'And you never told me', he said now looking at Snape who was looking at him with tears in his eyes. 'You never once told me!'

'He couldn't', Lily said softly and she touched his cheek with her fingers. 'How could he? There are things you don't know of as yet that totally destroyed Severus years ago, things that prevented him so much from revealing the truth to you. For the few that you do know yourself, how do you think the man who killed me would react if he found out that you were our son?'

'He'd kill him', Harry said still looking at Snape and he saw the man take a deep intake of breathe as he tried to steady himself.

'Yes he would! He'd torture him.'

'Well he'd deserve it wouldn't he? After how he tortured me ever since I came here to this school.'

'I'm sorry', Snape said softly looking at him and Lily's head turned towards him.

'You're sorry?' Harry asked in an angry voice. 'You think you can just say you're sorry and make up for all the times you made my life here a living hell? Always accusing me of doing something bad, always failing me, insulting me in class, loathing after me like if I was nobody to you!'

'He had his reasons', Lily said looking sad. 'It was all my fault.'

'All your fault? How was it all your fault?'

'Didn't he tell you what I did?' Lily asked looking at Snape and Harry saw as their eyes met, they both looked...in love with each other, unto this day.

'I bet you've been going around telling people that you made that choice all by yourself to change Harry and save me from James haven't you? Well, Harry, you should hate me and not him actually. You see, the night I got you was the night before your father got married to me and your father was having a bachelor party so he happened to not be there. Severus and I hadn't spoken in weeks after I broke down and told him I was getting married to James. He refused to even talk to me.'

'I was deeply hurt, Lily', Snape said.

'I know you were. I understand that now but then I didn't. I didn't know what a stupid mistake I was about to make by marrying James because he was never the right one for me. I realised that after I married him and I still felt incomplete. God, when he wooed me with all his kind words and his false pretences I was fooled. Not that he was a bad man! He was good too but, my heart was always with you, Severus. And you knew that.'

Lily turned to Harry with tears in her eyes. 'Do you know what he did on my wedding day? Severus? He was so distraught by it all, that was the day he became a-a death eater. I'll never forgave you for doing that', Lily said looking at Snape. 'Because there I was on the alter about to say 'I do' to James and I realised that I really didn't care what would happen if I said no and married you instead. I suddenly didn't care what my parents would do or say because I hated them. I hated Petunia for telling them that you tried to rape me and having them turn against you and threaten to lock you up if you married me. I hated them all! But then Lupin saw me stalling and he came up and whispered in my ear that I shouldn't worry about Severus Snape because he was now a death eater. How you had just sent an owl to tell me that you'd miss my wedding sadly because you couldn't stand it and was going to dedicate the rest of your life to that man who ended up killing me.'

'I couldn't live without you!' Snape exclaimed in an anguished voice. 'I wanted to die!'

'You didn't have to become a death eater to prove it to me! I told you this before! I told you about what my parents thought about us and how I had no choice.'

'You had a choice, Lily. We were not children then. We were adults and you could have chosen for yourself. You chose James.'

'Oh God', Lily said rubbing her temples and closing her eyes, 'we are always going to fight on this, Severus. I don't want to fight with you. Like I told you before and will repeat it again, I was eighteen and still under my parents' wing. When they found out I was pregnant and they figured it was James' baby, they wanted me to marry him for my own good. It was arranged for me. I didn't know Harry would have ended up being your son and if you can't remember clearly, the night when you came to see me in the hospital, you were the one also who suggested that I go along and marry James. You said that I was better off with him and how – '

'I was deeply hurt and anguished, Lily!'

'Oh bloody hell you were anguished!' Lily cried rounding on Snape. 'You seemed alright with it in fact you understood how I felt and what situation I was in, Snape! You understood then and that's why you agreed to let me go ahead and marry James then you clicked on my wedding day! What the hell ever happened to you that day I don't know but somehow you lost your damn senses! I always knew you'd go after the dark arts. I always knew it and I constantly warned you about it! Look where it got you. Are you proud of it? All you have as an excuse was that you were hurt and anguished? Did you know how hurt and anguished I was when I heard about you becoming a death eater? You chose THAT over me? My best friend was now on the other side and he left me hanging. You terribly hurt me Severus and I couldn't forgive you.'

