AN: Apologies for the unintended cliff hanger yesterday. I had intended to load the entire story in one day. However, Mr. Aurette and I had managed to forget it was our 15th wedding anniversary, until the in-laws showed up to take us out to dinner. We never turn down free food.

Monday evening found Snape sitting at his kitchen table with his booted feet up, and his hand curled around a glass of brandy, staring out the open window for an owl he knew wouldn't come.

There would be no more owls. No more shared meals. No more laughter. No more mad schemes. No more running to the bank only to find he was broke again. He was a very wealthy man now and had nobody to drain his account while he wasn't looking. He had nobody at all.

He looked up at the empty space left on the wall from where she'd taken her clock. He could have had her for a few more months. He could have had her all to himself until September, but he threw her out instead.

Clearly, he was an idiot.

He poured himself another glass of brandy.

It was eight o'clock when he felt his wards chime and heard a knock at the door. His head came up quickly and he dropped his long legs to the floor and bolted up. He buttoned up the collar of his robes and dragged his hand repeatedly through his hair, before hurrying to the door and throwing it open.

"What have you done? In all my years of knowing you, you have reached a new low," hissed Minerva, as she shoved her way past him.

"What the devil are you talking about?" He said, as he slammed the door.

"I'm talking about this!" She thrust the newspaper clenched in her hand at him. He snatched it away from her and shook it out before looking at it. There, on the bottom of the front page was a photograph of Hermione and another man. The headline read: 'OVER! Snape Tosses Out His Tart!' The caption to the photo said: 'Jilted Granger seen leaving her home with her new Muggle look-alike lover.'

The man in the photograph was tall and thin, with short dark hair, a rather prominent nose, and glasses. He looked smug as he carried her luggage down the steps of her flat with one hand on the small of her back. Snape was filled with an irrational hatred for the man. The git obviously didn't make her happy. She looked sullen and angry in the photo, with large bags under her still-puffy eyes.

"How could you have destroyed the very last shreds of her reputation this way, Severus? If your relationship had run its course, couldn't you have kept it quiet until her contract ran out? Would it have hurt you so much to have let her finish her apprenticeship? Instead, you made it a matter of public record! You had to know it would have reached the press as soon as you filed the paperwork. Her apprenticeship has been notorious. You know she won't be hired anywhere now. The Ministry won't hire her back after giving them no notice. You've ruined her. After defending her to me and everyone else, it was you that ruined her!"

"No, I haven't," he said, tossing the newspaper back at her. "She's lost nothing of any great importance to her. Granger was never interested in being an apprentice. She was only after two things. Revenge and money."

He turned and walked back to the kitchen with Minerva following behind.

"What do you mean?" she asked, as he reached for a clean glass.

He poured her a drink and waited until they were both seated before he spoke.

"I don't think you realize the depths of Granger's hatred and disgust of the Wizarding world after that farce of an inquest over her N.E.W.T.s. When I next saw her again it was months later, and she was already plotting. She'd decided to work for one more year, hoarding her paltry salary, before leaving our world for good and never returning. She's going to move to Australia, so she can at least get to know the two people who gave birth to her and see if she could somehow fit back into their lives. The only people she still cares about at all are the Weasleys and Potter, and she still has them. She always will."

"How did you fit into all of this?"

"I was her form of revenge. She was the one who came up with the idea of renewing all my patents and putting the Wizarding world at my mercy. She's been behind every action, every take over, every buy-out, every strong-armed tactic that turned me from being merely hated and despised, to feared and respected, as well. I just took her away from the Ministry and gave her a chance to use her brain. I was nothing more than a safe place from which she could plan how best to start over."

"And ending the contract early?"

He closed his eyes. "I got tired of playing the game. She's very wealthy now. She doesn't need me anymore." He drank deeply from his glass as Minerva stared hard at him.

"You never slept with her at all, did you?"

He slammed his glass down. "No," he spat back. He waved a hand towards the paper on the table next to her. "She's been dating that fool for months now. His name is Reginald, and I highly doubt he'd look so smug if he knew she was planning on leaving him without a backwards glance as well."

"As well?" She pinned him with a shrewd eye.

"As well as the rest of us," he amended.

She shook her head and looked down at her drink. "Oh, Severus. Why is it, whenever I get a bellyful and confront you, I always end up looking like a fool."

She took another sip and placed her drink on the table and stood up. Snape walked her to the door, and she turned and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Did you never think to asked her to stay, you daft man?"

