The Dream of One Night

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Avrille

The first time I awoke, I had no idea where I was or what had happened. My muddled mind had the vague notion it was Christmas morning, and I was incredibly happy for some reason. But... how old was I? Was my mom going to come in any moment and pull open the curtains? Was I in my dorm room at the Boston Witches' Academy? Before I could connect two thoughts together, a wave of drowsiness washed over me once more, and I fell back asleep.

The next time I woke up, I was much more lucid. My eyes focused on the rich forest-green bed curtains, and I instantly recalled where I was. I had absolutely no idea how long I had been asleep; the room was still quite dark except for a corner where a couple of low burning candles flickered. With a deep sigh of contentment, I rolled over onto my stomach. I buried my face in the decadently soft pillowcase, inhaling the exotic, sweet-musky scent of Severus' cologne. My body still felt languid, but my mind was clearer than it had been all week. Although I probably could have dozed off once more, I jumped out of the bed in excitement. Today was Christmas morning and all I wanted was Severus.

I hurried into the bathroom and splashed some cool water over my face. I tried to smooth my hair down the best I could since I didn't see a comb or brush I could borrow, and I wasn't about to go digging through the drawers. Looking in the mirror, I was pleased to see how nice and refreshed I actually looked. That potion seemed to have worked a miracle. Unable to remain apart from Severus a moment longer, I belted my robe over my pyjamas and opened the door separating us.

My first impression was that the sitting room looked exactly as it had the night before, and for a moment I wondered if I had fallen asleep at all. Then I saw Severus sitting in an armchair by the hearth, reading a newspaper. His jet hair was once more tied back in a neat tail as it had been last night when I came here, giving me a delicious view of his neck and chiselled jaw line. He was now fully dressed, looking exceptionally handsome in a tailored black suit, which told me that at least some time had passed. He looked up as I entered the room and his face lit up with a smile.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked, folding the paper in half and tossing it onto the coffee table in front of him.

"Yes, I feel so much better," I replied, closing the bedroom door behind me quickly. I suddenly felt a little guilty over not making the bed. "What time is it?" I asked, unable to hold back a yawn.

Severus glanced at a clock on the fireplace mantel, the face of which I could not read from there. "Almost four..." he said.

"In the afternoon?! Are you serious?!" I covered my mouth with my hand in surprise.

Severus laughed and walked over. "You needed it," he said, kissing my forehead and embracing me. I closed my eyes and let myself be held for a moment, relishing once more the scent of Severus' cologne as I rested my head on his shoulder. There was another delicious smell in the room too, but I couldn't place it until I felt my stomach rumble.

"Forgive me, you must be starving!" Severus said. I guess my stomach had been quite loud after all. "I have breakfast for you... unless you're feeling more like lunch now? I can have something else sent down." With an arm still around my waist, he guided me to a small table near some heavy velvet curtains that were tightly drawn. On the table was a large covered platter from which the most heavenly fragrance was wafting. Severus pulled out a chair for me, and as I sat he removed the cover to reveal steaming scrambled eggs, buttery wheat toast, a bowl of fresh blueberries and strawberries, a tall glass of orange juice, and a hot pot of coffee.

"Mmmm... all my favourites," I commented. "How did you know?"

"Well, I have been watching you eat for four months," Severus replied as he Vanished the cover and sat down across from me.

"Aren't you going to have anything?" I asked while pouring myself some much-appreciated coffee.

"I did already a while ago. And, incidentally, you might not want to eat too much because we should make an appearance at Christmas dinner in two hours."

"Mm-hmm," I agreed while sipping the perfectly brewed coffee. Severus Summoned his paper to the table with a graceful flick of his wrist (making me extremely jealous since I couldn't do that even with a wand...) and laid it flat in front of him. I was just about to ask him if there was anything interesting in the news when a horrible, panicked thought flashed through my mind.

"Oh my God!" I gasped and dropped the piece of toast that I had been holding.

Severus' head jerked up from the paper. "What?!" he exclaimed. "Are you alright?!"

I looked across the table at him, my eyes open wide in horror. "How am I supposed to get back to my room?! It's four in the afternoon, and I'm wearing a bathrobe!"

Severus burst out laughing.

