A/N: Thanks so much for everyone's reviews!

Chapter 3- Ron's Gift

It took Hermione the better part of the week to begin to feel normal again. Her face still retained some bruising, but she no longer felt as if she had been run over by the Knight Bus. As the weekend finally arrived, she decided it was time to pay a visit to Ron regarding her birthday present from him.

She arrived at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shortly after lunch on Saturday. The store was doing a good business, especially since it was the end of summer and students were stocking up before returning to Hogwarts. She had to squeeze her way through to the back room where she knew Ron would be, taking inventory as he did every weekend.

"Hermione!" Ron said looking up from a stack of parchment, reading glasses perched on his nose and a quill in hand. She had to smile at the sight. He looked positively Percy-like, although she didn't dare say as much. There were still hard feelings between Percy and the rest of his siblings, even if his mother had forgiven him.

"What are you doing here?" he asked waving a wand so that a box of Canary Creams flew off the nearby chair. Hermione sat down.

"Well, honestly, I came to tell you what I want for my birthday."

Ron's mouth gaped open. "Really? You came all the way to the store just for that? You know, you could have just owled or floo-called me."

"I know," Hermione said, beginning to blush. How was she ever going to tell him her request with a straight face? "But it's actually one of your products that I would like."

The look on Ron's face couldn't have been more shocked and Hermione let out a nervous laugh at the sight. When he recovered from the shock, though, he looked positively delighted.

"Well, sure! What do you want? Anything you can think of, Hermione. It's on the house."

"Well," Hermione began, fighting the urge to laugh again. What had possessed her to be so silly? "You know those Patented Daydream Charms you have? Well, I've always been rather interested in them. You know, to see how they work; strictly out of curiosity of course."

By the time she finished speaking, Ron was laughing so hard that Hermione thought he was going to start choking. His face was bright red and finally she had to conjure a glass of water for him. When he finally calmed down, however, she found she was feeling more than a little annoyed at him.

"Honestly, Ron. If you're going to make such a big deal of it, just forget it. I just always thought it was a clever bit of magic on the twins' part. I just wondered how realistic they made them."

"Oh don't be mad," Ron said, realizing that he had hurt her feelings, but still unable to wipe the grin off his face. "You've just been acting so strange lately. You've always been the studious, serious one. I never pictured you being one for having daydreams. I didn't even know you knew how to daydream."

"Well, wouldn't this be a good time to learn?" Hermione asked, still feeling a bit defensive.

"Alright, Hermione. If you want a Daydream Charm, I'd be more than happy to give it to you. Hell, you can have a whole case of them. Come on, I'll go get it for you."

Hermione followed him back out into the main part of the store. He reached the small display and handed a small box to her.

"So, uh… how exactly do these work?" she asked as she discretely took the box and put it in her pocket.

"Well, you just say the incantation in the box and swallow the potion provided, and it will provide you with a realistic thirty minute daydream."

"And… what exactly will the daydream be like? Are they the same for everyone?"

"Oh no!" Ron said looking almost offended. "I mean, what might be a great daydream for one person, might be a nightmare for someone else. The potion uses your own subconscious to determine what you would most like to dream about. It's a new technique, actually. They used to just have the incantation, but this way they are so much more suited to the person using it. A big improvement, I must say."

Hermione looked at him slyly. "Have you ever used one?"

"Uh… well, it's part of my job to try all of our products," Ron said, his face beginning to color.

"And?" Hermione asked arching her eyebrow. "How was it?"

"Erm… very nice; really, a high quality product."

Hermione laughed outright at the look on his face and it was clear he was not going to go into any further detail. She thanked him and left the store with a silly grin on her face, feeling that she was being rather daring.

She had meant to go straight home and try it out, but as luck would have it, she ran into Susan Bones as she was walking down Diagon Alley and had been talked into going to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink. In the end, several of her former classmates had shown up and she hadn't been able to get away until very late that night.

The next day she overslept. She was not used to staying out late, and so she had to hurry about to meet her parents for lunch. She still went over to her parents' house once or twice a month for dinner and was almost always an all day affair. This day was no different and it was only after her mother sent her home with a bag full of leftovers and reminders that they would see her the weekend after her birthday that Hermione finally managed to escape. By then it was again late and although Hermione grasped onto the box in her pocket whistfully, she put the thought aside. It wouldn't do to show up at work the next morning sleep deprived because she was too busy daydreaming of all silly things.

