Author's note: Story is set in an AU where Hermione saved Severus from the effects of Nagini's attack.

She looked down at him sprawled languorously beneath her upon his settee. Severus wore his black neck tie and white shirt, his black jacket haphazardly flung over the back of the armchair beside them. Her heart was large and aching with emotion in her chest.

"I have to go - I have to study," Hermione mumbled sadly, drawing away, his hands reluctantly leaving her back and trailing along her arms. She pulled at her ponytail to fix it and moved off of him, standing up. She looked to the door and then down again. Though she had been there a while, Hermione saw him anew - his lips red from kissing, the blush on his cheeks, the desire in his expression - and frustratedly exclaimed, "Oh!" She bent over him again and pressed her lips to his once more in earnest. She couldn't bear to part with him, not when he looked like this.

One hand was on her arm, the other tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Stay," he whispered plaintively, through the kisses.

"I can't," she mumbled back sadly, feeling a tug in her stomach, wishing with every part of her that she could.

She drew away again. She looked down upon him, her heart burning for him, his black eyes large and full of yearning. Her hand went to the strap of her school bag, but after giving him another glance she dropped it, turning her head upwards and groaning aloud. The pull he had on her heart was too strong to ignore.

She clambered back upon him and he gave a small chuckle just before her lips found his. "Oh, this is such bad timing!" she cried pitifully, straddling his hips, his hands now cupping her face as they kissed, his nose pressing against her cheek. He was grinning. "I can't stop thinking about you, and there's only one week until my N.E.W.T.s, and-"

"Damn your N.E.W.T.s," he grumbled. She pulled up and he raised his torso from the arm of the settee, sitting up to meet her, his hands moving to hers. "Please, stay," he murmured, "just for a little while-"

"No, I can't-" she gasped, before pressing her mouth upon his, his lips then finding their way across her jaw, then to her throat. Her breath was hot in his ear. "Severus," she whispered, her eyes closed, but whether she wished to dissuade him or entice him he did not know. His hands rushed down along her sides, feeling the softness of her grey wool jumper. His fingers then found their way under the hem and up the starched fabric of her white shirt. She was unmoving under his touch.

"My god, you are beautiful," he breathed, looking up at her, one hand upon her waist, the other moving up her back. She blushed further, his words causing her stomach to flutter about.

She leaned over him again and he lay back against the arm of the settee, a faint grin on his lips, feeling the weight of her body against his, his hands exploring her. After another frenzy of kisses, she broke away with a gasp.

"No, no - I have to go," she insisted, disentangling herself, one foot going to the floor as she sidled off him, followed by the other, his hand holding onto hers before she stepped away. She picked up her bag with one hand and put the strap over her shoulder with the other, slipping on her shoes. "I have to go," she repeated, steeling herself, speaking quickly. She leaned back over him, placing a hand on his shoulder to steady herself and brushing her lips against his before finally breaking away. "I have to go now, or I never will."

He stared after her as though he could not look away, as though he didn't mind if she never left and would rather prefer it if she didn't, but he did not say a word.

She walked quickly to the door, hoping to put as much distance between them as she could. "I'll see you - I'll see you when I can," she called, opening the door and stepping through it, giving him one last mournful look before decidedly closing it behind her.

He placed his hand over his mouth, one finger pointed upwards along the side of his face. His gaze then went to the clock on the mantelpiece, his eyes fixed upon the second hand. He watched it tick forwards several times before his eyes shifted back to the door.

He watched it swing open, Hermione bursting through, then heard it promptly bang shut behind her. She moved the strap from off her shoulder and threw her bag down near the hearth, striding determinedly towards him, her eyes never leaving his. She tore off her jumper and threw it on the armchair, stepping out of her shoes, her mouth open in anticipation before she settled into his lap. He embraced her, bringing her close, his hands in her hair and his tongue parting her lips, a noise of deep pleasure issuing from the back of his throat.

They broke apart for only a moment, Hermione's hands deftly going to his neck tie and quickly undoing it. "You haven't the faintest idea what you do to me," he muttered, his hands going to her arms and then her back, folding her against him.

She unwound him so easily, so utterly.

Her mouth was on the underside of his throat, then on his again, before she unexpectedly drew away. "But I'm not going to stay as long as I did yesterday," she insisted, her expression intent. She looked at the clock, her ponytail tickling his chin. He simply appeared amused. "Six - I'll leave by six."

