Chapter 3 ~ Forgiven

Their eyes were locked for such a long time, and Severus noticed how amidst the dark blue hue of her eyes, there were brown dots, thousands of them. His hand reached up of its own accord, and his thumb stroked her cheek. He had never seen eyes like that before. Not only were they windows to her soul, they were like a painting…a painting of leaves in a pond…

Moira was almost disillusioned. She had never imagined, even in her dizziest daydreams, that she'd be wrapped in such an intimate embrace by Severus Snape. She was lost in his hematite eyes, they eyes of someone who has seen heartbreak…felt it, embodied it…she was so lost in them that she almost didn't notice him drawing her closer. She did notice however…lips touching lips.

Her eyes slid close as Severus pressed a kiss against her mouth. The rational side of his brain told him to stop…that he was supposed to be breaking her heart, not giving in to his…and unfortunately, that side was successful. He pushed her away roughly. So roughly, in fact, that she fell to the ground. A surprised gasp passed her lips as she looked up at him.

He glared down at her. He had to break her heart…he had to break her heart!

"You disgusting whore! You made me do that!" he hissed. Her eyes connected with his. A ripple started in the pond, the leaves rocked with the waves, the dam had been opened , and the water began to flow…she was sobbing. Her whole body was shaking, and she wasn't bothering to cover it up. She wasn't hiding her face…she was just sitting there, pathetic, broken…but her eyes never closed. She was staring at him. Her pain was flowing into him, and he found himself drowning in the pond. He fell to his knees in front of her.

"I'm so sorry…I…" he stood up quickly, going into his desk for a handkerchief. He had to wipe away her tears…he had to take back what he'd said. He retrieved the kerchief, and turned back to her…just in time to see the door slowly shut. She was gone. She'd run away, leaving nothing but a few tears, three small puddles upon the floor. He dropped the kerchief.

Again, Moira found herself soaking her pillow with tears. Except this time…this time she felt as though the world had crashed down on her. She knew not what to do. She knew nothing would ever cure this pain she was feeling. Not now…not after what he'd said. A whore…

'You filthy whore…'

'Whore!'

She covered her ears with her hands and curled into a ball. She'd never get that image out of her head…that look in his eye. That look of complete and utter disgust…

'No…no…no…no..' she drifted into a haunted sleep.

Three hours later, she awoke to someone stroking her hair. She noticed that her pillow felt more like leather than cotton. She sat up, blinking away sleep, only to come face to face with the man who'd killed her spirit.

"Moira…" it was only a whisper. A soft pressure on her name, a slow hand on her hair. And yet, she was still frightened. She stood up, backing away from Severus. She kept walking backwards until her back connected with a wall opposite the leather couch. Severus stood, but did not approach her.

"Moira…" that whisper again "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean what I said."

Moira shook her head. Said nothing, only shook her head. Severus took two steps towards her.

"Please, Moira…" he was desperate. He couldn't believe he was begging a 16-year-old girl to come into his arms, to kiss him…but by now, he'd stopped trying to make sense of this. He only knew he wanted to feel her love again. Right now, hell could open up and swallow him, if he could only feel that love again before being engulfed in the flames.

But he had hurt her. Her lovely eyes looked dead. He had to give them life. He had to. He walked up to her, wrapping her up in his arms. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"I'm so sorry…" he moved his lips to her ear. "So sorry…"

They stayed like that for a long time. The grandfather clock that stood a few feet from them was ticking of f the seconds. 1…2…3…4…5…6…7…8… To him it seemed like an eternity. He'd almost given up, almost let her go and bit his lip, walking away from the girl with kaleidoscope eyes…when he felt that connection again. He felt her love flowing into him. She sniffled.

"I forgive you…Severus." She whispered, before leaning up and kissing him softly, her eyes locked with his the entire time. He felt like he was drowning…he let the waves take him down.