Hermione felt sick. The air whizzing past them was making her head spin, she refused to even look down, concentrating on Snape's back. She knew she was holding on to him tightly, maybe even a little too tightly, but couldn't make herself loosen her vice-like grip on the man. Besides, she hated to admit it but he smelled rather pleasant, even if they had been camping for the past two and a half days. His coat smelled of herbs and parchment, a combination she would have found pleasant had it not been for the fact that they were almost five hundred feet in the air and still climbing. Finally, the broom stabilized as they had reached almost six hundred feet in the air, just a few hundred feet short of the top of the mountain.

"Granger, you're practically giving me the Heimlich maneuver, kindly loosen your grip on my person." Said Snape as he turned his head to the witch behind him.

"Not until we reach solid ground," Hermione said, not letting up on her grip.

"Fine" Professor Snape said, holding back a smirk as he proceeded to make the broom dive down towards the ground.

Hermione squealed and buried her face into his back, her grip tightening even more. As they neared the ground, Professor Snape corrected his broom and the pair glided gently onto the ground below them.

"Remove yourself Granger, we are on solid ground now, as per your request," Said Professor Snape sarcastically.

Hermione opened her eyes and realized they were indeed on the ground. She proceeded to unwrap her arms around the dour man and stepped away, blushing.

"You may have broken one of my ribs had we continued by flying, what exactly is your fear about flight Granger?" Said Professor Snape with genuine curiosity.

"That I fall" Said Hermione, wrapping her arms around herself in a protective gesture.

"You do know that there are spells that halt any fall from any distance"

"I panic, Ron tried to teach them to me but I'm just too afraid and my mind goes blank. Besides, Ron thinks it's a waste of time since I don't play Quidditch."

At the mention of her redhead paramour, Professor Snape couldn't help but feel anger towards the boy at withholding information from her, clearly wanting to feel superior.

"As part of your training we will be learning those spells, I expect you to be able to fly as we will not be able to portkey nor apparate to every location."

"Can't I just fly on the broom with you?" Hermione said, eyes as big as a deer in headlights.

"No, there may be times I will need to stay behind while you complete a task that requires flight. This is the job Granger, you can either do it or not." Said Professor Snape as he started to walk where his calculations pointed towards where the flower should grow.

The pair hiked in silence, Hermione considering what he had said, wondering if she could continue knowing she would need to not only fly, but fly on her own. Deciding she would need to face her fears, Hermione steeled herself for what was to come and set off after the dour man in front of her.

As they climbed the mountain, the air was noticeably thinner and the weather noticeably colder. Relieved they would be going back down to their camp for the night, Hermione took out her jumper from her bag, putting it on. As she looked up at the sky she noticed how dark the clouds were becoming

"Granger! Keep your eyes peeled, the flower should be here. The weather is turning, and we need to get off this mountain before the storm hits." Professor Snape said trying to speak over the howling winds.

The weather had turned considerably in a short amount of time, hail started raining down on them as the pair searched for the innocuous flower. After an hour of searching, the sky was completely black, thunder and lightning could be heard seconds from each other meaning the storm was right on top.

"Professor! We need to find cover, it's not safe and I'm not dying over a flower!" Hermione yelled over the sound of tree branches hitting each other.

Professor Snape hated to admit it, but his young apprentice was right, taking one last look around, he spotted a rock formation that could provide adequate shelter from any falling trees. Professor Snape looked back and nodded, signaling for her to follow him. As the pair reached the shallow cave, both breathed a sigh of relief, admiring the storm for a moment before setting up the tent Professor Snape had brought in case of an emergency. Both parties realized at that exact same moment that they would have to share the tent for the night.

"I'll set up the fire while you um...set up the sleeping arrangements," Hermione said, clearly slightly embarrassed.

"Granger I don't suppose you had the forethought to bring your own sleeping bag?"

"Um…no sir"

Professor Snape pinched the bridge of his nose in clear annoyance.

