Title: Masterpiece - Severus

Pairing: Snape/James are the main pairing

Overall Summary: Silent Severus is the ultimate shiny black box that Sirius and James cannot resist opening. He's too strange. He's too different. When they plan the worst prank they can imagine, they pay a price for opening a veritable Pandora's Box.

Chapter Summary: Severus doesn't want to attract attention. This is exactly what draws James and his friends to him. None of them are good with rejection.

WARNING: Non-con and gender challenges!

Lovely reader, this story probably contains socially inappropriate things. Ideas are put together in a way that may seem strange to you because you have not walked in my shoes. My mind goes where it's not supposed to go. That's where all the excitement is for me. Please turn back if this makes you uncomfortable. It's a beautifully strange, story. My favorite kind.

The more James Potter studied Snape, the more Snape bothered him. There he was, standing over his plant with Slughorn, feeding droplets to a shriveled dandelion. Damn if that thing didn't stand up in its pot and spread its weedy leaves for more. The class gasped.

For one thing, all that fucking black hair falling around his face and shoulders, was obscene. He should be forced to set a proper example and cut it. Any teacher should've been able to see this. The only reason a guy would keep his hair all long and soft and shiny like that, was if he was spitting in the faces of real men. That's what James thought, as he watched Severus Snape accept the award for the best brewed, plant healing elixir. Seriously, if men were going to let themselves look like that, there'd be nothing separating them from the women. How would you know who to chat up? What the bloody sense did that make? Sure, old wizards could get by with long grey tresses. Dumbledore could pull it off. But nobody's gonna mistake his ancient arse for a chick, now are they? Nobody's trying to get a piece of that.

Snape's green water concoction was the only one to bring his dead dandelion back to its optimum yellow bloom. A few students had met with half the success, but Snape's plant lifted it's bushy gold petals and stood at its tiny height within minutes of soaking in the droplets he gave it. The class had only been given an hour to perfect their potion. James knew for a fact that Snape worked on his for a full week before the assignment was even set. Slughorn may have been impressed, but James wasn't.

It's not that he hated Snape, he didn't. Quite the opposite. He could clearly see intelligence guarding itself behind Snape's eyes. Snape looked at his classmates the way a Greek philosopher might've looked at a culture of third-world natives, clicking and warring amongst themselves. Or, lets face it, a visitor from another planet. He was just trying to learn and not get killed by teen savagery in the process. But James wanted to tell him, good luck with that, mate. You've landed on Earth, not some bloody paradise. You gotta mix it up, you gotta play the game. The human game. You'd be bloody good at it, mate.'

If he could just get the guy to talk to him, he'd probably be able to do something about teaching him to fit in. James was good with people. He was a realist. If Snape didn't learn how to hold his own now, in a world of real men, he would just be eaten alive as an oddball reject that no one respected. With a bloke like him, it could go either way. If he'd let James tame some of that wild indifference, he could teach Snape how to get what he wanted from people.

James knew there was some tragic history there, some family issue that might as well have stigmatized Snape as being raised by wolves, but the guy was too intense to ignore. He fucking walked like he didn't give a shit about anyone else. He made people stare, gaping in the wind he left them standing in. James saw how people didn't easily approach him, as if Snape had charmed a barrier around himself. Girls wished they could talk to him. Guys interpreted this as a kind cold control they envied. It was becoming so pronounced, that even James thought it would be kinda cool to have the guy for a friend. But he was so odd, it could've gone the other way. He just as easily saw himself pitying the jerk for not being smart enough to catch on. James could admit that Snape was tall and pretty good looking for a guy. Not the most athletic guy, but if he cared more about his looks and its affect on others, he'd be competition. That might be fun, but the jerk didn't know what he had.

Every time James attempted to humor the Slytherin, something awkward crept up between them. Whether it was a joke Severus was too serious to get or a prank that he shrank, disapprovingly from, he never seemed to get that James was trying to be his friend. Was he so backwards that he didn't know guys don't use words to say how they feel? They use action. They joke, they kid, they fart around. Only girls actually use the proper language. Surely, he wasn't that soft. He scared people, for crying out loud. That's partly why James liked him.

Everyone else looked like normal students in their black robes, Snape looked like darkness had sex with light and spit out this extraordinary blend of pale, sharp drama. Ever see a sky where the sunny side meets a storm, right at the line? That's what he looked like, a fucking storm of contrasts. Those odd things found in nature, don't talk. Like Snape, they don't spill their secrets to help everyone achieve understanding. No, James thought, they fuck with you and make you wonder why they even exist at all. It's okay if the sky wants to show something different every once in a while. But don't ask him to act like it was perfectly normal to have the sky go all weird on you, because it wasn't.

