May 1st, 1972

Lucius and I are walking to lunch in the Great Hall, and I am telling him a story from Potions class earlier today, "So me and Lily were saying—"
"Lily and I, Severus. Wait— Lily who?" he stops, and turns to me, catching me by my arm.
"Uh, nobody! Me, her, Evan, and another girl are table partners in potions!" I say, trying to sound convincing.
"Why are you and Evan not table partners with Joseph, Clarence, John, or girls from Slytherin?" he growls, and throws me by my arm into the empty classroom to our left. As I stumble, I catch sight of Potter, Black, and Pettigrew behind us.
"We just sat down like that the first day and never moved! It's not a big deal, I promise! She just sits at our table!" I tremble, holding the arm he grabbed. I can feel it bruising.
"And this isn't the mudblood you hang around with? The one from the station at Christmas who said you were best friends?" he growls, advancing on me and grabbing my arm again.
"No! She's not! I don't hang out with people like that!" I whimper, looking anywhere but at him.
"Don't lie to me, Severus! You need to get your head on straight! You make yourself look dishonorable by hanging around her, and you make your friends look like blood traitors. Quit making stupid decisions, stop being an idiot, and think about your reputation. Think about MY reputation! You drive me crazy sometimes, you know that? I don't need to waste my time with you if you're going to hang around with riff-raff like that," he declares, and shakes me lightly.
"No, please don't be mad! I'm sorry! I'll try harder! I'll be better! I promise!"
"I hope so. I don't want to see you hanging around that girl again, do you understand me?"
As I nod my head out of fear, I wonder what would happen if I said no. I don't want to make an enemy out of Lucius, and he's nice to me when I'm good— much nicer than my own parents, so, feeling terrible, I say, "Yes, sir."
"Good, now get to class," Lucius growls, lets go of my arm, stalks out of the room, and slams the door behind him.
Sniffling, I straighten my robes, take my hair tie out, and rub my arm.
"I don't know, Snivellus, but my friends don't throw me into empty rooms and yell at me, though you probably deserved it," sneers Sirius Black, opening the door and sidling into the classroom closely followed by James Potter and Peter Pettigrew.
"You don't know what you're talking about, Black!" I sneer, getting out my wand, "Your friends are… are…"
"We're what, Snivelly?" laughs Potter, and I see his wand move before I hear him speak.
"Expelliarmus!" I cry, and his wand flies out of his hand. Quickly, I turn my wand on Black, remembering what my dad said about proving they shouldn't mess with me. I'm not too worried about Pettigrew, but I keep an eye on him as well, "You came in here for a fight, or what?! Fight me if you think you're so brave!"
As Black raises his wand, we hear the voice of Professor McGonagall, "What exactly do you boys think you are doing?!" she shouts, shoving Pettigrew out of the way and getting in front of Black, "Mr. Snape! How dare you attack your classmates?!"
Shocked, I lower my wand, feeling tears starting to well up in my eyes again at the injustice, "It wasn't my fault! I was in here talking to Lucius, and they came in and and and and—" I try my hardest to keep the whine out of my voice, but I don't succeed.
"So you thought you would provoke them to fight you? Do you think this school exists as an outlet for you to vent your anger on classmates? You need to learn to control yourself, or I will be writing to your parents to suggest they take you to St. Mungo's for an evaluation!"
Potter, Black, and Pettigrew exchange grins behind McGonagall's back as I implore, "No! Please don't write to them! I promise it was just this one time! I'll be more careful next time!"
"Detention, all four of you. I will be speaking to Professor Slughorn about this, Mr. Snape," she snaps.
"All of us?" squeaks Pettigrew, "I didn't do anything!"
"Shut up, Peter," murmurs Potter, "Should we really get detention, Professor? You heard Sniv- Snape, he was attacking us! We just came in 'cause we heard him talking to Malfoy, and we wanted to see if he was done with his potions project yet. We thought maybe he could help us!"
"That ain't even true, Professor! They came in and started makin' fun of me 'cause— 'cause Lucius was mad at me! Please, Professor, please believe me!" I beg, forgetting to fix my voice like Lucius has taught me. It's hard to remember when I'm stressed and nervous.
"All four of you," she restates, voice hard, and gaze steely, "will have detention with me tonight at five o'clock. Now, get on to the Great Hall, all of you!"
Potter, Black, and Pettigrew leave the classroom grumbling.
"It wasn't my fault, Professor, I swear! I wasn't tryin' to fight with them!" I say as I pass McGonagall.
"Detention at five, Mr. Snape," she responds, and herds me out of the classroom.

