The Reward of the Phoenix
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related characters and themes are the property of JK Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am making no money from this story. All I am getting is a cramped hand from writing and typing.
A/N: A day early, because I'm having a marathon tomorrow of the HP movie, and therefore will not have time to upload. In other news, the Premiere is this week! It's on Wednesday for me, and I cannot wait!
Chapter 11
The winged boars that flanked the Hogwarts gates cut an impressive silhouette against the starry night sky. The castle loomed distinctively in the background, its windows dark in the dead of the night.
Security was tight, not only in the castle proper, but in the grounds as well. Hagrid patrolled the Forbidden Forest and various staff took turns to guard any possible entry point.
Severus Snape moved closer to the great gates, his footsteps silent on the crisp spring grass. He thought he had heard the distinctive sound of someone apparating nearby, and he didn't want to risk being unprepared for an attack.
A faint sound pierced the silence, which Snape recognised as the sound of footsteps.
"Hello?" A soft voice called, and he froze, afraid that he had not been as stealthy as he had thought. "Is there anyone there? Please, I need help."
Snape was cautious, but he didn't recognise the voice as a death eater, although it was eerily familiar. He lit the end of his wand with a silent spell, and directed it to the place where the sound originated.
"Who is there?" He called, and heard a startled gasp.
"Sev?" The voiced called. Snape felt his heart contract. He peered even more intently into the darkness. He stumbled back a few steps when he recognised the face peering back at him from between the iron bars of the gate.
"Lily?" He breathed. "But how? You've been dead for nearly 15 years."
"What?" Lily looked startled, and pale. "But… Sev? Is that you? Merlin, you look old!"
Snape looked at the woman curiously. His keen eye picked up on her glazed eyes and ssaw the sheen of sweat across her brow. He flicked his wand and muttered the words to open the gates. As they swung open, Lily tottered in, looking dazed.
"Sev? Where are we?" She asked as she stumbled forward and Snape was forced to grab her arm to stop her falling. "I don't feel so good."
Snape was glad he was already holding her up as she promptly fainted into his arms. For a moment, he just stared at her face as It was lit by the wand. Then he swept a hand under her knees and lifted her up, cradled safely in his arms.
He knew, oh how well he knew, that this could be a Death Eater trick. But he was sure that it wasn't, that this was the real Lily Evans Potter in his arms. He knew it. And if anyone were to know the difference between a real and a fake Lily, it would be Severus Snape.
The castle had never seemed so far away as it did to Snape that night. It felt like an eternity before he reached the heavy doors leading into the Entrance Hall, but he got there. Once inside, he called for a House Elf, and told it to inform Madam Pomfrey that her help would be needed. He was halfway to the Hospital Wing before he noticed it had gone.
The Healer met him at the door, and they hurried inside. Snape gently lay Lily down on a bed and tenderly brushed the hair off her face, while Madam Pomfrey expertly began her initial examination of the patient.
