Disclaimer: The characters do not belong to me. But oh, how I wish they did……
A/N I don't like to leave these notes, as I feel they distract from the story, however, this story is rated M for mature, so if you are underage, or prudish, leave now.
"Rick! Hey, Rick, man! Hey wait up!" Hermoine watched as Brandon Christopher ran to catch up with his friend, Richard Elliott, Hillary Hurst trailing behind them. It reminded her so much of her own first year, she thought as she made her way to her quarters.
The first weeks of school had passed in a blur. The professor had decided that she had observed his teaching methods long enough, so on Monday, after the Halloween weekend, she would begin teaching the advanced first year class. She had ten students in the class. She would promote each student to their own age group once she felt they were ready, until finally, the class advanced out.
Beside her teaching responsibilities, she was continuing her own potion making in the private lab. Madame Pomphrey would give her a list of needed medications each week for her to complete. Snape had also been allowing her to observe him while he made the Wolfsbane potion, however, had not allowed her to participate in the making, yet.
Since the incident on the first day of class, their relationship had become strained. The professor seemed to be sharper with her on occasions, then he had ever been in her school days. She felt this was mostly her own fault.
She could not stop thinking about him! The dark haired man in her dreams had finally taken a face. Her dreams where full of passion as she dreamed of Snape… no… Severus, as she was coming to think of him. She imagined his hands on her body, his lips placing soft kisses in special places. In her dreams, she could run her fingers through his locks of raven hair. In her dreams, she could touch him where she wanted; she could kiss him where she longed. In her dreams, he would whisper her name, in a way that made her know he wanted her and desired her, as much as she wanted him.
Yet, in reality, she felt confused and ignorant around him. When he asked her questions, she would grow flustered and stammer a reply. Or she would try to appear confident and knowledgeable, but end up sounding impertinent. She had lost her ability to be relaxed around the man.
Snape was acting strangely himself. Outside of their quarters, in class, he was terse, biting of his words at her. In the lab, he was cool and strictly professional. The only time he was relaxed was when they were alone during their meals, on nights they chose not to join the school in the Great Hall, or in the sitting area of the quarters. They would eat together, in silence, occasionally making small talk.
Snape, when he felt like it, could be very articulate. They would discuss their day. They talked about classes, potion theories, and students. He could tell such funny and interesting stories about his students, which he often referred to as dunder-heads.
After dinner, they would relax in the sitting area, reading books, or listening to music. Hermoine was very impressed with the professor's music collection. He had several wizard collections from Celestina Warbeck to the Weird Sisters. He had muggle collections, including, John Mellancamp, Michael Buble, and Billy Joel. He had several collections from the wizarding groups who had crossed over into mainstream Muggle music, such as Bonnie Ryat, Elton John and Phil Collins. His taste ranged from jazz, to R&B, to heavy metal. The only thing he refused to listen to, no matter how hard Hermoine tried, was country and western, which he informed her was "intolerable racket".
Hermoine was not the type of person who could sit quietly, while a good song played. She would often hum along with the tune as the music played. When Snape was attending to his Deputy Headmaster duties, and Hermoine had the quarters to herself, she would often stop what she was doing and belt out the song in accompaniment.
Hermoine had a deep singing voice, which held a raspy quality to it, much like her favorite musician, Melissa Ethridge. This was whom she was listening to, as she worked on her lesson plans, which where sprawled across the sitting room floor where she lay. As her favorite song played, she pushed away from her work, and belted out the words to "The Only One".
"Very good, Hermoine. Do you take requests?" Hermoine jumped as Snape walked into the room. With a flick of her wand, the room was bathed in silence.
"That was quite a feast, don't you think?" she asked, trying to make conversation, and cover her awkwardness over being caught singing.
