Hello all. This is my second venture into the land of Harry Potter. I happened to like almost all the characters, Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy being my favorites. (Severus my very fav by far) I also write about Phantom of the Opera, Labyrinth, and Hannibal.

            This is my first posted HP fic, it's quite depressing, be warned. It takes place after Lily's death. Severus is mourning her loss. Hope everyone likes it, many more Poetry fics to come from me. This whole story revolves around the poem "When We Two Parted" by Byron. I have become a bit obsessed with it after writing this. Enjoy.

~*Jacquline Christine*~

Silence and Tears

            I never thought my last image of you would be so soon, with you so young. How could I have ever imagined the evil spreading rapidly through our world would violently touch you and drain your life?

            I remember the last time I saw you, smiling at your wedding. Of course, I wasn't jealous, I loved you too much for that. You were such a gentle thing that I was lucky to have for a friend back in school, but I always knew I couldn't keep you forever.

            We were friends to the end, forever, always. And I smiled for you, because you looked so alive and happy. After all, how could I feel anything but lucky to have had you grace my life, even for a short while?  I passed you onto James, knowing the ring you wore, and the vows you took could never change a thing between us.

            That last time I had seen you, after the wedding, we were alone, outside. You were silent, so was I. You somehow knew you had broken my heart, but mended it with every glance you gave me. You stood close, looking into my eyes, yours full of regret. I could see the dilemma: you wanted to heal my wounds, and stay true to James. I wish you could know you healed me long ago.

            We both cried silently.

" Lily, regret is not what I want for you on your wedding day. Forget me, forget this. You have given me more then I could dream of"

            You cried harder at this, perhaps it added to your unjustified guilt.

"Severus, I'm so sorry."

            "I'm not, you've given me something precious. I swear, that if you plunged a knife into my heart I would smile at your face, and be glad I was able to see such a beautiful thing in the last moments of my life"

            You seemed taken aback by this, perhaps it was the first time you realized how much I truly loved you, maybe you never understood how strong it was. You ran from me then, looking back, I wonder if you would have preferred silence and tears.

When we two parted,

In silence and tears,

Half broken hearted,

To be severed for years.

          But now it seems you're gone for good, as I see your lifeless body here and now. So many mourn the loss of you. I do not know how I can look at your white lips and not cry, I remember the coral color they once were.

Pale grew thy cheek,

And colder thy kiss,

Truly no hour foretold,

Such sorrow as this.

            Now I am crying. The true loss has finally occurred to me, and it stings, it burns. This isn't the parting of hearts, but the parting of souls. I realize for the first time, I will never know you again; after all, angels don't keep company with demons. It seems to me, the feeling of loss and the cold rain that came so many years ago that night somehow foreshadowed this.

The storm of the evening,

Damp chill on my brow,

It felt like a warning,

Of what I feel now.

            It seems, my sweet Lily, that you leave many people in pain. Your bridal vows are broken now, marriage cannot transcend death. And what of this child you leave behind? This son, James' son. What is there now for him? You promised me to be happy, to live, not to regret, and I sense, rather than see, all your promises to the world, shattered at my feet. They lay there like shards of glass. But do not worry Lily, you did not break them, they were broken for you: You never had a say in it.

            I hear people speaking of you and how good you were -- it's true, but they know nothing of it, I knew you, they did not. And I stand here in silence, not daring to admit it; I wouldn't want you remembered as the woman Severus loved, after all. I would never sully your memory in such a way.

The vows are broken,

And great thy fame,

I hear thy name spoken,

And share in its pain.

            No one understands why I cry, why I sob like a child now. No one knows of our smiles, promises, dreams and sorrows. Ha. No one thinks I knew you. I weaker man would fall to his knees and profess the love lost. I am not weak, and I am not deserving of such relief. I will not tell them, I love you too greatly still.

            They name thee before me,

A knell to my ear,

                A shutter goes through me,

         Why wert thou so dear?

           

            They know not I knew thee,

 I knew thee too well.

     Long shall I rue this?

Too deeply to tell.

            It is over now, the ceremony anyway. My pain has just begun. I think of all the times I walked side-by-side with you, that special time I was allowed you, I cherished every moment, I knew it would be short.

            Now it is time to pay for the happiness, time to grieve. I know all things come with a price. Somehow, a lifetime of grief for those few years does not seem an unreasonable debt.

            The saddest thing is I know I will never know you again. I would have been the one to walk hand and hand with you in paradise, but I know now that I am destined for hell. I don't fear it; I can take my memories of you with me, a candle in a world of darkness.

 In secret we met,

Silence I grieve,

              That thy heart could forget,

And thy spirit flee,

  If I should meet thee,

After long years,

      How should I greet thee?

      With silence and tears.