As usual, lessons became tougher after the Christmas holidays. With the end of the semester approaching, the Professors increased the amount of homework for students.
The day after they had come back to the Castle, the sixth year Gryffindors were already full of assignments.
"Fuckin' hell" muttered Sirius as they walked out of Transfiguration, "McGonagall's gone crazy."
Peter nodded, he too looking pretty tired; luckily for all of them, that was the last class of the day.
The girls and boys all went back to their Common Room, dropping their books and having quick showers before going to dinner. The day had really weighed down on them. In Potter Manor, they were used to oversleep, play Quidditch, smoke cigarettes and listen to music all day. Hogwarts life was so much different.
As they moved towards the Great Hall, Madeline spotted a group of Slytherins doing the same, not too far from them; she couldn't believe her luck as she spotted Severus between them. He was walking slowly, with his hands in his pockets, barely listening to his mates and giving a nod of agreement every now and then as Mulciber and Avery discussed something.
"Mmm… See you later, guys, I need to have a word with someone." Madeline whispered to the Marauders, and they all look displeased as she separated from them and walked towards the skinny boy.
When Severus noticed her, she smiled at him and stood in his way.
His friends turned when they realized Snape wasn't following them anymore. "What's the matter, Severus?"
Madeline threw them an annoyed look. "You may go, darlings, you're not required here." she ironicallysaid.
Avery raised an eyebrow while his features hardened, "Don't you dare use that presumptuous tone with me!"
"Presumptuous?", Madeline laughed lightly. "Wow, your vocabulary is really widening. I'm proud of you."
His face abruptly reddened, and the boy was about to reply when Severus told him he'd reach them later, took her hand in his, and pulled her away from the entrance of the Great Hall. They walked a bit and ended up in the same old classroom where he had tutored her in Potions.
"You shouldn't speak to them like that." He said, as he closed the door behind himself.
"Why? Because they're Death Eaters?"
He sighed, "Yes. Exactly because of that. They're dangerous, and stupid… Which makes them even more dangerous."
She shrugged, "I'm not afraid of them. I won't shut my mouth."
He couldn't help but smile a bit. "Of course you won't…" he muttered, before looking directly into her blue eyes. "You wanted to speak to me?"
Madeline laughed, and approached him. She stopped when they chests were barely touching and Severus had to lower his gaze to properly look into her face.
"I wanted to be with you." She whispered, and as he bent to kiss her, she took a step back.
Some amusement sparkled in his onyx eyes. "You want to play with me?"
"Well… I can't deny I've missed doing so."
Severus nodded, and went to sit on the desk in front of the class. "Two can play at this game." He stated. Madeline raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so you want to make me beg for a kiss instead?"
The Slytherin boy grinned. "That would be exciting, if I must be honest. Plus, you probably deserve it." He said, crossing his arms.
Madeline, who had begun walking towards him, stopped in her tracks. "What? Why?"
Severus knitted his brows. "I'm tired of seeing you running behind Black anytime he's in a tantrum." He admitted sternly, like he had been holding back from saying so for too much time; his tone of voice had gone from amused to annoyed in less than a second.
Madeline sighed deeply. "Listen, we've already talked about this…"
"You promised you'd stop acting like his girlfriend."
"I'm acting like his friend, Severus." She explained, icily. "If you hadn't noticed, James came with me."
"Oh, and you think that makes me feel better? I hate Potter!"
"Well, is there someone you don't hate?" she asked, raising her voice.
He shot her a look. "Well, I don't hate you."
"How lucky I am…" she muttered, out of fatigue. She didn't really mean it to sound so… Mean.
Severus stiffened visibly, and he threw her a hurt look that only lasted a second. Then, the cold, expressionless mask he reserved to his enemies moved back in place. The boy stood from the desk and started walking towards the door. "Fine" he muttered, "Go fuck yourself, then."
"Severus…" she called from him.
He didn't stop.
"Severus Snape, don't run away from me! What are you, a coward?"
She saw his whole being freeze at that. She didn't care. She wanted him to face her. She hated people who simply ran away from problems.
He slowly turned, and she couldn't help but being afraid from the anger burning behind his eyes.
"Don't – call me – a coward." He said out of gritted teeth.
