8

CHAPTER EIGHT: SOSTENUTO

They arrived back at Hogwarts weary and emotionally drained. Snape made for his rooms but stopped when he sensed that Hermione was not following.

"Do I still have a curfew?" The child was poised on the stairs looking up at the path to Gryffindor Tower.

"Yes." Snape watched her face fall. "But I will not turn you in. Go spend time with your friends, child. It has been days. But I thought Potter and Weasley weren't speaking with you?" Severus was careful in his wording. He wanted to remind her of the need to keep distance, at least for the time being, between herself and Potter. But he couldn't come right out and say anything. The walls had ears, literally in spots.

Hermione glanced at his robes pocket where he had the chronicles safely stowed, then looked wistfully back up the stairs. "I know, but I just want to try again." Just then Malfoy and a group of his cronies came around a corner. Snape thanked the gods he had kept his mouth shut earlier and cringed when Hermione continued on seemingly oblivious to their presence. "He doesn't trust me anymore, but maybe I can still spend time with him. See what he is doing, make sure he's keeping out of trouble. Harry seems to have a knack for finding it." Hermione glanced at the Slytherins and gave a rather startled jump then looked pointed at her husband and winked.

Snape realized she was setting up their story more completely. Malfoy would be sure to pass the conversation along to his father. And the way she phrased things it sounded like she just might be SPYING on Potter. Perhaps he had underestimated her again, he wondered. He knew she was intelligent, but she also appeared to have an inborn talent for deception. Must be genetic.

"Alright you can go, but I will require you to be in my chambers by midnight. We need to discuss your training." Snape locked eyes with her and silently told her not to hurry. He gave a small nod in the direction of the observers and the girl slowly blinked her eyes to acknowledge a message received. "We need to get you ready for your public debut. I believe we have little less than two months till I will be expected to attend a dinner at Malfoy Manner. You of course will accompany me. You have much to learn before then."

Hermione perked up at the mention of extra lessons, no matter the subject, then hid her glee under a mask of submission in honor of their audience. "Thank you Professor. I will make sure I am back in time." With a bounce in her step that ignored the time of night, and the day's events, she bounded up to Gryffindor Tower.

Snape turned to the still lurking students. "Mr. Malfoy, may I ask why you appear to be eavesdropping on a private conversation?" Severus added a low rated sneer for good measure. He may not deduct points from Slytherin often but he demanded constant respect.

"I wasn't eavesdropping, Sir. If I had been you wouldn't have seen me." Draco carefully allowed an equally mild smirk to grace his features. He didn't want to goad his head of house into point deductions but the sneer demanded a smirk, at least a little one.

"Refrain from such actions in the future Mr. Malfoy, no matter what you chose to call them. Now go to bed before you aggravate me." The steel in Snape's tone would have sent many a Hufflepuff to the infirmary. Draco simply smiled once and left, the normal entourage trailing silently behind him.

Snape sighed and banished his cloak to his closet. It had been days since he had made his regular rounds of the school, it was high time to get back on schedule. He started near the kitchens and ended by the Astronomy tower. Six detentions and fifty house-points later, -a slow night, - Snape gave up the struggle and went to his chambers to rest.

Hermione was not back yet, he didn't honestly expect her till morning. He striped down and stepped into the shower. The water felt wonderful, easing all the day's tensions away with its soft caress.

Severus spent a little longer than normal under the cascade and made an attempt at a preemptive strike on this morning's problem hoping it would not repeat itself. She hadn't run screaming, but she hadn't volunteered to help either. He stepped out of the shower and redressed. He went to his desk and stared at the stack of work waiting for him. He picked up a fourth year Ravenclaw's essay on the use of powdered Bicorn Horn and shuttered. Red quill in hand, he set to work.

He had just finished marking and laying out the lesson plans he had been neglecting when he caught sight of the clock. Three am, he was too tired to care about the rest of the stack tonight. He piled his parchments up and set a heavy paperweight on them and crawled under his sheets. He promptly lost all connection with the waking world.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

The knocking on his chamber door made him jump upright. He was tempted to scream Nevermore and put in earplugs. Now wouldn't that shock the populace of the school. Poe was a damn fine muggle writer...

