Chapter 3: Potionmaking for Dunderheads

Severus I

Friday, 24 June 1977

Severus was waiting in his classroom, the very room in which he had lived at the castle for his sixth year. He had finished with Creevey and Cresswell, and he had just met with Regulus for 'alchemy lessons'; now, he could wind down during Mary's Defense lessons, which would properly begin today. He and Mary had gone over the fundamentals of spellcasting, the connection to language and association, intent, and threat assessment; it would be something else entirely to properly assess her dueling skills. She had been lucky enough to disarm Rosier, but luck could only get her so far unless Fate itself was on her side, which Severus seriously doubted.

The classroom door opened, and Mary hurried in with Brandy following close beside her. There was a skip in both their steps, Mary's due to her clear excitement and Brandy's due to her leg injury, the memory of which Severus couldn't help but flinch at.

"Evening, Sev."

"You're on time."

"Obviously." Mary stopped before the training dummy in the room. "So, what's on today's schedule?"

"Today," Severus began, "we will be going over stances and forms."

Mary didn't look like she understood, which became more apparent with her prolonged silence and the confused expression on her face.

"... footwork and wandwork," Severus re-explained.

"Oh." Mary's confusion turned to excitement. "Alright, I'm ready, professor!"

... do you want to take over, or should I carry through?

Lazy, are we?

Lily told me to take breaks.

And?

I'm not working if you take over.

Silence followed before Severus spoke aloud once more.

"Get into your fighting stance."

Mary immediately drew her wand and pointed it at the training dummy-

"No," Severus said, looking over her form. "Absolutely not."

"What?"

"The toe of your front foot should be pointed directly at your target. And your back foot should be pointing away from your body at a ninety-degree angle."

Mary adjusted her stance to Severus's specifications.

"Widen your stance."

Mary adjusted.

"That's too wide."

Mary re-adjusted.

"Good. Now, notice that your wand hand is forward. This is an orthodox stance, best suited for quickly striking your opponent. Now, invert it."

Mary turned her body so that her wand-foot was now behind her off-foot.

"This is the inverse stance. Your wand is away from the front, which is used to prevent your opponent from lunging forward and disarming you. Orthodox is offense-oriented; inverse is defense-oriented. With me so far?"

Mary nodded. "Yeah, everything makes sense."

"Assume an orthodox stance."

Mary complied.

"Notice how your off-hand is relaxed and almost tucked into your chest, your palm facing inward. This is known as the Badger's Paw, which is the most rudimentary and simple of forms. Simple to train with for beginners."

"Are we starting with this one?" Mary asked.

"No, I'll give you an overview of all the forms and let you select the one that feels the most natural. Now, all I want you to do is turn the palm of your off-hand so that it faces your target."

Mary turned the palm of her off-hand to face the dummy.

"Lion's Paw. Unlike Badger's Paw, Lion's Paw is suited for wandwork in conjunction with wandless casting, giving the caster an advantage. Currently, it's banned in dueling rings; fortunately for you, you won't have to worry about fairness in live combat. Place your off-hand on your hip."

Mary placed her off-hand on her back hip.

"Eagle's Wing. Provides a stabilizing element to one's wandwork in conjunction with footwork and is the preferred dueling form. Raise your off-hand above your head and arch your arm so that your hand is pointing at your target."

Mary followed Severus's instructions.

"Serpent's Fang. Much like Eagle's Wing, the form provides a stabilizing element; however, the center of balance for this particular form is higher and lends better to more fluid combat."

"What does that mean?"

"Eagle's Wing tends to be more static and provides better point control, which is good for a linear approach. Serpent's Fang lends itself better to duelists who move their upper body more dynamically. Now, invert Serpent's Fang."

"I... what?"

"Invert both your footwork and the placement of your arms."

Mary took an inverse stance, raising her wand-arm above her head and training it on the training dummy while her off-hand was pointed directly at it.

"When your off-hand's palm faces the ground, it is Dragon's Breath. This form allows for casting at higher angles, typically best used for uneven terrain, and your field of vision is no longer obstructed by wand flourishing. As the wand is also away from your center of mass, it proves more difficult for your enemy to properly disarm you."

"I don't get it," Mary said, lowering her arms and returning to her normal, Mary MacDonald stance. "Wouldn't I be disarmed by the Disarming Charm no matter where it hits me?"

"A fair question." Severus stood between Mary and the training dummy and drew his wand. "Disarm me, and aim at my chest."

"What?!"

"This is a practical lesson. Disarm me."

Mary pointed her wand at Severus, albeit reluctantly. "Are you sure?"

"It's a Disarming Charm, MacDonald. You won't kill me."

Mary nodded. She traced her wand through the air and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

Before the light came out from the tip, Severus felt a sudden wave of danger, which almost caused him to deflect her casting out of instinct. Stopping himself, he allowed the light to hit its mark, which he immediately regretted as he found himself thrown off his feet and crashing into the training dummy behind him, his back nearly bending around the wooden frame as the air escaped his lungs. He could hear Mary scream as he hit the ground, and on his nose, no less.

"SEV!" There was the sound of rapid footsteps, and Severus felt Mary turn him onto his back. "Oh my God, I'm sorry!"

"It's fine," Severus wheezed out, his voice nasally and the inside of his nostrils smelling of metal. "I... Mary, where the fuck did that come from?"

"I-I don't know! All I wanted to do was disarm you!"

Severus glanced at Mary's wand. "What wood do you have?"

"What?"

"Your wand wood."

"It's cherry with unicorn hair."

"I've been reading up on wandlore recently to figure out how to train you. Cherry wood has an affinity for lethal forms of magic."

"Lethal?! You mean I could've killed you?!"

Severus almost nodded, but the pain in his spine shot up to his neck. "Yes," he breathed out. "You see... help me sit up."

Mary carefully put her hand under Severus's body, her palm on his back, and helped him as he forced himself up.

"You see," Severus explained with some difficulty, "when you aimed at my center of mass, it caused my extremities to lose hold of whatever they were grounded to. My hand lost hold of my wand, and my feet lost hold of the ground. After this, my entire body, instead of solely my hand, was thrown back. Had you aimed for my wand hand, only my wand hand would have lost its hold."

"... sorry."

"It's fine." Severus winced as he forced himself back on his feet, holding his hand out to wordlessly Accio the wand he'd been disarmed of. "Assume Dragon's Breath."

Mary looked as if she didn't want to continue the lesson, but she complied anyway, returning to her previous form. But only after a few seconds, her arms dropped again, and Severus didn't have to be a Legilimens to figure out why.

"... you need to learn something very important," Severus continued, bracing himself on the nearby desk. "If you find yourself in an altercation, someone will be hurt: either you or your attacker. You need to acclimate to violence."

"I don't want to hurt anyone-"

"The enemy doesn't care about what you want. When the fighting starts, the enemy wants to hurt you. The enemy wants to subject you to torment. And, at worst, the enemy wants to murder you. Your wants and desires go out the window the second the Death Eaters come for you, and if you don't adapt, you will die, and you won't be able to protect your loved ones."

Mary didn't respond, not with words at least. Instead, she nodded quietly, her wand shaking in her hand as Brandy let out a whine.

"Look at me."

Mary met Severus's eyes.

"These lessons will push you to your limit, physically and emotionally."

"... I know..."

"I cannot go soft on you. Not if I want you to live a long life."

"I know." Mary huffed. "You think I'm being weak, don't you?"

"Fear isn't weakness, Mary; cowardice is." Severus stiffly walked over to the girl, ignoring the growls from Brandy. Sitting on the desk closest to her, he continued. "I have been afraid more times than I've ever been brave. And it took me far too long to realize the key to bravery, something that's almost instinct to you."

Mary looked at Severus with confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Love, Mary. When someone you love is in danger, you'll do everything in your power to protect them. That's what you did on Valentine's Day with Brandy. And you disarmed Rosier when I was in danger, as well. Focus on that. You're not just fighting for yourself."

"... when did a Slytherin become an expert on bravery?" Mary joked. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were a Gryffindor."

"And share a dorm with James fucking Potter?!"

Mary started laughing. "Alright, I see the problem... Sev?"

