He remembered their meeting far too clearly. They met the winter that Lily had gone home, back in their fifth year. He sat at the Slytherin table alone, heavily regretting his decision to come to the feast. A loud outburst of giggles sprouted from the Gryffindor table, causing him to scowl deeply. At least when Lily was here, he had someone to talk to, even if she only ever talked about James Potter these days. No doubt she would end up liking the infernal know-it all; they were prefects, it was only a matter of time before something happened. Sinking deep into his misery, he hardly noticed the new presence next to him. Only when she spoke did it register to him that he was no longer alone.

"I figured you might like some company. Nobody should be alone on Christmas."

Without looking in her direction, he readied himself to tell her to mind her own business when he got the eerie feeling that he was being deeply analyzed. What he saw was now what he expected. Next to him sat a beautiful girl, perhaps one of the loveliest he had ever seen. Very different from Lily, she had waist-length chocolate hair that complimented her creamy skin perfectly. A gentle blush covered her cheeks, making her look almost like a muggle's China doll. Freckles dusted her nose, dimples rested on either side of her brilliant smile. Yet, try as he might to find something, nothing had ever left so much of an impact on him as her eyes. A deep shade of green, looking into them was like looking into a forest with no end. He felt as though his very soul was being bared to her gaze as she waited for a response. When she received none, she stretched out her hand to him. "Adaira," she murmured.

"Sev-"

"Severus Snape, I know. I've heard of you. You're Slughorn's protégé," she answered with a soft smile.

For a while he stopped to stare at her. He was positive he would have remembered if he had met her before and he did not. She wore an overly large blue sweater with her house scarf wrapped around her as though she were trying to keep warm. Ravenclaw. He knew he had never met her before. There were very few Ravenclaws he could stand to be around for extended periods of time and she was not among him, nor had he given her the chance.

Very aware of his attention, she stood up and peered at him expectantly. "Do you wanna get out of here? You really aren't into this kind of thing, are you?"

Again baffling him, he found himself slowly standing up and following her against his better judgement. With a small squeal of delight, she led him out of the hall and through the castle. They soon arrived at a statue of an eagle. She grinned at him before addressing the statue in Latin. Twisting and grinding, the great bird twittered to life.

"Adaira! It's been a while."

She nodded. "It's Christmas. Less people means I'm free to explore as I wish."

Noticing him for the first time, it dipped its head in a way that was mistakenly a grimace. "You brought a boy?"

"My new friend."

"Does your brother know about this?"

She shook her head fervently. "He's not here. Went home with James this Christmas."

"He's gonna flip out."

"Well, what he doesn't know won't hurt him."

"And you trust this boy?"

Giving him one last glance, she nodded. "I do."

The eagle shook its head before releasing its bronze wings. Beneath the left one was a small golden button. Turning back towards him fully for the first time, she grabbed his hand and pulled him through the door that was revealed. Several flights of stairs sat before them. They trudged up in silence for a few moments before coming to another door. Inhaling deeply, she shoved it open.

"Welcome to my perch."