A/N: After a long hiatus, the Slyth Duo is back! This chapter was greatly inspired by my own midterms week. Share the pain.

CHAPTER IX

Severa sat cross-legged on her bed, her arithmancy textbook opened in front of her. In her right hand she fuddled with her green quill and trying to resist the urge to jam it into her eye out of frustration. She took a deep breath, closed the book and took her anger out by stabbing the helpless text with her quill instead.

"Die, die! Foul demon spawn from Hell!"

Which only resulted in her quill being severely bent. After the brutal assault, she flung the book across the room, took out her wand, and prepared a flame spell. But at that very moment, Iphi came skipping merrily into the room. Severa quickly hid the wand behind her back and smiled innocently.

Iphi looked at her and narrows her eyes. "What were you doing?"

"Studying for the finals."

"Ah ha, and your books on the floor and bent quill helps you?"

Severa smiled. "Indeed. Speaking of unconventional study habits," she continued, picking up her vile book and Iphi flopped on her bed with a far-away look in her eyes, "where were you for potions today?"

"Oh," Iphi answered lightly, "I was held up at Runes…It's okay, Healthy gave me an excuse and I explained it all to Snape."

"Yeah, but what could possibly take an entire other class period?" Iphi smirked the smirk of illicitness. Severa's face paled all the more than usual and looked sick. "Oh, gods, Iphi you ain't …Iphi?" her roommate didn't respond, Iphi just smiled. Severa mad several small squeaks of surprise before letting loose a torrential string of loud sounds of disgust/disapproval while hopping around the room in a frenzy. "ICK! ICK! Aargh! Eew! Icky, icky. No, WRONG!"

"I think you're overreacting," said Iphi from her bed. "Besides, how many times have we talked about having affairs with professors? I just took the initiative."

Severa kept her distance from the Liverpool native. "Yes, but we were suppose to fantasize about it, not actually do it! I mean if Snape offered I wouldn't say 'no'…But that's completely different!"

Iphi sat up, indignant. "Really, how so?"

Severa ran a hand through her hair. "Well, because it's…it's Healthy! If it…it was I dunno, if say Professor Lupin were still here, I'd understand, insanely jealous, but Healthy? ERGH…I mean, what about Lee?"

Iphi crossed her arms. "And since when did you care about Lee's feelings? He doesn't know, he isn't, and I'm still going to date him."

Severa paced the room, rubbing her eyes, trying to process this. She stopped and looked at her unmade bed. An object sitting on it caught her attention. She crossed the room, expression deadpan, and saying, "I'm greatly upset by this, and when I'm upset…MR. FLIBBLE IS VERY CROSS!" She grabbed the plush penguin and turned its glowing eyes on Iphi. Iphi shrieked, ran out of the room, but Sev and Flibble were close behind.

The chase led them to the common room. Iphi scrambled over chairs and studying Slytherins trying to escape. Sev managed to tackle Iphi and the two girls plus a doll tumbled to the floor.

"LADIES!" A voice barked. They looked up and there was the Slytherin prefect, a sixth year named Adsartha Morrighan, standing over them. "Enough of these antics or I'll report you to Professor Snape, and I think he's getting rather tired of your shenanigans."

Enraged by the younger girl's presumption, Severa sprung off of Iphi, grabbed Adsartha by the hair, and pulled. Other Slyths swarmed around, trying to pull the girls apart. Soon the entire common room was awash in battle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Snape sat down in his office ready to pour himself a well-deserved day's glass of brandy. "Finally," he mumbled to himself. He took the stopper off the decanter right when Iphigenia burst into his room.

"Professor Snape! Come quick!"

"What is it now?" He asked, disgruntled.

"Big fight in Slytherin commons…you should come before someone gets killed!" She sprinted off back towards the Snake's Den, but Snape took a more casual pace.

When he reached the common room it was as he expected: A turmoil of fists, kicks, and bites, but it all seemed to come from a focal point in the centre of the room. "ENOUGH!" he bellowed, bringing the chaos to a halt. "Cease this at once, all of you. Now get up and line up." Everyone complied with their head of house's demands. He walked the row of them like a general inspecting new cadets. He stopped in front of the all too familiar blonde who was already sporting a bruised eye and cut lip. "Now tell me," he said addressing the group, but kept his eyes fixed on Severa, "who started this?"

