IT'S CHANGED! (SNILY)

CHAPTER 41 The song.

The rest of the day went up quite smoothly. If trying to ignore the people and are successful falls under that category, that is. Severus and Lily felt uncomfortable even facing the other. They didn't know now, what to say to on another. One minute they had been kissing and cuddling and the minute everything had broken up. It was too fast for either of them to comprehend. They still wanted to with each other, but the gap was for a reason. Lily would definitely, not cover the gap until she was satisfied with what she wanted.

Though, they thought that they weren't behaving awkwardly, for anyone to notice, their friends had the sixth sense, to know that there was a certain amount of tension between them.

Severus was going around when he collided with someone, making two of his books fall from his hand. "What the- Oh, Charm?"

"Severus?" she was picking the books up but left them, when she saw him.

"Well, what are you doing here?" he looked around in the Ancient Runes corridor, the subject she wasn't interested in.

"Uh…" she looked flustered. "Nothing?"

He peaked behind and rolled his eyes. She had just been out with, well, Elias. She must have asked about some secret passages from the Marauders. "You have been with Elias, didn't you?"

Charm's eyes grew wide in alarm. "What?! No! I was just taking a walk"

"A walk in the most boring area of the castle?" he raised his eyebrow. "I am not dumb, Charm"

She let it go, and picked the books up, handing them over to him. "Where are you going?"

"Coming back from the class. Others had already left and I was there with the teacher, clearing some doubts" he answered.

"Oh… well…"

"Do you have something specific to say, Charm? Otherwise, don't waste my time" he snarled.

Charm frowned and then looked at the floor contently. She was correct. Something was wrong. Otherwise, the way she had seen him in the Potion class room, it was evident. He seemed really, really out of character… and even bitter than he was before…

*Page Break*

The Potions Class room.

Severus sighed. The first time he hated the class so damn much. Not because of Slughorn's stupidity or not acknowledging his brilliance. No! It was because he had to sit with Lily. He hadn't ever felt so bad about it… but when he thought about the thing, he couldn't keep his anger at bay. He didn't know why was he feeling it, he just was.

He groaned. The only seat left for him was the one near Lily. Everyone must have assumed that he was going to be her partner for the class as always, but then, they didn't know what had happened its previous day, between them.

He grudgingly went and took his seat beside her, without even sparing a glance to her. His sudden appearance would have shocked her as, she had turned to him before looking in the front again.

No, they had to make a potion together too. His life was hell.

"My dear students" Slughorn addressed everyone present in the classroom, genially. "Now, I hope you had a good night's sleep, didn't you?"

Not a very enthusiastic answer followed his question. He had actually expected the sixth-years to say that they slept well. Which student would have? It was the sixth-year! Didn't he get that?!

Slughorn laughed at his own stupid joke. "Well, I see many of you didn't. I understand. Exam pressure and the excitement for the tournament"-

Severus hoped to everything that he doesn't ask a question to him about the Triwizard Tournament, or he would snarl at him like a freaking monster. To his relief he just got a pointed look from him, but no, questions.

- "So, to give a rest to that we'll be making the Dreamless-sleep potion for today" Slughorn smiled. "The preparation is on the board, and the instructions are easy. The techniques that are used for this potion are already taught to you. So, let's see who was paying attention to the last class. Hmm?"

Severus sneered. Nothing was as fun as Slughorn made it look. He went to gather the things from the cupboard, when again he was met by the person he didn't want to. He actually wasn't in the mood to see any human being.

"Hey, Severus" It was Sirius Black. He was going to annoy him again.

"To the point, Black!" he snarled.

Sirius blinked. Hadn't they been friends? They were even on the first-name basis. "What has gotten you so angered? The tournament's stress?"

Severus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Yes, the tournament's stress" he said through clenched teeth.

Sirius shrugged. "Well, James doesn't seem so stressed by-"

"AND I AM NOT JAMES POTTER, BLACK" he yelled in frustration, before noticing that his conversation was no longer private, as the entire class was staring with a weird look at them.

"Any problems, Mr. Snape, Mr. Black?" Slughorn asked from the front of the class.

"No, sir!" Sirius responded, while Severus set into his work of getting the ingredients again. Taking them, he left the place to his desk, giving one last glare to Sirius.

