Chapter Summary: Severus' appearance after Christmas break sparks something in Sirius; a bullying incident leads to the end of a friendship; and an attempt at revenge backfires in unexpected ways
Chapter Word Count: 10,332
Warnings: use of derogatory term; mentions of abuse
A/N: For those who got the update email, but then there was nothing there, so sorry! I had to go back and fix something, plus I was at work, and did not have time re-post the updated chapter right away. Again, apologies! Now, on with the update/story.
"Speaking"
'Thinking'
Spells/Letters
Original Posting Date: Wednesday, January 2, 2019
He sighed as he eased his battered body, courtesy of his bastard of a father, onto the seat; this past Christmas had been the worst as it seemed as if his father's temper had spiralled out of control. The beatings he had suffered were much worse than previous beatings, but he would deal with it, he always did. The only problem was that, he had to wait until he arrived back at his school, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, before he fully healed himself.
The compartment door opened and a snarl was on his lips as he shifted his gaze to see who had entered; when he recognized two of his best friends, the snarl died down. It was a boy and girl; the boy was a year younger than him and was very handsome with light blue eyes, and shoulder length, dark, curly hair. His name was Regulus Black. The girl was his age and was slightly shorter than the boy; she had curly dark brown hair that fell mid-back with a bang in the front, light brown eyes, and a slim body. Her name was Melina Doukas.
When the compartment door closed behind two of them, Melina pulled out her wand and cast a Silencing Charm to prevent outsiders from hearing the conversation. The moment she was done, she turned back to her friend. "How bad?"
He turned his attention to the passing scenery without answering.
"Severus?" Melina prodded as she took the opposite seat to better look at her friend. "How bad was it?"
"The worst," he answered after another moment of silence.
"This cannot be allowed to continue," Regulus growled as he sat next to Melina; his eyes took in the way his best friend was sitting; as if to ease the pain on his body.
"It will Reggie," he answered, "at least, until I am of age to leave, maybe not even then."
"And why will it continue even after?" Melina demanded; she was beyond angry at what was happening to her friend. The two had met on the train to Hogwarts during their first year and Melina had felt compassion in her for the drawn, lank-haired boy. It had taken time, but she had secured a friendship with him. When Regulus had started school the year after, both had seen the same thing in him that was in Severus and had taken him under their wing as well.
"It doesn't have to," Melina continued. "You know we could help."
"I know all that," Severus sighed, "however, if allowing that pitiful excuse of a man to release his anger on me saves my mother from his attentions, then I shall endure it as long as possible."
The anger in the other two teens eased just slightly. They should've known that that was the reason why their friend was refusing to do anything; Severus loved his mother more than anything and would do anything for her. And they knew that until Eileen herself made the decision to leave, then Severus wouldn't do anything against his father. It was frustrating.
"You shouldn't have to wait that long or go through this at all," Melina shook her head; she wished there was something she could do, but she knew she couldn't. Her friend would not leave his mother to face his bastard father on her own and he wouldn't appreciate it if anyone were to intervene; Severus was as proud and stubborn as Melina herself was. She blamed her stubbornness on her Greek Heritage, and Severus, his stubbornness and pride could be blamed on his Prince side.
"I shall endure," Severus repeated and he allowed his gaze to shift back to the scenery as his mind drifted off to his vacation; going home for Christmas was supposed to have been a good thing, but it wasn't. Tobias Snape had been in the worst of moods and he had been the recipient of it. He hoped his beating was enough to satisfy the man and keep his mother safe as she was the most important person in his life.
The compartment opened once more and four people stood there; Melina's eyes narrowed into slits when she saw who they were.
"What are you doing here?" she demanded as Regulus scowled at the four guys that stood there.
"Now, now Melina," one of the guys, a young man with shoulder-length curly, smirked; he had the same eye colour as Regulus. "Can't we visit our year mate?"
"How was your Christmas Snivellus?" another male, this one had short, messy, dark brown hair and hazel eyes that were hidden by glasses. He too had a smirk on his face.
"I fail to see how that is your business Potter," Severus' reply was scathing and made one of the boys let out a soft whimper.
"Go away Sirius," Regulus' dark blue eyes narrowed at the first guy that had spoken.
"Now, little brother," Sirius smirked at him, "we're not doing anything."
"Really?" Regulus raised an eyebrow at his older brother.
"Guys," the third male, a sandy-haired, brown, almost amber-eyed teen with scars on his face and that looked a little worse for the wear, chided. "Let's just leave them alone."
"You should do well to listen to your friend," Severus turned to glare at them. "Leave us be."
"Remus is just being Remus," Sirius said as he threw a hand around said guy's shoulder.
"And Remus wants to leave," Remus turned to Sirius. "Now Siri."
"You should listen to your boyfriend Sirius," Melina remarked as her eyes scanned Remus from head to toe, taking in his slightly dishevelled appearance.
"Shut up Doukas," Sirius scowled at the blonde before turning to look at his boyfriend. When he saw the tired and pleading expression in Remus' eyes, his own softened and he shifted closer to him. "Fine."
The gratitude and relief in Remus' eyes had Sirius smiling.
"Oh come on Sirius," James turned to look at his friend. "Remus is fine. Snivellus needs to be taught a lesson."
Regulus watched as his older brother's eyes moved from Remus to travel over Severus and he saw the barely formed frown.
"Some other time James," Sirius shook his head. There was something about Severus; the teen looked as if he had been in the fight of his life and had barely escaped intact.
"Are you kidding me?" James exclaimed before pulling out his wand. He couldn't understand why his best friend was willing to walk away when they had the perfect opportunity to prank Snape.
"No James," Sirius reached out a hand and grabbed on to James' outstretched hand, shocking not only James, but the Slytherins as well.
"What is going on here?" a silky and steel-filled voice came from behind the four boys causing the shortest one to squeak in fear. When they turned, they saw none other than the Head Boy Antonio Zabini.
"I do believe I asked a question," Antonio's dark eyes turned stormy in anger and they narrowed on the four boys.
