The half lit room definitely spun as she stood, her hand rising to her head in an effort to still it. She needed but a moment to gather herself… a sigh eschewing from thin lips as the knocker showed persistence. "I'm coming!" she called, but not quite loud enough. Leaning heavily upon her walking cane, Minerva McGonagall slowly walked over to the door of her personal quarters to reveal the rather late visitor – most likely Albus, to ask if she were absolutely alright. She never would have anticipated it to be one of her other colleagues until she opened the door. There was no mistaking about the tangy, oily ebony hair despite the owner's head being cast downward, though. "Severus?" Minerva's mild surprise sounded through in her voice for those who listened well.

The Slytherin's head rose to meet her green eyes with his colorless ones. "Minerva. You look…" he began, upon taking in her appearance… eyebrows knitting together pondering about how he could address the topic to her.

"Pale? Maybe like I've been hit by four Stunners and barely survived it?"

"I'm glad that you did," Severus offered. "If you should happen to need anything whatsoever, I hope that you'll consider asking about it."

Minerva's lips twitched, her eyes momentarily shimmering… if you looked very well. The overall air of seriousness never left, though. "I'll consider it."

Severus nodded, turning already when he suddenly stilled. Looking over his shoulder, he added, "You gave us quite a scare."

Minerva's lips twitched once more, slightly more obvious than last time. "You, too?" she wondered.

Turning about ninety degrees toward her again, he replied, "Everyone, so yes… me, too. I never would have thought to see Dumbledore as visibly enraged as when the Dementors came upon Hogwarts' domain again. However, that was nothing compared to how he reacted upon hearing about your accident."

"Accident?" Minerva voiced, eyebrow lifting in wonder about his referral to an event that had nearly had her killed.

"Yes," he replied, choosing to just ignore the eyebrow which Severus had seen raised a bunch of times upon nonsense replies in class, teenage idiotism and foolishness or skepticism – thus, often enough. "I'm quite sure if he hadn't been the one on the run, Dumbledore might have come to kill her."

A laugh left her lips then, followed by a groan of slight discomfort as she would name it.

Worry passed over pale features, watching as Minerva leaned even more heavily upon the walking cane in her left hand. "I'm fine," she said, sensing the question upon his lips rather than seeing it, for her eyes had closed upon having felt that pain rush through her sore hip. Standing long was certainly not beneficial for it. Minerva damned herself for not having managed to keep the groan unheard. If only she had not laughed… Her hand rose to her head in a fashion that was getting familiar.

Rushing forward, Snape reached around her frame and let her collapse against him just in time. Fine – of course. He, however, had enough wits left about him not to argue about it.

A wave of his wand made a glass of cool water appear in thin air and hover just long enough as to enable him to shove his wand away once more and reach for it, offering it to her. Her hands shook as she gladly accepted. Helping her raise the glass to her mouth to sip from it, he resolved to help her to bed and tell her to get some rest. She obviously was far from fine. Most likely she had somehow convinced the staff at St. Mungo's of her well-being in order to 'escape' sooner than normally would have been allowed. However, he couldn't even begin to imagine what 'cooperative' patient she must have been.

Getting hexed despite her weak state, testing her magical abilities despite it, wasn't on his list of goals, so he wisely chose not to mention his thoughts.

Instead, he just carefully held her, until her hand stopped shaking and she herself banished the glass wandlessly. Clouded green eyes rose again. "I'm very sorry," she apologized. "I have been in bed for about twenty-three hours a day during my stay at St. Mungo's. I need…"

"… to get some rest," he interrupted.

To his utter surprise, she nodded. As she pushed away from him, she noticed the door to her rooms had been shut and wondered when he had moved into her room further and done so.

"I apologize," she repeated.

A light touch upon her jaw line made her slowly lift her unclear eyes to his again. "I momentarily thought I was going to lose you," he admitted.

"You won't get rid of me so soon," Minerva said, feeling the change in the air about them which she internally assumed he felt, too.

