DISCLAIMER: ANYTHING YOU RECOGNISE, I DO NOT OWN, PRETTY MUCH.

WARNINGS: THERE ARE MENTIONS (and maybe more) OF SELF-HARM, SUICIDE AND SEX.

Chapter 3 – Magic

Christmas came and went – Severus's mother did end up buying him a pair of black gloves, for which he was very grateful – and Severus's birthday came and went – neither his mother nor his father acknowledged the occasion, as was the norm. Months passed and Severus didn't know if his life could get any more monotonous. He visited the park every day, and occasionally saw Angel Lily there; that was enough of a birthday present to last three years.

Spring wore on, and early in May, what began as a completely ordinary week, turned out to be Severus's favourite week ever. He had taken a walk to the park as normal and was relaxing behind his usual tree to the sound of happily chirping birds when he heard a voice of music. Angel Lily had arrived.

Severus peeked around the tree to watch her. Lily and Petunia were playing on the playground; Lily on the slide and Petunia on the swing. Lily slid down and landed hard on the ground with a thud.

"Ow!" she yelped, "I do wish the bottom of this slide were cushioned." She climbed back up the ladder and slid down again. This time, as she neared the bottom of the slide, a big purple cushion appeared and she landed on top of it. Petunia leaped off the swing and rushed to Lily's side, examining the spot from where the cushion had just disappeared. Lily, too, was standing and Petunia turned to her.

"How'd you do that?" she demanded.

"I didn't do anything!" Lily replied.

"Don't lie! I saw that pillow appear and break your fall!" Petunia yelled at her sister.

"No! I didn't do that, Tuney, and I do not know how that happened! I just asked for it, and it came!"

She asked for it and it came, Severus thought, SHE'S A WITCH! Severus was overjoyed and almost cried out; Lily would be joining him at Hogwarts! He looked back at the bickering sisters.

"You liar!" Petunia screamed, "You're a liar and a freak! A freak!"

Lily burst into tears, her shoulders shaking as she cried, while Petunia showed little pity towards her younger sister. Severus couldn't stand to see her so upset, and so emerged from behind this tree into the girls' view. Lily looked up when Petunia gasped. She stared straight into Severus's eyes and he smiled hopefully. Lily stopped crying and glared at Petunia, before cautiously approaching Severus. Shocked, Petunia ran off shouting, "You're both a couple of freaks!" as she left. Both Lily and Severus stared after her, and then the Angel spoke.

"Hi," she said, "My name is Lily. You live down the road from here don't you?"

"Uh… ye– yeah," Severus stuttered. Pull yourself together, he thought. "I'm Severus, Severus Snape."

"Lily Evans," she extended her arm and Severus shook her hand. I am actually touching her, he thought, disbelievingly. Lily smiled at him and spoke again, "Don't even worry about Petunia. She has been acting quite strange these past few weeks. It's me. I have also been acting odd, doing odd things. I don't know what it is, though," she sighed.

"I'd think it's quite obvious," said Severus.

"What's obvious?" Lily asked.

"Of course," Severus mumbled to himself, "How would you know, you're a Muggle-born."

"I'm a what?"

"You're… you are a… a witch," Severus said. Lily's mouth formed a perfect 'O'.

"That is not a very nice thing to say to someone," she said, and turned to leave.

"No, wait!" Severus ran after her, "I'm not trying to be mean." She turned to face him. "It's the truth. You are a witch, and I'm a wizard. I'm not lying!" he added, seeing the look of disbelief on Lily's face.

"Think about it," he continued, "You can do things, can't you Lily. Things other children can't. Like just then, what did you just do on the slide?" Lily stared at him for a moment before responding.

"I wished for the bottom of the slide to be cushioned, and a cushion appeared there."

Severus raised his eyebrows, "See. You can do magic! Here," he picked up a leaf from the ground and threw it into the air. The leaf literally took flight and flew over to Lily, who caught the leaf and gasped.

"Woah," she breathed. Lily gracefully threw the leaf back into the air towards Severus and it flapped back over to him.

"See!" he said again. "You're magic, Lily!"

She smiled, "I really am?"

Severus smiled back at her, "Yeah."

Lily's eyes widened and they shone, and she said, "So tell me about wizards, Severus!" His stomach squirmed when she said his name.

"Okay. Well we attend a school of magic, called Hogwarts," he began, "And we'll go there for seven years…"

Severus told Lily all about the classes, getting wands, broomsticks, the ghosts and portraits and feasts. She was intrigued by all the magical components that made up Hogwarts. They talked for over an hour about the magical world before the setting sun told Lily she should return home.

"Bye, Severus," she said, "Can we meet up again tomorrow?"

Oh my gosh, yes, yes of course!

"Uh, sure," Severus replied.

"Cool." Lily beamed and ran off home. As cheesy as it sounded, Severus was entranced by her beauty. He was so glad that she accepted him despite his unusual and off-putting appearance. For the first time since he could remember, Severus was looking forward to tomorrow. He practically skipped home, not at all bothered by Berjovik's gang. Tomorrow was going to be a good day. Severus was sure of it.