A/N: Who doesn't love a sweet treat-inspired story right around such a sappy holiday? This was my submission for Draco's Den - My Sweet Valentine - Valentine's Day Fest this year.

This piece was beta read by Grammarly so I apologize for any glaring errors.

aleysiasnape, I hope that I was able to do your prompt justice and you enjoy this as your 2022 Birthday Bonanza fic!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Lots of love to you and yours!

Love always,
~starr


It was early Sunday morning as Hermione found herself in the small kitchen of Spinner's End flipping through a muggle cookbook. Severus had woken up before dawn to begin working on yet another round of Wolfsbane. Though Hermione had offered to help him, Severus was adamant that he didn't need assistance. So since she was already awake, she decided that she would create something of her own - just a little more delicious than Wolfsbane. Hermione flicked through the book mindless with a sigh before stumbling upon the dessert section of her book.

Hermione took a moment to think about her favorite desserts from her childhood, her mouth-watering as the images of different sweets flooded her brain. After a minute of debating, her mind settled on something that she hadn't had since she was a young girl - double chocolate brownies. The only time she could remember her mother making them for Valentine's Day so that Hermione had something homemade to give out with her cards.

"Wait a minute," Hermione mumbled, pushing away from the counter and patting down her pockets, looking for her mobile device. She extracted it from her pocket a moment later and lit up the screen. "It's Valentine's Day."

A grin pulled at the corners of her lips as she turned to glance at the door to Severus's lab - he can lock himself in there for as long as he likes, but no one, wizard, witch, or muggle, can turn down homemade brownies - especially double chocolate ones. Hermione set to work searching their kitchen for the ingredients necessary to make her special treat with her mind made up. After a few minutes of searching, she cursed under her breath because they had none of the things she needed.

"How do we have no food in this house?" she mumbled, making her way back to the bedroom to grab a jumper and her purse. A trip to the store was the only way a special treat would get finished. Even though she knew Severus had no idea it was Valentine's Day or why such a silly Muggle holiday was so important to her, she wanted to do something for him since he had been working so hard to help Remus out. With her keys in hand, Hermione made her way back down to the kitchen and went straight to the lab door; grabbing the handle, she pulled at the door, and it refused to move.

Hermione rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. "Of course, he's got me locked out," she grumbled. Shaking her head, she made her way over to the window and motioned for Twila to come to the window. She scribbled a note on a nearby piece of paper and smiled when she saw her owl sitting on the window sill. "Hello, Twila," Hermione said with a smile, grabbing a biscuit out of the cookie for the bird before attaching her note to her leg. "Can you take this to Severus?"

Twila chirped as she jumped down from the windowsill. Hermione smiled as she watched the owl land gracefully beside the window at the far side of the cottage. Turning on her heels, Hermione made her way to the door so she could head into the village. Hopefully, the corner market would have everything she needed because she had no interest in heading into the city. Hermione wrapped her jacket tightly around her waist, bracing herself against the cool breeze as she made her way down the cobblestones.

Within an hour, Hermione was on her way back to Spinner's End with her shopping bags held tight at her side. The wind had a crisp chill to it, which sent a shiver down her spine as she fumbled with her key in the door. Once she got into the cottage, she dropped her bags off on the counter and went back to their bedroom to shed her shoes and coat. On her way back, she tried the handle of the door to the lab once more, sighing when she realized it was still locked.

"Typical," Hermione sighed, rolling her eyes. She gathered her hair up in her hands and twisted it up into a ponytail before setting to work, making a special treat.

Soon, the small cottage was filled with the aroma of chocolate and sugar as the sounds of melodic sounds of Elvis Presley's Can't Help Falling in Love filled the air. Hermione danced around the kitchen as she waited for the oven timer to buzz, cleaning dishes and tidying up the mess she had made - she was oblivious to the world around her.

Severus leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest, watching Hermione dance around the kitchen. He hadn't seen a smile so bright in quite a while, but that may have been since he had been spending so much time trying to help out Remus. Severus had missed her smile. Often, she was already asleep when he came to bed and it was the wee hours of the morning that he would disappear into the lab. He shook his head, cursing his carelessness under his breath. He should have made more time for her, or at least let her sit in the lab while he was working. He was more distracted knowing she was upstairs wandering around the house bored than he would have been with her in the lab reading. In fact, maybe if Hermione had been in the lab with him, it wouldn't be taking him so long to finish this project.

Hermione stopped mid-spin when she realized Severus had emerged from his lab, a smile pulling at the corners of her lips. "How long have you been standing there?" she asked, leaning against the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"Since the second chorus of the song," he replied, looking her up and down. "You look happy."

"I am happy," Hermione hummed, pushing herself away from the island and offering him her hand. "Dance with me."

Severus smiled and pushed himself away from the door, making his way across the kitchen. He took her hand and pulled her body flush against him, and his other hand found purchase against the small of her back. They began to sway, dancing their way around the kitchen. The music faded from one song to the next as they moved gracefully around the room.

Several minutes later, the time on the oven rang. The sound put a smile on Hermione's face as she pulled away from Severus and made her way to the oven. Slowly she lowered the door, and the smell of chocolate flowed into the room. Hermione pulled the tray of brownies out of the oven and placed them on a cooling rack.

"What smells so decadent?" Severus asked, leaning against the island to get a better look at what had just come out of the oven. He took a deep breath and let out a sigh as a smile pulled at the corners of his lips.

"Double chocolate brownies," Hermione mused, licking her lips as she moved to the refrigerator. "Well, right now, they are just brownies. Once they cool and I can put the icing on them, they will be double chocolate brownies."

"And to what do I awe this delicious treat?" Severus asked, observing Hermione as she returned to the island with a bowl of frosting. She brushed her finger along the edge of the bowl, lifting it to her lips and licking a small amount off her finger before offering it to him. Severus smiled, raising a brow as he leaned forward and took her finger into his mouth, swirling the chocolate off it with his tongue.

A nervous smile pulled at Hermione's face as she pulled her finger away. "It's a silly Muggle holiday tradition that my mum used to make for me and today happens to be Valentine's Day, so I thought I'd surprise you with a little treat."

"Valentine's Day isn't a silly Muggle holiday," Severus said, moving around the island to stand next to Hermione and wrap his arms around her waist. "It's meant to celebrate love. I love you, Hermione."

"I love you too, Severus," Hermione said, pressing up on her tiptoes to drape her arms around his neck and press her lips against his, kissing him softly.