Title: Blue October, Volume One – Chapter Twenty-Five.

Author: Woodland Goddess.

Rated: M

Author's Notes: Thanks for your continued reading, reviewing and support of this story. Here's another chapter for you.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Twist of Fate

The weather was fabulous, the sun pouring down on Northern England; it had not rained for several days, though the horticulturalists were dismayed by that fact as flowers and grassy areas were beginning to grow too dry. "The sun is conspiring to torment me," Lily complained loudly, sprawled out on the grass at the playground, an arm draped over her face to protect her eyes from the intense glare of the sun. Severus was stretched out beside her, head resting on his arms. He peered over his upper arm, eyeing her in amusement.

"You can't be surprised," Severus said, laughing. "A white girl with ginger hair? The sun's no place for you!" Lily turned her head to look at him and stuck her tongue out. They soon devolved into a childish kicking match, each of them trying to do the most damage without leaving permanent marks on their legs. Their battle did not last long as, sweat pouring down their skin, exhaustion took over. Acting the gentleman, Severus reached into his bag and withdrew his spell book, using it as a fan. "Better?"

Lily hummed in contentment, the gentle breeze cooling her hot and sweaty skin. She turned over on her side, elbow digging into the grass, chin on her palm. "In the future, we'll learn how to cool ourselves down with Magic, won't we? I can't imagine a Wizard or Witch would be comfortable in this kind of heat – not when they're wearing robes anyway."

"There's a spell for nearly everything; even packing your suitcase, but Mum said only lazy people use unnecessary spells. There's nothing wrong with packing by hand, she said, and I think she's right. You should never do anything with Magic that you can do without it; otherwise, you become dependent and that's never a good thing."

"Says the one making lights with his wand when the power goes out, instead of getting a candle," Lily teased, smiling at him from where she lay. Severus stuck his tongue out at her, parodying her earlier action. Giggling, Lily moved over and rested her head on his shoulder. He gazed down at the top of her red hair, admiring the way it shined brightly in the sunlight. He wrapped his arm around her, hugging her close. "I hope we get into the same House at Hogwarts; I'd hate it if we had different timetables." She wrinkled her nose in distaste.

"The Hat will put us in whatever House it likes," Severus answered, trying desperately to keep the sadness from his voice. "It sorts you based on personality traits and in that regard you and me are very different...but maybe you can bully the Hat into listening to you. Merlin knows you're annoying enough." He tried to keep the subject light, teasing her, earning him a hard swat from her.

"Humbug," Lily said quite seriously, before cracking up a moment later. The sound of her laughter filled Severus with an easy contentment. "Dad's thinking of heading down to London next week, to visit his sister, my aunt. I'm hoping I can persuade him to let me bring you with us. I'd hate to leave you behind." Severus pursed his lips in irritation, knowing what she meant by that; Lily did not want him to be on his own, because it was a pitiful state to be in. "Have you ever been to London, Sev?"

"Only the Wizarding section of it," he reluctantly admitted, avoiding her gaze when she tipped her head back to look at him questioningly. "That's where I went to get my wand. Mum and I apparated to Diagon Alley – you can find it through the back entrance of a pub in London. Muggles can't see it, though. Well, they can, but it looks different to them. To Muggles it looks like a broken-down old shop on Charing Cross Road. Daisy Dodderidge founded it in the 1500s; she was the first land lady, there. A guy called Tom is there now."

"Is Diagon Alley a nice place?"

"It's...beautiful." The corners of his mouth pulled upwards into a small smile at the memory, still so very clear in his mind. Severus began, then, to describe it to her and she drank it up, watching him intently. He had never felt so important as he did in that moment, with Lily hanging on to his every word as though they were made of precious gold, as though they were something to be treasured. Severus' heart swelled in his chest at the thought. But words could never describe the true beauty of Diagon Alley; he would have to show her, one day.

Lily would love it; there were so many new things the girl would be able to see and experience. It would be like a dream come true for her. For Severus, it already was. He was in the middle of describing Ollivanders when something hard hit the side of his head, eliciting a hiss of pain. He jerked up into a seated position, his hand covering the side of his head as Lily tumbled from where she had been settled so comfortably. Something warm, wet and sticky touched his skin. When he pulled his hand away there was blood, clinging to his fingers.

"Sev," Lily exclaimed in concern, hands reaching to cradle his head immediately as if she could heal him by her very touch. Severus caught her hands, shaking his head as he glanced around, searching for his attacker. He could see no one, but that did not mean no one was there; they could be well hidden. Lily pursed her lips, her gaze tracking Severus'. "We should leave. We...we'll make it a race back to my house. Come on." The urgent tone of her voice left little room for argument.