"Yes?"

"If Potter wasn't in Gryffindor, I think you'd be a good fit."

"Even with McKinnon there?"

"She's... she's doing better."

"... I don't want to say, 'I don't believe you'."

"Well, that must mean I'm right," Mary said with a grin. She got back into Dragon's Breath. "Now then, what's next?"

"Open your off-hand and have your palm face the target."

Mary complied.

"This is Manticore. It combines the wandwork of Dragon's Breath with Lion's Paw's use of simultaneous wandless casting. It's also a suitable stance to disarm your opponent at close range."

"Do people actually fight like this?"

"In the field, no. But learning the stances and forms helps refine your footwork and wandwork so that, when you're in mortal combat, you understand and apply the basic principles."

"So..." Mary shifted back into Badger's Paw, then Lion's Paw, and then Eagle's Wing. "... which one do you think I should use?"

"What feels the most natural to you?"

"Badger's Paw; you said it's a simple one."

"Then why ask me for my opinion?"

"It's just... I mean, I'm small."

"... a good observation. In your case, you're a smaller target, harder to hit, so mobility should be your focus; ergo, emphasis on non-linear footwork. You would also benefit more from uneven terrain and using your environment to your advantage."

"What if I'm out in the open?"

"Create your cover; this is why Transfiguration is important during combat."

Mary nodded.

"How do you fare with wandless casting?"

"You mean without my wand?"

"That is... exactly what I said, yes."

"I can't really do that," Mary admitted.

"In that case, this will be another part of your lesson. Witches and wizards are not their wands, despite what others might tell you."

Severus continued with the lesson, Mary practicing her footwork by advancing and withdrawing while Brandy sat and watched, although the cruppie continued to growl at Severus. Mary had a basic understanding of the lesson so far (which wasn't difficult compared to what was to come), but there were moments when she would step forward using the wrong foot and almost trip herself.

"Your legs should never cross," Severus reminded the girl. "Crossed legs are an opportunity for the enemy to destabilize you."

With corrections being made, Severus allowed Mary to move on to side-stepping, with which he made good use of conjured tennis balls to ensure she stepped the correct way. By this point, Severus had stretched out the pain in his back, and was now standing beside Mary for close observation.

"Your stride is too deep."

"You really criticize everything, don't you?"

"It's my job."

Mary shook her head and continued her drills. "Sev?"

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

Severus wasn't sure what to make of the question. "In what way?"

"It just seems like you're stretched out all over the place."

"I'm busy; I won't deny that."

"It's just..." Mary stopped her drills. "I... I just don't want you to overwork yourself. I mean, you're tutoring me, plus Creevey, plus Cresswell, plus Black, and this is all before you can spend time with Lily."

"Funnily enough, Lily insists I rest more as well."

"Well, if she's telling you to rest, you've got a problem."

Severus smirked at the comment. "We've been listening to ABBA together."

Mary's eyebrows raised up. "... you're... really?"

"It's torture," Severus said dryly. "I almost regret buying her that bloody album."

Mary laughed. "Well, do you have anything else you do to relax?"

"Aside from self-meditation?"

"... you meditate?"

"It's complicated."

"Well, do you do anything else? Do you have hobbies?"

"Lily asked the same question, to which I loosely replied, 'No'."

"Well," Mary pushed, "what do you like doing?"

"In terms of resting?"

"No, just in general."

"Reading and research, taking notes, that sort of..."

"... what?"

"Nothing," Severus replied. "I've just... no one's ever asked me about my hobbies before. At least, not as proper friends."

"So, Lily didn't...?"

"I can bring it up with her later." Severus gestured to the training dummy. "Let's continue with today's lesson."

Eventually, Severus drilled Mary in her wandwork, having her switch through the different forms, with particular emphasis on Dragon's Breath. The first charm he decided she should practice was the Disarming Charm, given their earlier exchange. Her sole task was to disarm the dummy of the fake wand in its hand, which proved to Severus that, while Mary had raw power on her side (with the right intent), she had poor accuracy, something which was exaggerated by her inability to see her wand as she cast the charm. It would be important for her later on to visualize the movements and incantations in her mind, but that would take more time than Severus had hoped for.

"That should be all for today," Severus said after some time. He checked his pocket watch, seeing that dinner would be starting soon. "Shall we head out?"

"Alright. Come on, girl!" Mary caught Brandy as the cruppie leapt into her arms. She turned to Severus as they left the classroom and asked, "What do you think we're having for dinner?"

"How should I know?"

"You're a seer."

"... for fuck's sake," Severus muttered. "Fine, let's say... fish pie."

"Are you sure?"

"If I recall, you're the one who asked me, the seer, for an answer. And if I'm wrong, I trust you won't ask again."

"And if I'm right," Mary played along, "I'll keep pestering you until you graduate."

Severus let out a tired sigh.

What do you make of all this?

Why do you ask? Need I remind you we share the same memories?

That doesn't mean we agree on everything, does it?

I suppose not. If you want my honest opinion, which I'm more than happy to provide, I would say we should remain focused on our task. We have time on our side; all we have to do is utilize it properly before the new term starts.

So, you're ignoring what both Lily and Mary are saying?

We both know you don't want to be a lay-about.

We don't have to be a lay-about.

... go on.

Mary mentioned something about hobbies.

And what good do hobbies do us?

Don't act like I don't remember how much you enjoyed your crossword puzzles in the paper.

... that's hardly the point. That wasn't productive either, apart from keeping my mind sharp.

Here's the point I'm trying to make: right now, we're living off of Dumbledore, and our friends are worried that we're overworking ourselves.

So, what you mean to say is that you think it wise that we deal with those problems?

Pay back Dumbledore while also doing something that helps us unwind...

What is it?

"Unwind" might be the wrong word, but you know what I mean.

Professor Snape was silent for a moment, but Severus knew exactly what was on his mind. And as the two of them came into agreement, something inside clicked.

Lily I

Sunday, 26 June 1977

"... you want to what?" Lily found that, despite the number of things about Severus that she didn't expect, this had to be near the top of the list.

"I don't like living off of Dumbledore," Severus explained as he set the two cups of tea down on the table. "He's been paying for everything so far-"

"Sev, we haven't even been here for that long!"

"And the longer we both live here, the more he'll have to pay for. I don't want to be indebted to him."

"So, you're saying you'll be our provider from now on?" Asking the question almost made it seem like the two of them were... well, together, which wasn't something Lily wanted to think about.

Severus nodded.

"But... do you even know what you're doing?"

"Thank you for the support," Severus said sarcastically.

"No, Sev, I'm not saying I don't support it, but... look, it's one thing to do your own research on the side, but you're talking about publication."

"And I'll make it," Severus replied. "They'd have to be dunderheaded not to see that my research checks out."

Lily held back an amused smile (Severus was nothing if not confident in his intelligence), but there was part of her that didn't know if he should go through with it.

"If you have something to say," Severus said, "I'd prefer if it was aloud."

"It's... do you remember the point I made about overworking yourself?"

Severus nodded.

"I just don't want to see you work yourself to death."

"It's an investment. If I work through it now, I won't have to work as hard later on. Besides, I enjoy research and development."

"Is that what you want to do after graduation?"

Severus nodded. "Preferably as far away from other people as possible, maybe in the depths of St. Mungo's."

"I think Healers are a bit more social than you'd like."

"The research division isn't." Severus took a sip of tea.

"With how much tutoring you've been doing," Lily said teasingly, "I can't imagine you as anything but a teacher."

Severus tensed up at the suggestion. "I think I'd rather just write down my knowledge for people to read. I can teach them without having to put up with them, and I get some money out of it."

Lily smirked at the comment as Severus continued drinking his tea. "Have you thought of a title?"

"Not yet. I've been looking at a few works to get an idea of how to title it, but nothing comes to mind."

"Well... do you have to title it the way other people do?"

Severus didn't look like he understood.

"Why not just go with your gut?"

"Typical Gryffindor advice," Severus muttered.

"Oi!"

"We can discuss it later," Severus said, finishing his tea. "Do you mind if we discuss something?"

"Is it related to the list?"

"It's adjacent."

"Alright."

