Halloween was Thursday, and he had not seen Granger since.
Severus had spent the entire weekend torturing himself, both with want and regret in equal measure.
She had not attempted to contact him since their encounter. Surely that was all the confirmation one needed to move swiftly on.
Severus however, was well aware of his unwieldy habit to fixate and obsess.
Lily had stolen his heart for over two decades without any physical romance involved.
He hadn't allowed himself to get close to anyone during the wars,- not that he had witches lining up for the opportunity,- the fear of either side using someone he loved as a pawn had outweighed his loneliness.
Of course, the woman he had once loved was used as a bargaining chip, so he thought it fair to be cautious in allowing himself to feel.
During the war, its hiatus and inevitable revival upon Voldemort's return Severus had only allowed himself an occasional physical connection.
Before Thursday with Hermione it had been a fair while since he had felt the touch of a woman and none, compared to what he had experienced with her.
It was similar to how he had always imagined intimacy with Lily might have felt.
Not the act itself, that was inconsequential compared to the emotional responses, which were completely foreign to him. The fluttering in his chest each time an image of her curls flashed through his subconscious, the quickening of his pulse and the slight tightness in his throat were all completely out of his emotional range.
He could recall the feeling of butterflies in his stomach when Lily would touch his arm or smile at him, this felt similar; intensified maybe.
Severus did not let himself dwell on that thought, well, he tried not to. Of course the feelings he was experiencing now were intensified, he'd never been intimate with Lily. Certainly this was just a lingering effect of arousal. He'd done very little in the last three days than replay the encounter in his mind, and tomorrow, he would have to face the witch again.
On Sundays he usually enjoyed a drink or two in 'The Three Broomsticks', today however he had quietly convinced himself that he had markings to catch up on.
Certainly he was not attempting to avoid Granger.
Minerva had urged him to allow himself to 'be happy', but Severus wasn't sure he'd ever felt true happiness. The concept was as foreign to him as the irritating flutter in his chest when his mind chose to replay snippets of Hermione writhing on his lap.
So he had tried, tried to allow himself a moment to relive the highs and lows of this new unplanned relationship that had found its way into his life.
Hermione's insistence to be accepted as a feature. What he had initially thought was to be a new friendship and the quick realisation that it was something more.
In quick succession flashes of a stolen kiss in the dungeons, sharing a table in the pub, brewing together in his tiny lab, many hours patrolling narrow hallways in the dark, mingled with her scent and sounds, shifted and warped.
A twelve year old with bushy brown hair and large teeth waving her hand enthusiastically in his class and the ire that she evoked in him, a fifteen year old Hermione crying as he cut her with his words.
Happiness may not be an overly familiar emotion for Severus, but he was certain that this was not it.
Would it be possible for him to separate Hermione from Miss Granger? Was it even appropriate to do such a thing?
Suddenly feeling repulsed at himself Severus rose from his desk where his marking lay neglected all evening.
A waging war in Hermione's mind had been playing out for two days before she came to the conclusion that she needed to reach out to a friend for advice.
Her experience in matters such as this were limited, well, non-existent.
During her days in the Ministry there had been a wizard in another department who Harry and Ron had assured her was flirting blatantly with her, but Hermione was far too busy fighting her corner, trying to stay afloat in the cutthroat world of politics and losing miserably to notice him.
She hated feeling like this, there were no books,- none she knew of anyway- to help her understand it.
Hermione supposed if it had been anyone else, that she likely would have just sought him out to discuss the matter at hand. But Severus was just so incredibly intimidating. Her stomach flipped just thinking about approaching him.
So she had employed Ginny, her best friend and confidant to help her figure out her predicament. That was only partly true, Ginny had contacted her every day since Thursday asking for updates, she obviously knew something had happened but they hadn't had a moment to speak privately.
Clutching her traveling cloak close to her chest she braved the cold, damp streets of Hogsmeade with
Madam Puddifoot's tea shop in her sights.
Usually they would meet in 'The Three Broomsticks' but Hermione feared that Severus might be there, enjoying a quiet Sunday pint.
Pushing through the door caused the tinkle of a bell above her head, drawing the attention of the staff. A few patrons in the cafe turned in her direction and whispered excitedly to each other, one or two waved at her and she waved back.
Hermione would never feel fully comfortable with her 'celebrity' status in Wizarding Britain but she wouldn't allow her discomfort to stand in the way of good manners.
Taking a seat away from prying ears she removed her cloak, dried it quickly with a non-verbal charm and sat into her seat in wait for Ginny.
When a waitress approached her Hermione smiled and ordered a pot of tea. She would refrain from ordering any food or treats until Ginny arrived.
Moments later the waitress returned with her tea and a selection of cakes and pastries.
"On the house," she said quietly.
"Oh no, I couldn't,-" Hermione began, only to be silenced by the waitress waving her hand.
"It's nothing, thank you for everything," she whispered, her voice cracking slightly as she whisked away.
Hermione was left staring after the girl wondering who she was and why her presence had caused such an emotional reaction. Had she lost someone important during the war?
Of course for a year or two after the war ended that type of response was almost constant, it had thankfully become less common in more recent years for Hermione, she doubted it would ever die down for Harry. She didn't deserve the praise and kindness of strangers, that particular privilege belonged to Harry and Severus in her opinion.
Just the thought of Severus' name set her heart aflutter like some besotted teenager, she smiled to herself as she started to pour her tea.
