IT'S CHANGED (SNILY)
CHAPTER 36 The stone
Severus banged stair after stair downwards. He hadn't experienced this pain since his father last beat him. He groaned at the end of the staircase and then heard Selene shout something, Austin and Charm gasps and Lily and Shane's anxious footsteps.
He lifted his head a little only to see what's in front of him. It was a golden box. That had come into view by the slipping of the floorboard. But that didn't catch his attention. What did was a voice. A motherly one. Caring and Loving, calling him to herself.
It was his mother. Could he meet his mother through the golden box? Did he simply have to open it?
A wave of air brushed through his air and he was instantly changed into a black pair of trousers and a forest green full-sleeved shirt. He didn't pay a single heed.
His muscles and ribs ached that he knew were some new bruises, but he didn't care. The whispering voice was calling him and so, he sat up straight, ignoring all the pain.
"Mum?" he whispered to the box. Some commotion was going on in the place but he could hear nothing more than his mother's sweet voice.
"Dear Severus… here am I… come to me, child… I am here, right with you… I love you, my child… open the box, you'll meet me… come my dear child…"
He reached a hand to open the lid of the golden box but a hand held on his. He angrily looked up and saw anxious green eyes.
"Sev. Please, concentrate on my voice… don't listen to the other one… listen to me"
Whoever the person was, didn't matter to him. Anything or anyone who comes in the way must be destroyed. He shoved her away with immense power. He heard a cry but didn't bother checking up.
His eyes softened when he looked at the box again. Someone tried to grab hold on his arms but it wasn't difficult for him to shove them away. He eventually opened the lid.
An ugly ring with a black stone and a golden loop. He could see a weird symbol engraved on it but didn't bother thinking about it.
"Severus!" a yell came to him and he titled his head to see a bruised face with blonde hair speared the shoulders of the person. He. Merely. Didn't. Care.
He snarled and looked away.
"I'll have to hex you, Severus… Back away" another threatening voice met his ears before he could pick the ring up. He looked up to see that he was on the wand- point of a Mahogany haired and hard-pale eyed girl.
He sneered and turned to the ring again.
"I'll truly hex you, Severus… when I say, back off, I mean it… back off" the girl's voice was so threatening that it sent shivers to his spine.
He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them. The whispers were calling him. Louder than ever. He turned to the girl and before she knew what was going on he snatched the wand from her.
She gasped with shock and took an involuntary step back. He pointed the wand on her and snarled. "AVADA KEDAVRA!"
He heard some screams and saw the girl falling down. An evil grin broke from his face and he felt a tinge of sorrow over his sadist satisfaction, but he ignored it.
"I said don't come in my way!" he hissed and others could have sworn to have seen a glance or red in his black eyes, that Selene loved.
He reached a hand to get to the ring but that is when he felt a poke on his neck from the back.
"Don't. Severus, don't. Don't move and calm down. …" a male voice. He sharply turned back to kill the next person too. A black face with blood shot eyes came into his view and he without thinking grabbed the wand and broke it into half.
The owner stood, perplexed while Severus threw the remains of the wand with a sneer to turn to the ring again.
This time he didn't wait for long before putting it on. He instantly grabbed it before anyone could interrupt again and placed it in his finger, where he wore the other one given by her mother.
A felt a sharp piercing pain in his finger before it converted into a full-blown white-hot pain, that rang to all his nerves in his hand. He screamed.
A black smoke poured out from the ring in his finger and took over all the air in his surroundings.
The pain and the smoke swirling around him made him dizzy. His eyes teared up, as he felt his flesh burning and his finger losing life.
He blacked out after that.
*Page Break*
His eyes opened as he came back to his senses, though he felt no pain. He frowned. Not even a little bit? Because the last thing he remembered was unbearable pain. He turned to his finger but before he could take a look, he heard a gasp.
And soon his lips were locked with someone else's. They were so gentle and calling. They separated and he opened his eyes again to meet the anxious green ones, filled with tears.
