Devotion (Snape × Student OC)

25

As students filed out of the classroom, still chuckling or groaning about the burdensome homework assigned by Professor McGonagall, I quickly called out to Harry. "Hey, Harry!" Harry briefly turned his gaze back towards me, He responded to my question with a sarcastic undertone "Oh, so Sue wants to talk about my impending doom too?" I let out a soft chuckle and nodded my head in acknowledgment as the two of us continued walking side by side towards the Great Hall for lunch.

We strolled together as I raised my eyes to ask him a question. "Do you think seeing a dog in your cup has something to do with the man who broke out of Azkaban?" Harry paused for a moment, his nod slow and thoughtful. "I'm not sure... all I know is that I will die this year." he said with a hint of dark humor, prompting me to punch his shoulder. "Don't be so ridiculous, Harry! You've already defeated Voldemort!"

Harry paused once more, then fixed his gaze on me contemplatively. "I've noticed something about you, Sue..." My eyes widened in surprise "What is it??"
He raised an eyebrow and observed, "I've noticed that you never seem scared of saying Voldemort's name. You never refer to him as 'You-Know-Who'." I felt caught off guard by Harry's comment. I had always been more comfortable with calling Voldemort by his name, never quite understanding the taboo around it.

I shrugged "I don't know. I just find it silly to call him 'You know who' or 'He who must not be named.' It's just a name." Harry smiled and chuckled softly "Yeah, I figured you'd say something like that. You always had a way of thinking outside the box."
Our conversation was abruptly cut short as Hermione approached us, walking briskly and being followed closely by Ron. It appeared that they were engaged in another one of their arguments, with this time's topic being about the Divination class.

Harry and I shared a knowing look, our expressions full of amusement "They're always like this." Harry sighed with a small smile, then as we took our places at the table in the Great Hall, he turned to me again. "You look pale. Are you okay?" I casually waved off his concern and took a sip of my pumpkin juice, replying jokingly "Of course I'm fine. You're the one who should be worried about those doom signs."

We both chuckled softly, the tension in Harry's eyes lightening up as we shared our banter. For a moment, the worries about prophecies and ominous signs from Trelawney's class seemed to fade away. I quickly wolfed down my lunch before the class with Hagrid began. Ron, his mouth slick with grease, raised an eyebrow and quipped "You've started to wander around like a ghost again?"
Without wasting any time, I snatched my bag and replied "Just a little thing I need to do."

Ron leaned towards Harry, whispering quietly "I bet you she's going to stalk Snape. Why on earth is she wandering around the school like a ghost all the time?" Harry rolled his eyes and replied with a shrug "Who knows? Maybe it's just her weird habit. She's always been like that." I sprinted through the castle corridors towards Snape's office, opening the door with a burst of energy. With an almost too excited tone, I enthusiastically greeted him "Good afternoon, pro-"

My jaw dropped as I froze in place, realizing that Professor McGonagall was already in his office, as if I had interrupted a serious conversation between them. Professor McGonagall's eyes shot up at the sound of my sudden entry, her sharp gaze turning towards me. Snape, on the other hand, fixed his stern gaze upon me, silently awaiting for the reason of my unannounced arrival. Snape let out an annoyed sigh as he looked at me "What is it, Miss.Sue?"

I glanced between the two of them, feeling my embarrassment grow, I wish the ground could swallow me up right now. Feeling mortified, I hastily replied "N-nothing...I'll come back later." With that, I hastily left his office, closing the door behind me. Professor McGonagall looked at Snape, a curious expression on her face. "She usually comes to your office?" Snape leaned back in his seat, a mocking grin playing on his lips. "She's fond of potions... perhaps she had a few questions."