Stories had begun to circulate around the ancient school. Everywhere you went the whispers were different; "I heard he fought off six Centaurs at once", "He saved a First Year from the Acromantulas. She was almost eaten!", "I heard he was caught having a ride on the Slytherin Seeker's broom stick." None of these rumors were true, of course: rumors do tend to be false. Only a handful of people knew what had occurred in the Forbidden Forest two weeks ago that left Severus Snape unconscious in the Hospital Wing.
"Just ignore them, Sev," Lily told him as they walked through the crowded halls to History of Magic; every finger pointed to him and groups quickly formed to murmur their suspicions.
"That's sort of difficult," he said sneering as some curious-looking Fourth Year girls giggled at him. "Must be the one about me having a shag with Regulus Black." He cringed slightly at the thought.
"Don't worry about what a bunch of silly Fourth Years think. We know the truth. And so do Professor Dumbledore, Professor Slughorn and Madame Pomfrey." He sighed, nodding his head.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. And it's been a pretty interesting experience. I've learned things about myself that I never knew before. For example, did you know that I once fought off a gang of Hinkypunks with nothing but my bear hands and a serving spoon?" Lily laughed, the quiet chuckle a welcome relief from the hum of lies around him. She tugged hard on his robes.
"Come on, we're gonna be late. Binns will have a fit!" They ran down the corridor, their footsteps echoing in unison until they slipped into the dark classroom.
"Mr. Snape, Ms. Evans, so kind of you to join us today," the ghost Professor said in monotone. The two took their usual seats in the back of the classroom, Lily a bit pink in the face.
"We're sorry, Professor," she said sincerely. "We got caught up in the hallway." He gave them a skeptical look.
"I'm sure you did." A few of the other students snickered. "Please open your books to page forty-six." The ancient text books smelled of mildew and weighed about fifteen pounds as they painstakingly extracted them from their bags.
"Dumbledore wants us to be in his office at seven-thirty tonight," Lily whispered to Severus.
"I'm not letting you do this, Lily," he said offensively. "It's too dangerous!" Lily shook her head as the teacher continued drawling on about fourteenth century witch hunters.
"Sev, I've got to!" she protested. "It's the only way -"
"Listen to me, Lily. I can't let you do this! It's too risky. I won't lose you." His normally paper white face went pink when she smiled.
"I'll be fine, promise. Would I lie to you?" He smiled, shaking his head.
"No, I guess not."
"-which coincidentally lead to the Flame-Freezing Charm, but that's a question for Professor Flitwick."
After dinner, the two made their way up to the Headmaster's office. "Blood pop," Lily said to the enormous gargoyle. It rotated to reveal a spiraling staircase. They knocked twice on the door before it opened to the circular room.
"Ah, Mr. Snape, Miss Evans, right on time." Dumbledore smiled at them from behind his massive desk. A man sat next to him, a nervous smile on his face; he was a bit round, his clothes fitting him rather snug. He wore a silly little hat on his head that covered the patches of blond hair that were still intact.
"Good evening, Headmaster," Lily said. "You wished to see us?"
"I assume that you know why I have asked you here tonight, Miss Evans?" he asked. She nodded. "Then it is crucial that we proceed as soon as we are able."
"Why not tonight?" Dumbledore smiled at her enthusiasm.
"No, Lily," Severus spoke for the first time.
"Mr. Snape, is there something wrong?"
"Yes, there bloody well is!" he fumed. Lily tried to calm him but there was no use. "I am not letting Lily risk her life just so I can continue to live "normally". If anyone has cared to notice, I have never been normal, and now especially, I never will be." The Headmaster nodded.
"I see your point, Mr. Snape."
"Yeah I bet you – wait. You do?"
"Yes, I do. I understand why you have such reservations about Miss Evans going along with this."
"You do?" Lily asked crossing her arms over her chest. Dumbledore smiled.
"Surely Miss Evans you understand your friend wanting to keep you safe. After all, a friend like you comes along once in a life time. You are irreplaceable."
"Exactly, that's why I can't let you do this, Lily!" he implored her to see reason.
"Yes, instead you should allow young Severus to leave the school to acquire what he needs. That is the only way to keep your friendship strong. You do realize of course, that once you leave, Mr. Snape, you would not be able to return?" Severus hung his head.
"No Headmaster. I – I never thought about that." Lily rested her hand on his shoulder.
"Then let me help you." He smirked, putting his arm around her.
"Alright. Let's do it."