"Are- Have- How- Could you sit up, Sev?"
He nodded and sat up groaning. He could feel each of his bones and muscles paining now. Yes. He remembered, falling down the stairs. Only if Selene hadn't gotten her feet in between his…
His thoughts trailed off and the memories came to him at once.
He had hurt Lily… he had hurt Austin and Charm… he had killed… Selene…
His eyes filled with tears of dread, shame and sorrow. Lily cupped his face and forced him to look into her eyes but he defiantly looked away. He couldn't look into those eyes.
How could he do that?! He had killed one of his most loved friends. How would he live with this burden? Was she actually gone? Just like that. A hollow pit settled in his stomach and he tried to stifle a sob.
"Severus?" a gentle voice met his ears. "Are you awake?"
It was Shane. How could he be so soft spoken to him, still. He had killed his fiancée. He loved her so much. How could Shane still worry about him?
He couldn't bear that kindness and so, he pressed his palms on his ears to avoid all of that. His tears blurred his vision and his sobs intensified. He couldn't hear anything on top of that. He had lost Selene! Nothing could make up to that.
A light hand rubbed his back and that only increased his sobs. How could someone be so kind? Everyone must hate him!
"Shush, Severus… you are alright" Shane whispered in his ears and he tilted his face in the very opposite direction.
"Sev, please, calm down… everything is fine" Lily sweet voice sounded as the most bitter thing to him the world. It pierced his heart.
He was about to break away and run somewhere far from them but before he could, Shane had pressed his head on his chest, comfortingly rubbing his hair.
"Are you in pain?" he asked.
"N-No…" Severus replied, sniffling loudly.
"Then what is distressing you?"
He hid his face in his hands with the swirl of emotions he was feeling and the lack of confrontational energy. "I-I…"
"Shush, Severus… would you tell me what is wrong?"
"I KILLED SELENE!" he yelled on the top of his lungs before crumbling with deep sobs on the ground.
Shane sighed and then smiled. "She is there" he pointed towards a corner.
Severus turned lightly to the corner, where a body was lying with the same familiar mahogany hair, spread on the floor. Selene. How peaceful she looked. He saw her chest rise and fall rhythmically. She was alive!
He didn't wait any longer to crawl in her direction, lift her body up in her arms and hugged her as tightly as he could.
She groaned and placed her hands lightly around his torso, that made him only to hold her even tighter.
"Severus… I… can't breathe…" she said and Severus left her instantly.
"I am sorry. I am sorry…"
"Shh… you are fine" she whispered before resting her head on the edge of the wall again and closing her eyes.
"You are fine" he corrected.
"Yes… you gave me a scare, but I am fine" she yawned. "And was sleeping"
He broke into another sob that made her open her eyes and roll them.
"Severus… you are worse than a baby. How would I handle one after the child's born?"
"I used the killing curse on you… how did you not…?"
"Shush up, first. And then Shane can be real douche sometimes"
"Shane?" he looked back at Shane who was chuckling and shaking his head.
"I just pulled her down before the curse could touch her… See" Shane pointed towards another corner that had a dark burn. "that, was the only destruction"
Selene narrowed her eyes. "Also, my ankle"
Severus viewed her ankle. "Sprained"
"Yes, all the favor Shane could give me"
Shane gave a mock-offended look though, he was smiling. "I at least saved you from the vicious green"
That made Severus start crying again. "I-I used the k-killing curse on y-you… h-how could I…?"
Selene glared at Shane to have slipped about that again and make him tear up. "Severus, Severus… please, my head's hurting. Please, calm down, it's not helping right now"
Severus pressed a hand on his mouth to try to cease the incessant sobs, but no use.
She banged her head on the wall. "Fine, let them out" she rubbed a hand on his knee.
Lily crawled over to them too and cleared her throat. "You were possessed, Sev"
"I-I know… I am s-so foolish" he wept.
Lily laughed. "That destroyed the horcrux"
He paused immediately and turned fully to her. "H-How?"
