"I regret it," said Voldemort coldly, and Disapparated.
Severus stood there, his knees shaking. They gave way and he fell to the floor, lay sprawled on the ground, breathing hard and clutching the bloody cuts in his neck.
It was painful. White-hot searing pain was spreading through his whole body. He blinked his eyes. He was going to see Lily again. He would no longer need to do this. He didn't want to fight anymore.
And suddenly there was a ripple in the landscape, and Severus thought it was his own blurring vision, until he realised who stood there.
Harry Potter crouched gently at his side, and held his hand gently on Severus's neck. It subsided the pain.
He wanted something suddenly. Pain and longing burst through his veins. He thought of all the happy memories he'd shared with Lilly before James had took her. And he forced them through his mind.
White memories began trickling from him. With great difficulty, he burst words out.
"Take it…take it…" The words issued from his throat, barely audible, but Harry understood, and took the thoughts with a flask.
Severus had no blood left in him. There was only one thought in his mind: Lilly.
He burst with longing again. The last thing he wanted to see…he did not want to see those glasses, nor that black hair, nothing about James. He forced his hand up and pulled the glasses off, pulled Harry closer.
And he stared into those dazzling green eyes, Lilly's dazzling green eyes, and he almost smiled, Lilly, Lilly, he was going to see Lilly, and Dumbledore…
The green eyes stared back at him, and he saw the wonderful things in them, the childhood memories he'd loved, and given away, when he'd first met Lilly Evans, the wittiest, smartest, most beautiful girl he ever laid eyes upon, the strong-willed girl, the kindest and nicest, who had almost loved him back, his only one true love, who was dead.
And now he was going to meet her once more.
He forced his vocal cords to do one last thing. "Look…at…me…" he whispered. The whiteness of his face turned stronger, and there he was, pale as a ghost, staring into the wonderful green eyes, thinking of no one but Lilly.
