Chapter Fifteen: Revelations

Disclaimer : The characters aren’t mine, the Potterverse isn’t mine, even the prompt is someone else’s

I have a beta, ladyinthecloak. She is brilliant!

Chapter 15: Revelations

Ron leaned his rangy frame back in the chair and gloated as he surveyed the chessboard. He knew he had outwitted Severus again, but how long would it take for his opponent to concede?

“Dammit, Weasley! You’ve done it again. The same trap I fell for last week; must be losing my touch.” Severus ran his hands through his hair in frustration and finally admitted defeat.

“Ha! So it’s back to Weasley, is it? Now I know I’ve got you rattled!” taunted Ron.

“Another game then, Ronald, or are you going to quit while you are ahead?”

The redhead sobered and got up to fetch another round of Firewhiskey. It was time to finish what he had started months ago.

“Actually, I have something I need to talk with you about. It involves Hermione.”

Severus reached for his glass and studied the liquor intently, but Ron wasn’t fooled by his friend’s carefully guarded expression. He had spent too long now as an Auror to miss subtle changes in body language.

“Tell me, Severus, do you love Hermione?” he asked calmly.

“Of course I do. You know that,” the older man replied, surprised at the question.

“No. I mean, do you love her? Not as a friend, not as a family member, not as a protector, but as a lover would?”

“What kind of question is that, Ron? You are her husband, for goodness sake!” Severus countered, exasperated.

“I am her husband, and I love her dearly, but I can’t help but notice that she’s changed over the last two years. The spark, the light I used to see when we were together has gone. We are comfortable together, best friends, like we always were at school, but there is nothing more.”

“Are you saying that you have another woman? By Merlin’s wand, man, if you have been unfaithful to her, I…” Severus stood, shaking with anger.

“No, no, that’s not what I am saying. I would never cheat on Hermione. There is no other woman, and I know she would never cheat on me. That is the problem,” Ron explained quietly.

“How can that be a problem? I would have thought that mutual fidelity was to be preferred?” His brief flare of rage quietened rapidly, to be replaced with confusion.

“The thing is, I believe she is in love with another, and unless I do something about it, she will continue with our marriage out of a sense of loyalty and friendship, denying herself the opportunity of true happiness. Let’s face it, we were eighteen when we got together, full of the passions of youth and always expected to marry by our friends and family. It has been a good marriage, but now I think there is something lacking on both our parts. I’ve seen Harry and Ginny together, the way their faces still light up when they see each other, the way they touch each other whenever possible. We just don’t have that, and apart from the first few months of our marriage when everything was new and exciting, I don’t think we ever did. We do love each other, and the kids, but not the way we should.

“I don’t want her to stay with me and in ten years find our friendship and love ruined by bitterness and disappointment. I want her to be happy, and maybe if I am lucky I will find someone who makes me feel the way she appears to feel about him.

“When she is with him, she has a radiance, a quality of being, that makes her more beautiful than ever. She watches him constantly, always aware of where he is and what he is doing. I believe she is not altogether aware of this herself and will be horrified when I tell her I have noticed, but I can’t let her lose this chance. I love her enough to let her go. She will always be the mother of my children and my best friend, but I can no longer allow her to chain herself to me as my wife,” Ron finished, taking a large swallow of Firewhiskey. He noted the stricken look on Severus’ face.

“Who… who is this man?” Severus managed to croak out.

“That’s why I wanted to know how you felt about her. Can’t you tell, Severus? That man is you. She has loved you for years, but now she is older, she loves you as a man, not just as a friend or protector – but as a man.”

Severus stared at him, dumbfounded. He could not believe what he had just heard, and from Ron himself. He had been aware that his feelings for Hermione had changed over the years, but had carefully hidden his growing longing for her. Hermione and her family’s friendship meant everything to him, and if he had to lie awake at night, his heart aching and his desire unquenched, that was a small price to pay. The possibility that she reciprocated his love was almost his undoing.

“She loves… me?” For once in his life, the acerbic ex-Death Eater, ex-spy, and ex-professor was lost for words. It was the glimmer of hope in his eyes, the barely restrained grin, which usually was reserved for Rose, and the overall lightening of his demeanour that confirmed Ron’s hypothesis. He was about to act as matchmaker for his own wife.

Hermione was curious as to why Ron had organised the children to stay with Molly and Arthur for the weekend. Pleased, but curious. They had rarely spent time alone together over the preceding year or two; there were always the children, his assignments, her potions research, but they were content. The arguments, followed by the passionate making up, which had been a feature of their early years of marriage, had dwindled out a long time ago. Their lovemaking was infrequent, pleasurable in a comfortable way, but they knew each other’s bodies well enough to ensure satisfaction. In short, they were best friends who had the benefit of regular sex. A weekend arranged especially without distractions was a rarity.

