Title: Haunted
Pairing: SeverusxLily
Disclaimer: i don't own anything.
Author's Notes: written for the Potions OWL at Livejournal's "lumosowls"; Content: The challenge of this drabble is that it must take place inside the potion classroom. It's up to you to decide who, when & why. In some way the story must include-
A cauldron
A cleaning charm
The word "ouch"
A broom
A locked door
A potion
this is the expanded (and much better) version (the OWL version had to fit in one comment), it begins just after Harry's first Potions class at Hogwarts.
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Professor Snape locked the door shut behind the last Gryffindor student. He stood a moment; when he could no longer hear any footsteps he walked slowly and silently back to his desk. The air was cool and crisp in the darkened classroom, the smells of the First Year's somewhat miserable attempts at a potion lingered in the air. Snape absent-mindedly listed each ingredient by smell in his mind, it was a game his mother had taught him when he was very young. He must force his mind to focus on the present. He started to pace about the classroom, pausing at each work station to assess the damage. He noted that Miss Granger left her station spotless in contrast to nearly everyone else. Weasley had tried to hide his messes, sweeping everything off his table and into a little pile of leftover potion ingredients on the floor.
"Ten points from Gryffindor." Snape said quietly. He set a cleaning charm and moved over to Mr. Potter's desk. It was tidier than Weasley's station (though nowhere near as clean as Granger's). Snape had seen Potter when he'd arrived, had watched him being sorted and at the feast, but he hadn't seen the boy up close until the class today. Everything he'd heard about the boy was true, he resembled his father extroirdinarily but for two differences. The first was the delicate scar in the vague shape of a lightning bolt on his brow. The second was his striking green eyes.
xxx
Severus sighed to himself. He could hear the other students running by the classroom and imagined them bursting out of the castle and into the sunlight. Normally he wouldn't care, he generally preferred the classroom to the grounds. But today was the big match between Gryffindor and Slytherin and he desperately wanted to see James Potter lose. He kicked over a cauldron in frustration. It was Potter's fault he was in detention in the first place and while James had been punished as well, somehow it didn't conflict with his precious Quidditch match. If only he were on the Slytherin team...but he'd never been gifted at athletics. He kicked the cauldron again and watched it roll across the room.
"You'll never get out of here that way." Severus froze at her voice. He turned slowly to find Lily Evans standing in the doorway, a broom in her hand and her green eyes smiling.
"What are you doing here?" He blurted out less than politely but she simply shrugged and indicated the broom.
"Thought you could use some help."
"Professor Slughorn - "
"Is at the match, he'll never know and even if he finds out somehow - he won't mind. Trust me."
"I - why...?" He stammered. Lily's eyes flashed.
"It wasn't your fault. Well, not all your fault." She smiled in that way she had. "So do you want my help or not?" Severus continued to stare, then nodded once. "Good. You go recover the cauldron and I'll sweep." And away she went leaving Severus no choice but to do as she said. He picked up the cauldron and returned it to the shelf, then proceeded from station to station, scrubbing each desk until they shone. He tried to ignore Lily but wasn't particularly successful. She flitted about the classroom, humming quietly, her long red hair flipping around her. An hour went by as they cleaned the classroom together, the only sounds were Lily's humming and every so often a cheer from the Quidditch patch.
"Ouch!" Lily's cry cut thru the near silence, startling Severus. He looked over to see she had her finger to her mouth. Almost without thinking he crossed the classroom and in one swift movement was holding her hand in his, examining the cut with a gentleness Lily had never suspected him capable of. Then he pulled her over to the cupboard and still holding her hand, rummaged through the various bottles. He pulled out a small vial and carefully placed two drops on her wound. The cut closed immediately. A moment passed, neither was quite sure what to do next. Then suddenly another cheer pierced the air, longer and louder than the others. Startled Severus pulled away from Lily and replaced the healing potion quickly and silently. Lily watched, suddenly shy, moving only when Severus made to the shut the cabinet behind her. He paused once it was closed, afraid to turn toward her. As they stood waiting for the other to move, the cheers continued, growing louder as the other students converged on the castle. Lily placed her hand on Severus' shoulder but he flinched at her touch and moved away.
"Severus -" Her voice was cut off by the door banging open, light flooded into the dark room making Lily blink.
"Still here, Snivelly? I've got a gift for you!" James Potter stopped short in mid-swagger, the tiny golden snitch clutched in his left hand. He stared at Lily, "Evans? What are you doing here?" Lily looked from one to the other, James' look was accusatory and tinged with hurt, she imagined he assumed she'd witnessed his (no doubt glorious) victory. Severus' look was unabashed fury, but his dark, normally unreadable eyes seemed to implore her to hold her tongue.
"I cut my finger and needed a healing potion."
"Why didn't you go to Madam Pomfrey?" James continued to glare at Severus.
"This was closer. I didn't want to miss the climax of the match, but it seems I did." She turned back to Severus. "Thank you, Severus." He looked up and met her eyes.
"Hey, Snivellus, looks like you're good for something after all." Severus clutched his wand and prepared a hex but James turned away. "C'mon, Evans I'll walk you back - oy! Evans!" Severus stopped mid-casting distracted by Lily's exit. James rushed out after her, still calling for Lily to wait. Severus stood still until he could no longer hear either's footsteps. In his mind's eye he continued to see her green eyes.
xxx
Snape shook himself out of his reverie. He abandoned his inspection of Potter's work station and walked swiftly past his desk and up the stairs into his office. He pulled out the pensieve and plucked the memory out of his mind. The past must not be allowed to distract him. When done he watched the memory swirl in the bowl, Lily's eyes staring out at him, haunting him as they had since the moment he'd met her. He sat in the dark until the memory mixed with all the others, then returned the pensieve to its cabinet. He closed his eyes briefly and then with a flick of his wand lit the candleabra and returned to work.
Fin.