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.

Only one person ever knocked like that. He cursed the gods for gracing the earth with elderly Gryffindor matrons and pulled on his robes. He would be damned if he was opening his door less then properly attired.

Wrenching the handle open he scanned the hallway. "What do you want McGonagall. It's five am!" His eyes fell on a bloody Draco Malfoy and a sheepish looking Weasley and Potter. Raising an eyebrow he looked back at the boys. "Let me guess, you three couldn't wait till graduation to kill each other and decided to do it at FIVE A.M!" The dungeons rang. Even Draco cringed.

He turned his furry onto the Gryffindor Head of House. "And what pray tell made you bring them down here? Mr. Malfoy is in obvious need of Madam Pomfrey and you're responsible for those two...two...cretins."

Minerva actually looked happy as she reached behind her back and yanked a disheveled Hermione Penwrath into Snape's line of sight. "True, but I thought this might belong to you." The damn woman smirked. Snape decided that there would be one very nasty potion going into her pumpkin juice in a few hours.

Hermione for her part looked a mess. Her robes were wrinkled and her hair was even more bushy and tousled then normal. Her eyes were wild and her face flushed. She kept glaring at Draco and her hands where shaking slightly. Severus decided to get to the bottom of this, and a cup of coffee.

"Alright, alright bring them all in. Mr. Malfoy follow me." He stepped back from the door and went to a cabinet and handed Draco a healing potion. The boy drank it back without looking at it and Severus made a mental note to instill a little suspicion in the Malfoy heir. He watched Minerva lead the trio to the sofa out of the corner of his eye.

"If you think you can handle it from here I'll be going back to bed, Severus." Minerva once more smirked and rushed out before Snape could protest. Oh yes, one VERY nasty potion in her pumpkin juice. One that would at the very least turn her hair Slytherin green for a few hours...

"WHAT happened? The truth Mr. Malfoy." Severus scowled at his prize pupil.

Draco turned red and looked at the ground. Snape narrowed his eyes. The boy was up to something. He never acted like this.

"Would you care to enlighten us, Ms. Penwrath?" He obviously wasn't going to get anything of value out of the other one, not when Draco was so obviously plotting something.

Hermione glared at Draco and raised her chin. "Ferret boy made an unwanted, unsolicited, and unmannerly advance. I reacted accordingly." Potter and Weasley snickered and tried to hide it. They failed.

Snape turned to look at the now cowering Malfoy and intensified his glare. "Draco Malfoy is what my wife says true? Did you proposition her?" The boy nodded. "Did she say no?" Another nod. "Did you persist?" A smaller affirmative head motion. "What happened next, Potter." Snape did not trust either Hermione or Draco to tell the next part truthfully. Draco was pretending to be frightened and Hermione looked like she was out for blood. Neither one would prove insightful at the moment.

Harry swallowed. "Well Sir, you see, Malfoy had Hermione by the arm and he wouldn't let go. Ron and I where about to...uhm...assist her when she hit him. Hard. Malfoy fell down a couple of steps and she, well, she...ah..."

"Get on with it, Potter." Harry gulped and looked at Hermione and refused to continue. "Weasley you finish the story."

"It was bloody bril...uh.." Snape glared. "Uhm, Hermione went after Malfoy and she well, she kept hitting him. A lot. And then she kicked him."

Draco interrupted. "She kicked me down a whole flight of stairs!" Weasley was red in the face and Draco had gone pale but his tone still held its normal whine. He was off the couch now sending hate filled looks at the trio while somehow managing to keep an air of dignified injury about him.

Snape took one look at his friend's son and decided he needed to put a stop to whatever it was the boy intended to pull before it happened. He drew himself up to his full imposing height and allowed his voice to rise. "You TOUCHED my wife without my permission and you have the nerve to complain to me about the consequences?" Snape internal cringed at the words. He looked at Hermione and saw her angry glare was now directed at him. He rubbed his wrist where the bonding bracelet lay to let her know that he did not mean them. She jerked and grabbed her left wrist in surprise than quickly hid her smile.

Malfoy meanwhile was trying to figure out if he wanted to make a run for it or keep up his air of superiority. Snape didn't give him the time to choose.

