Chapter 7 –Love Heals

From their positions on the floor Severus and Hermione looked up to the figure looming in the doorway. Hermione prayed that it wasn't Eleanor or Lucius. In fact she wished who ever it was would piss off and let her have what she wanted.

But alas it wasn't to be it was indeed lucius standing in the doorway. Severus stood up and in front of Hermione protectively.

"Severus," lucius said with a nod. "I just came to say happy New Year."

Severus could see Narcissa behind him, supporting a sobbing Eleanor.

"Thank you Lucius, a Happy New Year to you and yours."

"I'll see to it that Eleanor returns home safely." He extended his hand to Severus, but not to shake it. Instead he held a roll of parchments. "Do it for Merlin's sake!" Lucius said with a smirk and a wink at Severus.

With that he was gone, with his wife and his mistress. Severus looked down at the roll of parchments in his hand and slowly, tentatively unrolled them. He smiled and then let out a little laugh and shook his head.

"What is it?" Hermione asked still on the floor.

"The best bloody thing that could happen! Divorce papers! Already signed by Eleanor." He was numb with amazement.

Severus turned and helped Hermione to her feet.

"No matter what happens this year Hermione it's gonna be the best year yet!"

Severus shut the door to Hermione's rooms and wandered down to the party room in the hope of finding one last free drink to celebrate the New Year. He had put Hermione to bed with a cup of tea and a sleeping potion. He might want to make love to her all night long every time he saw her but she was in shock and he still some self control.

He found several people still enjoying the party when he arrived. Taking a brandy from the bar and accepting a cigar off a very inebriated ex-faculty member, he sat down in the corner of the room and allowed him self a tiny smile.

"Hey Severus!" came a irritatingly happy and familiar voice next to him

"Yes Remus?" he queried through grated teeth. He expected some drunken rambling and such.

"Make her happy will you?" Remus said and patted Severus on the shoulder before leaving the rooms, and Severus presumed the grounds.

Severus lit the cigar and sighed, "I'll make her happy Remus, don't you worry." He said to himself.

The next day the castle was silent. The staff were all recovering from hangovers and rising late from their beds. It was the typical New Years day. House elves were busy taking coffee and breakfasts to the rooms of the faculty and the castle felt lazy and happy in the afterglow of the celebrations.

Hermione had woken at 9am, the first time in her life she had been the first staff member awake in a long time. She felt rested and fresh. A smile stuck on her face after the events of the day before. She got up, showered and dressed herself before taking a walk down to the kitchens to acquire some food. She wanted to go down there and see Dobby as well as acquire some breakfast.

She walked through the room that had held yesterday's festivities and almost missed the figure sleeping in the enormous armchair in the corner. Severus was sleeping, slumped down in the chair, his head on his shoulder and a glass still in his hand.

Quietly she crept over to him and removed the glass from his fingers and summoned a blanket. She gently laid it over him and crept away again.

As she reached the kitchen door she looked back at him to see his eyes open and watching her.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you, you just looked cold."

"No need to be sorry, I shouldn't have fallen asleep there, I can't believe no one woke me."

He rose from the chair and stretched a little. Hermione resisted every urge to push him back into the chair and kiss him till he begged for air.

"Breakfast?" she asked brightly.

"Why not? But I think I would rather have it in my rooms, I need a shower and to get out of these clothes. Will you join me?"

"Of course I will."

Severus left Hermione in the living area as she showered and changed. When he emerged from his bedroom he found that breakfast had arrived and that some easy listening music, something by Celestina Warbeck no doubt, was quietly issuing from the speakers of his radio. Hermione was sipping a cup of tea with a croissant held daintily in her hand. He crossed the room and sat beside her. Before he could ask 'what's for breakfast' she handed him a cup of coffee and a plate of toast.

"How's your neck?" she asked as he sipped his coffee.

"A bit stiff." He said and realised that his neck wasn't the only thing that was a bit stiff. What was it about the mere presence of this woman that turned him on?