When I get to the Great Hall, I immediately sit down next to Lucius and tell him what happened. I take a deep breath as I feel tears filling up my eyes. He gives me a hug, and tells me that he and Narcissa will accompany me to my detention tonight, and pick me up when I am done.
"Are you still mad at me?" I ask timidly.
"No, of course not! I just want you to understand that your actions have consequences, and that you need to make the right choices if you want to keep my friendship. That's all," he says, smoothing my hair back into a low ponytail and securing it with one of his hair-ties.
I hurriedly wipe my eyes, and throw him a small smile, "I'm gonna go sit with my friends, okay?"
"Go on, then! I will see you in the common room before walking you to McGonagall's office!" he laughs, and lightly pushes me towards Evan, Clarence, John, and Joseph.
I see Lily waving at me from the corner of my eye, but checking behind me and seeing Lucius still watching me, I pretend like I haven't seen, and don't wave back.

The next day, when Lily and I are supposed to be studying together in the library, I notice Oliver and Rodolphus sitting nearby, so sidle up next to her and act as if I'm looking for a book, then whisper, "I can't study with you right now. Lucius' friends are there. Wait till they leave, then I'll come over."
Lily sighs, and irritably flips a page in her book.
As I walk back over to my own table, Rodolphus calls to me quietly, and I nervously walk over to him.
"Hey, kid. Why don't you sit with us today? Come and join the big boys!" he says.
"Oh, I-I-I-I—" I stutter, not sure how to respond.
Oliver grabs my arm and sits me down in the chair next to him, and sneers, "What? Are you scared?"
I shake my head, and put my book on the table.
"You wouldn't happen to have been talking to that girl just now, would you?" Rodolphus says quietly, moving around to sit on my other side.
"No!" I squeak.
"That's good. I believe Lucius said he doesn't want you spending time with her anymore, am I right?"
I nod, looking down at my knees.
"I said, am I right?"
"Yes," I whisper.
Oliver laughs quietly, and says, "No sir for Rodolphus?"
"I suppose I don't give him enough treats to be called sir. But it doesn't matter to me— I'm not the one who wanted him, anyways," Rodolphus smiles and taps the tip of my nose as if I'm a puppy that's just done something awfully cute.
Oliver chuckles, "Aww, look at those big, sad eyes! Such a cute little mutt! I bet you'd do anything Lucius told you to do, huh?"
"Of course he would. He knows what's good for him. Regardless, we're studying here tonight, and you're studying with us. It's so lame to be studying alone, don't you think?" Rodolphus says, opening his textbook. It's a book about the dark arts from the Restricted Section.
I nod, looking at his book, and mumble, "Mm hmm."
"Are you interested?" Oliver asks.
"No!" I squeak, "I just—"
"If you're good, and Lucius agrees, maybe I'll let you look at it later," Rodolphus says.
Not knowing what to say, I just look back at my book. I wish I were sitting with Lily. We'll have to find a new spot to study together, away from Lucius, his friends, and my friends. I didn't think it'd be this hard to stay friends when we got to school! I thought for sure we'd be in the same house and get to hang out all the time! At least we'll get to hang out over the summer, and next year Lucius and his friends won't be here, so it might be easier to hang out then, too. It's a bit scary to think that he won't be here next year, though. What if he forgets about me? Sometimes he scares me, but mostly he's super nice to me! I love that he hugs me, and tells me he's proud of me, and that I'm smart. I love that he pays attention to me, and gives me nice things, and helps me with my homework. I love hanging out by the fire listening to him and his friends talking in the evenings, and polishing his broom, and I love that when I fall asleep by the fire, he carries me to bed. I've never had that before. Sure, Lily's parents are nice and welcoming, but Lucius is so cool, and so powerful! Like my mum said, I'm so lucky he likes me and pays attention to me! Sighing, I refocus myself, and start taking notes on the chapter of my charms textbook my class was assigned to read.

