Survival of the Fittest

Feeling Severus tense beneath her, Hermione redoubled her efforts and climbed off him. She rolled to the other side of the bed, bracing herself for the fallout of her actions – their actions. She would be damned if she as going to take full responsibility for this disaster.

The bed shifted and she started.

“Cover yourself,” Snape stated, his inflection brisk. “We have company.”

“What?” Hermione asked as Severus walked to the bureau, removed a pair of shorts and a shirt, and pulled them on.

“Dumbledore has arrived,” he replied. “I suggest you get dressed.”

Hermione nodded, her eyes following him as he walked out of the room. The door clicked shut behind him, and she could hear the sound of muffled voices.

Dumbledore!

A mixture of dread and excitement coursed through her already adrenaline-saturated veins. Perhaps, she would just Obliviate Snape once she had her wand back. They had been so close! So close to the end of this nightmare! If only she had resisted a little while longer! If only she hadn’t been so weak!

Jumping out of bed, Hermione searched for her knickers and shirt. They were tangled in the remaining bedclothes. She pulled them on quickly, thanking God that the nightshirt was long enough to protect any dignity she still had.

“It’s about bloody time!” she heard Severus’ caustic curse.

Hearing a muffled response, Hermione walked toward the door, catching sight of herself in the mirror. Her hair was wild, her lips were swollen, and there were several love-bites on her neck. She looked wanton and…loved?

She shook the disconcerting thought from her mind. Her passionate declaration repeated in her mind, and Hermione winced. She had given Snape the ammunition he would need to make her life miserable. A surge of anger washed over her embarrassment.

Dumbledore, the grand manipulator, was in the next room. He was a wizard who had always garnered her respect. That respect was gone now. Had he gotten what he had wanted? Was Severus’ speculation about the headmaster’s want of the potion master’s “happiness” accurate?

If so, what of her feelings? Had Dumbledore ever stopped to consider her happiness? Tears welled in her eyes. Anger bled into disappointment. How could she face Dumbledore and pretend she and Snape were lovers?

That’s just it, isn’t it? She and Severus were lovers now, and she had no one to blame but herself. Actually, that wasn\'t true. She did have someone to blame. Albus Dumbledore was one hundred percent to blame for this entire fiasco.

Food appeared on the table, momentarily distracting her. Her stomach growled, but nothing on the table looked the least bit appetizing. In fact, everything looked as though it would taste like cardboard. But, Hermione sat at the table and stared out the window.

The unmistakable sound of the Floo carried through the closed door and Hermione nibbled her bottom lip.

“He’s gone, now,” Severus’ voice startled her.

“He’s gone?” asked Hermione as she glared at him. “How could he leave us here? What did you say? Where –”

“Yes, he’s gone,” Severus snapped. “He didn’t leave us here and I told him the truth.”

Hermione jumped up and started pacing.

--

He looked at Hermione as she walked back and forth worriedly.

Damn Albus Dumbledore to the suffering abyss of hell! The man had the worst timing imaginable. The old meddler had dashed his plans of shagging Hermione senseless. But what irritated him most was the look of Albus’ face once the headmaster saw him. Surely, the only way to dispose of that blasted twinkle in his eyes was to rip them out.

Hermione stopped in front of Severus and put her hands on her hips, which pulled her nightshirt higher, exposing the creamy expanse of her upper thighs. “You told him the truth?” she asked, her inflection shrill.

“Seeing as the truth is what our dear headmaster wanted to hear, yes,” he replied, pouring some coffee into a cup. Lifting the cup to his lips, he smirked as his lover started to pace again.

“Oh that’s a relief,” she scoffed. “We’ll never get out of here.”

“Actually, I didn’t have to tell him anything,” he replied. “He is an accomplished Legilimens.”

She blanched and sat on the bed.

“You needn’t worry, Hermione.” Her name rolled off his tongue like a caress. “He saw nothing that I did not want him to see.”

She was motionless, as though the gentlest breeze could blow her over. As much as he wanted to close the Floo connection in the other room and keep her here, he couldn’t. This morning had proven their volatility around one another.

Mentally, Severus scoffed. Their entire internment had demonstrated the mercurial nature of their relationship.

Relationship? Was he actually contemplating carrying on with this lunacy in the real world? Now that he’d had her, he found that he needed her. The ramifications of this time spent with her would reverberate through the rest of his existence. Dumbledore had inconvenienced them both, manipulating their circumstances and their…her feelings.

He must be going soft in the head. Since when did he care about her feelings? Her affections were misplaced and he wanted nothing to do with them. Suddenly, his course of action had never been clearer.

“There is Floo powder next to the fireplace, which leads to the headmaster’s office,” Severus stated simply, his voice calm and uncaring. “But, before we depart, there are some things we need to discuss.”

