Change The Fate: The Fallen Angel Arise

By TheUndefeatable

Disclaimer: Do I look like J. K. Rowling to you? No? Ok, its settled then!

Rate: Rated T just to be safe

Summary: There is always a light in the middle of darkness, you just must be brave enough to see it and to embrace it! Then, you will see that you don't need to take the burden all by yourself; you see that you are not alone. A sequel to 'Face The World Alone: Tale Of A Fallen Angel'

Warning: Mention of child abuse and attempt suicide, some violence and bloodshed in later chapters, but not any thing explicit! Don't like it, don't read it!

A/N: Life is really hectic, so I don't know when I'll manage to update! I try my best to update soon, but no promise! Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, favorited, and alerted. An especial thanks to Alethea27 for her help.

Edited November 2018.

"So let's go somewhere more comfortable and …private" Dumbledore suggested while turning back to the way they had come and went towards nearest staircase.

Lily followed him, lost in her thoughts. She couldn't imagine what the headmaster wanted to talk about with her. All possible scenarios went through her mind and by the time she realized it; they were in front of gargoyle which jumped aside without any word being exchanged.

Chapter 2: Finding common ground

Lily felt nervous as she followed the headmaster up the stairs and into his office. Dumbledore sat in his chair and Lily after closing the door joined him, sitting in a chair in front of the headmaster's desk. There was silence as Dumbledore gazed intensely at Lily, which made her squirm in her seat. Then abruptly he asked, "May I ask what you were doing in the Hospital Wing at this hour?"

"I ...um …I went to Hospital Wing to deliver Potter his food as his friend asked me!" She blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. It wasn't the complete truth, but it wasn't far from it either. Sirius and Remus were speaking aloud about James' favorite food and how bad that they can't deliver it to him. Apparently, Sirius and Peter were in detention with Filch, Remus had prefect duty and had to report to McGonagall. They also talked aloud about how good it would have been if one of their housemates did it. They were throwing side glances at her all the while to see her reaction when they thought she was not looking. It was obvious that they wanted her to do it, but in the end, it was her decision to do it. However, she won't admit that to herself let alone the headmaster even if her life depended on it.

"It was kind of you to do that," the headmaster's voice startled her and brought her out of her musing.

"About what happened in Hospital Wing …"

"I told you, Headmaster, it just slipped …" Lily started to say, but seeing Dumbledore's raised hand, her voice trailed off.

"As I've already said, it is alright, but I wanted to ask what do you think about what you saw?" At Lily's puzzled look he elaborated "What I mean is that considering your comment and yes, I know it was unintentional, but I want to know what you think might have happened to Severus?"

"It was clear that he had brought it upon himself. He and his friends were probably up to no good, fought a duel, and ended up like this," she said in a 'matter of fact' tone in a low voice, but both she and Dumbledore noticed the doubt that marred her tone.

"So you think Severus is one the supporters of the man who calls himself Lord Voldemort?"

Lily suppressed a shudder at the name. She was getting confused as she didn't understand where the headmaster was going with that line of questioning, but she answered them nonetheless.

"Of course he is! Everyone say that he is and it is really obvious. He is the member of that group of Slytherins who always hurt and mock other students, especially the younger ones!"

"Everyone?" Dumbledore nodded absentmindedly and asked, "Do you think the same thing? I've heard that you knew him from before Hogwarts and you were his friend, but the members of this group don't seem friendly to Muggleborns. How is it possible for him to befriend people who are not good to his friend from before Hogwarts?"

"Yes, I know him from before, but he is not my friend anymore"

"May I ask why?"

"He changed. He wasn't the same person when he started to hang out with the other Slytherins. My friends have told me for years that I should not continue our friendship, but I didn't listen. However, in the end they were right and I could only make excuses for him so much. I found out my friends were right the hard way." Lily said with mixed emotion filling her voice. Her head was bowed, her eyes were distant, and she was playing with edge of her robes.

"What changed your mind? What was the hard way that you found out Severus is one of them?"

"He insulted me," Lily said simply and sharply, any sympathy that was in her voice a moment ago, evaporated.

If this wasn't what Dumbledore expected, he showed no sign of surprise. "May I ask you how he insulted you?" Dumbledore inquired.

Lily shook her head a little and said "It doesn't matter! As I said it was not the only obstacle between us. Our ways were different from the start and he cared about his Slytherins friends more than he cared about our friendship! I was a fool and made excuses for years to my friends to remain friends with him, but he didn't care enough to keep our friendship!"

'I beg to differ. I at least know that he cared enough for your friendship that it was the only thing that gave him motivation to live after his mother death. He cared enough that after losing you, he tried to take his own life,' Dumbledore thought. 'And from the way you are talking, my girl, I think you had decided long ago to sacrifice your friendship with Severus for your friends in your house. I know as a matter of fact that the Slytherins tried to discourage Severus from befriending people with less blood status and now Gryffindors are trying to do the same, but with different reasoning. It is like everyone was trying to separate these two. Was this just house rivalry? If so then it was getting out of hand. A voice in the back of Albus' mind started to speak. 'It is your fault –' but before the voice managed to finish the sentence, Albus pushed it and all the other thoughts behind his shield to process later. 'I have a conversation to finish,' he reminded himself. Now, thinking of it, he decided it would be better if they continued their conversation at another time. It was getting late and Lily Evans didn't seem to be the type to be convinced anytime soon.

