Amour

GLITCHES

Snape and Hermione were back at Hogwarts and the internship program was going on full-swing; they were soldiering through the process very well and spending their nights at their old chamber. Meanwhile, they were trying to have the last thing that would fulfill their happiness.
Ome night while having dinner, Hermione was discussing how she was getting on. "I'm really nervous about the inspection at the end of this week...wonder what strict invigilators are gonna be there...the Ministry is always after our asses."Hermione said as she pecked at her food. Snape was eating more at ease. "You did pretty well throughout these months, I'm sure you'll be fine. You definitely won't let those Ministry officials intimidate you, after spending this much time with the most intimidating person you know."he smirked. Hermione was a little more hopeful then,"Yeah, I guess the practical exams won't be a problem, but I'm a little bit concerned about the written examination. There might be questions a little out of context...plus there's the thesis paper, that we need to submit a couple of days later." "You need to submit a thesis?"he asked. "Yes. It's on this whole internship program, what we learned and how we are gonna put it into effect and stuff."Hermione informed,"All us interns have been doing group studies together, helped each other out, you know. That's why mostly our introduction and conclusions are gonna be the same. I hope that won't be a problem..." "Hang on,"Snape furrowed his brow,"When have you been doing group studies?" Hermione said casually,"Once a week after dinner. You were asleep, I didn't wanna wake you. And if I told you before I was afraid you were gonna make a big deal out of it, try to help out with this too or whatever." He was intrigued,"Why wait so long to tell me? Yes, I could've made some suggestions, I could provide you with more examples to note down and oh, I could've shown you what would be a perfect way to secure more marks without being too kiss-ass and also-" "You're making it a big deal!"Hermione pointed out. "Sorry."he smiled. "And anyways, mine's done. And I have been thorough. I did a lot of research."she pointed at a thick spiral-bound copy of her paper on the side table. He eyed it,"Oh! Maybe after we finish eating, I could take a look-" "No. It's my paper. I wanna do this by myself. And I don't want anyone to even question the fact that you might have helped me simply because we're married. They are gonna pose enough questions as it is..." He was a little taken aback but then thought she was probably right. "So, you've been sneaking out at night secretly to work on this project without letting me have a whiff of it?"he said as a change of topic. She smiled,"It was actually thrilling...kinda like I was back in my school days. Only this time around, without the fear of Filch trying to catch us. I missed the boys though, Harry and Ron. Well, Neville was there, and Cho, and Lavender and Zachary...and oh, Steve." "Who's Steve?"he inquired.
"He's the American guy from Ivermorny. Haven't you ever come across him in the corridors or at the Hall?"
"No.."he was trying to remember. He had a vague idea of a brunette-haired boy everyone was talking about as 'the new-boy on the block', but he hadn't paid much attention till now.
"Ah well, that's probably cause he's really shy. But he's so sweet. We've also been doing oral things.."
Snape nearly choked on the water he was sipping. "S-sorry what was that? I kinda-sorta had a mini heart-attack after you said 'oral'." Hermione looked at him and rolled her eyes."I said we've been doing studies orally. For if they ask us questions during the practical test." He resumed eating somewhat reluctantly,"Hmm nice." She glanced at him over her lashes and saw a definite frown upon his brow and smiled to herself...............................................
