CHAPTER 2: MISERY LOVES COMPANY
Flashback
"I want something nice to drink," the girl said, with a (slightly) evil smile on her face.
Severus Snape was not having a good day. He was simply meditating, minding his own business in a park, when all of a sudden a girl appeared on top of him, accused him of sexually assaulting her, and apparently hoping to get a free meal or two off him. The girl demanded that he buy her a drink, but Snape, a poor bloke with no penny, could not even afford a cup of coffee from a cheap café. So, he decided to invite the girl to his house instead.
'This wouldn't look good from any angle. She might accuse me of luring her to a trap. Then again I'd still be trouble if I ditched her,' thought Snape.
"I'm sorry, but I did not bring any money with me," he said. "Would you like to come to my house for a drink instead?"
"Oh…" said the girl with a mischievous, accusing smile on her face. ('Damn, I knew it,' thought Snape.). The girl was silent for a while, looking at him intensely. Then…
"Okay, sure," she said finally, but a devilish smirk was still plastered on her face.
'What kind of mess have I gotten myself into this time?' sighed Snape to himself.
End of Flashback
The girl was currently sitting comfortably on the living room sofa, taking a sip of coffee. Her movements and manners seemed elegant, graceful and refined. She would have been like a lady, if not for her constant mumblings and complaints about his house, the old furniture, the dust, the low quality coffee, the old biscuits, and everything else, talk about ungrateful.
"I'm sorry if this isn't to your liking," said Severus, barely able to hide the irritation in his voice.
He waited for the girl to finish her snack, who, in spite of all her complaints, devoured (although in an elegant and respectable manner, but in the amount of time that the food disappeared, devoured was an excellent term for it.) all the food that she was offered, before starting his inquiry. There were so many questions that he wanted to ask the young lady, that he found it hard to state them one at time, a feat which Snape congratulated himself him for managing.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Before I tell you who I am, I think you should introduce yourself first," said the girl. Snape scowled at her retort. "After all, I'm the one who asked the questions first. Answer them first, then I'll answer yours." She was probably referring to the ones she asked when she fell on top of Snape.
The two glared at each other, black eyes into emerald ones. Neither of them spoke. Neither wanted to give an inch to the other.
A few minutes passed. Realizing how stubborn the girl was, based from his first impression of her, the young man conceded.
"Fine," sighed Severus. "To answer your first question, my name is Severus Snape. To answer your second question, Lily was a friend of mine." There was regret and bitterness in his voice. "I sort of mistook you for her, I apologize."
"…was a friend of yours…" muttered the girl. "Does that mean she's…"
"No, she's alive and well," Severus quickly cut her off. "It's just that we don't see each other anymore... she hates me now." He felt like crying there and then, but quickly held back his tears.
"Oh …..so you were dumped?" the girl inquired.
"I was not," he retorted. "We weren't like that. We're just friends." The tone of his voice betrayed him, however, as the girl was now eyeing Snape with even more curiosity, wanting to know more. "Anyway, I answered your questions. So, mind telling me your name?"
"Oh, right," said the girl.
She remained silent for a while, as if to regain her composure. Then, she took a deep breath and introduced herself.
"A pleasant afternoon to you, Mr. Snape (Severus winced slightly at being addressed to in the same way as his father), My name is Ilyasveil von Einzbern-Emiya."
"Ilyasveil von Einzbern-Emiya," muttered Snape.
"I know, my name's quite long, isn't it?" chirped the girl. "So just call me Ilya for short."
"Ilya then," said Severus. "Oh, and please don't call me Mr. Snape. That makes me sound like an old man or something. Just call me Severus."
"Severus… too unpleasant," pondered Ilya. "I know! How about I address you as Sev instead?"
The name triggered something in Severus' brain to snap.
"NO, YOU CAN'T!" shouted Severus on reflex.
"Huh?" said the girl in surprise. "But why it's a nice name."
"I SAID YOU CAN'T CALL ME THAT, SO YOU CAN'T," yelled Severus, unable to control himself.
Moments of silence, which felt like hours, fell between them. Thunder can be heard rolling, as the sky outside was starting to grow dark, as if to match the mood.
"Get out," said Severus Snape in a low voice.
"Wha…" started the girl.
"I SAID GET OUT!" roared Snape. He dragged her towards the door, pushed her outside, and slammed the door on her face.
-BREAK-
That night Severus Snape was in a daze, as he lay on his bed. He already has too many things to worry about as it is. His mother, Eileene Prince, was a witch who fell in love with a Muggle. Unfortunately, Tobias Snape, the man she married, turned out to be an irresponsible drunkard whose favorite hobby included beating his wife and son. The woman, whose love for the man held true, silently suffered this treatment. On the summer after Severus' second year at Hogwarts, however, his mother could not take anymore, and committed suicide in Muggle fashion, by hanging herself. Due to this, Severus now had to deal with the full brunt of his father's abuses, which he was barely able to endure.
In the middle of November of that same year, however, Severus Snape received an owl informing him that his father met a train accident and died. The bastard, no doubt under the influence of alcohol, slept on the railroad tracks and was ran over. At first, Severus was relieved, but soon realized that he was all alone now. His father may have been cruel and abusive, but he was the only family he had. He was thankful that Lily was by his side all those times, he did not know how he would have managed without her.