"You may as well stay for dinner, in that case," he countered, smirking slightly as she looked down at him.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, becoming frustrated with him again, the flat of her palm impatiently tapping his shoulder. "You say that, and then it'll be, 'Stay for a cup of tea,' and then, 'What is it you're studying, in any case,' and then, 'It's so late, you may as well stay here, save you the walk back-'"

"It is quite the walk to your room-"

She redoubled her efforts, kissing him deeply as she pulled away his neck tie, tossing it onto the armchair without looking, curling into him as much as she could. His hands were at her waist, gripping tightly, his ability to concentrate impaired by the thought of her intentions. She unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt, feeling the smoothness and the heat of the skin beneath it. Every time it was as the first, as if she was discovering him all over again.

She shifted her body to press against his hips and distinctly felt his arousal beneath her. It always caught her by surprise how she was able to elicit such a physical reaction in him, and how quickly. She looked at him from under hooded eyes and pressed against him, more firmly, watching as his black eyes slowly closed and then opened again.

Suddenly, they were frantic for one another. His hands went under her skirt, finding and pulling at the waistband of her tights as she kissed him. He exposed the white of her skin as he pulled the black hose away with her help from one leg, then the other, his hands then marveling in how smooth they were.

Her already loosened tie was removed, her hands and then nails trailing along the skin beneath his shirt. He moaned quietly into her mouth before his hands again went beneath her skirt, finding her knickers and pulling them down from her hips. She took them off as he shifted further down the settee, now lying flat on his back.

She moved to lie upon him but he stopped her, his hands on her shoulders, both breathing shallowly. His hands slowly moved from her knees up along her thighs, caressing them, his eyes going to hers and back before he reached and pressed the back of her thighs, motioning for her to move forward. She obliged, her weight resting on her knees which were now near his ears, her calves tucked along his side. He pushed her skirt so that it rode up to her middle.

"Severus," she whispered, feeling him lay kisses upon the inside of one thigh, then the other, then kissing her center. She shivered. She did not know where to put her hands, and they drifted from his hair to the back of the settee and finally to the arm as his tongue sought her. She whimpered, moving slightly closer to his mouth, and he began in earnest, his tongue making circles at her core. She moaned aloud, her thighs tightening around him. His arms were wrapped around her thighs, then his hands went to her breasts, feeling them through her shirt. His black eyes stared up at her from under his eyebrows, and she moaned again at the sight.

She now reached back, her hands finding the buttons of his trousers, fumbling to undo them as she trembled. At long last she found her way, her hand reaching into the fabric and delicately taking hold of his member, enjoying the feel of his velvety soft skin and the look of pleasure on his face as his eyes closed in response to her touch. She began to softly stroke him, listening to the hitch in his breathing as she did so. He then began sucking and kissing and flitting his tongue against her anew, his hands running along the warmth of her inner thighs. After several blissful minutes of simply allowing her body to feel and respond to his touch she froze, one hand still grasping him, the other moving from the back of the settee to his hair as she came, her release loud and intense and shattering.

She gasped, spent, feeling him kiss along her thigh again before she gathered the strength to move away and stand up, her legs shaking. He removed his trousers and underwear and stood too, his lips soft upon hers as he held her close, his need pressing and apparent against her thighs. She ran her hands down his back before turning away from him, looking at the settee and then back to his gaze. She took his hand to draw him close, then climbed onto the seat, kneeling and facing away from him.

He still could not believe it, believe her - Hermione Granger before him, wanting him, a willing partner. He could hardly restrain himself. He positioned himself just behind her, his hands gently caressing her hips before raising the back of her skirt, pressing himself against her then, achingly slowly, into her. They both groaned deeply at the feeling, their chests heaving, taking a moment to revel in the feel of the other. His grip on her hips tightened, his eyes closed, before he began to move ever so slowly out, then back into her. Hermione's head hung low, resting against the back of the settee as she trembled, feeling him adjust himself again and begin thrusting in and out at a slow but even pace.

She cried out and he reached beneath her, his fingers upon her core, his other hand running along her arm, her breasts, her stomach as he leaned over her back, close to her. It was almost too much - his fingers, his breath, the sounds of his gasping - and she struggled but managed to meet him at every stroke, pushing back to him. It unnerved her, how good this could be.

