Scenes from a Different Romance

Chapter 1 - Enter Our Players

Lily watched from the castle, desperately trying to quell the sense of horror rising in her stomach and traveling upwards through her throat at seeing the dreadful humiliation Severus Snape was enduring at the hands of Potter and Black. She wanted to feel vindicated, wanted desperately to feel joy at him being treated thus, wanted to be able to enjoy his punishment for calling her that despicable word. But she couldn't.

All she could think, watching him being disgraced in front of those people, was 'That poor boy…"

She wasn't mad at him for what he'd said. She couldn't imagine the things she'd scream at people if she'd been going through what he had. And, after all, she had retaliated just as horribly, hissing at him, calling him his odious nickname. Her heart constricted, hearing the laughter of her fellow students even from 100 yards away, as Potter stripped Severus of his underwear.

The look of hate Severus shot Potter was one of death, and Lily couldn't find it in her to blame him. If Potter had…exposed her as he was doing Severus, she didn't know if she could truthfully claim not wanting to kill him.

Relief flooded through her as Remus Lupin finallywhispered something into Potter's ear which made him drop the inverted boy. It was a good gesture on Lupin's part, but it was too little too late in Lily's opinion. Potter left, laughing with Black and Pettigrew, Lupin casting remorseful glances over his shoulder. Severus lay on the ground, unmoving, covering himself, and eventually the spectators exited the area as well.

When the others had all left, Lily noticed Severus stir for the first time, and she made up her mind to go to him. Rushing out the door, but not running, Lily managed to reach Severus just as he was bending down to pick up his scattered books.

"Severus…" she said hesitantly, not wanting to startle him.

His head snapped around and he fixed a glare on her so hateful that tears came to Lily's eyes. "Come to laugh some more?" Severus spat, and then leaned back down to retrieve his book.

He's a right hard bastard to feel sympathy for, Lily thought wryly as she looked on. She was about to open her mouth to speak again, maybe to apologize, but before she could he picked up his last book and turned around to appraise her.

She stared into his eyes, which were still blazing with anger and hurt, but remained silent, knowing that anything she said would be turned into some sort of insult by the boy in front of her. After almost a minute of tense silence, Severus snorted to himself and shook his head.

Surprised, Lily asked, "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking that it had been a long time since I've had a genuine staring contest," he replied, peering up at the sky, with actual mirth in his voice.

Lily's eyes widened in shock. She'd expected…rage, maybe; yelling, probably; sulking, definitely, but never in all her imaginings had she expected joking from Severus Snape. Her shock must have been evident on her face, because when he looked back at her he grinned at her.

I'm dreaming, Lily thought, that's the only thing for it. I tripped on my way down here, knocked my head, and this is all a very weird dream. Snape doesn't joke, or grin, or laugh. He broods, and glares, and hisses.

Lily didn't know what to say. She'd come here to comfort him, to calm him down, to let him know that she wasn't angry with him; but it seemed he needed none of these things.

"I…uh…had thought that you would be…angry or…um…something," Lily didn't really know what she meant or why she was talking, so she quickly clamped her mouth shut.

At her words Severus' eyes darkened, filling with hate and hurt once more, and he glared at the ground, "Oh, I'm still livid at those bastards, and I'm still going to fucking destroy them when I get the chance."

"Oh," Lily said in a small voice, quelling under the loathing in his voice.

Hearing the fear in her voice, Severus quickly returned his gaze to her own and softened the look in his eyes, "But that doesn't mean I'm going to be a jackass to you again."

Lily's eyes widened again, shocked at this semi-apology, and she opened her mouth to respond, but was cut off by Severus, who said, "Look, Evans, I want to apologize for what I said to you earlier, you know…"

"I know," Lily said, smiling in spite of herself. It was obvious that he wasn't practiced in apologizing.

"…right, so, anyway, I'm really sorry for what I called you. You were just trying to help me, and I had to go and shit all over you because I was embarrassed that I needed help at all and hurt and fucking apoplectically mad."

"It's alright," Lily comforted, reaching out and resting her hand on his forearm. Lily's heart clenched when even this small touch caused him to flinch slightly, but she refused to remove it and he relaxed after a second.

Severus looked downcast as he said, "I just wanted you to know that I don't really buy into all that shit. Pureblood Supremacy, blood traitors, muggle born and half-blood extermination; it's all the paranoid nonsense of a bunch of inbred retards. It's the kind of shit my father believes in, and if I ever end up like my father I'd want someone to kill me."

Lily bit her lip as she saw his cheeks redden when he realized how personal his last statement was, but she decided to cut him off before he could think too much about it and run away or something. "You should enlist Potter and Black for that job. I think it would be the highlight of their pathetic lives."

It was a risky comment, Lily knew, but she wasn't Gryffindor for nothing. At worst, he would get offended again and stalk off. At best, he would forget about his slip up about his father. After a few seconds of pregnant silence, Severus smiled and said, "I said kill, Evans, not torture."

Lily shrugged, inwardly thanking God that her risk had paid off, and said, "I'm sure they'd get to it…eventually."

Severus wordlessly jerked his head toward the castle and began to leisurely walk towards it, Lily immediately following him. Once Lily was at his side again, Severus said, "Be that as it may, I was thinking more of a quick, painless death. I think I'd have to go to Slytherin for that."

"Well, it's you're death," Lily said lightly, her heart, for some reason, sinking a bit as she and Severus reached the entrance to the castle. They passed through the gate and stood and faced each other when they reached the branching hallway. Gryffindor and Slytherin common rooms were in opposite directions. It was time for them to part, and Lily felt suddenly sad. This entire meeting had been so unexpected and intriguing that she didn't want it to be over.

Severus, though, didn't seem to have any such qualms. "I'll see you around, Evans," he said, flashing a quick smirk before brushing past her and striding off towards his common room.

Lily turned slightly, watching his retreating form, and said softly, "Yeah…later." The she shook her head, clearing it of all superfluous thought, and started to make her way to her own common room.

To Be Continued…