Molly Weasley hummed to herself as she tidied the cramped kitchen at the Burrow, something she had done so many times over the past two decades that she hardly needed to put any thought into it. A charmed sponge was scrubbing dishes dirtied from a meal of chicken tagliatelle, and with a lazy flick of her wand, the clean plates flew into the awaiting cupboards. The matriarch turned, knowing the floors needed to be tended to as well, and she picked up a broom that had been resting against the kitchen table. Her voice grew louder as the wistful song repeating in her head played on, and she shimmied a little as she swept. Arthur was at work and knowing the boys needed to keep occupied or risk having the house torn apart, were sent on an errand. Ginny, the sweet girl, was upstairs in her room, as she hadn't wanted to accompany her brothers to Professor Snape and Cassie's home. Molly, never really comfortable in the quiet, continued to sing to herself.
The song that was in her head was from long ago, a ballad by talented witch Evaine Emeraldheart. It was the song played during her first formal dance with Arthur, the one that never failed to bring back memories of their wedding day. She hadn't heard it in years, but in the last few weeks, she found that it popped into her head quite frequently. Weddings in every sense of the word had been on her mind ever since Severus had asked her and Andromeda to accompany him ring shopping.
She heard a commotion outside, much earlier than she had expected. Going to the window above the kitchen sink, she peered out to see what her sons were up to. Ron and the twins were getting their brooms out of the garden shed and were already arguing about who should carry the trunk of Quidditch balls to the yard.
"Back so soon?" Molly called from the front door with her hands on her apron-covered hips.
"Cassie had to leave," Ron answered, shrugging. "Didn't feel like hanging around without her."
"Not that Snape would want us hanging around there," Fred chimed in. "He might come across one of our puking pasties!"
Molly's face screwed up as she readied to scold, but George cut her off. "What I wouldn't give to see Malfoy eat one of 'em."
"Malfoy," his mother said, taken aback. "Lucius was there?"
"No, no," said Fred. "The little one."
"Odd." Molly had never heard of Draco visiting Ottery St. Catchpole before. She supposed there was a first time for everything.
"That he is," George added.
"Where did Cassie go?" she asked her three sons, and she received three blank stares in reply. "Really," she huffed, feeling crosser as this conversation went on. "Do none of you pay any attention?"
"What business is it of ours where she goes?" Ron protested.
"Her cousin came for a visit and she left him there. That doesn't strike you as strange behavior?"
Ron continued to look dumbfounded, but something seemed to click on the twins' faces. George looked sheepish before saying, "Someone came to the door, and then Cassie left in a hurry."
"Who?" Molly demanded.
"Dunno," Fred answered.
Molly was fed up with questioning her clueless sons. With little information to go on, her instincts were telling her that something was wrong. After reminding them that they were not allowed to fly unless they invited Ginny along (and that was met with the loud moans of protests that she was expecting), she headed down the dirt road, leftovers in hand.
She knocked on the door three times, and unable to contain herself while waiting for a reply, she called, "Severus? It's Molly, dear!"
The Hogwarts professor answered the door, his expression sober as he studied the witch before him. "Yes?"
"I wanted to check on things," Molly said, and she brandished the leftovers at the tall wizard. "And I have Tagliatelle if you're hungry."
Severus raised a single eyebrow at her. "Thank you, Molly. Cassie is not home, unfortunately."
"I know, that's why I'm here! The boys mentioned it - " She stopped when she saw the boy with familiar platinum blond hair poke his head around the corner. His nose scrunched up at the sight of her, and she wanted to slap the look right off of his smug face. "I see you have company." She knew discussing anything sensitive would be repeated to Draco's father and subsequently, Cornelius Fudge.
"I will be escorting him back to Malfoy Manor shortly."
"If you need anything, please don't hesitate, Severus."
"Understood."
Molly went home empty-handed and feeling very much like she had accomplished nothing. She watched her children fly on their brooms and pass a quaffle back and forth while her mind drifted to other things. Ginny especially was getting quite good, and she praised them all generously for getting along while they practiced. She had just ushered them inside so they could start making dinner when she noticed the Head of Slytherin coming up the drive.
