A/N: I don't know what urged me to write this as the second to last chapter, but I think I like how it turned out. It's not predictable, I'll tell you that. At least, I don't think so. So, I'm sorry if you're expecting some relationship romance/angst, because this one's a bit different. . . .
Happy reading!
Bittersweet
Lily Evans stood in front of the mirror in her wedding dress, smiling. She gently ran her hands over the soft silk fabric, wondering what James was doing in his own room. . . . She was going to be married to him in less than an hour. The very thought of it made her want to laugh uncontrollably. She smiled to herself -
The door opened. Lily turned and saw the very last person she expected to see - Severus Snape.
Lily gasped and ran over to the table where her wand lay. Shge gasped it and held it by her side, not having the guts or the heart to point it at him. She was suddenly breathing heavily as she stared at her old friend - his dark eyes, his slightly greasy hair and black clothes. But he looked too serious, too . . . empty. He was never joyful, of course not, but he had had a thirst for intelligence, for learning whatever he could. It had brought a light to his eyes that just wasn't there as he stared evenly at her. But she could see the flash of hurt as she glared warily at him.
"Why are you here? What do you want?" Lily gasped.
"Lily, I'm not going to hurt you," he said quietly, taking a step toward her, but she stepped back. He sighed, "I just wanted to see you one last time."
"I'm not dying, Severus," she snapped, "I'm getting married. And if you're here to convince me not to do so, you can just leave."
He stayed quiet.
"But if you're here to be with me," she said quietly, her expression softening slightly, "I'm glad you came."
Severus' face darkened. "It was not my intention to be present at the wedding of my childhood friend and my arch nemesis."
Lily swallowed, her expression hardening again. "Then what was your intention, Severus? Are you going to kill me? Kidnap me? Force me to switch sides?"
He flinched visibly. "No, Lily . . . no," he whispered, taking a step forward once again. She didn't move - his expression had gotten her attention. It was like he had stripped all of his cold decor and had become the Severus she once knew. He took her hands in his. "I'm just here to tell you . . . to tell you . . . I - "
"Lily?" came a voice from the other side of the door - Dorcas, who was her maid of honor. She knocked. "Are you almost ready? James is heading out."
"Yeah, Dorcas, just give me a minute." she said back, her throat feeling tight.
She looked back to Severus, whose expression had become unbearably pained. He let go of her hands and backed up, as if she was a frightening image.
"What? Severus, what were you going to say?" she asked gently. It killed her that she would never be able to be cruel to him, as she should be. After all he'd done to innocent people, after what he'd done to James. . . .
"I just wanted to tell you," he breathed, then paused. Then, he continued, "I've changed. I'm not your friend anymore. I'm a servant of the Dark Lord, and I don't want anything more to do with you."
Lily stared at him, shocked. She knew that wasn't what he was going to say. It couldn't have been. . . .
But she felt freed somehow. Freed of worrying about him, of wondering if he was killing or not, because he was still her friend. He was still her friend. But she wasn't his.
And it was time she accepted that, and moved on.
"Fine," Lily finally said. "If that's how you feel, we have nothing more to discuss."
She then brushed past him and walked out the door, her head down. She picked up her flowers from the table and stared at them. She needn't worry about Severus anymore. She was freed of that . . . that burden. They were different people now.
Magic - the thing that had brought them together, was ultimately the reason they were torn apart.
And Lily walked down to the ceremony, her head high. Every step she took, she felt herself letting go of Severus, of that life she had with him. She would never fully let go of him - but she could let go of the friendship they'd had together.
And the moment she saw James, it was banished from her mind forever.
But Severus Snape would never let go of Lily, not anything about her. He would always feel the same way he did dince he first met her. So he snuck out to the ceremony and stood in the shadows, watching with dread as her and Potter said their vows and were married. It was a form of torture for him, and he supposed he deserved it after what he'd said to her.
He watched as Potter got to kiss her, and he forced himself not to look away. Although, soon, it was too much, and he turned away with one last whisper - the one ting he was going to say to her before she made this mistake . . .
"I'm in love with you, Lily."
