Disclaimer: I do not own the wonderful world of Harry Potter.
Thanks to: DraculaLover99, maramouse, and Eclaire Stones for the reviews!
Before Severus knew it September was just a memory, and Halloween was approaching. The castle was buzzing with excitement about the feast, including Severus's friends. Remus, Peter, Lyra, Lily and Severus were lounging around the fire the day before the holiday, having finished all their work days before. Lyra and Remus were sprawled out on the floor soaking up the warmth, leaving Severus, Lily and Peter to sit on the couch.
"How many pumpkins do you think there will be?" Lyra asked the group at large. "Some fifth year told me there would be hundreds floating around."
"That would be amazing" Peter said, his pale blue eyes wide.
"Oh, and I heard there would be live bats too! Swooping around the ceiling and all over the tables… what's wrong Lily?" Lyra stopped her descriptions at the look on Lily's face.
Severus turned to Lily, who had gone pale. He remembered she had been nervous at the thought of bats flapping around the great hall, but he didn't remember her getting this frightened. Then again, he hadn't sat with her so he didn't know how she reacted.
"B-bats? There will be bats there? I hate bats!" Lily moaned. The irony of it all made Severus chuckle. She would be terrified of bats when he was probably the biggest bat of them all.
Lily punched Severus on the arm. "It's not funny!" she said.
"It won't be that bad, they won't hurt you. I'm sure they'll keep their distance anyway" Remus reassured her.
"Alright… as long as they don't get within a foot of me I'll be fine" Lily said.
The next morning Remus and Peter stood in the boy's dormitory contemplating how to wake their friend Severus, who was draped lazily across his four poster bed snoring slightly.
"How are we going to do this?" Peter asked nervously. They needed to wake Severus, breakfast was in ten minutes and they didn't want to be late, but he could easily hex them both. For some reason their friend slept with his wand in his hand.
"Very carefully" Remus said, edging closer until he was only a few inches away. "Severus? Severus wake up."
"Mmmmm… Lily…" Severus mumbled in his sleep. Remus turned to look at Peter, who shrugged. Remus smirked and decided to have a bit fun.
"Yeah, it's Lily" Remus whispered in Severus's ear. "I've got a surprise for you…" Meanwhile Remus was frantically gesturing for Peter to grab the water jug next to him. Catching on, he grabbed the jug and stood poised over Severus's body.
"what… is… it…" Severus mumbled again.
"I'm going to kiss you in three…"
Severus smiled; blissfully unaware of the danger he was in.
"Two… one…" Splash! On one Peter dumped the full jug onto Severus's sleeping form and they threw themselves out of firing range.
"ARGHHHH!" Severus shouted, shooting up in bed drenched to the skin. Furious, he turned to his attackers to see Remus and Peter collapsing on the ground in hysterics. Lowering his wand he glowered at them. He was expecting a very different pair than the one standing in front of him.
"You two… you bastards!" Severus hissed at them.
"You should have…seen…your…face…" Peter gasped in between bouts of laughter.
"Priceless!" Remus cried, still rolling on the ground.
"You two are no better than Potter and Black!" Severus yelled at them, casting a quick drying spell on himself and his bed.
"Relax Severus, we were trying to wake you up for breakfast. We didn't mean to prank you it just kind of happened." Remus said brightly. "It's in about five minutes by the way."
Severus glared at them before digging through his trunk to find fresh clothes.
"I didn't know you fancied Lily" Peter remarked.
"You must be blind Pete, we all know it except the Lily herself." Remus said.
"Yes, I fancy Lily, and if any one of you tells her that I will personally hex you until you're nothing but a puddle on the floor. I'll tell Lily myself when the time is right" Severus said, emerging from the bathroom.
"Don't worry your secret is safe with us" said Remus, a twinkle in his eye.
The three arrived at breakfast only a few minutes late. The rest of the day passed uneventfully, until the feast began. Severus had seen the floating pumpkins and swarms of bats plenty of times before, during his time as a student and professor, and tuned out his fellow student's excited chatter. He was just helping himself to treacle tart when there was a loud bang from the slytherin table. He looked up to see Lucius Malfoy screaming, frantically trying to tug one of the flying pumpkins off his head. The entire hall erupted in laughter. Severus was doubled over in laughter at his old comrade, clutching his sides. He had been wanted to hex that man for years and was glad that somebody had actually done it.