"Start the roast," Molly told her children, "and please peel the potatoes." Fred, George, and Ginny disappeared through the front door without a word of protest.
"But Mum," Ron started, eyeing Severus warily. "What's he doing - "
"Hush, now!" she scolded, "I'll be inside in a moment."
Severus appeared to be at a loss. He stood before her at his full height, his black eyes locked on her with the most unreadable expression. She could sense that he wanted to say something and whether it was that he didn't know how to word it or that he was trying to hold back, she wasn't exactly sure. But with countless years of mothering behind her, there was one thing she knew for certain: the wizard in her presence needed comfort, and that was something that she could provide.
"Severus," she said softly, "Would you like to talk?"
He said nothing to indicate either way. Instead, he let out a shaky breath, his eyes glittering with the subtle hint of obscured emotions. Molly felt his distress. It was painful, seeing the normally stoic wizard in such a vulnerable state, and she knew it must be agonizing for him to come to her. She pushed down the hundreds of questions that were threatening to bubble up from her chest and burst from her mouth, for she knew it was Cassie's well-being that was causing this man such turmoil. And Cassie's well-being was something that she fretted about nearly as much as her naturally-born children. But she couldn't help Cassie at that moment, not directly. All she could do was help the man that Cassie loved, and that would have to be enough.
Knowing Severus might resist, Molly wrapped her arms around his lanky frame and pulled him into a tight hug. She could feel the wiry muscles beneath his long black shirt tense, and for a few moments, she worried that she had overstepped. But then he began to relax and even somewhat return the embrace, and she pulled him in tighter.
Meanwhile, an ocean away, Cassie inhaled deeply in an attempt to steady herself. She and Romily had just arrived in Rio de Janeiro by Portkey. There was a standing order that the ministry could not prevent them from traveling to South America in case Minister Da Gama needed them. Otherwise, getting there would have been a lot trickier.
"The muggle leader must be rather narcissistic," Cassie commented dryly, nodding to the enormous statue at the top of a mountain as they followed two Brazilian Aurors through the crowds.
"Muggle leader? That is Christ the Redeemer," Romily corrected her, looking slightly horrified at Cassie's ignorance. She snorted in disbelief when her raven-haired companion gave her a shrug of indifference.
Bianca was being kept in a small basilica at the base of The Corcovado. Cassie could sense the dense magic as they neared it, likely from all of the charms that were needed to deflect wandering muggles. She was surprised, then, to see four more navy-clad Aurors when they walked through the heavy wooden doors.
The blonde seer was nearly unrecognizable. She lay on a cot covered in a tangled mess of blankets, her face that was normally rubicund and full of perception now ashy and lifeless. Her eyes were turned up to the ceiling, and she didn't seem to notice as Cassie and Romily slowly approached. Her lips were moving in an endless barrage of soundless gabber.
"Be quick about it," said one of the Aurors. He was a stout wizard with long sideburns and a cold glare. "Bianca needs her rest."
"Alvaro, she has done nothing but rest since she was attacked," the witch standing next to him, an Auror named Kelya, responded swiftly. Cassie shot her a look of thanks, and Kelya winked at her in response. They were familiar with one another, as Kelya had pledged her loyalty to Cassie that night in St. Petersberg.
"And you think her presence is going to help things?" he said, gesturing toward Cassie like she wasn't there. Romily, who was growing visibly annoyed, stepped forward to answer when Bianca's mutterings became more audible.
"I didn't quite hear you," Cassie said softly, getting closer to Bianca. Her eyes were still screwed upward, and she hadn't blinked once. Her dry, chapped lips were moving quickly as if she were chanting, but all that Cassie could hear was a faint whisper. "Can you speak up a little, Bianca?"
The seer continued to whisper. Romily joined Cassie at her side, bending down to try to hear better. Bianca closed her eyes as her lips continued to move.