"Yes, the kitchen elves outdid themselves this year. The best part is no more students until Monday!" Snape beamed down at her, " Nice shirt." Hermoine found it more comfortable to relax on the floor in Muggle clothes instead of robes. She was dressed in a button down, flannel shirt and blue jeans. Snape, himself, was dressed more casual then she had ever seen him. In his customary black, he had forgone the frock coat and robes for a sleek, button down shirt, and dress pants. With his black hair and eyes, the black clothing and a sneer upon his face, he resembled a rouge pirate more than a schoolteacher.
Hermoine noted he also seemed very unsteady on his feet. "Have you been drinking?"
"Been drinking, yes. Am drinking? About to, and I plan to carry on long into the future," he replied as he collected a bottle of Ogdens Fire Whiskey and two shot glasses, "and you are going to join me." He sat down on the sofa and poured the alcohol into the glasses.
"Severus, I don't drink whiskey. I don't even normally drink more than three butter-beers at a time."
The man flashed her an inpatient look at her and said, "Live a little, Hermoine. Sit. Humor me"
Hermoine did not know what to do. She had never drunk fire whiskey, even when she had come of age. However, not wanting to upset the man, she sat down next to his feet on the floor and eyed the glasses in front of her on the coffee table.
"Hermoine, don't look so frightened. We'll make a game of it. We'll play Spot." With a tap of his wand, another shot glass appeared on the table. He then reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a silver sickle.
"I believe the Muggles have a game similar to this. You must get the sickle into the right spot, being the glass, without missing. If you make it, you drink, and you are allowed to ask the other person any question, which they in turn must answer truthfully, and they drink a double shot. If you loose, no question, and you drink a double shot. Do you agree to these terms?"
Hermoine was not crazy about the idea, but could not think of an easy way out, so she accepted the rules by shaking Snape's outstretched hand.
"Ladies first." Hermoine took out her wand and easily sailed the coin into the empty glass. She raised the glass to her lips and tipped the contents into her mouth. The liquid burned as it slid down her throat. She immediately began to cough and sputter. Snape patted her on the back as he told her, "Come now. Surely you can do better than that. Now ask your question."
"Why do you drink?" she croaked. Snape looked at her, lips curled in a smirk. He appeared amused by her tearing eyes and flushed face. "Tonight is Halloween."
"What has that got to do with anything?"
"Only one question at a time," he replied as he drank his double shot quickly.
Hermoine removed the coin from the glass and laid it upon the table. Snape had obviously been drinking for some time, as his coin did not sail into the glass as easily as Hermoine's had. Instead it floated in a small, wavering circle, above the glass, before dropping into the glass. He then poured them each their drinks.
Hermoine was ready for the burn this time, and managed not to outwardly react. Inside, the alcohol was taking its toll, as she grew more and more relaxed, until she rested her head back against Snape's seat.
"Ask away, sir."
"What are your feelings towards Mr. Potter?" Hermoine did not pause before she answered, "Harry is my best friend. He is like a brother to me." She then picked up the sickle and flipped it into the glass with her thumbs, "That's how Muggles do it." She picked up the bottle and poured them both drinks. She was starting to enjoy this game, she thought, as she asked her question. "Why do you drink on Halloween?"
"Ah, ha, Ms Granger, you are learning how to play. I drink because of sorrow. Mr. Potter's parents died twenty-one years ago, because of me."
Hermoine had known Snape's role in the Potter's death for some time. Harry had told her about how the prophecy had changed his life back in their school days.
"You were never the cause of their deaths, that was Voldermort. Even Harry has come to an understanding on that," she protested.
"Even so." Snape picked up the coin and plunked it in the cup, as Hermoine had done. He handed Hermoine her drink and swallowed his own, "Do you have a boyfriend, Hermoine?"
Hermoine thought it a strange question to ask, but she answered truthfully, "No, I have not dated anyone since Ron. I spent much of my time on my studies while at University." She then forgot about the game and poured them both more to drink. As she poured she became amazed by the fact that the bottle seemed to be refilling itself after each drink. "And what about you, Snape? Do you have a special lady friend?"
