Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Prologue

Scavenge and Brew

• • • •

Severus screamed as vines sprouted from every pore of his legs, crawling and twisting under his robes.

"Oh, that's no fun if we can't see things!" James hollered, and with a second flick of his wand, the fabric covering Severus' legs flew up. The vicinity erupted in laughter, the sound surging against Severus like a tsunami; Severus' face burned profusely, and his heart sank into a cold and empty pit.

"Sev!"

It was Remus, and Severus' heart suddenly beat rapidly. There was hope, he had a savior….

Sirius whistled mockingly. "Oh, look who's here to save Snivellus!"

James spun around with a malicious grin, and Severus' robes fell back over his legs. "Oh hello, Loony," James sneered, his wand hanging loosely from his fingers. It was pointed at Remus almost lazily. "Have you come to get hexed too?"

Remus whipped out his own wand and directed it at James; as he did so, the crowd drew a united intake of breath. "Undo the spell," Remus seethed, his eyes flashing dangerously.

Severus had never seen Remus so furious, and apparently neither did James, for his wand hand faltered visibly. Remus was a true Gryffindor, Severus thought miserably. If there was one thing Severus resented more than James and Sirius, it was his lack of valiance; if he was brave, he could have been sorted into Gryffindor, and he could spend every moment of his life with Remus and Lily. But no, he had to get sorted into Slytherin.

Sirius, bored by the altercation between Remus and James, twirled his wand at Severus' legs, and the vines moved quicker than ever; Severus screamed pathetically as they tangled themselves in his boxers, dragging it down as they whipped back at his feet. Sirius brandished his wand again, levitating Severus' robes just as James did, and the bystanders roared with laughter again. Severus' robes uncovered more and more of his legs as his boxers moved further down, pooling around his feet….

"STOP IT!" Remus yelled, shooting a hex at Sirius. Boils immediately burst from Sirius' skin, and he howled in pain. His Levitation Charm was broken, and Severus felt the fabric hit his legs again.

"How dare you!" James boomed, flinging a shot of light toward Remus. Remus ducked, and it struck against the tree with a bang. James aimed his wand at Remus again, but this time a female voice shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

James' wand flew out of his hand, landing in front of Lily's feet. James, empty-handed, now had two wands trained on him; beside him, Sirius still fretted over his boils, evidently out of commission. James gave Lily a cheeky grin, as if he could seduce his way out of his predicament, and was blasted backward by Remus.

"Okay!" James growled as he got up. "I'll leave!"

"Undo the hex first, Potter," Lily snarled. "Or we'll have McGonagall deal with you."

James rolled his eyes. "I'll need my wand back."

Lily glared at him and summoned his wand from the grass. She threw it toward him, and he caught it expertly. He swished it around, and the vines—now groping uncomfortably around Severus' cock—instantly receded.

James grabbed Sirius' arm and together they fled the scene. Severus' audience had also begun to disperse, and eventually Lily and Remus were the only ones left remaining with him. Severus pulled his boxers back up, and together the three of them strolled back to the castle, making a detour just to avoid the route James and Sirius took.

That was in second year. It was sixth year now, and Severus was still bullied, but Remus and Lily weren't there to defend him anymore.

• • • •

Severus placed the Ashwinder eggs and mistletoe leaves in his mortar and pestled them into bright, orange powder; he sifted the mixture into a ragged pouch, sealed the top securely, and tucked it in his robes. Beside him, his cauldron bubbled and steamed, just as it had continuously for the past week. Severus checked the clock, waiting for nine o clock to strike, and when it finally did, he stirred the potion three times clockwise, then five times counterclockwise. A metallic flower blossomed in the center of the lavender liquid, and the potion took on a mercurial silver. The steam wafting in an indistinct haze suddenly straightened into pronounced columns, twisting together at the base as if forming a tornado. The potion bore the strongest resemblance to Amortentia at this point, and the only ingredient left to add was the blend of eggs and mistletoe... and of course, Severus' special touch.

The next morning at breakfast, Severus sat in his usual spot at the Slytherin table, discreetly surveying the position of each Gryffindor. At the very center of the table were the Marauders, with James and Sirius on one side, and Remus and Peter on the other; Lily sat beside Remus. Committing their location to memory, Severus turned his attention to his breakfast.

As he expected, the Marauders left the table before Lily. The minute they departed from the Hall, Severus hastily moved toward Lily's table, plopping down beside her in Remus' seat. Lily gave a yelp and recovered in a second, shooting him the death glare to which he was now accustomed. "What are you doing?" she hissed.

"What I've been wanting to do for a very long time," Severus replied, leaning suggestively forward. Lily stared at him, her green eyes limned with incredulity, before huffing in annoyance and bolting out of her seat. Severus sighed. This was a fork, obviously; if Lily ran away from him, he'd capture the other piece waiting.

On the table in front of him was Remus' empty goblet, the brazen metal slightly glazed with milk; Severus drew the pouch from his robes and sprinkled the fiery powder onto the inner sides of the cup, coating it to the point where no white or bronze shown through. He silently counted to sixty as Remus' saliva was subsumed into the powder. After a minute had elapsed, Severus took the cup, returned the mix to his pouch, and pocketed it inside his robes once more.

That night, Severus ground up a second batch of Ashwinder eggs and mistletoe. Thirty minutes prior to nine, Severus divided the potion unequally between two cauldrons, and poured the contents of his pouch to the larger portion. He took his mortar and held it up to his lips, spitting some saliva into the powder before scattering it into the other cauldron. Then he continually stirred the two concoctions, reversing his direction every ten revolutions, until finally the clock read nine.

Severus promptly jerked his styli from the potions, and the scent of Remus and Lily abruptly inundated the room. It smells like family, Severus thought, and a pang of sadness struck his heart.

Leaving no time to waste, Severus pulled out three glass vials, set them on the table, and placed their respective stoppers above them. He pulled out his wand and color coded the cork—he forewent the first one, changed the second one grey, and turned the third one green. He ladled the liquid from the greater cauldron into the first and second vials, while filling the third one with the other pot of potion.

Having affixed the stoppers to the glass as was appropriate, Severus stuffed the three tubes gingerly into his robes. All that remained undone in his plan was the spiking of their pumpkin juice….

A/N: Thank you for reading, and I'll try to bring up the first real chapter as soon as possible! And please review, because they're the only things that keep me writing.