Longing for Flowers

A/N: I do not own these characters. I might own a couple created characters, but everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling. I am trying to use as little dialog from the book as possible. I didn't create that dialog, J.K. Did. This has SPOILERS FROM THE 7TH BOOK!! Do not read if you have not finished the 7th book. Don't complain to me if I spoiled something for you, I have said it here. Thank you.

Chapter One: Reaching Out.

The sun was shining brightly, a cool summer day just waiting for little ones to play outside. A soft breeze blew as a blonde hair girl plopped herself upon a swing, a younger girl with red hair sitting on the swing next to her. The red head smiled and began to swing.

"Bet I can jump farther than you Tuney." said the girl as she gained height, her legs pumping to make the swing go farther. The elder girl smiled as she did the same.

"I doubt it Lily." Petunia replied, laughing as she gained height quicker than her younger sister. Lily wrinkled her nose.

"No fair, you have longer legs than me." she cried as she felt the wind blow through her long hair.

"And stronger!" shouted Petunia. After another swing, Petunia launched herself into the air and soared through it and landed perfectly in the gravel. She turned and watched her swing slowly die and put her hands upon her hips. "Go!" Lily bit her lip, did one last swing, and jumped. She soared through the air as well, but not as gracefully as her sister. She landed on her feet but ended up falling on her butt. She looked at her feet and looked in front of her, to see her sister's white shoes wiggling in the rocks.

"Beat you." said Petunia, a smile upon her face. Lily looked up at her sister.

"So Tuney! You always beat me, but you know I can climb higher than you!" piped Lily, getting to her feet. Petunia crossed her arms.

"I doubt it. The trees at home are shorter than the trees here. You'd get scared." explained Petunia. Lily bit her lip.

"Liar." she said as she glanced at the nearest tree. Petunia was right. The tree was taller than the short one they had at home, but there were several branches that she could climb easily. She glanced at her sister. "I bet I could climb up to that branch with no leaves." said Lily, pointing to the said branch. Petunia glanced up at the tree then back at her sister. The branch she was talking about was a good fifteen feet in the air. There was no way that her sister would be able to make it there.

"Lily, I doubt you could get that high, it's higher than the tree we have at home." protested Petunia. Lily crossed her arms.

"Fine, if you are too chicken to bet me, then I'll prove to you that I can do it!" squeaked Lily as she walked towards the tree.

Petunia watched as her sister walked to the tree. Petunia tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and dashed after her sister.

"Look, this isn't the best idea. What if you fall? Mom will be mad at me!" protested Petunia. Lily shrugged.

"I've hurt myself before and you were never to blame." explained Lily. Petunia put a hand upon her sister's shoulder.

"Yeah, but that was never here! You can't get yourself hurt!" cried Petunia. Lily shrugged off the hand.

"I promise I won't get hurt, kay?" chirped Lily. She smiled at her sister. "If I get scared, I'll climb down. It shouldn't be too hard." Lily glanced at the tree then back at her sister. "Wanna give me a boost?" Petunia looked at her sister, then the tree, then back at her sister. She gave a sigh.

"All right, fine, I'll give you a boost." Lily flung her arms around her sister, giving her a big hug.

"Thank you Tuney!" exclaimed Lily as she turned and stood at the base of the tree.

Petunia knelt down as Lily put her foot into Petunia's hand. Petunia counted and on three, she hoisted Lily up. Lily's fingers gripped the first branch and she felt herself pulling her body upwards. It was harder than the tree at home because the branch was higher up. Lily felt her muscles tighten as she hoisted herself over the branch. Her stomach gave a little ache and she wiggled on the branch. So far so good. She gripped the trunk the best she could and pulled herself to her full height and looked down. Petunia was watching her, worry filled her eyes. Lily gave a small wave and turned her attention back to the tree.

Lily found herself winding in and out of the branches as she pulled herself closer and closer to the branch with no leaves. Her body was feeling a bit tired from all the climbing. Petunia was right; the tree was a lot bigger than the tree that was in their backyard. She felt her arm tighten as she grabbed the next branch and hoisted herself up. Finally. She was finally at the branch with no leaves. She turned and waved at Petunia.

"I did it!" she cried. Petunia smiled and clapped.

"Good job Lil! Now get back down here!" shouted Petunia. Lily nodded and turned her body so she could make the trip back down. She didn't know how it happened, but while she was lowering herself onto the branch below, her arms gave out and she felt herself falling from the tree. She let out a scream and Petunia watched terrified.

"LILY!!!!!"

