Disclaimer- All cannon characters belong to JK Rowling and one else belongs to me just like the plot, unless stated otherwise. It will likely be awhile until I can add another chapter or update this story. I've got a lot of other things I'm working on now; school assignments and stuff but this fan fic will be one of my top priorities. Please bare with me-Gadget

The Return of the Prince- sequel to the Prince of Flame

Prologue Snape's POV

To the untrained, the scent of a bubbling cauldron is overpowering. There was no shortage of 'untrained' in Hogwarts this year and most of them were in my classroom. And not all of them were students; one was my replacement for the following year. Each of my untrained first year students watched with frightened expressions as I wrote the names of several concoctions on the board. A list of poisons, from Love Potions to the Undetectable's; they all had one thing in common. Few people knew of that one thing but I planned to inform my students and at the same time, weed out the smart ones and to teach my replacement how to handle my Slytherins while I still could.

It was the third week of the starting term at Hogwarts and my twenty-fifth year teaching potions. I had given up asking for the Defense position when Lupin proved competent enough to handle the position year after year without error. As much as I disliked the wolf, I could commend him on his teaching ability. As it was my twenty-fifth year teaching, it was also my last year teaching at Hogwarts, I was planning to take a position at the Wizarding Academy after I trained my replacement.

Her name was Anita Clawsyn; she was in her early thirties with long dark blonde hair and blue eyes rimmed in too dark mascara and witch's robes that dragged on the ground behind her. She was intelligent, for someone so young and someday I was sure she'd be an accomplished teacher but right now, she needed to learn how to handle the students and to deal out the proper punishments.

I turned back to the class, glaring openly until the side conversations stopped and I had their complete attention. The year was progressing slowly but in each of my classes I had a group if students hell-bent on destroying potions and using an unnecessary excess of ingredients. I had to restrain myself from sending the lot of them to St. Mungo's every class period with the first years. The Headmaster had planned to hire another assistant this year but there hadn't been anyone willing to take the job for the last five or so years. Not that it mattered; all the staff preferred a certain assistant from several years ago.

"Now, you lot of dunderheads," I began and not even the scrape of a quill dared to interrupt me. "Which of you can tell me what all these potions have in common?"

My only answer was the collective breathing of the Slytherin/Hufflepuff mixed class. I had suspended the actual process of potion making until all my students at least understood the concept of chemicals. So far, it seemed as though I would be covering the 'safety' topic for some time to come. And so would Miss Clawsyn if she planned to teach my class after I left.

"Anyone?" I asked, beginning to pace the room. "Miss Henrietta?" The small girl squeaked in fright; even after all these years I could still make them shake down to their knickers.

"Um...well...they're all...potions sir." She said, it sounded near to a question however.

"Five points to Slytherin," I said dryly. "What else do they have in common?" I looked around the room, pacing slowly, letting my cloak billow behind me in the dungeon air. "How about you tell the class..." My eyes singled out a blonde Hufflepuff boy; Malfoy's younger cousin and the first in his family to be placed in a house other than Slytherin.

"Well sir...um..."

"If you give the victim a bezoar then the toxins of those poisons are cancelled out, leaving the victim severely sick rather than dead. But a bezoar won't work on every poison."

"Who dares to interrupt my class?" I roared, spinning around, ready to hex the student stupid enough to barge into the dungeons without even knocking and during a class.

The figure standing in my doorway wasn't a student; it was someone I hadn't seen in over a decade. Someone I had loved and still loved after all this time. He was, as always, dressed in a Muggle black button-up shirt and faded jeans over what appeared to be the same trainers he'd been wearing the first day I met him. His curly, sable hair was longer than I remembered, falling a little past his shoulders, almost to his armpits. His Sidhe eyes were hidden behind the ever-present reflective Aviator sunglasses and a playful smirk stained his lips as he leaned against the doorjamb casually.

"Oh, just me." He said his voice a deep baritone with a slight Western American twang that one would only hear if they weren't from America originally.

I licked my suddenly dry lips, feeling my heart skip a beat. "Halo..." I said. "Welcome back."

The smirk widened to a smile. "It's good to be back...Sev."

A lesser being would have been a puddle on the floor at the emotion that filled Halo's tone when he called me by my given name. I saw two Hufflepuffs and a few of my Slytherin girls send admiring looks at my former lover. As always, Halo didn't seem to notice; he didn't know just how beautiful, how enthralling he was.

Anita Clawsyn looked from Halo to me, confusion evident on her face. She had never heard of him. Few of the professors rarely talked about him anymore, not in front of me at least and Clawsyn had been at my side since the start of the term.

"You got a minute?" He asked.

I didn't even look at my class before I was speaking again. "Sixty inches on the properties of a bezoar due next class; you're dismissed. Clawsyn, if you would excuse us..."

"Yes sir," She said, grabbing up her notes and disappearing into the storage closet adjacent to my room.

The scraping of chairs, thuds of books being put away and several girlish giggles were all I heard before Halo and I were left alone. He stood silently for a moment and then closed the classroom door, smiled and walked closer to me.

"It's been awhile," He commented.

I found that I could speak. "Ten years Halo, ten very long years."

He inclined his head. "You look good, like you've been taking care of yourself."

I looked him up and down, remembering the first time I had had his body underneath mine. "You look the same." He did look the same, as if he hadn't aged but two years.

He smiled warmly. "Thanks Sev."

"What are you doing here, at Hogwarts?" I asked. I hadn't exaggerated; it had been a very long ten years. Each day playing the last time I had seen him over and over in my mind. Never once being able to change those last moments. Not even in my imagination, not even for a good night's sleep. I still loved him, still wanted him to be my mate, my friend and my companion.

"I'll explain everything when I go to see Dumbledore. If you'd like to go with me...?"

"Of course Halo," I said, feeling appalled that he would think I wouldn't want to. "I've missed you very much."

"Yeah, I've missed you too."

I don't know which of us moved first but suddenly Halo's arms were around me as I kissed him. Time stopped for us and the moment lasted forever. It had been ten long years but as we kissed it was like we had never been apart at all. Everything I had felt for Halo was still there, still festering and growing in my chest; in my soul.

"I missed you," I said again but those weren't the words I had wanted to say.

He nodded against my chest. "Me too,"

We had both spoken softly, in barely audible tones, all too aware of Anita Clawsyn in the other room. The moment that had passed between us, however, was still so very precious.

(pagebreak) More to come- Gadget