She lifted his hand to show him the Prince heir ring he was wearing. "Remember this?"
He nodded confusedly.
"What can destroy a horcrux?"
"A goblin-made thing, but my ring wouldn't pierce a thing" he retorted.
She shook her head, smiling. "This time it wasn't the ring… when we went to the Chamber of secrets, you were the one to direct the Basilisk's fang to the diary. At that time- as much as we have discussed till now- your ring soaked the venom"
"But… But that was a long time ago" he pointed out.
"Magic, Sev…" she grinned and gave him a peck on the cheek.
He sniffled and looked around. "So, the horcrux is destroyed?"
"Yes"
He went up to hesitantly pick the ring in his shaking hands. He twirled it around just to have a good look when a wave hit him and he dropped to his knees.
He instinctively looked up saw a silver figure with flowy silver hair and blackish silver eyes. The cheekbones and forehead as his. He gasped.
"Mum?"
The figure reached out a hand to cup his cheek and smiled. "Yes, my child. And this time it's truly me"
"Then last time?"
"Last time, it was a curse placed on the ring to destroy the wearer, that was calling you" her voice pleased his ears.
"Lily said I was possessed"
"I know, Severus… you were saved by that…" his mother's figure lifted his hand up with the ring.
"Lily said that it had soaked the Basilisk venom in it, that destroyed the Horcrux"
She gasped. "All sorts of things you do, Severus…" she lightly slapped his cheek.
"Lily said-"
"Lily, my son's love, isn't she?" she teased, a small smile playing on her lips.
Severus flushed. "Whatever you say, Mum…"
She laughed making the pleasant sound ring in Severus's ears. "Well, more to that, the Prince protection gave you the guard and the curse didn't reach you"
He frowned. "I felt pain though?"
She smiled a small sad smile. "It can't give all the protection of the world, Severus"
"Oh… How am I talking to you?"
She chuckled and bent down to kiss his forehead. "The stone, Severus" she pointed to his fisted hand.
He looked there and clutched it tighter. "I'll never let it go"
"You have to, Severus"
He shook his head violently as his eyes filled with a new set of tears. "I won't"
"I am always with you, my child… you have to let it go" she insisted.
"No, no, no… I don't want to lose you once more" he whined stubbornly.
"But you are not losing me"
"I am"
"You will if you keep holding it"
"How so?"
"You want my figure or me?"
"You, of course. What am I going to do with your figure, that doesn't speak?"
"The point, Severus. Until I am here, you'll forget the real me"
"I won't"
"You will. I know that. Let it go and you'll start seeing me inside you. You are a part of me, Severus. I am always there with you" she held her hands out.
Severus stood and jumped into her arms, weeping. "I love you, Mum"
"I love you too, my child" she smiled and kissed his crown. "Keep loving Lily, Severus. She loves you too much. And you have got some precious friends, keep them safe"
"I will, Mum"
"My boy. Now, leave the stone"
He pulled back to take a last look of his mum before smiling and dropping the stone. "Bye, mum"
And the silvery figure disappeared without a trace of it ever being there.
*Page Break*
He stood there for a few minutes, simply staring in space where his mother's figure was before he dropped the stone. He felt as if he had lost her for the second time, but then he felt her inside himself, in each of his cell and smiled. She was there.
He turned back to see everyone's stunned expressions. Austin and Charm had gotten back from the kitchen where they were investigating again, even after the horcrux was found. They all seemed frozen.
He went and sat beside Lily on the floor, urging for them to speak something, but they kept staring at him with their mouths agape.
"Speak something!" he asked anxiously and they shook their heads from the shock.
"What were you doing?" Charm asked, taking a seat on the floor beside him.
He blinked. "Taking to my mum"
She raised an eyebrow. "How did you talk to your mum?"
He looked back, crawled and brought the stone to her. "From this"
"It's the ring's stone" Austin prompted.
