A/N: Hello lovelies! I don't have much to say, except for thanks for the support and the reviews. Here's a short update for you to enjoy.
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Avonlea wasn't much for talking as she held onto the jar of blood that McGonagall had brought with her. The young girl kept her eyes focused on the fire and drank deeply from the jar, letting a little trickle of blood slide from the corner of her lips. Snape couldn't help but stare at her, mesmerized by the strange sight.
"How long have you been serving her blood like this?" Snape demanded of the Headmaster, glancing at her as they stood back, watching Avonlea.
"A few days," McGonagall said, frowning. "Almost a week now…She didn't want me to tell you, Severus. She didn't want you to see her like this."
"Why not?" Snape asked. "I knew that she was feeding on blood. Why would she think that she has to hide the bloodlust from me now?"
"She's scared."
Snape's brow furrowed. "Scared?"
"Yes. Scared." McGonagall crossed her arms and looked at the younger man. "She's scared that if you see how her bloodlust is increasing and her humanity is lessening, that you'll feel obligated to help her. An obligation that can't help her at all." She glanced in Avonlea's direction again. "And she's scared that it will also push you away from her to see her drinking blood like some kind of feral animal. The child is a mess of insecurities and fears, Severus."
"She should have told me," Snape muttered, looking at Avonlea as the girl shifted position near the fireplace. "I am the only person that can help her and she knows it." His frown deepened. "We have come so far together, why would she push me away now?"
"Fear can do many strange things, Severus," McGonagall said softly. "Don't hate the girl for what she did or for fearing what she fears. It's something that she can't control, no more than she can control the fate that her parents handed her when they created her."
"I don't hate her," Snape whispered before he could stop himself.
He was surprised by the truth in his words as he heard himself say them. The girl used to annoy him because of her meekness and because she was a student that conjured memories of so many evil ones before. Now, she was the only person that he could think of and he was seeing her come out of her shell as they spent more and more time together. Snape realized that he was becoming content around the girl and looked forward to spend more and more time with her.
"That's good to hear," McGonagall said with a small smile. "Because hate is the last thing this poor girl needs." She turned to face Snape fully. "I'll leave you alone with her. But don't do anything that could make her upset, Severus. You're now seeing her at her most vulnerable. Don't make her regret it."
Snape gave her a small nod. McGonagall crossed the space between them and Avonlea, placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder. It hurt Snape to see how the girl jumped and stiffened under the Headmaster's touch.
"I must leave you now, Miss Raven," McGonagall said softly, looking down at the young woman. "I will see you tomorrow afternoon with your next delivery. Okay?"
Avonlea nodded. "Yes, ma'am."
McGonagall squeezed the girl's shoulder and offered her a wan smile before turning. The woman's skirts whispered across the carpet as she headed for the door and vanished through it. Snape stared after her until Avonlea made a small sound.
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Avonlea had heard Snape and McGonagall talking in low voices as she consumed the blood she needed to take the edge off her hunger. She had hated it when the older witch had said that she had to leave because that just left her with Snape. The one person that she didn't want to see her this way.
Oh God, she thought, tightening her grip on the half empty jar in her hands as she watched the fiery tendrils dance in the fireplace. Why couldn't he have stayed away? Why did he have to come investigate the reason that I couldn't come to dinner with him? Why?
A strange thought occurred to her in answer: maybe he had done it because he cared about her more than she thought he did.
"Miss Raven," Snape said quietly as she took another long drink of blood.
"Sir?" she whispered, her body tense.
"Is there anything that I can do?" he asked.
Avonlea turned her gaze onto him and felt her lips twitch at the corners. Please help me.
The Veela shook her head and climbed slowly to her feet, clutching the nearly empty jar to her chest. "I can't think of anything that you can do right now." Her body trembled and Avonlea downed the rest of the blood before throwing the jar into the fire. "I wish there was something that you could do…but you can't. Not now."
Avonlea readjusted the blanket that she had wrapped around herself, frowning at the blood stains that dominated the light material now. Shaking her head once more, the Veela Halfling moved over to the nearest loveseat and plopped down on it. As Snape watched, she drew her knees up to her chest, hiding her toes beneath the cloak of bloodstained fabric.
"Snape," she whispered, looking at the fire rather than at the man in the room. "I had hoped that you would have listened to my note…You should have stayed away tonight."
"If I were to stay away tonight because of what has happened to your bloodlust, then I would most likely never see you again," Snape pointed out with a frown, moving closer to her. "You need me to be here."
"But you don't need me." Avonlea sighed. "There is a difference there, Snape…one that could be a big wall that neither of us could climb over."
"Are you ready to throw in the towel, Miss Raven?"
Avonlea's chest grew tight as she thought about never seeing the sun again. She'd never be able to be warm again. She'd never be able to feed on her favorite foods again or hang out with Carissa and the others.
"I'm not," Avonlea said firmly.
"And I am not." Snape moved to stand in front of, glaring down his nose at her. "So do not think for a moment of pushing me away just because you need to feed on blood. I know about your hunger. It is no surprise to me."
"But does it disgust you?" Avonlea asked, searching his eyes as he sat down next to her
"No."
A small smile touched Avonlea's lips and she bumped her shoulder against his. "Liar."
She was surprised when the ghost of a smile touched the man's lips. Avonlea yawned and looked at the nearest clock.
"It is past dinnertime," she commented. "Are you going to go get something to eat?"
"Perhaps in a little while," Snape said, glancing at her. "I take it that you will not be joining me?"
Avonlea shook her head and leaned it against his shoulder. "My stomach is full right now. Anything else would result in me getting sick…No; I think it would be best for me to get some sleep and for you to go eat."
Her eyelids fluttered shut and she slowly breathed in Snape's pleasant scent. Before she knew it, she was slipping peacefully into a deep sleep against the dark professor.
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Snape looked down at the girl as her words faded and her breathing slowed. He moved his arm slightly, testing her, but it appeared that Avonlea had fallen asleep against his side. Snape had never had something like this occur to him except for in his childhood with Lily Evans, so this was strange to him.
This means she trusts me…he realized, seeing the peaceful look in the girl's face. She trusts me like no one has ever trusted me before.
The dark professor shifted his arm and the girl until she was cradled against his chest. She snuggled closer in her sleep, stirring the fragrant scent of her hair. Snape breathed in slowly until his head swam with the scent of the girl. His hand rubbed her arm and he forgot about dinner as he mused on how natural all of this felt.
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A/N: Not a very long update, but I'm working up to something. Or, at least, I hope that I am. Anyway, you know the drill. Read and leave a comment in the little box. Thanks and I'll see you around. -Scarlet
