Hey guys and merry christmas!! Here's a twoshot for the Lily/Snape-shippers about Severus finding out about the approaching wedding of James and Lily. I hope you like it and review. (:

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Harry Potter'. You know that. =P

It was a cold afternoon in December when Severus Snape stepped out of his house. For a moment he couldn't make out anything but white. Then he realized it was snow. It was winter.

Great, he thought, when the first snowflakes landed in his hair. Just great.

He didn't really hate snow, not in general. But as he lived in Spinner's End the snow was grey and dirty and didn't resemble at all the white, clean, thick snow you saw in movies and children played with.

He slipped into another one of his thin old cloaks and closed the door behind him. After making sure no one was watching he drew his wand and Apparated.

Seconds later he stood in front of a small nice house somewhere near Manchester. The area seemed quite new; here the snow was as white and snow-ish as in the stories.

In the neighbor's house's garden even stood two snowmen. One wore an old ugly hat; the other one had lost its scarf that was lying next to him in the snow.

Severus walked over to the first house and murmured: "Homenum Revelio."

After making sure nobody was in the house he went to the front door. Over the bell hang a sign saying: "Steven, Mary & Lisa Ludvig say hello!"

Smiling grimly, Severus said: "Alohomora", and the door fell open.

Severus was glad the family wasn't at home. He remembered Mary Macdonald from Hogwarts. She was one of Lily's best friends and after marrying Steven Ludvig moved to Manchester. Since the Death Eater didn't know whether or not she was in the Order Severus had been sent to make it clear. Severus secretly had chosen this day to investigate after making sure the family wasn't there. They were visiting a relative in the city of Manchester.

He would just look around for a while, leave marks that would prove he actually had been at the house, leave and tell the others unfortunately he couldn't find out whether Mary Ludvig, neé Macdonald, was in the Order of the Phoenix because she hadn't been there to be questioned.

Of course she was in the Order. He was sure of that.

Severus knew that he didn't really act like his fellow Death Eater colleagues. But when he thought about what Lily would think if he hurt Mary or her family… He couldn't even picture her rage and hate and then he would lose her forever.

He stepped into the living room, a sudden hope burning inside of him. Maybe Mary still had pictures… maybe pictures not only of her but of her friends as well… pictures of a certain redheaded girl...

Severus didn't notice any other furniture while he walked over to the little table at the end of the room.

A lot of photos showed the little family and Severus only glanced at them. But behind all these there were some photos that definitely showed places in Hogwarts.

And then there was one that made Severus swallow hard. The picture showed four giggling girls. There were leaning against a familiar looking tree and behind them Severus could make out the lake. He recognized the girls one by one.

The name of the girl left was Alice. He didn't know very much about her, except that she was married to Frank Longbottom and that they were in the Order as well. The next girl's name was Abby Walters, another friend of Lily's. She wasn't in the Order and had moved to America the year they had graduated. Then came Mary. She was beaming and her arm lay on the shoulders of the last girl. She was smiling the brightest. Her red hair was shimmering and her eyes appeared even greener in the sun.

Severus wondered what Lily had been thinking of when the photo was taken. They all looked not older than fourteen and that meant at the time the photo was shot Lily and Severus still had been friends…

He would have been able to stare at the picture for much longer if there hadn't been another thing that attracted his attention.

A piece of paper that had fallen off the table when Severus had come in lay on the floor. He took it carefully and began to read.

Dear Mary,

James and I would like you to attend our wedding on the 22rd December. Please be at Godric's Hollow at 11am. Don't hesitate to bring Steven and Lisa. We're always delighted to see them.

Love,

James & Lily

P.S.: We decided to leave out the formal invitations, so this is all you will get.

Godric's Hollow, 28th November 1979

Severus felt his knees buckle. He thought he was going to fall but when he landed he wasn't sitting on the floor but on one of the plushy chairs that he had seen everywhere in the house.

Something was wrong here. Never – never – would Lily, sweet little Lily, marry a guy like Potter. Never.

This had to be wrong. There were probably a lot of couples with the names Lily and James. Of course. And there had to be another one of these couples living in Godric's Hollow.

But still – what if he was wrong? What if on the 22nd December he would lose Lily to James Potter forever?

He felt the sudden urge to rush over to her and ask her but knew at the same time that that was impossible. The Dark Lord would know, somehow he would know.

But they had only just graduated from Hogwarts. They were young. Surely the invitation was from an older couple, it had to be.

Confused and angry, Severus got up and left the house, leaving the invitation lying on the floor.

Part two following.