#4 ~ The \"Up Against the Wall\" Wars

Disclaimer: All characters belong to JKR. All situations are my own.
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Chapter 24 ~ Offering the Bait

Another bottle of wine later found Severus leaning back on the loveseat, one leg extended, stroking his chin, his dark eyes focused hungrily on a half-dressed, gyrating Hermione. She had cranked the music up and agreed to dance for him after her fourth glass of wine. After ten minutes had found her swishing skirt too confining. She was now dressed only in her camisole, white lace panties, and the knife sheathe, tied around her thigh, which Severus found highly arousing. She swung her hips to the rhythm of the very primal music that her chosen station played. Hermione was quite limber, and sensuously bent her body and lifted her legs in ways that set Severus’ imagination aflame. Not to mention she occasionally fell into belly dance mode, which threatened to make Severus’ erection tear through his robes.

Watching Hermione, he could almost forget why they were here. But he remembered, and that was the only reason he was still in the loveseat and not inside of her. They still had to take the itinerary downstairs. But she was so beautiful, the wanton expression on her face seductive, and alluring, her amber eyes half-lidded and hot as she met his hooded gaze as if to say, “come take me,” before spinning and bending backwards, arms entwining to the sky. Gods knew he wanted to fuck her. But he sat through the delicious temptation of her twisting, coiling, sweat-sheened body stoically, thinking if she had shown even one third of the sexiness he was now witnessing in Gryffindor Tower, she was lucky she wasn’t ravished by the randy wizards she no doubt left behind. Even her best friends Potter and Weasley must have been hard-pressed not to take advantage of their bushy-haired and uninhibited friend, which incidentally had exactly been the case.

The two wizards had to wrestle the drunken witch up to her rooms, which was made harder by the collapsing staircase, and her attempts to dance with each of them in a very inappropriate manner, while yelling at and threatening to hex the horde of protesting young wizards clamoring behind them. If not for the loyalty of the two boys to their friend, and their own restraint, Severus probably wouldn’t have been her first. He might have been the last in a long, long line.

Having watched her as much as he could stand, he stood up stiffly, because of his swollen, protesting, member and walked over to his black bag and took out a vial of sober-up potion. He returned to the loveseat, sat down and poured it into her wine glass.

“Hermione, “ he called to her, his voice somewhat hoarse, “Come have some more wine.”

Hermione stopped dancing and approached him, her hips swaying invitingly. The next thing he knew, she was in his lap, her legs on either side of his waist, arms around his neck, sitting right on top of his cock, whispering seductively, “How about we find out why this is called a loveseat?” He could feel the heat of her arousal through the thin crotch of her panties.

He groaned and weakly offered her the glass of potion.

“Drink this first,” he said.

Hermione gave him a dirty little smile as she took the glass out of his hand.

“Ok, but then we fuck,” she giggled, tilting the glass to her lips.

Severus silently cursed Draco and every damned deatheater that ever walked the earth.

Hermione swallowed down the sober-up potion, and the heat in her eyes began to cool as she realized where she was, how she was dressed, and what hard thing she was sitting on. Severus grabbed her before she could leap up, holding her in his lap.

She blushed, and asked, “The wine?”

Severus smirked at her, “Yes, the wine.”

“Did I act…silly?” she asked him, her eyes full of trepidation.

“No, not at all,” he replied, locking his arms behind her, “you were quite…serious.”

Seriously delicious, that is.

She looked down at herself. “How did I end up in my panties?”

“You got a little hot,” he replied.

“Oh,” she said shortly, still embarrassed.

Severus shifted her on his lap, unable to resist feeling her heat against him and said, “Hermione, don’t ever be embarrassed to find yourself in a compromising position with me. Trust me, we were having a very good time, and you did nothing to be ashamed of. You needed to relax, and you did with a little help from the wine, and the wireless wizarding network. And you helped me relax as well. The only reason we stopped is because we have to get downstairs and place that itinerary where Draco will find it. Otherwise…”

He gave her such a hungry look that her stomach flipped over with desire.

Severus stifled what he was going to say, and said instead, his black eyes hard, “Listen, I don’t want you drinking wine or any other alcoholic beverage with anyone other than me. Understand?”

“Yes,’ she whispered.

He kissed her rather possessively on the lips, then released her.

“You’d better dress,” he said, “We have to go down to the inn, and do a little celebrating.”

Hermione climbed off his lap and walked over to her skirt, which was in a small pile near the radio. She shook it out. Not too many wrinkles. She slipped it on.

Severus dug into his black bag, and pulled out a vial of blue liquid. He uncorked it and drank it down. He stood there a moment, then sighed with relief. He put the vial back in the bag.