"Well, well" said Dumbledore from the head table, peering at Lucius over his moon-rimmed glasses, who was now trying to break the pumpkin apart only to find it was rock solid. Severus could see his distressed eyes through the triangle holes. "Mr. Zambini, if you would escort Mr. Malfoy to the hospital wing…"
More laughter exploded from the house tables as a scowling Zambini led a partially blind Lucius Malfoy out of the hall, glaring daggers at anyone who dared even smile in his direction.
Severus turned to Lily, saying, "That was great, the guy seems like such an arse."
Lily meanwhile was busy glaring at James and Sirius. Severus looked over at them to see two angelic smiles plastered on their faces. Immediately he knew that they had been behind that little stunt. For once, he felt glad that James Potter had pulled a prank. Just this once.
"They did it!" Lily muttered to Severus under her breath. "Don't get me wrong, he had it coming, but do they have to act so juvenile?"
"Well we are only eleven" Severus reminded her. Secretly, however, he was thrilled that she disapproved of him already.
The next day at breakfast a school barn owl swooped down to Severus, landing unceremoniously into his bowl of porridge and knocking over his goblet. Remus, Lyra and Peter snickered at him. Glowering at the clumsy bird, strongly reminded of the idiotic owl Ronald Weasly had kept, he grabbed the parchment off its feet. It hooted at him, annoyed, and made to peck at his bacon. Severus snatched it back.
"None for you!" he growled at the owl, shooing it away. He looked down at the letter, and seeing his mother's handwriting, quickly excused himself to read it in private. He quickly strode down the corridor and locked himself into an empty classroom. Slowly Severus sunk to the floor, staring at his letter. He had never received any letters from his mother, and wanted to cherish the moment. He ran his hand up and down the rough parchment and traced his name written clearly on the front in his mother's flowing script. He had given up on getting anything personal or intimate like letters from home and there was a lovely warm feeling spreading throughout his body. His mother cared. She had taken the time to sit down, gather a quill and ink, and form these words to tell her son. He sighed, and opened the letter:
Dear Severus,
I cannot tell you how happy I am when I got your letter in the post. You're right, we should have talked about communicating before you left, but your suggestion seems fine as long as you continue to time them correctly. I don't want to lose you now that you're away at school.
I am so proud of you Severus. Being sorted into Gryffindor shows that you are brave, my son, and will do great things. The Princes have always been in slytherin, but you have started a new chapter in our family's history and I know that you will make it a good one. I'm glad that Lily is with you, say hello to her for me, and you must tell me about your new friends. As for Slughorn, he may be a bit enthusiastic at times but he does have his uses if you get to know him. Bring him crystallized pineapple, it is his favorite and it will work wonders on him if you ever need a favor.
Love,
Mum
Severus took a deep breath and sat back. For a moment he let all her words sink in before an enormous grin took over his face. Phrases like I am so proud of you Severus ran in circles around his head. She was proud of him, he couldn't believe it. Eileen had always been slightly withdrawn because of her husband, never showing much affection, but still tried to protect him from his father's rages. It seemed that she did love him after all, and the realization made him sit around grinning like a fool. Perhaps they could have a real relationship in this life, as soon as he got rid of Tobias. He smiled to himself, thinking how they could fix up the house, eat dinner together, and do all the normal things families do, that he never did, but always secretly wanted to. He had been jealous of Lily and her perfect family when he was younger, but if all went right he would have his own family to be with.
Severus jumped up as the bell rang and, cursing under breath, raced to potions. Not that it mattered much, he thought, Slughorn was practically singing his praises in every class. Severus was holding back of course, but couldn't resist showing off once in awhile. He turned a corner and almost collided with Dumbledore, but managed to stop himself from crashing into the old man.
"My word!" cried the headmaster, peering down at Severus. "What has you running like a madman through the corridors Mr. Snape?"