So this was why at 4:00 Monday afternoon, as Hermione checked the clock for the twentieth time since lunch, she made the rash decision to try it out. She had forty-five minutes until her appointment with Professor Snape and according to both the box and Ron the charm would only last thirty minutes. That would leave more than enough time and it would make the last hour of her day pass much quicker than it normally did.

She hurried over to where she had hung up her cloak and fumbled for the small box. She pulled it out and rushed back over to her desk. Now that she had decided to use it, she wanted to hurry before she changed her mind. She tore open the box and quickly read the instructions, glancing out of her office door to make sure no one was watching. Sitting back in her chair, she swallowed the potion and read the incantation.

She suddenly felt as if a swirling fog was surrounding her. She realized she was walking down a long, cold hallway. There was a door at the end of the hall and she reached out and turned in. Inside was a library.

She couldn't help but laugh at herself. Only she would have a daydream about finding a library. She should have known her mind would choose something like this rather than something romantic like the pirate ship that was displayed on the outside of the box. Still, it was amazing to her how realistic it all seemed. She could smell the smoke of the fire in the fireplace; she could feel the leather of the binding on the books as she ran her hand along it. She was excited to discover that not only were all her favorite books here, that there was an extensive reference section, including many books she had always wanted to explore in the restricted section of Hogwarts. Her only problem now, was that thirty minutes was not going to be nearly enough time to explore the room and she was dying to read many of these books.

It was dim in the room; only the fireplace provided any light and she noticed she did not have her wand with her so she was unable to create any more light. She felt untroubled by this, though, as she continued to explore the room. She finally made her way to the back of the room and the last row of shelves where she had to squint just to see the titles, when she heard someone move behind her. She turned around quickly to see someone, a man, towering over her.

It was dark enough that she couldn't quite make out his features. He was quite tall and dressed in black and Hermione felt almost a bit let down. He didn't look like he was just going to let her read.

"Who are you?" she whispered backing against a row of books.

"Who do you want me to be?" he asked in a low, gravely voice. Although he seemed vaguely familiar, she was quite sure she had never met him before.

Hermione could feel herself blushing. This was not what she had imagined. He was… unnerving. She could feel his body heat and she could hear him breathing as he moved close to her.

"I… I don't want you to be anybody," she said wishing he would back away.

"Liar," he said, sounding amused. She could sense more than see his smile.

"Excuse me! I am not a liar!" This was getting ridiculous. She was arguing with her fantasy. But instead of her reaction pushing him away, he was moving closer, until she could feel his breath on her cheek as he bent down to whisper in her ear.

"You are a liar. And you are not the prim and proper young woman you would have everyone believe."

"I don't know what you mean," Hermione breathed. She could hardly believe her subconscious would create this.

"If you were, I wouldn't be your fantasy." His lips were so close to hers they were nearly touching. If she moved but a millimeter forward they would be kissing.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She could feel his hands gripping her arms.

"Liar." He had moved forward that last millimeter as he spoke so the word was said against her lips. His lips were soft, but firm and she could feel his tongue slide against her bottom lip. She opened her mouth to him and groaned as he deepened the kiss, wrapping her hands in his hair. Any remaining distance between their bodies was closed and she pressed against him. His body was hard and strong and she shuddered as he slid his arms against her body.

Somewhere in the back of her practical mind, she was amazed at how real this all felt; his hands, his mouth, his body. If she didn't know better she would think she was really kissing a man. This was amazing, this was incredible, this was… all beginning to fade away. The mist that had preceded the daydream was now returning. She mentally groaned at the terrible timing. Couldn't it have lasted just another five minutes?

Yet, even as the library began to fade away, the man didn't. He was still standing there, clutching her arms, albeit a bit more stiffly than before, their mouths fused together. She felt her heart give one joyous leap before it gave a monumental plunge. The only way she could still be kissing this man would be if he were real and not part of the daydream. And the only way he could be real would be if he was… Oh Merlin!

She stiffened and pulled away, wrenching her eyes open. It was exactly what she had feared. There, standing across from her, somehow looking confused, embarrassed and angry all at the same time, was Severus Snape.