He almost threw the ingredients on the table before closing and taking a deep breath at the sniffle he heard from his side. Lily had no right to cry on anything! She was the one to start the entire breaking up process. Now, what was the point of showing off that she was feeling miserable. Pretending that it was all because of him!

They did the work in some silence and Severus cutting the roots aggressively, until a tear ran down Lily's eye. She hurriedly brushed it off, lest anyone notice it. But the observance of Severus didn't fail at that point. He had obviously seen it.

He stirred the simmering liquid in the cauldron, kept in front of him thrice before scribbling something in his textbook and saying with a voice devoid of any emotion and his eyes holding nothing but a blank look. "I don't believe that the salt water would help the potion in any sense"

The voice felt so cold that it made more tears slip down her eyes, but he didn't care. He kept scribbling in his textbook in his same spidery writing that had spread through the entire book.

"Sev…" Lily breathed, her voice cracking as she held on Severus' wrist.

He ignored her at once and freed his hand from her hold, raising it. "Excuse me, Professor Slughorn"

Slughorn turned to see who called, when his eyes landed on Severus. "Yes, my boy?" he smiled.

"I believe the potion is completed, sir"

At the statement the entire class turned to him, almost impressed and totally jealous, who had started making the potion, for the second or the third time, as they had ruined their initial tries.

"Let me check it then, Severus…" Slughorn walked to their bench and smiled at the potion. "The perfect color, purple… then, I expect nothing less from you two. Excellent!" he patted Lily and Severus on the back before frowning at her.

"Is something wrong, Lily?"

Lily looked up at her before swallowing and smiling softly. "No, sir… just that I squeezed some of the valerian juice in my eye"

Severus sneered mentally. Why couldn't she have just said that she'd been crying? That too because of him. That wouldn't have taken a lot of energy in pretending, because who wouldn't have believed perfect Lily Evans? He scoffed.

"Oh, that is completely harmless, but might cause some irritation at first" Slughorn turned to Severus. "You could take her to the infirmary for the curing potion for irritation, Severus… you both have completed the assignment too"

Severus sat up straightener and said in the same cold voice. "You just said it is completely harmless, sir. I believe she'd be fine a while after"

"As you wish, my boy… don't touch your eye, though, Miss Evans" Slughorn warned before smiling at the two of them and leaving.

Severus looked at Lily, wondering had she actually squeezed Valerian juice in her eye? Because then, she was the one to cutting that fruit. Were her eyes actually hurting? Should he had taken her to the infirmary? Damn! He was such a jerk.

He turned her eyes immediately to the front as Lily turned to him. He took began scribbling in his book again, about the new modification he was trying to make in one of his spells, when after a while Slughorn addressed him again.

"Mr. Snape?"

He looked up. "Yes, sir?"

"Please, fill the potion you both have made in the vials, it would have cooled down, by now. The potion is perfect, so, it could be taken to the infirmary"

"Sure, sir"

Severus picked the vials from the corner of his table and was about to give them Lily, as she brought her hands towards himself, but he diverted them and kept the vials on the table. How dependent were they on each other for everything? Even for filling some small vials.

"I'll do it myself, the splash can hurt your eye more" he stated passively, without looking at her.

"My eyes aren't hurting, and you know that" Lily said slowly.

"Well, that is what you told Slughorn, better heed with the lie" he began pouring the potion in the vials, without her help. He wouldn't run behind her anymore, that wasn't worth anything. He could live by himself.

"Sev-"

"Better not call me that"

Lily closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She'd start crying in between of the class, if he kept on talking like that. She had never been on the receiving end of his sharp tongue, before. She had seen him being like this to others, but never to her. And so, now she was feeling how hurting he was being. "Severus, can we please talk"

Severus snorted. "No!"

"Sev-erus, just listen to me-"

"I don't want to, nor do I need to" he said clearly.

Lily opened her mouth to say further, but paused as the bell for the ending of the class rang. She sighed and looked at Severus once more, who had already hung his bag on his shoulder and was picking up the vials to place them on the back table.

"I can at least keep them there" she offered.

