The Choice of Destiny (Snape Love Story)

Dueling Club Renewed

………….

Since the encounter in the infirmary, Snape seemed to have been avoiding her. Catalina couldn’t blame him but sometimes, she missed the way that they quarreled together. She sighted and knocked at the door but there was no answer. When she finally dared to walk in, she could tell that tonight’s detention was quite peaceful. Snape wasn’t even in his office, he just left instruction.

Miss Legrande, your today’s punishment will consist of sorting the potion recipes in alphabetical order. You are to wait for me until I come back; we need to talk.

Severus Snape

Damn it, thought Catalina. If only they were on equal footing here, she would gladly wait for him if only to say what she thought about him. Like this, she was a little nervous about the act.

Peacefully, she sorted the recipes and curled up in the only comfortable chair she could find in his office. The armchair was soft and inviting, she certainly wasn’t going to wait for him on the floor. Hours passed by with the blink of an eye and she found herself dozing off until the darkness of her dreams engulfed her into calm, undisturbed sleep.

………….

Severus walked into his office, expecting the unruly student to be there and work, however she was nowhere to be found. With a frown, he checked the potion recipes only to find that they were sorted exactly as he ordered. Despite his increased hatred for her, he had to appreciate the zeal and effectiveness with which this girl worked. Should he have given a similar detention to any other student they would most likely still be nowhere near done but this girl did even the nastiest chores more effectively than some house elves. But still, she was supposed to wait for him in here. 

For the entire afternoon, he was preparing himself to confront her on the topic of their interactions and was ready to offer her a deal. He would lay off his ridiculous amount of detentions and sanctions and she would stop talking back to him in class. Thus he could forget about the unpleasant accident with Amortentia that happened last week. He was certain that most of his students would be willing to pay him his weight in galleons for that kind of a deal but Catalina Legrande was nowhere to be found tonight.

Severus curled his lip in displeasure when his eyes drifted over the armchair Albus forced him to keep in case the Headmaster ever ventured down in the dungeons. According to Albus, it was the armchair that turned the torture chamber Severus created here into a decent office. Severus never felt amiably towards that piece of cozy furniture but now, something drew him close. He drew out his wand on instinct and peered carefully over the edge, relieved at the sight that was offered to him.

Catalina Legrande was curled up in that armchair, covered with the heavy dark mass of her tresses and her cloak. Her eyelids fluttered a little bit, and Severus wondered what a girl like her could dream about. Going home after this Tournament was over? Mixing her Potions Master a special poison with no antidote? He watched her toss a little from her sleep but he didn’t want to disturb her. Instead, he allowed himself to look at her through different eyes, contemplating her appearance not as a professor but as a man. Her beauty seemed to be flawless, as if someone played a joke on him and created his feminine ideal. Her slightly tan skin seemed to radiate off warmth and softness that he always craved to feel but could never find.

It was as if the opposite sides of a magnet met, attracting each other until impact. Severus unconsciously drew his hand across the edge of the armchair and cupped her cheek with it, gently sliding his thumb in circles over her cheekbone until the girl let out a small sound. He stopped and waited for her to wake up and start screaming at him. He couldn’t say that he would blame her; he certainly wouldn’t appreciate anyone coming up to him and waking him up in this manner. She stirred beneath his hand, moving not away but closer to him. Severus held his breath when her lips curled into small smile; he quite enjoyed the view but something about all of this bothered him. He withdrew his hand from her and started to walk away, quite accepting of the fact that she would sleep there till morning.