"Professor!" she gasped covering her mouth with her hand. She wondered if it would be insulting to begin wiping it. "I'm so sorry, Sir."

For a moment she thought that he was not going to respond. Or that he would turn around and leave without his money. The look on his face was enough to make her want to turn around and leave without giving him his money.

"Please explain yourself, Miss Granger." His voice was cold and Hermione tried desperately to think of something to say, but her mind still seemed muddled and cloudy.

"I'm sorry Professor," she said again trying to think of the right words. "I… I'm not entirely well at the moment. Perhaps it would be best if you told me what exactly I did first. I'm feeling a bit… confused.

"That much is clear," he said, glaring at her. "When I arrived, the door was open as usual. I waited for permission to enter, but you did not give it to me. You were standing by the wall; you looked confused as if you were looking for something. I asked if you were in need of some sort of assistance. You turned around but you did not speak, Instead you… you…" He broke off, clearly unable to verbalize what had happened. It didn't matter; Hermione already knew.

"I'm very sorry, Professor," Hermione said, unable to meet his eyes. "I… uh… well I thought you were someone else. I can assure you that I will never do something so unprofessional again."

It was close to the truth. Severus, however, was not falling for it. He walked forward to her desk and picked up the box that was sitting on it.

"Patented Daydream Charms," he read and looked over at her. "This is a product from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, is it not?"

Hermione wanted to crawl away and die from embarrassment. What had she been thinking? Instead she just nodded her head.

"Yes, Professor." She felt as if she were back at Hogwarts again.

"Isn't this product meant more for hormonal teenagers?"

This was getting worse by the moment. "It was a birthday gift," she mumbled. "From Ron. I just wanted to do something fun for once in my life; something that required no thinking."

"I see. Fun; such as taking Quidditch lessons? You seem to be getting yourself into some interesting situations lately, Miss Granger, although I suppose it's no surprise that Weasley gave you something that required no thinking. As I recall he was rather opposed to that activity. It's a shame you seem to be exhibiting the same disregard for propriety that you did in school. Here I was just beginning to admire your predictability.

Had Hermione not been so thoroughly humiliated, she would have been shocked at the idea that Severus Snape admired her for anything, even if it was only for being boring. As it was, she continued to stare at the floor while she walked back to her desk.

"As I said, Sir, I am very sorry for what happened. Had I been aware that this could be a consequence, I would have never taken it knowing I could be interrupted."

Severus gave her a long hard look and some of his fury seemed to have drained away. "Considering we will still be interacting on a weekly basis, perhaps it would be best if we put this behind us. Presuming, of course, that you keep such nonsense to your private life from now on."

Hermione had a feeling that she thought would be very similar to having turned in a sub-par potion in Potions class. She mumbled another "yes sir" and Severus took his seat.

"Do you want to make the usual withdrawal?" she asked hoping to change the subject.

"Yes," he said, sparing her the humiliation of having to look at him. She handed him the parchment and quill, willing her hand not to shake. He signed it and she handed him the money.

"I will see you next week Professor," she said as he began to rise. As he stood though, he did not walk away as she expected. She glanced up to see him looking at her.

"Perhaps," he began, looking uncomfortable, "considering the circumstances, it would be no longer appropriate for you to call me Professor. It seems rather sordid, don't you think? You may call me by my first name, if you so wish."

Hermione's mouth dropped open. She never thought she would see the day when he gave her permission to call him Severus.

"Well, alright then," she said with a smile. "I will see you next week, Severus."

"Good evening, Hermione," he said curtly and he stalked out the door. Hermione's smile grew wider as he left. This wouldn't have been the situation she would have chosen for herself, but there could be worse things, she supposed. As she reflected on it, and once her face stopped burning from embarrassment, there was one thought that kept lingering in her mind. Who would have guessed Severus Snape was such a good kisser?

Severus walked away from Hermione's office as fast as his legs could carry him without breaking into a run. He could not get the image of her out of his mind, or the taste of her off of his lips. He knewthat she had only kissed him because of that bloody charm. He also knew that as of this moment she was probably disinfecting her mouth. When she had said good-bye, though, she had smiled genuinely at him; perhaps the first genuine smile he had received in years. He wished he could convince himself that such things didn't matter to him. But today she had practically thrown herself into his arms when he had arrived and he had behaved in precisely the same manner all men would. It had been far too long since he had had any physical contact with a woman and he hadn't been able to help himself. He liked to think that he didn't have such base physical desires, but it was one thing to convince himself of that when alone in a cold dungeon or his decrepit home, it was quite another to do so when an attractive young woman was in his arms.

