Remember

CHAPTER 7: The Waltz of the Lion and Serpent







Severus made his way back through the throng of students towards Hermione. He stopped for a moment to observe her. She was watching the dancing with a soft smile on her face as she swayed back and forth gently to the music. She was actually a rather pretty witch with her whiskey colored eyes and plump lips. Why was she so determined to be close to him? Why, of all the people in the school, had she chosen him to befriend?







He jolted when someone bumped into him and had to juggle to keep from spilling the cups of punch in his hands. Knocked out of his reverie he continued on towards the witch waiting for his return. She turned her eyes towards him and her soft smile broadened. She always seemed genuinely glad to see him, that bright smile always ready for him. He handed her the cup and felt heat travel up his arm when their fingers brushed.







“Thank you.” She said softly, looking up at him curiously. She had felt that little jolt when they touched. She had touched him many times over the last two months and never felt that little burst of heat.









“You are welcome, Hermione.” He said roughly before tearing his eyes away from hers and focusing on the dancing couples. They were dancing to muggle music, the formal portion of the event having been completed already. He heard her humming along to a song beside him and he figured he should ask her to dance.









“Well, hello Ms. Granger.” Peter Pettigrew literally appeared from no where in front of them. “Such a shame to waste such a lovely young woman by making her stand on the sidelines.” He mocked, shaking her head and giving her a look that said he thought her pathetic.







Hermione shifted closer to Severus and he felt her clutching his arm as though seeking his protection. He glanced down at her and he could see that Peter was clearly upsetting her.









“How about taking a spin on the dance floor with me, Ms. Granger?” Peter asked, leering at the neckline of her dress that showed her ample cleavage.









“I’d rather not, thank you.” She said, standing so that she was pressed completely against the side of Severus.









“I am afraid you arrived just as I was about to escort Hermione onto the dance floor, Pettigrew. Excuse us, please.” Severus pulled his arm from her grasp and slid it around her waist as he pulled her to the edges of the dance floor.





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Albus watched the young couple and smiled, his blue eyes twinkling as that sullen, dark boy came to life. He had seen the possessive way he had claimed the witch as he pulled her away from Peter. Severus wasn’t one to touch or be touched, he was a distant boy who was prone to being bullied but never fought back. Albus suspected that it was a deliberate choice on the boy’s part, he believed that if Severus ever let go of his control he would be very dangerous.







Albus grinned and with a flick of his wand the lights went down and a nice, slow, love song began to play. For her time with them, he would see to it that everything went in favor of them becoming closer.







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Severus looked around, startled when the lights lowered and the music melded from the up tempo sounds of the Beatles to the slow strains of Eric Clapton. He cleared his throat and pulled Hermione into his arms.







“I don’t really know how to dance.” He said quietly.









“Just put your arms around me.” Hermione said, taking his hands and pulling him closer so that his arms were around her waist, his hands locked together at the small of her back. She reached up and laid her hands on his shoulders and they began to move in a slow, swaying circle to the music.







“This is a little…close…isn’t it?” He asked, looking down at the witch who was only an inch away from him as they danced.







“Slow dancing is supposed to be close, Severus.” She smiled and he felt his stomach tighten. What is happening to me?









“I wouldn’t really know.” He said.









“Thank you…for taking me to the dance, for actually dancing with me…even if it was only to save me from Peter.” Her right hand slid higher on his shoulder, her fingertips toying with his collar. “You know, you are the only thing making this bearable for me. I miss my friends, I miss my own time, but you being here makes this easier somehow.”







“I suppose there was a compliment in there somewhere.” He said quietly, trying hard not to react to the soft caress of her fingers as she toyed with the short hairs the curled at his nape. “I’m glad I can make someone’s life better.”







Hermione smiled softly and rested her cheek against his chest. He exhaled sharply at the contact and closed his eyes. She was slowly breaking down his defenses and he couldn’t fight her. She was infuriating and intoxicating all at the same time.









She could hear his heart pounding as she rested against him. She felt safe being close to him. Her heart ached for him. He was so sad, so very lonely and so unaware of the amazing things he would do, of the incredible man he would one day become. She breathed deeply of his spicy scent and sighed. Why did it feel so good to be held by him? Why did she wish that the song would never end?







As the song ended and people began filtering off of the dance floor, Severus reluctantly released the witch in his arms. Their eyes met and something was different than it had been only an hour earlier. There was a new awareness in their regard of one another; a heat that had been dormant was now beginning to stir.







“It seems that the dance is over, I should walk you back to the dorm.” He said softly, offering her his arm. She smiled and nodded as she slipped her hand through his arm and let him lead her from the hall.









“Where is everyone?” She asked as they made their way through the halls that were primarily deserted.









“Headmaster extended curfew, so most of them have snuck off to some dark location to snog and fornicate.” He groused. Hermione’s eyes widened for a moment and then she started laughing.







“To snog and fornicate?” She laughed. “Goodness, Severus, the way you say things sometimes just amazes me.







“I speak the truth.” He shrugged. “It is all these people seem to think about.”









“You don’t like kissing?” She asked, looking up at him as they stopped outside of the Gryffindor common room. Severus looked decidedly uncomfortable. “Have you ever kissed a woman?” His face heated and his lips drew tight. “How can you not be a virgin yet never kissed a woman?”









