Warning: this chapter is a little bit more graphic than the previous ones!

Chapter Fourteen

Severus was still seething when he returned to his quarters after dragging himself up to Lavolla's in search of Quirrell. Something had to be done. Severus would visit Dumbledore in the morning and request that he'd kick the git out of the school. Surely the safety of his niece would make the Headmaster reconsider letting Quirrell stay.

Stepping into his chamber, he found it to be pitch black rather than softly illuminated, which was how he had left it behind. He guessed Lavolla had put out the candles that usually lit his room before leaving. He felt the disappointment wash over him at the discovery of her departure, after he had told her to stay. This was also an awfully displeasing thought, as he had not been able to find Quirrell and therefore knew he was still out there somewhere, slithering through the corridors like a traitorous snake. Of course, the outfit Lavolla'd been sporting as she'd knocked on his door earlier, was another factor as to why Severus had very much hoped he would find her in his room, waiting for him. He allowed himself the briefest remembrance of the way in which her glorious chest had been heaving in exasperation, the lovely feminine shape of her legs and her beautifully scented hair that had been tousled around her face, before recalling that he was actually still angry with her and had been spending the entire night thinking about ending things with her.

After seeing how she acted around him with her sister there, he had come to the conclusion that it would be easier on both of them if he just backed away. When he had made this decision, two reactions had followed. One part of him was saddened at the loss of Lavolla and the joy that she had brought into his life with her. But then there was another part of him that was strangely relieved. As if he had seen their relationship's ending like this from the very beginning. The moments he had spent with Lavolla were happy ones and he had enjoyed them greatly, but the fear of eventually getting hurt had always been present like a faint stinging in his brain.

Lavolla was probably used to being surrounded by the most perfect, young men and he would make himself – and her, a laughing stock if she'd ever dare take him home to meet her family properly. Though he doubted if she ever would: the look of embarrassment on her face when she'd found him on her doorstep that night, had told him everything he needed to know. Severus damned himself for having allowed it to go as far as it had: he should never have let her in, he should never have kissed her, never should have allowed her in his bed and he should never have let himself develop these feelings he had for her.

Holding his wand with the small but clear blue light on the tip, Severus absentmindedly took started in the direction of his bedroom before coming to an abrupt halt at the sound of a very faint whimper. Flinging his wand over to shed its soft light on his sofa, he found the source of the noise.

Instantly, all of his anger subsided as he took in the sleeping form of Lavolla. Her head and part of her upper body were leaning against an armrest and her legs were stretched, showing their outline perfectly.

He sat himself down on the edge of the sofa and gingerly shook her. Lavolla stirred and opened her eyes, blinking ferociously at the light of Severus' wand. For a moment, neither of them spoke. They simply looked at each other in the dark, until Severus raised his wand at the fireplace behind Lavolla.

'Incendio!' The fire came to life with a roar and the room was filled with the warm light and the crackling of the flames eating their way through the wood.

'I'm sorry.' Lavolla said and Severus could hear the honesty in her voice. But he remained silent, not willing to grasp the apology and let her break his defence again.

'Is Freya safe?' She asked when another silence had passed.

'Yes. I did not find Quirrell, however. But I gave your sister clear instructions; she will be fine.'

'Good.' Lavolla said softly. 'Thank you.'

Severus nodded curtly and then frowned. 'What could Quirrell possibly want from your sister?'

Lavolla raised one eyebrow. 'Well, there is one thing all men want from her. But it's not just Freya, it's me as well.' There was fright in her eyes now and Severus had to fight the urge to stroke her hair and hold her.

'Remember Quirrell wanted something from me, but we couldn't figure out what?' She continued.

'Remember?' Severus exclaimed. 'Of course I remember. It was only yesterday that I was trying to protect you from him and then you suddenly disappeared when I was looking after you, remember?'

