Disclaimer: I don't own the dystopic world of Harry Potter where date rape drugs are sold over the counter as prank items.
Chapter 2: Bad O.W.L. Memories
"Five more minutes!"
The voice made Lily jump in her seat. She finished writing her last answer and then started rereading her exam answers from the start. Here and there she made a few corrections and wished, not for the first time, for a pen or pencil instead of these stupid, annoying quills.
"Quills down, please!" squeaked Professor Flitwick. "That means you too, Stebbins! Please remain seated while I collect your exams! Accio!"
Over a hundred rolls of parchment and their accompanying exam papers zoomed into the air and into Professor Flitwick's outstretched arms, knocking him backwards off his feet. Several people laughed. A couple of students at the front desks got up, took hold of Professor Flitwick beneath the elbows and lifted him back on to his feet. "Thank you… thank you," panted Professor Flitwick. "Very well, everybody, you're free to go!"
Lily stuffed her quill and inkwell into her bag, which she slung over her shoulders as she stood and headed for the door. Lily paused just outside the doors until Alice Fortescue emerged. She was short with a round race and short blonde hair, with a Prefect badge pinned to her robes. There were three other girls with her: Mary Macdonald, Emmeline Smith and Marlene McKinnon.
Marlene had blonde hair like Alice, but it was longer and framed her square face. Mary and Emmeline were both brunettes but Mary's hair was short and very dark—almost black—and she had blue eyes while Ememeline's hair was long and tied up in a ponytail and she had hazel eyes. Lily herself had thick, dark red hair that fell to her shoulders, startlingly green almond-shaped eyes, and a figure she was proud of—not that anyone could actually see it in these hideous black robes everyone had to wear. Like the quills, their only purpose was to satisfy some stupid 'tradition' from the Dark Ages.
Lily joined the group of chatting girls.
"—don't think I didn't see the way you were making cow eyes at Sirius Black," Emmeline was saying to Marlene, "of course, he didn't seem to notice."
"And how would you know that unless you were eyeing him up too," Marlene retorted.
Emmeline rolled her eyes, "Oh, please. I don't fancy Sirius Black. I like Jack Vance."
Lily couldn't help herself; she burst out laughing. Mary also giggled. The other girls paused to stare at her. "Jack Vance? You want to date a guy named Jack Vance?"
"What so funny?" Emmeline hotly demanded "he's a nice guy, I like him. What's wrong with that?
"Oh, I'm sure he's fine but—," Lily put her hands on her mouth and the giggles came again.
Mary finally explained to the clueless purebloods: "Jack Vance is also the name of a muggle author who writes stories about fictional wizards."
"They do that," Alice frowned "but how can they know how magic works?"
"They don't," Lily replied "in fact a lot of the details are flat out wrong."
"Like what?" Emmeline asked curiously.
"Well in the stories," said Mary, "The wizards have to learn their spells over and over again each day because they forget them after casting."
"That's weird," Marlene sniggered. The other girls nodded and the conversation shifted to the latest gossip and robe fashions. Lily, who was of the opinion that the words "robes" and "fashion" didn't belong together in any universe, looked around and glimpsed Snape a short way away, moving between the tables towards the doors to the Entrance Hall. Round-shouldered yet angular, he walked in a twitchy manner that recalled a spider, and his oily hair was jumping about his face.
Lily looked away and her eyes fell on the Marauders. James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew had been given that nickname by Professor McGonagall in first year and it had stuck. But despite being notorious pranksters, they couldn't keep a secret to save their own lives. Anyone with half a brain could spend five minutes listening to them and figure it out. Like now for instance.
"Did you like question ten, Moony?" said Sirius Black.
"Loved it," said Lupin briskly. "Give five signs that identify the werewolf. Excellent question."
"D'you think you managed to get all the signs?" said James in tones of mock concern.
"Think I did," said Lupin seriously, as they joined the crowd thronging around the front doors eager to get out into the sunlit grounds. "One: he's sitting on my chair. Two: he's wearing my clothes. Three: his name's Remus Lupin."
Pettigrew was the only one who didn't laugh. "I got the snout shape, the pupils of the eyes and the tufted tail,' he said anxiously, "but I couldn't think what else—"
"How thick are you, Wormtail?" said James impatiently. "You run round with a werewolf once a month—"
"Keep your voice down," implored Lupin.
But Lily knew that he needn't have worried. Lupin's condition—and what his friends were doing for him—may have become practically common knowledge among the Gryffindors but aside from Snape, Lily was pretty confident that it hadn't gone any further and she and the other Gryffindors had an unspoken agreement to keep it that way.
"Well, I thought that paper was a piece of cake," she heard Sirius say. "I'll be surprised if I don't get 'Outstanding' on it at least."
"Me too," said James. He put his hand in his pocket and took out a struggling Golden Snitch.
Lily rolled her eyes. James Potter was inordinately fond of showing off that he could have been a Seeker as well as a Chaser.
"Where'd you get that?"
