II.
Later, after the juices of several mangos found their way across both of their bodies and had subsequently been licked and sucked away, Severus held Ginny in his arms and watched her as she slept. In sleep she was peaceful, more at peace than she ever was in her waking hours.
Even after being together for almost eleven years now, her face was never completely calm – at least until she came to him before dinner. Then, when he spanked her smart little bottom until her cheeks were a lovely shade of pink, her face became serene and tranquil, as though she had never faced any of the hardships of her life.
When she was riding a broom – a proper, wooden broom, he smirked – he imagined she must look the same way. He'd never been focused on her during the Quidditch games she played in when she was a student as his concern was always for his Slytherins or on matters other than the Gryffindor team. He regretted that now. When they'd flown together over the previous summer the look was more undiluted joy rather than the tranquility he saw when she was bent over his desk with her skirt around her waist, waiting for him.
He wondered idly if he looked the same way during those times.
He felt that way; that much was for sure. Her submission to him was … Merlin, there were no words for it. Wonderful? It didn't quite catch how awe-inspiring it was. Splendid? That wasn't it either, for it didn't express the excitement that came from it, and the sentiment was too sweet. It wasn't perfect either, for she was a rebellious little thing who loved to show him exactly who held all the control in their relationship.
As if he needed a reminder.
He still wondered why she chose him. Ginny could have been with anyone. She was young, vibrant, and so achingly beautiful. He thanked whatever god was listening that he had enough self-discipline to have not completely realized just how completely lovely she was when she was still his student. Her prettiness had been obvious then, he did remember that. Occasionally, he would covertly glance in her direction with his face hidden in the lengths of his greasy hair to appreciate it, especially when she wore her hair down around her face.
Ginger hair had always been an attraction for him, even before he'd become so obsessed with Lily. There was another Muggle girl in town who his mother had kept during the day when he was very young, maybe six or seven. Her hair was the color of the sunset, and he used to watch her when she was out playing with his mother in the sunshine of their yard. Severus couldn't even remember her name now, but he would always remember her brightness being one of the few cheerful things in his life then.
Now, his little red-headed witch, all that he cared about in the world and the best part of his life, was snuggled tightly next to him, as though she were trying to blend her body into his. Her pregnant belly was slightly resting on his hip, the little life within still except for an occasional movement to let him know she was indeed ever present.
He tried to envision what she would look like when she was born, especially as the time was growing very near. Without a doubt, he wished for her to look like her mother, with the red hair he loved, the blue eyes that calmed his soul, and the freckled skin that she hated but that he loved to touch. But the Prince genes were strong – that had been evidenced in his own appearance. His father had been fair haired and eyed, with tanned skin from day labor. It was his mother who'd had the black hair and eyes that he'd inherited, and he favored her down to the horrible nose in both their faces.
A faint groan came from his chest with the thought that their little girl could inherit the Prince features that he so hated. But the thought of her having any of the Snape characteristics made him weak with fear.
He thought of his father; his pious, neglectful father who would rather frequent the inside of first the local church and then the local pub than come home and spend any of his spare moments with his wife and child – the witch and wizard that he'd been saddled with against his will. He wondered if the first Tom Riddle had felt the same when he woke from her Amortentia laden stupor and realized that he'd been completely duped by a witch who was more intelligent than anyone gave her credit for.
Tobias Snape had been not been poisoned into a loveless marriage like the Dark Lord's father, but he'd surely felt that way when his wife had finally admitted that she was a witch, long after the nuptials that had been necessitated by the pregnancy that resulted in his birth. He'd taken out his anger of being married to a witch – a sinful, godless witch – by doing nothing and being nothing to either his wife or child. He came home every night, usually drunk and more spiteful than Severus could have every hoped to be during the height of the war, but he was never there.
Tobias never gave any more of himself to them that was required, until the day Severus got his Hogwarts letter in the mail. Then, suddenly, he had all the attention he never wanted when the neglect shifted into abuse.
His father had known that Severus was a wizard, but Tobias thought he might be able to pray the trait out of him in time. When it didn't work, he tried to beat it out of his son. The fights that occurred every summer the closer the calendar came to September were legendary in Spinner's End, even though their neighbors never knew exactly what they were about. Potter had thought that the Muffliato Charm had been Severus's invention. In reality, it had been Eileen Snape's last creation so that their secret could stay safe within the walls of their home despite the screams and pleas for mercy.
Severus tightened his hold on his wife, trying to chase away those thoughts before they took hold over his mind. It never did any use for him to dwell in the past, even if the memories still haunted him. Especially at night, when dreams, nightmares, and reality sometimes blurred until he wasn't sure what was real and what wasn't.
After burying the thoughts of his father tightly back into his mind, he pondered, instead, over the previous few hours he and his spent in bed. Ginny's libido had soared throughout the pregnancy to the point that he'd done some private research on the matter to make sure it was as normal as Poppy had assured them it was. He'd even consulted Muggle sources during a trip to one of his ingredient suppliers in London, just to help his mind to rest easy on the subject.
Of course, the MediWitch had been correct, but the affirmation from the private sources made him feel better about continuing to please her in any way she preferred. Except for their private time before supper – he'd been firm about that ceasing until after the baby was born mostly due to his own fears. So, instead of the spankings that he normally gave her, he fucked her on that same desk every single afternoon until the moans she normally delighted him with before had changed into screams of pleasure after he kept her from orgasm until she threatened to curse him.