"No need" he pronounced and left the desk, leaving her miserable with her thoughts again. She had started questioning her decision now. He was seeming extremely affected by what she had said and done. What if they actually parted ways totally? She didn't want to leave him. He could even start seeing other girls.

Lily inhaled, sharply. She couldn't start thinking about all of that now. She had to remain stoic until she gets what she wished for. She hoped at least.

*Page Break*

… she was brought out of her thoughts when she heard a grumble. She turned to her side, realizing that Severus was still walking on her side and waiting for an answer. She decided to dump the subtlety approach and take the direct one for once.

"You-You…" she hesitated, clearing her throat. It wasn't very easy to ask Severus this question, when she knew that he wouldn't be answering easily.

"Come. To. The. Point. Charm!" Severus emphasized on each word, gritting his teeth. He hoped to reach the end of the corridor soon.

"YouhadafightwithLily?" Charm rushed, almost intimidated by his entire persona. But he had heard each word, she had said.

His face sharply turned to her, before he began walking faster than her pace. She had to run to catch up with him.

"Severus, wait! I didn't mean to upset you, but-"

"BUT WHAT, CHARM?!" he yelled without actually raising his voice, his eyes wide in rage, making Charm jump. "Want to give me some tips on how to become a better person? Then, don't waste your time because I can't and most probably, will never! Leave. Me. Alone!" he hissed before walking at a high speed.

Charm didn't follow him this time. She knew he'd like to be alone in such a vulnerable state. She sighed and changed her direction to the different corridor, without noticing where she was going. She kept looking at her feet, thinking about Severus, when she walked into someone.

"I am sor- Austin?"

It was Austin. He scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, wasn't paying attention"

She waved it off, fully well, knowing that it was herself, not watching the way she was walking. But then, who explained that to a Hufflepuff, who'd always be ready to apologize, even if they think that only a little part of the event was their fault.

"It's okay… where have you been, by the way?" Charm asked casually.

He shrugged. "Was just coming from the Astronomy"

She groaned. "I have double Astronomy tomorrow… I am bad at that"

"Rich to accept that you- a Slytherin- is bad at something" he snickered, gaining a smack on the arm by Charm, who rolled her eyes. "Severus, could help you with that… he had read about the part we are doing right now, earlier in a book"

She sighed. "Well, Severus, perhaps, wouldn't be talking to me for a while"

"With you too? What happened?"

Charm frowned. "Me too? He isn't talking to you either?"

"Well, for now, he wouldn't want to talk to any human… he and Lily had a fight" he slumped, feeling sad for them.

She raised her eyes. "And he told you that?"

He shook his head. "No. We have our Astronomy class with the Gryffindors, so, Lily…"

"Lily would have said!" she prompted. "Why are only the Slytherins so difficult?"

"The second thing you accepted today. Is there something in the air?"

"Shut up with the nonsense, Austin! What happened that Lily told you?"

"Well…" and he began.

*Page Break*

They all sat on their respected seats, waiting for the class to begin. They were trying to understand the language written in the textbook, that they knew, wouldn't make any sense until the professor comes and makes them write in actual English. Yes, the words were English but they still were way difficult. All the constellations and stars… they all groaned… Why did they even decide to take this subject?

Lily sat in a corner, away from the prying eyes of everyone. The potions class couldn't have gone worse than that. She was unsettled by the entire ordeal. The decision she had made had certainly, not being taken the same way as she had intended to, by Severus.

Only if he gave her another chance to explain. But then that seemed like a huge luxury now. She sniffled. He seemed hurt. And because of her again.

"Hey, Lily!" a cheerful voice from her side came and she put on a smile instantly. That was Austin.

"Hi, Austin… you are a little late"

He blushed, rubbing the back of his head and taking seat beside her. "Umm, yeah… well, you know, Marlene"

"Sure, I do" she forced a laugh. "Must have been extra enthusiastic"

Austin flushed further red. "Well…" he frowned as he looked at her and suddenly changed the topic. "Your eyes are fine, now? I heard you saying that, some Valerian juice went into them"

She looked away. "Yeah, I am fine. It was nothing"

He nodded. "Your eyes look a little red, though"

She forced a smile and faced him again. "A little perhaps… but I don't feel any irritation"

"Hmm. I didn't know that Valerian juice can even cause swelled eyes…" Austin narrowed his eyes.

