Christmas was only two days away and Sophie was both apprehensive and excited. She was nervous about singing in front of the school, tomorrow on Christmas Eve, and she was also anxious about the day itself.
There were a number of reasons why one could be nervous before Christmas Day. Some people had house guests and others didn't have any. Sophie did not let this bother her in the slightest.
The young substitute professor was full of nerves because she had gone and bought the Potion's Master a Christmas present. She didn't care one way or another if the man gave her anything in return. Sophie didn't care much about presents for herself at all. She was worried, though, that perhaps he wouldn't like his or he might be angry or upset with her for getting him a gift.
The two didn't talk about Christmas once in the time they spent together working on the potion for Voldemort. They met up three times since that first night and they hadn't come up with anything that worked so far. This was unsurprising; neither of them expected results so soon.
They did talk about a lot of things, but the looming holiday was never one of them. Sophie bought her present for Snape ages ago, back on the first Hogsmead trip when she followed him around like a lost puppy, and now she was unsure if it was a good idea or not. Their relationship was so unstable, she didn't have the slightest clue where it was going, and she didn't know whether a present was the right thing at the moment.
Even though it was Monday, Professor Sprout called off their bi-weekly meetings for the week. It was the eve of Christmas Eve and the woman wanted to do nothing but relax and get ready for the busy holiday hanging over their heads. Sophie filled this empty space with another night with Professor Snape, working on that potion in the dungeons.
It was just around lunchtime and Sophie confirmed her meeting with Snape earlier in the day after breakfast ended. Now she had nothing to do but wait. Her eyes roamed her room before she stood and grabbed the thickest robes she owned, along with a large cloak. Skipping her way down to the Great Hall, she only stopped by for a quick bite before she headed out again.
Snow covered the immense grounds of Hogwarts, at least a foot high, and Sophie trudged a path through it, occasionally prancing on the top of particularly packed areas. The sky was clear blue, the sun shimmering down and reflecting off the perfect snow with its blinding light.
Sophie made her way across the grounds, unconsciously making her way toward the lake. She let her feet lead her and let her mind wander to what she planned on singing the next day at dinner. Would it be a Christmas song? A muggle or a wizard song? What would she wear? Would she need music or should she just sing by herself?
There were so many thoughts running through her mind and she didn't know how to answer a single one of them. Perhaps a walk around the lake would clear her head. Maybe sitting at the edge, by that large tree she used to spend her days at, would help her sort things out.
It wasn't until she was nearly on said tree that she noticed the figure standing under it. There was no cover for it to hide, with the leaves being gone and its blackness sticking out like a sore thumb, so Sophie had no idea how she missed it before. For half a second she considered that it was Lord Voldemort, standing on the edge of the Forbidden Forest like he owned it. She dismissed this thought as soon as it entered her head.
Though Voldemort allowed himself to wander the Forest while was inhuman, he would not do so now. It was much too risky while he was in this state, with a body that could be killed and Dumbledore being so close. He wouldn't ever take that much risk unless he had a plan. Sophie knew for a fact that he had no plan.
The black figure was not Voldemort. Sophie grew closer to see that this was a person with intents that were not as evil. Professor Severus Snape was standing on the edge of the both the lake and the Forbidden Forest, faced away from her.
He didn't acknowledge her as she came up behind him and she wasn't sure if he even knew she was there. Sophie decided against making her presence known. From behind his back, she was able to observe him without being observed herself.
"Didn't your parents teach you that staring is rude, Ms. Roe?" Snape's voice asked, startling the girl from her thoughts.
Sophie blushed, a deep pink color that evened out what was already red from the cold. She looked down at the ground in embarrassment, her head dipping low so that her hair fell over her face.
"I'm so sorry, Professor Snape, I didn't mean to," the young witch apologized, her eyes darting up to meet his.
Snape wasn't angry at her at all, but he found it amusing that she was so nervous around him. He was also slightly amused by the fact that she thought she was watching him while he didn't know. Of course he knew that she was there. A seasoned Death Eater, he was aware of her presence as soon as she stepped out of the castle doors and long before she ever caught sight of him.
"Don't let it happen again," Severus stated.
Sophia nodded quickly and went on to continue stammer apologies. Once was quite enough for him, though, and he cut her off.
"That's enough, Ms. Roe. It will not happen again, I am satisfied," Snape said.