-0-

"What are you doing?!" came a muffled voice from downstairs. A small boy sat in his room, the curtains drawn and the lights turned off. He sat there, his eyes glancing over a book. There were funny writings in it, something that most people wouldn't be able to read. The boy pushed his black hair from his face and his eyes traveled over the funny letters. He didn't like to hear his parents fighting; it just didn't make for a happy family.

"It's for Severus!" a shout came from downstairs and the boy groaned. He was being brought into another one of their fights. Severus Snape rubbed his forehead as he continued to hear his parents argue downstairs. Severus closed his book and swung his legs over his bed. He left the book lying upon his bed and he walked to the window. He drew back the curtains and pushed it open. He felt the cool summer air blow into his face. He closed his eyes as he felt it calm him. He didn't enjoy living in his house, didn't like the fact that it was always his parents fighting and never actually trying to get along. He knew that marriage was a fickle thing, but his parents made him not want to get married. The bickering and the complaining, it just wasn't his cup of tea.

Snape looked out his window and gave a sigh. What he wouldn't do to live in his mother's world. He bet it would be better than living here, with stupid muggles. His mother was a witch, a pureblood to be exact. She came from a long line of powerful witches and wizards. He didn't know how she fell for his dad. Maybe it was to get back at her family, to be a rebel. Maybe she saw something then that she had never seen before, whatever the reason, she fell for his muggle father and he did the same with her. Severus felt that it was cheap that his mother didn't tell his father that she was a witch, but maybe she figured they wouldn't last long... But they did. They ended up married and they had him. He knew his father had been grumpy ever since he found out that the woman who was is wife was odd, not normal. And when Severus had turned two, he was already making things move on their own on accident. He knew his father didn't like it much and was never around except for at night. This didn't bother Severus, he felt more connected to his mother anyway. He rarely left the house, never liking to dress like a muggle. Robes fitted him best and it made him happy. His mother wasn't good at dressing herself either, so she didn't have a lot of clothes for Severus to choose from. This didn't bother him of course, he rather not go out in public, for the fear he wouldn't be able to control his magic.

A shout from downstairs made Severus glance at the door nervously. He needed to get out of there before he was brought into the mess of the argument. He knew he couldn't go out in his robes though so he went to his dresser and began to pull out clothing. He found a pair of shorts, a button up shirt and socks. He knew which set should go where but he had no idea that wearing green shorts, a pink button up and yellow socks would be a huge no no. He grabbed a pair of black shoes and tied them. He looked at himself in the mirror. He figured he could wear a coat to try to hide him, even if it was summer. He grabbed a gray coat from the closet and flung it over himself. He made his way to the window and crawled out of it. His feet landed upon the roof that went over his porch and jumped from that. He landed softly on the ground, and began to walk down the street.

It was a quiet day, afternoon just beginning. Severus kicked pebbles as he walked. He had no clue where he was going, but he always ended up walking the exact same path he always did. He didn't understand why he did, but he did. He ignored children calling to him as he walked. He didn't feel like talking to anyone, they weren't his kind. His mother always told him that she was probably mistaken to marry his father, but when a witch or wizard marry, they marry for life, there was never any turning back. Severus gave a small sigh as he walked. He stopped when he came to a fork in the road. He always took the left path, but today he felt he should change up his walk. He turned and began to head down the right path.

His eyes traveled over the houses as he walked. He never had been down this road, so everything was new to him. The houses looked nicer and the atmosphere just seemed kinder. He walked down several streets until he found himself near a playground. He was about to turn around when he heard a girl scream. He looked up as he heard

"LILY!" and he found himself running. He stopped himself short as he saw a girl falling through the air. His eyes were wide. How was she going to survive?

Lily felt the wind whip through her hair and her scream pierced the air. She was falling and she couldn't do anything about it. Please let me float, please let me land! I can't die yet! Please, let me hover or something!!! The little girl thought as she fell. Soon she felt herself not moving. Her eyes flew open and she watched as she slowly descended downwards. She felt her body going upright and she felt her feet touch the ground. Her eyes were wide. She looked at her sister. Petunia's eyes were wide, her mouth open.

"Lily..." said Petunia softly. Lily looked at herself and began to feel her body.

"I... I... stopped myself..." said Lily. She felt funny. How had she stopped herself? This was all too weird. Petunia walked up to her sister and touched her shoulder.

"Are you okay? You aren't hurt are you?" she asked. Lily looked at her sister and smiled.

"I told you I wouldn't get hurt." she said brightly. Petunia glared at her sister.

"Lily, this isn't a laughing matter. You almost died!" cried Petunia.

"Yeah, but Tuney I didn't! I'm alive!" she cooed and spun around. "It was like... magic!" she chirped. "Wouldn't it be great if I could do magic Tuney? I could make things come to me, make things disappear... I could make a career out of it! I could be famous!" giggled Lily as she hopped from foot to foot. Petunia just looked at her sister.

