It had been one of the first questions James had wanted answered, right up there with "What will we name him?". The problem was that Lily had no idea what the answer would be. She didn't have much experience in the area of godparents. James, however, insisted that their son needed a godfather. Lily didn't see any harm in it or anything. She just couldn't think of anyone perfect enough for her child.
Well, someone had come into mind. Someone who wasn't perfect at all.
It had been such a bizarre idea that she hadn't really considered it. And what James would say if she even mentioned it... She could almost hear his voice, shocked, with a hint of indignation: "Severus? Severus? As in, Severus Snape? Are you serious? Please tell me you're not."
Was she serious?
No, of course she wasn't. Whatever Sev had been before, he wasn't now. He was a Death Eater, for heaven's sake! She couldn't hand over her son to a servant of Voldemort!
And yet...
Somewhere in that part of her mind where she hid her forbidden thoughts, Lily still felt like she knew Severus Snape. She had been his best friend for years, after all. She still remembered him as the bat-like boy in the oversized coat, regaling her with stories of Dementors and Hogwarts. He'd seemed so trust-worthy and friendly back then. A bit odd, maybe, but nice all the same. Her first memories of James, on the other hand, were...unflattering, to put it mildly.
Funny, how things changed, in ways you never expected.
Lily suddenly felt a lump in her throat. She wasn't going to start crying, was she? She swallowed hard, trying to get rid of her unexpected sorrow, when-
"SIRIUS!"
She started with a yelp. James was standing in the doorway, beaming. "Sirius!" he repeated.
"What about him?"
"He could be the godfather!"
"Oh."
Lily struggled with an unanticipated twinge of disappointment. Sirius Black, her son's godfather. She liked him quite a bit, no doubt, and he would be a good godfather, but...well, she didn't know. She hadn't actually been thinking of asking Severus to be godfather, had she?
Maybe she had. Maybe the small part of her that still entertained unrealistic fantasies had been thinking that this was the perfect opportunity to rekindle her friendship with Severus Snape.
She was suddenly aware of James's gaze, dissatisfied by her lack of enthusiasm. "Oh!" she tried again, pulling up a smile, "Sirius! That's perfect, James! Really."
She sighed inwardly. What had happened was over. There was no way of getting it back, and she knew.
