Tempted
His favorite time of day is late afternoon, when the sun is dipping below the tree line in the park and he is lying on the grass and Lily Evans is beside him with her hand a few centimeters from his, tempting him to grab her fingers.
"One more month until Hogwarts," he says, and Lily nods, her green eyes squinted against the setting sun.
"Do you think we'll both be in Slytherin?" she asks, turning her head so she's looking at him. The breeze plays with her hair, and he watches her stroke the grass beneath her fingertips, and he is tempted. . . .
"I hope so."
Lily sighs happily and wiggles her bare toes. They've both abandoned their socks and shoes down by the river, and he likes the pink varnish she's coated across her toenails. "Tell me about Hogwarts again."
"You've heard about it a thousand times!"
She giggles, and her hand closes in a fist around a bunch of grass. "Tell me again, Sev!"
"Fine." He clenches his abs and maneuvers into a sitting position, leaning his back against a tree trunk. "Sit up."
She does, and he tells her there's grass in her hair, and she sticks out her tongue and says she likes it better that way. "Tell me about the professors."
"There's Professor Slughorn. He was teaching back when my Mum went to Hogwarts."
"He teaches Potions," Lily says. She grins, revealing a missing tooth, and she braces her arms behind her, with her fingers splayed out, and again, he is tempted to take that hand.
"If you already know what he teaches, why d'you ask me about it all the time?"
She shrugs. The sun has nearly disappeared by now; soon their parents will be wondering where they are—or at least, her parents will. His never seem to notice he's gone.
"Tell me about McGonagall."
"She teaches Transfiguration. My mum had her at Hogwarts, too. Rubbish subject."
"You only think it's rubbish because your mum couldn't pass her OWL in it."
Severus rolls his eyes. "I think I've told you far too much about my family."
Lily giggles. "I'm quite excited for Transfiguration. I can turn Petunia into a tiny little rabbit if she makes me angry."
"Turning humans into animals?" Severus shakes his head. "It's all rubbish."
"I think it's incredible."
Severus rolls his eyes. "That's just because you're new to magic."
"Maybe." She lies down again and closes her eyes. "Which lessons are you excited for?"
"The ones without any homework."
"Sev!"
He pushes away from his tree trunk and moves to sit closer to her. "I s'pose I'm excited for Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Lily opens her eyes and nods excitedly, rubbing even more grass into her hair, and he is tempted to pick it out, tempted to run his hands through that river of red, but he doesn't, he knows better than that, he knows he has to ask, knows he's supposed to wait—
"Tell me about that one."
"What?"
"Defense. Tell me about Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Severus shrugs. "Mum liked it."
"Who's the professor?"
"I dunno. Defense professors change quite often."
"But your mum liked it?"
"Yeah. She liked protecting people. Would've gone into law enforcement, I reckon, if she hadn't met my dad."
The sun is gone, and the usual summer chill has set over the park. "I want to protect people," Lily says quietly. Her eyes are closed again.
"So do I."
She opens her eyes, and he is startled, even after all this time, by how brilliantly green they are. "What kinds of spells do you learn in Defense Against the Dark Arts?"
"Oh, loads." Severus picks at the grass. A breeze rolls through, and Lily shivers slightly. He thinks of offering her his coat, and then thinks better of it. "You can destroy cursed objects. Attack boggarts. Defeat dark wizards."
"What's a boggart?"
Severus grins. "What's this, have we found a subject you're not a know-it-all about?"
Lily sits up and wraps her arms around her knees. "Don't make fun of me, Severus Snape. What's a boggart?"
"It's like . . . it's a creature. It can change its shape to look like what you fear most in the world."
"Like a monster under the bed?" Lily shivers again.
"Yeah. Only, it's not a monster, for me."
"What is it?"
He is so tempted to tell her.
"Brussels sprouts," he says instead, and she throws back her head and laughs.
"So you and I will take a hundred Defense Against the Dark Arts classes to defeat all the wicked vegetables!" she says, and he smiles and hopes she can't tell how nervous she makes him.
"What about you?" he asks. "What kind of boggart do you have?"
"Hm." She picks at the grass. "Being alone, I think. Having my family disappear. And my friends." She looks directly at him. "I couldn't stand it if you disappeared."
He starts to say something, but it sticks in his throat.
"Of course," she says after a moment of silence, "all that pales in comparison to brussels sprouts."
He smirks. "You can learn to protect them," he says. "Defense Against the Dark Arts can teach you how to protect Muggles, too, probably."
"It's not quite like that." Lily frowns thoughtfully. "I'm afraid they'll choose to disappear."
"No one would choose to leave you, Lily."
She smiles. "I'm glad."
He swallows. "Lily—"
"Lily!" calls the unmistakable voice of Petunia Evans. "Where are you?"
Lily sighs and stands up, brushing her hands off on her dress. "Time to go home," she says. "Bye, Sev!" She darts down to the riverbank to fetch her shoes.
He is tempted to watch her leave, but instead he turns away and walks back toward his own house, hands shoved deep into his pockets.
Quidditch League, Round 2: Hogwarts Subjects
Holyhead Harpies, Seeker
Prompt: Write about someone showing interest in Defense Against the Dark Arts before starting their magical education.
Word Count (Microsoft Word): 974