Chapter Seven: Up Close and Personal

Chapter Seven: Up Close and Personal

"You snuggled?"

"Yes."

"With Professor Snape?"

"Yes."

"The tall, dark, evil-tempered, bat of the dungeons Snape?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure it wasn't someone else using Polyjuice?"

At that, Hermione slapped Ginny's arm and laughed. "Yes. It was the real Severus Snape. I told you he wasn't all that bad when he forgets the sour act. It took a while for him to relax, but he got there in the end." She sobered as she remembered the expression on his face. "I don't think anyone has just wanted to give him a hug before. It's so sad, seeing someone so ready to believe they are not worthy of any affection. I'm sure underneath all those protective layers is a really sensitive man. I just have to hunt him down and bring him to the surface."

"Are you sure it's not a case of wishful thinking, Hermione?" asked Ginny, concerned about her friend's emotional investment in the grim man.

"I would prefer to go into this marriage believing that than otherwise," Hermione replied. "And I have seen glimpses of a different side to him this week."

"Like when you were snogging, perhaps?" Ginny teased.

"That too."

"Hermione, do you think you have fallen in love with him?"

Hermione sat for long moments and contemplated the question. Had she fallen for the taciturn Potions professor? Only a matter of weeks ago she had barely acknowledged he was a man, let alone a romantic prospect. She snorted softly at the thought of Severus Snape and romance coupled in one sentence.

"No, Ginny. I don't think I have fallen in love with him. Yet. I've discovered I like him when he lets down his guard. I even find myself liking his snarky sense of humour. Yes, a sense of humour. It's there under all the sarcasm. I definitely fancy him physically, far more than I thought I would. I feel I want to protect him, comfort him, give him the affection he deserves, but I don't know whether that is really love. But I do know I want to love him. I hope that's enough." She turned to Ginny, eyes shining. "Is it enough, Gin?"

"I think it's enough for a start. I just hope he is prepared to offer you the same," Ginny replied with a warm hug.

Later, when she was tucked up in her bed, Hermione thought long and hard about love and passion. She remembered the wonder in Snape's eyes on the few occasions she had kissed him. What will he look like when he is in the throes of orgasm? Will he look fierce and determined like the hero in that silly romance I read or a little relieved, like Jason? The possibilities bewitched her until she drifted off to sleep, visions of a dark-eyed lover in various stages of ecstasy haunting her dreams.

With no Potions class for the day, Hermione found she missed seeing the dark wizard whom she now regarded as hers. Class work occupied her mind for the most part, but nagging from a corner of her awareness was the daring and personal idea she planned to suggest that evening. She had not been remiss in her own research regarding sex; one brief affair over summer, although enlightening, had hardly encompassed the full gamut of sexual experience. He would no doubt be embarrassed and either hex her or argue, but that possibility had not stopped her over the previous week or two. She was a woman on a mission.

"Hey, Hermione. Want to play Exploding Snap this evening? After we have done our homework, of course," Ron added as she opened her mouth to remind him to study.

"Actually, I have to see Professor Snape again this evening to discuss... er... arrangements. Perhaps I'll join you afterwards." She noted Ginny's quizzical look and shook her head slightly.

"You seem to be spending a lot of time with him," grumbled Harry. "But at least you won't have to live there after you marry him." He was not particularly happy with the idea of his friend marrying the professor, but he knew better than to try and dissuade her once she had decided upon a course of action. Besides, thoughts of Dolores Umbridge living anywhere near Hogwarts or Millicent Bulstrode throwing her considerable weight around as Snape's wife were enough to ensure his reluctant support.

"Why on earth would you think I wouldn't live with him?" Hermione was surprised at her best friend's lack of insight.

"Well, I thought you were only marrying Snape to help him out, not because you wanted to, so I assumed you would continue to stay in your own room and just, you know, visit from time to time when you had to..." Harry's explanation tailed off at the fierce glint in her eyes.

"What is it with you men? Of course I will live with him. He will be my husband! Does it not occur to you I might actually enjoy spending time with him?" She stood, exasperated, and left the table in a huff of robes.

"What'd I say?" whined Harry, still having trouble processing the thought that anyone might like Snape, despite the knowledge his own mother had done so.

"Sometimes, Harry Potter, you can be a right insensitive clod!" Ginny stood and hurried away to catch up with her friend, leaving the boys shaking their heads.

Harry and Ron looked at each other, shrugged their total lack of comprehension, and went on with their meal. It was not their place to understand the vagaries of women. The Quidditch match coming up the following weekend was really a far more important topic of discussion.

"Hermione! Wait up!" Ginny called as she ran down the corridor. "Much as I love him, Harry can be a real prat at times. Don't pay any attention to him; he will figure it out eventually," she soothed.

"It's not so much that, Gin. It's the way everyone just assumes Severus will be an awful husband. No-one ever gives him a chance." She turned tear-streaked eyes to the redhead. "I feel like I am fighting an uphill battle sometimes."

"Oh, Hermione, love. It will work out. The boys will realise he's not so bad. We'll just have to keep knocking their heads together until they do."

"What would I do without you?" The girls hugged briefly and made their way arm in arm back to Hermione's room.

From deep within a nearby niche, a dark man stared thoughtfully after the two students. Emotions roiling, he strode off to the dungeons where he considered his future with the young woman who had staked a claim on his reluctant heart in a few short weeks.

Did she really care for him, or was it simply pity?

Standing before Snape's office door, Hermione paused to consider the wisdom of her actions. Contrary to popular belief, she was not without self-doubt. She had almost decided to abandon her mission when the door swung open, and a mocking voice drawled, "Are you planning to stay out there all evening staring at the door, or did you intend to join me some time?"

