This ficlet was written as an answer to a 100-word drabble contest, except it got a little too long. Beware, this is very dramatic, but it was fun to write! :)
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Hermione stormed into Severus Snape's rooms with a look so angry that he thought she was about to give him a detention. In actuality, he thought she looked simply ravishing.

"Professor Granger, to what do I owe this visit?" Severus said, giving her a sexy smile and raking over her form with his dark eyes. Perhaps his powers of seduction would overrule his less than kind words at that morning's breakfast at the High Table.

"Severus Snape, don't you dare try to seduce me right now! What was that about, this morning? Calling me a child in front of the entire staff? How foolish of me to think that you actually cared!" Hermione cried, her hands shaking with anger. "We said we loved one another two nights ago," she said very softly as she sank into a large armchair. "Why must you act as if you despise me?"

Severus' face dropped as he gave the younger professor a guilty frown. "Accio firewhisky," he said, pointing his wand towards the mantle, where a large bottle of Ogden's sat. "I'm so sorry, Hermione," he said with a sigh. "You see, I grew up in a family where love was not a priority. In my family, obtaining power was important, and showing emotion was shameful." He paused for a moment, composing his thoughts. "I do love you - I was not lying when I said it, and I'm not lying now. It has simply been so long since I have allowed a woman to care for me, and allowed myself to care for her in turn, that it doesn't yet come natural to me to... make public displays of it."

Hermione shook her head. "Severus, I don't expect you to act out a romance novel with me in the halls, but I do need and deserve respect in front of our peers, and I don't want to hide our relationship anymore. I'm not your student anymore, and you shan't treat me as such!"

Severus downed his shot of firewhiskey in one gulp. "Hermione, you mean so much more to me than I ever could have dreamed. It was just this morning when I was watching you in a discussion with Filius Flitwick that I realized that perhaps I could enjoy watching you for the rest of my life. That thought scared me, as I've never cared as much for anyone as I have for you, and I've worried this whole time that you would think me a stupid old man and decide to stop wasting your time and move on to someone your own age. This is why I've chosen to keep our trysts secret, and to act like... well, like a bastard, in public. If you can assure me that you have no intention to live out my fears, then I can assure you that I will make every effort to show the world how much I do truly care."

Severus let out a huge breath that he didn't realize he'd been holding, as he watched Hermione.

Hermione leapt out of her chair and ran to him, settling herself on his lap. Reaching down with a smile to let him know exactly what it was she wanted, she said, "Severus, your fears will never come true. You should know by now that all I want... or need... is you."

Severus growled as he took Hermione's mouth in a fierce kiss, and in one move, he lifted her up and carried her to his bed.