"And..." Severus paused. "... when I ask you this, I'm not accusing you of anything."

"... okay?" Lily was more concerned about the question now that Severus had framed it in such a way.

"Before our falling out, did we ever discuss my hobbies?"

"You don't remember?"

Severus shook his head. "I remember us talking about magic and schoolwork, along with more unpleasant parties, among which was Potter."

"I just assumed your hobbies involved..." Lily took a moment to formulate what she wanted to say. "I thought all you did was study magic. Why do you ask?"

"That's true," Severus seemed to admit, "but did either of us ask what each other's hobbies were in the first place?"

"That's ridiculous, of course... we..." Lily froze. "We had to have mentioned it at some point, right? I mean, you know what my hobbies are, don't you?"

"Only from context clues."

Lily felt her face slack, and she guiltily took a sip of her tea. "... God, we need to work on that."

"To be fair, you were right about-"

"Sev, I shouldn't just assume I know everything! God, Mary was right."

"What about?"

"Well, we were talking about our conversations... not the specifics, just the overall direction, and at some point, I said that I expected you to know that you were allowed to be open about yourself."

"If I'm putting the pieces together properly, this has to do with assumption."

Lily nodded. "And now, I'm starting to question how much about you I even bothered to find out."

"In your defense, I shut myself off from quite a few people, yourself included." Severus set his cup down as he met Lily's eyes. Usually, they had an intensity to them that made it seem like he was staring into her soul, but for now, they were relaxed. "Fortunately, we have time to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it."

"You can't tell me it didn't hurt you a bit," Lily insisted.

"Focusing on those feelings doesn't solve anything. The last time I did that, it was behind prison bars, and we both know what happened with that."

"To be fair, I think that was mostly the dementors and isolation..."

"What is it?"

"... I feel so stupid for writing to you when I knew your eyes were bad."

"It was rather dunderheaded."

Lily smirked and reached over the table to slap Severus's arm. "Berk."

Severus smirked likewise, some warmth appearing on his cheeks. Lily wasn't used to seeing that sort of expression on him, but she wasn't entirely opposed to the change.

Suddenly, the smirk vanished as Severus's eyes focused.

"What is it?" Lily asked.

"I have a title now." Severus stood abruptly and made his way to the staircase. "One moment," he called back as he hurried up.

Lily sat quietly and checked the time; it was almost time for her to 'wake up in her dorm bed'. It surprised her that she'd been able to keep her living arrangement a secret for so long, especially with Alice sleeping in the bed next to hers. It almost felt like she was a secret agent rendezvousing with her contact on the outside, but that was probably just the James Bond movies she'd seen with Dad influencing her.

Severus returned once more and sat down. "I wrote it down," he said. "Now, I can properly begin."

"I didn't even know you had a typewriter," Lily remarked.

"... what?"

"... Sev, were you going to write by hand?"

"It's a manuscript; why wouldn't I?"

"You don't have to be that literal with the term. Dad has one in his office, so I could..." Lily trailed off as reality set in once again. "Well, he had one. It's probably still there, if Mum didn't take it with her."

"Your sister might need that for her job."

"Since when did you care about Tuney so much?"

"I don't, but I would wager that your mother cares more for her than me." Severus checked his pocket watch. "We ought to return to the castle. You first. Snarky?"

Pop. "Snarky is keeping to schedule, sir," the old house-elf said, walking over to Lily and extending his hand. "Is Lily Evans ready?"

Lily smiled down at Snarky and took his hand, which seemed to disgust him for some reason. The world spun, and before Lily knew what had happened, the two of them were sitting on her bed, the curtains drawn and enchanted to silence everything within its boundaries.

"Well, thank you-"

Pop.

"... alright then." Lily straightened out her nightdress and pulled back the curtains, only to find Alice facing the mirror and finishing with her hair. "Morning, Alice."

"Morning." Alice looked at Lily's reflection. "I'll be going with Frank to the dueling area. You coming with?"

"This early?"

Alice shrugged. "It's nice and cool right now."

"I wouldn't want to ruin your date," Lily said with a laugh.

"No, this is serious for Frank," Alice said, although she smiled along with Lily. "Today's another one of his stress-testing days, so I thought he could try training on an empty stomach for a change before he gorges himself at breakfast."

"I'm surprised he doesn't get fat."

"I'm not. He's very... vigorous," Alice said, unable to stop herself from laughing out loud, her cheeks turning cherry-red.

"ALICE!"

Lily dressed and followed Alice out of the dormitory and common room, the two young women making their way down the staircase to head to the Quidditch pitch, which Dumbledore had designated as a training area for the Aurors at the castle. Reaching the ground floor, they ran into Severus, who was just coming up with Frank, the latter with his arm around the former.

"Ah, there they are," Frank said as he let go of his hold of Severus. "Morning, dear."

"Morning," Alice responded with a smile as the two shared a kiss.

Lily held back a laugh as Severus's face twisted in disgust at their affection.

"What brings you up?" Lily asked Severus.

"I was going to the Library," Severus answered, "and then I sensed danger."

"What sort of danger?" Alice asked.

Severus remained silent, but his eyes darted to Frank.

Frank let out a laugh. "Don't worry, Snape. I'm not as dangerous as I look."

"He's a big ol' teddy bear," Alice added, nuzzling up against her husband.

Severus blanched and stepped away from them and closer to Lily.

"We're heading to the pitch," Lily said to Severus. "Are you coming along?"

"I'm being dragged there against my will," Severus replied.

"It's just for the morning, Snape," Frank insisted. "And we can come back for some good nosh afterward."

"I-"

"It's just an hour. If you don't like it after that, I won't ask again."

"Sev," Lily said, "you don't have to if you don't want to."

Severus let out a silent breath, and remained silent for a noticeable amount of time, as though weighing his options. "... one hour."

"One hour," Frank repeated.

"... fine," Severus capitulated.

The four of them made their way out of the castle and to the pitch, and Lily saw that Kingsley and Moody were waiting for them. "Morning, King!" Lily called out.

"Good morning," Kingsley called back.

"Lovely weather," Frank remarked, looking around as they met up with the two Aurors. "At least, as far as Highland mornings go."

"Cold enough to freeze piss," Moody grumbled, pulling the coat over himself even tighter.

"Breakfast should warm us up," Kingsley replied. He turned to Frank and asked, "You and me first?"

Frank nodded and drew his wand. "Sounds good. Basic warm-ups first, right?"

"I think, in this weather, we don't have much choice but to warm up."

As Frank and Kingsley walked over to an open area, Moody approached Severus. "We're pairing off."

Severus glanced over at Lily, who nodded and gestured for him to go with the prematurely aging Auror. Rolling his eyes, he said to Moody, "Fine."

Lily watched the two walk off in the opposite direction of Kingsley and Frank, leaving her to stand with Alice on the side.

"I've never seen any of them duel before," Lily commented to Alice.

"Really? Not even Snape?"

"Nope."

"Right, I forgot you weren't there." Alice gestured over to them. "Moody's been ranting about wanting to fight him."

"That sounds about right," Lily laughed. "I'm not sure how much of a fight Sev's putting up today, though. He was looking forward to visiting the Library."

"Sorry about Frank dragging him along," Alice said apologetically. "He's just been eager about summer training."

Lily was about to respond, but the sound of spells being cast drew her attention. Severus was blocking and exchanging with Moody, and it seemed they were starting at a slower pace, much like with Frank and Kingsley.

"I'm surprised you didn't want to spar with Frank," Lily said.

"Oh, God no!" Alice laughed. "The second I'm his opponent, he gets all meek and submissive."

"You're that good of a duelist?"

"As much as it pains me to say it, no... I'm not very good at all, to be honest. I'm just Frank's crypt... what's it called?"

"What?"

"The thing Superman's weak to."

"Kryptonite?"

"Right, that."

Lily smirked. "And here I thought Mary's Muggle knowledge would've rubbed off on you."

"You could have helped out," Alice said teasingly.

