The Herbology Assistant

Chapter Eight

Clarice had just closed her door to head the quidditch game when she realized she forgot her scarf. It was November now and it had been getting quite chilly.

"Running away from me?" She heard a familiar voice and swung around. She sighed a breathe of relief when she realized it was only Severus.

"Never, just forgot my scarf. Hang on one second." She went into her bedroom to grab her plain black scarf. and came back out.

"No house representation?" Severus asked her.

"I don't have a Hufflepuff scarf." Clarice said and he chuckled.

"Well they're not the ones playing today. It's Gryffindor vs. Slytherin." He informed her and she smirked at him.

"Which is why I'm playing dumb because I don't care who wins." She replied and gave him a playful shove. They had been flirting like crazy the last few weeks, but nothing had come out of it. Both of them were too scared to admit how they felt, so they left it at that.

They walked out to the grounds and climbed their way up into the staff seats.

"Professor Bates! I saved you a seat!" Lockhart yelled while waving his arms in the air like an idiot. Clarice rolled her eyes and ignored him. Instead she sat down next to Filius and made Snape sit next to Lockhart on her other side.

"I see you're rooting for Slytherin Clarice?" Filius asked her.

"Huh? Oh no I don't care who wins. I just enjoy watching." She smiled and then followed his eyes to her scarf. It was no longer plain and black, but now green and silver.

"Severus! Did you charm my scarf?" She looked at him and smacked him which caught the eyes of some other professors. They had noticed them spending a lot of time together. They always show up to meals together and leave together. They do patrols together at night and she had been helping him out with his sixth and seventh year classes as well. Most of them were just happy that Severus had found someone to be himself around. He had been much happier these last few weeks and the students have noticed that as well. He had been assigning a foot less of homework and started awarding house points to houses other than his own. He was different.

"Perhaps I did," He chuckled and waited for her to change it back, except she didn't. "You're not going to change it back?"

"What? You don't think green looks good on me?" She asked and swung it around her neck dramatically accidentally smacking Filius in the face with it. "Whoops! So sorry"

"Any color looks good on you. Especially Slytherin colors." He said and suppressed a laugh towards Filius giving her a glare.

"Ya know, I don't think I've ever seen you in any other colors." Clarice admitted.

"That's because I don't own any other colors." He replied while pointing to the game that had just begun. Clarice watched intently, but got bored quickly.

"You could wear Slytherin colors. Dark green would bring out your eyes." She said while watching one of the twins beat a bludger towards a Slytherin.

"Psh. Nonsense. Black is in style." He said.

"Yeah at funerals." She giggled and he nudged her in the ribs. "A little color wouldn't hurt."

Another man walked into the stands and kicked Lockhart out of his seat to sit next to Severus. She hadn't seen the man before and knew he definitely wasn't a professor.

"Severus." He greeted and turned to the game.

"Lucius, how are you?" Severus greeted him in his monotone voice he used to use on the students which made Clarice wonder who this man was.