I am not J.K. Rowling, nor am I connected in any way with Bloomsbury or Scholastic. Anything that I post here on FF is merely for fun and speculation, but strictly not for profit. This story has not significantly changed from when it was first published in 2005. I have merely uploaded a version that is edited for grammar and compliant with canon through book 7.

Chapter 1

Teatime

The slender, young woman slipped away from the bustling crowd of persons on the street and feverishly looked round for a place where she could be alone. Stumbling down the neat, cobblestone pavement of a side street, she blindly peered up at the old houses—mostly early Stuart period wizarding townhouses with upper storeys that hung far out into the street. Finally giving in to confusion, the girl clumsily sat down onto the second to the last of the age-worn steps in front of the largest and oldest house on the street. The shadow of the upper levels hid the sun—temporarily allowing her to sit in the cool shade. The tears that she had hitherto controlled were now sliding slowly down her cheeks and nose as she murmured, "How could he? How?"

The unusually petite young woman pulled her knees tightly to her chest, causing the wet hem of her robe to touch her ankles. The clinging contact of the damp blue silk made her look down and notice that there was a large puddle of mud under her feet, so her hem now was stained a light brown. The girl hid her scared face in two small white hands and began to sway back and forth on the edge of the step repeating aloud numbly, "What am I going to do? What am I going to do? Now Mummy is going to see it and she is going to know!"

Unexpectedly, a man's nasal voice interjected into the girl's thoughts. "I don't care what else you do, but you may start by removing yourself from my property. This step is not a public…"

The young woman lifted her fair head and turned her now splotchy face towards the deep, growling voice, causing the tall, dark-haired man to stop speaking abruptly. The girl gasped in recognition as the man harshly rasped, "Miss Kent?"

Immediately hurrying to stand up, the young woman tripped on the hem of her robe, causing the man to extend one sallow, thin hand to catch her.

"I'm so sorry, sir, I didn't know, I mean I was not looking and I didn't realise that…"

As she spoke the man pulled his hand away as if her sleeve were on fire and snarled, "Never mind girl, you can't sit there in the mud." Then, after a brief pause, the man clasped her upper arm to draw her up the stairs and furtively glanced down the street. The young woman seemed to be too petrified to attempt to wriggle out of the painfully tight grasp he had on her upper arm. After waving his wand in several circles and swoops then touching it to various portions of the door, Severus Snape turned the handle and dragged the girl all the way inside.

Patience Kent stood stunned—fearfully staring at the back of her former teacher as he returned all the Locking and Sealing Charms to the door. She tried to wipe the remnants of the tears from her face with her sleeve as her mind began to slowly rally. Finally, she allowed herself to wonder why he had just brought her inside his house. She felt a sudden urge to try to push past him and escape from the house before Snape had a chance to finish locking her inside.

However, the professor turned just at that moment to face her, spinning so quickly that his robes ballooned outward in a swish of black gabardine. "Well?"

Terrified, Patience began stuttering, "I'm s-sorry Professor, sir, I didn't realise that this was your house and I…"

"Never mind that, you silly girl, what were you doing sitting out there in the first place?"

Patience lifted her pink rimmed, violet-blue eyes to look into the pallid face of Professor Snape, the man who had terrified her for five long years at school, and surprised both herself and the fierce-looking man in front of her by bursting into tears.

Snape recoiled from the young woman in front of him and snapped angrily, "Don't cry, girl. I am not going to harm you. But you could not remain out there where you would be seen, do you understand?"

Patience, already embarrassed that she had begun crying again, accepted the dingy square of white cotton being thrust at her and wiped her face. "I'm sorry for bothering you sir, I ought to go home."

"Were you lost?"

"No, I…I was not supposed to be in Hogsmeade, so I ought to go back home…"

Snape shook his head and made a sharp gesture to indicate that she should follow him and spun on his heel. He walked several paces away from Patience and then turned to glare at her until she followed him out of the dark, panelled entry hall down the even darker corridor.

As Patience followed him along the faded, ancient rug, she absently noted as they passed burnished ebony Queen Anne chairs pushed against the walls, ornate goblin-silver sconces next to a portrait of a very beautiful witch, two portraits of unattractive, evil looking warlocks in centuries-old dress, and three silver objects with strange spikes on a spindly Jacobean table.

