Chapter 6 - February

February 2nd

It is so unfair. Hermione Granger was supposed to be embarrassed in front of the whole school when her aging potion blew up and made her and Neville Longbottom old. I thought it really worked because she hasn't been back to potions class since, but it didn't.

I heard Harry and Ron talking about Hermione before class started. They feel sorry for Hermione because she is working on a special potions project with Professor Snape. Even though she blew up her aging potion, Professor Snape thinks she's too smart for 7th year potions and is teaching her advanced things privately. Hermione gets to go to the library and do her homework during potions class because the private teaching cuts into her homework time. Harry and Ron feel sorry for her because she has to spend so much time alone with Snape.

They have a point. Maybe that's even better revenge than embarrassing her.

Oh, I was 'teaching her advanced things privately' all right.

Hermione mastered brewing the Wolfsbane potion more quickly than he ever dreamed possible, which left them with two hours between dinner and rounds every night to spend as they pleased. It occurred to him that he could teach her to brew any one of a hundred useful and complicated potions, but instead he chose to bewitch her mind and ensnare her senses in an entirely different way.

He had expected Hermione to take to sex with the same confidence and enthusiasm that she displayed in the classroom, and was disappointed and frustrated when he discovered that this was not the case. Hermione was a mass of shame and insecurity when it came to her own body. The girl, who bounced in her seat and waved her hand furiously for an opportunity to demonstrate her mental gifts, undressed in the dark and wouldn't remove her under things until she was securely beneath the blankets of his bed.

He was tolerant of her insecurities at first, thinking she just needed time to become more comfortable with him. But as the weeks passed her initial shyness became a routine that frustrated them both. He had yet to see her body and she had never experienced the full pleasure that their union should have brought her. Weary of waiting for her to come around on her own, Severus decided to take matters into his own hands, so to speak. A small smile crossed his lips as he remembered the night when she finally experienced her first orgasm.

"Nox"

"Lumos. The lights stay on, Hermione." Severus removed his outer robe and sat on the bed in his white shirt and trousers. "Come here."

She stood in front of him, dressed in her school uniform -- a sight that simultaneously excited and shamed him. He felt her body stiffen beneath his hands as he removed her outer robe and tie. His deft fingers made short work of the buttons of her blouse and the clasp of her bra. Red-faced with embarrassment, her bottom lip quivered and she crossed her arms over her naked breasts. Severus gently, but firmly, placed her arms back at her sides.

"They're too small," she whispered.

"They're perfect." He reached out and drew her to him, taking each rosy nipple into his mouth and laving it to a firm point. Slowly, she relaxed. She gasped with pleasure as he encompassed each of her breasts in his large hands and caressed them with a gentle touch that stood in stark contrast to his harsh nature. "So perfect. So beautiful."

A tiny moan of protest escaped her lips as he undid the fasteners of her skirt and let it fall to the ground. Seeing her clad only in her white cotton knickers, knee socks and loafers was an uncomfortable reminder to him that she was indeed a student and that what they were doing was inappropriate. He could have stopped then…should have stopped then, but instead pulled her down on top of him and kissed her deeply. He rolled over so she laid on his bed and quickly removed her remaining clothing. Now naked before him, she wasn't a student; she was his lover, his intellectual equal and his comfort. He wanted to please her.

Her tiny moans of protest slowly became uninhibited cries of pleasure as he showered kisses along her jaw and neck. She squealed with delight when his kisses became more urgent and moved down to her breasts and belly. Her breathing hitched when she could feel his breath on the silky curls of her sex. Startled, Hermione attempted to close her legs when the destination of his questing mouth became clear but Severus would have none of it. He parted her thighs and ran his tongue lightly along her cleft.

"Doesn't that taste bad?" she whimpered. With difficulty, he moved her thighs further apart, opening her to him. He nuzzled her clit with his nose drove his tongue deep inside her.

"Sweet…like honey," he mumbled into her center. "Hot."

Seemingly reassured, he felt her body begin to relax under his persistent ministrations. He traced intricate patterns on her clit with his tongue as he stroked her core with long, practiced fingers. Before long her hips began to move with the involuntary thrusts of her building pleasure.

Severus quickly worked the buttons of his trousers and freed his straining cock. Still fully clothed, he drove into her naked body. Her excitement made her body even tighter than it had been when he took her virginity. A woman never felt this good to him before. She was made for him. Her tight, inexperienced body gripped him like a glove as his carefully controlled thrusts became faster and more forceful.

"Open your eyes, Hermione. Look at me." She looked up at him, shyly at first, and they wide-eyed with astonishment as his movements pushed her to higher levels of excitement than she had ever experienced before. She struggled to keep them open as she lost herself in the sensations he was creating.

Her eyes slipped shut and she cried out with surprise as waves of pleasure coursed through her body for the first time. And Severus lost himself completely when her body pulsed around his. It was more than he could take. With a cry of triumph and satisfaction, he spilled into her. He remained sheathed inside her as her body squeezed the last drop of his free will from him. When nothing remained, he rolled off of her and fell back heavily into the bed. Both smiling broadly, their eyes met again.

