Hello all! I hope I have not kept you waiting for too long for this update and I hope very much that it does not disappoint. Life has been a bit on the challenging side recently, so writing took a bit of a back wheel in the past weeks.

Just a heads up that I will be traveling towards the end of this year, so the next update might also be a little while coming…

Once again, thank you to everyone who left a comment. Each one means a great deal to me.

Disclaimer: No I do not own Harry Potter.

Rating/warnings: Please note the rating. This story is rated M for language and sexual content. There are also mentions of violence.

Chapter 6: Madness makes the heart grow fonder

Hermione peered at her reflection in the Muggle mirror she had nicked from her parents' house, brown eyes scrutinising her every feature. She had tied back her hair into a neat braid, utilising a neat Charm that Ginny had shown her to keep unruly tendrils from swinging into her face. Unusually for her, she had also applied a light layer of make-up - just enough to emphasise her large amber eyes and to make her mouth appear more prominent. Underneath her work robes, she was wearing a neat pencil skirt and her best white blouse. Objectively speaking, she looked… nice. Sophisticated, professional, classy… She frowned at her reflection.

It's alright to want to look nice some days… right? I dress up for girls' nights with Ginny, I wear make-up for dates, and I do my hair neatly when I'm giving a presentation… Today I'm going to Gringott's and I want to make the best possible impression on the Goblins. They would probably forgive my terrible Gobbledegook if they see me trying my best to impress them. Right?

Right…

Oh sod it all. She was being hopeless.

She had replayed the evening at the cursed flat over and over in her mind, wondering what on earth had possessed her to behave in such a way towards her former Professor. What must he think of her? Her frown lifted slightly as she remembered how his breath hitched when her fingers had run across his skin. He certainly hadn't been pushing her away. And if she was being completely honest with herself, Hermione felt slightly disappointed that she hadn't been able to feel the sensation of his mouth touching hers. Alright, more than slightly disappointed. At that moment she had desperately wanted to kiss him, to wrap her arms around his lean torso and dip her fingers into his glossy black hair.

Gods, what was wrong with her?

Deep breaths. Deep, calming breaths… Deep breaths that brought from her memory the smell of fire from a bubbling cauldron, crushed herbs, pressed silk, the delicious tang that was uniquely his…

"Argh!" Hermione threw up her hands and stomped into her small kitchenette to make herself some coffee. Obviously she was just sleep-deprived and desperate for sex. That was it. Definitely it. She was going mad from a bad sex life. Nothing to worry about. She was sure there was a potion that she could take to treat that…

Or perhaps a Potions Master she could take…

Hermione growled under her breath and grabbed a coffee mug from her cupboard with slightly more vehemence than necessary. She flicked her wand at her Charmed coffee pot and it instantly began filling itself with strong, black coffee, whistling a happy tune as it did. Resisting the urge to grind her teeth together (someone brought up by two dentists knew the consequences of regular teeth-grinding), Hermione reached into her pantry for her supply of crumpets and jam.

She sighed. He didn't even have nice teeth. She really, really liked nice teeth.

But… he did seem to have whiter teeth than before. And neater hair, cleaner hair, and even his skin looked a far cry from the sallow, swarthy hue that he formerly displayed. It was almost as if he was… making an effort.

Or maybe he's just happy, Hermione - happy that he doesn't have to be tortured every other day by a murdering sociopath.

Hermione growled again at the unusual focus of her thoughts and attacked her buttered and jammed crumpet. Merlin, the combination was heaven-sent. She instantly felt her mood improve as she enjoyed her breakfast and coffee.

When there was nothing left but crumbs and a few gulps of dark liquid, Hermione leaned back in her seat and pursed her lips. Was it really so strange that she found herself attracted to Severus Snape? Perhaps if they had met under different circumstances, it wouldn't feel quite so bizarre. After all, he was fiercely intelligent, articulate, had lovely hands, and could be quite the gentleman when he wasn't being a sarcastic, snarky git, which - strangely - hadn't really happened recently. True, he wasn't conventionally handsome… but still, she found his looks rather compelling. Something about the long, lean figure, dark hair and eyes contrasted with pale skin, and yes, even that nose… She had to admit that there was an allure there. Not to mention his voice. That voice should be made illegal – it was an Imperious Charm all by itself.

But still. He was her former teacher, almost twenty years older than her, and they were working together. There was no time for idle attractions. After all, she had pretty much sworn off relationships since she and Ron split up not so long ago. Severus Snape just didn't seem like the kind of wizard who was looking for a quick shag every now and then.

After all, he liked children. That implied things like settling down and getting married.

With someone like the curvy, blonde witch of his dreams, most likely.

Shut up, brain!

She would not become jealous of a purely imaginary witch.

Well, hopefully imaginary.

Hermione growled at that train of thought and attempted to finish the rest of her coffee with a violent gulp, almost sending half of it down the wrong way. Chastised, she sipped the last dregs more slowly as she pondered her current view of relationships. It wasn't that she was completely opposed to the idea of the idyllic family life. She was just… well, she had been in what she (and apparently the rest of Wizarding Britain) considered a fairy-tale relationship with Ron, and look how that turned out. They were best friends, two-thirds of the Golden Trio, who fell in love during a time of conflict. And yet, despite their best efforts, their relationship had fallen apart. Hermione thanked all the deities she could think of that Ron hadn't proposed during their time together – at the time she might have agreed. Now she was certain she wouldn't have been happy being Mrs Ronald Weasley. And he wouldn't have been happy with her, either. It was all for the best.