Hermione got up and walked to the back of the sofa and began to rub his neck and shoulders. He moaned and groaned appreciatively as he felt her small fingers loosening up the muscles. He put down his cup and plate untouched and reached up to take hold of her hand. He kissed it and leant back as Hermione's hands moved round to his chest and undid the top few buttons of his shirt. She slipped one hand down the front of the garment to caress his chest and leant down to kiss his neck.

"I wished I hadn't woken up alone this morning." She whispered into his ear before gently biting his earlobe.

He bit his lip and moaned, he felt paralysed and her hands felt wonderful on his skin. Despite wanting to stay sat there with her soft touch for eons, he had to kiss her. He turned quickly, kneeling on the sofa and leaning over the back of it to catch her mouth, his hand on the back of her hair, tangled in her soft frizzy hair.

His mouth left hers and found her neck, soft, smooth and so nice to kiss. Slowly he pulled away and stood up. Taking Hermione's hand he led her to the bedroom. Once inside he leaned round her to push the door closed before taking her in his arms. Before he could kiss her she put her hands on his chest and looked into his eyes.

"Severus I've never done this before," she said and bit her lip, "but I want to do it now." She continued before he could say anything.

He didn't say anything; he just took hold of her hands and kissed her softly on the lips. He led her over to the bed and sat down. She stood before him looking nervous as he undid the rest of his shirt buttons and removed it. She sat down next to him and took off her t-shirt, revealing a white lace bra that was almost failing to contain her more than ample chest.

Severus cupped her face in his hands and kissed her forehead, her cheek, her mouth. One hand lowering to trace across her chest and feel her skin, which was as every bit like silk as he had imagined it. His hand carried on gently running over her breast, cupping it and feeling her breath hitch while he carried on kissing her.

Never for one moment did he expect to be teaching Hermione granger again, least of all teaching her this. But felt Justas novice at this as she did. He knew of course what to do, but he had never done it with someone that he was so in love with. He had never wanted it to be as special and damn perfect as he did now. He wanted to be her first and only.

He ran one hand down her back and held her as he lowered her onto the bed, not letting their mouths break apart for even a second. He was lying on his side able to let his hands roam all over her flesh. He felt her fingers snake across his waist and explore his skin, as he knew she had never done to any other man.

Hermione felt nervous and thrilled at the same time. She wanted this so badly and she was so glad he was taking this so slowly and being so gentle. She felt his hand run down to the waistband of her jeans and she felt the button pop open, the zip slide down. His fingers caressed the top of her lacy pants.

As he broke their kiss, to stand up ad remove his trousers, she felt cold and in need of him to be right back next to her almost immediately. He removed her jeans, her legs still hanging over the edge of the bed. He looked over her ivory skin with the expression of a hungry wolf.

Hermione felt very exposed, no man had ever seen her in this state of undress before. Nor had she ever seen a man in only boxer shorts before, well at least not one so close: Least of all one with a hard on purely because of her. Before she could ask him to stop looking at her, he dropped to his knees between her legs. She could feel his lips on the inside of her thigh. She could feel her legs quivering as she felt him getting closer to area she most wanted him to touch. She already new her pants were soaking and between her legs felt like it was on fire. Her clit throbbed so hard it was almost painful.

He could smell her; he knew she would be hot, wet and aching for him to touch her in her most intimate place. He could almost taste how sweet she would be, he almost gave into the desire to bury his face in-between her folds right now, but this was going to be special.

He reached up and took hold of the top of her pants and pulled them over her hips, down her thighs and calves, before discarding them in a pile on the floor. He gently parted her legs again and leaned forward. He could smell her scent; it was more potent than any aphrodisiac potion.

Hermione waited with bated breathe until she felt his tongue slowly glide over her clit, then she let out the sweetest sound Severus had ever heard. It was something between a sigh and moan. Gently, slowly he let his tongue explore this virgin territory. His tongue delved deeper every time, his nose rubbing against her clit.