"How did you...?"

"Wards, my dear. Now, get inside before you make a spectacle of us both."

"Er... sorry. Thanks," she added as he ushered her through into his sitting room.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure this evening?" He handed her a glass of wine, smirking as she inspected the contents. "It's just wine. If you are adult enough to marry, I'm sure you can manage a small glass of wine."

"I was just looking at the colour and clarity," she retorted as she swirled the wine in the glass and took a deep, appreciative sniff. Sipping a little, she held it in her mouth for a moment and then swallowed. "Not bad. Could do with a little more cellaring," she declared.

Snape shook his head in disbelief. "Not only a know-it-all about sex, she's a wine expert as well."

"Not an expert, but my father is quite the wine connoisseur and has taught me a thing or two over the last few years," she explained with a smile. "Talking about sex..."

"What? Don't tell me you have more homework? Did I not perform adequately with the last assignment?" he growled.

"Oh, I think you did very well, although the practical application remains unattempted. However, I have another, somewhat personal, question for you."

Snape rolled his eyes and took a large swallow of his wine. "I hate to think. Go on. You are going to ask anyway."

Gathering her courage, Hermione looked him in the eye and asked, "How often do you... er... masturbate?"

"I beg your pardon? Did you just ask me how often I..."

"Masturbated. Wanked. Took matters into hand, so to speak. How often?" The blush which suffused her cheeks belied her confident words.

"I do not..."

"Oh, come on. There's a well-known Muggle saying, 'Ninety-five percent of men masturbate – the other five percent lie about it.' Which is it to be?" she insisted.

"I was about to say, I do not think it is any business of yours how often I relieve myself." Snape started pacing the room as the intimate topic of conversation stirred unwanted interest in his trousers.

"Oh, so you do then. Good," she stated matter-of-factly.

His lips thinned at her audacity. "Do you think it is good that I have had to stand in the shower every night and every morning over the last two weeks, cupping my aching balls in one hand and stroking my cock until I explode against the tiles shouting your name, Hermione?" Red-faced with the realisation of how much he had inadvertently revealed in his moment of fury, he turned and strode from the room to gather his shattered composure.

"Oh, my," she whispered as she watched him leave.

A few moments later Snape returned to find his fiancée sitting in the armchair by the fire staring into space.

"What? Too much information? Changed your mind now you know what a perverted old bastard you are about to marry?" He sneered.

She turned her face to him, face flushed and pupils dilated with arousal. "On the contrary, Severus. I think you have just fuelled my fantasy life for weeks. The thought of you naked in the shower, touching yourself like that... I just needed a moment to cool down."

"Oh." He sat heavily on the sofa and stared at his feet. "So, why exactly did you want to know? Although, I'm not sure I want to know the answer."

"I was reading..."

"Surprise, surprise."

"Hush. I was reading, and it seems that often on the first occasion a man has intercourse, he has trouble... you know... lasting the distance. I thought if you made a point of bringing yourself to a climax a couple of times before the wedding, you would last longer. OK, OK, I know it was a bad idea, but I just want our first time to be perfect," she explained, head in her hands.

He lifted his eyes and studied her for long moments, once again wondering why the gods had chosen him. "You really mean that, don't you?"

"Yes. I do."

The sincerity in her gaze made the decision easy. "In that case, I will personally take matters in hand on Saturday morning. Happy?"

The warmth of her smile was all the repayment he required. "Now, I think you should leave. I have a certain urgent... problem to attend to." He looked ruefully down at his straining pants.

"I could help," she offered tentatively.

"Oh, no you won't, Miss. Go. Now!"

"I'll be thinking of you later," she promised and winked as his eyelids fluttered shut, and he groaned despite himself. Breath stolen by the sight, Hermione left the room before she lost all control.

Ginny Weasley took one look at her friend's flushed cheeks and glazed eyes upon her return to the adult students' common room and bustled her into her room. Pouring the tea she had prepared earlier and placed under a warming charm, she thrust a cup into Hermione's slightly tremulous hand. "Here. Drink up. Then tell me what on earth happened down there."

Gratefully, the older girl drained the cup and held it out for more. After two cups of hot, sweet tea and a few biscuits, she was able to speak.

"I... I..."

"You what? Hexed him? Snogged him? Jumped him? What, Hermione? Do I have to drag it out of you word by word, because, by Merlin, I will if I have to!" Ginny glared at the witch before her.

Hermione took a deep breath and drew her scattered wits together. "Alright, keep your knickers on. We had a little chat about... er... masturbation. He told me something, unintentionally, that just made me want him so much. I don't know if I can wait another two days!" she wailed.

"Whoa! Back up a bit. You were talking to Professor Snape about masturbation? What, did you just come out and ask him how many times he did it?" Ginny's flippancy transformed into horrified realisation when her friend simply nodded. "Do you have some sort of death wish? Why on earth did you need to know that?"

Hermione retrieved the book she had been reading about first time sex and showed the relevant passages to Ginny. "You see, if he deals with it earlier in the day, he should..."

"Don't really want to know the details, Hermione. I get the gist. But I can't believe you just went and ordered him to masturbate for you. That's so... kinky! Er... is he going to do it?" she added, curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well, yes. That's the problem. The thought of him..." She gazed off into the distance, eyes glazing over again.

"Oi! Hermione! Stop imagining the professor doing that in front of me. It's just not right! Now, come and play Exploding Snap nicely with the boys, then you can indulge yourself in all the fantasies you like later – in the privacy of your own room. Alone." Ginny gave her a gentle shove towards the door.

"Alone. Pity," the frustrated witch muttered.

Prompt: 1. Something Old. The Marriage Law Challenge. Many thanks to karelia for the beta.