"That will be all Miss Evans. I have to ask you to not tell anyone of what you saw in the Hospital Wing or the talk we had."

Lily couldn't understand what was going on. Dumbledore brought her to his office, interrogated her, and now is dismissing her. She stood up while trying to make sense of her talk with the headmaster and what she saw in the hospital wing when Dumbledore's last request tugged her mind to attention. She narrowed her eyes and looked at Dumbledore. What did he have in his mind? Doesn't he want to punish Snape and his friends? It was not like they said anything important or that she saw anything special in the hospital wing anyway. Why did Dumbledore ask her to remain silent? What was he playing at? Why would Dumbledore want to cover for them, especially after what they had done to others? Mary for example.

Lily realized she'd spoken the last question aloud when she saw the change to Dumbledore's demeanor. Then with Gryffindor courage which was nonexistent a second before she continued, "I mean …you are among people who fight Death Eaters! Why are you supporting them?" She asked.

"I assure you Miss. Evans that I'm not covering for anyone's actions. What happened to Severus has nothing to do with what you think has happened, namely Death Eaters and their activities." Dumbledore said calmly, his voice firm unlike the gentle one he was speaking in before.

"Then what happened to him?" Asked Lily with a look of doubt or was that fear on her face, while her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Dumbledore looked at her for several second then said "It is late; you should go back to your dormitory and sleep"

"What? You really think I can sleep with this situation? I won't be able to sleep till I know what happened to him!" Her voice raised an octave at the end of her speech."

Dumbledore sighed. "Even if we don't consider the hour, I'm not sure how much I can tell you as it is a confidential matter. I suggest you to go back to your dormitory and ask Severus when he awakens."

"I can't wait till morning, and even if I could; I still couldn't ask him as we are not on speaking terms anymore!" Lily said.

"You mean the time he insulted you was the last time you spoke?" Dumbledore asked with a look that made Lily think he already knew the answer.

"Yes ...no, he came to Gryffindor tower and we spoke. He apologized and explained. I told him that I can't be his friend anymore and he went." Lily felt bad since it was the second time she hadn't told the truth. However, with the way Dumbledore was looking at her, she just couldn't say that they argued that night.

"I see," was all Dumbledore said. Lily was a really bad liar, Dumbledore found that out then and there, but he decided to not comment on it or the fact that she lied to his face.

Lily wanted to leave as soon as possible, but she admitted that her curiosity was peaked. She was curious about Dumbledore's strange behavior and questions about what had really happened to Severus. She told herself again and again that she didn't care and it was just curiosity why she wanted to know about Severus' predicament. If Severus' condition had nothing to do with his Death Eaters friends then what? Suddenly a thought came to her mind.

"Did Marauders do that to him? Is that why they are in detention? Or did Severus go into Forbidden Forest and forest's creatures attacked him? Or Perhaps …"

Albus sighed and raised his hand to silence the student in front of him. He knew then and there that this girl wouldn't go without having answers and even if he denied her the answers she sought then she'll start speculating about the situation and by the look of it, they are getting wilder and stranger. He wanted to tell her, but he had to be careful about his words. He needed to buy Lily's sympathy towards Severus, but he also needed to earn the trust of Severus as well for his plan to work. He knew that Severus didn't trust him – he really hadn't given him any reason to do so. If Severus' secret reached unwanted ears then he would never trust Dumbledore. Therefore, he had to be careful how much he is going to tell her and how he is doing so. More importantly, he had to make sure that Lily won't spill one word of this to anyone, regardless of her reaction to the news or her decision on whether to reconcile with Severus or not. With that in mind Dumbledore started to speak. "No, what put Severus in this predicament happened outside of Hogwarts." When he saw that she was going to ask more question, he continued. "No, Severus didn't exit school ground because he was not here in the first place when it happened!" He said cryptically.

"What do you mean?" Lily asked confused.

"You said you knew Severus from before school. What do you know from his home life?"

"Excuse me professor, but what does this have to do with what happened to Severus?"

"We'll cover that subject as well, but now if you don't mind answering my questions. What do you know of his home life?"

"Well ...his father worked in the Mills and his mother was mostly home. Their financial condition was not good. Um ...I have heard rumors that his father drank and that the sounds of arguing, shouting and screaming can be heard from their house."

"Has no one called local authorities?" Dumbledore asked.

"Spinner's End is a creepy area. It is normal to hear such thing from the houses there."

"What had Severus told you?" Dumbledore asked already having a good idea of what the answer would be.