"We were leaving," Remus grabbed Sirius' hand from James' arms and started to pull him away. James hesitated before turning to throw a dark look at Severus.
"Next time he won't be there Snivellus," James taunted.
"But we will," Melina glared at him. She really hated James Potter. She disliked the way the teen walked around the school as if he was Merlin's gift to women, and the way that the professors, Dumbledore especially, seemed to turn a blind eye to his pranks and bullying.
"I suggest you leave Mr Potter," Antonio stepped into the compartment. "Now."
With one last glare, James stomped off, Peter following him.
"Are you ok Severus?" Antonio questioned as he closed the compartment door and took a seat next to his friend.
"I have been better," Severus replied. "I will survive."
"Not too sure about that," Regulus muttered. "It happened again Tonio."
Severus glared at Regulus while Antonio turned narrowed and concerned eyes on his friend.
"Sev?" Antonio questioned.
"It is nothing," Severus dismissed the concern. "Nothing you can say will change anything Antonio. My mother is the most important person in my life and I will protect her anyway I can. If taking a few beatings is the way to do that, then so be it."
"And how can you protect her if you are dead?" Antonio growled out, his eyes flashing with his anger and frustration.
"I do not desire to stay in this situation any longer than necessary," Severus snarled, "but if it means I am protecting her, then I shall. She is all that matters! My safety means nothing as long as she is safe."
"And we know that," Regulus injected smoothly. "All we're saying is to let us help. What good is having friends if you don't rely on them?"
Severus became quiet, his dark gaze shifting between the three. He heard what they were saying and he was deeply touched by it. He had never expected to make friends during his stay at Hogwarts and had been surprised when he made not one, but three. Sure, he had one friend from childhood, who to his delight had been chosen to attend the same school as he, but from their first year onwards, things became different; he had been sorted in Slytherin and as if the Fates were mocking him, his only friend—the one and only Lily Evans—had been sorted into Gryffindor—the house he had soon learned was Slytherin's rival.
Two months into the school year, he had been approached by Antonio Zabini and Lucius Malfoy, who had come to him after seeing how he had handled himself throughout his classes and with students of the other Houses—more specifically, the Gryffindors. Despite the fact that he Severus had been a first year while both teens were fifth and seventh years respectively, a friendship had developed between the three and soon it became known throughout the school that he was under the protection of not only Antonio, but Lucius' as well; it was a protection that hadn't dissolved with Lucius' graduation that same school year. Antonio had stepped up even more when Lucius had left and no one messed with him, except for James Potter and his friends. How he hated them.
"I understand," Severus said at last, "And I am completely grateful for your friendships, make no mistake about that, however, this is something that I must handle on my own. I cannot ask you to become involved in this."
The three exchanged glances and sighed in unison.
"Very well," Antonio nodded. "I can respect your decision; just know we're here if you decide you need help."
"I know," Severus nodded before he turned his gaze back to the passing scenery.
~...~
At the welcome back feast, Severus stared at the table, paying no attention to the students that were talking or what Headmaster Dumbledore was saying. When the Headmaster was finished and everyone started on their dinner, he didn't.
A plate clanked in front of him, drawing his attention. He looked up and saw Regulus grinning slightly.
"What?" Severus snapped. He was not in the mood for whatever mindless chatter or idea or whatever that Regulus might have.
"Eat," Regulus said as he gestured to the plate he had placed in front of his friend. "And don't bother saying you're not hungry, because I know you are. More than likely you haven't eaten anything since yesterday as you were too busy protecting your mother."
Severus glared at him, but Regulus didn't even flinch, already used to his friend's looks.
"Severus," Melina sighed as she started placing food on his plate. Like Regulus, she too ignored the glare that was sent her way. "Glare all you want, but you're still eating something."
Severus held his glare for a few minutes and then he dropped it, his gaze falling to his plate. He sighed and then, under the watchful eyes of his friends, he started eating. "Happy?"
He would suffer a thousand Crucios before he ever admitted it, but deep down, he was grateful for his friends and that they cared so much about his well-being.
"Ecstatic," Melina grinned as she started piling food on her own plate.
The three ate quietly, with Melina and Regulus speaking occasionally.
When the feast was over, and the Headmaster gave the usual warnings, the students got up and left to go to their dormitories.
Over the course of the next few days, Severus stayed within the Slytherin dorm or in the company of Melina, Regulus and Antonio as he recuperated from his injuries. He avoided everyone, including his supposed best friend, Lily.
He knew she would be worried and that when he did face her again she would have questions, but it was questions she wouldn't get the answers to. Lily had no idea of just how dark his childhood really was and how even as a teenager now, it hadn't changed.
And it was something he had no intention of ever telling her.
~…~
One night, about two weeks later, Sirius was sitting in the Gryffindor common room on the couch closest to the fireplace with his head turned towards it.
It wasn't an unusual sight as he was always there sitting with either Remus or with James or all three of them. What was on unusual was the frown that was on his face. It wasn't an expression that was normal for Sirius.
He was frowning because he was thinking about Severus. Ever since he had seen the Slytherin on the train after Christmas break, he had had a nagging feeling that just wouldn't go away. There had been something seriously off about the teen's appearance that had had warning bells sounding off in his head.
Sirius knew that as a Slytherin, Severus had his own secrets, but there seemed to be something more that the teen was hiding from everyone else. Even Lily, his best friend had no idea what was going on as they hadn't spent as much time as they normally had together.
And now that he thought about it, it was the same way every time they came back to school; every school year, especially the first week or two in September, Severus would spend the time scarce—not even Lily would see him.
For some reason, it really bothered him. He didn't know why, but he had the feeling that it was something pretty horrible and he knew it had something to do with his home life.
Was that it?
But that didn't make any sense.
"Sirius?"
Said teen looked up and saw Remus walking towards him, "Hey Remy."
"Are you ok?" Remus asked as he dropped next to his boyfriend on the couch.
"Yeah I'm fine," Sirius smiled, "I'm just thinking."
"What about?" Remus asked as he shifted closer to other teen, practically burrowing into his side.
