Winter – part 2

Midnite String Quartet - Closer

The walk to the dance floor was short and silent. To their surprise, the dance floor was crowded. They had to dance closer, which was almost not respectable for a waltz, but neither of them cared. She'd never been that close to her master before. His shoulders were broad, his figure was lean, and Hermione liked the weight of his hand on her waist.

Severus Snape was anxious, which was a new feeling for him. He was so close to Hermione; she smelled like peaches, and he loved peaches a lot. Her hand was so small in his, but it felt so natural, so good.

'I am sorry, Severus.'

'What for?' Hermione started to think. Why is she apologizing, really? She cannot be accountable for everybody else's behavior.

'To be honest, I don't know. Old habit, maybe. Ron was an idiot, and it's not his business whether I fall in love or not. And Professor Sprout! Why is it surprising that we came together? You are as good as any man in this room. I don't understand why everybody is so close-minded about us.' Hermione shut her mouth immediately and tore her eyes from Severus. His heart, however, just skipped a beat.

'I was very private in my whole life, Hermione. I never had a date, a friend, or a dog to accompany me to balls or events. I never paraded around with women. Twenty years of being a spy was a challenging job. They were just surprised. Remember that I am 19 years old and your senior. I am your master. I was your school teacher. These circumstances throughout our lives make everything weird. Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate that we became friends, but for the outside world, it's just...'

'Weird.' Hermione sighed. 'All these things you said shouldn't matter. You are a wonderful person, Severus. I'm thrilled how this apprenticeship turned out.' The song ended. 'Can we go home? I'm fed up with this night.'

Severus nodded. He didn't even want to stay that long in the first place. They said their goodbyes and left to the apparition point. Snape held out his arm, which Hermione took gladly. They disapparated quickly.

When they landed at home, Hermione lost her footing and stumbled upon Severus. Snape, always that gentleman, put both arms around her—for stability purposes only—not because it felt magical to hold and dance with her, but because he missed her warmth and peachy smell.

Hermione stared into Snape's eyes—deeply. Something shifted, something changed in her. Undoubtedly, she saw the man—the powerful, gentle, snarky, wonderful, and sexy man he was. She pressed her front to his; her eyes wandered. His nose was crooked, but his cheekbones and jaw were strong. His eyes were ever so deep and dark, and his lips... she wanted to kiss those lips. She wanted to know how it felt on hers.

Severus didn't know what to do. Hermione was in his arms. The smell of peaches was so strong that he couldn't help himself; he squeezed her waist gently. Snap out of it, you fool, he scolded himself. The urge to kiss her was strong, so he started to lean in.

A dog started to bark; the moment was gone. They jumped away from each other.

'Thank you...'

'Hermione...' They started to speak at the same time. Severus motioned to Hermione to continue.

'Thank you, Severus, for the night. I enjoyed every moment of it.' She smiled. 'But I am exhausted, so I'm going to bed.'

'Of course. Sweet dreams, Hermione.'

'Good night, Severus.'

xxx

With a blink of an eye, it was New Year's Eve already. Severus accepted Minerva's invitation for poker and fire whisky, while Hermione went to a party at Grimmauld Place. Since the ball, they tip-toed around. Every sentence, every moment was just too polite, too nice. It was a holiday season, so they didn't have any lab work scheduled and Hermione carried only one 24-hour and two 8-hour shifts. The tension started to get too much.

Hermione checked her outfit for the last time – she wore black Mary Jane's, black thighs, a simple white long-sleeved shirt, and a black overall dress, which ended above her knees – and left her room. Once she was in the living room, she saw Severus was about to go too. Awkward.

'Happy New Year, Severus. I hope you have a wonderful time with Minerva.'

'Thank you, Hermione. I wish you a Happy New Year as well. I guess I see you tomorrow morning.' Without any further words, he left.

xxx

Just after midnight, Severus Snape stepped into the silent living room. The night with Minerva and in addition to Poppy, Pomona, and Rolanda were alright. They played poker, drank two bottles of fire whisky and he enjoyed the women engaging in gossip. It was quiet but he preferred it that way. He removed his jacket, summoned a nice glass of elf wine, and sat on the couch.

