Snape In Love

Chapter 15

Open Wide The Floodgates...

Remus was, as usual, tucking in to a hearty full Scottish breakfast, including porridge and kippers, when I arrived in the Great Hall, and he greeted me warmly.

"So, how long was it before Severus joined you last night?" he asked ingenuously as I sat down beside him.

"Oh, about fifteen minutes," I smiled.

"You win, Sirius!" he said, tossing a silver sickle across me to Sirius who pocketed it smugly.

"Remus! I can´t believe you were taking bets!" I said, appalled.

"It wasn´t me, it was his idea!"

Sirius winked at me and said,

"It was easy money, Ella. Remus is a soft touch and Severus is just so damn predictable!"

"I´m glad you think so," I said, unconvinced. Severus´ behaviour since I´d known him had been anything but predictable.

"He was speechless at you last night!" Sirius continued gleefully as he poured me a large goblet of pumpkin juice. "His face as you left was a picture! When he saw you meant business, he stormed off back to his dungeon! I got the impression he wouldn´t stay there long, he was muttering something about not letting you get the upper hand!"

I laughed in spite of myself, and turned back to Remus, who was gazing wistfully across the room to where Hermione was sitting. She caught him looking and smiled warmly, blushing. I noticed Remus´ ears turn pink, and decided I didn´t need to talk to him about Hermione after all.

Just then I heard a familiar swishing of robes behind me, and the chair next to mine was scraped back noisily. Severus met my warm smile with a face as black as thunder, sat down next to me and said in a low voice,

"Is this how it´s going to be? My chasing you all over the school like a lovesick fool, never knowing whether or not you´ll be there when I wake up?"

"I don´t know, Severus," I said, looking at him, all frowns and irritation, and feeling desire tug at me once more, "How would you like it to be?

"I want you to come with me to the dungeons. Now!" he spat, "Unless you think I need more sleep!"

I looked him up and down, enjoying the angry fire in his eyes, and said mischievously,

"You look very well rested to me, love."

"Then will you come?"

I raised an eyebrow suggestively and saw his eyes glint, and his sensual lips curl slightly in a smile. I leaned over until my lips touched his ear, and whispered,

"As often as you want to make me..."

His eyes burned into mine and I shivered, drawing back, yet still unable to resist adding,

"...Just as soon as I´ve finished my breakfast."

Open-mouthed and admitting defeat, he sat back in his chair with a sigh.

"Woman, will you not take pity on me?"

I was virtually frogmarched down to the dungeons, Severus gripping my arm tightly and rushing me along the gloomy corridors, barking "Shut up!" at any paintings that dared to greet him. When we reached his rooms at last, he locked the door and turned to me, his desire evident in his expression.

"I want to make myself perfectly clear. I do not want any repetition of what happened last night in future. Do you understand?"

"Perfectly, Severus. But it was for your own good."

"I´ll be the judge of that," he answered, as he slipped my robes from my shoulders and removed my sweater and trousers slowly and reverently, moving his hands up and down my body as he drank me in. When at last I was standing naked before him, shivering with want for him, he scooped me up in his arms masterfully.

"At last! Now, I believe it´s my turn to be in charge, isn´t it?" he said with a triumphant gleam in his eyes. He carried me through into the bedroom beyond his office, flinging me on to the bed, where I lay flushed with excitement and wondering what he had in store for me. His eyes glittered, and he smirked as velvet cords snaked from each of the four bedposts and knotted themselves around my ankles and wrists. Surprised, and aroused, I pulled against my restraints and said,

"I´ll scream!"

"Oh, you´d better! I shall be very displeased if you don´t!" he smiled lasciviously, and bent over me, kissing me deeply, his hair brushing my face. I wanted to embrace him, but was powerless to break free of my bonds. His tongue licked my lips, and then travelled down my neck behind my ear. I could feel his hot breath on my cheek and it sent delicious shivers down my spine. I moaned, and he chuckled softly as he nuzzled my ear with his nose.

Then, moving his hands down my body, his fingers found my nipples, brushing over them with the lightest of touches until I turned my face to his and pleaded, "Severus..."

He gazed into my eyes longingly, but simply said in a mocking tone,

"I´m in charge now, Ella," and stood up, walking across the room away from me. I voiced my disappointment, but he was simply removing his wand from his robes and performing a soundproofing charm on the room. He came back to the side of the bed and I strained against my restraints, wanting to reach out and pull him to me. He looked down at me, impassive except for the fire in his eyes, and slowly, methodically, began to undress. He was teasing me, I knew, and he couldn´t prevent a slow smile from spreading across his face as I devoured him with my eyes. At last, he was naked except for a pair of green silk boxers, which did little to hide his arousal. Slowly, never taking his eyes from mine, he removed them too, then climbed on to the bed, and lay down just inches from me. I ached for him, wanting to feel his smooth skin against mine, my desire for him hot, and my body desperate for his touch.

