International Wizarding School Championship
Mahoutokoro, Year 7
Whomping Willow - Look at the theme of bullying in schools and workplace
Main Prompt: (platonic pairing) Severus Snape/ Lucius Malfoy
Additional Prompts: (object) Dungbombs, (song) A better son by Rilo Kiley
Word Count: 3300
Slightly AU
Thank you, Mason and Sophie, for betaing this, you're amazing.
A Tale of Dungbombs
He had been waiting for this day for as long as he could remember. Finally, he was going to Hogwarts, away from his parents, away from their arguing, and away from all the trouble.
The sorting didn't go according to plan. He'd desperately been hoping that, even if he wasn't sorted into Slytherin, he would be sorted into the same house as Lily, but that hadn't happened, and now, once again, he found himself all alone. Lily was sorted into Gryffindor and once again, he found himself all alone.
It was only the fourth day of school, and his dormmates were already avoiding him. Nobody wanted to be near the smelly kid.
Severus found himself in front of the mirror, brushing his raven hair. Scalls and grease stuck to his brush.
He crossed the common room, ready to leave for breakfast when the Head Boy blocked his way. "You will not leave until you have showered."
"I'll do it later."
"Now," the tall seventh year insisted. "You are representing your house and your lack of hygiene will fall back on all of us. I expect to win the House Cup."
"That's easy for you to say as Head Boy! You have your own quarters and bathroom," Severus snapped.
All the chatter died at an instant. Everyone was staring at him. He knew he shouldn't have lost it like that. Preparing himself to be hexed, the first year was surprised to find the Head Boy laughing.
His long, platinum blond hair danced as he threw his head back. Without replying, he left the room.
Severus didn't quite understand what had just happened but his instincts told him that he had made a grave mistake. Being laughed at was probably worse than being hexed.
An older girl with long curly black hair walked up to him. She smiled at him in a way that made Severus flinch. He wanted to run but before he could, she withdrew a crooked wand from her robes and put him under a full body bind. His heart was beating quickly. He was terrified.
She walked closer to him, her black eyes glimmering maniacally. Severus struggled against her jinx. He took a deep breath, hoping that whatever she was about to do wouldn't hurt too badly.
She grabbed him by the feet and dragged him over the stone floor, over the stairs to the clocktower courtyard. His head bumped against the ground a couple of times. Anger boiled in him. He closed his eyes, not wanting to look at anybody, like a child hoping to become invisible. Severus tried his best not to show any emotion, not wanting to give her the satisfaction.
The rest of his housemates followed them, curious about what would happen next.
She levitated him and dropped him right into the fountain. "See, having a bath is hardly that difficult."
Wet and humiliated, Severus entered the classroom. The first lesson of the day was Potions with the Gryffindors.
"See, not even his own housemates like him," Sirius said and James laughed.
Lily glared at them and rushed over to Severus. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," he said, trying to dry his robes over the flame of his cauldron.
"What happened?" She sounded worried.
"Nothing. I've been looking into the Wiggenweld potion for you. I found three different recipes. After trying a few things, I found what works best," Severus said, handing Lily a note.
By the end of the lesson, the two of them were the only ones who'd actually managed to brew the potion. Slughorn was impressed. He hadn't expected the firsties to come up with something usable so early in the year. Both of them earned 25 house points for their teamwork.
Severus wasn't even out of sight when James asked Lily why she would spend time with someone like 'Snivellus.'
"You two should really grow up and stop being mean."
"It's not my fault that my crazy cousin dumped him into the fountain," Sirius justified himself.
"But you did laugh about it."
Before Quidditch training, Lucius ran into Professor Slughorn. At first, his Head of House had only meant to inform him about the next Slug Club meeting.
The Head Boy grinned through his teeth, trying not to look too annoyed. His professor didn't seem to understand how busy and stressful his life was. It was hard to stay on top of his studies, aiming for a perfect score on his NEWTS and the House Cup, and fulfilling his duties as Head Boy. But he could hardly tell Slughorn that he needed ten Outstandings since this had been his excuse for not serving the Dark Lord any better as well.