Sirius sighed and wrapped an arm around Remus' shoulders, pulling him closer to his body. "About Severus."
Remus frowned, "I hope you're not thinking of another prank."
"No!" Sirius protested, "not this time Remus." He turned until he could look the teen in the eyes, "Did you notice something weird about him? Something's different Remus. I noticed it when we saw him on the train."
Remus' hazel eyes turned thoughtful as he remembered the day on the train when they had ended up in the Slytherin compartment—he remembered how Sirius had walked away, much to the displeasure of James.
"That's why you walked away that day?" Remus asked.
"Yeah," Sirius nodded, "Did you see how he looked? He looked like he'd been fighting for his life."
"I noticed," Remus nodded, "Siri, I know you and James have made Severus your personal victim all these years, but there's a reason why I never want to join in and why I try to stop you."
Sirius shifted until he could look Remus in the eyes, "What do you mean? What do you know Remy?
"It's not what I know," Remus said softly, "It's Moony." He was referring to the animal inside him. See, unlike anyone else in the school, he was a Werewolf—he was bitten when he was a young child and had kept it a secret from anyone not in his family. Dumbledore had known and James and Sirius and their other friend Peter had found out by accident, and surprisingly, they hadn't ran away screaming.
Instead, they had done something that was amazing and completely blew his mind—they learned how to become Animagi just so he wouldn't be alone on the nights of the Full Moon. Their friendship and acceptance and Sirius' love had gone a long way into him accepting the wolf inside of him as a part of him and not as a creature or monster to be hated.
"What does Moony know?" Sirius asked.
"Moony says that Severus has a lot of pain surrounding him," Remus explained, "He can sense it. He said that whatever it is, it has nothing to do with how you and James treat him, it's deeper—way deeper; like a pain on the soul."
Sirius went quiet as he thought about that; a pain on the soul. What the hell could've happened to Severus that would bring about the kind of deep pain that Moony was sensing?
"Siri?" Remus prodded after the other teen had been quiet for a while. "What are you thinking?"
"I don't know," Sirius sighed. He turned to stare into the fire even as he tightened his grip around Remus.
The thought he had had earlier about Severus' home life didn't seem so farfetched now, and, he reasoned, it shouldn't have. His own family for crying out loud made their displeasure known when it came to him—especially after he had been sorted into Gryffindor and not Slytherin like the rest of his family had been.
He had actually been very surprised, and still was, that he hadn't been disowned. With Regulus being in Slytherin, it wouldn't have been too much to simply pass on the heir duties to his younger brother, but instead, his parents had done nothing, especially his mother. Since his first year, she had been angry and had made her displeasure about his sorting known, and even now, she still made her displeasure known, and yet, nothing had happened. That meant that his mother had a reason, one that she wasn't sharing, for why she hadn't initiated a Disownment. It made him wary.
Time skip
It was time for the fifth-year students to sit their O.W.L.s. The school was filled with students studying together all over the place as students from each House prepared themselves.
A day after their last O.W.L., Severus was walking across the grounds towards the lake. Melina and Regulus had told him to meet them at the lake when he had finished what he was doing in the library. He kept his head down as he walked and as such, he didn't notice that James was heading in his direction.
"Hey Snivellus," James called out as he walked over to the teen, Sirius in tow.
Severus sighed, but ignored James and kept walking.
"Don't pretend you didn't hear me," James snapped out as he stopped in front of the Slytherin.
"James," Sirius rolled his eyes. Ever since his talk with Remus months ago, and instead, he had found himself watching the Slytherin student. Although Severus hadn't acted any differently the last few months, there was still something about the teen that rang false. Whatever it was, Sirius was never able to figure it out, but he had heeded Remus' words about Moony's observations, and he had found himself slowly withdrawing from joining James in bullying the teen. He'd also started becoming bothered by James' continuous need to go after the Slytherin, especially when he knew the only reason James did it was because he was jealous of the fact that Severus was friends with Lily when she wouldn't give him the time of day.
Of course, he never said anything because James was his best friend and other than Remus and Regulus, the only person he cared about.
"Let's just go," Sirius said—he was hoping to deter his friend, "I'm supposed to meet Remus in the library."
By now, a crowd had gathered around the trio as the students anticipated a fight breaking out as the infamous rivalry between the Slytherins and Gryffindors, especially these sets of students reared its head.
"Remus can wait," James turned and threw a glare at his best friend, wondering why Sirius would willingly pass up the chance to torment Snape when it was something they'd done since they were eleven.
Ever since Christmas and they had seen the Snake on the train, Sirius had been acting weird. He was always trying to avoid going after Snape when usually, he would be the first one to want to prank him.
James turned back to Snape. "So where have you been Snivellus? Been hiding out like the coward you are?"
Severus glared at James, hating him with almost the same intensity that he hated his father.
"I honestly do not see how that is any of your concern Potter," Severus sneered, "however, it does not surprise me as you cannot seem to keep your nose out of affairs that are of no business of yours."
Angry, James pointed his wand at the Slytherin and snapped out a spell that flipped him into the air.
It just happened to be the same spell that he Severus had used on James and Sirius a few years ago.
Because he was upside down, Severus' robes fell over and his undergarments were on display for everyone to see.
Laughter echoed in the air as the students took in the sight of the Slytherin not only hanging upside down, but the greying colour of his boxers.
"James, drop him!" Sirius snapped, feeling something towards the Slytherin that he'd never felt before; pity.
"What the hell is going on here?" Lily demanded as she strolled up to the group. She saw the teen in the air and gasped when she recognized him, "Severus?!"
James whirled around, at the same time cancelling the spell on Snape. "Lily!" Of all his luck, the girl he wanted more than anything had to see him doing this. He always tried to make sure his pranks weren't ever done in her presence because he knew that Lily and Snape were friends. Everyone knew that, but he honestly couldn't understand why the smartest and most beautiful witch he'd ever known would even want to be friends with Snivellus. Especially when she never seemed inclined to give him the time of day.
Lily started in on James, admonishing him for what he was doing even as the other teen tried to defend himself claiming self-defence.
