The Potions Master and I

Chapter 14

When I descended the stairs the next morning I had to admit I was slightly worried. Though I still felt confident in my decision to stand up for myself, it had dwindled a little the more I thought about what I had said to Snape.

Cedric had been stunned when I explained everything to him. He had heard from Seth what had happened when he had helped me on the staircase and had been worried about what else had transpired once I was alone in the dungeons with the potions master.

"I cannot believe you said all of that!" he exclaimed, staring at me, mouth agape as he let out an astonished laugh.
"You, Iris Finch, really ripped Prof Snape a new one? I am so..."

"So what?" I cringed, waiting for his response.

"So proud of you! He crossed a line, and such an inappropriate comment is intolerable. I knew he was a slimeball, but you never would expect him to be that harsh. As for Charles," his face darkened, his jaw hardening. "I'll take care of him. I knew there were some rumors but I didn't realize things had gone that far. I'm sorry you were treated so poorly, Iris. You deserve much better than that."

"Cedric...if it was anyone else spending so much time alone with me...would you believe that they have been saying?" I traced lines on the carpet, biting my lip. I know Cedric was my friend, the truest friend I had ever had, but I needed to know what he thought of me.

"I don't believe in rumors Iris." He smiled softly, eyes sincere and reassuring.

I smiled back, but I'm not necessarily sure I believed him. If he knew about Sirius, what would he say? I couldn't bring myself to tell him, no matter how close we were. I don't know if it was because I was still not used to having a close friend, or if it was because I feared his judgment. My first kiss should be something exciting, something you rush to tell your closest friend, but I had made a mistake. Giving in to my desires had only brought regret and pain.

"Has McGonagall mentioned anything to you about us?" I was curious to know if the other professors were privy to the gossip between all the apprentices or not.

"Yes she seems to have heard some things, but she hasn't been too concerned. She puts a great deal of trust in both of us. If I was visiting your chambers it would be different, but we're both excelling too well in our studies for there to be proof we are using our time in...other ways." he blushed at that, laughing as I covered my face.

"If anything she seems to think we fancy each other, and that's the extent of it." I gawked at that, unbelieving that McGonagall would draw such a conclusion. I knew she wasn't clueless but did we come across that way to her?

"Really? What did she say?" I chortled, finding the whole thing amusing.

"Not much. Just that she thought we made a handsome pair, and that we seemed compatible." We began to laugh harder at the absurdity of it all.

"Matchmaker McGonagall! Of all professors." was all I was able to get out before we collapsed into a pile of hysterics, loud laughter filling the room as tears streamed down our cheeks.

Moments like these made me realize that everything was worth it, no matter how dreadful things got.

I tried to hold on to that feeling as I approached the large and ominous door of the potion master's lair. I took a deep breath and held up a hand to enter, but the door swung open on its own. I gulped.

Quietly padding through the dim room, I worked my way past the tables to see Snape hunched over his desk as per usual, quill scraping along his parchment, a steaming cup of coffee pressed to his lips.
He didn't look up as I moved toward him, which was either a very good thing or a very bad thing.