On the tenth day of Christmas, my best friends gave to me
ten wands a-waving,
nine dragons diving,
eight rememberalls,
seven Quidditch pitches
six snitches swooping,
five chocolate frogs
four butterbeers,
three broomsticks
two phoenixes
and a box of Bertie Bott's Beans.
I know, isn't it lovely? Severus asked sarcastically.
My God, what happened? she asked in barely more than a whisper.
Vladmir happened. He replied, still not turning around. Lily had never seen anything like it, and hoped she would never see anything like it again. It looked like a picture from a history text book, from the days of slavery. Long gashes marked his back, reminding Lily of pictures she had seen of slaves that had been whipped. You couldn't have put a finger between the gashes and cuts. If fact, his whole back looked like one big wound. And they looked as though they had been inflicted only minutes ago.
she managed to say.
The Hogsmeade visit just after Halloween. Vladmir was in the Three Broomsticks, drunk of course. He saw me and dragged me into an alley way and did this. He hexed me to keep it from healing. It won't get infected, but God it hurts.
Why didn't you go to Madame Pomfrey? Lily asked as she sat down on the green couch with him. Her knees felt suddenly weak.
Because she'll tell Dumbledore, and he'll try to stop him. It'll only make things worse.
I don't know how good a job I can do, but I'll try. Hold still. Lily said. Severus turned his back to her as she pulled out her wand. Finite douleur.
Well, it doesn't hurt anymore. He said, turning back to her.
That was just a pain killing charm. I'm going to try and break the hex now. She told him. He turned away from her again, so she could see his back. The sight of it made her stomach churn. She began muttering a charm to herself as a light gold ray of light shot from her wand, covering his back in light.
Did it work? he asked, not turning around.
One way to find out. Lily replied.
Another ray of light, silver this time, shot from her wand. As the light faded, Lily could see that his back had been almost completely healed. She could still faintly see the marks, but she was sure they would disappear quickly.
There you go. Good as new. She smiled weakly.
Thank you...Lily.
You're welcome. She replied softly.
They were silent for quite a while, listening to the fire crackling. Then, Severus did something completely unexpected. He began crying.
Its okay. Lily whispered, hugging him. She let him cry into her shoulder. He can't hurt you here.
I shouldn't have come here this year. If I'd stayed, maybe she'd still be alive.
Severus, you had to come. You know you couldn't have stayed. It isn't your fault. She said firmly. But its getting late, maybe I should leave.
No, please. Don't go. He begged, not letting her go. Stay with me, just until I fall asleep?
Who are you and what have you done with Severus? Lily asked, half smiling.
I know what you mean. I know this isn't like I normally am, but I can't keep up the tough guy act right now. Sorry to disappoint you. Its just...I fear him as much as I hate him. And after everything that's happened lately, I don't feel safe... he trailed off.
You don't have to explain. She replied gently. I'll stay.
Thank you. He said, laying down on the couch.
Why are you being so nice to me? he asked after several minutes.
Its Christmas. She replied. Somehow, rivalries and being enemies seem so silly around this time. I've never been able to hate anyone during the Christmas season.
Lucky for me. Though she couldn't see in the dim light, she was sure he was smiling. "Lily?"
"Yes?"
"I told you why I stayed here..." he began.
"Yeah."
"Why aren't you at home? Why did you stay here?"
"I wanted to stay with my friends." she replied. "With my boyfriend."
"You're lying." he said, sitting up and looking her in the eye. "You've gone home almost every year, unless your family was going on a holiday. You went home last year too, so it can't be because of Potter. Why did you really stay?"
"You know how you said you weren't wanted at home?" she asked. He nodded, watching her intently. "Well, I guess I stayed because I wasn't wanted at home either."
"What? Ms. Perfect Lily Evans? Not wanted at home?"
"Hard to believe huh?" she said bitterly. "It isn't my parents though, they love it when I come home. Its my sister."
"Your sister?"
"She hates me. She calls me a freak all the time. At first I thought she was just jealous, but now I'm not so sure. She really truly hates me. I just didn't feel like going through the verbal insults again this year." she sighed. "Guess I'm not so perfect after all, am I?"
"Maybe not. But at least you're human now." Lily couldn't help but smile.
"You're never going to get to sleep if you keep talking." she told him. He obeyed her and laid back down on the couch. Lily moved over as he began to drift off, lifting his head into her lap. She stroked his hair in a motherly way. Despite how greasy his hair looked, it was actually quite soft and silky. "Severus?"
"Yes?"
"What are you going to do? You can't live with your stepfather if he's so abusive, can you?"
"He doesn't have custody of me. But, as this is our last year, it doesn't matter anyway. After graduation, I can go wherever I want. I have my inheritance from my parents. I don't have to see him again."
"Are you going to be okay?" she asked, still stroking his hair. Maybe it was just the Christmas spirit making her stay with him. She wasn't sure. But for some reason, she really cared about what happened to him.