Severus fell to the ground completely humiliated and he could feel his blood boiling and to his silent horror, his eyes were filling with tears. 'Do not allow that inconsiderate fool to see you cry.' He scolded himself.
To make matters worse, the girl he loved had witnessed his humiliation. He glanced up through his locks of hair and what he saw made his heart freeze. Lily might have been glaring at James, but her eyes were filled with amusement.
For a split second he thought he was seeing wrong, but deep down, he knew he wasn't.
He knew her and he knew he wasn't mistaken.
Lily glared once more at James before turning to help her friend, "Here Severus."
Severus kept his head bowed—he couldn't believe that Lily, his first friend, had found amusement in him being humiliated and then she had the audacity to turn around and play the part of a concerned friend. How dare she?
"I do not need any help," Severus replied icily as he stood up, "especially, not from a duplicitous Mudblood such as yourself!"
Everyone froze as the word left the Slytherin's lips. They all knew, even though they never understood, about the friendship between the two and to hear Snape say that word to Lily. It was shocking.
Lily stumbled back from the person she had thought was her friend, her green eyes wide and slowly filling with tears at the icy venom she had heard come from him…and that word! Never in her life did she ever think Severus would ever call her that.
Not even bothering to look at Lily, or anyone else, Severus pushed past the crowd, leaving everyone staring between him and Lily's still frozen form.
"That despicable bastard!" James hissed as he made a move to go after the Slytherin.
"James," Sirius shook his head and stepped in front of his friend. He couldn't allow James to go after Severus.
Glaring once again at his best friend, James whirled around and when his hazel eyes caught Lily's stricken face, his heart hurt. Merlin he loved her and seeing her so filled with pain made him want to hurt the person that did this to her. "Lily."
"No," Lily whispered and she shook her head and took off for the castle.
"Lily!" James yelled, but the witch didn't stop. James watched her go before he turned to look to where Snape had gone.
If it was the last thing he did, that bastard was going to pay for hurting Lily. Nobody hurt Lily. Nobody.
~…~
Regulus and Melina had heard the whispers of a confrontation between James, Sirius and Severus and the two had left their spots near the lake and took off back to the castle. Before they could get very far however, they saw their friend coming towards them.
"Severus!" Regulus called out, "what did that bastard James do?"
"He didn't do anything!" Severus hissed.
"Severus," Melina narrowed her eyes at her friend, knowing he was lying to her.
Turning rage filled onyx eyes on the Greek witch, Severus recounted what had happened. When he was done, both teens were angry at what the Gryffindor had done.
"This is bullshit!" Melina snapped. "I'm sick and tired of James Potter doing whatever the hell he feels like and getting away with it!"
Severus stared at his friend, onyx eyes seemingly vacant.
"Severus?" Melina stopped her tirade and peered at him closely, "What is it? Did something else happen?"
Severus briefly contemplated not telling her, but if the last six years of friendship had taught him anything it was that the woman would not let go until she knew what was bothering him.
"I called Lily a Mudblood," Severus admitted.
"You what?" Melina was shocked. While she never understood the friendship, she respected her friend enough to never say anything about, or against it. She knew that Severus treasured the friendship with the Gryffindor and that he would be the last person to ever use that kind of slur against her. So it was completely shocking to hear that he had. "Why would you do that?"
"Because I saw the look in her eyes when she was scolding Potter," Severus replied, "She was amused."
Regulus and Melina exchanged looks and it didn't go unnoticed.
"What?" Severus asked looking between his two friends.
"To be honest," Melina started, "it doesn't surprise us. Regulus and I have come to realize that Lily Evans isn't as appalled at Potter's behaviour as she would like everyone to believe."
"Evans protests just a little too much about how much she hates Potter," Regulus continued, "I believe that she has feelings for him, but she tries to hide it." he shrugged, "We never said anything because we didn't think you'd want to hear it."
Severus remained silent as the words sank into his consciousness. Was he such a fool that he had never realized how the person he had considered his first friend was lying to him? Or was he that blinded by his feelings for her that he couldn't see who she really was?
"Severus," Melina touched his arm, "Don't beat yourself up over it. You didn't see it because Lily was your first friend. And you never expected her to act one way while doing something else. It…is…not…your…fault."
Severus nodded, but it was obvious that a part of him was still blaming himself.
Regulus said nothing; instead, he was thinking about what his friend had just told him. Not about what James did, no, his mind was focused on what Severus recounted about his brother Sirius.
For the last few months, Regulus has been watching his older brother—ever since that day on the train, he had seen something in Sirius' face when he had been watching Severus.
Sirius was the Black Sheep—well, that's not right. No, he was the White sheep of the Black family. He was the first and only Black to be placed in Gryffindor and not Slytherin, or Ravenclaw. Interestingly enough, Sirius had joined up with the one family that was the true opposite of the Black Family. The Potter family was to the Light what the Black was to the Dark.
Absently, he followed Melina and Severus as they made their way back into the school. His thoughts were still on his brother.
Sirius had tried to run from their family and their ways, but it seemed that what his dear brother had failed to understand was that as much as he tried to deny it, he couldn't. The Blacks have always been a Dark family. Their magic especially has always been firmly situated on the Dark side of the Magic Spectrum. The only other family that was as dark as theirs was the Malfoys.
But it seemed as if the Black blood was still going strong in Sirius. If one would look closely at the pranks that he pulled, they would see that more often than not, those instigated by Sirius drifted to almost borderline dark and completely cruel, but they were dismissed because James Potter was involved.
And now, it seemed as if his brother wasn't as far gone into the Light as everyone had thought.
Sirius' own actions these last few months told him something that he was sure no one else was recognizing.
Sirius was slowly changing his course of path to a different one than James Potter. He knew though that it would take something big to fully turn Sirius back from the Light and back to the Dark where he rightfully belonged.
As Melina continued on her tirade on Dumbledore's blind eye to his Golden Boy and his dealings, Regulus' eyes caught sight of the two figures standing a distance away from them, easily picking out his brother.
