Severus stole a glance at the girl at the front of the room. He could only see the back of her head, but it was enough. Her hair was caught in the light just right so that it glistened in the soft sunlight streaming through the window. He looked back down quickly as James walked over to her and placed a sweet kiss on the side of her neck. She turned to the side to hug him and as Severus looked up he saw the bump that hurt his heart every time he caught sight of it; Lily's baby bump…the little James Potter. She had one hand cradling her bump and the other hand around James' neck as they shared a passionate kiss…right there in front of the full Potions classroom! Gryffindors and Slytherins, the school's biggest rivalry between houses, packed into the smallest room in the castle, surrounded by dangerous chemicals and magickal ingredients and instructions to make poison, charms, Polyjuice, etcetera. Severus didn't think that was a wise move on the founders' part but nothing had aroused from the placement yet so they must know what they're doing.

Lily noticed him in the back corner and she let go of James to join him. "Hey, Sevvy!" She trilled, planting a kiss on his cheek. He looked up startled, surprised at her sudden want to talk to him, and closed his potions book, in which he'd been writing heavily in. "Hiya, Lily! How's the little bumper doing?" He gestured to her tummy. She sighed and looked down. "He's doing okay. He is seven months old now! Not much longer!" He stared at it for a moment. "How do you know it's a he?" She blushed and said "Well, I don't, it's just a feeling I have…." "Hiya, Snivellus!" Sirius thundered as he sat on the table between Severus and Lily, breaking off contact. Severus hid his face in his hair and rolled his eyes discreetly as Lily and Sirius engaged in marriage-related conversation.

"I want a Spring wedding, but James wants an Autumn wedding. Something to do with house-elves being more useful in cooler weather but muggles just don't like cold, outdoor weddings and I wanted my sister, Petunia, to be my Maid of Honor…." Over on the other side of the room, Severus heard different conversation, "Oh the wedding? Oh, it's not a matter of mine to stress over. That's a bride's thing. I'm really hoping she plans to marry after the baby is born because the honeymoon is what I'm looking forward to…." Severus cringed and stopped listening, trying not to envision his love and his foe tangling between the sheets. Just then, the professor walked in, quieting everyone down. "Class! Turn to page…."

Lily Owens held her stomach as she sat in the bathroom floor again, on her knees in front of the toilet. She moaned and propped her elbow up on the toilet seat and held her head in her hand. Morning sickness; a terrible thirty minutes of retching and nausea followed by a slight fever and maybe a migraine. It wasn't that she hated her baby, whom she'd grown fond of and couldn't wait for his arrival, but she hated that she'd gotten pregnant. At seventeen she was supposed to be apparating and jinxing and partying but since this little fellow had been planted in her body she couldn't do anything her friends could do. She had to stay in the dormitory while her boyfriend was chasing the snitch across the sky. If only she hadn't broken the rules that rainy night….

Lily slipped out from under her covers, shivering in the cool, night air. Her window was open and she shuffled over to close it without making any sound. "Miss Lily?" She jumped and spun around. Bella the house elf was standing there with a scroll of parchment in her hand, thrusted towards Lily. "Master Potter has a message for you, Miss Lily." Lily took the parchment and patted the little elf's head, gave her a chocolate from her bedside trunk, and sat on the bed to unwrap the letter. "My dearest love," it said, "Meet me at midnight exactly in the common room by our favorite spot. I'll be waiting for you as a prince should wait for his queen. I promise you will get your desired sleep in the morning when we are through. Sincerely, James." Lily instantly got butterflies in her stomach as she wondered what he could possibly want with her at this hour. Her alarm clock blinked 11:58. She quickly dressed and hurriedly went downstairs to find James. He was waiting by the fire, a rose in one hand and a small, square package in the other. He met her at the foot of the stairs and swung her around, kissing her desperately. "It's been a long time since I got to see your beautiful body." He laid her down ion the mat in front of the fire and unbuttoned her night shirt. She arched up against his touch, realizing now that it had been months since they'd had the time and convenience to fool around. "Lily, I wanted to ask you…." He started, but she kissed him with fiery passion that ignited the animal in both of them. The words were never spoken, the instincts just enveloped the both of them as James Potter and Lily Owens made love for the first time, the small square package…their only protection…forgotten on the floor.