He blinked and looked down at the floor.

"Good bye, Severus. The next time I get a bellyful, I'll just send you an owl and you can burn the letter upon arrival." She squeezed his shoulder and added, "Drink isn't the answer, lad. It only adds to the pain in the long run."

Thursday evening found him sitting in the same place. He sat with his feet on the floor and his head in his hands. The uneaten plate of supper had been pushed to the side and an unopened stack of important correspondence was in a pile by the window. He'd killed half a bottle of brandy, when he felt his wards shiver and heard the door click open. He froze, and his heart started to race. He didn't even know he'd started rocking back and forth slightly, until she placed her hand on his shoulder and stopped him.

He swallowed around the lump in his throat, and his hand reached up and clasped hers. He turned his head to the side and pressed his face against her arm. She smelled of sunshine and tanning oil. He gripped her wrist with his other hand and pressed his lips against her soft flesh.

"You lied to me, Granger," he said, against her skin.

"When?"

"That first day. You promised I wouldn't regret letting you into my house, but I do. Oh, gods, I do. If I could go back in time I'd have locked the door against you."

"Why?" she whispered in a broken voice. Her other arm draped across his chest and she cradled his head against her neck.

"Because I knew, even then, it would hurt me to let you in."

"You never let me in."

"It would have hurt so much more when you finally left me. I never wanted you to leave me."

"You stupid man. Why did you never ask me to stay? Why do you think I kept spending all of our money? I did it so I would be too broke to move away, and you wouldn't get any more ideas of tossing me out early."

"Will you stay? I'll beg you on my knees if that's what you want. I've no pride left." He gripped her arm and pressed his face into the soft hollow on the inside of her elbow. "Don't leave me, Hermione. I can't bear it when you're not here."

He felt her start to shake and realized she was crying. He broke out of her grip and stood up, turning slowly, embarrassed by his drunkenness, his week's worth of beard, and his disheveled clothes. When he saw her tears, he forgot all of that and just reached for her, his hand moving up to tug her lip away from her teeth, before wiping her tears away. Her arms came up and he pulled her into his embrace, crooning to her as she started to cry harder and tucking her head under his chin as he rocked her.

"I can't bear it when I'm not here either, Severus. I love you. I have for a long time now."

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. An intended rumble of pleasure came out sounding like a cry of pain.

"I'm so fucking sorry, Hermione. I cannot believe that you've come back. I'll never do it again. I'll never push you away again. I'll give you anything you want, I swear it!"

"I don't need things, Severus. I just need you. All of you."

"You have me."

She smiled through her tears, and leaned up and kissed him.

He hugged her tight, and a cry caught in his throat, as he kissed her back. He kissed her mouth, her cheek, her eyelids, and then he pulled her tight against him and rested his cheek against her hair.

"What about Reginald?" he asked.

She barked a sad laugh. "Reginald is still in Greece nursing a bruised ego and a swollen cheek for calling me a heartless bitch and a boring fuck."

Snape stiffened, as his anger began to swell.

She pushed back out of his arms. "Don't bother," she said, when she saw the murderous look in his eye. She took his hand and led him out of the kitchen. "I was a heartless bitch. I picked him up in a nightclub because he looked the part." She spelled out the lights and led him over to the bookcase and tapped it with her wand. "As for being a boring fuck, I could see where he would get that impression. Once I took his glasses off and managed to get him to keep his mouth shut, I could shag him for hours. Unfortunately, he's a myopic nervous talker. Not too many men appreciate constantly being told to shut up in bed."

She led him up the stairs, into that area of his house she'd never been invited to before. After a questioning glance and an answering nod towards the right door, she led him to that one place he'd never been able to lie to himself about her. His bed.

"Reginald and I had nothing in common and I couldn't seem to make myself enjoy being around a Muggle all the time. He never had a chance, Severus. He was only ever a substitute. I thought I was supposed to go find someone else. So I did." At a push, he sat down on the narrow bed.

She bent down and pulled off his boots, wrinkling her nose at the smell. "When is the last time you had a bath?"

He felt his cheeks burn. "Friday," he replied.

"Hmm. That's too ripe for me. My intention was to just put you to bed and continue this discussion in the morning when you're sober, but," she leaned down and snatched up his dressing gown from the pillows, "you need to go wash. Where do you keep your t-shirts? Can I borrow one?"

He blinked at her. "You'll stay?" he asked in a hoarse voice.