"I think we should go home..." said Petunia, grabbing for her sister's hand. Lily settled down when Petunia grabbed her hand and Lily gave a pout.

"But Tuney, I want to stay... Maybe I could fall from the tree again to make sure it wasn't an accident!" cooed Lily. Petunia shook her head.

"No. I don't want you to hurt yourself. I think it's safe to say you shouldn't try that again. Don't tell mum either." said Petunia. Lily gave a small pout.

"Fine. Can we come back tomorrow though? I wanna beat you in jumping." said Lily as Petunia began to lead them out of the park.

"Okay, but you will lose."

Severus caught his breath while he had watched the redheaded girl slowly float from the tree. At that exact moment he had dived behind a bush and watched them. Severus's heart was pounding. She could do magic... He watched as Lily talked with her sister, seeing the upset look upon the elders face. Severus was a little surprised. The blonde seemed to not believe in magic... So that must mean... Severus's heart gave a little leap. She was muggle born. He watched as the two walked from the park and down the road. He slowly stood from his hiding place as the girls walked down the road. His eyes watched them, his eyes never leaving the spot until they were out of sight.

He made his way over to the swings and sat upon them. She could do magic... She was a witch... She was one of them. His heart seemed to flutter at the thought of that. He never knew another one before; he thought he was the only one with magical powers in these parts. He was sure his mother would let him play with other little witches and wizards if there were any, but there were none. This made him sad and wonders if it was his father's doing or if his mother was tired of living in the magical world. He figured it was the first one. Severus stood up. He would return again tomorrow to watch to see if the girl indeed was a witch, or if it was his powers that made her slowly come to earth. He had to find out... He was tired of being the only one.

-0-

Severus was sitting behind a bush when the two girls appeared the next day. Lily was in the lead as she raced to the playground. Severus stayed hidden. He was afraid if he showed himself, they would never come back and he would be devastated if that happened and the girl was a witch. He watched as she ran towards the tree. She looked up at it. Severus didn't understand what she was doing. She was just... standing there in front of the tree, looking at it.

Lily stood at the base of the tree, her eyes fixed upon the leaves that waved at her when the wind blew. It was a nice, gently breeze and it made her close her eyes. I wish I had some leaves to play in... To jump in... She looked at the leaves on the tree as they danced. Then suddenly, a whole branch worth of leaves came falling down on her, all from the exact same branch. They didn't fall like normal leaves though; they fell like they were being controlled. Lily's eyes went wide as they came to her. They floated around her as she looked at them. She touched them gently and then they fell.

"LILY!" cried Petunia. "What did you..." she stuttered.

"I did it again!" she chirped. She smiled brightly at her sister. "I did it again."

I did it again rang in Severus's head as he sat at the dinner table that night. His mother sat across from him as she ate her chicken quietly. The television was blaring in the living room and a soft grunt was heard every now and then. Severus made the leeks on his plate swirl around and around. She was a witch... The thought of having someone else like him made him happy, happy for really once in his life. A small smile must have crept to his lips because his mother softly spoke.

"What is on your mind Severus?" Severus looked at his mother.

"Are there anyone else like us in the area mum?" he asked. Severus' mom pondered for a moment then put her fork down.

"None that I can recall. Your father asked the same question before we moved here... He seemed pleased when I told him that..." her voice trailed off, scared on what else she might say. Severus frowned a bit.

"So if there was, they would be muggle born huh..." His mother nodded.

"Yes... that is right. Please Severus, don't get tangled up in that lot..." she said. "I should have listened to my mother but I was... well... I wanted to be a rebel... But that is really all you need to know Severus... Just... don't get mixed up with muggle born children." she explained. She got up from the table and disappeared from view. Severus touched his plate with his fork. He shouldn't get close to muggle born children... Yet she wasn't just a muggle born... She was a witch... That shouldn't make a difference, right?

The next few weeks Severus hid behind the same bush, always waiting for Lily and Petunia to arrive. Sometimes it was Lily by herself, and this made Severus want to come out of hiding, but he was scared, scared that if he moved too soon, he would scare her away. He didn't want to scare her away, he wanted to be her friend... He wanted someone else to talk to besides his mother. So every day he went to the spot just to watch her do magic. Soon she stopped however, and he only watched her play with her sister.

