Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Quaffle and Chain	By : CelesWarren Category: HP Canon Characters paired with Original Characters > Het - Male/Female Views: 4445 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters, J.K. Rowling does. I do own Celes though! I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Chapter 4 Killing With Kindness

McGonagall was pacing back and forth behind her desk when Celes entered her office, she’d only been in here once when Dumbledore was still Headmaster and it seemed a lot different from then. The new Headmistress had taken out all of the little silver gadgets and random artifacts that had once been on every available shelf or table top, and there wasn’t a single bowl of Lemon Drops or Licorice Snaps to be seen. Instead there were books stacked neatly upon shelves, a few personal treasures, quills and parchment strewn about, and not a lot else. Obviously Minerva was a very simple woman who didn’t feel the need for a lot of useless decorations, so her office gave off a bare somewhat unlived in feeling.

She finally stopped pacing and turned to look at Celes, her eyes still narrowed into tiny slits of frustration at the young professor. The Headmistress motioned towards the chair in front of her desk, and Celes sat down nervously, finding it hard to meet McGonagall’s gaze.

“Minerva don’t be too hard on the girl…”

Celes’ head shot up immediately when she heard the soft voice of her former Headmaster, he looked a little worried in his frame but his eyes still held that mysteriously calming twinkle.

McGonagall frowned up at the painting as if to say keep out of it and then turned her attention back on Celes, she seemed to have lost a little of her anger at the sound of Dumbledore’s voice, and Celes was grateful for it. An angry Minerva was worse than being surrounded by Dementors!

“Mrs. Warren you can’t go around fighting with your fellow staff members, what will the students think if they see you saying such rude things to a fellow Professor?”

‘It being Snape I’m sure they’d think I was setting a wonderful example and start cheering me on’ She thought to herself, and had to suppress a smile.

“I’m sorry Headmistress but he—“

“I know Severus if a very difficult man to get along with, but you must understand that he’s been teaching at Hogwarts for quite some time….he has quite a bit of seniority over you young lady, and sometimes you’ll just have to ignore the things he says and back down!”

Celes looked down at her shoes, she couldn’t face McGonagall while she was being lectured to. She knew the old grouch was above her in years as far as teaching went, she didn’t know that meant she had to smile at his snarky comments concerning her intelligence and choice of subject to teach!

“Celes…”

She looked up as the Headmistress spoke her first name in a much softer tone, obviously McGonagall did sympathize with her situation somewhat.

“I know this isn’t going to be easy, but I must insist that you apologize to Professor Snape immediately.”

Celes’ mouth fell open in horror, apologize!? To him!?

“But….but Headmistress!”

“no buts!”

“Couldn’t I send him an owl?”

“No!”

“A message with one of the house elves?”

“No!”

“I could figure out how to use one of those muggle talyfones!”

McGonagall’s nostrils began to flare dangerously once again and Celes thought it best to comply.

“I…I’ll apologize immediately Headmistress..”

She stood up quickly and nearly ran for the door before McGonagall could give her another lecture.

*************************************************************************************

She had expected Snape to be waiting downstairs to smirk at her misfortune, but she could only see a few students milling about and Professor Flitwick running upstairs to his classroom obviously a little late, he reminded her of the rabbit in those old Alice and Wonderland stories.

Of course he wouldn’t be waiting for the apology he knew she would have to give him, no he would find it much more gratifying to make her descend into his domain and present it to him there. The man did enjoy his cruel little torments didn’t he?

Ugh! She was beginning to think like him now! She grimaced

The dungeons were just as cold and damp as ever, no human being could actually enjoy living down here could they? It was quiet except for the sound of her breathing and the click clacking of her shoes against the stone floor, she wanted to get this apology over with and get out this creepy place as soon as possible. Her breath was coming out in white mists as she descended lower under the castle, she shivered and pulled her cloak around her shoulders tighter.

Finally reaching the door to his office she hesitated, trying to pull up any shred of courage she could find to make this more bearable. Once she felt brave enough she knocked on his door and waited.

“Enter” came his familiar voice, but this time it held a silky quality in it that let Celes know he knew she was on the other side of his door. The courage she had fought so hard to muster was gone in an instant, leaving behind a sickening feeling of dread.

She entered the dimly lit office and closed the door behind her, it didn’t feel much warmer in here than it did in the corridor even though a crackling fire was visible in the fireplace.

He was seated behind his desk grading parchments, she suddenly felt like a teenager again walking in here for detention and waiting for the Professor to acknowledge her presence, it felt sickening.

As though he could read her mind he placed his quill down and looked up at her, amusement clear on his face.

“Well…doesn’t this feel familiar…”

His voice was still silky, he reminded her of a panther eyeing his prey and getting ready to strike.

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out, scrambling for any shred of courage to come back to her.

He waited patiently, smiling maliciously at her obvious nervousness and fear.

“I…am sorry…..for being so rude to you earlier….I hope….that you can forgive me…”

She said it like it was the most painful thing she’d ever experienced, her face was contorted in a grimace of sheer revulsion. Snape enjoyed every second of her torture, savoring it like fine wine. He wasn’t sure why her humiliation was so enjoyable to him, but Celes Warren groveling before him with her little half-hearted apology made him feel richer than Lucius Malfoy.

“You know I don’t think you’re sorry at all Mrs. Warren, in fact I don’t think you hold a shred of repentance. Perhaps you should try it again with a little more feeling?”

His eyebrows raised mockingly at his question.