When Slughorn dismissed the class, James hung around watching the few students who congratulated Snape. Sirius and Remus hovered by his seat. All three aborted their glib remarks when Lily Evans crossed the room to compliment Snape. As airy as a light breeze, the red head placed her long fingers on his sleeve and told him what a genius he was. James marveled. It was like she didn't know what a contagion Snape was. She just treated him like she treated everyone. And got the most splendid results. For a moment Snape appeared to forget the emptying classroom and matched her smile with equal warmth. Equal appreciation. His smile was so beatific, the humanness of it pissed James off.

"Oh, he knows who to act normal with, doesn't he? The odd git."

Beside him, Sirius added, "If you'd walked up to him like that, you'd be limping away from his scorn."

Remus snickered. "You two are so jealous. It's free entertainment for me."

"Jealous? Lily's not even thinking about him. She's told me what she looks for in a man and he's no where near her taste."

"Too bad I'm not talking about Lily, then. The way you too go on about Snape, Lily is clearly the third wheel."

While Remus bent on his laughter, James and Sirius, defended themselves. "I'm just supporting James, like a real friend should. I don't give two loads about Snivelous."

"Jealous of Lily? Yeah, the next time I want to get close to a greasy black wig on a grasshopper, I'll be sure and ask her what her secret is?"

Grinning, Remus thrust his hands deep into his pockets and rocked on his heels. "Gentlemen. Such defensiveness. What could possibly provoke so many unfriendly words for our friend here?"

James shoved his books into Remus's stomach. "Carry these. I got a few choice words to say to sir grasshopper."

Just as he got up, a round, plump young man ran into the room calling his name. "I have it! I have it, Sirius."

Peter Pettigrew bounded towards the row of seats and didn't stop until his bulk crashed into the whole row, dislocating the arrangement of tables and burners. Flasks shook in their brackets as he braced himself on the table to catch his breath. The commotion got only a glance from Snape, who strode out of the room behind Lily.

"What are you on about?" James snapped. He kept his eye on Snape's robe as he maneuvered around Peter.

"I finally have it. The book Sirius needs. On human transfigurations! All of Hogwart's stuff tells you what's possible, but they don't actually go into detail about the more complicated transformations. This book was in my great aunt's library. She sent it to me. I remembered it from when I was a child. It has information about the Animagi. The whole process. The language is a little archaic, but I think we can figure it out."

"You've got the details? Really?" Sirius snatched the book from him. Loose pages slipped from its leather binding.

"Careful. It's really old. That's the first edition, before all the laws were put into place."

"There must be illegal spells in that book," Remus admonished. "Dangerous spells."

"Lads, as interesting as this sounds, you can fill me in later." James left his friends staring after him as he raced for the stairs. He lost sight of Severus a few times, but always managed to spot him among the other robes. No one else's billowed with that quick, graceful speed. He wouldn't mind learning that. He told himself he was just following Snape to make sure he didn't try anything with Lily. She was too nice for her own good. The longer he followed, the more he realized Lily had gone her own way two floors ago.

So what does a person like Snape do between classes? What hole does he crawl into, until it's safe for him to come out again? Sure enough, he predicted the lone wolf to shirk lunch in a cheerful, crowded setting. There must've been too many people out enjoying the sun, for his comfort level. James saw him pass right through a perfectly bright courtyard in preference to the cool shadows offered within the school library. Maybe he burns, thought James. He could see that as being plausible. That skin did look awfully high maintenance.

Just when Snape's behavior almost made sense to him, James saw him open a broom closet beneath stairs at the library's entrance, and close it behind him. He smiled. Now that was just like Severus. The only place on earth quiet and private enough for him, was a broom closet. Did he really hate people that much?

The temptation to ruin Severus's precious solitude to ask him, felt like the perfect way to bust his balls. Jame's hand was on the door handle when he heard his name called. Over his shoulder, his friends were quickly catching up him. He put his fingers to his lips, silencing them, and pointed to the door. "Snivelous."

Always game for fun, the other three young men fell into understanding and grinned. They had no idea what James was planning, but they wouldn't miss it for the world. James pushed on the door, braced against any squeaking that would give him away. The closet was a tomb of quarried bedrock, enclosing a small, winding space that led to nowhere beneath the stairs. The little room spanned less than ten feet and allowed Snape to clearly see him enter. Snape sat by the only small window that let in just enough light through a tinted pane, to illuminate a book page if it fell on it the right way. He looked poignant as a spinster, James decided, reading by the window like that.

