Getting Close To Hermione

Sorry its taken me longer than normal to get this chapter up, but my long weekend consisted of reading and drinking. Not in that order.

I've tried my hand at some lemons, maybe more like strong lemonade, but I'm pretty satisfied this time.

All canon characters belong to JKR

Thanks to June for all of her help and suggestions.

Chapter 7 – Getting close to Hermione

Severus woke up on his living room couch. He felt slightly dizzy as he sat up and looked around the room. He looked down at his cloak and smelled firewhisky.

"At least this time I know why I blacked out." He stood up and felt his head pounding slightly. Obviously he'd had too much to drink with Lucius. He also missed lunch, at least he thought he did, so no doubt that added to his current state. He walked to the bathroom and stripped his clothing off and turned on the shower. As he let the steam form, he went to the medicine cabinet and looked for some Hangover Potion, something that had an eternal shelf life. Severus remembered he'd always kept at least a bottle or two for those times when he drank to help him forget the death and chaos he'd witnessed during a raid. Luckily for him, there was one bottle, which he greedily drank down. The relief was instant. Once his head stopped pounding he got into the shower.

"What time is it?" Severus called out. When he'd first arrived at Hogwarts as a teacher, he charmed one of the stones making up the shower wall to show the time of day. That way he would know how much time he had to shower and get ready for class. He had similar objects around his rooms charmed the same way. It was now a quarter to eight in the evening.

"How long did I sleep?" he wondered aloud to himself. He washed his body slowly, thinking about the last several days. He'd never felt the loss of control over his own mind as much as he had at that moment. He knew that the lost time he'd been suffering had to do with Voldemort's curse from ten years ago. He had to find out what had been done to him, but where to start?

Severus had always been a private man, with private feelings and thoughts. When he had a problem, he always tried to figure it out on his own, asking for help only when he'd come to some impasse and could no longer find a solution on his own. As he held his head under the warm shower, his thoughts began to turn to Hermione and, as if on cue, he began to harden. He looked down at his fast approaching hard-on and sighed.

"Well, at least I know something is working the way it should." He closed his eyes, leaned his forehead against the cool stones and began stroking himself. Before he had been cursed, it had been over five years since he'd bedded a woman, so his last sexual contact was now fifteen years ago. If he was honest with himself, there had never been anyone he was interested enough to even try to have sex with. When he was a young wizard, sex was sex; it didn't have to mean anything or feel any particular way other than good. But as he grew older and when he began spying, his outlook changed. The few women he encountered bored him to tears. He realized he needed an intellectual connection as well as a physical one, and finding that was about as easy as finding the a virgin in a whorehouse.

After several years of looking for a connection with a woman, he just stopped looking. He realized that the position he was in wasn't conducive to having any type of a relationship, good or bad. Now standing in his shower, pumping himself dry at the mere thought of Hermione Granger beneath him, he realized that it was time to live again and seek out the pleasures he had so long denied himself. There was nothing wrong with wanting Hermione. She was a twenty-six year old woman after all, and even though he was nineteen years her senior that really wasn't much of an age difference, not in their world.

Severus Snape may not have had the pleasure of indulging himself with the soft and willing body of a woman for over fifteen years, but he still knew when a woman wanted him. He had a feeling that Hermione would be receptive to his advances. He'd make it clear to her that it would not just be casual sex, since he genuinely liked her. She wasn't a sixteen-year-old girl anymore and she had grown into a responsible adult. Hermione might be someone that he could consider a friend and maybe someday, something more than that. He wondered if Hermione would indulge him in the "something more" part sooner than later.

After his shower, he dried off and dressed in his usual attire, sans the black frock coat. He then walked a few steps down the hall and knocked on Hermione's door.

"Severus, come in, have a seat" she said as she stepped aside and allowed Severus room to walk in and sit down. "I wondered if you might have forgotten about stopping by." Hermione got the file from her desk and sat next to Severus.

"No, I didn't forget. I...had taken a nap when I came back from Hogsmeade." Severus leaned back against the couch and made himself comfortable.

"I was reading some of your notes and made a few notations of my own. Would you mind looking them over? I think I figured out where I went wrong." Hermione handed him the file.

Severus looked at it. He smiled as he read her new formula.

"This looks correct. Will you be brewing it soon?" he asked.

