Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to the amazing J.K. Rowling.

Author's note: Thanks for the feedback on the last few chapters! I'm glad people are enjoying the story so far. :)

Chapter Three

After almost an hour of cheerful conversations and the sounds of silverware scraping plates, noise began to build in the Great Hall. Dumbledore took this as a cue to stand up and address everybody again.

"I'm sure you all have more catching-up to do," he said, smiling down at them again, "but it is time that we leave for our dormitories. First years, please follow the Prefects of your House and they will show you to your common rooms."

Severus sighed and stood up slowly- his doom seemed imminent. Lily turned to him with that bright smile again, those wonderful green eyes dancing with delight. "Oh, I bet the common room is amazing!" she told him excitedly. "Everything here is so incredible."

The boy smiled tightly; he wasn't looking forward to meeting his new roommates. However, he was quite curious to see what the Gryffindor Tower looked like on the inside. Even as Head of Slytherin, he had never been inside any of the other Houses' common rooms. "It's all the way at the top floor, I think," he replied to Lily. "We need to find a Prefect, though, so they can tell us how to get in."

She nodded in return and the two of them began making their way toward the small knot of other first year Gryffindors. Black and Potter were already there, Severus noticed, but Lupin was nowhere to be found. Probably making arrangements for his transformations, he thought to himself. He had never cared much for the werewolf, but the other boy seemed like the only sane one out of the three remaining Marauders. And Pettigrew got what was coming for him, he thought with a smirk. He felt no guilt whatsoever in putting the bloody traitor into his proper place.

The male Prefect, a rather stuck-up sixth year, Severus thought privately, led the little group up the main staircase to the seventh floor. He stopped in front of the portrait of an extremely large woman.

"This is the Fat Lady," the Prefect introduced her in an important tone. Severus hadn't bothered to remember his name. "She guards the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, and, as such, you will be required to know the password to get inside. The current password is Cor unum. Please don't forget it, as other students prefer not to have to let you in late at night."

The boy looked down his nose at them in a comical imitation of Professor McGonagall's sternest look. "Now we will begin the tour, if you all just stay with me," he instructed them pompously.

Severus was seething inwardly by now. Good Godric, did all Gryffindors act like that? The Potions master knew he wouldn't survive a week with fools like that, let alone seven years. What had the hat been thinking? He could deal with evil Slytherins and Death Eaters, but this was simply absurd.

Lily didn't seem to notice her best friend's irritable mood, still dazzled by all the magic surrounding her. She followed the Prefect through the portrait into the common room and looked around wonderingly. "Wow…" she whispered, apparently to herself.

Severus was thinking the same thing, but for very different reasons. There's so much… RED, he thought, horrified. He thought he might be having a sensory overload from all the scarlet hangings and paintings. The room was quite magnificent, he had to admit, but it was incredibly crowded with red and gold all over the walls. And it was so bright… There was no comfort to be found here in looking for familiar green hangings and elegant decor.

Well, here I am, he thought to himself bitterly. Stuck in the lion's den with a bunch of morons. Even the fact that Lily was with him couldn't lift his sour mood. He was determined not to show it, though. "It's very… cozy," he managed to tell her through gritted teeth. It was true: a couch and a few armchairs were crowded around the fireplace for the ever-social Gryffindor students to talk with their friends. All were in the same shade of maroon, Severus noticed irritably.

"Alright, now that you've all had a look at the common room, we're going to show you to your dormitories," the Prefect boy announced. "Lisa over there" -a friendly-looking sixth year girl waved at them- "will take the girls." Lily gave Severus a brief smile before joining Mary and Alice to see her new dorm. And then there was one, Severus thought to himself gloomily.

A sudden voice over his shoulder startled the boy. "What'd I miss?" Lupin asked him anxiously, panting slightly. He seemed to have been running recently, probably from the Headmaster's office. "Dumbledore gave me the password, but he didn't say anything else."

"Nothing much," Severus growled irritably as the two of them followed Black and Potter up the stairs to the boys' dorm. "This pompous prat of a Prefect is just showing us around and explaining that we are not to disturb his beauty sleep when we forget the password."

Lupin looked startled at his reply, then let out a short laugh. The smile relaxed the harsh lines of his face, making him look much younger and less tired. Severus was surprised- he hadn't meant to be funny. His mouth twisted into something like a smile, but he didn't say anything else.

