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The sound of heavy rainfall was like a harmonic thrumming––nature’s white noise. The smell of petrichor invaded his nose first on waking, the scent rising like a miasma to greet him instead of the warmth of morning sunlight. It was a jasmine-and-gingerbread fragrance, warm and fresh, and it laved the land with sweetness; the precipitation gave to them what the sun had taken away. In Singapore, it rained one out of every three days. At Hogwarts it rained more, but the humidity was far less.
Scrunching his eyes shut a little tighter, Severus allowed himself to enjoy the pitter-patter of water as it bounced off the glass of the windows. With his eyes closed, however, his other senses became heightened and his nose detected another scent he was not familiar with in sleep normally. Opening one eye to peer through it, he took note quickly of his surroundings.
This was not his bedroom.
A second eye joined the first one in taking in his surroundings, his heartrate a little elevated for a moment as they darted around from one corner to the other, and lastly, to the smaller form that occupied the other side of the bed he was lying in. Long brunette curls spilled all over her pillow, creeping onto his. Ah, so that was where he was.
The events of the previous night suddenly came into sharp focus in his mind, bringing a small smile to curve his lips. Hermione had entreated him to stay with her, leading him to her bedroom where they… the reminder of the previous night's activity sent blood rushing to a certain part of his anatomy. Bollocks.
While she had invited him to join her in bed last night, he wasn’t so sure how she would feel about waking beside him. Presumably she assumed he might still be there, given the way she had curled around him before they’d fallen asleep. Severus, however, was not certain what it was that she expected from him now. For that matter, he wasn’t exactly sure what he expected would happen now.
Hermione shifted in her sleep, rolling towards him and burrowing close once more, seeking out his warmth. Surprised, Severus lifted his arm around her shoulders, burying his nose in her fragrant curls and closing his eyes once more.
‘Severus?’ she mumbled sleepily.
Ah, so she did know who was in her bed, he thought with some relief. ‘Good morning,’ he uttered quietly.
She shifted, leaning up to look him in the eye before she leaned forward to press her lips to his. ‘A very good morning,’ she said in agreement when she pulled back.
Severus wasn’t so sure he could even breathe, but she was looking at him expectantly, so he scrambled for the right words to say. ‘How are you feeling?’
Hermione chuckled. ‘A little sore, but otherwise well,’ she said, stretching her arms over her head, pressing her unclothed chest against him.
His excitement notched up a little, a surge of desire coiling below his navel. The arm around her tightened, sliding his hand down the silken skin of her back to cup her bottom. Apparently this was the right move as she rolled them over and straddled him, the sheet falling away. Her bottom lip was caught between her teeth, her hands coming to rest on his chest. She was lovely.
Leaning forward, her mouth descended upon his once more and he was helpless to deny her whatever it was she wanted.
Afterwards, she slipped out of the bed and dashed through a door that presumably led to her bathroom. A flush followed, confirming his suspicions. He hauled himself out of the bed, waiting for her to leave the bathroom, dropping a quick kiss to her lips before he entered to relieve himself and wash up a little. When he returned to the bedroom, Hermione was nowhere to be found.
Summoning his clothes to him, Severus redressed before walking out to the kitchen where he could smell fresh coffee.
‘Coffee?’ she asked, drawing two mugs out of the cupboard over the sink.
He nodded. ‘Please,’ he answered. ‘I will have to depart shortly to feed Cat, however.’
Hermione smiled, pouring them both a cup and adding a dash of milk to both. ‘I understand.’
‘Thank you.’ He took a sip of the hot beverage and flashed a grateful smile in her direction.
She leaned against the counter, dressed in a robe and socks. He wished he could linger, but he really had to go home to his, no doubt, grumpy feline.
‘I had a wonderful time last night,’ she assured him.
‘As did I.’ Severus smiled.
‘And this morning,’ she said with a flirtatious grin.
He returned her grin with a smirk of his own. ‘Indeed.’
‘Very loquacious in the morning, I see.’ There was a teasing note in her voice.
He huffed and rolled his eyes. ‘Not before coffee, no.’
Her hand came to rest on his arm, giving it a gentle squeeze. ‘Let’s not allow this to be awkward, hmm? I really like you, and I want to see you again, Severus.’ Hermione’s expression was so earnest, he could hardly believe it. Thank Merlin.
‘Alright,’ he replied lamely.
‘Good.’
He quickly finished the coffee, stepping around her to rinse his mug despite her protests, setting it aside. Pinning her against the counter with his hands resting either side of her, he looked into her honey eyes for a long moment before leaning in to kiss her. He stifled a groan when her warm little tongue teased past his lips. Their kiss tasted of the coffee they’d consumed.
When he pulled back, her hand was grasping the front of his shirt, and her eyes were dilated. Please with how dishevelled she looked, he stepped back.
‘What would you say to breakfast before work tomorrow morning?’ he asked, eager to see her again, and hoping she would not find him needy.
The bright smile he received allayed his anxiety some. ‘I’d love to,’ she said quietly.
‘I’ll stop by at seven to collect you?’
She nodded. ‘Until then.’