Her cheeks flushed scarlet, her eyes narrowed in that familiar look of intense hatred she reserved only for him. She had never hated someone so much in her entire life! And then all at once she stopped shaking furiously, she stood up strait and allowed the color to leave her cheeks, her eyes opened to their usual size, and a soft smile crossed her lips.

In her sweetest most honeyed voice she offered up a more sincere apology.

“You’re right Severus, I wasn’t being sincere with how truly sorry I am. I should never have behaved so disrespectfully to you, I promise it will never happen again.”

The words came out so softly, and her demeanor was so gentle and kind that it threw Snape completely off balance. All traces of amusement had left him completely, and he stared back at her blankly as though he couldn’t believe what was happening.

“Out!” He said curtly, his voice was angry and his mouth was quickly contorting into a sneer.

“Ah, well good day to you Professor.”

After adding the final nail in the coffin she sauntered out of his office, a genuine smile on her face as she knew she had robbed him of any satisfaction he could get from her humiliation.

*************************************************************************************

After the events surrounding the apology Celes began treating the Potion’s Master completely different. She knew that if she let his words rile her up then she was letting him win, and the satisfaction of making him sneer angrily at her whenever she smiled sweetly at him in the corridors was very enjoyable.

She began leaving her seat by Professor Sprout unoccupied and instead started sitting by Snape during meals, much to his dismay she noticed. When she would sit down beside him, and offer up both a pleasant smile and a warm greeting he would look at her dangerously and sometimes even growl low under his breath before ignoring her completely.

She missed his delightful little potions, but Poppy was back, and she wasn’t going to stop being as nice to him as possible anytime soon.

She was, as they say, killing the man with kindness.

*************************************************************************************

Towards the last month of the school year, when summer was approaching Hogwarts in a blaze of warm weather, the law that everyone of marriageable age came to fear was passed.

Celes was gripping that morning’s Daily Prophet so tightly her knuckles were turning white, she read the headline over and over again until she began to feel a headache coming on.

Snape glanced over at her, pleased to see a look of utter anguish on her face as she continued to stare at the paper’s front page.

“I was of the understanding that all young women dreamed of their wedding day, afraid you’ll be tethered to a balding old janitor?”

She glared at him with pure malice, wanting so badly to smack him with the paper.

His smirk almost made her actually do it. If Hagrid, who sat on the other side of her most days, hadn’t taken the Prophet out of her hands she probably would have.

She pouted at the lost opportunity to inflict a little violence on the man she loathed and focused back on her scrambled eggs, they looked about as appetizing as Dragon dung.

A few days later, while she was drinking a cup of tea with Professor Sprout in the Staffroom, a soft tapping sounded on the window. She looked outside it to find a large Barn Owl waiting to be let in, an envelope was tied to its leg.

She opened the window and let the Owl fly in, it landed on the chair she’d been sitting on and waited for her to untie the envelope. She handed the large Owl a Tea Biscuit and patted it’s head before shifting her attention to the letter, its opening was sealed with bronze wax stamped with the Ministry of Magic’s seal.

She hesitated, not wanting to open the letter, somehow hoping that if she ignored it she wouldn’t have to comply with it.

“You’d better get it over with deary, it’s not going to disappear anytime soon.”

Pomona was trying to be comforting, but it did little to ease the tension Celes was feeling as she eyed the envelope with contempt.

Just then the Staffroom door was whirled open and Professor Snape entered in a frenzy, madder than Celes could ever remember seeing him before. He clutched a piece of parchment in his hand, and glared at the two witches who both looked startled at his sudden entrance.

Looking from Pomona to Celes he finally spoke in a venomously angry voice.

“Where is Minerva? This is ridiculous!”

Pomona shrugged hesitantly, her eyes were wide and she seemed a little afraid of the towering presence looking down at her from the doorway. Celes stood up and approached him, she moved slowly like someone trying to calm a ferocious beast would.

“Calm down Severus, I believe she went to Hogsmeade to do a little weekend shopping, what’s the matter?”

He seemed to calm a little when she said his first name, at least enough not to hex her anyway. He closed the door, walked over to an empty chair on the other side of Pomona, and sat down huffily.

Celes made her way back to her seat and offered him a cup of tea, but he just glared at her in response. After a long moment of uncomfortable silence he finally spoke, albeit through gritted teeth.

“The Ministry is planning to make me subject to this farce of a law! I’m 45 years old….far beyond the age to be making…..children...”

He ground out the word children as though he were talking about the most despicable thing in the world. She assumed to Snape children were probably worse than receiving the Dementor’s Kiss, but honestly she felt worse for his future little spawns than she did for him. The poor things, it would be like an eternal Potion’s Class, she shuddered at the thought.

He raised an eyebrow at her, curious as to what was going through that empty little head of hers.

“You shouldn’t feel too badly you know, I’ve got to comply too…”, She said almost sadly while holding her unopened envelope up for emphasis.

“Do not think to compare your misfortune with mine Warren! I have enough to deal with in my life without being stuck with a annoying wife and terrible children! You on the other hand teach a class devoted to popping out mindless little housewives!”

Pomona could feel a heated argument about to ensue between the two and decided to slip out quietly before the furniture started being thrown.

She sincerely hoped the Ministry was smart enough not to stick those two together! That would be a disaster to rival Voldemort!

I really enjoyed writing this chapter! I think I'm getting into the groove of the story rather nicely! Their constant bickering is so fun to imagine, I hope everyone else is enjoying it so far. I'd like to know how everyone feels about my OC, I'm trying to write her as close to the personality of a real woman as I can.
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Quaffle and Chain