Both James and Sirius were staring at them and while James was glaring at them with hatred, it was Sirius that held Regulus' attention. His brother's gaze alternated between watching Severus and James and then, he saw it. The flash of annoyance and disquiet when Sirius' gaze shifted to James and Regulus slowly smiled.
"What has you so amused?" Severus asked softly as he caught the look on his best friend's face.
"Oh nothing," Regulus grinned, "just a problem that is about to correct itself, and about damn time too."
Oh yes, Sirius' breaking point was coming.
~…~
It has been a few days since the last of the O.W.L.s and since the "Mudblood" incident.
James was still fuming over Snape insulting Lily by calling her that horrible word. But that wasn't all that was on his mind; he was thinking about Sirius and how different his best friend had been acting ever since they came back from Christmas break.
Shaking his head, James pushed thoughts of Sirius away, deciding to figure out what was up with his best friend later. Right now, he had some revenge to take care of.
He was standing in a corridor, one though close to the library was not used normally by students; only a few ever took this corridor and it just so happened that Snape was one of the few students that did. And as dinner was over a while ago and the students were mostly in their common rooms or heading there, he knew that there wouldn't be many witnesses, if any.
Hearing footsteps, James glanced up and smirked when he saw his target heading in his direction.
"Snivellus," James called as he stepped into the Slytherin's line of sight.
Severus stopped and refrained from sighing, "What do you want Potter?"
"I want a lot of things Snivellus, but nothing you can give me," James sneered.
"I am in no mood for whatever tangent you are about to spew," Severus intoned as he made to walk past the other teen, "So please, continue to do so, but leave me out of it."
James scoffed. "Look Snivellus; I don't like you and you don't like me. So what do you say we settle this once and for all?"
Severus stared at Potter, wondering just what it was the Gryffindor was up to. "And how exactly would we do that?"
James wanted to dance at the triumph that erupted in him, but he stopped himself. "A Duel. No rules, no nothing; everything goes."
Severus stared at the other teen, though he was silently wondering why James was all of a sudden willing to duel him. Not that he was worried; he was Slytherin, and a Prince, and he had confidence in his abilities to hold his own. After all, he was taught by both Lucius and Antonio, as well as keeping practice with Regulus and Melina. Still though, he could admit he was curious. "When do you propose this duel shall occur?"
"Tonight; the Shrieking Shack," James answered, "I chose there because I figured since it's anything goes, we'll have no interruptions from the professors and no chance of any other student getting hurt. So what do you say?"
What did he say? This was his chance to show Potter that he was the better wizard once and for all. No rules, no first year spells; just an all-out duel.
Severus nodded, "What time?"
"Let's say in an hour," James said. "And I know you're a Slytherin and all and you lot are cheating buggers, but tell no one. I want it to be just us."
Severus bristled at the "cheating buggers" bit, but bit back his retort and nodded. "Very well."
With nothing else to say, Severus walked away, leaving the Gryffindor staring after him.
"Excellent," James chuckled, his hazel eyes flashing with glee as he watched the Slytherin and thought about what was going to happen.
After tonight, Severus would definitely regret the day he had insulted Lily.
~…~
Severus knew he should tell Regulus and Melina, even Antonio, about his meeting with Potter, but he couldn't. Not only was he a Slytherin, but he was also a Prince and if there was one thing he learned about his mother's side of the family was that they were prideful as hell; point in case, his own mother who refused to turn to her family for help with her situation with Tobias Snape. When she had married him against her family's wishes, all communications between her and her family had ceased to exist, and it was her pride that kept her from reaching back out to them.
He couldn't tell them; not only because of his pride, but because this was his battle. This was his dispute to settle. It was him Potter came after all the time and they needed to settle this rivalry between them once and for all.
So with that in mind, he easily slipped from the common room without garnering any attention, especially from his friends.
He left the dungeons, moving quietly through the Halls as he made his way up the stairs to the main corridor. He had entered the hall that lead to the Great Hall, and the entrance, when he spotted movement out of the corner of his eye. Stopping, he shifted to better see who it was and frowned slightly when he recognized Remus Lupin.
Curiosity filled him as he wondered where the student was going. He followed slowly, making sure to keep out of eyesight and hearing range, and watched as the student made his way to the school entrance, looking around once more before slipping outside.
Pausing, Severus thought about his next actions and his duel with Potter. He was to meet Potter at the Shrieking Shack for their duel and based on the fact that he was sneaking out of the school, it seemed as if that that was where Lupin was heading as well. Was it a trap? Would Black and Pettigrew be waiting there for him as well?
'If I do not show, then Potter would use it as an excuse to make my life even worse. His taunting would have no bounds, no end in sight. Even if it is a trap, if it is four against one, I have to go.'
Bolstered by that thought, Severus nodded to himself before quickly making his way to the entrance and sneaking out the school. He failed to see James watching him with a devious and triumphant look.
~…~
James couldn't stop the smirk that settled on his face and he didn't want to. He was a genius. He was still patting himself on the back for his pure genius when he entered the common room. He looked around and saw Lily sitting by herself near the fireplace and made his way over to her.
He was halfway across the room when he heard his name.
"Hey James," Sirius called out as he walked into the common room.
"Hey Siri," James turned to his best friend, "How was detention?"
Sirius groaned, "I swear McGonagall is a tyrant and a slave driver."
James snickered, "that bad huh?"
"Worse," Sirius groaned, "and I really wanted to join Remus tonight."
James smirked, "oh I'm sure Remus won't mind. In fact, I do believe he'll have some company soon."
It wasn't really the words, but the tone, that caught Sirius' attention and sent apprehension and dread flowing through him. "What do you mean?"
James' smirk turned nasty, "Just a little bit of payback."
"James?" Lily's voice interrupted and said teen turned towards the redhead.
"Go on," Sirius pushed him on with a playful shove. "You've been waiting for this for a while."
James laughed and Sirius laughed with him, but the moment James had headed over to Lily, the smile fell from his face as unease built in him. Making sure James was occupied, he quickly left the common room and bounded up the stairs to their dormitory.
