a/n - Again, edited for content. Feel free to email me for the unedited version. Enjoy!

The least movement affects all nature; the entire sea changes because of a rock. - Pascal

Chapter 11

Suddenly Snape's hands grasped her shoulders, ending the kiss. "What on Earth are you doing Miss Granger?" he asked firmly.

Now she was completely baffled, but she laughed anyway. The joy had overwhelmed her. "Why are you calling me that?"

"Calling you what?" he asked.

"Miss Granger," she giggled nervously. "It was cute the first time, but now it's just odd."

His eyes were searching her apprehensively, "I think you need to lie back down. The potion must not have taken care of the concussion."

She couldn't figure out why he was teasing her like this after she'd believed him to be dead. "I feel fine now that I know you're alive."

"That is very good." He was speaking slowly as though she was having trouble grasping the idea.

"What is the matter with you?" she asked, alarmed. He was looking at her as if he hardly knew her at all.

"What is the matter with you is the more pressing question." His face was different somehow, she suddenly noticed, and he was certainly acting strangely.

Removing herself from his lap, she stood, scanning the room in bewilderment and pacing to the isle between the two rows of beds. They were in the infirmary at Hogwarts. That made perfect sense. The only thing that wasn't making sense was Severus.

"Tell me what happened," she said vehemently.

"You know what happened," he replied in a soft voice.

"No," she said in frustration. "Tell me what happened after I lost consciousness."

He looked ever more watchful. "I brought you back here."

She was so very happy to see him, but he was maddening the hell out of her and her head was starting to ache again. She restated the question, "After I killed Galena I passed out. What happened after that? How did you survive?"

Eyes wide, he stood from the chair, his height not nearly as daunting as the mounting concern on his face. "What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding suspicious.

She sighed and said with much less emotion than the sentence warranted, "I heard Galena yell the killing curse and then I heard you say the same thing. When I came into the room, I saw you dead and then I killed Galena. After that I passed out."

"That is not possible," he gasped.

"Why's that?" she asked impatiently.

He still looked extremely wary. "Because there is no way you could know that."

"And why's that?" she asked, becoming worried herself.

"Tell me who you think Galena is," he said firmly.

More than stunned she answered, "You're old lover, don't you remember?"

"Of course I remember," he said, guarded. "But how could you possibly know?"

Now she was extremely concerned and thought Madam Pomphrey should have a look at him. "I'm going to go get--" she began, but she never finished. Catching a glimpse of herself in a long mirror on the wall, she was transfixed. She could see herself staring back, but she was wearing her old school robes and her Head Girl badge was pinned to her chest. The clothes were nothing to her appearance. She looked as though she was still eighteen years old, which was simply ludicrous.

She spun around to Severus. "What kind of joke is this?" she asked pointing toward her reflection.

"It is no joke," he said, still eyeing her in disbelief.

She thought she was going to be sick. Her heart in her throat, she asked, "What day is it?"

"Friday," he answered. "June twenty-second."

"That isn't possible," she breathed. "Where did you bring me back from?" she asked in a strained voice.

"The Ministry," he answered slowly. "You were--"

She waved her hand frantically, "I know that part." The information was settling in, but the fact of the matter was that it couldn't possibly be true. There was only one thing that could rationalize the situation. "I must have had the most vivid dream," she said rubbing her temple that was aching horribly again. "But it all seemed so real, I can remember it all perfectly."

"You are not the only one," Severus said under his breath.

She shook her head, trying to clear it of all the thoughts flying through it at once. "I lived more than six years," she explained in awe. "And I remember every second as though I actually lived it, detail for bloody detail." She was in base amazement. "I don't know what to do. This all feels so strange."

"I know," he replied gently. "I nodded off myself for a moment and had a bizarre dream. It is all the stress. Now lie back down before Poppy comes back and hexes me for letting you out of bed." He shook his head slowly as he turned back to the bed, barely whispering loud enough for her to hear, "It was such a nice dream until the end."

She narrowed her eyes, her heart was beating faster than it ever should and her mind was twisting with a thousand different questions. Was it possible, she wondered? "What was your dream about?" she asked, trying to sound casual.

A smile crossed her lips as the faintest blush colored his cheeks. "Ah, it was…well…none of your business," he said, his voice tense.

Suddenly she understood. Hermione was all but sure she'd solved the riddle. "You remember," she said in a loud whisper as she crossed the aisle to where he was still standing next to the bed and fixed him with a hard stare. "You remember just as much as I do."

"You do not know that," he replied his stubborn exterior fading a bit under her gaze.