Lavolla nodded impatiently. 'Yes, I know! I said I was sorry. But listen, when I ran into Quirrell with Freya this afternoon, he got the strangest look on his face when he saw her. Freaked me out. But then I thought about the unicorn blood. There are some old stories that say immortality is given to those who manage to steal the heart of a siren. I'm thinking that is what Quirrell is after: a siren's heart.'

Severus grimaced. 'Figuratively speaking or…'

'My guess is that the stories were figuratively speaking, but I doubt Quirrell is planning on winning Freya's heart romantically. Or mine.' Lavolla swallowed. 'I think he wants an actual heart.'

Severus got up and started pacing. 'We have to inform the Headmaster: this has gone far enough.'

'We will in the morning.' Lavolla promised. 'For tonight, Freya will be all right.'

Severus stopped pacing and took a hand through his black hair.

'And you?' He asked.

'Well, I'm with you.' She said. That made him look at her. She was smiling at him and her eyes were filled with trust. Even the sizzling flames in the fireplace couldn't make him feel as warm as that look did. 'If you'll let me stay, that is.'

He walked back over to the sofa and sat next to her again, this time a little closer.

'If I do, are you going to offer me an explanation as to why you were parading through the castle at this hour… dressed like this?' Severus said, gesturing to her nightgown.

'I wasn't parading.' Lavolla said firmly, but not unfriendly. 'I was going to see you.'

'And a change of wardrobe didn't occur to you?'

'Not at the time, no.' There was a hint of mischief in Lavolla's voice and Severus felt a shiver run down his spine at the sound of it.

'I am not certain whether that should flatter me or not.' He answered with a grin, but went on in a more serious tone. 'But I must remind you that there are children living here, too. It wouldn't be the first time that one of them ignores their curfew and goes wandering about at night. If one of them would have seen you tonight, the entire school would be talking about it by tomorrow.'

'I know. I'm sorry.' Lavolla shook her head at her own foolishness. 'I wasn't thinking. I just really had to see you.' She held out her hand to stroke his cheek, then his chest. Severus closed his eyes and relished in her touch for a second, but then took her hand in his and pushed it away.

'I cannot imagine why.' He said bitterly. 'While you were so clearly displeased to see me this afternoon. Tell me, I'm curious, were you able to convince your sister that I am nothing more than a colleague; that I in fact bore you with my company; that I am far from worthy of the attention of a faultless siren?'

In a movement that went by so fast that if Severus had blinked, he would have missed it, Lavolla sat up straight and grasped his face with both of her hands.

'I forbid you to say things like that!' She snarled, sounding truly angry and Severus was, for a moment, taken aback. He composed himself quickly, but remained uneasy with this ferocity that he would have never imagined her to be capable of. 'You could never bore me with your company: I have never enjoyed someone's presence as much as I have yours and I am always pleased to see you! I wish I could describe how great it feels to me when my eyes find you and when you look at me in that way that I've never been looked at and how blissfully happy I am when you touch me, but I simply do no have the words. And had I not known my sisters so well and had I not been so mortified of them trying to take you from me as I know they will, I would have been thrilled for you to meet Freya and the others, but I just do! And FAULTLESS? Please! I've got so many flaws I can't even count them! I'm impatient, I'm nosy, I have the worst temper, will never be able to brew a decent potion or perform a good transfiguration, I'm selfish, I – '

'Talk way too much.' Severus interrupted. He had listened to her rambling and the bits and pieces he had managed to catch, had been enough for him to throw away the last of his reserve. He felt a familiar pull in his groin and without thinking things over, he wrapped his arms tightly around Lavolla and kissed her passionately. As soon as he felt her responding, giving him the green light by answering the kiss with equal force, he let his hands roam over her poorly concealed body. He pushed her back against the couch with his own weight. Parting his lips from hers to follow his own fingers in their journey down to her neck, her collarbone, planting kisses on every bit of skin they could find. Lavolla threw her head back and moaned in approval. Her fingers grabbed his hair and she arched her back, pressing herself against him.
When he reached the mounds of her breasts, his hands cupped both orbs and held them as if they were the most precious treasure he had ever come across. Through the thin fabric, he sucked at one of her erect nipples. Gently he grazed his teeth over the small bud, nipping at it lovingly. Lavolla let out the softest yelp of surprise and Severus moved to kiss her panting mouth, grinning against her lips.