Hurrying over to his bed, he went through his things until he found what he was looking for. Pulling out the parchment, he tapped it with his wand. "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."
Activated, words appeared, but Sirius paid no mind, eyes too intent on searching for what he was looking for. He found Remus' name at the Whomping Willow, but it was the name heading towards Remus' own that had his eyes widening in shock and fear and had him rushing from the dorm and out of Gryffindor Tower.
He had to reach in time. He just had to.
~…~
Later, when he looked back, Severus would admonish himself for his reaction. He was a Slytherin after all, and not only that, but knowing what his home life was like, he should have honed his reflexes.
But that was the thing about hindsight. He had followed the teen into the Whomping Willow and had been surprised to find the stairs inside. Hearing moaning, he had followed the noise. the last thing he had expected when he had followed Lupin was to see him transform into a wolf.
The look on Remus' face when he had opened the door though would be forever engrained in his memory. It was look of fear; something he had never seen on the teen's face in the entire time they've known each other.
Remus had stumbled away and with panicked words had tried to get him to leave.
Severus had been too stunned to listen and he could only watch as the teen transformed into a werewolf in front of his eyes.
A snarl brought him back to the here and now and he shifted backwards as the wolf took a menacing stance and growled at him.
He made to pull out his wand, but the wolf caught the movement and with a threatening growl, attacked.
Severus gasped, dropped to the floor and rolled out of the way, barely missing the swipe of the animal's claws. When he stopped, his wand finally in his hand.
The wolf fell on all fours and crouched low, staring at Severus with dark eyes and a predatory snarl.
Severus breathed heavily as he kept his wand and his eyes trained on the animal across from him. His arm hurt, as he had landed on it when he fell, but he paid it no mind; right now, he was more focused on staying alive.
As the wolf attacked again, he shouted a spell, one he had created a short while ago. "Sectumsempra!"
The wolf yelped as slashes appeared on its body. Blood flew around the room as the animal landed hard on the ground.
Severus breathed a sigh of relief, which was short-lived when he realized that the wolf was once again getting up.
Despite its injuries, the animal moved to attack again, but before it could get close, there was a shout and blur and someone tackled the wolf, both of them rolling over.
The two forms separated and Severus was shocked to see Sirius kneeling in front of the wolf.
"Severus, don't move," Sirius ordered, not taking his eyes off of the werewolf.
Certain that the Slytherin would heed his warning, he turned all his focus on the wolf.
"Remus," Sirius breathed out. He had to get his boyfriend under control. "It's me…it's ok…it's me…calm down…"
Sirius held out his wrist, "Smell me Moony…it's me…"
Moony growled before moving forward in a slow prowl. His nose touched the pale wrist and sniffed. The scent exploded in his sense and he recognized the familiarity of it. This was his mate. Whining, Moony shuffled forward and pressed his head into Sirius' chest.
"Yeah Moony," Sirius let out a huge sigh of relief, "it's me. Just stay calm…okay?"
Severus watched in shock, "Black?"
Sirius looked up at the Slytherin. His eyes widened when he saw the way the teen was cradling his arm, "You're hurt!"
Severus looked down at his arm before looking back at the wolf, "So is he." He stood up, but made no more to go further, "I can heal the wounds, but I need to know he will not attack."
"He won't," Sirius said, confidence in his every word. "Just move slowly." He kept his eyes and his hand on Moony, to reassure the wolf.
Severus heeded the words, knowing that this wasn't the moment to ignore or balk at the fact that a Gryffindor was helping him. He was angry, make no mistake, but he was still a Slytherin and this information was extremely useful, but first, he needed to know everything. Not yet though.
Right now, he had to heal the wolf, and then, take care of himself and then, then he would ask his questions and get his answers.
So doing what Sirius said, he cautiously approached the wolf and then proceeded to heal him. "He'll need to go to the hospital wing for rest and possibly blood transfusion to replace the blood he lost."
"I'll take him in the morning," Sirius replied and then finally turned to his attention to the Slytherin. "He'll be fine until then. We need to get you to Madame Pomphrey to get that arm looked at."
The teen didn't protest; instead, he looked at the wolf, "Is he going to be ok?"
Sirius looked back at Moony and saw that the wolf had laid down and was slowly falling asleep. His lips turned up in a small smile and he gently ran a hand through the wolf's fur.
"He will be," Sirius nodded. He bent down and leaned close to a downy ear and whispered, "I'll be right back."
Moony whined softly before falling still, the rising and lowering of his chest the only indication of movement.
Sirius stood, "let's go." With one last look at Moony, he led the Slytherin out the door.
Neither teen said anything as they made their way back into the school and up to the Hospital Wing.
"Madame Pomphrey?" Sirius called out.
The woman came out, and gasped when she saw the two teens, "What did you do now Mr Black?"
"It wasn't him," Severus spoke before Sirius could.
If Madame Pomphrey was surprised at his defence, she didn't show it. "These pranks of yours are getting out of hand. Next time one of you will come with a missing limb."
She led Severus over to one of the beds and bustled round the room, muttering to herself as she did so about House rivalry and idiotic students and headmasters.
Both boys remained quiet.
"Thanks for not saying anything," Sirius muttered, just loud enough for the other teen to hear, but not the nurse.
"It would do neither of us any good," Severus replied, "besides, were I to reveal the truth, it would diminish my chances to finding out what was going on."
Sirius chuckled, "Spoken like a true Slytherin."
Severus' eyes gleamed with amusement though he said nothing.
Pomphrey came back, and within minutes, Severus' arm was wrapped and he was being directed to a bed, despite his protests about being able enough to go back to his room. After all, he'd had plenty of experience taking care of himself.
When the nurse left the two teens alone, with strict warnings not to cause any more damage to each other or her ward, they looked at each other.
"I'll tell you everything you want to know," Sirius said at last, breaking the silence between them, "But not now. In the morning; I need to go back and check on Remus. But first thing tomorrow, I'll explain, and so will you."
Severus nodded, "Very well. That is acceptable."
Sirius nodded in agreement before he turned and left.
