Freddie felt giddy as they made their way out of the tunnel a short while later. When they stopped near the entrance to brush the dirt from each others clothes she felt as if she were floating. Her body felt light and her head didn't seem to be attached to her body, but she was conscientious enough to use Daniel's spells for tidying them up.
"What did you do to my hair?" Snape asked, touching his head in the dim light filtering in through the small opening of the tunnel.
"A spell Daniel taught me," she said with a smile, not even feeling the usual sting of pain the came with thinking of Daniel. "He used to use it when he didn't feel like taking a shower." She chuckled softly. "It's for cleaning hair – like dry shampoo, he said."
"Dry shampoo?" he repeated.
"Yeah it's a Muggle thing I guess. He said it's 'not as good as washing your hair but feels better than not washing your hair'. I wanted to make sure we didn't look like we'd been rolling around in the dirt."
He let out a soft sound like a chuckle. She started to climb out but he put a hand out to stop her.
"Let me go first so I can freeze the tree," he said. "It does not stay frozen for very long."
"Alright," she agreed, falling back behind him.
She still had a smile on her face as she followed him out of the passage and stood blinking in the light. She had said the three words that she'd been trying so hard not to say, the truth she'd tried so hard to deny, and her world hadn't imploded. Nothing bad had happened. He hadn't laughed in her face, he hadn't pushed her away or said they had to stop their physical activities...instead he had laid her down in the dirt and fucked her slowly, kissing every inch of her as he did, making her feel what he hadn't said...made her feel like he loved her too.
He stood there watching her as her eyes adjusted to the light and the expression on his face was dark and unreadable. Not so unusual for him, she thought.
"Have you mastered the Drought Charm?" he asked, the tone of his voice not giving away anything about his mood either.
"Ehh..." she said, avoiding his gaze. She ran her hand along one of the frozen limbs of the willow tree, felt it shiver beneath her touch. "No. Not really."
"Show me," he said, taking a few steps away from the tree, back outside the circle she'd drawn in the dirt.
She blew out a sigh and followed him. She approached one of the puddles that still littered the grounds and raised her wand.
"Arefacio," she said, tracing her wand in the required pattern. Steam rose from the puddle but only half of it evaporated, still leaving a good amount of water on the ground. Snape clicked his tongue disapprovingly.
"No dueling today I'm afraid. You need to continue practicing."
"It might go easier if I had someone to practice with," she said, kicking dirt into the puddle with the tip of her boot.
"No," he said.
"Why not? You've helped me study before," she persisted. "You're gonna leave me out here all alone with the death tree?"
"You're not alone," he drawled. "You have your cat."
"Kneazle," she insisted and he gave her a little smirk.
"Keep practicing," he told her. "If you like, you can come brew something after dinner."
"Alright," she relented. "I'll see you later I guess."
He nodded shortly then turned on his heel and strode back towards the castle. She watched him go, a sweeping dark figure, black robes billowing around him as he crossed the dreary grounds. She looked up at the cloudy gray sky and blew out a sigh. It looked like it was going to start raining again.
"We'll practice out here til the rain starts," she said to the sleeping kneazle that hung around her neck. "If I can't get it right by then I guess I can practice on glasses of water or something inside."
She sighed again and glanced back towards the castle. Snape's figure was no longer visible. The euphoric feeling she'd been experiencing had disappeared with him.
#
The rain held off for most of the afternoon, though the sky got progressively darker. It wasn't until Freddie evaporated a large-sized puddle that the bottom fell out of the sky, almost like the rain had been waiting on her to master the charm before it let loose.
"Ha!" she said as the puddle vanished into steam, then the rain started falling and soaked her through in an instant, as sure as if someone had dumped a bucket of water on her. "Dammit!"
She quickly cast a water-repelling spell and held her wand up over her head. She used her free hand to open the pouch around her neck to check on Ziggy. He slept on, oblivious. The pouch he was in was apparently water proof.
