Chapter 16
Half asleep, you turn over, feeling for your bed mate. You find his spot cold and vacant. Slowly, your eyes open, but quickly shut from the morning light pouring through the windows. Your head is throbbing. Gods, your memory of last night is hazy. You know Severus was here, though. Stiffly, you sit up, stretching your achy neck. You stumble out into the hallway and into the loo, sitting down on the toilet to empty your bladder.
You need to rinse off - you step into the shower to scrub the grime off from last night. It’s damp in here, you wonder when Severus left. He must have showered. You got wasted last night. No wonder you feel like shit. After drying off, you wrap the towel around you and head back into your bedroom. You have to go speak with the fire chief this morning about the report he has yet to finish. Given that the Death Eater started the fire, you wonder how the report will be completed. There isn’t likely to be a cause found by fire investigators.
You open a drawer and grab undergarments, then the next drawer where you use to keep your shirts. You forget you cleared some out for Severus. Inside your old shirt drawer lies some of his white undershirts, perfectly folded. He’s already put some of his clothes here. You smile, touching them, then search the rest of the drawers. He's put some underwear and socks in another. You giggle like a little girl.
You dress in dark jeans and a white, low cut shirt. After combing through your damp hair, you deem yourself presentable and head downstairs. Before you can wonder where Severus went, he is found in the kitchen, standing in front of the stove. He’s cleaned up everything from last night - the kitchen is spotless.
“Oh, I thought you had gone,” you greet. He’s stirring something on the stovetop. You hope he isn’t attempting to cook again.
“Would you like me to?” he wonders, sitting down the spoon and turning to you. He’s dressed in his dark slacks, black belt, and white, tucked in dress shirt. His hair looks freshly washed. He’s so easy to look at, you don’t want to stop.
“No!” you say, in a gasp. He smiles softly at you, a rare sight.
“I’m brewing you a potion. I’m sure you don’t feel well,” he explains. You approach him, looking down into one of your pots - little herbs and other ingredients float around inside. “A cure for a hangover. It’s nearly done,” he murmurs.
His hand comes up to your hip, tugging you towards him. You place a hand on his chest and stand on your toes to kiss him. His warm mouth welcomes yours. Your lips have no problem molding together and greeting each other anymore. It’s a delicate, thoughtful kiss.
“How’s your head,” he asks, titling it down and examining your scalp.
“Throbbing,” you murmur. He plants a kiss on your head, then returns to his potion, stirring it in a clockwise manner.
“You hit your head on the light above the kitchen island. Broke a bulb.”
You gasp again, looking up. It seems it is fixed now. “I don’t remember. Was I dancing?”
Severus chuckles, nodding. You groan, feeling embarrassed. “It was quite the sight. You should dance for me some time,” he requests.
You scoff, sitting down in one of the stools, laying your head on the cool countertop. “I don’t remember much,” you sigh, honestly. “I haven’t gotten so plastered in ages.”
“You needed it,” Severus says, simply, turning to face you with a coffee cup in hand. He slides it to you.
“Maybe if my boyfriend didn’t ignore me, I wouldn’t have wanted to get so fucked up,” you say, teasingly. You look down in the cup, turning your nose up at it.
“Don’t blame your own actions on me,” he replies, looking at you, guiltless. You smell the potion now and frown. “Make us coffee and you can mix it with that,” Severus explains.
You stand, wincing at your aching body, and begin to brew a pot. Once it’s finished, you pour him a cup, splash it with cream. He thanks you, then grabs the cup with the potion inside and hands it to you. You fill it up with coffee and mix in some cream, drinking it. You can taste it faintly, but it isn’t bad.
“What are your plans today?” Severus asks, leaning beside you, drinking his coffee.
You check the clock. “I have to leave soon. I have to meet with the fire chief. He’s supposed to have the final report ready. When that’s finished, I can submit it to insurance.”
“Shall I come with you?” he offers.
Your brows pop up. You wouldn’t think he’d want to. “Of course. I’d love for you to come.” You would love his support during this difficult time. A bit surprising he’s offered. But, then again, perhaps not surprising.
After finishing your coffee-potion concoction, you feel significantly better. Your headache is gone and your body isn’t aching. You and Severus go into the garage and climb into the car. Soon enough, you're cruising down the street. One of your neighbors is outside, at their mailbox. They smile and wave and you return the gesture.
“People here are very…neighborly,” Severus comments. You nod, noticing the leaves are starting to fill in the trees.
“It’s a nice, quiet town,” you speculate.
“Have you ever wanted to leave?” he wonders. You stare at the road, slowing down and stopping at a stop sign. You shrug at his question.
“I suppose I never have thought about it. I’d like to travel outside of Great Britain, though. Take the train across Europe. Switzerland is beautiful, I hear.”
Severus hums in response. “I will take you anywhere you want,” Severus says, staring out the window. “Traveling by magic isn’t free but it isn’t costly either. With my status, I could get us anywhere without much cost. Stay in the best places.”
“That would be amazing,” you reply, turning the car down another street, smiling gently. “Maybe after all this fixing the bakery business is over, we can take a trip together.”