"Yes, this evening," Hermione shyly looked down at her hands, as she played with the corner of her blouse. "I was wondering if you might...well, if you might want to... brew with me."

Severus stood and offered her his hand. Hermione allowed him to lift her slightly; she placed her hand on his chest lightly as he stared down at her. Their faces were inches from each other.

"I would love to...brew with you," said Severus, not realizing how hoarse his voice sounded.

Hermione began to raise herself up on her toes so that she was a hair's breath from his lips, when they heard a voice coming from the Floo.

"Hermione! I've got niblets in my poo!" Ron was making his nightly call.

Both Hermione and Severus jumped away from each other. Hermione caught her breath and rushed to the fireplace.

"Ron, that's...nice." Hermione looked over to Severus who looked flushed as he began to unbutton his top coat button. "How was your day?"

"Not bad," said Ron casually. "Harry had to go and check one of the offices in the States. He came back with some corn on the cob." Ron laughed. "I didn't know if I ate it I'd have corn in my poo! Do you want to see?"

"No! Thanks, but I believe you," said Hermione quickly.

"Okay, I'm tired; I'll talk to you tomorrow." Ron waved then leaned forward slightly. "Oh, night, professor." Then he cut the connection.

Hermione turned quickly and noticed Severus standing behind her.

"Sorry, Ron calls me every evening. His potion wears off about this time," she said as she stood.

Severus smirked.

"Am I to understand then that we should have no more interruptions regarding poo?"

She laughed. "No more poo, I promise."

With all talk of poo forgotten, Hermione showed Severus to her private lab. When she'd moved into her rooms, Albus helped her add an extra room so that she could use it as a private lab, for her own experiments.

Severus was impressed with the layout of the lab. Hermione had her ingredients and other supplies set up much in the same manner as he'd had his own, which made him smile. Albus had told him that Hermione taught her Potions class the same way he'd done so when he taught, and now seeing her lab made him realize that perhaps they had more in common than he initially realized

"Severus?" Hermione had been calling his name for a while as he was looking around the room. "Severus."

He turned to her. "I'm sorry," he said as he leaned back against the counter; she'd never seen him so relaxed. "How do you wish to begin?"

Hermione realized he was allowing her to take control. She wondered if he would have ever allowed this had he never been put under that curse. She then thought he would. After Voldemort had been destroyed, Severus would surely have been able to relax enough to allow others to take the lead. Her mind then briefly wondered if he would allow her the same control in the bedroom.

Severus smiled as he saw her cheeks redden, knowing what she was thinking.

They both began the task of making the potion for Ron. It consisted of actually two different potions, both of which had to be made at the same time to be combined at the end. That had been part of her earlier mistake. Hermione had made the first potion and then the second potion afterwards; as it turned out, neither potion could sit while the other was being made. Also, one potion's ingredients had to be prepared with metal instruments, and the other with wooden ones. There even had to be a wooden knife to slice those ingredients.

"All right, I'll take the metal," said Hermione.

Severus arched a brow.

"It seems then that I have wood." He smiled.

She turned quickly and began to gather what she needed. She was so nervouse that she forgot to fill her cauldron with warm water.

"Severus, would you...fill my cauldron?"

His original smile never wavering, he purred, "I would love to...fill your cauldron."

She knew that it would be a long evening. As they worked on the potion, Hermione told Severus what she'd been doing, briefly albeit, in the last ten years. He felt he knew a bit more about her now. He also opened up a bit more to her, allowing her to ask him questions regarding his life before and during his days as a spy.

After two hours of chopping, blanching, waiting, sneaking glances, pouring, smiling, stirring and finally simmering of both potions, they finished together.

"Severus, I have an alabaster bowl in the cupboard next to you," said Hermione. Both potions needed to be poured into the alabaster bowl simultaneously, another mistake Hermione had made previously. As they both poured their cauldrons the combining liquids turned light lavender.

"I think it's perfect now," Hermione said as she beamed.

Severus leaned forward and took in the scent of the potion. It smelled of honey, vanilla and a bit of freshly cultivated fennel seeds.

"The true test will be when you give it to Mr. Weasley. Would you like for me to help you bottle this?" He'd hoped she would say yes. He wasn't quite ready to leave her just yet and was fairly sure she felt the same way and would allow him to remain there.

"You've already done so much. This is no longer a two-man job. I don't want to impose on you any further and keep you from anything." She was confident he would want to stay with her. They'd spent the last two hours talking, flirting and brewing, and she hoped he wasn't tired of her yet.