He put his hand to my face, so close that the downy hairs on my cheeks were almost brushed by it. Almost, but not quite. Propping himself up on one elbow, and watching my every reaction closely, he let his hand travel down to my shoulder, then further to my breast, never quite touching my skin no matter how much I strained and arched my back to reach it.

"Severus, please!" I sobbed urgently, earning no response other than a slight smile from his parted lips. When I thought I could take no more, the building pressure between my legs unbearable now, he climbed on to all fours and straddled me, saying

"Corpus leviosa!"

All of a sudden I was floating an inch or two above the bed, still tethered, my chest and stomach pressed against his as I rose. With one hand he supported himself while the other stroked up and down my spine, tickling in a deliciously erotic way until I was crying out for him to stop. His face brushed mine, our cheeks and noses rubbing one another´s faces, but no matter how I struggled, I could not catch his lips for a desperately craved kiss. I could feel his manhood as it explored the dark hairs guarding the entrance to my most secret place, and I thrust my hips as far as my restraints would allow, pleading with him to enter me.

He looked down at me eventually, eyes smoky, clouded with passion, and said huskily,

"I don´t think you´re ready yet," and moved down the bed. I moaned and writhed, needing to feel his arms holding me, his fingers caressing me, his arousal filling me. But instead, he positioned himself almost at the foot of the bed, murmuring,

"How much do you want me?"

I screamed "Ah! Severus!" and his hands gripped my bucking hips tightly, forcing me to be still. I was beside myself with want and need and the pleasure was becoming unbearable. Just when I thought I could stand no more, and yet at the same time wanting it to go on forever, he stopped, and moved back up the bed until his face was level with mine once more.

"How much do you want me now?" he repeated, his manhood insinuating itself into my velvet folds.

"Oh Severus, I want you, oh please, please," I begged, my breathing ragged with desire.

"I still don´t think you´re ready yet," he teased softly, "because you aren´t sorry about last night..."

"I am, I´m sorry, I´m sorry!" I gasped as he sucked and fondled my aching nipples once more.

"...And you must promise never to do that to me again..."

"I do! I promise! Just- just- Ah!"

I cried out, his weight pushing my body back down on to the bed. Suddenly the bonds on my wrists and ankles were gone, leaving me free to wrap myself around him and cling on to him with all my might. His eyes were closed now, an expression of bliss on his face as he made love to me. I felt the heat growing between my legs and returned each of his thrusts with one of my own, moving my hips around in a circular motion, making him groan with pleasure. All I was aware of now was the feel of his skin against mine.

We seemed to go on for a very long time, each of us trying now to keep our passion in check in order to prolong the experience for the other, but at last Severus gazed down at me and almost sobbed,

"Oh, Ella..." and as we looked through one another´s eyes deep into our souls, we felt the intensity rising, ever rising, until we were holding on to each other so tightly as our climaxes exploded, spreading outwards from our very cores, and we were crying out each other´s names, over and over, until it was finished. We lay motionless, shattered by the sweetness of our union, the only movement the pounding of our hearts. Severus lay across me, his face buried in my neck, my arms and legs still wrapped around him, my hand tangled once more in his hair. His body was wracked with tremors and I stroked his back wordlessly, calming him. Minutes passed before either of us moved.

It was Severus who broke the spell first, sliding off me until he was lying by my side, arms still around me tightly. He planted gentle kisses all over my face, then looked into my eyes, saying solemnly,

"Will you stay with me?"

I nodded mutely and my eyes filled with tears. Tears that this proud, lonely man could open himself up to me so completely, make himself as vulnerable as he appeared to me now, asking such a question behind the question. I knew that I was giving him the answer he wanted. Yes, I would stay with him. For as long as he wanted me to.

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We spent the next few weeks in a haze of passion, sleep and food. Severus´ recuperation from his ordeal at Voldemort´s hands was psychological as well as physical, and he would often wake in the night screaming and sweating, coping with it alone at first, as he had had to do for so many long years. But as time went on, and I shared his bed each night, he began to crawl closer into my arms to escape his demons. Although he was still as intense as ever, as our love grew so did his good humour. Behind closed doors, that is. To everyone else, little had changed. He still strode around Hogwarts glaring at any students who got in his way. When he was well enough to teach again, he still terrorised his classes. He still scowled at Sirius and Remus at every opportunity while they, in turn, teased him mercilessly about me.

But he would close the door to his rooms after a lesson, come to me and sweep me off my feet, kissing me with such exultation and intensity that it made my heart feel like it would burst with love for him. For a while, we were happy. Then came December.