Severus reaches over and places a hand on your thigh, rubbing it up and down. You turn the blinker on and pull into the fire station, parking in front of the doors. You both get out and head inside, where they are expecting you. One of the firefighters leads you up a spiral staircase and into an office, where the fire chief is waiting for you. You both sit down in front of his desk.
“Good morning, Miss [last name],” he greets. The man isn’t a stranger to you. His name is Keith and he comes into the bakery and places large orders a lot for his crew. He’s aged well, but he most definitely isn’t putting out fires anymore. “And, who is this?”
You gesture to Severus. “This is my partner, Severus,” you introduce. He stands and holds his hand out to him. Severus stands as well and shakes his hand. The men both take their seats.
“Pleasure to meet you,” he tells. He picks up a file folder and begins to flip through it. “I am sorry to say we found no reason behind the fire,” he begins.
You grip the arm of your chair. He sounds apologetic. He sits the folder down and interlocks his hands on the desk. “We even called in our people from the city. They found no cause. And, when no cause is found, insurance isn’t likely to pay what they should for repairs.”
Your face falls. You didn’t anticipate this. Severus reaches across and grabs your hand with his, rubbing his thumb over the top of your hand. Keith stares at you, looking almost hesitant.
“But, since you are Louis’ granddaughter, and you make the best muffins in town, I will deem the cause of the fire as arson.” Keith picks up a pen and begins to write on one of the forms. He holds it out to you and you take it, shakily. “That will get the most money from the insurance company. Don't speak of this to anyone, no one in town, no other authorities.”
You nod quickly. “Of course, Keith. Thank you so much. I don’t know what to say.”
Keith leans back, shaking his head. “Just fax that to your insurance company and be done with it. Make the place beautiful again, for your grandfather.”
You smile, feeling tears rush to your eyes. “I will!” You stand up and walk around to him, giving him a hug. He laughs, patting your back. “You’re a saint,” you breathe.
Keith bids you goodbye - you and Severus leave shortly after.
In the evening, you and Severus sip wine and converse in the living room. You’ve laid down across the sofa, resting your head on his lap. You hold a glass of wine in your hand, staring at him in the reflection of the glass. You faxed off the report to insurance. They faxed a confirmation back, saying they will review and be with you by the end of the week.
You’ve been speaking of the Wizarding War. You asked about it. Severus tells you stories of it. Some are hopeful. Most are dark.
“What was it like, Severus, when the snake bit you?” you wonder.
He inhales through his nose, exhaling after. “It was the second worst physical pain I have ever felt.” You turn your head up, seeing him reaching up to press his hand against the crook of his neck. “Still painful, but tolerable. It didn’t last long, the pain. When I started to die, I couldn’t feel much of it.”
You jolt up, bringing your knees up onto the cushion, turning towards him. “You died?”
Severus smiles small, reaching out and placing a hand on your surprised face. “It wasn’t for long. I don’t believe so, at least. Madam Pomfrey, the school healer, brought me back. Shoved potions down my throat. By the time I came to, Voldemort was vanquished. I thought I was in some sort of dream when I saw him lying on the floor of the Great Hall. Even more so when I saw Potter standing, still alive.”
Your eyes soften. “I went comatose shortly after they hauled me back to the castle. For the next two weeks, I laid in a bed in the hospital wing. I lost nearly all of the blood in my body. The venom of the snake is regenerative. It still remains inside my blood, which is why I still need treatments. Why the scar refuses to fade.”
You lean forward and press your lips to his. He hums against your lips. “I’m glad she saved you,” you whisper. He presses his lips to your forehead. “I wish they could heal you permanently.”
Severus shrugs. “It will come with time. Like you came to me,” he says, gazing at you. You grin, taking a drink of wine.
“Did you think you’d ever be with someone like me? A muggle?”
Severus snorts through his nose. “I did not think I would ever be with anyone. Especially someone…” he runs his fingers through your hair now, then traces his hands down your back. “…so beautiful and charming and so forgiving of all of my sins.”
You grin again, unable to speak. Severus knocks his wine back and sits down the cup on the table. “What about myself? Am I someone you thought you’d end up with?”
You laugh, holding a finger up. “A wizard? No. Not at all,” you begin, then hold up another finger. “ An older man? Nope.” You add a third finger now. “I sure as hell didn’t think I’d find someone so sarcastic.”
Severus chuckles, pushing your hand down. “I couldn’t be happier with anyone else,” you admit. “None of my exes have made me this happy, anyway.”
Severus retrieves his wand from his sleeve and summons the bottle of wine in from the kitchen. He tops you off, then himself. “I wish I was special, like you,” you murmur, watching him magically sit the bottle down.
“How do you mean?” he asks, brows knitting together.
“Magic,” you reply. “You can do so many wonderful things. Like show memories of my grandfather to me, like it were a movie. Summon objects to you. Protect people. Bloody teleport.”
Severus scoffs, shaking his head. “I have done far more worse things with magic than wonderful things. For some magic is a gift. For others, it is a curse.” You're saddened by his words. He touches your thigh, rubbing you. He meets your eyes, and somewhere in his dark orbs, there’s almost light. “With such affection and kindness you show to me of all people, you are magic.”
