Hearts are Blind (Severus Snape X OC)

Christmas Letters

She'd been having a wonderful dream. It was the first pleasant one she'd had since the first night she arrived back home, three days ago. Since then, she'd been waking in a pool of her own sweat, crying out for no one in particular. It unnerved her parents; her mother especially, but she told them that it was her sudden change in sleeping arrangements, stress from school and her disruption in routine. Lucinda knew what was really wrong, though... She was still getting her feelings of dread late into the night as she slept. She was afraid something was coming, something was happening. It was as if the Dark Lord was coming back or something... It had a dark feeling like that.

There was a soft tapping and Lucinda opened her eyes. She'd been dreaming that her potion had been a success and that she and Severus were celebrating. He'd picked her up in his arms and spun her around the classroom. He didn't even stop her as she drank it and they both just smiled. Everything went perfectly. Then there was a tapping and she was pulled from her dream. Lucinda leaned up and looked over her shoulder at her bedroom window where something dark was hunched on the sill on the other side of the frosted glass. It tapped again and Lucinda flung the covers back. She stumbled over to the window and opened it, letting in a blast of early morning air.

"C-c-cold." She mumbled and took a step back to allow the large barn owl to swoop in. It circled the room once and then seemed to spot her mail-station and glided down to perch on the small platform. Lucinda shut the window and then walked over to the creature. It had a letter in its beak and Lucinda took it from it and then went back to her bed to wrap herself in her covers again. As she opened the letter, the owl drank from the water dish she had out and nibbled at the dried bits of meat in the metal pan.

"Oh, it's from Aurora!" Lucinda said, looking up at the bird. It clicked its beak and then continued its nibbling. Lucinda smiled and opened the letter.

Hello Lucy!

I figured I'd get right down to it and ask how your holiday is and whether or not you have mentioned to your parents about coming to our house for a couple of days. I know, right? I am being so over-bearing. I just know that Christmas Break doesn't last that long and I want you to meet my family. Anyway, so we didn't really get to talk much on the train about what's been going on with you and... you know who. And if you're wondering which "you know who" I'm talking about, then that is precisely my point! Clover was with us the entire train ride, so it wasn't like I could really bring anything up in front of him. So, spill it. What's going on with you? I'm happy you got a boyfriend and all and Tristin seems really smitten with you, but you've started to act a little differently. Given, I haven't known you that long and I don't know how you act when you have a boyfriend, but still! Late nights in the potions classroom with professor Snape? I thought it was nothing before, but now even Tristin (who never gets angry at anyone, might I add) has started to get a biting tongue when it comes to our beloved professor, and we all know it's because he's jealous of the time you two spend together. I thought, well he has no reason to be jealous. They're teacher and student and—dare I say it?—friends. But, something happened on your way to the Hogwarts Express. I knew Snape walked you to your carriage, because you allowed me that much information, but then nothing. You hardly said a word. WHAT IS GOING ON? Don't leave me in the dark, girl. You've become my best friend and I want to know what's happening in that lovely mind of yours. My love life basically doesn't exist right now (what with Adam hardly even trying to hold my hand) and yours is so obviously adamant and flourishing. I NEED to hear the juicy details.

Send me back a reply with the post-owl. He's just a loan from the post office, until our little Patchy gets over his cold. Love you dearly and desperately awaiting your letter with baited, romantic breath. Haha!

Aurora Borealis

Lucinda folded the letter back up and returned it to its envelope. She set it beside her and stared across her bedroom with a contemplative sigh. Seeing as she didn't know what exactly was going on with her either, Lucinda didn't know how to respond to the letter. There were only two days before Christmas, though, so she figured she might as well send a reply as soon as possible. Lucinda got back up, untangling herself from the warm blankets again, and walked to her desk for parchment and a quill. The barn owl watched her movements until she was settled on her bed again; then it continued to snooze (as it had started to), knowing that it better get its naps in where it could.