A sudden clatter of dishes broke through the silence of the room. Severus rose with a wand in his hand. He glanced at the grandfather clock; it was just over 3 in the morning. He must have fallen asleep. The noises led him to the kitchen. In the kitchen stood Hermione Granger, putting together sandwiches. Around her on the floor several pots and pans, all used. She was swaying her hips to some music, which was supposed to be in her head. He cleared his throat.

'Oh, hi, Severus. Fancy a sandwich?' Hermione was flushed. Most of the alcohol left her system already but she was still too happy. And honest. And had the urge to talk all the time. 'First, I couldn't decide what I wanted so I tried to make eggs but I burned them. After that were pancakes but I burned them as well. I wanted grilled cheese as well, but we don't have cheese and I burned the butter into the pan. So, it's just baloney and tomatoes.'

'Tempting as it is Hermione, I have to decline. I reckon you should go to bed, not eat. It's rather late.'

'Party pooper!' she stuck out her tongue to him. Little Severus just stirred in his pants. He shifted uncomfortably. 'You should be happy that now I can feed you. Gods, can you imagine the mess without your cooking lessons?' Hermione was looking for a nice glass of wine, just because. When she found it, she ditched the glass and drank straight from the bottle. Severus grabbed the wine from her hands and shoved a glass of water instead.

'Hermione, you are intoxicated enough. I don't even know how those so-called friends let you drink that much, it's not safe.'

'Bah, you just don't want me to have fun. Everybody is shocked that I love to be your apprentice and I love to be in your home and that you are my friend. I even told Ginny that you have a good ass, by the way. She agreed. Then I told her that I don't want to be Charlie's bedwarmer for the night just because he too has a nice ass.' She blissfully bit into her sandwich, humming softly. Severus didn't know what to think. She was drunk, for once it was obvious. But this Charlie thing... it bugged him. Deeply.

'Do you think Mr. Weasley wanted to ravish you?'

'Don't be ridiculous, Severus; I know. He told me that you are single, I am single, we should fuck each other into the next year and I just laughed.' That redheaded idiot. How can he be so cringe? Severus Snape was speechless, and it showed on his face too. 'Oh my God, you should see your face! Do not worry, there will be no half-naked Weasleys roaming around here. I told him that first of all, he just broke up with some gypsy witch in Romania, so I am not interested in gypsy curses, thank you very much. Secondly, I kind of have my eyes on somebody else, who also has a nice ass. I would like to have the opportunity to fuck him into the next year one day.' Hermione felt very sleepy suddenly. She put her plate into the sink and stood in front of Severus.

'Hermione...' Severus stood in a stupor, when Hermione put her arms around his neck, pressed her body to his, and placed a feather-like kiss on his cheek.

'Happy New Year, Master.'

xxx

The days after this early morning encounter remained in the dark. Neither of them was talking about it. They just behaved as if nothing happened. On January 9th, the very exact day when Severus Snape was born, Hermione Granger had a free day. She decided to make a cake for him; a celebratory meal was in order – fish and chips from the pub around the corner and a simple chocolate cake. Severus was out of the house for the whole day, doing errands.

While Hermione was mixing the cake batter, started to think – does she have to ask this man on a date? They almost kissed for God's sake and she told him that she wanted to sleep with him. She couldn't be more obvious. Should she ask him for a date? Yes, she realized. She should.

Severus Snape arrived home to see his dining table was set to celebrate. He didn't care about his birthday. Not because he was getting older each year. Growing up, birthdays and holidays never get celebrated. At Hogwarts, he never really told anyone in the beginning. In the last 46 years, he only had about 10 parties. He was about to sneak into his room when Hermione emerged from the kitchen, carrying a bottle of wine and two glasses. She was wearing a lovely pastel pink dress and high heels.

'Oh, Severus, you came just in time!' She set the glasses and the bottle on the table. 'Happy Birthday!' she just walked up to him and hugged him briefly.