The two turned back to the boys as they sparred, and Lily saw that the pace had sped up; Frank and Kingsley were now casting much quicker spells at each other, neither of them letting up as they started moving away from the others, caught up in their duel. Lily turned to see how Severus was doing, and her mouth almost dropped open. Severus hadn't moved a single step since the bout started, his wand hand doing all the defensive work as his eyes focused on Moody. Moody, on the other hand, had started circling Severus, not letting up on the barrage he'd been throwing his way as he tried aiming for a blind spot.

Lily had wondered how Severus had somehow managed to face a dozen students and win, but she now fully understood; Severus wasn't even looking at Moody as he deflected incoming spells, the fingers of his open hand fluttering as he lowered his wand and allowed wandless magic to protect him. It was as Moody was directly behind him, throwing spell after spell at Severus, that the latter's eyes seemed to gloss over and lose their focus, almost like he was in a trance as his open hand continued to protect him.

Almost in an instant, Severus spun in place and raised his wand, his eyes focusing once more. A light shot out and toward Moody, who, instead of using the Shielding Charm, drew solid stone from the sand before him to block the shot, the light spreading out around it in flames. The older man remained in place, stepping neither to one side of the stone wall nor the other, and he stepped back as the wall disintegrated back into sand, Severus still standing in place.

"You really are a Seer, aren't you?" Moody growled over to Severus.

Severus inclined his head. "Obviously."

Lily turned her attention away from them and over to Frank and Kingsley, who were now dueling at a pace Lily couldn't see. Kingsley's movements were powerful and direct, and Frank returned in kind despite his less aggressive demeanor. The latter seemed tense and nervous, the former more confident, which made Lily think Frank was in over his head. She glanced at Alice to see the latter's reaction to the duel, but she didn't seem nervous for her husband whatsoever; her eyes were both wide and soft, a reddening smile forming on her face.

It wasn't until Lily turned back to the duel between Frank and Kingsley that she saw the latter's wand fly out of his hand and into that of the former, eliciting a startling cheer from Alice, who nearly jumped in excitement.

"Calm down, Mrs. Longbottom," Lily laughed as she held Alice in place.

"Did you see how he snuck in with that feint?!" Alice asked frantically.

"Fantastic," Lily lied, pretending to have seen the move.

"GO FRANK!" Alice cheered, gaining the attention of all four duelists.

Frank's eyes widened at the sound of Alice's voice, and Lily saw his face go crimson as he laughed and pumped his fist in the air.

After some time, the four finished sparring with their partners and swapped; Kingsley and Moody went off immediately to spar some more, while Severus and Frank came back.

"I think I did alright," Frank said as he kissed Alice. "Starving, though."

"We still have thirty minutes," Alice said with a grin.

"... bugger." Frank turned to Severus and asked, "How about we have a bout?"

Severus made deliberate eye contact with Lily, and she could see that he very much didn't want to be here anymore.

"Thirty minutes left," Lily said, echoing Alice.

Severus let out a sigh and walked off with Frank, the two of them turning to face each other.

Severus II

Tuesday, 28 June 1977

Severus sat across from Dumbledore in the latter's office, the two of them sharing a pot of tea. Lily had gone home for the evening, and she was most likely playing her ABBA record while doing her assignment on the transition from solid to liquid matter.

"How have your lessons with Regulus been going?" Dumbledore asked.

"Which ones?"

"Either. Or both."

"He doesn't have a predisposition toward alchemy, but I would say he's progressing well enough. He's fortunate I'm not grading him."

"And Occlumency?"

"I've had him start with meditative exercises to help relax and clear his mind. In terms of using legilimency on him, I'll wait until Friday."

"Rather generous of you, Severus. Much more than I believe you were before."

"Black doesn't have a piece of the Dark Lord's soul inside him. There's less urgency."

Dumbledore nodded and took a bite of his biscuit. "And I believe that you're writing a book of sorts?"

"... Snarky's spying on me, isn't he?"

"Not particularly. I just asked him how he was faring at your house, and he mentioned that you needed writing supplies for your book."

Severus sipped his own tea. "It's a book on remedial potionmaking. I'm using my notes from my first life to simply the field."

"Generous once again," Dumbledore said with an annoyingly warm smile. "Do you need help finding a publisher?"

"I thought I would self-publish."

"You'll need to fill out some forms and have it notarized. Do you have a name in mind?"

"Half-Blood Prints."

Dumbledore let out a laugh. "I never expected you to make a pun."

"I was against it. It's not like the Dark Lord doesn't already know we're the one in the prophecy."

"Well," Dumbledore continued, "I can help you have it notarized if you wish to focus on your writing."

"I can go on my own."

"Ah, I fear that may not be wise. Remember that you and Lily are in hiding."

Severus was about to respond, but he remembered that the Dark Lord would most likely have eyes in public places, and he wouldn't put it past the man to place a pair among the notaries. "One thing I might need help with," Severus admitted, "is finding the notary office."

"You have two options, if memory serves me correctly," Dumbledore answered. "You could either go to the one within the Ministry or the one at Gringotts."

"Gringotts has a notary?"

"They do, although it's legally a branch of the office in the Ministry itself."

"... I think I'll choose Gringotts."

"I take it you're not fond of visiting the Ministry."

"I at least trust the goblins to not throw me in confinement for doing nothing wrong."

Dumbledore looked as though he was about to respond, but he stopped himself before replying. "How about we visit them when you're available?"

"Saturday?"

"If that would work best for you, then yes." Dumbledore finished his cup before pouring another. "How far along are you?"

"I've almost finished the manuscript."

"And how many pages is that?"

"Currently, 394."

Dumbledore dropped his spoon as he was about to add a sugar cube to his tea. "So soon?!"

"Most of the notes are in my head. I went to the Library the other day, partly to read up on some unfamiliar Herbology texts."

"That's not what I meant," Dumbledore said, notably bothered. "You've written that many pages in two days?!"

"'Nights' would be the appropriate term."

"... and how many hours have you slept?"

"Is that important-"

"Yes, Severus, it's important to sleep!"

"You sound like Lily."

"It speaks volumes to me that a teenage girl has a better understanding of self-care than a 38-year-old man." Dumbledore pinched the bridge of his crooked nose before dropping his hand. "Will you please sleep properly tonight?"

"Yes, headmaster."

Dumbledore seemed to calm as he retrieved the sugar cube and mixed it into his tea. "Now, regarding the Horcrux at Hogwarts..."

"I've looked through the history section at the Library with little success; anything related to the Founders is limited, especially regarding Ravenclaw."

"Limited in what way?"

"The texts suggest she once owned a diadem of some kind, but it disappeared around the time of her death."

Dumbledore stood and walked over to Fawkes, who was busy preening his feathers. Stroking the phoenix's beak, he said, "I'm familiar with the legend; I believe her daughter absconded with it."

"According to legend, yes, but the details are unconfirmed."

"Well, it's fortunate that we can confirm them."

"... sir?" Severus asked, trying to understand the old man's logic.

"I thought you knew," Dumbledore replied with a look of surprise. "The Grey Lady is Helena Ravenclaw."

Severus straightened up in his seat. If the Grey Lady knew where the diadem was, it would make the ordeal of locating it much easier. But there was an obvious problem, one that made him feel uneasy. "If the legend is to be believed, she fled far from Britain."

"Yes-"

"However," Professor Snape interrupted, "if the diadem was far away but still managed to get into the Dark Lord's hands, it's possible he approached her to find its location."

"And what will your strategy be?"

"What do you mean? I believe he wishes us to approach the Grey Lady ourselves. Why us?"

"Professor Snape is correct," Dumbledore admitted. "Helena was never fond of me in my youth, and she avoids members of staff whenever possible."

Severus nodded in resignation. He didn't know why he expected Dumbledore to ask, given that finding the diadem was his own task. "I'll go to her sometime this week. Perhaps after we visit the notary?"

"That sounds like as good a time as any." Dumbledore glanced at one of the hideous clocks in the room. "I believe it's time for you to return to Lily."

Severus stood and nodded. "Have a good night, sir."

"And you, Severus. Professor."

It didn't take very long for Severus to return to his dorm room despite the distance; right now, he needed to get back to his desk at home so he could touch up on the glossary at the end. He wasn't quite finished with the core material, but he'd made an effort to write the glossary as he made additions to keep his approach more precise.