The night after that, Snape ran into the said boy, at the foot of the stairs, as he was about to go to his room. "You must be...Steve?"he pretended to not remember his name correctly but rather, he had had him in his mind all day. Now that he finally met him, he took a good look. Sure, girls would go fawning after him. He has got that high-school heartthrob thing going on, although he looks quite senior-year type. And he has that accent I'm sure that they find irresistible. "Yes. Nice to meet you. I was just with Hermione, she has helped me out a lot. I'm new here, ya know and don't really know how things work. I really needed her guidance in finishing my thesis."said Steve, cheerfully tapping his finished copy. "Hmm,"said Snape, without even giving it a glance,"That was big of her." Steve was a little awkward, but added cheerfully,"She's really great. I owe her one. I hope we'll be colleagues after the exams are over and if we get qualified that is.." Snape tried to sound casual but with the intention that suggested that he was clearly marking his territory."I'm not so sure whether she's gonna join right after...she has her own family to tend to. You do know she's married, right?" "Y..es."he replied. He wanted to add, 'To you, no less', but he didn't dare; he had been familiarised with Professor Snape's reputation very soon after he had arrived. They stared at each other for a minute, where Steve shifted uneasily from one foot to the other, wishing he could escape. "Well, don't let me keep you from your studies. If you want to make a crack at the Hogwarts teaching staff, you should keep your attention fully on education."Snape said curtly, making him believe that he wished him well, whereas in truth, wishing precisely the opposite. Steve said a hasty 'good night' and scampered away with Snape still eyeing him from the back. When he turned to climb the stairs again, he found, to his dismay, Hermione standing at the head. She had her arms crossed over her chest in an angry position and her jaw was clenched. As he looked up a little sheepishly, she shook her head, exasperated and marched back to their room. By the time he reached the bedroom, she was already changing into her night-clothes and huffed as she clambered into bed,"I can't believe...you doing this insane jealousy thing after all this time!" She had thrown him a bone just for fun but she didn't imagine this would lead to such serious consequence; he had been very rude according to her. He got in bed beside her,"I didn't mean..." But she had already pulled the covers over herself and turned to the other side, not facing him anymore. He reached across to touch her arm but thought better of it and decided to let her sleep on it. He put off the lights but lay awake, staring at the ceiling and twiddling his toes under the sheets. He deliberated long, debating with himself. After making sure Hermione had fallen asleep, he got out of bed and tiptoed his way to the outer office. He had no trouble finding the copy of Hermione's thesis. He carried it to his table and sat down to study.....................................
The next morning Hermione was woken up by her husband with breakfast in bed. "What is this?"she asked, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. "I brought you your favourite- scrambled eggs, toast and sausage."he said, placing the plate in front of her. "That's so sweet! Thank you."she chirped. "Look, I'm sorry about last night."he sincerely said. Hermione smiled, knowing that he was wanting to make amends. "It's okay sweetheart." They were about to kiss when Hermione noticed something he was hiding behind him. "What's that?" "Oh, it's just- I thought you could look at it after..." But Hermione had already snatched it away and read the headline on the first page. Her brows furrowed. "What is this?"she asked perplexed,"This is my thesis. But why in your handwriting..?" Snape chewed on his lip as Hermione's eyes shifted down to read the whole page and her expression gradually changed; her nostrils flared and her eyes blazed when she looked up at him again. "So, let me get this straight. You just assumed that my paper was going to be bad, so you wrote one for me?" Snape jumped to defend himself,"No. I assumed it would be good and I was anxious to read it. And- and it's not totally my writing. You did a good job...there were just a few things that needed a little polishing-" Hermione threw down the copy and got out of bed enraged."I told you not to-.. Oh god, this is exactly why I didn't want you to know!" "Please don't be upset,"he pleaded,"I couldn't sleep last night, so I was casually going through this. And when I saw some mistakes I corrected them- I couldn't help myself. Anyways, no one needs to know. I am your husband, right? I am allowed to help you, isn't it. I just want you to be okay with that." "Listen to me."Hermione rationalised,"I need to do this on my own. If I fail, I fail. If I pass, I pass. Do you get that?" Snape's face grew smaller as he realised she was right,"Sorry...I was just trying to help..." Hermione rubbed her temple, frustrated,"Don't you understand that they'll immediately recognise it's your handiwork? No matter how good I do, there will be always fingers pointing and saying, 'Of course she got the job, she's shagging a professor'! This was my way of putting a zipper on their mouths." She went out of the room slamming the door hard behind her.......................................
When there was a knock on the door the next evening, Snape put down his book and went to open it. "Good evening, Professor." It was Hermione. He checked her mood although she was smiling. "Are you still mad at me?"he asked cautiously. "I have no reason to be mad at you anymore. I got an Exceeds expectations on my paper!"she showed him the result proudly."Yeah, that's right. On my paper, not yours, mine. Take that you snob!" She hugged him. He laughed,"I've never seen you this happy with an E before. I assumed you never settled for anything less than an Outstanding."