You smile, rolling your eyes. He always finds a way to make you feel so treasured and special. You knock your wine back. You look at the clock on the wall, then purse your lips. “Want to go to the wine spot in town? It’s happy hour,” you offer.
Severus presses his lips together, shrugging. “Oh, why not?” he agrees. “If that’s what will make you happy, darling.”
You giggle, standing, pulling him up. He groans as he rises, pulling his hand from yours to bring it to his neck. Your smile falls. “What’s wrong?”
“Fucking neck,” he murmurs, walking past you. He goes into the foyer, where he’s hung his cloak. You follow him, seeing him searching the deep pockets within. He fishes out a vial, then heads into the kitchen. “Would you help me?” he asks.
You come up behind him, pulling out a stool. “Of course, sit,” you say. He sits down, handing you the vial. You look at it, then unstopper it. “What is it?”
“Nothing in particular. Something Madam Pomfrey and I concocted. Helps pain and inflammation. Makes it numb. I have a treatment tomorrow. This happens occasionally.”
You raise the vial to his throat and let a few drops fall onto his reddened and angry scar. He sighs in relief as soon as it hits his skin. He brings your other hand up to him, wanting you to rub it in, so you do. Gently and carefully, you massage it into the old wound until it’s all absorbed. He leans into you, pressing his head against your chest, exhaling. “Thank you,” he murmurs.
He leans up to look at you when you don’t say anything. You feel awful for him. His wound should have been healed by now. Maybe magic isn’t so wonderful. It’s caused Severus pain for nearly two years now. He lays his hand on your cheek. “Don’t cry for me,” he says, somewhat upset.
“I just wish it wouldn’t hurt you,” you say, voice thick. He shakes his head.
“It doesn’t hurt now. Let us go have wine,” he insists, standing.
You wipe your teary eyes, following him to the door. “We’ll have to walk, I’ve drank three glasses of wine,” you murmur. He nods, reaching for his cloak, but hesitating. That isn’t normal wear for the muggle world. He’ll need a jacket to walk in, it’s a little chilly today.
“Hang on,” you say, opening the closet door. You push through your grandad’s old jackets until you find the one your looking for. You pull it out, showing it to him with a smile. He purses his lips, thinking on it.
“I’d rather see you in leather, but it will do,” he says, taking it from you. He slips the black leather jacket over his white dress shirt, looking at himself in the mirror.
“Oh, you look hot,” you admit, smoothing down his shoulders. He looks at you in the reflection, arching a brow. You slip on your own jacket and turn red in the face. He looks absolutely handsome.
“Would you think I looked hot, as you say, if you had never seen me before?”
You both step outside and you lock the front door, nodding. “Oh, I would definitely make it my mission to fuck you.”
His hand swiftly smacks your arse, making you jump. “Watch your mouth, young lady,” he demands, voice quiet and dangerous. You stop, hesitating purposefully.
“Should we stay home instead and fuck like animals?” you retort. Severus walks to you, backing you up against the front door, a dark expression across his face. He places his palms on the door beside your head, pressing his body against yours and his mouth to your ear.
“That offer is tempting,” he breathes. “I do plan to fuck you like an animal tonight. After we get a few more glasses of wine in us, of course.”
He pushes off the door, straightening up, eyes burning into yours with an emotion you can only describe as not lust, but a burning need. He grabs your hand and pulls you down the stairs and begins to lead you to the sidewalk. His words have you fucking speechless. And turned on. He knows how to tease you too well.
When you get to the Wine and Dine, it’s pretty busy. The people at the bar crowd around and the high top tables that line the wall are crammed full. In the back of the restaurant, a small band is playing live music. They’ve repainted the place since you’ve been here last - deep green paint colors the walls and there’s been a new dark stained floor put in.
They’ve manage to sit you at a nice corner booth that faces out the window. You’ve each ordered flights of wine - Severus let you pick out for him what flavors to try. A singular short candle in a jaw sits in the middle of the table. Severus stares out the window, watching the passerby’s. You stare at him.
“This is rather a nice little town,” he speculates.
“You live here now,” you say, amusedly. A small smile tugs at his lips.
“Yes, that’s right.” He reaches across the table, turning is hand so his palm is out. You grab it.
“This is where you used to read your poetry?” he wonders.
You nod, looking around, smiling. “Yeah,” you say, pointing to the band. “Up there. Microphone and all,” you explain. Severus chuckles.
“Write me a poem?” he asks, tugging on your hand.
You stare at him. He looks like he is serious. “Shall I compare thee to a summers day? Thou art more lovely and-“
Severus scoffs, rolling his eyes. “An original, preferably,”
You laugh, pulling your eyes off him and leaning back when the server comes to sit down your glasses of wine. You shake your head when she asks if there is anything else you need, then she goes on to her next table. Severus examines each small glass of wine before deciding on one. You raise one of your glasses and he touches his against yours.
“That is one of my favorites,” you say, nodding at his wine glass. He takes sip and lets it wash over his tongue. He hums and begins to swish the wine around in his cup. You laugh.
“What is the verdict, wine connoisseur?”
