Chapter 13 - Coming Soon
Hermione awoke at 10:00am on the first morning of the Christmas holidays. Thankful for the rejuvenating sleep-in, Hermione sat up and glanced towards Snape's empty bed. Having already lost a large proportion of the morning she hurriedly got dressed into a tank top and jeans, attempted to tame her hair into something that didn't resemble a bird's nest and entered the main room of the potion-master's quarters. The young woman was surprised to discover that Severus was not residing in this area. The fact that he had left no usual explanatory note on his desk added to her suspicion. Surely he couldn't possibly be working on the very first day of his long awaited break?
Resigned to the fact that Snape was most likely doing class work or research in the library, Hermione lowered herself into 'her' armchair with a discontented sigh. As she often did in these quiet and secluded moments, Hermione began to reflect on her relationship with Severus in silence. She couldn't remember the last occasion on which they had spent any real time together. The young woman wasn't naive enough to assume that his emotional connection was as strong as hers. But in her heart she hoped that it might grow. As her mind rested on this hope the entrance door of Snape's quarters opened and Hermione stood to welcome her companion.
"Where have you been?" Hermione tried not to make her tone sound accusatory but her annoyance got the better of her. Severus raised his eyebrows. "Good morning to you too." Hermione didn't smile at this warm sentiment. "Well?" Snape frowned before cautiously replying. "I've just been busy making final preparations for our plans today." Her face relaxed a little. "Oh. I was just getting a little worried." She said guiltily.
Severus chuckled before closing the space between the two of them and pulling her close to his body. Hermione rested her head against his upper chest as he traced imaginary lines on her bare shoulder with his slender fingers. He leant in so that his nose was brushing against her unkempt hair. "I'm sorry" Severus' lips moved against Hermione's ear and she shivered as she felt his warm breath wash over her skin. "I'm so sorry. Not just for worrying you about my whereabouts, but for everything. I know I haven't been the best company of late." He slowly pulled his face away from hers without loosening his grasp on her arms. Hermione looked into her former professor's eyes and saw an extreme sincerity. She sighed with relief. "Thankyou Severus. You have no idea how much that means to me." Snape smiled a rare smile and stepped back slowly.
He sat down next to fire and motioned for Hermione to sit in the opposite chair. After a moment of comfortable silence she spoke. "I believe you mentioned something about pre-arranged plans for today?" Severus nodded. "It came to my attention that the two of us have never exactly had an authentic date." He paused. "I have organised various… activities for the duration of the day if, of course, you don't happen to have other plans." Hermione grinned widely as she nodded eagerly. "Okay." Snape replied. "We will be departing in twenty minutes. I must change my attire."
As planned, the pair was back in front of the fire after twenty minutes of preparation. Hermione gasped when she laid eyes upon the potions master. He was wearing beige trousers with a simple white collared shirt. He had left the top two buttons of the shirt undone, much to Hermione's gratitude. Severus frowned. "What's the matter?" Hermione smiled before replying. "It's just, I don't think I've ever had the opportunity to see you dressed in anything other than black. You look… different." Her companion feigned surprise. "Did you just try to give me a compliment Miss Granger?" Hermione's reply consisted of nothing more than a mischievous grin.
"I see that you have taken the liberty to change as well, although it wasn't needed." She was wearing a sensible halter-neck floral dress that reached her knees as well as a light green cardigan. Unable to make any changes in the restricted time, her hair was as unruly as it was previously.
"Shall we?" Hermione enquired. "Yes, I suppose so. I am taking you to a small village in France named Cassel. We will be travelling by the Floo System. I assume you have travelled in this fashion before?" Hermione nodded. "Right. I will step into the fire first and say 'Cassel, France', just as I wish for you to do immediately afterwards. Do you understand?" There was a pause while Hermione took this information in before replying in the affirmative. "Okay, I will see you there." Snape said, before taking a pinch of Floo powder from the bowl by the fire. He tossed the powder into the flames before stepping into them and clearly stating, "Cassel, France." After watching Severus disappear Hermione followed his actions and felt herself being hurtled through flames making sure to keep her elbows clamped tightly to her sides.
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I'm not especially proud of this chapter as it has a number of inconsistencies that I'm sure many of you have noticed (if not, ignore my ramblings). However, I am particularly proud of the little romantic moment between Hermione and Severus. In case you haven't noticed, I enjoy writing about a character's lips brushing against the other's skin while they are talking. I'm weird.
Anyway, thankyou for reading and I hope to update as soon as I can.