Pleased with how everything had gone the previous day and that morning so far, Severus Apparated home to feed Cat, hoping that she would not be too upset with him for not returning sooner.
It wasn’t long before they were spending every other night at his flat, much to his astonishment. Not that he was going to complain. Hermione pointed out that it would be too much of a disturbance to Cat, shifting her back and forth, so they would often Apparate there after the end of their workday, and she would end up on the rug in his living room with the needy feline in her lap, petting and cuddling her while he prepared their evening meal.
During this time, Severus discovered that Hermione had no talent for cooking, managing eggs on toast but nothing more complex. She brewed a decent cup of coffee, though, and always praised his own skill. He couldn’t remember the last time he was so flustered and flushed from the attention of a woman––likely never.
Being around her was addictive, and he looked forward to every second they were together, whether they were working silently marking student work in the evenings, going out for brunch or dinner, or simply cuddling together on the sofa, reading and drinking tea.
A month after his first night with her, Severus was woken with a start one morning, the sound of a sharp beak rapping against the glass of his bedroom window drawing him from slumber. Hermione made a mew of annoyance, nudging him in order to get him moving. Grumbling, he slid out of the bed, walking across to open it, rubbing the sleep from his eyes roughly. An exhausted-looking barn owl was perched on the exterior windowsill, a letter attached to it’s leg.
Opening the window wide, Severus allowed it to glide and land on the baseboard of the bed, relieved that he’d thought to shut Cat out of the room the night before.
Removing the letter from the leg the bird extended to him, Severus stroked the owl's head, wondering who was sending him correspondence that day. ‘Where did you come from?’ he murmured, his voice a little husky from sleep.
Turning over the envelope, he saw Minerva McGonagall’s tidy script, causing his brows to rise. It had been months since last he’d heard from her. Placing the letter down on his bedside table, Severus maneuvered past Cat who was waiting at the bedroom door, leaving his paramour to sleep on as he sought out something to feed the weary bird. Feeding his greedy cat and giving her a scratch behind the ears, he found a bit of raw chicken in the fridge and cut it up into pieces.
Back in the bedroom, he placed a small plate down on the dresser for the bird to nibble on. He’d allow it to rest for a while there before sending a reply back to the Hogwarts Headmistress. He reached for the letter as he slid back into bed beside Hermione, flicking the wax seal with his thumbnail and scanning the contents.
‘Who wrote you?’ she mumbled, rolling over to gaze up at him, her mad curls all over the place.
‘Minerva,’ he answered.
‘Oh!’ Her eyes lit up at that. ‘What does she say? I haven’t heard from her in a while.’
‘She wants me to visit for Christmas,’ he answered, passing the letter to her. ‘I hadn’t thought about how to spend Christmas this year.’
In truth, he rarely did anything to celebrate. Before Hermione had started working at the University with him, he spent the holiday alone, reading and drinking an entire bottle of wine and going to bed very early. When she’d unceremoniously charged back into his world, she’d always insist upon him eating with her on Christmas Eve before Portkeying back to London to spend a few days with her friends. They hadn’t discussed what would be different now that they were dating, if things were indeed going to change at all.
‘Well, I would prefer to spend Christmas with you, if it’s all the same,’ she told him, pulling absolutely no punches.
‘I can refuse Minerva,’ he suggested.
‘Absolutely not,’ Hermione told him stubbornly. ‘She’d never hear of your refusal anyway. I will simply have to come with you.’
His brows shot up into his hairline almost. ‘You’d go with me?’
‘Of course,’ she said, smiling at him fondly. ‘Severus, this thing between us, I don’t view it as remotely casual. I hope we are on the same page?’
After making her bold statement, watching her anxiously pull her bottom lip between her teeth cause his chest to tighten. It wasn’t just him, then? A wave of relief washed over him. Severus had always assumed that his feelings were perhaps a little stronger than hers. She was affectionate, had no problem at all with telling him what she wanted when they made love, and was incredibly fond of his cat, but those things alone were not indicative of feelings.
‘We are on the same page,’ he confirmed, gasping as she launched herself at him and stole his breath with a hard kiss.
‘Wonderful,’ she said when she pulled away. ‘Write her back and let Minerva know I’ll be coming with you. Would you be terribly upset if I suggested we spend New Year’s with Harry and Ginny?’
He frowned for a moment at the mention of the Boy-Who-Lived-Twice, but nodded in agreement. It was only fair after all. ‘Very well,’ he sighed.
‘Good.’
He received another swift kiss for his easy acquiescence before she slipped out of the bed and donned his discarded white shirt. On her it went down past her bottom, and he smiled as she pulled on a pair of thick socks.
‘I’ll get the coffee,’ she told him, ducking out of the bedroom quickly.
When she returned, he was leaning against the head of the bed, a couple of pillows behind him. He’d dressed in a t-shirt and jogging bottoms, and when Hermione passed him a mug of coffee, he drank it gratefully. She slipped between his legs, and he put his arms around her lazily as they sat in bed and began their morning together slowly. After she’d had a sip from her own mug, Hermione turned her head a little, reaching up to draw his head towards hers for another gentle kiss.
He would never get tired of how perfectly her lips melded to his.