She took a step back. "Then don't be one. Stay. Talk to me."
"I think you've said enough."
"I haven't." she stated, and inspired deeply. "Severus, why won't you trust me? I've already betrayed James' trust for you. Don't push me away."
He arched an eyebrow at that. "What? How did you betray his trust?"
"It doesn't matter now…" she breathed out, shaking the thought away. "The fact is… I did it to protect you. Because you're my friend." She approached him slowly. "And you should stop close in on yourself whenever we argue."
Then, as swiftly as it had come back in place, the mask of coldness slipped away. Madeline sadly thought that, one day, the boy in front of her wouldn't be able to take it off anymore. That mask would take over him; it would break him.
Because it is impossible to pretend not to have emotions for too long. Sooner or later, when you deny your feelings, you end up having them no more. The weight on Severus' heart, the one who forced him to appear unbreakable in front of everyone, would kill him some day.
Her heart skipped a beat when those thoughts registered in her head.
Some minutes passed while they stared at each other through the silent room.
He was the first one to take a step in her direction. "I thought you liked me being jealous…" he said with a soft tone of voice. He looked at the floor, as if he was ashamed of the words that had barely left his mouth. Madeline understood it was a request of forgiveness.
She rolled her eyes. Boys were such weird creatures.
"I'm sorry for calling you a coward." She admitted.
"I'm sorry for mistrusting you. It's just… So difficult, for me."
"I know." She said, and took a step in his direction. He looked up at her, then. "But I won't always agree with what you think or do. And this doesn't make me any less than a friend. You can't expect me to be a pet to control as you like, Severus."
He snorted. "I certainly know that. Plus, it'd be impossible to control you. You're way too hot-headed for that…" he walked towards her. "Such a Gryffindor you are, Madeline Green."
She smiled sweetly, because she knew he couldn't resist her charm for too long. Severus loved that look on her face. The little tease knew his soft spots.
"Can we stop playing for a bit?" he asked.
She shrugged, "Yeah, playing has led us to no good." Madeline said, and she was about to laugh, when Severus' lips claimed hers.
It was nothing like the hot, breathless, full of desire kisses they had exchanged on New Year's Eve.
These were their "I've missed you so much and I'm so sorry for always complicating things" kind of kisses. She let her hands roam through his hair as always, and he bent to suck on his neck as always, and then he pushed her against a wall and she moaned.
"I'm just so jealous all the time…", he whispered against her ear. "I think he acts all desperate just to see you running behind him…"
Madeline laughed, "Sirius' not like that…" she muttered, but he silenced her by kissing her again. "Don't say his name while we do this…" he said in a harsh tone, just before his tongue slipped back into her mouth. She bit his lower lip after a minute or so, as she always did to break their kisses. "For your information, Siri-" he threw her a look, as he left a tray of wet kisses and bites on her neck. "Fine" she muttered, "My best friend... is seeing someone else."
Severus stopped to look into her eyes, "Who's the girl?"
"Marlene McKinnon."
He snorted, "She's always fancied him. Everybody knows that. Black's just using her for entertainment because he can't have you…" he said, and gave her no chance to reply and deny everything, like he knew she would do. He encircled her waist with his hands and pushed her against him to kiss her again full on the mouth, till they were left breathless and panting.
"Easy, love…" she whispered, laughing, "I don't want someone to find us shagging in a classroom."
She had only meant that as a joke, but Severus' eyes lighted up when she mentioned them "shagging".
"Yeah, right…" he agreed, then, coming back to his senses. "Maybe we should go back to dinner."
Madeline sighed, "Oh, they're probably eating dessert by now. We could go to the kitchens, if you like."
He raised an eyebrow, surprised. "The kitchens? You know where they are?"
She rolled her eyes. "Severus… I know you hate them, but the Marauders are really bright people."
He made a disgusted face. "How do they know the Castle so well?"
She laughed, "Do you really expect me to tell you their secrets only because we've just snogged?"
He pouted, "No… But I wanted to give it a try…"
She took his hand in hers and led him away from that dark classroom. "Let's go. I'm starving! Just don't tell anyone where they are… The elves are delicate creatures, one must know how to deal with them."
