Fire and the Dragon

A/N: Holy moly, three chapters in one day!! I just wanted to put another one out today. I am going to try to post again tomorrow, but Christmas shopping is not going to get itself done. WARNING: SAPPY CHAPTER, ok there, I suck at writing sappy love scenes. There will not be many of them in this story, lets face it, Severus is not sappy. I know first hand, I married a short haired, american Severus. The snarkiest, most arrogant person in the US Navy...but also the most passionate and loving man you could ever know..only to his family! He even has a big nose! I love him! Anyways, I recommend the healing power of a good rain to everyone! Thanks for reviewing and reading!!!













Ch. 11 Changes in the Moonlight



Hermione yelped as she felt Severus grab her around her waist and apparate away. They landed in a bustling village. Brightly lit shops lined the street. It was almost like Hogsmeade, only bigger.



“Where are we?” she inquired. “Must you know everything?” Severus bantered back. He began to walk down the street and towards what looked like a small café. Hermione jogged to keep up.



“I thought we were digging up moonflowers.” She said, truly perplexed as Severus held her chair out for her. When they were both seated, he unfolded his menu and casually answered, “It would be unwise to attempt such a task without some form of sustenance.”



They were seated at one of the tables just outside the café; slowly, Hermione began to notice that the witches and wizards passing them were casting strange glances at them. Severus noticed her sudden change from curious to uneasy and looked around. Perhaps this was too soon for the girl.



Hermione was glad when the waiter came and took their order. She ordered a turkey club sandwich with a glass of water. Severus decided on a roast beef sandwich, baked potato, tea, and a side of chocolate sauce. The menus vanished as the waiter walked away.



While they waited, Severus began glaring at anyone who dared send a look their way. Hermione was idly shredding her napkin beneath the table, a nervous habit she developed in grade school. Tolerating it for a few minutes, Severus reached his hand under the table to grab hers.



“If you wish to leave, we shall. I have no desire to expose you before you are ready.” He whispered to her. She smiled at the gesture, “No thank you. My head knows that I need to get used to being around people again. If I could just tell my nerves to listen.”



Their meal arrived and they ate together in a comfortable silence. When they were done, Hermione tried to reach into her pockets for a couple of galleons. “Ms. Granger, do not insult me, if I had not intended to pay, we would have eaten whatever mush the castle elves prepared.”



She muttered a thank you before once again feeling the squeeze of moving through air at high speeds. She gulped down air and looked around. They were in a huge clearing near the Forbidden Forest.



She watched as Severus walked around, inspecting the ground, then glanced up at the moon. “Ah, any moment now.” He motioned for Hermione to join him and she made her way over to him.



As soon as the moon hit her face, Severus pointed to the grass. Hermione gasped and nearly lost her balance. All around her big white flowers were blossoming. The moon bounced off of them in such a way that it looked like diamond dust was sprinkled on each petal. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.



She and Severus went to work to dig up as many as possible before the moonlight left them. They could not merely pick them, they needed to be dug up with the roots in tact or they would shrivel as soon moonlight left them.



After they had filled their bags, they stood up. Severus looked Hermione over; she was covered in dirt, but happier than he had seen her in a long time. “Thank you for your help, Hermione. I do not believe I have ever collected such a fine crop.”



“It was my pleasure, Severus, I never knew they were so beautiful!” she looked around at the remainder of the flowers. He gave her a soft smile. The young woman was slowly and surely intoxicating him. “bad thoughts Snivillus.” He scolded himself silently. “you can not become infatuated with the girl. She is still recovering from a vicious attack, she is pregnant with another man’s child.” He sighed, his thoughts would lead him to a bad place.



He advised that they retire. As they were leaving, it began to rain. “Perfect,” he mumbled to himself. Not the way he had hoped the evening would end, and they had left their cloaks behind.



He stumbled when he realized Hermione was still several feet behind him in the clearing. He looked at her with curiosity. She was simply standing there, eyes closed, face pointed at the sky, arms slightly extended beside her. “Hermione?” he called to her.



“I love the rain. A nice cleansing rain.” She said calmly, almost serene. Severus walked up to her, the girl had lost her mind. He touched her shoulder. “Just a moment, please professor.” The use of his title made him recoil his hand. She continued to just stand there while she spoke, trance-like.



“A nice refreshing, cleansing rain. Almost as though it is trying to wipe away all the pain.” Severus barely saw the tears that began to fall. “You know what I love about the rain, Severus?” he shook his head. “No one can see your tears with the raindrops falling.”



Severus could not help but look at the girl, she looked so beautiful with the rain falling around her and the moon highlighting her profile. He approached her and put his hand on her cheek.



“You are so beautiful Hermione.” She looked up at him, “what did you say, Severus?” ‘shit, oh shit I did not mean to say that out loud. Damn it all, I am acting like one of those dunderheads I teach’ he growled softly to himself.



“It is not important Ms. Granger.” It was when he looked into her eyes that he realized what she was doing, just standing in the rain; she was healing. She was finally allowing the pain to flow out and the true healing to begin.



He took her into his arms in a warm embrace. Hermione was shocked, he was hugging her. In all their time together, the most he had done was rub her back or squeeze her hand, but he was actually hugging her…and even more surprising, she had no desire to pull away.



That was the way they stayed for a long time. Severus just held her and allowed her to quietly let out all of the pain, allowed the rain to help rinse her clean so she could start anew.



They pulled apart and Hermione wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She looked at him, “Thank you, Severus. For everything.” Her eyes glistening in the moonlight with tears still held the pain and fear, but Severus also noticed a small glimmer of hope now shining.



He could not break the gaze they held with one another, and without thinking, barely realizing, he began to lean forward. Hermione instinctively leaned in as well. Their lips were so close, she could feel the warmth of his breath on her mouth.



Just before they met, Severus suddenly pulled away and began the walk towards the castle. He was slow enough to allow her to follow closely, but made sure to keep some distance between them.



When she got back into her room, the reality of the situation came crashing down. Severus almost kissed her! Her former professor and current mentor was mere millimeters from snogging her.



Hermione thought it over, would she have minded if he had gone through with it? She was recently attacked, should she be wanting to be kissed already? Why didn’t he go through with it?



True, they were both covered in dirt. She sniffed the air and sighed. She needed a bath, very urgently. She heard the water in the bathroom and knew she had to wait. When she was sure the coast was clear, she took a long, mind-clearing shower.



She lay down in her bed, not even bothering to dry her hair, oh boy it would be a mess in the morning, but she had more important things on her mind. She really needed to sleep, but she knew, as she groaned, that sleep was the last thing she would get tonight.