"I am last for potions class, sir." Severus replied stiffly. He really didn't want to be alone with the headmaster right now, especially now that people were whispering about him behind his back about his amazing talent. He tried, but failed to remain under the radar. He had sneaked a look at McGonagall's desk the other day and saw a report, exclusively about him and his progress. It was disconcerting at the least.
"And what has made you late?" Dumbledore asked calmly, studying him with his twinkling blue eyes.
"I received a letter from my mother and was reading it in private, and did not notice breakfast was over" Severus answered him. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea to tell him about his family, especially since it wasn't even a real family yet. He wanted Dumbledore and his meddling ways out of his business for as long as possible.
"Ah, I see" said Dumbledore. "Letters from home are a wonderful occurrence, and it is indeed lucky that you almost knocked me over in your haste. I have been meaning to talk to you about your school performance. Please meet me in my office tonight after dinner." Smiling down at Severus, the headmaster strolled away, humming to himself.
Rolling his eyes, Severus continued down to the dungeons and entered the classroom with a warm greeting from Slughorn. The day went on as usual until Severus was standing outside the door that led to the headmaster's office. He knew that this meeting was inevitable, so he took a deep breath, checked his occlumancy shields, and banged on the door determinedly.
"Enter" a voice called from within. Severus walked into the familiar room, and took a seat on the chair directly in front of Dumbledore's desk. He covertly glanced around the room, smirking to himself that the last time he had been here, he had been the headmaster.
"Welcome Severus! Would you care for a lemon drop?" Dumbledore inquired politely. Severus looked at the offered sweet and declined, instead gazing at the old wizard he had so unwillingly killed. He hated Dumbledore for making him murder him all just to carry out his master plan. He never once considered that Severus was not a murderer, that never, not once, had he ever had the desire to take life. He felt rage like any other person, but it was kept under control. He had been ordered to kill by the death eaters during raids, but managed to avoid it in the chaos of battle, instead relying on torture and maiming spells. That was until the ancient man in front of him tricked him into agreeing to end his life. That was why as Severus sat, the picture of an innocent first year, he was secretly seething inside.
"Well to the point then Mr. Snape. I have received several reports from your teachers that you display incredible talent for such a young wizard" Dumbledore paused, obviously expecting him to react to his praise. Severus simply nodded coolly. "You have extraordinary promise, young man, and I would like to help you develop your skills in magic. I think it would be best if you were given advance coursework in your classes, if you are agreeable, and we reevaluate your progress at the end of the year."
Severus was relieved that he hadn't proposed some elaborate plan for his "education". No doubt the wheels in the man's head were turning, wondering how he could nurture his supposedly young mind into the perfect weapon. Severus would never be his plaything again, but he would be a fool to turn down advanced studies.
"That would be excellent, sir" Severus responded after a moment.
"Wonderful!" Dumbledore exclaimed. "Now, how are you adjusting to Hogwarts? It must be very different living away from home." He was trying to get a picture of his personal life, Severus knew, so he chose his next words carefully.
"I enjoy Hogwarts very much sir" Severus said.
"And have you made any friends?" He inquired.
"A few, sir."
"Yes, I've noticed you spend quite a bit of time with Lily Evans" Dumbledore said. Severus was infuriated that he had already been snooping around, but masked his anger.
"Yes, we are friends" Severus answered.
"Marvelous. Well, the hour is late, and we must all bow to the continuous passage of time. That and our need for a good night's sleep. Goodnight, Mr. Snape."
"Goodnight headmaster." Severus left the office, shutting the door behind him. He walked back to the dormitories, satisfied that he had not revealed anything important to the manipulative fool. However he was a little worried that he knew he cared about Lily.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore sat at his desk, contemplating the enigma that was Severus Snape. The boy no doubt had potential and enormous untapped power. However the child was closed off to him, and seemed to be purposely keeping him at a distance. Why would he be suspicious of him? Perhaps it had something to do with his home life. He would have to look into that…
Dun, dun, dun! What will Dumbledore uncover? You'll just have to wait to find out! Next chapter: Severus gets a curious letter, and Christmas is in the air!
Please review!
