Warning: 

The next chapter contains scenes with explicit sexual content. Reader discretion is advised.

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For a moment he thought he was still dreaming.

Severus woke up, feeling comforted to realise that the woman's warm body was still by his side, her smell of sweet spices filling his lungs, her brown hair contrasting with the whiteness of the sheets. However, he also noticed another presence, one that he thought he had been able to push away the night before. One that had been with him for years, that resided in his head and his heart. The memory of Lily still haunted his thoughts.

He let out a sigh and clenched his teeth, embarrassed that Lily's ghost managed to sneak into his mind right after making love to Laurel. He considered using occlumency to make those feelings disappear, but he didn't want to sink into darkness, not now that Laurel's love and passion had filled his body and soul.

He then decided to face her, hugging Laurel, as if she were the anchor that would keep him safe and undaunted in the face of the deluge of remorse that was about to fall on him.

Lily

"I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."

"No, listen, I didn't mean..."

"To call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

That memory replayed in his head, sharper than ever.

He wished he could have the chance to answer her:

"Because I love you, Lily. Because I never meant to hurt you.

I am sorry, I was angry and humiliated and jealous of James Potter. He fancies you, and you fancy him back, I know. I saw you laughing when that swine hanged me upside down in the air.

I know I am just the boy with the shabby clothes who lives down in dreadful Spinner's End, I know you would never look at me the same way you look at James. But I am begging your forgiveness because I have no one else, because you are my only friend and I don't want to lose you, now that I have lost my family as well.

Last winter I stopped my father from trying to kill my mother, did I tell you that? No, I did not, because it's humiliating enough to know that I'm not as important for you to believe me, to take me seriously when I told you Sirius Black tried to kill me. Even Dumbledore, the wise and just headmaster, has made me swear silence to protect his decision to accept a werewolf at school, he has made me swear to keep my mouth shut to protect his beloved Gryffindors".

"What difference does it make if you know that I Obliviate my father and kicked him out of the house? What difference does it make for you that my mother has no desire to continue living and even refuses to speak to me?

"You are light, Lily. You don't deserve to deal with someone like me, a miserable lover of the dark arts, a twisted Slytherin who has only found appreciation from perfidious Death Eaters".

"Forgive me, Lily, it was all my fault, I should never have dragged you down with me".

"Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker... Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way..."

Severus opened his eyes again upon hearing a low singing and felt a soft caress on his forearm. Laurel had woken up too and was now curled up next to him, humming weakly, her gaze fixed on the dark mark.

He quickly drew his arm away from the touch of the woman, who turned her eyes to him, smiling shyly.

"It's a pretty tune". - He whispered, hoping his impulsive movement would go unnoticed.

"My mother used to lull me to it". - She whispered back, realizing that the dark mark was off limits.

"Why did you wake up so early?"

"I must go back to my room. The earlier, the fewer people will see me". - She said shrugging and stifling a sigh as she pulled the duvet aside, her skin turning to goosebumps at the contact with the cold air of the dungeons.

Severus immediately felt the emptiness in his bed, he had no desire to be alone with his thoughts.

"Stay".

Laurel giggled when Severus grabbed her wrist, pulling her towards him, wrapping the sheets around her again, hugging her from behind. He bit the nape of her neck, leaving the mark of his uneven teeth on the delicate skin, then began to slowly descend her spine, kissing and sucking on each vertebra, until he reached the two small dimples in the small of her back.

She let out soft moans, her body wiggling of its own accord, pressing against his and it didn't take long for her to feel his erection rubbing against her buttocks. Severus put a hand to his mouth and moistened his fingers, then tucked them between Laurel's firm legs, stroking her throbbing sex, masturbating her. Her body was crying out to be penetrated by the wizard's cock, yet Severus seemed to have other plans.

He continued to rub her clit, whispering in an aroused voice sweet nothings to her ear. Laurel squeezed her legs and moaned loudly, rocking her pelvis, trying to increase his contact, breathing heavily against the pillow, imploring him to fuck her.

Severus, on the contrary, preferred to continue with the torture. He inserted his fingers painfully slowly, moving them inside her until he found her g-spot.

"Severus, please!" - She begged, while her complexion acquired a blushed tone.

Severus bit her shoulder, trying to control the spasms that hit the woman's body as the friction increased in her point of pleasure, his fingers curving, circling faster against her swollen g-spot. She came hard, her mouth opened in a silent scream, her body melting in his hands like butter.

Sticking his fingers out, wet from her juices, he spread out her legs, fucking her sideways, tenderly; slowly enjoying her freshly cummed pussy.

"Tell me you love me". - He murmured, pushing his cock inside her. He needed to hear those words again, he needed to be sure that there really was one person in the world who loved him: Severus Snape, the poor, bullied half-blood child, the vile, ugly Death Eater, the hated teacher.

"I love you... I love you, Severus." - She moaned in an agitated voice, feeling electric shocks surging up her cervix with each slam.

Severus suddenly took her by an arm and, gripping her tightly, he turned her body, leaving her face-down on the bed, as he leaned on top of her, balancing his weight on his arms and penetrating her vigorously from behind, his pale glutes contracting with each thrust, his black hair, bouncing against his sweaty face. Noticing how his love bites left red bruises that stood out against the dull scars on Laurel's back, Severus became even hornier.