"Snarky?" Severus said aloud as he shut the door behind him.

Pop.

"Can-"

Snarky immediately took the hem of Severus's robe, and the two Apparated to the latter's house.

"Thank-"

Pop.

... he must be busy with something.

It might have to do with the Aurors.

Severus nodded to himself; combat drills had started growing more intense for them, which required a high demand for nutrition, which required a focus on cooking. If he had to guess, Snarky was involved in the prep work so that breakfast would be served as soon as the Great Hall opened its doors. He already knew that was the case, but-

"Sev?"

Severus was pulled out of his head and turned to Lily, who had entered the sitting room with a cup of tea. "Hmm?"

"You were just standing there for a bit," Lily continued. "I made us some tea... oh wait, you had that with Dumbledore."

Severus nodded.

"... for God's sake," Lily cursed to herself. "Well... care for another?"

"Only one cup," Severus replied as the two sat down. "I need to get back to work."

Lily remained silent, but her brow furrowed as she lowered her eyes to the teapot. After pouring the tea, her eyes remained downcast and focused on her cup.

"... I'm not working myself to death," Severus reassured her.

"You're not getting enough sleep," Lily insisted.

"I get as much sleep as I need."

"You have dark circles under your eyes again. Or didn't you bother checking in the mirror?"

Severus felt his blood warm. "I thought you'd be happy that I found something fun to do."

"I'm just worried about your health!"

Severus bit his tongue to stop himself from starting a full-blown argument. With the progress they'd made so far, he didn't want to ruin anything else. Reluctantly, he said, "I'll be going to bed, then."

The tension in Lily's face vanished, replaced by relief. "... okay," she said, her voice small.

"I just need to get something from the lab." Severus stood and made his way to the kitchen cupboard, opening the door and pulling on the broom handle inside so that one of the walls slid out of the way, revealing the secret staircase to the potions lab below. Making his way down, he entered the lab and traced his finger along the shelf until he found the vial of black liquid he was looking for. He turned, vial in hand, to go back up the staircase, and was about to slip it into his pocket before he found Lily standing at the very top, looking into the cupboard.

"Sorry," Lily said apologetically, "I was just curious about..." Her words trailed off as her eyes moved to the vial in Severus's hand. "... is that Living Death?!"

Severus froze in place. "W-why did you come to-"

Lily rushed down the few steps that separated them and took Severus's occupied hand in her's, raising it so she could see the vial. "You're taking LIVING DEATH to sleep?!"

Severus remained silent as he slowly tried removing his hand from Lily's and putting the vial in his pocket, only for her to tighten her grip.

"Why are you taking this?!" Lily demanded.

"... sleep," Severus answered quietly.

"But- Sev, you'd be putting yourself in a coma every time you take this!"

"Right."

Lily's face paled. "You could just take Dreamless Sleep-"

"I've grown a tolerance to it," Severus finally capitulated. "It doesn't work anymore."

"So, you're sedating yourself?!"

Severus took a breath to collect himself. "If I don't take this," he reminded her, "the dreams come back. If you want me to sleep well, let me sleep."

Lily didn't reply, but Severus could see what she wanted to say through her eyes. She took a small step closer, relaxing her hold of his hand, and pulled him into a hug. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"No, I shouldn't have responded like that."

"No, Sev, if you..." She pulled back with a confused expression. "Wait, how do you wake up?"

"Snarky administers seven drops of Wiggenweld per drop of Living Death," Severus explained.

"... per drop...?"

Severus realized what he'd implied and cursed himself. "That's the formula," he explained. "That's the minimum amount required to undo the effects of Living Death."

Lily nodded and pulled Severus into another hug. "Okay," she said. "If you need it to sleep, then... as long as it's not hurting you..."

"Don't worry," Severus reassured her. "I'll let you know if it does."

Lily nodded and pulled away. "Alright. Well, I guess we should get some sleep, then. If you'd like, I could give you the Wiggenweld tomorrow."

"I-"

"Snarky's busy, right?"

"How do you know that?"

"Dumbledore mentioned it to me last night after dinner."

"Right... well..." Severus hesitated. "... don't get upset."

"About what?"

"Promise first."

"... alright, I promise." Lily started to look more worried than she had only a few moments ago.

"When you give me the Wiggenweld," Severus said carefully, "you have to apply exactly fourteen drops."

"Fourteen-?!" Lily stopped herself, her eyes widening.

"You promised."

Lily held her mouth shut tightly, although it was clear she couldn't keep her promise, and it made Severus think back on what they'd discussed the day she'd forgiven him.

"... I shouldn't ask you not to be upset," Severus said. "I know that it bothers you."

"No, it's..." Lily couldn't finish her sentence.

"Lily, I'm fine," Severus reassured her. "I know you're worried, but I'm just taking it for the dreams."

"... why do you have to take two drops?"

"I've grown a tolerance to just one. And before you say anything, I'm aware that this isn't normal." Severus glanced behind Lily. "Could we...?"

"Right, sorry." Lily stepped back out into the kitchen, Severus following behind as he shut the secret door. "How about I make breakfast tomorrow?"

"Alright," Severus agreed. "And just so you know, I want to dedicate tomorrow to finishing up with my writing, so we might not talk very much."

"That's fine," Lily said, before quickly adding, "As long as you rest properly."

Severus sighed. "Fine, I'll rest."

"... okay, good," Lily said with a nod. "Where's the Wiggenweld?"

Lily II

Wednesday, 29 June 1977

Lily hadn't woken up this early in a long time, but given the task Severus had entrusted her with, she didn't have much of a choice. Not that she didn't want to do it, just that she couldn't imagine herself not doing it. She had just stepped out of the bathroom, freshly showered, groomed, and redressed, and was now going into Severus's room with the Wiggenweld bottle in hand. It came with a dropper so that she could measure the exact dosage to give him, so she didn't have to worry too much as long as she took her time.

Opening the door, Lily saw how barren the room was (or would have been if not for the stacks of paper on the desk). Apart from the desk and chair, there was the wardrobe (which Lily had been told not to look into, for some reason) and the bed, the latter upon which Severus was comatose. She had never seen his face as relaxed as it was, his normally hard brow soft, much different from how he'd been when Lily had come in to see him during the Christmas holiday. She pulled the chair over to his side and sat down, unstopping the small bottle and extracting the liquid with the dropper.

Setting the bottle down, Lily used her free hand to open Severus's mouth, still surprised by how slack he was, and starting carefully dropping the Wiggenweld in. As she did, she glanced down at his bare arm above the blanket, almost dropping the dropper at the sight of the burn marks on his forearm. They were circular and of varying sizes, ranging from the size of her pinky nail to the size of her thumb nail, the same as the marks she'd found on his shoulder. She bit down on her lip and controlled her breathing, despite how tight it'd grown from what she'd just seen, as she covered his arm with his sleeve and then focused on feeding Severus the Wiggenweld.

As the final drop left the dropper, Severus's breathing deepened, and his eyes slowly opened. The second his eyes met Lily's, however, they immediately widened, and some color came to his face. "Morning," he said tightly.

"Morning," Lily replied.

The two stared at each other for an embarrassing amount of time, before Severus finally said, "Thank you for waking me."

"No problem," Lily replied hurriedly. "I got up extra early."

Severus nodded and was about to pull the covers off himself until he looked down, his eyes widening.

"What?"

Severus quickly pulled his exposed arm under the covers, tucking it into his body. "N-nothing," he answered quickly.

It took a moment for Lily to realize what he was talking about. "I-I'm sorry," Lily said, "I didn't- it was already uncovered, but I covered it back up."

"... how much did you see?" Severus looked nervous.

"It was just a glance," Lily continued. "I don't mind."

"You don't-" Severus's words were cut off by nothing in particular. "You're... are you sure?"

Lily nodded.

"And you're not... it really doesn't bother you?"

Lily shook her head. "No," she lied, "no, I'm fine. It's fine, Sev."

Severus didn't answer, and Lily thought he might after the uncomfortable silence that passed between them. He looked around his room before setting his eyes on his desk.

"Right, I'll just make breakfast," Lily said as she stood up. "I'll call you when it's ready."

