Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Harry Potter characters; I simply have them do my bidding.

Note: Many thanks to my roleplay partner for the inspiration and for essentially co-writing this chapter with me. This story was borne of a spectacular session the day that Deathly Hallows part 2 was released. Severus Snape deserves some happiness in his name.

Mail: mistermalfoy at gmail dot com

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"But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

Those words haunted him for weeks. It was sheer torture, thinking about how angry he'd been at those gits, and how that anger had blinded him, causing him to lash out against the only real friend he had. The memories kept flooding him unbidden, reminding him of his scathing words and of their later discussion outside of the Gryffindor common room. The resultant and somewhat abrupt end never left his mind in peace thereafter.

He simply couldn't stand to lose his best friend, so after weeks of torment, of sulking on his own, of snapping at anyone who so much as breathed around him, he decided enough was enough. He practiced his charm work for hours, days, weeks on end, getting the flicks and swishes just perfect. All too often he was off on his own, far from prying eyes, practicing the magic that he desperately hoped would win his best friend back. Severus was entirely singular in his task, but not even his schoolwork had suffered. If nothing else, he was a very well-studied young man who could easily dazzle his professors, if not for the ever-present scowl on his sallow face.

The work had paid off as the day had come. It was late in May, the final countdown until the O.W.L.s already having begun the prior school year. Severus was hardly concerned. His Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.s were the only ones of serious concern, and he had no doubt he would nail them with Outstandings while breezing through the rest.

His unusual good mood accompanied him as he worked diligently along a secluded patch of grass down the long lawn of Hogwarts, nestled at a slight decline, a stone path leading farther down into the Forbidden Forest.

The first year he'd recruited proved most useful as Severus finally broke away from his work to watch him leading the red-haired object of his devotion toward him and the set-up he'd so meticulously worked on. His pockets felt considerably lighter as the first year had been a conniving little git, greedy hands reaching for any gold Severus had to offer. Slytherins were nothing if not opportunistic. Before the girl had a chance to question him further, the first year dashed off ahead and used his abundant young energy to his advantage, fleeing the scene and ensuring that Lily Evans made it near the intended patch of grass.

When she couldn't catch the boy, she started rummaging through her bag looking for the potions ingredients he had claimed he needed, probably hoping he would return. The scene was set, and without much thought, Severus sent the silvery doe flying from the tip of his ebony-and-dragon heartstring wand. She gently made her way near the redheaded girl who, if she looked up and around her, would spot the beautiful creature.

Just as predicted, she did finally look up from her bag in exasperation, having cut her finger on some parchment or another. Sucking on the wound, her almond-shaped eyes fell to the creature grazing along the grass nearby, curiosity piquing. When she started to head toward the doe, it darted off in the direction of the decline not far from Lily, who followed in curiosity.

Petals crunched beneath her shoes as she looked down and noticed them. They seemed to be arranged in a pattern leading toward the decline, just in case she hadn't seen the doe's direction. Eyes wide in curious wonderment, she followed the path until she came upon the full scene, her vibrant green eyes taking it all in.

A curvy white shape, upon closer inspection, formed the body of a snake and was made up of casablanca lilies. The fragrance hit her nose instantly and she marveled at the scent. Another little detail caught her eye: twined along the serpentine shape were little yellow Narcissus flowers, spelling out—her name. It was unexpected, but she was starting to piece together the puzzle.

"Sev…?" She tentatively called out for the boy she'd recently had a falling out with, shouldering her bag and looking carefully about.

His hands clenched beside him and his head rested against the firm bark of the tree supporting his back. He'd watched her movements from behind the tree until he absolutely needed to conceal himself as she got nearer. Now that she made the connection, he slowly emerged from the tree, leaning his rounded but slightly angular shoulder against it as his gaze trailed the grass at his feet. Severus' heart was hammering in his chest, but lightened a bit at Lily's soft voice, noting that it held no malice or mistrust.

"…Lily." The curtain of black fell before his dark eyes for a moment as he finally lifted his head a fraction, the thoughtful gaze running across the scene and landing on his target's shoes. He did not dare look up to meet her own face, fear gripping him in immeasurable ways.

Hearing the acknowledgment, she swallowed the suddenly dry lump in her throat and shifted her bag, addressing the scene.

