Beneath the Surface

Beneath The Surface

By: Sharkdiver

Disclaimer: These characters belong to JK Rowling. They are NOT MINE. I\'m just borrowing them for a good time. No profit is being made from this.

Rating: NC-17

Summary: Severus Snape is currently researching a potion that could serve as protection from the effects of the Cruciatus curse. After Harry and Ron are sent to the Auror Academy, Albus Dumbledore arranges for Hermione Granger to assist in the research of this invaluable potion as an apprentice to Severus. Will they be able to overcome their differences for the greater good? (SS/HG)

AN: I know. I am abhorrent at updating…I assure you I have not given up on this story, it’s just that I am in the midst of applying to Grad school, and studying for my Biology GRE, so that leaves little time to be writing fanfiction…I am having fun with this, and I will update when I can, so hopefully I haven’t completely lost you all.


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Chapter 12 – Dinner in Hogsmeade Part I

“I’ll just be a few moments, I need to freshen up a bit.” Hermione said before she turned away from him to hurry towards her bedroom.

Severus nodded in acquiescence, and raised one finely arched brow as he watched her practically sprint down the hall.

Hermione stepped into her bedroom and shut the door, sagging against it with a nervous sigh.

‘Oh God, what am I going to wear?’ she mentally shrieked as she bolted across her room and tore open her armoire.

“Too dressy, too frumpy, not dressy enough, too bold, too sexy…wait…this isn’t mine…” she shrugged as she cast the garment aside. Ginny must’ve slipped it in with her clothes as a joke knowing that the only man Hermione would be seeing on a regular basis was Professor Snape. Little did Ginny know that Hermione actually considered that a good thing…

Finally after nearly 10 minutes of pulling out every dress she owned, Hermione found a simple black dress in the back of her wardrobe that she held up to herself as she looked in the mirror.

“Not bad…it’s simple enough that it doesn’t look as if I’m trying to look nice, and nice enough for a casual dinner with a ‘colleague’.”

Hermione sighed, “Well, it worked for Audrey Hepburn…”

Hermione pulled off her jeans and tank top and threw them on her bed before slipping the dress over her head. She found some simple black flats in her trunk and a hunter green scarf to compliment her dress.

“Now for the hair…” she tapped her wand on her head recited a smoothing charm. Her normally frizzy curls smoothed into soft ringlets, and she smoothed a dab of gloss on her lips as a finishing touch.

She grasped her doorknob and took a deep calming breath before opening her door and heading towards the living room to meet Severus.

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Severus had watched Hermione make a hasty retreat to her room to ‘freshen up’ as she had called it. He looked down at his appearance and decided he could do with a bit of it himself. It had been a very long day, and she hadn’t made it any easier on him wearing those tight muggle jeans that hugged her hips in all the right places, or that bit of gloss that made her lips look full and ripe. He couldn’t even bring himself to make eye contact with her when that delicious mouth of hers was speaking…

Severus removed his black frock coat and laid it carefully over his chair, leaving him clad in only his simple white linen shirt and black trousers. He had noticed her admiring him this morning after he emerged from the shower wearing only this, so on an impulse decided to see what her reaction to him would be if he were to forgo his usual multitude of black layers. He muttered a quick cleansing charm on his hair, as it had a tendency to get rather oily from working over cauldrons all day.

As he waited for Hermione to join him, he poured himself a drink and gazed into the flames of the fire as they blazed in the hearth.

How was it that this young witch, barely a woman, had gotten under his skin? A slip of a girl, who happened to be the best friend of the boy-who-lived? He’d never know.

As the clock chimed at precisely eight p.m., Severus heard Hermione approach from behind.

“Severus, I’m ready whenever you are.” Hermione said softly, not wanting to startle him, as he seemed to be lost in thought.

He turned to acknowledge her presence, and the sight before him made his breath catch in his throat. She looked stunning. Even with such simple attire, and just her natural beauty gracing her face, she took his breath away.

Her eyes widened slightly as she took in his appearance and noted he wasn’t wearing his typical black attire. She suppressed the her initial reaction to gape at him, as she didn’t want him to think she was gawking, and smiled warmly as he met her eyes. He looked so much more casual and less intimidating in the soft white linen shirt. She hoped that tonight would be an opportunity to get to know him a little better.

“Shall we?” he asked politely as he opened the door for her and led her towards the restaurant.


