A/N: TPOV
"Furthermore, me hitting you with the snowballs earlier was fair. Semper Vigilans, after all!" Tonks smiled broadly up at him.
Severus' eyes narrowed slightly, even as a slight smile played on his lips "Always Vigilant, eh?" With his left arm holding hers, his right snaked behind his back, holding his wand and cast another stinging hex on her bum. She yelped loudly and tried to instinctively pull away from him. The arm holding hers held her tight and guarded against her retreat.
It's either a duel or a snowball fight, not both! Tonks huffed indignantly. However, the first rule of dueling is…She moved around in front of him, standing a bit on her tiptoe to kiss him. As he responded and she deepened the kiss, moaning softly against his lips, her hands moved down his arms. The moment she felt his right hand, still holding his wand she grabbed the wand and made a run for it…never allow your opponent to disarm you.
She stashed his wand inside her cloak with her own as she ran up the stairs of the dungeon. Do not trip. Do not trip. The mental warning and the ground under her feet became her sole focus, even as she heard the obvious sounds of Severus' boots impacting the stone floor not too far behind her. As she got to the main doors, Minerva was just coming through.
"Miss Tonks what are you…!?" said Minerva, startled at seeing the young auror running full speed toward her with a large grin on her face. Tonks ducked under the professor's arm, thrilled to have made it outside. She instantly ran behind one of the low walls of the courtyard and started forming the packed snow into a series of fist-sized projectiles.
From right inside the hall she could hear Minerva again, "Severus! Is everything…What is going on?"
"Where did she go?" Severus couldn't believe he had been disarmed so easily and was now chasing the witch through the castle. He certainly didn't want to explain to Minerva how he had been so distracted. Minerva's eyes glanced quickly over to the main doors before looking back at him. Even as he heard her try to send him off in the opposite direction he knew exactly where his pink haired adversary had gone.
Tonks saw the large doors open slowly and ducked back behind the wall, picking up three snowballs from her pile. Hearing the door swing close she jumped up and fired all three at the person who had just come out, realizing three snowballs too late that it was Minerva. "Minerva! I am so sorry! I thought you were-AHH!" A freezing cold thud hit her back and exploded into icy crystals, most of which made their chilling way under the collar of her shirt and cloak and down her back. She spun around just in time to see Severus duck behind one of the courtyard pillars. He had managed to come around through one of the side entrances while her focus had been on the main doors and the individual coming through them.
Glancing back over her shoulder, she winced at the sight of Minerva's green cloak and trademark hat covered with a powdery layer of snow. From the two packed circles on the door on either side of her, Minerva had managed to deflect the second two snowballs, but the first had most certainly hit its mark. Tonks started again with her apologies, but was stopped short as Minerva raised her hand after using her wand to vanish the snow from her robes, "I believe your intended target is over there. It would be a shame to let him win so easily." The mischief glittering in her eyes was enough to galvanize Tonks back into action as she picked up a number of snowballs and crouched behind the wall, getting closer and closer to the offending pillar.
As Severus peaked around the pillar to see where she went she fired two more shots and heard his curse as one impacted and the other exploded on the stone, no doubt showering him in slightly crystallized and easily melting shrapnel. With a growl he came out from his cover holding an armful of snowballs and Tonks grabbed her own ammo and made a run for it. The two exchanging shots as they ran across the courtyard and around the tree.
Tonks was the first to run out of ready-made snowballs as she ran under one of the covered walkways on the perimeter of the courtyard. Glancing around she realized the nearest snow drift was at the other end of the straightaway. "Out of ammo my dear?" Severus asked as he smoothly advanced, tossing his last snowball up in the air and catching it again. He stopped just short of the arched entryway to the covered area, his eyes challenging her to make a move.
As if by magic, the shelf of snow that had been so delicately perched atop the walkway's overhang let loose, falling and covering Severus in a white cloud of powder. Tonks eyes went wide as she tried to figure out what had caused it to let loose right then and couldn't help but notice the satisfied smile on Minerva's face as she calmly and unobtrusively put her wand back in her cloak. As the cloud cleared and Tonks could finally see Severus she broke out in laughter. The sight of him with a pile of snow on his head, slowly melting, his usually black robes almost white, was too much. Tonks went over to him, her walking severely impacted by her continuous fit of giggles.
Severus watched her approach, trying hard to maintain his serious composure. Although the bracing snow dripping down his back and face sure helped. Cold or not, her pure laughter warmed him. Merlin she is attractive when she smiles, let alone laughs. Once she was in arms reach he grabbed her and pulled her close, before collapsing so they were both in the rather large pile of snow. He grinned at her sharp squeal as more snow went down her shirt. Severus leaned in close, stopping just short of her lips, pleased to see a slight glaze enter her eyes with him this close, "I believe you have something of mine."
Tonks' eyes went wide and she reached in her pocket, feeling both wands there before taking her empty hand out and starting to pat the rest of her cloak nervously, "Um…I swear it was right here…it's got to be here…" She looked up at Severus whose eyes had grown wide, his mouth open in wordless shock. She reached back into her pocket, "Oh here it is!" She grinned as she handed it to him, knowing she should feel guilty, but that the opportunity was too good to pass up. As Severus reached for his wand, he also caught her hand and pulled her close. "I will be sure to remember that little prank later when we are alone," he purred in her ear. Tonks felt a shiver of anticipation run through her, knowing she probably shouldn't be looking forward to whatever payback he was planning but loving the idea nonetheless.