"This is pointless," Alvaro muttered. "Leave her be, you two - "
"Shut it!" Kelya snapped. The other Aurors looked nervous as they guarded the door, unsure of which superior's side to take in the argument. Cassie, however, remained focused on Bianca, trying to make out what she was saying. Her voice was so quiet, so raspy, and her lips were moving so fast -
Bianca's eyes shot open and her head suddenly whipped toward Cassie, who yelped in surprise at the sudden movements. Those dark brown eyes were haunted and unseeing as they locked onto Cassie's. "CASSIOPEIA ELLADORA BLACK!" Bianca screamed. "CASSIOPEIA ELLADORA BLACK!"
Cassie nearly tripped over backward as Romily gripped her upper arm in terror, but she steadied herself, unwilling to look away from Bianca's blank stare as she continued to screech her name. There had to be more information, had to be something else she would say so they could figure out what had transpired. She just needed to figure out how -
"ENOUGH!" Alvaro roared. "Get out of here, right now!"
"It is not your call!" Romily fired back, her wand drawn and pointed at the older wizard's chest.
"How dare you - "
"Alvaro," Kelya tried to reason. "If you want to help her, if you want to find out what happened, you have to give Cassiopeia more time!"
"I won't have it!" Alvaro responded, pulling his wand from his robes. "I'll go to Da Gama himself, I'll have you all arrested!"
Cassie, too engrossed in preparing to perform Legilimency on Bianca's broken mind, missed the scuffle that followed. In less than thirty seconds, Romily and Kelya had subdued the angry Auror and had escorted his unconscious body from the basilica. The two younger Aurors needed little convincing to step outside until Cassie was finished.
As soon as she was connected to the seer's mind, Cassie wished that she hadn't. She had performed the skill so many times recently that it had become almost second nature, but this was something else entirely. This consciousness was chaos, and the images were fragmented and nonsensical. She tried to make sense of what she was seeing, but it was like trying to grab whirling, minuscule puzzle pieces from unknown bits of time and attempting to force them together. She could feel her own mind start to unravel in all of the mayhem. And a voice was getting louder, louder, until she realized it was someone - no, Bianca - screaming her name...
She had to get out. Panic ripped through her when she realized that she couldn't. CASSIOPEIA ELLADORA BLACK. CASSIOPEIA ELLADORA BLACK.
"Help!" Cassie cried, but she didn't know if she had said it or if it was only in Bianca's mind. Could Romily hear her? Even if she could, what could she do?
She felt Bianca's pain. Searing hot flames burnt flesh and invisible daggers pierced her. She heard bones crunching as something twisted her from the inside and she wanted to die, but the merciful release of death never came. Only demands that she could not meet, and she was punished further.
In the tornado of torn memories, Cassie caught a glimpse of something. It was a flash of a tan face covered with blue dashes surrounded by a mane of black hair. A voice, this time much deeper than Bianca's, started to laugh.
"Little girl," the man's voice goaded her, drowning out her name.
"What do you want?" Cassie demanded as if the voice was sentient. It laughed again, sending shivers up her spine. She choked as an invisible hand grasped around her throat and squeezed. She could feel her strength rapidly leaving her.
"Vengeance," it hissed.
All at once, she was severed from Bianca's mind. She fell to the ground in a heap, struggling to catch her breath. Romily was standing over her with her wand in her hand, her eyes widened in alarm as she looked over her.
The basilica was eerily silent. "Bianca," Cassie gasped as Romily pulled her to her feet. "Did I hurt her?"
"I had to knock her unconscious," Kelya said quietly. The Auror was stroking Bianca's blonde hair out of her face almost lovingly. "Whatever connection you made, you didn't seem to be able to break it."
"You're right. I couldn't."
"You were struggling," Romily told her quietly, "Like you were 'aving a seizure. We 'ad to do something."
Cassie swallowed thickly. "What did they do to her?"
Kelya's gaze flickered up to Cassie's in surprise. "You didn't see?"
"No, I - Not really. I felt it."
Kelya nodded solemnly, her eyes returning to Bianca's sleeping form. "When she was found, it seemed her assailant was trying to force premonitions from her. There were burnt twigs and broken occamy eggs around her. Even a couple of dead rats, although we aren't sure they were a part of it."