After a couple of hours, Oliver stretches, and says, "Alright, I'm ready to head out."
"Me too!" Rodolphus yawns, "Come on, kid!"
"I still have some work to do," I mutter, hoping they'll leave so I can go hang out with Lily.
"Well, luckily for you, there's a nice bit of rug by the fire in the common room with your name on it. You can finish your homework there, then, if Lucius is alright with it, you can polish my broom," Oliver says, patting my head.
"Nah, it's my turn. He did yours last week!" Rodolphus exclaims quietly, closing my book, shoving it into my backpack, and grabbing my shoulder to steer me out of the library. As I'm led away, I glance quickly at Lily, trying to convey with just a look how sorry I am that I'm not with her right now. She looks sadly back at me, then lowers her gaze to her book.

Before Potions class the next day, Lily and I have a chance to talk to each other. Nervously, I explain that Lucius got mad that Evan and I were sitting with Gryffindors instead of with other Slytherins, and that he said we can't sit together in Potions anymore.
"Why don't you just tell him to mind his own business, and that you'll sit with whoever you want?" she sighs exasperatedly.
"'Cause he'll be mad at me! And he's Head Boy! I don't wanna get in trouble!" I exclaim, then, more quietly, I say, "Next year, though, he'll be gone, and we can sit together again."
"I guess," she shrugs, "My parents always say not to let people push you around."
"That's great. This isn't that kind of situation, though!"
"Then what kind of situation is it?" she asks, eyebrows raised.
I look at the floor. I don't know how to tell her that I'm terrified of what could happen if I disobey Lucius. He's powerful, has powerful contacts and friends, is from one of the oldest, most powerful families in Great Britain, and in general, he's really good to me. I don't want to lose that, and I definitely don't want to get on his bad side. I shrug, and mutter, "It's complicated."
"Fine. Whatever. Instead of studying in the library, do you wanna start studying somewhere else? He probably won't look behind that tapestry of the unicorn on the fourth floor!"
"That's a good idea!" I smile.
As Professor Slughorn walks into the room, Evan and I sit next to two other Slytherin girls who normally sit with a girl from Ravenclaw. Clarence, Joseph, and John have been sitting with a Slytherin girl named Morgan since the beginning of the year. Potions class is weird without Lily, but it's okay, I guess. Everything is fine.

One Friday evening, about a week after my detention, as Evan and I are doing homework in the common room, Lucius motions for me to come over to him. He and his friends are sitting at the chairs around the fire. I look inquisitively at him.
"Severus! Why don't you join us at the fire?" he calls, "You can do your homework here, and I have a proposition for you."
Sighing, I stand up and gather my books. When Evan does not do the same, I say, "Well? Come on!"
"He only wants you," he mutters.
"Yeah, but I want to hang out with you. It'll be lonely over there by myself. Come on, Evan. Pleeeease?"
He tries to hold back a smile, and picking up his books, he says, "Fine."

When we get over to the fire, Evan stands awkwardly in front of the fire, looking for an open seat. I know what to do— I hang out with Lucius and his friends by the fire all the time. I put my books on the floor and lay down on the sheepskin rug. I pull Evan's pant leg and give him a meaningful look. Getting the hint, he sets his books down as well, then he lays down next to me by the fire. I glance over to see if Lucius is okay with me bringing Evan, but he is already talking to his other friends. For a while, nobody pays attention to us, and we continue to work on our homework. When we've finished our homework, we play Hangman on some of Evan's extra parchment.
"Severus?" Lucius asks.
"Mmm?"
"Would you like to polish my broom for me? I've been so busy studying for N.E.W.T's next month that I completely forgot it needs to be done before the quidditch game tomorrow."
"Sure," I mumble, tearing my attention away from my game to look at him. He lifts a long hand and beckons to me. I get up and shuffle over to him on my knees. Why bother standing up if I'm just going to sit back down again?
He smiles, and pulls a lollipop out of his pocket. He unwraps the lollipop, and saying, "Open up!" he pops it into my mouth. Some of his friends laugh lightly. Lucius ignores them, and says, "You know where my broom and polishing kit are. You can go get them yourself, right?"
"Mm hmm!" I say through my lollipop. It's strawberries and cream— my favorite!
Oliver Jugson, who has curly, dirty-blond hair and is one of the Beaters, asks, "Lucius, would he be able to do mine tonight, too? I have a chocolate bar from Honeydukes I can give him!"
"He can if he has time, but I don't want him up too late tonight," Lucius says lazily, twirling a piece of my hair around his long fingers.
I frown, and Rodolphus chuckles.
"Don't frown at me," Lucius laughs, "You were up late last night messing around in the lab. I saw you come back and told you not to go sneaking around after hours anymore, remember?"
I nod, smiling slightly.
"Well, if we're not sure if he'll have time, then what about that one?" Oliver says, pointing at Evan.
"That's the Rosier's kid, you idiot," whispers Rodolphus, elbowing Oliver in the side.
"Oh, shit, sorry," mumbles Oliver, looking abashed, and he leans back in his chair.
After an awkward pause, Lucius ruffles my hair and says, "Well, go on then!"