Severus was thankful she was there too. Her fingers running through his hair reminded him of when he was little. How he would wake up from a nightmare and his mother would gently lull him back to sleep, her fingers stroking his hair. He knew Lily would be a wonderful mother someday. He wasn't sure why he was being nice to her, or why she was being nice to him. He knew he needed somebody. Somebody he could talk to, who would listen, and care. Was this that Christmas spirit he kept hearing about? Caring for another person, your traditional enemy, and having them care for you in return? Even if it was only for the holidays, he liked the feeling. For the first time in a long time, he thought he might actually enjoy a Christmas.
"Yeah Lily. I'll be okay." he yawned. He began drifting off to sleep. And Lily, for some reason she didn't know, began to sing.
Hush now, my baby
be still love don't cry
sleep as you're rocked by the stream
sleep and remember
my last lullaby
and I'll be with you
when you dream
(A/N- Yes, I know this song wasn't our during their time. But its such a sweet song I had to include it)
Severus hardly noticed she had stopped singing as he drifted off to sleep. When she realized he was asleep, Lily made a split second decision. Without disturbing him, she pulled out her wand and aimed it down at him.
Peut votre Noël est brillant et gai,
Pouvoir la paix est dans votre coeur,
Et vous pouvoir toujours garde,
Ce don dans votre coeur.
A few minutes later, Lily had fallen asleep also.
***********
"Lily." Severus said early the next morning. He gently shook her, trying to wake her. "Lily, wake up."
"What? What is it?" she asked sleepily. Then, she realized where she was. "Oh my God, I fell asleep."
"Evidently."
"What time is it?" she asked, sitting up.
"Six in the morning."
"I still have time." Lily mumbled. "I can still sneak into Gryffindor tower. If they ask, I'll just say I fell asleep on the couch."
"They wouldn't be too happy to know you spent the night in the Slytherin common Room?" he asked, half smiling.
"Would you be happy to know one of your friends spent the night in our common room?" she asked.
"And the truce?" he asked.
"I'll talk them into it. I'll tell them after lunch. They're easier to convince on a full stomach." she said, standing up hurriedly. "I'll see you later?"
"Probably sooner than you think. Breakfast will be soon, remember?"
"See you then." she smiled, hurrying out of the dorm.
Lily ran the entire way to the tower. She narrowly avoided Mrs. Norris on her early morning rounds. She wished she knew all the secret passages James and the Marauders used. They would have helped immensely. She was completely out of breath by the time she reached the Fat Lady.
"Mistletoe." she gasped. She ran into the Common Room and was delighted to see that it was empty. She immediately fell upon the couch and began breathing deeply, trying to stop panting. She closed her eyes as she heard feet running down the stairs from the Boys Dorm.
"There is no way I could have said that." Sirius protested.
"You did Sirius. I swear to God you said 'I love you Narcissa.' I'm just glad you were asleep at the time." Remus replied.
"I couldn't have said that. Come on, Malfoy's girlfriend? I mean, she's like the wizarding version of Lily's sister." Sirius continued. "Its just vile."
"Well, its a good thing you didn't really say that then, isn't it?" Remus grinned.
"What?!"
"I made it up Padfoot. You're so easy to fool."
"Oh that's it. I'm going to beat every last drop of that werewolf blood out of you." Sirius cried, chasing Remus around the Common Room.
"James, help!" Remus laughed as he ran from Sirius.
"You brought it on yourself Moony. And be quiet both of you. Lily's sleeping on the couch." James replied.
"Not anymore I'm not." she said, stretching as though she'd just woken up. "What are they arguing about now?"
"Remus pulled another prank on Sirius." Peter replied. "And now Sirius is trying to take revenge by beating him senseless."
"Look out!" Remus cried, jumping over the couch. He managed a spectacular landing on the table, then fell to the floor. Sirius soon caught him and they began wrestling playfully on the floor.
"I give the landing a six, seven for originality." James grinned.
"I'd say at least a seven for the landing. It was a difficult jump after all. Originality gets a seven also though." Peter added.
"O...kay." Lily said slowly. "I'm going back to sleep."
"No you aren't Lily dearest." James told her, forcing her to stand. "We're all going down to breakfast, and you're coming with us."
"Do I have to?" she moaned, though she let him lead her along. She was just glad they hadn't found out.
************
"Sirius!"
"What?" he asked innocently.
"How many times do I have to tell you to stop making this damn mistletoe follow me around?" she cried.
"I'm not sure yet. Probably until I get tired of you yelling at me." he grinned. "Or until I get a kiss from you."
"That will be never. To both of them." Peter remarked.
"Sirius, the next time I see this mistletoe hovering over my head, I'm stuffing it down your throat." Lily threatened.
"Okay, fine, I'll get rid of it." Sirius moped, waving his wand. "I can always make it follow Snape around. That should prove interesting."
"Can't you leave him alone for once?" Lily asked, flopping down on the couch.
"Lils, are you feeling all right?" Remus asked.
"I'm just saying...maybe we should call a truce with him, that's all." she continued. No turning back now, she thought.
"A truce? With Snape?" Peter asked in disbelief.