Hermione sighed and sent her dishes to the sink to be washed with a casual flick of her wand. Ruminating about her love life could wait. For now, she had Severus Snape to meet and Goblins to interrogate.

"Miss Granger."

The silky voice washed over her deliciously and Hermione had to use every ounce of willpower she possessed not to shiver. "It's Hermione." She corrected, smiling as she saw the tall, dark-robed wizard stalk towards her. He was dressed in light robes for summer, with a waistcoat and neat shirt underneath. Everything black, of course. It rather suited him. Severus' gaze flickered quickly over her appearance and the expression of approval in his eyes warmed her to her toes.

Stop it, Hermione… You're meant to be working!

They were outside Gringotts, Wizarding Britain's premier financial institution. As per usual on a weekday morning, it was swarming with visitors. Hermione had her Ministry identification pinned on the front of her work-robes, hoping it would make gaining entry slightly easier. As for Snape – well, she had identification from the Ministry for him too, but Hermione was rather hoping that he could show her what exactly he had meant by 'being owed favours by Goblins'.

Severus' mouth curled in a small smile as he accepted her correction to his greeting. "Hermione. Before we attend our appointment, I wanted to ask your progress in recruiting William Weasley's expertise?"

Hermione grimaced and straightened her robes as they walked together towards the main entrance, splendid in its white marble surfaces. "I Owled Bill a few days ago – I got a friendly but brief response saying that he would send me an Owl when he's free to set up an appointment to meet. Fleur's ready to burst with their second child, and apparently their hands are full trying to curb their – for now – only daughter's excitement. He's on official leave from the Ministry so I can't really force him to see me without revealing too much… but his note gives me hope that he won't keep me waiting for too long."

"I see. Well, perhaps the Goblins will be forthcoming today and we will not be required to resort to his assistance. However…" Severus glanced at her sideways as they handed over their wands to be checked at the security desk, "Given how you and your friends managed to escape from the most secure vaults in this bank on the back of a dragon, no less, it may be reasonable to assume that they would be wary of you."

"Oh." Hermione smiled sheepishly, blushing slightly as she remembered their desperate escape from Gringott's all those years ago. "Well, it was necessary at the time. Do you think they still remember it? It was quite a few years ago…"

"I believe it has become something rather legendary amongst the Goblin folk, Miss – ah, Hermione." Severus' eyes glinted with something that she thought could be affection. Hermione blushed further and suddenly felt grateful for her light make-up. At the very least it covered up the annoying tendency of her face to colour brightly when she was embarrassed.

The Goblin at the front desk handed their wands back to them, grunting a terse "Wait here," before disappearing. Hermione clutched at hers gratefully, never forgetting the time when she and Harry had to share a wand during their search for the Horcruxes. It had been an unimaginably challenging time, and having her wand out of her hands gave her heart palpitations like nothing else.

Well, except for a tall, dark-haired, hook-nosed wizard, perhaps…

Shut up, brain!

The Goblin who had checked their wands returned with another of his kin, a more elderly, slightly-hunched Goblin who wore gold-rimmed spectacles over an assessing squint. His gaze lingered over Severus for a brief moment before resting on Hermione. She met his gaze carefully, resisting the urge to blurt out her usual introduction as an officer from the MLE. Beside her, Severus too, remained silent.

After a few tense moments (Hermione felt a bead of sweat begin to form at the collar of her blouse), the elderly Goblin nodded to the security desk and the atmosphere visibly relaxed. She silently released a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding, tucking her wand surreptitiously into the pocket in the sleeve of her robes. Severus made a show of smoothing down the side of his cloak, and Hermione almost smiled with the realisation that they had both made the same subtle movements. Like teacher, like student …

"Come with me." The bespectacled Goblin motioned for them to follow. Hermione exchanged a look and a raised eyebrow with her companion before moving forward wordlessly. The Goblin they were following was not one whom she recognised, but he moved through the bank as if he was Gringott himself. He led them through the long queues of Wizarding folk lining up to withdraw money from high marble counters manned by discerning Goblins. Several of the witches and wizards turned from their coin to stare at Severus Snape, but he spared them barely a glance as he walked amongst them. Hermione, on the other hand, met their stares head on, daring them to speak their thoughts. She wasn't exactly angling for a duel in the middle of Gringott's, but she certainly wasn't about to stand for anyone insulting her companion. Had the man not had a difficult enough life? Did he not deserve some measure of peace?

They were led into a small room behind the counters, richly decorated with fine furnishings styled with bold, deep colours. There was an ornately carved desk and chairs covered with rich red velvet, and the golden light of the room came from a number of candles placed around the room, held by gleaming candlesticks sculpted from silver and gold. Hermione forced herself not to gape at the opulence of the place. The Goblins were known for their love of gold and riches, but this was certainly not the office of a low- or middling-level member of Gringott's. Hermione immediately felt herself tense with the realisation. She had arranged an appointment with a member of the bank's security, certainly not a overly senior member, but one who should have been able to provide them with access to the Malfoy vault and information on any tampering (Merlin forbid) that may have taken place.

The Goblin waved them to sit and placed himself behind the desk, sitting down on a tall chair so that he was almost eye to eye with a seated Severus. "Master Snape." He acknowledged the wizard with a small tilt of his head before turning to Hermione. "Miss Granger."

