The Assistant || Severus Snape x Reader ||

Chapter 21: The Assistant's Return

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*SMUT AHEAD*

"What did you just say?"

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For the first time in your life, you couldn't hardly wait for Christmas break to end. From the moment you boarded the train to go home, you were ready to come back to Hogwarts. In your previous experiences, Christmas break felt way too short and as if it had flown by before you had a chance to embrace it. This year, though, it felt like an absolute eternity.

Every day that you were home felt exactly the same. First, you'd get up early to see if your family's carrier owl had returned with a letter from Severus. About the third day you had been home, you received a letter from Severus back at Hogwarts. It was just to check in to make sure that you had made it home safely without any mishaps. You wrote him a letter back to let him know you got his message, and soon enough the two of you were writing letters back and forth throughout the break.

You had to be meticulous retrieving your letters. You were afraid your parents would beat you to the punch and you'd have to come up with a lie to keep things under wraps. Thankfully, that never happened.

If you had a letter, you'd read it three or four times, picking apart every word and sentence trying to decipher his tone. He told you how much he missed you and how he couldn't wait for you to get back. He kept you updated with everything that had happened around Hogwarts while you were gone. Harry Potter and his friends had stayed over the break and were causing all kinds of mischief, much to Severus' annoyance. You had reminded Severus in one of your letters to take it easy on them, considering they had been nothing but pleasant to you.

When you weren't reading his letters or writing one back, you were out in your backyard practicing for Quidditch with what you had on hand. You didn't have a real Quidditch field by any means, but your outside space was enough to where you could make sure your skills didn't get rusty. After all, the Quidditch Cup would be taking place a week after your return to Hogwarts, so you had to be ready.

Despite your efforts to keep yourself busy, you just couldn't stay home another day. You convinced your parents to take you back to Hogwarts the day before everyone else would be returning. They were skeptical of this, and they noted that if was unusual for you to want to return early. You snuck in a little white lie, telling them that your House's team had made arrangements to have the field to yourselves so you could practice without any obstacles.

They seemed satisfied with that, and they had you on the 9 & 3/4 train back to Hogwarts that very afternoon. You had never packed your trunk so fast in your entire life. Your bedroom became a hurricane of flying clothes and belongings that you'd be taking back with you. You made sure to securely place his stack of letters against the inside of your trunk. There was no way you'd be leaving them behind.

You were reeling with excitement the entire train ride back to the castle. You didn't tell Severus that you were coming back early, so it was a surprise of sorts. You carefully fiddled with the chain of your necklace that had been gifted to you just a few weeks prior. You often found yourself touching it when you were thinking of him, which seemed to be more and more as time went on.

After several hours, the train was stationed at Hogwarts and you were comforted at the feeling of being back. By the time you moved all of your things back into your dorm, it was pushing 8:30 PM. Severus would more than likely be in his quarters for the evening, considering that he had no reason to be in the classroom or his office. You weren't used to Hogwarts being so eerily quiet. You supposed that the kids who had stayed over the break were in their respective House common rooms, which is why the halls were so desolate. As a matter of fact, you didn't see a single soul the entire trip down to Severus' living space.