All the while they'd been working on her potion, Voldemort kept trying to break through past Severus' soul. The DADA professor seemed stronger than he had before. For whatever reason, something was keeping Voldemort from coming to the surface. The Dark Lord wondered if Severus was now with Hermione. There was still no way he could gauge Severus' emotions or even read his thoughts, but Voldemort now wondered if that might have anything to do with why he'd not been able to surface. The only thing the Dark Lord could do was sit and wait – something he was tired of doing.

What Voldemort didn't know for certain was that Severus was indeed being affected by Hermione. Not only was she stimulating Severus intellectually, but physically as well. Severus was a man after all and a man who desperately needed...no, wanted the company of a woman at that moment. Severus was free, and could enjoy a woman's company in every way and not have to worry about anything violent happening to his partner. During their conversation Severus decided that he wanted Hermione. He wanted her in his bed very badly. He no longer saw her as his student. She was a woman, and from the moment he woke up from his ten-year sleep and saw her, he'd felt a stirring in his soul.

As they bottled Ron's potion into small vials, which Hermione would take to Harry and Draco, she wondered if she should make her move. Had it not been for Ron's interruption, she might have kissed Severus earlier; right now, Hermione felt she'd been left high and dry. She looked over her shoulder and noticed Severus carefully measuring each ladle into a small vial. When he finished, Severus turned to face Hermione, who he realized had been watching him.

"Was there something you needed?' he asked.

"Yes," Hermione said as she walked towards him slowly. "I needed this." She then wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him softly on his lips.

Severus in turn wrapped one arm around her waist, then slid his other hand up her back and buried his fingers in her long thick curls.

They kissed for several moments, neither wanting to pull away from the other. Severus then blazed a warm trail of wet kisses down Hermione's neck as she pulled his body closer to her own.

"Was there something that you needed from me, Severus?" she asked breathlessly.

Severus lifted his head from the valley between her breasts and looked into her half-lidded eyes. Her lips were red and slightly swollen, her hair a tangled mess, and her cheeks flushed.

"I need...I need..." He caressed her cheek as she closed her eyes and leaned her face into his palm.

"Yes?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"No," he said as he continued to stroke her face. All of his life he'd wanted to feel this. To feel a woman who truly welcomed his touch, for no payment other than the warmth and companionship he could offer. Love was a deep feeling, a feeling so close to its partner, hate. Love could be felt in so many levels just as hate. His entire life, hate had been so easy to come by and allow into his heart, but what of love? How many of the different levels of love could he experience with Hermione, he wondered.

Finally letting his guard down, after so many years of building walls and standing at the gates of his heart, with a sword in hand not allowing anyone to trespass, he would allow himself a moment of vulnerability, and hope to not regret what he was about to do.

"I want... to feel you love me," he finally said.

Hermione opened her eyes, which glittered with the reflection of the candles surrounding the walls of the small room. She could feel the energy coming from him, and the emotions that had never been given the opportunity to show themselves until now. Hermione knew what he meant, what he wanted.

She took his hand and led him down a short hallway to her bedroom. Her bed was a large sleigh bed made of dark red cherry wood. The stoned walls were covered in golden red and green tapestries of knights slaying dragons and fairies dancing through the forest. The floor was covered with thick wool rugs and her bed made with soft cotton sheets. Much like himself, Hermione seemed to prefer cotton to anything else.

He allowed her to lead him to her bed, where he sat on the edge as she now stood in front of him peppering his face with light kisses.

"I can give you want you want, Severus," Hermione whispered in his ear, as she stroked his long silky hair.

Severus placed his hands on her hips before he began moving them to her curvy bottom. Hermione lifted one knee onto the bed next to him, allowing her to move closer to him. Severus now continued kissing her where he'd left off. He turned his head slightly and licked the outline of her round breast until the tip of his tongue made its way to the edge of her bra. He opened his eyes and looked at her. Her head was thrown back and her breathing labored; he knew that she would allow him to go further with no need of asking for permission. His warm hand moved aside the lace material covering her pink nipples, and his tongue continued its path.