"Ah… Austin…"

"… and chapped and red cheeks…"

Lily closed her mouth and kept staring at him.

"… and hoarse voice…"

She closed her eyes and turned to face the table, keeping her tightly intertwined fingers on the surface.

"Don't those seem like the signs of something else?" he raised his eyebrow.

"What do you want to hear, Austin? Come straight" she said, in an even voice.

"Come straight? Severus is rubbing off you, isn't he?" he intended to cause the pain by the statement.

She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, as if to deal with physical agony and her intertwined fingers tightened their grasp, until the knuckles of both of her hands turned white.

"Well, sure we have been friends for almost nine years" she dipped her head further down, making her hair fallen on either side of her face, obstructing her vision of the out.

"Deal with it, Lily" Austin stated, bundling her hair off her face and throwing them at the back of her neck.

Lily turned to him. "What do you know?"

"That is something is going on between you and Mr. Who-looks-adorable-when-blushes-and-monstrous-when-snarls" he said with a chuckle.

She chuckled too. "Did he say something to you? You know, he does that when he doesn't know what to do with himself"

"I do, and I am not even a bit offended by the hurtful words that he could throw… though, they are quite brilliantly piercing"

"Slytherins has that, Austin, we have to deal with it" she patted his arm, smiling genuinely this time.

"Exactly, my point!" he prompted. "Deal with it. Don't hide"

She shook her head. "I am not. It's just that he took something I said the wrong way"

"Then talk to him, he wouldn't deny your offer"

Lily smiled sadly, looking into her lap. "Well, he doesn't want to… in fact, he said he didn't need to"

"Snarky! Just insist and make him hear… that is what you can do" Austin shrugged.

"I hope he does listen, but it isn't that easy"

"I totally agree" he chuckled, as they both turned to their front to pay attention what the professor was saying. They hadn't even seen her coming in, due to their talk.

*Page Break*

"… so, that is what happened" he completed.

Charm was rubbing her wrist in thought. At least she now, knew that it was all a misunderstanding. She could help with clearing it all up. Severus and Lily had always seemed to have been together that now, when they had fallen apart, everything seemed to shatter.

"If we can help with something?" she sighed.

Austin shrugged. "They have to talk, Charm… if it was because of me, I would have apologized by now"

She rolled her eyes, with a huff. "I am aware… but they aren't a sweet Hufflepuff and a quidditch-obsessed Gryffindor. They are the always-brooding Slytherin and the not-so-eloquent Gryffindor"

"I know… Slytherin and Gryffindors always were at so much odds that their relationship had been unique… and surreal"

"Indeed. So, now, according to that, to Lily's offer, Severus would say- No, don't want to or rather don't need to" Charm tried to impersonate Severus' cold voice.

"And Lily would stop at that… because Severus would walk away. But what if she runs and grabs his wrist" Austin grabbed Charm's wrist in impersonation of Lily.

She nodded. "Good idea. And Severus would stop but wouldn't look at her and say- Leave me alone, Lily"

"And then Lily would come and stand in front of him…" he turned to Charm's front.

She lifted her chin and looked away. "He'd most probably do this… and free his wrist from her hold" she jerked her hand free.

"But then, what if Lily becomes full of her Gryffindor self and goes and kisses him"

Charm stepped a step backwards with wide eyes. "We aren't doing that"

"Of course, not" he took an unconscious step back too.

"But the idea is good from the perspective of a Gryffindor… but as much as I know Severus, he would break apart and run down the corridor, leaving her miserable again"

Austin groaned. "Couldn't he just listen to her once? What's the loss?"

"How would he keep up with the stubbornness, then? He wouldn't listen, I can give in written" she stomped her feet to show her confidence.

"Both of them are stupid"

"I am in total agreement. But don't go giving advice to Severus, he is already under the delusion that everyone would be on Lily's side… without even knowing the story" Charm warned.

"Yes…"

Another familiar male voice caught their pace. "You both doesn't know the perfect plans"

Austin and Charm turned around. Shane… and Selene.

"They both are idiots, better not to make them understand. They won't understand… especially Severus" Selene rolled her eyes, approaching them.