'Then what do you suggest that I should have done?' Snape asked, his cheeks wet with tears now.

'Understand me!'

'I LOVED YOU!' Snape cried.

'Oh really?' she asked and placed her hand on Harry's shoulder then looked at Snape. 'I had no idea! How did he come into existence, Snape?'

They stood staring at each other for some time until Harry couldn't take it anymore and he sank down into the chair and covered his face with his hands. Harry began to sob uncontrollably into his hands out of frustration and sadness. There they were, his parents, arguing over the past and he had to admit that had he been in Snape's position, he would have felt the same way like he did. He realised also that he understood the situation his mother had been in and even so, that sort of thing would cause any guy who was madly in love with a girl to crack. The very idea of you not getting to be with the one who had your heart was something so dreadful to imagine that Harry didn't know how to explain it.

'Lily', he heard Snape softly say, 'it's done. We can't change any of it. Let's stop arguing as if we can change it and focus on our...son.'

Harry couldn't believe what he had heard Snape just say. The man had just made a statement that affected his heart so much that he believed his heart had stopped beating. Snape had just called him his son and was actually making an attempt to be concerned about him.

'I love my son, Lily', Snape said softly, 'even though I had treated him bad for all these years it's because I was so angry at you for what you did and the mere fact of him just looking like James ignited that hatred in me. No matter how you twist and turn it James got you in the end and I never did. I wanted you to marry me and you might say I'm stubborn and ignorant because I don't seem to understand what circumstances you were in but I did understand. I understood but that couldn't have stopped me from being hurt and feeling as if I could kill myself when you had to marry James. I had a right to feel that way. Any man would, had their one true love been taken away from them. And I still love you. I will always love you. What we had was so special to me that I have proven it to you in what I did promise Dumbledore the night you died. I don't care if the Dark Lord kills me because I know I would die in honour from protecting my son.'

'Severus', Lily softly said, and her hands fluttered up to her face then she ran towards Snape.

Snape wrapped his arms around her and even though it wasn't the same to actually hug her and smell her like he used to, he treasured it. Pressing his face unto her neck, he kissed her there and then she looked up and their lips met. Snape honestly believed that he wouldn't have felt her lips on his but he did. It felt as if she was entirely alive and real that he was so shocked from the impulse of her kiss. Harry watched them as they kissed and he couldn't help but cry and smile the same time.

They looked so deeply in love and so right for each other that Harry found himself finally understanding how two completely different people could fall in love and stay that way for so long. It had nothing to do about looks or behaviour sometimes, he thought. There was Snape with his bat-like appearance and black coat with his shoulder length greasy black hair and hooked nose. In his arms was his mother, with her beautiful red hair and face. Her pretty smile and kind eyes and her soft skin and cheeks that made her appear so pretty.

'I'll always love you Severus Snape', Lily softly said as she caressed his cheek and he rested his forehead on hers. 'I'll always be here with you and Harry.'

'Lily', he said into her hair now, 'the day you died was the day I died too and I'll never be the same again. I didn't know what to do. I was so distraught and I wanted to just –'

'Shhh', Lily said pressing a finger to his lips. And she slowly reached forward.

When their lips met again, Snape felt the tears running down his cheek and he wished that he could relive the day that they had made love for the first time during their fourth year. They were so young and were so sure of their love for each other that they didn't even think long and hard about being each other's firsts. She had gived herself to him freely. Now when she bit on his lip and her tongue slipped into his mouth, moving hotly around, all those feelings came rushing back. The time they had made love before she went to France was the deepest and most romantic experience he ever had.

