Title: 50 Ways
Author: Sara Newberry (prncssme@yahoo.com)
Rated: PG-13
Pairing: HG/SS
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, just like to play with 'em.
Summary: Though there are 50 ways and reasons to leave your lover, Severus Snape needs just one. Response to the WIKTT challenge.
Author's Notes: I would appreciate any and all reviews as this is my first foray into HP fanfiction though definitely not my first fanfic. Flames will be used for warmth until my heater is fixed and then generally ignored. Enjoy!
He had wanted his sudden arrival at home to be a happy surprise. Sitting in his office at Hogwarts just a half hour earlier, he had imagined the pleased look on her face when he walked through the door, kissed her, then took her to the bedroom to make careful love to her over the growing mound of her pregnant belly. He had savoured these thoughts all through the snowy, brisk walk from the school to his tiny rented house in Hogsmeade. He had thought of how he was going to inform her that they would be married after the successful birth of a live child, her reward for giving him the child he craved without knowing why.
Many people would laugh if they knew that Severus Snape, Potion Master and all around greasy git, had somehow convinced a woman like Persia Pendleton to become his lover for the sole purpose of bearing him a child. In the three years since Voldemort had been defeated, he had found himself longing for a stability that was finally, for the first time ever, within his grasp. A family, a legacy, a name for himself outside that of Professor or Death Eater. These were the rewards he sought, though at first he had been disgusted by his mundane longings. But as he had watched most of those around him settle into a security that had not been possible for over twenty years, he'd decided to make a change for himself as well. Only Dumbledore and his potions assistant knew.
This change had brought him to the threshold of his tiny bathroom in a tiny cottage, gaping in horror at Persia's flat, definitely-not-pregnant belly. She hadn't seen him yet, for which he was grateful but the smooth line of her body was clearly visible through the cheap plastic shower curtain that surrounded the clawed porcelain tub. He was unsure of what spell she had been using to convince him of her pregnancy but it was obviously something she used only in his presence. He paled at the thought of the powerful magic behind the thumping and rolling he had personally felt on the surface of her belly and the ease with which she had lied to him. Lied. Silently, he shut the bathroom door and moved slowly to sit in the threadbare armchair by the fireplace he had claimed as his own.
With a mutter, he summoned a glass of firewhiskey from the kitchen and kept his eyes focused on the closed bathroom door. He sipped slowly at his drink, feeling the potent alcohol burning slowly down his throat and igniting the dormant fury in his belly. That bitch! He thought to himself as he heard the water in the other room cease to flow. He intended to confront her but knew he needed to be calm, cool, and collected which would require all of his Slytherin cunning. Although Persia claimed to be a tried and true Ravenclaw, he now suspected she was more snake than eagle.
As though this thought had summoned her, Persia emerged from the steam filled bathroom, completely nude with droplets of moisture still gleaming on her skin. Her dark, curly brown hair was piled artfully on top of her head and her equally dark brown eyes widened just slightly upon seeing the dark figure in the chair. Persia felt a lurch in her chest as she realized how lucky she was to have thought of re-casting her charm before emerging from the bathroom.
"Severus, darling, what brings you home so early?" She glanced at the empty hearth and the unlit candles. The room was bathed in the dim grey light of an afternoon snowfall in late winter. "Why haven't you lit the candles?"
Dark eyes glittered in the gathering gloom and Persia felt a twinge of foreboding where relief had filled her just moments before. She felt frozen to the spot by those cold eyes and for the first time felt a flicker of fear rather than pity as she gazed upon the man in the chair.
"How were you planning to pull it off?" He said dispassionately, his gaze dropping to her now bulging belly for the first time since she had entered the room.
She had the good grace to flush slightly before stammering, "I-I'm not sure what you mean…"
"How long did you intend to let me think you were carrying my child?" His voice was chillingly cold and the fear burst through her, making her knees shake. He knew of her lie. She harboured no illusions regarding the revenge he would surely take, she knew what he had been for she'd seen the faded mark upon his arm. Her only hope lay in denial, she was sure of it.
"But I am carrying your child!" She burst out, her hand flying to her belly.
"No you are not." He could feel his calm demeanour begin to crack and fought hard to keep his voice steady.
"Yes I am!" She screamed at him, her entire body trembling. "I don't know whether you are genuinely insane or just winding me up. But I'm tired, I'm stressed and I'm fighting for patience. I've got three things to say to you - shut up, shut up and shut up!"