Severus watched him go before falling back on the pillow with a heavy sigh. Somehow he knew that everything that had happened tonight, had changed things irrevocably.
He had no idea how right he was.
~…~
The next morning, Sirius showed up at the Hospital Wing, but this time, he had Remus with him; a battered and tired looking Remus.
Severus was awake and watched the two teens with calculating eyes.
After Pomphrey made her usual fuss over Remus, Sirius led his boyfriend over to where Severus was sitting.
Remus spoke first.
"Severus I am so sorry about last night," Remus' eyes filled with tears, "You know have no idea how much. That has always been one of my biggest fears and to see it happen…" the teen trailed off, unable to continue, but the emotions were clear to read on his face and in his body language.
"I know we don't like each other," Sirius said, "but please, please don't tell anyone about Remus. If it came out that he was a werewolf, they would kill him."
Both Gryffindors knew that things could go very wrong. This wasn't any other student they were dealing with; it was a Slytherin, and one of the more dangerous ones as he was in the right to ignore them and to use this information against them.
Their pride, House or personal, didn't matter here because neither could fathom what they would do if Severus decided to out Remus' secret.
It didn't matter to them that they were pretty much indebting themselves to a Slytherin; all they cared about was keeping Remus' secret a secret.
Severus stared at the two teens in front of him. He knew that he held all the power and that he could make either one of them do whatever he wanted.
This was pure gold to anyone, especially a Slytherin.
"It is not my secret to tell," Severus said at last. And he meant it. Yes, initially he had been outraged at the fact that a werewolf was among the students and none of them knew anything about it. And he had been filled with the idea of having the ultimate revenge against the Gryffindors for the hell they had put him through, but in the end, he had changed his mind.
He had spent the entire night really thinking things through and he had realized that he had no right to spill the secret. After all, despite the fact that he turned into a bloodthirsty beast three nights every month, Remus had never so much as hurt another student.
But what had really changed his mind was the fact that he had his own secret, one that no one outside his family knew; not even Regulus and Melinda and they knew everything. He had thought about how he would feel if someone accidently found it out and then revealed it without his consent.
And he realized that he couldn't put someone else through something he himself would never want to experience.
Sirius and Remus breathed a heavy breath of relief.
"Thank you," Remus gasped out emotionally as he clutched Sirius' hand in his own.
"I do have some questions, however," Severus continued.
"What do you want to know?" Sirius asked.
Severus turned to Remus, "How long have you been a werewolf?"
"Since I was a child," Remus answered, "I was bitten when I was a boy, around age five or so."
Severus nodded, "And no one outside of your family knows?"
Remus shook his head, "My parents knew what would happen if anyone found out, so they kept it a secret. The only people who know other than my family are Dumbledore—I think professor McGonagall knows too but I'm not too sure—Sirius, Peter and James."
"And now me," Severus finished.
"Yes," Remus nodded. His eyes filled once more. "Severus, you have no idea how sorry I am."
"Hush wolf," Severus chided, "I already told you; I will not be spilling your secret as it is not my secret to spill and if I recall, I hurt you as well."
Remus nodded and didn't say anything else. Severus held all the power right now and could do whatever he wanted. The fact that the teen, despite their shared past, was willing to keep quiet lifted a weight from Remus and he swayed a bit as it sunk in that he wouldn't be kicked out of school nor hunted down.
Sirius looked at his boyfriend and led him to one of the unoccupied beds, gently pushing him down. "Sleep Remus. You're tired and you need it."
"But Siri," Remus started, only to be interrupted by a yawn.
"Sleep," Sirius repeated gently. "I'll be here."
Remus sighed and burrowed under the blanket; his eyes slipped shut as he fell asleep.
Sirius watched and made sure Remus was deep in his sleep before he turned to Severus. He looked at the teen with a frown. "Why were you at the Shrieking Shack in the first place?"
"Potter challenged me to a duel yesterday," Severus revealed, "He chose the Shack as the location under the guise that it would minimize the students that would be hurt or caught in the crossfire of any spells. As I was on my way to meet him, I saw Remus. Of course when I saw the direction he was heading, I immediately assumed that it was a trap. But," he shrugged. "I am a Slytherin and my pride would not allow me to back down. So I followed."
"James told you to meet him at the Shack so that the two of you could duel?" Sirius' brows drew together. there was something about the whole thing that was bugging him.
"Oh I'm sure Remus won't mind. In fact, I do believe he'll have some company soon."
…James' smirk turned nasty, "Just a little bit of payback."
Realization filled him and Sirius shot up off the bed. His eyes had darkened, and his magic crackled in the air as a murderous rage filled him.
"That complete and utter bastard!" Sirius ranted, "How could he?!"
Severus stared at the Gryffindor in shock. In the entire time he's known Sirius, he's never once seen the teen react like this. "What has your knickers in a twist?"
Sirius growled, "I'll murder him." He whirled around and stomped from the room.
Severus watched the teen go, his entire being filled with confusion. He wanted to go after him, but then he remembered the last time he allowed his curiosity to get the better of him and stayed put.
~…~
On his way to Gryffindor Tower, Sirius was barely aware of anything but his rage at his best friend. So, he didn't realize the students that were looking at him in shock or the whispers from them and the painting or those who scurried out of his way and the magic he was letting off.
When he got the entrance, he snarled the password at the portrait and his magic pushed, slamming the door open, making those inside and outside the Tower jump.
The Gryffindors inside stared at the enraged teen with shock, but none of them dared to move.
"Where is he?!" Sirius demanded as his eyes scanned the room.
The students were too frightened to answer.
"Sirius?" James called out as he came from the boys' dorm and stepped into the common room.
"You son of a bitch!" Sirius yelled as he slammed his best friend against the wall.
The students gasped. Never have they seen the two boys fight each other. It was inconceivable. Sirius and James were as close as brothers.
"Sirius what the hell is your problem?" James struggled to get away from his friend.
"My problem is you!" Sirius growled. His eyes flashed as his magic crackled in the room, making the students scream.
James was starting to get angry, though he was still confused. He had no idea why Sirius was acting like this.
