Unforeseen Affliction (snape x reader)

Secrets

Snape almost drops you as his head darts in the direction of the noise from the door. You pull away from him and see panic building in his eyes. He sets you down swiftly before starting to pace around the room, searching his quarters for a hiding spot.

"Hide." he whispers hurriedly. His hand points to a spot behind a bookshelf.

You rush to the spot as quickly as you can. Even though you're hidden from the view of the door, you wrap your arms around yourself in an attempt to make yourself as small as possible.

Snape walks towards the door, buttoning up and fixing his shirt. He glances in your direction, making sure you're hidden, before opening the door. Before darting your head out of sight, you notice how tousled his hair looks; but it's too late to warn him.

"Good evening, Severus." Dumbledore's voice says from the other side of the doorway.

"Headmaster?" Snape responds, a mixture of a greeting and a question.

"I'm sorry to disturb you this late, especially on your birthday," Dumbledore smiles softly, "But it's urgent. Remus has informed me of a development."

"Oh?" Snape says lifting his eyebrows, his voice sounds strained.

"While the students were practicing nonverbal spells today in class, y/n y/ln's counterspell almost hit him."

Your eyes widen at the mention of your name and the incident during class.

"No one was hurt, but it practically turned the board to dust." Dumbledore continues.

Snape inhales sharply. "I see."

A cramp in your leg causes you to adjust your footing, and the wood of the shelf creaks quietly in response. You cringe at the noise and hold your breath. Dumbledore glances in your direction, eyeing the spot for a few moments. He blinks a few times, but sees nothing except a shelf of books. Snape moves uncomfortably, taking a minuscule step in an attempt to obstruct Dumbledore's view.

"I'm afraid it's happening sooner than we thought." Dumbledore says, moving his gaze back to Snape, "Do you have the potion prepared?"

Potion?

Snape nods and mutters something to Dumbledore.

Then there's silence. Hidden from view, you're unable to see what's going on. Your heart beat picks up and you scold yourself, wishing you hadn't moved at all. Your mind is spiraling into overthinking. You wonder whether you've ruined everything, whether you'll actually be caught.

But then, Dumbledore speaks up again. "Very well, it's getting late, I won't bother you again tonight. I just thought you would want to know what's going on." Dumbledore explains. "Goodnight. And happy birthday."

The anxiety in your chest loosens when you hear the door close. Snape lets out a long sigh and walks to sit on his bed. You move hesitantly around the shelf, taking a deep breath.

"What was that?" you ask quietly.

Snape's hand moves to his face and his fingers move against his closed eyes, willing away the stress and frustration Dumbledore's news brought. He doesn't answer you.

Not for the first time this year you feel like there's more going on behind your back than you know. You feel like an idiot for letting yourself believe, even for the briefest of moments, that things had returned to normal with Laura's return. It seems like the complete opposite is true.

"What's going on? Why was he talking about me?" you say as you approach Snape's bed. Your hands stay wrapped around your body, as if protecting yourself from whatever he's about to say.