Chapter 5: The Dungeons
"I can't do it. I'm awful at Potions. I'm sure Remus thinks so too." Mary shut her Potions book and laid her head on the table glumly.
They were in the spare potions room across Slughorns office that the older students used as a personal project room. Lily and Mary had already taken turns going around the desks to see what potions the older students were in the middle of brewing. Lily could only name a few but she was proud to be able to name any at all. By far her favorite potion was the Draught of Dreams. It was a beautiful pearly white color that shimmered and yet you could still make out your reflection, albeit a bit fuzzy, but nonetheless a translucent potion that you could see your self in.
She flipped over the thick thesis that sat by the cauldron, the author, Emma Vanity, had described it as a potion the lulled the drinker into a deep sleepless dream. The idea was that the drinker could be awake, still majorly aware of his surroundings but dreaming at the same time.
She had intended to create the potion for those suffering from seizures, caused by Helshreiks, in an effort to reduce the frequency of their seizures and calm them enough so the disease could be studied as currently the seizures were so frequent that healers hadn't been able to properly come up with a cure because of the interruptions.
"I'm sure he doesn't. Remus is nice." Lily said retrieving the book, opening it back up to the correct page and peering into Mary's cauldron. "And your potion isn't that bad."
"It's green goop Lily. The potion is supposed to be a clear blue liquid that shimmers in the light." She said quoting the word to word description from the textbook.
Lily could not argue with that logic.
"See even you think I'm awful at potions!" Mary threw up her hands up, feeling quite defeated. "I give up. I'm going to apologize to Remus and tell him he'll have to find himself a new partner if he wants the chance to get an 'O' in Potions."
"Mary you're overacting!" Lily grabbed her friend's arm and pulled her back. "Remus won't have to find a new partner because you're going to stay his partner. I'll teach you."
"But Lily I'm hopeless." Mary sighed. "I couldn't even make a simple cure for boils potion. I got a 'P' on my Babbling potion last week and-" she sighed "Slughorn said if I don't start getting any better I'll have to take his class on the weekends and its bad enough I have to take his class at all but I really don't want to see him on the weekends too!"
Lily smiled and took a seat next to Mary. "You know I was just like you. If you can believe it. Absolutely rubbish at potions. But I had Severus, and he helped me practice and get better and look at me now. I'm doing just fine."
"Fine?" Mary rolled her eyes and scoffed "You're brilliant." She looked around the various potions concocted by the older students in the room. "They're all brilliant."
"Well most of these are older students, 5th year as up so you have time before you get there." Lily told her honestly.
"I just don't get potions." Mary was walking around now. "It should be simple enough. I can read directions so I just don't understand where I'm going wrong-"
"Come on." Lily said suddenly standing up, her brain whirring suddenly. "I may have an idea. Follow me."
"Where to?" Mary asked following Lily without a second thought. "Wait, my books!"
"You won't need them!" Lily pulled the girl along with her, both of them were sprinting out the potions room further down the hall than Lily had ever gone. She had never been down there except for the time when the prefects had given them a tour last year.
Mary was trailing behind her looking at the walls. "Lily," she called out, "this is fun and all but where are we going?"
Lily had stopped in front of the entrance to the deeper dungeons. It was a gray stones archway that extended into a longer hall. Though dark for 5pm, the walls around held torches that were lit with green fires instead of the red orange flames that existed everywhere else around the castle. Mary was looking towards the blue green flames curiously. "Lily look at these, they're so pretty. I wonder how the flames get so blue.."
"I wouldn't get too close."
Both Mary and Lily turned to the speaker. The older girl looked around 16 with dark skin and long waist length braided brown hair. Her amber eyes took them in with such intensity they almost looked solid. Lily couldn't decide if they were more beautiful or more terrifying. Her image of perfection was unfortunately ruined by the cigarette she held in her hand.
"I know a first year who touched them-she never came back." she said letting out a stream of gray smoke from her open mouth. Mary stepped back from the flames instantly.