"Yes" he nodded. "But I believe it is more than just his Horcrux"
Lily and Shane eyed each other sideways and nodded. "It is more than just his Horcrux" she said.
"It is one of the Deathly Hallows" Shane told.
All of their eyes widened. "The Deathly Hallows are real?"
Lily inclined her head. "Yes. The Gaunts were an old pureblood family, getting something like this in their ancestry isn't shocking"
"The other two were what? – the elder wand and the…" Selene gasped. "The invisibility cloak… and Severus has one"
Severus straightened. "There are more invisibility cloaks than that from the tale of the three brothers"
She shook her head. "But they are rare and expensive… the cloak from the tale would most possibly be passed from one generation to the other"
"You know, the cloak actually isn't mine… it was given to me by someone called… Harry"
Selene rubbed her chin. "Harry… he could be one of Peverell's successors"
"Could be… but I don't think he is"
"And why not?"
Severus shrugged. "If he were then, why would he give the cloak away?"
"Because, he would simply not be a Slytherin, Severus… must be a Gryffindor or a Hufflepuff to be so noble and kind"
"Yes, true"
Lily and Austin looked at them suspiciously, trying to find any hidden insult.
"That means, we can conclude that we found two DEATHLY HALLOWS!" Charm yelled.
Selene groaned, pressing her palms on her ears. "Charm!"
"Sorry… But two Deathly Hallows… we just need the last one, which is the Elder's wand"
Severus brushed it off. "That's all stupid… forget about that"
Shane exhaled loudly. "Well, then what did you both find upstairs" he pointed on Severus and Selene, who shivered involuntarily.
"First, we saw the skin of a snake" Severus voiced.
"And well, that just tells that Nagini's been here" Selene completed.
"And we saw the slither patterns on the stairs-"
"That is how you fell down" Lily cut him, keeping a hand on her chest, trying to feel the bruises through his shirt, making him blush.
He cleared his throat. "Selene brought her feet between mine, accidentally, and that made me fall" now, when he thought about it, he suddenly started feeling all the pain in his ribs.
Selene flushed. "I apologize for that"
"Yes, it's fine… Lily, it's fine" he took her hand away from his torso, blushing even redder.
"Mum's going to kill me, if she knows that I allowed this happening" Lily sighed.
"I'll cover for you" Severus winked.
That made Lily smirk seductively. "Well, that you can wait for" she kissed him.
Austin cleared his throat while the others chuckled. "So, I and Charm found some cruelties here too"
Charm affirmed. "Yes, we found"- she scrunched her nose- "pieces of human flesh in a cupboard"
"Ooh…" they all made interesting kinds of noises over the fact.
"And they were seven" Austin added.
"Does that hold any significance?" Lily frowned.
Shane rolled his eyes. "I didn't think I had to say this, that Gryffindors can be dumb… seven is the magical number"
"Wait. The last person other than the Aurors coming here to take Morfin away was Tom Riddle" Selene supplied.
Severus hummed. "So, it is possible he kept them. On top of that seven. Though, his psych tells me that he'd use human flesh"
"Stupid people. What is he most obsessed with? Horcruxes" Lily said casually, though it was a little smug and they all had to give her impressed looks.
"I take my saying back, Lily" Shane patted her back.
"Good"
"Now, this means he wishes to make seven horcruxes" Austin summarized.
Selene nodded. "Yes, seven. And we have destroyed, how many? The ring…"
"…The diary…" Shane remembered.
"…The diadem…" Charm prompted.
"… The cup…" Severus gave.
"Just four… we are left with three that means" Charm groaned. "Where are we going to find the other three now?"
"I believe just two" Selene guessed. "One could be his own body"
Severus blinked and then smirked. "Pregnancy hormones also bring some extra smartness, I never knew"
She glowered at him. "You know, you were better crying like a baby"
That made him fall his head in shame. "I thought I killed you" he whispered.
Selene straightened. "Not those eyes, Severus… shush up. And the way you fell down we thought you were dead"
He sniffled.