I get up and run to his dorm to grab his broom and polishing kit. I get back on my knees to get them out from under his bed, but stop when I see a big book on his bedside table. It looks very old and is bound in black leather. I glance around quickly, then look closely at the cover. In faded silver, the words A Practical Guide to the Dark Arts. Intrigued, I open it up to the page Lucius has bookmarked, and start to read. There are so many curses that do so many different things! I never knew these things even existed! When I get to the bottom of the page, I suddenly remember that I'm supposed to be getting Lucius' broom and polishing kit. I know he wouldn't want me reading through his stuff, so I quickly close the book, making sure it's exactly where it was before I touched it. I grab his broom and polishing kit, run back out to the common room, and set Lucius' stuff down. Then, seeing Evan looking uncomfortable, I walk back over to Lucius. He looks at me expectantly, and raises one eyebrow.
I beckon for him to lean forward, then, pushing his hair out of the way, I whisper in his ear, "Can Evan have a lollipop, too?"
He thinks for a second, then hands me a smaller piece of candy to give to Evan.
"Thank you!" I whisper, and sit, cross-legged, back down at the fire next to Evan. I give him the candy before I get Lucius' broom polish and rag out, and he smiles gratefully at me. We finish a few games of Hangman while I work on Lucius' broom.

When I'm done, I pack everything back up very carefully, then, holding his broom out in front of me, I shuffle on my knees back over to Lucius.
"Wow, Severus, it looks great! You always do such a good job!" he exclaims, taking his broom to look over, and ruffling my hair again, "Why don't you go ahead and put this away now? Then when you get back, I'll look over your charms homework to make sure you did everything correctly."
My stomach knots up, and I look down. I'm not very good at charms, and I don't want him to see all the times I scratched out what I wrote on my homework to put what Evan wrote, and how poorly I spelled everything, "Do you have to?" I ask quietly as I stand up.
"Of course! I can't have you turning in sub-par work! Oliver? Why don't you go with him and get him your broom and polishing kit?" Lucius says.
Oliver gets up, and we head back to their dorm room. I put Lucius' stuff away as Oliver gets out his broom and polishing kit, and as we're on our way back, I stop next to Lucius and beckon to him. Smiling, he leans forward. I push his hair back, and whisper in his ear, "Can I read your book if I'm good?"
"Hmm, let me think about it, alright? I don't know if you're quite old enough for that book, but we'll see," he muses aloud, "Why don't I make you a deal? I'll let you read the first chapter this Sunday since you've been so good, but I think you should wait to read more till you're a bit older. How does that sound?"
"Thanks, Lucius!" I exclaim, and give him a big hug.
He pats my back, then shoos me off back to the fireplace to polish Oliver's broom.
"Damn, Lucius," I hear Rodolphus murmur as I walk away, "your little project's going really well for you."
"It really is," Lucius murmurs back, "And without too much effort, too."

Evan helps me polish Oliver's broom, and once we're done and I've put his stuff away, I grab Lucius' fuzzy blanket, and stop by my dorm to grab my pillow and Evan's pillow, then I make my way back to the fire. I leave my special quilt and my rabbit plushie on my bed, since I want them to stay nice and neat. It's getting late in the common room, and usually when I hang out with Lucius and his friends, I don't go to bed until Lucius tells me to. Sometimes if I fall asleep by the fire, Lucius will carry me to my bed and tuck me in before he goes to his dorm, and that makes me feel special. I put our pillows on the floor, hand Lucius my charms homework, take the bar of chocolate Oliver hands me, lie down next to Evan, and cover us both with Lucius' blanket. Evan smiles peacefully at me, and I give him half of my bar of chocolate as we start a new game of Hangman.