Snape threw his head back and laughed. "Who would want a man like me? Most everyone thinks I am a traitor; everyone thinks I am a bastard."
He waived away Hermoine's objections before she had opened her mouth. "I've known for years that my reputation was of a man with a heart of stone. I worked very hard to achieve it. No woman wants a man who will never shower her with sweets and roses. I could care less if it was the anniversary of the second time I held hands with someone in the moonlight. I don't hold hands," he growled.
"Not every woman wants a man like that. I find hand holding mushy. I prefer to spend my time making new days together, instead of rehashing the past, so anniversaries mean nothing to me, either. Flowers die and sweets make you fat and your heart is not made of stone. I believe that it may be scared and bruised and that you hide it for protection, but I think it's in there." Hermoine stated this as she pulled herself in front of him. She nudged her way, until she was kneeling between his knees. "Not every woman would reject you, Severus."
He watched in stunned silence as she raised her hand slowly towards his face. She traced his cheekbones, his eyebrows, his lips, before cupping her hand against his jaw. He caught her other hand in his own, as she brought it forward. Turning it, he placed a kiss against her palm. Moving his arm around her waist, he pulled her against him, and placed a soft-questioning kiss upon her lips. Hermoine rose to her feet, and reached for his hand. She then led him into the door of the master bedroom.
Standing next to his bed, he gathered her into his arms, and pulled her tight against his chest. She met his mouth with her own, and opened, allowing his tongue inside. She moaned, and arched her back, when he tore his lips from hers, in order to rain kisses down her throat.
Her mind, too busy concentrating on the lips at her neck, and the hands rubbing against her back, would not give her fingers the ability to cooperate as they tried to undo the buttons on his shirt. Finally, she pulled her wand and cried, "Diffindo!" The buttons on his shirt flew across the floor.
Not to be outdone, Snape took a handful of her shirt in each hand and pulled. The shirt was torn open and roughly pulled from her shoulders. She then helped him remove her bra, and lay back on the bed. Snape stood over her, removing his shirt, while she unfastened her jeans and pulled them off her hips. Sliding them down her legs, she kicked them off onto the floor.
Snape also removed his pants before crawling onto the bed next to her. She smiled when she took note that even his briefs where black. Her hands moved to the waste band of her panties, when her hands where stilled. "Please, allow me."
He did not immediately remove her underwear, instead he lowered his head and kissed her once more. Caressing her breasts, he trailed kisses from her neck, across her collarbone and shoulders, before he bent and caught one hardened nipple between his teeth.
Hermoine moaned and brought both hands to his head, entwining her fingers in his hair, and he alternated between tiny nibbles and sucking kisses on her breasts. She could feel the wetness of his tongue as it lapped at her skin. She arched her back, trying to bring him closer to her, into her, as she felt a strong sensation, which she had never felt before begin to burn in her.
With her panties still on, he moved one hands between her legs and rubbed at her core. She jerked her hips as he found her magic button, nothing but a small sheet of cloth covering it. As he rubbed a gentle circle, he continued with his kisses on her breasts, until she soared over the edge. With a cry of his name, she had her first orgasm.
As the waves of ecstasy began to ebb, she pushed him from her, until he lay on his back against the pillows. "It's my turn to play," she informed him, as she straddled his hips. She then attacked him, ravishing his chest and neck with kisses of her own. Rising to kiss his lips, she rubbed herself against the bulge of him, which was resting between her legs.
Moving down his body, towards the end of the bed, she dipped her tongue in his navel. His hips jerked and she took this as a cue. Running her tongue down his "happy trail" she took hold of his waistband and tugged his underwear from his body, dropping it onto the floor with the rest of their clothes.
Eyeing his erection, she grinned in anticipation. She then lowered her head, and tasted the salty bead, glistening on the top with the tip of her tongue.