"So that's what everyone is talking about!" Hermione's eyes shone with delight and discovery. Severus looked upon her and felt the stirring of an emotion that he couldn't readily identify. It wasn't love or respect, but rather something in-between…or maybe a combination of the two. Her expression moved him in a way he had never been moved before.

Later that evening, after Hermione left and he was alone with his thoughts, he tried his hand at a spell, which to his shame, he had never been able to cast successfully. He focused on the mental image of Hermione's face, her mouth open with pleasure as she moved her body under his. He heard his name on her lips as she called out at the peak of her excitement.

EXPECTO PATRONUM!

And there it was. It wasn't something sinister or evil, as he expected it would be. It was beautiful. A silver falcon glided gracefully around his chambers. He watched in awe for what seemed like hours, as the tangible evidence of his happiness flew in lazy circles through his rooms, before evaporating into a silver mist. Any doubts he had about his relationship with Hermione evaporated with it.

Severus sighed deeply as he recalled that evening. It was one of his most cherished memories.

And the first memory the Dementors will suck from my mind if I don't concentrate.

February 14th

Hyacinth Potter

Mrs. Harry Potter

Hyacinth Tilly Potter

Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter

Harry and Hyacinth Potter

I can't decide which one I like best. We have to be apart for this Valentine's Day, but maybe we can do something very special for the next one. Something like get married.

I'll be spending this Valentine's Day with my friends, along with Athene and Hedwig. It's a shame Athene and Hedwig and both girls. It would be so cute if our owls were a couple, just like Harry and me. I hope Bella comes to the Owlery. I think she's afraid of Annie and I only get to talk to her when the other girls are asleep.

We'll probably do some wedding planning tonight. After that Annie wants to think of something else to do to Hermione Granger, but everyone is getting bored with that. After Harry and I are married we won't see that much of her anyway. I've got better things to think about.

More good news! Mrs. Ely owled me and let me know that I can work at the Owl Emporium over Easter break if I want to. Do I want to? Is she kidding? It's the only thing that makes being apart from Harry bearable. I sure wish he would hurry up and kill You-Know-Who so we can be together. He has to kill him before the end of the school year so he can kiss me in front of the whole school. Oops. Sorry. That was a nag. I shouldn't have written that.

I can wait as long as it takes.

She's spending more time with Annie and less time with Bella. That doesn't bode well. Still, her focus is moving away from Hermione and her obsession with Potter is exceeding all bounds. No reason yet why she attacked Hermione, no reason why Dumbledore gave this diary to me, and still nothing more than a hunch why the Petrificus Totalus killed her. I have GOT to talk to Lupin. Where to hell is Tonks when you need her?

She spent Valentine's Day in the Owlery with her "friends" planning her wedding. Severus wondered how that information could help him. A sudden realization hit him and his eyes went wide with apprehension.

Good Gods, no!

He tore into her next diary entry.

February 15th

Oh my God! Oh my God! It. Was. So. Gross.

Last night I was in the Owlery planning my wedding and Hermione Granger came in. My friends and I knew we should do something but we couldn't come up with a plan fast enough so we just hid. I know all of the best hiding spots in the Owlery.

Anyway, she didn't post a letter or play with an owl or anything. She just stood there, looking out the window. Then Professor Snape walked in. I was kind of happy about that because I thought she was going to get in trouble. He asked her if they were alone and when she said yes, HE KISSED HER! And it wasn't just a peck on the cheek either; their mouths were open and they used tongues and his hands were in her hair and on her bum. And what's even worse, SHE LIKED IT. I always knew there was something wrong with Hermione Granger, but I never in a million years thought she would snog an old greasy git like Snape. She's disgusting.

Then they started talking. He said that Valentine's Day was his favorite holiday because he got to deduct so many house points. He said that he had already deducted fifty points from Gryffindor and thirty points from Ravenclaw after catching couples snogging. Hermione said that she should deduct points from Slytherin because the head of house was snogging the head girl in the Owlery. He said that he would deduct an equal amount of points from Gryffindor because the head girl was snogging the head of Slytherin. They both laughed about it. Snape laughed. He really laughed. I honestly didn't think her was capable of such a thing.

Snogging a teacher is bad, but what Granger did next was even worse. She told one of Harry's secrets to Snape. Professor Snape told Hermione that if they were going to be able to continue meeting after supper they would have to start doing some actual work again. (What have they been doing I wonder?) He said that maybe it would be a good idea to work on Polyjuice potion next. Granger laughed at him and he asked her what was so funny. That's when she told a secret.

She told Professor Snape that she, Harry and Ron brewed Polyjuice in the girl's bathroom when they were only second years. Professor Snape pretended to look shocked and said that he should have the lot of them expelled. Then he asked her how it turned out and a lot of other blah, blah, blah, potions talk.

Everybody knows that Snape has it in for my Harry. And now Hermione is snogging Snape and telling him Harry's secrets. Hermione Granger is not Harry's friend. She has Harry fooled. He'll never believe me unless I have proof. So I'll have to get him proof or take care of Granger myself.