"It's not funny!" I insisted, banging on the table with an open palm for emphasis. "I am not supposed to be here right now!"

Severus finally managed to get a hold of himself. "You can take the Floo back to your room," he said hoarsely and pointed to the lit fireplace. "I connected our two rooms this morning."

"Oh." I picked up my toast once more and bit into it, feeling pretty silly. Severus was still smiling at me. I had to admit it was wonderful to see him smile so much, but I rather wished it didn't have to be because of me saying dumb things. Nevertheless, at the risk of sounding stupid again, I swallowed my toast and asked the question I had been thinking since I had woken up.

"It's still completely dark in here... Are we totally underground, then?" I asked. It was hard to tell with the dungeons exactly where you were because there were so many twists and turns. Because the castle was on a cliff, some of the dungeon classrooms had small windows while others had none, and since Severus' room had such large windows, it made me curious.

"Not exactly," Severus replied and reached behind to tug at one of the drapes. He managed to pull it slightly open so that I could see a thin line of cloudy blue-green.

"That's amazing!" I said. The window's view led directly into the lake, well under the top layer of ice. "Do you ever see merfolk?" I asked.

"Sometimes. Once in a while the little ones will swim up, maybe when their parents are hunting. Hence the curtains." He let the drape fall back into place, and the room became dimmer once more.

"Well, even though it's a little dark, I think your rooms are beautiful," I said. It was the truth. All of the furniture was a rich, lustrous mahogany upholstered in green brocade so dark it looked nearly black. Almost every inch of the walls, even in the bedroom, was lined with massive bookcases filled to capacity with ancient-looking tomes and newer textbooks. The remaining wall space held luxurious Renaissance-style tapestries and oil paintings.

"Thank you," Severus replied. "I'm glad you think so."

Maybe because you hope I'll be spending a lot of time here? I thought privately with a small smile as I pierced my eggs. I hope I will as well...

Severus picked up his newspaper once more, and I finished eating my breakfast in silence. I was so happy I could barely swallow. I really felt like we were a husband and wife having breakfast together on Christmas morning, even though it was the middle of the afternoon and Severus wasn't eating. I was so hungry from sleeping so long that I did finish all of the food, confident I would still have plenty of room in my stomach to eat dinner in a few hours' time. When he saw I had finished, Severus Vanished the plate and his newspaper. I sat back contentedly in my chair and stretched.

"Should I get going?" I asked.

Severus stood and held out a hand to help me rise. "Not yet. I can't bear to part with your company so soon, and there are a few things I would like to discuss with you," he said and led me over to the couch in front of the fire where I assumed he had spent the night. I sat, next him but still facing him at the same time. Severus still had my hand in his, and he kissed it gently while looking deep into my eyes.

"Actually, before I start on that," he said, brushing back behind my ear a stray tendril of hair that had escaped my hasty bun, "I have something for you. For Christmas, if you'll allow me..."

My heart sank. I had, of course, considered getting something for Severus, but in the end decided against it on the grounds that, since he was my supervisor, it might sort of seem like bribery.

My face must have fallen visibly because he hastily added, "Please don't concern yourself if you don't have anything for me. I've had this for a while and wanted to give it to you, but I didn't have the courage to send it to you anonymously. Besides, having you here with me is the only thing I could ever want."

With that said he jumped up and grabbed a small wrapped package I had not noticed off of the mantel. He seemed almost as excited as me as he dropped back down on the couch. He placed an arm around me as he handed me the gift with the other. I no longer felt guilty about not having a present for him. Just feeling the soft weight of his arm around my shoulders would have been enough of a Christmas gift for me as well. The package was a nice bonus though...

I stared at the gift in my hands. It was so beautifully wrapped in shining silver paper and white silk ribbon that I almost didn't want to open it. I carefully untied the ribbons and set them aside, wanting to save them forever. Next, I gently pulled apart the paper so as not to rip it and revealed a small, brown velvet box.

I kissed Severus quickly and said, "Thank you."

He looked at me in slight confusion. "You haven't even opened it yet."

"I know! But I'm sure that I'm going to love it, so I wanted to say thank you now." I was not disappointed when I opened the box. Inside were two stunningly gorgeous hair combs exquisitely carved from red-lacquered wood. Their delicate scalloped edges were detailed with cherry blossoms made of inlaid mother-of-pearl and gold. They were so beautiful that I couldn't speak for a moment.