Severus purses his lips. “Shall I compare it to a summers day?” You laugh out loud, taking a large drink of your wine. “It’s delicious. A little tart,” he describes. “A nice after taste. I like it,” he informs.
You smile, looking at him over your cup as you drink. If these are what days will be like with him, you welcome them. You’re stress free - not one bit worried about the bakery. You’re not sad. Not dwelling on your grandad. For the first time in nearly a year, everything seems…normal. Life can be good again. It is with him.
Severus glances to the band. You’ve never seen him listen to music. “Do you like music?” you wonder.
He glances to you, then back to the band. “This is Queen, isn’t it?” he replies.
You nod. The band is covering it well. “It is… do you like Queen?”
He looks back at you, gazing at you for a long moment. “I did. When I was young,” he begins, tapping his fingers across the table. “They aren’t bad.”
You cock your head. “Who is good?” you wonder. He shrugs, looking towards the band again, thinking deeply about the question.
“Bowie. Depeche Mode. The Smiths.”
You nod, raising your glass. “All solid choices. Fleetwood Mac?”
He scoffs as if you're dense. “You didn’t need to ask that,” he deems, apparently liking them. You grab the next glass of wine. Severus sees you do this and he knocks his wine back and starts on his next glass.
Before you know it, Severus is nodding his head back and forth to the music, working on his last bit of wine. You’re feeling the perfect amount of relaxation, thanks to the alcohol. You’ve been talking about nothing serious while enjoying each other's company with good drinks.
Severus talks about his school days - the good ones, this time. He was invited to join his potions professor’s special club, the Slug Club. You briefly met the man in the London Magical Underground. He was nice. His club was only meant for very gifted students. Severus declined due to the falling out between him and Lily Potter, who was also selected to join the club. Then, when Severus was a professor, that same potions teacher invited him to his Slug Club Christmas Party and told him how much he missed out by not being in his special selection of students. You thought that was interesting.
Severus reaches out and touches your hand. “Hm?” you hum, raising your brows.
“Has the wine gotten to you? Did you hear me?”
You laugh. “Sorry, no. I was looking at you. Admiring how handsome you are,” you say, blushing.
Severus rolls his eyes. “How were your school days?”
You stick out your lower lip in thought. “They were unremarkable. Some of us didn’t go to a school of magic,” you say, smirking. “I had good marks. I was liked by my peers and teachers. I played tennis for a few years. I did the yearbook and was editor of the newspaper. One of my creative writing pieces is on display at the town library,” you say, reminiscing.
Severus chuckles. “Oh, you’re famous,” he boasts, sarcastically. You nod, gulping down the last bit of your drink.
“Not as famous as you,” you say, laughing. “I could have finished uni. My grandad said he’d have paid for it all. We had put my nan into the facility, though. My grandad wasn’t getting around as well as he did in his younger years. I didn’t think staying away would have been good for either of them. I was a…cunt during my teenage years to both of them. It was the least I could do, you know. Go back home and help.”
Severus regards you with a look you can’t describe. He shakes his head back and forth, letting out a long sigh. “In that matter, we are nothing alike. I would have ran off to university. Have tried to ignore all of that.”
You shrug, nodding. “It did cross my mind. How easy it would have been to go and not watch them both grow old, not watch my nan’s mind slip away. There’s a price to be paid for love, I suppose.”
Severus shakes his head. “I couldn’t have stayed and made myself suffer. Again, we are not alike in that matter. You’re a saint.”
You roll your eyes and lean towards him over the table. “Opposites attract.”
Severus arches a brow, in agreement. He eyes you up and down, practically ravaging you with his eyes. “They do, indeed, attract,” he breathes. You lick your lips because they’ve gone dry and Severus stares at you while you do it, liking it. Carefully, you slip your shoe off and stick your foot between his thighs, discreetly under the table. His nostrils flare when you press against his groin. Quickly, he grabs your foot, shifts in his seat, and presses it against his soft length beneath his trousers. Your lips part slightly. You caress him slowly with your foot, staring into his dark eyes. His lip twitches as he becomes hard. “You’re being naughty,” he whispers.
Before you can respond, the server brings your bill. You both sit up straight and you slip your shoe back on, then simultaneously, you and Severus both reach for the tab. She laughs lightly at you both and sits it down on the table, leaving you both to argue over it. Either of you grab each side of the check presenter.
“Do you even have muggle money?” you wonder, giggling.
He nods, keeping a hold of it. “Of course I do,” he replies, tugging on it, taking it from your hand. You watch him look at the tab, then reach into his trousers and withdraw a simple black wallet. He lays down some bills and is smirking proudly.
“Thank you,” you say. You both stand. “I’m going to the loo. Just wait outside,” you inform. Severus nods, stepping through the door of the restaurant. You weave between tables and the bar, heading to the back.
Once you’ve relieved yourself, you go to the sink to wash your hands. As you're drying your hands off, you hear the familiar sound of an apparition. Severus appears behind you, hair windblown. You gape, staring at him in the mirror. He looks dubious, but also so fucking attractive, towering behind you. You open your mouth to ask what the fuck he is doing, but he reaches out from behind you, grabbing you and pulling you back into him.
