The fourteen year-old Slytherin made his way steathily through the castle corridors, listening at every corner for a sound of footsteps. Gradually, he made his way up stairs and around bends, only having to duck into a shadowy nook a few times in order to hide from patrolling teachers or prefects.
Finally he found himself at the bottom of the Astronomy tower stairs and started to climb, glad for the enclosed space that meant he wouldn't be hindered. The tower was technically forbidden to all students outside of classes, so even prefects wouldn't be wandering around at the top of it.
Stepping onto the landing at the top of the stairs, still breathing slowly and silently, Severus walked to the edge of the tower, wanting to look out over the ramparts onto the school grounds, as he had wished to do since his first class held under the stars. Their Astronomy Professor had a fear of heights (which was absolutely ridiculous in his opinion), and so warded the space at the beginning of every lesson to keep students from getting too near the edge.
The circular space made even his soft footsteps echo strangely, and he stopped for a moment before realizing the sounds were an echo, not an approaching group of irritating and arrogant Gryffindors.
"Stop being so paranoid," he whispered to himself, continuing on his way. "They're probably in bed, snoring so hard that what little brains they have shoot out of their heads."
He half-chuckled at the image his mind had conjured up, but his amusement was replaced with awe as he came to the edge, taking in the panorama that was visible. It was definitely better than he had expected, and he wished he could just stand there forever in the fresh air, underneath the twinkling stars.
Severus Snape hoisted himself onto the stone wall, feeling a thrill of excitement as he stood so high above the ground below. It was probably the closest thing to flying without a broom he could ever experience. The breeze, not too strong, whipped his hair across his face and he smiled for the first time in a while, grinning at the feeling of complete freedom that standing there gave him. Beneath the expanse of the dark night sky, feeling above everything in the world.
He remembered one of his mother's favorite quotes that had been framed on the wall above their living room couch for as long as he could remember: "If the stars should appear but one night every thousand years how men would marvel and stare. -Ralph Waldo Emerson". Emerson was an American muggle author, but his mother, born from the Prince family (which, though it was a pureblood family, was not nearly influenced as much as other families by blood status), had been well-read in both worlds. Standing on the parapet, Severus couldn't help but agree with the author. Deep in Scotland, away from electrically-lit apartments and streetlights and car headlights there was a certain wonder that came from the heavens above, as he had never experienced at home.
The dark-haired boy sat down with his legs over the edge of the tower. He wasn't afraid of falling, and just wanted to sit in the silence that came with the nighttime. It was easier to deal with his problems when they felt so much farther away, when it seemed as though he was worlds away from them.
He sighed, thinking of the Marauders. After that first meeting on the train before first year, things had only gotten worse. The nickname they had chosen for him, Snivellus, had stuck throughout their school years, adopted by more and more other students as time passed, not exclusively used by the four Gryffindors. Then they'd made his life terrible, singling him out for absolutely no reason.
Their pranks had only escalated in the amount of pain or embarassment they caused him over the years and he wished sometimes that they could just see how much it bothered him instead of getting a laugh out of it. Granted, all of the Slytherins in the school had been subject to a prank or five during their education at the school, but he was either pranked or hexed at least every other week, if not even more often. It just wasn't fair.
Not fair in the slightest, Severus thought to himself bitterly. Especially when I get told off for provoking them when I've done nothing but protect myself and they just get detentions writing lines. Can't the teachers see that it isn't working? That no matter what they do it's only getting worse?
Severus sighed and sat back on his hands, gazing up at the crescent moon surrounded by stars. He had looked forward to Hogwarts, to the learning he would do, to days spent underneath the warm sun near the cool lake as his mother had illustrated in her many stories about the castle, but after three and a half years his dreams were getting worn down by the reality of it all.
Days where he was only able to sneak a talk with Lily when there weren't any condemning older students from either Gryffindor or Slytherin around, being teased and bullied by the Marauders (and sometimes other students) so much that some days he simply wanted to let his anger loose and turn them into worms to smash under his shoes. That was the reality of his life at Hogwarts.
Lily was the only one he could talk to, the only one who really understood. Not to say he didn't have friends in Slytherin, but they weren't real friends, more of allies. Avery, Mulciber, Regulus- Though... does Regulus count as an actual friend? he asked himself. Professor Slughorn had assigned him as a tutor to the younger Slytherin and, despite his dislike for the Black family (not only Sirius was a pain, but Narcissa was an absolute ditz and Bellatrix, who had graduated the year before, was absolutely obsessed with blood purity and the rise of the 'new Dark Lord' she had ranted on and on about), Severus had agreed.
He'd been pleasantly surprised to find that not only was the young boy eager to learn, but that he was a perfect gentleman and knew quite a bit about advanced Defense and Charms, which gave them something to talk about when tutoring sessions were shorter than planned or they ran into one another in the common room. They could also spend plenty of time complaining about the Marauders: Regulus for Sirius' irritating 'pep talks' to transfer to Gryffindor and Severus because of the bullying
Yeah, Severus thought to himself, smiling up at the stars again. I suppose Regulus is a friend. So, I have two friends and three or four allies. Well, better than nothing.
He had decided, within his first month at the school, that he wished to have friends instead of allies, despite Lucius Malfoy's coaching to be a 'proper Slytherin' with no relationships other than those that gave you more power or prestige. Allies were more of neutrals who simply were on the same side as you designed to build you up in the eyes of others, while friends were those who stuck with you personally, no matter what, who built you up emotionally when you most needed it. He couldn't go to Nott or Avery, complaining about the Marauders and their pranks like he could with Lily, couldn't discuss the latest findings in Charm studies or experiments with them like he could with Regulus.
And friends were there for him and he there for them. When older Slytherins called Lily a Mudblood he would defend her, as she would do for him when the Marauders started picking on him. When Sirius was berating Regulus for being in Slytherin just like the rest of the Blacks, Severus could easily send a jinx at him or Potter while they were busy, just as Regulus would defend him from their attacks.
"Friends are the best," he spoke out loud for the still castle grounds to hear. "The very best people in the world."
As if it had heard his words, an owl swooped past, heading toward the Owlrey. Severus yawned deeply and checked his pocketwatch. Seeing it was a quarter past midnight he sighed, knowing he needed to get back to his dorms because of classes the next day. He pulled himself to his feet, took one last look around at the multitudes of stars that shone down on him, then started his silent journey back down to the dungeons and nearer to his troubles.
Written for: Fanfiction, School of Imagination and Creativity: PDHPE Assessment 2, chosen topic: bullying