'Thanks. You shouldn't have to bother yourself; I barely do anything different this day.'

'It's just the two of us, don't worry.' she left for the kitchen. Severus walked to the table and sat down.

During the fish and chips and the wine, they conversed like every other evening. Severus grabbed a second bottle and when he got back Hermione was standing in front of him with a cake in her hand and a smile. The cake only had one candle, thankfully.

'Happy birthday, Severus.' she beamed at him. "Make a wish.'

Severus was staring at her, intensely. He blew out the candle.

'Hermione, would you like to go out with me?' Snape pressed his lips together, trying to remain calm. Hermione blinked; twice.

'Yes.'

xxx

They apparated to an alley, then took a rather nice walk toward the restaurant in Muggle London. The weather was warm, considering it was early February. The restaurant was beautiful; soft jazz cocooned them and the lights were dimmed. Their waiter escorted them to a cozy corner table. He handed over the wine list and the menu, then left.

Severus watched Hermione deeply in thought while she was looking at the menu. He still barely believed that she said yes. Their schedule was horrible and he insisted that if she only had one free night per week, they should be in the lab and she should rest afterwards. Truth be told, he was nervous. He just realized in the past weeks that he never had a real first date, and didn't know how to behave. Choosing a Muggle establishment was a conscious choice – he didn't want his apprentice to become a target for nasty rumors, especially since this date could be fruitless.

On the contrary, Hermione was bubbling with a good kind of nervous energy. When she said yes, never crossed her mind that she would be looking forward to it. Being agreed to said date, thankfully, it didn't cause problems in their day-to-day life. She fantasized about so many different outcomes, regarding tonight's dinner. She was sure, that sex was out of the question – at least in the beginning; but being here, listening to the soft jazz... she was in the mood for dancing. The dance that they shared at the Christmas ball lives rent-free in her head, how good it felt, to have his arm around her. She stole a glance at him, Snape looked very tense.

'The menu is huge; I don't know what should I order.' Hermione tried to lighten the mood. 'Did you eat here before? You can suggest something, I trust your taste.'

'I've never been here. I always order the same thing, so I don't know.' He was very tight-lipped, which bothered Hermione very much. Before she could speak, the waiter came back.

'Are you ready to order? Water, wine perhaps?'

'We'll have a bottle of the house wine. I would like to have the steak, medium rare, roasted potatoes, and asparagus with peppercorn sauce. The lady needs a couple of extra minutes.' with a wave of his hand, he dismissed their waiter.

Hermione was flabbergasted. This Snape here reminded her of the Snape back in September, and she didn't like it. She didn't want to waste this evening. Their waiter came back with their drink order.

'I'll take the duck with the garden vegetables, please. Also, can I have a glass of water? Thank you.' Granger smiled warmly at the waiter, who smiled back at her shyly and then left.

Hermione turned to Snape, who was fuming, and angry he was. She took a big gulp of her wine before speaking.

'The place is great, Severus. Thank you for taking me here.'

'Don't mention it. I see that you enjoy the service quite alright.' She was speechless. She finished the remaining of her wine and refilled her glass. Amply.

Snape couldn't understand himself. He was oh so jealous of the waiter, the bartender, and really, everybody who just looked in the direction of Hermione. He knew that this attempt was useless. He knew, that his witch didn't need a man, twice her age. Severus angrily gripped his wine glass and drank all of it. He knew he had to change his behavior rather quickly, Hermione didn't deserve this. He asked about her day.

Granger calmed down a little, seeing Severus start to regain his normal self. While talking, their dinner arrived, and they dived right into it. The conversation was a little bit dull, but at least they weren't in silence.

They both refused dessert, but Hermione ordered a gin for closing the evening, while Snape opted for whisky. The band started a sensual song.

'Would you like to dance, Severus?' asked Hermione.

'I don't dance.' Huffed out the answer Snape, while gesturing for the check. Hermione quickly turned her back, trying to hide the tears in her eyes. The evening was nothing she hoped.