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The restaurant Severus had chosen, Le Cheval Noir, was one of the classier dining establishments in Hogsmeade. Hermione had never been there, and felt butterflies flitting around her stomach in nervous excitement. She knew that technically this dinner wasn’t a date, but to be invited to go anywhere with Severus Snape in public was such a foreign concept.

They were escorted to a table towards the back, where candles flickered on the tables casting a warm glow to the room. He held out her chair for her and she nodded in thanks and sat. He sat across from her and almost immediately, the waiter appeared with a bottle of a deep burgundy wine.

“The wine here is excellent.” He stated simply as he swirled the contents around the glass and tasted it for it’s full rich flavor. He nodded his approval, and the waiter began to full her glass and then top his off before leaving them to decide on their entrée.

“What do you recommend?” she asked him as she opened the menu and noticed that most of the dishes were French cuisine.

“The Duck L’Orange is quite good, and if you’ve got the courage to try it, the Escargot is a popular dish as well.” He said with a smirk, knowing that the infamous Gryffindor courage would rise to his challenge.

She smiled back, knowing he was baiting her, “Thank you, Professor, The Duck does sound good, but I couldn’t possibly eat an appetizer as well by myself, unless you’d care to share the Escargot?”

Touché. She was a clever one. Not one to back down from a challenge, Severus accepted her offer, “That sounds acceptable.” He said with the hint of a smile playing at his lips.

The waiter returned to their table where Severus ordered the duck for both of them and an order of Escargot as an appetizer.

Hermione picked up her wine glass and took a sip of the wine, savoring its taste. Her eyes fell shut as she tried to identify the ingredients, “There is a hint of Current and…vanilla I think.”

Severus watched her intently, aware that as her eyes fluttered shut while she savored the wine, his trousers were growing increasingly more uncomfortable.

Hermione opened her eyes briefly glancing at her surroundings when… “Oh God!” she whispered with her hand over her mouth.

“What is it?” Severus asked, his hand instinctively reaching for his wand.

“Over there…three tables down. It’s Lavender. She saw us.” Hermione whispered, although her eyes looked stricken

Severus sighed with relief at her words. He’d thought Voldemort himself was striding over to their table the way she had reacted.

“Lavender? Lavender Brown? I fail to see what the problem is, Miss Granger.” He said casually as he picked up his wine glass to take a rather large sip of wine.

Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose and let out the breath she’d been holding, “You don’t understand, Lavender Brown is the biggest Gossip in Gryffindor House…maybe even in the entire school. Not only is she NOT privy to inside Order information, she has no knowledge of the two of us working together. Basically, to put it bluntly, she sees us here in this restaurant, having dinner together, and most likely she is forming her own conclusions as to the reason why.” Hermione said as she flushed a little at what her words implied.

“You mean to tell me that she would assume you and I were having improper relations?” Severus drawled in that silky voice, causing Hermione to turn even a darker shade of crimson if at all possible.

“That’s precisely what I’m telling you, Professor. Everyone in Hogsmeade will have heard of this before you can say ‘Quidditch’, I guarantee it.” She said quietly hoping that this unexpected turn of events wouldn’t ruin the evening.

“It sounds as if you know first hand of Miss Brown’s penchant for idle gossip.”

“Yes, well, there was that time that she ‘accidentally’ mentioned to everyone in the common room that she saw Ron Weasley and I snogging in the fifth floor corridor in my sixth year…” Hermione felt her face growing even hotter as she realized exactly what she’d just admitted to her Potion’s professor.

“And did she?” Severus asked her with a devilish smirk.

“Did she what?” Hermione answered caught off guard by his question.

“Did she really see you…snogging as you so delicately put it?” Severus ventured, clearly enjoying her discomfort of the subject matter.

“No, Ron Weasley and I…er...that is to say…we never exactly dated. That night I was politely refusing his attentions, and she just happened to be walking by; once again, drawing her own conclusions.” Her voice sounded bitter as she finished that sentence, letting Severus know that she obviously held some contempt towards Miss Brown.

“Well, since we are to be the topic of conversation regardless as you say, let’s make it worthwhile, shall we?” Severus looked at her with a wicked gleam in his eye. He was breaking out the Slytherin tactics.

“Professor, are you suggesting we make her think there is something going on?” she said, surprise clearly written on her face.

“Why, yes. It’s called reverse psychology Hermione, Gossipmongers tend to fabricate facts, therefore making something not entirely interesting a hot topic so to speak. If she were to plainly see what she may have merely suspected, it is no longer necessary to fabricate those facts, rendering the topic uninteresting once more.” Severus said in his best lecture voice.