"I said not those eyes! But then, Lily felt your pulse and we knew that you aren't leaving so soon"
"Sorry"
"So" Shane said loudly, to distract them from dissolving into tears. "We have got to destroy the other two Horcruxes"
"One actually… I believe, perhaps, one of the Horcruxes is Nagini" Lily pointed out.
"Could be" Charm nodded.
"That means for now, we are left with only one horcrux" Austin said.
"Slytherin Locket" they all voiced together and then sighed.
"We need to find where that is hidden now… Merlin, how much You-Know-How likes to play this stupid game!" Charm groaned.
"We can perhaps, leave it on later and go back to our homes for now" Shane looked out of the window for the position of the sun. "It's early evening"
"Mum's going to kill us!" Lily dropped her head in her hands. "Shane, Selene, could you heal us… so, mum don't see the little injuries"
Shane and Selene slumped. "Sorry, Lily, but no, we can't fix these wounds, unless you risk it"
"No, it's fine… I'll pull my collar up" she winked in Severus's direction, who pointedly ignored her but then it dawned to him.
His eyes widened. The spell placed by Shane would have changed them to their normal self again removing all kinds of muggle or magical concealments. And so, the foundation would have been…
One of his hands clapped on his neck to hide the bruise Lily had given him just that morning, but obviously, he was too late. He looked around to catch just the knowing and teasing glimpses his friends were passing him. He gave Lily a warning look before pulling his collar up.
"So, are we going home, with that piece of shit again?" he changed the subject.
Lily smacked the back of his head. "Dare call my broomstick that again"
"I am not going on that again, Lily" he whined.
"Yes, because you are scared"
"Lily!" he shrieked, suppressing it. "I am not"
"Fine, you win"
Severus turned to Shane. "Please, could you leave me there… please, Shane"
Shane laughed. "Fine, I will… would you come too, Lily?"
She hesitated but then nodded. "Okay, it is fast, anyway…"
Severus smirked but refrained himself from saying anything.
Austin scrambled to his feet and took the pieces of his broken wand from the floor, pocketing it, that made Severus remember, another of his stupidities when he was possessed.
"I'd pay for your new wand, Austin" he said, even though that'd take all of his savings, but then the fault was his.
Austin simply smiled. "No need"
"No, please, it was my fault. I'd pay for it" he insisted.
"I am not getting a new wand, Severus"
"You are going to use a borrowed one! That is bad, Austin. I'll truly pay for a new one"
Austin kept smiling and shook his head. "Dumbledore can probably fix it. I'll see him as soon as the school starts"
"Oh…" Severus had to admit that was a good idea. "So, what excuse would you give to have broken it in the first place?"
Austin's brows furrowed. "I haven't thought of that… perhaps, my little sister broke it?"
"Come on, Austin, you don't have a younger sister… how about you got in a fight with me and in anger I broke it?" he suggested.
"I can't get your name… what if you get punished for it?"
Severus slumped. "It was my fault, wasn't it? And then if you give my name, it wouldn't be lying, so, you can say that"
"You don't have to do this to make for it"
He shook his head. "No. Dumbledore is a great wizard and from that as much as I can deduce, he would know Legilimency that we could use to get the truth. So, better say the truth"
"You sure?"
"As I could be" Severus said confidently.
"Okay, then…"
"Now, can we get home?" Selene yawned. "I hate pregnancy for this sleepiness"
"We also have to meet Dumbledore to tell him about this" Shane said, getting up and giving a hand to her to support herself up on her feet.
"And we need to get to Madam Pomphrey too" she groaned. "All of it after the school starts, because all of this apparating makes me sick"
"Yes, Selene… come on, now, you can get home by yourself, or must I come if you are so sleepy?"
"I can, Shane"
"Good, then… let's walk out of here"
And so, they did, walk out through the entire muddy and dried grass area with all the shit that had compiled there for years because of the lack of maintenance.
