Chapter 109: Sulking In Bitterness

My Thanks To All My Readers And Reviewers-S.S.

The Grounds, Hogwarts Castle, Wizarding World...

It had been another fine clear day looming above them as Severus Snape stood with his arms folded across his ebony clad chest as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes as the students filed into the main corridor in a bid to get to their respective classes. The start of the new term had brought with it a lot of changes as well as the added tension of his being pushed to the brink by both the dark lord and Dumbledore due to unseemly demands. He had also been fretting over the situation with his wayward godson Draco Malfoy whom had been tasked with putting an end to the Headmaster's life and seeking adverse methods in which to do so catching many a unsuspecting student in the crossfire. The latest being the young witch Katy Bell whom had fallen victim to a cursed necklace. If that had not been enough to give him his fair share of trouble there was always Harry James Potter right in the thick of some half cocked scheme that nearly got him killed and his recent obsession with going after all things Malfoy wasn't helping matters.

Lucius being incarcerated in Azkaban had not been easy on the Malfoy family nor Snape himself for that matter, but there was little anyone could do about it. The Former Potions Professor ventured into his private chambers grateful for the solitude as he made his way toward his makeshift bar and poured himself a round glass of fire whiskey. He wasn't in the mood for much else after his latest appearance in The Great Hall. He hadn't seen his wife since their relatively smooth chat about what was expected of him once they returned to Hogwarts.

Stress for the already angry Professor had been at an all time high and he was in desperate need of a way to relax. It had been relatively difficult to keep food down as he found himself getting closer and closer to the appointed time in which he'd have to put on the performance of a lifetime.

The Potions Master made his way back toward the dungeons wishing to put an end to the long night within the confines of his private quarters. He'd been rather fortunate that Slughorn had returned to Hogwarts and sought to take up a teaching position in Potions and elected to have the quarters that would have been meant for Snape. The Potions Master had been pleased that he could return to his original quarters once the term began despite being the new Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor.

He had not been one to deal in curses, as rumors had always been abound that The Dark Lord himself cursed the position due to not being able to obtain it himself in the wake of his attempts to teach at Hogwarts. Snape had not cared so much about the curse as it was only the icing on the cake for what the year had in store for him.

Snape made it down to his quarters and sighed as he moved toward his makeshift bar. He often enjoyed the peace of being alone amid his many books and the fireplace but he couldn't seem to find his way to relaxing with everything being so crowded in his wayward mind. He'd been about to take off his coat and crash into his favorite arm chair when he found himself face to face with none other than his young wife Hermione Granger-Snape.

The orange and yellow flicker of the flames inside his fireplace had done little to illuminate the inescapable beauty of the young witch before him as he moved toward his favorite armchair. Hermione smiled at him and easily slipped into his lap as the crackling of the flames continued to echo through the front room.

"I've missed you these past few weeks." she said resting her head against his chest.

Snape sighed and wrapped one arm around her body while gripping his newly poured drink with the other hand. He had felt the same despite being unsure if he had the right to given all that he had done in the past and would be forced into doing in the not too distant future.

The Potions Master now Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor turned up his drink and tossed it back with relative ease. He knew there would be hell to pay come morning but he was in dire need of comfort from his wife despite her not being aware of just how much he'd come to rely on her presence when he'd been given to darkness.

Hermione rested her head against his ebony clad chest as she listened to the beating of his heart. It had been enough for her that he'd been alive and well given how easily he could have been harmed due to his status as spy for both The Order Of Phoenix and The despot alike.

"I heard about Lucius." said Hermione breaking the easy silence which had fallen between them that had only been disturbed by the crackling of the logs on the fire. "I'm sorry it's come to this."

Snape sighed and finished off his drink as he thought of the handsome blond wizard whom had been like a brother to him locked away in darkness and haunted by every terror one could imagine in the form of Dementors coming at him over and over again with no end in sight. There was no doubt in Snape's mind that Lucius would emerge from the pits of that foul place a broken man.

"The tortures of the damned." said Snape as he looked over at the flames in the fireplace finally consume the log. "I have seen many horrors in my lifetime Hermione, but nothing compares to knowing that Lucius is locked away in that place with my Godson and Narcissa alone and vulnerable at Malfoy Manor with the other death eaters awaiting the moment to make him pay for any slight imaginable."

Hermione sighed.

On one hand Harry had believed Lucius Malfoy a death eater through and through but with her husband being so upset over it, Hermione had not been so sure about what Harry believed when it came to the battle lines drawn in the war.

Snape finished off his drink and got up from the chair pulling his wife along with him as he tossed the glass against the far wall and it shattered to pieces.

"Come, I need a distraction." he said carrying her in his arms as if she'd still been his bride toward his bedroom.

"What about Dumbledore?" asked Hermione.

"Sod Dumbledore." growled Snape meeting Hermione's gaze with a heated expression. "I need my wife tonight."

Hermione had no objections as her carried her inside and kicked the bedroom door closed behind him.