Oddest Couple

Remus Lupin was a rather jealous boy. He was in love with Lily Evans, who just happened to be in love with Severus Snape. More unfortunate than that was that one of Remus' best friends, James Potter, also fancied Lily. Remus had always known that there was no hope for Lily and him, but the fact that she was dating Snivellus was too much.

Lily knew that Remus was jealous, but quite honestly, she didn't care. She was happy with Severus, and Remus would just have to learn to live with that.

Lily returned from dinner with still no letter from Severus. Surely he had said after Potions...

Screech!

A small grey owl flew down to her and held out its leg, where the envelope Lily had been waiting for was tied.

Lily hurried and untied the envelope and let owl fly out window.

'Who's the letter from?' Remus asked, watching the owl fly out the window.

Lily stared at him blankly and Remus rolled his eyes, realising it was from Severus.

Lily opened the letter.

Dearest Lily,

One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love. I would have written sooner, but today was rather hectic. I need to see you again, to talk to you. It must be tonight; I don't think I can bear this burden any longer. There's no time to waste; I don't know how much longer there is. Please meet me in front of the statue that leads to the Prefects' Bathroom. Not to worry, we won't be in there. Just meet me there.

Love always,

Severus Snape

Lily wasted no time. She knew that it would be against the rules, but she had already broken them once today when she stepped into the Forbidden Forest. What was another rule? No one would know. She got up and headed toward the Fat Lady's portrait.

'Where're you going?' Remus said, watching her intently.

'Er, I need to take a bath,' Lily lied.

'You're meeting him, aren't you?' Remus said, glaring at her.

Lily sighed and kneeled down next to him. 'Please, Remus,' she begged. 'Don't say anything. He needs me right now. It's something serious. Please, just trust my judgement and cover for me.'

Remus hesitated before nodding. 'Fine,' he agreed grudgingly. 'But if you get caught, it's on your own head.'

'Thank you, Remus,' Lily whispered, and swiftly, she kissed him on the cheek before dashing out of the common room. She raced down the stairs, careful to hop over the Sinking Step, and headed down to the floor that she often visited after a stressful day involving, more than likely, James Potter.

Lily skidded to a halt in front of the statue of Boris the Bewildered. She looked around, but no one was there. Could Severus have possibly stood her up?

Her heart sank into the lower part of her stomach where all her bad feelings went. A hand grabbed her shoulder and Lily gasped, holding back the scream that caught in her throat.

Lily spun around to face Severus. She let out a sigh of nothing more than relief. But then she looked at him. His eyes were bloodshot and it was quite obvious that he had been crying. 'What's wrong?' she asked, her body trembling with fear.

'Not here,' he whispered. Severus took her hand in his and led her back up the stairs. They moved quickly and quietly, hoping that no teachers would find them out of bed.

Much to Lily's surprise, Severus stopped on the seventh floor, the floor where Gryffindor Tower was located. 'What are we doing here?' she asked quietly.

'Do you trust me?' he asked in response.

Lily stared at him. 'Yes,' she decided after thinking for a moment.

'Then, you have to just trust me that we're going somewhere safe,' Severus said, squeezing her hand lightly. 'I would never do anything to hurt you.'

Lily still didn't understand where they were going or why they were going there, but she trusted him and followed him down the corridor. He stopped in front of a bare wall. Lily looked around. There was a tapestry on the opposite wall; she recognised the man on it as Barnabas the Barmy. He was trying to teach a goblin to sing opera but failing dismally.

When she looked back at Severus, he was holding open a door that had appeared on the once bare wall. 'C'mon,' he said, motioning inside the room.

Lily tentatively entered. The room was a good size. There were books on shelves covering all of the walls. And in the middle of the room was a couch.

Severus entered behind her, closing the door behind him. He seized her hand and led her to the couch. His eyes still looked rather red, so Lily asked once again, 'What's wrong?'

Severus sighed sadly and lifted his head to look at her. 'Lily, have I ever told you that I'm a half-blood?' he asked.

Lily shrugged. 'I saw it in your Potions textbook,' she said. 'The Half-Blood Prince. Your mother's maiden name was Prince.'

'How do you know that?' Severus asked, shocked as ever.

'It wasn't that difficult to figure out, Severus,' Lily said, smirking. 'I just went to the library and did a bit of research.'

'Oh,' he said plainly. 'Well, then, I assume you also know that my father is a Muggle.' He said the word "Muggle" like it was a terrible word, causing Lily to frown at him. But she nodded, knowing that his father was not a wizard.

'I know not all Muggles are bad,' he said quickly, noticing Lily's reaction. 'But my father - he's not a good person.'

'Severus, please, just tell me what's going on,' she begged. Lily hated the way he was stalling.

Severus sighed, leading Lily to believe that whatever was wrong was very wrong. 'Things aren't good at home,' he explained slowly. Lily's heart beat faster. 'My parents - they don't get along well...I might have to go home to help my mother. She's...sick.'

Something about the way Severus said "sick" made her believe that there was more than what he was saying. 'Severus, please, tell me exactly what's happening at home. I want to help you,' Lily whispered.

Tears glistened in his cold eyes, anger-filled tears. His hands began to shake violently and his face tensed.

'Please,' Lily repeated quietly, taking hold of one of his shaking hands.

Severus looked into her eyes and took a deep breath. 'She's dying, Lily,' he said, his voice cracking. 'She needs me.'