The Herbology Assistant

Chapter Thirteen

Clarice had only just put down the letter before opening the small gift that came with it. Severus had gifted her a single black tea cup with a golden daisy engraved. Inside, a small velvet jewelry box. Her heart ached as she opened it to reveal a golden sun and moon necklace... representing them. Clarice had clasped the necklace around her neck, packed her bags quickly and apparated to the front gates of Hogwarts.

It had snowed here leaving the grounds a soft white as Clarice gently brushed it off her cloak while stepping inside. The castle was decorated in the most beautiful illusions she had ever seen. She silently walked to the dungeons and stopped by Severus' classroom to see if he was in there, but as suspected he was not. She walked and stood outside his quarters and tapped on his door. It opened as it revealed the man who she had traveled to see.

"Clarice," Severus said and stepped aside for her to come in. The second he had closed the door, she precisel practically threw herself into his arms. Severus looked in her eyes and for a split second, she saw him for who he truly was; pained, but in need of love and forgiveness. Clarice let her hand snake through his hair and come back to his face as she let her thumb caress his cheek. Her other hand, clutching his robes and pulling him closer. With a single breath, she let her lips grace his and this time, it was everything she had ever wanted. Clarice had found herself entangled in the mans grasp and felt the pain and heartache in her body leave her in the most extravagant way possible. Her world melted in the palm of her hand as she pulled away to look Severus in the eyes.

"I forgive you," She whispered before encapturing his lips once again. Once they had pulled away, she pulled him over to his couch. "I have something for you. Thank you for the gifts, by the way. I love them, truly."

"You are welcome," He spoke gently while sitting next to her. She had pulled out a medium sized gift and handed it over to him. He gave her a look and raised his eyebrow at her, but opened it. He pulled out a black cloak, similar to the one he always wears except this one had a dark emerald green color on the inside.

"I told you that you should wear more colors. I figured this would be a good start." She smiled at him.

"Thank you. I love it." He said and brought her back in for just one more kiss.

"Happy Christmas Severus." She spoke gently.

"Happy Christmas Claire." He replied.

"Are you hungry? Shall we go get some food?" Clarice asked him after a few minutes of them resting on each other.

"We can go get something to eat. Although, I think breakfast may be over." Severus said while checking his pocket watch.

"Since when do you have a pocket watch?" Clarice asked him curiously never noticing it.

"McGonagall gave it to me for Christmas because I'm always late to the staff meetings. Little does she know it's just because I think they're annoying." Severus admitted and Clarice laughed at his silliness. "You laugh at me, but give it five years and you'll be doing the same thing."

"Who says I'll be here in five years?" She teased while Severus stood and pulled her up.

"Well do you have other plans?" He questioned and lead the way to the kitchens.

"Er no." Clarice said quietly and then laughed. "Okay okay, point taken."

"What are you in the mood for?" He asked her while opening the door to the kitchens. Almost immediately, Kiki was in front of them.

"Mr. Snape! Ms. Clarice! What can Kiki do for you?" The sweet elf asked them.

"Just some brunch, we missed breakfast." Clarice said and the elf quickly ran away to fetch them a plate.

"Come sit! Come sit!" The elf called them and the pair walked over to the counter she placed their food on and left them to enjoy their meal.

"I love avocados." Clarice said and took a bite of her toast.

"She even gave us mimosas!" Clarice exclaimed while sipping it instantly.

"So what did you want to do today?" Severus asked her and only Clarice only shrugged. She hadn't thought much about the rest of her day.

"Well, I dunno. There's the Christmas feast tonight. Surely, we can attend that. In the meantime, we should just enjoy our day together." She said while picking at her eggs. Severus put a hand on her lower back which got her attention.

"Claire I dont ever want to lose you." He said and her heart just melted.

The door had just opened and Minerva entered the kitchen. Severus slowly dropped his hand, but not without the witch seeing.

"Clarice! I thought you were going back to America?" She questioned the girl and Clarice washed her food down with her drink.

"Change of plans. Mum's sick. I didn't want to catch what she had." She smiled at the witch who gave her a sympathizing look.

"Sorry to hear, but it's nice to see you. Happy Christmas." Minerva said while giving her a warm embrace and eyeing Severus. "You two seem cozy."

"I got here after breakfast ended and was hungry. Severus and I decided brunch would tide me over for about an hour." She giggled.

"Very well. Will I see you both at the ball tonight?" She asked.

"There's a ball tonight? Severus! Why didn't you tell me?" She asked astonished that he would try and hide this from her.

"Must've slipped my mind." He muttered.

"What time is it?" Clarice asked Minerva.

"Six, dinner will be served at seven. Then there's a live band playing until midnight after dessert. It is formal attire. I hope to see you both there," She said as she plucked an apple from the fruit basket and left the kitchens.

"Were you going to let me show up in my jeans to the ball? What the hell?" She smacked Severus on the arm.

"I wasn't sure if you were into that kind of thing." He said lowly.

"I'm a girl! Of course I like these things you nitwit." She smacked him again.

"Will you stop smacking me? Maybe I wanted to surprise you and Minnie just ruined it!" He said back at her.

"You didn't even know I'd be here until an hour ago!" She went to smack him again, but this time he caught her wrist and held it gently. Clarice laughed and blushed.

"I didn't plan on going tonight... until you showed up. If you're so concerned about your... attire, why don't we go down to Hogsmeade for the afternoon and you can get yourself something nice? We can stop at The Three Broomsticks for a drink too." He said as he brought her hand up and kissed her knuckles.

"You don't know where that hands been Severus." She said tauntingly and laughed as he dropped it quickly.

"I'm only kidding. I swear it washed them last week," She teased.

"You tease me Clarice. Is that a good plan for today?" He asked her seriously and she nodded her head. She dipped her toast in the rest of her eggs and washed it down with the rest of her mimosa. Severus stood first and place his hand on her back as he helped her off the stool.

"Go get ready for the day," He said while eyeing her current outfit.; flannel pajama pants and a white tee shirt.

"What? You don't like my outfit? I was thinking about wearing it to the ball tonight!" She laughed.

"I'll come grab you in twenty minutes." He said as he kissed her cheek and headed in the opposite direction as Clarice.

Clarice couldn't help but smile to herself as she walked to her quarters and opened the door. She decided to change into a a pair of black mom jeans, a warm baby blue turtleneck, and her favorite pair of black chelsea boots. After grabbing her wand, she slipped on her gray wool cloak and waited for Severus to knock on her door.