“You don’t kiss the kind of women Lucius Malfoy invites to his little gatherings, that’s how.” Severus snapped, frowning at her. “Besides, it’s disgusting, exchanging saliva with someone, putting your tongue into the mouth of another person when you have no idea where their mouth has been. I have no desire what so ever to …..mmmmfh!”







Severus’s eyes snapped wide when he felt Hermione press her lips to his, silencing his little tirade on the negative aspects of kissing. Her lips moved slowly, sensuously over his. He stood there for several moments, not responding to her, just absorbing the impact of the little witch’s soft, warm lips moving over his.







Hermione wasn’t sure what made her do it. He was ranting about the disgusting practice of kissing and she just had to prove to him that it wasn’t disgusting at all, that it was beautiful, thrilling and powerful. He wasn’t reacting or responding, he just stood there as she kissed him softly, her lips moving gently against his again and again. She put her hand on the back of his neck, the other on his shoulder. She pulled him to her as she lifted onto her toes, pressing her body along the front of his as she deepened the kiss.







She nipped at his bottom lip and he gasped, his lips parting slightly, giving her the opportunity to run the tip of her tongue lightly between his lips and then suckle his bottom lip gently.







Severus felt the bottom drop out of his stomach when she sucked his bottom lip. He groaned and put his arms around her, pressing her tight into him as he began to respond to the kiss. He parted his lips, tilting his head to gain a better fit of their mouths. She whimpered when his passion ignited, her fingers threading through his hair, the ribbon holding it back fluttering to the floor behind him as she clutched him tightly to her. Their tongues met, dueled fiercely then mated softly. They parted only long enough to catch short, shallow breaths and angle their heads for a new, better fit.







They held on to one another tightly, desperately needing the anchor to keep them from flying away. Severus had one large hand pressed between her shoulder blades, pressing her to him, her breasts crushed against his chest. His other hand curved low over her bum, holding her against his aroused flesh as he devoured her lips. Her fingernails bit lightly into his scalp, both of her hands fisted tightly in his hair as passion carried them away.







She pulled her lips from his, sliding them over his cheek to nibble on his ear. He grunted softly and his hips arched against her.







“Do you still feel the same about kissing?” She asked breathlessly.







“You have very effectively argued your point.” He replied, moaning softly when he felt her lips on his throat, kissing and nibbling gently along the chorded tendons. “What are we doing?” He asked, his fingers curling into the soft flesh of her bottom when she raked her teeth over the side of his neck.







“Snogging.” She said, lifting her lips back to his. They kissed for what seemed like hours. Severus finally pulled her into the shadows and pressed her against the wall as he leaned into her. She couldn’t believe she was kissing him, and loving it so much. She whimpered when his hand closed over her breast, arching her back and pressing her flesh more fully into his touch. He kneaded her gently, his fingers brushing over the nipple as it hardened beneath his touch.









“Good gods tell me that isn’t Snivellous making out in the corner!” Both Hermione and Severus turned their heads at the intrusion to see James, Sirius, Lily and Remus staring at them in shock. “It is! He’s snogging that Granger girl!”







“From the grip she has on his hair it looks like she enjoyed it.” James said. “Better wash your hands, Granger, you don’t want to get grease on your gown and ruin it.”







Severus, closed his eyes and counted slowly to ten. He reached up and loosened Hermione’s fingers from his hair and lowered her hands. He turned to leave, but she grabbed his hand.







“No, Severus…..don’t.” She said softly. She laid her hand on his cheek and smiled up at him. “Don’t let them ruin this, it was wonderful. You are wonderful.”







“Merlin’s beard! Look at her! She’s completely smitten with the greasy fuck!” Sirius said. “It’s disgusting! You are a disgrace to Gryffindor!”









Hermione turned in a flash, her wand out and pressed under Sirius’s chin.







“No, you are the disgrace. You are a bully, Sirius Black, the worst sort because you have no reason to be, you just like mistreating others.” She said, enjoying the shocked, somewhat frightened look on his face. “You should be neutered you worthless, cowardly mutt!”









“Now, Granger…” James stepped up, but backed away slowly, his hands in the air when she turned her attention, and her wand on him.









“And you….you are head boy, I would expect better from you. You are supposed to set the example, show the others how to behave properly yet you follow along behind that mangy cur and behave just like him. You bully Severus simply because he is different, and you do it with the excuse that he is fascinated by the Dark Arts yet it is your behavior that is malevolent, not his. You don’t deserve the title you hypocritical twit.” She said, looking down her nose at him in disgust. “And Lupin…..you can do better for friends. There are people, good people who will look at the real you.” Remus gasped softly as he realized she was aware of his condition. “And you, Lily…..you are so blind.” Hermione whispered, shaking her head before putting her wand away and turning back to Severus.







“Thank you, for a wonderful evening, Severus.” She said, smiling softly at him before leaning up to buss his lips quickly. “Goodnight, I’ll see you at breakfast.”









“Goodnight, Hermione.” He whispered back, amazed at the little firebrand. He watched her turn and glare menacingly towards the small group assembled in the hall before muttering the password and entering the common room.









Severus smirked softly when they turned their eyes back to him. He smoothed his hair back, straightened his robes and cleared his throat before shouldering past them and heading towards the dungeons. He was even humming softly as he did so, feelings of happiness warming him for the first time in ages.