Grasping his hands in hers, she brought them from her face, to her chest, and smirked a little at the quick inhale he tried to hide when his hands made contact with her breasts for the first time.
"Would you mind helping me out?"
oOo
Minx. She was an unabashed tease. And once more he felt the heat in his cheeks, knowing if he'd cast a glance in the bathroom mirror there would be a pink tinge to them, and hating that he was so transparent around her. But he couldn't back down, not now. Since they had reconnected, she had always been a flirt and a playful tease, though she'd never been quite this forward before. Confessions to each other aside, he briefly wondered whether the extra teasing was a coping mechanism to cover her own nerves, or if she just no longer felt the need to hold back now that she knew for certain that he echoed her sentiments.
Steeling his courage and throwing caution to the wind he made to remove her bra. Then promptly fumbled the clasp because he'd never encountered one that opened at the front like this, and for a moment he lost his bearings and wasn't quite sure where to put his hands. When he eventually managed the clasp with a muttered swear, his eyes quickly flicked to hers and he saw from her the way she quickly averted her gaze and her amused smile that she was trying her best not to laugh at him…Which he appreciated the effort at least.
Instead of fleeing, he scowled at her playfully. "Quiet you." to which she barked out a laugh and quickly giggled "I didn't say anything". "Your eyes said enough, witch" Then just as suddenly her eyes were warm, as warm as the hand that gently cupped his cheek, and for a moment he could do naught but raise his own larger hand to hold hers, where it was still pressed against his cheek.
Suddenly it was her turn to be struck by nerves, as she went to remove the now opened bra but seemed shy all of a sudden, wrapping her arms around her middle as though she had just realised she was all but naked. Though in typical Gryffindor fashion, blurted out her feelings on the matter as though she struggled to keep them contained. "In my plans to seduce you… I may have forgotten momentarily that my post-pregnancy body is decidedly not the same as it was pre-pregnancy and am suddenly worried it may not be the sensual delight we were hoping for, what with scars and stretch marks and…"
It was his turn to cup her face then, his much larger hand resting on her cheek as he leaned into her, to press his forehead to hers, revelling in the warmth and the contact as she closed her eyes to do the same. "Hush witch. You are a mother, this I already know. A wonderful mother, and a wonderful witch and it adds to your appeal, it will never subtract from it"
"Nevertheless…" She whispered, as she glanced down at her body and away again, arms tightening once more around her middle and a blush alight upon her cheeks, her mouth running away with her as he'd come to discover that it was wont to do when she was this nervous... "You say that now, but I'm nursing, and sensitive and I'm mortified I might let down in the bath when I'm…well…aroused, because there's no doubt in my mind that your presence here means that is a foregone conclusion at least, even if we don't progress any further than bathing, because well just look at you standing there! all tal,l dark and …woof… and it is one thing to nurse in front of you, but it is another to be laid there with my post-baby belly and stretch marks on full display, leaking milk like a saggy cow and I -"
He kissed her. It seemed the only way to stop the endless torrent of words escaping from her.
There was nothing harsh or demanding about the kiss, it was just pure affection and warmth. A reassuring and gentle press of his lips against hers, and when he pulled away after a few moments, she was finally silent, apart from a small whimper when they parted.
"You are a goddess. You brought life into this world, you fought for it, bled for it, almost died for it. You even walked into Azkaban, pregnant and alone to battle for me. And even now, you give life with your body. You nurse our babies, sustain them, care for them… nothing to do with your pregnancy, nothing about you, will ever not be beautiful to me Hermione."
Tears dripped down her cheeks and he wiped them gently away with his thumbs, as his large hands cupped her small elfin-like face. Her smile was watery and when she spoke, she rested her hands on his chest, over his heart. "You said our babies".
That wasn't what he'd expected her to say, and he froze for a moment, when he realised that indeed he had. Out loud. It had become so ingrained in his way of thinking, his innermost heart, that he had grown to adore Rose as much as Alexander, despite the fact that it was not Severus himself but a monstrous man that had sired her, the little girl who held Alexander's hand while they slept, and smiled when Severus soothed her, who loved his voice and laughed when he told her stories, that was his daughter in his mind, just as much as Alexander was his son. Fenrir didn't deserve her goddammit, he had no right to even bare the name father. He was her sire, her sperm donor and nothing more. It was Severus who soothed her and prevented her Colic, Severus who knew her favourite stories and toys… Just as it was Hermione, who loved and bathed and nurtured his son like her own, when Alice would rather kill herself than care for him, leaving him weeping and filthy and alone. It was Hermione who had clothed, bathed, fed and loved Alexander. Who sang to him when she nursed him, and held him against her heart and breast beside her own daughter. His mind had cemented them so much in these roles, that this was his family, their family that the words had slipped out without any conscious thought of censoring them… nevertheless, he couldn't, wouldn't, take them back now. He'd have to accept whatever rebuke he received.