The windows in the cafe had a hazy layer of condensation distorting the street outside.
November had dawned bright and frosty, but already, not a week in and thick dark clouds had replaced clear blue skies.
The condensation and persistent rain beating against the panes caused the street lamps outside to glow and twinkle pleasantly. Hermione loved winter, even the dark and drizzly days filled her with a cosy comfort. She loved nothing more than curling up with a good book, a cup of tea and listening to the rain beat against her window.
Caught up in her musings while watching water droplets descending down the large window next to her, Hermione failed to hear the bell announcing the arrival of Ginny.
"Well you certainly look smitten," Ginny said, pulling out her seat with a cheeky grin across her face.
"Gin," Hermione started. "Sorry, I was miles away."
"Oh yeah? Mind still wandering in the dungeons?" she asked playfully, doing nothing to suppress her smirk.
Hermione rolled her eyes but knew that her blushing face really counteracted the power of her reaction.
Ginny had the uncanny ability of balancing unrivalled kindness and compassion with inappropriate banter that Hermione presumed came from growing up with six brothers.
The waitress came bustling over once more and took Ginny's drink order, nodding kindly to both women before returning with a second pot of tea.
Once safely out of earshot Hermione cast a quick Muffliato around their table.
"How is little James?" she asked, unsure how to start.
"Oh you know, impatient, hairy and loud, like most men," Ginny said impatiently. "But you didn't cast that silencing charm to enquire about my first-born."
Hermione laughed anxiously, biting down on her lower lip. The urge to open up was being consumed by her fear of verbalising her feelings.
"So come on, spill, tell me why my brother scowls every time I've mentioned your name in the last few days."
"For Merlin's sake," Hermione said, exasperated. "What is his problem?"
"Jealousy?" Ginny asked curiously.
"Doubtful, seemed more akin to disgust," she said sadly.
"What happened?" The red haired witch reached her hand across to lay it on Hermione's.
Quickly explaining exactly what went down on Halloween with as little explicit detail as possible Hermione watched as Ginny's eyes grew wider and her mouth popped open in quiet shock. She appreciated her friend's ability to maintain calm and allow her to recall the events without interruption.
"You, you and,-" she started. "You fucked him? On Halloween? Hermione,-" Ginny faltered.
"You Weasleys have such a colourful vocabulary," Hermione muttered.
"I'm sorry, but I'm a bit shocked by this revelation. I thought maybe you had kissed again or something. But not that!"
Hermione tapped her foot anxiously against the table leg. Of course she expected this type of reaction from her friends, she groaned inwardly at how Harry might react.
She couldn't find her voice, she didn't know what to say next. Confiding in Ginny started to seem like a bad idea, she should have just let herself suffer in silence.
"Ok, so… what's happened since then?" Ginny asked, finally looking like she had processed the information fully.
"Nothing," Hermione answered, staring at her cooling cup of tea. "I haven't seen him since."
"Merlin," Ginny gasped. "I wish this was wine."
Hermione scoffed and nodded her head in agreement.
"We could head to 'The Three Broomsticks'?"
"No!" Hermione cried.
"Why not?"
"He might be there, I can't face him yet. I need to figure out what to say first, I mean what if he regrets it?"
"Do you?"
Thinking back over the events of Halloween, she allowed herself a moment to really analyse the situation and her emotions. Her face warmed as she recalled Severus' hands and mouth on her, the satisfaction of friction between them and the pleasantly sated feeling afterwards.
Glancing at Ginny she could see her friend raise a brow, pursing her lips to avoid laughing.
"That's a no then," she giggled. "Is it not weird?"
"Is what 'weird'?" Hermione asked.
"Well, knowing you've had sex with your old professor? I mean, it's not been very long since you were waving your hand around in his classroom."
Sighing mournfully Hermione fidgeted with the corner of a croissant. She honestly didn't care, she didn't care that he was her former professor, that he was her colleague or that he had in the past and even fairly recently been absolutely horrid to her.
Her growing attraction had reached a point where she was willing to forgive his insensitive comments and attitude during her time as a student.
She did worry that perhaps he would not be so quick to forget the overly-keen student she had presented herself as only a couple of years prior.
"No," she replied. "But I hadn't really thought too much about it. Do you think he has?"
"I hope not," she replied, pulling a face and laughing. "Seriously though, are you hoping this will go somewhere? Do you really want that? I mean, he's not exactly what one might consider husband material."
"Woah Gin, you're a few too many steps ahead of me!"
"Well, maybe you should jump ahead a few steps hypothetically," Ginny replied, tilting her head and frowning slightly at Hermione. "I mean, he was very cruel to you when you were a student. Have you forgotten the 'teeth' comment?"
"Of course I haven't," Hermione snapped, a little impatiently.
Ginny flashed her a sympathetic smile.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have snapped."
"It's ok, I grew up with Ron, remember? Speaking of which, I'm not so surprised by his reaction any more. He did spend years defending your honour in Potions class after all. Are you going to tell Harry soon?"
"Not yet."
"Ok, well, just remember that Harry adores you and I know he will support you in any way he can, once you give him a moment to adjust."
"Thanks Ginny, I think I need to chat with Severus before anyone else finds out," she said, swallowing down the anxiety that had started to bubble in her gut.
The two friends parted ways and Hermione slowly made her way back to Hogwarts, forming a plan for how best to approach Severus Snape.