Chapter 10

Serina entered her room with a concerned look on her face. She had been waiting for Severus at breakfast, but he never showed up. Of course, it was the weekend and many teachers chose to sleep in, but after their conversation yesterday, she wanted to make sure that he was alright. She contemplated going to his room, but she decided against it. He would search her out when he was ready for company.

Severus awoke to blackness. His room was always black as there were no windows. He found his wand and muttered Lumos and the room burst into light. Squinting, he found his clock and saw that it was almost noon. He looked at the clock in astonishment. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept so late.

Getting up, he went into the bathroom and got in the shower. He felt different this morning, almost cheerful. Lighthearted would be a better description. Years of guilt had seemed to melt off him overnight. He finally understood the events that had happened so long ago. Yes, he had heard the prophecy and he had been at fault for telling the Dark Lord about it, but that was where his guilt had ended. He smiled as relief flooded him. He hadn't been the cause of Lily's death. That fell solely on the shoulders of Voldemort himself. He wondered why it had taken him so long to come to that conclusion.

He stood there as water coursed over his back. Serina had truly worked a miracle. He needed a way to thank her. His breath quickened as he thought of her. He thought of the way she turned red when she was embarrassed. Then he thought of that night in the infirmary. Their kiss seared through his thoughts. He wanted her to kiss him like that all of the time. He smiled as he formed a plan to confess his love for her.

Serina jumped when there was a knock at her door. She had been engrossed in a Muggle magazine about electronics and had been lost to the outside world. Throwing the magazine down, she raced to the door, hoping it was Severus on the other side. She opened it to find him smiling at her. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.

Boy does he look sexy! Serina thought.

"So are you ready?" he asked her.

Looking at him quizzically she replied, "Ready for what?"

"Are you ready to go?"

Even more puzzled she asked, "Go where?"

"You said we'd meet after breakfast!" he teased.

"I said no such thing! Besides, it's well after lunch now."

"Are you ready or not?"

"Where are we going?"

He smiled again. "You'll see."

She gave him an exasperated look and motioned for him to come in. "No, I'm not ready, but I will be in a minute." Motioning at her robes she asked, "Is this satisfactory for wherever we're going?"

The robes were a sapphire blue that picked up the color of her eyes extremely well. Severus eyed her appreciatively and only nodded. She shook her head and walked to the coat closet. Removing a cloak and some boots, she went over to a chair and sat down. She pulled on one boot while watching Severus. There was something different about him. He seemed infinitely more relaxed. He even seemed to be happy. Pulling on the second boot she stood and threw the cloak around her.

"Okay, I'm ready. Now tell me where we're off to," she demanded.

"I told you, you'll see," he replied, his eyes twinkling.

"What on earth has gotten into you?" Serina exclaimed as he took her arm and walked her to the door.

He didn't reply as they entered the hall and made their way to the stairs. Before she knew it they had descended them, walked out the doors, and made their way to the school's gates. As they exited them, Severus took a better hold of Serina's arm and looked over at her.

"Are you ready?" he asked her.

"I suppose so," she said, eyeing him curiously.

With that he turned on the spot and they disapparated, appearing a moment later at the back of the Shrieking Shack. Severus smiled down at Serina as she looked quizzically at the old house.

"What are we doing here?" she asked him.

"Building new memories," he responded.

Grabbing her hand he pulled her toward the Shack and removed the board to give them entry. They both squeezed through the space and Severus took his wand and chanted Incendio. A fire sprang up in the fireplace. He went over to the old beaten up couch and transfigured it into something comfortable and levitated it over to sit in front of the fire. Taking Serina's hand again, he led her to the couch and they both sat down. Soon they were mesmerized by the fire.

Finally Severus turned to Serina and broke the silence. "I wanted to thank you for last night. You presented an argument that I couldn't refute. I feel like a great weight has been lifted off me."

Blushing, she confessed, "I'm glad I was able to help."

Serina suddenly felt nervous inside. Severus was staring at her intently and it made her insides tingle. She gave him a quick smile and looked away, turning a darker red than before.

