Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Everything (except the plot) belongs to J.K. Rowling and the plot isn't even original.
Chapter 1: Thoughts of the Past
He was running as fast as his body was capable, but he couldn't feel a thing. His heart was beating so hard that, if he had been paying any attention, he would have grasped it in pain. His sides had that familiar feeling of pain, just like they felt after he had been kicked repeatedly in school. However, none of these discomforts made any difference to him because the only thought that came to his mind was I hope I'm not too late.
He slowed as he approached the house. The man paused before rushing out into the open. James Potter's house, he thought. Just the sight of it brought back so many memories of that wondrous night; the night that had changed his life forever. He wondered whether he had run fast enough and if, for once, Lady Luck was on his side.
The few moments that he had paused for were only seconds, but to him, they seemed like an eternity. As he began to move forward, towards the house of his enemy, a green light flashed throughout the house and it was changed entirely. As much as he hated to admit it, James did have a nice home. It was grand, larger than life, and somewhat pompous … just like the man who owned it. However, now it was more like a skeleton; a lonely and menacing skeleton. It was a solitary shadow, mocking him about what he had just lost.
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The man who was Severus Snape shot straight up in bed, drenched with sweat. His heart pained him, just as it had so many years ago. He clutched his chest and caught his breath. Once he had calmed himself down, he ran a hand through his damp hair and threw himself backward, his head hitting the soft, fluffy pillow. He knew why he had dreamt that dream out of all the assortments of dreams that he could have dreamt.
About ten years ago, Lily, the love of his life, had been killed by Lord Voldemort. And now her son, Harry, was coming to Hogwarts … in a couple of days actually. He didn't know what he was going to do when he met the boy face to face. He continued to lay in bed staring up at the ceiling, allowing his mind to wander to whatever thoughts and memories were lurking in the darkest corners of his mind.
Severus glanced at his clock on the night stand. He groaned as he realized that it was 3:14 am. He already knew that he was never going to get any more sleep that night; he never did after having dreams like these. Sighing in exasperation, he forced himself out of bed and headed towards his bathroom. He saw himself in the mirror and was slightly irritated to find that he couldn't find the young man he had once been anymore. There had been a time when they had all thought that life would never change and that they would always be as young as they were. He sneered at himself as he thought about how stupid that seemed now. Of course people grew up and wasn't it obvious that they would change. Then, his expression softened as he thought It might sound ridiculous, but what I wouldn't give to be that young and naive again. He moved away from the mirror and turned the hot water knob on all the way in the shower and grabbed a towel. He undressed and stepped into the shower.
School starts soon the Professor thought as he positioned himself so that his back and neck were directly under the steaming hot water. Severus Snape was, by nature, a very orderly man and liked to have things done ahead of time so, naturally, he had been prepared for the start of term days ago. Nevertheless, he still ran through everything he would need one more time.
After about a half an hour of standing in the water, spacing out, he brought himself back into reality and quickly washed himself and (gasp) his hair. It was amazing how this simple act could bring up memories. One in particular was the times when Lily would play with his hair and tell him that even though his hair looked greasy, she loved to play with it because, in reality, it was silky and soft. The memory was short and sweet, but it was enough to make him feel better. He rinsed off, turned off the water, and stepped out of the shower.
After drying off, Severus wrapped the towel around his waist and walked into his bedroom. He chose his normal attire from the other copies of the same thing. As he dressed himself, he also thought about how much he really had changed. As a child and teenager, he had been tall and skinny, As he grew into a man, some slight muscle had begun to develop. This was most likely thanks to his being a Death Eater. Having to run and do whatever other ridiculous tasks Voldemort wanted him to do did wonders on his body. Of course, he hadn't had to do anything of the sort since … the Incident, but Severus tried to keep his figure the best he could.
Another memory of Lily came to mind. He smiled to himself as he remembered how Lily was always asking him why he hid his true figure beneath his bat-like robes. He had always smiled and laughed as he replied that he didn't want to provide James Potter with real competition and that he wouldn't want to have to humiliate him by taking away his groups of fan girls. Lily would always laugh her beautiful, sing-song laugh and that would make him love her even more. What he wouldn't give to hear that stunning laugh just one more time. Severus sat on his bed and put his head I his hands.
This was going to be a long seven years.