A/N: Thanks to Bri892 for editing and being a great sounding board.

Chapter 39: Let it go

Hermione returned home from her evening appointment with Filius. She smiled at the scene before her, Severus was in the living room grading essays as the sounds of Adele's Rolling in the Deep filled the room.

"Honey, I'm home." she called out.

"You are dead to me."

Hermione pulled the quill and parchment out his hands, dropping on them on the table behind her. She straddled him on the couch, her hands cupping his face.

"Don't try using those big brown eyes on me. It won't work."

She batted her eyelashes but he remained stern and unyielding. "I. Love. You." She stated with a kiss to emphasize each word.

"Still upset."

Hermione kissed him deeply, wrapping her arms around him, "Please forgive me, Severus."

His face softened for a moment before he realized she was still batting her eyelashes at him. "I am not a forgiving man, Hermione."

She laughed at him, and he shoved her off his lap onto the couch.

He stood up, his tall frame hovering over her, "This was bad. This was really really bad."

"Severus, please," she pleaded.

The potions master turned and strode across the room. Hermione held in her giggle as she imagined his black robes swooping around him like he was Batman. Unfortunately, he had shed his teaching robes when he arrived home. He paced the room; his usual grace forgotten.

Dejectedly, he returned to the couch. She pulled him into her arms, rubbing his back, murmuring, "I know, I know."

"This was so much worse than the Tangled phase. I have experienced true horror in my life and this," he sighed, "this was almost as bad."

Hermione guided his face up from her chest, and softly spoke to him, "Severus, you have to let it go, let it go."

The man jumped up and erupted, "This! This right here is why you are dead to me."

He stomped out of the room as she sang behind him, "Let it go, let it go. Can't hold back anymore."

~~~~O-O~~~~

Severus returned from the kitchen with tea, Hermione had finally stopped giggling. They sat together listening to music and working.

"Did you pick this playlist, Severus?"

He dipped his quill in the red ink pot and resumed writing scathing remarks on an essay, "No, Sabrina picked it out. She said my face was to 'frowny' and this playlist helps you calm down. "

"Yes, I often listen to this mix after enduring Sabrina's choices."

Sighing heavily, Severus answered, "The movie is okay but listening to that song on repeat is making me insane."

They worked side by side for a little before setting aside their work to cuddle and talk.

"Filius believes I can test for my spells mastery next month. I will have accumulated the hours and enough new spells."

He carded his hand through her curls, and pulled her close, "You are more formidable than you were in school. No one has achieved a spells mastery in less than a year. And you did this while working another job and being a parent to a small child."

"The spell work was done while working for Techno-Wiz too."

"Still impressive," he muttered as her hands roamed over his firm chest.

The song changed on the media player, Hermione sang along as she kissed his neck. Between sultry music and their close proximity, the mood in the room shifted from playful to intense.

~~~~O-O~~~~

As days passed into weeks, Hermione and Severus grew closer. Their dates were fun, he took her to a wizarding production of Hamlet and she took him to a rock show in muggle London. He refused to go to muggle dance clubs but he danced with her in the privacy of their quarters.

Many evenings at home led to intense conversations about their experiences; good and bad. She shed some tears as he described the first time he held Sabrina. He stopped breathing as she described her encounter at the Malfoy Mansion.

"My heart is yours, Hermione. It's overwhelming to think that if not for Sabrina, we may have never gotten to this point. We would have never entered into a friendship, a relationship."

With her eyes glistening with unshed tears, she traced his face lightly with the tips of her finger. "I am yours, Severus. I want to have it all with you, marriage and babies and a lifetime of happiness."

Severus wrapped his arms around her and tucked her in tight. Her curls tickled his neck as they whispered endearments to each other. That evening, he found himself laying in bed, with his mind and body relaxed. He fell into a restful sleep with a small smile on his lips.

~~~~O-O~~~~

A/N: No Disney Princesses were harmed in the writing of this chapter. For those who missed the Frozen movie craze, the song Let It Go song was released in two versions by Demi Lovato and Idina Menzel. The song was quite popular with almost every segment of the population from little girls to military men.