Another girl emerged from behind her with rich dark brown hair, hazel eyes and full thick brows that Lily thoroughly envied. "Oh Ayesha, just in time. Look what I found. Aren't they just the cutest looking pair of brave little lion cubs you've ever seen?"
The one named Ayesha looked at them quizzically. "Nikki-Lucius is asking for you."
The one nicknamed Nikki took a step towards the pair and caressed Lily's hair, "Such pretty hair". She mused, her smoky breath flowing directly in Lily's nose.
"Smoking's not allowed at Hogwarts." Lily said taking a quick step back before giving into a fit of coughing.
Mary pulled Lily back further. "If you don't mind, we have somewhere to be. Lily?" she insisted looking pointedly towards the girl. "Let's get going to where we were going."
Lily didn't move. Instead, she turned back to face the girls "We were looking for Severus." She said. "Severus Snape."
Mary turned to her, eyes wide like she couldn't believe the words that came out of her friend's mouth.
"Snape?" The girl with gold eyes said looking interested "He's been quite popular in the common room lately. What's your business with him?"
"I don't think I need to tell you that." Lily said boldly.
The girl simply stared at her.
"Let me stop you there." The other girl, Ayesha, spoke. "Niki doesn't take cheek very lightly. Fortunately for you she's in a good mood tonight."
Nikita Zabini didn't say a word, her eyes still resting on Lily. Mary was looking between the two girls deciding which one was more frightening. "Really? Why's that?" she asked curious. She clamped her mouth shut a second later wondering why she couldn't keep her mouth shut.
The girl took another swig of the smoke and laughed. "I'll tell you when you're older. Come on, Ayesha."
The dark iron clad gates behind them creaked open slightly. With each click a metal silver snake with green emerald eyes slithered down the bar, clicking as each unlocked the other until the gates fully opened exposing a little of the Slytherin common room. Nikita took one last look at them before disappearing inside.
Lily craned her neck to see what little she could. She hadn't ever seen the inside of another houses common room, she realized.
The other girl Ayesha stood at the open gates for a second before turning back to them. "And a little tip," she said "Next time you're down here I suggest you think twice about staying. Not all Slytherins take kindly to just-" she looked Lily and Mary up and down. "anyone."
"I need to talk to Severus, please-" Lily started but the gates with their clicks had just closed themselves back up again.
"The Slytherin common room, Lily?" Mary whispered arms folded. "What were you thinking?"
"What do you mean?" Lily looked towards her friend confused. "I had to get Severus-where else would I find him?"
"You could have told him to meet us at the library." Mary told her pointedly. "Haven't you ever wondered why no one goes down to the Slytherin common room?"
Lily pondered the question for a moment. She hadn't recalled there being rules about going to another houses common room, save for going inside of course. Like the other common room, those from other houses wouldn't be able to enter unless they knew the key to getting in.
What was so wrong about standing outside the common room though?
"I don't understand."
"Lily the Slytherins you see- I mean to say they have a reputation for being-" she racked her mind searching for the best word before deciding on "exclusive."
"I don't understand why everyone takes these houses so seriously. It's just seems like another way to divide students. I guess I don't understand it. Why can't we all-"
"Lily!" Mary gasped quickly pulling her behind a statue of a monkeyish looking tall wizard with a thin beard that trailed all the way down to the ends of his robes. He was staring proudly into the dark and-
She hard the familiar click of the gates being opened, the small silver snakes sliding down the stone bars to reveal a confused looking Severus who had pulled his wand out at the ready.
"Lumos." a small ball of light illuminated from the end of his wand and he pointed it toward the statue where both girls stuck their heads outwards to see him.
Lily ran up to him and hugged him tightly. "I was looking for you."
"Er why?" He asked as they pulled away awkwardly.
Mary stayed where she was and gave Severus a small wave.
"What are you doing here, Lily?" Severus asked again, leading them away from the common room. "What did you say to Nikita? Ayesha just came up to me and said someone was outside to see you?" He turned to her seriously. "Did they say anything to you?"
"No,nothing." Lily shook her head. "Although she was smoking- that's not allowed right?"
Mary cleared her throat. "Lily."