“Severus,” you sigh.
“Shhh,” he whispers, pressing his mouth against your ear. “You don’t want to be found being promiscuous with a man in a restroom, do you?”
You gape, face turning red. He chuckles lowly, running his hands down your sides. “You’re so responsive…I love it. Already red in the face…” One large hand traces up and presses over your breasts. “…breathing faster…” his other hand travels down, pressing against the crotch of your pants. “Getting wet like a slut, I’m sure,” he says, in your ear.
You take a sharp breath in. He pushes you so your stomach is flush with the sink. “Severus,” you sigh.
“Be quiet,” he commands. The band is still playing. You’re doubtful anyone can hear. Maybe if someone walked by the bathroom, they could. He presses a hand on your shoulder, making you bend at the waist over the vanity. You stare at him in the mirror. He’s looking at your body, your arse. He begins to run his hands down your back, groaning ever so softly. “Unbutton your pants,” he commands.
You part your lips and you silently protesting. Not in the bloody bathroom! Severus cocks his head, his dark eyes widening in warning at your hesitance. He reaches up and plants a hand over your mouth, then grabs a handful of your hair, pulling your head back. He presses his mouth to your ear.
“Do as you’re told,” he commands, voice deeper, darker. You reach down and unbutton and unzip your pants, pushing them down your thighs. He removes his hand from your mouth, sighing, sounding pleased. “Was that so hard?” he wonders.
His hand goes straight between your crotch, pressing up, rubbing. You put your own hand over your mouth, whimpering beneath it. Severus pushes you so you’re leant over the counter of the sink. You watch in the reflection as his hands run down your body, feeling every soft curve of you. He uses one hand and undoes his belt, then he pushes his pants down. He strokes himself for a moment, meeting your eyes. Then, he pushes his hips against your arse - you shut your eyes when you feel his hard cock against you. He pushes your underwear aside and immediately shoves two fingers into you, pumping and thrusting them. Your head lulls to the side.
You hear the knob on the bathroom door try to open - but it’s locked. Severus glances at it, almost getting angry but keeping himself quiet. He returns his attention to you now. He shoves his leg between yours and kicks them apart in one motion. His hand grabs the back of your hair, tugging, making you open your eyes again. The dark eyes bore into yours. He positions himself and pushes inside you, slowly and almost torturously. You sigh in pleasure. Severus leans down to you, your hair still in his hand.
“Look at me,” he breathes. He pulls himself out of you, thrusts back in, harder this time. You breathe out a silent moan. Severus nods, using your hair to tilt your head to the side so he can wrap his lips around the cusp of your neck. He begins to rut into you, at a steady pace but hard. He’s fucking you so hard the soap bottle on the sink falls over. This is too public, you’re worried someone will catch you. But watching Severus fuck you from behind in the mirror is a major turn on. How he holds you, how he’s kissing your neck, watching you with his dark eyes. How his hair is swaying back and forth, and his little groans of pure satisfaction. How good he feels inside you, the pressure and friction. He’s hitting you at a wonderful angle, where it feels so good.
“You’re going to cum around my cock,” he commands in your ear. You moan lowly, knowing you will indeed cum around him. Severus hisses through his teeth, pounding harder and faster now, like he has some sort of point to prove.
“Fuck,” you sigh. Severus wraps his arms around from behind, pulling your back into his chest, so your just slightly bent enough to continue to fuck. His hands squeeze around the curves of your body, his grunts fill your ears. You unravel around him in a split second, it comes out of nowhere. You pant, moaning and clenching, and Severus groans in pure pleasure. He thrusts only a few times before spilling himself. You both pant, staring at each other in the mirror of the bathroom. Severus presses his lips to your cheek, taking his softening cock out of you. He begins to right himself, fixing his trousers, doing his belt back up. You do the same. You attempt to fix your hair so it doesn’t look like you were just shagged in the bathroom when you walk out of here.
“Did you like that?” Severus asks, running his hands down your arms, bringing you close. You nod, smirking, feeling light headed from the wine and now the post-orgasmic pleasure.
“Caught me off guard,” you sigh, gazing up at him. He presses his lips to yours, kissing you with need. He pulls away from you.
“I’ll meet you outside,” he states, then disappears. You take a deep breath and exit the bathroom. You suppose he couldn’t apparate you, since someone could have seen you walk in here.
Severus and you walk back home, hand in hand, smirking at each other. When you get inside, Severus takes his shoes off and puts them neatly by yours, then hangs the jacket back in the closet. He strides into the living room and gets comfortable on the sofa. You take your jacket off and throw it over the entryway table, following him in. You plop down beside him, exhaling.
“How do you feel about Sunday for tea with Minerva?” Severus asks. You shrug.
“Can't really work right now, so that’s perfect,” you reply. He nods, lulling his head back, murmuring something about sending an owl to let her know. You stare at him, drunk and getting aroused again. You can’t help it.
“Let’s have sex again,” you decide.
“What?”
You stand up and walk to fetch your speaker and mp3 player, then return to the living room. You turn on music and sit the things down on the table, then begin to undress, which makes Severus eye you suspiciously. You get down to your bra and underwear, then grab each of his hands to place them at your waist.