"Then tell me what you remember," she instructed.

He shook his head, "There is nothing about it that you need to know."

She laughed brazenly, walking toward him and laughing again as he retreated until his knees made contact with the chair behind him and he fell into it. Bending over until her face was level with his, she said, "Then I'll tell you what I remember."

His eyes were looking everywhere except her face. "That really is not necessary." His voice was shaky.

She giggled, "Oh yes it is." He tried to stand, but she sat back astride his lap to hold him down. He sighed and stared blankly over her shoulder. She laughed again. Thinking she'd better get on with it before he pushed her away, she said, "I remember you walking into that bar on Ledbetter Street." His gaze did not waver. "I particular liked the jeans you were wearing. They suited you well." He gasped, but he still wouldn't look at her.

She continued, "I remember Tuesday morning before the sun came up." He finally met her eyes with wonder on his face. "I know who Galena is, and to be honest, she's a bitch." He laughed subtly. "And I know you had a cat named Cookie, of all things."

His eyes widened as he took a deep breath, "I told you that at The Three Broomsticks."

Hermione breathed a deep sigh of relief. "You were drinking vodka screwdrivers."

He smiled, "You punched the Weasley boy."

She giggled, "He was being an ass."

Snape hugged her tightly, dispelling all of her worry. No matter what was going on at least they were in it together. Pulling her away, he looked at her adoringly, the look he must have been suppressing since she awoke. "I did not think it possible," he said. Smiling warmly, he chuckled, "I have missed you so much the last few moments."

"Missed me?" she exclaimed. "I thought you were dead!"

Slowly he leaned in and kissed her, except this time it was long and soft and made her feel ethereal. The quiet cough from behind her wasn't nearly enough to pull her from this reverie. The circumstances could be dealt with later because that kiss was the most important occurrence in the entire world at the moment.

"I see you two have gotten to know each other a little better." Albus Dumbledore was standing right behind her.

> > > > > > > > > >

Reluctantly breaking the kiss, Snape looked up into the smiling face of his friend, pondering how he was going to explain.

"Albus," was all he managed to say before the old man waved his hand.

"No need to explain Severus," he said kindly. "It is easy enough to see what's going on."

"But," Hermione tried to add until Albus cut her off as well.

Albus winked before saying, "Strange things can happen when that locked door in the Department of Mysteries is opened."

Snape was astounded, but not entirely caught off guard by Albus' perception. "We lived another life in a dream by some means, the same dream," he told his friend.

Albus nodded wisely. "Oh, that was not a dream. That was very real for those affected by the ripple."

"Ripple?" Hermione asked. Snape noticed she was blushing, probably because she had realized she was still sitting on his lap in front of Albus.

"The ripple in the course of love," he smiled shrewdly, sitting on the bed beside them. "Love is never set in stone. Therefore, when something disrupts the general path, as Voldemort did tonight when it consumed him, we get a ripple. It doesn't affect everyone in the same way. Some only feel a bit happier about life, while others may get a glimpse into a likely future to show them what they would be missing, in a sense."

Snape was thinking that the man was absolutely brilliant when Hermione spoke, "So you mean it was the future as it would have been if we'd never revealed our feelings to each other?"

Albus laughed, "Reveal is the least of it. It took you both a very long time to figure out what those feelings truly were. Tonight, that powerful energy had the opportunity to point out the apparent oversight on your parts." He smirked before adding, "Love gets impatient when those it has meant for each other are so slow to comprehend."

Snape was curious, "How do you know how long it took for us to find each other?"

Albus nodded, "Yes, you two seem to be handling this well so I'll be off. I'd only come to see if Hermione was better and as I can plainly see, she is doing well."

Snape laughed, "You are avoiding the question."

Albus turned his attention to Hermione, "Ron should be back shortly, but it would be best if you waited until morning to speak with him, considering his condition." He winked at her. "Severus, you're fired."

"What?" Snape asked in astonishment.

Albus chuckled warmly, "Until further notice, you are no longer a teacher at this school, which means you are no longer bound by the school bylaws." He looked to Hermione, "Though you are finished with classes, you are technically a student for another week."

"How do you know absolutely everything?" Snape asked, positively thunderstruck.

"Goodnight," Albus said as he headed for the exit. Just as he reached the door, he added, "Do behave yourselves."

Snape was shaking his head and smirking as Albus left the infirmity. "That man is in desperate need of a psychiatrist."