She knew about Hermione and me. Oh, dear Gods. That's why Albus didn't give the diary to the Aurors. Albus knows then too. I'm done for.

A crash at the door of his chambers alerted him that Tonks had finally arrived. He tucked the diary away and opened another book.

"Wotcher, Severus." Tonks dropped herself ungraciously into the seat in front of his desk and tossed a roll of parchment to him. "I have those autopsy reports for you. I'm sure they'll make for entertaining reading. They don't say much more than I've already told you."

"Thank you. Hopefully I'll find something that your examiner overlooked. But, first things first. I need to see Lupin." He looked at Tonks expectantly.

"No. That's not possible."

"Tonks, he has to start taking Wolfsbane potion next week and I need to examine him to see if the refinements I made worked properly." He lied well. Tonks did not show any outward sign that she doubted him.

"He's going to have to find another potions master. It would be highly improper for you to receive guests in your present circumstances, even if it is only Remus. Sorry Sev." Severus anticipated that she would make things difficult and played his trump card.

"I understand. I'll forward his specific formulation to whomever he chooses. I hope he finds someone good, and soon. Imagine what would happen to Rosemary and the baby if his potion is not brewed properly." Severus returned to his reading as if it were of no consequence to him if he saw Lupin or not. Tonks sighed deeply and quickly banished the image of Lupin's family shredded into bloody ribbons from her mind.

"Fine. But keep it short. Here's some Floo powder. Enough for a call, not enough to Floo out of here. I'm trusting you, Severus."

"Thank you." He strode over to the hearth, threw in a handful of powder and stuck his head in. "Lupin. LUPIN."

"I'm right here, Severus. Keep your shorts on. What can I do for you?"

"You need to come to my chambers, now."

"I do?" Remus blinked with surprise.

"Yes, you do," said Severus impatiently. He gave Lupin a look that he hoped conveyed his need for the werewolf to stop asking questions and just comply.

"Rosemary stepped out. I'll have to bring the baby with me," said Remus.

"Fine. Do whatever you need to do. Just come now," Severus snarled.

"Give me a few moments." Severus stood impatiently by the hearth and, as promised, Lupin emerged a few moments later with a baby in tow. "What is so bloody important --"

Severus quieted the werewolf with a stern look and motioned to Tonks with his eyes.

"Tonks. Hello." Remus looked to Severus with confusion.

"You brought the baby!" Tonks covered the distance between herself and Remus in a heartbeat and began entertaining the baby by making funny noses.

"Perhaps you could take Annabelle into the next room so Remus and I can have some privacy," said Severus. Tonks quickly regained her professional demeanor.

"I said you could see him. I didn't say you could have an unsupervised visit."

"I have to examine him to see if the new formulation had any ill effects," said Severus. "I'm sure Lupin won't mind if you observe. Strip down to your shorts, Lupin."

"I beg your pardon," said Remus, beginning to lose his sense of humor with the ruse.

"I think I'll just take Annabelle into the next room," said Tonks. Her face was nearly as pink as her hair.

"Sit down, Lupin," said Severus when he heard the door shut, giving them privacy. "How far does this new 'getting along' thing between us go?"

"Not far enough to get me to strip down to my shorts. Do you want to tell me what in Merlin's name going on here?"

"I killed a student."

"You what?" Remus's eyes went wide with astonishment.

"I accidentally killed a student." Severus repeated wearily.

"Who? How?"

"Her name was Hyacinth Tilly. I restrained her from injuring another student with a Petrificus Totalus and she dropped dead. No one knows why."

"Hyacinth Tilly," Remus searched his mind. "The bird girl?"

"Do you remember all of your students?" Severus asked with annoyance.

"Yes. Don't you? Why am I here Severus? What does any of this have to do with me?"

"She mentioned you in her diary." Severus opened Miss Tilly's diary to the appropriate entry and handed it to Remus, who read it with interest.

"Yes, I remember that day. I picked up two untraceable owls from Ely for the Order," said Remus.

"That's what I thought it might be," Severus said with satisfaction. "How do those owls work?"

"I'm not sure of all of the details. Ely alters them somehow and when you cast a simple disillusionment charm on them, it renders them absolutely invisible and untraceable. You can't see them, smell them or hear them. The only way to detect them is to actually touch them."

"How does he alter them?" asked Severus.

"I don't know, but I can find out. How do you think the owls are connected to Miss Tilly's death?"

"I don't want to speculate until I learn more. Can you get back to me this afternoon? I don't have much time. They found a potion in Miss Tilly's system, which looks highly incriminating for me. I'll probably be sent to Azkaban this evening if no evidence is found that conclusively clears me."

"I'll get back to you within the hour," said Remus.

"Lupin, I didn't mean to kill her."

"I know you didn't, Severus. I know."

Severus watched with apprehension as Lupin collected his child from Tonks and said his goodbyes.

"I'll be in touch soon," said Lupin as he stepped into the hearth.