The Stars on the Staircase

Beyond Arms Length

"Severus." McGonagall began "What is the meaning of this?" She demanded.

Severus seemed to be at a loss of what to say. So I tried "Professor Snape has a headache and I was applying some mint oil..." as I stood and stepped away. It was so much worse getting caught than I imagined. There was a huge pit in my stomach of worry for him.

"Minerva. We should have come to you sooner, there is something happening to us. It's not easy to explain but please trust me when I swear-"

"Severus. You well know that I do not truck with this kind of nonsense from our staff. There was a time at this school where this sort of thing happened, and I swore when I took this position that never again would I allow this kind manipulative behaviour to occur."

"Professor, I can also swear he's telling the truth about-" I try.

"We will sit down, the two of us and have a chat about this but I need you to know that just because you are of age does not mean you are beyond the manipulative control of someone. I think you should go to your dormitory now and allow me to speak to Severus."

"Minerva, don't dismiss her. You need to hear the story from both of us. We have a memory we can you show you." Severus pleaded.

"Memory. Memory of what, Severus? The moment you lost your sense and allowed an inappropriate relationship with a student to form?"

"As a matter of fact, yes." He answered. McGonagall was taken aback. "A couple of weeks ago I stopped her from falling off a staircase. When I grabbed her hand, sparks emitted where we made skin contact. After that, we began to find it difficult to stay away from each other. Moreover, I can hear every thought from her mind like she's reading it aloud to me. I can respond in her mind without casting any legilimency spells." He explained, I could hear the tension in his chest as he spoke.

"If this is true, you should have come to me immediately, not carried on alone. I've changed my mind. I'll talk to you later, Severus. I must speak to you first, my dear, and ascertain exactly how fair this has gone. Come along." She was moving toward the door and gesturing me to follow.

"You have my word Severus that I will not tell her about the bathtub or the tapestry." I think as I leave the room. I pray he heard it. The walk up to her office is tense and quiet and I sort through my memories of the last two weeks. Each time we have been alone something has happened that he could be in trouble for. I parse through the memories, trying to think what to tell her about and what not to. She is no fool, if I sit in her office and claim nothing has happened she will see right through me. There is no way to claim that my straddling him tonight is the first time we have broken a boundary, but what can I tell her that she feels she has been fully informed without risking Severus' job?

In her sitting room she offers me water, a seat, and a penetrating stare. I sip my water, biding my time, but the quiet doesn't last long. "First, tell me about the staircase incident." She says quietly, with a tense set of her mouth. There is a sadness in her brow. I can feel her overwhelming disappointment in Severus. There's a huge weight on my shoulders to do justice to him.

"It was a Monday afternoon. I was walking down the stairs as it moved from the East Wing 5th floor corridor to the 4th West. I was trying to reorder my parchment for the next class and my foot landed incorrectly on a stair near the bottom. I lost my balance and almost tipped right off the stairs but he grabbed my hand, pulled me back up. There were these little... starbursts all around our hands. Little sparks. He magiced my papers back into my hands and he walked off. I was embarrassed and shaken. That day I wouldn't say anything felt abnormal but after that moment we kept finding the other looking at us in crowds." I try to explain in enough detail to prove the truth of it, but the fact is the moment was so fleeting there's very little detail to tell.