"I would've gotten an O had I submitted your corrected version. But this way it was more believable. They also told me that I missed the perfect score by only a small margin. It's all good- I'll try and do better at the theory and practical examinations." Snape was about to guide her inside but she protested. "No no, tonight is group-study night. The exam is just a day away. You might as well go to sleep now, I'll be late."she kissed his cheek,"Laters." He stood there perplexed as she bustled away. He couldn't help but feel a little hurt......................
The exams were over without any glitches and Hermione and Snape came back to their home to have a celebratory dinner; just the two of them. "It was very romantic, thank you for this."Hermione acknowledged as she got ready for bed. Snape couldn't help but voice his discontent,"I thought you would wanna spend this night too with your 'group-study buddies'." He made a face, which he thought she wouldn't notice, but she did. "What are you saying?"she arched an eyebrow. He realised he was caught, but then decided to speak frankly about his displeasure anyways, that had been bubbling all this while,"You've been spending quite a bit of time with your friends...and Steve." He said the name in a mocking tone. "That was for work. And for the last time,"Hermione had great difficulty maintaining her composure,"We are just friends...hell. And FYI, Steve's gay!" Snape shut his mouth, processing this information. "If you have a problem with me, tell me, don't make it about anyone else."Hermione said. He tried to put more gravity in his defence,"Yes. Yes, I was upset that you went away last night. I thought we were going to...we are still trying, right?"
"Then you could've just told me!"Hermione gestured madly with her hands,"You know how obsessed I can sometimes get over studies. I was too engrossed with the coming exams and this just...left my mind. I probably wouldn't have said no if you had only asked."
He argued,"You have been quite irritable with me this last week. I am here to spend time with my loving wife. Is she here, by the way?" Hermione became even sterner,"Don't joke with me now. I don't understand. Why put this jealousy in between? And where is this coming from all of a sudden?"
"Oh, am I so wrong to be a little jealous? You are the only one I can claim any possession on. Allright, I'm sorry. What're we gonna do?"
"I'll tell you what we are gonna do. We're gonna put this fight on hold and have sex."
"Fine!....What?!"
"Yes. This is the last day I'm ovulating. If we don't do it now, we're gonna have to wait till next month."
"....Are you serious?"
Hermione took a calming breath and informed,"Yes. We've been trying for months now, right? So I thought that I should monitor my cycle. That way the chances of getting pregnant would be better." "Oh..."Snape opened his mouth and closed it again, unable to think what more to say. Then he quitely started undressing, still not sure what just happened. Hermione waited in bed, drumming her fingers, obviously impatient. "Spend more time on your cravat, that'll make a baby!"she snapped, sarcastic. Snape stopped unbuttoning, fed up now. "Look, I can't do this. I can't make love to you while we're fighting this way. Is this really the way you want our baby to be conceived?" Hermione looked down sadly and bit her lip,"No...you're right. It shouldn't be this way." She covered her mouth with her hands as she realised something."Oh my god, are we already that couple who has to forcefully have a child just to save their marriage?!" Snape rushed to her side, willing to console."No my dear, of course not. Remember, we decided to do this at a perfectly happy time. Not to avoid some other bigger problem. And anyways, this..this is nothing. It's a minor glitch. We are gonna do this because we want to. And if we don't, we don't. We don't need this to complete ourselves or anything. Don't feel forced, Hermione, don't ever think that." She hugged him lovingly then,"For what it's worth, I was being quite irritable. I'm sorry. It was just the pressure of the examination..I had a lot on my mind." "Yeah, we were both in the wrong. I should've understood you were anxious. You were bound to snap and I pushed you further. I'm sorry."he said. "You've already apologised darling."Hermione mused. They shared a long kiss and realised that now that everything was forgiven, they were rather turned on. Hermione looked at his face and smiled naughtily,"So..do you wanna?" Snape needn't be asked twice; he relieved himself of his clothes in a jiffy and did the same to his wife, surrendering themselves to ecstatic coitus.