Ron entered the comfortable living room, which was still scattered with toys and other children’s paraphernalia, carrying two glasses of wine. He handed Hermione her glass, then settled on the sofa in front of the fire, next to his wife.

“We need to talk,” he stated baldly.

“What is it, Ron? Do you have a problem?” The serious expression on his face was creating a feeling of unease in the pit of her stomach.

“Well, it’s more an issue that involves both of us,” he explained. “You know I love you just as much as the day I married you, don’t you?”

“Of course, but what are you trying to tell me?” She stood up, agitated, and started pacing the floor.

“Please sit down, love. This is difficult enough as it is without getting a crick in my neck trying to follow you around the room,” Ron gently teased.

“What? What is so difficult?” she asked as she finally sat beside him on the sofa.

“Hermione, we have changed, do you not feel it? We were best friends in school, inseparable, and then we became a couple. It’s been wonderful, being married to you, but over the last few years things have been different. We talk about the kids, the house, and our plans for the day, but we rarely ever just talk. When was the last time we made love? I can’t remember, and the thing is, I don’t really mind.

“But look at Harry and Ginny. The passion and love they share is completely different to what we have. Even Mum and Dad are more demonstrably close than we are. I love you so much, but it doesn’t seem to be the same. I think we are good parents, great company for each other, and the best of friends, but somewhere along the way the passion… romance… spark, as you used to call it, has died. We have come a full circle, you and I.” He took her hand in his and lightly stroked her ring finger with his thumb as she contemplated his words.

She sat quietly, the light from the fire flickering on her sombre face. He could see the myriad of expressions passing over her features as she mentally reviewed the nine years of their marriage.

“Oh, Ron. I can’t deny anything you have said, but a marriage based on friendship is not such a bad thing, is it?”

“In usual circumstances I would agree, but there is a complicating factor.” Ron took a fortifying sip of his wine and continued on. “I suspect you have deeper feelings for Severus than you will admit, even to yourself.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ronald, we went through this years ago,” she replied vehemently.

“I have been watching you lately, love. When he comes in the room, you light up. You are both constantly aware of each other. Even Hugo has noticed. The other night when we had that hot chilli for dinner, you took a drink out of his glass, without even thinking about it, and you even finish each other’s sentences at times. When he leaves, you lose some of that sparkle. You are so loyal that I don’t think you have even consciously recognised how you feel. Think back over the last six months and tell me I am imagining things, if you can.

“I am going to fetch some more wine. Take a few minutes to consider what I have said, love.” He disappeared into the kitchen, allowing Hermione some space and time to reflect.

Hermione gazed into the fire, considering her relationship with Severus. Ron was correct. Things had changed between them. It had happened so gradually, that until that moment, she had not even noticed. She remembered how happy she had been when Ron and Severus had finally given up their mutual antipathy and realised they could be friends. The chess games had helped. In those, Severus had accepted Ron as an equal and enjoyed the contest with a like mind. As the years had passed and Ron had matured, Severus had found him an amenable companion, one of the few male friends he had. Hermione smiled to herself as she recalled how at first she'd nearly had to knock their heads together to get them to agree on anything. How times had changed.

However, over the last year or so, the easy companionship between the three of them had changed subtly. Nothing she could have put a finger on, just small nuances, particularly in Severus’ behaviour around herself. At work, things had continued as before; their business had been consistently busy, which kept them focussed on their potions brewing. But at home, she now realised, Severus had rarely spent time alone with her, preferring to play with Rosie and Hugo or talk to Ron unless they'd been all together. She realised now why she had been feeling so unsettled over the last six months. She had missed her long, intimate conversations with her friend, even though she saw him nearly every day.

Little incidents, which she had brushed off as inconsequential, came back to her. Occasions which, when taken alone were meaningless, but when added together demonstrated the truth of Ron’s words.

She fondly recalled a morning earlier in the year.

The house seemed inordinately quiet and still when she arrived to start the day’s work. Walking into the sitting room, she found Severus had fallen asleep while reading in his armchair by the fire, which he had a habit of doing at times. She couldn’t resist gently brushing his hair off his face and kissing his forehead to wake him. He stirred and reached up to caress her cheek.

“You know I adore you, Hermione,” he murmured, still half asleep.

“I love you too,” she whispered. “Now, wake up, it’s time for work!”

She had thought his flush was due to being once again caught asleep in his chair, but now she wondered.

Hermione remembered times in the lab when she had looked up to catch him studying her or when she had found herself watching him work instead of concentrating on her own tasks. Times when he had stood close beside her as they had worked together on a delicate potion, which had of late resulted in an awareness that had not been present previously. She blushed as she recalled the Vienna incident; something she had carefully avoided thinking about since it had occurred three months earlier.

