Archive of Our Own

Hermione

Being back at Hogwarts felt different now. The halls looked the same, the staff was largely unchanged and even the smell of parchment and ink was exactly as she remembered.

But everything was different now. She was no longer that same muggle-born girl with a desperate need to prove she belonged. She was a celebrated war hero, respected, and with her pick of jobs. Choosing to return had been easy. She loved learning, and inspiring a new generation of witches and wizards was a dream come true.

Headmistress McGonagall had offered her the position of Transfiguration Professor and she'd jumped at the chance. That was how she found herself walking the hallowed halls of Hogwarts on yet another September 1st, but this time wearing the robes of a professor. Under her robes, she wore a fit-and-flare blue dress with a little button-up cardigan covered in light blue flowers. She knew no one could really see her outfit, but it made her feel good to know she looked cute underneath her robes.

She'd spent the previous day setting up her classroom and as she walked in, she felt a surge of pride over the room she'd made her own. The desks were arranged in a circle to facilitate group discussions and she’d placed several plants around to give the stuffy room some new life.

Theo

Being back felt strange. He'd never thought he'd be here again. His love of Arithmancy was something his father had never fostered. It was too cerebral. His father wanted him to duel, to play Quidditch, hell, even potioneering would have been more acceptable. But no, Theo had loved the magic of numbers. It was a dream come true to be able to spend all day working in the subject he loved, it was a day he'd never thought would come.

His father had gone and died in his relentless pursuit of being the most intimidating person in the room and now Theo had something he'd never expected; freedom.

Theo had no idea how the public at large would accept him. His eighth year had been insulated. He, Draco, Blaise, and Pansy had stuck together getting each other through their NEWTs and the heck out of here. None of them could fathom why he'd wanted to come back. As Draco had pointed out, he had no need to work, he'd inherited a literal fortune when his father died. Draco certainly had no intention of working a day in his life. But Theo wanted to do more with his life, so here he was.

When he'd interviewed for the position, Headmistress McGonagall had also expressed concerns about how he would be received by his students and colleagues. He'd assured her it wouldn't be an issue. He'd handle it no matter what came his way. As he walked into his classroom he felt less certain than he'd sounded that day.

He ran his fingers through his curly mop, a nervous tic of his, and straightened his dark velvet robes.

He found his first group of the day, Slytherin and Gryffindor's fourth years, all sitting and chatting about their summer breaks. A hush fell over the room as he made his way to the front.

He wasn't sure if it was due to the typical respect they afforded all of their professors or if they were terrified of him, either way, he was glad they were behaving. Then he saw it.

Hermione

She’d heard, of course, that Theo was joining the staff. She’d even caught glimpses of him down the table during meal times and in the halls, but running into him was still a shock.

Hermione was sitting in the professor’s lounge, a sort of common room for the staff she’d had no idea existed during her time as a student, when in he walked.

He threw off his robes, slinging them over a chair and settling at a table by the fire. He had a stack of papers with him, presumably to grade but instead of touching them, he just sort of…brooded?

She was familiar with the favorite pastime of all Slytherins, they were champion-level brooders, practicing it since birth. But today, in this environment, Hermione was not sure what to do.

Were he any other colleague, she’d ask if he was alright. But it felt awkward to try to comfort him, they weren’t friends, acquaintances; Hermione didn’t think she’d ever actually spoken a word to the man. He’d always just been around.

But he continued to pout and no one else was coming in so she just stared at him, trying to determine the right course of action.

He was wearing a button-up in a rusty red color and layered on top was a long tan cardigan, with little patches at the elbows. He was tall and lean, his body almost too tall to fit in the chair comfortably. His dark curly hair dipped into his gray eyes. His eyebrows were thick and expressive. Hermione thought, on most men, it would be unattractive but it worked on him.

“Are you going to hex me or fuck me?”

Hermione startled, her eyes meeting his. At some point he’d noticed her inspection it seemed.

“Salazar Nott, neither. I was just wondering if I should ask if you were alright.”

He shrugged. “I’m on edge.”

Hermione noticed he did not actually apologize.

“Well, I leave you to your bad mood,” she said, gathering her own papers and walked out. She had a class to teach soon anyway.

After that first run-in, Hermione seemed to run into Nott everywhere she went. When she wasn’t teaching in her own little room, her eyes always seemed to drift to him. Down the table from her at breakfast, she’d notice as he picked at his food, his deep gray eyes marked with deep purple under them. During her walks around campus, she’d see him flying, not practicing quidditch but just riding his broomstick aimlessly. His thighs seemed to be rather defined from all that time on the broom but that was neither here nor there. But mostly, she saw him during their mutual break between 5th and 7th periods. They both seemed to enjoy the professor’s lounge more than their own offices for breaks and ended up there together nearly every day.

They settled into a sort of tense ceasefire after that first run-in. He took the table closest to the fire, while Hermione took the one by the kettle. She drank her tea and graded while he propped his feet up and did the same. Only, Hermione was now very much in the habit of watching him, and she did so whenever she thought he was engrossed enough in his work to not notice.

He never shouted at her about hexes or fucking, so she supposed she must have gotten more subtle in her observations of him. On this particular day, he was wearing a deep purple shirt, a pair of braces, and that same cardigan with the patches at the elbows. It should have been silly, seeing a grown man dressed as such, but Hermione couldn’t help but find him rather fit.

Suddenly, he broke the silence of the room, “Do you know anything about Conrad Verner?”

He spoke as if they’d been mid-conversation. As though they always chatted and asked each other about students and this was a completely normal occurrence. He didn’t even bother to look up from the paper he was grading as he spoke to her.

Hermione was tempted to look around the room, to make sure she was in fact who he was talking to but she fought off that urge with a shake of her hair. She knew they were alone, just as they always were this time of day.

She had a few options in front of her. She could ignore him and keep the icy silence which had honestly been working just fine for the both of them. But she could also answer and start to thaw out that ice.

In the end, as it always did for Hermione, curiosity won out.

She cleared her throat, doing her best to speak just as casually as he had. “I do know a bit, yes. Why do you ask?”

Nott looked up at her now, his face a blank slate, giving away nothing. “He’s been giving me some trouble. Wondered if perhaps he acted up for other teachers?”

Hermione turned to face him. “Acted up…no. But he causes issues in other ways.”

