Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter related! That is owned by the wonderful J.K. Rowling!
Note: This story takes place during the era of the Marauders. However, it is not canon-based. Basically, I'm re-writing the storyline. Hope you all enjoy!
Chapter One
Severus walked the length of the train platform with his head down, greasy black hair covering his sad and lonely face. The sounds of happy families saying goodbye to their children floated through the air around him. He tried to tune it out because it just hurt too much.
Severus was alone. His mum had sent him through their fireplace with Floo powder when his dad had left for work; mostly because his dad hated magic. The two fought about it constantly and Severus was lucky to be going to Hogwarts at all. His father had almost refused to let him go. But he hated having his son around more than he hated the idea of a school for magic.
A sweet voice sounded from behind him like a melody dancing through the clouds of his bitter heart. "Severus! Oh Severus! We're over here!"
Severus turned and spotted a beautiful little red-haired girl waving at him down the platform. He trudged toward her, his hands in the pockets of his ratty Muggle pants, his head lowered.
"Hey Lily," he murmured when he finally reached her. He glanced up and his heart skipped a beat as he met those brilliant green eyes.
She beamed at him and motioned toward her family. "Mum, dad, this is Severus! He's the one I've been telling you about. He's a wizard like me!"
Her parents smiled at him in what he felt was a polite-but-distant way and he merely gave them a little shrug. His eyes flicked to them then to Petunia, Lily's older sister. She was dressed impeccably, as usual, and was looking at him with obvious disdain. He looked away, embarrassed, and fiddled with a hole in his over-sized shirt, invariably making it larger in the process.
The train whistle blew, letting the students know that this was their final warning – either get on or be left behind.
Lily hugged Petunia, then her mum and dad. "I'm going to miss you guys, but not too much because this is so exciting! I'll be so busy learning!" For some this might have been rude, but Lily was the kind of girl who could get away with saying nearly anything, she was so sweet-natured and joyful.
Severus was yanked forward as Lily grabbed his hand and pulled him excitedly toward the bright red Hogwarts Express.
They moved down the compartments, each one crowded with students. After reaching the end of the train, they finally found one compartment that was unoccupied.
They pushed open the door and went inside. Severus sat on one side and Lily on the other, both peering out of the window to watch the hustle and bustle at the station.
After a few minutes the whistle blew again and the train began to move. Lily pulled out her wand and began to twirl it around. "Only a few hours and we'll be at Hogwarts! I just can't wait!" She bounced happily up and down in her chair.
Severus couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. He sometimes felt envious that he couldn't muster the excitement she felt about nearly everything. Then again, he didn't have the energy to be so passionate all the time.
His smile quickly faded when their door slid open and three boys walked in.
Two of the boys had messy black hair, though one looked deliberate while the other appeared to be uncontrollable. They walked with an air of arrogance and a self-confidence that Severus envied; therefore, he immediately hated them.
Severus never went half on anything. He didn't even know how. Either he loved something, or someone, or he hated it. The moment he met Lily, he loved her. And the moment he saw these two black-haired boys, he hated them. There was no other word to describe the dark feeling that overwhelmed him at the sight of them.
The third boy had light brown hair and a meeker expression. He looked a little nervous and wary. He was the last to enter and closed the door quietly after him.
One of the boys slid onto the chair next to Lily. "Hey there, love. I'm Sirius…Sirius Black. This is my mate James Potter and that is Remus Lupin," he pointed to the other black-haired boy first and then the quieter boy next.
James sat next to Sirius, his gaze barely registering Severus as he stared fixedly at Lily in a way that Severus didn't like….didn't like at all.
Remus sat beside Severus with an apologetic glance before pulling out a book Severus recognized as their history of magic book and burying his nose in it.
Lily raised an eyebrow at them. "I don't believe we invited you to join us in our car."
James and Sirius exchanged amused looks. "What a fiery little thing we have here, James!" Sirius exclaimed with a wink in her direction.
