Who: Severus Snape & Lily Potter What: A not-so-random run-in! Where: The apothecary where Lily works. When: This afternoon Rating/Status: TBA/Incomplete
Severus had always been cautious with good news. He'd never been inclined to keep his talents hidden, of course - no one could have called him modest - but he'd stumbled over one too many false starts not to know that a thing ought not to be revealed until it was well-settled. Having the ground collapse underfoot after one had been boasting was a decidedly unpleasant experience. And so it was only a few weeks after he'd taken up as Belby's apprentice that he so much as considered letting the word to slip out to anyone beyond his immediate circle of acquaintance. He was proud, without a doubt. It was a hundred times more engaging than peddling beetle eyes and glorified home remedies, and he only had to cope with two or three people a day instead of inordinate number of customers, and it was something he could admit to being paid for without feeling as though he had to explain himself.
He hadn't had that since Hogwarts.
Now that the job had solidified, and now that he'd come down from the initial giddy, half-paranoid stage of his new endeavor, he'd let his mind begin to turn to other things he hadn't had in years. This changed things for him. It was only natural that it should change things for other people, too. He had no particular words in mind as he entered the apothecary where he knew Lily spent her working hours, on a mission (conveniently enough) for a slightly different stage of dried monkshood flower, but that didn't mean he didn't know what he meant to say.