"I know you think it's a soft subject, but you really have a talent for Herbology. It's beautiful."

Not used to compliments, he shrunk a little, wondering at her final sentence. Was she saying the floral scene was beautiful for the sake of beauty, or because it was he who had created it? He had to know, so he lifted his head the rest of the way, heavy gaze tracing over her collar before it came to rest on her perfect lips—though he quickly shoved that train of thought to the back of his mind—and composed his voice so that none of the internal battle would seep through.

"I would never think to take up the subject purely out of academic curiosity, I assure you. This was not meant to be a show of talent, as much as—" He halted mid-speech, unable to reveal the truth just yet. He let the unfinished sentence linger in the stiff air between them, onyx eyes and thin jaw steeled against her reaction.

Still tender about his harsh words several weeks ago, she allowed him to flounder in his halting words now, slowly walking toward the silvery doe which had started to 'graze' along the lilies Severus had brought to life. Her hand passed neatly through the doe's neck before coming to rest on her, as though she would pet her. Softly, she offered the words he was grabbing for.

"You're sorry, I know, Sev. That doesn't change the words you said or their meaning." She hadn't turned to look at him.

"What they meant—" he began, unable to finish the sentence when he heard the heat in the words. Instead, he walked to the edge of the flower serpent's body and plucked a lily from it, come to a halt on the other side of the doe, a mere foot separating him from Lily.

"I was angry. I shouldn't have said that. I truly am sorry." He gently lifted an arm over the doe's back and held the flower out to her. A peace offering.

She'd been following his movement as he walked toward her, keeping her gaze low so she wouldn't make him too nervous. She learned over the years of their friendship that he never seemed to do well when expressing his emotions.

A few moments passed before she reached her hand out to intentionally brush against his for several seconds, finally taking the lily into her own hand. Pulling back, her free hand swiped at her cheeks, dashing away any stray tears that had formed.

Lily laughed a little to cover up her emotions, before changing the subject. "Look at her, she's brilliant. I thought mine was good, but I clearly need to practice more if I don't want a 'T' on my O.W.L.s."

Severus watched her carefully, pushing back the feelings the simple touch of her hand evoked. His cheeks had other ideas as a slightly rosy color crept onto their pallid surface. He'd noted the swipe at her tears and his heart lurched.

In a gravely voice, he reverted the topic to a more serious angle. "I need you to understand me, so I can't ever hurt you again. You were right about everything you said, but I want you to know why I can't let it go, why I can't be good and pure like you."

The seriousness of his tone caught her attention. She took in his words and immediately threw them back at him. Her voice dropped an octave so as not to be overheard, despite being far from the castle.

"There is no way I can understand what you said. When you use that word, it applies to every muggleborn, including me. And those boys you've been hanging around with… you're falling in line with them, starting to act just as creepy as them." She leaned in closer over the doe's back to convey her message more clearly.

"A lot of the muggleborns are becoming afraid to walk alone, Sev." Lily was even having a hard time walking around the Potions classroom, which was, unfortunately, very close to the Slytherin common room and the source of the discomfort for muggleborns. Ever the favorite of Professor Slughorn, she didn't even feel safe going to his office whenever he called upon her.

His brows had gradually dipped deeper as she spoke, until he wore an all-out frown. He didn't want to start this again, so he shifted the focus of the conversation to a question she'd asked him weeks ago.

"You asked why you're different. But that's just it. You simply are. I hoped this," his arm swept across the floral scene behind them, "would convey my meaning. I wouldn't do this for just anyone." The last was whispered as his shoulders tensed. Would she understand the depth of his emotions, the meaning behind the gesture?

She started to say something in objection but Severus' gesture made her look at the scene around them and think twice about her words. Her face relaxed a bit as she turned back to him.

"That doesn't make me different from the other muggleborns, I am a mu—" she couldn't say the word, the very one Severus himself had spat at James several weeks ago. Lifting her shoulders against the memory, she went on. "I am a muggleborn, despite how we feel about one another." Lily didn't notice her slip right away, instead, plowing forward with her thought.

"With you hanging around these new 'friends,' I can't help but ask if you feel like muggleborns are under you. I don't understand how you can continue to associate with me if that's the case." The tone of her voice was wary as she watched him across the doe's back.