"Right." Lily turned to Severus "Well Severus. you know how I've never asked you for anything?" She blinked up at him and smiled.
Severus took one look at Mary MacDonald and understood.
"Lily-" Severus warned knowing exactly where she was going with this.
"Please Sev, she just needs a little help. You helped me, right? All I'm asking is for this one teeny tiny favor!"
"Lily I have things to do!" Severus tried to protest turning to face the wall.
"Sev, going to your common room to read is not a thing." Lily sighed. "Please Sev?"
Severus sighed defeated. "Fine. Only for a little bit." he turned to Mary and asked. "We'll start with the cure for boils. Do you have your book?"
"No-" Mary started glaring at Lily who has been the one to tell her she didn't need to bring her book in the first place. "I'll bring mine."
"Oh Sev," Lily grinned and hugged her friend. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! We'll be in the spare potions room across Slughorns class!"
Severus turned back heading into the common room to get his book and Lily turned to Mary. "See, now you'll be a pro in no time-what?"
Mary was looking at her oddly. "How long have you known Severus?"
"Since I was about ten." Lily said fondly remember the first day that they had met. She had just had a fight with Petunia who had seen her making little dandelions float in the garden. It was then that Severus had emerged and told her she was special and a witch.
She had thought he was making fun of her at first because why not? But then when she had gotten her letter, the very day Severus had told her it would come, she had immediately made a run for the last house on Spinners end excitedly to tell him.
"He's the one who first told me I was a witch-why?"
"Just wondering." Mary said. "You sure he's okay with helping me out a bit?"
"Of course. Severus can be really kind when he wants to be."
Severus to his credit wasted no time to get ready. He had re arranged the station Lily has set up and cleaned out the green goop that was in Mary's old cauldron.
"The potion is on page 10. The ingredients are in the back-you'll start, and I'll watch to see what you do."
Mary nodded with a look of encouragement from Lily and turned to the cabinet to get ingredients. She double checked them twice and began chopping the necessary things as instructed.
"Thank you, again." Lily and Severus sat a few tables away from Mary watching her attempt the potion with a new rigor. "I owe you anything you want."
"Anything?" Severus asked teasingly.
"Anything." Lily finished. "Except my Beatles and Beach Boy posters. Those are strictly for myself and Petunia." Lily looked down at her shoes suddenly reminded of her sister.
"Lily," Severus looked at her, understanding. "She'll get over it. She's just jealous you're special and she's not."
"That's a terrible thing to say Severus. It's mean."
"It's true." Severus told her earnestly. "You are special."
Lily gave him a small smile. She didn't want to think of Petunia but she idly wondered what her sister was doing right now.
There was a sudden whiz and Severus pulled Lily down as Mary's cauldron sizzled and burst. When they got back up Mary was standing in the middle of it all looking quite horrified. "I told you I was terrible." She said glumly.
"We," Severus sighed with a side glance towards Lily. "have a lot of work to do."
He turned to inspect the damage. "I can point out 4 things you did wrong already. First you over-heated the cauldron which of course led to it busting in the first place. Second you didn't cut the beetles the same way-it should resemble a jelly. Third you are to use the essence of the heated bugleweed, not dump the entire thing in the cauldron-"
"Alright," Mary folded her arms looking rather annoyed. "I get it, I'm an idiot."
"You're not an idiot." Severus corrected. Lily turned to look at him surprised. "You just aren't concentrating or reading for that matter."
"Well, I'll add that to my list of things I need to work on." Mary sighed. Lily brought out another cauldron, shutting the cabinet as she walked towards them. "Here let Severus and I show you how it's done."
Severus had already replenished the ingredients to his left and began chopping the ones that needed to be chopped while setting the bile weed in a small pot to be boiled.
Lily lit the cauldron and mixed the base of oil and fluxweed letting it simmer until the bugleweed was ready.
They were like clockwork when it came to positions.
"That way we can knock those two things out of the way while the base is getting ready." Lily explained to Mary who was watching them intently.
