It Happened One Hallow's Eve

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 13 ~ Playing It Cool

Hermione returned to Gryffindor tower feeling very randy. She had tried her best to get Severus to give her some relief…she actually burned for his touch. The witch wasn’t used to such longing and when she undressed for bed, found herself tossing and turning, thinking about the wizard in a very erotic way. Desperate to ease the throbbing between her legs, Hermione took the matter in hand.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t very good at it, and tried imagining it was Severus’ hand tickling her soft inner flesh. It was a little better, but still didn’t get the job done. Squirming, the witch had a naughty thought…this time imagining Severus watching her masturbate. She pictured his dark eyes, hot and hungry resting on her…his nostrils flared, biting his lip like he did when he was inside her and that did it. It wasn’t a stellar orgasm, but it brought some minor relief.

The witch lay there, panting. This just wasn’t doing it. She understood Severus wanting to keep their affair a secret, but hell…this was Hogwarts. If you were careful, you could get away with anything. Hermione was certain they could have sex without being discovered. She could floo to his rooms, or enter disillusioned after rounds, or they could find a niche on the upper floors after curfew. There were a number of ways they could act on their desire for each other. Severus was just too damned straight-laced.

She felt how hard he was for her when they kissed and she rubbed her body against his. He wanted her just as badly as she wanted him.

The witch’s brow furrowed. She didn’t want to spend night after night twiddling herself. She wanted the Potions Master twiddling her the right way. She lay there thinking, then came up with a rather daring idea partially inspired by her masturbation session. She needed to turn up the heat, and though the idea of it slightly embarrassed her, she was determined to do it. She had no idea how the wizard would react or what he would think of her…but she was desperate. Besides, everything couldn’t go his way. They had restrained themselves long enough as far as Hermione was concerned. It was time to give in…at least once.

Severus Snape was going to fall…and fall hard.

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After the kiss and attempted seduction by Hermione, Severus thought it wise not to meet up with the witch on rounds again. When he returned to his rooms, he was still so aroused he had to drink a deflating draught to ease his throbbing erection. It would have been so easy to do as the witch wanted, but he had to prove to her and himself he could handle this situation and stick to his plans.

He expected to see some residual emotion from the witch the next day, but Hermione all but ignored him during class, simply doing her work and looking at him with nothing more than the normal interest of a student. There was no note attached to her parchment either. This non-interest went on for a number of days, and eventually Severus began to wonder what was going on. Had the witch returned to her room that night, overrode the kiss he’d given her, returning to dwell on the cruel things he’d said to her and deciding to give him a wide berth…possibly not to deal with him at all?

Severus didn’t want Hermione acting attracted to him publicly, but he did want to feel something from the witch. At least see a bit of longing in her eyes. But they were just as cool as any other student’s when she looked at him. He should be glad she was sticking to his instructions.

But he found he wasn’t. The way the witch was acting worried him.

Hermione and Ron weren’t speaking either. The morning after the confrontation with Severus, Hermione laid into him but good, publicly telling him to leave her alone completely and that she wasn’t interested in him at all as a boyfriend, and if he kept it up…he would no longer be her friend either. Ron was shocked. He knew she was mad she got in trouble with Snape, but the wizard didn’t do anything other than give her a tongue-lashing as far as Ron knew, and hell, he’d been doing that since her first year. But the wizard backed off, deciding to wait for her to calm down. Still, he had no intentions on giving up.

“I don’t know, Ron. Hermione really isn’t interested in you that way,” Harry said doubtfully as Ron shared his intentions with him. “You should just get yourself a real girlfriend and leave Hermione alone.”

Ron scowled.

“Harry, I’m telling you she IS interested in me in that way. I kissed her. I know. We came pretty close to shagging a couple of times,” the wizard said insistently. “She just needs a bit more work.”

Harry frowned at Ron.

“Ron, why can’t you just leave her alone about that? Just be her friend…that’s all she wants,” the wizard implored.

“No. I want to shag Hermione, Harry. It’s something I know about that she doesn’t. Probably the only thing I have on her…she’s so bloody brilliant. She’s been teaching me things all these years. This is something I can teach her. We’d be even then,” the wizard said, a faraway look in his eyes.

Harry looked at him blackly.

“So that’s what this is about, Ron? Wanting to ‘teach’ her about shagging because you want to even the score? At least you could have some real feelings for her,” the wizard said angrily, adjusting his glasses, “You’re a real pig, Ron.”

”What’s wrong with wanting to teach her something?” Ron asked, not having a clue.

Harry shook his head, unable to believe his friend was so fucking thick. His green eyes narrowed.

“She doesn’t want to be taught by you, that’s what wrong with it, Ron. You want to fuck Hermione to feel better about yourself, that’s all. And it’s wrong…all wrong,” Harry said. “You’re going to lose her for a friend Ron…if you don’t end up expelled for sexual harassment if she reports you, you git.”

“She’s not going to report me,” Ron said, “Not if I give her some space for a while. Hermione likes me Harry. I know it. She’ll come around.”

”Ron, you’re as blind as a Cave-dwelling Niflick,” Harry said, exasperated, “And when this shit hits the wind, all I’m going to say is ‘I told you so.’”

Harry got up from the table and exited the Great Hall. He couldn’t deal with Ron anymore this morning. He was his best friend, but he was such an idiot sometimes.

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Hermione’s birthday came and went. She was now recognized as being the age of consent. She had a small party in the common room and received some gifts from her housemates, costume jewelry mostly. Hermione liked wood jewelry. Parvati gave her a wooden bracelet with colorful little elephants dangling from it. She got a few necklaces and earrings as well. When she returned to her room that night, she found a small brown package on her nightstand, the words “Happy Birthday” written on it in Severus’ hand.