The two of them climbed to their feet. While they did so, Severus stuffed his book into his satchel, throwing the strap over his head so that it was slung across his chest. Lily grabbed his hand, gripping so tight he feared he would lose feeling in it. She took off, sprinting across the playground, and Severus ran with her, matching her stride for stride as they burst out into the town. Rocks pelted them from behind, skipping across the roads and footpaths whenever they missed their targets.

Severus did not dare to look back for fear of getting hit in the face and neither did Lily. Instead, they focused on the path ahead of them, dodging pedestrians and darting across roads that carried no traffic. Blood pounded in Severus' ears and streamed down the side of his head, drenching his skin and matting his hair. Head wounds bled profusely, even if they were superficial; Severus knew that very well. Lily cried out in pain when a large rock struck her right ankle mid-stride. Her foot came down wrong and there came a sickening crack, the sound echoing as she fell forward.

Severus caught her with both arms, hauling backwards with all his strength in an effort to keep her from hitting the ground. He staggered as she collided with him, but remained upright, cradling her against him. The girl whimpered as he manhandled her, pulling her arm around his shoulders, forcing her to keep moving in spite of the pained noises she made with every second stride. He knew they must look a terrible sight, covered in blood and hobbling along, but there were hardly any pedestrians about; everyone was at work. There was nobody to help them.

"I can't go any further," Lily protested, gripping his arm tightly, her face pinched and pale.

"Yes, you can," Severus retorted, virtually spitting at her as he hauled her along their path. "Pain is a state of mind; rise above it."

"I can't!"

"Shut up, quitter!" Severus half-carried her out onto the road ahead of them, holding her tightly so that she would not fall as they crossed. He barely glanced left and right, noted the large truck swiftly approaching but paid it no mind as he urged Lily into a faster hobble, ignoring sputtered protests and tears of pain. They had just stepped onto the opposite footpath when a horn and a scream sounded, accompanied by the squeal of rubber tires against the surface of the road as the lorry came to a screeching halt, the trailer jack-knifing.

Severus jumped forward, shoving Lily ahead of him, covering her as they hit the ground hard. He looked back over his shoulder, eyes widening as he realised how close he and Lily had come to being struck; the end of the lorry had missed them by a hair's breadth. And there, materialising in a swirl of particles in the middle of the road, was Peter. His arms were covering his head and his body leaned slightly back in terror of a death blow that never came. Severus could not breathe for the shock; he had thought, perhaps, that Peter might be a Squib – he had, after all, shown no signs of an ability to use Magic – but it had appeared that Peter did have Magic; he was just a late bloomer.

Nancy was on the other side of the road, eyes wide with terror, her hands covering her mouth as if to catch the heart leaping up into her throat. Her gang of cronies were gathered behind her, each of them as pale as she was. Everyone was staring, transfixed, at Peter – even Lily, who peered out from underneath Severus' arm. The short, round boy with watery eyes trembled vigorously as he realised he had escaped the clutch of death. He lowered his arms, eyes looking at the lorry as if it might bite him.

Severus supposed it was an understandable reaction. His lip curled derisively as he watched Peter come to the realisation that he had used Magic, watched as the penny dropped heavily and slowly. Peter started hyperventilating, his face turning a deep red colour as he struggled with some inner emotion. "Stay here," Severus growled at Lily, pushing up from the ground as he did so, not waiting for her to nod in agreement. He marched over to Peter and drew back his arm, sending his fist flying into the boy's ugly face.

Peter squeaked in fright and pain, falling back on his arse as his hands rose to clutch his face, blood spurting between his fingers. Though Severus was only ten, he knew enough about punching someone; he had lived through the experience of receiving one, after all. "You bloody hypocrite," spat Severus, who was nearly frothing at the mouth in anger and hatred for all of the crap that Peter had flung his way for being a freak. Well, now Peter was just as much of a freak as he and Lily were. Severus sneered down at him, feeling very justified in that moment.

"If you do or say anything to Lily ever again, I'll do worse than punch you. Got it?! I no longer have to feel guilty for defending us with Magic; we're on equal footing now." The words were quiet enough for only Peter to hear. Severus' eyes glittered with the promise of pain. Peter trembled and shook his head, seemingly unable to talk. At this point the lorry driver was scrambling out of his vehicle and Severus felt it prudent for himself and Lily to leave. He stomped away, coming back to Lily's side. The girl in question was staring at him like she had never seen him before.

For only a moment did Severus hesitate, before helping her up from the ground, holding her close as he helped her hobble along. Lily seemed to be torn between gazing at him and looking back over her shoulder at Peter, who was attempting to join his friends but was rebuffed, abandoned as they ran away from him. Looking back, Severus felt a grim satisfaction for indirectly causing him to be deprived of friendship; it was about time Peter suffered what he had suffered. Karma would only wait for so long.

