Inside the Fire

"I never picked you for a fool Severus."
Dante's voice had gone cold with a contempt Severus himself could not place.
"A fool you say?"
He raised one black eyebrow at Dante's back.
"I'll never be her, you know that."
"What in the name of Merlin could you possibly be talking about?"
He was intrigued now. Dante turned to face him very slowly. She had a piece of paper clutched in her fist.
"I knew you still loved her, but I didn't realize just how much."
His face was blank, as if every ounce of emotion had drained away in the few second it took her to turn around.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
Severus was clenching his jaw so hard Dante was surprised his teeth weren't cracking under the pressure.
"Lily Potter. You've kept a scrap of the last letter she ever wrote to you, and how long has it been traveling next to your heart Severus?"
His eyes narrowed into slits.
"You can't possibly be jealous of a dead woman?"
"It obviously doesn't matter if she's dead! You're still in love with her!"
He snatched the scrap of paper from her hand.
"That is none of your concern." Dante's eyes closed and her voice dropped to a whisper.
"I can't be her, I won't try, and I won't play second fiddle to a dead woman."
She picked her sword up off the floor and headed for the door.
"So what does this mean Dante?"
"That we tried. You can't let her go, and I won't pretend you don't love her."
He was silent as she walked out of his life for a second time, this time probably never to return.

She cried the entire time she searched for Potter and his friends. She couldn't help herself, the pain in her chest wouldn't cease and she couldn't seem to make the tears stop flowing. When she had finally found the trio, her eyes were bloodshot and she felt empty. At least Granger seemed relatively concerned.
"Dante? Are you alright?"
Dante could only manage a small nod, still not trusting her voice not to crack from the un-shed tears she had forced back when she found their camp. She waved all three of them away when they tried to speak to her, and took up her post in a tree. He may have been cold and distant, but when Severus Snape loved, he loved forever, and it broke her heart to find out she wasn't what he really wanted.