Hermione laughed and beautiful did not describe her as she did so. He was so glad to find her, no matter how convoluted the circumstances were. She suddenly stopped laughing. "Wait, if that all would have really happened, then what about Lucius?"

"What about him?" Snape asked.

"Your scotch," she said pointedly. "What if he's in our rooms right now?"

He understood what she was saying, but he had to smile. "Our rooms, you say?"

She blushed, "Well…they were. I don't know." She sighed, "I don't think I've ever been so confused in my entire life." She shook her head as she laughed.

"You are not alone," he told her as he laughed as well. "It really is of no concern because he will be captured tonight anyway. And besides, scotch does not sound that pleasant to me anymore."

She giggled as he lifted her to her feet and stood himself as he said, "Let's go home love."

She answered as she took his hand, "I've been waiting for you to say that all day."

It was so very late that they didn't meet any students or teachers on the way down to the dungeons. Holding hands boldly through the halls, Snape was almost disappointed. He would have loved to see the looks on some of their faces.

He had been so very disappointed when he opened his eyes shortly after he had thought he was dead. He wasn't dismayed to be alive, but when he saw Hermione in the bed in her school uniform, he knew it had all been an inordinately wonderful dream. When she woke and kissed him, he couldn't allow himself to believe she had experienced the same thing he had. That simply could not happen. He was going to allow himself to enjoy that one kiss and allow that to sustain the memory. At least until she magnificently forced him to believe otherwise.

The first thing he did when they reached their destination was change the wards. He wasn't going to make that same mistake again. To his surprise, the sitting room was just as it had been which shouldn't have been surprising at all. This was certainly thoroughly perplexing. A glance at the mantle clock told him it was almost half past three in the morning and he was amazed that he wasn't more tired.

"Do I still get to keep the desk?" she teased soon after they arrived.

"The same rules still apply," he advised.

"That's fine with me," she answered as she disappeared into the bedroom.

He followed her saying, "Unfortunately, we will not have the luxury of our old bedroom."

He heard her laugh as he turned the corner and laughed himself. The room was just as he remembered it, the massive bed included. Standing just in front of him through her giggles she said, "Do you think he approves?"

Snape took a step so that he was standing behind her and wrapped his arms around the waist he had so coveted. He pulled back her hair to kiss her neck. "I do not care if anyone approves except you," he said in a low voice.

He could feel her shiver in his arms. Leaning her head back against his chest, she sighed, "I love you."

Nuzzling his face in her neck, he replied, "And I love you."

He kissed her neck again, the goose flesh rising up under his touch. Pulling her against him, he whispered, "How does your head feel?"

"Like it wants you to kiss me again," she answered quietly.

"As you wish," he replied.

He obeyed, kissing her neck and down to the nape, until he felt her tremble against him. He drew his hands up her side until they were alongside her breasts and smiled at her gasp of delight. Sliding his hands over top of her chest to the buttons of her cloak, she moaned softly. Unfastening them slowly as he kissed her just below the ear, he slid the fabric from her shoulders and let it fall to the floor.

Moving her hair, he shifted his attention to the other side of her neck as he began unbuttoning her blouse, his fingers moving delicately to the bottom button and pulling it from her skirt. Her hands came around to his hips as he slid the shirt away and kissed down her shoulder, sliding away her bra strap as it impeded his progress. Unclasping her bra, he slid the other strap down and she let it fall to the floor.

Pressing himself closer to her naked back, he hoped she could feel his desire for her. Her sharp inhalation told him she could. Sliding his hands under her arms, he reached around and caressed every bit of skin around her breasts until he took them both at once, causing her to sigh profoundly.

She quickly turned around, her eyes narrowed into that look he had so much trouble resisting. Suddenly her face changed to blushing uncertainty.

"Oh," she said quietly. "If now is really now then that means I haven't yet."

"Haven't what?" he asked, thinking he already knew the answer.

Her flush deepened, "I didn't until after graduation."

"Ah," he said softly. "You are still a virgin."

She nodded slowly, "It looks that way."

Apprehensive, he said, "If you want to wait, I understand."

Her eyes quickly returned to that devious stare. "I don't want to wait--I just wanted you to know."

He watched her, exposed from the waist up as she began unbuttoning his robe. The knowledge that she was still untouched was sinking in as fast as his breathing was becoming. "Maybe you should sleep on it," he said shakily.

"Maybe you should sleep with me," she answered enticingly.

His robe fell to the floor and she started on the buttons of his shirt. His heart was racing again. The hair on his arms prickled as she began kissing his chest as she tugged his shirt free from his waist and slid it from his shoulders.