Severus Snape walked from the Potions classroom to his Defense Against the Dark Arts class quickly and quietly, head down and hair in his face. He hated any sort of confrontation or attention. He attended school to learn and excel. That was it. Friends were useless; they did nothing but ask you to make sacrifices, waste your time, get on your nerves then stab you in the back. Being a hermit was his only way of getting through school without thoughts of suicide or homicide. Well, maybe he would never actually do it…but sometimes he wished it were legal. "Sevvy! Sevvy, wait up!" He heard Lily call. He smiled and stopped to walk with her. She waddled down the hallway, holding her belly in one hand and her books in the other. "Sevvy, why don't you ever talk to me anymore?" Severus turned to her without meeting her eyes and shrugged indifferently. She ought to know, really, the answer was right under her nose…and I mean right under her nose. Lily pressed her palm to his cheek and he smiled wider, looking up at her. "Sevvy, you're my best friend. You're the one who told me what I was when everyone else thought I was a freak! You were there for me when my own family turned me away. You held my hand on our first train ride to Hogwarts and you bought me my first owl. The very owl that is my second best friend to this day." She brushed his hair away from his face and smiled, "And you'll always be my number one best friend, Severus Tobias Snape. Always. I don't want you to ever think otherwise, okay?" he nodded and in spite of himself, felt a blush creep across his cheek like someone had taken a paint brush doused in red acrylic and streaked it across his face. This made him blush even harder. Then she said, "You're so cute when you blush." Suddenly, her eyes widened and she retracted her hand quickly, going back to cradling her stomach. Severus recovered and said, "Uh, Lil, want me to carry those for you?" She smiled, but it didn't touch her eyes. "No thank you; I got it. Take care." She hurried off; leaving Severus confused, a little hurt, but very, very pleased. He walked to his D.A.D.A. class with a spring in his step and a weight on his heart.

James sat beside Lily in Charms class, at their usual table in the back, casually swinging his arm around her shoulder. He used his right hand to flick his wand, charming his pencil to take the notes Professor Flitwick had set for them to write. He conversed with Peter, Sirius and Remus quietly about the next full moon cycle when Sirius cleared his throat loudly, gesturing to James towards Lily. James looked to her and saw that she had a vacant expression on her face; her eyes shiny and her lip jutted out just a tad. She looked so cute when she did that. James turned his body to her and poked her cheek with his nose. "Lily? Baby, are you alright?" She nodded slowly, still staring at nothing. James started to worry. "What's on your mind, love?" Lily said nothing. She held that same facial expression and focused her attention on fly buzzing about the room. James looked at her for a few minutes, then turned to continue his conversation, assuming it as some sort of pre-natal depression. He never once thought Snape was the reason for the tear that now slowly slid down her face.

When the bell rang, Lily stood up and collected her things. It wasn't until they were right outside the Great Hall when James turned to her and said "Love, the boys and I are going to the Shrieking Shack. Full moon tonight and Remus has already begun to grow spots of hair in clothing-covered areas. I'll see you tonight, okay?" He kissed her on the forehead and turned, following the other three out into the schoolyard. She sighed, turning to enter the Hall and go to lunch when she bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm so sorry…Severus!" She smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around his waist. She felt a startled hesitation from him and then slowly, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She felt so safe and warm in his arms. She inhaled deeply though her nose, memorizing the scent of a sweet-smelling potion and an herb she didn't recognize. She opened he eyes as soon as she realized they were closed; she felt Severus' hand sliding up and down her back slowly…sensually…and it pleased her. She pulled away quickly, pink blood flushing her face quickly. "Um, Sevvy, I…uh…I have to… Severus, I…." She shut her mouth, embarrassed by her rambling and she walked around him, accidentally slamming her shoulder into his arm as she passed. What in the world was wrong with her? Severus was her friend…and nothing else. She was a pregnant woman! She was in a relationship with her baby's father and here she was getting snuggly with another guy! She mentally cursed herself. She sat away from her friends, not wanting to talk to anyone about anything at the moment, and she caught herself peeking up at the Slytherin table right at Severus. He caught her looking and grinned at her, but instead of acknowledging him she cast down her face, concentrating on tracing the quilted embroidery on her table napkin with her eyes.

Severus ate his roast pork slowly, staring into space, reflecting on some things that had just happened. First, Lily talked to him for the first time in months. Then, she said he was cute and after that let him hold her…comfortably close…for several minutes. He didn't know what to make of it…any of it; especially now that he looked at her and she was silently crying into her napkin. He sat with his chin in his hand propped up against the table and he sighed. He didn't understand girls. He scooted himself away from the table and left the Great Hall, not looking towards the Gryffindor table once more.

He didn't want to go to the common room, and he didn't want to go back to the Great Hall, so he walked the grounds. Eventually he stopped at a tree overlooking the lake and he sat on its roots, pulling out a quill and parchment. Not even thinking of what he was going to say, he began to write:

Dear Lily,

I love you more than you know. I am almost sure that you have held suspicion or even possibly known that I have had a crush on you for quite some time. Know that it has progressed much further than that. You are my love. I have wished for you to feel the way about me that I do you for years and years and it's time I told you about it.

School will be over soon; we will both go our separate ways. I will go and become a teacher or maybe a great alchemist, and you will go on to live with James and raise your family in that perfect, fairytale-like way that you dreamt about when we were children.

I can't tell you how I yearn to be that prince in your story, the father of your children, the provider of your riches; I will always dream I was though. 'What if' and 'how would' will forever be my dominant thoughts.

And if on some lonely night when you have a safe moment to look up at the glowing, silver moon, just know I'll be looking too. No matter how far away we may be, we will always be close enough to look at the same sky.

I love you, Lilith Juniper Evans.

Severus Tobias Snape