He watched as she peaked at him from under her heavy black eyelashes, blue eyes meeting his dark ones. She smiled at him and he scowled as he always did.
"I just wanted to come and clear my head," the girl told him. "When I saw you, I almost thought you were Voldemort."
The Potion's Master raised his eyebrow in the usual manner, but didn't say a word.
"I have no idea what I'm going to sing tomorrow," Sophia explained.
His eyes snapped down to her and he immediately said the first thing that came to mind, "Not another horribly cliché Christmas carol."
For a split second, Snape was worried he might have offended her by his slip. He hadn't really thought about what he said before it came out and only now realized that may have been exactly what she was planning on singing. Normally, he didn't care if he said something rude, but this was a girl he was trying to stay on good terms with. She didn't hate him yet and he wanted to keep it that way for a while longer, if he could help it.
He didn't worry long as her laugh rang out sharply, surprised by his quick and honest opinion on the matter. Snape watched as Sophia laughed for a good minute or more, clutching her stomach as her face fell into a wide smile. Slowly the laughter wore off into little giggles and she kept grinning as she faced him again.
"Sorry," she said softly.
Snape didn't know how to reply so he continued to watch her.
"Right, so no Christmas songs," Sophie stated. "I'm assuming you don't enjoy muggle music either?"
The witch looked up at the man who she was so intrigued by and waited for his answer. She didn't know why, but his answer meant a lot to her and she thought she would probably go with whatever he suggested.
"A few songs are acceptable," the man admitted. "But I would stay away from it just to be safe."
Snape admittedly did not like most music, muggle or otherwise. Much of it was too fast, too loud, and meant absolutely nothing at all. He didn't need to listen to songs written by children, singing about love and parties, when he didn't enjoy any of those things anyway. He'd only ever been in love once and never in his life had he been invited to a party that didn't involve torture and murder in some way.
Sophie took this into consideration and nodded. He was probably right, she thought, she didn't want to pick a muggle song only to realize that half the people listening to her didn't know what the words meant.
"Any suggestions?" she asked.
They stood side by side, facing the lake that was frozen over and covered by so much snow that you could hardly tell it was there. Snape wondered about what he would have her sing if he could pick any song. He didn't know.
"You cannot get out of picking a song by asking me, Ms. Roe," Snape replied.
He heard her sigh heavily.
"Fine," the girl huffed as though she were a child who had been told she couldn't have a toy.
Neither of them had any more to say and they were quiet for a few minutes.
"Did you get lunch?" Sophie asked, looking up at the Potion's Master.
She just realized that she didn't see him in the Great Hall when she grabbed her own food and he must have been here long before she arrived.
Snape looked down at the witch, finding her eyes searching his own.
He answered honestly, "No."
"Aren't you hungry?" Sophia questioned.
Severus turned away from her and looked back over the lake. He wasn't comfortable with the way she was asking these questions, seemingly concerned for him. He didn't do concerned; in fact, he didn't do feelings at all.
"I'm fine," he answered.
The Potion's Master was fine. He didn't need food at the moment and before she mentioned it, he hadn't even realized he missed a meal. His body didn't process the loss of nutrition as another wizard's might.
Sophie's eyes wandered down over the man and she grabbed his hand without thinking. Snape startled at her touch.
"What are you –"
Sophie started pulling him through the path she made on the way down, not bothering to dignify the man with an answer. He pulled away, slightly angry that she touched him without his permission. Snape wasn't a touchy-feely man and didn't like when others placed their hands on his person.
The girl stopped and stared up at him with her wide eyes, as if she didn't know what she did wrong.
"What do you think you are doing?" Snape snarled, just barely holding back the words 'infernal woman' from the end of his sentence.
"You can't just go hungry!" Sophie stated, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Severus was not happy with this answer, "I think I can decide when I need to eat and when I don't, Ms. Roe."
Substitute professor, Sophia Roe, paused and looked at the sneering, snarling face of the Potion's Master. Though you could hardly tell with all of the robes he was wearing, she found that he was much too skinny. She wanted to help him, to forcefully feed him until he was of proper health.
Sophie sighed, "I was trying to help you. I thought you should eat, with all of the things going on involving Voldemort and spying and missions."
"I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself," Snape stated curtly.
Sophie nodded, defeated, "Of course."