“I see your point professor, but what if the reverse psychology approach doesn’t work, and we only add more fuel to the rumors?” Hermione debated.

“We are about to be spoken ill of regardless, It’s worth a try don’t you think?” Severus said as he arched an eyebrow, “And since we are to appear…intimate…you should use my given name.”

The waiter interrupted the conversation as he brought the appetizer of Escargot to the table. “Will you be needing anything else, Masseur?” the waiter asked as Snape dismissed him. He inclined his head to Severus and walked away.

Hermione sat stiffly looking at him over her wine glass. He wanted her to pretend they were…lovers. What should she do? Feed him the bloody Escargot? Hermione shifted her eyes and cleared her throat to speak before Severus cut her off by lifting a small piece of the escargot to her lips.

She hesitated, clearly surprised by his boldness, and then parted her lips to receive the morsel. It was tasty, and had a much smoother texture than she had initially thought. It tasted of warm Butter and garlic, and complimented the wine nicely.

Severus’ smile grew even wider at her reaction and waited to see if she would be daring enough to play along.

Hermione silently accepted his challenge and covered his hand with her own over the table while a seductive smile formed on her face. Feigning her attraction to the Potion’s Master was not a difficult task at all considering she had been waiting for an opportunity such as this for the past four years.

Severus felt the familiar tightening in his groin at her touch, and mentally chastised himself for allowing her to spark this reaction in him so easily. Feigning interest in this girl was turning out to be quite the pleasant undertaking, especially considering that he wasn’t really feigning anything…

Severus took the byplay up a notch as he lifted the hand that was covering his and placed a feather soft kiss on the back of it, while never breaking eye contact.

Hermione’s breath hitched as she felt his warm lips on her skin, mentally wishing she could feel those lips on certain other parts of her anatomy.

“Hermione, I couldn’t help but notice your color choices this evening…it’s very…Slytherin of you.” Severus teased her.

Hermione looked down and realized he was right, she hadn’t even noticed that she was wearing both green and Black, two colors commonly found amongst the students in Slytherin house.

“I hadn’t noticed. The scarf was a gift from my mother and I thought it might look nice with the dress.” She answered honestly

“Well, aside form the fact that you are overwhelmingly Gryffindor, the color suits you.”

“Why, Severus, I do believe there was a compliment in there somewhere…” Hermione said playfully.

Severus took a bite of the escargot and let out a small groan of appreciation of its flavor. Hermione could hear the blood pounding in her ears as her arousal spiked at the velvety tone of his voice. If he was making sounds like that over the appetizer, she didn’t know if she’d survive dinner to make it to dessert!

The entrée arrived just in time, and they ate in relatively companionable silence. Their wine glasses had been refilled and Hermione was now finishing her second glass of wine. She could feel warmth in her cheeks and she felt good. Really good. Too good in fact, as she was now currently sliding her foot up the inside of Severus’ leg underneath the table.

Severus froze mid-bite as he felt her leg sliding higher and higher. His groin tightened even further at the contact, and he was now sporting a throbbing erection. This was no good. He didn’t have his billowing robes to hide behind, and he couldn’t very well leave the restaurant in this condition with his dignity intact.

“Miss Granger…what do you think…”

“Hermione…my name is Hermione.”

“Yes, Hermione, I realize you are probably just getting carried away by our charade, but I assure you Miss Brown cannot see what your feet are doing under this table.”

“Who said that this was part of the Charade…Severus?” She let his name roll off of her tongue in a husky tone. Severus’ eyes widened and he dropped his fork onto his plate with a clatter before regaining his impeccable control. There was no mistaking it, Hermione Granger, Gryffindor ‘s resident Know-it-all, was aroused. Her eyes sparkled with desire as her pink tongue darted out to lick her lips. It had to be the wine talking…

Severus shifted so that he could remove her foot from reaching its intended destination, and cleared his throat loudly to try and distract her.

“Have Miss Brown and her companion lost interest in our tableaux?” Severus asked desperate to shift her attention.

Hermione sneaked a peak at Lavender’s table and could see Lavender whispering fervently to her dinner companion, as her eyes kept darting over to Hermione and Severus’ table.

“I think we just added the proverbial fuel to the fire.” Hermione whispered in his direction.

“And does she seem uninterested at present as the reverse psychology theory suggests?” Severus asked, not risking a look.

“Umm, actually I wouldn’t be surprised if we made the front page to the Daily Prophet the way they are carrying over there.”