"I couldn't work out what they were after," Cassie muttered, disgusted with herself. "What was done to her was truly horrendous. Her mind...I've never seen anything like it."
"The healers said it was a miracle she is even still alive," said Kelya, and then her hand went to her mouth as she stifled a sob. Romily rushed to her side.
Cassie returned to Ottery St. Catchpole, crestfallen and with more questions nagging at her than before. Severus, ever the intellect, probed her with dozens of questions after she recounted her nightmarish experience. He was nervous for Cassie, suspecting whoever had done this to Bianca had likely done it to get to her. She had come to this conclusion as well.
"We must understand this in its entirety," the Potions Master declared as he paced their cozy kitchen. Clad in a black long-sleeve shirt and lounge pants, Cassie willed the situation to be as casual as Severus was dressed. She was staring at his bare feet as he padded back and forth across the tiled floor, her mind miles away as she wondered how many people in his life had seen him without shoes. It was an odd thought. She didn't hear him the first few times he called her name.
"Huh?" she asked softly as Severus knelt in front of her. With his face inches from hers, his black eyes pulled her focus back to him as they nearly always did.
"Cassie," he repeated, not unkindly. "I need you to concentrate. Are there any other details you did not already disclose? Is there anything else you can tell me?"
She reached out to touch his face gently, cupping his cheek with her hand. It was a gesture of loving appreciation, to show him that she didn't take for granted that he was always by her side. He turned into the touch, just so, and let out a small sigh.
"You've heard everything," she told him, her hand returning to her lap.
"Perhaps if I connect with your mind - "
"No!" she said abruptly. His eyes narrowed and his eyebrows cinched as he studied the nuances of her outburst.
"If you've forgotten something, it may be the only solution," he pressed, speaking slowly as if he was trying not to spook a scared animal.
"Absolutely not!"
"Cassie - "
"I won't have you experience it," she said, shaking her head. The wizard grasped her hands in his, but she pulled them away in fear that he was going to try to look into her eyes again. A sudden guttural fear took over her that somehow he would see Bianca's pain as she had. "I can't do that to you, Sev!"
"I can endure it."
"You can," she said, looking down at her lap, "but it is not necessary." A pressing silence passed between them.
"That is final, then?" he asked sardonically. His expression was icy and calculating as he gazed upon her. "You are in danger, the people around you are in danger. Yet, here we sit with the tiniest bits of information you were able to provide?"
"That's not fair."
"What an asinine thing to say. It's not about what is fair." He stood up and turned away from her, likely to hide the sneer that had formed on his features.
"Really, Severus? Then enlighten me, will you?"
"It's about you making idiotic decisions based on your feelings, yet again!" he snapped. Red-hot anger formed on Cassie's chest and radiated to her neck as his words processed.
"So I'm an idiot? For trying to protect you?"
"I don't need protection, you foolish girl!" he snarled, his eyes glittering dangerously as he faced her. He was lost in his indignation, unbearably uncomfortable at his inability to control the situation. He was finding himself in this predicament more and more these days.
Cassie pushed herself away from the table, the chair scraping loudly against the floor as she moved. "You don't know what you need, Severus Snape!" she snapped at him as she stormed away.
She was alone in their bedroom for only a few moments. Severus had followed closely behind her, having only taken the time to fetch a sleeping draught from his stores. He didn't know exactly what his lover had seen in Bianca's tormented mind, but he did know that she would need a medicated reprieve to get a good night's rest.
With Romily, Diolinda, and Kelya's help, Bianca was moved to the empty Lestrange estate. Cassie wanted the seer within Apparating distance so she could ensure her protection, but also to continue the efforts to heal her. So far, nothing had offered any improvement, and Romily was tasked with tracking down a Healer that might be able to offer something different. Cassie, for the most part, stayed away. Every time she entered the room Bianca was being kept in, she started to scream her name again. It was a traumatic situation for both witches.
As the summer break trickled on, Cassie continued with the interrogation of her new followers as Severus continued to brew. The Potions Master was going through expensive ingredients regularly, and knowing that someone might recognize that he was concocting large batches of Veritaserum as well as Wolfsbane, he had to be careful about how and when he obtained supplies.
