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Eye of the Beholder	By : BlueSchmoo Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female Views: 3725 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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A/N. I just have to say � you are the most intuitive reviewer I have ever met, White Lilac! Sheesh! I think you have been peering over the BlueSchmoo�s shoulder when she has been writing� : ) Once again your comments are wonderfully insightful, and always very welcome.
Thanks go out to Msmalcontent and Carmen for their great review comments (glad to hear this story is still keeping you on your toes). Also my sincerest thanks go out to Stebu for her very kind and reassuring e-mail � I do appreciate it!
Final comments: I realize with the way fictions are now being categorised by the webmistress (i.e. m/m; f/f; HP/DM, HP/SS, etc, etc.,) that this OC/hetro fiction will probably be lost in the shuffle (i.e. there is no existing category for it). However, if anyone (new or existing reviewer) catches a mistake in the characters I have developed (factual or otherwise), please feel free to e-mail me and I will hide my head in shame, but do my best to correct this.

Chapter 39. As the Fates Decreed�
She noticed that Snape just stood there, wordless, as she very slowly entered the room. She stopped just in front of him, and gazing up into his eyes, she smiled. It was a genuine smile the reflected how she felt at the moment � relieved, beautiful, and yet surreal. At that moment, all thought of potions, Lucius, the Dark Revel, and everything else faded from her mind, and she just wanted Snape to look at her - see her - as she really was.
She followed his eyes as they darted around her face, searching, comparing. His demeanour never changed, he was still as cold and aloof as before, when Lucius was in the room. Still not saying a word, he reached out and brushed her hair away from her cheek with the back of his hand. His gaze found the faint ghost of the scar near her jaw where the potion had not completely healed it, and he traced it with his finger. The skin was smooth; there was no puckering, oughough it was still slightly pink. It would always be there � a small reminder of all she had suffered through. Of the pain he had caused her, albeit unintentionally. He truly had hoped that the potion would remove all traces of it, but apparently, that was not meant to be.
Bringing his other hand up, he cupped her face in his hands and softly ran his thumbs over her cheeks. As before, he felt a tightening in his chest, almost as if his heart was swelling, leaving him no room in his chest to breathe. Of all the potions he had created as a Potions Master, he was, arguably, proudest of this one. Not because it was difficult to make, but because of the incredible effect it had on Sasha. He saw a light within her that he had never seen before � a confidence the welled up from somewhere deep inside her being. It was a small thing for him to provide her with this potion, especially after all she has given to him.
Still gazing at each other, Sasha reached up and placed her hands over Snape�s.
"Well," she said hesitantly. "I guess I have to thank you. Your potion worked. At first, I did not believe my eyes when I saw it, but there it is," she said her smile blossoming into a full grin. She waited for his reaction, but there was none. He stood there, coldly regarding her with his glittering eyes. Her grin faltered, as Snape�s countenance never changed. "Well�" she said hesitantly, "what do you think?"
"You look beautiful," Snape murmured. "Understand, Sasha, that in my eyes, you have always been beautiful. It is not what�s in the outside, but what is on the inside."
"But now you have to admit, at least I won�t scare small children away now," she laughed self-depreciatingly.
Unexpectedly, Snbroubrought his mouth down on hers in a passionate, crushing kiss. Seeing her this way � so lovely, so young and full of confidence, somehow hurt inside of him. He wanted to hold on to hend nnd not have her change on him. He could see it � see the potential for her drifting away from him, and it hurt him so much.
He broke away from the kiss abruptly, and pushed her away. He was a fool to ever think there was any future together with her. He gave her the one thing she had wanted more than anything � to be rid of her scar. And now that it was pretty much gone, he feared she would move on from him � her greasy git of a Potions Professor, and find someone closer to her own age. Someone who would be attracted to her physically, and not mentally, emotionally, the way he still felt for her.
She saw the momentary look of hurt in his eyes, and was confused by his sudden change. "What, what is it? What have I done wrong?" she asked.
"Wrong? You have done nothing wrong. It is what I have done. I now realize that by healing your scar, I have changed you. You will no longer be the shy girl you were before. I have saved you from one fate, only to lose you to another," he said sadly. Snape shook his head, the demons of doubt, self-loathing and anger climbing his back once again.
Sasha paused and looked at him. She thought about what he had just said, and realized where his doubts were coming from. Inside, she smiled. She reached out and gently took his hands in her, trying to pull him closer. He just stood there, refusing her embrace.
"Severus," she began, "think about what you have just said. Yes you have saved me � in many, many ways. However, has it ever occurred to you that there was a reason why we were both in that field at the same time? A reason why I ended up at Hogwarts? Have you ever thought that perhaps the fates did not intend for you to save me. Maybe, just maybe, I was sent here to save you � from yourself?"
Snape still stood there, motionless, contemplating her words.
"I honestly believe there is something between us that started long before either of us could have predicted. It began in a field outside of London, a long time ago. It was at that point in time that our fates were sealed, along with Lucius and Avery, and only now have we been given the opportunity to help each other. If you think that just because I no longer am an ugly chit, and that everything that has happened between us means nothing to me, then you are sorely mistaken. I still care for you, Severus. More than that. I love you. I don�t want things to change between us." She was getting emotional and had to stop speaking or she would start to cry.
Snape closed his eyes and allowed her to pull him into her. They held each other for the longest time, not saying a word, but gently rocking back and forth. He led her to the couch, where Snape sat down, dragging her onto his lap. Again, they just sat there, feeling each other�s heartbeat, and breathing in the scent of each other. It was when he was in her arms that he finally knew what it was like to be loved, unconditionally, and unashamedly.
Their touching soon blossomed from mutual comfort, to outright passion. It was during their love-making that any emotional wounds between then finally healed, and they both knew that everything would be OK.

A/N. Next chapter� the Epilogue.
- 38
- 39
- 40
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Eye of the Beholder