A.N. More sort of a joiner chapter. Between bad story and bad story. Gah. Where is this stuff coming from?
Disclaimer: MY stories don't make me cry. Can't say the same for DH. Annd not just because of how crap the epilogue was. Though that is a big part of it.
The next morning Severus awoke with a sense of impending dread. It took a moment to realise why it was there. He groaned and hid his face in the pillow. A voice from somewhere in the room growled 'Shut it or die'. Severus knew better than to make noise before noon in the Slytherin dormitory. He silently slipped out and took a much-needed shower, having gone to bed still sticky from his and Lily's food fight the previous night.
His stomach lurched in horror as he remembered everything that had happened the day before. He quickly got dressed and left for the Gryffindor common room, where Lily was waiting for him. He never had the ability to get up at dawn like her. He had always been more of a night person.
She waved cheerfully and gestured to the wicker basket by her feet. He stopped and picked it up for her, then walked side by side. 'So what's in here?' he asked. 'Food' she said, looking at him as if he was mad. 'So you got the house-elves to forgive you?' he snorted. Lily cocked her head 'No-one can stay angry at me' she grinned 'You're living proof, Sev'.
Lily directed them towards the broom sheds when they got to the grounds. 'Oh, are we flying then?' asked Severus, mildly surprised. Lily wasn't a keen flyer. 'Not quite' she said cheerfully drawing out a Silver Arrow. Severus frowned at it. 'That's Potter's broom' he observed, not liking where this was going. 'Nope' she said 'It's mine today. I told him I was borrowing it, and he was so happy I wasn't yelling at him, he said I could use it whenever I wanted' matter-of-factly swinging the basket over the back and following it.
She appeared to be waiting for something. 'Well?' she asked impatiently 'I can't fly the damned thing. Get on the front'. Ah. That explained why she was willing to fly. He nervously climbed aboard the expensive broom which obeyed his touch surprisingly well. Lily shuffled forwards and clung onto his waist, resting her head on his back. 'Ready' she announced. Terrified of Potter finding out, but excited by her daring, Severus raised the broom high into the air and followed her directions.
'Little higher…little higher…stop!' she told him. They were resting on a few feet of stone on the roof of the astronomy tower, all Hogwarts at their feet. 'This is where we're eating?' he asked, bemused. 'Yeah. Isn't it great? I thought the tower came to a point, but this is hidden. Help me with the cloth'.
They set out the sandwiches and various other nibbles Lily had been able to cajole from the house-elves. Severus looked down the sheer sides of the tower to the abyss below. 'Do you reckon it's safe?' he asked carefully. 'No. One wrong move and we're dead. Isn't it cool?' she said cheerfully. Severus helped himself to a bowl of cherries, marvelling at her idea of cool.
They ate companionably, chatting about nothing in particular, until the subject turned to Lily's appointment that evening. 'He's taking me to that fancy French place just outside the village' she sighed 'Poncy git. If he knew me he'd let me choose, and I'd want to something fun. Not napkins and panicking about using the right fork'. Severus glanced at her. 'Something like last night, then?' he asked casually. 'Exactly! Oh, you just read me like a book, don't you, Sev?' she beamed. She collected everything back into the picnic basket carefully, then tossed it from the tower.
'Washing up's done' she deadpanned. Severus couldn't help but smile. 'Want to go back down yet?' he asked. 'Not a chance. Potter's been looking for me all morning. Besides, it's just getting to the nice bit of the day' she said, squinting at the sun which was indeed making an appearance from behind a cloud. Lily slipped off her cloak and dropped it at her feet 'Nice thing about this place' she said, undoing her tie 'Is the fact that no-one can see us' her shoes and socks followed her cloak 'We're too far from the Quidditch pitch, and everyone else is too low. They never look up here anyway' she undid the buttons of her shirt 'No-one knows it's here, see'.
She continued undressing until she was just in her bra and knickers. She grabbed a bottle from her robe pocket and handed it to him 'Do me a favour, won't you, Sev?' she asked. He undid the top and squirted a splodge onto his hands. 'It's suncream' he said unnecessarily. She nodded slowly and deliberately as if he were rather dense. 'I'm a redhead, Sev. If I don't use it I lobsterify. Our natural colour is a kind of pale blue' she laughed.