"You both are plotting behind their backs" Charm narrowed her eyes, though they seemed impressed.

"What do you think?" Shane winked. "It isn't even difficult"

"I believe we mustn't force them, though. Making them understand is better" Austin said, shrugging making the others roll their eyes.

"Come on, Austin, you are saying as if they'd listen" Selene said in a bored tone. "Again, especially Severus"

"You have a plan?" Charm asked, folding her arms on her chest.

"Of course, what do you expect from me?" Shane rolled his eyes.

"Cool, then, what is it?" Austin looked at him hoping for a great plot.

"Well…" and the plan began.

The entire thing wasn't even a little bit difficult; Shane had just used the perfect timing for the event to take place. But then, he wasn't a Ravenclaw for nothing. What was left was to make them agree. Lily wouldn't show much tantrums but nothing could have been said for Severus.

They all groaned. Slytherins were difficult… especially Severus, Selene added mentally.

*Page Break*

He was sitting on his bed, with his legs hanging down and his heels banging lightly on his trunk that was kept under the bed, as he rocked them. He was trying to make a decision for hours. He looked at the side watch and frowned. It had seemed like hours. He sighed and tried to observe the dormitory. He could only hear his dorm mates' even sleeping breaths, and the whooshing, chilly breezes from out of the window or perhaps, the patters of rain too. The weather sure was cold.

He concluded that everyone was asleep and decided to take his golden egg downstairs, in the common room again. He slid down from his bed and crouched to get the egg out of his trunk.

He opened the curtains from around his four-poster bed and stealthily walked out, closing them behind himself. His eyes turned to the corner of the room and his heart skipped a few beats, his breath seemed to have frozen in his lungs. An unmoving figure, peeking its shoulders out of the curtains of someone else's bed, had two unusually bright cat-like blazing eyes, that scared him shitless.

"Breathe" the unmoving figure in the corner of the room, said.

And Severus sucked in a deep breath. "W-What? –I mean… W-Who-?" he stuttered at the shining eyes in the dark.

"Andrew Afroze, Severus" the figure stepped off the bed and soon there was light in the room. It was actually Andrew Afroze, holding his wand in his hand. Severus exhaled in relief and then turned stunning red realizing that the figure that scared him so much was just one of his dorm mates.

"I-I… you are still up?" Severus frowned, trying to brush off his embarrassment.

Afroze shrugged. "Nothing, just listening to some music"

"Music? You aren't a muggle-born or a half-blood. How do you have the electronic?" he asked, disbelieving. A Pureblood casually listening to music was quite uncommon, even though, he was an ally of the light.

Afroze chuckled and waved his wand, forming a gentle and relaxing music in the air with some fresh, grassy smells spreading in the room. "We have spells for that, just not discovered yet"

"Wow!" he took the deep breath, suddenly wanting to curl up in his bed, before realizing that he had work to do. "Who told you about this?"

Afroze frowned for a second before blinking. "Oh, yeah… Crouch did"

"Crouch?" Severus raised his eyebrow. "I never knew he was interested"

Afroze looked away, as if hiding something. "Oh, he is interested in plenty more than you'd realize"

"What do you mean?" he asked carefully, in the aim to get some information out.

Afroze shook his head. "Never mind that, he has anyway, started remaining out of his head a little"

"I have noticed… he seems a bit weird to me" Severus mentioned, wondering what reaction would he get.

But Afroze just nodded, casually, showing that his knowledge about the topic's limit was reached. "Perhaps… where are you going, though?"

"Ah…" Severus thrusted his egg to his front. "Just going to get downstairs… search for a hint, the second task isn't very far away"

Afroze hummed before prompting. "Though, don't sit on the couch with this… get a corner or something"

Severus' eyebrows furrowed. "Why? I don't believe the egg leaves the sound behind"

Afroze chuckled. "Of course, not. But it leaves gold flakes on it that are really difficult to get off. Even the house-elves failed in the task"

"Oh, I didn't know… very well, I wouldn't bring it to that place" Severus began to walk towards the door when he got called again.

"And, Severus?"

He turned around. "Yes?"

"Get a cloak, at least. It is February, must be cold downstairs" Afroze suggested before rolling his eyes and getting into his bed once more.