A little while later, Narcissa comes into the common room. I quickly get up and run over to give her a hug. She picks me up, twirls me around, quickly kisses the top of my head, then, laughing, gives me a light shove in the direction of the fireplace. I go back to my place at the fire as she goes over, sits on Lucius' lap, and gives him a kiss.
"How has your day been, love?" she asks.
"It's been wonderful, darling. Are you excited to watch the game tomorrow?" he smiles at her, and runs his hand through her hair. I can hear Rodolphus making kissing noises at them, and Evan and I giggle softly.
"Of course! Remember our bet, now! If Ravenclaw wins the cup, then you get to take me out somewhere extra nice, so you had better play well tomorrow!"
"And if we win?"
"Well, that's between us," she purrs, and kisses him again before standing up, "I'm going to take a bath, then I'm going to bed. I'll see you tomorrow morning!"
"Enjoy your bath," he says, winking at her. Macnair and Goyle whistle at them, and Evan and I cover our mouths, trying to stop the giggles from coming out.
"Oh, I will," she smiles seductively, and throws her long, thick blonde hair over her shoulder as she saunters away.
I unlace my boots and shove them off, then lay back down. Feeling tired, I close my eyes.
"Sev," Evan whispers.
"What?"
"Do you want to go to bed? I'm tired!"
"You can if you want, but I'm gonna stay here by the fire. I like listening to them talk, and the fire's warm," I yawn.
"Okay, I'll stay a little longer with you, but I don't know how you can fall asleep on the floor like this!"
"It's not that bad! You just need to get used to it is all. And we've got a rug, and blankets, and everything!"
"You're crazy, Sev. I could never get used to sleeping on the floor."
I just shrug my shoulders and snuggle into the blanket. Everything is so peaceful, and warm, and I'm full and content. I let the warmth of the fire, the scent of Lucius' blanket, the low sounds of the seventh-years talking, and Evan's deep breaths wash over me, and I feel my breathing slow as I drift off to sleep.

When I wake, I am cocooned in Lucius' blanket. He is carrying me to my bed. The lights in the common room are dim, and Evan is nowhere to be seen. I figure he must have gone to bed on his own when he couldn't fall asleep by the fire. I snuggle into Lucius' chest. The sound of his heartbeat is soothing. When he enters my dorm, all my friends are already asleep. Evan hasn't changed out of his clothes, and he's curled up on top of his covers as if he fell asleep waiting for something. Lucius opens up my covers and sets me down in bed, then puts my boots on the floor. I know I should get out of bed to change into pajamas, but I'm too tired. Lucius puts the covers over me, but doesn't take his blanket back.
"You can hang onto that tonight, Severus. Your charms homework was fine— I only had a few corrections, and we can go over those on Sunday evening. Sleep well— I expect to see you in the stands at the game tomorrow!" he whispers to me before he leaves.
"Mm hmm, I'll be there! Goodnight!" I whisper sleepily back at him. He smiles at me, then leaves. Cuddled up in his blanket and my covers, and still warm from the fire, I fall back asleep, eager to watch the quidditch game tomorrow with my friends.