Severus gulped and his stomach lurched. She lay down on her front and undid the clasp of her bra. His mouth suddenly dry, Severus looked around for somewhere to sit. 'There's not a lot of room up here' he said, glancing at the sheer drop either side of him. Lily snorted. 'Don't be bashful, Sev, we've known each other since we were kids. Just kneel over me or something'.
Severus took a deep breath and lowered himself, one knee either side of her thighs, and cautiously stroked his hands over the small of her back. Lily shivered despite the heat. Encouraged, he massaged the white liquid into her shoulders and down her sides. His fingertips brushed the edges of her breasts and her breath audibly hitched. 'Go on' she breathed 'You don't want me to burn, do you?'. Severus squirted some more cream onto his hands and finished her back, his heart pounding and breathing shallow. 'Don't forget my legs' Lily demanded, her tone more confident than she felt.
She let out a poorly-suppressed groan as his hands swept her thighs, which she unconsciously opened. He took this to mean he was to do the insides too, and her eyes opened in shock as his delicate fingers got dangerously close to her knickers. Her head span out of the realm of reason and rationality. She was about to turn over when he snapped the bottle closed and announced 'Finished'. She let out a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding.
She recovered and sighed, resting her hands underneath her head. 'Sev, lie down, you're blocking my sun' she said, closing her eyes contentedly. He tried to do so, but she cracked an eye open. 'What do you think you're doing?' she demanded. 'Getting out of the sun' he replied, concentrating on not falling. 'Wrong answer. Lose the robe. You're too pale as it is, spending time in those dungeons'. Swallowing nervously, Severus took off everything but his black boxers. Since his humiliation yesterday, he had sworn never to wear anything but brand-new underwear. Satisfied, Lily closed her eye again.
'There's not really room for two of us, Lily' he said doubtfully looking at the few feet of available room. Lily looked around. 'Nonsense. We're just going to have to squash up a bit'. Severus lay down very cautiously. Lily curled herself around him like a cat 'Better?' she said without opening her eyes. Severus gulped. 'Not really' he said honestly; his right leg was dangling off the roof. 'Right. Shuffle over here a bit' said Lily, shifting slightly to make room. 'Bollocks!' she exclaimed. 'What?' Severus asked, concerned. Lily giggled 'I knocked my shirt off the tower'.
Eventually they both reached a fairly safe and comfortable position. Lily was curled with the curve of the circular tower around Severus' head, and he was stretched across the centre of the small space. They sunbathed for a few hours. Eventually Lily became bored and started playing with Severus' hair, running her fingers through the long locks. 'I like your hair, Sev' she said unnecessarily. 'Oh yeah?' he asked sceptically 'It's not greasy enough to cook chips?'. Lily laughed. 'Why is it Potter makes fun of everything I like about you?' she asked rhetorically. 'It's lovely' she brushed some in front of his face, squealing happily when it fluttered up from his breath.
She lay back and noticed at the sun, which was low in the sky. 'Oh, shit' she cried, looking at her watch. 'How is it six o'clock? Why does time always pass so quickly with you? Where's my skirt?'. Severus stood up and joined her in dressing, pleased to notice the pair of them were both considerably browner, although Lily's took the form of freckles. 'Sev, give me your shirt, NOW!' she ordered. He did as she said. She buttoned his shirt over herself in place of her own missing blouse. It fell to halfway down her skirt. It was strangely arresting seeing her in it. Unfortunately, he didn't have long to ponder this, as he had to fly them both back down to the grounds.
Their flight passed without incident apart from having to threaten a Hufflepuff second year so he wouldn't tell anyone he saw a half-naked boy and a girl wearing the wrong shirt come down from the infamous astronomy tower. Lily pecked Snape on the cheek and smiled bracingly. 'See you later. Wish me luck' she said, nervousness betraying her normally bouncy voice. It was with a heavy heart Severus waved her off at Gryffindor tower to get ready.
A.N. Short chapter, I know. The next one is already written, I'm just waiting for some lovely reviews to post it. Mwahahaha. Voldiepoo has nothing on me. Ahem. Yes.