Hello Readers! Everlily here! I was so thrilled with the response to my other fic that I decided to put this one up too! This one is very different. First of all, its in the Harry Potter section! The best book series ever! It will be a series of one shots throughout Snape's life, showing his perspective on a few of the most important moments of his life. This fic was inspired by one of my fellow Potterhead friends, who absolutely LOVES Snape. (Seriously, its a little scary ;-)) I love the Marauders, don't get me wrong, and Snape gets on my nerves with his jerky attitude to Harry sometimes. However, she got me thinking about his life, and how he was feeling during some of the events described in the books. We never get a very deep look at Snape, and that's why I was inspired to try this. There will be about 5-6 of these in total, but they'll be coming out as soon as I finish them! Hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters described here, or any of the plot or setting elements from JK Rowling's Harry Potter book series. I only own my own imagination, no matter how much I try to convince myself that I attend Hogwarts.
Definitely Worth It
Severus Snape was furious. He glared daggers at anyone who dared to even look at him for more than a few seconds as he walked through the halls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and God help anyone who dared to giggle at him.
He stalked quickly down the halls towards the Slytherin Common Room, following the twists and turns of the halls absentmindedly, already knowing the route like the back of his hand due to the fact that he had been walking it for nearly three years already. His mind, free to wander, focused on his more pressing problem, James Potter.
Oh how he loathed him. The stuck up prat; the perfect pureblood Gryffindor who could do no wrong; who was adored by the school for his prowess at Quidditch and for his easy success in lessons. He was top of the class, well on his way to becoming Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, and the most popular boy in school, which only served to inflate his already enormous head. He had everything, and he appreciated nothing, Snape thought bitterly to himself; money, confidence, popularity, a loving family- he stopped himself there, knowing that he was liable to curse the next thing he saw if he continued on this tangent.
Besides, that wasn't his main problem right now. His main problem was the pink, slimy goo that was currently dripping from his head, down his robes, and onto the floor. Filch was going to kill him later, if he ever found out that it was him who had dirtied his meticulously scrubbed floors.
He could still hear the imbeciles, known to the public as James Potter and his loyal dog Sirius Black, jeering at him in his head.
"Oy, Snivellus, when's the last time you washed that greasy mop?"
"Need a hand SnivellyXUY? It must be hard to see through that curtain you call hair."
"Tell us, do you prefer lavender or coconut?"
The idiots had then proceeded to dump some foul concoction onto his head that they had levitated over him while he had been occupied looking at them, anticipating a hex or curse of some kind. They shouted a few spells that he hadn't understood as he had been trying to rid himself of the substance. In the process, he had stumbled backwards and tripped over one of the roots of the tree where he had been doing his homework on the grounds, and proceeded to roll down the hill, leaving a pink sudsy trail as he went.
Laughing, the two menaces had proceeded to send his bag, books, and meticulously taken notes down the hill after him, sliding down the soapy pink trail he had left, and rendering everything indecipherable from his usually immaculate writing. The rest of the onlookers had of course found this absolutely hilarious, and the devilish duo had been struggling to stand as Snape had quickly gathered his things and stormed off, trying to maintain his dignity.
Luckily, with a quick scourgify, he had been able to restore his supplies and bag to their former pristine state. However, he had discovered that the strange potion had been enchanted to stay in his hair for an unknown amount of time, and it was seemingly multiplying as well, thus causing the incessant dripping down his robes. Sighing, he knew that his best chance would be to try the showers now, when most of the older population of Slytherins was either in the library studying for OWL and NEWT exams or otherwise engaged in classes or some other boring youthful trivia. The younger years were too scared of the boy to be of any concern to him anyway.
Snape himself had never had much use for the drama most young people chose to surround and drown themselves in. He had never really had many friends; most of the people in his house he counted as acquaintances. People he knew and could use as a means to an end if he so desired. The one person he knew that he really cared about was Lily Evans.
Thinking about her brought a strange warmth to his chest and he could feel the blood rush to his cheeks incriminatingly. Lily was, ironically, a Gryffindor in the same year as he. Snape had known her even before she came to Hogwarts together. They had lived very close together, and it was he who told her of her magic when it had began to manifest accidentally. From then on, they had been as thick as thieves, and even though they were in different houses, they were still quite good friends. She had deep green eyes and red hair that matched her fiery temper and possessed a wit to rival even James Potter. Despite this however, she was one of the kindest, most caring people he had ever known. She made friends very easily, and was well liked among most of the Hogwarts houses. She was very smart as well; one of the top of their year, and Snape would be shocked if she weren't made a Prefect, or even Head Girl in a few years time. She was very ambitious as well, a quality that would surely have made her popular, or at least accepted, among the Slytherins as well if she weren't a Mu-
He stopped that thought in its tracks, not wanting to fall into bad habits. He knew that hanging around with Lestrange and Malfoy was going to rub off on him, but he hoped to avoid slandering his one true friend with that horrible insult.
He forced himself to focus again, for his musings only had one purpose- Revenge.
He knew that he had to find some way to show those self-dubbed Marauders that he would not be pushed around by them. He contemplated what course of action he should take to prove that he meant business.
He couldn't go to any teachers; that would only make him look like a coward. It would mean that he couldn't handle his problems himself, and that he would go crying to an adult at the first sign of trouble, over a simple prank. Besides, the worst they could do would be to assign detention and deduct points, which he knew would do little to deter the troublemakers. He was pretty sure they already held the records for those two particular punishments anyway.
No, he knew that he would have to be much more creative in his retribution. And he couldn't ask any students for help either, as that would only serve to show that he needed backup like Potter when he was perfectly capable of handling this on his own.
