Severus awoke as the first rays of sunlight pierced the magical window in his bed chamber in the dungeons. He looked over to see Abigail sleeping soundly under his sheets, a tiny, content smile on her stunning face. Snape gave the smallest hint of a smile, feeling odd pulsations in his chest, and he breifly mused to himself the irony of having a heart attack at the early age of thirty-five, the night after he'd realised that even 'always' has it's own denouement.
He reached over to brush brown hair from her face. How old was she now? Eighteen? She was almost done with Hogwarts. He sat up, noticing that he'd fallen alseep without redressing. He made a mental note to change the sheets tomorrow. He stood and walked over to his dresser. It was Saturday, so he didn't have any classes, but Umbridge might call on him for more Veritaserum, and soon. He had to wake Abigail and see to it that she returned to her common room undetected by Filch or his irksome feline companion.
But she looked so lovely, sleeping there, in his bed. He moved closer to her, still sitting, and played contently with his amor's hair until she did stir, early enough that he didn't have to wake her and hurry her out.
"Hello, Severus," she said in a girly, sleepy voice, and Snape smiled.
"Hello, Abi," He whispered the nickname he'd heard her friends refer to her as. She smiled angelically.
"I... Last night..." Her impressive vocabulary and outstanding eloquence seemed to be failing her. Snape silenced the dopey girl with a long, from-the-heart kiss. She responded instantly and pushed her fingers into his hair, holding his head in place and deepening the kiss lovingly.
Snape found the will to pull back when the chill of the dungeon reached his nether regions and cleared his throat. "Abigail... You must return to your bed before we both get into trouble,"
Abigail's happy, love drunk face melted into cold realization before settling into it's usual bright determination. "... Right."
Severus stood and pulled her to her own feet, holding her tight. They were both bare, and their souls pressed against them just like every other part of them. He wasn't too much shorter than him; she was probably around 180 centimeters, and he was 189.
"Perhaps... Over the summer, we could... rendezvous?" Snape muttered into her forehead.
"I believe I'd enjoy that," she replied brightly before kissing his jaw. He broke the embrace to retrieve her clothing, assisting her as she dressed, before he, too, redonned his own clothes.
His alarm clock began to sing music, and Abi gave him a small, light-hearted smirk. He raised his brows as she took his hands and began to dance, though her lovely body was a bit tense, a bit unexperienced in this particular area of expertise.
He gave a laugh before twirling her, and eagerly she followed his lead, dancing with him until she tripped and landed on the bed, laughing heartily. A billowing cloud of love enveloped his heart, like a stronger and more pure version of anything he'd ever felt for Lily. He pulled Abigail to her feet and walked her to the door.
"What's your Patronus, dear?" He asked, leaning against the door. She smiled up at him.
"What's yours?" She asked, voice hinting at something. Was it still a doe?
"Expecto patronum," breathed Snape, entirely unsure of what the product would be; he wasn't emotionally invested in Lily anymore (or, rather, the way he had been- she was still a major part of his life, and he didn't believe he'd ever really be 'over' her), and his happy memory was, on a whim, listening to Abigail's gorgeous laugh.
It definitely wasn't a doe; rather, it was some type of avian.
"An African grey parrot," said Abi, before laughing. "Probably the most intelligent and sentient birds of any."
Severus stared at the bird for a long time as it flew around the world, before finally letting it fade into incorporeal, and then nonexistance.
"Expecto patronum," Abigail said brightly, and a large, beautiful thestral rushed from her wand; he'd never seen nor heard of such a being being a Patronus, and despite himself he laughed a rich, heartfelt laugh as the magical creature walked about Snape's room.
Somehow, he was happy they didn't have the same Patronus. He was, finally, free... Not straining to be a perfect match for someone who'd never have him, anyway.
Abigail was more than happy to have him for himself. Severus gave Abigail one long, loving kiss before opening the door to his classroom.
"I'm in love with you, Abigail,"
"And I you, Severus," the girl said, smiling and perhaps- was that a blush? He grinned at her and she buried her face in his chest.
Severus knew they'd be happy... They'd be wonderful, he bet. she deserved absolutely no less from life.