"Do you like them?" Severus asked in a slightly worried voice over my lack of speech.

"They're the most beautiful things I've ever owned," I whispered and touched one with my fingertip. I was terrified of taking them out of the box. Severus sighed in relief.

"May I?" he asked. I handed the box to him, thankful that the responsibility of having something so precious was literally out of my hands for the moment. He placed the box on his lap and turned my head away from him. With a movement so quick I barely felt it, he loosened my bun so my hair tumbled down my back. Then gently, section by section, he worked out the snarls with one of the combs. The movement of his fingers against my scalp and the comb gliding through my hair was so relaxing that I could have easily fallen back asleep.

Once my hair was tangle-free, Severus separated out a lock, wound it into a twist and secured it just behind my ear with the comb. He then did the same thing to the other side. When he was finished he reached around and, with his fingers placed tenderly against my cheek, turned my face back to him. He nodded once, satisfied with his handiwork.

"How did you learn to do that?" I asked as I gently felt over my head. The combs were wedged strongly in the twists without pulling any hairs. The rest of my hair felt smooth and silky with no bumps or flyaways. Severus looked embarrassed for a moment. I could understand why he would be; I would never have believed it if someone had told me Hogwarts' stern Potions master also knew how to dress hair.

"My mother, actually, used to wear her hair like this sometimes. Occasionally she would ask me to help her. Her hair was slightly longer than yours, you see..." he trailed off.

"I'm sure it looks wonderful," I said and wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. "Is it alright if I leave it like this for dinner?"

"Of course," he replied, looking up at the clock unconsciously. I did as well to see that it was already half past the hour.

"What did you want to talk about?" I asked, knowing I should return to my rooms soon to get changed. I moved the box and wrappings aside so they wouldn't be crushed.

"I thought perhaps we should establish some rules," Severus replied. I had to work very hard to keep a straight face; it was so like Severus to think of rules even for a relationship.

"Okay... What did you have in mind?"

"Well, first off, as much as I want you to, I do not think you should come down here very often at night. At least, not for the entire night."

"I know," I said nodding. "You probably won't get much sleep on the couch, and I know that you wouldn't let me sleep on the couch, so..."

"Well, yes, but I am thinking also in the case there is an emergency in the school. The last thing we want is for someone to try and wake one of us and find we are not where we are supposed to be."

"That's a good point," I sighed. I was already hoping maybe I could spend the night again after dinner and perhaps convince Severus to sleep in the bed with me. There was nothing I wanted more than to fall asleep in his arms.

"Secondly," Severus continued, "I do not think that we should... be intimate unless we are behind a closed door and most preferably in one of our private rooms. Do you agree with that?" Again I sighed but nodded. I knew he was right but it was going to be torture to not kiss him even when I was sure no one was looking.

"This relates to that, but lastly I need to make it clear that when we are out in public, sometimes I am going to have be..." He paused, searching for the right word, "...brusque with you." Severus said this quietly and I knew from his tone of voice the thought pained him. "I'm afraid recently I was often letting my guard down too often when you were near. I couldn't help it; you had that effect on me. But now it's going to be even harder, and I think, at least at first, it would be better if we do not speak too much while in the presence of others. I'm not saying we should stop talking altogether, which would look suspicious in itself, just... not often."

I took Severus' hands in mine. "I promise I won't be offended. And you don't need to worry about me. Did I ever tell you I was the president of the Drama Club at the Boston Witches' Academy?"

Severus smiled. "No, you did not. And I'm not worried about you. I am saying all of these things because I worry for myself."

"Well, I won't let you break a rule. You can't if I don't let you kiss me, now can you?" I knew that was a stupid thing to say as soon as it was out of my mouth. I was asking for trouble.

Indeed, Severus leaned toward me and in a low, seductive whisper asked, "What will you do if I kiss you anyway? Put me in detention?"

"No," I replied sharply and placed my hands on his chest to push him away just as he was about to kiss me once more, "I'll make you sit next to Lockhart at dinner."