"You Mr. Malfoy, will spend three weeks detention with Filch and fifty points from Slytherin." The room was silent. That was the most points Snape had ever taken from his own house. Draco was stunned. "Potter, Weasley, if there ever is a next time, which I do not believe there will be," Malfoy had backed up slightly and looked green with the thought, " I expect you to protect your friend. Ten points from Gryffindor apiece and a detention with your head of house. Now out." The boys scrambled for the door. Weasley turned to give his friend a glance but Potter pulled him out. Draco was not far behind them. Unlike the other two who practically tipped over themselves in their haste, the Malfoy heir seemed to stroll casually out as if he had not received a single word of chastisement.

As the door shut Snape reset the wards and silencing spells just in case and turned to his wife. "Are you alright?" Hermione had slid bonelessly down the wall and was sitting on the floor. "He didn't try anything to..." Snape still hadn't figured out what Draco was up to and he was afraid the boy might be trying to live up to the family legacy of lecherous pursuits at all costs.

She shook her head no. "No, he just...grabbed me. I think he wanted to talk at first but Ron wasn't about to let him so Draco decided to tick Ron off. I wasn't expecting him to grab me like that and say those things. I think now that its over, he was just looking for something to aggravate them. Why I don't know." She shivered. "I'm sorry to make you yell at him. Lucius and Voldemort won't be happy will they?"

"Lucius will understand and the Dark Lord will expect me to be territorial. I've never shared well, not even as a child." He paused, "But you do understand that I don't see you as my property and that I won't stop you from...well be discreet." It pained him to give her permission to have an affair. But he knew she wasn't married to him out of love and he would not stop her from looking for a true romantic interest, she was so young. But they had to be careful. If news of her infidelity got out they would be in danger. Well, she'd be in danger. Snape would just be laughed at for being a cuckold. He could live with that, of course anyone who said it to his face would find breathing difficult.

Hermione jerked to her feet. "I wouldn't do that!" Indignation burned behind her eyes. "I made a promise and I keep my promises. Besides I don't trust anyone enough to risk it besides Harry. And you know what I think about the chances of a relationship with him."

Snape was oddly relieved. He silently went back to his cabinet and gave his wife a calming potion to stop her shaking. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately. He led her into the bedroom and turned around so she could change in peace. He slipped back out of his robes, he had kept his sleeping wear on underneath. They both climbed under the covers. Snape then asked a question that had been bothering him. "I thought you didn't tell Weasley about all this? How did you and Potter work around that staged fight so quickly?"

Hermione chuckled. "To start with I made sure that Malfoy heard me say that Harry didn't trust me anymore. That way I can't logically be expected to lead Harry out of Hogwarts should the Dark Lord ask. Then when I got to the tower I made a big show of crying and begging for forgiveness. The others scattered and left the three of us alone to work it out. The tower is rather use to our little melodramas, although it's usually Ron and Harry trying to get the other one to accept an apology. After we were alone I told Harry I didn't send the article. Ron wanted proof, he was still mad at me. I still don't know who did send it, I most likely never will."

"I asked Harry if he had seen any strangers around Privet Drive this summer. He said he had seen an older man, dressed in funny cloths, hanging around in mid-July. I commented that the man was most likely a reporter sent to keep an eye on the Boy-Who-Lived. That was proof enough for Ron. Poor thing thinks he still might have a chance with me. He can't stay mad at me for long anyway. With Ron placated, Harry decided that we should get some snacks and sit and talk about things for awhile. We needed to get caught up after all that's been happening. And I had to convince Ron I didn't need to be rescue from you. So we made a kitchen raid."

Snape glared. "I will not take points this time, but don't think I won't if I catch you in the act."

Hermione smiled. "We made a kitchen raid and then found a ...well one of our normal little hiding places and talked for a few hours. When we saw it was around Five am we decided to head back to the tower. We had Harry's cloak of course and they wanted to drop me at our door. That way if Filch was out and about I wouldn't have to explain your giving me permission. Which made Ron about die of surprise by the way. Harry didn't seem to think anything about it. For some reason I think Harry's taken a liking to you." Snape looked horrified. "In a completely platonic way, Severus." He breathed a sigh of relief.