Nott raised one brow, interest clear now.

“Well, he’s said some troubling things about purebloods in muggle studies. McGonagall has been informed and she’s monitoring him, do you have any similar complaints about him? I am sure the headmistress would be very concerned if she knew.”

At the mention of McGonagall, she watched him stiffen. It was clear something was going on and she loved to piece together a good puzzle.

He turned back to his papers. “No, no. Nothing needs to be said to McGonagall.”

Hermione stood up and made her way over to his table. His eyes widened but he said nothing as she sat down across from him.

“Listen, just between you and I, that child is a prick, and if he’s giving you issues about your father’s side of the war-”

“I really don’t want to talk about this. Especially with you,” he snarled.

He started to stand and collect his things.

Without thinking Hermione grabbed his cardigan sleeve and pulled him back down to the table.

She pinned him with her best glare. “My two best friends are Harry and Ron, running off in an angry huff doesn't work on me.”

He laughed, though he tried to hide it and Hermione knew she was making progress.

“I get why you don’t want to talk about this with me. I’m the literal poster child for the other side. But I also think you don’t feel very comfortable going to your boss with this and I don’t see anyone else in this break room jumping at the chance to help you out.” She gestured to the empty tables around them. “So take what's being offered.”

He ran his hand through his mass of curls. “It’s been small stuff, mostly,” he began. “But when he undermines my authority it has a ripple effect.”

Hermione nodded. She was familiar with the importance of keeping the students in line. She still had some issues with her 6th years, ever since the transfiguration assignment where she’d typed up for them to change a caterpillar into a car instead of a cat.

“What sort of small stuff?” she prompted.

Theo sighed and began studying the wood grain of the table. “My first day, he wrote ‘murderer’ on the board. He often calls me Professor Twat. But when I call him out on it he denies it. I don’t want to be too hard on him. I know the war tore families apart and my father’s actions were inexcusable. But today, he actually used magic on me. Just a small tripping jinx but still.”
Hermione gasped. “Theo, none of that is small. I can’t believe you've been forced to work like this.”

“Please don’t make this into a whole thing.” He rubbed his face with both of his hands.

Hermione took his hands off of his face and grasped them in hers. “I said I wouldn’t go to McGonagall and I won’t. But you and I, we are going to fix this.”

He looked down at where their hands touched and neither of them spoke for a moment, just feeling the connection between themselves in the silence.

Finally, he nodded. “Alright. What’d you have in mind?”

Theo:

Every break period for the next several weeks was spent plotting with none other than Gryffindor’s Golden Girl. Being on the inside of one of her notorious plots was much more fun than being on the outside looking in.

She was whip-smart, of course, but also unexpectedly funny. And she took absolutely none of his pouty sad boy shite. Which was annoying, but also kind of great?

She waltzed into the faculty lounge, carefully removing her robes and hanging them from one of the available hooks.

She was wearing another one of her flouncy little dresses. Today’s was black and covered in a tiny white floral pattern. It flared out as she quickly turned to face him, giving him a glimpse of her thigh. It was just an upper leg, it shouldn’t be so tantalizing, but Theo found himself living for those little peeks.

He tried to straighten his face to cover up that he’d been ogling her like a creep. “No somber faces today Nott, we have too much to get done,” she chastised. “Last planning session before we set things in motion.”

He smiled at her and she nodded before sitting down next to him. As they talked, he had trouble focusing. Her hair smelled of roses and honey. Her elbow kept rubbing against his as she spoke animatedly. Her knee even knocked against his thigh.

Once this little plot of theirs was over she was going to go back to sitting at her table and he at his and he’d never need to speak to her for any length of time again. Which was probably for the best. He’d developed quite the little crush on her. He needed to get off of the school grounds desperately. He needed to find some girl to shag to get thoughts of her out of his system. Thank Salazar, the Christmas hols were coming up.

“And that should be it,” Hermione announced, as she finished summing up their plan.
“Sounds great. Thank you for all of the help.” He tried to look happy he did, but it wasn’t a natural state for him, and she did not buy it.

“Nervous about the plan?” she questioned.

“No, I trust you implicitly,” he said, truly meaning it.

She stood, their time was almost up. She placed her hands on her hips, accentuating her tiny waist and lovely hips.

“Just gonna miss working with you I suppose.” He tried to make it sound casual. A throwaway comment.

She laughed. She actually burst out into laughter. “Need another student to make your life a living hell, yeah?” she joked.

When Theo didn’t join in with her, she froze. “Wait Nott, You don’t think we were going to stop talking once this is all wrapped up do you?”

He nodded. “Um, yeah, sort of.”

She shook her head, sending her golden curls in all directions “Nott-, Theo,” she said using his given name for the first time, “We’re friends now. You’re stuck with me.”

She squeezed his shoulder before she left the room.

Theo didn’t know what to make of any of that. He was thrilled they would still be able to spend time together but also they were friends. Just friends. Just 3 more weeks to winter hols he reminded himself.

The next day, he walked into his first session of the day. It was with his fourth-years as always.

He began his lecture on the power of the number 13 in creating wealth and success when right on cue, Verner raised his hand.

“I thought 13 was an unlucky number Professor Twat?” The class sniggered and the stocky blond boy turned to bask in the laughter of his classmates.

Calmly, just as Hermione had instructed, he called out, “10 points from Slytherin.”

“That’s a load of bollocks! What the hell for?” He was standing now, but that only worked to Theo’s advantage, highlighting how much taller he was than the boy.

“20 more for language,” he said blandly.

His housemates were looking at each other now, concerned.

He was looking for them to back him up, but the support was nowhere to be found.

“Whatever, I don’t have to listen to you. You’re nothing but a piece of shite Death Eater.” He stood up and walked out of the classroom slamming the door behind him.

The final piece of the plan was set in motion now, the most important moment.

Theo turned to the remaining students. “Mr. Verner will be serving detentions every evening until winter break. But we need to talk about what he said. I know Mr. Verner considers me Death Eater scum, but It’s important to me that the rest of you know I do not and never did hold those ideals.” He shed his robes, unbuttoned the wrist of his shirt, and began rolling the fabric up his left arm. He heard a couple of snickers but knew this was critical and carried on.

