Chapter 1
I remained still, watching her hair waving like a fierce flame behind her back as she ran away. So we were neighbors… How could've I not noticed her? She was so pretty… And she was like me. She was one of my kind… a witch. And a brilliant one, almost as brilliant as me. Her and I were alike… it seemed like her family doesn't know much about magic. I should have shoved her sister off the swing when I had the occasion... she reminded me of… Father. I felt like vomiting just by calling him that. But the thought of the girl made me swallow back my anger instantly. Merlin, those emerald eyes… I wish I could talk to her, show her she is not alone…
"SEVERUS SNAPE!"
I jumped on my spot, spinning around. Mother's was there, and she was angry. I knew I was forbidden to all the way to our neighbors' house. But I wouldn't miss an occasion to see her again for the world's gold. I glanced one last time at the little house, before running back towards my own dark home.
But I escaped the very next morning and hid behind the usual tree. She was there. But she was alone… and it seemed like she was doing magic again. She had her hand stretched out in front of her just like the day before, but it seemed like the daisy she had put on it didn't want to fly; it raised itself an inch upwards before falling back on the palm of her hand. Unable to see her face correctly, I shifted to another spot behind a nearer tree. By the time I had moved, the girl had let her hand fall back along her side; she was staring down at the grass, where the daisy had wilted. From where I was standing, I could see that her eyes were shimmering.
"I'm a freak…" I heard her whisper.
On the next second, I had jumped out of my hidden spot and I was standing in front of her like an idiot. She gasped and took a step backwards.
"You're not a freak." I heard myself say, unable to look away from her eyes.
She blinked and observed me for a moment, as though I was a specimen. I started blushing and, not knowing what to do, I ran my hands though my hair, pushing them back behind my ears. I knew I should have taken a shower today.
"Everyone thinks I'm a freak." She finally said.
"Everyone is wrong." I answered instantly.
She frowned and looked down at her feet.
"If I'm not a freak, what am I then?"
I hesitated for a moment.
"You… you're a… you're a witch." I finally said, much less confident than before.
Her eyes shifted back up on me. She seemed upset, but I didn't understand why.
"It's not polite to call someone a witch!" She claimed, offended.
"But it's the truth!" I said desperately. "There's nothing wrong with being a witch… My mom's a witch… and I'm a wizard."
Her eyes seemed to light up with interest, but it shifted into a skeptical look.
"Why are you making fun of me?"
"I'm not-!" I started, but I knew it was useless.
So I picked up the daisy she had dropped. I stretched out my palm towards her, and instantly the flower bloomed and raised itself to the air. She caught it gently. She looked up at me, smiling. My heart stopped.
"What's your name?" She asked.
It's only then that I realized that my mouth was open. I closed it and swallowed. My throat was dry.
"S-Severus." I stuttered dumbly.
"I'm Lily. Lily Evans."
Lily… her name echoed in my head like the siren's song.
"Nice to meet you, Lily." I loved the way her name sounded in my voice.
"What were you doing behind that tree?" She crossed her arms, raising her eyebrows. She seemed to hold back a laugh, but I still blushed hard.
"Um… Well, I… We're actually neighbors, and I… I figured we could become… friends. And each time I came you were with that muggle girl…"
"That what?" She frowned, looking confused.
"Muggle. Non-wizard people." I shrugged.
"So… I really am a witch?" She asked hopefully. I smiled to her.
"You sure are. And a bloody good one." My eyes might have been twinkling. "You'll receive your letter soon, eventually."
"What letter?" once more, I confused her. It felt good, being able to teach her something, and maybe impress her with my knowledge.
"So you don't know anything at all about your powers?" I asked innocently, already seeing myself as a teacher.
"Not really, no…" She smiled sheepishly, pushing back her hair behind her right ear like a silky curtain. I sighed dreamily.
"I'll answer all your question, Lily Evans." I said, smiling so widely that the corners of my lips hurt. She smiled back. Merlin, so that was how it felt to make an angel smile…
We spent the rest of the afternoon lying down on the grass, and by the evening I had told her everything about the magic world, including Hogwarts.