Severus froze and took on a look of horror so genuine I actually wasn't sure if he was pretending or not. "You wouldn't!" he gasped. "That is too cruel, Avrille..." But then, as I was sitting there staring at him and wondering whether or not to apologize, he leaned in before I could stop him and kissed me passionately. Since I had absolutely no willpower, I let him get away with it, knowing also that in a few minutes I would have to go and start preparing myself to act like none of this had happened. But I did draw the line when he started to kiss my neck.

"No you don't..." I said and pulled away. "I have to go get dressed." Severus sighed and sat back against the couch. "Are there any other rules you would like to lay down so you can break them?" I asked playfully.

"There is one other thing I would like to talk to you about," Severus said, completely serious all of a sudden. "Something quite important I've been considering for a few days, but we don't have time now. It has nothing to do with 'us,' per se, so it can wait a little while. Even though I just said we shouldn't do this, will you come back down here tonight? Perhaps around nine o'clock?"

"Of course I will," I replied, already trying to think of a way to convince him to let me stay the whole night again. "Should I take the Floo down?"

"Yes, if you would." Severus stood and held out his hand to help me rise. "I would always take it from now on. We cannot risk someone seeing you walk down."

I rose then gathered up the box and wrappings to take with me. I immediately moved next to the fireplace to signal I was ready to go. In truth, I wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible, because at the moment there was nothing I wanted more than to push Severus back down onto the couch and mess up that perfect-looking suit of his. Perhaps he was feeling something along the same lines because he quickly held out to me a small carved urn from the mantel containing Floo powder.

"I'll see you in a little bit," I said, taking a pinch of the Floo powder with my free hand. Severus nodded but didn't say anything. I threw the powder into the hearth so the flames shot up blazing green then stepped into them. In a clear voice I said, "Avrille Asphodel's room!" and within a whirling second I was there. I missed Severus already.

It only took me a little while to freshen up and change clothes, so I spent the remaining time before dinner opening the few Christmas presents that had been placed at the foot of my bed. It was nice to have presents, but I was really so happy already that I wouldn't have cared if I had received nothing. Caligula had been rather icy toward me when I arrived back. I had not been apart from him that long since we had come to Hogwarts together. However, he soon forgave me after I presented him with his Christmas gifts consisting of a package of toy mice made from rabbit fur and a small catnip plant, both of which he immediately began tearing to pieces with playful growls.

A few minutes before six o'clock, I started to make my way down to the Great Hall. I was feeling pretty anxious since this first test of our discretion would occur amidst the majority of the staff and a decent number of students. I knew Severus would be fine; indeed he had hidden his feelings toward me most skilfully until a few days prior. I also knew that I had no choice but to perform perfectly as well. This was the price we were going to have to pay to spend a few hours alone together later.

As I descended into the entry hall, I saw Fred and George Weasley huddled together at the foot of the stairs, whispering animatedly to each other. I could see they were wearing new Christmas sweaters, knit with the letters "F" and "G" in snowflakes, which I thought were absolutely adorable. George suddenly broke away from his twin with a nod and hurried over to the open doors of the Great Hall. He peered in and seemed to be looking for someone... his brother Ron, perhaps? Fred was so distracted watching George that he didn't even notice me until I was right next to him.

"Good evening, Fred," I said.

Fred noticeably jumped and spun to face me with his eyes open wide. He seemed totally stunned for some reason and looked furtively to George, who had heard me and quickly scampered over.

"Good evening, Mistress Asphodel!" George said in a loud and extra-jovial voice.

I looked expectantly at Fred. When he was still silent, George jabbed an elbow into his brother's side, making Fred breathe something that sounded like, "Oomph... evenin'..."

"Is everything alright?" I asked, a little concerned over their strange behaviour. George had an enormous forced smile plastered across his face. Fred was still staring at me as though he had never seen me before. Both of their freckled faces were glowing brick-red.

"Er... yeah. Fred's just... got a stomach-ache. All that Christmas candy, you see..." George grabbed Fred by the arm and started to physically pull him toward the Great Hall.

"Okay... Well, you two have a Merry Christmas," I said, still standing at the base of the staircase.

"Right! You too!" George called back over his shoulder.

Fred groaned loudly then turned to his twin and muttered, "I'm gonna be sick..."

"Shut up!" George hissed between gritted teeth as he dug in with his elbow once more. "Too much candy!" he called back to me again in the super-cheery voice, even though I had moved away from the stairs and was only a few feet behind them now as they entered the Great Hall.