She should have moved away at that point, but somehow despite everything, she felt just right where she was – not that she could have moved away had she tried to. The throbbing in her hip could not be ignored any longer. She didn't move away. She didn't fight him as his lips moved upon hers in the moment. She even responded to him, at once somehow the nausea having momentarily washed over her entirely gone, together with her headache. Now, if he had been able to make the pain across her hip disappear, too…

Releasing her kissed lips, Severus retracted. "I'd have…" he began. "Hogwarts wouldn't have been the same anymore," he concluded.

The look contained within those deep green orbs pulled him to her once more. A whimper left her as the emotion made her unsteady on the legs – even more than she already was. Unable to leave those sensual lips so soon, yet unwilling to continue her pain, he gently lifted her in his arms while never stopping to kiss his dear colleague…

"I'm going to take you to bed personally," he breathed in her ear as he finally retracted once more. Assuming that her rooms were constructed similar to his, he began moving toward the door to the right.

Laying her down upon the bed as gentle as possible, Severus found that her lips – obviously swollen by his kiss now – were too hard to break away from. They begged to be kissed again. They needed to be kissed again. He needed to kiss them, kiss her… again. However, she had only just left the darn hospital. He couldn't very well… She had not even consented to being kissed nor taken to bed by him!

"I apologize," he said, eyes taking in her appearance as she lay upon and between the pillows of her bed… looking like a siren. "I'll leave you to get some rest."

Moving her hand to his, Minerva stilled him. "No worries," she said. "I'm just not as energetic now as I've been…"

"That's why I should be leaving you now," he said.

Moving her hand to his lips, Minerva shushed him, head shaking. "Gently," she whispered.

Reaching down once again to reclaim her soft lips, Severus slowly moved atop of her, careful to lean most of his weight upon his arms as he moved one hand on each side of Minerva's head, right above her shoulders.

His weight gently rested against her centre as he lay in the cradle between her thighs, their kiss easily growing more heated. Minerva's hand slid down to tangle in his hair – which was surprisingly soft to the touch despite how it seemed. "Inside me…" she breathed, as their lips parted and his moved to the hollow of her neck.

As he sank deep into his once mentor, he indeed was gentle. The tightening of her hand in his hair and the other upon his shoulder encouraged him to move. Gently he remained as he carefully listened to Minerva's painting, straining to be able to hear it if she was again beginning to feel discomfort.

Her wet hot heat felt so good as it surrounded him, and as he closed his eyes and the nice feeling immediately intensified, he pounded into her hard.

A wince left her lips upon it, and his eyes opened to peer down upon her. He stilled.

"Please don't…" Minerva whispered, her nails digging more into him.

"You're…"

"I'm fine," she countered, "just… gently."

Skepticism overtook, but he did as Minerva asked. However, this time Severus would not make the same mistake… keeping his dark eyes upon her. He never would have thought to actually enjoy doing just that… he never had looked at any of the women who had shared his bed. However, he enjoyed to see her nostrils flare as she struggled for air, the delight rippling through her upon his thrusts stealing it away. He too enjoyed to not only hear her moan, but see it as well.

Slowly experimenting with a slightly faster pace – though still careful not to move into her too hard – he began to feel the first tendrils of his impending orgasm, the increase in strength of her moans telling him that she might well be as well.

Keeping his dark eyes upon Minerva while still moving experimentally faster, he could feel her thighs tremble at his sides… A few more thrusts until Severus could feel her orgasm overtaking her – most especially by the tightening of her walls about his length… The spasms made him topple over the edge within seconds, too.

Forcing himself not to just collapse as he otherwise would have done, he could feel the life giving white fluid leave him.

Having gathered himself again, Severus's eyes opened – they had inevitably closed upon the arrival of his orgasm. He peered down upon her while letting himself slip from her and moving beside her on his side, so that he could still eye her.

Her eyes did not open as she spoke. "That was… intense," she said. "Maybe we could try it again when I'm feeling better as well, though. You've made me curious as to how it might feel if I'd been able to be more active."

"I wouldn't be surprised if you usually were."

"Oh, I am," she said, eyes opening. A smile spread over her features. "You just wait and see…"