"Officer Granger," Hermione said as pleasantly as she could manage, sitting down on the stiff-backed chair that she was offered. Breathing deeply through her nose, she fought to retain some semblance of calm whilst arranging her skirt decorously around her legs. "From the Ministry's department of Magical Law Enforcement. I believe I had an appointment with Argnot from Gringott's security to discuss certain… sensitive matters?"

From the edge of her vision she watched Severus to see if he was displeased with her methods of handling the situation, which could have been interpreted as impudence. To her surprise, she saw his jaw twitch as he suppressed a smirk. It put her immediately more at ease and Hermione no longer had to struggle to stop herself fiddling with the hem of her robes.

"Indeed, I am not Argnot, Officer Granger." The Goblin watched Hermione with what only slightly resembled a smile. It looked more like he was attempting to show off what sharp teeth he had. Hermione repressed the urge to narrow her eyes.

"If that is the case, then I wonder who you are… and why we are here." She questioned, in what she hoped was still a tone of pleasant interest. Beside her, Severus remained silent but watched the Goblin carefully.

"I am called Narlock. My position here is unimportant. You are here because… well, I must inform you that your appointment with Argnot has been cancelled." Narlock again showed his unpleasantly predatory-looking smile.

"And may I ask why that is?" Hermione asked slowly as she exchanged a quick glance with Severus, whose impassive expression did not change.

"Argnot is… indisposed at present."

Well that's just convenient. "He assured me that we would meet today."

"I am afraid that he was mistaken."

For the second time that day, Hermione stopped herself from gritting her teeth. "Why is Argnot indisposed?"

Goblin teeth flashed but this time Hermione was too angry to feel even slightly frightened. "Now you are beginning to ask the right questions, Officer Granger."

"Narlock, it would be a great convenience to us if we could please skip through the riddles." Severus spoke for the first time since they arrived, his voice tinged with mild exasperation. Hermione looked at him with some surprise. How would the Goblin react to that tone of voice?

More sharp Goblin teeth were shown as Narlock's 'smile' widened. "If you insist, Master Snape." The Goblin leaned back in his fine chair, pressing the tips of his gnarled fingers together as he focused a bright stare on Hermione. "Argnot had been dismissed from this bank. That is why your meeting has been cancelled."

"Why?" Hermione thought back to when she had made the appointment two days ago. Argnot had not sounded like he had expected to be out of a job then. Whatever had happened to cause his dismissal must have happened only yesterday.

"He was found in breach of the codes of Gringott's bank. As you know, Argnot oversaw several vaults of the highest security. Although these vaults remain…untouched, his actions revealed that he could not be trusted."

"Argnot was in charge of Narcissa Malfoy's vault." Hermione said, leaning forward. "It was why I arranged to meet him. Master Snape and I are aware that there have been some inconsistencies regarding that vault, although it is unclear how these were caused."

"Indeed." Narlock fell silent, his face drawn into a grimace. His fingers gripped the table and he appeared seconds away from rising.

Hermione was uncomfortably aware that Narlock was about to dismiss them. She started desperately trying to think about something to say to salvage the situation that had rapidly spiralled out of her control. There had to be something that they could learn about what had happened at Gringott's! Surely the Goblin who had the authority to access the Malfoy vault would not have been dismissed lightly – what in Merlin's name would have revealed him to be untrustworthy?

"Can you tell us anything else about Argnot?" Severus' deep voice halted the frantic steam train that was Hermione's thoughts. It took every ounce of willpower for her not to stop and gape at him. He appeared perfectly calm, with only a slight edge of impatience in his tone. Well, I suppose this would be the strong constitution one builds after being a spy for twenty years…

Narlock met Severus' gaze with a stare of equal intensity from behind gold-rimmed glasses.

"He spent too much time with wand-bearers," the Goblin said, finally, eyes glinting with anger.

With those cryptic words, Narlock rose and made a sharp motion with his arm. The door to his office banged open at the movement. Only many, many years of practice kept Hermione from jumping at the sudden noise.

"You are dismissed." Narlock's tone brooked no argument. "Leave now before our patience runs out."

Hermione and Severus both stood. The tall wizard gave Hermione a meaningful look before reaching out to hold the door open for her to step through. But before they could leave, they heard a delicate cough from the direction of their host.

Hermione turned and saw Narlock looking at her closely. The anger had faded from his eyes and he now looked almost resigned "We found a gift from a wand-bearer in Argnot's chambers. It appeared to have been… tampered with. It made him unstable."

"What was the gift?" Hermione managed to ask.

"A bottle of Firewhiskey. We have destroyed it. Now, go." The return of the angry glint in the Goblin's eyes almost made Hermione take a step backwards. From the edge of her vision, she saw Severus' eyes narrow.

"And this time, kindly leave our dragons alone, Officer Granger."

They walked away from Gringott's in silence. Hermione had no idea what Severus was thinking, but she felt uncommonly dejected. Nothing, nothing about this case was going according to plan. Truth be told, she had expected the brush-off from Gringott's, but she thought that at the very least she would have been able to meet with the Goblin that she had actually arranged to see! But… Argnot's dismissal seemed awfully suspicious. Hermione knew that vaults at the highest level of security, like that of Narcissa Malfoy, required the touch of a certified Gringott's Goblin to be opened. Argnot was one of the few Goblins at the bank who could open the vault, and now he was gone, dismissed for being in possession of… tampered spirits?

