"And what is wizarding royalty doing at Hogwarts?" -SS
"Come now Severus... Princesses love castles" -AD
Severus Snape was like an abandoned castle; cold and secluded. That was the way he liked it. He'd long since accepted the fact that he would be...
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"You are insufferable, Merlin," Severus grumbled in disdain, shoving his hair out of his eyes as if it had personally offended him.
"And you're miserable company but you don't see me complaining," Caledonia returned teasingly, swinging her legs from where she was lying on her stomach across his bed.
"Use that tone again and you can go back to your own room," he grumbled.
"It's chess, Severus, hardly worth such colourful threats," she gasped mockingly and he growled. Grinning mischievously, she ran her hand through the chess pieces on the board between them, sending them in all directions. The shock registered on Snape's face for only a second before she grabbed his tie and yanked him closer, sealing their lips together. They'd scarcely managed to keep them apart in the hours since her confession.
The information swam in circles around his mind like swans on a lake. Soon, she'd be wed to some horror of another's choosing and for the first time, the thought of losing her felt like a sword to his chest. All those months he'd wasted praying that she'd leave the castle, only for him to now clutch to her. Her kisses were more intoxicating than air and his head felt as though it'd become three times lighter.
"You're evil," he sighed, in a sort of heaven as she ran her fingers lightly down his cheek. No sensation had ever warmed him so effectively. In the hours since her confession, everything had shifted but their mutual aggression and clipped words hadn't fallen, not even when she'd dragged him up to his bed chambers.
"You'll find devils far preferable to angels, Sev, they know how to have fun." Caledonia shoved the chess board off of the bed easily and straddled him. Severus couldn't comprehend if it was all real, or merely happening in his head. His hands placed on her thighs to stop her from falling sideways off of his bed. At another time, he'd consider the consequence of their actions. He'd think about her marriage, his love for Lily, and the meaning of it all. For now, he had a stunning woman on his lap and their lips moved together in a sweet rhythm.
It seemed the least opportune time to tell her he had never been kissed. Instead, he toyed with the softness of her dark hair and breathed in her intoxicating scent.
"Stay with me tonight," he breathed, pushing her hair out of her eyes and she stared at him for an immeasurable moment, just long enough for him to start regretting his words.
"My, my Sevvy, aren't you very forward. Bending me over your desk would've been less revealing," her lips spread into a feline grin and he glared to negate his embarrassment as she settled comfortably between his emerald green sheets.
"A terror," he agreed with himself and slammed their lips together, incapable of getting enough.
--
"To be completely frank, the reason you're still unable to brew an adequate potion is because you're using the wrong recipe," Professor Merlin spoke calmly to a group of fifteen students, by far one of the largest groups she'd ever stood in front of. As time at Hogwarts continued to gallop onward, exam season was beginning and Caledonia felt as though she was living within a new, alternate world. "By this time in your education, you should all be able to correctly identify the uses of ingredients. Spellbooks, like cookbooks, are a guide. For instance, it doesn't tell me to use the side of my blade for cutting but from experience, I know that that works best. You are in your final year of Hogwarts, have been practising these skills since the beginning and should be able to put them into practice now. Trust the spell books only so far, trust yourselves more. Consider, for instance, when you learned the Patronus spell. those who were successful will know that the spellbook could only help you so far, the rest had to come from within." She finished her pre-exam speech and they nodded their gratitude.
"I now have conclusive evidence that you speak to everyone else far nicer than you speak to me," Severus Snape spoke calmly, leaning in the doorway of her classroom after he'd successfully scared away all her students. As much as she enjoyed teaching, her favourite times were always when night fell and the students went to bed. That was when time became her own again.
"I fear you wouldn't know what to do with yourself if I spoke to you nicely," she scoffed, chucking papers on her desk and he looked at it in disdain. Caledonia hadn't cleared her desk since she'd started working there five months ago and she had no intention of starting now.
"I must say your constant agitation does keep life interesting," he returned, fixing the cuffs of his shirt and she looked at him in apparent shock.
"That might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me," she beamed and he rolled his eyes.
"Well, I'm off to visit Dumbledore. I was merely stopping by to ensure you hadn't burned down your classroom trying to teach potions," he rumbled, stirring the contents of one of the potions, his face entirely unreadable. Still, Caledonia couldn't help but smirk. He was impressed and she knew it. She'd just taught a group of his most difficult students and their potions were more than adequate. If he'd picked fault in their work, he'd have surely said so.
"Awww, you care!" she gushed, approaching him and he shot her a disgusted side-eye. "You do have a sweet side, after all."
"Hardly," he scoffed but his eyes shimmered as she stopped by his side. "I am just eager to avoid the paperwork I'd be lumbered with if you committed arson."
"Oh, Sevvy, your words are ever so sweet," she mocked and he snorted in a very unfamiliar manner. The noise brought a grin to her face and his glare slammed back down like a shield as he turned to sweep from the room. She laughed at him all the way back down the corridor. He cared, even if he refused to admit it.
Despite all that loomed ahead, an unshakeable warmth had infected her and it had been almost impossible to keep a smile off of her face for the past few days.
Author's note: Hi all! I am bringing this book back! I have missed Caledonia and Severus. Please let me know your ideas and opinions. This is a bit of a filler chapter but the next will continue the story. Thank you.