-0-

Lily walked into her room and sat her shoes upon the floor and flung herself onto the bed. She had once again been told not to perform her little tricks in the living room. It wasn't her fault that the logs near the fireplace went up in flames, almost burning down the house. She couldn't control what she did half the time... She always had this funny feeling that she was somehow different from everyone else... When she was little things would break and toys would appear in front of her when she wanted them. She remembered hitting her head when she was small and feeling blood on her forehead but when she went to wipe it away it was gone and so was the pain. It stopped when she was around seven, but now it was back, and this excited her. She wanted to know why she could do all this crazy stuff. She knew her sister hated when she did it... Her sister seemed to be the odd one in the family. Her mother told her not to do her tricks if it would harm something, but a lot of times she would turn the other cheek and pretend she didn't see it... At least if Petunia wasn't around. Her father loved all her tricks, and was astonished that his baby girl was talented. Petunia... She just didn't like seeing her do her tricks. This made Lily sad though. Petunia was her older sister, and she loved her dearly. She admired Petunia's piano skills and her cooking ability... But Lily was good at something and Petunia didn't support it. Lily gave a sigh. Why didn't her sister support her?

-0-

Severus paced up and down his bedroom the next morning, a plan running inside his head. He was going to talk to her today. He was going to approach her and tell her that she was a witch. He knew that she was probably confused at what she was, not knowing that she was a special child. Severus bit his lip and sat upon his bed. It couldn't go wrong... She would surely be happy to know what she was, and would want to be his friend... A friend. Severus smiled just a bit. He never thought he'd be able to say he had a friend... He knew once he would reach Hogwarts he would be away from all the muggles and he would be with his kind. He would be in Slytherin, his mother's house, and would have friends. The thought of a friend now, though, made him feel scared. What if it didn't go the way he planned? What if she laughed in his face? What if she accidentally jinxed him? He shook his head. She wouldn't be able to do that. She seemed too nice to do that.

Severus walked towards his dresser and pulled out a pair of jeans, a smock shirt and pulled them on. He grabbed his trust coat and slid it on. He looked at himself in the mirror and scrunched up his nose. He looked okay... But he really didn't have many muggle type clothing so he would just have to do with what he had. He took a deep breath and walked towards his door.

-0-

Lily soared through the air and softly landed on her feet. She looked back at Petunia and watched her get angry. She dug her heels of her sandals into the gravel and stopped. Petunia began to yell at her. Lily smiled and protested. She glanced around the playground. No one was around, so she knew that she was safe. She grabbed a flower and concentrated hard on it and soon it was opening and closing on its own. Petunia looked at her sister and told her to stop it. Lily sighed. Her sister never supported anything that she could do. Her hand closed around the flower and threw it to the ground. She looked at her sister when she asked "How do you do it?" Lily was about to open her mouth when someone from behind her went,

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Lily turned around and her eyes fell upon a ten year old boy with long black hair and mix matched clothing. Lily questioned him, asking him what he meant. When he said she was a witch, Lily was quite offended. How dare someone she didn't know call her a witch? When she was about to tell him off, he kept babbling on, saying how his mother is a witch and that he was a wizard. The thought of actual witches and wizards made Lily's head spin. They couldn't be real, what she did was just silly little tricks that could be explained. She couldn't explain them, she was just ten years old, but she knew someone could... Just not her.

Petunia gave a laugh that brought Lily from her thoughts. She said that the boy was that Snape boy from Spinners End. Lily knew where that was; it wasn't that far from where they were at. Her sister asks if he was spying on them, and she listened as the boy retorted and said he wasn't spying on a muggle. This word was weird to Lily, she never heard it but he wasn't talking about her, he was talking about Petunia. Maybe it was a word for people who didn't know magic? Petunia told Lily they were leaving and Lily was surprised. She kind of wanted to hear more from this Snape kid but she didn't want to disobey her sister. She knew her sister was most likely right, but she had a funny feeling that what Snape had said might actually be right... She turned her back and followed Petunia out of the park.

Severus stood there as he watched the two girls walk down the road. His shoulders slumped and he gave a sigh. It didn't go as it was suppose to. He had the courage to finally talk to her! But alas, he knew she didn't believe him. If only he had waited until Lily was alone, then he could have told her the entire truth. He kicked a stone and turned around. No use staying there, he might as well go home.

On the way home, Severus's mind wouldn't leave him alone. All he could think about was all his mistakes. Talking to Lily with her sister there, scaring them, not explaining properly everything he wanted to say. He stood on his stoop and looked at the door. He was a failure... A complete failure. Maybe he wasn't allowed to have friends until he reached Hogwarts? He grabbed the handle and pushed open the door.

Severus dragged his feet as he went to his room. He climbed the stairs and shut the door as he collapsed onto his bed. He stared at the ceiling. Maybe he was meant to be alone.

A/N: It is hard typing Severus instead of Snape... Hope you like it.. I bet this is one out of 1,000 popping up, but they all have their own little twist, so eh... Yeah.