"No! I would never—" Severus abruptly stopped that comment before he got too heated. Changing tactics, he lowered his tone. The doe between them was finally dissipating from the heat of the conversation until it fizzled out in a mist of silver.

"The reason I said that was because of my father," he practically spat the word. "He loved the bottle more than he ever loved my mother and me, more than he loved making money, and even more than he loved eating the basics to survive. He made me hate muggles." The venom in his voice was clear, although when he turned his gaze to look into Lily's green depths, the heat all but dissipated.

"I think it was mostly blaming him for his actions. I'm starting to see how wrong I was." Severus paused as though he were about to rip a piece of his heart out and hand it to her on a silver platter. Perhaps in some way, he was.

"Lily, I could never see you as beneath me. Above all, I see you as an equal." He sincerely meant it, his eyes were pleading with her to believe him.

The beat of a few moments passed in tension. She finally leaned forward and reached for his face with both hands, resting them upon his cheeks. Her thumbs stroked his cheekbones gently as she leaned her lips against his forehead in a chaste kiss. Lily didn't lift away much as she spoke.

"I forgive you."

Severus was taken aback by her actions and words. He held onto his breath and his deep black eyes widened as he stood there, unable to move, unwilling to shift away from her comforting warmth. After a little while, he noticed he hadn't taken a breath and quickly starting to breathe again. He closed his eyes to revel in her presence.

Softly, he replied. "…thank you." His hands were itching to be around her, so they tentatively reached up to Lily's sides, resting awkwardly against her in a gentle touch, not quite a hug.

— ¤ —

They'd reconciled their friendship that afternoon, but before the day was over, their voices could be heard discussing a new topic.

"You'll have to help with my patronus so we get into the same Defense Against the Dark Arts class," she told him firmly, raising a brow as if he could argue.

They faced one another as she prepared for a quick lesson, her wand out and ready. He pulled his own to practice the wandwork with her as they started.

"Remember what we learned: think of a really happy memory and then say the spell."

She nodded and did so, her "Expecto Patronum" resulting in a crystal clear doe for all of a second before it was sucked back into the tip of her wand. Lily huffed in annoyance.

"It must be my concentration. I can't think as well with O.W.L.s so close…"

"You'll do fine, don't worry." Severus addressed her concerns. "Besides, this can do nothing but help in our studies, right?" When he had a point, he had a point.

Her second try resulted in a similar outcome: the patronus didn't last for more than a second.

Severus, without actively thinking about his actions, came up beside her and started to position her wand at a slightly different angle and moved her hand with his through the motions of the spell. She was a bright witch, but no doubt the O.W.L. pressure was truly getting to her, so he didn't question her failure.

When he realized his boldness, he snatched his hand back and took a few steps backward, muttering a "Sorry" as he indicated for her to try again.

This time the patronus lingered for a moment longer before dissipating again. Severus raised both brows as he slowly approached the redheaded young woman, this time voicing his actions.

"Here, you bring up another memory and I'll help you hold the patronus." He didn't explain how he would do that, but she merely nodded as his hand wrapped warmly against hers, her wand in position.

"Expecto Patronum!" The doe shot out of the wand and formed a bright edge around its body, her head leaning down toward the lilies to graze, just like Severus' had done. He dearly hoped she wouldn't make the immediate connection between their two does' similarity.

While she was casting the spell, Severus had tried to keep eye contact with her for as long as possible. Over the recent months, he'd discovered a new skill in his possession, where he found himself in another's mind and could read their deepest secrets and could even see through their eyes. In this instance, he had used this ability the way a hypnotist might, swearing he would do nothing to hurt Lily and intending to keep his word.

Her fascination with the doe was heartwarming. She turned back to him to offer a wide smile and he finally noticed how close he was to her. He jostled her wand hand slightly in his sudden nerves, while taking a falling step backward, cutting off her patronus. His cheeks were starting to heat up again, but this time, instead of snatching his hand back like before, he gazed upon his hand covering hers and committed the image to memory. It would probably be a rare occurrence in the future.

Severus finally pulled his hand away and met Lily's expression. She was surprisingly happy that the two of them had broken through her concentration barrier to allow the doe to linger so long. She wisely did not mention the coloring of his cheeks that lingered.