“What are you doing?” he asks, sounding pleased. You straddle his waist.
“You said you wanted a dance,” you say, grinning. Severus leans his head back, arching a brow, not protesting. You grab his hands and plant them on your breasts, which he eagerly takes into his palms.
“Fuck,” he says, looking down at your waist moving against his crotch.
“I need you to fuck me again,” you say, drunkenly. Severus groans now, his eyes darkening.
“What, do you think my cock can get hard again so quick?”
You reach behind you and unclip your bra, which he gladly discards to the floor. He leans his head forward, sucking one of your nipples into his mouth. His tongue swirls and his teeth brush against your sensitive skin.
“It will for me,” you retort. This makes him clamp down with his teeth around your breast. You gasp, grabbing at the hair on the back of his head. “Severus,” you whine.
He pulls off of you, chuckling. “I will never grow tired of you and your little noises,” he breathes, pulling you down into his waist as he presses up. You lean into his face with your chest and he responds by kissing between them, groaning against your skin. You continue to move your hips back and forth, urging him to get hard. His hands run up and down your body, squeezing your skin with his calloused fingers.
“Please, Severus,” you say, grinding against him faster. He exhales, reaching down and undoing his belt. He pulls himself free - he’s nearly hard enough.
“You forget I’m old,” he sighs, moving his hand up and down the length of him. “We just shagged not ten minutes ago,” he reminds.
“I’m horny,” you say, sadly. Severus plants a hand on your stomach, pushing you off of him. You stumble to your feet as he stands, towering over you know.
“Show me how much you need me,” he commands, pushing his pants down to expose the entirety of his manhood. You drop to your knees immediately, resting your hands on his thighs. You open your mouth and look up at him with a demure expression.
“You want me to suck your cock?” you ask, innocently. He scoffs, grabbing himself with one hand. With the other, he holds your head still and shoves himself inside. You moan, trying to open your mouth as wide as you can, but you fear it isn’t enough.
“I want you to choke on it,” he breathes, throwing his head back, beginning to pump himself in and out of your mouth. You moan around him. You love when he talks this way. You don’t know if it’s his deep voice, or how sexy he sounds when doing it, but you are a fucking whore for it. “Good girl, take it all,” he murmurs, looking back down at you.
You moan around him, beginning to bop your head as he thrusts into your mouth. He hisses through his teeth. “I do not deserve you,” he says, shaking his head. His self loathing makes you suck harder and faster. He grunts, pushing himself in to the hilt and ceasing further movement. You begin to choke on him and your eyes begin to water. There’s something about how far he is and how much he stretches you that makes you adore this. You want to please him more than anything. “Fuck, look how good you take my cock,” he praises, almost sounding impressed. “Is it hard enough for you, darling?” he toys. You nod, trying to speak, but cannot. He pulls out of your mouth, pulling a rope of saliva with him.
“Get up,” he orders, meanly, pulling you up by your arm. He swings you around towards the sofa and bends you over at the waist over the arm of it. You gasp when his hands rip down your underwear and squeezes the soft skin of your arse roughly. “You are too needy,” he says, grasping your thighs and pushing them apart. He presses himself against you, rubbing up and down your folds before plunging himself fully inside you. You throw your head back, crooning - you’re still so sensitive from earlier at the winery. It feels heavenly.
“Fuck, I love having you inside me,” you sigh. He pulls himself out and thrusts back in, hitting the deepest parts of you. You cry out, nodding stupidly. He slowly pounds into you, humming softly when he hears you moan. “Faster,” you beg.
He grabs your arse, beginning to thrust, complying to your request. You grasp at the couch, moaning stupidly.
“You look so lovely from this angle,” Severus grunts. He begins to use his strength behind each thrust now. You feel him lean over you. He places his hands at either side of your shoulders, rutting and heaving into you. You groan outloud with each thrust, your eyes roll back. He’s fucking you so perfectly. You won’t ever get enough of him. “Is this what you needed, you little whore?” he asks, pulling back on your hair.
“Yes, yes, so badly,” you whine. Severus groans deeply, continuing his fucking. It doesn’t take you long for your back to arch and legs to shake. Severus chuckles menacingly.
“Already?” he asks, coyly. You begin to clench around him, each wave of pleasure better than the last. You moan wildly, panting beneath him. He’s breathing heavily too, and you swear you can hear a small moan escape his throat. Severus thrusts a little slower, through your tightening core, hissing as he does. “Being so needy suits you so well,” Snape gets out before stopping his fucking to spill himself inside you. You pant, pressing your head into the sofa cushion, wondering if you’ll be sore tomorrow. He really didn’t hold anything back.
He pulls out of you, fumbling around his clothes for his wand. He waves it and you feel his release vanish from inside you. He’s always cleaning you up after sex, it’s almost like he hates the thought of his semen running down your thighs. Carefully, he pulls you up, turning you around to face him. You look up at him with tired eyes. He promptly picks you up and heads towards the staircase, knowing you’re both too tired and tipsy to continue. Once inside your bedroom, he lays you down on the bed, exhaling. He joins you.
