Bittersweet (A Severus Snape fanfic)

Settling in

The time finally came where Severus had to pick up the dark haired beauty from her coastal home and bring her to Hogwarts.

He was not pleased that Dumbledore had chosen him to be her chaperone, but at the same time he was pleased that he had chosen him and not Lupin. He still couldn't believe that he had chosen a werewolf to work within such close proximity of the students, but Dumbledore seemed to not be phased by the idea, no matter how many times Severus had brought it up.

It was dark, but it had stopped raining. Severus hadn't slept much that night. He had eaten to become more sober, and had a short nap after continuing his research on Auras, but besides that half an hour, he hadn't slept another wink.

It didn't bother him that much; he had to be up early anyway to get ready and he wasn't especially tired. He often had bouts of insomnia, which, had he been in the castle already, he would of spent adventuring the grounds or the restricted section of the library. But he was not. So he spent his time double checking his stuff, before using magic to send it to Hogwarts.

Elvira was in the same sort of situation. She hadn't slept either, but more out of muted excitement rather than insomnia. She had been washed, dressed and packed by three, and she had done her makeup and hair by four.

Elvira wasn't the kind of person for light or natural makeup; she liked her bold and fierce look. It boosted her confidence and helped her seem more independent. She thought nothing was better than a sharp flick of eyeliner, and she completed this with dark green and black eyeshadow, and a nude lip. Her contour was done with precision, highlighting her already chiseled features. Elvira thought makeup was an art. An art that had cost her way too much money and too many years of practice.

She had paired her heavy makeup with a tight black dress that hugged her body, and stopped just above her knees. It was sleeveless, and had a turtleneck collar. She also had a hooded, dark grey cloak and leather ankle boots that propped her already tall height a few inches higher.

Elvira was kind of beautiful, but she often didn't see this as a positive. Her appearance always drew in the wrong type of people, and too many times she had had a close call. She had learned that many people had not taken her seriously because of the care she took in her appearance, and had believed she was dumb or that she had didn't care about looking intelligent. It was a stereotype that she had battled for years, and it annoyed her.

She strongly believed that a female could be beautiful and intelligent.

She had also learned that whilst people could worship her body, they could harm it too, and soon she had begun using her body as a Swiss Army knife. Her appearance helped draw people in, and sometimes the subtle wink of an eye or the sneaky peek of a inch of her cleavage was enough to get what she wanted. Elvira had too many times used her body to her advantage to gain information or objects.

And it was one of the reasons she was being hunted.

Elvira walked downstairs with her large trunk and settled it on the floor of the hallway, trying to be as quiet as possible. The animals she was looking after were still fast asleep, and she wanted them to be well rested before they were taken away and given new homes whilst she went and lived at Hogwarts.

Elvira walked into the kitchen, taking some of the medication from the cabinet beneath the sink, oblivious to the grumpy man who was now stood in the doorway, watching her. She had sensed a presence, but she was too focused on finding the right tablets to realize he was right there.

"I said be ready for six." Severus scowled, leaning against the door frame. Elvira held her hand to her chest and let out a small squeak as he made himself known. She could see his scowl twitch into a smirk and she rolled her eyes, taking the tablets and closing the cabinet door.