Severus nodded. "Right. Thank you."

With that, Lily left the room and went downstairs. Setting the pan on the stove and frying up the eggs helped Lily distract herself. She respected Severus's privacy (she had to, if she wanted him to open up to her more), but it now dawned on her the degree to which he kept to himself. There was no doubt in her mind that he had hidden a troubling amount of pain from everyone, and the request Dumbledore had made of her, to stay by Severus's side for the summer, had a new meaning to it. Dumbledore seemed to know more about Severus than anyone else, and it was entirely possible he knew about the scars she'd seen and the scars she hadn't seen.

And right now, she hoped she'd seen most of them.

Severus III

Saturday, 2 July 1977

Severus and Lily hadn't spoken too much since the morning the latter had woken the former up, and he had to admit how much he was to blame for it. He was aware that, even with Living Death, he was able to move around in his sleep (something that he could only attribute to the ridiculous level of tolerance he'd developed toward sedatives), but the fact that he'd managed to kick his covers off in the middle of the night was something else. He was certain that Lily would have had more of a reaction to seeing his erection (he didn't know if he was relieved or concerned by that), which might have not been so bad if he hadn't been wearing the loose nightshirt Professor Snape was accustomed to instead of his regular shirt and trousers. He was almost certain that Lily could see the outline, even through the blanket, and he now cursed himself for his noticeably panicked reaction when he'd drawn his arm under the covers to tuck it between his legs.

Severus returned to the present, Occluding, as he and Dumbledore stepped through the threshold of Gringotts, making their way down the center of the room and up to the goblin at the head desk. They stopped before the goblin, and Dumbledore gently cleared his throat.

"Good morning, Roghod," Dumbledore began.

The goblin, Roghod, looking up from his desk, nodded to Dumbledore. "How may Gringotts help Headmaster Dumbledore?" he asked in a cautious voice.

"Oh, not me today." Dumbledore rested his hand on Severus's shoulder. "We have business with the notary."

Roghod's eyes moved to Severus, hardening at the sight. "Severus Snape," he said. "Your name travels deep underground."

"I see," Severus replied calmly.

Roghod's gaze hardened even more. "I'll take you to the notary," he finally said. "Follow me."

Severus and Dumbledore followed Roghod through a door on the side of the hall and down a corridor until they arrived at the Notary Office.

"Step in," Roghod commanded as he opened the door.

Severus and Dumbledore stepped in as the door shut behind them, and the two found themselves standing before a desk with two employees, one human and one goblin.

"Mr. Snape?" the woman asked.

Severus nodded.

"Janet Greymoor," the woman replied, standing and holding out her hand.

"Greymoor?" Severus asked.

"Oh, you must know my husband, Philip," Mrs. Greymoor said. "He works at the Muggle Liaison Office."

"Ah, I thought so," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "You've done well for yourself, Janet."

"Thank you, Headmaster," Janet said with a grin.

"Can we get on with it?" the goblin barked out.

"Sorry," Mrs. Greymoor quickly said. "My apologies. This is Snaglaw; he'll be Gringotts's representative during the process."

"It's my job to make sure the money goes to the right place," Snaglaw sneered.

"Of course," Dumbledore said with a nod. "May we sit?"

Severus and Dumbledore were gestured to be seated by Mrs. Greymoor. "Now," she said, "firstly, we'll need to see the manuscript."

Severus looked down at the stack of pages in the satchel he'd brought with him and carefully took everything out, setting the thick manuscript before the woman and goblin.

Mrs. Greymoor looked over one of the stand-alone pages, the document Severus had been required to fill out and present to them. "'Potionmaking for Dunderheads'," she read aloud with a laugh in her voice. "Rather... inflammatory."

"The only thing inflammatory is someone's cauldron if they're too stupid to brew properly," Severus replied smoothly.

Mrs. Greymoor frowned at the remark. Snaglaw grinned.

"And you'll be publishing under 'Half-Blood Prints', correct?"

Severus nodded. "Correct."

Mrs. Greymoor tutted to herself as she read through the document. "And I see you haven't listed any will in your document."

"A will?" Severus had seen the section regarding the directions the royalties would go upon his death, but he didn't think it applied to him.

"Do you not have a will written?" Mrs. Greymoor asked.

"Is it mandatory?" Dumbledore asked.

"No," Snaglaw explained, "but the bank's been involved in an annoying number of civil lawsuits due to people fighting over the copyright, all of which happens when a will doesn't explicitly state who inherits said copyright."

"Could we write one right now?" Severus asked.

"That's why I'm here," Mrs. Greymoor said with a smile. "My husband and I deal with this sort of thing all the time." She took out a blank sheet of paper and an inkwell and set them before Severus. "It doesn't have to be too formal right now; for now, just list your living next of kin and whether or not you'll allow them to inherit."

"Next of kin?" Severus was confused; he didn't even know he had next of kin.

"Do you not have any?" Snaglaw asked.

"Not that I'm aware of," Severus answered. "Couldn't I just write down people I know, even if they're not related to me."

"Unfortunately not," Mrs. Greymoor said apologetically. "With how the Ministry currently has its laws, you're required to list all living relatives and their standing with you. Otherwise, it leads to more lawsuits than you can count."

"And who should we speak to regarding this issue?" Dumbledore asked.

"No worries," Mrs. Greymoor said. "Gringotts keeps records of every wizarding family who works with them."

Snaglaw let out an exasperated sigh as he got up from his chair and walked to the door. "I'll find it," he groaned, scowling at Severus before violently slamming the door behind him.

"... I apologize," Mrs. Greymoor said. "Snaglaw's had a bad morning."

"I hadn't noticed," Dumbledore responded politely. "I remember, as a younger man, the number of times I had to come to Gringotts regarding my studies with dragon's blood. The system was a bit different, at the time."

"Better or worse?"

"Couldn't say, really. Although, back then, the Ministry representative usually offered a cup of tea."

"Oh, we can't offer that anymore," Mrs. Greymoor said. "Not after the Madhard incident."

"The what?"

"Well, back in '62, the kitchenette in the employee area-"

Snaglaw stormed back in carrying a massive tome in one hand and a massive magnifying glass in another. Slamming the tome on the desk and nearly causing the pages of the manuscript to fly (which Severus stopped very quickly), Snaglaw said, "Hair."

Severus yelped as Dumbledore pulled a hair from his head, which immediately turned silver-white. Mrs. Greymoor and Snaglaw both turned to Severus in confusion.

"... I had a bad year," Severus replied.

"I can confirm that," Dumbledore added.

Snaglaw rolled his eyes and opened the book, poking the empty page with his long fingernail and reciting the name, "Snape, Severus."

Suddenly, Severus's name appeared on the page, after which Snaglaw placed the end of the silver hair directly on the enchanted ink.

Severus had known that his mother was from a wizarding family and that their name was Prince, but he knew very little else about them, even from all the books in the Library he'd read to find his heritage. He'd started developing the idea that they might be more secretive, so secretive that even the records didn't have anything on them, or perhaps because they were so highly regarded and legendary that their name was in the Restricted Section. Of course, the idea that they might've been a regular family had crossed his mind, and perhaps that was the reason there was nothing on them.

But as the ink on the page expanded and branched out, and as Snaglaw studied the names and started speaking, Severus, unfortunately, learned very quickly why nothing was written on them.

Lily III

Lily watched as Mary beat Frank at Gobstones for the fifth (technically sixth) time, while she sat with Alice and Moody; Kingsley was currently practicing his wandwork with the other Auror trainees to get back at Frank beating him at every duel since they'd arrived. Brandy was, as usual, sitting in Moody's lap, happily licking his cheek and nose while the Auror scowled and scratched the cruppy's head and behind the ear.

"Are you sure you don't want something to eat?" Alice asked Moody.

Moody glanced over at Alice, his scowl following him. "I'm perfectly fine," he said with some tension.

"Are you alright?" Lily asked.

"Perfectly fine."

"If you're worried I laced it with something, you're mad!" Alice exclaimed. "You let one accident make you more paranoid than you already were."

"You said you wouldn't talk about it!"

"I-I don't... what?" Lily asked, looking between the two. "What accident?"