He held up his unmarked forearm for them all to see. “My father was a Death Eater. I won’t lie to you or try to downplay that. He happily followed Voldemort. He believed that power and force were the same thing. And that to be powerful, to be respected, you had to take that power from someone else. Sometimes that meant muggles and muggleborns and sometimes that meant me. But I am not a Death Eater. I am unmarked, largely because my father considered me too weak to deserve it. Which I am thankful for every day. Having it forced upon you is… well, it’s bad. I believe that everyone in this room has the capacity to create strong and beautiful magic and all of you deserve the opportunity to learn just how to do that. I am honored to be your teacher. Now, I am going to open the floor to questions and discussions but If this gets disrespectful, I will be taking away more house points, understood?”

The faces he saw staring up at him were full of emotion. Some looked sad, others curious, but all of them looked at Theo with respect.

Hermione:

Hermione pounced on him the next morning at breakfast. “How did it go?”

Theo looked surprised. She supposed they did typically wait to talk until they were in the faculty room alone, but she needed to know!

“I think it went well. I’ve anonymously written to McGonagall, as we discussed, recommending him for an appointment with the mind healer. He whispered, his breath tickling her ear. She tried to ignore the way it sent tingles down her neck.

She tugged on his robes, “But what about the other students? How did it go with the rest of the class?”

He laughed. “Your plan worked beautifully Hermione, how could it not, you're you.”

She brushed away his compliments, “Did they have many questions?”

He added some coddled eggs and roasted tomatoes to his plate. “Well, yeah. They asked me everything from what it was like growing up with a Death Eater to what I thought Voldemort smelled like. I think it was the first time many of them were able to speak about that period without whispering. Many of their parents would rather pretend none of it ever happened.”

Hermione bit into a green apple, and nodded her head. “This is exactly why I think keeping it off the History of Magic curriculum until 6th year makes no sense!”

She was getting worked up, she knew, but it was a subject she had a rather reasonable concern over.

He patted her shoulder. “I know, I know. I have heard this speech several times already.”

She began to pout but he beat her to the punch. “Don’t sulk, Hermione, we have too much to do today for that.”

She looked over at him, her eyes twinkling with laughter. “Don’t quote me to me!”

“Why not, I’m told you’re rather witty.”

“Professor Granger, Professor Nott. Good Morning.”

She could feel Theo tensing next to her. Her hand shot under the table, grabbing his, to give him reassurance. He squeezed her hand, and Hermione felt happy she could offer him just a bit of courage.

“Good Morning Headmistress,” Theo replied.

“How are you this morning, Headmistress?” Hermione said, keeping her tone cheerful and relaxed.

“Lovely, thank you. But I wanted to speak to you both and when I saw you sitting together I thought, no better time than the present.”
Hermione nodded, confused as to what this could be about. Surely she didn’t know about Hermione’s involvement in the lesson yesterday.

“You see, Professor Slughorn was just offered a chance to work with a group doing some experimental potion brewing over winter break and he doesn't want to pass up the opportunity.”

Hermione nodded again, a smile plastered on her face despite her utter confusion as to what this had to do with her.

McGonagall continued to stand over them as she went on, “Typically, Slughorn stays as the chaperone over winter break. He volunteers to take it on on his own, even though it is traditionally a two-professor job. But, now he is unable to fulfill the role.”

Hermione’s smile dropped. She saw where this was going now.

"As the two professors with the least seniority, you are both required to stay here and chaperone the students who will be staying at the castle over winter break. I know it's not how you imagined you’d be spending the holidays but I am afraid no one else seems to be interested in stepping up to volunteer.”

When Hermione entered the faculty room that afternoon, she wasn’t sure what the tone would be. Would she find sulky Theo, sad he had to be stuck with her for the break, or perhaps he’d even be angry about it? Alternatively, maybe it would just be relieved Theo, glad their plan hadn’t been clocked by McGonagall.

But what she found was in fact, happy Theo. He was a rare Theo indeed.

He smiled brightly at her as she set down all of her things. When she began to put the kettle on he called out, “I made you a cuppa already. Splash of cream and one spoon of sugar right?”

Her eyes went round. “Yes, that’s exactly how I take it.”

He chuckled as he handed her the cup.“Don’t look so surprised, you’ve had at least two cups every afternoon for the entire term, I was bound to notice how you take it.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Alright, that checks out I suppose. But what has put you in such a chipper mood? I thought you’d be sulking about not getting to spend Christmas with your friends.”

He shrugged casually. “I sent Draco an owl during lunch. I’m sure he’ll be a bit let down, but honestly, an entire break of hearing him and Pansy go at…I can do without. I swear the two of them couldn’t cast a silencing spell to save their lives.”
Hermione grimaced. “Wow, McGonagall really did you a favor then, huh?”

“You could say that,” he responded, looking at her with an emotion she couldn’t quite place written on his face.

He tapped the table with his fingers. “But, I’m sure you must be rather put out, I should have thought of that, sorry.”

She looked down, studying the light brown liquid in her cup. “It’s actually not that big of a deal for me either. My parents are in Australia and while I love visiting them, Christmas in the heat is just not the same.”

“But you could stay with Potter, right? And Weasley?”

“Eh, Christmas at the burrow has been a bit odd since Ron and I broke up. I’m fine with it, Ron’s fine with it, but Molly, his mother, she just can’t let it go. We get placed under mistletoe and accidentally put in the same room and sat next to one another for every meal.”

"Oh," Theo said, his face unreadable. "I didn't realize the two of you weren't together anymore."

Hermione sighed. "It was all rather short-lived actually. But the papers sensationalized it so much you'd think we were some great love story." She could feel her cheeks heating. She didn't want to admit to herself how much her belly fluttered at hearing him ask about her love life. It was nothing. They were friends. Hermione glanced at the clock and was relieved to see it was time for class.

"Time to go!" She called out louder than she'd intended.

He looked at her with his eyebrows raised, but let her leave without another word.

Theo:

Theo soon learned why Slughorn always volunteered to do this job. There was nothing to it. 7 students stayed over the break. Of the 7, 4 never left their rooms except for meal times, and the remaining 3 spent all of their time keeping each other entertained. They were often found in one common room or another playing exploding snap or reading quietly. It was the easiest week of his teaching career. Having the beautifully decorated castle, the kitchens that continued to make delightful food, and no real responsibilities certainly held some obvious appeal. But the best part for Theo was all of the time he was getting with Hermione.