"Of course," she replied. "You asked me to. I'll do anything you ask of me, Severus."

"Kiss me," he asked.

"Bathe first," she answered.

He huffed and stood up. "Why do I suspect this 'anything I ask' is always going to end up on its head?"

"Because you are a highly intelligent man. T-shirts?"

He gestured towards the proper drawer and stalked off to take the fastest shower and shave of his life. He snatched out a bottle of Soberup Potion and downed it, before brushing his teeth.

When he returned, she was curled up in his bed reading his copy of Chaucer. He stopped and stared at her, and she looked up and smiled at him. He was suddenly nervous, and wished he'd stayed drunk. She put the book down and flicked the blankets aside in invitation, revealing a hand-span of naked thigh between the sheet and the bottom of his shirt. His shirt.

"Come on. I don't bite unless you want me to. We'll work it all out in the morning. For now, let's just sleep."

He walked across the room and flicked out the light with his wand, leaving them in darkness, before dropping his dressing gown and crawling into bed with her.

The bed was narrow so he pulled her into his arms and twined his legs around hers, as she leaned up and kissed his cheek. He couldn't hide the erection, so he took a deep breath and decided not to bother. He settled her against him and sighed.

"Why did you come back?" he asked.

"Minerva finally tracked me down through Ron. He's been watching Crooks and Hercules, while I was away. She told me I needed to have one more talk with you, before I put you behind me forever. That you were a stoic fool who was obviously in great pain, and probably trying to drink yourself to death." She settled her cheek against his chest. "I really didn't need her to tell me that, but you hurt me so much when you threw me away. We do so well ninety-five percent of the time, Snape, but that other five percent can be devastating."

"I'm sorry."

"I know." She kissed his chest and he tightened his arm around her. "Severus?"

"Yes?"

"Those reasons that you gave me for not wanting to be with me before, they were pretty convincing."

"They evaporated like the smoke they were made out of when you took your clock off the wall. I was really just afraid."

"Are you still afraid?"

"Terrified."

"Are you sure you want me to stay?"

"It's the only thing I am sure about right now, Granger."

She sighed deeply, her warm, moist breath ghosting across his nipple and making him shudder.

"I'm glad," she said.

He rubbed his hand up and down her arm, finally grabbing her shoulder and urging her up his body as he brought his face down. She stretched and tilted her face towards his and he kissed her. They both stilled at the contact. Her lips were warm and soft, and her breath was sweet, as it puffed across his face. She surged up and pulled him into a tight hug and clung to him, one of her legs wrapping around his hip. She kissed his forehead and then his eyebrow, and then he felt her open lips glide across his cheek as she came back to his mouth. He rolled and pulled her on top of him and groaned when he felt her naked heat settle against him.

"If you were planning on just sleeping tonight and talking in the morning, what happened to your knickers?"

"What can I say? I like to plan for potential futures. I noticed you didn't bother with pants either."

"I had no intention of just sleeping," he said. "You were foolish enough to climb into my bed. Do you know how long it's been since I've had a woman in this bed?"

"You don't still mind that I'm only half your age?"

"I think we've clearly established that you are much more emotionally mature than I am."

"What about making their lies truth?"

"Is it true that you love me?"

"Yes."

"Than that's the only truth I care about anymore, Hermione. The rest of the world can go hang."

He heard her contented sigh and felt her lean down towards him. He held very still, savoring the expectation of her lips on his and marveling that this wasn't just another empty dream. When her lips finally touched his again, he sighed, and slid his tongue inside. He closed his eyes and felt the world spin, as her hands combed against his scalp, and she deepened the kiss. His hand kneaded her back, slowly traveling further down, until he worked them under the shirt and back up again. She stretched like a cat as he pulled the shirt over her head. His breath left him in a long sigh as he brought his hands up and cupped her rounded breasts.

She arched back and pushed them into his hands and he bent forward and took one in his mouth. When she mewled with pleasure, it was as if a coiled spring had been set loose and he growled, pulling her flush against him. The feel of skin on skin enflamed him, as he kissed and licked and lightly bit every inch of her he could reach. His hands skimmed down her hip and around her thigh until he palmed the wet heat of her core. When he felt how swollen and ready she was, a strangled moan escaped him.

She raised up and then sank down, slowly impaling herself on him and they both cried out

"Hermione…" he whispered.

"Oh, yessss," she answered.