"None of your business!" Moddy hissed at her, only for his aggression to vanish as Brandy reared her head back and started growling. He eyed the cruppy, before looking back at Lily and Alice. "... we found contraband potions during a raid," he finally admitted, the tension in his voice easing as Brandy calmed down and started licking him again. "Experimental."

"Some of them were Aging Potions," Alice added.

"I was getting to that," Moody grumbled. "Some were Aging Potions. Some were Airborne Additives."

"I don't know what that is," Lily admitted.

"It turns liquids it makes contact with into mist, also known as a Misting Mix." Moody scratched Brandy's head. "The crates we found them in were mixed batches, and I ended up having one of those mixes fall on me."

"Well, you look better now than you did before," Alice said comfortingly. "Most of it wore off, right?"

"Wait, how long ago was that?" Lily asked.

"Not very," Moody answered, "but the Healers at St. Mungo's can't reverse it anymore."

Alice put her arm around Moody and gave him a hug, which the latter found visibly uncomfortable. "Don't worry about it," she said. "Some girls like older men, you know."

"They're disgusting," Moody grumbled.

"The girls or the men?"

"Both."

Lily and Alice both laughed at Moody's response as Mary and Frank walked over from their game, the latter's face covered in gobstone fluid. "Everything alright?" Frank asked as he dried his face. Alice was about to kiss him on the cheek, but he leaned back. "Oh no, dear, I need to wash up first."

Alice roughly grabbed him by the collar and kissed him, only to recoil as she gagged.

Frank started laughing uncontrollably. "I warned you, didn't I?!" Turning to Lily, he asked, "Snape's not coming along yet?"

"No, he'd busy at the moment," Lily replied. Severus didn't want too many people to know about his work. "But he should be here any minute."

"Oh, speak of the devil," Alice said, gesturing behind Frank.

Lily looked past Frank and Mary to find Severus walking along, hands in his cloak pockets and eyes on the ground. Not even glancing their way, he disappeared around the corner.

"He doesn't look happy," Frank commented. "Did something happen?"

"I'll check," Lily said as she passed him.

"Let us know the details!" Alice called from behind.

"Are you joking?" Lily called back. "He'd kill me if I did!"

Lily hurried after Severus, which took a surprising amount of effort due to his naturally longer stride and pace. Finally catching up, she grabbed his arm. "Sev, how'd it go?"

Severus turned reluctantly, and Lily saw a notable lack of light behind his eyes. "It went fine," he replied, his voice completely normal-sounding, which was somehow more alarming.

"... did something happen?" Lily asked gently. "Or- wait, did the meeting go poorly?!"

"No, it went well," Severus answered. "I'm officially a publisher now; I'll be able to start printing once I find a printing house."

"Oh, well that's good, but you don't look well. Did something happen?"

Severus looked around to see if anyone was nearby.

"Come on," Lily offered, "we can find an empty classroom." They went through the first door in sight, Lily shutting it behind them as she turned to listen. "So, what happened?"

"... we had the meeting," Severus began, sitting down on a desk. "We had to confirm some forms I filled out for them, which went fine. But they needed to attach a will to the documentation for legal reasons, which I hadn't done."

"Why would they need something like that?"

"It's a Gringotts policy; they want everything to be as efficient as possible to avoid people contesting over the royalties. And part of that process is seeing who my next of kin are."

"So, you wrote a will, then?"

Severus nodded. "If I die, you receive the royalties."

Lily's mouth went slack. She opened her mouth to say something, only to shut it again as she thought about what to say, her mind coming up blank until the words he'd just spoken started to make sense. "Wait, are you saying we're related?!"

"God, no!" Severus exclaimed. "Where did you get that idea from?!"

Lily felt stupid for a moment, only for her embarrassment to be replaced by relief (not that she wouldn't want to be Severus's relative, but it was good that he wasn't...) Lily couldn't reconcile the confusing emotions in her head, so she decided to simply address the question. "Well, you said your next of kin would inherit, so I just assumed."

"They would, if I had any."

Lily's confusion vanished at the implication. "You mean...?"

"I don't have any relatives. No one alive, at least."

Lily felt an ache in her chest (not the first time when it came to Severus), and she sat beside him. "Sev, I'm so sorry."

Severus looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean'? You just said you don't have any living relatives."

"That's not why I'm... that's not the issue."

"... Severus, you're making it very difficult for me to sympathize with you."

"If you'd let me get to my point, it wouldn't be difficult," Severus shot back.

Lily sighed. "Fine, continue."

"They brought out a tome that traces one's ancestry, and they traced mine..."

"... okay?"

Severus glanced at Lily for a moment before looking down at his lap. "I'm a nobody."

"... what?"

"Growing up, I thought the Prince family was some obscure, maybe even powerful, wizarding family. I thought their history might have even been intentionally hidden away." Severus shifted himself on the desk. "Then, I found out that even though 'Prince' was the name of a wizarding family, it isn't even a wizarding name. My mother was a half-blood."

"... oh." Lily didn't know how to take this news; it didn't sound very bad at all. "Go on."

"Her mother was a half-blood too, born to Muggle and witch. And her mother after her, and her's after her. My mother was the last in an unbroken line of half-blood house-witches born to Muggle fathers. And every single one of them, excluding my mother, only produced Squib sons. No wizards."

"That..." Lily was stunned. "How is that even possible?"

Severus laughed mirthlessly. "Right? What are the odds of that? Millennia of wizarding history, and I don't descend from any of the mildly known wizarding names."

"Well, what about outside of Britain? Maybe you're family-"

"Romanian," Severus answered, cutting Lily off. "But it's the same there. And the same in Rome, as well. Generation after generation, century after century, civilization after civilization, and not one wizard. And you'd think that my ancestors' sisters would've maybe married into a wizarding family so that their children would inherit at least one famous name, but no. Muggle husbands again, more witches and Squib sons. And all those thousands of branches are extinct now."

"Come on, Severus, that's ridiculous," Lily countered. "By your logic, I'm a nobody because I don't have magical ancestry."

"You make sense," Severus shot back. "No one expects Muggle-borns to be related to other wizarding families. And besides, you out-compete most other witches and wizards."

"What-"

"You mastered accidental magic before you even heard of Hogwarts," Severus continued. "In a thousand years, historians would try to trace members of your bloodline."

Lily felt herself blush.

"When you're born to a wizard or witch," Severus continued even further, "people expect you to be related to other wizards or witches in some way, or to have done something significant in the past. The Malfoys once served under William I during his conquest for England, and they now own their own wineries. The Ollivanders have been making wands since before the Roman Empire. The Crouches have historically been involved in the Ministry. The Potters come from a long line of potioneers. The Blacks are related to everyone. I don't have any wizards in my bloodline to look up to."

"Why not look up to the witches?" Lily asked, crossing her arms.

"That's not the point!" Severus stood from the desk. "I'm so far removed from everyone else in wizardkind, it's like I'm not even the same species as them!"

"So what?!" Lily asked as she stood with him. "You're greater than any wizard I know; hell, you'd give Dumbledore a run for his money in a few years! Why do you care about any of that that?!"

"Because I want to belong with someone!"

With that last sentence, Lily finally understood what Severus meant. At heart, she was a Muggle; she identified with her Muggle family and extended family, along with her family heritage (and she knew she had some distant cousins in Northern Ireland and Wales). But Severus identified with his wizarding side, and Lily understood the deep-seeded animosity he had toward his Muggle side, especially after reading the article on Tobias Snape.

"... you're such a dunderhead," Lily said quietly.

"What-"

"Do you really think you don't belong anywhere? What about me, or Mary, or Dumbledore? Don't we count for something?"

Severus's frustration lessened, slowly reverting to his previous melancholy as the fire left his eyes once more.

"... why can't you belong with us?" Lily asked.

"I just thought my family was more than... I thought they were someone..." Severus's words trailed off.

Lily stepped forward and took his hands. "I know you're sick to death of being hugged, but-"

"Actually, I think I need one this time," Severus mumbled, his eyes becoming glassy.

"Okay," Lily said softly as she drew him in for a hug. Holding him tightly, she whispered, "You belong with us, alright?"

