Author's Note: First let me thank everyone who had reviewed, alerted, or put this story on their favorites it means a lot to me and keeps me writing.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Do I really need to say that I don't own them? I'm just playing with someone else's toys and do return them in the same shape I have found them (well that may not always be the case).

Severus slammed the door to their rooms as he walked in, it would figure the one day he wanted to be done early and the dunderheads were not having any of it. Two exploded cauldrons later, it took them nearly two hours to clean the potions room. He had sighed when he finally looked up, Hermione was sitting in his chair a book in her hands though he didn't think it was any kind of text from this school.

"I'll just grab a shower then….."

"Supper is done, I heard about the exploding cauldrons. Just go shower, I'll have it ready when you come out."

Severus looked at her for several moments before saying,

"The point was…."

"It says that on the date nights in I would cook on one and you the other, well now the next one you can cook." She stood slowly going toward him she kissed him on the cheek before turning toward their small kitchen leaving him staring after her.

Twenty minutes later he was sitting at the table with her when she asked,

"So other than the accidents how was your day?"

"The same as always, though I did have a fifth year say something that surprised me."

"Oh, what was that?"

"She told her partner who was complaining about my….. methods that he must have forgotten the accident they had in their second year when two students and the professor died. Her cousin was one of the students, she told him that he may not like how I teach but there has not be any major accidents since I've been here."

"See some people understand why you're so…. Strict when it comes to your class. One mistake is all it takes to have a terrible accident."

"Yes it is. So how goes the research?"

"Tedious, I didn't realize how many different potions had been tried to cure the effects of that curse."

"Well I'm sure you'll be able to wade through it all and give me a well thought out theory with more information than his required."

Hermione looked up to see him smiling at her, she smirked back at him before stabbing at her salad with her fork.

Severus had no idea what in the world she had fixed but it was some kind of chicken, which he had found that she eats more of than anything else when she bothered to eat at all.

"What is this?" he asked poking the piece of meat with his fork.

"Chicken."

He sighed, "I figured that. I meant what is the name of this dish."

"It doesn't have a name, if you don't want to eat it….."

"No, I was just wondering."

"Severus, I know you're not fond of chicken but since my surgery most meat dishes don't set well with me."

He did not know that but was glad she told him or he would have been fixing something with beef on his night to cook.

"I will reserve judgment until I've tried it, I wasn't trying to say…."

"I know, it's just…. Well Poppy is trying to adjust the potion I have to take, it just makes me…. Off. It's either too much or not enough. Either way makes me moody or upset or just downright depressed."

He had a thought occur to him, setting down his fork he asked.

"Is that why you spend most evenings in the library?"

She looked up at him, how did he do that she probably would never know.

"I don't want to snap at you over nothing, and believe me it's hard not to snap. So yes I spend less time around you because I don't understand why I want to bitch at you, it's not that I'm unhappy. It's really rather disconcerting."

Severus sighed laying his hand over on hers, finally he said.

"Did you read the latest potions monthly? There was an article about a new hormone potion, maybe we should try it."

"Yes I read it, it also said that it's only for half blood or pure blood witches. Something about being a muggle born makes the potion inert."

"Well then I'd say it's a good thing you know a potions master who cares about you, I'll see what can be done with it. Do you still have the medication the doctor gave you?"

"Yes." She started to rise when he said,

"Later, just leave it in my lab."

"Okay."

"We'll figure something out."

She smiled at him as she went back to her supper.

Severus told her after supper that even if he wasn't much on chicken it was still a very good meal and he wouldn't mind having it again.

As Hermione started cleaning the dishes, no matter how much he told her that she could leave them she never would, Severus transfigured the sofa into one with a wider seat, after he helped her finish the dishes he took her hand leading her to the sofa. He sat down having her set between his legs. He handed her the book she had been reading and a glass of wine. Then he picked up his own book and his glass.

"No old dusty tomes tonight?" he asked as he found his place in his book.

"No, I just need some mind numbing reading."

He made some non committal sound as he started to read his book.

He had stopped reading some time ago when he noticed she was humming, he closed his eyes listening to the soft sound coming from her. Finally he leaned over whispering in her ear making her tense.

"What are you humming?"

"I'm humming?" she asked as she kept her eyes on her book.

"Yes you are, it's a beautiful tune what is it?"

Hermione closed her eyes as she started humming again, paying attention this time to what the tune was finally she said.

"It's just a muggle song called In Your Eyes." She hadn't even realized she was humming. The song she had been humming had struck her as odd. Then of course her mind started to reason it out, this time she saw what she had wanted before every time she looked into his eyes. At times it was like getting lost in his soul, at times it scared her to no end how lost she could become if she let herself.

"I see." He said making a mental note to find a copy so he could hear it.

Sometime later he looked down to see what she was reading when he felt her tense against him. As he read the page that she was currently on he smirked, he would have never pegged her for the trashy romance novel type.

In her ear he whispered softly,

"That does not seem like something I would have ever caught you reading."

"I found it in your office." She said a slight humor in her voice.

"I'm sure it was confiscated."

"I'm sure." She said distractedly.

He laid his book aside along with his empty glass before leaning close to her ear whispering,

"Have you ever done that?" then he mentally kicked himself, here he was in his late forties and still couldn't say the word masturbate.

Author's Note: Comments really do make me smile and brighten my day.

Also I wanted to let you know that I have a couple of Severus/Hermione videos on youtube, the link is in my profile.