She'd threatened to do the same tonight, when he insisted on dripping the juice on her body over and over again, only using his tongue to clean his mess. As he explained to her, it truly was the only way he could make sure that she was really clean. She'd paid him back in kind. He smiled when recalled the triumph in her face when she'd made his eyes almost cross with her tongue and mouth.
He felt himself twitch a little, trying to come to life. As though she recognized the shift in his thoughts even in sleep, Ginny's mind was suddenly very present in the room as she slowly woke. Just a sigh at first, followed by the tune she unconsciously hummed when she woke every morning.
He groaned when he felt her hand travel to his groin.
"Find something you like?" he asked, almost a sigh as she squeezed his length.
"I think I have," she replied. Her fingers were cool against his hot skin as she stroked him, making him fully erect. She licked her lips as she lowered the sheets to expose his naked body to her eyes, then let her eyes travel back up to his face. "What would you like tonight? Can I take a ride on your broom?" she asked, giggling a little as she swung her leg over his to straddle him.
"There's nothing I'd like more," he answered. He flexed his hips to meet hers, seeking out the warm heat that made him feel like he was home.
She laughed and grabbed his hands, trying to find the perfect balance as she shifted her weight a little on his lap. Bringing his knees up slightly to support her, he helped her find the right position so that she could ride him to her heart's content.
"Oh, my …" she sighed as she slid down along his length, squeezing him as her body met his in the most intimate of caresses. Then she began to move in slow, teasing circles, rocking back and forth as he met her hips with his.
"Ginny," he whispered, lost in the haze of bliss she brought him with her movements. She let go of his hands and grabbed the headboard behind him, giving him the opportunity to touch her body as he desired while she sped up her movements. His hands slid over her arms, feeling the muscles in them flex as she moved. He let his hands settle on her breasts, not settling really, as he favored them above almost any other feature on her body besides her lovely backside. Squeezing hard, he watched her face to make sure he wasn't being too rough.
"Is this okay?" he asked, repeating the movement, seeing her bite her lower lip in response.
"Yes," she gasped. "Gods, yes. Don't stop."
He smiled lazily and continued, sliding his fingers over her swollen nipples and pinching lightly at first, then harder when he heard her moan of pleasure and felt the affirmation come from her mind as well. She leaned forward a little, giving him the opportunity to catch one in his mouth to tease with his lips, tongue, and teeth. He realized he'd missed a spot earlier, despite his care, when the flavor of ripe fruit came to his lips.
She moaned in response. "Harder, Severus. Please."
Grinning against her skin now, he complied with absolute delight, using his teeth to graze the sensitive skin as he sucked harder. She clinched around him, her movements slowing as she muttered inarticulate words, begging him to continue.
"Shhhh," he crooned gently as her paid her other breast the same attention, biting sharply when she cursed him coarsely for the brief interlude it took him to bring it to his mouth.
"Oh, fuck," she cried, her movements speeding back up clumsily now in her excitement as she was trying to seek release. He brought his hands to her hips, slowing her pace down again.
"Not until I tell you, Mrs. Snape," he said.
"Need to come now," she whimpered, trying to rub herself frantically with her fingers.
He grabbed her wrists lightly, bringing her fingers to his mouth so he could taste her desire before he entwined his fingers with hers and settled them on her hips. "All good things to those who wait," he said as he thrust his hips against hers, setting a new, achingly slow rhythm that took every ounce of his self-control to keep.
He refused to Occlude his thoughts during sex, even if it would delay his release – every minute of their love making was too intense and too passionate for him to lose any of time to the sanctuary of his mind. He focused on her face instead, watching the flush rise more still in her cheeks and forehead as she fought to reach the orgasm he was keeping just out of her grasp with his ridiculously slow movements.
"Bastard," she whispered, half-heartedly trying to break her hands free.
"What was that?" he asked, slowing his thrusts almost to a stop.
"You are a bastard, Sir," she said, trying to wiggle her hips despite his control over them.
"That's a little better at least," he groaned, resuming the actions of his hips.
He kept up with the slow rhythm as long as he was able; soon enough she was purposefully squeezing him with every muscle in her groin, teasing him as much as he was teasing her. It was enough to drive a sane man crazy. He released her hands and loosened his grip on her hips, and she began to move as though her life depended on the orgasm he felt building within her. He felt his own begin as well, warmth moving from his spine to his groin with every thrust.
"I'm …" she whispered, not able to finish before spasms shook her body. Severus watched his already beautiful wife glow from every pore as she came in his hands, trembling and shaking with the force of her pleasure. Hard ripples wrenched his cock as she came, sending him over the edge and into oblivion with her.
"Ginny," he shouted, unable to control the emotion in his voice. Nor did he want to.
She rested back against his knees, catching her breath and watching him come down from the incredible high of their love making. When he was finally able to open his eyes he looked right into her blue ones.
"I love you," he said softly, using the voice he saved for her when she'd been very, very good.
"I love you, too," she said back.
The corners of his mouth rose slightly with those words. He helped her move from his lap, though he immediately missed being within her as soon as he felt himself leave her body. Settling her back next to him, he cast a cleansing charm over both of them.
"I hope that was a good ride, Mrs. Snape," he murmured as he kissed her forehead.
"The best," she said groggily as she moved back into sleep once more.
This time, he slept with her.