Snape was slow to take an interest in him, and merely waited on James to explain the intrusion.

"You've got to be kidding me. You're in a closet with a book?" James heard his own laughter and that of his friends behind him. "I've got to wonder, what is in those pages? You just won an award, my good man. Celebrate in the sun."

His declaration was so hardy, he almost believed himself sincere. The corners of Snape's mouth lifted as if James's act fooled him too, just a little. But then they returned to normal. "I'm fine here."

That was another thing. His voice. It didn't squeak and break up like everyone else's did. It wafted soft and low like something measured and placed to fit. No kid James knew talked like that.

"People are starting to wonder why you don't like them, Sev. Come out and be social. What gives?"

As if this needed a serious response, Severus closed his book. His hands were almost apologetic. "I've taken extra classes this term. Tell them I'm sorry, I've no time for friends."

James wanted to say, 'Nobody cares, I just made that up.' But he baited Snape. "I bet you planned it that way. I bet you hate people. I know, people are arses. But, I know a reasonable bloke when I see one. You and I haven't always seen eye to eye, and that's my fault. I'll take the blame. The only reason I'm in here disturbing your reading, is because I'm being the better man and asking you to join my pals out on the lawn. Tell us how you got that potion in under an hour. There's no reason why a Gryffindor can't be friends with a Slytherin, is there?"

Where the extension of friendship would soften anyone else, James could see Snape's recoil in the sudden flat line of his mouth. His eyes dulled with humorless dismissal. "I can't join you, Gryffindor or no."

"How about tomorrow? Sirius and I are looking for some extra help with our potions. You could give us your take on things. How you find it so easy?"

"I study."

"Yeah, but that doesn't come easy for some of us. Let's face it, you don't have a lot distracting you. I've got Quidditch, a girlfriend, and a ton of friends. We can't all be studious." James chuckled at his harmless jab.

Snape stood and regarded him with a look so prim and reprimanding that James figured out what Snape reminded him of. "I've got it. You sound and act like a really confident woman. A spinster. Are you close to your mother? 'Cause I think it's rubbed off. That's what's been bothering me about you for a long time. Feels good to figure it out."

He didn't mean to laugh, but it was so damn funny. And the anger on Snape's face just made it worse. Even the guys behind him laughed as they spilled into the closet. "Am I right? Doesn't he fit somebody's mother, or some old maid witch, than he does a wizard? All that long hair, hiding in closets with books, come on. I mean, at least put it up in a bun or something. I'm sure Professor McGonagall's got a lovely pointy hat you can barrow."

Their laughter grew riotous as Snape's expression grew taut. They laughed for so long, Snape's face slackened in a final resolve. He saw the exact moment when Snape quit them and decided to leave. Instead of storming off, as expected, Snape drew himself up, lifted his arms, and lifted his hair away from his shoulders. It was an innocent act to the less observing, but a strange 'fuck you' to the boy who had a problem with it.

James got the message, and tried to laugh it off with his friends. But Snape's body and manner, outlined in his billowing black, stretched the full length of him for appraisal. It stood tall, slender, and long muscled. For one second, the stretch showed James and his friends, what would happen if he allowed himself to be as free as them. It flaunted a concealed sexuality, as masterfully as any who wanted it known without saying a word. And in spite of Snape's boyish long frame, the gesture struck James as distinctly female. James caught the scent. It silenced him. His friends were slow to get it.

What was this? Bloodline magic? Somewhere in Snape's ancestry, were there witches vying for the chance to live again through him? He looked masculine enough, but the demonstration with his hair sent mixed signals. Even men with longer, better hair, didn't use it that way. He knew from sharing a bathroom that Snape was all male. So he felt all the more confused. Snape picked up his books to leave.

James blocked his path. "It's just a joke, come on, Severus. Don't be so serious. I know I'm talking utter shite. I led you into the trap, just to get to have some fun. Sue me."

"Step aside." Snape denied him anymore friendliness.

James couldn't let him walk by. "You know, you can't take everything so seriously. If one of us doesn't play the fool, nobody would ever make friends."

Behind him, Sirius, Remus, and Peter had grown silent. Snape's refusal to play nice, no doubt alerted them to trouble. James could practically feel their wands at the ready. "Okay, Severus, Sev. I'm going to let you go, but first let me say -"

Snape stepped around James, prepared to push past his friends. Against all reason, James couldn't let him get away with such fearlessness. He grabbed Snape's robe and pushed him against the base supporting the staircase above. He hadn't thought about what he'd do, he just went with his strongest impulse. Something in his mind told him that if he was fast enough, Snape would let him get away with it. He wouldn't fight.