"Um ...Not much, he didn't like to speak of his home. He said that his parents usually argue and that sometimes he's not permitted to go to park and play and had to stay home to help his mother. He said his father doesn't like magic or anything, much. He never told me his address; he always insisted that we should meet at the park near our homes. He told me to wait for him for half an hour and if he didn't came by that time I should go back because it is one of his indoors days. That's all I know. Now can you tell me what this has to do with anything or why you just asked questions from the moment we came into your office and what really happened to Severus?" Lily told him everything she knew. She was tired of all of these questions and Dumbledore talking in riddles and beating around the bush. She didn't understand what he is hiding or why or the reason behind so many questions!

Dumbledore sighed. 'So he hadn't even told his best friend! And here he had expected Severus to go to an adult for help! His explanations were wonderful, half truths that their validity can't be investigated. His parent arguing and him staying indoor to help his mother.

"I'm sorry about questions, but we are getting there. Did Severus tell you about his father ever hurting him?"

Lily narrowed her eyes "I once asked him if his father hurt him. He said that whenever his father want to hurt him, his mother protected him and that they usually argued after such occasion. Are you trying to tell me that Severus' father did that to him?" She asked incredulously.

"Yes ...today we found out that Severus hadn't come to Hogwarts this year without any prior notification. Professor McGonagall and I investigated and found him in his home in the condition you saw him."

Lily's eyes were as wide as a saucer. "His father?" She muttered under her breath. "But what about his mother? Didn't she do anything? Why did it take one month for someone to notice that Severus hadn't come to school?" She asked her voice rising as she went on.

Dumbledore knew he shouldn't be surprised that Severus hadn't told her, but he was. "His mother passed away near the end of last term. He didn't tell you, I take it?"

Lily's legs became shaky and she sat down on her chair again. "No, he didn't," she murmured. Whatever reasons she thought had been behind Severus' condition, weren't true! 'Oh, it must have been very hard for Severus. His mother was one of the only people who Severus loved very much; her death must have been hard!' she thought.

'He was grieving and those Marauders were pranking him left and right and instead of sticking by his side, comforting and helping him, you left him!' That nagging voice said in the back of her mind.

'Well, it still isn't a good reason for saying what he said. In case you have forgotten, I was trying to help!' Lily said to in answer to the voice.

'Put yourself in his shoes, he must have been really upset. I'm not making excuses for what he did. All I'm saying is that you always knew Severus had a temper and they humiliated him in front of half of school. He just lost control. You would have lashed out too, wouldn't you?'

'Well, how was I supposed to know he was that upset about everything? He didn't tell me anything!' Lily said indignantly.

'There was no need for him to tell you he was upset about all the pranks Marauders pull on him, it was obvious! And about his mother's death, did he really have time to tell you? How much time did you spend with him last year? Were you away from your friends enough for him to speak with you? You always knew Severus rarely spoke about his parents and his home life! I don't think he would have approached you even if he had the opportunity! What did you expect him to do? To walk up to you and your friends, tell you his mother has died, and ask for your comfort?'

Lily didn't have an answer to that, but she wasn't going to back down. 'But it still doesn't account for being friends with those –' Lily suddenly noticed the ridiculousness of situation. She was arguing with herself and was trying to win the fight. 'Well, the last thing I need now is to be admitted to St. Mungo's mental ward.'

A hand on her shoulders made her jump. She turned her head and saw it was headmaster and he was looking at her with a kind look and his lips were moving. 'When did headmaster came to this side of desk? What is he saying?' Lily shook her head to clear it and concentrated on Dumbledore's words.

"...ly! Lily! Are you alright?"

"Yes ...yes, I'm fine. Can I go?"

Before Dumbledore answered her, the fireplace flared to life and McGonagall stepped out. After she cleaned her clothes of soot, she raised her head and looked surprised at seeing Lily there.

"Headmaster, it is well after curfew! What is Miss. Evans still doing here?" She asked.

"I'm sorry Minerva; our discussion took longer than I anticipated. Actually, Miss Evans was going back to her dormitory. Did you need to talk about something with me?" Dumbledore said calmly.

McGonagall looked from Dumbledore to Lily and back to Dumbledore, a look of uncertainty on her face, but with a nod from Dumbledore she said. "He stopped fighting the potions miraculously and now he is stable. But Poppy said there will be some complications and asked me to tell you go to Hospital Wing as soon as you can. I'll escort Miss. Evans to her dormitory and join you."

There was no need to guess who she was talking about. Lily sighed inaudibly. No matter what she said, she didn't want Severus to die, especially now when she knew he hadn't done anything to deserve what he got. She looked to Dumbledore for permission to go and at seeing his nod, she stood. There was a lot of things she had to think about so she doubted that sleep would come that night.

When she was near the door with McGonagall's hand on her shoulder, Dumbledore called her back.

"I still have to ask you to promise that you won't share anything that's happened with anyone even Severus himself – should you choose to speak with him again."

"Um ...Yes, Of course, I promise I won't," she said and then turned and walked out of door with a pensive look on her face.

Dumbledore sighed. "I hope everything turn out well," he said as he stood and made his way towards the fireplace. Fawkes started to sing a sad melody from his perch.

TBC...

Tell me what you think!

This chapter is dedicated to Alethea27.