Severus varied his pace, alternatively taking long, slow strokes, then short fast ones, before stopping to simply explore her, still deep inside her, his fingers undoing several buttons at the top of her shirt to feel the skin beneath, his hands rushing along her arms, her back, her legs, every part of her pleasing to him as she shivered under his touch.

He then withdrew, his hands and his eyes never leaving her as he lay down on the settee as before. He let her climb into his arms and embraced her, finding her warmth, both giving a cry of pleasure when he entered her again. His lips found hers and they lay there leisurely, he softly stroking in and out as she trembled, her eyes closed, her right hand upon his hair and his ear and his shoulder.

Severus paused and drew his legs up so that his feet were flat on the settee, allowing him more leverage. He wrapped his hands around her back and began thrusting upwards into her, at first slowly, his pace then quickening as he knew he would be unable to hold off much longer.

"Severus!" she exclaimed breathlessly, her cheek pressed to his as she felt a tightening, then another intense, all-consuming shudder wracking her body. She cried out in pleasure, her body clinging hard to his, then whimpered into his ear as he stroked in and out below her. His hands clutched her as he too found his release, his body tensing as he moaned aloud. He thrust in and out a few times more before relaxing, their chests heaving from their exertion, lips red, cheeks pink. His hand went to her hair, sifting through it before resting upon her back once more.

She lay upon him, exhausted, her arms wrapped around his torso just as he was tangled around her. Her eyes found his and they kissed gently before she pulled away from him, lying on her side as he turned on his to hold her.

He could never tire of this, he thought, as she lay there in his arms. He lazily circled the fingers of his right hand upon her back, through her shirt. She laid her left palm upon his cheek, stroking his nose, his lips, his chin lovingly with her thumb. His black hair fell upon his face and she tucked it behind his ear, before trailing her fingers slowly down his forehead, his nose, across the deep line between his high cheekbone and the corner of his lips. His eyes did not leave hers.

"I... I suppose I should be leaving soon," she said quietly, her breathing finally returned to normal.

His dark eyes moved to the clock and then back to hers. "I still have three minutes," he murmured, his voice deep and calm. He touched his nose to hers, waiting for her to turn her face upwards, her upturned lips finding his again.

She let out a little sigh, her eyes closed, feeling as he gently placed kisses upon her mouth and then her eyelids, her brow, her forehead, her nose, then her mouth once more.

After a little while Severus reluctantly stopped. He unwrapped his arms from around her and allowed her to move away from him, watching as she stood and began replacing her clothing. He followed suit, and when she turned back to him they both were more or less fully dressed.

He stepped towards her and his hands went to the top of her shirt. "When will I see you again?" he asked quietly, doing up the buttons.

Her heart fluttered. "I'm not sure. I - I have quite a lot to do," she mumbled. He took her loosened tie from the armchair and placed it over her head, gently pushing up the knot and adjusting her collar. Her hands were at his waist. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I start my exams next week, and they'll take another week to finish." He looked down at her over his hooked nose, appearing stoic. She knew he was disappointed. "After that, we'll have all the time we like."

"I can hardly fathom waiting two days, much less two weeks," he admitted quietly, the fingers of one hand twisting the curly tip of her ponytail.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek to his chest, listening to the soft thumping below. His hands sat heavy upon her lower back.

"You should be off, then," he said after a few moments. "Unless you would like to stay for dinner?" he asked hopefully.

"It's not a matter of wanting," she mumbled sadly.

She let go of him and stepped backwards, bending towards the fireplace to pick up her bag. He was beside her when she stood straight, and after placing the strap on her shoulder she tilted her head up for a kiss.

"I love you," she whispered, her eyes searching his, two weeks now seeming like an endless period of time to her.

"And I, you," he returned. His eyes were soft but his brow was furrowed. He did not like the prospect of saying goodbye either. He walked with her to the door to see her off. "You'll let me know when you're through, then?" he asked, looking at her almost sheepishly.

"Of course," she said, grinning. She kissed him one last time, her hand upon his arm, then looked up at him before placing her hand upon the doorknob.

"Good luck," he offered, "although I should hardly think you will need any." He watched her step away.

"Thank you," she murmured, with a smile. She turned the doorknob and stood upon the threshold, looking out into the corridor. She then looked at him, gave him a small wave, and finally closed the heavy wooden door behind her.

Hope you've enjoyed. If you have, please review and check out Confluence of Truths, my recently rewritten SSHG fic which is based in the same AU as this story xx