"That meeting raised rather more questions than answers." Hermione murmured dejectedly as they fastened their cloaks. She could still feel her skin prickling at Narlock's display of temper. Angry Goblins made her rather nervous. Almost as nervous as angry centaurs… or angry giant spiders… or angry giant snakes, come to think of it.

"At least it raised some new questions." Severus intoned, with a mildly troubled expression. For a moment of madness, Hermione felt like reaching up with her thumb and wiping the frown off his face…

Whoa… get it together, lady! Hermione released a sharp breath to gather herself and smoothed down the light material of her robes before replying, "Like all my other dealings with Goblins, that was rather cryptic and we had to leave in rather a hurry. I suppose I shouldn't be expecting anything different." She paused and considered Narlock's words carefully, tilting her head to the side. A few curls slipped out of her Charmed styling, but she was too distracted to notice. "Narlock said that he spent too much time with wand-bearers… witches or wizards, then. So Argnot received a gift of Firewhiskey from a witch or wizard that made him so untrustworthy to his colleagues that they had to relieve him of his position? That is rather odd. I do wish we could examine the whiskey for magical tampering…"

"Goblins are rather suspicious of other magical folk who aren't their own kin, but they certainly reserve particular spite for 'wand-bearers' like us." Severus said, offering Hermione his arm. Apparently he had done so without consciously thinking about it, as when she wound her arm around his elbow, he looked at her with a brief flash of surprise that quickly turned into a fond expression that Hermione thought she could rather get used to. She felt her cheeks began to colour again and hoped to Merlin that she wasn't being too obvious.

She was rather too old for hopeless infatuations, after all.

Suddenly, Hermione gasped and flicked her arm to release the wand from the pocket of her robes in a flash. The tip of her wand had started to grow warmer, part of a Charm and she had devised together with Ron and Harry to allow for a more subtle form of communication between them than sending off a Patronus. This way, they could move somewhere more private to listen to a message, away from prying eyes and ears.

At her gasp, Severus had released her arm and armed himself with his wand more quickly than her eyes could detect. Hermione linked her arm around his elbow and hurried began pulling him through the crowd to what looked like a quiet alleyway. "Follow me," she whispered, "I think it might be Harry with a message. Or Ron. Gods, I hope they're alright."

Once they had emerged from the throng, Hermione tapped her wand on the brick wall of the alleyway, whispering a short spell. As soon as she finished her words, Harry's Patronus appeared, the glowing stag growing corporeal in seconds. It stood still and seemed to be looking intently at Hermione. Her heart racing, she waved her wand carefully in its direction, muttering a short incantation to release the Charm that they had placed to ensure that only the intended recipient would be able to hear the message.

Harry's steady voice rang through the air. "Hermione – there's been an emergency. You are needed at the Ministry immediately. Bring Professor Snape."

"A herd of forty-five cattle, two dogs, and several birds – we haven't found all of them yet – and… that's the final approximate tally."

An Auror Hermione didn't recognise left the glowing script transcribing his words floating in the middle of the meeting room. It was one of the more spacious rooms in the Auror Office, but it was now chock-full with Ministry wizards and witches. There was plenty of pressing and shoving and elbow-nudging as the room seemed to fill with more people by the minute. Hermione and Severus arrived just as the 'final tally' was being announced. Quickly scanning the words already written above, Hermione gasped as she read.

'Magical explosive… released unidentified amounts of Dreamless Sleep Potion combined with Dragon's Fire and other yet-to-be-defined Potions… farmland fifty miles from closest Muggle settlement… animals within a one-mile radius succumbed to unconsciousness… no sign of awakening despite repeated use of Reviving Charms… Priority One…'

Hermione stood on her tip-toes and scanned the myriad of faces for a messy-haired, green-eyed man. She spotted him standing to the side of the speaker. The only sign of anxiety he showed was the small crease between his brows, right underneath the lightning-bolt scar that marked him as the Boy-Who-Lived…Twice. Harry's eyes swivelled to meet hers through the crowd and acknowledged her with a quick nod. His shoulders were tense with controlled calm.

A sharp elbow in her ribs made Hermione grunt with surprise – she was so focussed on reading the report and looking out for Harry that she hadn't realised how completely full the room had become. There were Aurors, MLE officers, Muggle Liaison members… Hermione stepped quickly backwards out of the way of sharp limbs and bumped into a hard torso. She turned her head quickly to apologise but stopped when she saw Severus giving one his 'you're about to blow up my Potions classroom' scowls to the Ministry official who had bumped into her. The unfortunate wizard let out a high-pitched "eep!" before pushing his way through the crowd to probably find a spot as far from them as possible.

Hermione felt irrationally flattered by Severus' show of protectiveness. She must truly be going mad.

He had gripped her shoulders with gentle hands to steady her, and once Hermione had clearly revived her balance, Severus released his hold on her. His lowering hands brushed against her lower back and she tried but failed to repress a shiver.

Focus, Hermione… Focus.

"Muggle authorities have now arrived at the site. Our contact from the Muggle police force tells us that although no Muggles were harmed, they are taking this incident very seriously. We await to find out whether the Muggle methods of revival are more successful on the unfortunate animals that came in contact with the explosive."