"Well, you know, since its Christmas and all. Christmas is the time for getting along, not hating each other." Lily said. She suddenly felt like this was a mistake. "Just for Christmas of course. We can all hate him again after the holidays are over."
"I'd prefer to keep hating him now." Sirius replied.
"Lily, are you feeling all right? Do you know what you're saying?" James asked with concern.
"Yes, I know what I'm saying James." she replied. "Its just a temporary truce. Its not like I'm saying we should make him a Marauder."
"Butits Snape. He's a complete and utter git." Remus reminded her.
"He's actually a pretty nice person sometimes." she said. She instantly regretted it.
"Hel-lo? Lily, this is Snape we're talking about. How can you possibly say he's a nice person?!" James asked.
"James, he's all alone. No one should be alone on Christmas, not even him." she argued back.
"If anyone deserves to be alone, its him. Why is it so important to you that we call a truce anyway? You don't actually like him or something, do you?"
"James Harold Potter you are a thick-headed, arrogant, stubborn old slug! You know what? He actually agreed to call a truce, for Christmas only. Isn't it kind of sad when Severus is more willing to be nice than you?" she said angrily. "You go ahead and have a Merry Christmas James, all of you. And you can have it without me!"
With that, she stormed out of the Common Room, leaving the Marauders standing there, stunned. They exchanged several confused looks, but no one spoke for a while.
"What just happened?" Remus asked at last.
"I think...Lily dumped us." Sirius replied.
"Us? I don't recall you dating her too." James said.
"Well, not dumped in that sense. But she just said she isn't going to be with us on Christmas."
"Oh this is going to be a merry Christmas." Peter said sarcastically. "How can we enjoy ourselves with one of us missing?"
"Doesn't it seem weird though?" James asked. "Why is she so eager for us to call a truce with Snape? I would have thought she'd be the last person to defend Snape like that."
"No, Sirius would be the last one to call a truce." Remus smiled. "But Lily is just kind-hearted enough to do that sort of thing."
"But why?" Peter asked. "There must be some reason she wants to be nice to him all of a sudden."
"One way to find out." James said. "Sirius, you and I are going up to her dorm. Remus, you and Peter take my cloak and follow her, see if you can find out anything."
"You're suggesting we spy on her so you can go look at your presents?" Remus asked.
"I'm not going to look at my presents. I'm just...looking for clues about what's going on." James replied. "Look, tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I know the last thing all of us want is to have Lily mad at us on Christmas."
All right, fine. Remus agreed.
**********
"Sirius, be quiet or your going to get us caught." James hissed.
"By who? No one is even in here."
"Just be quiet and start looking." James sighed, already looking through her bedside table. Sirius began looking through her trunk. "Books of course. Advanced Charms, History of Magic, Christmas Charms for Holiday Fun."
"Anything interesting in that last one?"
"Nope, just a bunch of Charms for decorating. You find anything?"
"Not a bloody thing. Too bad she doesn't keep a diary."
"What are you two doing in here?" asked a voice from the doorway. James and Sirius jumped about a foot in the air.
"Tamika? God, you scared us to death." James gasped.
"Well, I wouldn't have if you hadn't been in here. Now, what are you doing in here?"
"We're looking for clues, sort of." James replied. Seeing the confusion on her face, he continued. "We had a fight with Lily. She wanted us to call a truce with Snape."
"Is she feeling okay? Why would she suggest a thing like that?" Tamika asked.
"That's what we're trying to figure out. She hasn't said anything to you, has she?"
"No, not a word. I'd remember something like that."
"Thanks anyway Tamika." Sirius sighed. "Come on James, I doubt we'll find anything else."
**********
"Well?" James asked as the door to the dorm opened. He knew it was Remus and Peter because he could hear them, even under the Invisibility Cloak.
"Nothing. She's just up in the Owlery crying. She keeps mumbling about how she just wanted to give us the perfect Christmas." Peter replied, removing the cloak and handing it back to James. "How about you?"
"I didn't find out a thing. She has a Charm book up there, for decorating Christmas trees, but I didn't see anything. Tamika doesn't know anything either."
"How about Sirius? Did you find out anything?" Remus asked.
"As a matter of fact, yes. Lily has quite a supply of green underwear. Kidding!" he added, ducking as James aimed a blow at his head.
"Well, its getting late." Peter said. "We won't find anything more out tonight. Maybe we should just apologize?"
"There is no way I'm calling a truce with Slime for Brains." Sirius said firmly.
"What if that's the only way to get her to forgive us?" Remus asked.
"She can't stay mad at us forever." Sirius replied. "Can she?"
"I'd rather not take that risk. But...I'd still like to know why she even suggested it in the first place." James said, laying back on his bed.
"Maybe he did something to her?" Peter suggested.
"That's giving him too much credit."
"I'm still not apologizing until I have a damn good reason why I should call a truce with Snape." Sirius said before sinking into sleep. James was going to say something, but he thought "Why bother?" They'd just have to figure it out in the morning.