As he suspected, all but one person immediately pointed in Severa's direction. Severa pointed at a dormant penguin doll on the floor. Snape sighed. "All of you, back to your studies. Miss Rimmer, with me."

Snape led Severa into the hall outside the common's door, but far enough away so no one could eavesdrop. Snape rubbed his temples as Severa stood there, biting her lip. "Miss Rimmer…why?"

"Erm…my violent tendencies?"

"Besides that, Miss Rimmer…"

"Erm…"

"Miss Rimmer, you are drawing to the end of your career here at Hogwarts, why the hell do you insist on messing with it now?"

"Sexual repression has manifested into aggression?'

Snape grimaced. "Dammit, Rimmer."

"Sorry sir, first thought came to mind."

"Just get through these exams, pass them, and may you have a happy rest of your life, but do what you can to stop trying to kill anything that moves"

"I'll take that under advisement."

"See that you do." With that he swept away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Iphigenia raced down the hall. She couldn't believe Healthy was almost making her late for her potions final. She skidded into the classroom, relieved to see that Snape wasn't there yet. She sat down next to lee and smiled at him. He replied with his brilliant whites. "Nervous?" he asked her and giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Not at all," she said confidently and gave him a quick kiss. There was a snort form across the room and Iphi turned to see Sevvie shaking her head.

Severa stopped looking at the couple and turned her attention to dusting off her tabletop with the feather of her quill. Irritably, she noticed someone staring at her: Fred. "What?"

"Oh, well, um…"

"Listen, I'm not going to let you cheat off of me. Besides you shouldn't have to worry, Snape'll pass you just to be rid of you and your doppelganger."

"Oh no, it wasn't that. You see Severa…"

At this choice moment, Snape entered the room, made his way to the front, and turned to face the students. "Henceforth there is to be no talking. Anyone caught talking or cheating during the hour will have their exam destroyed, receive no points for it, fail the class, and not graduate. This exam is in two parts. First is a comprehensive. You will mix the potion using the ingredients before you. Secondly is an essay. Discuss why the ingredients react the way they do when combined, and describe the effect it has on the human body if ingested. When you are finished with both parts of the exam, you will place your potion on this shelf at the right wall. The essay section is to be placed on my desk. After you are done, you are free to leave. And may I say that I hope it is the last time I see most of your faces ever again. Time start."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Severa was finishing up her last sentence for the essay. She completed it with a triumphant period. She looked at the clock and saw there was still twenty minutes left in the hour; there was also an entire backside of her piece of paper that begged to be written on. She looked up at Snape who was pouring over his grade book, and smiled. She turned her essay over to the blank side and wrote:

These seven years

Have gone so fast

It's hard to think it's

All in the past.

May Seven years more pass

May seven more years go,

Buy only for you

Will my love grow.

Know that my thoughts

Are on you;

Know that my heart

Is with you.

Someday I'll return

And all will be fine

And on that someday

I hope you'll be mine.

She signed her name and dotted the 'i' in her last name with a heart. As she stood, so did Iphigenia. Together they placed their potions on the shelf and put their essays on Snape's desk. They stood there until he looked up at them. Together they winked. Severa's left eyelid read "Amo", and to her left, Iphi's eyelid had "Te". Snape blinked a couple times and just jerked his head towards the door, motioning them to go.

The girls scampered off into the hallway and fell down giggling.

"Oh Miss Daughter-of-a-Muggleborn, thank you for ever introducing me to Indiana Jones."

"You are welcome my pure blooded friend," she said standing up. "So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?"

Iphi smirked. "Do you really want to hear about it?"

Severa grimaced. "No, not if it involves the Professor who shall not be named."

"Well then." Iphi smiled and ran off down the hall. Severa gave one last longing look at the potions classroom door and trudged up the stairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Slutty!Iphi and Angsty!Sevvie? Truth be told, Rubida Luna is coming to a close. The next chapter will more than likely be the last. Not to worry, at the end I'll give you info on sequely goodness!