The girl did not leave or head back to the castle as he might have expected her to, but rather stayed at his side and stared at the ground for a long moment. Long enough so that Severus was slightly worried about the overly happy witch. His eyes darted down to her face.
Snape found that Sophia wasn't doing much and it bothered him. She was obviously thinking hard about something.
"I am headed up to the castle," Snape said.
He watched as Sophia's head slowly came up and she nodded. Snape didn't think she would just let him walk away like that, but maybe he was wrong. He decided to start up the path and see if she would follow. The girl did not disappoint.
Quietly, they wound their way back up to the heavy doors of the castle. It seemed that they were the only ones to come through it lately, with all of the students away and no reason for the professors to need it.
As they walked, snow started to come down in little flurries. This did nothing for Snape, except perhaps annoy him, until he heard a little giggle coming from his left.
Eyes darting downward, Severus Snape saw the half-smile graced his partner's face once more. Flakes of crystallized water fell on the girl's face, hair, and robes. From a distance, it might look as if she had bad dandruff, but from here, she looked almost ethereal. Her eyes batted and she giggled again as more snow drifted into her eyelashes and across her face.
The breath was stolen from his lungs as he gazed at this witch. Sophia lifted her hands and let the snow fall in her palms, the tiny icicles melting immediately in the warmth. She raised her face to the sky and smiled wide.
They had come to a stop in their trek up to the castle, but it seemed that neither one of them noticed as they delighted in the beauty before them. Together, they stayed in that spell for what felt like hours, but were in reality only a few short minutes. It was broken when Sophia lowered her head and sharp blue eyes met black ones.
Snape's face fell to a scowl instantly, but Sophie saw the way he was looking at her when he thought she couldn't see him. Secretly, she was thrilled, but she contained it so she didn't scare him away.
"I am not going to stand in the cold all day, Ms. Roe," Severus Snape stated. "Are you coming or not?"
Sophie nodded and scampered after him, a small smirk on her face. They entered the castle a few moments later.
The warmth of the school burned her fingers and face as she followed the Potion's Master through the doors and Sophie trailed after him rubbing her hands on her thighs to warm them quicker. She was so intent on this that she did not notice where they were headed until they stood directly before a familiar portrait.
"Ms. Roe?" Snape asked.
"I thought you said you weren't hungry!" Sophie accused.
The Slytherin shrugged, "I merely said I could decide for myself when I was hungry, Ms. Roe."
Sophie stared at the man with a dumbfounded expression for a few seconds longer before she grinned, as if just being clued in on some joke that she hadn't gotten before. She nodded.
"After you," Snape stated, gesturing to the portrait of the fruit.
Sophie tickled the pear and the giggling fruit admitted them to the crowded kitchens of Hogwarts. It appeared house-elves did not take breaks when the children were away. They were crowded and working away busily, but not too busy that they couldn't stop what they were doing to greet the two professors with enthusiasm. The smell of something wonderful came from the depths of the kitchens and the two picked up on it instantly.
"Miss Sophie Roe!" a small elf squeaked. "Master Snape, Sir! What can Whimsy do for yous both?"
Whimsy the elf was big-eyed like all house-elves, but instead of a normal color, like blue or green or brown or even yellow, they were a strange sort of light purple. She had large, bat-like ears that flapped slightly as she talked, like a dog wagging its tail. To cover her body, she wore what looked to be a faded yellow pillowcase.
Snape grimaced at the peppy creature, almost ready to give up on this torturous idea, but he didn't have to speak. Sophia's voice came from beside him, filled with utter delight.
"Professor Snape and I would like something to eat," the witch explained. "Is there anywhere we can wait where it is quieter?"
The elf's large eyes grew even wider and they twinkled with happiness, "Oh yes, Whimsy will show Miss Sophie Roe and Master Snape, Sir where theys can wait. Follow, Whimsy please."
Snape was unsure if following the creature was a good idea, but Sophia was already walking through the crowd and he traipsed after her. Elves bowed out of the way one either side of him, parting as though he were a celebrity – or a monster. He thought the second option was more likely.
Surprisingly enough, the creature did find them a space in the kitchens where there were less elves and the noise was brought down to a tolerable level. Snape was marginally impressed.
"Whimsy uses the quiet to make Professor Headmaster Dumbledore's favorite woolly socks!"
Severus would have sneered if he hadn't seen the witch's face. She was grinning and she answered the creature with some positive remark that sent the thing scampering away in delight.
