The Night after the Wedding
When she came back to the world, Hermione was on her knees. Only Severus’ embrace kept her from collapsing.
‘I think,’ he said hoarsely. ‘That is quite enough for tonight. We are both tired and not quite sober.’
When she uttered a soft noise of protest, he kissed the corner of her mouth, sending another spark of desire through her body. A reaction that did not escape his attention. His eyes shone with a satisfied gleam.
‘There is time for everything, Hermione. Time enough. We can still count the times we have kissed on our fingers.’
‘But—’
‘Shhh,’ he laid a long, slender finger over her mouth, before tenderly tracing her lips with his fingertip.
‘I do want you, Hermione,’ he stated. The unadulterated possessiveness in his voice caused a pleasant warmth to spread through her stomach.
His lips curled into an unexpected smile. ‘I desire you very much. But I assure you that shared intimacy is more rewarding if the process to reach its completion is not rushed and if each stage is savoured for its own sake.’
She couldn’t breathe. He had bewitched her mind, ensnared her senses. She gulped audibly, trying desperately to fashion her fraying thoughts into a coherent answer.
‘That…sounds much like the brewing of a potion,’ she gasped at last. ‘You need to add each ingredient at exactly the right time…stir with a precise rhythm…’
And hadn’t his tongue stirred her desire just as adroitly has he mixed his brews?
‘Indeed,’ he smirked.
Although her aroused body regretted it, her mind was willing to agree to his reasoning. Her heart remained torn. Whatever was going to happen or not, she did not want to sleep alone tonight. Her face or body must have given her away. Severus rose to his feet and drew her up with him. Once they were standing, he embraced her once more, but did not allow her to touch his lower body.
‘What do you want? I can see it in your eyes—you want to ask a question, but you don’t dare. While I might enjoy such rare an occurrence normally, tonight I would prefer you to simply tell me what you want.’
She took a deep breath. As an adult woman, as his wife, she should be able to answer a simple question in a complete sentence.
‘Even if—we don’t sleep with each other tonight,’ she said, ignoring the heat that suffused her cheeks, ‘I—don’t want to sleep alone tonight. If you don’t mind.’
In the depth of his eyes an emotion flickered. Disbelief? His embrace tightened, allowing her to feel again that his body at least had very different ideas about the pace of progress for their relationship.
‘Mind? Foolish woman. Why would I mind that?’
oooOooo
He was dressed in sensible black pyjamas, fine cotton, not satin or silk, almost as concealing as his daywear, when he re-emerged from her bathroom. When he noticed her curious look, a weary expression crossed his face.
‘I learnt years ago that it wasn’t a good idea to wear the nightshirts favoured by most wizards…or any—shall we say ‘enticing’ fabrics—in case I was summoned.’
Hermione stared at him, at a loss for words. She had not expected his newfound openness to extend quite that far.
An instinct as old as mankind tugged at her heart. If only she could heal his heart, smooth away those pains and hurts. But when she saw his bleak, black eyes, she knew that no instinct would suffice. Maybe nothing ever would. Suddenly the years and experiences that separated them turned into a deep abyss.
He passed her and slipped under the green covers without sparing her another glance. Only when he had settled down in her magically enlarged four poster bed, he looked at Hermione again.
And then Hermione showed that she was indeed a Gryffindor.
She smiled at her husband, and began to undress.
At last she stood naked in front of her bed. She was acutely aware that her nipples were still taut with arousal and the slight chill of the room, and more than a little self-conscious at showing herself to Severus with all her little imperfections: the purple scar at her throat from Bellatrix’ knife, the paler mark from the curse that had hit her in the Ministry of Magic, the slightly irregular shape of her breasts, the way her hipbones jutted out painfully because she was so thin.
With some trepidation, she sought his eyes, and was shocked at the intensity of his gaze. His eyes were blazing, his face—she had never seen Severus Snape like that before…his expression completely unguarded, laid bare, not for the world, but for her eyes only to see.
And he was looking at her, as if she was…she couldn’t find the right word, caught in that mesmerizing gaze…something special and unexpected, at the very least.
She padded over to the bed and pulled out her nightshirt from below her pillow.
‘It’s green,’ she said pointedly.
‘So I see.’
As she slipped into the bed, her heartbeat quickened. She had never slept in the same bed with someone else before. Even after years of sharing a dorm, this would be a new experience.
‘May…I?’
He frowned, but nodded.
She scooted over with an awkward slither, before she curled up against him. He was too thin for a man of his size. But he felt good next to her. Strong, and warm, and solid. His tantalizing, addictive scent enveloped her. Severus exhaled deeply, then he slid an arm around her, drawing her even closer to his side. Hermione felt a small, contented sigh escape her lips as she snuggled closer to her husband and inhaled his special fragrance.
A few breaths later she was already falling asleep, sucked into the warm darkness of safe, sheltered slumber, for once without any dreams or nightmares at all.
Oh, Chartres cathedral! What a perfect destination!
I visited there in high school when on the exchange program. It was the first cathedral I ever visited, and I shall never forget the feeling of amazement!