"So I did," he whispered with an embarrassed and somewhat shamed smile.
But he did not get the rebuke that his self-hating subconscious had expected.
Instead, he got something far different.
"I like the way it sounds.Our daughter. Our Son. Our babies, Severus."
"So do I" he'd choked out and crushed her to him in an embrace.
In one sentence she validated his feelings. Her emphasis was not missed. Our daughter. Emphasis on the Our, accepting his claim to Rose and validating it. The daughter he had soothed and held, who he'd worried for and cared for as though she was his own. Our Son. emphasis on the son. Returning his claim on Rose, with hers on Alexander. The child she had welcomed into her arms, her home. The son, not of her blood, that she had still nursed at her breast as though he was of her own womb. Accepting. Approving. Our babies. The final piece of the puzzle. Neatly putting the fractured pieces of both their lives together, cementing them in place to create a new but beautiful whole like…
"Kintsugi"
He hadn't realised he'd said it outloud, until she paused for a moment and then smiled as realisation hit, pressing her lips to his.
"Yes, Kintsugi. What a beautiful thought, Severus, who knew you were such a romantic at heart"
His face must have shown his embarrassment, but she wouldn't allow him to be ashamed.
"You have the soul of a poet, and it is wrong how others have taken advantage of that until now but never again, I'll take it and guard it with me, because you're mine now Severus. Both of you. My loyal wizards, so full of love."
"And you have the soul of a goddess. And you are mine, both of you, my beautiful little witches, my fierce warriors".
And they kissed again, just as gentle, just as easy, just as warm… but somehow more.
Then after they parted with a small sigh, a smirk lit up his face and he chuckled.
"Woof?"
"Oh, sod off"
oOo
She had seemingly bolstered her courage after that , as she slipped out of her underwear without much ceremony, and he'd quickly averted his eyes out of respect, even if she chuckled at the ever present pink flush on his cheeks while she settled within the water.
When she gave him the okay he turned back around to see her reclined in the water. Whereas when their roles were reversed he'd been vigilant to ensure the bubbles kept him covered up, for her sake, she was less concerned with where they gathered and the movement of the water kept giving him teasing glimpses of soft thighs, endless curves and dark curls, which he did his best to not stare at, and fought the urge to pull her from the water like a caveman and drag her into the bedroom.
When he reached for a sponge and began to gently wipe at her face, he was quickly brought back to his task when she winced as he found the source of all that sticky blood that had coated her curls.
Warm amber eyes watched him closely as he leaned in to examine her, and with a nod at his unasked question, cast diagnostics over her head.
"It is as I thought, the cut is superficial and wound paste should deal with it. But you do have a concussion, and probably will have a goose egg on your head for a few days. My new wound paste and the headache soother will both be fine to take while nursing Rose, but the bruise paste and swelling reducer contain powdered silver and monkshood respectively, so I can take away the wound and the pain, but the bump and any bruising will have to go down on its own, my apologies."
Her hand reached for his. "Don't apologise. You are caring for me, for us, so well. The fact that you consider my nursing, and Rose's allergies, without even a second thought, is wonderful enough. You have worked so hard on the alternate potions for me and Rose, but there will always be some medicinal potions that cannot be altered, powdered silver is an intrinsic part of potioneering and a catalyst for so many health potions, you cannot be blamed for that. "
"Still , I cannot help but feel that I of all people should be able to do something-"
"You have done enough. More than enough. You work yourself to death for the foundation, as well as working on alternate potions for me and Rose, and even spent weeks on that scar reducer for Lavender, all the while parenting two babies and putting somehow also me that I also need to eat and drink between work and-"
"Hush. I get it Witch, cease"
Abashed, she smiled as he cut off her torrent of words. Then she smirked when she once more caught his eyes slipping to below her neckline before he quickly averted them with a muttered oath that sounded like 'give me strength'.
She took pity on him.
"Severus…You can look your fill. I didn't invite you here as a test, I'm not cruel. If I didn't want you to look, I wouldn't have brought you in here."
His heated gaze scanned her from top to toe and that, before meeting her eyes with a heated look of his own and despite her words she found herself shivering at his intensity. It was very clear, despite her earlier nerves, that Severus very much liked what he saw, and that gave her confidence a much needed boost.
"You are beautiful witch, and I very much would love to partake of the view, but for practical reasons I must focus on what I came here to do, lest I lose track of my concentration and do something counterproductive"
"Counterproductive?" She asked with a quirk to her lips and his answering wicked smirk made her shiver.
"Because despite what it appears, I'm not made of stone. You're fucking glorius, and it is taking everything in me to remember we actually came here for a specific reason, and if you continue teasing me witch, I'm liable to forget about your concussion, drag you out of this bath and get you wet in an entirely different manner… either that or join you in it."