What he needed, he thought as he hurried down Diagon Alley, was a nice stiff drink; something to help him forget this godforsaken day and that bloody woman with her bizarre behavior. Why could no one just behave in the way that was expected of them?

As he finally reached his home and sat with a sigh onto a faded chair, a drink on the table and a book in his hand, his mind kept wandering to the earlier incident and the young woman involved. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair as his mind continually strayed from the words on the page and to the memory of her mouth and how her body had molded to fit his. After all, she might be a bushy haired know-it-all, but Merlin could she kiss!

Hermione wasted no time as soon as she left for the day to hurry down to Weasley Wizard Wheezes. Once she had got over the shock and embarrassment, she had begun to feel a fury toward Ron for selling her this stupid thing in the first place. She knew she was conveniently ignoring the fact that she had requested it.

Fred was just locking the doors when she arrived. She forced her way past him ignoring his cry of surprise.

"Ron Weasley!" she yelled storming her way to the back room.

"Hermione?" Ron asked, coming out of the office. "What's wrong?"

"This!" She shoved the now empty box into his hands. He stared at it, dumfounded. "Thirty minute daydream my arse! That thing lasted at least forty-five minutes and I'll have you know it was the cause of a very unfortunate incident with… with… someone."

"Well, see, we've been working on improving it," Ron said beginning to blush. "It's still not quite reliable, so we didn't want to advertise the longer time. But if you looked at the fine print, we've put a disclaimer in there about adverse reactions…"

"Well, that's not the only problem!" Hermione said, still furious. "It says nothing about actually interacting with people while having your daydream! I thought I would just sit and stare into space!"

"Well… see, there's something about that in the disclaimer as well. It is rare, but sometimes these things just affect certain people more."

"I don't give a bloody damn what the disclaimer says!" Hermione said her face red with fury and the memory of her humiliation.

"Merlin, Hermione," Ron stuttered and swallowed hard. "I don't think I've ever seen you so angry. What happened?"

"I… oh does it really matter, Ron? Let's just say that I was interrupted at a very inopportune time."

Ron's eyes widened a bit and Hermione supposed he was imagining his own daydream and how one could be interrupted.

"I see," he said gravely. "Well, it wasn't one of the goblins was it? I mean, that's just sick."

"For heaven's sake, Ron," Hermione said rolling her eyes. "It was not a goblin."

"Well, that's a relief. So, how bad could it be then? I mean as long as he's human and it wasn't Snape or anything." As soon as the words were out of his mouth his eyes grew wide and his face turned red. "Hermione, today is Monday isn't it?"

Hermione just sighed and nodded her head. There was clearly no point in denying it now. Ron however, looked as if he was torn between being sick and laughing.

"Not a word of this to anyone. Do you understand me?" Hermione growled at him. "I mean, I wasn't in my right mind."

"What did he do? He didn't hex you or anything did he?" Ron asked. "If he did I swear I'll get him for it."

"He didn't do anything of the sort. Naturally he was upset about it, but we have agreed to put the incident behind us." Now that Hermione thought back on it, she was surprised at how well he had taken it. Granted he had been angry, and who could blame him, but he had calmed down fairly quickly and there had only been a minimum of threats. She sighed and looked at her watch. It was growing late and she was getting tired. All she wanted was the peace and solitude of her flat.

"Look Ron, I better get going. I just thought you should know that those charms have some unusual… uh… side-effects."

"I'll be sure to let Fred and George know. They like to document these things," Ron said without thinking. When he saw her look of fury he hastily added, "I won't tell them the specifics; just that you had an adverse reaction."

Hermione nodded and turned toward the door. Before she reached it he called out to her.

"Why don't you come by tomorrow night for dinner? Help me make it up to you?"

"Alright," Hermione said with a strangely mischievous smile on her face. "Besides, I know what I want from Luna for my birthday." She left and Ron as watched her retreating form, he wondering why her last comment was making him feel so nervous.