Lily frowned. "My name is Lily, not love and not little thing. And I don't like you very much, Sirius Black. Please leave."
James looked distraught. "Oh but Lily, all the other cars are full! Please, we won't bother you. Just let us stay here."
Sirius raised an eyebrow and looked at his friend in a mixture of amusement and disgust.
Lily sighed. "Oh alright, if it's okay with Severus, it's alright with me."
James and Sirius exchanged a look and at the same time exclaimed, "Snivellus?"
Severus' back straightened and he felt his pulse start to pound. "My name is Severus," he replied coldly, wishing he knew a few hexes already. He'd send them flying through the bloody window if he could!
Lily glared at the two boys. "If you're going to call him names you can leave right now!" She jumped to her feet and pointed at the door.
James raised his hands in a placating gesture. "No, Lily, we're sorry; we simply misheard you. Severus, can we please stay here?"
He sounded pained, being forced to apologize to Severus. Severus wanted to refuse and it was on the tip of his tongue, but a quick glance at Lily showed him that it would be a bad idea. She was looking at him hopefully, her beautiful eyes wide.
Severus sighed. Lily always told him that she thought there was some good in him, and he just needed to practice being nice to people to become better at it. He didn't agree, but her belief in him made him want to try harder.
"Oh fine, why not?" Severus muttered and turned back to the window, determined to ignore all of them for the entire trip. It wasn't hard, because they seemed to want to ignore him as well.
"So, Sirius, how long have you and James known each other?" Lily asked curiously, now that her ire had been cooled by James' reassuring manner.
Sirius grinned at his friend. "About three days. We met in Diagon Alley when we came to buy our school things. We've been inseparable ever since!"
Lily's eyes widened in surprise. "Seriously? You guys act like you've known each other your whole lives!"
James shrugged and leaned back against the seat. "It seems like we have."
Lily looked over at Severus, because she felt that way about him, though they'd only known each other for a few months. Then she glanced at Remus.
"What about Remus? Did you just meet him as well?"
"On the platform a few minutes ago," Remus replied without looking up from his book.
Severus understood, then, why Remus was much quieter than the other two; he wasn't as comfortable with them as they were with each other.
Severus' gaze turned to Lily who was watching the two boys beside her with interest. He felt a sting of jealousy and wished the stupid boys had never entered their car. Lily was his friend and his alone!
The remainder of the train ride was spent in James flirting with Lily, and Sirius dominating the conversations. Remus and Severus remained silent the entire time, neither caring to participate. Remus merely preferred reading, while Severus grew angrier as time passed. By the time they reached their destination, Severus well and truly hated James and Sirius, because he had planned on spending this ride getting to know Lily better. They had stolen this time from him and he wouldn't forgive them for that.
Upon reaching the Hogwarts station, the children disembarked and, much to Severus' relief, James, Sirius and Remus parted ways with Lily and himself. Lily grabbed Severus' hand and they followed the rest of the first years to the lake, where they received their first view of Hogwarts.
Severus gaped in awe at the sight before him: A giant castle sat on an island in the middle of a huge, black lake. The castle was lit up and stood out against the night sky. The full moon reflected off the calm surface of the lake. It was all very…well…magical.
The first years climbed into rowboats that appeared to move by themselves; the children's first real taste of the magic to come.
Lily sat beside Severus and they watched in amazement as the castle grew nearer and larger. Finally they reached a set of stone stairs and climbed up a staircase leading into a hallway. The hallway led into a small room.
There was a set of wooden doors, behind which they could hear the sound of the older students getting settled into what they assumed was the Great Hall they had heard talk of.
James, Sirius and Remus appeared by Lily's side. Severus glared at them but there wasn't much else he could do.
"I'm definitely going to be in Gryffindor! What about you, Lily?" James asked anxiously.
Lily shrugged. "I don't really care which House I'm in, so long as I'm with Severus." She smiled at Severus sweetly while Sirius and James gagged behind her back.
