Chapter 2
Snape spent a lot of the night tossing and turning in his bed. He couldn’t stand the fact that she was on the other side of the wall, and he couldn’t even talk to her about the past 4 years they had spent apart. He thought he’d lost her when she moved to Belgium, with Karkaroff. Until then, she had been a princess; every one of her needs had been catered for, by her huge family.
She lived in a big house, somewhere in the south; she didn’t really know where, with 9 adults, Snape, Karkaroff, Lucius and Narcissia Malfoy, Bellatrix LeStrange, and a few others. They all looked after her. She met with her father sometimes, he would always be nice to her, and he would always keep his head covered. He used to ask her about people, if they were treating her properly.
Then, Snape came home one day, with Karkaroff. Affinity was seven years old. “Severus!” Karkaroff held out his hands to catch the small child, as she came running over to them. She stopped. “Severus, why are you all white?” Karkaroff took Affinity to one side and said, “Something happened to your father, we have to leave.” Affinity didn’t know at the time, but she wouldn’t see Severus until she returned to the country, four years later.
She went with Karkaroff to live in Belgium, and learned all types of dark magic. When she got her Hogwarts letter, she left Karkaroff for England. Snape was shocked at the way Affinity was able to manipulate people at Hogwarts, so much so, that she was ostracized, and people didn’t want to speak to her.
She had no friends by the end of her first year, and went to spend the following summer and every summer after that with the Malfoy Family. She was able to do magic without using her wand, and eventually was able to do non verbal magic, without her wand.
Snape awoke the next morning. He dressed and went to the empty Great Hall. Affinity walked in a few minutes later. “Good morning Severus.” She said. “Good Morning” he replied from behind his Daily Prophet. Affinity paused. The last time she was in here, she was a student, and sat at the Slytherin House table.
“So am I aloud to sit at the staff table?” She said. Snape put his paper down. “Of course you are, why wouldn’t you be? You’re a teacher now!” She smiled and sat next to him. She pulled some cereal towards her, and poured some milk onto it. Then, she pulled another bowl towards an empty seat and poured just milk into that. “So that mutt will be joining us then?” She smiled and said, “Lucky for you, I’ll let that one pass.”
The rest of the summer passed in a blaze of sunshine, but Affinity spent most of her time down in the Dungeons planning her classes. She had one potion she had to teach the 7th years, and that was Instagro potion. It was one of the most difficult potions she’s ever seen, she didn’t do it when she was at school.
She had asked Snape to help her perfect it on the last day of summer. “How many times Affinity? It’s three times clockwise, once anti clockwise and then add the root of balsfore. Stir four more times clockwise and then simmer. It’s not exactly difficult.” Affinity smiled and said “Answer the door, Severus.”
He looked at her for a second and said “What?” As soon as he said that, there was a short knock at the door. Snape smiled. “I’ll get it.” He walked over to the door and saw Umbridge stood there. “Ah, Severus, I was wondering if I could meet our new member of staff.” Affinity appeared behind Snape, and put her hand on his shoulder. “Yes?” She said with a wry smile. Umbridge looked at Snape’s expression. Nothing. “Ah, I’m professor Umbridge. I am the new, ministry appointed Defense against the Dark Arts Teacher.” She held out a stubby hand. Affinity said “I’m Miss Riddle and I will be teaching Advanced Potions to the 6th and 7th years.” She didn’t take her hand. “Can we help you? We’re quite busy.”
Umbridge looked as though she’d been slapped in the face. “Ah yes, of course…” Affinity slammed the door in her face. “That’s enough of that I think.” Snape smiled. “Affinity, you’ve not changed very much! Now this potion, we’ll get it done by this evening!”
They spent the rest of the day completing the Instagro Potion. The next day was start of term for the students. Affinity was introduced during the start of term feast as Professor Riddle. Affinity went red, and put her face down.
In the crowd a rather scrawny looking boy with messy black hair and glasses nudged his red-haired friend and said, “She doesn’t look so bad!” said Harry Potter to his friend Ronald Weasley. Ron smiled. “No, she’ll be easier on the eyes than old McGonagall!” Harry laughed. But inside he knew there was something about her. He looked at Snape. His scar tingled as he watched the potions master talking to Miss Riddle. As his eyes moved over to her, there was a strange sensation in his scar; it soothed it, made it feel like an ice-cube was running over it.
Affinity sat at the top of the Great Hall for the rest of the evening and watched the room buzz with excitement of the first day back. Snape turned to her and said, “Is it everything you thought it would be?” Affinity smiled and said “More!”
