AN: I'm a hopeless Severus/Lily shipper and this has been rattling around my brain ever since I saw DHP2. I haven't read Deathly Hallows in forever (I'm rereading the series right now and I'm on Goblet of Fire atm!) so if I got anything blatantly wrong, this is movie!verse. Either way, this is my headcanon for the origin of "Always" because they both fucking said it!

~X~

Severus's heart fell when the Sorting Hat called out its decision. "SLYTHERIN!" it said. But not for Lily. She was in Gryffindor. He cast her a sad, lost look as he made his way to the Slytherin table, wanting nothing more than to walk to where she was sitting and take a seat there. But he couldn't. She was in Gryffindor, she was in Slytherin. And for the next seven years, nothing was going to change that. It was a miracle that he kept his face blank as he sat next to a blonde boy, who clapped him on the back and said something, probably a congratulation. Severus wasn't listening. He knew that people were speaking to him, but the words were meaningless.

Worse still, he thought as he cast a look to Lily over his shoulder, was who she was sitting by. James Potter, all cocky attitude and messy black hair. He said something to her, and she laughed. He wished he had been the one to make her laugh.

He didn't pay attention to much for the rest of the ceremony. A few people asked him questions, and he nodded, shook his head, grunted, and mumbled in reply, hoping that people would just pass it off as shyness. He was glad when the food appeared, not because he was particularly hungry, but because it provided a distraction, and an excuse not to interact with those around him.

The days passed, and the students of Hogwarts fell into a familiar rhythm and routine. Get up, breakfast in the main hall, a few lessons, lunch, a few more lessons, dinner, then free time in the common room. Maybe you would have some free time in between, it all depended on the day. He had Transfiguration with Lily, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, and he met her in the library occasionally, but it wasn't enough. Lily was his only friend at Hogwarts. He had a few people in his house who he would speak with, the other first years, but it wasn't enough to call them friends. It seemed like they spoke to him more out of courtesy than anything.

He learned quickly that there was a certain amount of enmity between Gryffindor and Slytherin Houses. He would get strange looks while walking down the hall with Lily, people would whisper and murmur when they sat together in their few shared classes. James was the worst. He would push Severus in the hallways, take his books, and call him names. Lily would often speak in his defense, so the torment soon spread to her, as well. Severus could handle being picked on, he'd dealt with it his entire life, but he couldn't stand seeing Lily go through it, too.

He began distancing himself from her.

He started out small, sitting by one of the boys in his own House during a Transfiguration lesson, going to the Slytherin common room instead of meeting Lily in the library. She'd asked him why he hadn't met her, and he'd simply mumbled something about forgetting, and about how it wouldn't happen again.

It did.

She still gave him confused looks, hurt looks, but she didn't ask again. He continued pulling away from her until the day when he didn't speak to her at all.

James's torment was worse than ever, and it felt worse still without Lily there with him. But, he noticed with relief, Lily wasn't being bothered anymore. He refused to meet her eyes when she tried to catch his attention. He moved to the other side of the corridor when he saw her moving his way.

They didn't speak until she cornered him on the way to Transfiguration.

"Why are you ignoring me?" she demanded. He tried to step around her; she stepped with him, blocking his way. "No, I'm not letting you go until you answer me."

He mumbled incoherently in reply.

"What? Speak up, I can't hear you!"

"Slytherins are supposed to hate Gryffindors…" he mumbled pathetically, refusing to meet her gaze. He tried to step around her again, but she still wasn't letting him go.

"So what? You think that matters?"

"People stare at us all the time," Severus said, voice louder than before, but still quiet. Lily started to object, but he cut her off. "James is picking on you now, and it's because of me."

She stared silently, and for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, but had really been about sixteen hours, he met her gaze. He was sure she was going to turn around and never speak to him again. And he wouldn't blame her. What she did instead surprised him.

She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him tightly. "I don't care about that. All I care about is that you're Severus, and I'm Lily, and you're my best friend."

Just as she did this, James walked by.

"Hey, look, Sirius!" he called mockingly, "Snivelus's got himself a girlfriend!" His friends cackled as they walked by. Lily turned around to face them, eyes burning with fury.

"Shut up, James!" she said. Her voice wasn't loud, but it had a certain anger and authority in it that made them all stop. "You're just a good for nothing jerk, and you need to just shut. Up!" They all stared for a moment before continuing to their class. None of them were smiling or laughing anymore. They were quiet.

Lily turned back to him, anger fading from her bright green eyes, and smiled at him tentatively. "So are you still my friend, Severus?" She looked at him hopefully.

Severus felt the side of his mouth turn up in a lopsided smile.

"Always."