On one cloudy evening, the couple made a special trip specifically for such ingredients. Severus traveled to a potions shop in Muggle London while Cassie went to Mulpepper's, and they intended to have dinner at the Leaky Cauldron when they were done. It was a simple plan, one that Severus hoped would be uneventful as to offer them some much-needed relaxation. After he arrived at Diagon Alley and spotted Percy Weasley walking toward him, he quickly realized the evening would be anything but.
"Good evening to you, Professor Snape," Percy said amicably, offering his hand. Severus took it, albeit reluctantly.
"Good evening, Mr. Weasley," he intoned.
"Doing a bit of shopping?" the younger wizard asked, eyeing the paper-wrapped parcels in his ex-professor's hands. The question, which would seem harmless under normal circumstances, was tinged with an air of suspicion.
Rather than answer Percy, Severus stared him down. The boy deflated under his gaze, as he expected. "Is there something I can assist you with, Mr. Weasley?"
Percy cleared his throat, although the attempt didn't prevent his voice from cracking. "Will Cassiopeia be joining you?"
"I do not see the relevance," Severus replied. Several loud pops around them announced the arrival of others. As he recognized Barty Crouch, he hid his surprise behind a mask of indifference.
Crouch, flanked by two Aurors, approached Severus slowly. "I presume you have an idea what this is about, Snape."
"On the contrary. I implore you to enlighten me."
One corner of Crouch's mouth upturned slightly as he looked Severus over. "Malfoy assured me you would be reasonable in Black's absence. He and Dumbledore speak so highly of you."
"I doubt you've cornered me to sing my praises," Severus replied dryly.
"Of that you are correct," said Crouch. "I want your cooperation, Snape. Convince Black to come in. Fudge is at the very end of his rope."
"Obviously, you don't know Miss Black all that well," Severus quipped. "If you did, perhaps you would know that no one - not even myself - can convince her to do anything. Perhaps Mr. Weasley can inform you of her indomitability."
Crouch looked around, confused about the reference to Percy for a few moments. "Ah, yes! Weatherby has mentioned that she is a particularly stubborn witch. Which is why I am petitioning for your assistance." He took a few steps closer, his voice much quieter when he spoke next. "I can understand your desire to be defiant, Snape, which is why I feel the need to mention that if you are unsuccessful, I might have to have a chat with the school governors about your current position."
Severus had a harder time hiding his bewilderment at Crouch's threat. Truly worried about his job? Of course not. Dumbledore would never allow him to be sacked over something so trivial, and Lucius would likely side with him over Crouch. But the audacity of the wizard was truly astounding. He met the Ministry wizard's stony gaze with an equally cold glare, opening his mouth to reply something snarky when a voice caught them all off guard.
"How dare you!" Cassie thundered. How much of the interaction she had heard, Severus wasn't sure at the moment. What he was sure of was his girlfriend's demented rage.
"Cassie - " Severus tried to interject, as her wand was already pointed at Crouch and her face twisted in anger.
"Don't tell me to stay calm!" she hissed at him. She turned back to Crouch and the Aurors, who now also had their wands drawn. "Threaten Severus, did you? Did you think that was going to accomplish anything?"
Crouch's Adam's apple bounced as he swallowed down his nerves. "Miss Black, we were having a conversation. If you would only comply with Cornelius's requests - "
"I heard your conversation,'" Cassie snapped, her wand now pointed at his neck. "It would serve your best interest to not lie to me, Crouch."
"Miss Black, please listen to reason - "
"I will no longer obey Fudge's demands. Unless you're having me arrested - " she said as she stuffed her wand into her pocket. No one moved. She brandished her fists at the Aurors and they flinched, but she was only offering them her wrists to be shackled. "Leave us the fuck alone."
Percy stared at her, slack-jawed, before Disapparating with his colleagues. Severus suggested that they return home, but Cassie would not have their plans interrupted so rudely.
"Cassie," Severus said as they walked, "You know that will not be the end of it."
She grabbed his hand, giving it a firm squeeze as she looked up at him. "It will be, Sev. Trust me."
