Daydreams

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author.

Many thanks and hugs to Sequana for the beta of this chapter.

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Chapter 11: Daydreams

The grounds were still and quiet as the couple trudged through the cold of the early morning, intent on reaching the gates. Their luggage was all shrunken and residing in the man's pocket, and their gloved hands were joined and entwined between them. Their unspoken, but mutual, affection allowed them small moments such as these. Christmas had passed just two days before, and Severus had told Hermione later that night, as he saw her to the door of her chambers, that he would be leaving on the twenty-seventh. She had been thrilled to receive the invitation to go with him, of course, and had spent a fair amount of the day before trying to figure out what to pack.

As they walked along the snow-covered path, Hermione's thoughts were constantly drifting back to Christmas night and the moment she and Severus had shared in the doorway to his rooms before they had headed up to the Great Hall. His lips on her palm was the sweetest caress she had felt in a long time. She had seen him flush and found that she was irresistibly drawn to him. She had no idea how she could have possibly left him just on an emotional impulse that way all those years ago. She had been chastising herself for weeks. Surely if she had wanted to know that badly if he loved her, she could have asked.

She shook the thoughts from her head. It was too late for regrets. They had a future ahead of them for sharing, she could tell. Looking to her left, she saw that Severus appeared also to be rather deep in thought as they ambled along the path. He was frowning slightly, and his lips were pressed tightly together in a thin line as though he were angry. She gave his hand a light squeeze to attract his attention, and he started a little before looking at her and giving her a small smile to reassure her.

'What's on your mind, Severus?' she asked, gazing straight back at his face.

'Nothing of importance,' he murmured in reply, sounding a little unconvincing as far as Hermione was concerned. 'Nothing that you need worry about, pet,' he added with a grin, releasing her hand and instead wrapping his arm around her shoulders, pulling her tighter to his side.

Hermione decided to drop it for the time being, but it was far from being forgotten. She snuggled into his side and smiled in contentment. 'I always loved it when you called me that,' she informed him softly.

'When I called you "pet"?' he asked, looking down at her in surprise.

She nodded against his shoulder. 'We were good together – weren't we?' she asked, her voice sounding wistful even to her own ears. She almost wanted to take the words back until he stopped on the path and turned her so that they were facing each other, his hands on both her shoulders.

He pressed his forehead against hers, breathing in the scent of her hair and the freezing cold air deeply. 'I should never have let you walk away like I did all those years ago,' he admitted a little sheepishly. 'I could have come after you and asked you to stay, but I was so upset, it was all I could do to get up every day and sulk around the castle, taking out my anger on the students as usual.'

'It doesn't matter anymore,' she replied with a forgiving smile as she pulled back a little bit from him.

Wrapping his arm around her shoulders again, he indicated they continue, and they walked briskly along together until they reached the gates. On stepping through them, they were immediately on their guard, prepared for any sort of repeat of their attack. When he was sure the coast was clear, he wrapped both his arms tightly around her and Disapparated. They reappeared together just inside a clean, well-lit hall, almost as grand as the Entrance Hall of Hogwarts with a huge crystal chandelier hanging from the ornate plaster ceiling.

'Welcome home,' he murmured into her ear, releasing her and looking down at her with such fondness in his eyes.

'It's good to be home,' she replied, her smile beatific.

She looked around at the familiar surroundings that she remembered despite the length of time since her last visit. It had always been her favourite time of the year, when Severus would take her with him to the manor. Smiling broadly and throwing all caution to the wind, she turned to face him and flung her arms around his neck, pressing her mouth to his insistently. He tasted of the coffee he had drunk that morning and a little minty like his toothpaste. He stiffened at first, shocked to the core at her actions. But soon he relaxed and wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her tight to him and parting his lips beneath hers, allowing her seeking tongue to dip into his mouth.

The kiss lasted for as long as they could possibly stand until they needed to breathe. They broke apart, panting, their foreheads pressed together. He stared deeply into her eyes and could see the spark in them that he knew so well. It was her way of wordlessly expressing her affection for him. 'I don't suppose you would mind foregoing the tour of the house in favour of stepping upstairs for a while, would you?' he asked, his breathing laboured.

Hermione grinned. 'You know that I know this place almost as well as you do,' she replied with a flushed face. 'I have been waiting long enough to be alone with you...'

He nodded in agreement and then scooped her up into his arms, Apparating them straight to his bedroom. He had not ever shared a bedroom in the manor with anyone before or after Hermione – she had been the only one for him. He placed her on her feet at the end of the bed and immediately shrugged out of his long winter coat, tossing it aside and starting on the long row of buttons on his frockcoat. Taking his cue, Hermione started to undress as well, hardly believing that what she had been craving for months was finally going to happen. Her coat and sweater were easily and efficiently disposed of, and she was working on the buttons of her blouse as he started on his white shirt.

Severus was only halfway through his shirt buttons when he glanced over to Hermione and saw that she was topless and was wriggling out of her trousers, kicking her shoes to the side. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of her in the black, lacy knickers and bra. She looked up when she felt him stare at her and was tempted to wrap her arms around herself self-consciously. Her arms made the motion, but he walked forward and stopped her, placing a large, warm hand on her palm and rubbing her smooth skin.