He knew she’d said many times that they were just friends, but his crush just kept growing. He held onto a thin bit of hope that perhaps she felt the same. Every time she’d treat him to that glowing smile or touch him just a bit longer than strictly necessary, his hope grew.
Tonight was Christmas Eve and the kitchen had prepared a feast for them all. Roast goose, mashed potatoes and gravy, Yorkshire pudding, honey-roasted carrots and bread pudding.

Instead of sitting at the teacher’s table, Hermione, Theo, and the students all ate together. It was rather sweet chatting with the students and sharing Christmas Eve with them all.

When dinner was over, he and Hermione began walking back to the professor's quarters together.

“So what are your plans for the night?” he asked, hoping it came off as casual and cool.

“Just going to watch some Christmas films, probably pass out on the settee.” She laughed at herself.

He turned to look at her.“Oh, I’ve seen a couple of muggle movies, but never any Christmas ones. What are they like?”

She stopped walking. “You poor, deprived pure-blood. You must come to mine and watch! We will start with the classics and work our way through. We don’t have much time. Chop chop!”

She ushered him towards her room without another word of discussion. Theo just smiled. The evening was turning out even better than he’d hoped.

Hermione:

She opened the door to her room, feeling self-conscious. She knew he probably had furniture and bedding that cost more money than she’d ever earn in his room. He must have sensed her nerves, he bumped her shoulder.

"It's nice Hermione, thanks for letting me join you. Being alone on Christmas Eve just feels sad."

She nodded her agreement and felt her curls bob with the motion. She ran her hands over them, suddenly concerned they were frizzing or unruly.

He smiled at the motion, pulling one of her curls, and watched as it bounced.

"So my muggle expert friend, what Christmas movie do we need to start with?"

"Right, of course." She made her way to the tiny hutch where she stored her DVDs. "I think Miracle on 34th Street is a classic. They put Father Christmas on trial."

He laughed, "Alright, Santa goes to jail it is. Shall I make us a drink while you get it set up?"

"Ooo yes please!" Hermione replied, eager for something to calm her nerves.

He walked over to her counter where she had a few bottles and mixers laid out.

"Two peppermint schnapps hot cocoas?"

"Perfect!" she told him as she got the movie cued up.

He handed her the mug and settled on the far side of the little loveseat. Hermione was a little disappointed he was staying so far away but tried to push those feelings down and just watch the movie.

He looked over at her and whispered, "So she wants a family and a house for Christmas? I feel like she's asking for too much. No way Father Christmas gets her all of that."

Hermione beamed at him, loving how into the movie he was. "You'll just have to watch and see."

Theo turned to her, bringing his body just a bit closer, "So he knows Dutch? That's pretty convenient, the little girl looks so happy."

Hermione turned to him as well, her knee bumping his. "I know, isn't it so cute?"

As the movie ended, she heard Theo make a noise beside her. She turned and found him wiping his eyes.

"Theodore Nott, are you crying?" she teased gently.

He tilted his face away from her. "Absolutely not. I don't cry. But if someone were to cry at the little girl getting her dream home and a new dad that loves her and her mother, well then, that would be completely understandable."

Hermione laughed and rubbed his back. "Yes if someone were to do that, not that you are, it would be a very normal reaction."

He leaned into her hand pressing his shoulder closer to her. She liked having her hands on him, feeling the muscles in his back as they rippled under her fingers when he moved. It felt intimate and loaded like they were both on the precipice of something.

The DVD ended and the opening screen began to play, pushing them both apart.

Theo stood.

"Oh, you're leaving?" She asked, trying to hide her disappointment but not sure she was doing a very good job of it.

"No…I mean…I wasn't planning on it. Just refilling our mugs. Unless one movie was enough. I can get out of your hair."

"No,I mean, please stay. You have to see Home Alone. You're going to love it."

Somewhere around their 4th movie and 3rd mug of heavily spiked cocoa they gave up on trying to focus on the Grinch and his shenanigans and just began talking to each other.

Hermione gazed at him from across the couch. Her blood felt sluggish in her veins but her heart was beating fast. She was pretty sure she was pissed, but it was so nice to talk with him. “What was it like for you? As a student I mean? I imagine our experiences were pretty different.”

He tilted his head and raised a singular thick eyebrow at her. “Yeah, definitely different.”

She laughed. “I don’t mean the whole defeating a dark lord bit. Just the day-to-day. I've never even been in the Slytherin dorms. I’m just curious what it was all like for you back then.”

He took a sip from his mug, which Hermione was fairly certain was only filled with whiskey now. He swallowed and she watched as his Adam's apple bobbed in his delicate neck. “School was an escape for me. I loved being away from my areshole father, but it was more than that. It was nice to be in a place where I was celebrated for my accomplishments rather than berated.”

Hermione leaned into him, wanting to touch him very badly. It was strictly to comfort him and not at all because he looked delectable with his curls falling into his face and the sleeves of his cardigan rolled up.

“You were just behind me in a lot of classes. I can’t believe your father wasn’t proud of your school accomplishments.”

He smirked, “I love how confident you are in your abilities. You don’t shy away from the fact that you ran laps around the rest of us.”

She shook her head, “No, my point was I didn’t run laps around you.”

“Yes, and how uncommon that was,” he countered.

She shrugged her shoulders, “Point conceded.” She could feel her cheeks heating.

“Don’t be embarrassed about it, my point was that I love that about you. It was supposed to be a compliment but I bungled it, it seems.”

“You are more than welcome to try again,” she said with a playful laugh.

He tapped his chin in faux contemplation. “Let’s see, what else can I compliment about Hermione Granger.”

She shoved his shoulder. “Don’t think so hard about it. Surely something else comes to mind.”

His eyes dipped to where her hand was still pressed against his bicep. She went to pull it away but he placed his hand over hers instead.

“I like the way you touch me. It’s always so in the moment. Like your hands want to give comfort and reassurance and they do it without consulting your brain at all.”

He ran his thumb over the back of her hand. She shivered as the movement sent tingles up her spine.

He grabbed her hand now, settling it on the couch between them, still grasped within his own.

“You have to say something nice about me now,” he whispered. “It’s only fair.”