Severus delighted in her awkwardness. It was just further proof of her affection for him. He could contain himself no longer and reached out and took her hand.

"I have something for you."

Serina's eyebrows rose as she looked back at him.

He reached into his cloak and pulled out a box. It was rectangular in shape, flat and made of a dark wood that was hinged on one side. He handed it to Serina who had scooted back a bit and had turned toward him pulling her leg up on the couch. She caught her breath and gave him a curious look. She took the box from him. Placing it on the couch in between the two of them, she carefully lifted the lid. Inside was a necklace lying on black velvet. There was a thin round collar of spun silver that twined around itself and sparked. At the base of the circlet sat a sapphire in a diamond cut. It was surrounded by rays that shot away from the stone. Each ray was made up of several small diamonds. The whole thing sparkled happily at her.

Serina's eyes grew wide and she pulled her hands away from the box as if she had been shocked. She scooted back, recoiling away from the necklace and looked up into Severus' puzzled eyes.

The smile had fallen from his face. "You don't like it?" he asked tentatively.

Looking at Severus with new understanding, she responded, "Of course I do. It's lovely." She gave him a small smile.

"Serina, is something wrong?" Severus asked. She was acting very oddly.

Her eyes looked around the Shack and settled back on him. "It was you! It has always been you!" was all that she said.

Even more confused, Severus stared into her eyes and demanded gently, "Would you mind filling me in on the rest of the conversation that's going on in your head?"

Serina composed herself and closed the necklace box up. She moved it to her other side as she slid closer to Severus. Looking back at the fire she began.

"About a year after John died, I began to have a recurring dream. I have had it every night since."

Severus raised an eyebrow at that.

"In the dream I am here, in this shack with a man. I can never see his face. For a long time I thought it was John, but then I finally realized that this wasn't a dream about some past event, it was foretelling the future." She continued to stare into the fire as Severus listened intently.

"In the dream, I know that the man and I love each other and that we're soul mates. He gives me something. It's a box. When I open it," she took the box from off the couch and opened it, "this necklace is inside."

Severus stared at the necklace, his eyes wide.

"I have dreamt of this moment every day. I have seen this necklace and wondered who the man was who would give it to me. It was you all along."

Severus inched closer to her. "Is there any more to this dream?" he asked her.

"Y-yes, but I…I'm embarrassed to tell you." She avoided his eyes.

Severus moved so that he was right next to her. He put his arm around her shoulders and drew up to her so their faces were inches apart.

"In the dream did I tell you that I loved you and never wanted to be without you again?"

Serina tried to inch away, but Severus wouldn't let her budge. "Yes," she finally said.

"And then what happened?" he asked sultrily.

Serina hesitated, searching his eyes for some kind of sign. "I told you I loved you too and we kissed."

"Do you love me too?" he asked, so close to her that she could feel his breath on her cheek.

"Incredibly so," she whispered.

He smiled and his lips found hers, kissing her softly. Serina was glad she was sitting because otherwise she would have fallen to the ground; her legs had become so weak. They lost each other in the kiss. Nothing existed but the two of them. He was so gentle with her, as if she might shatter if he demanded too much. After a while, he pulled away from her, his eyes filled with emotion.

"You are quite the fortune teller," he told her while caressing her cheek.

She smiled at him. "Only in this matter," she replied.

"So was that the end of your dream?" he asked and kissed her cheek.

"Pretty much," she said.

"What does that mean?"

"That means that that is all that's worth telling right now."

"Are there tales for later?" He pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arm around her. They snuggled together on the couch.

"Not really," she replied. She looked up and kissed him. "You'll just have to wait and see, won't you?"

Looking at her crossly he replied, "You're impossible."

"That's why we get along so famously," she smiled.

He arched an eyebrow at her as she settled into him. There was obviously more to her dream, but she was not yet ready to tell him.

A/N: I'll be out of town for the next week. I'll try and get a new chapter up for the next weekend, or that following Monday, the latest. Review, review, review. (that means you.)