Snapping out of her catatonic reverie, Hermione looked around the room. “As far as I’m concerned, we need never discuss what transpired here.”

Her words needled his pride.

“We’ve done what Dumbledore, ” she said the headmaster’s name as though it left a bitter taste in her mouth, “wanted us to do. We’ve learned to tolerate one another. You stay away from the library and I’ll not stray toward the dungeons. That should minimize our contact and our chances of hexing one another.

“It really is quite childish, if you think about it,” Hermione laughed on the verge of hysteria. “You’re a wizard. I’m a witch. We’re both adults. Surely, we have learned enough self-control to be able to tolerate one another. Perhaps we could even learn to be acquaintances.”

Her words dashed any hopes he may have had for an ongoing tryst. His pride would not allow him to suggest such an absurdity. Besides, it would only complicate matters. “As you wish.”

Hermione relaxed visibly.

“However,” Severus paused for effect, “that does not negate the fact that their may be consequences for our… lack of judgment this morning.”

He didn’t believe Hermione could get any paler than she already was. It was a good thing she was sitting down. She covered her face with her hands and groaned. Her words were indistinguishable and anything but flattering. “I have potions that will take care of any unwanted… complications,” he said.

Hermione stood up and glared at him, her eyes flashing and angry. “I won’t take it.”

“Don’t be foolish, girl,” Severus seethed, standing to confront her on this matter. “I’ve spent the majority of my life teaching dunderheads. I have no wish to father one.”

“You should have thought about that before you touched me,” she retorted hotly.

Reveling in the underlying challenge, Severus advanced upon her, pulling her into his arms. “You didn’t seem to mind my touch. In fact, you begged for it. You even declared your love for me.”

She pushed against his chest with little effect. “It was the heat of the moment, and I was still half asleep.”

Severus drove his arousal against her stomach. “You’re awake now,” he growled against the pulse point on her throat. Pulling the hem of her shirt up, Severus maneuvered his hand past the hem of her knickers and slid his fingers between her slick nether lips. “And ready for me again.”

Hermione whimpered and Severus winced as she dug her fingernails into his forearm.

“You’re like an opiate,” he hissed, making various marks along the column of her neck. “So addictive.” He moved his moistened fingers against her clitoris, grinning as she strove to claim the ecstasy only he could bestow. Pulling his fingers away from her, Severus scooped her into his arms and carried her out of the room, through the sitting room, and into the bathroom.

He set her on the counter and reached over her shoulder. Jerking the cabinet open, he pulled a midnight blue bottle out, unstopped it, and held it against her lips. The Contraceptive potion would do little good for their previous activities, but he didn’t want to take another chance. He had to have her.

Gulping for air, she pushed against his shoulders with a renewed vigor. “Stop,” she pleaded softly.

He had no intention of stopping and coaxed her underwear down her hips. Her hand closed over his holding the bottle and they tilted the contents into her mouth.

--

She swallowed the sweet liquid along with the lump in her throat. She was powerless against this.

There was a loud squelching noise behind Severus’ shoulder, momentarily distracting them. Peering over his shoulder, Hermione could see that the shower had transfigured itself into a bubbling spa.

Her lover saw the invitation in the reflection of the mirror. “Perfect,” he sighed against her lips and pulled away. Holding her hand, Severus coaxed her into the tub, ignoring the fact they were still both wearing clothes.

Hermione reached for the hem of her shirt as she climbed in, but he clasped her wrists together and continued to lure her into the warm water.

“No, don’t. I want to do it.” His voice was rough and low, betraying his obvious need. His dark eyes stared into hers. “Undress me.”

She needed no further instruction and pulled the hem of his shirt slowly up and over his head, kissing her way along the lines of his body. When she encircled one of his nipples with her tongue, the dreaded Potions master shuddered in her arms. If the death hold he had on her hair was any indication, she’d better follow his lead. Who would have thought that such an intense passion lurked beneath his cold exterior?

He was still standing as though he were afraid to move. Always one to follow instructions, Hermione slid her fingers underneath the waistband of his shorts and tugged them down, freeing his rigidity. Curiosity got the better of her and she nipped her way down the narrow hairline to his navel, giving it a quick flick with her tongue.

Severus had gone absolutely still. Was he still breathing? Suddenly the urgent tug on her hair turned into a subtle push of her head. Feeling embarrassment flush her cheeks, Hermione kissed his hip.

Fellatio was not a skill she’d acquired with Ron. She’d tried it once, but the red-haired wizard didn’t care for tasting himself when they kissed afterwards. Her inexperience jangled her nerves.

Her nervousness was quickly forgotten. Her eyes grew wide as Severus clutched his member and stroked it. His hand on the back of her head was gentle as he guided himself to her lips. There was no hesitation on her part as she licked the dew that had formed on the tip of his sex.

