Cast yourself (you are the spell)

Chapter 42

"—The ministry has remained suspicious of us, but for the time being I have proved able to convince them that the prophecy is not authentic. Hopefully, that will be enough to rid us of their presence for now..."

Professor Snape enters the headmaster's office, all eyes on him. He pauses, pursing his lips as every teacher in the room looks at him expectantly. Dumbledore stops talking himself as everyone quiets to hear Snape's intel.

"Miss Mikaelson..." he trails off, not knowing exactly how to word this. Some professors lean forward with anticipation. "Proposed? I confess, I could not hear them, but Miss Saltzman seemed to welcome the idea..."

McGonagall audibly gasps, but other than her, no one makes a single sound or attempts to speak. The only noise in the room is the distant melody of a phoenix singing and its flapping wings clapping against the air outside.

"Severus, are you sure?" Dumbledore asks at last, the first one to pull himself together. One by one, the professors around him begin to blink out of their shock. They nod as if to agree with their headmaster's uncertainty.

"To my utter shock," Snape starts slowly, "I witnessed them...fraternizing...in the corridor outside my classroom."

Professor Vector takes that instant to giggle out something between a scoff and a laugh, and Snape scowls at her. Vector forces her lips into a thin line, but the humor remains quite obviously in her eyes. Snape narrows his own eyes but continues.

"Unfortunately," he adds, wrinkling his nose. "It seems that they have entered the honeymoon stage—if you will—in their relationship. Let me be clear, I am referring to the fact that their desire has made them blind. I have never seen two teenagers so passionately intermingling, in the hallways no less. In fact, I had to perform a cloaking charm on them for fear another student out after curfew might happen to pass by."

"Hmm," Dumbledore hums thoughtfully, with a hint of utter delight. "Next time, you shall do no such thing. It might be better for us if someone does happen to stumble upon them."

"Politely, sir—" Snape tries to argue, but Professor Flitwick speaks up.

"You saw them, you're positive?" he splutters, still looking at Snape. It seems he and all the other teachers in the room still can't believe the man.

"With absolutely certainty," Snape declares, the harsh set of his eyes communicating his sincerity.

All at once, the room dissolves into clapping and cheering. Professor Slughorn starts to pump his fists into the air like he's a child rather than an older man, and Professor McGonagall just about faints before Vector catches her.

"Thank Merlin!" Hagrid shouts, waving and twisting his hands and fingers strangely in order to pay respect to his giant-human ancestors.

Snape allows himself a small smile as he watches his fellow staff members celebrate around him.

This had been a long time coming, indeed.

"If Severus is confident," Dumbledore says, when everyone is finished. "Then we should leave them be for now. If they have come this far on their own—"

Every professor in the room immediately sobers up and glares at the old man.

"—They can do the rest themselves. However, I would still like Severus and Septima to advise the girls on their upcoming nuptials whenever deemed appropriate. Pomona, it might do well to mention peonies or daisies in Herbology for the wedding arrangements and bouquets."

Snape, Vector, and Sprout all roll their eyes while the other teachers release small sighs of exasperation.

So much for leaving them alone, Vector thinks.