She studied their hands only half listening to what he was saying. Holding his hand felt big, important, but her foggy brain wasn’t sure why.

Her eyes finally darted up to meet his, he wasn’t saying anything, he wasn’t going to ask for a compliment again. But Hermione didn’t need to be asked twice.

“I like your eyebrows.”

He snorted. “That’s all I get back?”

She rolled her eyes. “Be patient Theo, I'm not done. I like how expressive your thick eyebrows are. You hide your emotions, but they give away more than you’d like. I like it when I can tell how you're feeling. I like it when I walk into the faculty room and can see that you are having a good day by the set of your eyebrows. I like it when you are happy.”

His eyes bore into hers. He seemed to be searching for something. Hermione wasn’t sure what would be the right look or expression to make so she just left her face open, and honest. Letting him see whatever he could.

“Hermione,” he began, his voice shaking a bit, “I know we’ve both said we're friends.”

She nodded, hoping he knew she considered him a true and valued friend.

“But, sometimes, I think about what it would be like if we were more than friends. What it would be like if I could hold you, kiss you, fuck you.” His eyes dropped now, no longer searching her face. “Is that something you think about too?”

She pressed herself into his body, and her body sang at the contact it had been craving. “All of the time.”

He bent and captured her lips in a soft quick kiss. She wrapped her hands around his neck, silently begging him for more.

He gave what she asked for happily, deepening the kiss, biting at her lip, and then soothing it with his tongue. He pulled her to settle fully onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist.

His fingers found her curls and tugged lightly, drawing a moan from her lips. “Your hair has been torturing me.” He informed her in between kisses. “I want to touch it all the time.”

She kissed his jaw, his ear, his temple. “You can. You can touch it anytime you like if it will feel like this.”

“I can make you feel so good. I promise, Hermione, I'll make everything feel so good for you.”

She pressed into his chest further, hating any gap where her body wasn’t touching his, needing him to envelop her.

But then he was standing. “I have to go.”

“Why?” she asked, her voice sounding whiny even to her own ears.

“Because we are drunk.”

She blinked up at him.

“And I like you.”

She still did not understand.

“And I will not start things with you as a drunken hookup, Hermione. When we have sex, we will be sober and I will have taken you out, maybe a couple of times even, and you will know that you mean something to me.”

His words were beautiful and they made perfect sense. But they only made her want to jump his bones even more.

She pulled him down for another searing kiss, it was so so good kissing him, she knew the sex would be fucking incredible. She pushed him back.

“You have to leave now because I respect everything you said, but if you kiss me for even one more second, I won’t be able to wait.”

He laughed but walked to the door. “Goodnight Hermione.”

“Goodnight Theo.”

Theo:

The next morning, Theo woke up early with a plan. He downed some pepper-up potion to help with his hangover and got to work. Nothing in Hogsmeade would be open on Christmas day, he knew, but that wasn’t going to stop him from getting things done.

First, he dropped off water and another pepper-up potion at Hermione’s door. Next, he went to the faculty lounge. He spent some time working there and when it was finally time, he sent an owl to Hermione.

Hermione,

Will you please do me the honor of being my date tonight? If yes, meet me in the faculty lounge at 7 pm.

Ps. I will sit with the students while they eat dinner! You take tonight off.

When they met up not long after to join the students for lunch, she blushed prettily. She looked well, the pepper up and sleep had eased the effects of the alcohol it seemed. She wore an oversized white jumper tucked into a long lavender flowy skirt. Her hair, sadly, was thrown into a messy bun and, adorably, she’d stuck her wand through it to hold it in place.

“Did you sleep alright?” he asked, hoping their drinking hadn’t left her unsettled.

She laughed. “Had a bit of trouble falling asleep actually. Someone got me all keyed up.” She gave him a cheeky wink.

“Oh?” he said, his mouth twitching. “And did that same someone perhaps invite you on a date tonight to make up for that?”

She smirked now. “He might have done.”

“Well, it would be horribly rude to keep this mystery person waiting. It’s traditional to owl someone back when they ask you a question you know,” he chastised.

“Well, I knew I’d be seeing you… I mean this person, for lunch so I figured telling him in person would suffice. If he needs a more formal response…” she let the sentence hang there, leaving him still without an answer.

“No, no,” he rushed to assure her, “an in-person answer will be just fine. We don’t stand on pretense much around here.”

“Could have fooled me,” she mumbled.

He stopped, turned to face her, and took her hands in his. “Put me out of my misery, Hermione! Are you still interested in seeing me, now that you are sober and we are in the light of day?”

She glanced around, making sure they were alone and stepped onto her tiptoes to kiss the much taller man.

He bent down, meeting her halfway. It was a fast kiss, more like a peck really, but it sent electricity through his system. His skin warmed and his heart sped up. “That was a yes, yes?”

She laughed at him. “Yes, Theo. It was a yes.”

Hermione:

At 7 pm she walked into their room, the faculty lounge where it all started back in September. She appreciated the sentiment.

The room was lit with fairy lights and floating candles. All of the tables had been pushed out of the way except one, set up right by the fire. Their table.

He’d covered it with a white linen tablecloth and two fine china plates. She wondered where on Earth he’d found those.

He walked over and looked her up and down.

She was wearing a silky green dress. It dipped low in the front, giving him a peek at her decolletage. Otherwise, she was fairly covered up. It was still her place of business after all. The dress reached to the floor and had long tapered sleeves. His eyes sparked with attraction and Hermione felt more beautiful than she had in a very long time.

He reached out to take her hand. “You are stunning Hermione.”

“You like it?” she asked, gesturing to her gown.

“Do I like you, dressed up in Slytherin green, just for me? It's better than anything I could have imagined.”

Theo snapped his fingers and an elegant dinner for two populated the table. There was a plate of baked goat cheese and figs in the middle as well as a bottle of red wine chilling in a bucket of ice. On each of their plates were lamb cutlets, buttered vegetables, and whipped potatoes.

“Theo,” she enthused, “This looks incredible. Where did this food come from?”

“I may have hired a chef…is that too much?” His ears turned pink as he answered.

She smiled at him, her heart filling at the thought and intention he’d put into this date. “It's incredibly romantic,” she assured him, before placing both hands on his chest and kissing him.