"You said we were going back down to sleep!" Hermione said annoyed, feeling slightly stupid for not thinking ahead.

"That was before the bloody storm Granger! You must be prepared for any possibility, I am questioning whether your survival when you were on the run wasn't based purely on luck"

"I'll have you know, I was the only reason those two idiots survived" Hermione huffed, crossing her arms in front of her

"Could have fooled me" Professor Snape retorted, rolling out their only sleeping bag and putting it in the tent.

"Can we not use wandless magic? I could transfigure my jumper and-"

"No, we cannot run the risk of being discovered. This is too important, and I will not ruin this mission due to one…uncomfortable sleeping situation."

Hermione rolled her eyes and set about collecting debris within the shallow cave to make a fire. The pair ate in silence, both lost in thought as the storm raged on, only seeming to rise in intensity. Both seemed reluctant to be the first to turn on, but as night fell, so did the temperature.

"Granger you're shivering. Get in the tent I will follow soon after."

Hermione thought about arguing but thought better of it as her teeth started clattering. Admitting defeat only to herself, Hermione got up and made her way into the tent. As she entered, she couldn't help but feel cozy in the small tent, the sleeping bag was warm and just big enough to have two people share it. Hermione slipped in, still slightly trembling but could not feel her extremities. A few minutes later Professor Snape joined her in the tent, eying the sleeping bag she was in, clearly assessing the space they would need to share and looking distinctly annoyed. He quickly took his boots and climbed into the tent, closing the zipper behind him. Clearly reluctant to join her in the sleeping bag, Hermione made herself as small as possible, trying to make as much room for them not to touch. Professor Snape sighed and slipped in, quickly turning his back to her. They both lay there in uncomfortable silence until Professor Snape sighed again, slightly turning to face her.

"We will need to get up around dawn once again, we need all the light we can get. It is imperative we find this flower Granger, I cannot continue my experiments without it"

"Understood, goodnight Professor Snape," Hermione said sleepily.

Professor Snape only grunted in response, and both fell into a deep sleep soon after.

Hermione woke first, feeling incredibly warm, and soon realized why. A rather long arm was wrapped securely around her midsection with a lean body attached to it firmly pressed into her behind. She could feel puffs of air on her neck coming from her sleeping Professor. She hated to admit it, but this felt rather nice, she couldn't remember the last time she had been held so securely in her sleep. Deciding to enjoy being held, Hermione drifted off into sleep once more, feeling safe and warm.

Hermione woke up once more to someone nuzzling her neck, she opened her eyes alarmingly fast and was met with a new sensation, a hard appendage firmly pressing on her lower back. Professor Snape was slowly waking up but was still in the realm of lucid dreams. Hermione had no idea what to do so she started trying to get out of his iron-clad grip before he could fully wake up, knowing he would be embarrassed. As she tried wiggling herself out of his grip, this seemed to have an adverse effect as he tightened his hold on her.

"Five more minutes kitten…" Professor Snape grumbled into her ear using his deep, rich baritone voice. As he snuggled himself more into her, his hands started to roam her body, going from her midsection to her bottom, to climbing back and squeezing her breast slightly.

"Professor Snape!" Hermione squealed at the contact to her more private areas.

His eyes flew open, his hands froze on top of Granger's chest, as he fully realized what he had been doing.

"Miss Graner I am so-"

"Professor it's ok, let's just never speak of this again."

Hermione quickly unzipped herself out of the sleeping bag and left the tent, leaving Professor Snape stunned and embarrassed as he rolled onto his back and put his hands over his face. He'd been cuddling his student and had even groped her in his sleep. He did not know how to proceed, worse yet he was still aroused by the feel of her body next to him. He needed this to go away and did the only thing he knew would solve his problem. Knowing Granger would stay clear of the tent for a while, he took himself in hand and closed his eyes, willing his mind to remember his encounter with the pretty Herbology Professor. Every time he came close, his mind would switch to a mass of curly brown hair and the firm yet soft breasts he had squeezed lightly just moments ago.