"This is the dorm you will be staying in for the next seven years," the Prefect told the boys, now looking quite bored. "As you will notice, all your belongings have been brought up here already for you. The lavatories are down the hall, at the far end, just please don't hog the showers. Keep in mind that many of the older boys play by 'seniority rules', and you four are at the bottom of the totem pole right now. Any questions? No? Good. Now run along and don't bother me unless you are in mortal peril. Good night."

And so the pompous prat of a Prefect left them all wondering just what had happened. Severus raised his eyebrows, but he didn't say anything about it. Lupin merely shrugged and headed inside the dorm room, Severus turning to follow him. Potter and Black appeared not to have been paying attention whatsoever during the entire lecture and were instead whispering to each other excitedly. In fact, they didn't seem to notice that Severus was standing there. Suddenly, they charged past him toward the common room, cackling madly and completely ignoring him.

Severus sighed and headed into the dormitory. I probably don't even want to know, he thought to himself. He pitied the poor fool who would become the Marauders' newest target. Inside, he found that his trunk had been left near the door, giving him an option of which bed he wanted. Lupin had apparently claimed the one on the far left and already had his nose buried in a book.

Severus stared at him for a moment, trying to decide what he should do. He could take the bed in the middle and split up Black and Potter, but that might turn him into a target. He could take the bed on the other far side, but then he would end up having one of the two of them right next to him. Shrugging inwardly, he dropped his trunk at the foot of the bed next to Lupin's. The young werewolf looked up from his book briefly, but he didn't say anything. Severus was starting to think he might be able to tolerate Lupin. After all, they had worked in the Order together, and Severus didn't really have a good reason to hate him. The sandy-haired boy didn't seem very interested in the antics of Potter and Black. At least, not yet. Severus would have to keep an eye on him.

The boy sighed and then flopped on his bed, staring up at the scarlet curtains glumly. He still couldn't get over the fact that he was surrounded by a sea of redness. By comparison, the Slytherin common room and dorms were modestly decorated, green fabric and trinkets scattered around the room in a tasteful manner. Severus sighed again and closed his eyes briefly. This would be a lot to adjust to.

He sat up and pulled his trunk toward him, muttering the counterspell to the enchantment he had put on it to keep it locked. It sprang open and he eyed its contents with distaste. All of the clothes it contained were secondhand and worn out, looking almost as shabby as Lupin's robes. The books were old, as well. Severus remembered that he had taken his mother's old books to Hogwarts as a child, since his family couldn't afford new ones.

After a few Reparos and a little nonverbal Transfiguration, the books were looking much less worn, and his clothes were almost as good as new. The only thing Severus hadn't bothered to change was his trunk, as that would probably catch Lupin's attention. He sneaked a glance at the other boy, but the young werewolf seemed absorbed in his book. Severus gave his trunk another once-over and put everything back, satisfied. He pulled out his pajamas and a plain gray t-shirt to wear at night, changing behind the curtains around his bed. He didn't like other people seeing his body, and he noticed there were several bruises around his shoulders. They were probably from when his father had fallen into one of his drunken rages.

When he was finished and had his robes carefully stored away in his trunk, Severus took out his mother's old copy of Advanced Potion-Making. She had given it to him rather reluctantly, he remembered, but he had begged her to let him borrow it. It was full of potions far too complicated for any ordinary first year to make, but Severus wasn't exactly an ordinary first year.

"Geminio," he muttered quietly, tapping the book with his wand. An exact duplicate of it appeared on the bed next to him, and the boy leafed through it quickly. Content that it contained the same information as the original, Severus put his mother's book back in his trunk and took out his quill and ink bottle. What use was a potions book if it didn't contain the most accurate information?

The boy smiled to himself as he sat back against his pillow to begin editing the recipes. He loved potions. They were an exciting challenge to him: he could experiment with them, he could improve them, he could try creating his own. The possibilities were endless. A sudden rustle from Lupin's bed startled him.

The sandy-haired boy looked at Severus sheepishly, a chocolate bar in his hands. It appeared that he had been trying to open it quietly, so as not to disturb the former Potions master.

"Sorry," he mumbled quickly. "I didn't mean to bother you. I just- I really like chocolate, I guess." There was that embarrassed smile again. Seeing that Severus was still staring at him, the boy grew flustered. "Would you like some?" he asked hurriedly, apparently worried that Severus was angry at him.

