Hey everyone! This chapter is where the sexy stuff begins - not quite lemons yet, but be warned. Also, it is a pretty long chapter (yay!) Thanks so much for all of your support!

Over the course of the next few weeks, Hermione was enrolled in Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology, and Potions. As much as she loved Hagrid, the thought of getting her head bitten off by some giant, menacing animal was not appealing in the last bit, so she decided to forgo Care of Magical Creatures. Getting to study under the professors one-on-one was an experience that Hermione delighted in. No other student had this opportunity, and she was grateful for it.

Relaxing in the library, Hermione thought back to her first day of classes. Professor McGonagall began her lessons at eight in the morning, teaching the young witch more advanced transfigurations than most seventh years had even heard of. Her second class of the day was Charms with Professor Flitwick, who had improved his attitude drastically since calling out Snape last month. His class was by far the easiest of the four. Hermione took a break for lunch with the professors, and then trudged down to Professor Sprout's greenhouses. Most of Herbology was spent looking forward to her last class of the day, Potions.

She had always been interested in the subject, but now she was enjoying it more than ever. Every Potions class was the same; she would walk in, greet Professor Snape, who was sitting at his desk reading Potions Magazine, and follow his instructions written on the chalkboard. After about an hour, her potion was usually complete. Snape would walk up behind her and remark, "Perfect as usual, Miss Granger."

The two would then bottle the potion into individual vials. Sometimes, when there was still time left in class, Hermione would ask to borrow his magazine. She read it promptly that night and would discuss the subject matter with him during the next class period.

Professor Snape had been unusually supportive throughout the past month. Of course, Hermione knew in the back of her mind that his rude demeanor had mostly been an act, but she still couldn't get past the strangeness of his new, positive outlook. He still had the familiar darkness about him, but she had caught him smiling more than a few times during their discussions.

"But how do you know gillyweed's precise effects on the consumer? There hasn't been much research done on the subject."

"Just because things aren't spelled out in the textbook does not mean one cannot infer, Miss Granger. I know from experience that gillyweed has roughly the same effects on everyone and is uniform in regards to both freshwater and saltwater."

The two argued back and forth about anything and everything. Soon, Professor Snape had become Hermione's second favorite professor, only coming up short of Professor McGonagall.

The Headmistress had apparently taken it upon herself to get Hermione to learn as much as possible in as little time as possible. Hermione thanked her profusely at every opportunity she got. "It's no hair off my head, dear. You have such a ready mind for learning, it'd be a shame to see it go to waste," was often the professor's reply.

Hermione relished in getting to spend time with the professors, especially during mealtimes. She often conversed with Hagrid about his latest creature of interest. Professor McGonagall usually chatted with Professor Sprout about the latest gossip in the wizarding world, while Professors Flitwick and Snape remained relatively quiet. Hermione took a peak at Professor Snape whenever she got the chance, admiring the deep, far off look that often appeared on his face. I wonder what he daydreams about, she thought.

One night at dinner, he tilted his head up away from his meal and asked her, "Miss Granger, have you thought about what subject you would like to specialize in?"

Everyone at the table went quiet. Hagrid nearly choked on the bit of steak hanging out of his mouth. Snape rarely started up conversations in this way. In fact, he was silent most meals, stealing glances at Hermione when he had the chance.

"Um, actually, I was thinking of specializing in Defense Against the Dark Arts."

He didn't even correct her for not addressing him as 'sir,' as he would have done readily in the past. Instead, he replied, "Ah, I suppose that is your level of…expertise. However, none of us have been teaching you Defense Against the Dark Arts. Why have you not brought it up before now?"

"I…I don't know," she confessed. "I thought you all were doing far more for me than I deserve already. I didn't want to push my luck."

"I would be happy to teach you Defense," Snape replied, earning a table full of startled eyes.

"Why, that would be wonderful, Professor Snape! I apologize Hermione. I had considered enrolling you in Defense, but figured you didn't need any more reminders of the horrible events that took place here merely a month ago. I see I was wrong; you are much stronger than I gave you credit for."

Hermione grinned widely. "Thank you, Professor McGonagall. And thank you, Professor Snape."

