Romeo and Juliet (Book 1) - SS x OC

Chapter 22 - The Same Mistake

"O teach me how I should forget to think (1.1.224)"
― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

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CHAPTER 22 - The Same Mistake

~ S ~

There was barely any light from the outskirts of Hogwarts castle; only a tiny speck of glimmer that seem to emit from somebody else's wand was visible through the darkness. Severus was on patrol duty and this was his last stop, after which he was expected to retire to his chambers and attempt to sleep even though classes would once again take place in just about a few hours, much to his extreme irritation.

Severus thought that whoever owned that wand must be daft as a brush, thinking that going to a remote area could save him or her the most loathed detention. He treaded slightly, trying not to make any noise because he wanted to startle, or in his case, frighten whoever that dunderhead was.

When Severus saw the back of someone he knew and saw everyday since last September, he immediately realized that it was no dunderhead, but Renee. He was shocked to see her crouched over in her nightclothes, her lit wand resting on her side, forgotten. He wasted no time and dashed to see what this madness was all about, hoping it wasn't anything serious, or else he'd never forgive himself if anything happened to her.

"Renee," Severus called, bending down to hesitantly place an arm on her back, scanning the girl carefully to see if she was truly alright. "What on earth possessed you to lurk about at this hour? Haven't I told you that it is dangerous to--"

Renee faced Severus with eyes filled with pain, causing him to shut up, his heart thumping from her grief-stricken face, yet he made sure she saw nothing but a deadpanned expression.

"I'll show you because you're the only one I trust," Renee said, her voice quivering. Severus didn't know what in Merlin's name was she talking about and he wasn't sure if he should know, yet his unyielding concern for her pushed him to intervene.

"What is it? What happened?" Severus asked relentlessly. Considering that this concerned Renee, his adrenaline was a hundred times more haste.

All of a sudden, Renee removed her top quickly, followed by the rest of her clothing, and continued to strip until she was left with nothing but her bra and knickers, making Severus retaliate.

"What the bloody hell--" he said, looking at everywhere except at her person, because he wouldn't want to think about what would happen if he did. "What is this all ab--"

"Follow me," Renee said and went into the lake before anyone could stop her.

"Fuck!" Severus hissed. This girl will be the death of me!

Renee will surely have to provide him an explanation for all of this, but right now, all he could think of was getting her out of that damned lake then scold her for her reckless actions later.

Severus shakily took his black garments off as quickly as he could possibly manage, and he swore that he popped out a button or two, causing him to curse at his own misdoings. He had the decency to leave his trousers on, but the only thing that was running in his mind was Renee; she probably communicated with another one of those bloody fishes again and thought that it could help her or whatever, but in his opinion, no discovery was worth Renee's life.

The initial coldness of the water was torture to Severus' skin, yet that was nothing compared to the pain he would feel should Renee get hurt. Unfortunately, this time he had no gillyweed in his pocket, so his only choice was to cast the Bubble-Head Charm for him to be able to breathe underwater, so he did.