A/N: I do not own rights in any way to the characters developed by JK Rowling for the Harry Potter universe.

The title of this fic is a line from the song "Singing in My Sleep" by Semisonic. Chapter 1 is rated M for language and sexuality.

******

Muggle shite.

Snape grimly eyed the quintet of self-styled punk rockers gyrating by the lake. Had Dumbledore really acceded to their request to perform? Those five were a disgrace to Hogwarts. The Potions master had never seen so many piercings and Doc Martens in one place at the same time.

He stepped from the copse of trees into the fading sunlight of a hot June evening. Severus noted that most of the student body appeared to be in attendance for the concert.

They certainly don't appear to be studying for exams, he thought ruefully, passing a crowd of students dancing in a manner that suggested the frenzy of Cruciatus victims. A skinny second-year whom he recognized as the Tonks girl ran across his path, screaming the lyrics to whatever nonsense the band was playing.

Snape moved closer to the band, where he was able to distinguish Aurora at the microphone. The strawberry blonde of her pixie haircut shone in the sun, perhaps aided by what seemed to be a significant amount of gel or mousse. A metal hoop bisected the smooth curve of one nostril. She wore a red plaid skirt that was a little too short for her gangly legs, with the requisite shit-kicking boots and a t-shirt that read "CBGB & OMFUG", whatever that meant. The shirt was torn in several places and had been mended with an armada of safety pins. Aurora's fair skin gleamed through where the edges of the fabric were not entirely aligned.

He found the entire aesthetic both repellant and strangely appealing, particularly the pinned t-shirt. Severus could see himself shredding the already torn fabric to expose more of that pure flesh. The safety pins would dig into her skin, some popping open to prick her, to draw both gasps and blood from her body. He remembered the sweet fruits that were her tits; perfect handfuls of soft flesh, tipped with pink. And that tartan scrap of cloth which passed for a skirt would pose no problem. He would have it above her sweet arse in a heartbeat.

Snape found himself ducking his head slightly, trying to catch a glimpse of Aurora's underpants under the skirt. What was she wearing? White cotton? Cute and colorful briefs? Black lace? Nothing?

He shifted his hips to make room for the growing erection inside his pants, thankful for the plentiful drape of his robes. Stop it, you moronic git, he cursed himself.

The girl's charisma, however, there was no denying. Despite the enthusiastic but inept musicians who surrounded her, despite the brutal crap that she was belting, despite the angry snarl which disfigured her pretty face, Severus could not take his eyes off of her and actually found himself drawn by the melody, such as it was. The microphone was magical, and so merely a prop, but Aurora worked it like a professional, manhandling it and slinging it around, taming it with her manic will. Snape's eyebrow shot upward when she slid her fingers up and down the mike stand in what could only be described as a suggestive manner. He scratched his temple to cover a blush.

Then the drums came crashing to a finale, and the audience erupted into applause, mixed with whoops and whistles. Aurora's face gleamed with excitement as her eyes roved over the crowd. Suddenly, her gaze met Snape's. He stared back coldly.

A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. She turned to her band and said something, then leaned back into the mike. "This one's for an old friend," she announced. Severus thought he caught the barest hint of a wink in his direction.

The guitarist began softly; the tune sounded...folksy. Aurora swayed, eyes closed. After a few measures, she began to growl into the microphone.

I need someone, a person to talk to,
someone who'd care to love. Could it be you?

Cheers rose up from across the audience as the students recognized the lyrics. Snape looked around to see the youth of Hogwarts dancing and singing along to this strange monotone that she was chanting, apparently, for him.

A giant grin spread across Aurora's face as the guitar tumbled down a flight of chords.

You can all just kiss off into the air.
Behind my back I can see that stare.
They'll hurt me bad, but I won't mind.
They'll hurt me bad: they do it all the time.

Two of the boys in the band sang back-up, repeating the chorus with her. Severus cocked his head, trying to gauge the emotion swirling inside him. Anger? Fear? Grief? Gratitude?

What was Aurora doing, messing about like this?

Hundreds of voices joined Aurora's as she wailed: "I hope you know that this will go down on your permanent record!" Their passions and frustrations welled to the surface, unleashed by this song.

Severus scoffed, rolling his eyes. What did they know of being outcasts? What did they know of whispers and taunts? Of losing yourself in the pain until it almost felt good?

Aurora knew though. Yes, she did.

She was dancing behind the microphone as her band wrestled with an awkward bridge. As she waved her arms, Snape could see the tattoo which had returned with her from holiday break. A black mark on her left forearm.

****

He spotted the tattoo under her sleeve and grabbed her arm, wrenching it painfully. She cursed under her breath, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of crying out.

"What is this?" His words were slow as a glacier, cold as ice. But there was no doubting the fury simmering behind the mask of his face. "What is this?"

"Thought we'd be cute as a matching set."

Snape squeezed her soft flesh. "I will not permit backchat, even from you!" he hissed, cranking her arm until the sleeve fell away. Emblazoned on her fair skin was a small black heart encircled by a snake biting its own tail. Aurora laughed at his astonishment, and Severus thrust her away from him in disgust.

"Reckon your dark lord would spank me for that?" Her wide eyes mocked him. Then she stepped closer to him. "Reckon you would?"

He slapped her across the cheek.

Moments later, when she had fled the room, he came to his senses and leaned panting against his desk. He was only glad that he had not gone for his wand.

*****

The bridge resolved itself into a bass-and-drum beat. Aurora grabbed the mike and began to speak-sing again.

I take one, one, one 'cause you left me
and two, two, two for my family
and three, three, three for my heartaches
and four, four, four for my headaches
and five, five, five for my lonely
and six, six, six for my sorrow,
and seven, seven for no tomorrow,
and eight, eight, I forget what eight was for,
and nine, nine, nine for a lost god
and ten, ten, ten, ten
for everything,
everything,
everything,
everything.

Aurora moaned her way through the chorus again, then raised her hands to the crowd. "Now, everybody!" Snape stood stone-faced as the students screamed,

You can all just kiss off into the air.
Behind my back I can see that stare.
They'll hurt me bad, but I won't mind.
They'll hurt me bad: they do it all the time.

****

A/N: "Kiss Off" was written and recorded by the Violent Femmes.