Disclaimer: I am merely playing in Rowling's world. I came up with Serena and some of the minor characters, but 99 of the characters and setting are Rowling's. I'm not getting paid or compensated. Just doing this for fun.

Author's note: This is an AU story so I've taken some creative liberties, so be aware before you read.

Shadow of a Silver Panther

Chapter 1: The Cliffs of Mor

Serena Castleton-Black stood on the Cliffs of Mor, her favorite spot in all her native Ireland. She faced the sea and with her eyes closed, she listened to the surf pounding far below her. Stretching out her arms, she felt the wind play around her, pulling some of her hair free from her ponytail and letting it fly about her face. The morning mist had burned off and the late July sun warmed her back.

Nearly three months ago, Serena had nearly died after being encased by a Dominatus Crystal, but here in Ireland, that all seemed a long way off and a long time ago. Now, in just another week, she would return to Hogwart's School for Witchcraft and Wizardry for her second year as the Defense Against Dark Arts professor.

Behind her stood Severus Snape with his arms folded and amused smile barely touching his lips. His longish black hair blew in his face from the wind and he schooled his annoyance at that as he watched Serena drink in the essence of the Cliffs. When he'd first met Serena, Severus had hidden his attraction behind his usual wall of arrogance and disdain, but eventually they'd become lovers. They'd become more than that. Somehow, Serena had slipped past all of his walls and he'd fallen in love with her. Severus put his hand in his pocket and felt along the edge of the velvet ring box. He'd been carrying the damn thing since May.

Serena looked back over her shoulder and smiled at him. Severus was tall and pale, and his nose was rather large and hooked. In his early forties, his face carried a touch of middle aged weight. He was not what most people would describe as a handsome man, at least not in a typical way. But it was more than his face that had attracted Serena; it was his mystery, his keen intellect that had first turned her head. And then they had danced once, and there had been some unnamable, intangible something in they way they moved together that kindled an attraction the likes of which Serena never remembered feeling.

Severus watched Serena as she turned back to the cliffs again, still letting her hair be blown by the sea breeze. There were days he still couldn't believe that Serena found him attractive in the slightest. He had found her, however, intoxicating from just about the moment he met her. The first few weeks, he'd resented her for becoming the Defense Against Dark Arts professor, but his opinion changed quickly once he got to know her. Not only was she extremely bright – bright enough to challenge him intellectually – a quality he found to be devastatingly desirable, but she was down to earth and practical.

"Shall we go back to the house?" asked Serena when she finally walked away from the cliffs.

"If you're ready."

She looked back over her shoulder for a moment. "For now, yes, but I'm sure within a year I'll want to come back for another visit." Together, they walked the mile back to the cottage in comfortable silence.

The cottage where they were staying had a beautiful garden in the back. It was walled in, giving plenty of privacy. Around the walls were thick with flowers, lianthus, white and purple coneflower, and several colors of monarda. Closer to the center of the garden were smaller flowers… coreopsis in pinks and yellows, and cupid's dart. There was yarrow, too, and several types of day lilies. In the center of the garden, was a circular area of flagstone that held a table with some chairs and a bench. A stone path led to the house.

That night, under a golden full moon, Severus walked Serena out to the table for dinner. There were candles in suspended glass globes all around the garden. On the table were fine china and crystal, a bottle of wine, and a vase full of fresh roses. The dinner was a quiet affair: casual conversation sweetened by comfortable silences. Once, without a word, Severus reached out once and gently caressed Serena's hand before going back to his dinner. She smiled at him fondly, wondering at his far-away gaze.

After the dishes were cleared away, Serena watched him gaze up at the moon, his eyes on some distant point.

"Where are you, Severus?" she asked. "You've been distracted all through dinner. Is something wrong?"

Severus looked guilty.

"Are you so eager to get back to Hogwart's?" Serena came over and stood behind his chair. She leaned down and put her arms around him. He was silent for a long moment.

"I'm not a very pleasant man," he said softly. "I have made terrible choices in my life. I am temperamental and vengeful, and I have spent most of my life shutting people out." Serena's eyes opened a little wider at his unexpected evaluation of himself.

"My temper is at least a match for yours," she said, "and I am not so forgiving myself, as you know." She once again thought briefly of the day she threw him out of her cottage, thinking he'd lied to her. "You may be those things, but you are also intelligent and courageous, and it is all of the parts of you that make you the man I love."

Severus shut his eyes as she kissed the top of his head.

"I'm going in to get a cup of tea. Can I bring one out for you?"

He nodded. His fingers ran over the velvet ring box in his pocket. And add a shot of whiskey to mine, he thought.

Well, I know a few of you have been waiting a quite a while for this to post. Hope it will end up being worth the wait. I probably won't post as frequently as I did with "Thunderstruck," but I promise to at least try to be fairly regular. Please read/review and let me know what you think…