Shane spoke first. "Severus, Lily and Charm wait here, until I get Austin to his home"
Austin grinned. "You are taking me too! That Knight bus was awful"
"Come on, then…" he held his hand out that Austin caught and they soon disappeared from view.
"Well, bye" Selene said before vanishing away in thin air.
Shane came back and took Charm by his arm before passing from sight once more.
Severus sighed and kept waiting for Shane to come next while Lily picked her broomstick up from the floor where Severus had thrown it, earlier.
"The faster we are seventeen the faster, we'd be able to apparate on our own" Severus slouched.
"Charm and Austin are seventeen but they still aren't able to do it" Lily pointed out, resting her head on his shoulder.
He picked one of her red-haired strands and twiddled it with his fingers absentmindedly. "The test wasn't offered yet, Lils"
"Yeah…" she yawned. "I hope they do so fast… I can't wait to be a major and give the test"
"We also need to pass"
She chuckled. "I know"
"The day was tiring, wasn't it?"
"Agreed. I just want to go home and slump down on our bed"
"Our bed?" he smirked.
Lily blushed. She couldn't have slipped that out, did she? "I meant… your bed. That is where I sleep everyday"
"Hmm…" Severus kept smirking before it vanished. "And we need to get a good excuse for all these wounds that Mrs. Evans are going to fuss about"
"Mums" she rolled her eyes. "Though, you have no idea how loudly to screamed to give us all heart attacks"
"Oh…" he flushed. "I don't remember screaming… but some sort of pain"
"Yes, that is when the room filled with black smoke and you passed out… I checked for any injuries but you looked absolutely fine, so, we let you be"
"And it feels like I never rested for so long"
"But you did, Mister"
"And what did you all did for that long?" he asked.
"Uh… Got Selene in a comfortable corner… her ankle was sprained but she got a magical support spell for it, that is how she was walking so, comfortably… then, we looked at the Horcrux ring to conclude it as destroyed…"
"Then? Because this wouldn't have taken that long"
"Yeah… then, Charm and Austin went to the kitchen again… Shane sat with Selene until she was asleep and he kept whispering something in her ear, I don't know what… I was trying to check through your family ring and just kept staring at it for long… and I have no idea what did I think about for so long…"
"Crazy, aren't you?" he shook his head, chuckling.
"Whatever, Sev"
Shane came sighing then. "Charm's mum always fusses around. Sorry for being late… now, grab on my hand" he spread his hand and Lily and Severus grabbed on each of them before feeling as if they were sucked through a thing pipe, that had knocked all the air out of them.
*Page Break*
Apparation was bad. The next they were standing in front of the Evans' residence and a huge grin took on their faces. Home, after all.
"Thank you, Shane" they said, waving to Shane, who was ready to apparate to his home, at last.
"Bye" he got off their sights in thin air.
They gulped at the entrance of the house and then entered. They could simply sneak up to their bedroom without Mrs. Evans' notice. Good.
They tip-toed till the beginning of the stairs before stopping dead in tracks when they heard a voice.
"So, you two are back" it was Petunia.
They sighed in relief and turned back with an exaggerated smile on their faces. "Hi, Petunia"
She narrowed her eyes. "You both were looking nothing less than jokers when you went and now, how are they changed into perfectly fine clothing, though they are dirty"
Lily looked down on her white turtle-neck and blue jeans while Severus at his green shirt and black pants and cringed. They forgot about this.
"Magic" Lily made a bad excuse.
"You both are also scarred. Good, that mum's not home-"
"Mum's not home!" Lily squeaked. "Oh, then I am going to sleep… come on, Sev. When she comes back, tell her we are already asleep"
"Fine, go"
Lily and Severus ran upstairs to his room, and without changing their clothes- for which they weren't left with any fuel, anyway- they slumped down on the bed. They got under the covers soon.
Severus wrapped a hand around Lily and pulled her closer to his chest, kissing her hair.
They both yawned and dived into deep sleep, after a tiring day.