"I doubt that," Sirius replied with a smirk. "Snivellus…I mean…Severus…will definitely be in Slytherin, and I can't really see you ending up there Lily."
Lily opened her mouth to reply but was saved the time when a side door opened and a tall woman walked in. She was rather severe in appearance with a serious expression, black hair pulled up into a painful-looking bun, and glasses perched on the tip of her nose.
"Greetings new students. I am Minerva McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor and Professor of Transfiguration. I will quickly explain how this works:
"At Hogwarts there are four Houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin; named after the four founders of Hogwarts. You are about to be sorted into one of these four Houses, and there you will stay for the remainder of your time here at this prestigious school of witchcraft and wizardry.
"Your House will be your family for the next seven years. Honors and achievements will earn you and your family points; rule-breaking will lose you points. Whichever House has the most points at the end of the school year will receive the House Cup, which is a huge honor, let me assure you."
She clapped her hands together and turned in a fluid motion toward the large doors. If she wasn't so severe, Severus might have thought she'd been a dancer when she was younger. "Now, please line up in single file and follow me!"
The doors opened and the students scrambled to obey. Severus found himself pushed away from Lily as Sirius took the spot before her and James the one behind. Severus' eyes narrowed at their backs but, yet again, there was nothing he could do. He couldn't wait to learn spells!
They entered the Great Hall and stared in astonishment at the room around them. It was a huge room with a ceiling so high they couldn't see the end of it. It was enchanted to look like the night sky, so was currently clear of clouds, full of stars and even shown with a full moon.
Candles floated in the air a few feet above the five tables that dominated the room.
The first four tables were lined up vertically, and over each was a banner symbolizing the table's House. The fifth table was horizontal and at the end of the room. This held the staff with the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, in the center.
McGonagall led the first years to the staff table and lined them up in single file so that they faced their peers. Then she went into a side room and returned with a three-legged stool and a ratty wizard's Hat, which she placed on the stool.
She explained that when she called a student's name, they were to come forward, sit on the stool, place the Hat on their head and it would sort them into their new House.
She pulled out a scroll and began to call the first year student's names alphabetically. Student after student was called. When they placed the Hat on their head, time would pass, sometimes moments but occasionally longer, and then the Hat would speak, which startled the new students at first. The Hat would announce the new student's House and the student would go to the correct table.
Severus tuned out most of them, but a few stood out:
Sirius Black was called. He had the Hat on his head for quite some time, as though the Hat couldn't quite figure out where to place him. Finally it shouted, "Gryffindor!" And Severus noticed that many of the students, both in Slytherin and Gryffindor, were shocked. He wondered why and then dismissed it, because he couldn't see why it really mattered.
A few more students went and then Severus leaned forward anxiously when Lily was called. The Hat pondered for a time that felt like eternity to Severus. He muttered, "Please be Ravenclaw," because he felt he could handle her being in that House. Instead the Hat called, "Gryffindor!" Severus felt his heart drop to his toes and tears welled in his eyes. Gryffindor. Anything but Gryffindor! Lily looked a little surprised and gazed at Severus before joining Sirius at the Gryffindor table.
Remus Lupin and James Potter joined them at the Gryffindor table, much to Severus' dismay, though not his surprise. Finally, Severus' name was called.
Severus stepped forward and sat on the stool. He placed the Hat on his head and listened as it spoke softly in his ear. "Ah yes, a very good mind; yes, very intelligent. Ravenclaw would be good, no doubt about that. But there is a thirst for power, ambition and quite a bit of cunning. I think it has to be, Slytherin!" The last word the Hat called out for all to hear.
Severus climbed quickly off the stool and threw the Hat from his head at the line of students, before stalking off to the Slytherin table. He sat down beside another student who had been sorted into Slytherin before him, lowered his head into his hands and let the darkness overwhelm him.
A/N: Alright, that's it for the first chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to writing more! Please leave reviews, though if you have criticism please make it constructive! Thanks!
Edited for spelling/grammar errors and a few additions to the story.