A/N: Here is my second piece! I should mention here that these will NOT be in chronological order. The first one is "present day." The others will just be reflections on their relationship, things that happen in their every day life, etc. Just wanted to clear that up. :D So, enjoy, and please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own HP or "Ring of Fire." J.K. and Johnny Cash do.

Love is a burning thing

And it makes a fiery ring

There was no denying the sparks between Hermione Granger and Severus Snape. Everyone knew they were there, but no one talked about it. Not even Snape and Hermione themselves.

Hermione was still in her seventh year at Hogwarts, making her off-limits to Severus, no matter how badly he wanted to scoop her up in his arms every time he saw her, which was quite often, considering Hermione had decided to get her N.E.W.T. in Potions.

Graduation drew nearer and nearer, but it wasn't coming soon enough for Severus.

Or Hermione for that matter.

Every time she saw him, her insides flip-flopped. She needed to be near him, and right away. But she couldn't talk to anyone about it because they would think she was insane.

Not to mention that all anyone ever wanted to talk about these days was the End of the Year Ball (like a Muggle prom). So, she joined in all the excited chatter, got the perfect dress, and a date: Ron. She and Ron had decided that romance just wasn't right for them, but they were best friends with no significant others, so they decided to go to the ball together.

The night of the ball, Hermione spent three hours getting ready. But she didn't really care about impressing Ron. No, it was Severus's eye she wanted to catch. She wanted him to see how beautiful she was.

Little did she know, he already did.

/\/\/\

That night at the ball, Severus could not keep his eyes off of her. He stood by the punch bowl with Dumbledore, making sure no one slipped any Firewhiskey into it, only halfway listening to Dumbledore's rant about how the Ministry had loosened up far too much since the fall of Voldemort.

Severus couldn't give a care less about the policies of the newest idiot in charge of the Ministry; he wanted to talk to Hermione. His heart was on fire. He knew he needed to get her alone: tonight. She has never looked so gorgeous. That blue is the perfect color to compliment her slightly tanned, freckled skin… But as gorgeous as the dress is, it would look much better on the floor next to my bed… Severus! What are you thinking?

Hermione stood with Ron, Harry, and Ginny, pretending to listen to their conversation, but she had locked eyes with Snape from across the room.

He has never looked sexier, she thought, with his black dress robes. And those buttons. I wonder how long it would take to undo them all… No! Hermione, what are you thinking? She shook her head.

"Hermione, are you okay?" Ron asked, looking at her concernedly.

"Yeah, Ron, I- I'm good. I'm just going to go get some punch, alright?" she said, and before he could offer to get it for her, she bolted toward Severus and Dumbledore. Ron shrugged and kept talking to Harry and his sister.

Hermione took a deep breath as she approached the two professors.

"Good evening, Miss Granger! Don't you look lovely? Severus, doesn't Miss Granger just look beautiful?" Dumbledore asked Snape, a slight hint of a twinkle in his eye. Snape's breath caught in his throat.

"Yes, Albus. She looks beautiful," he said, locking eyes with her. She blushed deeply. Dumbledore chuckled almost silently and turned to talk to Professor Sprout.

This left Hermione and Severus standing alone. They stood awkwardly for a second, both of their bodies on fire.

"Hermione."

"Severus." They said at the same time. They both laughed nervously.

"Hermione, could I have a word? Outside?" he said, gesturing toward the hallway outside the Great Hall. She nodded. They left the Great Hall without a word to anyone else. They stepped into the hall and into an empty classroom. He shut the door behind him and locked it with a flick of his wand. She swallowed and backed up until her backside hit a table. He smiled and walked toward her.

"Hermione, I need to tell you something," he said lowly, stepping closer and closer to her. She nodded.

"Me too," she said quietly, putting her hand on his chest.

He opened his mouth, but instead of speaking, he leaned down and kissed her full on the mouth. She gasped slightly but kissed him back.

What would Ron say? Hermione thought.

What would Dumbledore say? Severus thought at the same time.

As if they were reading each other's minds, they shrugged and their lips met for another fiery kiss.

I fell for you like a child

Oh, but the fire went wild.

tbc

Thanks for reading, I am so much enjoying writing these! Please review! I'll update soon, probably tonight. Love love!

-r