His response inspired her. Cupping him with one hand and stroking him with the other, Hermione took him into her mouth and established a slow, teasing rhythm. His length and girth were intimidating, just like him, but she couldn’t help the smile that turned her lips when he whimpered.

Yes! She’d made Severus Snape whimper!

Instead of pushing her head, he was now pulling on her hair. “Enough,” he groaned, collapsing into the water and kicking his shorts the rest of the way off.

Hermione watched them float to the surface with a satisfied smirk. Severus’ eyes were closed and he was taking deep, measured breaths. The expression on his face caused her to pause. Just as she had settled back into the water, he moved.

He was like a striking snake, quickly removing her knickers and settling her onto his lap. She could feel his length rubbing against her bum. His lips clamped over hers, coaxing hers to open. By the time the kiss ended, they were both breathless.

“Now take me,” he commanded, lifting her up and settling himself at her entrance.

Biting her bottom lip in concentration, Hermione closed her eyes and eased her tight orifice over his readied sex.

“Open your eyes,” Severus moaned. “Look at me.”

She gasped as he filled her and as he stilled her movements on top of him. Her T-shirt was clinging to her breasts and he bit her nipples gently through the material.

“Say the words.” He controlled their intimate connection, neither taking nor giving what she wanted.

“No,” Hermione panted, trying to move against him. “It isn’t true.”

“Then lie to me.” One of his hands had found its way between their union and started to pluck her clitoris.

“No,” she purred, leaning over and sinking her teeth into his shoulder, unable to bear the fullness of him inside her, yet unable to move.

He released her hips with a muttered curse. “Insolent.”

Victorious, Hermione grinned and started to rock back and forth. Her tenuous rhythm was broken when Severus reached for her T-shirt and tugged on it. With frenzied actions, they peeled the cotton from her body. She had little time to recoup as her lover suckled one of her breasts.

Gasping, she arched her back. The water swirled around them, silent testament to the passion between them. She mewled with frustration when he removed his hand.

Severus’ hand closed over one of hers and pressed it between their bodies. “Touch yourself,” he cajoled, thrusting jerkily into her. His fingers manipulated hers, and when she found her own rhythm, Hermione cried out.

--

Having lost all sense of time, Hermione woke to confusion. She was sore, having used muscles she hadn’t used in, well, all of her life. A smile spread across her face as she stared into the moonlit room.

Severus was an insatiable lover. She had lost count of the times they’d made love…had sex. Sex. It was just sex, not lovemaking.

“I do not love Severus Snape,” she chanted repeatedly to herself as if saying it enough times would ease the dull ache in the pit of her stomach.

Every time he had tried to talk about their return to Hogwarts, Hermione would silence him with a kiss. So, she really had no one to blame for her achy muscles but herself. He’d taught her things she’d never even imagined. And for that she would always be grateful.

Extracting herself from the tangle of limbs and his possessive hands, Hermione sat up and slid to the edge of the bed. The pressure on her bladder was just too much.

“And just where do you think you’re going?” Severus’ voice purred possessively.

“The loo,” she replied, trying to keep her voice neutral.

Seemingly pleased with her response, Severus closed his eyes.

Hermione eyed him and walked over to the dresser drawers, pulling them open and taking out some knickers and a nightshirt.

“Clothes?”

Startled, she turned around and smiled, trying her best to keep him in the dark. “You may still be in bed, but it’s freezing out here.” That’s it, Hermione. Idle chitchat. Keep it light.

She pulled her knickers and nightshirt on and walked to the bed. Leaning over him, she placed a kiss on his forehead. “I’ll be right back.”

Severus clutched a handful of her hair and pulled her in for a real kiss. Feeling the familiar tug of lust pool in her stomach, she kept the kiss chaste and pulled away quickly. “I really have to go.”

“Very well,” her impatient lover snarled.

She closed the door behind her with a soft click, trying to calm her nerves. There was so much to do. She needed to act quickly. Her hand shook as she grabbed a handful of Floo powder. The flame died down and Hermione stepped into the fireplace. “Hogwarts’ headmaster’s office,” she stated clearly and threw the powder at her feet.

*****

A/N – Thanks for all the reviews. The disaster relief is slowing down. I really was just doing my job though. As a state employee, you sign up for disaster relief. Having several evacuees cross against my desk, I felt really frustrated. So, I called my son’s school and received such a huge response of household and personal items, I’ve got tons left over. I actually heard back from one of the evacuees from Jefferson Parish. Their home sustained some roof damage, but they weren’t flooded. Isn’t that great!

Thank you to Kathy Rose and Larilee for beta reading, suggestions and inspiration. You guys rock!