They are working on restoring the windows at the moment. I think they will be done in 2011/2012 … can’t wait to see it again then, all bright like at the time it was built.
I loved your story… so far. But Severus Snape in a church? Oh my, quite OOC, but OK, he needed someone to talk to, so I drop the topic.
BUt this punishment for Alina is rather brutal. And for what? That a half-Keazle cat disappeared for two days? C’mooooon…. And Ginny was standing there and watching? What happened to your characters? They were sooo perfect! Especially Snape, and now this chatedral, or church, or whatever…
Ok, I’ll read on, just wanted to tell my thoughts.
Thank you for spending time with my story. Thank you even more for taking the time to leave a comment! I’m glad you enjoy it so far.
Why shouldn’t Snape visit a church? And where in canon does it say he wouldn’t? 😉
Re: Alina’s punishment – I’d be shocked if you didn’t think it harsh!
However … even at “Muggle” boarding schools traditions of hazing and punishment among students are incredibly cruel and harsh in real life. JKR chose to ignore that part of public school tradition; I decided against that. The shock and revulsion you (hopefully) feel are quite intentional.
Please feel free to offer your thoughts any time, I’m always curious about what my readers think. Even if I don’t agree with them. 😉
Oh, don’t get me wrong! Of course it is not impossible for him to go a place like a church, I just feel like it’s wierd.
And as for Alina, yes, I felt shock. That was oh, ‘harsh’ is not the right word. But the most shocking thing was that Ginny was standing there and watching, without a word.
So I was relieved when she told the whole thing to Hermione.
And that part with McGonagoll, and keep your stupid cup, LOL 😀 Loved that.
That’s fine, really. 🙂 I am trying to portray Severus as a character with unexpected depths, after all.
I have read your story on fanfiction.net a while back but I really like this version better. it gives a lot more… structure? character? feeling? to the story.. I am unable to describe the exact thing.. but still.
Good work all around..
I am thrilled that you’re enjoying the way I present my story here! And what a wonderful compliment that you came back to read it again. w00t
I love Chartres Cathedral. I wrote a paper on it for Art History class and found that the Masons built many esoteric features into it. When I actually was fortunate enough to visit it in person, it had a spiritual effect on me. I visited many other cathedrals in France that trip, and none of them made me feel the way that one did.
I’m so glad Severus took Hermione there. Still not sure why he would, but your Severus seems full of surprises. I’m sure, given time, he will grow to love her as much as she does him. He is well on his way already.
Great story.
Chartres is amazing. 🙂
Re: Severus – in canon he always struck me as a man of many (surprising) secrets. So I enjoyed giving him a few more in my story!
I have never seen the Chatres Cathedral, but I have seen other cathedrals and can imagine the feeling this one can give you. Loved the pictures.
So, Alina is a Necromancer, whatever that is. I hope I don’t need more information than you give within this story. (I don’t know the books you refer there.)
That punishment was really harsh and unusual, but I can see this within the HP universe, even if it was never described. The HP universe has a lot of really cruel customs. I remember how shocked I was at the outcome of the Triwizard tournament. I think this fits with the feeling the House of Slytherin gave me as portrayed in the books.
What is a half kneazel? You just need to know cats to know they can vanish for days without anyone finding them. The castle is big and Crookshanks had years to explore the thing. It seems the students don’t know cats very well 😉 . But I can imagine how desperate poor Alina was when she noticed the cat was missing. From there on everything just spun out of control. I just hope that this incident plus the bell incident didn’t cost Alina her Slytherin friends. She needs friends in school and not just friends in other houses or among the staff.
Necromancers (the manifestation of Sauron in Dol Guldur was called a Necromancer, too) are wizards with a special affinity for the dead, to put it simply. They can talk to the dead or control zombies … depends on the interpretation, really. I was fascinated with the world-building in the “Abhorsen” books, and in conjunction with some HP death magic (like the Veil), it seemed to me an interesting AU angle to explore.
Re: the punishment, yes, yes, yes, exactly! This is one of the scenes that usually leaves readers totally shocked. But based on what I know about “normal” hazing in Muggle British public schools, I think Slytherin must have been ten times worse. And isn’t it how those things usually go? Good intentions all around and suddenly you’re sitting in a handbasket and it’s getting awfully hot and the air smells of sulphur …
Kneazles: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Kneazle
(I think they show that JKR doesn’t really know cats, because they are like that and do all that stuff without any magic, thank you very much. 😉 )
Beautiful. As is the rest of this novel, but this was so unexpected! Looking forward to the whole unchartered territory ahead of our newlyweds.
20 years? It’s high time I saw Chartres again, and took my son (it’s ridiculously near my usual place).
And I’ll go on minding my h’s 😉
Thank you for reading! And oh, Chartres … you’re lucky to live so close. I’ve been wanting to visit again for years … the windows are supposed to be better than ever after the restoration. But unfortunately I live really, really far away. *sigh*
I’m glad you’re enjoying the story! *hearts*