He continued to ponder his problem as he turned the last corner in the dungeons and reached the common room, mumbling the password halfheartedly-
"Pureblood."
Finally, an idea hit him out of the blue. Why not beat them at their own game? As the plan began to take shape in his head, he smiled. Somewhere in the back of his head he thought that he must look a right sight, dripping pink, soapy, lavender smelling goo everywhere and smirking evilly, but he didn't much care at the moment. As he walked jauntily up the steps towards the boys' bathrooms, he began to work out the details. He fought down the insane urge to cackle malevolently, James Potter was about to get his comeuppance.
A week later, everything was ready. Snape woke up with a feeling of nervous excitement, knowing that this very morning was when he would put his plan into action.
He knew that Potter and Black would have expected him to simply curse them in the hallways the next day, but he had spent the past week studiously and religiously avoiding them.
He did this for a few reasons. First of all, he needed the time to get all of his preparations done. Also, he knew that it would either make them antsy, waiting for him to retaliate in some form, or lull them into a sense of false security, when in reality he was just biding his time.
But now, he had finished all aspects of his plan, and he was sure that it would go smoothly. He dressed quickly in his black school robes that bore his house crest, donned his tie, and set off for the Great Hall.
When he got there, he tried to look bored and uninterested as usual, as if today was no different from any other day. He knew that as soon as his plan was put into effect, the boys would know exactly who was to blame, but until them he had to keep up appearances. As they walked into the room, Black and Pettigrew laughing boisterously at some obviously hilarious (note the sarcasm) joke Potter had just told, while Lupin followed docilely behind with his nose in a book, smiling politely at his friends.
As the boys took their usual seats at the Gryffindor table, Snape struggled to hide his evil grin. It was almost time for phase one of his plan.
He had known that he couldn't ask any of the students to assist him in his scheme, but that didn't mean that he had to be completely alone. He was one of the few students who knew where the entrance to the kitchens was and how to use it. Once inside, he had found his quarry, the house elves.
The Hogwarts house elves were extremely friendly, and eager to do anything they could to serve a staff member or student at the school. After five minutes of them all asking him-
"Would sir like a cup of tea?"
"Or perhaps a few biscuits?"
"Fresh cakes just out of the oven if sir would like a taste."
-he finally managed to ask the favor he wanted of them. They were hesitant at first but after he reassured them that the brew he had prepared would cause no lasting damage, they were eager to assist him.
And that was how he knew that as soon as Potter and Black took a scoop of the scrambled eggs, a dish that it was no secret the boys had a particular liking for in the morning, that had been strategically placed right in between the two pests, that Phase 1 of his plan was going to begin.
The effects of the potion he had taken five days to brew were not immediately obvious to anyone. But slowly, it was apparent that all was not right with the two third year Gryffindor Boys. Their hair was slowly lengthening and becoming silkier and shinier by the second. Their bodies began to thin out around their waists, while their athletic chests grew outwards.
After a minute it was clear that the potion had done its work. James Potter and Sirius Black had been transformed into girls.
Slowly, the Great Hall began to point and laugh at them, and even more slowly the boys realized what had happened to them. They heard the amusement and jeers, and saw the confounded yet slightly amused looks of their friends. Then they looked at each other, confused looks turned horrified as they looked down at themselves, comprehension dawning.
Fighting his own laughs, Snape put Phase 2 of his plan into action. He muttered a quick spell under his breath, pointing his wand at his two classmates. They shrieked in embarrassingly high voices as their robes turned bright green and purple, and they found their faces done over with an amount of makeup that would seem excessive for a clown. The back of the robes now read Jamie Potter and Shirley Black in bright pink, cursive writing.
The merriment in the room grew as Snape smirked and put the final part of his scheme into play. With one more whispered spell, James, now Jamie Potter stood up on his seat and proclaimed loudly for the whole of the Great Hall to hear,
"James Potter is a prat and idiot, and I am Queen of the World!"
No sooner had he finished, to the delight of the Hogwarts Student body, when Sirius, now Shirley stood up and shouted,
"James Potter is a prat and an idiot, but I am Queen of the World, bring it on!"
They both threw their hands over their mouths, horrified, and Snape couldn't hold in his laughter any longer, and joined the rest of the hall in their uncontrollable mirth.
His plan now completed, he knew that it was only a matter of time before the two mischief-makers worked out exactly who had been behind the prank, and so Snape knew that it was time to make his escape. As he slipped out of the Hall, he caught Lily's green eyes. She was laughing heartily, and gifted him with a smile and a wink, to which he smiled slightly, before quickly retreating so she wouldn't see his blush.
He quickly ran down the hallway, managing to turn the corner before he heard the furious outcry of
"SNIVELLUS!"
He smirked evilly and fought down his urge to cackle again. That should teach them never to underestimate a Slytherin. Gryffindors may be brave, more like foolish Snape thought wryly, but Slytherins were cunning and crafty, and would go to any means necessary to achieve a goal. Turn your back on a Slytherin, it may be the last mistake you would ever make, because they would easily wait any amount of time necessary to take their revenge.
He knew that this wasn't the end. Potter and Black would surely be back to take their revenge as soon as they were rid of the enchantments he had put on them. He didn't think that he would do this again, this pranking lark wasn't exactly his style, and besides, he didn't want anybody to think that he was just copying the Marauders. However, just this once it was worth it to see the looks on their faces when somebody outwitted them, he thought smirking.
He thought again of the smile on Lily's face, the way she had laughed and winked at him. As he continued to run down the hall to safety, his face softened into a true smile.
Yup, definitely worth it.