Within a second, he had her flipped over onto her back. He devoured her mouth with his. With nothing but a very thin piece of soaking wet cloth between them, she wrapped her legs about his waist. As his hands traveled over her body, her own hands traveled over his body. When he bit the side of her breast, she dug her nails into his backside.
Snape slipped his hand inside her panties and found her magic button once more. As another orgasm washed over her, she arched into his hand, and he slid a finger inside her. As though someone had poured cold water on him, he stilled. Rolling away from her, to the edge of the bed, he placed his back to her.
"Severus, what's wrong?" Hermoine asked.
He held his head in his hands, his elbows resting on his knees, "Your still a virgin," he replied.
"Yes. I am."
"Collect your clothing, Hermoine and return to your room."
Hermoine reached a hand out to him and touched his shoulder, "Why"
He jerked from her touch and stood, not looking at her, "Hermoine, leave now. We will discuss this later."
"But..."
"Go! Now!" he demanded
Hermoine grabbed her clothing from the floor and ran from the room. She ran into her bedroom, throwing the pile of clothing on the bed, and then retreated to the bathroom. She crawled into the tub, and turned on the overhead shower, and cried.
She couldn't understand why Snape had become upset. She was ignorant in the emotions of sex, but with her inquisitive nature, she knew the basic details of how it went. Her roommate at University had been very experienced and had often shared details with Hermoine. They had even watched muggle videos about sex one time, just to see what they where like. None of her girlfriends at school had teased Hermoine for her innocence. They knew that she was more inclined to study, then to party, and fool around with boys.
The main problem had been that no boy had ever challenged Hermoine's mind enough to make her want to be interested in him. She wanted someone with a man's mind, and indeed, Snape challenged her mind, while bringing sensations to her body she had never known about. When Snape looked at her, her stomach made funny little jumps inside. When he touched her, her knees went weak. When he kissed her, she felt as though she were dying a thousand small tiny deaths.
Hermoine stayed in the shower spray until the water had drowned all of her tears. She dried and went to her room to change. Taking clothes from her wardrobe, she pulled them on, then she picked up the pile of clothing from her bed. She noted that she had taken Snape's shirt along with her other clothes. Picking it up, she held it to her face and breathed in his spicy scent. The shirt smelt of sandalwood and cinnamon, his own personal scent, and a thousand other exotic fragrances from the potions he worked with. She folded the shirt and tucked it away into her trunk.
Hermoine came of her room to find Snape dressed and sitting on the sofa. He looked up at her with a sad smile and patted the seat next to him. Hermoine could feel the tears start to gather in her eyes as she sat down.
"Don't cry," he pleaded as he gathered her into his arms, "You did nothing wrong."
"Why?" she sobbed against his shoulder.
"I had no idea you where still a virgin," he began. Knowing she would question further, he placed a finger against her lips. "I thought that you had already had relations with Ron. I am confused on that. Some of the things you did. Well, they weren't things you would expect from a virgin."
"I read about it," Hermoine told him.
"Hrmph," Snape gave a sharp laugh. "I should have known. Even still, if I had known, I would never have touched you. Your virginity is a special gift, Hermoine. It isn't something you would want to give away lightly, especially to a man like me."
"Severus, I wanted to give you my virginity because I love you." Hermoine was just as shocked by these words as the man who held her. He stared into her eyes for several long moments, before hugging her to him.
"You just think you love me, Hermoine. You don't have enough experience to know what love is all about. Someday, when you have met the right man, you will realize the truth, and then you'll thank me for stopping earlier."
Hermoine looked at the sadness in his eyes. "Severus, do you love me?"
The man only hugged her closer to him, and placed a kiss upon her brow. Smoothing her hair back from her face, he sat for several seconds and stared into her eyes.
"That's not a question you want me to answer right now," he stated as he rose from the sofa and walked into his room, leaving Hermoine alone, and her heart aching.