Snape rose from his chair in an instant, his eyes blazing and wand out. She backed up involuntarily and braced herself for the Unforgivable he would unleash upon her. She only hoped he wouldn't torture her for too long before finally killing her. But he did nothing, only breathed shallowly for several seconds.
"I am going back to Hogwarts where I will spend the rest of my night. I will return tomorrow and if you are still unwilling to tell me the truth…" Here he paused and she saw his grip on his wand tighten. "I will deal with you then. If you are not here, I will find you and force the truth from you." With a swirl of his robes and an uncharacteristic slam of the door, he was gone. Persia breathed a sigh of relief and sank to the floor, mindless of her nudity.
****
Hermione Granger hummed happily to herself as she slowly stirred her cauldron of Dreamless Sleep potion. Madame Pomfrey was in constant need of the potion and as the resident potions apprentice, she was proud to brew up a batch or two. Leaving it to bubble quietly over the open flame, she began to organize and put away the ingredients se no longer needed. After two and a half years, she knew where Professor Snape kept everyone of his potions ingredients and the hell she'd have to pay if a single one was out of place. She had just emerged from the storeroom when the door slammed open and Snape swept dramatically into his workroom.
"Professor?" She raised a dark eyebrow as he marched towards his currently brewing potions. "I thought you were spending the night at home."
Snape didn't even bother to look over his shoulder as he hissed, "You thought wrong. Kindly take your annoying self off, Miss Granger."
"Merlin help me," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You know you don't really mean that."
"For once I do. Now get out."
Perching herself upon the edge of her worktable, she folded her arms across her chest with a half smile on her face. "Now it can't be all that bad. Lover's Quarrel? Persia want parsnip ice cream and toadstools for dinner?"
"Persia is not pregnant." He looked at her for the first time since entering the room and her breath caught in her throat at the pain she saw etched in his gaze. Automatically, she jumped to the wrong conclusion.
"She lost the baby? She always seemed so healthy and I …" she trailed off, watching his reaction. The painful look had been replaced by a hard glare and even she wasn't immune to that look, though many things had changed since her student days.
"I will say this once and never again. She never was pregnant; it was all a lie," he sneered. "If you say anything about this to anyone, I will have you out of this castle so fast, your head will spin."
For the first time since her graduation, she believed him and held her tongue.
**To be continued…**
Author: Sara Newberry (prncssme@yahoo.com)
Rated: PG-13
Pairing: HG/SS
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, just like to play with 'em.
Summary: Though there are 50 ways and reasons to leave your lover, Severus Snape needs just one. Response to the WIKTT challenge.
Author's Notes: I would appreciate any and all reviews as this is my first foray into HP fanfiction though definitely not my first fanfic. Flames will be used for warmth until my heater is fixed and then generally ignored. Enjoy!
He had wanted his sudden arrival at home to be a happy surprise. Sitting in his office at Hogwarts just a half hour earlier, he had imagined the pleased look on her face when he walked through the door, kissed her, then took her to the bedroom to make careful love to her over the growing mound of her pregnant belly. He had savoured these thoughts all through the snowy, brisk walk from the school to his tiny rented house in Hogsmeade. He had thought of how he was going to inform her that they would be married after the successful birth of a live child, her reward for giving him the child he craved without knowing why.
Many people would laugh if they knew that Severus Snape, Potion Master and all around greasy git, had somehow convinced a woman like Persia Pendleton to become his lover for the sole purpose of bearing him a child. In the three years since Voldemort had been defeated, he had found himself longing for a stability that was finally, for the first time ever, within his grasp. A family, a legacy, a name for himself outside that of Professor or Death Eater. These were the rewards he sought, though at first he had been disgusted by his mundane longings. But as he had watched most of those around him settle into a security that had not been possible for over twenty years, he'd decided to make a change for himself as well. Only Dumbledore and his potions assistant knew.
This change had brought him to the threshold of his tiny bathroom in a tiny cottage, gaping in horror at Persia's flat, definitely-not-pregnant belly. She hadn't seen him yet, for which he was grateful but the smooth line of her body was clearly visible through the cheap plastic shower curtain that surrounded the clawed porcelain tub. He was unsure of what spell she had been using to convince him of her pregnancy but it was obviously something she used only in his presence. He paled at the thought of the powerful magic behind the thumping and rolling he had personally felt on the surface of her belly and the ease with which she had lied to him. Lied. Silently, he shut the bathroom door and moved slowly to sit in the threadbare armchair by the fireplace he had claimed as his own.
