A/N: I'm so sorry for the massive lull. We have been so busy with end of school year stuff and summer holiday stuff but I have managed to finish a chapter! Yay!

Summer 1972

Severus was woken earlier than he would have liked on the last day of the summer holidays. He buried his head under the pillow and groaned, "Gran…five more minutes?"

"Come on, Severus, Mr. Filch is coming to see the litter of kittens and choose one today. You need to be up and dressed. Come now, spit spot!"

Severus groaned again, and rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he tried desperately to wake up. He stumbled toward his shower and started the day.

Argus Filch finally makes it to Prince Manor just before lunchtime. He felt like he was getting a familiar, something he had wanted for a long time. He felt like he was a small boy again. A cheery house-elf opened the door to him and showed him into a warm, sunny room where a large Kneazle lay in a patch of sunlight while three kittens frolicked around her. Severus follows him into the room, "Well, Mr Filch, as you can see, they are very happy, healthy kittens. Which do you like the look of?"

He reaches down and plucks up the smallest - a dust-coloured tortoiseshell cat with yellow eyes.

"This one is lovely. I think I'll choose him. I want to call him Norris."

"There's a slight problem with that, Mr. Filch," Severus answers, smirking, as he turns the kitten over to show Argus filch that 'he' is a she.

He lets out a wheezy laugh "I'll call 'him' Mrs Norris instead."

XXXXX

September rolled around all too soon and Severus had a request for his grandmother. He crept into the study while she was reading the Prophet and drinking her afternoon tea.

"Gran?"

"Yes, son, come in, come in. Don't skulk in doorways, boy. It suggests bad breeding."

Severus sighed inwardly and stepped into the sunny room. "Gran, I was wondering if Lily and I could try going on the Hogwarts Express again. It's been a while and we want to try to get back to normal."

His grandmother looked concerned and unsure of what to do. "Are you sure those…boys will leave you alone?" She raised one eyebrow to emphasise her question when Severus didn't answer her straightaway.

"I think so, Gran. We want to at least try it again."

"Very well," she relented. "You can try again, but any funny business on that train and I'll put a stop to it again, do you hear me?"

"Yes, Gran," Severus answered and made his way over to his beloved grandmother to envelop her in his arms and press a kiss to the top of her grey head. "Thanks, Gran."

"Look after yourself, my boy."

The teenagers met at platform 9 ¾ with trunks packed and excited to start their third year of magical education. They boarded the large, scarlet train to take them to Hogwarts. Severus found a nice quiet carriage where they could sit undisturbed and enjoy the ride up to Scotland. The train moved off at exactly 11am and as they left the city behind and moved into the green countryside, the Slytherin prefect Narcissa Black came to the door of their carriage.

Severus cancelled his silencing and security charms and opened the door for his fellow Slytherin.

"Good morning, Narcissa. Are you well?"

"Very well, thank you, Severus. And yourself?" She paused as Severus nodded. "Professor Slughorn requests the company of Severus Snape and Lily Evans in his private carriage," she delivered his request in an uncanny impression of the rotund potions professor. The younger witch laughed at her impression while Severus secured their possessions and carriage while they would be away from it.

All three made their way to the first carriage behind the engine that was reserved for the teacher designated to accompany the train that time. This time was Professor Horace Slughorn's turn and he had made some changes to make the carriage very sumptuous and had laid on a buffet for his guests, of which Lily and Severus were not the only ones - there were ten students in all, all vying for a seat in the teacher's carriage.

"Ah, Evans, Snape, come in, come in. Would you care for some tea?"

"Yes please, they chorused and waited as their potions professor poured out two cups of tea from the oversized chintz teapot. Severus added sugar and they both added milk.

"Please, take a seat."

The teenagers looked around. There was one seat spare and that was opposite James Potter and Sirius Black. Severus audibly swallowed and sat down with his head held high. Lily wasted no time in placing herself in Severus' lap. She caught her housemates' eyes, demurely crossed her legs and placed her cup and saucer on her knee. James Potter choked on the slurp of tea he'd just taken and Sirius hid his smirk by hitting his friend between the shoulder blades.

Professor Slughorn winds up the Slug Club meeting just as the train starts to slow before Hogsmeade.

"Everyone, go and pop your robes on in my private bathroom and then we can board the carriages that I have secured exclusively for the Slug Club."

Sirius was among the last to change and when he emerged, Narcissa & Regulus were waiting for him and everyone else had already boarded the carriages.

"You're with us," his cousin told him, her tone brooking no argument.

"I want to talk to about Severus," she started.

Sirius rolled his eyes and muttered, "Not this again."

"Quiet! I want your Vow that you will not hurt him or allow your Marauder friends to hurt him."

"My vow or my Vow as in Unbreakable?"

"You know. Wand out," Narcissa said.

Regulus watched as A thin tongue of brilliant flame issued from his wand and wound its way around the hands of his cousin and brother like a red-hot wire.*

The next morning McGonagall walks down the length of the Gryffindor breakfast table handing out timetables, she pauses at Potter's & Black's places. She fixes them with her trademark stare, "You boys had better not cause trouble this year, I want you to be a good example to the new first year Gryffindors"

They promise wide-eyed and crossed-fingered to behave.

*Italicised text from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince