Cover Girl

A/N I\'m sorry if the story is sad, but I promise it will all work out in the end. Thank you, review-writers, for writing reviews.

Hermione woke up on Saturday morning about five hours earlier than she usually did. The light was still crisp and early when an owl flung itself against her window over and over clutching something wrapped in brown paper. Her first feeling was annoyance-- who would send something so early in the morning? The owl wouldn’t want to carry anything so heavy before he had eaten breakfast. Hermione got out of bed and unlatched her window. The owl flew in and dropped the package on her night table then drank out of the water dish Hermione had brought. She had some cat food that owls generally liked and put that out, too. Whoever sent the owl out had obviously given him breakfast, because the bird only picked at the food before flying back the way he had come.
Mollified, Hermione set to the package. She unrolled the scroll attached to the top.

Dear Hermione,
I know you want to see me naked.
I have seen every inch of your skin. I know the scar on your thigh that looks like a tear drop. I know you have wondered what my Dark Mark feels like, and whetherave ave burn marks on my arms and chest and lash marks on my back. I’m not going to tell you whether I do or not in this letter.
If you ever want to find out, you will read the book I sent you. If you want to have me again, you will find the time.
Yours,
S. S.

Intrigued, Hermione had to admit that she badly wanted to see her lover naked, and she was very curious about what book he might have sent her. Would it be something sexual? Something about potions? She tore open the wrapping. It was a biography. Hermione read the back. It was a biography of a the first man to successfully teach resistance to the Imperius Curse. In other words, it was a book about a pioneer in the field of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Of course, Snape’s personal hero would be in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but not only that, he even taught it. Revolutionized the field of teaching. Hermione realized she was smiling. She flipped through the book and tried to remember the last serious book she had picked up. Her life always seemed so busy, she just didn’t have time any more, but, as he said, she would have to make it a priority.
Since she was up so early, she might as well take a look at the book. Actually, she’d need to do more than take a look at it, she’d need to read it cover to cover, because she wanted Snape back in her bed. As a student, she could have gotten through a biography in a sitting, but she was out of practice.

To Hermio sur surprise, reading dense books was like riding a bike. She hadn’t forgotten how. Her eyes flew through the paragraphs and she felt elated. She understood why Snape wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job, she kind of wanted it herself, reading about the life of the man who had revolutionized it. She remembered the joys of her school days, of studying all the time and reading challenging books. Even the joy of constantly trying to win the approval of her gruff, brilliant Potion Master.
Hermione shuffled through the mess on her desk and found her stationary set. Before she began writing her reply, she looked at all the things that had collected on her desk. She moved a few piles of old magazines and some bills. Still, it was easier to just write her letter from bed. She settled down with a pen and began to write.


Dear Severus,
I would like to see you clothed. I would like to talk to you about the book you sent me. I know you care about the Imperius Curse, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. If you ewantwant me to see you naked, please meet me for dinner on Saturday.
I even know that you care about teaching.

Yours,
H.G.