Excited, she opened it, and found it was a handwritten book containing defensive spells that weren’t taught at Hogwarts. She leafed through it, amazed. The Potions Master had taken out the time to write the invocations and diagrams of twenty spells…three or four of them quite lethal. On the first page he had written the quote, “The Best Defense is a Good Offense.”

Hermione was thrilled with his gift and planned to start learning them immediately. Yes, it was quite an exciting gift, but actually Severus was thinking ahead. He had enemies and if it became common knowledge that he was involved with Hermione in the future, she might be targeted because of him. Voldemort’s blessing was no promise of safety. He wanted the witch able to protect herself and lethal. If she were attacked, her use of these advanced defensive spells would discourage subsequent attacks once she showed her skill.

“Bone Breaker Curse, Blinding hex, Hammer Curse, Leg Twist hex…” Hermione read. Ooh, these curses and hexes were really nasty. She doubted she would ever need to use them, but still they would be good to know. It was all about knowledge to the witch. It figured a dark wizard would give her such a dark gift, but she loved it. Plus it was written in his own hand. Some of the diagrams were quite complicated, so Severus really took time out to do this for her.

Hermione felt a pulse in her belly…but it wasn’t lust this time. At least, not completely. Desire was there, but it was becoming something else. Something less…physical. When the witch went to sleep that night, Severus’ gift lay right under her pillow. The book wasn’t the wizard, but it would do.

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Severus had enough of Hermione’s cold shoulder tactics. He had told the witch to act as if everything was the same as always between them, but like most contrary individuals, the Potions Master found he didn’t like it. Her occasional longing looks were reassuring to the wizard, and the lack of them disturbed him very much. So he decided to start his rounds early and run into the witch…just to see how she was doing, of course.

And of course, Hermione was doing this purposely. She knew the wizard had feelings just as strong as she did and knew that he wouldn’t like her acting as if he didn’t exist in any other capacity than her Potions Professor. He didn’t knuckle under to it immediately, but she had caught him looking at her thoughtfully several times in class and in the Great Hall. She pretended she didn’t notice…but every fiber of her body did. She was becoming quite good at acting detached, actually following his example as he requested. She figured it wouldn’t be long before he showed up during her rounds. She was prepared. She had been ever since she came up with her plan weeks ago.

Sure enough, after she passed Charles on his way to the lower floors, Severus appeared in the corridor she was walking down.

“Hello Professor,” she said, walking by him, smirking slightly

Severus scowled after her then followed, his robes billowing. How could she greet him so flippantly when she hadn’t seen him in a private situation for weeks? Had the witch gotten over him?

“Miss Granger…Hermione…a word if you please,” he called after the witch.

Hermione stopped and turned as the wizard stalked up to her. She looked up at him, lacewing flies turning somersaults in her belly at his proximity, but she hid it admirably.

“Yes, Professor?” she said innocently.

Severus stared at her.

“How have you been?” he asked her.

“Fine, thank you,” she said formally.

“You haven’t sent me any messages or notes lately,” he said, trying to find a way to get her to tell him her feelings without tipping his hand that he was worried.

“No, I haven’t,” she agreed. “I decided I shouldn’t anymore. Too risky. I can’t make them burn up like you can.”

“I see,” the Potions Master replied. Then he asked, “Are you sleeping well?”

He really wanted to know if she were dreaming about him. He certainly had been dreaming about her.

“Like a stone every night. I am well-rested,” the witch replied, wanting to laugh as the wizard’s jaw tightened.

“Good,” Severus said, looking at her intensely. “So I take it I am no longer intruding on your dreams then?”

Hermione shrugged.

“Once in a while…but I just push you out. It becomes easier over time. It’s almost as if nothing ever happened between us,” the witch replied.

What?

“Professor, I really need to continue on my rounds,” the witch said. “I will see you in class tomorrow.”

She began to walk away. Severus looked after her with mixed emotions as she walked further down the hall. Then he walked away.

Hermione had expected him to follow her, but the wizard didn’t. She looked back and he was gone.

“Oh shit,” she cursed.

It seemed that she had overdone the ‘not caring’ act and the wizard decided to leave her alone. That wasn’t what she wanted to happen. She wanted to get some kind of rise out of him, for him to say that he missed her and thought about her. Maybe kiss her again and give her the opportunity to put her plan in action.

But it hadn’t worked. Severus had gone.

Sighing, Hermione half-heartedly checked the corridor, then turned and walked back up the empty hall. Damn. She'd blown it.

Suddenly a pale hand shot out of a niche and yanked the witch inside, pulling her tight against a hard, lean and very aroused body.

“I don’t believe you,” Severus hissed at her, his eyes hard. “You think about me, witch. You more than think about me. You crave me!”

Hermione gasped against the wizard…being crushed against his hard body like sensory overload.

“Admit it! Admit you want me, Hermione!” he demanded, beginning to move against her sensuously, his hands sliding over her back and buttocks.

Suddenly the wizard stopped, pulling away from the witch and holding her at arms length, staring at her with wide eyes before letting his eyes drift slowly over her robes then snap back to her face.

“What are you wearing under your robes, Hermione?” he asked her, his voice thick and raw.

“Nothing,” she breathed, “Nothing at all, Severus.”

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A/N: Oh man, oh man. Hermione, you are a naughty, naughty little witch. Damn girl. How about Ron? What an idiot, wanting to “even the score” with Hermione. I have a feeling this is going to get worse before it gets better concerning the wizard. Hmm, is that citrus I smell or just an ill, teasing wind? :::shrugs::: We’ll just have to see, won’t we? Please review. :)