They sat together in the relative quiet.
"She's nice," Sophia stated.
This time, Snape did sneer. He didn't have to like everything and he wouldn't change his opinions just because Sophia Roe, the substitute professor, Hufflepuff, said differently.
Sophia didn't seem offended by his lack of enthusiasm, though. Instead, she looked like she expected it and that maybe it didn't bother her. Snape didn't think that she could possibly believe both things; that the creature was nice and still like him at the same time, but he didn't say anything.
When Whimsy came back, she carried a tray with an assortment of foods. Some were from the lunch Snape missed, but Sophie recognized. Others were fresh and newly-made, maybe for dinner, or perhaps the elf made something just for them as a snack. Either way, Sophie was very pleased with the results of their venture down here.
She also brought drinks, which ranged from firewhiskey, to butterbeer, to pumpkin juice. Snape took a glass of the whiskey. Sophie had a bottle of butterbeer, knowing she couldn't handle alcohol very well at all.
The two professors ate in silence. Sophie didn't know what to say and Snape didn't like to speak. It was comfortable. Neither of them felt they needed to say anything to fill the quiet. Snape was thankful for this.
Their impromptu lunch ended and they rose from the unnaturally peaceful section of the kitchens, starting for the door. Whimsy found them before they could make an escape.
"Leaving so soon, Master Snape, Sir? Miss Sophie Roe?" the house-elf asked. "No desserts?"
Seeing his upper lip curl, Sophie answered the small creature before Snape could.
"That's alright, Whimsy," the witch replied kindly. "We'll be sure to have some at dinner, though."
Whimsy's ears sagged slightly and Snape would have been content to make his getaway then, but Sophie couldn't leave the elf sad like she was.
"Did you have something in mind?" Sophie asked.
Snape watched as the elf's ears perked back up and the wide eyes glittered with pride.
"Oh, yes, Miss Sophie Roe! Whimsy has just the dessert for Miss Sophie Roe and Master Snape, Sir!"
The little elf bounced off into the chaos of its kind and Snape turned to Sophia. She was looking at him with an apologetic grimace.
"I'm sorry," she said.
"Ms. Roe, I will not be staying here for another hour with these creatures surrounding me," Snape stated. "I was leaving because I did not want the extra food."
"That's fine," Sophia stated. "You can go, if you want. I won't be staying much longer either."
At that moment, the elf appeared at their feet once more. She was only about as tall as Snape's shin and he looked down at her as if she might be a disease. In her hands, she held two large pieces of what looked to be chocolate cake.
"Whimsy makes it just for Miss Sophie Roe and Master Snape, Sir," she stated with a big smile.
He glanced at Sophia to find her grin matched the elf's.
"Do you mind if we take them to our rooms, Whimsy?" Sophia asked. "Professor Snape and I have other business to attend to now."
The house-elf's eyes went wide and she nodded as she answered, "Oh, yes, Miss Sophie Roe. Whimsy will get yous both plates to go!"
In a flash, she was gone and back before them.
Snape watched as Sophia took the covered plates and thanked the creature profusely for the meal and the dessert until it was glowing with pride. Then she turned and handed him one of the plates and started out the door with a small smile on her lips.
The Potion's Master followed the witch out of the crowded room, finding they were only there for a few extra minutes, not long enough for him to complain about.
"I have things I need to attend to," Snape stated as he came to a stop outside the fruit portrait beside Sophia.
She did not protest, but simply nodded her head.
Fifteen minutes later, Severus Snape sat in the living room portion of his Hogwart's home. On the table to his left, sitting next to his Slytherin green armchair, a plate of half-eaten chocolate cake awaited his return.
The man who should have been enjoying this death by dessert had stood a few seconds earlier. He faced the charmed window with his hands together behind his back, thinking about his experience with Sophia Roe out in the snow he was now staring at indifferently. He wondered how the night of potion's making would go tonight after dinner.
Another plate of chocolate cake sat on a side-table in a different part of the castle, but in another professor's rooms. This one, however, was not neglected.
Sophie licked the fork clean before digging in for the last bite. She scrapped dark frosting of the white of the plate and savored the last bite with closed eyes and a satisfied smile. In her mind's eye, she saw the way Severus Snape looked at her this afternoon when she had been marveling at the snow and she couldn't wait until her next chance to get him to look like that again.