"Nicked it," said James casually. He started playing with the Snitch, allowing it to fly as much as a foot away before seizing it again; his reflexes were excellent. Pettigrew watched him in awe.
Lily saw the Marauders settle down on the grass in the shade of a beech tree at the edge of the lake. Lily and her friends sat down some distance away at the water' edge, removed their socks and shoes and cooled their feet in the water. If it had been up to her, Lily would have chucked the stupid, hideous black robes altogether as the girls uniform included a long-sleeve white button down shirt with a tie and a skirt underneath the robe, while the boys had the shirt, tie and pants underneath. But one of the more stupid school rules—which was also, she'd learned, a generally ironclad rule of wizarding fashion in general—dictated that robes had to be worn in public at all times, despite the fact that it was already shaping up to be a hot summer.
Lily was just about to rejoin the conversation, which had moved to the Quidditch League, when she heard him.
"All right, Snivellus?" said James loudly.
Lily turned just in time to see Severus react so fast it was as though he had been expecting an attack: dropping his bag, he plunged his hand inside his robes and his wand was halfway into the air when Potter shouted, "Expelliarmus!"
Sev's wand flew twelve feet into the air and fell with a little thud in the grass behind him.
Sirius Black let out a bark of laughter. "Impedimenta!" he said, pointing his wand at Severus, who was knocked off his feet halfway through a dive towards his own fallen wand.
Students all around turned to watch. Some of them had got to their feet and were edging nearer. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained. Lily noticed with disgust that the 5th year prefects were either watching indifferently—in the case of Alice—or pretending that nothing was going on—in the case of Remus.
With a sigh, Lily started getting up and putting her socks and shoes back on.
"What are you doing?" Alice asked
"I'm going to put a stop this," Lily announced, "since apparently you don't care, Ms. Prefect." Lily had intended the remark to goad her into action but Alice just shrugged it off.
Severus lay panting on the ground. Potter and Black advanced on him, wands raised. Lily caught Potter glancing over his shoulder in her direction. Pettigrew was on his feet now, watching hungrily, edging around Lupin to get a clearer view.
"How'd the exam go, Snivelly?" said Potter.
"I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment," said Black viciously. "There'll be great grease marks all over it, they won't be able to read a word." Several people watching laughed; Pettigrew sniggered shrilly.
Severus was trying to get up, but the jinx was still operating on him; he was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.
"You–wait," he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing, "you–wait!"
"Wait for what?" said Sirius coolly. "What're you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose on us?"
Severus let out a stream of mixed swear words and hexes, but with his wand ten feet away nothing happened.
"Wash out your mouth," said Potter coldly. "Scourgify!" Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, choking him—
"Leave him ALONE!" Lily called out as she approached.
Potter and Black looked round. Potter's free hand immediately jumped to his hair and ran through it to make it look windblown. Despite herself, Lily inhaled sharply. James Potter really was handsome; too bad he also an arrogant git.
"All right, Evans?" said Potter, and the tone of his voice was suddenly pleasant, deeper, more mature. Oh, if only he was really like that…
"Leave him alone," Lily repeated and glared at Potter. "What's he done to you?"
"Well," said Potter, appearing to deliberate the point, "it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean…"
Many of the surrounding students laughed, Sirius and Wormtail included, but Lupin, still apparently intent on his book, didn't, and nor did Lily. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. That was the exact same reasoning people like Mulciber and Avery used to justify harming others. She saw, in Potter's face, his real reasons: he still hadn't forgiven Snape for intending to murder Lupin last full moon. But that still didn't excuse Potter's actions now. She'd thought he'd stopped doing this.
"You think you're funny," she said coldly. "But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone."
"I will if you go out with me, Evans," said Potter quickly. "Go on… go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again." Lily's eyes widened. This was not the first time Potter had asked her out, though it was the first time he'd done it so...so... blatantly.
The Impediment Jinx was wearing off. Severus was beginning to inch towards his fallen wand, spitting out soapsuds as he crawled.
"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid," said Lily. Not, at least, as long as he was acting like this.
"Bad luck, Prongs," said Black briskly, and turned back to Severus. "Oy!"
But too late; Severus had directed his wand straight at Potter; there was a flash of light and a gash appeared on the side of Potter's face, spattering his robes with blood.
Even as Lily gasped at Sev's use of a potentially lethal spell, Potter whirled about: a second flash of light later, Severus was hanging upside-down in the air, his robes falling over his head to reveal skinny, pallid legs and a pair of graying underpants.
Many people in the small crowd cheered; Sirius, James and Wormtail roared with laughter.
Lily's furious expression twitched for an instant as though she was going to smile; finally she said, "Let him down!"
"Certainly," said Potter and he jerked his wand upwards; Severus fell into a crumpled heap on the ground. Disentangling himself from his robes he got quickly to his feet, wand up, but Black said, "Locomotor mortis!" and Snape keeled over again at once, rigid as a board.
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily shouted and drew her own wand. Potter and Black eyed it warily.
"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," said James earnestly.
"Take the curse off him, then!"