"I'm sorry you had to witness that," Severus muttered as they disappeared from view, turning his attention back to his friend as he helped her home. Lily frowned at him and shook her head, saying nothing, but squeezing his hand affectionately. Severus felt his heart swell at the thought that Lily might forgive him for his behaviour. The rest of the short journey back to Lily's house continued in silence until they reached the Evans' driveway. As they approached the front door was wrenched open.

Mrs Evans, an apron covering a nice set of clothing, came barrelling out of the house. Flour clung to a loose strand of hair and was smeared across her forehead. Mr Evans came out behind her, accompanied by Petunia. Lily fell forward into her mother's embrace as Severus relinquished his hold on her, his chest heaving from exertion, turning his face away from their moment of emotional turmoil. The adrenaline ebbed away, his heart and lungs gradually calming down. A wave of dizziness came over him, causing him to stumble. It was Petunia who caught him, to his brief surprise. Her face, tight with reluctant concern, was the last thing Severus saw as his vision swam a moment before the darkness claimed him.

When Severus returned to consciousness, slowly and reluctantly, he found himself stretched out on the sofa in the Evans' living room. The unharmed side of his head was resting on an extremely soft cushion. A warm blanket had been drawn over him and his fingers clutched at it tightly for reassurance. Mrs Evans was sitting on the edge of the couch, a dish of warm, slightly bloody water cradled in her lap. "Lily?" Severus asked in an almost panicked voice, trying to push himself up from the couch. Mrs Evans' hand pressed lightly but forcefully against his torso, pushing him back down.

"Harry and Petunia took her to the hospital," she said gently, hand rising to push a lock of Severus' hair out of his face. He shifted uncomfortably; he was unused to such kindness from Mrs Evans. "She might have a broken ankle...and has some bad bruising on her shoulders and the front of her torso." Mrs Evans' brown eyes gazed steadily down at him with a concern that unnerved him. Her face paled slightly. "Lily told us what happened, how you defended her, protected her from getting hurt any further. Perhaps, I was wrong about you," she admitted, guilt flashing briefly across her face before she squashed it.

Severus swallowed thickly; he had no idea how to handle this. There was nothing that he could say in response, so he just nodded, wincing as pain flared in his head. "Ow."

Mrs Evans brought a wet cloth, which she had wrung above the dish, to Severus' head, resting it gently against the wounded side of his head. His eyes drifted closed as a sensation almost like pleasure shot through him. "The cut's shallow," she said quietly, "and the bleeding has eased off a great deal, but you received a good bruising, I'm afraid. It'll be tender for the next few days; I wouldn't do anything strenuous if I were you." Severus grunted, accepting the advice though it was hardly wanted or needed. He appreciated the gesture for what it was.

Neither of them said anything more, falling into an awkward silence that was broken only by the sound of a squeezed cloth relinquishing its liquid. Severus lay still under her ministrations, afraid to disturb the reluctant peace between them. In time, Mrs Evans escaped briefly to the kitchen, returning soon with a plate full of biscuits that were fresh from the oven. Wordlessly she offered him one and he inclined his head in gratitude as he accepted it. He brought the hot biscuit to his mouth and took a bite, his body going limp as the pleasant taste flooded his mouth. He felt better once he had eaten it and was unafraid to ask for another. A reluctant smile gracing her mouth, Mrs Evans informed him that he could take his fill for helping Lily.

Time dragged by and when Mr Evans finally brought Lily home, Severus felt ready to weep with relief at seeing her. He was dismayed, however, to see the heavy white cast encasing her foot and half her leg. Lily stood in the doorway of the living room, looking fit for bed. When she saw Severus, she gave him a tired smile and waved limply at him. Instead of greeting him, Mr Evans said, "I stopped by your mother's on the way home from the hospital. I asked her if you could stay here for the night, to offer Lily some emotional support after her ordeal. You'll be glad to know she gave you permission, even though she was reluctant and very worried about you!"

To be honest, Severus was unsure how he felt regarding the matter. He wanted to stay with Lily, but he also wanted to go home and curl up on his mother's lap while he felt sorry for himself. In the end, he came to the conclusion that Lily needed him more than he needed his mother at the moment. Severus gave Mr Evans a tired smile and offered his gratitude for his forethought. Mr Evans shook his head and said there was no thanks necessary.

"I'm hungry," said Lily, disturbing everyone's thoughts.

Mrs Evans disappeared into the kitchen to prepare something for Lily to eat, leaving Severus in the capable hands of Mr Evans, who sat down on the couch, manoeuvring Severus around so that the boy could rest his head in his lap. Lily hobbled over to join them, curling up into her father's side as he embraced her. For the first time in the year since he had become friends with Lily, Severus felt as though he were truly welcomed in the Evans' household; it was a wonderful feeling. Severus would cherish it for as long as he lived...

To be continued.

I greatly enjoyed writing this chapter. Feel free to let me know what you think!