French spoken in this chapter. Translation site I used:
The Mirror of Erised Chapter Twenty-Five By Jewel Little Bird
Snape grabbed his left forearm and hissed in pain. "Damn!" He forgot about the essays he was supposed to be correcting and pulled his sleeve up. Sure enough, the Dark Mark was pitch black and burning furiously.
He spat out a word that would've shocked Peeves speechless; Voldemort knew that Snape wouldn't be teaching classes at eight in the evening.
Snape wrote a hasty note, got up, went to the door, and opened it. He saw Mrs. Norris just down the hall. He knelt down and called to her; when she was within his reach, he held out the note so that she could take it into her mouth. "Take that to Dumbledore," he told her, scratching her behind the ears. "It's important."
She mewled in response, took the note, and took off.
He closed the door to his office, warded it, and ran through the corridors as fast as he could, finally reaching a side door that led outside, just a couple hundred feet from the Forbidden Forest. He started towards it at a fast walk, trying to catch his breath.
"Severus!"
He whirled in shock. Fleur came running towards him, a robe draped haphazardly over her body; she must have started following him at some point. "Fleur! What are you doing here?" It suddenly occurred to him that she'd called him by his given name.
"Where are you going?" She grabbed his left arm, right over the Dark Mark. At his hiss of pain, she grabbed his hand so he couldn't pull away and yanked up his sleeve. Her eyes narrowed. "If 'e is calling you, why are you answering?"
She was a clever little girl (no, not girl, she was a woman; that was obvious to him after the bathing room incident). He clenched his teeth and forced himself to answer. "I'm a spy for Dumbledore, though Voldemort thinks I'm a spy for him."
"Double agent?"
"Yes."
To his surprise, she became worried. "What weell 'appen to you if 'E- 'Oo-Must-Not-Be-Named finds out?"
"What do you think? The same that he did to the Potters and tried to do to Harry."
She gripped his shoulders tightly. "You must come back to me," she snapped, her eyes both angry and afraid. She didn't seem to realize what she had said.
He looked at her. He thought she could consider his hints as a game; that she wouldn't take him seriously. Apparently, she had. "I will try."
"No! No try! You will do! Promise me!"
"Fleur, I - "
"Promise me!"
He grabbed her wrists and took her hands from his shoulders. "Fleur, I can't promise anything!" he shouted at her. "If he finds out, there's nothing I can do! I'm as good as dead! I've managed to keep myself alive so far, but if tonight's my last night alive, then I'm helpless to prevent it!"
She ripped her wrists from his hands and grabbed him around the chest. "Non! Non! Je ne vous laisserai pas partir!"
"Fleur, if I don't go, he'll think something is wrong and I'll not be able to get the information that Dumbledore needs!"
She was crying and speaking in rapid French, probably not knowing what she was saying. "Vous ne pouvez pas aller! Vous êtes tous que j'ai! Je ne veux pas vous perdre! N'allez pas! Restez avec moi! Je t'aime! Je ne veux pas que vous mouriez! N'allez pas! Nous courrons loin ensemble! Nous irons où il ne peut pas vous suivre et nuire! Vous ne pouvez pas aller! Non! Non!"
He pulled her away, grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "I. Have. To. Go! I can't run away! No matter where I go, the Dark Mark will lean him to me!" He didn't reply to her other demands, too shocked at the moment to fully take them in. "Fleur, I will try to come back, but I can't make any promises. Believe me, it kills me to say that, but it's true." He leaned in close to her. She smelled like vanilla. "The best I can do is try."
She gazed at him, tears streaming from her eyes, and then slowly nodded. Without warning, she stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Je vous attendrai." She then turned and fled back into the castle.
He stared after her for a moment then continued on his way to the forest. He hadn't been looking forward to this meeting to begin with, now he was looking forward to it even less. His lip curled in a sneer. If Lucious Malfoy jibed him about what he was doing before he came, Snape had an answer that would shut him up:
"If you must know, Lucious, I was being seduced by one of the teachers."
And he had been, too; a chance to run away and not have to worry about anything ever again.