Realizing that Lupin was trying to make peace between them, Severus wasn't sure what to do. He had never cared for chocolate much, but to refuse it would be to refuse a potential ally. And Merlin only knows how many of those I might find in Gryffindor Tower, he thought to himself sardonically.

"Sure, that would be great," he replied to Lupin, his half-hearted smile almost passing for a real one. Severus didn't want the other boy to think they were friends or anything, of course. He started to grow uncomfortable when the young werewolf's face broke out into a huge grin.

"Oh, no problem, here you go," the boy said happily, breaking the bar in half and tossing part to Severus. He seemed to be studying the dark-haired boy for a moment, then asked casually, "Whatcha reading? Anything good?"

He had a sort of hopefulness on his face that forced Severus to respond. "Oh, just my Potions book," the former Slytherin replied, showing Lupin the cover. When the other boy looked surprised at the title, Severus felt the need to explain. "My mum used to make potions for St. Mungo's. She has all sorts of books at home, so I've been reading them ever since I was little."

Lupin looked curious at this bit of information, probably wondering what Severus meant by 'used to'. However, the former Potions master wasn't about to tell anyone that his father had snapped his mother's wand and forced her to quit her job.

Just then, the two boys were interrupted by the dorm room door slamming open and hitting the wall. Severus whipped around frantically to see who it was, instinctively raising his wand.

"Good evening, roomies!" Sirius cried heartily. "I am the magnificent Sirius Black, and this is the most marvelous James Potter!" The boy took a moment to look around at the occupants of the room and his face fell. "Oh, it's you," he said sullenly, staring at Severus.

James pushed past him into the room, also glaring at the former Potions master upon recognizing him. However, he didn't say anything, which Severus found quite odd. Finally shut his fat mouth, has he? he thought scornfully.

"You, what's your name?" Sirius barked, now looking in Lupin's direction.

The poor boy started and looked incredibly confused at the tension between Severus and the two newcomers. "R-remus Lupin," he managed to get out. Sirius simply sneered at him and didn't reply.

"All right, Snivellus?" James asked loudly, still staring angrily at Severus. He hadn't moved from the doorway. "I know it's not quite the snake pit you were expecting, but-"

He was suddenly cut off as Severus lunged across the room and gripped him by the collar of his robes, shoving him against the wall with his wand at the other boy's throat.

"Don't you DARE call me that again!" Severus commanded furiously, using the voice that had stuck terror in the souls of students for 15 years. This wouldn't happen a second time, not if he could prevent it. "You will refer to me as Severus, or as Mister Snape, if you happen to grow some manners overnight. I can do unimaginable things to you, magic you've only ever dreamed of. And don't even think about trying anything behind my back, because I will most certainly find out and make you wish you'd never been born. Understand?" When the other boy didn't respond at first, Severus shook him roughly. "Understand?"

"Very well, Mister Snape," James snarled furiously. However, he didn't dare to move until Severus let go of him. The messy-haired boy stalked over to his trunk, snatched it up, and dropped it unceremoniously at the foot of the bed on the far side of the room. As far away from me as possible, Severus thought to himself smugly. The Marauders wouldn't be getting the better of him this time.

When James pulled his curtains shut, Severus turned toward the other two. Lupin was staring at him with an odd mix of horror and delight, while Black simply looked murderous.

"You have anything to say?" Severus asked the other black-haired boy curtly.

"Of course not, Mister Snape," the boy sneered slightly and turned to get into his own bed.

Severus sighed and looked toward Lupin's bed, but the young werewolf had followed Potter's example and closed his curtains already. Oh joy, I get to live with this for the next seven years, the former Potions master thought irritably. A cowardly werewolf and two boys who probably want to kill me right now.

Severus climbed into his own bed and drew the curtains shut. He set his potions book and quill gently on the floor next to his bed, but he kept his wand inside his pillowcase. He didn't want to risk Potter or Black doing anything potentially dangerous. Tomorrow's going to be a long day, he thought to himself, rubbing his forehead. He was exhausted already and it was only day one of being a Gryffindor.

Note: How else would a man deal with the boy who stole the love of his life and the other boy who sent him to be killed by a full-grown werewolf? ;) Also, the password, Cor unum, is a Latin phrase meaning 'one heart'. I think it fits the Gryffindors pretty well, since they generally have good team spirit (with a few exceptions).