But James hesitated. Snape didn't fight him at all. He just stood there looking evil in some cruel twist of beauty and blackness. There might've been a man in his pants, but there was a woman in his blood. Snape's eyes dared him to try it. Snape, and everyone else, saw the kiss coming a mile away. When James did muster the courage to lean forward, Snape waited until he was a hair away from his lips, before turning his face aside. With the act out there for all to see, Snape's actions asked James, 'Now who's laughing? Now who's the fool?'

James recovered quickly, letting Snape go. "Like I said," he joked. "Friends." He really had no idea what had just taken place, and didn't feel like holding Snape hostage over it. There was nothing funny about his embarrassment at all. His friends had seen enough. He backed away, slipping past them. Remus ran after him. Peter looked undecided before backing out the door. Only Sirius stayed, eyeing Snape like he had a bone to pick. But the hands that grabbed Snape were a lot more aggressive than that.

"You, you piece of shite!" He did what James had been too slow to do. He didn't give Snape a chance to dodge his mouth. He shoveled himself deep into Severus's throat, making the kiss as savage as he could, and didn't stop until Snape gagged. Snape was strong enough to keep him fighting for contact, but he used every second to wrench as much disgust from the prissy tease he could get. When he let go, both their mouths were hurting.

He wiped the saliva off of his chin. "That's for my friend. Take my advice, you ugly git. If somebody takes pity on that scowl of yours, have since enough to fucking let them kiss you if that's what they want."

He turned and left Snape to glare at his back.

It took James days to come to terms with his actions. Every time he tried to explain to his friends why he did it, Sirius told him to shut up. He didn't have to justify himself.

They piled into the Gryffindor common room after hours. Remus had been able to charm the kitchen elves into sneaking butterbeer and snacks up to them. Crumbs fell from his mouth as he tried to comfort James from the opposite couch. "So you overstepped the mark. We all saw him. He's bloody gorgeous when he's not hiding it. Not one of us saw that coming. From the looks of it, I'd say he was female in the womb and his mother tried to change that to please his father. There's a syndrome with kids like that."

Peter looked up from his book. "Really? I've never heard of such a thing."

"S'true," Answered Sirius from the couch. "The old folk in my family used to say a baby had to be fixed if it wasn't what they wanted. A powerful witch can give her husband the son or daughter he wants, no matter that he's the one carrying the deciding factor. Back when heirs had to be males, this was a fortunate talent to possess. But it's permanent and the soul, body and brain knows it's a lie. That's why wizards never bother themselves with being too terribly upset over blokes kissing other blokes. The purebloods understand it best. I think they invented the spell to secure their fortunes."

"That's remarkable," Peter sat up. "There's a spell in here that's similar, but it's only temporary. To change an entire little baby before it's born, that's powerful. People are playing at gods, trying to control something like that."

Sirius slipped a splash of bourbon he'd lifted off Filch, into his pumpkin juice. "Stick to your animagus studies and leave the satanic rituals to the Slytherins."

"Hey!" Remus took offense. "That's rather uncalled for."

"I know, I know, some of your best friends are Slytherins." He waved his arms in the air. "Satan, I apologize for saying you have Slytherins for friends."

Remus tsked. "Show a little sophistication. Don't disrespect the magic of our ancestors."

"If I were in contempt of magic that leveled the playing field, would I be trying to master the animagus? No, I would've just given myself a horse's dong and be done with it."

Peter made a face. "Gross!"

Remus dribbled juice down his chin as he laughed.

James stubbornly held to his introspection, not joining them. In his mind, Snape kept turning his face away. Those thin pink lips kept evading him, rejecting him. He fixated on the line between them and its wide, downward arch. He wasn't even angry at himself for attempting the kiss. He was more upset at how Snape's rejection could upset him. He hadn't even realized he wanted to do that, till he couldn't do it. It wasn't even a big deal really. He knew he was a good looking guy, had one of the best looking girls at the school, and did very well for himself in the smooching department. Which was why he couldn't understand how an odd, white slug like Snape thought he was too good for him. That was fucking humiliating.

He could let it go. He would. He knew tables would turn soon enough and he'd have Snape tripping over his shoe laces at the top of a flight of stairs, or hanging upside down in the air with his pants down. He'd tried, for the last time, to make peace with the idiot and that hadn't worked. Oh sure, he hadn't really been serious about all that helping him with potions stuff. But the invitation to join his circle had been real.