"I'm so excited!" She giggled, and I watched her. "When are we supposed to get our letters?" she asked eagerly.
"Dumbledore won't make you wait any longer, I promise." I smiled
"I really would like to meet that man…" She sighed contently, looking up at the clouds. But unexpectedly, her smile vanished. I frowned.
"What's wrong?" I asked her.
"Well… All of this seems wonderful, but… what are my parents going to say? And Tunie…She is going to be furious…"
"She's jealous. Because she is ordinary and you are extraordinary."
"That's mean, Severus." She blushed nonetheless.
My heart stopped at how her tongue rolled upon my name.
"Concerning your parents…" I cleared my hoarse throat, "I bet they'll be proud to have a witch for a daughter."
"Maybe they will… or not." She sighed. For a minute we remained silent, but she spoke again. "Severus?" she called. I shivered. Merlin, why does it have that effect on me all the time?
"Yeah?"
"Does it… Does it make a difference to come from a Muggle family?" She asked hesitantly.
I stopped breathing and looked away from her, in case our eyes would make contact.
"No…" I lied. My voice was barely hearable. "I doesn't change anything at all."
"Great! I feared it would… tear us apart." She chuckled nervously. I remained quiet, my throat tight.
And she took my hand, watching the sky. I remained frozen, but I was hexing myself in the inside.
I continued to meet Lily in her backyard the days that followed, even though I had to face my parents when I came back every evening. But I always managed to escape in the morning. They were always fighting anyway, no one noticed until I came back. We did everything and anything together. I taught her new trick, told her about Hogwarts… but as we grew closer and closer, I regretted lying to her a lot more each day.
The truth was that it was going to be Hell for her, especially when she was going to be sorted into Slytherin like me. She was going to have to face bullying and injustice in the magic world, even though she was the best witch I had ever met… not that I had met much witched after Mother. But I had taken my decision, everything was settled and clear in my mind: no one was ever going to touch my Lily.
Finally, the day we received our letters from Hogwarts arrived. I was already in the backyard when she ran outside, waving her letter up in the air, her face radiant.
"Sev! Here it is, I got my letter! Finally!" Her laughter sounded like a song, a song about happiness. She stopped a couple of inches away from me –her vanilla perfume invaded my senses like oxygen- and put the letter under my nose. "Look! Oh, my parents are so proud… just like you said they would be! Did you get yours?" She eyed me curiously.
I took mine out of the back pocket of my jeans.
"The owl knocked in my window when the sun began rising." I smiled at her.
"Your parents must've been so happy!" She jumped on her spot, clapping her hands together.
"My… my parents? Um… well, my mother… yes, she was smiling. She hardly ever smiles." I frowned, realizing it as the words come out of my mouth.
"How about your dad? Does he know?" She frowned.
"Well, he doesn't like wizards very much… neither does he like magic, actually…" I began doodling with my foot on the grass as I spoke. "Things aren't really going well at home…"
"Severus, I'm sorry…" Lily whispered. She seemed sad… I hope she doesn't pity me...
"Oh, don't worry about me…" I said proudly, glancing at the horizon. "I'm used to it. Besides…" My breathing stopped. I turned to face her. "You're there, now." I smiled.
"I'll always be there for you, Sev!" She said in a tone that sounded like a promise. I felt so much relieved I almost couldn't believe it.
"Always?"
"Forever."
And then we lied down on the fresh grass, and watched the sky. Well, at least Lily did, for I wasn't interested in astronomy. I was interested in her. I watched her attentively, I followed each one of her movements with my eyes. I retraced her features, her forehead, the straight line of her nose, the curve of her lips, her chin, her jawline, the crook her neck… I loved every single detail in her, from her silky red her to her hypnotizing perfume, her deep emerald eyes following the clouds and glimmering in the sunlight, her melodious laughter… the more I looked at her, the more I loved her.