"What in Merlin's name are you think - " He was cut off as she stood on her tip-toes to kiss him. She wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him closer to her, and the kiss grew far more heated than the usual chaste kisses they shared in public. For a split second, his first instinct was to halt her advances, as he despised such exhibitions. But he lost himself in her touch and her scent, and the fact that in moments like these when she had been on the brink of hysteria, she sought him to calm her. He was in awe as her lips moved against his and he wondered if she would always need him in this way. Perhaps their love was on borrowed time already, for he had yet to work out how this gorgeous young witch could possibly desire him above all others.
What she wanted was clear, and Severus was in no mood to deny her. Wordlessly, with her still clinging to his robes, he managed to pull her into the Leaky Cauldron. The pub was full of patrons having their dinners after a day of shopping, and it was busy enough that only a few seemed to notice the couple. "A room, please," Cassie told Tom breathlessly as he approached them with sticky menus.
With the key to room six in hand, Severus pinched his lover's backside as they ascended the staircase. She giggled, blushing as she turned to reprimand him. Elizabeth Selwyn, who was eating matzo ball soup, gasped in disdain. "The nerve of them, so blatant with displays of affection," she said, huffing to her nearly-deaf dinner companion, who nodded to appease her.
The couple wasted no time in locking themselves away in the cozy little room. Severus, who was blocking the door, seemed to be in a particular mood as his eyes trailed greedily over Cassie's clothed body.
"You have been causing me a lot of problems as of late," he drawled. Cassie worried her lower lip with her teeth and his black eyes flickered to her mouth.
"Are you displeased with me, Severus?" she asked sweetly. Her hand trailed between her breasts teasingly and his eyes followed her movements, pupils blown with lust. She pulled the ribbon that was keeping her blouse tied shut and as it fell open, she backed away from him, effectively moving closer to the bed.
"Utterly exasperated." He covered the distance between them in two long strides, causing her to squeak in delight as he shoved her down onto the mattress. Her body bounced slightly before it was covered by his long, black-clad frame.
"How would you like to alleviate your frustrations?" His face was inches from hers, and she tried to kiss him. He pulled back just enough to avoid her lips and then smirked at her obvious disappointment.
"Tonight," he purred, a mischievous glint in those onyx eyes. "You will obey."
She didn't argue. Instead, she savored every lick, every brush of his fingertips as he touched her. Her body was on fire as he slowly undressed her, leaving kisses on her exposed skin as he peeled the garments from her like he was opening a gift. Her clothing was discarded on the floor, forgotten as the Potions Master nibbled on her neck and kneaded her breasts. She was growing wetter by the second and writhing underneath him, desire giving way to burning need as Severus explored her at an agonizing pace. She needed more, she needed to feel him. When she reached up to unbutton his white shirt, he pulled her hands away.
"Spread your legs," he commanded. Knowing she needed to submit to get what she wanted, she did just that, moving her legs apart as he pulled his shirt off. Unsatisfied, he placed his hands on her knees and spread her even further apart, pushing her knees up towards her breasts and exposing her even more. Now that she was positioned how he wanted, he started to unbutton his trousers. "Now, touch yourself."
Heat rose to her cheeks at the very thought. "You want to watch?"
"Yes." A gentle smirk played at his lips, and to her, he had never looked so gorgeous with his tousled black hair contrasting with his bare, pale skin. Oh, what a scrumptious distraction this man was capable of providing her. Her hand went between her legs, her fingers gently parting the increasingly wet lips at her center. The tips of her fingers coated in her juices, she started to slowly rub her clit. "That's it, my love," Severus praised, satisfied with her adherence to his instruction. "Touch your cunt like you're imagining me fucking you."
Cassie moaned at the thought, increasing her pace. His nimble hands were on her inner thighs as she continued, dangerously close to her glistening core as he watched, his eyes flitting between her face and the hand that was building the ecstasy inside her. She was getting close. He could tell by the way her breathing was coming out in short bursts and how her thighs were shuddering.
In one swift motion, Severus pulled her hand away. Heavy-lidded blue eyes flew open to meet his, and he chuckled at the expected aggravation on her face. "No cumming," he told her silkily, "unless I am the cause of it."