@
End of Chapter Twenty-Five
The Mirror of Erised Chapter Twenty-Five By Jewel Little Bird
Snape grabbed his left forearm and hissed in pain. "Damn!" He forgot about the essays he was supposed to be correcting and pulled his sleeve up. Sure enough, the Dark Mark was pitch black and burning furiously.
He spat out a word that would've shocked Peeves speechless; Voldemort knew that Snape wouldn't be teaching classes at eight in the evening.
Snape wrote a hasty note, got up, went to the door, and opened it. He saw Mrs. Norris just down the hall. He knelt down and called to her; when she was within his reach, he held out the note so that she could take it into her mouth. "Take that to Dumbledore," he told her, scratching her behind the ears. "It's important."
She mewled in response, took the note, and took off.
He closed the door to his office, warded it, and ran through the corridors as fast as he could, finally reaching a side door that led outside, just a couple hundred feet from the Forbidden Forest. He started towards it at a fast walk, trying to catch his breath.
"Severus!"
He whirled in shock. Fleur came running towards him, a robe draped haphazardly over her body; she must have started following him at some point. "Fleur! What are you doing here?" It suddenly occurred to him that she'd called him by his given name.
"Where are you going?" She grabbed his left arm, right over the Dark Mark. At his hiss of pain, she grabbed his hand so he couldn't pull away and yanked up his sleeve. Her eyes narrowed. "If 'e is calling you, why are you answering?"
She was a clever little girl (no, not girl, she was a woman; that was obvious to him after the bathing room incident). He clenched his teeth and forced himself to answer. "I'm a spy for Dumbledore, though Voldemort thinks I'm a spy for him."
"Double agent?"
"Yes."
To his surprise, she became worried. "What weell 'appen to you if 'E- 'Oo-Must-Not-Be-Named finds out?"
"What do you think? The same that he did to the Potters and tried to do to Harry."
She gripped his shoulders tightly. "You must come back to me," she snapped, her eyes both angry and afraid. She didn't seem to realize what she had said.
He looked at her. He thought she could consider his hints as a game; that she wouldn't take him seriously. Apparently, she had. "I will try."
"No! No try! You will do! Promise me!"
"Fleur, I - "
"Promise me!"
He grabbed her wrists and took her hands from his shoulders. "Fleur, I can't promise anything!" he shouted at her. "If he finds out, there's nothing I can do! I'm as good as dead! I've managed to keep myself alive so far, but if tonight's my last night alive, then I'm helpless to prevent it!"
She ripped her wrists from his hands and grabbed him around the chest. "Non! Non! Je ne vous laisserai pas partir!"
"Fleur, if I don't go, he'll think something is wrong and I'll not be able to get the information that Dumbledore needs!"
She was crying and speaking in rapid French, probably not knowing what she was saying. "Vous ne pouvez pas aller! Vous êtes tous que j'ai! Je ne veux pas vous perdre! N'allez pas! Restez avec moi! Je t'aime! Je ne veux pas que vous mouriez! N'allez pas! Nous courrons loin ensemble! Nous irons où il ne peut pas vous suivre et nuire! Vous ne pouvez pas aller! Non! Non!"
He pulled her away, grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "I. Have. To. Go! I can't run away! No matter where I go, the Dark Mark will lean him to me!" He didn't reply to her other demands, too shocked at the moment to fully take them in. "Fleur, I will try to come back, but I can't make any promises. Believe me, it kills me to say that, but it's true." He leaned in close to her. She smelled like vanilla. "The best I can do is try."
She gazed at him, tears streaming from her eyes, and then slowly nodded. Without warning, she stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Je vous attendrai." She then turned and fled back into the castle.
He stared after her for a moment then continued on his way to the forest. He hadn't been looking forward to this meeting to begin with, now he was looking forward to it even less. His lip curled in a sneer. If Lucious Malfoy jibed him about what he was doing before he came, Snape had an answer that would shut him up:
"If you must know, Lucious, I was being seduced by one of the teachers."
And he had been, too; a chance to run away and not have to worry about anything ever again.
@
End of Chapter Twenty-Five