Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not my creation, though I tend to make the habit of sticking with it through and through.
Author's Note: It's been around a year since I've posted a fic. I've written plenty, but they've all been abandoned. What a shame. On to greater news, this one is complete. I'm splitting it up into chapters just because I can. Unfortunately, my chapters are never as lengthy as I'd like them to be. As a fresh start, I've changed my pen name. I'm currently WhatTheFinnick (same as my Tumblr URL), but I was previously LiveLaughLovePotter.
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The young red-head supposed that certain days could have gone better. Perhaps on the fifth of June, James Potter wouldn't have hung Severus Snape by his ankles in mid-air. Perhaps on the fifth of June, Severus Snape, in spite of his own embarrassment, would not have called Lily Evans a "filthy mudblood." And perhaps two years later, on this very date, Lily Evans would not have realized that she had long ago fallen into a hopeless mess called love.
Though the ties of friendship are inevitably severed and old doors close behind rusty locks, time never stops spinning. The spider continues to weave its way through an endless delicate web. A quilt left unfinished, time weaves its way through the hours and tosses fate into unpredictable whirlwinds.
And what an unpredictable evening it had been on the fifth of June in Lily's seventh year.
"Brilliant work on your sleeping draught, Ms. Evans! My heavens, it's possibly the best one I've seen in all my years of teaching," praised Professor Horace Slughorn as his seventh year students emptied the dungeons.
"Thank you, Professor," responded Lily. "It wasn't all too difficult to brew."
As she tidied her work area, she avoided conversation with her teacher. Slughorn was best known for his attempts to lure in valuable students, and Lily was certainly not in the mood for such a discussion on this dreary afternoon.
"Ah, a witch of your caliber, I should hope not," Slughorn chuckled and paused. "Now, I'm sure you've heard that I am holding another gathering this Friday evening. If your schedule can offer a few hours next Saturday, I would love to have you attend."
One unacquainted with the large, toad-like man would be touched by his warm tone and gestures. How sweetly he could deceive an innocent bystander surprised Lily to no avail.
"Thank you, Professor, really," she paused, combing through her list of prepared excuses. "But I promised James Potter that I would watch the Quidditch match against Ravenclaw that night."
Slughorn's smile faltered, "How unfortunate."
"I hope to catch you at the next one, Professor," said Lily as she collected her bag and started for the door.
With her mind caught up in Slughorn's affairs, Lily did not pay attention to the young man walking through the same door. The two collided in quite an ungraceful manner and scattered the contents of Lily's unzipped bag.
"Oh, Merlin's beard," she sighed in exasperation. Five minutes after the bell with Slughorn was plenty enough for one day, she thought. "Sorry, sorry, I wasn't-"
Severus Snape lay sprawled across the floor, quickly gathering Lily's books.
"Here," he thrusted a stack of papers at her, stood up, and slithered to his seat in the Potions class.
"Thanks," she murmured.
"I never meant to call you a Mudblood. It just-"
"Slipped out? It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends. You've chosen your way. I've chosen mine,"
Lily cringed at the harsh words that echoed in her memory from their last fight. Just two years ago, she and Snape had been the best of friends. Actually, it had been a lot longer since she and Snape had been close. His Slytherin tendencies had overpowered the duo's friendship beginning in his third year. Until their fifth year, Snape had spaced himself from Lily. He hid secrets. He disappeared with his Slytherin friends in the middle of the night. Rumors had surfaced in the beginning of their fifth year that Death Eater recruitment had begun at Hogwarts. Though Lily tried to drown her suspicions, it was difficult to ignore Snape's secrecy. When James Potter had him strung by the ankles in midair, Snape met his boiling point. He was done with Potter's antics. He was done being embarrassed. He was done being doubted. Lily had marched up to Potter on the fifth of June, ordering him to release Snape. Snape, in the face of embarrassment from being "rescued" by a girl, a muggle-born at that, uttered the very words that cut the link of their friendship. There are certain lines you cannot cross when it comes to people you care for, or don't care for in this matter, and Snape had stretched the rope too thin.
"You call everyone of my birth mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"
Lily collected her bag once again and closed the door behind her.
Author's Note: I would honestly love to hear what you all think – the good and the bad. Please leave a review if you have anything at all you wish to say! The next chapter will be up shortly. It's already written, but it needs a bit of revision.