None of them actually remembered that Harry was in the room, watching them as they kissed. He watched them and couldn't help but smile at what an expert at kissing his father...and Harry realised that from then Snape would be known to him as his father. How would he deal with that? Would he be able to tell Hermione and Ron? What would they say? His father kissed his mother deeply and he ran his fingers between her hair as he did. Snape pulled away breathlessly and gazed into his mother's eyes, his filled with tears.

'Lily', he whispered, his voice low and cracked. 'I love you so much. You were my bestest friend and the only girl who saw through me. When all the others hated me and avoided me, you were the one who cared and –'

'Loved you the way you had to be loved. Severus you were the only person I could love with all my heart, be myself around you, make fun of you and your greasy hair', she said playfully and kissed him on his cheek, 'I could sit for hours with you without saying anything and feel so loved.'

He kissed her again and then remembered Harry was sitting there looking at him.

'We forgot Harry', he whispered into her ear for his son to not hear and she giggled, 'he's going to torment me about this for years to come.'

'You aren't a bad kisser you know. You were always so good at it. He can't complain. I could kiss you for so long. I remember', she said now turning to Harry, 'I remember this one time when we were in fifth year, yea your age, Harry. And it was Valentine's Day. For years your father and I were hiding our feelings from each other because we weren't sure if it was love we were feeling.'

'Then', she said ruffling Snape's hair, 'I tormented him to take me out by the lake. Usual Valentine's Night thing at Hogwarts' were for the fourth years and up to stay out on the grounds until eight...We went by the lake and then I made him confess his love for me. Then –'

'She tortured me', Snape said cutting her off lightly. 'She began to tease me with kisses and –'

'I liked teasing you', she said smiling, 'you were so easy to tease because I knew you loved me soo deep that when I kissed you I knew you'd lose control. And we did.'

'I wished I could have seen the two of you together', Harry said sadly. 'There aren't any pictures with the two of you for me to keep remembering or even knowing how you looked together.'

'Who says there aren't any?' Lily asked. 'Harry, there are so many with the two of us. More than with James and I. You can show him the album, Sev'.

'Really?' Harry asked looking shocked.

'Yes. Why he was at my house so many times over the holidays that when I got the slightest chance, I flashed pictures with my camera that my dad got me for my reward at passing every darn exam in my first year. Used to drive Petunia crazy when we'd go off and leave her alone at home when our parents were out working during the day.'

'I remember the picnics', Snape softly said.

'Of course you would. Those were special times to us, not even Harry can hear about them', she said winking at Harry.

'I wish you were still her so we could both have you. I just became so cold and dreadful after you died. I don't believe I have a heart now.'

'Oh you do. I can feel it.'

'That's because you're here with me. I can love another but never as much as I loved you.'

'Love Harry as you'd love me then', she said looking over at Harry. 'He's still a part of me. He's ours, what our love made. What we made together. Love him for me.'

'I will', Snape said in a pained voice.

Lily kissed him longingly again then turned to face Harry and she walked towards him. She then bent down and wiped his cheeks, smiling and kissed his forehead.

'Harry, I love you so much. Don't worry about what Severus and I did in the past. Don't worry about his choice or mine. We might regret what we did but we will never regret having you as our own. Whenever you find that you hate him, just remember this: when he came to see you at the hospital and he saw you had his narrow face structure and black hair, he picked up into his arms and kissed you softly. He didn't disown you, nor even ask any questions, sweetheart. He just held you there in his arms and never wanted to put you down even when Dumbledore came. He was the one who suggested we name you Harry.'

'I have to go now', she said softly and already her body outline was slowly fading. She turned to Snape and said, 'Mr. Killer can never separate us, Severus. Oh, and I don't mind if you end up being with Kate. She is one lucky woman to have you. Harry, read the letter still', she said and she was gone.

Snape and Harry stood gazing at the spot where she had just disappeared from and then the former sank into the chair he had once been sitting in.

And he cried.