"Elves? Delicate creatures? Not Mulciber's…"
She turned to give him a strange look. "Fucking purists… They're really the worst." She commented. "My elves are like part of the family… They're amazing creatures."
Severus let himself be pulled by her. "You're really a weird Pureblood, Green."
She threw him a sad look. "No, I'm not. There are so many like me. You were just so unlucky you met the worst of us."
Severus decided it was time to change subject. This was dangerous field. As he thought about what to say next, they reached a painting depicting a fruit basket. Madeline left his hand and grinned at him. "I'm not crazy…" she warned him, and started tickling the image of a pear.
Severus was about to comment otherwise, when a handle appeared in the middle of the painting, and Madeline opened a secret door.
He had never been to the kitchens… Merlin, nobody he knew had ever been to the kitchens. They were big, and warm. There were four huge, widen tables that resembled the ones in the Great Hall. Hundreds of house elves were working, probably already preparing the food for breakfast. When they spotted Madeline, all of them cheered and greeted her with joy.
One of them approached her, and Madeline shook his… or hers?... hand. The elf looked quite old, and he had an elegant air… Which was quite strange for an elf. His eyes were big, and blue, and his clothes were of Gryffindor colors, and strangely refined.
"So glad to see you, Miss Madeline." said the elf with a loud, hoarse voice, sounding excited.
"So glad to see you too, Maximilian." the girl said, with a huge smile of her face. "You're wearing our Christmas gift! You look lovely! I've told Sirius and James you'd like them!"
The elf's eyes glimmered with pride at Madeline's compliment.
"The young Miss and Masters have been so kind to Maximilian. Maximilian loves Gryffindor colors!"
Madeline smiled, "They're the best indeed. You have a good taste, Max." she grinned. Severus snorted, and she gave him a playful nudge.
"Me and my friend have skipped dinner… We were wondering if we could still eat something? If it isn't too much trouble." She explained, then.
Severus shot her a surprised look. That wasn't the way Pureblood wizards usually addressed to House elves. For what he knew, they were nothing but servants. Wizards gave them orders, not requests.
"It isn't too much trouble for Maximilian, it isn't at all!" squeaked the elf, "Maximilian is honored to serve such a kind girl! Maximilian is so glad to have such a kind friend! Maxilian has missed Miss Madeline and Masters Sirius and James!"
The girl's eyes softened, "Oh, Max, we were so busy with homework, that's why we haven't visited in a while… But we've missed you! I'll tell Sirius and James to come and say hello, ok?"
"Please, Miss Madeline, that would be wonderful, thank you Miss, Maximilian is so grateful…" he rapidly said, and she smiled again, before turning to look at the boy. "What would you like to eat?" she asked.
He shrugged, "You choose. Anything's okay for me."
"Mmm, okay… What about desserts? I could dine with cake."
Severus laughed, "Dine with cake? I've never done that. Alright for me."
Maximilian nodded after their exchange, and walked away, probably to get their food.
Madeline led Severus to a part of the kitchens where there was a smaller wooden table, where they could put some distance between the elves and themselves.
After no more than a minute, Maximilian brought them a tray full of all types of cakes: carrot cake, chocolate cake, fruit cake, lemon cake and so on. He had also brought them two jugs full of pumpkin' juice and cold milk.
Severus didn't love sweets, but when he saw Madeline's eyes sparkle with happiness, he couldn't help but smile too.
"Please, you have to try this" she said, after biting into a piece of lemon cake. "This is my all time favourite." She commented, and raised her fork to feed him a piece too.
He blushed slightly, because he wasn't used to that kind of intimacy, but he opened his mouth nonetheless. The cake melted on his tongue, and he chewed it a bit before swallowing it.
"So?" asked Madeline, curious.
"That's good."
She smiled, "It's the best." She said, and bit into another piece. She closed her eyes as she did so, and let out a soft moan. "Merlin, I love this…"
He laughed briefly and started eating something too. He preferred chocolate cake, to be honest, but he didn't tell her. They ate cake and drank juice till their stomachs were full.
Madeline suddenly looked at him and smiled sweetly.
"What?" he asked. She moved towards him and, when he thought she'd kiss him, she licked his lips, slowly. "You taste like chocolate" she said, and then gave him a peck on the mouth. "Sweet."
