Maternal Instinct

"Don't." Hermione shook her head, "Don't you dare bring her into this. She's a child; your child! I might get paid to keep her from getting under your feet, but she's your responsibility!"

She tried to look away, but Severus caught her face in his hands and forced her to look at him, "That has nothing to do with the questions I asked."

"Oh, no," She hissed angrily, "It has everything to do with the question you asked. She's your daughter, not mine! She's five years old; children of that age don't have a very long attention span! If I died - or resigned - she would forget me with surprising ease, you know!"

"And...?" Severus prompted, holding her still - with some effort - as she tried to move away from him, "What about me?"

"What about you?" She echoed thoughtfully, before she shook her head rapidly, "No, why don't you clarify that one for me? Because I don't know the answer and - in case you haven't noticed - I’m not a mind reader, unlike you! ... On second thoughts, don't. It's not like I intend on dying soon, and I don't want to either; the point I was trying to make was that I’m not scared of death. Now, if would you just let me go..."

With a frustrated growl, Severus swung them both around, until Hermione's back hit the kitchen wall. He heard her sharp intake of breath as her shoulders collided with the wall, but he ignored it and pressed his body into hers. They glared at each other for a time that could have been forever, but, as her breathing slowed, she seemed to fall forwards, her forehead coming to rest on his shoulder.

Sighing, Severus wrapped his arms around her. He felt something wet on his neck and realized that she was crying. There was an empty feeling in his stomach and it had nothing to do with hunger, as Albus had almost force fed him Lemon Drops only half an hour ago. Hundreds and hundreds of the bloody things!

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, bending his head protectively over hers.

"No," she whispered, as her tiny fingers clenched, clutching at him, "No, I’m sorry... It was... Malfoy took me by surprise; I'd forgotten just how sharp his tongue could be... I... I'm sorry..."

Severus stroked his hand over her hair. He wasn't quite sure what to say; he didn't like her tears, but he wasn't going to tell her that. What ever Lucius had said, it must have been something to do with her not being able to have children, because taunts about her blood had never upset her this terribly at school - why would it make her cry now?

No, Lucius had overstepped the mark; he had gone further than most men would dare to go, especially when the woman they were degrading was Hermione Granger... but perhaps Lucius had noticed Hermione's lack of fight - the last few weeks had upset her tremendously, as they would any woman with her desire for children - and the older Malfoy had taken advantage of her weakened emotional condition.

Severus was just glad that Lucius hadn't decided to hurt her physically. The hand that he had wrapped around her throat was nothing compared to what he could do, if he set his mind to it. Severus could still see the women used by the blonde, lying, bleeding and lifeless, on marble floors. The thought of the small, delicate creature in his arms being one of those women felt like millions of ice-cold needle stabbing at his chest.

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Malfoy's words had really hurt, and while Hermione tried to convince herself that it wasn't true, he had only confirmed her fears. Who would possibly want her now?

She had learned that the Wizarding World were, in some ways, a bit old fashioned compared to the muggle world. One of these ways was family. Most wizards were very adamant about having heirs - at least one son - so who on earth would possibly want her, now that she couldn't have children?

She was going to be alone forever.

Except... there was Severus.

No, whatever was going on between them would pass soon. It was purely lust; nothing that would last.

But if it was just purely lust, why did she feel so safe and protected? Why was he being so... gentle? Why did she just want to stay in his arms, away from everybody and their love of Viktor Krum? They would fall for his lies, just as she had done, but this time the lies were about her and they hurt.

Hermione wished she could go back and change everything. She would never have slept with Severus the first time, never had got pregnant - that's how everything started. She had made one stupid mistake; maybe some sort of God was punishing her for cheating on Viktor.

Finally, she managed to calm down, and she stopped crying. She tried to pull away, feeling stupid for breaking down like she had, but she only managed to lift her head, as the arms around her waist and shoulders were too strong.

He stared down at her, "You never answered my question... What about me? If you went - for any reason - what about me?"

Hermione bit her lip carefully, "I... You'd be fine. You would find another person to look after Corrin and carry on as you were before I was employed... Though without Amy, obviously. I think the hardest thing would be finding someone to replace me; you've got to admit that you do have a reputation. I wasn't even sure about taking the job at first. Yes," She nodded, "The hardest thing would be finding my replacement."

His arms tightened around her, as he said, "It wouldn't be hard... It would be impossible. You're irreplaceable."

Hermione swallowed and shook her head, "There are lots of people that are good with children; lots of people better than me, with kids of their own and experience."

"You're wrong," He told her, "But I wasn't just talking about the way you look after Corrin." He smiled slightly, "You seem to have a problem understanding the question... What. About. Me?"

She squeezed her eyes shut. When she opened them, he was still staring at her expectantly.

Finally, she shrugged, "I don't know. I really don't... You'll have to answer that yourself... Anyway... ah, Corrin wanted me to ask you what's happening when you go back to Hogwarts."

"That," Severus said slowly, "is entirely up to you. You have the choice to either stay or leave."

Hermione shook her head, "No I don't, and you know it. You won't find some one else in two days, if I left." She sighed to herself, "How do I get myself into these situations? I should go and find Corrin..."

She pulled herself from his arms and was nearly out of the room, but Severus caught her wrist. She turned and he drew her closer once more, brushing curls gently from her face.

"I would miss you," he said quietly, "If you left."

Hermione let out a long breath, "It's a good job I’m not leaving then, isn't it..."

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A/N: Thanks so much for all your reviews!

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