The Art of Taking Chances || Severus Snape x Reader ||

Chapter 9: Racing Thoughts

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A/N: Hi, lovelies! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

"You've been out of sorts with whatever you want to ask me for quite some time now."

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The office was strangely quiet as the two of you sat on your respective sides, almost drowning in working silence. You couldn't seem to really put all of your focus into the essays in front of you, because you just couldn't forget what Neville had said. It was strange to you that Severus talked about you openly in front of students...you just wished that you knew what sort of things he said. You glanced up from your desk to get a look at him, but you felt a rush of heat when you saw his eyes were already set on you.

This wasn't the first time that had happened, and each time made it more and more awkward. He was trying to build up the courage to ask you about the encounter that HE had with his students earlier that day. He wasn't exactly sure how to casually ask about why Draco Malfoy had made such a bold claim. He didn't want to ask, but he desperately wanted to know.

Severus only gave a soft smile, tearing his eyes away after a few seconds.

You couldn't fathom why he kept staring at you, but you were too skittish to even take the time to really ponder on it. Severus finally spoke first, catching you totally off guard.

"Did you get the chance to ask Miss Lovegood?" Severus wondered.

"Huh?" You questioned, totally missing the intent of his question.

"Miss Lovegood. Did you ask her about taking an assistant position?" Severus asked again.

"Oh! Yeah, I did. She was more than happy to help." You alerted him, recalling your conversation with the third year Ravenclaw.

"That's good. I think she'll prove to be useful." Severus stated.

You nodded in response, keeping your eyes fixed on the Potions master across the room, who wasn't currently sharing a stare. He was scribbling with his quill, clearly occupied with whatever was in front of him.

You were raking over your words over and over, but you just couldn't get the words out. All you had to do was start a different conversation. It was a simple question. It shouldn't have been this fucking hard to ask him about it. You opened your mouth to speak, but Severus' beat you to the punch.

"You know you can ask me anything, [Y/N]." Severus said, hiding his smirk by keeping his head lowered.

You paused. How did he know that you had been trying to ask him something for the last hour and a half? You hadn't given him any indicator that you had something on your mind.

"How did you..." You began to ask, but the obvious answer popped into mind before you could finish. You tossed your pen onto the desk, looking at his incredulously and leaning forward in your chair, "Are you a fucking Legilimens?"

Severus looked at you, not hiding his sneer anymore and laughing at your priceless expression.

"A rather skilled one at that," He announced, "You've been out of sorts with whatever you want to ask me for quite some time now."

You were floored at his confession, and more humiliated at the fact that there was no telling what sort of things he had heard you think before.

"Have you been reading my thoughts this entire time?" You questioned, your cheeks burning.

He shrugged.

"Maybe." He said slyly.

Your jaw was dropped, completely taken by surprise. You were sure that you'd break out into a sweat if you didn't get it together. Leave it to Severus Snape to obtain one of the hardest skills to master in the world of wizardry. You had respected his boundaries, refusing to use your Legilimency skill on him. Now the playing field was even. You went quiet for a moment, focusing in the way you knew how before you began to hear his thinking.