The Potion Master's Apprentice (A Severus Snape love story)

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

The clock ticked monotonously. An echoing, repetitive sound like a dripping tap that cut through the roaring silence like a knife. Florence stared impassively at the velvet canopy of her bed, trying to calm the angry beating of her heart.

She sighed and rolled over, burrowing her head in her pillow in an attempt to lure sleep. This was, unfortunately, to no prevail. She was too riled up to sleep, hands clammy with sweat as her mind worked overtime, whirring inside her tired head and preventing the black curtain she so longed to descend over her and take her to sleep.

Stifling a yawn she pulled herself begrudgingly away from the warm, inticing bed covers and slipped silently towards the door. Grabbing a thin gown from a hook on the back  of the mahogany door, she pulled it over her black lace underwear and went to her bedside cabinet.

Florence groaned as she saw her reflection grimacing back at her. She looked an absolute mess. Taking a moments breath she got to work, flattening down her mad, static hair, applying a thin coat of crimson lipstick and trying to remove the mascara smudges from beneath her glistening eyes.

When she was happy she gave herself a good luck smile before pulling herself upright, allowing the gown to remain unbelted as she brushed her hair away from her face. Breathing quickly and nervously she stepped silently from the room, feeling her way along with her hands against the rough stone walls. A loud thunk signified that she had reached another door, and, without hesitation, she pushed it silently open. Crossing her fingers that the door wouldn't make a sound, she laughed softly and slipped inside.

A soft, glimmering glow was pentrating the stifling darkness from a lone candle that was stooped in the corner, wax dripping silently to the floor. Severus didn't stir beneath the silky black covers, just continued breathing heavily and occasionally shifting.

Florence stepped calmly towards him, stopping when she was only a metre away and she could see the faint stubble on his face.

"Severus!" She tried to shout but in a whispered voice. Severus grunted and turned over, now facing the opposite direction. Florence groaned and stomped impatiently over to him. She went to the other side of the bed and crouched down so that their faces were on the same level and she could see his fluttering eyelids. "Severus!" She hissed, louder this time. Serverus just grumbled incoherently and remained sleeping. Florence gritted her teeth and pushed herself onto her feet.

She crawled onto the bed, stopping when he moved. She held her breath, waiting for him to wake up, but all he did was shift so that he was laying on his back. She exhaled roughly and shuffled over so that her knees were touching his leg and she could smell his pungent cologne. 

"Severus." She whispered, moving closer. She lifted her hands up to his face and delicately caressed his lips with her thumb whilst she used her other hand to trail down his chest. That was when Severus woke up, a startled expression on his face as he saw a scantily clad woman sitting in his bed, her hand now on his thigh.

"FLORENCE! GET THE FUCK OFF ME!" He shouted, clutching the covers and pulling them tighter around his waist. Florence scowled at him but refused to move her hand. In fact, if anything, she just moved it further away from his knee. "I'M NOT WEARING ANY CLOTHES! GET LOST!" He roared, pushing her hands away as her scowl became a fully fledged death glare.

"No!" She growled, tightening her grip. "Besides," She added with a grin sneaking onto her bright scarlet lips. "It's nothing I haven't seen before." She cocked her head to the side as he turned a vivid shade of red.

"I DON'T CARE! GET OUT! OUT!" He yelled, causing her to frown profusely. 

"I'm not going anywhere." She hissed, eyes narrowing as she crawled towards him. "And neither are you." Severus swallowed loudly, slightly nervous at the almost predatory expression on her face. She reminded him of a hungry Wild cat. She grinned manically at his frightened expression.