"Are you absolutely sure?" he asked, breathless.

Dragging her nails down his chest, she asked provocatively, "Don't you want to?"

"Oh god yes," he breathed as she ran a finger along the waist of his trousers.

"Then I'm yours," she said as she kicked off her loafers and unzipped her skirt and let it fall. Stepping out of it, she walked toward the bed, the sight of her in only her panties phenomenal. The truth of the moment surpassed any fantasy he could ever imagine. Peeking over her shoulder, she asked, "Are you coming?"

"Oh yes, I will be doing that," he replied deeply.

Climbing the steps to the bed, she stretched out elegantly. When she rolled onto her side to face him, she slid a hand down the front of her panties. That sight was too much for him to stand. He closed the gap between them quickly.

When he reached the side of the bed, he said, "No, not this time."

She looked at him questioningly as he lifted her effortlessly into his arms. He was going to make this a second first time she would never be able to forget, and with any luck would replace the memory of the other entirely. Carrying her into the bathroom, he lowered her smoothly to her feet. She was still eyeing him inquisitively as he turned on the shower, careful to adjust the water so that it was just below scalding hot. Turning back to her, he took off his own pants and dropped to his knees, sliding her panties down and lifting each foot to remove them. She was smirking at him wickedly, watching his every move.

Sliding his hands around to her supple bottom, he pulled her toward him. Running his hands up her sides, allowing his thumbs to brush her nipples, he dragged them back down until they were resting just at the top of her hips. She cried out in shock as he sat her down on a small chair he had summoned from across the room silently when he had started the shower. The room was filling up rapidly with sultry steam. He looked up one last time before diving in to see that her eyes were large and her breathing had quickened in anticipation. The sight of her face made his own anticipation pound stridently.

Waiting no longer, he parted her knees and leaned forward to taste her. She gasped, sliding forward in her seat and pressing herself against him. As her hands slid into his hair, he quickened his pace. Her body bucked back, but her thighs met his cheeks and her hands pushed him on. Gradually increasing his tempo, he gloried in the sensation of her beginning to flex from the inside and out, her thighs tightening their hold on him as she came vigorously. Lifting her quickly, he put her legs around his waist as she embraced his neck. Carrying her with ease into the shower, she moaned loudly as the hot water washed over her skin and the cold marble hit her back. He kissed her ravenously as he held her by the thighs up against the stone.

As he glided himself inside, the surge of pleasure was exquisite, every nerve in his body firing at once. Her muscles were still vibrating frantically against him, sending coarse shocks through his brain. The searing water soaked them as he thrust slowly into her over and over, revering the incredible woman from his dreams that was giving so readily of herself as she cried out sensually. The harmony of the almost scalding water on his back, and the awareness of her ridiculously wonderful body wrapped so closely around him, ensnared his every sense. The rapture escalated until he felt his own tremendous expectancy and climax nearing. Nestling his face in her neck, his forehead against the icy marble, he gave one final push and the flourish of immense release washed over him. Her hands in his hair, she held him to her as his trembling subsided.

They maintained the pose for a long while as she tenderly kissed his neck and he set the memory in his mind for a later time after he was bound to wake up because this was far too good to be true. When the water began to run cold, he lowered her gently to the floor without loosening his embrace. Kissing her temple as he shut off the shower, he left her standing alone only long enough to retrieve two towels and transfigured another into a bathrobe. She stared at him in wonderment as he dried her and wrapped her in the soft terrycloth. Drying himself and wrapping the towel around his waist, he picked her up still looking swept away, and carried her into the darkened bedroom.

"Are you all right?" he asked gently as he settled her onto the downy mattress.

"Never better," she replied breathily as her lips edged into a smile. "I do hope this is all real because I want to do that again sometime."

He chuckled as he removed the towel and climbed into bed next to her. "Again, you are not the only one." As she cuddled up next to him, he couldn't resist adding with a smirk, "Love, I believe you have been cheating on your boyfriend with your potions professor."

She giggled nervously, "I hadn't thought about it like that." She paused before adding, "It feels like that was all still years ago."

"Just be gentle with him," he said quietly. "I remember all too well how hard it is to lose you."

Kissing him slowly, she untied her robe and slipped it from under her, tossing it to the floor. Rolling into his arms, he held her close as she whispered sleepily, "I love you Severus Snape."

"And I love you Hermione Granger."

He gazed at her as she fell asleep, until his eyes would remain open no longer. If this was another dream, he didn't mind as long as it never ended. This was where he wanted to be for the rest of forever.