Affinity sat in her room that evening messing around with her hair. She took her wand and ran it over her hair. It turned bright auburn and twisted up into a glamorous bun on the top of her head. Gus was sitting in his bed, watching her. There was a knock at her door. Affinity jumped and Gus sat up in his bed. She stood up and opened the door. Snape was stood there. “Hi, Severus, come in.” She said as Severus looked at her hair, and walked through the door. “I like your hair, Affinity,” He said. Affinity blushed and shuck her head, which made her hair fall around her shoulders and back to her usual color. Snape smiled. “Show off.” Affinity smiled and walked into the room after him. “So to what do I owe this pleasure?” Snape looked at her and said, “I have bad news for you, I’m afraid. The Slytherin and Gryffindor fifth years both have a free class on Tuesdays and Thursdays and we need a teacher to supervise them, and I happened to nominate you.” Affinity laughed and said, “Well, that was good of you, Severus.”
Snape smiled. “You know about the house rivalry between them two, and as you know, it gets worse with age…” Affinity smiled, and said “That was a long time ago, Severus; I was only fifteen years old.”
Affinity looked at a limp piece of parchment on her desk, when she saw Snape looking at it. “What’s that meant to be?” Affinity smiled and took up the parchment and read it. “It’s meant to be my Plan, for my seventh years, but I’m not sure it’s… Well, any good.”
Snape looked through it. He screwed it up and threw it across the room where it hit the wall and fell into the bin. He sat at the desk and conjured up another chair beside him. “Here I’ll give you a hand.” They sat at the desk together, and thought.
Affinity told Snape what she planned to do with the seventh years. “But I don’t know if that’ll be enough until Halloween.” Snape thought hard. He took a new piece of parchment and a quill, and scribbled down a few notes. Affinity looked at Snape concentrating. He felt her looking at him, so he turned around and looked right back at her.
Affinity looked into Snape’s eyes. She saw the man who she fell in love with four years ago. Everything around her seemed to dissolve. Neither of them knew what else to do but kiss.
When she finally got to bed, Affinity was tired. Her head was spinning with all kinds of thoughts. When she finally dropped off to sleep, her dreams were punctured with memories of her past.
She was in her sixth year, and she was in the library. It was almost nine o’ clock and there were only three people left in the library. Herself, the Librarian madam Pince, and another girl in her year and her house, Helena Hall. They were in the library so late because they were both given detention by Snape.
Earlier that day, they were waiting outside the dungeons for potions when Helena and her friends started poking fun at Affinity. She was used to this, so she just ignored it. “Look at her hair, it’s always raggy looking.” Affinity just smiled. “At least I’m not a filthy little mud-blood like you, Hall,” Affinity gloated.
Helena looked enraged, “You’ll be sorry for that one, Riddle,” she spat. Affinity turned around to fully face her. “And what’s a mud-blood like you gonna do about it then?” This time Snape interjected. “Now, now, ladies, I’m sure there’s no need for that kind of language.” Snape ushered the rest of the class into his class room and turned to the two girls in the hall.
Affinity laughed and said “I don’t know why I waste my time on someone like her anyway.” And while she said this, Helena cursed her with a curse that Snape or Affinity had never heard before. Affinity fell, and lost all the feeling in her arms and legs.
Snape rushed to Affinity, and said, “Are you ok?” Affinity mumbled an incantation under her breath. Helena fell onto the floor unconscious. Snape didn’t pay any attention to Helena.
Affinity could hear Snape saying an incantation of his own, and Affinity felt the blood rushing back into her arms and legs. Affinity stood up, shaking slightly. She went over to Helena and kicked her hard in the ribs. Snape smiled and said “I’m going to have to put you in detention for that…”
She didn’t look at him, but picked up her school bag and went into the classroom.
When she woke the next morning, Affinity was groggy. She walked around her room, trying to get her things together, including her class plan. Gus looked up from his bed and yawned. “Its ok pup, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.” Gus put his head back down. “Or else you could come to give me moral support?” Affinity said, hoping he’d change his mind and come up to the Great Hall with her. No luck.
Affinity arrived up in the Great Hall at about half eight, well into breakfast. She walked quickly up to the staff table between the Ravenclaws and the Slytherins.
She sat next to Snape, who was buried in his morning’s Daily Prophet. She took the closest plate of bacon and eggs and piled them onto her plate. “Good Morning” Snape said from behind his paper.
Affinity didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure what his mood would be like after last night. She was nervous, because it was the morning of her first class, which just happened to be 6th years...