If she had ever before considered what Professor Snape's home looked like, Patience would likely have predicted it would be dark, damp, and cave-like, but this was the house of an old pure-blood family. It did not seem likely that he was bringing her here for any nefarious deeds, but Patience was too afraid of her former teacher to trust him or to disobey him. Therefore, she meekly trotted after him into the room at the end of the corridor, where Snape had been standing and holding open the door.

When Patience had followed him to a group of chairs in the middle of the fire-lit room, Snape spoke curtly, "Sit down, Miss Kent."

"Professor, I really think that I ought to…"

"Sit."

Patience sat carefully on an ancient brocade bench and peered nervously at the uncomfortable looking warlock in front of her. She was afraid to speak, but even more frightened of what was going to happen if she didn't get home before her mother found out that she had escaped her closet. Whilst Patience waited for Snape to tell her why he had brought her there, her stomach suddenly began to rumble from hunger. As she felt her cheeks burn with shame, Patience peered fearfully up at him, hoping that he had not heard.

Yet his dark expression twisted into a grim look of frustration, as Snape clapped his hands loudly and spoke sharply, "Wicket!"

Realising that he must have heard, Patience shrank back into her chair and wondered if she could Apparate away from the house. However, she knew that most old houses, like all of her own family's houses, were protected from anyone Apparating into or out of them. Professor Snape's house was not likely to be any different.

"How long has it been since you ate?"

Patience did not dare tell the truth, "Only since breakfast."

Patience wondered if the fact that she was hungry could possibly make Professor Snape look quite so angry and was almost resolved to risk an attempt at Disapparating when a tiny, elderly house-elf with exceptionally hairy ears appeared at the professor's side and bowed. "Yes, master?"

"Tea for the lady. Something substantial and don't be long with it."

"Yes, master, tea."

Patience thought how incredibly out of character it seemed for one of the nastiest men she had ever known to be offering her a meal. In her experience, which included a lifetime spent with her two older brothers and her father, warlocks did not concern themselves with the needs of a witch unless strictly necessary.

"Now then, explain yourself."

"It really isn't anything, sir. I was lost and so I thought I would…"

"The truth, girl. Out with it."

Patience did not respond as she thought privately, "Why does he care? Does he…does he think that I was spying on him?'

"Should I send for your parents, Miss Kent?"

"No! Oh, no, please sir, please don't let them know that you saw me. Please!"

Snape looked carefully down at the young woman that had jumped up from the little bench to plead with him. He knew how old she was, but she was so small that even standing she would probably be shorter than he was when seated, so she looked more like a second-year than a young woman who had recently taken her NEWTs. What could have possessed him to bring this girl of all witches, inside his home—his private sanctum? "Very well then, Miss Kent, but only for the moment until you can explain yourself more fully. Take your seat again. Wicket is here with your tea."

He noticed her blush deeply and nervously fidget her hands as she watched the old house-elf set up the tray in front of her. He could tell by the almost nauseous look on her face when she smelt the food on the plate that she had lied to him about how long it had been since her last meal. Of course, he had known that Morag Kent maltreated her daughter, but he had never expected her to starve the girl. Despite a complete lack of brains, such a beautiful creature as Patience would be an asset to the Kent family. Snape knew well how much Morag was concerned about appearances and power, yet a starving girl would not attract the right sort of wizards. So to what end would she have done this? Patience was such a milquetoast personality, so desperate to please and willing to obey, that Snape could not imagine that she was being starved to punish some serious disobedience.

He watched as the young woman swallowed a few mouthfuls of the buttered toast and then closed his eyes. He lifted his fingers and felt the warmth of the fire grow and then after a few moments he looked back at the girl. She seemed to have almost forgotten his presence as she greedily gobbled down two large oat scones and gulped the goblet of blackcurrant juice.

Finally, after almost 10 minutes, during which time Snape got up and poured a second drink from the decanter that the house-elf had placed by his right arm, he saw the girl return her attention to him. It was clear to him that Patience was realising that she had been acting much like a pig at the trough, therefore he was not surprised when she hastily dropped the bite of muffin that was in her hand and stammered, "Thank you very much for the meal, sir. I…I didn't mean to inconvenience you."