Severus could feel her getting wetter and wetter; he knew that soon he would make her ecstatic with pleasure. Soon she would be panting and writhing from the first orgasm he would ever induce in her. Sure enough soon she was beginning to pant. She was moaning and trying to talk but it was all incoherent.

Then it hit her, the wave that had been building since they had first kissed, this feeling of immense tension, peaked and relaxed and she just wanted to fall into his arms.

Severus felt her orgasm hard and carried on teasing her clit as she came down from the pleasure. He climbed onto the bed next to her. His lips brushed hers as she fought for breath. He was about to ask if she still wanted to do this but her eyes spoke a million more things than her mouth ever could have.

He pulled back the sheets and she crawled underneath them and unclipped her bra before pulling the sheets around her looking embarrassed. Severus got off the bed and crossed the room to close the curtains. He knew she would be shy and so gloom would be better than bright light. When he reached the side of the bed again he removed his underwear and Hermione could see his erection even in the gloom. She wondered if this would hurt or if he would fit as well as a hundred other thoughts.

He joined her under the sheets and reached out to touch her and pull her close, to close away her worries away. He kissed down her neck and her breasts, allowing himself the selfish act of paying a little more attention to her nipples. Her breath hitched and the warm aching between her legs soon began again.

Her hand ventured down to touch his manhood, something she had never felt before. She was amazed not only at the hardness of it, but also that it felt smooth. He guided his throbbing penis down to her wet opening. He looked up into her eyes and pushed into her slightly and pulled it back again slowly, watching the look of concentration on her face. He knew it would be no good to tell her to relax; the first time was never going to be one anyone would ever be able to relax into. Neither would it ever be a time when the fear of getting it wrong would ever go away.

He pushed into her a little more and again pulled back just as slowly. Pretty soon he was completely inside her. He lay there inside her completely still, his cock throbbing, his desire almost irrepressible, but he cared too much for her to take advantage for his own pleasure. She looked in pain.

"I'm fine it's just strange," she whispered as if to answer the unasked question on his mind.

She was so tight; he could have exploded just then. Never before had he fitted inside someone so snugly. He slowly began to move, sliding in and out so exquisitely slowly that he felt he could have done this for ever.

Hermione looked up at the man above her, the man that she had wanted for so long. Her night time musings and daydreams had been mainly about him. Now here he was and she was giving him her one last precious thing, she had held on to her innocence of a mans touch for so long and now it was happening it was every bit as sweet and perfect as her daydreams had allowed her to believe. True it was slightly strange and uncomfortable but that was to be expected, it was after all the first time she had ever had sex. She wanted this to be as good for him as it had been for her so far.

"Faster" she whispered as her hands tentatively reached up and brushed his hair out of his face. His expression was mixed, pleasure and concentration. He started to move faster and Hermione grabbed his shoulders at the sweet feeling of him being this close, to be wanted so badly by another human being. It was the same as his tongue, but she knew she would get used to it in time.

Her hand ventured down his back and stroked his soft skin as she thrust into her gently. She let her fingers caress his buttocks feeling the hard muscle underneath and daring to grab one arse cheek. He laughed slightly as she did that and she looked back at him with a look of amused embarrassment.

She enjoyed letting her hands wander over his body which until now had been off limits. Dragging her nails lightly over his skin, feeling the goose bumps rise in the wake of her hands. He shivered and faltered in his strokes.

"Hermione I'm sorry but I think I'm about to…."

But before he could say it he felt his cock throbbing of it own accord and Hermione could feel something hot inside her, and his member pulsating. She gasped a little at the sensation but she found it was not unpleasant.

As he stopped thrusting, panting and looking into her eyes, she reached up and pulled his face to hers and kissed him.

"Thank you." She said smiling.

He rolled off her and wrapped his arm around her pulling her close. She rested her head on his chest with her hand wrapped around his torso. She sighed sweetly, and closed her eyes. His hand was stroking her hair and the other was wrapped round her waist.

"Hermione?" Severus asked between breaths. "Marry me."

!of course I will Severus, you didn't even have to ask." She said without moving from her comfortable position.