"We were just above the last landing leading down to the dungeons when Ron tripped and the cloak fell. Before we got it back on, -it's hard to fit three of us under it anymore,- Malfoy came out of the shadows, alone for once. Ron started in on accusing him of doing something Dark, like usual. Then Harry blushed for some reason and that caused Malfoy to smirk. Which made Ron even more upset. I stepped in between them to stop the fight like always, but then Draco did something he's never done before. He made a pass. Something about finding out what a man can really do instead of a bookworm in robes." Snape tried to hide his indignation. "No offence, he said it not me. He must have forgotten who he was talking to anyway. I mean, I find intelligence and a love of reading a TURN ON! Anyway, he went on to say something about you only knowing what to do with a cauldron and that he'd be more than willing to show me the ways of true pleasure. I laughed at him. I forget what I said, but Ron about threw up. Needless to say I had defended your sexual prowess. After a stunned silence Harry smirked and Malfoy grabbed me. He then said it was always better to keep these kinds of things, meaning affairs, in the family. I do hope he was joking and just trying to provoke the boys. I wasn't ready for somebody to grab me like that. I panicked and well, you know the results."

Snape chuckled softly. "I believe you just effectively curbed Draco's lust for a while. I've never seen him so miserable." Severus was suddenly struck by a thought, why hadn't Hermione used magic? The child had physically attacked instead of hexing. Given her above average magical skills why would she chose to take such a risk? And how had she won? Granted Draco was not a large opponent, but years of broom riding had given him more than a few muscles. He forcibly shoved his questions aside. The evening's events where trying enough for the girl after all she'd been through of late. He didn't want to cause her more distress. But he would investigate this later. Some things about his wife just weren't adding up. He turned his attention back to the conversation just in time to catch her response.

"You helped by taking house points and a whole three weeks of detention. That's unprecedented for a Slytherin from you."

"I have never had to protect a wife before." Both lay in silence for several heartbeats. "I blame my sudden bought of protectiveness on the bonding. Ancient magic tries to perpetuate itself and if I let harm come to you the bond could possibly be broken. It must be acting to foster more nurturing feeling in us in order to keep itself active."

Neither one looked convinced. Hermione decided not to press the matter yet. Instead she changed the subject. "What kind of training?"

It took Severus several seconds to follow the jump in logic. "Training? Oh, what I need to teach you for Lucius' little get together. Well I assume Soren taught you table manners and how to properly carry yourself." Hermione nodded. "I just want to brush you up on it a bit and make sure you know enough protective spells incase one of the other wives decides to see what your made of. Some like Narcissa are to out of it to bother. They can barley function. Others are like Mrs. Lestrange was before Azkaban, ruthless and heartless creatures. Some of the Deatheater wives are more dangerous than their husbands. Not all activities at the Dark Revels where held against the women's will after all. Some participated willingly and enjoy the acts, as hard as that may be to believe. Those that shared themselves willingly and without complaint normally got to help with the torture and muggle bating later. Mrs. Avery and Mrs. Nott are always eager to cast right along with their husbands. Mrs. Nott is better with Cruciatus than either Lucius or myself. Since the Inner-Wives are no longer required to attend the Revels they have taken to challenging one another to relieve the boredom."

"So you want to make sure I can defend myself and that I don't humiliate you."

"Correct."

Hermione yawned. "Good, because I'm to sleepy to even think about learning anything else and we only have two hours to sleep." They both stopped fighting the inevitable and gave into their dreams.

The next morning started just like the pervious one, except instead of a sleeping wife he found a very awake one. An awake and moving one. Severus didn't question it, he was only too happy to comply, except he would rather be asleep.

Hermione giggled and kissed him. "I was wondering when you'd wake up." She gave a grin and finished undoing the buttons on his nightshirt. Severus looked down and realized she had already gotten it half off before her movements had disturbed him.

"If you plan on accomplishing something with me when I have had less then three hours sleep I fear you are mistaken." He grumbled through his fatigue and tried to go back to sleep. He had another half-hour before he needed to get ready for breakfast, over an hour if he decided to skip it.