Potter sighed deeply, then turned to Severus and muttered the counter-curse. "There you go," he said, as Severus struggled to his feet. "You're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus—"
"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!"
Lily blinked.
"Fine," she said coolly. "I won't bother in future. And I'd wash your pants if I were you, Snivellus." She turned to leave, fighting hard to hide her inner hurt.
"Apologize to Evans!" James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him.
"I don't want you to make him apologize," Lily shouted, rounding on James. "You're as bad as he is."
"What?" yelped James. "I'd NEVER call you a - you-know-what!"
Lily had to give him credit for that, at least, but she didn't say it aloud; not when she had so many other things to say: "Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can–I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK." She turned on her heel and hurried away.
"Evans!" James shouted after her. "Hey, EVANS!"
But she didn't look back.
"What is it with her?" said James, trying and failing to look as though this was a throwaway question of no real importance to him.
"Reading between the lines, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate," said Sirius.
"Right," said James, who looked furious now, "right -"
There was another flash of light, and Snape was once again hanging upside-down in the air.
"Who wants to see me take off Snivelly's pants?"
Lily collapsed on the ground next to her friends, "Thanks a lot for nothing, Ms. Prefect."
Once again Alice was seemingly unperturbed by the barb, "Snape isn't worth it. How you could ever have been friends with a creep like him, I'll never understand. In any case, I couldn't have done any better and probably wouldn't have accomplished even that much. As you keep pointing out, I'm a prefect; which means that, yes, technically I should be putting a stop to things like that. But I don't have any actual power; all this shiny badge is good for is getting into a really nice bathroom. My 'authority' is dependent entirely on how much I am respected by my fellow students. And while I'm sure Potter respects me at least as much as any other Gryffindor, I don't think he'd have stopped for me on this."
"Why are you so certain," Lily demanded.
"Because," Alice replied, "I have only seen James Potter back down for three people: a teacher, Sirius Black…and you. Teachers because they do have real power; Sirius Black because he's his best friend. And as for you…"
"I'm the girl he fancies, I know," Lily shook her head. "But that doesn't excuse not even trying."
"You're right, of course," Alice admitted, "And, truth be told, if it had been almost anyone else, I would have intervened. But as I said, Snape isn't worth it—not after he helped Mulciber get away with almost killing Mary." Mary, for her part, looked almost gleeful to see Snape brought down like this.
Lily let out a deep breath and buried her head in her hands. In retrospect, she really should have seen this coming. She'd been hoping that if she avoided him long enough, Snape would finally wake up and realize what was happening—what he was becoming and that she couldn't support it. But now what was done was done and there was no way she could just shrug this off and forget it. The little boy who had been her friend, who had introduced her to the Wizarding World, was gone—replaced by someone who had the same name but who had become what the Marauder's had always accused him of being: a Dark Arts obsessed Death Eater wannabe. Or maybe he had always been that way and she just hadn't been willing to see it until now.
Lily basically sleep-walked through the rest of the day, only really coming out of it when her name was called for the Defense practical. She performed each spell asked for and then returned to Gryffindor tower. That evening as she was getting ready for bed, Mary came in.
"That awful Snape boy is outside," she said, "He's says he's not leaving until he speaks with you, even if it that means spending the night out there."
"Alright," Lily said, "I'll get rid of him." She threw on a dressing gown over her nightie and went down the stairs and out the portrait door. Sure enough, there was Snape standing there looking very distraught.
"I'm sorry." He blurted out before she could say anything.
"I'm not interested." Lily scowled and crossed her arms.
"I'm sorry!" Snape repeated.
"Save your breath," said Lily, "I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here."
"I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you a Mudblood, it just—"
"Slipped out?" There was no pity in Lily's voice. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends — you see, you don't even deny it! You don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?" He opened his mouth, but closed it without speaking. "I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."
"No — listen, I didn't mean —"
"— to call me a Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth a Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?" He struggled on the verge of speech but Lily, with a contemptuous look, turned and climbed back through the portrait hole.
(*)
A/N: If you go back to Ootp and read SWM carefully, you'll notice that Snape is described as being very focused on his exam paper…after Flitwick has collected the exams. Even though JKR tries to justify it as just the "exam questions," I find that hard to believe as I have never been in a class or a taken an exam where you were allowed to take the questions with you after you left, even if the answers are written separately; it's just not done. Maybe the Brits do it differently but, in any case, why would anyone continue reading over their exam questions after the exam has been turned in? So, as far as I'm concerned, Snape fudged the memory in order to mess with Harry and did a better job at it than Slughorn because Snape is an Occlumens and a triple agent, and Harry never noticed the inconsistency because he's terrible at critical thinking. Mind you, I'm still on the fence about the accuracy of Pensieves in general and anything that came out of Snape's head in particular. Oh and that bit about prefects not having any real power? Totally canon: it's a minor plot point in OotP that prefects can't deduct points. Percy in 'CoS' was just bluffing a trio of 2nd years, knowing that they couldn't report it without reporting what they'd been doing in the process, which would have gotten them in trouble anyway.