You find each other quickly, pulling the sheet over your sweaty bodies and getting close. You press your lips to his, then lay your head on the pillow. “I love how you fuck and talk to me,” you breathe. Severus turns his body towards you, running his hand up and down your spine.
“Is that all you love?” he asks after a beat. You stare at him, then slowly smile, but don’t reply. “You told me last night, when you were intoxicated, that you loved me,” he reveals.
You gape, shaking your head. “I did not!” you say defensively. He frowns, dramatically.
“You do not love me?” he asks, voice quiet, purposefully sounding sad. You nod immediately.
“Drunk words are sober thoughts, right?” you reply, grinning. You wait for a moment, hoping he will return the same feelings. Instead, he presses his lips to your head, letting them linger for a long moment. He is not one to openly express his feelings so easily. You don’t expect him to reciprocate verbally. Maybe this is his way of returning your feelings. When he pulls away, he looks at you apologetically, almost pained. You press your hand to his cheek.
“It’s alright,” you breathe, understanding. He places his hand over your own, then kisses the inside of your wrist. Then he continues up your arm, to your shoulder, your collar bone, your neck, kissing you until he’s practically smothering you. After awhile, he pulls away, gazing at you…lovingly.
“This…” he says, putting his mouth on yours, his hooked nose pressing against your cheek. You kiss him back. “…is how I can say that.” He kisses you again, then lays his head down, continuing to gaze at you. He looks despondently.
“I’ve only ever said it one time. To one of my exes. It was hard,” you whisper, then you smile. “And I didn’t even mean it then.”
Severus presses his forehead to yours. “You mean it now?” he asks. You nod, kissing his nose.
“Yes. Don’t you believe me?” you wonder. His eyes flutter shut and his long eye lashes fan out beneath his eyes.
“We promised never to lie to each other,” he says, alluding that he believes you. “I did not believe anyone would ever say those words to me.”
You’re motionless and silent for a long moment. His words hurt you more now than it would have back four or five months ago. Because you feel so deeply for him. You need him. He needs you. You think, or at least hope, he realizes the same. Carefully, you wrap an arm around his back, putting your head into the crook of his neck. There are no more words. Just the embrace that takes you both to sleep.
When you wake up the next morning, you’re still in the same position you fell asleep in - tightly wound together with Severus beneath the sheets. You lean your head up to check your alarm clock behind him on the nightstand. It’s nearly nine. When you lay down, his eyes are open and looking at you.
“Oh. Good morning,” you say, your voice thick with sleep. He slowly unwinds himself from your body, then sits up. He stretches his arms above his head and you hear something pop inside his body.
“Good morning, darling,” he replies before standing up. He goes to the chest of drawers and begins to grab some of the clothes he stuck inside. You smile at him from behind, sleepily.
“Do you have somewhere to be? I thought the school was on holiday.”
He nods, pulling out an undershirt and putting it on. “Poppy tends to my throat today,” he reminds. You sit up now, watching him grab a pair of slacks from the closet. He dresses before you can finish getting out of bed.
“Sleep some more,” Severus says, looking at you, getting to the bed. You stick your lower lip out.
“Do you want me to come with you?” you ask. He hesitates, staring at you.
“If you want to,” he says, placidly. “It’s boring. And takes a little time.”
You shrug. “It isn’t like I’m working right now.” Severus nods, then sweeps out of the room. You hear him go into the bathroom and shut the door. You find something comfortable to put on and run your hands through your hair. You head downstairs to use the half bath, since Severus is still occupying the full one upstairs.
You find each other in the living room when you’re both ready. He grabs your hand and then the portkey, taking you inside his office at Hogwarts.
The walk from his office to the hospital wing is lengthy, but you don’t mind. You get to look at more of the castle. It’s hard to believe Severus has spent his life here and he so badly wants to leave. The halls are empty, save two younger students you saw playing a game of chess. When you arrive at the hospital wing, it’s vacant. Severus takes a seat on the bed, exhaling as he does. He begins to unbutton his black frock coat.
“Well, sit down,” Severus says. You sit down in the chair beside the bed, crossing your legs and getting comfortable. “When we see Minerva Sunday, don’t tell her you met Poppy. It might make her angry that she didn’t meet you first.”
You smile, letting out a laughing sigh. Severus unbuttons his white dress shirt now, shrugging it off. Your eyes trail down his chest and you take your fill of his body. You hear footsteps approaching, they get louder the closer they get. You watch as the healer enters the hospital wing, carrying two vials in her hands.
“Oh, dear! How long have you been waiting?” she asks, walking up to Severus. She hands the vials to him, then pushes his head to the side, examining the reddened, irritated scar. Severus begins to read the vials.
“Not long,” Severus replies. “Nothing new, then?”
As shakes her head, she catches a glimpse of you out of the corner of her eye. She smiles down at you politely. She’s dressed in a long white dress with a red sleeved cloak over her shoulders. She has a white bonnet on her head. She’s adorable.
“Oh, hello there. Who might you be?”
You smile back at her, standing up and holding your hand out. “I’m Severus’ partner, [first name]. Pleasure to meet you… Poppy?”