Severus nodded his head ever so slightly. This witch will be the death of me.

…

As he pulled on his long robes in preparation for this evening, Severus could not stifle his smile. This is wrong. So very wrong.

He had grown accustomed to working with the Granger girl every day. So accustomed, in fact, that he looked forward to their meetings with anticipation. Tonight, he was going to teach her Occlumency. She was obviously up to par in most Defense subjects, so he felt that a little challenge would be good for her. He reasoned with himself that it was perfectly normal to look forward to such an event, given Occlumency was one of his favorite subjects.

Don't lie to me, his inner voice reciprocated. He left his room with a deep sigh.

…

Hermione pulled on her fifth set of robes. "These are too long!" she exclaimed to herself in the mirror. "Oh, what's the use? Why am I trying to impress Snape, anyway?" She plopped down on the bed and thought back to dinner, when Snape actually seemed interested in teaching her Defense. I wonder why that is.

Try as she might, Hermione couldn't convince herself that the Potions Professor meant nothing to her. In fact, she was growing to rather like his company. She caught a glimpse of her goofy smile in the mirror and deadpanned immediately. This is so very strange, she thought.

Then again, perhaps her emotions were not that surprising. After all, she had many a fantasy back in the day about Snape. She had always found his serious, strict demeanor rather attractive. Not to mention his deep voice that was like sex to her ears.

Did I really just think that?!

She shook her head at the thought and smiled. If only he could have seen her daydreams. She had fantasized about more than a few men in the past, so maybe Professor Snape was nothing special to her. Then again, she was always most turned on when she had thought of him in that way.

Hermione lay back in bed. She needed a release before heading over to the potions lab.

…

Professor Snape patiently waited for his student in the potions classroom. He tapped his foot against the concrete floor, humming to himself and trying not to think too much. What if Granger accidentally (or purposely, for that matter) penetrated his mind and saw what he thought of her? The thought set him slightly on edge.

He had never, of course, thought of her as anything but a student up until a couple of months ago. His level of respect for her grew immensely when he saw her fighting the Dark Lord fearlessly, and increased even more so when they ran into one another in the library.

"Everyone thought you were the bad guy, when really, you were protecting us all along. You are…simply amazing. I have the utmost respect for you."

Her voice echoed in his mind. Since then, he had tried (unsuccessfully) to keep her out of his carefully guarded thoughts. Last night, however, he had been at his breaking point. He allowed those impure thoughts that had collected in the far corner of his brain to break free. He imagined bending her over the desk and spanking her; bringing her to the point of pleasure where she was screaming his name; whispering in her ear things to drive her crazy. He had only lasted about sixty seconds. And although he felt relieved beyond measure at that moment, Severus desperately feared that Hermione was about to somehow see everything that he had tried to keep hidden for so long.

A little while later, Hermione entered the potions classroom. The two unknowingly tried to calm their wildly beating hearts before speaking.

"Miss Granger, please take a seat." She did as he asked and waited for more instructions. "Today we will be practicing Occlumency. I trust that you have no background in the subject?"

To his relief, she said, "No, sir."

"Good. Although the Dar…Voldemort, I mean, is no longer around to torment us, there are still undoubtedly evil people in the world that want nothing more than to terrorize someone with such a pure heart as yourself." He winced slightly as he spoke these last words. She smiled.

"Stand up, Miss Granger, and I will attempt to enter your mind. You must, in turn, attempt to keep me out. I must warn you, however, that this may bring unwanted thoughts to the surface. Are you ready?"

To tell the truth, Hermione wasn't ready at all. The prospect that Snape would be seeing her innermost thoughts, and perhaps fantasies, was more than just intimidating. It was damn near terrifying. But being the true Gryffindor that she was, Hermione simply replied, "Yes."

"Legilimens!"

Severus immediately flew through her mind. He caught fleeting glimpses of book pages, fights with Potter and Weasely, and once he even saw the red-haired boy and Granger in a heated kiss. He ignored his disgust.