Snape replied in what he hoped was a steady voice, "Finish eating and then you may return home via Floo from my fire grate."

Patience shook her head vehemently and pleaded, "No, please. They mustn't know I ever left."

Snape felt a wave of immense irritation pass over him as he asked, "You've not run away from home, have you child?" Watching her carefully, Snape thought with distaste that if the silly girl had somehow embroiled him in a feeble attempt to escape her family…well, he would have to disabuse her mind of any thought that she could rely on his help. Snape roundly detested Morag, loathed William, and disliked both of the Kent twins, who had caused him too much trouble when they had been in his house six years beforehand. He had no desire to get any more involved with the Kent family. Why had he allowed himself to display his weakness and brought her into his home?

"No, sir. Mother would not let me leave the house and she had not let me owl Bobby for a week, Bobby Fleming I mean. We are supposed to be married in October, so I was afraid that he would be concerned. So I Disapparated from the back garden, Mummy doesn't know that I can Apparate so I hoped she wouldn't know that I had left, sir, and I was going to surprise Bobby at his office here in Hogsmeade."

Snape thought bitterly that it was his own fault for asking the girl what was wrong with her. He ought to have given her the food and pushed her out the door. He pinched the top of his nose to ward off what felt like a sudden headache and said, "Continue."

"But…Bobby was not alone."

Inevitable. It had been guaranteed from the start that it would be something like this. He had always thought that Robert Fleming had been a particularly intelligent Ravenclaw. Now he had two reasons to hate the damn boy. He had sworn four months ago that he would never again allow this particular weakness to affect him and now she was in his house, eating his food, and giving him every reason to want to try out his latest Kontaminácia Spell on the 20-year-old junior secretary to the head of magical law enforcement. "I see."

"So I…so I was upset, which is why I ran away before he could see me and I was trying to collect myself when…when you found me."

Snape did not say anything to the young woman who was alternating between nervously watching him and peering round the room as if she were expecting her mother to jump out of the walls and find her there. He had to get the girl out of his house before he did anything else foolish.

"Have you finished eating?"

"Y-yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

"You will want to return home before your mother discovers your absence?"

"Y-yes, sir, please."

"Come then."

Snape saw the girl look down at her dirty hem after she stood up to follow him. He could see that she was obviously distressed about it. She was standing indecisively, her wand raised, and biting her lip as if she were trying to remember something important. Surely, she was not so incompetent that she could not even Spell away mud, was she?

"Hurry and clean it. I've not got all day, girl."

He saw a deep red flush spread along her face and down her neck, "I…I always bleach it out on accident. I don't know…"

Snape flourished his wand at her robe and then waved his hand toward the door saying with asperity, "Second-year Charms, you silly girl. Even most first-years know it. Now follow me."

Note:

This is the second in a pair of stories for a characterisation exercise challenge. The rules: both main canon characters must stay in character, yet it must be believable that both men have married quite young, attractive recent graduates from Hufflepuff house at very nearly the same time. Both witches are pure-bloods (we know from canon that both wizards are half-bloods). Additionally, so neither OC will be a Mary Sue, neither witch is allowed to have been overly intelligent at school. Academics or career pursuits must not be a method in which the wizards connect with the witches. No romance must have begun at Hogwarts. Both relationships must pass through similar highs and lows, but there is no rule as to how the relationships must turn out at the end.

I chose to separate the two stories, but they were written at the same time and are loosely connected. They are meant to contrast how differently the two men handle their respective romances and succeed to whatever degree. This story contains only the Snape plotline with a reference to the Lupin story. The Lupin story is posted here on ff as well. The other story was written pre-HBP so is completely AU, however with the updates that I have just tucked in today this story is now canon-compliant through all seven books (the changes are minor, since the story was previously compliant through HBP).

I do so appreciate anyone taking the time to read this, especially as it originally was written 11 years ago! In response to comments, I want to make clear that this is the complete story posted in full. The final chapter does not spell out certain events, since we all know what transpired in the final book. Thank you especially to every one of you who has reviewed. I am thrilled that people enjoyed what I wrote for a bit of fun. Thank you!

Best Regards,

E