The next day, Slytherin wins the game. We also win the game a couple weeks later, and the Quidditch Cup, which everybody is excited about. Exams come and go, and finally, on the morning of graduation, I'm snapped out of my dreams by a soft knock on my dormitory door.
"Mmm!" I grumble, and roll over.
The door opens, and Narcissa asks, "Severus? It's time to get up!"
Yawning, I sit up and look groggily at her, "What time is it?"
"It's 5:30! Breakfast isn't for a couple of hours, but you need to get up and take a shower! While you shower, I'm going to do my makeup, then I'll take out my rollers and fix my hair while your hair dries, and when your hair is dry I'll put some nice waves in it. Do you think I should tease mine a bit? It's not too thick, so I think it needs to have a bit of volume, don't you? You've got nice, thick hair, though. I've always thought people who have dark hair have thicker hair than people with blonde hair, and it's so unfair! Do you know what you're going to wear to graduation already, or do you want me to pick out your outfit? I'm going to wear my dress from Easter. Lucius and his parents haven't seen it yet, so I think I can get away with re-wearing it, don't you? Do you have anything that has light blue in it? Like a light blue cardigan maybe? My dress is light blue and white, and Lucius is wearing a light blue tie, and I'd just love for us all to match! It would be just darling, don't you think? Oh, and I even had my mother take me out to get my nails done yesterday to match my dress! Look!" she exclaims, leaving the door open and walking over to my bed, then sticking her perfectly manicured fingers in front of my face, "Do you think they look alright?"
"Mm hmm!" I nod, and give her a quick smile.
"I wasn't sure about the glitter on the accent nail. Do you like it?"
"Yeah! They're pretty!"
"Do you think they look good with the promise ring Lucius gave me?"
"Uh huh! And your ring is pretty, too," I say.
"Thank you so much! Of course, my engagement ring will be a diamond, but I think this is just gorgeous! Lucius said he picked aquamarine to match my eyes! Isn't that sweet? He's so thoughtful, isn't he?" she asks, looking at her ring.
I nod, "Mm hmm!"
"Anyways, you need to shower!" she exclaims, and walks back to the door.
I get up, stretch, and grab my shower stuff.
When I get to the door, Narcissa gives me a quick hug, and says, "Don't forget to wash your hair and your face, okay?"
"Okay!"
"And remember to leave your conditioner on while you wash your body! We want your hair to be nice and smooth and shiny today!"
"I know!"
"When you're done, go ahead and change into your outfit and wait in the common room for me, okay?"
"Yes, mother," I grin.
Narcissa laughs, and ruffles my hair, and sends me on my way. It should be illegal to be that perky and talkative this early in the morning.

While I shower, I wonder what all my friends are doing right now. Probably sleeping comfortably in their beds. It was lonely going to sleep alone in the dorm last night after everybody left to go home, but I'm excited for to watch the graduation ceremony! I'm not excited to see Lucius' parents, though. They're so judgemental, especially Mrs. Malfoy. She always looks at me as if I'm some sort of cockroach, or centipede, or something. I sigh, rinse the conditioner out of my hair, and dry off. I put my old sweater and shorts back on, head back to my dorm room to change, then go back out to the common room to wait for Narcissa. After a few minutes, Narcissa comes out of Lucius' dorm scowling.
"What's wrong?" I ask.
"Nobody had anything light blue that you can borrow, and Bella called me a bimbo while I was doing my makeup! Can you believe?! A bimbo! And she said I worry too much about my looks and not enough about my education, but we're girls! Obviously it's important to care about our looks! I mean, it's our husbands' jobs to worry about their education! They're the ones who will be making the money, not us! My mother always says that it's important to always look our best for our husbands, and mark my words, Bella isn't going to have a happy marriage if she doesn't start making sure she looks her best for Rodolphus! And you know, I think if Bella put more effort into her hair and makeup, then maybe she'd act less ugly, too! She's always saying mean things like that to me, and I'm sick of it! She's such a bitch!" she exclaims, spraying my hair violently with detangler and combing it out with a wide-tooth comb.
"I'm sorry she said that to you. You're not a bimbo, and you are smart, just maybe not in the way Bellatrix is. Someday she'll see that you're smart, too, don't worry," I say.
Narcissa thanks me, and scrunches my hair a few times with a towel before standing up and going to get her travel mirror. Once she's back, she works on her hair while I read for a bit and let my hair dry, and when she's done, she blows some hot air on my hair from her wand to help it finish drying and puts some waves in my hair. I think it looks kind of stupid, but I thank her anyways and tell her it looks great.

As Narcissa finishes my hair and reapplies her red lipstick, the rest of the seventh-years trickle out of their dorms. The girls have all done their hair and makeup, and the boys all somehow look taller and more intimidating than normal in their graduation robes. As Bellatrix walks by, she grabs Narcissa's lipstick out of her hand, puts it on her own lips, then tosses it back to Narcissa.
Narcissa purses her lips, and once Bellatrix has walked away, she whispers to me, "I hope that lipstick gets all over her teeth."
"What are you two whispering about?" Lucius asks from behind us.
"Nothing!" we say together.
Lucius smirks, and says, "Narcissa, you look lovely as always."
"Really? I wasn't sure about how I did my hair!" she smiles, looking up at him from under her long eyelashes and fingering her waves.
"It looks wonderful. It always does. And Severus looks much more like a Prince with waves. You did a good job."
"Thank you! That's what I was going for! I wanted to make it look natural!" Narcissa beams, and ruffles my hair lightly.
Lucius kisses her on the cheek, takes her hand, and starts walking to the door. Feeling forgotten and lonely, I follow after them forlornly.