They sat and Theo poured them each a glass of wine while Hermione helped herself to some of the figs.

Hermione sipped the wine and hummed in pleasure as the rich flavor hit her tongue. Of course, he had impeccable taste in wine.

They talked for a bit about the upcoming term and their goals for how they would end their first year as professors. But it wasn’t long before the work talk fell to the wayside and the confession from the night before was brought back up.

“So,” Hermione began, as she cut another bite of the flavorful lamb, “how long have you had a crush on me?”

He smirked and she loved the playful look on his beautiful lips. “Oh, I don’t know,” he said, tapping his finger on his chin. “Probably about as long as you've had a crush on me?”

She laughed. “But honestly though, I’m curious, when did things change for you?”

His lovely green eyes found hers and she felt her heart stutter in her chest. “Well, I was always attracted to you. That was just a fact from day one.”

“Really?” she asked, not quite believing him.

“Oh absolutely. You’d slip your robe off so slowly and primly every day in the lounge and it was like my own personal little strip tease. Absolute torture. And then underneath you always have those sweet little dresses on, the next one more tantalizing than the last. Keeping myself from having feelings for you was always doomed to be an exercise in futility.” He ran his long fingers through his hair, mussing the curls just so and Hermione felt herself fall just a little bit harder in that moment.

“Alright, Granger,” he prompted, “don’t leave me hanging out here on my own. Please tell me you’ve thought about this before last night too.”

She blushed, “Oh, well, yes,” she admitted. “I said as much last night, didn’t I?”

He tilted his head in acknowledgment, “Yes, well it does my confidence well to hear you say it again.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh yes, I am sure your confidence is in desperate need of building up.”

He shrugged. “I may know I am a good-looking man, but that doesn’t mean I knew you were looking at me.”

“I think,” she began, as she picked up another succulent carrot on her fork, “that I realized I wanted to kiss you that very first day. When you asked if I was planning to hex you or fuck you.”

They both laughed, struggling to catch their breath.

“I am a right prick sometimes,” he said, wiping a tear away. “I can’t believe you didn’t hex me right then and there. I’d’ve deserved it, taking out my frustrations on you that way.”

“No,” she disagreed, “no one should have to deal with what you were, especially not on the first day of a brand new job. There is no right way to respond to something like that.” She reached her hand over to him and he took it, interlocking their fingers.

“Honestly Hermione, I don’t know how I would have made it through this term without you. Our planning sessions were the highlight of my days. I know this is only our first date, but I feel like we’ve been gravitating towards each other for months now.”

She wasn't brave enough to meet his eyes, but she squeezed his hand as she said, “Me too Theo. I’m really happy we finally made it here.”

After dinner, they ended up going back to his room. It was less formal than she’d imagined. It did have an armchair that looked to be older than the forming of the monarchy, but otherwise, it was a fairly typical space, filled with a small desk, a large settee, and lots and lots of books. Every wall was covered with bookshelves and every crack and crevice of the shelves were filled with books.

She walked to the nearest one and began to rifle through them. She could hear him laughing over her shoulder.

She looked at him over her shoulder. “What’s so funny?”

He shook his head. “You are just so predictable. I finally get you back to my room, after months of wanting you, and you head straight to the bookshelves. I should have seen it coming.”

Hermione ignored his laughing and went back to the books. She ran her hand along the spines, and as she did, she felt something funny. She pulled the offending book off the shelf. The title was “The Mechanics and Appliances of the Number 22”. It had a sticky sort of coating on it and Hermione was at a loss for what could be the cause.

“What’s going on with this book?” she asked, handing it over to him.

He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand as he blushed.

“Ooo” she cried out. “I’ve found some deep dirty secret of yours have I?” she teased. “Does the number 22 turn you on?”

He chuckled, “I am into some slightly unexpected things but sexual attraction to numbers is not one of them.”

Hermione’s eyes grew wide. “We are going to put a pin in that and return to it. But one mystery at a time. What is the story with this book?”

He huffed out a sigh and sat down on his settee with the book still in his hands. He gestured for her to come sit next to him. She snuggled in close, happy to be touching him again.

He grabbed the book and cast Revelio on it. The poorly cast, and therefore sticky, masking charm he’d had on it fell away and revealed a well-loved, battered and creased copy of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey.

“No!” Hermione shouted when the truth was revealed.

“Yes, my dirty little secret is that I love muggle books. And not just any muggle books, sappy Regency love stories. Now you know.” He hung his head in mock shame.

She lifted his head up, her hands cupping his face so his eyes could meet his. “You have to know that this is insanely hot right?

He laughed. “No it absolutely isn’t, it’s funny, a little humiliating, but certainly not sexy.”

“I beg to differ,” she told him, as she captured his lips in a deep kiss, sweeping her tongue along his beautiful lips and sighing when he began to kiss her just as deeply.

After a moment, he pulled back. "If I'd known it was this easy to charm you I'd have shown you my book collection months ago. Possibly even years ago."

She laughed. "You did not have a thing for me years ago," she said leaning in to rest her head on his shoulder.

He caressed her hair, running his hand gently over it. "Half the school had a thing for you after 4th year. But between Krum, Harry, and Ron none of us were brave enough to approach you."

She tilted her head. "Really?"

He laughed. "You didn't know?"

"Absolutely not." She looked contemplative. "But I suppose I'm not too bothered considering where I've ended up."

"Glad I'm an alright consolation prize," he said looking mildly offended.

"You'll do," she said, shooting him a wink. "Now don't think I've forgotten about that previous comment."

He groaned. "I really was hoping you had forgotten."

She tapped his chest, feeling the lean muscles underneath his sweater. "No such luck. Brightest Witch of her Age, remember? I forget nothing."

"Well, fine. I'll tell you but just know, none of this is a deal breaker for me, if you're not into it…it's completely fine."

She felt her hands begin to sweat a bit. What could he possibly be into?

He took a deep breath. "I like to be in control in the bedroom."

"Oh," she said, relieved. "That's not so scary."

He shrugged. "It's not something everyone is cool with."

She snuggled into him further, loving how he wrapped his arms around her making her feel safe and wanted. "Can you tell me more?" She felt her pulse speed up and she felt the urge to clench her thighs together. It seemed her body was very on board with this new information.