A chuckle met his protest and he felt a breath on his now bare shoulder. "I do LOVE a challenge." Suddenly Severus wasn't interested in sleep at all anymore. He paused a moment to wonder when exactly the child had learned to use THAT tone of voice. He came to the conclusion it really didn't matter.

He flipped over and finally shrugged off enough of his stupor to realize Hermione had already shed her nightgown. "I see you were sure of a positive reception."

Hermione gave a fake pout. "But I thought that you wouldn't mind a little diversion this morning." She grinned and looked down at her husband's half- hard cock. "I see that at least part of you doesn't mind. I figured that since I neglected you yesterday..." She stopped talking and moved closer. Severus reached out and snagged her into another kiss.

"So you noticed that, hum?" He quirked an eyebrow as Hermione growled at the loss of contact.

"Of course I noticed." She paused and looked a little sheepish. "I just needed time to work up the courage to do something about it. And when I woke up this morning to find a repeat..."

Now Snape looked a little uncomfortable. His plan from the night before must have failed. Someone should have warned him that teenage hormones where catching. He looked into his wife's eyes. They were amber again and more than a little dilated, she was also biting her lower lip.

"What is it?" She only bit her lip when something was confusing her.

"It's just, well, I started this and now I don't quite know how to finish it."

"You didn't seem to have much of a problem the first time around." He arched his eyebrow again and she shivered deliciously. He made a note, eyebrow equals sex weapon, check. He leaned in to her ear and bit down slightly. In a hushed tone, the one he saved for interrogations and bedroom rumps, he purred, "As a matter of fact you seemed to know more than you should."

Severus leaned back and watched the effect of his voice on the girl. She had closed her eyes and her heart rate had jumped. He chuckled and kicked the rest of the bed cloths off and got rid of his remaining clothing. If she started this he would make damn sure she finished it. Good work ethics should always be encouraged.

He let his hands follow their own devises. Instead of petting her hair this morning, they had decided that her sides and thighs were of interest. Hermione arched into his light caresses. A tiny moan escaped her as a nipple was brushed just slightly. "You did not answer my question, child." Severus bent his head down and licked the responsive flesh. That caused a not so tiny moan. "Where did you learn about all this?"

"I...I read a lot." Snape decided they only had an hour. He should stop with the pleasantries. He let the nipple go and the cold dungeon air did his work for him. His hands had stopped wandering and had taken up residence, one between those lovely thighs and the other gripping her left hand where the bonging bracelet made its home. He kissed her again as she squirmed trying to get his hand to touch her right there.

"And what books did you find of particular interest pertaining to this subject?" He kept his voice close to a purr. He went to sucking and licking the other sadly neglected breast before heading lower.

"uhm...oh my...I was inter...interested by a muggle writer...Anne Riiiiccccce. I never knew a belly button had...nerve...ENDINGS!"

He smirked as his tongue played. "Why yes they do. And such a lovely little belly button it is." He then moved further down and neared her entrance. Hermione groaned as he rubbed his free hand over her, she was already quite stimulated. "And what kind of books does Ms. Rice write?" Severus knew but he wanted to keep her talking. She was so cute when she was tying to concentrate on speech and hands at the same time.

Hermione grabbed his head with her right hand and yanked it up to her eye level. "This is not a book club!" She physical hauled him up into another kiss, this one brutal. Severus was surprised at her strength but easily twisted out of her one-handed grasp. Their hands were still tightly clasped next to them and the girl showed no signs of letting him go.

"Now now Ms. Granger I do believe you should answer your professor's questions."

"I thought you didn't want to be called professor in bed?" She smirked. "Isn't that a little kinky?"

Snape nodded and ran his right hand back between her legs and teased her. "And what kind of books does Ms. Rice write my dear?"

"Eroticcccaaa...and vampire...and witch...STOP TICKLING ME!" Snape had decided she wasn't answering fast enough.

"Ah ah ah, Ms. Granger. If you like Ms. Rice you won't mind if I make good on my promise to punish you for stealing from me in your second year. After all 'kinky' is mild compared to what that writer explores." He let his tone slip from a purr to a light growl. He was more than familiar with Anne Rice. He had been confiscating her Beauty Chronicles from Slytherins for years. It was odd how a house totally against all things muggle could become so attached to dirty muggle erotica.