At breakfast, I sit silently and pick at my toast while Lucius and Bellatrix talk to their friends, and Narcissa glares at Bellatrix.
"Aren't you gonna eat more than just a grapefruit?" I ask Narcissa after a little while.
"No, not this morning," she sighs, "I want to look good for photos!"
"Are you worried you'll get food on your dress or something?"
"I don't want to look fat! I've been working out and dieting all year to look this good! Why would I ruin it for some muffins?" she huffs, "That's stupid. Being fat is ugly, and no man wants an ugly wife! My mother always says that it's embarassing to not always look your best."
I shrug and look down at my own stomach, then take a piece of grapefruit from the serving dish. I don't finish my toast.

When breakfast is over, we all go out to the courtyard while the professors fix the Great Hall for graduation. After a bit, all the seventh-years' parents arrive. I look at my feet and hide behind Narcissa as the Malfoys come striding over to us. Mrs. Malfoy hugs Lucius and Mr. Malfoy shakes his hand.
While Mr. Malfoy begins asking Lucius questions, Mrs. Malfoy turns to Narcissa and says, "Well, don't you look just radiant!"
"Oh, no!" Narcissa smiles, "My hair is so flat and lifeless today!"
"No! You did a lovely job on it! It definitely has volume!"
Already tired of listening to the small-talk, I look around to see who else is here that isn't a seventh-year, but as I'm looking around, I hear Mrs. Malfoy tut, and look at her.
"Hmm, and this one's still around, is he?" she asks, looking down her nose.
I look down at my feet as Lucius responds, "Yes, Slughorn said he's been doing very well in his classes, and he always did a good job polishing our brooms before Quidditch games this year."
"Well, at least he's good for something! He seems to have grown a bit, though he still looks runty. How old is he now?"
"12," Lucius responds, "And you're right, he has grown a bit since Christmas, hasn't he?"
Mrs. Malfoy purses her lips, and looks me up and down, "Did you put those waves in his hair, Narcissa?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Narcissa responds, "Doesn't he look darling?"
"He looks much nicer with waves. More like his uncle, and less like a, well..." she waves her hand as if I am explanation enough.
I look back down at my feet.
"How are your grades, young man?" she asks.
"Good! I got A pluses in everything except Charms," I say, trying to sound happy.
"Hmm, what did you get in Charms?"
"B plus," I say embarassedly.
"But you tried your best, and that's what matters!" Narcissa says, ruffling my hair.
I look up at her gratefully, and Mr. Malfoy asks, "And you're still working ahead in Potions?"
"Yes, sir!" I exclaim, "That's my favorite subject!"
"Good. Lucius always speaks very highly of your potions."
I don't know what to say, so I glance up at Lucius and mutter, "Thank you."
Lucius smirks at me, and says, "You're very welcome."
"Lucius, dear," Narcissa smiles, putting her hand on my shoulder, "Have you told your mother and father how well Severus is doing in Potions Club? I asked Slughorn the other day, and he said Severus made the best Cure for Boils he'd ever seen from a first-year!"
"Good, good," Mr. Malfoy says, already turning back to Lucius.
Narcissa pats my back and begins speaking with Mrs. Malfoy again.
Feeling even worse somehow than I did before, I shuffle my feet in the gravel of the courtyard. I wish I were back in Cokeworth hanging out with Lily, and I hope my mum remembers to pick me up from school after graduation is over. Pretty soon, Professor McGonagall announces that it's time for the ceremony to start, and we all make our way back into the Great Hall. Before Lucius breaks off to go sit with the other seventh-years, he grabs my arm and whispers in my ear to wait for him in his dorm room after the ceremony is over, and that he has some things he needs to discuss with me. I nod, and he walks away.