"Don't make it sound like a cult," Severus replied dryly.

Lily scoffed and playfully smacked his back. "Given that you've made me your beneficiary, doesn't this technically mean I'm your family?"

Severus remained silent for a moment. "... you were always that."

Lily felt her eyes well up at the sentiment and pulled him in tighter.

"... Lily, are you crying?" Severus asked as he pulled his head slightly away.

"What?" Lily choked out, sniffing and drying her eyes. "No, don't be silly."

"Did I say something that upset you?"

"No, it's... you said something really sweet."

"... I did?"

Lily shook her head and laughed. "God, you really are a dunderhead."

Severus III

Saturday, 16 July 1977

Severus couldn't stay still; the anticipation was too much for him to bear. His manuscript had already been published in book form, but as of right now, it had to be peer-reviewed before being printed as an academic work. He'd been in contact with the names provided to him through Mrs. Greymoor, some well-known and some obscure, regarding the work; most questions revolved around creative choices in his writing style. But right now, he didn't care about what they thought about unless it was to do with the knowledge he'd written of, and part of him hoped that his recipes would be replicated by his peers to validate him.

Pop. "Severus Snape has received his reviews," Snarky said, holding out today's issue of The Evening Prophet.

Severus snatched the paper out of Snarky's hand. "Thank you," he said quickly.

Pop.

Severus sat down on his couch and flipped through the paper until he found the "Potions Tonight" section.

"Did I hear Snarky?" Lily asked as she came down the stairs. Her eyes locked on the paper. "Is that-?"

Severus nodded and started reading aloud as Lily sat down beside him, leaning up against him to get a better view.

Potionmaking for Dunderheads: Anything But

Potionmaking for Dunderheads has recently hit shelves in Diagon Alley's own Flourish and Blott's as an alternative to more traditional, no-nonsense academic works.

"Are they saying I'm nonsense?!" Severus exclaimed.

"Hush," Lily said, slapping his arm as she took the paper from him and read in his stead.

The author, Severus Snape, is a newcomer to the stage of academic-level writing, but his writing style is anything but traditional. Instead, the seventeen-year-old adopts the style of insulting others while offering his readers clear-cut, impossible-to-misinterpret instructions, with every single recipe fitting on less than one of 597 pages, not including the glossary.

Lily turned to Severus in shock. "Five hundred-"

"I had to change some things," Severus admitted sourly. "Just keep reading."

Lily shook her head and continued.

All recipes found within its pages are of pre-existing potions, with Snape's objective being to simplify without losing quality. As a show of good faith, some of the more advanced potions found in Snape's book have been put to the test by potioneers of varying skill level as a way to gauge the validity of Snape's simplification methods. A pool of approximately one hundred potioneers were made to brew the Wiggenweld Potion and the Draught of Living Death, each participant being required to write down their findings step by step. Among this pool were Damocles Belby (inventor of the Wolfsbane Potion), Nicholas Flamel (creator of the Philosopher's Stone), Albus Dumbledore (pioneer in the usage of dragon's blood), and Professor Horace Slughorn (current Potion Master at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry).

Severus felt all heat in his body vanish, replaced by the chilling realization that his work was being judged (which he'd expected, but it hadn't hit him until now).

"Sev?" Lily asked, now looking at him.

"... k-keep reading," he stammered.

Lily nodded and continued.

The remainder of the participants asked for their names not to me listed.

Of all one hundred attempts at brewing the Wiggenweld Potion, all one hundred were not only successful, but also of the same quality as required by wizarding law to be utilized at St. Mungo's and other wizarding medical establishments. One participant, a Healer at St. Mungo's, had this to say.

"In the years I've spent treating patients, we've had countless of emergencies and life-threatening conditions that could've been prevented had the patient been treated on-scene. In fact, most cases where the patient's condition worsens is due to a lack of Healers and a surplus of patients on a given day. Wiggenweld's a very simple potion to brew to begin with; I believe it's a fourth-year recipe. What Mr. Snape has done is turn a fourth-year recipe into a first-year recipe; in fact, this might even be a pre-school level recipe for a life-saving potion."

Of the one hundred attempts at brewing the Draught of Living Death, all one hundred, like with the Wiggenweld Potion, were successful. Many readers may wonder why such a potion would be taught to brew in this book, to which Mr. Snape explains, "The Draught of Living Death has useful application in wizarding medicine, such as rendering a patient comatose during bouts of excessive physical or psychological pain."

Lily's breath caught at the last few words, but she pressed on.

"The only real danger is not having someone around to wake you up. Alternately, you could withhold using it and allow patients to suffer, for what I'm sure is a brilliantly-intelligent reason. Your choice, really."

In response, Professor Horace Slughorn had this to say.

"Mr. Snape's methods are rather exceptional, and it's no wonder why he's one of my top students. You know, at the start of his sixth year, he was rather ill, and even with a loss in his motor skills, he outbrewed almost everyone else, the only exception being his friend, Lily Evans. I'd say that the only flaw in his recipe is the manner in which he speaks to his readers. Some might be put off by his overly-inflammatory remarks-

"Oh, fuck off, Slughorn," Severus hissed at the page.

Lily rolled up the paper and swatted Severus on the nose. "No interrupting."

Severus growled and crossed his arms with a scowl.

-remarks, and I think he would struggle with his sales.

Each recipe found in Potionmaking for Dunderheads features comments by Mr. Snape himself, either to explain potential applications for potions or as a way to mock his reader's intelligence for ignoring his instructions. While most participants found them amusing, one found the work vulgar.

"Mr. Snape reeks of the environment he was born into. His writing is malicious in nature and has a blatant disregard for cleanliness and decency. His acumen in potionmaking is a fluke at best."

"Oh, that bitch!" Lily exclaimed, catching Severus off-guard. "Sorry," she said.

"No, it's fine," Severus replied. He read the remainder of the article.

Potionmaking for Dunderheads is available for purchase at Flourish and Blott's for 9 Galleons.

The two sat quietly, Severus furrowing his brow as he looked the article over once more to take everything in.

"T-that last comment is just one person, Sev," Lily reassured him. "It doesn't mean anything."

Severus looked up, glanced back at the paper, and back to Lily. "No, I don't care about that."

"What is it, then?"

"... I just... I can't believe people are reading me." Severus looked over the words again. "I knew it would be reviewed, but..." He looked at the numbers below to see how many copies had been sold. "... ah," he muttered. He turned to Lily and said, "It hasn't really sold much..." He was caught off-guard as he felt a hand rubbing his back.

"I'm so proud of you," Lily said softly.

Severus felt himself tense up at the sensation. "I-it's not selling much right now-"

"Oh, sod that," Lily interrupted. "Sev, you made it."

An odd warmth spread through Severus's chest as he saw the pride on Lily's face. "You think so?"

Lily nodded. "You wouldn't happen to have a copy for me, would you?"

"Certainly, if you have nine Galleons."

"You're charging me?!"

"Lily, have you seen my numbers recently? I need to make more sales before I can afford to give them away."

Lily raised an eyebrow. "You won't even do it for your dearest friend?"

"Nine Galleons."

Lily groaned. "How about I cook all our meals until I pay it off?"

"... very well." Severus got off the couch and walked upstairs. He might've been giving away his personal copy, but eating Lily's cooking far outweighed the selling price. He did the math in his head with each step; given that today was the 16th and they would return to Hogwarts on the 1st of September, that meant there were exactly forty-six more days. They didn't have breakfast or dinner every single day (and rarely, lunch) but based on the rate at which they did, and based on what they typically ate and drank, he calculated that she would be in charge of the cooking for the next seventeen days. Arriving in his room, he took his copy of Potionmaking for Dunderheads and brought it back down.

Lily eyed it and smiled, reaching for it.

Severus pulled the book back. "Nine Galleons worth of cooking."

Lily nodded. "Nine Galleons."

Severus nodded in kind and gave her the book.

Lily flipped through the front and started reading through the forward quietly.

"So-"

"Shh!" Lily hissed, clapping her hand over Severus's mouth. "I'm reading."

Severus smiled behind her fingers, but he brought himself back under control as her hand moved away to turn the next page.