He could feel her already trying to push him out of her brain. She was thinking logically, analytically. She was not letting her emotions get the best of her. Snape nearly swelled with pride as she successfully pushed him out of her mind.

Hermione used all of her internal force to push Snape out. Once he was finally out, she expected to come back to reality. Instead, she entered a world that was completely unfamiliar to her.

She saw a young, black haired boy talking to a pretty redhead in a field of flowers. Suddenly, the image disappeared in a cloud of blackness and she awoke on her back in the potions classroom.

Severus stared down at Hermione, who was panting and wore a startled expression, as if she were afraid of the repercussions of tapping into Snape's brain. He lingered for a moment, enjoying her fear far more than he should have before helping her up off the ground.

"Sir, I'm…"

"There is no need to apologize, Hermione. You simply went a step further than I expected."

The startled expression remained on her face. It was then that he realized that he had addressed her by her first name, perhaps for the first time.

Hermione quickly recovered. For a moment, though, her heart skipped a beat at the sound of her name on his lips. It was so…perfect. She looked up at him with a seemingly blank expression now, waiting for his next move.

"Let's try again. This time, try only to get me out of your mind as soon as possible, and not delve into my thoughts and memories. Shall we?"

"Yes, sir."

"Legilimens."

Severus was thrown into a cloudy memory that involved, to his surprise, the potions classroom. He could vaguely make out Hermione sitting in the front row. Now, she was moving toward him, or what he assumed was him, at his desk. She walked closer, closer…

Suddenly, he was thrown from the memory and onto his back. He gasped and looked up at Hermione, whose face was redder than a tomato. She looked infuriated for some reason, and Severus found himself wondering what he just witnessed to make her so ablaze.

She extended a hand to help him up.

"Was that a memory?" he asked as he stood.

"No. Forget that, I have no idea what it was."

Something about the way she spoke too fast and too irritably brought Severus to a realization. That was a daydream. About me. He could not help staring at her for a moment too long.

"I…I think that's enough for today. You may go."

She didn't need telling twice. Hermione stormed out of the room more embarrassed than she had ever been in her life. She burst the door open to her quarters and began to cry. "Snape just witnessed one of my daydreams! Well, I suppose it could have been a lot worse, but still." What would he think of her now? Would they continue with Occlumency lessons after what he had seen? Hermione didn't even want to think about it right now. She buried her head in her hands and sobbed.

…

He could hear her. Severus could hear her crying from his room. He truly felt terrible that she had been embarrassed so badly, but a part of him was ecstatic that she had daydreamed about him. It would have been enough to get him off quickly that night if it hadn't been for her sobs coming from next door.

"Perhaps I should speak with her," he thought aloud. It would be highly uncharacteristic of him, but if it eased her mind, it was worth it. He stood up and walked to the door.

A knock on her door startled Hermione so much that she nearly fell out of bed. It was probably McGonagall asking about her lesson. She strode across the room, not bothering to wipe her tears away or brush her hair out of her face. She opened it only to reveal a very sexy Severus Snape, wearing blue jeans and a black t shirt, sans shoes.

Hermione couldn't help but look him up and down. She had never, in a million years, suspected that he owned Muggle clothes. Upon seeing her stare, Severus quickly realized his mistake. He tried to hide his obvious humiliation that someone had now seen him in his Muggle loungewear, to no avail. Hermione nearly giggled when she saw his facial expression.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but I could hear your wails from my quarters."

Now, it was the young witch's turn to feel humiliated. She not only realized that she, too, was dressed rather inappropriately (in a short pajama set), but she also had puffy eyes from crying. Plus, he had actually heard her. These thoughts only served to bring even more tears to her eyes.

"Hermione," Severus whispered, longing to touch her, to hold her. She turned away.

"I'm sorry I've been crying too loud for your taste. I'll try to shut up."

She whipped back around and nearly slammed the door in his face. "No, that isn't what I meant…" he began to say, but she had shut him out quicker than he got the chance to explain. He remorsefully strode back into his room, hating himself for hurting her.

A/N: Cliffhanger! I figured you guys could use some suspense, don't hate me! Haha. I will try to update again very soon. Please keep posting reviews, as they are extremely helpful!