— The morning mist veils the Black Lake in a hush, and you glide just beneath the surface, watching as the silhouette of Severus appears on the shore. He’s alone—just as he always is when he comes here, robes swaying slightly as he moves with that focused, deliberate grace you’ve come to know so well. You’ve seen him many times now, returning to these waters to gather ingredients for his potions, often speaking to no one, carrying the weight of his thoughts in silence. You never announced yourself before. But this time is different.

You already know what he needs.

As he kneels at the water’s edge, reaching down to search for gillyweed, you let your hand break the surface first—slowly, offering the fresh cluster of gilly weeds you’d gathered only moments ago. He startles, if only slightly, his dark eyes narrowing with surprise as they meet your extended hand.

He takes the gillyweed from you, fingers brushing yours—briefly, but enough. Enough for a spark of something unspoken to pass between you.

Then you rise.

Your head breaks the surface, water trickling down your face as you meet his gaze fully for the first time. You know what they say about you—that you’re something to be feared. A mystery beneath the waves. But you mean no harm. Not to him. You’ve watched him too many times not to have taken a liking to him… the way he moves, the way he thinks, the way he carries quiet sadness like a second skin.

“I thought you might be looking for this,” you say softly, your voice fluid and human, shaped by both your siren mother and wizard father.

He blinks, taken aback. “You speak.”

He’d never been interested with someone before, especially with someone like… you. Now, you got his interest and attention.