Several people started speaking at once, and a magically amplified voice saying "Quiet!" silenced the room immediately. The voice belonged to Florence Williamson, head of the Auror Office, a petite red-headed witch who rumour had it was the only person to have bested Alastor Moody in a duel. She cleared her throat and continued, "This case was previously being handled by individuals in Magical Law Enforcement, but given the obvious involvement of Dark Magic and high potential for extensive damage to both Muggle and Magical populations, the Auror Department will now be taking over all aspects of this investigation. If anybody obtains any information pertaining to this case, it must be delivered to us without delay. Thank you. This meeting is over."

There was again a cacophony of noise as Williamson finished speaking, but she clapped her hands and shooed everyone away with a snarling "That means leave, everybody. There is a great deal of work to be done and we can't do it with all this noise!"

Hermione elbowed her way towards Harry in the opposite direction of the leaving crowd. Her best friend saw her approaching and beckoned her to the side, away from the ears and eyes of Williamson and the other Aurors. She reached behind and tugged Severus' wrist to make sure she didn't lose him in the mass of moving bodies. His skin was surprisingly warm, and Hermione felt a strange and incredibly inappropriate tingle run through her at the contact.

"Hermione," Harry pulled them both to the side, whispering urgently. "It's all as you said. The Potions… the detonation… the after-effects… It's a miracle that no one was hurt - just a few farm animals that we can maybe cover up as a disease or something similar."

"We can help, Harry! Sev-" Hermione began, her words tumbling over each other in her excitement.

"Hermione Granger." Florence Williamson's steady alto voice cut into their conversation like a knife. "Potter has informed me that you were the one who opened this investigation. I am afraid that we have orders from the highest levels of the Ministry to take over the case with immediate effect. Your supervisor has given orders for you to provide us all the reports that you have compiled. We thank you for your efforts thus far, but must bid you to refer any and all further information you receive pertaining to this investigation to our Department."

Well, if that wasn't the most polite dismissal Hermione had ever heard. She saw Harry grimace from behind his boss. She sighed and turned to Severus. He was frowning slightly as his eyes skimmed over the report still written in glowing letters in the middle of the now much less crowded room.

"I would be happy to provide assistance with identifying the Potions involved in this explosive, Auror Williamson. Miss Granger can act as my liaison with the appropriate Ministry departments."

"No!" A strangled cry from a red-faced young Auror standing close by interrupted whatever answer Williamson had been about to voice. "That's Severus Snape! He's a murdering Death Eater…!"

Harry and Hermione had whipped out their wands before the indignant young man could continue. His words froze in his throat and he stared at them both, wide-eyed, before turning to the head of his Department in appeal.

"How dare you…!" Hermione began hotly, sparks beginning to emit from her wand in her anger.

"Hold your tongue, Spencer, unless you wish to enter a duel that you cannot win." Williamson's curt voice rebuked. "Severus Snape is no more a Death Eater than I am."

With a clear look of surprise in his dark eyes, Severus lowered his head to the red-haired Auror in a respectful half-bow. Harry and Hermione lowered their wands, but not before gifting Spencer with simmering glares.

"Unfortunately I have strongly-worded orders that this investigation must be coordinated by Aurors alone. If you will both excuse me, we have a great deal to do. We believe that this attack on uninhabited farmland was a… test-run, of a sort. It may not be long before the next attack, and we must be vigilant. Good-day, Miss Granger… Master Snape."

With a quick nod of her head, Williamson led the other Aurors out of the room, a chastened Spencer following slowly behind them. Harry grabbed Hermione's arm as soon as his supervisor was out of ear-shot and whispered rapidly into her ear, "I'll do my best to feed you information, Hermione. It'll have to be discreet, but I know you'll want to be involved. Merlin, I'm sorry it worked out this way... They're making a big mistake keeping you both out of the case."

One of Harry's colleagues called out to him and grimaced. Squeezing her hand tightly, he muttered a quick "bye, love" and hurried after the rest of the Aurors.

Hermione sighed. Today was not her day.

"I've never been thrown off a case before." Hermione grumbled despondently, counting the coins she had in her purse as she pondered how much food she could buy for a measly four Galleons and fifteen sickles. Oh, and three Knuts. Honestly, she should have gotten money out at Gringott's that morning.

They had spent the afternoon copying all the reports Hermione had painstakingly written and passing them to the Auror office. They next had to be interviewed by the Aurors about their morning's appointment at Gringott's. And then, all the records of Severus' Potions orders had to be copied and sent to the Department of Magical Research. By the time Hermione and Severus had left the Ministry, they were exhausted, grumpy (or grumpier, in the case of Severus Snape) and desperate for a drink.

"I would not consider it being thrown off the case, Hermione. You have merely been reassigned until the egos in the Auror department figure out that you are far more intelligent and determined than they are, and then they will grovel at your feet begging you for help. And from what I managed to overhear Potter whispering to you, it seems that you will not be kept completely in the dark about further developments." Severus waved the barmaid over and ordered wine for both of them, waving Hermione away when she offered him her share of the cost.

"You heard what Harry said?" Hermione said wide-eyed, wondering if her friend would get into trouble with the other Aurors. Despite the fact that he was Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived-to-Kill-Bad-Wizards, he was still technically meant to follow their rules…

"Potter has the subtlety of a rampaging Hippogriff, Hermione." Severus said, collecting the bottle of red wine and two glasses from the bar with a polite nod at the server. "But worry not, I believe only I was within earshot to hear the devious plans you made with the Boy Wonder."