Severus reminisced the years he spent with his friend. The first time they met, their time together at Hogwarts, and the fact that they slowly drifted away from each other, everything falling apart on that day by the lake, when he called her a Mudblood. He saw her face clearly in her mind. A beautiful young woman, with dark red hair, and emerald green eyes. Her image however, suddenly changed, and was replaced by another girl with identical green eyes. This one though, has a farer complexion, and silvery-white hair. She had a sorrowful expression on her face, and it mirrored the sadness that was present in Severus' heart.
He was brought back to reality by a flash of lightning. Severus could see the rain pouring hard, droplets hitting his window.
Without thinking, Severus got up, got dressed, grabbed his coat and umbrella, and ran out his house to look for her. He
What the heck am I doing looking for her? She's probably long gone by now, back in the safety and comfort of her home, thought Severus. But his worry for the girl drove him forward regardless.
He was running around, frantically checking every corner of the neighborhood. Then, he heard a female voice. From the way it sounded, the owner of the voice seemed to be singing, and it came from the direction of that small park, where he first met Ilya, where he and Lily used to spend time chatting. He ran towards it as fast as his legs could carry him.
As Severus approached the park, the rain has weakened into a drizzle. The night sky became lighter and the stars and moon became more visible as the clouds began to part. The voice became clearer and clearer, and he now recognized it with a certainty: it definitely belonged to white-haired girl. Finally he reached the park, and the sight that met him was breathtaking. He would never forget it for as long as he lived.
The girl sang:
1. Ich weiß nicht, was soll es bedeuten,
Daß ich so traurig bin,
Ein Märchen aus uralten Zeiten,
Das kommt mir nicht aus dem Sinn.
Die Luft ist kühl und es dunkelt,
Und ruhig fließt der Rhein;
Der Gipfel des Berges funkelt,
Im Abendsonnenschein.
2. Die schönste Jungfrau sitzet
Dort oben wunderbar,
Ihr gold'nes Geschmeide blitzet,
Sie kämmt ihr goldenes Haar,
Sie kämmt es mit goldenem Kamme,
Und singt ein Lied dabei;
Das hat eine wundersame,
Gewalt'ge Melodei.
3. Den Schiffer im kleinen Schiffe,
Ergreift es mit wildem Weh;
Er schaut nicht die Felsenriffe,
Er schaut nur hinauf in die Höh'.
Ich glaube, die Wellen verschlingen
Am Ende Schiffer und Kahn,
Und das hat mit ihrem Singen,
Die Loreley getan.
(Heinrich Heine, 1822 (1799-1856))
-BREAK-
Severus was utterly speechless. The sight that greeted him was so mysterious. There was Ilya, at the middle of the park, dancing and twirling like a fairy as she sang. Her eyes were closed, her silvery-white hair floating gently in the wind. She was singing a song in what Severus could only guessed as a different language. Her voice was enchantingly eerie. She was smiling, and her voice seemed to carry a joyous tone. But for some reason, Severus could tell that it was false. He can feel the sadness radiating from the girl, despite her appearance. Whatever burdens she was carrying brought her immense sorrow, Severus can tell. He realized that the girl was singing, lying to herself, making herself believe that she was happy.
It was the only way she had to keep her heart from breaking.
After a while, Ilya seemed to have noticed that she was not alone, as she stopped singing, and turned in his direction.
"Oh, hello," she greeted. Her voice was slightly hoarse, probably from all the singing.
"It's not good for a girl to stay out late night, especially when it's raining," Severus said. "Where do you live? I'll take you home."
"You don't have any money, you won't be able to pay for the fare," replied Ilya, making Severus frown, before she continued. "I don't have one."
"What do you mean you don't have one?" asked Severus, knowing that he will probably not like the answer he will hear.
"I don't have a home," she said simply.
"Sure you must be joking. Your family is probably really worried about you by now. I think you should…" Severus began, but Ilya raised her hand to stop him from talking.
"It is as I said," she said in quiet, but clear voice. "I don't have a home. I don't have a family, although I had one before, but it's gone now." Severus remained silent, transfixed. "My mother, my father, my brother, my friends, everyone in the world who ever loved me, everyone in the world I ever cared for, dead," she finished.
It would be an understatement to say that Severus was shocked at the revelation. He was horrified by what he heard, he wanted to believe it was a joke, but he can tell the girl wasn't lying.
Ilya told him these in an even tone, not a trace of emotion noticeable. A smile was plastered on her face, but her eyes gave her away: tears were flowing from them.
"I'm so sorry," said Severus, as he walked slowly towards Ilya, and stopped when he was right in front of her. He wanted to ask her about it, but knew this was not the right time.
"It's not your fault," said the girl, her voice starting to break. "The reason they are gone is because I wasn't strong enough to protect them."
"No, I'm saying sorry for the way I acted towards you a few hours ago," said Severus, his voice filled with sincerity. "I failed to realize that I wasn't the only person in this world who feel pain and sorrow, who carry with them heavy burdens. Please forgive me for losing my temper and taking it out on you. You're not at fault."
Without warning, Ilya put her arms around Severus in an embrace, and cried, all her pent-up emotions out of control, her face buried in his chest.