His eyes flickered to her legs, he'd noticed her little movement.

He dipped his lips against her ear and whispered "I like to reward good girls."

She let out a tiny whimper.

"And punish my girl when she disobeys me."

Hermione couldn't help but tilt her hips now. She was seeking friction shamelessly. Her body was on fire listening to him speak.

"But most of all, I'd like to tie you up. What do you think about that, love?"

Hermione was panting. She knew he could hear how turned-on she was. But she liked that he asked anyway.

"I think that sounds incredible. Please can we try that?"

His eyes darkened. "You beg so pretty, baby. It makes me wanna give you anything you want, as long as you behave."

Hermione was used to the many faces of Theo. The pout, the smile, the angry furrowed brow. But this was new. This calm, commanding man was so enticing, she wanted to get to know him.

"You have to let me know if this is too much too soon, baby. We will only do what you are comfortable with."

Hermione took a deep steadying breath and took a quick inventory of how she was feeling. She was turned on, that was clear. She felt nervous but in that typical ‘I am about to be naked in front of someone for the first time’ kind of way. But mostly she was curious. She wanted to learn what he liked, learn how to please him, how he could please her.

She looked up meeting his eyes, “I want this. I want it with you. Will you show me, please?”

He kissed her gently and then pulled back. “Stand up,” he instructed.

Her mind was racing. Would he like her body? Would she be good at this? Would she enjoy it?

He stood up and circled her slowly. His hands trailed lightly over her body. He started on her shoulders and moved downward, grazing between her breasts across her stomach, and over her hips. She felt her mind calm as she focused on his hands and where they would go next. She was still fully clothed but it felt erotic.

“That’s better,” his deep voice rumbled in her ear. “Now I want you to strip for me. Let me see you out of all of these clothes.”

She found she was eager to comply. Wanting to please him, now that she was out of her own head.

She undid the zipper at the back of her dress and let it pool to the ground. She stepped out of it and kicked it across the floor.

“Good, girl,” he praised. “Keep going.”

She was standing in just her black silk bra and knickers. She reached behind herself, unhooked the bra and slipped it off.

He was staring at her with his eyes roaming over her body. The look of blatant sexual arousal on his face made her feel beautiful and wanted. She could see his erection straining against his black trousers. She kept her eyes focused on him as she began to roll the knickers down her legs.

He moaned when she stepped out of her knickers.

“Give them to me,” he ordered her.

She picked them up and handed them over.

He looked at the black fabric and Hermione blushed, feeling self-conscious knowing how wet they must be.

“It seems you are enjoying yourself, aren’t you, love?”

Though her face was stained pink, she looked him in the eyes. “Yes, sir.”

He pocketed her knickers before he palmed his hard length through his pants. He groaned as he squeezed his cock and Hermione shivered, loving the way he was reacting to her.

“Go lie on the bed.” Though he’d just been moaning over her, he was instantly back into his commanding persona; showing no emotion as he told her what she was expected to do.

The small set of rooms was in a similar layout to her own. She walked to the small bedroom and began to crawl up onto the bed. She felt so exposed but looked behind her and found he hadn’t followed her into the room.

She positioned herself on the bed, laying on her back, laid out for him completely nude. She knew she’d asked for him to show her what he liked, but lying there without him was not something she’d expected. She felt a bit put out. She was enjoying his eyes on her, his rapt attention. And she was missing it now that he’d taken it away.

She began to squirm as he kept her waiting. She tried laying on her stomach, her side, and then returned to her back. She considered getting under the covers, but he’d said on top of the bed, so she was pretty sure that was the wrong thing to do.

As she lay there her mind started to drift. She began to think about how nice her skin felt against the cool duvet and how beautiful she felt right now. Her mind wandered to imagining what he would do with her when he finally came in. Would he fuck her slow and tender, pulling pleasure slowly from her body? Or was he going to be fast and rough, taking his pleasure from her, using her body to make himself feel good? All of it sounded great to her. It had been so long and so underwhelming before. But she knew he’d make this good for her. She could tell.

Her thighs were sticky by the time he walked in. He was still fully dressed and he held a fresh glass of water which he was casually sipping on as if he hadn’t just kept her waiting for tortuous minutes. But she was too turned on, too eager to even be annoyed anymore, she just wanted his body on hers. He looked so good, his curls disheveled and his trousers encasing his long legs and still hard cock. His long delicate fingers held his wand. Without any preamble, he cast Incarcerous. But he must have modified the spell in some way. The magic ropes made of golden light shot out of his wand, but they did not wrap around her, instead, they simply pooled ineffectually at her hands and feet.

“The spell didn’t work, sir,” she told him, a little mocking tone to her voice.

He tutted his tongue. “It worked just as I wanted it to, pet. We have our ropes, but I still get to do the fun part, tying you up.”

The fire in his eyes as he spoke had Hermione arching off the bed, dying for him to touch her, kiss her anything to quell her desperate need for contact.

He chuckled, “So responsive for me. What a good girl you are. Just don’t question my spell work again alright?”

She nodded, but he gave her a small, fast tap on her thigh anyway.

“Not nodding. You will answer me with words. Yes, sir. Or No, sir. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir,” she replied.

“Good girl, you always were a quick study.”

He bent over her now, grabbing the golden ropes that she could now see were attached to the headboard of the bed, instead of to her.

He lifted her wrist and tied an intricate knot over it, testing it carefully for how it rubbed against her skin and how much movement she’d have. He was taking such gentle care of her; it was causing her cunt to drip with anticipation. She knew she must have been making a mess of the duvet, but she couldn’t seem to bring herself to care.

He walked slowly down the bed lifting her ankle before bringing it to his mouth to place a kiss on the inside of it. It sent shivers down her body. She’d never been this sensitive, this attuned to her own body before. It was incredible.

He placed the glowing rope around her ankle and carefully secured it. Again he was careful to keep her from getting injured and gave her a bit of room to maneuver.

He was going so slowly, intentionally so, building her anticipation for him. He took his time with her right foot and wrist as well. Caressing them, before adorning them with the shimmering gold threads.

When he finished, he spent a moment just looking her over. Her naked form, spread out on the top of his bed, wrapped up in gold just for him. She felt like the prettiest little present.

“Are you ready, pet?” he asked.