Hermione snagged a bag of crisps on her way to their booth. Now that she was starting to come to terms with the strange fact that she was attracted to Severus Snape, she felt that it might be prudent to not go completely overboard with the wine… She might end up doing something completely mad, like kissing him.

Not that the idea was exactly repulsive…

Hermione almost staggered as her brain was suddenly inundated with images of her sitting on Severus' lap, pressing her lips to his. What would it be like? He had rather thin lips, but she didn't mind that. He also had a rather large nose. Would it get in the way? Well, if she slanted her mouth to the side…

She jolted herself out of her thoughts suddenly, realising that she was standing in the middle of a relatively crowded pub, motionless, carrying a bag of crisps, wool-gathering. Circe's knees, what was wrong with her? This infatuation was getting completely out of control. Fortunately for her, Severus didn't seem to notice that she had started daydreaming about planting herself on his lap. He had laid down the wine and glasses on the table and had turned around, frowning slightly, when he realised that she was not close behind. Breathing a sigh of relief, Hermione hurried over and thrust the crisps out to him in explanation.

"Sorry, I'm a little hungry." She ripped open the bag, willing her fingers to stop trembling. She told herself it was the nerves, the anxiety from earlier that day. Worrying about Harry, worrying about the world, again. When would it ever stop?

To her annoyance, some of her curls were escaping from her carefully Charmed hair. She balanced the bag of crisps on the table with one hand, dropping her wand into the other hand and tapping the rebellious curls gently, muttering the Charm to make them zip back into her braid.

"Why did you Charm your hair?" Severus was staring at her, having poured them both a generous helping of wine.

It seemed a strangely innocuous question for such a serious man. Or at least, a man she had previously associated with extreme seriousness. He really seemed to have mellowed over the years. "The Charm makes my hair neater. It frustrates me when it dangles all over and I have to keep flipping it back. And anyway, I wanted to make a good impression at Gringott's today."

And to you. The words were unspoken but in Hermione's mind they rang true, albeit grudgingly. She grimaced and attempted to hide it with another sip of wine.

"It is fine the way it is."

Severus reached out and tucked an errant curl, one that she had missed, behind her ear, his eyes never leaving hers. His fingertips grazed her cheek, and she felt the skin underneath colour brightly. Hermione had the almost unbearably strong urge to turn her head and press her lips to those beautiful fingers. She wondered, not for the first time, what his skin would taste like.

Hermione heard herself offer Severus some crisps, amazed that her mind could still focus on conversation despite the curiously singular direction of her sex-starved brain in the recent days. Her heartbeat was still recovering from the almost intimate gesture from her evening's companion. Such a gesture from Harry or Ron would be completely commonplace. They were her best friends. There was absolutely no awkwardness in physical contact between them, even between her and Ron. But Severus Snape? What did he mean by that? Was he… interested?

They sat, drinking in silence, interspersed with the crackle of rustling foil as Hermione helped herself to salty, deep-fried goodness. Severus made a remark on the lacklustre quality of her eating habits, which quickly sparked an enthusiastic debate about whether it was justified to skip meals when work or research seemed more compelling. The conversation quickly diverted to the latest edition of Alchemist's Quarterly, and Severus' thoughts on the articles that Hermione considered were of relatively dubious quality.

Thinking about Potions suddenly brought her back to the day's events. "I think you should continue making the Potions that were requested of you by our mysterious criminal. And even though I'm not technically meant to be working on the case anymore… you can always send me a Patronus if you need to reach me. I'd advise against sending me an Owl at work like you did before… the Ministry might get upset if you were to contact me instead of the Aurors."

"I agree that I should continue with the Potions order. It would be suspicious to suddenly cease my supply." Severus grimaced. "But I would rather not send a Patronus, if you do not mind. I will devise other means to contact you.

"Oh." Hermione stopped, puzzled. "Er – Oh." A lightbulb flashed in her thoughts. "Right. You have a rather recognisable Patronus. Right."

The Daily Prophet had been relentless in publishing every scrap of information known about Severus Snape after the Second Wizarding War. Everyone who hadn't been living under a rock for the past eight years certainly knew what form his Patronus took.

"Actually, my Patronus has… changed. I find myself rather unprepared to reveal it at present."

Hermione tried hard not to notice how his Adam's apple bobbed when he took a sip of wine. At his words, she started. "Oh. That's curious."

"Not particularly. Once I fulfilled my duties to Albus and to Potter, the power of Lily's memory diminished. I cannot say for sure when the corporeal form of my Patronus changed, but I noticed it soon after I left St Mungo's."

Hermione felt a strange sensation… almost relief? Did it matter to her that Severus was no longer desperately in love with Lily Evans Potter? Did it matter to her that he had found happier memories to draw upon to fuel his Patronus?

Yes. Yes, it does, Hermione accepted grumpily.

"Are you… are you alright? With… moving on?" The words escaped her before Hermione had a chance to pull them back. She grimaced inwardly. Severus was a notoriously private man. She had no business poking into his most intimate thoughts.

To her surprise, the corner of his mouth quirked and a glint caught his eye. Hermione took a large gulp of her wine to cover the butterflies in her stomach that had suddenly arisen. Severus should be banned from having such an expression on his face. It made him look rather devastatingly attractive.

