Severus Snape A Soul Undiminished

Chapter 12 - Unforseen

Chapter 12
Severus sat quietly, watching Sirana page through the Quidditch manual, which was sparsely illustrated, as if she was deeply immersed in an enthralling novel, until he could no
longer hold back his curiosity.
"What could a Muggle possibly find so interesting about the game of Quidditch?"
She looked up from the book for the first time since she sat with him and smiled a little, answering almost merrily, "From what I can make out so far, this is a sport, and a quite challenging one at that. I can only imagine how exhilarating it would be to watch, much less participate in."
His lips pulled up into an amused, almost affectionate grin. "Yes, it is. You are correct. It is both a sport and quite challenging, although I have only found it to be exhilarating on rare occasions. Perhaps one day I could..."He stopped himself from continuing the sentence, realizing suddenly how complicated this unforeseen arrangement was, and he couldn't imagine how he could explain the presence of his new companion at a Quidditch match, much less to Lucius, if he were to hear that she had not met the fate he had portended for her. He couldn't leave the unfinished sentence
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hanging, and finished differently than his original thought, "... explain the finer intricacies of the game to you."
She continued as if she hadn't noticed his hesitation and replied as if genuinely interested, "I would like that."
Severus was touched by the innocent curiosity of her answer, her eager interest in learning something from him, albeit a subject as bland as Quidditch. He felt the deep need to learn more about her.
"Tell me more of your life before you came here, " Severus said, and although it was not a question, his inquiry did not sound the least bit demanding.
Sirana wasn't sure where to begin, so she decided on continuing with the subject of the day.
"Quidditch reminds me a bit of a game called lacrosse, although I've never actually played it myself surprisingly..." she mused. "I've played my fair share of sports though, and I've always loved a challenging competition."
Severus seemed content to let her ramble, waiting patiently for her to take the conversation in her own direction.
"I suppose that's what led me to choose my profession. I'm a teacher. Or at least, I was." There was a tinge of regret in her voice.
"A teacher? Really?" Severus asked, a bit of surprise in his voice. "What subject do you teach?"
She laughed a little embarrassingly before admitting, "I'm a physical education teacher—an athletics coach. Don't laugh! I |60|

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know some people look down their nose at my chosen profession, but I was very proud to share with young people my love for sports and fitness."
"I can assure you, I wouldn't dare to laugh at such a worthy profession," Severus replied seriously.
She had to look up to see if his expression was a mocking one, wondering if his statement was laced with sarcasm, but he continued,"I have found that a teacher who is not only passionate about their subject, but willing and able to successfully pass their knowledge on, is an invaluable treasure."
She was flattered by his sincerity and asked, "What is your profession?"
She saw a sheepish grin form on his face before he answered, "I...am a professor. Although I often question whether it was my true calling. Let's just say that my chosen subject deals with matters of...science...and nature."
She could hear his hesitation and the vagueness of his reply, but she did not want to spoil the light mood by pressing for more specifics. She continued instead.
"I didn't want to give up my job. I loved my students and my school, but I was sent word that my grandfather was ailing, and needed more care, and after my husband had passed, the ties that had kept me there before were no longer strong enough to keep me from going to my grandfather. I had only been overseas once before to see him when I was very young, but we kept in contact through letters. I was very fond of him, as he was of me."
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She stopped for a moment, as if in brief pensive thought before continuing. "It wasn't too long thereafter before I found myself here. I spent only a few short seasons caring for him in his lovely home full of old books and his eccentric collection of souvenirs."
She was pulled from the warm memory by his response."I'm sorry for your loss," he replied thoughtfully.
She knew it was her own fault that he had misunderstood her words, and she corrected her own error. "Oh no! Thank you, but he didn't pass away. He is still living."
She stopped suddenly, a terrifying thought suddenly hitting her, and she shook her head quickly in confusion. "Actually, I don't know...I'm sorry, I...have only dreams of the last time I saw him, and I'm still not sure if they are real memories or just part of a nightmare I can't seem to shake."
Severus could hear the sudden distress in her voice, and although he didn't want their conversation to turn unpleasant, he had a foreboding that this may be a window into the mystery of her arrival into his life.
"Can you tell me about it...your nightmare?" he asked gently, hoping that talking about it might relieve some of her distress as well as open the window further into her world.
"I'm sorry," she said a little shakily. "I..." She almost said she didn't remember, but then, she thought of her promise to be completely truthful with this man. "I see my grandfather's face in the dream, his expression one of rage and anguish. He
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is running towards our neighbor's house, and I'm running after him. Dear friends of ours live there, and I know there is something happening there, something very bad, and I'm worried because I don't know what could be so dangerous as to make my grandfather so desperate to try and stop it."
She abruptly uncoiled from his lap and stood, walking to slide the Quidditch book back into the only empty spot in his bookcase. He felt a twinge of regret, already missing the closeness they were sharing. She was standing in front of his bookcase, her eyes closed in thought. He rose from his chair, and slowly approached from behind. Part of him was afraid she might reject his attempt at comforting her, but he was willing to risk the sting of rejection, gently placing his hands on her shoulders, leaning his head down to lightly rest his chin on her head. She did not reject his closeness and reached to place her hand on top of his. They stood like this for a while, each to their own thoughts, simply comforted by each other's presence.