Haunted

Just as he was about to open it, he heard \"Professor\" calling to him. He snapped out of his memories and glared in the direction of the voice. Dennis Creevey was the one to have disturbed his thoughts. \"Yes, Creevey.\" He said curtly, he thought inside \'this had better be bloody good.\' Merely the look on Creevey\'s face was enough to make Snape notice his legs were shaking underneath the boy\'s robes.

No suprise, Creevey had made a complete pig\'s ear of the potion he was meant to be making, it took him the entire rest of the lesson to get out the boy an explaination of what had happened. Just for this reason alone Creevey had landed himself into two detentions, whether or not he quite deserved the 25 points from gryffindor house as well was doubtful, but as though that mattered to Snape.

Dinner came round and he was glad for that for once today people were leaving him well alone, that was until Dumbledore spoke to him.
\"Is everything alright, Severus?\" Dumbledore asked.
\"Of course it is Headmaster.\" he replied.
\"I\'ve made sure we don\'t have to put up with one of these ministry, interferring little buggers next year!\" Dumbledore stated to Snape in a whisper so that Umbridge couldn\'t hear.
\"Really\" Snape mumbled as a reply.
\"Really, she\'s a nice person.\"
\"Really\" Snape again mumbled, completely lost to the actual content of the conversation.
\"She\'s a very nice person\"
\"Well employ her then\" Snape grasped hold of the thread of the conversation, and so said this statement rather more curtly than he intentionally meant to.
\"Wouldn\'t you like to see her file?\"
\"Not really, anyone would be better than the current holder of the job.\"
\"True.\" Dumbledore started, \"I\'ll hire her then.\"

Later on the same evening Snape was sat at his desk, marking as usual. After such a long time in the teaching you developed a style of marking which meant that he didn\'t have to spend too much time doing it. His eyes flicked to a photo on his desk, it was of his Berni and himself about three years after leaving Hogwarts, the happiest he\'d ever been. He picked up the photograph, caressing his finger down her face. He let himself fall back into his memories...

...As he opened the package his face was an absolute picture, inside the package was a watch. \'How did she know that my old one had broke? How did she know it was my birthday?\' He thought.
\"I don\'t know what to say.\" He started, \"Thankyou.\" He said hugging her.
\"Come on, it\'s cold, do you want to go back to the dorms?\"
\"Yes please.\" she replied after making him put the watch on. When they reached the door to her room they embraced once again her planting a light kiss on his cheek...