"I made the adolescent mistake of putting Lily on a pedestal." He said, catching Hermione's gaze. Again she felt her stomach flip and she forced herself to swallow as slowly as possible. "As far as adolescent mistakes go, there could be worse things." Severus did not elaborate, but the phrase 'like joining the Death Eaters' hung at the end of his words. "The truth is that Lily never loved me, but as she never really knew me, any love between us would have been a farce anyway."

"What do you mean?" Again her curiosity won out over common sense. Hermione could have slapped herself. Fortunately Severus didn't seem to mind.

He traced patterns on the wooden booth as he considered his reply. "I was never comfortable showing Lily who I was." He said, finally. "To me she had such a perfect life. I feared that she would have been disgusted had I shared who I really was… my unhappy childhood, the pressure to join the Death Eaters, being the target of bullies with neither compassion nor sense… I tried to be different around her. I tried to absorb her brightness and happiness. I tried to be someone that I thought she could like and respect. She was the only one who cared about me and I wanted to make myself her ideal. But really, she didn't know me, the real me, at all. I never let her close enough to find out."

"I loved her desperately even knowing that she would not love me back, all because she cared about me. And of course, one day I made a mistake and she turned her back on me. I was devastated… and that anger spurred me to do unspeakable things."

There was a pause as Severus ruminated on the past in silence. Feeling a surge of Gryffindor brashness, Hermione reached forward and covered his hand with hers. The dark-haired wizard looked up at her, then down at their joined hands. He did not pull away, but continued in a carefully controlled tone. "Even much later on… when the romantic attachment had faded and only the grief at her early death remained, I held on to my ill-fated love for her. I clung to it like a drowning man because it was a beacon that kept me to my course. At all costs to my soul, I had to protect her son. He had to live so that he could destroy the Dark Lord. Once that goal had been achieved, and shockingly I was still alive to witness it, I could finally let go of my feelings for Lily. Now she is… merely an honoured memory."

Severus paused and took a large swallow of wine, his fingers tensing beneath her hand. "And of course, the one man who knew me for who I really was and loved me anyway… Well, I killed him, didn't I?" This time there was a unmistakable hollowness to his voice. It made Hermione's heart clench painfully.

Dumbledore. Hermione's eyes closed for a moment as she remembered the pain she felt when she realised that Dumbledore was dead. But the second emotion to replace the pain was anger… the anger she had felt when she found out all that he had tasked Snape with – impossible tasks designed to make him appear untrustworthy, to isolate him from the Order, to force him to be alone. She couldn't help but say, "I always thought he asked too much of you."

"Albus? I suppose he did." Severus acquiesced with an elegant lift of his shoulders. "But had no choice. He had to… to force me to continue the fight. There were so many times that I was tempted to just give up. Every time I had to watch someone be tortured, or killed, all those times I was begged for mercy and I could do nothing… There were so many nights that I wanted to just throw myself off the Astronomy tower and be done with it. But Albus kept me going every time. He did what he had to do to defeat the Dark Lord. In the end, that is all that matters."

Severus was quiet for a long moment. "Although he may not always have been fair, I know that he cared for me, even at the time of his death. And that is a gift that I will never take lightly. He was an extraordinary man and a great wizard. There will be no other like him."

Hermione willed away tears at the honest emotion in his words. She lifted her glass and managed a small smile. "To absent friends."

"Absent friends." Severus murmured, tapping his glass against hers with a soft 'clink'. This time, when he looked at her, Hermione was sure she didn't imagine the intimate warmth in his gaze. She dragged her eyes away from his face with difficulty and sipped at her wine. With her trembling hands, she set her glass down slowly and licked the droplets of ruby red wine from her lips. Daring to peek at Severus from under her lashes, she saw him staring intently at her - at her mouth, to be precise – and his fingers – lovely, long, beautiful fingers - were gripping the table so tightly that his knuckles were white.

The atmosphere was charged. Although they were seated in a busy Wizarding pub, Hermione felt as though the rest of the patrons had disappeared, leaving her alone with an attractive wizard whose eyes were focused intently on her lips. If she just leaned over the table… she could press her mouth to his and lick delicately at the corner of his frown. She could tangle her hands in his hair and taste the wine on his tongue. She could…

Hermione almost gasped aloud as she realised the direction of her thoughts. Gods. She was tired, she had had too much wine, and she was… alarmingly attracted to Severus Snape. Her eyes snapped back to his and she was sure that the dark desire in his eyes was mirrored in her own. But, Merlin's beard, she had to control herself. If it was any other wizard she would take him to her bed...

"I… I should go." She heard herself croak out, "It… it's late."

Severus nodded wordlessly, his eyes never leaving hers even as he picked up his cloak slung across the back of his chair. Hermione stood on shaky legs, trying to press her thighs together subtly to suppress the ache of her desire. Gods. What in Merlin's name was wrong with her?

They exited the pub and trudged in silence to the alleyway Apparition point. Hermione struggled to form a coherent thought, although she knew that she was only a pleasantly tipsy rather than blind drunk. There would be time later for a cross-examination of her rather intense attraction to her former Potions Professor. For now, she had to get a grip…

There was a cool wind blowing and she shivered. Slowly, Hermione unfolded her cloak and draped it around herself, aware that she was stalling… wanting more time with her enigmatic companion but not daring to voice her desires. The enigma in question said nothing as she reached up to close the clasp on her cloak, her numbed fingers fumbling with the delicate fastening, taking far longer than usual.