“What was that?” Hermione asked, brushing her hair.

“A deflating draught,” he replied, looking at her with more than a little lust, “as I said, we were having a very, very good time.”

Hermione blushed once more. Her hair manageable, she put down the brush on the end-table. Severus checked his inside robe pocket, making sure he had his copy of the itinerary, then offered Hermione his arm.

“Shall we go, Miss Granger?” he said, as she looped her arm in his.

“Yes, Professor,” she replied, smiling weakly as the magnitude of what they were about to do came rushing back to her. They were giving Draco information he would use to try and kill them. Severus patted her hand.

“It will be fine, Hermione,” he said soothingly, opening the door.

Hermione could only hope so.

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Annadale had been quietly flitting around the bottom of the stairwell most of the evening, waiting for Hermione and Severus to appear as she went about her duties. How long could two people shag? She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw them descending the staircase, the pale, dark-eyed wizard, and a pretty young witch. They made an odd couple, she thought. But there was no accounting for taste. They looked happy enough. Well, at least the witch did. The wizard was scowling.

Severus escorted Hermione to a booth. She slid in and he sat opposite her. Annabelle hurried over, and put on her most pleasant smile.

“Good evening Sir, Miss,” she said, pulling out her parchment and quill. “What can I get for you tonight?”

Severus replied, “A firewhiskey for me, and a glass of your best wine for my companion.”

Annadale scratched the parchment with her quill.

“Very good, Sir. I hope you are enjoying your stay?”

Severus frowned up at the barmaid, “It is relatively acceptable.”

He hadn’t noticed that Hermione was staring at the witch, her mouth open.

Annadale pressed on. “Do you have any plans while you are in Hogsmeade? I can suggest some interesting places and sights, if you wish.”

“Thank you, but no,” Severus replied evenly. He didn’t want to conversate with the barmaid, “we have our own itinerary to follow. Now, our drinks, please?”

Annadale knew when she was being dismissed. She curtsied.

“Right away, sir.” She made for the bar.

They had an itinerary. She needed to find out what that was and get the information to Draco, and claim her “reward.”

Severus looked across at Hermione, noticing that she watched the barmaid with a slight frown on her face. He assumed she was a little jealous of the barmaid’s attention to him.

“Getting green-eyed?” he smirked at her.

“No.” Hermione replied, her eyes still locked on Annadale, “I know that witch. I mean, I don’t know her, but I’ve seen her before.”

“Where?” Severus asked, looking over his shoulder at the barmaid with interest now.

Hermione hesitated. “In the Room of Requirement when I was training. She was the witch golem who attacked me in the bathroom, my first combatant.”

Severus looked at Hermione sharply. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Hermione said firmly. “Same hair-do, same dress, same face.”

Severus took out the itinerary and placed it on the table, where it would be seen by the barmaid when she returned.

“She doesn’t look like much of a fighter. She could be on Draco’s payroll, however. Our first contact with his plan,” Severus said, “anyway, don’t stare at her. Act like you don’t know her. We don’t want her to know we suspect her of anything.”

Hermione nodded as the barmaid approached with their drinks. She sat the firewhiskey before Severus, and the glass of wine before Hermione. She paused subtly when she saw the list on the table and a hungry look swept across her face before it cleared. Both Severus and Hermione noticed this.

“Will there be anything else?” she asked, smiling pleasantly.

“No, that will be all for now. Just bring refills when you see we are low,” Severus replied, dismissing her again.

“Very good, sir,” Annadale said, and took off to serve other patrons.

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For the rest of the night, Annadale served Severus and Hermione drinks as they chatted animatedly. The itinerary lay tantalizingly on the table, apparently forgotten. But she didn’t dare take it while they both were there. Maybe they would leave it behind.

Hermione was giddy again, and had slipped off her shoe, and was sliding her toe up under Severus’ robe, caressing his inner thigh. He scowled, wishing he could just grab her, bend her over the table and give it to her good, the tease. She looked at him with an unmistakable gleam in her eyes.

“Let’s go back to the room,” she said, her voice husky with desire, “mess up the beds.”

Severus heartily agreed. If this were to be his last night on earth, he intended to go out with a bang. And a bang. And a bang.

He called Annabelle over and paid the tab. The couple left the booth, Severus holding Hermione tightly by her arm as she attempted to slide her body against his. Annadale watched them go, shaking her head. The wizard would have his hands full. She looked down at the table. Yes! They had left the itinerary. She picked up the glasses and slipped the list into her apron pocket. She had what she needed.

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A/N: Lemons ahead, and something pretty horrible in store for Annadale.