"Please, Sev," she panted, resorting to begging now that the wizard had both of her wrists clenched in his long-fingered hand.
"Such a needy little witch," he drawled. With a light flick of his wand, green ribbons wrapped themselves around each of her wrists. Those dainty wrists held so much unyielding power and yet were currently under his authority. It was a delicious feeling, one that he didn't indulge in often, but tonight it seemed it was something they both were craving. He went to work securing them to the headboard as Cassie threw her head back in frustration.
"Severus - "
"Patience, my love." He pulled something from one of the packages from the day's trip, a bottle that Cassie didn't recognize. She didn't realize what it was until he was squirting a small amount of it onto his fingers. She eyed his lubricated digits hungrily.
He covered her body with his again, his tongue deeply penetrating her mouth as he kissed her, his hand trailing down her belly and down to her aching, empty core. Her moan was stifled by his kiss as his slippery fingers parted her folds and gently stroked her. He moved slowly, savoring her reactions, and then his thumb teased her clit in soft strokes as he whispered, "Beg for it, Cassiopeia."
She wasn't sure she was going to be able to form words for much longer, but she would try as long as he demanded it. "Please, Severus," she whined between ragged breaths. "Please put your fingers inside me!"
"Good girl," he purred as he pushed two digits unceremoniously into her heat. She groaned in satisfaction as he easily found her g-spot, curving his fingers to hit it just so, and fell into a lazy rhythm. He admired the beads of sweat that formed on her porcelain skin and the way that her breasts bounced as she struggled to catch her breath. A gorgeous blush had formed between her bosom and was crawling up her neck as her arousal heightened, and it was when he looked at her face again that he realized that her eyes were closed in concentration. That would just not do, not in that moment, not when he knew he had her on the brink of orgasm. "You will look at me as I fuck you with my fingers, girl."
It took her a few moments to find the willpower, but Cassie obeyed. She looked angelic to him with her raven hair strewn around her shoulders and her cheeks pinked with pleasure. Her mouth was open slightly, little mewls escaping her lips, and now her blue eyes were fixed on him as he worked her. His unrestrained cock twinged, begging for stimulation, but that would have to wait. He had this divine creature to attend to.
Never faltering in his rhythm, Severus lowered himself between her legs. She bit her lower lip in anticipation of his mouth on her, something that always drove him wild. He didn't bother to make her plead for him to perform cunnilingus before he drew a lazy circle around her swollen nub with his tongue. He was growing less interested in playing this game, keeping up this charade that she needed to earn his affection. In reality, he could hardly contain himself from abandoning all of this foreplay and was on the verge of fucking her without restraint.
"Oh, Merlin - Severus!" Cassie cried as he licked and sucked her clit. At her words, he increased his pace as he fingered her. She bucked her hips, chasing her release, and he placed his free hand on her thigh to pin her to the bed. His fingers went deeper inside her still, his lips encircling that little bundle of nerves, all while trying to keep her still so he could give her exactly what she craved.
Her walls began to pulsate around his fingers, her entire body shuddering as she climaxed under his touch. Severus was grateful that he had remembered to cast sound-deafening charms before the start of this tryst, or the entirety of the pub would have heard her cries of ecstasy. He allowed her a few minutes of recovery so she could catch her breath and regain her ability to think, all the while kissing her neck and palming her soft tits. She might have been coming down from her high, but he was still swollen with desire and craving her wet heat, in whatever form that might be.
"Sev," Cassie whispered after her wits had returned to her. She inhaled sharply as he nibbled on the bruised flesh where he had left a fresh love mark. He didn't realize that his hardened dick was digging into her thigh until she turned her lower body toward him, trying to generate some kind of friction between their naked bodies.
"Not yet," he told her.
"What would you like, then?"
He released her bondage, carefully massaging each of her wrists before moving to straddle her face. She peered up at him through long lashes, eager to please him after his expert ministrations on her. Her soft hands glided up the back of his thighs and came to rest on his arse. Surely, he did not deserve this, that he was convinced of as he admired the lewd view below him. The beautiful woman smirked playfully at him as his cocked twitched in anticipation.
