Susan double checked the address on the advertisement she clipped from The Prophet. This was the place. Grimacing, she navigated carefully down the overgrown cobblestone path that led to Hyacinth Elixirs. If she hadn't needed the calming draughts, she might have just turned and gone home. This place was treacherous.

As she rounded the last corner, she could make out a hand coming out of the shadows to place a card in the window. Drawing nearer, she saw clearly lettered on it, "Help Wanted."

"Oh for Merlin's sake!" she whispered. Fate was really out to taunt her. She needed a job. Any job. But that was definitely Professor Snape's handwriting. After seven years under his petrifying tutelage, she'd know his script anywhere. With a sigh, she stepped into the shop.

Severus was not a man much given to prayer - he rather felt any God or gods that might be out there had better things to do than listen to his prayers, and sometimes those better things involved making him the butt of a cosmic joke - but he felt the urge to bow his head and say a prayer right then. Please, he asked the heavens in a non-specific fashion, please let this not be the dog lady, or an "old friend from the Order", or anything to do with personal female issues. Let this be a customer who hates to chatter, can pick out their own potion, and has exact change. Let them be gone quickly, and let his employees return shortly so he could stop minding the store before he lost his temper at one of the many stupid customers that made the trek to his door.

The inside of the shop was a bit dark, and Susan took advantage of that fact, pretending she hadn't noticed her former teacher standing in the shadows at the rear of the store. She scanned the shelves, biding her time while she tried to decide what to do. There was no one, save Voldemort and his minions possibly, Susan could imagine having less desire to work for than Snape. There was no way around it, though. She had to at least try for the position. Working for Snape was better than losing her house.

Quickly, she grabbed a bottle of murtlap essence and some Pepperup potion. Common, everyday needs. She'd have to go elsewhere for the calming draughts. Snape had never been tolerant of weakness, and admitting to her anxiety problems was probably not the way to get hired.

Severus looked at the girl's purchases, then the girl. Without a word, he walked past her, retrieved several bottles of calming draughts, and placed them with her other purchases on the counter. "I trust you remember the proper dosage?"

Susan flushed. Silly of her, Madame Pomfrey would have had to go to Professor Snape for potions back at Hogwarts. Odd that he would remember after all these years, though. So much for hiding the problem.

"Yes, thank you," she replied, not quite able to look him in the eye. "How much do I owe you, Professor?"

Under his breath, Severus muttered, "Carry the one... Divide by seventeen... Blast, how much is the murtlap?"

Turning the bottle up, Susan answered, "One galleon, five sickles. So, that's -" She did the calculations in her head and winced internally. "- Eleven galleons, fifteen sickles, sixteen knuts." She counted out the money and handed it over.

It's now or never, she thought as Snape put the cash in the register. Susan cleared her throat and straightened her spine, trying to appear confident. "I noticed your help wanted sign in the window. What sort of help are you looking for?"


Severus finished scribbling on a scrap parchment and grunted. She'd come up with the exact sum, and hadn't tried to cheat him. "Could you handle working with the public?"

Susan relaxed a bit; customer service was familiar. "Oh yes. I spent the last four years working in the Department of Records at the Ministry. I helped the customers who came in to research the archives all the time."

"I see. And do you have any restrictions on what hours of the day you would be available?"

"No, I'm available anytime."

Looking up as the ward on the path chimed to signify someone was coming, Severus looked out to see a familiar heavyset woman trudging towards the door. "You can start now. She wants a medicine for her dog, which you'll come to the back room to get, and it will cost two galleons and three knuts. Do not, under any circumstances, let her know I'm here."

Dumbstruck, she nodded, murmuring, "Yes, sir. Thank you very much!"

Susan felt lighter than she had in months as she turned to assist the dog lady, allowing Professor Snape to make a rather hasty retreat into his lab.


Summary: Snape makes a hasty hiring decision, and Susan is abruptly employed.