"Alright, let's get out of this mess," she said, cinching the pouch shut.
By the time she reached the Entrance Hall her boots were covered in mud. Filch was stalking through the hall and he glared at her fiercely but she was already using her wand to clean her boots. He scowled and continued on his way. His loyal cat companion, Mrs Norris, didn't immediately follow him. She stayed where she was and studied Freddie with her yellow eyes as she used a spell to dry her clothes. Freddie noticed the cat watching her and when she finished drying her clothes Mrs Norris came and began to wind her skeletal frame between her legs. Freddie looked around for Filch but he was gone.
"Well now," she said, surprised. "I've never seen you act friendly towards anyone before, except for Filch."
She squatted down, intent on petting the cat, but Mrs Norris darted away quickly. Then she came back, sniffing the pouch that dangled around Freddie's neck.
"Oh. You want to see him?" she hesitated but the cat didn't seem like she'd hurt Ziggy. She seemed more curious than hostile. Freddie opened the pouch and let the older cat peer in at the sleeping kneazle kitten. Mrs Norris stuck her head in the pouch and sniffed Ziggy curiously. She gave him a quick lick and Freddie heard her start to purr, a low rasping sound she hadn't known the ornery old cat was capable of making. Freddie chuckled and after a moment the cat turned and with a swish of her bushy dust-colored tail she headed off in the direction Filch had gone.
It wasn't quite dinnertime yet so Freddie headed back to her dormitory. She'd dried her clothes with magic but there was still a chill on her skin from the rain. She put a change of clothes in her book bag, then headed upstairs to the Prefect's bathroom.
She made sure the door was locked before she started running the water in the large bathtub. Then for good measure she added an extra layer of spells to the door, the same wards Snape used to guard his office, that she knew no student in the castle could break. She was still uneasy after what had happened last year with Geck, but with the added layer of protection she was able to fully relax into the bath. Ziggy was content to sleep in his bag which she left near the edge of the tub, but not too close. She got the latest copy of Apothecary Now out of her bag and settled in to read.
She was still in the tub a while later when she heard the bell ring for dinner. She put the magazine back in her bag then pulled the plug from the drain and got out. She dried off quickly then dressed in clean black jeans, boots, and a black cashmere sweater. She gathered her things, slipped Ziggy's pouch around her neck, and headed down to the Great Hall.
When she sat down at the Slytherin table for dinner her friends immediately surrounded her, begging to peek in at the sleeping kneazle. She put the bag on the table and un-cinched it so they could see him.
"Don't wake him up yet," she said as she piled food on her plate. "I want to eat something myself before he wakes up and needs feeding."
"I'll feed him for you Freddie," Amelia said eagerly but Freddie shook her head.
"I need to do it. He's still a baby and he needs to bond to me," she said, her eyes wandering to the staff table. "When he's older, I'll let you...where's Snape?"
His seat at the staff table was empty. He didn't often miss dinner, unless he was with her working on potions. And he hadn't said there was anything important they needed to brew.
"Dunno," Amelia said, glancing up briefly before returning her attention to Ziggy. "Maybe he's just late for dinner."
"Maybe," Freddie murmured.
She tried not to worry about Snape and focus on eating but as dinner wore on Snape still didn't show up. Freddie had just finished her plate of pork chops and roasted potatoes when Ziggy woke up and began to squirm his way out of his bag.
"Can I hold him while you get his milk ready?" Amelia asked, sounding so enthusiastic that Freddie couldn't say no. She nodded her head and the girl squealed in delight as she scooped up the kneazle kitten.
"It's okay," Amelia crooned to him as Freddie dug the feeding supplies out of her bag. "It's okay little baby, Freddie's getting your dinner. You are such a pretty baby yes you are."