After the ceremony, I slip away silently, keeping to the shadows. As I make my way back to the common room, I see Peter Pettigrew standing alone. I look around, but don't see any of his friends anywhere. Smirking, I sidle up to him. If he and his friends are going to bully me, I might as well make fun of him, too. It's not like he can do anything to me.
"Who invited you to graduation, Pettigrew?" I sneer.
He jumps, and squeaks, "My cousin!"
"Wow, that was nice of them to include you, wasn't it?" I say.
He fidgets nervously, looking down the hall.
"Normally people don't want to be seen with stupid, fat kids, but I guess here you are."
"I'm not stupid! James says I'm smart! And my mum says I'm just getting ready to go through a growth spurt!" he exclaims, flushing.
"Then you're gullible, too. I'd suggest studying more and eating less, but you're too stupid to take good advice. Honestly, I don't know why your friends hang out with you. I'd be embarassed. Anyways, have a good summer," I sneer at his red face, turn my back, and walk away.
"You're just poor trash, Snape!" he calls back at me, "And you're ugly, and the only reason you have any friends at all is because you're a suck-up!"
I halt, smirking, and turn back around, and, mockingly exclaim, "Wow! Very clever! Your pal Potter's only used those insults about a million times! Try me again once you've got something more creative, okay?"
The look on his fat, red little face almost makes up for all the times he's laughed at me while Potter and Black have jinxed me, shoved me down, and insulted me.

When I get to Lucius' dorm, I wait nervously until he finally arrives. By now, the giddy feeling I had from bullying Pettigrew has been replaced by my usual anxiety.
"Congratulations on your charms mastery and graduating and everything," I mumble, looking at my feet.
He tilts my jaw up so he can look me in the face, "What's troubling you?"
"As soon as you're gone, you're gonna forget about me, then I'll be alone and I'll never see you again 'cause you won't want me to make you cool potions or polish your broom anymore!" It all comes out in one long breath— all the fears I've been holding in since he first started paying attention to me.
"Don't be silly, Severus! I won't forget about you. You're very special, remember? And you have friends! You won't be alone!" he exclaims, gently brushing a wave out of my face, and sitting down with me on the side of his bed.
"But I'm not special! I'm weak, and stupid, and I'm a failure, and nobody likes me," I sniffle.
Lucius pulls me into a tight hug, "When will you stop listening to the voice of your father in your head and start listening to me? I already told you that you are not stupid, you are not a failure, and people do like you!" he says, stroking my hair, "What about Evan? I know you two are pretty good friends, right? And what about me? Am I not important? You know that I like you very much!"
I nod into his chest.
"You're very special, Severus. You're incredibly smart, and well-behaved, and you always try your best at everything you do. You're going to be very important and useful to us when you grow up— I know it."
"Useful to who?" I ask, pulling away and looking into his icy gray eyes.
"To whom."
"Useful to whom?"
Lucius lazily smiles at me, and strokes my hair out of my face, "Don't worry about it for now. Just keep working hard and being good. You'll see when you're older."
I sigh, and ask, "Where will you go now?"
"I will be traveling for a while, making new contacts and working for my family, as well as for the group I am joining."
"What group?"
"You'll know soon enough, but not now."
Pouting, I look up at him with my best puppy dog eyes.
"Now, Severus," he laughs, "that might work on Narcissa, but not on me! I promise, if you're good, you will know when you are older."
"When I'm back at school, will you send me pictures and letters when you travel? I wanna see the world, too!" I exclaim.
"I want to, Severus."
"I want to see the world."
"Of course! I'll make sure to send you postcards, and if I find something you'd like, I'll send it along as well. And don't forget, I spoke with your mother and I'll be picking you up on August 20th. You can spend some time at the manor, then I'll bring you to King's Cross. How does that sound?" he exclaims, beginning to tickle me.
"Stop!" I laugh, writhing around to get away from his long fingers.
Finally, after pinning my hands by my head on his mattress, Lucius purrs, "Give up?"
"Uh huh!" I giggle. When he lets me up, I pounce on him from behind, grabbing him loosely around his neck.
He flips me around and pins me by my wrists to the bed again.
I giggle nervously, "Gotcha!"
"Hmm, it appears that I got you!" he smiles, "If I let you go, will you behave?"
Smiling up at him, I nod, "Mm hmm!"
He lets go of my wrists, and pulls a piece of parchment out of his pocket, saying, "I charmed this parchment for us. We can keep in touch through it. When you write on it, it will show up on my parchment, and vice versa. Use it if there's an emergency, alright? Otherwise, just send me an owl."
"Okay. That's cool! You're really good at charms!"
"Thank you! If I wasn't, would I have gotten my charms mastery?" he asks jokingly, "Now, would you like to come down with me to say goodbye to my parents?"
"Mm hmm! Yes, Lucius," I nod, and with one last look at the dormitory we set off for the future.