Mary nodded. "That makes sense-and I get all that. It's just the part about stirring clockwise and then counterclockwise that I don't get. Why does the direction matter, it all goes around either way?"
"Potions isn't just about stirring and dropping things in a cauldron. It requires magic. You must will it to brew in order for it to work and that is why I think you're not doing well. You aren't willing yourself to brew-that is you aren't using your magic to brew."
Lily looked at Severus oddly. "Why, Severus you sound almost like a teacher."
"I'd never be a teacher." Severus told her. "Especially not one who teaches Potions."
"I think you'd be a great teacher." Mary told him.
"Now Mary, see how I've chopped up the beetles?They're all uniformed and small enough to be blended together for step 17."
"Alright." Mary scribbled something down on the piece of parchment in front of her and folded her hands, a grin etched onto her face. "Go on and teach me everything you know."
"Is she always like this?" Severus grunted.
Lily grinned. "If by this you mean optimistic then yes, she is. It's not a crime to be happy, Sev."
"No one is that happy." Severus looked over at the smiling witch who looked to happy watching them slice and dice bug remains. "So what did Petunia say?"
Lily squeezed the Snufflepod a little too hard at the question. "Nothing." She didn't respond. "I thought perhaps she would realize when I didn't join for the holidays but nothing."
He nodded. "She'll come around though." Lily told him. "Family always does."
Severus stiffened. "Yeah"
"Sev?"
"Hm?"
"Why is it that the Slytherins are so exclusive?"
"What do you mean?"
"Mary was telling me that the Slytherins, they don't like just anyone? I mean that's ridiculous. A shriveled hat told us what house we were in. How does it even know?"
Severus shrugged. "It's an ancient hat- it must have some knowledge."
"It's silly to me." Lily shook the snapping peas that were threatening to spill out the carefully sealed jar. "We're letting a hat divide students. I mean Sev I've seen the awful things people do in the name of house unity."
"Like James Potter?" Severus questioned.
Lily turned her head. "What do you mean?"
"He charmed Alesana's quill to poke her in her face last week."
"Oh." Lily hadn't known that. "I'm sure it was just a joke, they do like to mess around."
"She had to go to the hospital wing-it nearly poked her eye out."
"Oh."
She went back to inspect the potion. It was coming together now she thought to herself noting the pale yellow color.
"Is it because he's in your house?"
"What?"
"James." He continued. "Is it because he's a Gryffindor that you don't have anything to say?"
"I don't speak for James Potter." Lily told him cooly. "Besides his actions don't speak for all of Gryffindor."
"Same can be said for my house." Severus told her and she bit her lip. She couldn't argue with that logic.
"I'm sorry Severus." She sighed. "I guess I got caught up in Mary's words. You're right. Our actions shouldn't be defined by what house we're in. Personally I think the concept is rather silly- where did these houses even come from anyway?"
"The founders." Severus reminded her. "Remember how I told you there were four. Each of them have a house named after them."
Lily nodded. She did remember Severus vaguely telling her about the houses. She recalled how disappointed he was when she had been sorted into Gryffindor the first night.
She hadn't understood what it meant at first , but she quickly realized how everything at Hogwarts was based simply on the houses they were sorted in. First and second year schedules for example were based on their paired house as well. She had Potions with the Slytherins, Charms with the Ravenclaws and Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs. They were seated by house in the Great Hall though students did sit by their friends in other houses. The points system was also based on the actions of any member in the same house as her.
How peculiar it was, that everything from the time they had stepped into the castle, was decided for them. Where to sit, where to eat, where to sleep, what classes to take all based on whatever the old hat had decided.
She hated the house system and what is represented. She hated how she and Severus were separated by dungeon walls. She hated the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor she was just barely beginning to understand.
"Sev."
"Hmm?" He was back to being himself. Engrossing himself in whatever he was working on.
"Promise me you won't let these silly house nonsense divide us."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean," Lily gave an exasperated sigh. "regardless of what house we're in and what we're doing- we'll always be friends right?"
Severus gave her the look he always did when she asked questions. His eyes became a little soft, his voice dropping down a decibel.
"Always."