As soon as they arrived home, Hermione started to get rid of his winter clothes rather furiously. Snape closed the door, then banged his forehead on it. This evening was nothing like what he hoped for.

With a big bang, Hermione through her newly purchased boots to the floor and marched the liquor cabinet. She made herself another cocktail.

'You don't even offer me one?' as soon the words left his mouth, Snape knew he shouldn't have. Hermione almost hit him in the head with a heavy crystal glass.

'I really would like to understand what got your panties in a twist today, Severus. I have a feeling that what we wanted from this dinner is completely different. I just want to see clearly what is what and... we can forget about the whole ordeal.' she finished her drink with one gulp. Hermione turned her back to Severus again this evening to fix herself a drink. She won't waste another glass on him, that's for sure. He can pour his fucking drink.

'There is no excuse for tonight, so I beg your forgiveness. I would like the friendship between the two of us to remain, despite today's disaster. I don't know what I was thinking when I invited you, seriously. As if all you want is an old, grumpy, and broken man. Let's pretend today never happened.' he was about to leave in a hurry when Hermione stood in his way, raising a finger threateningly at the man.

'Tell me, you genius, have I given you any reason to doubt my intentions? ' She poked his master on the chest with a long, bony finger. 'I prepared for tonight thinking that it was a date, not a fancy dinner with friends.' Poked again. 'Believe it or not, Snape, I like you and I'm attracted to you.' the girl lowered her hand and took a step back.

Severus' eyes widened at what he heard. He opened his mouth several times to speak, then closed it, not knowing what he could say. Granger shook her head dismissively, then turned her back on Master Snape and prepared to leave the place. Snape blurted out.

'Dance with me.' Hermione turned around very quickly, looking confused at Severus. 'Dance with me, please.'

'There's no music here.' Snape elegantly waved his hand, and music poured out from the walls. Hermione took his hand; Severus tugged her waist close enough to his body, but he could still look into her eyes.

'I am really sorry about tonight.' Said Snape. He drew small circles on Hermione's waist.

'What happened tonight?' she knew there was more behind the surface.

'Many things have been left out of my life, thanks to my stupidity and the two madmen I had the pleasure of serving. I never had a chance to court anyone. My relationships with women were limited to either paying for them or casual fucks in random muggle pubs. There was nothing magical about it. This makes me... not confident when it comes to dating. - Hermione let go of his shoulder, gently smoothing her palm on his face. Severus enjoyed her touch with his eyes closed.

After that, there were no more words between them. Severus pulled Hermione close to him, who rested her head on his chest. They swayed gently to the music. The third number that came on was slightly faster. Snape, picking up the rhythm of the music, pushed the girl from him a little, making her move a little faster. She laughed with her head thrown back, enjoying the way he controlled her body. They continued to dance freely. Approaching the final chord, Snape pulled her hot against him, then quickly tipped her back. Hermione squealed, then wrapped both arms around Severus' neck.

He worked himself up as slowly as humanly possible. They stared deeply into each other's eyes. Severus slowly slid his hand around Hermione's neck, while he pressed their bodies together. Her gaze darted between his eyes and lips.

Snape, like a snake, threw himself on her lips, carefully tasting them. Hermione moaned softly, wrapping her arms tighter around the potion master's neck. She gave her whole body into the feeling. After a couple of small, tender kisses, Snape gently licked his tongue along Hermione's lips, asking for permission to enter. Their tongues began a shy dance, but as time progressed, it just got hotter.

Hermione began gently guiding her partner towards the couch. When Severus' leg hit the couch, Granger gently pushed the man backward, quickly straddling him. It was she who took control, kissing every little surface on his face as Snape's hands discovered every inch of her body, thorough, like the master he was. Hermione pistoled hot, wet kisses on the wizard's neck, Severus had to moan.

Severus couldn't believe his luck. He is the one she needs. He brought his hand to her ass, squeezing it. A chill ran down the witch's spine as she returned to Snape's lips. They kissed for a long, long time while Frank Sinatra continued to sing in the background.