She was not unlike the woman he used to make love to on a regular basis, although she was taller than she had been then, and her body was firmer and tighter like she had taken to running or exercising. Gone was the softness of her youth – she was very much a woman now, and he loved it. Her breasts were small and firm-looking trapped within her bra. Most men might not like that, but he found the effect to be rather irresistible. He brushed his thumb lightly over where her nipple was peaked beneath the lace cup, tightening it further.

'Beautiful,' he murmured, leaning down and capturing her lips with his swiftly only to pull back sharply and tug his shirt over his head and off.

He released the buttons and zipper of his fly with the ease of practice and had his trousers, shoes, and socks all kicked off to the side with his other clothes, leaving him in just his black, cotton shorts. They were on even ground. Hermione shyly stepped towards him, reaching a hand out and pressing her palm to his breastbone gently. He allowed her to touch him unimpeded, aware that she was a little nervous. It had been a long time, after all, since they had been together in this way, and even he was a little uncertain of what she liked or disliked now. He wrapped strong, sinewy arms around her, drawing her near-naked form to his and hugging her tightly, stroking a comforting hand up and down the small of her back.

'We don't have to do this now, pet,' he murmured, kissing the top of her head, her curls tickling the end of his nose slightly.

'I know,' she answered softly. 'But I want us to be together – just like we always used to be. I have missed being with you so much...'

'The missing is over now – for both of us,' he told her, pulling back. As he did, he released the clasp of her bra from the back and lowered the straps down her arms before removing it completely from her. 'You are still the most desirable woman I have ever had the good fortune to know.'

Her rosy nipples stood proud and peaked against the soft, pale skin of her breast. The colour of them had deepened only slightly, but he found them all the more ravishing for the starkness of the contrast. He touched one with the tip of his index finger, feeling the hard bud tighten further still. She was as sensitive as ever. Almost reverently, Severus dropped his hand and abruptly hoisted her into his arms, depositing her on the large master bed. She squeaked initially but relaxed in his arms and squirmed her way to the centre of the bed as he helped to relieve her of her lacy knickers. She opened her arms in invitation to join her.

He pushed his underwear off then and scrambled onto the bed and into her waiting arms, claiming her mouth in one of the fiercest kisses she had ever received. His mouth was scorching, as were the fingers that were travelling over her breasts, kneading, circling, and plucking until she felt like she was on cloud nine. That was until his hand crept further down and his long fingers stroked her slick opening below. His thumb remained on the bundle of nerves at the top while two long, dexterous fingers slowly stroked in and out of her warm, wet sheath. She was already tight around his fingers. Heaven forbid that he think of how tight she would be around his manhood.

Hermione, meanwhile, was a moaning, writhing, panting mess under his ministrations to her above and below. By this point, his tongue was lapping at a nipple while his erection rubbed against her thigh as he thrust ever so slightly. Hermione reached down and wrapped her fingers confidently around the tip, diverting his concentration from his task. He gasped and swore as she began to caress him in time to his own strokes until her walls trembled and she shattered into orgasm. Her chest heaved and her eyes closed as he pressed tiny kisses all over her face.

He moved so his shaft was between her parted legs, the tip rubbing against her as he prepared to enter. He leaned in and kissed her possessively. 'I don't want to be a rebound from your husband,' he whispered softly.

'I never loved Michael the way I've always loved you, Severus,' she whispered back, brushing her lips against his. 'You're the only one for me...'

'And you are the only woman for me,' he replied before thrusting into her quickly, drawing a long groan of pleasure from him and a moan from Hermione. 'I love you, Hermione Jane.'

Hermione smiled, shifting her hips as an invitation for him to move. He chuckled at her enthusiasm and set a slow, deep pace, savouring the feeling of being within her. Their pace continued at the same speed until Hermione found that she could hold out no longer, and her walls began to tremble around his hardened shaft. Hermione pulled him in deeper and urged him to go faster, pinching and rolling her own nipples while one of his thumbs rubbed her clit and his other hand stopped him from collapsing on her.

Severus could feel both his and Hermione's approaching releases and groaned, chanting her name over and over again in his mind. Her walls finally trembled and clenched his cock like the warmest, tightest, wettest glove of all. He found that holding back would have been fruitless, so he sped up until he came, shouting her name and spilling his seed deep within her. He had strength enough to collapse to the side of her and spoon up behind her, waving a hand to draw the covers over them before resting his head on the pillow.

He sighed tiredly then, closing his eyes. 'My beautiful pet,' he murmured, kissing her neck lightly.

She chuckled softly, wriggling her lean bum against him to get comfortable, and fell asleep shortly after, the arms of her lover wrapped tightly around her. Severus smiled at the cat-like behaviour, sighing softly. He fell asleep then, listening to the sounds of her deep, even breathing. The only thought in his mind as he drifted into another world was the happiness he felt from the knowledge of her returned affections.

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A/N – And now my little brazen story has turned into a longer R-rated one. Please leave a review!!!