She nods, shaking your hand, looking back and forth between you and Severus. “Oh, what wonderful news! Severus didn’t tell me! How long have you been seeing each other?” She pulls your hand into her chest, rubbing it. “This is just wonderful!”
You laugh, taking your seat when she lets you go. “We met in December,” Severus says, rolling his eyes. She promptly strikes his arm, making him wince.
“It’s bloody the middle of April! You didn’t tell me this entire time!”
Severus shakes his head. “It isn’t anyone’s business,” he retorts. Poppy cocks her head at him. He sighs, shrugging.
“I didn’t know how to bring it up,” he explains. Poppy looks at you, smiling again.
“Well, you're very pretty. And a little young,” she speculates. You nod, agreeing. “What is it you do?”
Severus groans, placing one of the vials in Poppy’s hand. She nods, getting her wand out, magically uncorking the vial and levitating the liquid over his neck. You watch it seep into his skin. It makes him wince.
“Well, I should probably tell you that I’m a muggle, firstly. I don’t do anything magical.”
Poppy’s brows raise as she glances at you, making her wand turn slightly. Severus groans. “Woman!” Severus complains. Poppy turns his attention back to him, making small motions with her wand over his neck.
“That’s just fine, muggle or witch. You must be very strong willed to deal with Severus here.”
You laugh, nodding. “That I am,” you agree. “I own and run a bakery in Three Bridges, if you know where that is.”
She nods. “I’ve heard of it, West Sussex, isn’t it?” You nod, impressed she knows where.
“She makes delicious food,” Severus compliments. Your face flushes. Poppy cannot stop smiling.
“Oh, I am so very happy for you both,” she beams, lowering her wand. She sits down beside Severus, who gives her a look of discontent.
“I should go get Minnie!” Poppy says, excitedly.
“No,” Severus replies. “She’s out of the school today, anyhow. We are having tea on Sunday, before term resumes.”
Poppy frowns. “Oh, I’m due at St. Mungos Sunday.”
“You weren’t invited anyway,” Severus reminds. Poppy rolls her eyes now.
“Severus Snape, you better change your attitude.” She stands up and waves her wand over him. The same diagnostic spell Severus used on you in the past. “You’re in good spirits overall. Why are you so mean today? Are you tired?”
Severus gestures to you. “She kept me up late.” You turn red in the face, widening your eyes at him. “You and Minerva won’t have the chance to pester me so much when I’m through with being Headmaster.”
Poppy stares down at him and her expression falls. “We care about you. Last time I checked, that list was short.”
She walks away after that, giving him no time to reply, heading further into the hospital wing.
“Why are you being like this?” you whisper. Severus eyes you.
“You try having two women constantly nagging and worrying for you and interrogating you on how you are. They’re both like this.”
You cock your head. “Why is that bad? You’d rather be alone? No one caring about you?”
Severus sighs. “I’m sorry. My neck hurts,” he murmurs. He scoots up in the bed and lays his head down on the pillow, shutting his eyes. “The first potion she dosed me with stays inside for about thirty minutes. It cleans the poison from my blood. She’ll come take it out and administer a strong anti-inflammatory and pain medication after.”
He brings his hand up to his throat, grimacing. “It isn’t very tolerable. It makes me irritated.”
You stand up and sit down beside him on the bed, grabbing his free hand. He exhales through his nose, squeezing your hand tightly. You stay like that through the remainder of the time.
Poppy comes back and begins to withdraw the potion from his throat and discards it into a basin. There’s a silver colored liquid swirling inside the potion. That must be the snake's poison that keeps regenerating. He sighs out loud when she starts to administer the next potion.
“I apologize, Poppy,” Snape says before she goes to leave again. Poppy stares down at him. “Thank you for helping me.”
She smiles, reaching down to brush away the hair from his forehead. “You’re welcome,” she whispers. Poppy looks at you. “He would have never said that if it weren’t for you,” she teases.
Severus rolls his eyes, you just laugh. She looks at the large clock in the center of the wall. “I must get to Hagrid’s. He’s got a touch of pumpkin fever,” she explains. You wave at her as she leaves. Severus sits up, reaching for his clothes. You grab them for him and help him into them. Once he’s dressed, you head back to his office.
The rest of the day goes by unremarkably. You spoke with the insurance company who said the check to start repairs on the bakery was mailed today, so you should receive it Monday. Severus and you spend time together by reading and chatting in between lunch and dinner. You order takeaway and play cards after eating. Then, after showering, you both become entangled in bed, content by each other's touch. That pain in his neck has vanished. You worry about when the pain will decide to return. You wish it’d go away. How terrible it must be to be reminded of the trauma of the snake attacking him.
Before you fall asleep, you briefly talk about the quickly approaching tea with Minerva. He seems worried about it. You are not. She sounds wonderful. You promise him you will make delicious treats and flavorful tea for her. He smiles at the sentiment. A part of you grows sad that he will be returning back to his job next week. You’ll miss him sharing a bed with you. Maybe you’ll just take the portkey and spend the night with him on the nights he isn’t here. The last thing you feel is his hand running down your back. It makes you drift into darkness.