthy pervert! You've done this just to get at Harry and me haven't you! Now tell me what you've done with her!" Ron shouted, then Hermione heard scuffling, as if a fight was in progress. She was worried then; she had no idea who would come off the best or worst; Severus with his experience and great skill or Ron with his strength and tactical ability. She guessed they were pretty evenly matched physically, but magically Severus was definitely the superior one. Then she heard more shouting, it was Ginny and Harry, followed by Dumbledore. Everything went silent, then she heard Dumbledores voice say through the wall, "I think you had better come out now, don't you Hermione?"

The wall disappeared and Hermione walked nervously into the office, wrapping the robe more tightly around her, hardly daring to look up.

Ron spoke first, "tell me it isn't true, tell me you don't feel anything for this..this giant bat!" he said pleadingly

Hermione looked up then into his expectant face, which was red with anger, but she couldn't seem to find the right words, so she just looked down again.

"What the hell is going on?" he demanded angrily, breaking free of his sisters restraining grip on his arm and walking over to his ex-girlfriend, "has he been forcing you to do stuff with him? Does this have something to do with Draco's attack on you?" Ron demanded again

Hermione was trying hard not to burst into tears and bit her lip; she looked directly into Ron's eyes and felt suddenly very guilty. She had not only cheated on him, she had consistently lied to him, when all he had ever done was love her. She still loved him, just not the same way as before.

"I'm so sorry Ron!" was all she could manage to say, before the floodgates opened and she burst into tears. Ginny ran to comfort her, but before he could say anything else Dumbledore interjected

"I thought this was at an end Severus?"

"I tried Dumbledore, but she..." then he trailed off, sighing, casting his eyes downward

"Well, it seems we have a problem then" Dumbledore announced, sitting down on one of the chairs at the dinner table.