Severus considered it for a second before finally deciding of getting the cloak. The fire wouldn't be that potent. So, he opened his trunk again and pulled out his black cloak, under which his eyes drew to the silvery material. The invisibility cloak. Severus shrugged and folded that too, keeping it in one of his black-cloak pockets before throwing it on his shoulders and heading out once more. He didn't know why was he taking it. Just an instinct asked him to and he heeded to it.

He looked around the common room before deciding to take the place on the window. He hopped over the alcove, adjusting himself comfortably and turning to the window. He sighed. The black lake that was the view from there looked dark and black at that point of the night. He couldn't see a single thing through it.

He took his wand out and waved it in the air, placing the Muffliato charm on himself and as he was sitting too close to the window, half of the circular spell was even enforced in the lake. He thought for a second on moving somewhere else but then, who would be disturbed by the banshee's screeching sound in the lake? The vicious creatures that lived there? They probably deserved it for being so vile.

Severus turned to the egg and pointed his wand on it. He whispered something under his breath creating three different shields around it. Perfect. He had written about Muffliato's modification in the potion class and it worked. He patted his back mentally. He did it even under emotional stress and that was saying something.

He slowly dug his fingers in its grooves and twisted the top to open it. He closed his eyes shut, tightly, ready to endure any kind of unpleasant noise, but it never came. He smiled. The first thing that happened correctly in the day.

He looked into the egg but it seemed totally empty. Totally. He scoffed. What the fuck?! What was he supposed to do with an empty shell? He couldn't get a single idea.

He took a deep breath and lifted one of the shields from around the egg, letting the two still remain around it to obstruct most of the voice. So, now, he was able to hear a faint screech from the egg. He groaned. It was still a bloody screech! At least not giving him headaches.

He looked around again and inside it and again found nothing. He sighed and lifted the second shield, letting the last one retain the loud noise, making him hear a measurable and bearable screech.

He was about to flip the egg up for another round of inspection, when a loud bang on the window made him jump. Was an insane creature from there trying to eat him? He flicked his wand, producing light. He brought it close to the window, to peek inside the lake, for its inhabitants, when he his heart skipped beats for the second time in a day.

A pair of vibrant yellow eyes were staring back at him. Severus closed his eyes and took a breath in to finally calm himself. He moved his wands tip to see the greyish face of the creature. He gasped. It was a Mer-person. He could even see the sharp yellow teeth, the flapping fish tail at the end of its body and the skinny hands pressed on the window from the other side.

Severus' eyes widened. He had never seen a real Mer-person, other than just the moving pictures in the books. They were intriguing… and ugly. He made a face. He had expected them to be at least better looking than… that.

He was about to move his wand to the Mer-person's chest, to know if it was a maid or a man, before he caught himself and scoffed, flushing red. He wouldn't do that. How perverting! Who cared if the Mer-person was a maid or a man? It was a creature, that he had to find out, why was here? Never before had a Mer-person travelled till this distance upwards. Why would it?

Severus followed its yellow eyes that hadn't budged from its position yet, even after him moving the wand from an angle to another. They were looking at the -he frowned- the egg. What was so special in that?

He was staring at the egg, searching for a reason when he also began hearing a faint whisper from the side of the window. He squinted in the dim light of the lake, even after his wand's light, the lake was barely visible.

He leaned his ear on the window to hear the voice properly. It felt like a sound… an actually pleasant one. It was something like…

… it is shattered now…
… reaching the end somehow…
… waits are long…
… questions are if I belong…
… paths wrong and right…
… hope it gets again some bright…

Severus moved his ear away from the window, sniffling and wiping the tears that had escaped his eyes. He couldn't have taken more. He wasn't able to catch the entire lyrics but the lines he followed were so beautiful that it had touched his heart, as if an angel was singing. He had never been affected by any then why by this? And what was the song?

He placed the egg on the surface of the alcove and got up from there. He had to get to the library to get a book on them now. He didn't know why the urgency took over him like that, but he had to get that.

He picked up his wand and flicked it to blow off the light. The screech of the egg wasn't so high to wake someone up and so, it was safe for him to leave it there.

Deciding that he left the confines of the Slytherin common room.