The following weeks passed bleakly as she bought the Christmas gifts for her friends and family, sending Dante with her packages ever few weeks so that he would have plenty of time to rest and fly while taking her packages to Spain. The days before Christmas she was quieter than usual with her students, her face drawn into a sad smile as they finished their midterm exams she had given them and headed out get ready for their trips home. Hermione Granger approached her desk after class was done her eyes concerned,
"Are you alright, Professor Verales?" She was touched by the concern in her voice and nodded, forcing herself to smile brighter.
"I am fine, Miss Granger. I just… miss my family is all. This is the first time I have not spent Christmas with my nephews and nieces and I just… miss them." Hermione nodded.
"I'm sorry to hear that, but do have a happy Christmas, Professor." Kio smiled at the girl and nodded,
"Feliz Navidad to you and your family, Miss Granger." She smiled at the girl as she nodded and headed out to join her friends. Kio sat back with a sigh. She did miss her family, but that was not the cause of her melancholia. No, the cause was somewhere else in the castle, probably brewing some concoction or other, unaware of her unhappiness. The weeks between Hallowe'en and Christmas were hard on Kio. She passed Severus in the halls and he wouldn't even look at her, only hurrying past her muttering under his breath. At meals she would see him, but he was always engaged in conversation or watching the students. On night patrols they would meet at some junction in a hallway and he would murmur a quiet 'excuse me' and move on. It hurt her that she couldn't sit down and talk to him, that she couldn't apologize for her behaviour, that after all these years she couldn't thank him for staying by her side at St. Mungo's. Fighting to hold back the tears that were ever-present at the corner of her eyes she grabbed her cloak and headed out into the courtyard while the students were at dinner. Whistling softly she called Dante to her outstretched arm, humming softly to the bird as she stroked his feathers gently. Dante nipped at her finger lightly and watched her, seemingly listening.
"I screwed up, Dante. I hurt the one man I have ever loved. I have damaged our relationship beyond repair." She sighed as she stroked the snow white feathers.
"I wouldn't quite say that," drawled an achingly familiar voice from the shadows behind one of the pillars. She looked toward the source of the words and lifted her arm for Dante to fly off as she met his smoldering dark eyes. Severus walked across the courtyard, coming to a stop before her. His gloved hand reached out to stroke her cheek lightly. "I need to go, Kio, and I don't know if I'll be back in time for the holiday, but I wanted to give you your gift before I left." He reached into his robes and took out a small black velvet box with a green bow and held it out to her. "Open it." Through all this she stood there just staring at him, taking him in, trembling as he touched her cheek, trying not to cry as she looked at his eyes, trying to see behind that veiled look. Damn his Occlumency! She reached out and took the box,
"Severus, you didn't have…" she broke off as she opened the box, her eyes widening as she saw its contents, a gasp escaping her lips. Inside was a dark jade dragon set in gold and held on a delicate gold necklace. She looked at Severus with wonder and not a little curiosity in her eyes. "How… why?" He placed a finger on her lips. "When I return, we have much to discuss, and to catch up on." With that he leaned in and kissed her, taking her face in his hands gently and reaching to cradle the back of her head, tangling his hands in her curls. She sighed into their kiss holding on to him as if he was the elixir of life and she was dying. She put everything she could not say into that kiss, and he, in turn, branded her with it, devouring her lips, her mouth, claiming her as his once more. All that was unspoken between them passed in that kiss and was washed away. Reluctantly he ended the kiss, pulling away slightly, his voice soft and hoarse with regret and passion. "I… have to go, Kio." He kissed her lightly once more and whispered, "I love you," on her lips. He then turned and quickly walked out of the courtyard in the direction of the Dark Forest. She stood there watching him leave, her cheeks flushed, her entire body tingling. Kio felt hot and cold at the same time, and that kiss left her feeling light-headed and weak-kneed. She walked slowly back to her room, her mind returning to the kiss. It felt surreal, and she gently pinched herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Indeed she wasn't, and letting out a happy laugh, she threw herself on her bed, reliving the moment over and over…
OK OK I'm sorry for taking nearly a year to update! Truth be told I was having a massive writer's block about how to bring the next part into play and it took me several tries. Furthermore, there was the whole school thing (I completed my third year, yay!) and there was a whole lot of writing to do for class and whatnot. I hope that you like this chapter, I needed some sort of redemption after all that drama, and plus I thought I'd add some confusion to the mix, such as why after nearly a month of not talking to her was he suddenly desperate to let her know he loved her? I promise it will be resolved… so a little more waiting! evil laugh (don't worry it won't be another year) sheepish grin Oh and btw, sorry for any misspellings and stuff like that. My beta is not available at the moment.