'Exactly how attached are you to this very inappropriate piece of nightwear?' Severus purred seductively.

Lavolla tried to catch his lips again, while tugging impatiently at the buttons of his jacket. Those things remained a source of annoyance to her.

'It's my favourite. Why?' She answered, followed by a triumphant smile as she finally managed to unbutton the last one of those tiny hindrances.

'Hm, pity.' Severus mumbled, watching her with amusement, before grabbing a fistful of the smooth fabric and ripping it from Lavolla's body.

She looked up at him in feigned shock, one corner of her mouth already curling up and betraying her true emotion.

'Severus Snape, that's going to cost you.' She whispered seductively. Severus was sure that at that moment, he would have paid anything to lay eyes on the sight he was currently beholding. Lavolla's eyes were gazing up at him adoringly, the tremulous light of the fire flickering in them and making them sparkle. Her lips red from kissing him, her bare skin ready to be united with his, her perfect breasts eagerly awaiting his touch. In one fluid motion, he gathered her in his arms and lifted her off the sofa, never breaking eye contact with her. Lavolla stroked his face with the tips of her fingers until he gently laid her down on the rug by the fireplace and got back up so he stood before her. He removed his jacket that Lavolla had already undone and then went to work on the buttons of the white blouse underneath, taking his time as he watched the dancing flames cast figures on Lavolla's body. Seeing her bite her lip in impatience made him want to slow his undressing even further as to prolong the moment and tease her, but at the same time he knew he was just as eager as she was to free himself of his clothes.

When he was down to his trousers, she obviously couldn't take it any longer. She propped herself up on one elbow and extended her free arm to him, reaching out for him.

'Severus!' She said accusingly.

'Yes?' He replied calmly.

'You're tormenting me! Come here, let me do it.'

He clicked his tongue in mock disapproval. 'Patience, love.'

Lavolla let herself fall back on the floor and put her hands on her head in frustration.

When Severus had freed himself of every last bit of clothing, as slowly as he could, he lowered himself down on his knees and then sat down by Lavolla, who grasped him by his shoulders as soon as he was in her reach. She pulled him down so she could kiss him while one of her hands traced his spine and the other stroked his chest, his abdomen, and from there travelled down to his erection. He grunted into her mouth as her fingers teased the sensitive tip. His desire for her growing with each passing second, Severus ripped off her panties and carelessly tossed them in a random direction.

'Don't make me wait any longer.' Lavolla whispered between kisses, there was a pleading tone to her voice.

Severus knew he wouldn't be able to last much longer, so he straddled her as she guided his manhood to her hot centre, gingerly stroking the delicate skin as she did. She released him when he was nudging her entrance. Their mouths broke apart and their eyes locked as he gradually pushed into her. Lavolla inhaled sharply as he did so and wrapped her legs around him, forcing him even deeper inside her. Severus held still for a moment and kissed her deeply. Then he started to move in and out of her, each thrust more powerful then the previous one. She pulled him closer until she was able to softly nip at the muscles in his neck, one hand taking a firm hold of his backside. He supported himself with one arm while his free hand massaged her breast and stroked her stomach.

Much too soon Severus felt the waves of pleasure grow more intense and knew his climax was nearing quickly. As soon as he began to slow down, Lavolla tightened her grip on him with her legs.

'Don't.' She panted. He picked up the pace again until he felt her muscles tense around him and she closed her eyes in delight. As her orgasm washed over her, Lavolla whispered his name. It was all Severus needed. Within several more thrusts, his own culmination arrived with an incredible force. Lavolla laid her hand against his cheek as he groaned at the overwhelming sensation of his release. Collapsing onto her, she wrapped her arms around him and held him.

Warmed by his body and the fire, Lavolla eventually drifted off into a dreamless sleep.