Something Sirius had said, inspired James to announce to all of them. "I know, we can give Severus a donkey's dong, since he thinks he's some kind of a stud."

"Donkey's are sterile, mate," Remus corrected him.

"Then let's make him a female donkey. That suits him better."

Remus snickered like it was very naughty of him, indeed. Sirius got very quiet, considering.

Peter offered another idea. "We can turn him into a toad. That classic spell is in here. It would only last for a few hours."

"Yes," Sirius agreed. "And put him in the woods. That would scare the hell out of the little bookworm."

"No good." James pointed out. "He'd get eaten. We can't chance it."

"Yes, but it'd be the perfect murder if we were the murdering type."

"I don't want to kill him. I want to let him know what a perfect arse he is. I want to hurt him with humiliation. Having him walk around with an elephant's snout is too good for him. I want something seriously upsetting to him."

All of them fell silent, attempting to answer James's wishes by brainstorming with him. James looked at Peter's book. "What did you say that spell was, that purebloods once used to get the heirs they wanted?"

Peter's shock had him stuttering. "Remus said that. The only spell in this book that even comes close to that, doesn't change a person completely, for real. It just forces their cells to do the opposite of what they're doing."

"How long will the effects last?"

"Depends. There's more than one version. Anywhere from a few hours to a few days. It's awfully complicated, though. There's some debate over whether or not the consent of the person is needed in order for it to work. Dark wizards can force it to work, but things go horribly wrong. I'd say this isn't the spell you want to mess with."

James sat up. A sense of relief brought an easy smile to his face. "I'd say that's exactly the spell I want to use on Severus Snape." He looked at his friends. "At least, after we give him a few extra appendages for fun, we'll finish with that grand finale. Are you with me?"

Sirius was the first to lift his glass. Remus shook his head and chuckled, "It'll never work." But his grin told them he would go along for the ride.

As uncomfortable as the idea made Peter, he didn't want to feel left out. It was just another prank, after all. And if James was too angry with Snape to understand the full extent of the spell, well he would learn everything eventually, if he attempted to use it. There was so much convoluted information in the text, so many rules and twists, he wasn't even sure he was translating some of it correctly. Not known for his academics, James would probably back off from it. That's what Peter was counting on when he agreed to help his friends cast the Unbearable curse on Snape.

Dear reader, you are now armed with enough information to know that very bad and naughty things will happen in this story. Snape is the character I love the most, therefore, he will be the one who elicits the greatest concern. *HINT!* I don't write "happy" endings, I write resolutions leading to greater issues. This way, the story never really ends in one's heart.

Notes:

A man as strong as Snape, deserves to cry. He kept his secrets for so long, between so many obstacles, and he never collapsed under the pressure. I wanted a fic that pushes him to cry so that my love can just keep pouring out for him.

I'm gonna repeat myself here. This story was initially inspired by the scene where McGonagall confronts Snape. (Slow it down and watch how powerful and energetic Snape's elegance is). Snape bought Harry time to destroy the horcruxi and made sure he had the Gryffindor sword to do it with. (He stole it from Bellatrix's vault and his patronis led Harry to it).

Look carefully at the series of expressions that play across Snape's face when he's confronted by McGonagall. It had to be pointed out to me, because the scene goes by too quickly, that Snape actually uses McGonagall's attack to deflect it towards the two Death Eaters behind him and take them out. Ensuring they cannot harm the students when he makes his escape, was what held him there. He never tries to harm McGonagall or Harry, and his anguish at losing her friendship is very evident on his face. When I saw this, I was ready to let him cry and give into the stress. I was ready to let him be strong enough to show what is, inaccurately, perceived as weakness. Crying can sometimes be a luxury that strong people do not feel they have. The body has a right to cry, for all that it is put through.

I'd been wanting to write Snape for years, but never felt I could do him justice. I still can't. But that scene assured me I had something I wanted to say about his energy, which is alive and thriving for anyone who tunes into it. JK's Snape is brilliant and she gets all the credit for that. But Alan Rickman brought something extra to the table with his performance, and by the end, he was untouchable. Fandom's love of Snape is really what revealed this to me. It's as if JK Rowling's genius gave us the basic kit, and from that, masterpieces of alternative realities have been built. Without Fandom, Harry Potter would just be a sad, albeit great, story that I could only read once. Thank you JK and FANDOM for making it so much more.