He lifted her up and let her sink back down on him, moaning loudly. She stroked his chest and began to ride him. The incredible pleasure slowly unraveled his mind until he was babbling. He thrust up into her, arching off the bed, trying to drive his soul inside.

"I've had you so many times in this bed, Hermione. Always in my dreams. I've woken up crying out your name as I spilled myself on the sheets like a teenager. And now you are here. I won't be able to ever let you leave."

"Don't! Don't let me leave. Keep me here. Hide me away. Just love me, Severus. I need you to love me."

He stilled his thrusts and pulled her down, so he could kiss her deeply. "I do love you, Hermione. I can't even remember now, when I didn't. It bothers me sometimes, for I know there was a time when I didn't, but it's gone."

She reached down and stroked his face. "I know exactly what you mean," she said. "It feels like we were always meant to be together somehow."

He kissed her again and began to slide in and out of her, wanting to merge with her utterly and become one forever. He intended to slowly build the fire back up, but it was all simply too much. His face screwed up into a knot of intensity as he pounded into her, his hips slapping loudly against her thighs, as her hands fluttered across his body.

"Ohhhh," he moaned. "Oh, gods, you feel so good."

"Yesssss… Severus."

He lost himself in the sensations, losing his self, losing his place in time, losing the moment. He was only aware of her. That she had come back to him, and he was finally buried inside of her. He heard her cry out and felt her fluttering walls grip him, and his release rushed up at him. He surrendered to it like a glorious sacrifice, as he cried out, "I'm going to—Oh, fuuuuuck!" He slammed into her one last time and she rocked her hips against him as he emptied himself inside of her, feeling her inner muscles spasm around him. She drained him utterly. He dropped to the bed and pulled her down on top of him, as his chest heaved and he gulped in lungfuls of air.

"Clearly," he said, when he'd caught a breath, "your Reginald was a fucking idiot."

She let out a peal of laughter and wrapped her arms around him. "Oh, he had his good points," she said, with a giggle.

"Such as?"

"After two glasses of wine he looked just like you."

"Only two?"

"I'm a cheap date."

"Not if you count groceries. You've cost me thousands of galleons just in food alone."

"Yes, but it was money well spent. I've nearly made you a millionaire, haven't I?"

He frowned. "I was never interested in the money, Hermione. That was all for you."

"Yes, well, you benefited greatly. And I'm looking forward to making you benefit a great deal more. The Wizarding world might hate us, but they are going to kiss so much Snape arse by the time I am through, it will make a Malfoy cry from jealousy."

He grimaced. "Actually, at the moment, you're the one benefiting greatly."

"What do you mean?"

"I thought you needed funds for Australia. So I transferred my entire account into yours."

She went still. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"You needed money to start a new life."

"When did you do this?"

"Last Thursday."

She was silent for a long moment.

"I'm not sure I will ever truly understand you, Snape. You terminated our contract and tossed me out on my ear, but only after you gave me all of your money?"

He stiffened and rolled her off him, tugging at the blankets to straighten them out.

"It's not like there wouldn't be more," he snapped. "You left me with all of these foolish companies I don't actually want to run."

She shifted under the blankets and wrapped herself around him, holding him tight, while his emotions roiled.

"Have I told you you're marvelous lately?"

He sighed and dropped his arm around her, tucking her head into his shoulder. "Not in the last few weeks, no."

"Severus, I might not fully understand how your mind works, but that doesn't mean I don't think you're absolutely marvelous."

"Good. I happen to think you are rather marvelous as well."

"Can we skip the lashing out in anger thing in the future? It's too painful for both of us."

"If you are patient with me while I get the hang of it. You've got forty years of precedent to unravel."

She giggled and cuddled against him.

"Just so we are clear," he said into the darkness, "you're not moving to Australia, are you?"

"No. I really just want a place where I belong. I wanted a home. You gave me a rather nice one, even if I was technically living off-campus, so-to-speak." He felt her head slide up towards him and opened his eyes. "I'd like to stay with you all the time, if you don't think that's rushing things a bit. I've always hated going home at the end of a day."

He tightened his arm around her waist. "When I said I wasn't going to be able to let you leave, I hope you didn't think I was speaking metaphorically. I'm quite serious."

"Oh, good," she said, settling back down and tugging the blankets over her shoulder. "You do realize I come with a cat, don't you?"

"He can't be any uglier or more annoying than that clock."

"You haven't seen him yet."

Yays!