A noise outside the window made Severus sit up. It was 2:30 AM and he hadn't been sleeping well. Something about Zachary's presence made him nervous, even a little guilty. He looked out the window but nothing was there. A chill suddenly came over him. He shuttered, lay back down, closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep.
Down the hall, Tiana got up to go to the bathroom and nearly fell over Zachary. "Zachary!" she said. The panther just stared at her but didn't move. Tiana bent down and began to pet the panther's sleek black head. "Can you move so I get to the bathroom?" she whispered in his ear. The giant cat stood up stretched and vanished. "I still have to get used to that," Tiana muttered to herself as she headed for the bathroom.
"This is hopeless," Snape muttered to himself after half an hour of trying to fall asleep. Suddenly, footsteps could be heard in the hallway. 'Probably just Tiana going to the bathroom,' he thought. But no, something was different about these footsteps. They sounded hollow and distant. He nervously got out of bed and grabbed his wand, lest he need to use it.
He barely had time to take a step when a pale figure emerged through his bedroom door. Snape stood there, wand at his side. The figure was wearing Hogwarts school robes and had flowing blond hair. The figure came to rest in a chair next to the fireplace. "W-w-what are you doing here? H-h-how? W-w-why?" Snape sputtered. "You stole my panther," the figure said calmly. "You stole at lot of things from me Professor," she continued. "M-M-Miss Walker," Snape said astounded. "That's right. It's me, Lexi Walker," Lexi said. "I didn't steal your panther. You gave him to me," Snape said. "I did no such thing!" Lexi said standing, her voice rising. "Then what is this?" he asked handing her the note. Lexi's ghost read it quickly. "That filthy little�" she said through clenched teeth. "Excuse me?" Severus said confused. "I didn't write this note you idiot. It was my rotten stepfather!" the pale figure spat angrily. Lexi glared at the note and then shifted her gaze to Snape. "If I find you have mistreated Zachary, I will make your life a living hell, like it was supposed to be!" Lexi's ghost shouted. With that she disappeared.
Just then, Tiana ran in followed by Zachary. "Dad, I heard shouting. What happened?" she asked in one breath. "I had a little visitor," Snape said, his voice a bit shaky. "From who?" Tiana questioned. "Lexi's ghost," Snape said quietly. At this, Zachary's ears pricked up and he looked intently at Snape. Snape looked at him and felt even guiltier than he did before. "She didn't give you to me. Her stepfather did," he murmured to the panther. "But you knew that," he added. "Dad, I think you need to get some sleep," Tiana said. "G'night," she added and walked out. Zachary lay down next to Snape's bed. Snape climbed in and closed his eyes. The panther's presence both comforted and frightened him. Lexi's words replayed in his head. "If I find you have mistreated Zachary, I will make your life a living hell, like it was supposed to be!" However, the late hours finally dragged him into sleep.