Correspondence

Severus had no idea what had happened. They had had a wonderful evening, and now she was being evasive, and he didn’t know why. But he was going to find out why. After dinner he made his way to the library, determined to discover the mystery behind her strange behavior.

He threw open the library doors, stomping inside and looking around. The library was empty, no students to be seen anywhere; the only occupant was the solemn librarian sitting behind her desk.

She glanced up, and her eyes met his; she gave him no sign of recognition and went back to reading the large tome in front of her. He made his way to the desk and stopped in front of her.

“Hermione, what in the hell is wrong with you? You have been acting oddly all week. You have avoided me and barely said two discernible words to me.” He crossed his arms, emphasizing his angry point.

“I have no idea what you are talking about, Severus,” she stated primly as she carefully shut the tome and lifted it, placing it on the corner of her desk for further reading later.

He leaned down, dropping his hands onto her desk and moving his body forward so he was bent halfway across the desk.

“Yes, you do. Don’t play coy with me. It won’t work. Try the truth. It will get you much further than anything else will.” He arched his brow, an accent on his demanding statement.

“Fine, you want to know what’s the matter with me? This,” she said as she reached across and pulled his face towards hers. Her lips just brushed his; a taste of peppermint and spice filled her mouth. She nibbled at his lips, tugging the bottom one gently with her teeth.

He released a groan that filled her senses, causing her blood to flow, rapidly heating her body. He pulled her up from her position behind the desk, placing her gently on top of the wooden instrument. She was quickly nestled against his firm body, her hands splayed out on both sides of the desk. One hand on bare desk, the other on the tome she had been reading. His arms wrapped around her; their lips melded together. A magic neither had felt was flowing between them.

Their hair whipped around their heads, brown mingling with black. The blast of wind was so strong several strands of hair knotted together. They both yanked their heads back in shock at the strange wind; the knot of hair pulled them back together, tethering them together for the moment. Hermione held up the offending piece of hair, staring at it strangely. She picked her wand up and sliced the strands with a quick swipe of the familiar wood.

“What was that?” he questioned sharply.

“You ask as if I have any idea. I am just as clueless as you are in the current moment.” He arched his brow and opened his mouth. “Don’t even think about it; it would be too easy and too beneath you to say something that Ron or Harry would get.” He cringed and nodded his head; his hand reached up, touching the spot that had been pulled on thanks to the knotted hair.

“Well, something just happened, we need to figure out what,” he said with surety. Their bodies were still close together, drawn towards the warmth and comfort that they had found in each other.

“Thank you, Sherlock Holmes,” Hermione grumbled sarcastically, leaning back and looking around the library for the source of the mysterious wind. Her neck and back were hurting her from leaning over the book she had been reading earlier. She arched her back and rolled her neck, attempting to stretch the aching muscles. Her breasts brushed against Severus’ cloth-clad chest, and he groaned at the sensation.

He looked down at the little minx. Her eyes were closed, and she was completely oblivious to what she was doing and what effect it had on him.

“Hermione, stop,” he growled. Her eyes shot open, meeting his glaring obsidian ones. She looked down and saw the position they were in.

“Does my touching you bother you, Severus?” she questioned.

“Yes,” he said tersely, attempting to keep his mind off her petite body pressed against his.

“Well, I am sorry that I cause such bother to your person. I will not bother you anymore since I so obviously disgust you!” she stated with indignation as she scooted backwards on the desk, jumping off when she reached the edge. “I think it’s time for you to leave now. I no longer want to be in your presence since mine is so disgusting to you.” She sat down in her abandoned chair and reached for the book that was no longer there. Her eyes lighted with the answer to the mysterious wind from earlier; the book must have caused the wind when she had placed her hand on it as it flew back to its place on the shelf. She called for another book. She kept her head down, unwilling to let him see the single tear that was slowly making its way down her cheek. All she heard was the rustle of his cloak and several stomps of his familiar black boots and then silence.

Her chair was pushed from the side, pulling her out from behind her desk. A pale hand lifted her chin, and her eyes met those ever-present black orbs.

“Never, ever doubt my attraction to you. It is that attraction that I am barely able to keep under control, and when you do things such as stretch, or even merely eating your food, it drives me insane.”

“Is that why you kissed me on the forehead on our first date?” she queried quietly.

“Yes. I knew if I did more I wouldn’t want to stop.”

“But if I want you too, I don’t see the problem.”

“The problem lies in the fact that, though we may have known each other for many years, we do not actually know each other. And on top of that, we have only been on one date; it is not proper.”

“Oh, screw propriety, Severus. After everything you’ve been through, do you really want to just sit back and let the world still rule your life? Have you ever actually done what you want? Or have you always had someone bossing you around, telling you what to do and when to do it? Can you do anything without being told?” she demanded, her ire at his stubbornness coming out.

“Yes.”

“What?” she shouted at him, glaring at his blank expression, her hot breath passing over his face.

“This,” he stated before dipping his head and capturing her lips with his. He slid his tongue to the edge of his mouth, gently swiping at her already moist lips. His hand under her chin moved around to the back of her head, and he pulled her up, pressing her full length against his body. Her arms wound their way around his neck, pulling him tighter against her. The weight of him pressed against her was too sweet. She had imagined kissing him, but it had never been like this. His heavy scent of herbs and spice filled her nose; it was a scent uniquely him, full of bite and a bit of sweet something that she couldn’t quite place. Her fingers twined themselves in his hair. It was not as greasy as it appeared. There was still some slickness to it, but that was the natural oils that everyone had when they didn’t wash their hair for a day or so. Her fingers buried themselves into his raven hair, tugging on the trapped locks, encouraging his exploring tongue to explore more. Her mouth opened over his, inviting him into her sweet mouth. Her tongue brushed his and he jolted, pulling away from her.

“I am so sorry, Hermione. I…” He stopped his rambling when she pressed her fingers to his babbling lips.

“Why did you kiss me in the first place?”

"To prove you wrong.”

“Right. By apologizing you are proving me right, so, Severus, just shut up.” She removed her fingers from his lips; his face was formed into an expression of pure shock. “Don’t look so shocked. You needed a wake up call. Now, when are we going to have our second date?”

“Who says I want a second date?” he questioned with a quirk of his eyebrow.

“That,” she said, pointing down to the rather prominent bulge in his pants.

“Oh, yes, a second date would be desirable,” he said awkwardly, attempting to discreetly adjust himself without her noticing. He was failing at that attempt.

“Pick me up Saturday night at seven. I will arrange everything, just be at my door at seven.”

“Yes, madam.” Sarcasm dripped from both words. She gave him a sly grin, a kiss on the cheek and wave of her hand signaling his necessary departure.