He reached down and placed a thumb and pointer finger on her chin, pulling her face up just enough to ensure he had her full attention. "Open," he commanded in his most authoritative tone, "and suck my cock."
Slowly, dutifully, she licked around his tip before taking the head of his length into her mouth. He let out a hiss, reaching down to grip his fist in her black hair. Every fiber in him wanted to force her head further onto him, to thrust his hips forward and bury his entire length into her throat. He couldn't do that to her, not after she had listened to every one of his instructions so well that night. So he stayed in control as she pleasured him at her own pace, her head bobbing, her cheeks intermittently hollowed and her hands squeezing and massaging his ass.
"Good girl," he praised her again and again. Spurred on by his words, she swirled her tongue around his tip and then plunged forward, taking him as far as she could before she began to gag. Severus groaned loudly, the hold on her hair tightening as pleasure ripped through his body. When she released her hold on him with a small 'pop!' to catch her breath, a small line of spit connected her lips to his cock. It was at that moment that he decided he could take it no longer. He had to take her.
He swung his knee over her body, reaching down to grip her arm and guide her to her hands and knees. She had left a puddle on the sheets below, and now she was crouching over the physical evidence of her desire for him as he positioned himself behind her. He had an insatiable need to claim her further, to fuck her, to be one.
He pulled a beautiful moan from her throat when he dragged the tip of his cock down her folds, gathering her juices. Desperate to feel him inside of her, she pushed back into him. He resisted the urge to plunge into her, attempting to continue the facade that he had all of the control that night. How quickly he would soon realize that he was very wrong.
"I can feel how much you want to fuck me, Severus," she cooed, pressing back into him again. Oh, how that filthy little mouth of hers was going to be the end of him if he wasn't careful. Perhaps she was nothing of the seraph he always compared her to and was really the fabled siren, leading him to his very undoing. He would hardly regret it, he decided as grasped her round ass cheek forcefully, digging fingers into her flesh as he readied himself at her willing entrance. This song she was singing was far, far too sweet.
He buried himself inside her heat in one swift movement. Cassie cried out, surprised by the force of his entry. Severus had more control in this position, and Cassie loved giving herself up to his desires, to his every whim as he pounded into her. He was rougher than usual, his hips snapping in his attempts to drive himself as deeply into her as possible. The guttural groans that were emerging from his throat were only edging Cassie further along in her desire as she gripped at the pillows beneath her.
She barely had time to breathe. He pulled himself out of her and thrust himself back inside, his movements becoming faster, over and over. She writhed on top of the bed, unable to control her movements as pleasure began to build in her belly. He took no breaks between thrusts, purely fucking her as his climax came barreling toward him at breakneck speed. His moans of desire turned into animalistic grunts that were uncharacteristic of the Potions Master. Under normal circumstances, he would never allow himself to be seen in such a vulnerable and refined state, but here, with her, he was protected.
Her walls gripped him like a vice as she reached her release and she cried out into the empty room. He yanked her up by her arms, aligning her body with his as he jerked his hips to empty himself into her. Severus moved his hands to desperately grip her throat, wanting her closer still, pulling her face toward him and feeling her hot breath as she panted through her fading bliss.
Severus released his hold on Cassie's throat, and together, they collapsed on the bed in exhaustion. Cassie reached out to stroke her lover's arm as he regained his poise. A fleeting smile passed on his fatigued features, and she knew that for once, even if it was momentary, he was relaxed. It pleased her immensely.
Severus Snape had never been good at sleeping. It was rare for him to fall into a deep slumber even after sex, so when he was snoring lightly only minutes later, Cassie was careful not to wake him as she moved about their little hotel room. She could have waited until they were home, but the events of that day were on her mind. It needed to be taken care of as swiftly as possible. Luckily for her, she had loyal followers that were available at her beck and call.
Using Tom's owl, she sent a note off to Romily. She would be needing her help once again. She needed to communicate with the Magical Duma of the Russian Federation, and she needed to do it without Cornelius Fudge knowing.