With one hand he brushed her hair away from her ear, whispering in his deep, silky voice:

"You are mine, Laurel. Only mine and nobody else's. Say it!"

Laurel was about to have another orgasm, the delicious voice of her lover was driving her crazy, his weight on her, his possessive obsession, and the intensity with which he fucked her, barely allowed her to think straight.

"Yours... yours... AHH!"

Laurel let herself go and a second later, Severus' deep growl warned her that he had caught up with her too, collapsing beside her, his eyes closed, breathing erratically.

The woman snuggled next to him, burying her face against the smooth skin of his chest, feeling the rapid pounding of his heart, forgetting for a second that Severus was a wizard, that she was at Hogwarts, that a war was taking place at that very moment. Nothing mattered to her, she could stay right there forever.

"Sing to me again, pet". - Whispered him, resting his chin on the Akardos's head.

" Two drifters, off to see the world ... There's such a lot of world to see ..."

Laurel's soft, brittle singing brought back memories of his earliest childhood, of the time when his father had not yet started drinking, nor had her mother confessed to being a witch, of the time when a piece of bread and a glass of water were enough to suffice the hunger of a four-year-old. He remembered his mother Eileen dainty humming, rocking him in her arms, silencing the cries of a feverish child during Bonfire Night. He clearly remembered seeing through the window the bright flames of the bonfire lit on his street, the shadow of the kids running around it, the laughs and shouts of the neighbours throwing the Guy into the fire. He could almost taste the baked potatoes his father had brought for breakfast after cooking them in the embers left from the bonfire.

He never thought he would miss those times, he thought he hated his childhood, and yet, Laurel had somehow managed to awaken in him an orphan nostalgia, an evocation of more innocent years that had nothing to do with Lily.

"Severus." - Laurel caressed his face, bringing him back to reality. - "You got caught in your thoughts".

"Sorry". - He replied, his mind still not used to be free for so long from the chains of occlumency.

"You don't need to apologize". - She said, freeing herself from his embrace and sitting on the edge of the bed. - "But we must get up now. Remus will be here soon".

"Remus?" - Severus felt the familiar sting of jealousy in his stomach. - "Hasn't he asked you to call him Moony yet?"

He buried himself back under the covers, his arms crossed in front of his chest, his grim face glancing at her sidelong.

"No, although it is honestly quite a clever nickname. I think I'll start calling him that". - She laughed, amused. - "Come on, Severus, no time for sulking now. I promised Dumbledore that I should keep you focused on your research".

And looking down at the floor where their garments had ended up last night, she added with a smile:

"I think I'm not doing a very good job".

Severus kept his eyes fixed on her, taking in the beautiful curve of her smile, her white teeth, the limpid laughter that echoed in her room. She was his and he wanted to make her feel that he was hers too.

"Call me Sev". - He said in an impulsive, almost childish way. He longed to hear that name again from the lips of a woman who loved him for real.

"Pardon me?" - Laurel turned her gaze to him, her eyebrows raised. - "I thought you didn't want..."

"I want it, I want you to call me, Sev." - Severus sat on the bed next to her, gently cupping her face with his hands. - "Please".

Laurel bit her lip, her eyes scanning him, trying to see in Severus's gaze the reason for that sudden request. A pang in her heart alerted her that the memory of his beloved Lily must have leaked at some point during intimacy, but in which moment? Last night while he was asking her not to leave him? While he was leaving love bites on her back? When he asked her to tell him she loved him? Did he dream of her?

Laurel looked down at her naked body and suddenly felt ashamed of herself. How could she compare to Lily? The woman who left him marked since his adolescence. He had said it himself from the beginning, he still loved her.

"I..."

She got up and quickly dressed in her nightgown, clearing her throat, trying to calm the ravings in her mind. She was exaggerating, for sure. Severus had no ill intentions, it was just a nickname, like Moony... Yes, that it was, he was jealous she said she would call Remus that.

Severus looked at her, confused, realizing too late his request had caused a grave displeasure in her. How could he have been so foolish? How did he not stop to think that Laurel would immediately think that he was comparing her to Lily? For being a spy, he really was behaving like one of his stupid students.

He got up from the bed and approached her slowly, not caring about the gelid air of the room, over his naked body.

"You don't have to call me that if you don't want". - He said quietly, watching as Laurel, distracted in her thoughts, picked up her robe from the floor. - "You can call me dunderhead, it sure suits me better".

Laurel smiled slightly, trying not to get carried away by her jealousy, she didn't want to doubt the affection Severus had shown her. She just wanted to clarify a question.

"You didn't want me to call you Sev before. Why have you changed your mind?"

Severus shrugged and with his usual smug smile said:

"I don't know, maybe it's because I hadn't tasted your lips". - Severus took her by her shoulders and kissed her mouth passionately. - "Maybe it's because you didn't sneak into my bed before". - His fingers slid under the soft satin, brushing her thigh seductively. - "Or perhaps, I didn't have the pleasure of seeing you in that skimpy and sensuous lingerie".

Laurel froze, fascinated by Severus's voice, by its irresistible scent of dried herbs. Despite being Akardos, she had fallen under his spell.

"Do I explain myself enough, pet?"

"I will let you win this time, Sev". - She said smiling, pushing him away and covering herself with her robe. - "Now, witch yourself up some robes, you are going to catch a cold".

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Song: Moon River
Audrey hepburn
Composed by Henry Mancini, lyrics by Johnny Mercer
1961