"George... I can't handle this!" Fred moaned and pawed at his brother's hand that was still holding his arm fast.

"Just don't think about it!" George turned and gave me one more huge, dopey smile before dragging his brother off to the Gryffindor table. They dropped down a little ways away from Ron, who was already there with Harry and Hermione, and started up what looked like a heated, whispered argument with each other. I had no idea what to make of it. It was almost as if they knew... No. That was impossible. I summed it up as just the inexplicable behaviour of teenage boys.

The Weasley twins were almost instantly pushed from my mind as I made my way to the staff table at the far end of the hall. It was impossible for me not to notice Severus was already there, although I tried my best to focus my attention away from him and look for an empty seat at the other end of the table. Unfortunately, Lavinia, who was sitting only a couple chairs down from Severus, spotted me and joyfully waved me over.

"I saved you a seat!" she called. I sighed and walked up the stairs toward her, hoping some other teachers would soon arrive to fill in the space between Severus and me. When I reached her, Lavinia rose and gave me a hug. Her cheeks were bright pink, and it seemed like she had already started on the holiday wine.

"Happy Christmas!" she proclaimed and motioned for me to sit next to her. "Thank you so much for your gift! It was so sweet of you to remember." I had given Lavinia a -----------pair of earrings I had seen her admire in a shop window once when we were in Hogsmeade. She in turn had given me a beautiful cashmere shawl.

"Thank you for your present, too," I replied. "It was so beautiful!"

"I thought it would be useful. I know how cold those dungeons can be during the winter."

We settled into our chairs. Severus glanced at me as I sat and gave me a curt nod before turning back to his conversation with Professor McGonagall. Once his attention was diverted, Lavinia rolled her eyes at me then burst out laughing. She poured me some wine which I gratefully sipped, hoping a little might help settle my nerves. As I bent my head to arrange my napkin on my lap, Lavinia noticed my hair.

"Oh, those are lovely!" Lavinia said, pointing at the combs. "Look that way so I can see them better. Were they a gift?"

"Yes, from my mother," I replied immediately. As I turned my head away from her and toward Severus, I could tell from his posture that he had been listening, though to his credit he had not missed a beat in his own conversation.

"Well, she has exquisite taste," Lavinia said. I had to fight back a smile before turning back to face her. I hoped Severus had heard that as well. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Professor Dumbledore entering the hall from the back door, escorting five people I had never seen before: four adults and one tiny little boy with white-blonde hair. While all four adults looked sombre, the little boy was looking around the Great Hall excitedly as though trying to take in every single detail. All of them were wearing Muggle clothes.

"Who're they?" I asked Lavinia, pointing discreetly at them.

Lavinia's bubbly attitude sobered instantly. "Those are the Creevys and the Finch-Fletchleys," she said gravely. "Professor Dumbledore invited them to spend the day here at the castle so they could see Colin and Justin."

Professor Dumbledore showed the two families to seats at the far end of the staff table. Fortunately, enough staff were away on holiday to accommodate them. When she saw they were seated, Professor McGonagall excused herself from Severus' side and went to go talk to the blonde family, presumably Colin's parents and little brother.

Once Professor McGonagall was seated next to Mrs. Creevy, Professor Dumbledore stood and welcomed everyone to the Christmas Feast. I barely took in a word of his short speech, my eyes focused on the bowed heads of Mr. and Mrs. Finch-Fletchley. Justin's mom's eyeliner was smudged, and the rims around his dad's eyes were bright red. Even though I knew there had been nothing I could have done, I still felt horrible watching them and knowing I had foreseen the attack on their son. Severus glanced at me, seeing me staring at them, and I'm sure guessed my thoughts. He frowned slightly, but obviously couldn't say anything to me.

Once Professor Dumbledore took his seat again, the tables in the hall suddenly creaked under the weight of dozens of different main dishes. I took a bit of turkey and mashed potatoes, but found I had little appetite, having nothing to do with my "breakfast" a couple hours prior. Lavinia, always so chatty and cheerful, sat beside me now silent and withdrawn. Severus filled his plate, but sat staring at it distractedly. The Finch-Fletchleys took no food at all.