"Young Mister Snape and his Gryffindor friend managed to brew a perfect Wiggenweld Potion. They look like promising new members for my club," the professor said.
This caught Lucius' attention. After briefing the Quidditch team in the common room, he had Severus come to his dorm. The first year arrived on time. He had learned something, after all.
"Sit," he commanded and Severus obeyed.
"It has come to my attention that you did extraordinarily well in Potions. How did you do it?"
"I did some research and tried a few things before the lesson."
Lucius smiled like the cat who got the cream. "Well, since you're not as stupid as I thought, you can do me a favor." He handed Severus a sheet of paper. "There are a couple of potions, but I have yet to find a recipe that works. Nothing too difficult, which is probably why no one bothered to write it down. You have until New Year's to figure something out. Some of those potions take a few weeks to brew so you better start now."
"And what's in it for me?" Severus asked before realizing that this wasn't the right way to speak to the Head Boy.
He opened his mouth to apologize but closed it again. Lucius laughed wholeheartedly. His muscles ached from the unusual movement. "So you are a Slytherin, after all. You help me out a little and I make sure our dearest Bella will not bathe you again."
Severus nodded.
"You are dismissed."
He was about to leave the Head Boy's quarters when he stopped and turned around.
"What's wrong with me?"
"You reek of mudblood," Lucius said.
"My mom is a witch."
"Then why are you completely ignorant to the pecking order, have no friends other than the little Gryffindor and are completely incapable of behaving like a proper wizard? You are in the house of Salazar Slytherin, who took great pride in our customs and traditions."
Severus swallowed hard. This was a lot to take in for an eleven-year-old boy.
"Are you going to watch the Quidditch friendly with me?" Lily asked.
"No time, I have to work on those potions for Lucius."
"You should talk to Professor Slughorn about this. He's using you."
"You didn't mind using my notes for our classes."
"That's different, we're the same age and you can always tell me if I'm doing something you're not okay with, but you can't say no to the Head Boy."
"Yes, I can," Severus said stubbornly.
"Also, I have heard that his father got the first muggle-born Minister sacked," Lily added.
Suddenly, there was a loud 'bang' and their entire table was covered with remnants of something brown. It stank terribly. Severus tried to save his work.
"James and Sirius! I can't believe you threw a dungbomb at us!" Lily shrieked.
"I didn't want to hit you," James defended himself, "but you were hanging around him."
Entering the common room, Severus was glad to find it deserted as his housemates were at the match. He really had to wash himself and was glad to do it in private.
Even though he was on his own, he still felt uncomfortable undressing.
After the Christmas holidays, Severus was glad to return to the castle. He had spent almost the entire holiday working on Lucius' potions, and he was quite pleased with the results.
The holidays hadn't been great. Lily had spent most of the time with her family and had hardly any time to come out and play.
Her parents drove them to King's Cross Station.
"Is it true that Lucius Malfoy made the entire Quidditch team and all students in need of tutoring stay at Hogwarts?" Lily asked.
Severus shrugged. "You have to work hard if you want to be the best."
"But not during Christmas, it's cruel. Shouldn't they have spent time with their families?"
"I'm staying at the castle for the next holidays as well."
"Why?"
"Not everyone has a great family," he snapped.
After the feast, they were led down to the dungeons by their prefects. Severus found Lucius, who had skipped dinner in a hidden corner in the common room. The table was covered by a huge pile of books. Sitting down next to him, he proudly showed the older Slytherin his results.
"Did you spend the entire holidays studying?"
"No, I also had to train the team," Lucius said.
He looked tired and loose strands of hair fell into his face. Beneath his tucked up shirt, a tattoo of a skull and a snake lurked out.
"What is that on your wrist?"
He immediately hid it. "Better not speak of what you have seen. We do live in dangerous times."
Instinctively, Severus hid his own skin even though everything was properly covered.
"What are you hiding?" he asked, catching Severus' arm.
The raven-haired boy winced and tried to free himself but the Head Boy was much stronger.