With a start, she felt warm hands wrap around her shoulders and edge forward to cover her fingers. Severus was standing so close behind her that Hermione could feel the heat of his body against her shoulders. His breath on her ear making her shiver, he murmured, "Allow me."

Too surprised to move, and much too turned on to care, Hermione stood still, unable to drop her hands as Severus' long fingers expertly slipped the fastening closed. When he had finished, they remained where they were, his fingers gently stroking her smaller, more delicate hands. Faintly aware that his breathing had grown heavier, she felt her eyes slide shut as Severus moved his face even closer to hers, the tip of nose touching her neck… her jaw… her cheek… The warmth of his breath made her skin tingle and she almost moaned with the pleasure of it.

Hermione turned her face to his. Their mouths were millimetres apart, their breaths mingling. The alleyway was lit by a single lamp-post, and they were otherwise alone. Not that it mattered - there could have been a herd of rampaging centaurs and Hermione probably would have ignored them. Her attention was focused on the tall, dark-eyed wizard standing behind her. The way he looked at her, obsidian eyes centred intently on her face, it was like he wanted to consume her.

She hardly noticed that her legs were shaking.

She wasn't sure who moved forward first, but with a gasp Hermione found herself suddenly wrapped in lean, strong arms, her lips pressed against the mouth of a man who smelt like herbs and fire and parchment and silk. At the first gentle pressure, she moaned, or he moaned, she couldn't tell. The feel of him was indescribable. Her heart thudding in her chest so hard she thought she might burst, Hermione wet her lips with the tip of her tongue without breaking the kiss, gently lapping at the seam of his mouth. He tasted of the wine they had shared, and it was wonderful. She was giddy with the taste of him, wanting more, only more, just more… When Severus opened to her, his tongue reaching out boldly to stroke her swollen lips in slow, mesmerising swirls, Hermione felt her mind start to unravel.

It was triumphant. It was bliss. It was magic.

His tongue tangled with hers slowly, an erotic dance that made wetness pool between her thighs. Those long, wonderful fingers slid into her braid, wrapping around her hair. Hermione felt rather than heard a wandless Finite undo the Charm that held her hair tightly together and her curls sprang free. Severus whispered his appreciation into her mouth as he weaved his hands through her unbound mass of hair.

Who knew that having someone comb their fingers through her curls could be so sensual?

Wanting him closer still, her fingers twisted in his cloak, tugging him to her so that her body was flush against his. She heard his gasp as she pressed closer against him, her breasts rubbing against his chest through the thin weight of their light summer clothing. The contact between their bodies made her skin thrum. Severus was lean, but there was a taut strength to his body that made her want to unbutton his shirt and press her hands against his skin. Her fingers moved of their own volition over the sharp planes of his shoulders, up his neck, into his hair… The dark strands were soft and silky, not at all oily or greasy as she anticipated. Clutching at each other, the height difference meant that he was bent over her, and the sheer brutality of their kisses almost made them both unbalance, until…

Until he lowered his hands slowly from her back to her thighs, leisurely skimming over her waist and bottom and hips, leaving a fiery trail in the wake of beautiful, talented hands. In a flash the kiss turned from soft and sensual to fiery and carnal.

Hermione gripped at his shoulders as her knees buckled. She felt her breath knocked out of her lungs as she tripped backwards. Before she could cry out or even break the kiss, Severus' armed tightened around her and she felt herself pushed backwards into the hard brick wall of the alley. A wandless (and non-verbal, thank you very much) Cushioning Charm meant that instead of hard stone digging into her back, she could focus her attention on the wizard currently trying to mark a trail down her neck with his lips. She gasped as he suckled on her collarbone, releasing a soft whine as the sensation sent a sweet ache shooting through her body to rest between her thighs.

She could hardly breathe, hardly think. What did it matter where she was? Did it matter that she was behaving more wantonly in public than she ever imagined?

Rocking her hips against him, wanting to feel more, Hermione relished the deep moan from her companion as he briefly stiffened before crushing her body to him tightly. Severus dragged his lips back to her mouth, nipping her exposed skin of her neck and jaw as he did, leaving a trail of fire in his wake. She rolled her hips against him and Severus hissed again, the hard evidence of his desire pressing against her intimately. Hermione shifted her legs to cradle him between her thighs and rocked against his hardness again, the pleasure so intense that her eyes slid shut as she cried out.

Gods, she felt so unbelievably close to orgasm and he had barely even touched her.

Her sudden cry seemed to jolt something within Severus and he stepped back from her so suddenly that Hermione almost fell forward. She felt cold without the heat of his body pressed against hers and the ache between her thighs was so strong that it was almost physically painful. What… why was he stopping?

Severus had stepped backwards to put almost a metre between them. He was staring at her with undisguised desire, still breathing heavily. Gradually, astonishment leaked across his angular features as he continued to gaze at her, arms hanging awkwardly at his sides.

Hermione wanted to reach out to him, but thought she was rather in shock. That had to be, hands-down, the best damn kiss of her existence. She had been minutes away from committing what was probably an act of gross public indecency and she had never behaved like that in her life.

She tried to recall how to form words, but her mind was a puddle of incoherence. Before she could open her mouth to speak, Severus stepped back even further.

And then he did the strangest thing she could have imagined.

He Disapparated.

*runs and hides*

…but, seriously, get it together, Severus! Am I right?

(If anyone has any romantic advice for either of these hopeless two, feel free to leave a comment ;) )