Anything you recognise is the property of J. K. Rowling and/or WB. I make no money from this piece of writing.
Hello ! This is the first post-worthy fanfic I have written and also the first to be posted here (it has been up on for over a year under the same username). I tried to stick with canon as much as possible with this fic and even though it's short I hope you enjoy it :)
Dead. Severus Snape looked at everything around him and realised he actually was dead. He must be since both Sirius Black and James Potter had snuffed it and were currently stood in front of him, both grinning like loons. Shit. This must be what some people would term Hell.
"Alright, Snivellus?" Sirius smirked at him.
Kill … strangle – bollocks. He's already dead. Can't kill him again. Crap.
Severus grunted in reply. He had to be dead, didn't he? After all the things he'd been through, after all the effort he'd put into preserving his own life as well as the Potter brat's, after following that old coot Dumbledore's screwy plans word for word he just had to be bitten by that stupid bloody pet of old Voldy's. And of course, to add insult to injury, the Potter brat just had to be the last thing he saw in the realm of the living and the bloody dog the first thing in the realm of the dead. Wonderful.
Hold on … wait a minute – it might have been the brat who came rushing over to his dying body, but it wasn't Potter who he looked at as he died. Not really. The eyes might have been a part of the boy, but they were somebody else's eyes. They were Lily's eyes. His Lily. Severus looked over his shoulder and his eyes met those of a beautiful red-haired woman. Harry Potter's eyes belonged to her.
"Hello, Sev," she said, a sweet, shy smile paying on her lovely lips.
"Lily," Severus breathed, turning to face her.
"Yes," she giggled. "Don't worry, those two idiots," she gestured to Black and Potter, "might be here, but this is definitely not Hell."
"How did you know what I was thinking?"
"I know you, Sev," she said softly.
Someone cleared their throat behind Severus' back. Severus blinked hard. Unbelievable. Surely the Dreadful Duo didn't intend to disrupt his peace. Of course they did. They made it their job while they were alive, why should death stop them?
"Yes?" Severus said flatly, turning to face the people who were always the bane of his existence. Sirius was still grinning, but James looked decidedly shifty. Shit, he's up to something. Always was. Now he always will be.
"Thankyou, Sniv- … Severus."
If Snape hadn't seen James Potter's lips move, he wouldn't have believed it had happened. First saying 'thankyou' then calling him by his given name? Obviously Severus' face depicted the shock going through his mind since Potter carried on speaking.
"Thankyou. You helped my son. Our son. Lily's son." James took a deep breath. "I know now just how much she meant … means to you. It's my fault – my doing that drove her away from you. If I hadn't tormented and … bullied you, you would never have said those things to her. I'm … sorry."
If Severus' jaw had hit his chest before, it was most definitely on the floor now. Surely this was some kind of trick or joke?
"No screwy business, I promise," James continued. "If I'd been in your position, I'm not sure I would've done what you have. You have my utmost respect for that. I … I'm not sure what else to say but thankyou." He held out his hand to Snape.
"Um …" Snape mumbled. Was James Potter trying to offer the proverbial olive branch here?
"Sev," a gentle voice came from just behind him. Lily rested her chin on his shoulder. His stomach jumped out of his body. "He means every word. He's … well, we've all seen what you've done for Harry, especially in these last few months and after all your bravery you didn't deserve to die. Not like that. It was too soon. But at least I'm able to see you again, to speak to you again. Please take his offer of peace. I know you'll never be friends, not after everything between you, but you do have to spend the afterlife with us and surely it'd be better spent in peace than in animosity?"
Her words washed over Severus like a soothing caress. She was right. Every word. He could never bring himself to trust Black or Potter, but he could always trust Lily. His Lily. He tentatively held his hand out and shook Potter's. He caught sight of Lily's smile in the corner of his vision and couldn't stop a small smile of his own breaking through.
"You're here too, then?" a new yet altogether familiar voice intoned from his left.
"Lupin!" Sirius ran and threw his arm around his werewolf friend. "It's great to see you! Oh wait … if you're here, then …"
"Yes, yes, I know, I'm dead," Lupin said, a little impatiently, "I'll come to terms with that later, but right now there's something us four have to do."
"Us four?" Sirius raised his eyebrow.
"You, James, Lily and myself. We need to go to Harry. He'll call us when he's about to do what needs to be done."
"You will come back though?" Severus asked Lily, fear tingeing his voice. He didn't want to lose her again.
"Yes, we'll be back. We can't stay with him, but we can help him with what he needs to do," Lupin said, even as he and the other three began to fade out.
"Be back soon, Sev," Lily smiled just before she completely vanished.
Severus sat down on the floor. If she said she'll be back then she will be back. Just a case of waiting. If this is what the afterlife is going to be like, if it means Lily will always be there, a little waiting will never hurt.