Lucius shoved the sleeves of his shirt up. Severus' arms were covered with purple bruises.
"Your father or your mother?" he asked the boy.
"My father."
The blond studied his injuries for a moment. "Does your mother not heal them as a way of protest or is she oblivious?"
"My father doesn't like it when she uses magic."
"Mm. Beaten by your muggle father; if that were to become common knowledge, you would lose the little respect you've earned by my side," Lucius said.
"Watch," he said, picking up his wand. "Episkey."
The bruises vanished from his arms. Lucius invested half an hour to teach Severus the charm, knowing that by the end of the year, he would graduate and not have the time to take care of those things for the young wizard.
After a moment of silence, Severus said, "I want to take revenge on James and Sirius."
"What are you thinking about?"
"I want to throw a dungbomb at them."
"A dungbomb? That seems to be rather immature."
"Thought it was fitting because that's what they did to me. Should I do something else?"
"No, do whatever you want, but it has to be impressive to gain the other Slytherins' appreciation."
Severus hid behind the armor in the corridor leading to the Great Hall. He waited for James and Sirius to come into view. Casting a quick Arresto Momentum, he froze them in place. He levitated the dungbomb over their heads and dropped it.
The boys and the corridor were covered in the manure he had added to the bomb just for show. He smiled, pleased with himself. Strolling through the ankle-deep stinking mess, he watched James and Sirius struggle before leaving the area.
Just in time, Lucius entered the corridor to find the two Gryffindors covered and surrounded by dung. "25 points off Gryffindor for each of you."
"We didn't do it! It was Snivellus," James said, but the Head Boy wasn't listening.
Mewling, Mrs. Norris entered the corridor and Filch arrived shortly after. "You useless troublemaker-"
"Mr. Black and Mr. Potter were just volunteering to clean up the mess they've made," Lucius said, sneering at the Squib.
The distaste they had for each other was obvious, but the Pureblood knew that Filch would never speak out of line to a respected wizard like himself and act his frustration out on the boys instead.
"But we didn't do it!" This time, it was Sirius who protested.
"Shall I send a letter to Walburga? How much more do you want to disappoint your poor mother? Family is all we have," Lucius said, leaving two furious Gryffindors behind.
"Rookwood and Avery, you attack the left-wing from behind while Antonin keeps them distracted with his little invention," Lucius said, moving chess pieces over the wooden table.
Lucius walked to the study and poured him and his friends a glass of Firewhiskey.
"I want to fight too," Severus demanded.
"You are a potioneer. Focus on your job."
"I'm a good duelist."
"I expect you to brew potions so none of us die from their injuries," Lucius said.
"I can do both."
"You will not have the time for that; I need you to research poisons for me. I'm looking for something that makes one feel sick but does not cause lasting damage."
"What for?" Severus asked.
"Let us just say that my wife has always been in bad health, such a frail being. She might not be able to care for a newborn on her own."
"And Narcissa knows of your plans?" Severus asked.
"Of course not."
"And when I find something of use to you, you'll let me prove myself on the battlefield. I'm much better than Potter or Black and they're out fighting all the time."
"This is what it's all about? Taking revenge? And you seriously wonder why I do not wish for you to fight? You would get yourself killed over some petty feud on your first mission."
"I can hold myself against our best duelists," Severus said stubbornly.
"War is not the same as dueling. It's messy and unfair. The best way to win a fight is not to get into one in the first place."
Severus huffed.
"It may be hard for you right now since your little friend is pregnant with another man's child, but if you are a little more patient, you can use that to your advantage. Both of you have Muggle origins; you do realize that having a Muggle child in this time and age would be a death sentence."
"You know nothing about love," Severus spat, hammering his glass onto the wooden desk.
"But I know of duty and responsibility, something your mother was an utter failure and complete disappointment at. I have a family history to live up to, a son to raise and assets to manage. Could you at least try to not make my life any more difficult? I think you owe me."
"I don't want children," Severus said.
