Dancing with fire. [A Severus Snape fan fiction]

Snapes temper

Phoenix

I was heading down the corridor off the great hall once again lost in thought. My previous dance class had been a blast! The Weasley twins really put in their all. At the end of the lesson I had pulled them to one side and tried to convince them to join up to dance classes. They looked skeptical but I knew they had had a great time too. So I was remaining hopeful. I turned off the corridor and made for the dungeons. Severus' classroom was right at the end. I hadn't actually been down here before. The temperature was beginning to drop and I could feel the hair on my arms starting to rise as goose bumps erupted all over me. I shivered and wrapped my cloak around my body. My footsteps echoed off the dark walls. The only light came from the occasional torch which burned with an emerald green flame. I couldn't help but feel a little unnerved. I had almost reached his classroom when I heard him raise his voice.
"If what you have to say it's more important than my lesson, then do feel free to share it with the rest of us." He sounded really annoyed. I stopped in my tracks. I was holding my breath. Maybe I shouldn't be here I thought. As I reached his door I leant
back against the wall and waited for his lesson to finish. A few minutes later the door flew open and a stream of surly sixth year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws left the dungeon. A couple of them gave me quizzical looks, but most of them ignored my presence. When I was sure all the students had left, I poked my head around the door. The room was lighter then I imagined. There were enchanted torches glowing brightly along the walls. There also seemed to be a haze spread across the entire room.I squinted through the haze trying to spot Severus. "Hello?" I called. I could hear a cauldon bubbling and hissing from the front of the classroom. The walls were lined with bottles of all shapes and sizes. The contents of the bottles varied too. I thought I saw what looked like some tongues in one, so I didn't stop to investigate. I was just about to peer into the bubbling cauldron when Severus appeared through the mist. My heart leapt with fright.
"Of what do I owe this pleasure. " He muttered. Our eyes met across the cauldron. Now that I was in his company, I suddenly felt very self conscious. I smiled shyly. His features softened as we surveyed each other in silence. I gazed around the room as I trailed my fingers across the rim of the cauldron. "I just...wanted to see you." I murmured. He was watching my every move. I took a small step forward. "Do you like what you see?" He asked. I paused to consider his question.
"Oh very much so." I replied. He was staring at me. I felt so peculiar under his gaze. Like he could see right through me. I fixed my eyes on him and refused to blink. "I can't stop thinking about yesterday." He said suddenly. I beamed at him. "Me neither. " I walked up to him. My fingers found his. He very slowly linked his fingers with mine until we were holding hands. I gave his hand a tug and guided him over to his desk. I gently pushed him into his chair. I hitched up my dress slightly then swung my leg over his legs and slid into his lap. He wrapped his arms around me and we sat in silence for a few minutes. I sighed as I closed my eyes. "You're too good for me. You know that." He whispered into my ear. I looked up into his dark eyes, "Don't be daft." I replied. I looked around his classroom. There on the wall was the Slytherin crest hung between two sconces. "Did you always know you were a Slytherin? " I asked. He raised his eyebrows at the randomness of my question.
"I suppose so." He replied slowly. "My mother was in slytherin, as was her mother and her mother before that. I suppose it must run in my blood." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "What about you?" He asked. "What house do your loyalties lie with?" I rolled my eyes at him.
"I have no idea." I answered "I was never sorted." I let the last sentence hang between us.
"Well...let's find out." He said abruptly. My eyes snapped up to meet his. "Why? Would it make any difference to who I am? Or would it affect the way you see me?" I glared at him with an eyebrow raised. In truth, I was quite curious as to which house I would have been in. But I wasn't going to admit it, at least not just yet anyway. His mouth fell open at the accusation. "What?! No, I just.." He was obviously lost for words. " Oh come on then" I mock sighed in defeat as I pulled him to his feet. I flashed him a cheeky smile. He narrowed his eyes at me. "On second thoughts, you're not too good for me. You'll probably end up being the death of me!" He muttered sarcastically. I laughed out loud. "You won't believe how many times I've heard that in my life!" I retorted. He snorted in reply so I poked my tongue out at him.

It was morning break so lots of students were milling around the corridors. Severus and I were walking slightly apart, and it was glaringly obvious that the students responded to us very differently. Whilst most of the students said a friendly 'Hello' or simply waved as I went past, not a single one greeted Severus. In fact a lot of them shrank away. Some of them even appeared utterly terrified at the sight of him. He didn't seem phased by the students reactions at all. I gave him a sideways glance. His face had completely shut down. His dark eyes were staring off into the distance, his mouth was fixed in a semi snarl. It was so hard to believe that this was the same man I had been playing around with less than ten minutes ago. I waited until we turned a corner and the coast was clear, then quick as a flash I spun around and kissed his cheek.
He stumbled and touched his face as if he had been burnt.
"What...Are you playing at!" He hissed. He stood glaring at me. He swiveled his head left and right, checking to see if anyone had seen. I stared open mouthed at him. I had never seen him looking so angry. He was absolutely livid. His eyes were darting all over the place and I could see a vein throbbing in his neck.
"Severus," I muttered "what on earth is wrong?" He locked eyes with me. I silently pleaded for him to come back to me. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Phoenix. I'm so sorry. It's just." He shook his head. "I've spent my entire life being this way." He swept his hand over his body. "I've spent years blocking everything out. I have to be in control." His breathing was starting to even out now. I took a tentative step in his direction. "Listen" I whispered, "I can see that there's issues that we obviously need to talk about" He took a breath but I ploughed on, "however do you think, for one second, that I would compromise our jobs by letting the students see me kiss you? " I could feel my own temper starting to rise, so I also took a deep breath. "Let's just go to Dumbledores office and ask about the sorting hat, shall we?"
At least he had the decency to look a little bit ashamed of himself, as he hung his head and looked up at me through his hair. I felt the corners of my mouth twitch as I stomped off down the corridor.