As his mouth enveloped her hardening bud, Hermione's head shot forward, and her hands moved from his shoulders to his head. She held him close to her breast as her hips now began to move against his lap. Severus tore her blouse open and pulled down the straps of her bra allowing himself full access to her now. He leaned back, taking her down with him, and then rolled slightly so that she was now on her back as he held himself against her side. She felt his hardened erection moving against her thigh as he sucked the underside of her breast and gently squeezed her buttocks.

"Please," she pleaded. Hermione threw her leg over his hips and attempted to move closer still to him. "More of you, I want more of you against me."

Severus lifted his head then brushed her hair away from her face softly.

"You shall have as much of me against you as you want." He stood and took off his shirt. His chest wasn't overly muscled but well-defined and solid.

Hermione licked her lips when she saw the dark line of hair that disappeared down past the waistband of his trousers. She spread her legs and wrapped them around his waist, moving him towards her as she grabbed his belt and began to undo it. Severus fell onto the bed and supported his body with his arms.

"Hermione, slow down. We have time; there is no need to rush." The last thing he wanted was a quick fuck. After fifteen years he wanted to make it count, especially if he wasn't sure if Hermione wanted just a one-night stand or something more. He moved to hold her hands but she looked at him with wide hungry eyes.

"No, I've never wanted anyone as much as I want you right now. We can take our time later. I don't want you to leave me tonight, please." She finished unfastening his belt and unbuttoned his trousers. When his hardened cock was freed, she took him into her small warm hands and urged him towards her.

"Then I will stay with you, Hermione." Severus gathered up her long skirt and pushed it up past her thighs and around her waist. He was surprised to find her not wearing any panties. He smiled and arched his brow.

"No panties, Miss Granger?"

She laughed a wicked knowing laugh. "I was hoping things would end up this way."

Without any further hesitations on his part he drove himself into her. She was lubricated to the point that when he entered her he could hear the sucking sounds her walls made each time he entered her and withdrew.

With each thrust, Severus pushed Hermione further towards the middle of the bed. He leaned down and kissed her passionately, letting her feel everything he felt at that moment. He allowed himself to lie fully on top of her so that their bodies were touching completely. After a few adjustments on both their parts, his pelvic bone was rubbing against her clit, giving her the sensation she was begging for.

"I'm so close, Severus!" cried Hermione. Her hips met his as he thrust into her harder and faster. She held on to him tightly as he held her in place now by holding on to her shoulder.

"Wait for me," moaned Severus. He doubled his efforts, wanting for both of them to climax at the same time. Hermione squeezed her inner muscles and he immediately let out a guttural groan that signaled his first orgasm in the arms of a woman in fifteen years. He felt her inner walls flutter around him as though she was pulling every bit of essence from his body and even his soul. Finally, sated and spent, Severus collapsed on top of her. Hermione lay beneath him, limp and satisfied, a huge smile on her face.

Severus lifted himself slightly and kissed her lips. He wiped the tiny beads of sweat from her brow and kissed her cheeks, then her forehead. Hermione's hands were lightly scratching his lower back.

"That was incredible," said Hermione as she looked at Severus' smiling face.

"Quite incredible," he agreed. "Do you still wish me to stay?"

"I most certainly do. I think a repeat performance is in order." Hermione rubbed her feet across the back of his legs, then brought her legs back up and wrapped them around his waist once more. "Maybe slower next time?"

"Yes, I believe slower is in order."

They lay still for several moments, and then decided to take a warm shower together. After their shower they opened a bottle of wine and talked until it was time for the second round.

As the two new lovers enjoyed their time together, deep down within Severus' subconscious, where Voldemort roamed, the Dark Lord grew angry. He'd been trying and trying and still he hadn't been able to get past Severus' soul. Something was happening, something he needed to figure out how to get past. Then, suddenly he felt... happiness; Severus was happy and it made Voldemort sick.

Surely it had to have something to do with the Mudblood, it was the only thing Voldemort could think of. Much as he himself wanted to play with her, if she made Severus happy then something had to be done about her. Miserable Severus was easy to manipulate. Up to now it had been fairly easy for Voldemort to take over the DADA professor's body, but now he couldn't so much as make a spark. Regardless, little by little, with each passing hour Voldemort was gaining strength. Even if he couldn't get through now, all he had to do is give it time. There would come a moment when he could make his move and take her from Snape for good. With Hermione out of the picture, Severus would be vulnerable and Voldemort could finally take over his body.

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I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. This is also a bridge chapter. I'd like to get things moving from here on out, but I needed to get Severus and Hermione closer.