When Freddie had the syringe full of unicorn milk ready Amelia handed Ziggy over, though she seemed to reluctant to do so. A small crowd gathered around to watch Freddie feed the kitten, mostly younger girls. She began to feel a bit claustrophobic and started to wish she'd waited until she went to Snape's office and fed Ziggy there. Still she had never been this popular before and for the first time in almost a year, no one was talking about her. They weren't whispering about her, calling her a murderer, or speculating on the appropriateness of her relationship with Snape. They were too busy crooning over the kitten.
Several times Freddie glanced at the staff table over the crowd of girls, wondering where Snape was and if he was okay. Maybe he just didn't feel like eating in the Great Hall tonight, she reasoned. I'm sure he's fine. He was fine earlier. Just because he isn't here doesn't mean he's ill or injured...
The last time she glanced up there she saw Dumbledore watching her, a smile on his face and a twinkle in his blue eyes at the sight of the kneazle being fed at the Slytherin table. Freddie smiled back awkwardly then turned her attention back to Ziggy.
When he was finished eating Freddie cleaned the feeding syringe. She let a few of the girls pass Ziggy around while he was still awake but she was itching to leave the Great Hall and go check on Snape. He'd told her to come down after dinner after all. Finally Ziggy started yawning and Freddie took him back from the third year girl who held him, another cousin of Amelia's.
"Time to let him rest," she said as she placed the kitten back in the bag around her neck. There were noises of disappointment as the crowd around her slowly dispersed. As soon as they did Freddie gathered her things, grabbed a doughnut from the dessert tray, and slipped away from the table. She left the Great Hall and headed downstairs to the dungeon to check on Snape.
When she reached his office she wiped the doughnut powder from her hands and knocked on the door. There was no answer. She knocked louder, waited a minute, and when he didn't answer she pulled out her wand and undid the enchantments that guarded his door.
She slipped inside to find the office dark and empty. With a flick of her wand she lit the torches and frowned, concerned.
"Professor Snape?" she called aloud, walking towards the hidden entrance to the brewing lab. "Severus?"
The lab was empty as well except for a pewter cauldron in the middle of the room, the fire beneath it unlit. She bit her lower lip, concerned. Then she spotted a folded piece of parchment on the workstation. It had her name on it and it way laying on top of an open copy of Apothecary Now. She unfolded the note.
Winifred,
I am unable to accompany you tonight in the lab. I thought you would like to take the opportunity to brew the new Fever Reducing Potion that was listed in this months copy of Apothecary Now. It is well within your abilities to brew alone and it is no doubt something you will find useful when you begin your internship at St Mungo's next year.
Leave your completed brew on my desk and do not miss curfew.
I will see you in class tomorrow morning.
~Professor S. Snape
Freddie's heart fell as she finished reading the note. She folded it and put it aside and sighed.
"But where are you?" she murmured allowed. "And why can't you be here?"
Had something happened to him? Was he upset with her? He hadn't seemed upset or angry when he left her earlier.
She sighed again and picked up the copy of Apothecary Now he'd left for her. She'd seen the recipe already and he was right – it was simple enough and well within her abilities to brew. It was almost boring. It would be a lot better if he was here with me, she thought sadly. She took Ziggy's pouch from around her neck and put it on the workstation, then took the magazine with her into the store room to gather her ingredients.
The potion went flawlessly and Freddie left it in a flask on Snape's desk. She'd hoped he might come back before the bell rang signaling curfew, but he didn't. She tried not to worry too much and she made her way back to her dormitory feeling dejected.
She lay awake in bed that night for hours, waiting for Snape's presence to show up in her mind like he had every night since the start of term. She got up twice to feed Ziggy and she watched the hours tick by on her watch. She tossed and turned and worried about Snape. What if he'd never made it back to the castle? She thought it was more likely that he was avoiding her. She knew she'd messed up, saying that she loved him. But it had just been a slip up, just a stupid slip of the tongue, and he hadn't seemed upset at the time. Quite the opposite... Eventually as the night turned into morning Freddie fell into a deep, uneasy sleep.