Disclaimer: These characters belong to J. K. Rowling and her alone. None of them are mine.
Chapter One – An Unexpected Encounter
The castle grounds that were so often bathed in sunlight were muted to an inoffensive shade of grey by the dense fog. A low-lying silver mist clung to every available surface, including her skin, making it damp with dew. The silence was stifling, the muffled nothingness pressing against her ears until all she could hear was the quickened beat of her heart. He should be here, she thought, staring earnestly into the fog, searching for signs of the lake or the edge of the Forbidden Forest that she knew must lie beyond. Then slowly, a shape began to form in the mist, getting larger as with each step. A head began to form, and then a body. Lily's heart skipped a beat, it's him. He came after all. However, it wasn't until the figure stopped a few feet from her that Lily realised she'd made a mistake.
She considered running but dismissed it when she saw he held his wand at the ready. No-one, no matter how fast, could outrun a spell. Her second option was to scream, but she doubted anyone would hear a sound. Her cries for help would be swallowed whole by the claustrophobic mist that still surrounded her. She thought then of her friends, imagining them enjoying a game of wizard chess or perhaps complaining about the amount of homework they still had to do. She cursed herself silently for not telling them where she had gone.br
"Lily?" The voice sounded small and cautious and she couldn't decide whether it was the fog or damp air that made it so. The figure moved a littler closer and then stopped, his wand held threateningly in front of him. Lily reached behind her and searched for her own wand, hidden deep in the pocket of her robes.
"Lily?" The voice was more urgent now, impatient. The figure moved a step closer. Lily carefully removed her wand from her pocket and held it by her side, hoping the dense fog would hide her actions.
Then, suddenly the figure jerked his wand upwards and shouted "Lumos!"
A powerful, electric-white light ripped through the fog, blinding her momentarily. She turned away quickly, her eyes stinging from the sudden light. Whilst waiting for her eyes to adjust, she listened until she heard the hurried footsteps of the figure drawing closer.
Panicking, Lily spun in the direction of the sound, waving her wand vaguely at the fog.
"Expelliarmus!" she cried, as a flash of red light shot from her wand, swallowed a moment later by the fog. She heard a surprised yelp, before a wand came hurtling past, narrowly missing her left ear. Running head long back the way she'd come, the stranger's footsteps close behind, Lily searched the sodden ground for the disarmed wand. Feeling around in the fog, she finally saw it resting a little distance away in large bush of decaying dittany. Reaching for it, she turned wildly around to face her pursuer, a wand in each hand. She could hear him skidding to a halt just out of her range of sight.
"I know you're there," she cried hysteria rising in her voice. She had run in no particular direction and it was only now that she realised she didn't know where she was. She turned this way and that trying to get her bearings, but it was impossible. She was lost.
"Give me my wand." The voice came again, more forceful than before.
"No." Lily answered bluntly, still trying to find an escape route.
"Please." The voice murmured quietly. Lily, caught by surprise stopped searching and turned to look into the mist, where she knew her pursuer must be waiting. She squinted into the fog whilst reassessing her options. After all, she mused, attackers don't say please.
Cautiously, a figure moved towards her, the fog thinning until Lily could make out the all-to-familiar lanky frame, greasy hair and sunken eyes.
"Please, Lily."
"Severus." Lily breathed, aware that her eyes were wet from suppressed relief. The boy simply nodded sharply in acknowledgement. Lily stared at him for a long moment before handing back his wand.
"Thank you." He murmured grudgingly, snatching his wand and jamming it hurriedly into his green-trimmed robes. Lily stood disbelievingly, watching as he curled and uncurled his pale hands in angry fists. She still held her wand defensively in front of her.
A long, awkward silence stretched between them, only broken by a long howl that echoed from the forest, hidden in the mist.
The boy remained silent, his eyes trained resolutely on the dew-flecked grass at his feet. Lily broke the silence first.
"What the hell were you doing?" The question erupted out of her before she could stop it. She glared at the boy expectantly; her grip on her wand tightening till her knuckles also flushed white.
"I don't have to tell you anything." He replied menacingly, still feigning interest in the sodden ground.
"I think you do!" Lily cried, motioning forcefully with her wand. "What on earth was so important that you have to go wandering off in the Forest and-"
"I do not have to tell you anything!" The boy interrupted loudly his livid black eyes burning into Lily's, his entire body shaking with the force of trying to contain his anger. Lily, stunned into silence could only watch as the boy turned suddenly on his heel and walked fuming back the way he'd come, his lean figure disappearing into the receding fog.
By the time Lily returned to the Gryffindor common room, the light was fading and the dense fog had disappeared leaving a clear, crisp evening. A large bruise full of oranges and pinks was blossoming on the horizon heralding an imminent and glorious sunset. Settling herself in an empty armchair by the dying fire, Lily searched for the answers to the questions posed by her unexpected encounter.
"Hey Lils, you coming?" Lily looked up to see a blonde haired girl with amethyst eyes, standing over her looking puzzled. She was motioning towards the entrance to the girl's dormitory and when Lily looked out the window she saw the dark indigo of the coming night.
"Umm….no it's alright Jen, I'll be up later." Lily replied, careful to sound cheery despite the chill that was spreading through her. She watched her friends ascend the stairs to the dormitories without her, laughing heartily over something Jennifer has said. Lily remained seated, staring into the remains of the fire, the warm embers casting a dull, warm glow on her face. She shivered and wrapped her robes tighter around her shoulders. Looking unseeing into the fire, she let her mind wander back to the events of earlier and the disturbing questions they now posed. I know Severus loves his secrets, but what could make him so desperate as to seek solace in the Forbidden Forest? Is it dangerous? Is it illegal?
After several hours considering all possible reasons behind Severus's personal evening excursion, Lily stood, stretched and then picked a route round the maze of empty armchairs to the stairs leading to the dorms. Her hand on the cold stone doorway, Lily turned surveying the familiar gloom of the Gryffindor common room before going to bed. Her eyes wandered from the burnt-out fire and the piles of greying ash in the grate, across to the large windows with their heavy velvet curtains, only to rest on the large, worn oak table piled high with spell-books and revision guides. It was only then that she noticed the small piece of folded parchment, illuminated eerily in a stray beam of moonlight.
Crossing the room quickly, Lily unfolded the parchment, ripping it slightly in her haste. Her heart thumped excitedly in her chest as she read it.
Lils,
Sorry for not meeting you tonight at the usual place.
I had to stay with Remus; he's going through a bad patch at the moment and needed my moral support.
Hope to catch up with you in potions tomorrow,
Yours passionately,
James
Lily read it again, a smile spreading across her face. She stuffed it haphazardly into her robes, intending to show it to Jennifer tomorrow who would without doubt relish reading every word. Dodging through the chairs, with new-found vigour, Lily bounded the stairs two at a time until she reached the door to her dorm. Several large snores issued from the room beyond. Laughing slightly Lily carefully slipped inside, closing the door silently behind her. Severus and his disturbed mind can wait till tomorrow, she thought irritably as she climbed into bed, pushing the plush covers closer around her. Before she blew out the candle, Lily delved into the pocket of her robes, now piled artfully on the floor and retrieved James's crumpled note. After reading it through several times, Lily leaned over and carefully blew out the candle, welcoming the warm blanket of complete darkness that followed.