I do not own Harry Potter or any characters, places, etc.

Those Most Precious

Everyone has something that is very precious to them. He had his box.

I didn't know what was inside the box. He would never let me see. Often I would beg him to let me see its contents but he continually refused.

I guess it wasn't that big of a deal. As I already said, everyone has something that is very precious to them; they should be allowed to keep these things private. Even so, I hated that he was keeping secrets from me.

Mind you, he was always one to hold back any emotion or opinion. Except for when he was with me. That's why I wanted to know what was in the box so badly; because there was nothing that he kept from me. That is, nothing but his box.

By the time I was in my second year I stopped worrying about the box.

For my birthday that year my parents sent me a fishing rod. I loved to fish and when I asked Severus to join me he told me that he did not know how to fish. This made me very happy because it meant that I would get to teach him everything behind fishing.

And that's exactly what I did. I had great fun teaching him all that I knew about fishing and I could tell that he had a good time learning from me.

Once we had finished having our fun and had released the last fish back into the lake I leaned back against a tree and closed my eyes letting my mind relax, just enjoying the company of my best friend and the smell of nature around me.

When I opened my eyes again Severus was facing away from me looking at something he held in his pale hands. Craning my neck to see what it was without alerting him that I was watching him I saw that it was a fishing fly. One of the ones that had come with the rod my parents sent me.

I thought he was going to continue fishing, but instead he pulled his box out of one of his robe's pockets, enlarged it and opened it up. From where I was I couldn't see what was inside the box, but I did see Severus putting my fishing fly inside of it.

I had almost completely forgotten about the mysterious box, but now, yet again, I was itching to know what it held.

Maybe the box contained items that fascinated him. He had seemed fascinated as he watching me fish. He had had a smile so pure and full of bliss that I was more grateful for my birthday gift than I had ever been for anything I had received before. He had that same smile as he looked at the items in his box. I'd give anything in the whole world to see that smile on his lips all the time.

Then, out from the box he pulled a Polaroid photograph. In it there was a young girl swinging on a swing set. I didn't know why, but this upset me. Why would my best friend want to stare at some girl's photo, and why would he hide it from me. I leaned closer in order to see the face of the girl in the picture. My breath stopped short once I realized that it was me on the swing set.

Before I could formulate another thought, he put the Polaroid down and pulled a rag doll out of the box. I had had one just like it when I was about nine years old. It had been my most favorite possession in the whole world. But then one day I decided that I was too old to still be playing with dolls and so I threw it in the sand box at the park. I hated myself for doing that. A few days later I realized that I really wanted my doll and that I didn't want to grow up without it. When I went back to the park it was no longer there.

As Severus held the doll in his hands I noticed a tear in its dress. Gasping I realized that it was the very same doll. Severus Snape had found it and kept it all this time.

Hearing me gasp, Severus realized that I was watching him. As he whipped his head around I saw a deep blush rising in his cheeks. Quickly, he gathered his box items into his arms dropping them back into their box and closing before I could see anything else.

He opened his mouth in order to explain, but before he could I had pulled him into a tight hug and held him there until I felt I could hug no more.

He was and always would be the one most precious to me.

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