Chapter Twenty: Take off the Invisibility Cloak
Stupid must be your middle name you decide as you slowly pull the Invisibility Cloak off yourself. You sink your hands in your pocket and look up at Snape as casually as you can. Maybe if you pretend it's not way past midnight, and you, in fact, have every right to be here, he won't notice the ginormous pink dragon in the room.
"Did I interrupt something?" You ask calmly, nodding back towards where Malfoy disappeared. You walk in the classroom and close the door behind you.
"Not quite. You just saved me from a childish temper tantrum that I was not too eager to hear."
"What's got Malfoy in a frenzy?" You ask as you move closer.
Snape sighs deeply and rubs his face. All of a sudden, you notice how incredible tired he looks. You feel sorry for him regardless of the fact that in about five minutes Snape will realize who you are and where you are at what time of the night and you will lose all the house points.
"Mr Malfoy is under medication because of sleep deprivation. He receives a weekly dose of potions that keep his nightmares away. He is to take them every third day so not to get addicted." Snape looks at you and rolls his eyes. "But he's a stupid little shithead and he, obviously got himself addicted. Now he's out of his potions, he can't sleep and he comes to me on his knees for the third night in a row to beg for some Sleeping Draught that I will, obviously, not provide him with."
"Oh," you say. You finally solved your little mystery, but you don't feel satisfied. You look at Snape and you wish there was something you could do for him.
"Can't the Headmaster help?"
"The Headmaster did help, that is why we are treating Mr Malfoy and not the Healers of St Mungo's." Snape pushes himself away from the desk and walks around it just to sit down on his chair.
"So what will happen to him now?" You go there too and sit on his desk. He does not seem to mind and you start to suspect Snape's so fed up with everything, he scarcely cares about anything at this moment.
"Nothing. We will simply not trust him with a larger dosage from now on. But I believe you're not here at nearly one in the morning to ask about Mr Malfoy. So, once again, what can I do for you, Mr Potter. And please keep in mind my consulting hours have ended about seven hours ago."
The small laugh that slips past your lips surprises you. Snape, too, looks at you with a raised eyebrow. It's the first time you two shared a joke. This situation is not as awful as it could be.
You feel a little braver and shrug. "Couldn't sleep either," you tell him with a half-smile.
"I'm not a drug dealer, Potter." He snaps but you don't back down.
"I don't want drugs. I want…" What…? What do you want? You look at Snape who studies you with a dark gaze. The man looks like he could do with a little chat. Maybe you could help each other unwind. "Company." You say at last.
Snape rolls his eyes. "What is it with you eighteen-years-olds? When I was your age-"
"You took the Dark Mark." You interrupt to remind him nonchalantly.
You look into each other's eyes and you can feel the space between you two fill up with tension.
You're ready for a fight, but something tells you it's not going to happen.
Then Snape makes a noncommittal eyeroll, and you know you're safe. He must be really tired if he doesn't even react to your cheek.
"That is true…" He notes with a shrug.
"Maybe that's why we come to you. Because you understand it. Us."
"You have friends," he says.
"It's not the same. Ron and Hermione… they have each other. Who do I go to? Ginny? Whose biggest problem right now is who's going to win the House Cup?"
"There was a time, when that was your biggest problem as well." He reminds you.
You avoid his gaze and sigh. "Yeah, that was a long time ago."
You're both quiet for a long minute. You can feel his eyes on you, so in the end you break and look up at him.
He has leaned back on the chair. His head rest against the leather as he watches you. He looks sleepy and sharp all the same time. His whole body is relaxed, but his eyes are as alert as ever. Nothing eludes that pair of black holes that seem to draw you in.
"You haven't slept much then, I take it," you say then add as if to clarify your train of thoughts, "if Malfoy kept coming to you at this hour in the last three days."
"It might not come to you as a surprise, but I'm rather used to not sleeping a lot." His eyes close down as he speaks and you can barely believe it.
Snape feels at ease with you enough to sit with you with eyes closed. The sight makes you smile and you want to do something to make him feel even more relaxed.
You like this Snape you realize, this calmer more subdued version of the man.
You slip off the table. He hears you, but his eyes remain closed. Even when you're right behind him, he only turns his head slightly.
"What are you up to?" Snape asks, tone a soft murmur.
"Have I ever thanked you?" You ask as you place your hands on his rigid shoulders.
"Thanked me for what?"
You can feel him tense under your hands, but he does not pull away. You start slowly rubbing him. Your touch is gentle for now. You don't want to scare him.
"For all the spying… the life-saving… for all that awful business with killing Nagini."
"That snake had it coming for her," Snape notes and you can feel his chest rumbling underneath your fingers.
You kneed him more firmly now, knowing he won't pull away. It makes you smile that you get to do this even though mere hours ago, you could never even imagine this night could end up with you giving massage to Severus Snape.
You rub the base of his neck and let your thumb move up on the line of it until you reach his nape. His hair is remarkably soft and the next moment you find your fingers buried in all that black ink. You give it a little tug, only out of curiosity and Snape lets out a small gasp.
Satisfied with your experience, you slide your hand back down on his neck, fingertips rubbing knotted flesh.
Bloody hell, why does this make you hard?
As your hand returns to Snape's shoulder, you press your hardening member against the back of the chair. Under the pretence of applying more pressure you move even closer and as you massage Snape, you brush against the chair over and over again.
A shuddering, but thankfully silent moan escapes your lips. You try your hardest to focus on Snape, but it only makes it worse. You want to touch him more than you want to touch yourself.
"I will not tell you to stop doing what you're doing… but be aware that it did not elude my attention." Snape says slowly and you freeze over him.
He does not sound angry and he does not move. Truly he doesn't seem to care whether you come rutting against the chair he's sitting on. Still, you cannot. This is simply out of the question. You should go, leave now, while you still have at least a shred of dignity.
Apologize and leave. (Go to chapter 21)
Continue. (Go to chapter 22)