Confess (A Severus Snape Fanfiction - SSxOC)

Chapter 1

With wide, fast-paced steps, he rushed down the narrow hallway, the soles of his black shoes pounding aggressively on the stony surface, the walls enhancing the volume of this sound, throwing back echoes throughout the corridor and warning the group of young people, flocked at one of the doors and cheering in excitement, of the man's impending arrival. Immediately, silence fell over this part of the building, and about twelve pairs of eyes nervously looked up in the direction of the footsteps. The torches along the wall began to flicker; a sinister foreboding of things to come. One of the twelve students, a blonde, rather cheeky-looking boy who must have been at least 17, swallowed hard as his eyes fell on the outlines of a tall, dark figure, who, with a swift stride, was quickly approaching. He could not make out any characteristics of the individual's features since a rather large shadow seemed to engulf his body. What he could see, though, was a long robe fluttering with every movement the figure made. Recognition gleamed in the boy's eyes, and quickly, he turned to the others.

"Uh oh," he muttered. "We're in trouble."

"Indeed," a deep, cold voice responded.

Startled, the boy spun around just to find a pair of the darkest eyes he had ever seen. For a moment, he was paralyzed with fear. Slowly, though, he began to recover from the initial shock and mustered up the courage to speak.

"Sorry, Professor. We know it's past curfew, we were just... we were just..." His words trailed off. Apparently, he didn't know how to finish his explanation.

"We were just having a bit of fun," a brown-haired boy with a mischievous grin came to his aid and looked their professor boldly in the eye without any sign of fear or nervousness. His peers, however, weren't that brave. They huddled closer to the door, forming a half-circle as if shielding something, eyes wide in horror over the fact that they just had been caught.

"Well, well," the professor hissed in a calm, but nevertheless threatening way. "And what kind of fun, if I may ask, were you indulging in?"

His eyebrows rose up in anticipation of an answer that would surely be worth taking at least 10 points off, even if the boys were in his own house. Taking off points was a disciplinary measure he saw more than fit for any attempt to undermine his integrity, or the integrity of the school thereof.

He waited in silence, watching the boys cast scared glances at each other. He waited one minute, two... Until he had enough.

"Well?" His voice bellowed through the otherwise deserted hallway, making every single one of the students cringe. "If you tell me, maybe I find it so amusing that I might consider joining you. Who doesn't like to have a bit of fun now and then?"

His black eyes were slowly turning into two burning coals lit by anger, lingering on the blonde student.

"Thom-pson," he dragged out the boy's name to emphasize his growing rage. "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing... Sir. We just.. I mean, we just were... um..." He started to stutter and looked around for the others to beg them silently for help, but it was in vain. Actually, Gilbert was so shocked by his friends' action that he shouted in panic, "Stop!! Are you crazy?"

But his friends were unaffected by the fear in his voice, if they had even paid attention to it. One after the other stepped forward to reveal what they had been hiding behind their backs.

The professor remained stoic and waited until the path for him was free. Immediately, his eyes narrowed and he tilted his head, questioning his eyesight. Painfully slowly, he shifted his weight and took a small step closer. No, his eyes were not deceiving him. He did see it correctly. With an unexpected movement, he swung around to face Gilbert, long strands of black hair falling into his angry face.