"Excellent. So, shall we begin?" Lily nodded. She and Severus followed Dumbledore to his desk where she was seated on a cushioned chair. "I'm not going to lie to you, Miss Evans. This will be an unusually painful process." She gave him a weak nod. "I can temporarily numb the area, but it will hurt quite a bit afterward. Are you sure you want to go through with this?" She looked up at Severus and smiled.
"Positive." Dumbledore nodded.
"Give me your hand." Lily opened her hand allowing the Headmaster to perform a charm over it, rendering it completely numb. "And now." He pointed his wand at her palm, running a long blade through the middle. Beads of blood immediately rushed to the surface and then a sudden rush of redness began to flow from her delicate hand. "Horace, the glass, please." The other professor, with a shaking hand, gave Dumbledore a thing crystal glass. He held Lily's hand over before wringing it like a cloth. As the final drops fell, Severus held on to Lily's shoulders.
"Are you alright? Does it hurt?" She smiled.
"I'm fine, Sev. It doesn't hurt at all." He touched it gently before it was wrapped to staunch any remaining blood.
"Right well, Mr. Snape, you should drink while it is still warm." He handed Severus the glass, Lily urging him to drink. He lifted the glass to his face; it was deep burgundy with an overwhelming metallic scent. A single drop lingered on the rim and curiously, he swept it up with his finger, moving it to his lips. To his surprise it was warm, and the metallic undertones went missing on his tongue: he enjoyed it. Tipping the glass towards Lily, he downed it in one.
"Feeling any better, Sev?" she asked.
"Much."
"Wonderful. Now, we have a second matter to address." The two looked confused for a moment. "I assume, Mr. Snape, that you have noticed some...changes, in your physical appearance lately?" It was true: in the last couple weeks Severus had noticed several differences when he looked in the mirror, he simply thought he was finally growing into his body.
"Yes I have, Sir. It's a side effect, right?"
"It is, though I wouldn't call it a side effect so much as an...advantage." He chuckled to himself, though Severus seemed a bit sour.
"Why is this happening, Headmaster?" Lily asked. He sat back at the desk, gesturing them to take the seats in front of him.
"Since Mr. Snape's accident, his body has gone under a grand transformation. For example," he took Severus' hand, "his fingernails will look like glass." The two looked on in awe, for neither had noticed that Severus' hands, now angelic, possessed glass at the tips. "He will also be very pale." This didn't show much in Severus, though there was a glow to him that hadn't be present before. "Most apparent of all changes will be his eyes." Severus sat back anxiously as they both looked inquiringly into his eyes; Lily gasped when she saw that his normally black eyes were replaced with stunningly luminous dark grey ones.
"Will it ever go back to normal?" she asked.
"The change is permanent, though there is a potion that we can use to hide these side effects from the other students who would undoubtedly notice." He waved over the other teacher who had simply been looking on for most of the meeting. "Professor Slughorn will be brewing your potion each month."
"Professor, you know that Lily and I are more than capable -"
"I have done this before, Mr. Snape," the Professor said. "This potion is extraordinarily tricky to make even for myself, and I have been Potions Master here for many years." Severus narrowed his eyes; he wasn't a child. "There are a few things you'll need to know about the potion, Severus. I'm sure you're quite curious as to what it does." His face remained blank, though beneath his angry exterior he was quite interested. "While you are under the potion's influence you will, as Headmaster Dumbledore has described, experience a sort of cloaking from your natural appearance. It will seem as if nothing at all has changed." Severus nodded. "You will also have a change in appetite. You no longer require the nourishment you did as a human, and will therefore feel a constant thirst. The potion should curb your necessity to feed."
"So while I'm taking this potion, I'll still need Lily's blood." Professor Slughorn nodded. "She'll need to do this for me every month when I take the potion?"
"I am afraid that you will need to feed more often than that, Mr. Snape"
"How often?" he asked looking him square in the eyes.
"Once a week, perhaps? Bi-monthly, but that's stretching it." Severus looked at Lily's balled fist now wrapped in white bandages.
"Every two weeks should be fine."
"If you are positive. The potion has been started already, but needs a few more days to mature. Once it is a nice deep blue it should be ready for you."
"Thank you, Sir." They shook hands, Lily offering him a smile.
"I think it's time you two went off to bed," Dumbledore said. "I will be sending you an owl for another meeting to review your progress, but until then, good luck to you, Mr. Snape. And you as well, Miss Evans."
"Thank you, Sir. Goodnight," Severus said holding the door for Lily.
"Goodnight."