The Infatuations And Disenchantments of Loving A Snake (Severus Snape)

21 | Severus' Enemy

It was true that Severus hated Anastasia for what she did to him. He knew from the very beginning that she would be his demise yet be as that may, He let her in. Their time together was short but he was the happiest he had been in years, and for a moment he thought maybe if all went according to Dumbledores plan about the Dark Lord, he could have a life with her. But any thought of that was ripped to shreds the night she left him.

He was a strong man; never let his emotions show. But that night, all his emotions which he kept bottled up inside were let free. He hadn't cried since Lily's death and if he thought about it, it almost hurt more. That night he had promised himself that he would never let her back in. She had made her choice to leave him, and if he wasn't good enough for her in that moment, then he would never be. And Severus promised himself that he would never put himself in a situation like that again. He had loved the woman and before he could even tell her she broke his heart.

He had done everything in his power to avoid her. He didn't even want to look at her. Seeing her would just hurt him even more. So, he started taking his meals in his office which he kept locked incase she decided to come and find him. And during staff meetings and when the chamber was discovered by the three Gryffindors and Lockhart he refused to look at her. Yet he could feel her eyes on him the whole time.  He didn't want to be in her presence let alone talk to her, or hear explanations or apologies from the slag. He wanted solitude.

With the end of the term came his relief and he felt as though he could finally relax. He could go back home to his dark creaky childhood home in Spinners End and be far away from Anastasia Tate. He may have hated living in a house that had so many horrid memories of his fathers abusive behavior towards his mother and himself but it was far better than having to be anywhere near her. Living in a house that did not feel like home was a million times better than living in the shared space of Hogwarts with someone who once did feel like his home yet no longer did.

Severus had spent his holiday making potions, and stocking up his ingredients for the approaching new term. He frequented Diagon Alley as a change of scenery and to get out of the stuffy house he lived in. Thankfully, he never ran into Anastasia.

That is, until a week before they were due back at Hogwarts...

Severus was sat in his armchair reading the Daily Prophet, blood boiling as he took in the article of Sirius Black's escape. How could that chav tosser escape the most guarded wizarding prison in the world? The only good thing that may come of this was that if he ran into Lily Potter's murderer, Severus could kill him himself.  his hands were shaking with rage as he read on. However, half way through the article, a blood curtailing scream pulled him from his thoughts. That scream, it sounded like her. He froze for a moment as he listened closer, waiting for another sound to come from outside his dwelling.

Had he imagined it? Slowly and silently he folded the paper and placed it on the small wooden table next to his chair. After a few moments he could hear whimpering and cry's coming from the alley beside his home. His eyes widened a fraction and he shot up from his chair wand in hand as he ran out the door. He did not know what had come over him. He liked to think that if this had occurred months ago he would have just left her there without a second thought. But for some reason his body had reacted in a way he hadn't thought he ever would for her again.

Once his eyes landed on the mess of Anastasia's limp body laying in a puddle of blood in the dirty street his heart sank into his stomach like a brick. Slowly he approached her. At this point she had stopped making noise and her skin was a pale gray, as if the life had drained from her.  When he finally picked her up off the ground, she made a soft whimper and he breathed a sigh of relief.
She wasn't dead.

His heart was racing as he preformed healing charms on her limp body. He had never seen her look so broken before, as if the fight had ran out of her. Her pulse was weak and he knew he had to work fast. She would be dead in minutes if he didn't stop the bleeding. Her injuries we're unmistakable, she had been splinched. He had seen worse splinching before during the aparation training at Hogwarts, missing limbs and fingers yet those were quickly remedied as the missing body parts were always only a few feet away. But the deep gouge of missing muscle and flesh trailing from Anastasia's collarbone down her arm could be anywhere. He had not known where she had come from so there was no way of putting it back. So he had to work quickly to heal and regrow what had been lost.

Once the witch left later that night Severus let out a frustrated grunt. He could not understand how he was always put into situations to save this idiotic woman. Maybe next time he should just let her die... No! He thought. He couldn't do that. That wasn't who he was anymore. Maybe if he was still a death eater, still set in his old ways he would have. But he couldn't, his conscious wouldn't allow him to let the woman he once loved die.

•••

Finally, it was time to return to Hogwarts and ready himself for the new term. Grumbling to himself he apparated to the gates of Hogwarts and made his way up to the castle. This year he was particularly outraged. Not only would he have to deal with that wanker of a woman but he also had to put up with the werewolf. He could not understand why the headmaster would hire a man so dangerous to teach children. He had a bad feeling that someone would get hurt because of him. Even despite the wolfsbane he would make for the man every month. He wasn't a seer but he did always get a feeling at the bottom of his stomach when he knew something bad would happen before it occurred.

Severus sat at the large staff table that night drinking mead and sharing light conversation when necessary with his colleagues. The beginning of the year staff party was in full swing. He always hated parties but the food was never comparable. Not only was the food delicious but Anastasia was not there to enrage him, more over neither was the werewolf. He knew Anastasia would most likely be arriving on the train with the students due to her injuries. He could only assume she was still much too week to aparate and would most likely be afraid to for a while after her incident.

But none of that explained why Lupin had not arrived yet...

"Severus, my boy" Dumbledore broke the raven haired man from his thoughts "I heard you fixed up our Professor Tate not just two days ago. I'm so glad you two made up" Severus could smell the mead on his breath and knew he was a bordering drunkenness. "How could you have possibly know about that?" Severus hissed. "Ana owled me explaining why she would be arriving late" Severus' blood started to boil what could she have possibly told the man to allude that they had made up. Nothing would ever be the same between them now... too much time had passed and too much damage had been done.

"I may have healed her, but that is all. I have no interest in that woman whatsoever." He grumbled standing up swiftly almost knocking his chair over in the process. He retired to his office to organize himself and start preparing for classes to distract himself.

He did not want to think or speak about Anastasia Tate for as long as he lived. He was numb to her now any part of him that still harbored feelings for her was gone.

However, when he was sat at the staff table awaiting the students arrival and the sorting of the first years, two professors walked through the great hall doors together. Anastasia Tate and Remus Lupin.

It appeared that they were having a light hearted conversation as they both laughed and payed no one else attention as they walked to the main table. Severus shifted in his chair as he glowered at the two approaching the table. If he hadn't hated her before, he certainly did now. How could she be mingling with that wanker after everything? Hadn't she known Remus Lupin was apart of James Potter's gang of bullies? Lupin and his friends nearly killed him back in their school days. Hadn't she been in her first and second years while he was in his sixth and seventh? She had to have known about how horrid that man was! Or had she forgotten?

He was not hurt as he had lost all feelings for the woman but there was a large part of him that was furious with her. After everything they had been through, after everything they had done together, she had to go and betray him like this?

It looked as though the two had been friends for ages with the way they were talking. And they way Lupin looked at her... it was as if they were falling for each other! How long had they known each other? Surly they couldn't have just met with the way she so freely talked to him with her eyes trained on his... then again this was Anastasia Tate. The woman who talked so freely to anyone who would listen. The woman who loved the uncomfortable eye contact that she gave just about anyone she talked to.

So, maybe he was overreacting, but a part of him could not let it go. She was conspiring with the enemy! No, she was the enemy now. They both were.