He shook his head, incredulous. "I'll never stop telling you how much of a tease you are."
"And I'll never stop telling you I know that" she said, and rolled her eyes.
They spent some more time there, joking and laughing and talking about school, and then they realized it was late, and that they had to go back to their Common Rooms and get some sleep, because they had classes in the morning and they weren't easy ones.
They greeted Maximilian goodbye, and walked out of the kitchens.
Severus insisted on accompanying her back to the portrait of the Fat Lady, even if the Slytherin Common Room was way closer than the Gryffindor one. Madeline took his hand, and they walked like that, rapidly. They were so lost in their thoughts, with their fingers entwined and each thinking of the other, that they had forgotten to cast a Disillusionment Charm, or to use secret passages.
They thought about that only when it was too late, and Filch pointed a wizened, accusing finger towards them. "Students out of bed." He stated, satisfied. Everybody knew about his sadistic enjoyment when he got to punish students. He was about to continue with his accusations, when someone stepped by his side.
"Mister Filch, let me take care of this."
Alastair Rathbone showed himself to them in all of his charm. Madeline couldn't help but let her eyes roam on his lean, handsome figure. He must had noticed it, because he smirked slightly while looking at the girl.
Severus left her hand, crossed his arms, and moved in front of her when he noticed the exchange. "Professor" he said, and Rathbone's green-grey eyes landed on him for the first time that evening. "I'm sorry we're out… We were together and we just lost track of time..." He stated, stressing his voice on "together".
Rathbone gave out a low laugh, devoid of any feeling. "I see." He simply said. "Well, I'm sorry too, but you've gained yourselves a detention."
Filch smiled at that, and petted Mrs. Norris, who was laying gently in his arms, staring at them with her cruel, red eyes.
"Now, we can't have you spend your detentions together, can we?" asked Rathbone with an obvious tone. "We've seen how much that makes you end in trouble." He added, as a matter-of-fact. "Mister Snape, you'll discuss about your detention with Professor Slughorn, as he's your Head of House."
The boy nodded sharply, looking pretty annoyed by that.
"Miss Green… Since I wouldn't want to give another thought to Professor McGonagall, you'll spend your detention with me."
Madeline nodded, almost relieved she didn't have to face McGonagall's wrath.
"Oh, and of course… Twenty points will be taken from both of your houses."
Mister Filch's smile widened, and Madeline was sure she heard him singing under his breath as he walked away, searching for other students to punish.
"Mister Snape, you can go back to your Common Room. I'll make sure Miss Green gets to Gryffindor tower safely."
Severus stiffened then, and threw him a hateful look. He knew he couldn't do anything, so he just sighed and turned to look at Madeline. He gave her a nod, but in his eyes she saw all the displeasure and nervousness he was feeling.
She smiled at him and whispered a "Good night", before following Rathbone towards her own Common Room.
The Professor was silent for a while.
"It's not like you to be out of your dormitory after curfew, Miss Green." He commented.
Madeline looked at him, who was walking by her side. He had a straight, pointed nose, high cheekbones and a light layer of mustache and goatee. His graying hair had lengthened slightly during the holidays, and now fell elegantly around his face. Merlin, he was really attractive. And yet, there was something mysterious about him…
"I'm sorry Professor. I promise you that won't happen again."
He smiled slightly, though it didn't reach his eyes. "It's so easy to make promises when you're young." He said, but it was so fast and delicate she almost thought she had imagined it.
When they reached the entrance of the Gryffindor Common Room, she smiled at him. Rathbone just watched her, and took a step in her direction. Then, he bent slightly towards her, as if to look at her better in the dark. She inspired and expired, not knowing what to do, and eventually ended up saying "Thank you for accompanying me, Professor." In a hurried tone.
Rathbone straightened then, appearing satisfied. He wore a knowing smirk on his charming face.
"My pleasure, Miss Green." He replied, letting his green-grey eyes study her face for a moment too long. "Sweet dreams…" he added, then, and grinned slightly. "I guess I should try lemon cake some time…" he commented as he moved away from her.
She stood there, looking at his back, astonished and intrigued, until he disappeared from her view.