And Hermione let out an embarrassing noise, half-yes, half-moan. She needed his hands back on her, she needed him to give her pressure, to give her friction. She’d been so good, so patient but she wasn’t sure she could be good for much longer.

“Do you feel good, Hermione?”

“Yes, sir.”

“If you want me to stop anything at any time I want you to say the word ‘finite’, can you do that?”

“Yes, sir. Finite.” Her voice didn’t sound like her own. It sounded breathy and needy and it made her blush, but Theo just smiled.

He began rolling up his sleeves, revealing his long arms corded with veins. Hermione loved his arms. She licked her lips and Theo seemed to know exactly what he was doing to her.

“I am going to eat your gorgeous cunt and then when I am done, I am going to fuck you hard and slow until you come on my cock. How does that sound, beautiful?”

She moaned, unable to keep it from escaping her lips. “Amazing, sir. That sounds amazing.”

He crawled up onto the bed, planting himself between her thighs. He bent his head low and she felt his soft curls tickle the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. He kissed her behind her knee first. Too low, but still sending zips of pleasure through her nerves. He moved higher, nipping at her thigh and then soothing over the bite with his warm wet tongue.

She tried to arch into the sensation, tried to move her leg forcing him higher, but she could do neither. Her arms and legs were held in place by the magical ropes. She groaned in frustration and he laughed into her thighs continuing to kiss and lave the skin there.

He moved higher bit by bit, clearly in no rush. She hated that she couldn’t just scoot down, and place herself closer but she also kind of loved it. The teasing was a delicious sort of torture.

Finally, he dipped his long beautiful fingers into her wet folds. He gilded along her lips just collecting her arousal and playing with her.

“Yes,” she called out, relieved to finally have him touch her where she needed him.

“You are soaked Hermione, I think you might like playing my games with me.”

She could hear him, but not really see his face as he spoke between her thighs. His breath ghosted over her skin in hot little puffs only adding to her arousal.

“Yes, yes sir” she replied, trying very hard to answer him properly and to be good for him.

He licked between her slick folds, dragging his tongue up to her clit before teasing her with small circles around the sensitive bud.

She pulled against the restraints, her body writhing, her instinct telling her it was too sensitive, too delicate and she couldn’t take it.

He looked up between her thighs, his chin shiny with her arousal. He wore a wicked grin. “Ah ah ah, I’m in charge here love. You can take it, right? Be a good girl and stay still for me, won’t you?”

He dove between her thighs again, resuming his tortuous circles around her clit. Without the option of squirming away, her body found another outlet. She moaned and screamed and gasped, as he brought her higher and higher dragging her pleasure out. Her cunt was dripping, soaking his face as he continued to work her. She could feel her core clenching, begging for something to grip around. But he just kept teasing, bringing her so close but never giving her body what it needed to actually reach that crest. Her hands fisted the sheets as she let him tease her pussy. He went on and on, getting her close and then pulling away. Then, with no warning, he took her clit between his lips and sucked.

The sounds she made would have been mortifying if she wasn’t just too strung out and needy for him to care. She was keening, wailing as he finally let her come. Her cunt throbbed, clenching over and over around nothing as he sucked on her sensitive little bud.

Her orgasm just kept going, her body taking its time coming down from the high he’d driven her to. Slowly, she began to come back to herself. Her thighs relaxed and her hands released the duvet they'd been clutching. All the while, Theo continued to lap at her cunt, his tongue licking up her wetness and teasing around the little aftershocks as her folds continued to hum and tremble with the force of her release.

Finally, he slid up her body, pressing himself into her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and positioning himself just to the side of her, with their bodies touching at nearly every point they could.

Hermione turned to face him, and he captured her lips in another searing kiss. She could taste her own tang on his lips. She liked tasting herself there, knowing he’d fucked her with his mouth.

“You did so well,” he praised when he eventually broke from the kiss.

She preened under his praise, happy to have done well for him. She could feel his erection pressing into her hip, though he was still fully clothed. She pushed into his hardness, as much as she could with her limited range of motion. “What about you, sir? You need to come too.”

He nipped at her chin. “You insatiable little thing. I’m fine. It will go down…eventually. This was for you, my good girl.”

She pouted. There was no other word for it. Her bottom lip jutted out, and her eyes went wide and needy.

He laughed. “Not now, maybe later alright? Now I am going to take care of you.”

She balked, “Again?”

He smirked, “Not like that.” He sat up and reached for the nearest golden rope, untying her wrist and massaging it gently. Her skin was completely unmarked, thanks to the magic of the bindings, but it was still sore from all of the pulling she’d done against her restraints.

His fingers worked her delicate wrist, pushing into the muscle and releasing the tension in it. He was just as attentive to her other wrist before moving down the bed and untying her ankle. He pressed his thumb into the divot there and made her moan as he massaged her sensitive skin. His talented hands made their way up her calf molding the muscles and kneading them. At some point in this process, she must have drifted off.

When she opened her eyes again, it was the middle of the night. The window next to his bed showed the moon was high in the sky and everything was quiet and dark.

She rolled over and found Theo lying next to her on his stomach. He’d shed his shirt and the beautiful expanse of his back was on display. The sheets were bunched around his waist and she just let herself appreciate the elegant muscles and tapered waist of the man beside her. She couldn’t resist skating her fingers along the delicate muscles there. She marveled at the reality of being with him here and now. Their journey had taken them from contentious children to avoidant co-workers, surprising allies and now here they were as lovers. Despite what they’d both said at one point or another, they’d never been friends, not really. And Hermione was just fine with that.

He stirred and turned to face her. “What are you doing up, little witch?”

She smiled down at him. “I was just thinking…”

“Uh-oh,” he joked. “What’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours?”

“Well, I was rather loud earlier.”

He grinned, “Yes, I noticed.”

“Maybe,” she continued, “we should think about finding a place of our own in Hogsmeade, I’d hate for anyone on campus to ever hear us.”

He laughed tugging her down to him in the bed. “Well as long as it’s for purely logistical reasons, heaven forbid anyone think Hermione Granger ever be motivated by her emotions.”

She snuggled into him. “ I’m so glad you understand,” she teased back.

“I think you like me,” he whispered in her ear, his breath tickling her skin.

She whispered back, her voice quiet enough he might have missed it, “I think I do too.”