"Fuck it" He whispered to himself and let his mind take control, going over the edge to the thought of Granger pressed against his body. After he had reached his peak, he realized he could not cast a cleansing charm and felt even worse, not knowing what to do with himself or his thoughts about the young woman meters away from him. Little did he know, Hermione was going through a similar ordeal, once again she could not quell the fire in between her legs. Being touched had ignited the fire once more, furthermore, the fantasies had come back in full force. She even contemplated going back to the tent but thought better of it. She wasn't attracted to Professor Snape, no how could she be? He was her professor, one she had admired and respected for years. It didn't matter that his hands were elegant yet rough, his voice deep and rich. She could listen to him talk all day even if it meant half of what he said to her were insults. And the way he had called her kitten as he touched her was definitely not the reason she had to press her thighs together to create some sort of friction to relieve the fire, if only for an instant. Hermione had never been good at deluding or lying to herself, deep down she knew she held some attraction to her dark and dour professor, but to what extent? Hermione chalked up her reaction to being sexually frustrated, especially after her and Ron's less-than-poor performance just days before.

I just need to find the right wizard, or at this point a muggle to take the edge off Hermione thought to herself as she prepared breakfast, desperate for her hands and mind to be busy. As she washed the dished, Severus washed himself off with a napkin in his backpack. He took a breath before finally exiting the tent himself, quickly throwing the used napkin in the fire hoping she wouldn't notice.

Clearing his throat he sat down and was grateful when she passed him a plate of scrambled eggs and toast. The pair ate in silence, both once again lost in thought about the other.

"Miss Granger…"

"If you are going to bring up what just happened I beg you not to…you were dreaming it happens."

"Yes well…still I just wanted to apologize"

"Thank you sir, there really is no need. Our secret?" Hermione pointedly stared at her professor, raising both eyebrows in question.

"Of course…kitten"

Hermione burst into laughter, the tension between them having finally diminished. Even Professor Snape cracked a smile, relieved she had laughed at his joke. Hermione cleaned the plates with a small smile playing on her lips, feeling better about the situation. She had been pleasantly surprised by his joke, not at all expecting him to try and find humor within the situation. She realized she had laughed more with him than she had ever with Ron, finding his humor to be crude and obvious. Cautiously she would sneak peeks at the professor as he cleaned their campsite. She had to admit he had become far more attractive without the stress of having to serve two megalomaniacs and constantly being on the precipice of death or worse, torture. He had filled out nicely even if he did maintain his lean yet wiry strength. Seeing him outside of the strict teacher persona had changed her views on him drastically within their short time together. Sighing she finished her task and decided to try and find a suitable distraction when she got home, preferably with long dark hair…

As Professor packed the tent and his belongings in his bag, he realized he felt more relaxed in her presence than anyone he would even consider an acquaintance. The Malfoys were really his only remaining friends, and even then he couldn't say he ever felt truly relaxed in their presence. In their short time, he had let her see his more…playful side, if one could ever truly call him playful. He had made jokes, teased her even and she had taken it all in stride, even teasing him back. She was clearly not scared of him, a fact for which he was continuously grateful for. His last assistant had burst into tears before running out of his office, all he had done was berate her for using bat bile instead of using snake bile. Perhaps he had raised his voice slightly and called her a dunderheaded empty-headed bottle blonde, but that was the job. One mistake and both he and whomever he deemed worthy to enter his lab could be dead from toxic fumes, explosions, and poisonings. As he packed he would try and discreetly sneak peeks at Miss Granger as she cleaned. Her mood had lifted dramatically since his little joke, he could tell she had been flustered before, but why? Embarrassed he could understand, even angry but flustered meant it had gotten to her. It meant his touch had affected her, if he thought about it she didn't react out of repulsion but out of shock. He would have to store the thought of her reaction for further analysis, for now, they had work to do and a flower to find.