Lucius inhaled sharply through his teeth. "Fine, see it that way. Since she's expecting, she will not do any more fighting for a very long time. Someone has to watch the child, at least until it is of Hogwarts age. That's enough time for them to realize that being married to someone with such a different upbringing is not worth the trouble, and you'll finally get your chance; that is, if you don't get yourself killed or do something stupid."
"You don't think the war will go on for that long?"
"What do I know? I've been fighting this for seven years longer than you. Our sides are too evenly matched. Only over the last few months, fights began becoming more intense," Lucius sighed. If he was honest with himself, the war wasn't his priority right now.
"Are you free now? Constantly under Dumbledore's thumb?" Lucius asked.
"I could ask you the same thing. Always watching your back, never free to voice your own thoughts out," Severus replied.
Lucius huffed. "You will watch over my boy, won't you? I do not wish for him to be in need of… dungbombs."
"Why don't you send him to Durmstrang? Igor can babysit him."
"Narcissa is against it. She wants our boy to be near. He even wants to return home over Yule."
"How terrible."
Finally, out of Azkaban. It had been the worst year of his life. His plan, leading to the battle to the Department of Mysteries had been perfect, but unfortunately, not foolproof.
He was cold and his limbs ached. Even near the fireplace, he was freezing. Being barely able to pull himself together, the months passed in a haze. The only moments he was fully aware of his surroundings and himself were when either Draco's or his own life were at stake.
Sitting at the long table, trying to make it through another agonizing Death Eater Meeting. He could barely sit upright. A part of him wanted it all to just end. Having lost all sense of time, the only thing that still mattered to him and evoked any hint of emotion was his boy.
The meeting ended and the Death Eaters stood up, returning to their work. Lucius was still sitting unmoved on his chair. His gaze was focused on a spot on the table.
Without warning, his chair tilted back and he crashed to the floor. Laughter echoed through the room. His chest ached as he took a deep breath. Remaining grounded, he let his head fall back so it could rest on the floor and he wouldn't have to keep it up.
Bella tapped her foot against his side. "How the mighty have fallen."
Bowing down to him, she pressed the tip of her wand against his cheek. He winced but didn't fight back.
Severus found him still lying on the floor. He helped his old friend up. It was hard as Lucius wasn't helping. His blue eyes looked like those of dead fish. He was unkempt and hadn't bathed in weeks. The Firewhiskey on his breath was enough to make the younger wizard feel dizzy.
He knew his friend couldn't take it much longer. Steadying the tall wizard, Severus slipped something into the pocket of Lucius' dirty robes. There was a glimpse of a confused look on his face but it lacked the emphasis and force the Malfoy patriarch was renowned and feared for.
"A dungbomb. I thought you needed it." Severus said.
Standing close to his wife and son in the Great Hall, he felt distant to them. As two wizards in Auror robes approached him, Lucius knew he was out of time. He looked at his family and nodded before taking a step towards the Aurors.
They took a couple of steps passing by the corpses when Lucius suddenly stopped. He reached into his pocket the Aurors jumped to the side covering their ears. He threw the dundbomb right at Bella's body.
The Aurors slowly recovered, looking confused. Lucius' hand was covered by brownish discolorations. He looked disgusted at it. He raised a brow and he looked at the Aurors. "Ready to go?"
The day after his trial, Lucius went to Hogwarts with a bottle of Firewhiskey. He walked straight into the Headmaster's office and poured himself a drink.
"Still free?" Severus asked.
"Are you doubting me? I have something for you, my old friend," Lucius said, throwing a dungbomb straight at Dumbledore's portrait.
Severus laughed.
Both of them, finally free, laughed together. Almost relaxed, they chatted effortlessly for hours. Exchanging old tales, their reunion was rudely interrupted by McGonagall entering her office.
"Have a nice day," he said to the mistress, leaving her office.
Lucius felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulder. He walked outside. The sun was shining upon his face with an unknown intensity. His hair danced in the mild breeze and fresh air filled his lungs as he watched children play. Their cheerful laughter made him smile ever so slightly.
You'll be better, and you'll be smarter and more grown up.
You'll be happy.