Hermione shivered remembering their conversation from a few nights back when she gave him tacit permission to punish her for the events of her second and third year. Biting back another laugh she ground out a response. "I had envisioned detention." She caught her breath as he stopped tickling her.

"Be glad I didn't demonstrate the tickling charm as I had suggested." He was back to purring and his tongue was now carefully following the path his tickling had followed. He really wanted to know more about what Hermione had read from her own mouth. He didn't want to do anything to frighten her or shock her, at least not yet. The books were a good place to start. He could find out what she was most attracted to in them and work from there. Hermione cut back in on his thoughts.

"Anne Rice doesn't use tickling for punishment." Snape looked up and met her eyes. "Try a nice set of leather bindings and a paddle." She was serious he realized. Thinking back it made sense. On their wedding night he had stopped her from uncovering his Dark Mark by pinning her arms. He had been afraid that she would become more nervous and frightened by the sight of the Mark. He had wanted to make sure she was, distracted, before she saw it. At the time he didn't consider her reaction to his actions as odd, but in hind sight he came to the conclusion they were. A normal virgin would have taken being pinned badly. But Hermione had only become more turned on.

"So you enjoy being..." He moved quickly to grab her other hand and held them out to her sides and above her slightly, their fingers intertwined. "restrained." He shifted his body and placed his knee next against her, between her thighs. She sucked in a breath and wiggled down on him trying to gain more contact, any contact.

"Gods yes! And if you tell a soul...I'll, I'll not do this again!" Her eyes were closed and Severus let her arms go pulling his fingers away from her.

"I believe we can keep this as our little secret. Don't move your arms." His command voice was in place, the one he turned on Longbottom to stop explosions. It seemed to have the opposite effect in the bedroom.

His hands now free, he spread her legs and slid a finger inside neglecting to even touch her clitoris. He placed a hand over her mouth when she made a small protesting sound. "Did I say you could speak?" Hermione tossed her head no and Snape chuckled.

"Who would have guessed that Gryffindor's little know-it-all would like things of this sort? I do wish we had more time to explore this, but classes will start soon." The glare he received made it quite clear that as far as Hermione was concerned classes could...be late.

"What would you like me to do child?" He withdrew his hands from her and backed off so that not a single part of him was touching her. "Tell me what you want or I'll leave you and take care of my situation alone and leave you to your own devises."

Hermione blushed. Then she looked him in the eye and he could again see her courage take hold.

"I want you to fuck me. I want you to let go and not worry about me this time. I want to feel you lose control. And later I want you to tie me to the bed posts, blind fold me, and make sure I never take from your private stores again."

"I think I can arrange that, Ms. Granger." Snape decided he rather liked calling her that under the circumstances. Her old name made her breath hitch. He guessed it was the combination of her nakedness, his authoritative tone, and the normal childhood fantasy of a student/teacher affair. "You do seem to enjoy the forbidden act of bedding a professor don't you wench?"

"Oh yes, Professor." She grinned impishly at him and wreathed for his attention keeping her arms carefully still where he had left them.

"I'll definitely have to investigate this more later. But for now I think we should abandon our little game. We have precious little time, Hermione. Besides, I'm still not up to actually DOING any of that to you." Hermione looked disappointed. "Not that I don't like the idea," She perked back up, "But I am still struggling with the concept of you in my bed in a normal way. Reconciling that and moving on to that kind of play will take some time. Plus I have a few, negative associations to work through when it comes to tying up people." Severus forced the remembered sounds of Deatheater victims from his mind. This was not the place nor the time.

Hermione's look turned sympathetic. "No rush, Severus. After all I've no experience with it beyond books." Hermione abandoned her position and crawled into her husband's arms and started her own investigation of his body, retracing her path from their first encounter. "I am intrigued by the idea, but that doesn't mean I'll like it in...practice." Hermione had her hand around his now rock hard member and was gently stoking. "But I'm eager to find out..."

Severus looked at the clock as he leaned her down on the bed. They were definitely going to miss breakfast...