"What is going on here?" Lily asked as she rushed down from the girls' dorm. She stopped and gasped in shock when she saw Sirius holding James against the wall, but quickly got over it and ran over to the two boys.
"What are you two doing?" Lily demanded, unable to believe what she was seeing. "Are you kidding me?"
She turned to Sirius. "Sirius, let James go."
"Back the fuck off Evans!" Sirius snapped at the redhead, the venom in his voice making her flinch back.
"What?" Lily replied faintly. Sirius had never spoken that way to her before; never.
James was now angry at his best friend. He didn't care what was going on, but no one talked to Lily that way.
"Don't treat her like that!" James yelled as he finally pushed Sirius off of him, "She didn't do anything to you!"
Sirius growled, fighting the urge to slam James against the wall again.
"I don't know what you're mad about, but don't take it out on Lily," James continued as he stared at his friend.
"You want to know why I'm mad?" Sirius demanded, "Because of you! You and your stupid prank!"
James looked confused before realization hit him. "How is old Snivellus?"
"He's fine!" Sirius snapped, "No thanks to you! I can't believe you did that! What the hell were you thinking?!"
"It was payback for what he did to Lily," James told him. He calmed down now that he knew what Sirius was upset about. Although, he couldn't believe that Sirius was this upset over something he did to Snivellus. They picked on him all the time; not that he didn't deserve it.
"Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" James asked.
"It's not even the fact that Severus could've been hurt," Sirius said, "But you put Remus in jeopardy as well."
James winced, a flash of guilt moving through him before he dismissed it, "Remus would've been fine. Dumbledore wouldn't have let anything happen to him."
"Do you think even Dumbledore would've been able to do anything if Remus had drawn blood?!" Sirius yelled.
James shook his head and pushed whatever guilt he felt further away. Sirius was making too big a deal out of this. "Sirius, calm down. Nothing would've happened to Remus; Dumbledore would've fixed it."
Sirius stared at James in shock. He couldn't believe his best friend was being this cavalier about the situation. Did he not care about what would've happened to Remus if he hadn't gotten there in time?
Snape could've been killed and Remus, if the Wizarding World didn't, then the guilt over hurting someone else would've killed him too. And it was as if James didn't even care; nothing and no one mattered as long as he had been able to exact his revenge on Snape.
Sirius took a step back and another, until there was distance between him and best friend. He stared at him as if he'd never seen him before. It was like he was finally seeing his best friend for who he was; a spoilt bully who always got what he wanted, not caring who he hurt, knowing that his parents and even Dumbledore would fix things for him.
Lily had been hurt and James had been determined to make the person pay, no matter who else was hurt in the process.
"Sirius?" James said. He was now concerned. Sirius had just been standing there saying nothing and it was starting to freak him out.
Sirius looked over at Lily and then looked back at James, "You really love her, don't you?"
Lily flushed at the words and glances and whispers were exchanged, but then everyone quieted down again.
"Siri," James started, not knowing where his friend was going with this, but he was starting to get a sinking feeling in his chest.
"No," Sirius shook his head and took another step backwards, "You love her, more than anything and anyone else; so much so, that you would be willing to hurt anyone who hurt her, not giving a damn about anyone else in the process."
James looked at Lily, and despite the situation, he couldn't help but to feel pleasure when he saw the look in her eyes. Maybe now she would finally give him a chance. But Sirius was his best friend and he needed to fix whatever was wrong.
"Now Sirius you know that's not true," James said, trying to play it off and not give Lily too much ammunition over him.
Sirius laughed, but it wasn't playful or happy; it was mocking, "Isn't it? Because that's what it feels like right now. You put not only Severus, but Remus in serious trouble James. Remus! And you don't even seem to care. It's like it's not registering in your mind. All you care about is the fact that you got payback on Severus for what he said to Lily, but Remus was innocent and you put him in jeopardy just for a prank."
James looked stricken. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't, because Sirius wasn't finished.
"You know what it would've done to him if anything had happened and you did it anyway," Sirius continued, "because Remus wasn't a priority. Lily was, and she always will be."
"Sirius, come on!" James was getting frustrated. "It was just a prank! It's not like we've never pranked Snivellus before!"
Sirius looked at his best friend. He still didn't get it. He still didn't realize just how dangerous the entire thing was. He didn't get how horribly wrong his so-called prank could've gone.
They'd pulled pranks before, and yes, some of them had always been questionable, but in the end, the pranks had never resulted in death or a too serious injury. They had never crossed that line…and yet, James had easily done so. Yes, it was for Lily, and Sirius understood that as he knew that he himself would hurt anyone who dared hurt Remus, but he wouldn't put innocent people in jeopardy just to have his revenge.
And that's what James had done. He wanted his revenge on Severus and in doing so, he had put Remus in danger, and obviously didn't care, and for that, Sirius couldn't forgive him.
Grey-blue eyes iced over and when he spoke, Sirius' voice and word held a final tone to them. "We're done."
James stopped and stared in shock, but he wasn't the only one; everyone else did as well.
"What?" James asked. His heart was pounding. "What does that mean?"
"It means," Sirius told him, "This friendship is over. I want nothing to do with you. And I want you to stay away from me and Remus."
His eyes went cold as he gazed at his now former best friend, "From this point on, James Potter you are no longer my friend. I cut any and all ties with you. We…are…done." With that, he turned and walked away.
James stared at Sirius, unable to believe what he just heard. It couldn't be true. "Siri."
Sirius stopped and turned to look back at James, "Do not call me that. You have lost that privilege. To you, Black; nothing else."
"You're serious?" James asked. He half expected the normal quip because he still couldn't believe what was happening.
Sirius stared at him, no amusement of any sort in his eyes, expression or voice when he spoke. "Deadly. You have your priorities," his gaze flickered to Lily, "and I have mine."
Saying no more, Sirius left the common room, leaving everyone inside stunned.
A/N 2: so...that's the chapter. You've come this far, all that's left to do is to review so I can know what you thought. Also, again, updates will be sporadic and I do apologize in advance for that.