With a mutter, he summoned a glass of firewhiskey from the kitchen and kept his eyes focused on the closed bathroom door. He sipped slowly at his drink, feeling the potent alcohol burning slowly down his throat and igniting the dormant fury in his belly. That bitch! He thought to himself as he heard the water in the other room cease to flow. He intended to confront her but knew he needed to be calm, cool, and collected which would require all of his Slytherin cunning. Although Persia claimed to be a tried and true Ravenclaw, he now suspected she was more snake than eagle.
As though this thought had summoned her, Persia emerged from the steam filled bathroom, completely nude with droplets of moisture still gleaming on her skin. Her dark, curly brown hair was piled artfully on top of her head and her equally dark brown eyes widened just slightly upon seeing the dark figure in the chair. Persia felt a lurch in her chest as she realized how lucky she was to have thought of re-casting her charm before emerging from the bathroom.
"Severus, darling, what brings you home so early?" She glanced at the empty hearth and the unlit candles. The room was bathed in the dim grey light of an afternoon snowfall in late winter. "Why haven't you lit the candles?"
Dark eyes glittered in the gathering gloom and Persia felt a twinge of foreboding where relief had filled her just moments before. She felt frozen to the spot by those cold eyes and for the first time felt a flicker of fear rather than pity as she gazed upon the man in the chair.
"How were you planning to pull it off?" He said dispassionately, his gaze dropping to her now bulging belly for the first time since she had entered the room.
She had the good grace to flush slightly before stammering, "I-I'm not sure what you mean…"
"How long did you intend to let me think you were carrying my child?" His voice was chillingly cold and the fear burst through her, making her knees shake. He knew of her lie. She harboured no illusions regarding the revenge he would surely take, she knew what he had been for she'd seen the faded mark upon his arm. Her only hope lay in denial, she was sure of it.
"But I am carrying your child!" She burst out, her hand flying to her belly.
"No you are not." He could feel his calm demeanour begin to crack and fought hard to keep his voice steady.
"Yes I am!" She screamed at him, her entire body trembling. "I don't know whether you are genuinely insane or just winding me up. But I'm tired, I'm stressed and I'm fighting for patience. I've got three things to say to you - shut up, shut up and shut up!"
Snape rose from his chair in an instant, his eyes blazing and wand out. She backed up involuntarily and braced herself for the Unforgivable he would unleash upon her. She only hoped he wouldn't torture her for too long before finally killing her. But he did nothing, only breathed shallowly for several seconds.
"I am going back to Hogwarts where I will spend the rest of my night. I will return tomorrow and if you are still unwilling to tell me the truth…" Here he paused and she saw his grip on his wand tighten. "I will deal with you then. If you are not here, I will find you and force the truth from you." With a swirl of his robes and an uncharacteristic slam of the door, he was gone. Persia breathed a sigh of relief and sank to the floor, mindless of her nudity.
****
Hermione Granger hummed happily to herself as she slowly stirred her cauldron of Dreamless Sleep potion. Madame Pomfrey was in constant need of the potion and as the resident potions apprentice, she was proud to brew up a batch or two. Leaving it to bubble quietly over the open flame, she began to organize and put away the ingredients se no longer needed. After two and a half years, she knew where Professor Snape kept everyone of his potions ingredients and the hell she'd have to pay if a single one was out of place. She had just emerged from the storeroom when the door slammed open and Snape swept dramatically into his workroom.
"Professor?" She raised a dark eyebrow as he marched towards his currently brewing potions. "I thought you were spending the night at home."
Snape didn't even bother to look over his shoulder as he hissed, "You thought wrong. Kindly take your annoying self off, Miss Granger."
"Merlin help me," she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You know you don't really mean that."
"For once I do. Now get out."
Perching herself upon the edge of her worktable, she folded her arms across her chest with a half smile on her face. "Now it can't be all that bad. Lover's Quarrel? Persia want parsnip ice cream and toadstools for dinner?"
"Persia is not pregnant." He looked at her for the first time since entering the room and her breath caught in her throat at the pain she saw etched in his gaze. Automatically, she jumped to the wrong conclusion.
"She lost the baby? She always seemed so healthy and I …" she trailed off, watching his reaction. The painful look had been replaced by a hard glare and even she wasn't immune to that look, though many things had changed since her student days.
"I will say this once and never again. She never was pregnant; it was all a lie," he sneered. "If you say anything about this to anyone, I will have you out of this castle so fast, your head will spin."
For the first time since her graduation, she believed him and held her tongue.
**To be continued…**