hope you get lonely - asher

Claire was marching her way down a flight of stairs with such aggressive authority even one of her favorite students ducked out of her way without a single word. She hadn't spoken to this Professor Kale much, but this was a special occasion. Two of her best students and the better members of the Gryffindor quidditch team were going to be in detentions every evening for the rest of the semester at the command of the new teacher. That just wouldn't do.

He high heels clicked on the stone floors of the dungeons as she approached the door and pushed it open without even knocking, "You put Taze Fowler and Lyric Lee in detention?" She asked in a voice that dripped in annoyance.

ASHER JAMES KALE

"I did. Now that that's been settled, what the hell are you doing in my office?" Asher didn't even bother looking up from the paper he had been reading, his legs propped up on the desk in his usual fashion. If the woman wanted her kids to stay out of detention, then maybe she should keep a better eye on them. It wasn't his fault that they had invaded his space and done God knows what in the short time they were there.

She glared at him and walked forward, snatching the paper from his hand and slamming it on the desk to make him look at her, "They have Quidditch next week. A championship match at that. And you are going to take away precious practice time for....what? Kissing?" She rolled her eyes, "One detention should be plenty, why did you assign ti for the rest of the term? 

Asher's eyebrows rose as she tore his paper away, but he wasn't exactly shocked. The woman was bound to be ticked. "I gave them detention for improper conduct, breaking and entry, and flying in unauthorized zones." He listed off factually, a hint of amusement in his tone. The chair creaked loudly as he leaned back to get a better look. At least she was easy on the eyes if she was going to be in here yelling at him like this. "Your lucky that I didn't report them to the headmaster. I wonder what they would have to say about your team captain commandeering the equipment because he was too busy with his girlfriend to make it to class the old fashioned way." He wasn't going to budge on the punishment, especially not when he hadn't figured out exactly what to do with the pests just yet.

Claire couldn't help but roll her eyes, even though she knew how unprofessional that was of her, "First of all, Taze owns his own broom, he didn't 'commandeer' anything. So I imagine he would get a slap on the wrist for flying but not much else." Her tone was clipped and annoyed, "Secondly," She continued, walking around the desk so she could lean against it and still face him, "I do understand that they need to be punished, But punishing them for the remainder of the term? Not only does it seem unrealistic for the crime committed, but all it is going to do is give you more work." She glared down at him, smoothing her hands over her skirt. She was one of the few professor's at Hogwarts who wore muggle clothing while she was working. In her classroom she had a black cloak that was often left open over her muggle business wear, "Give yourself a break by giving them a break." Claire laughed a little shaking her head, "Besides, I'm sure the awkwardness of being caught in your quarters is far more scarring than anything you could make them do for detention for the next two weeks."

"Don't worry Ms. Zimmerman, I've actually had it fairly easy here at Hogwarts. A little bit of workmay be exactly what I need." Her close proximity almost startled Asher, enough that he actually stood up to grab a not so inconspicuous flask from the side table. It was after hours and he really didn't mind a drink or two when he wasn't expressly responsible for the children.

"Besides, unless I find a suitable punishment that is at least slightly within the parameters set by the school, then I cannot see any way to lessen their time. I may actually need to increase it, the more I think about the whole situation. It does seem you disagree with my teaching methods though." Taking another long draw from the flask, he set it back down on the table with a large smirk. Whatever she thought she was accomplishing, Claire was very much so wrong. Fowler and Lee needed discipline, and who better to do it than him?

She narrowed her eyes, knowing that she wouldn't get her point across to this obviously stubborn man, "Claire." She said shortly, standing when he stood. They were now standing so close she could feel his breathe on her face and she couldn't quite decide how that made her feel. So instead of acting on whatever feeling she was having, she just glared at him and said, "You're insufferable."

Ah, so that was the way of it. Taking in her close proximity and the nature of the situation, Asher decided to go for it. If anything, it would get her off his case or make things worse in a few short seconds. Quickly wrapping one arm around her, he gave a devilish grin before leaning in closer. "And your stubborn." With that, he closed the remaining distance and kissed her. Probably not his best idea yet, but he did none the less.

What on Earth is going on right now? Her thoughts were spinning out of control as she stood there, shocked for a moment. Not that it wasn't wonderful. They was some sort of electric connection she couldn't explain between the two of them. Even though he seemed to be a terrible person in general, definitely someone she couldn't agree with on any level ever, there was chemistry. She leaned into the kiss and threw her arms around his neck, letting it happen. There was something incredible wrong with what they were doing, but she couldn't stop herself.

After a moment, her eyes flew open and she pulled back and shook her head, "What the bloody hell did you do that for?" She demanded, acting as if she weren't into it at all despite her reaction.

"Because it shut you up and distracted you for a moment." Asher's voice was cool and even, though he was lying out his teeth. He did it because he wanted to and that was the end of it. "And you enjoyed it, so no harm done. Disentangling himself completely from the infuriating woman in front of him, he made his way back to the chair he had been previously occupying. Asher wouldn't kiss her again, not until he was sure she wanted it. The game was never fun unless everyone wanted to play.

She narrowed her eyes at him and stomped her foot, effectively causing her heel to make a clatter that echoed off the dungeon walls, "It doesn't change my opinion on the students. They can't be put into detention for the rest of the term. I implore you to rethink your decision." Claire ran her fingers through a bit of her blonde hair, pulled into a high pony tail that fell to about her mid back in cascading waves, "I will return later if I do not hear confirmation of your...self-enlightenment." She as shaken, which was weird for her, but she did a good job of hiding it. Standing tall, her heels clicked authoritatively as she exited the room and stomped up the stairs.