They had booked, as usual, a two-bedroom suite with a shared bathroom for the annual Potions in Development conference in Vienna. As they always had a new potion to present to the gathered academic and business wizards, the use of a suite was invaluable when last minute details for their presentation needed to be hammered out.

The first morning of the conference program found Hermione’s mind occupied with the day’s program. She dropped her nightie and knickers in the bedroom and was rubbing sleep out of her eyes as she pushed the door open to start her morning wake-up routine. A harsh intake of breath alerted her to the presence of a very flustered, very naked Severus, who had just stepped out of the shower.

“I see you are still a fine figure of a man, Sev!” she remarked flippantly in an attempt to lessen their mutual embarrassment.

He remained mute, staring at her as if powerless to look away. Her eyes widened as she noticed his body rapidly responding to the sight of the naked woman before him.

“Er… at least that proves one thing,” she observed, equally transfixed.

“What?” Severus asked as he reached for a towel to cover his traitorous body.

“You’re definitely not gay!” she declared as she escaped back into her own room.

That night, she tossed and turned in bed, bewitched by recurring images of a rampantly aroused, raven-haired wizard.

Hermione shook her head as she emerged from her reverie. Ron was sitting opposite, watching her closely. He smiled the quirky, self-deprecating smile that she loved so much and awaited her comment.

“You’re right, Ron. I don’t know how I didn’t realise it myself. Things are not the same, but that doesn’t mean we should give up on our marriage. We should take some time and try to make it work again,” she entreated.

“No, Hermione. I love you so much, but right now your friendship is way more important than your passion. I would rather we accept that we have grown and changed, dissolve our marriage while we can do so as friends, and keep the great relationship we do have. I have grown to care deeply for Severus as a friend over the years as well, and I can’t think of anyone to whom I would rather entrust your heart. And before you ask, there is no other woman for me at the moment. Maybe some time in the future there will be, but I haven’t found her yet.”

She shook her head. “I know, Ron. I did not for one moment consider that. You are too good a man to have a hidden agenda here. But what about the children?”

“Rose and Hugo will understand; after all, they seem to see Severus as another father figure anyway. As long as we all remain close friends, I don’t think they will come to any harm. Now, will you do something for me?” he asked.

“Anything, Ron. You know that.”

“Kiss me, just one more time.”

She moved closer, and their lips met, as they had many times before.

“You see,” he said gently. “No spark, no fire. Now go and see Severus and try that again with him. I’ll be willing to bet Harry’s new broomstick that the result will be different this time.”

“Ron, this is not the time to joke,” his wife admonished.

“No. You are right, but at least I made you smile again,” he replied sadly. Seeing her still unsure, he asked, “What is it?”

“But, what if he doesn’t feel the same way?”

“Believe me, he does,” he reassured her. “Now go, and if you don’t come home tonight, know that I will be happy for you. The children are not back until tomorrow afternoon, so take your time and talk to him.” He blushed as he realised what else may occur.

“Oh, Ron, you are such a special person. When did you get so wise?” she softly queried.

“Just creeps up on a guy, you know,” he replied. “Now go and be happy.”

“I love you, Ronald Weasley.” Hermione tenderly embraced him.

“I love you too, but out there is someone who loves you the way you should be loved. Go!”

She left, not daring to look back in case her courage deserted her. She Apparated to the house that, deep inside, she still thought of as home. Opening the door, she softly called out his name.

“In here.”

She found him in the study, sitting in his old, favourite armchair in front of the fireplace, cradling a half empty glass of wine and gazing at the flames. At that moment, seeing him in his oldest clothes, his sleek hair hanging loose, half over his face, she knew that there was no man more beautiful in her eyes. Ron was right. She was completely and wholeheartedly in love with this antisocial, acerbic, witty, intelligent, wonderful man.

“You know?” she asked.

He nodded. He turned to her after what seemed a lifetime, his eyes full of hope, love and something she had never seen before – desire.

“Come here,” he invited, standing.

She went to him and, drawing close, leaned into his body. They studied each other’s face for long moments and slowly, inevitably, came together in a tentative kiss. Instantly, a flame lit between them, burning intensely, as their minds and bodies finally acknowledged that which they had tried to ignore for years. They drank from each other’s desire as if it were their sole sustenance. Neither had ever before felt this heat, this need to become as one. Neither would deny their feelings any longer.

“Yes,” she breathed, in answer to the unspoken question.

“Yes.”

Further words were unnecessary. He gathered her in his arms and, without losing contact with her lips, carried her upstairs and through the bedroom door.

A/N: Based on prompt 93. “Someone has his or her powers stripped away for misuse. Did he/she lose them because of actual misuse or was it a set up? How do they get them back?”