Darkest Desire

3. Bloody Murder (EDITED)

After having spent sometime thinking about my other stories, somehow I couldn't quite get this one out of my head. So here it goes, another chapter...

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As it turned out, Aurora didn't mind life in the countryside all that much. In fact, she'd come to appreciate the quiet calm of being surrounded by nothing but acres and acres of land, the small village nearby the only thing to break up the monotony of the different shades of green in different patches, cordoned off by small brick walls made out of uneven stones.

It had been almost three weeks since she'd been dropped off by her Godfather at the residence of no other than what had to be the most moody person on the face of the planet. Aurora wondered for the millionth time if maybe it was something she did. Something she said. Something she didn't do, perhaps? All she knew was that the Potions Master seemed to not exactly appreciate being used to babysit a student. She assumed that he was just a solitary man, not used to company. Why else would they end up fighting and bickering so much whenever they spent more than 5 minutes in each-others company? It wasn't like she was actively going out of her way to annoy him. It just seemed that no matter what she did, Severus would take it the wrong way, and they'd end up fighting yet again.

For example, she'd tried cooking on more than one occasion, only to be rebutted by an irritated-looking Professor Snape, who'd tell her to stay out of his way and not to bother cooking. Or the time she'd tried to do a little cleaning around the house, and had taken down a few books from the bookcase in order to properly be able to dust the shelves. The Potions Master had burst into the living room, looking at her like he'd seen water burn. He'd told her-no, demanded-she get down immediately and cease whatever the hell she was doing. Trying to explain she just wanted to help out around the house in order to not feel completely useless fell on deaf ears, and instead ended up getting her reprimanded for touching his books, which apparently were off limits unless said otherwise.

Now it was early morning at the end of her third week in the cottage, and Aurora wanted to get a few things done that day. She'd made her way over to the bathroom after waking up, not having heard any noise from Snape's room to indicate the man was awake. The bathroom could be described as somewhat dilapidated. The Formica peeled from the vanity and the enamel was chipped in the sink. Water leaked from the base of the faucet when it was in use. But it was scrupulously clean, the old tarnished mirror sparkling in the morning light and the bath, though also chipped, was as brilliant white as any in a showroom. The towels were fragrant, fluffy and carefully folded on a thrift-store chair in the corner.

Quietly she undressed, after making sure the door was closed. She debated whether to lock it, but didn't want to get into another argument with the man about doing something that he hadn't explicitly given her permission to do, so she decided against it. Shaking her head she had to fight back a sarcastic snort. Look at her, standing in the bloody shower, thinking about whether or not the damn potions teacher would approve! Ridiculous!  Aurora definitely wasn't used to having so much trouble getting along with someone. Perhaps it was the fact that she opposed him that annoyed Severus so. She could only assume from the man's demeanor and bearings that he wasn't the kind of man people said no to. And yet she wasn't hesitant or reluctant to challenge him whenever she felt he was being unfair or plain stubborn. It seemed that stubbornness was a trait the two of them shared in abundance.

Stepping into the shower, toes flinching as they touched the chilled ceramic floor, Aurora pulled the shower curtain closed after she'd stepped into the shower cubicle. Her mind was in shreds; many things on her mind demanding her attention. She turned the dial, old and metallic, releasing thousands of lukewarm drops, darkening her hair and trickling down her back as the water became warm. Her eyes fell closed over and over, the hot water stinging like pinpricks on her skin as she ran a hand through her hair. Reaching for some of the toiletries she'd brought with her, she noticed the shampoo was on it's last legs, and shaking the bottle of conditioner it also appeared almost empty.