Twisted Love

Chapter 6: Disaster in Hogsmeade

"If I hear another fucking giggle again I'll - "

A loud, disturbingly high giggle cut through Severus' dark mutter and the cold, crisp winter air. Not only was the sound unbearably annoying, it also meant that some airhead was having the time of her life. That was totally laughable. How can anyone have fun in a foul weather like this? The wind whipped his body ferociously, he had never been so cold, and (as he glared at the gathering clouds) he observed grimly that it was going to rain. Or snow. Or maybe both, he thought sarcastically.

Which seemed like the perfect touch to this gruesome day. Severus jammed his hands that were blue with cold into his trouser pockets and moodily kicked at an empty box lying around on the ground. He didn't have the slightest idea why he'd decided to stroll around Hogsmeade in the first place. OK, so after spending days just sitting around in his room all by himself, he'd been ready to do anything. Even if that meant getting half-frozen. Only he wouldn't mind it so much it there weren't all these Gryffindors swarming around constantly, giggling and chattering in usual annoying Gryffindor manner.

Severus seriously thought about going back. But then, he'd only been outside for, like, twenty minutes. It would be a terrible waste of time if he headed back to the school now. And anyway, just thinking about going back to his room was unbearable. He wasn't quite ready to face those blank, boring walls yet. He saw a sign that perked him up.

"If a butterbeer doesn't warm me up, nothing will," he muttered, shivering against the brutal winds. He walked casually towards the Three Broomsticks, trying not to break into a run.

*

"Oh, James, you're so funny!" Crystal let out a giggle and leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with interest.

That's the fourth time she's said that, James screamed inwardly. It would have been rewarding, or even understandable, if he had actually tried to be funny. He was sick of her giggling every time he opened his mouth. Trying not to scream out loud, he forced a smile and nodded briefly. "So, tell me something about you."

While Crystal went on and on about her supposedly busy and fun-filled life, James let his mind wander back to Lily. He still couldn't believe his plan had totally backfired. And after he had prepared so carefully, too. The plan had seemed brilliant at the time: First he would ask Crystal, one of Lily's closest friends, out on the Hogsmeade trip morning. Then he would causally offer some "cookies baked with a Cheering Charm," which were actually filled with temporary love potion, to Crystal. And to a certain red-haired person (presumably) standing right next to her. Assuming, of course, the easily excited blonde girl would pick up the emphasis on the word "cheering" and encourage Lily, who sure to be in a not-so-pleasant mood at the presence of James, to have a bite. He didn't count on Crystal turning all snotty and practically egging Lily on to have the whole stupid batch.

James' face crumpled as he vividly remembered the painful incident a while ago. Lily had looked as if someone had slapped her face. He could understand her furious, cold attitude towards Crystal, but why did she have to glare at him? James sighed, frustrated. Then he realized Crystal was saying something and looking concerned. He snapped back to reality. "I'm sorry - what did you say?"

Crystal bit her lip, still looking concerned. "Are you OK? You look troubled."

"Ah." James immediately relaxed his face into a grin. "No, no troubles," he said lightly as he could.

"Are you sure? You haven't been listening to a word I was saying." Crystal pouted, pumping out her full, red lower lip.

"I - I have a lot on my mind," James said apologetically. Time to change the subject, and quick. He took a deep breath and started to get up. "Did you finish your butterbeer? Let's go for a walk."

Crystal regained her lovesick expression and gazed adoringly into his eyes. "I'd love to, James," she breathed, and stood up from her stool.

James hesitantly held out a gloved hand, which Crystal took with a giggle. She had the highest, shrillest, most annoying giggle in the world, and soon he would be losing his mind at the very sound. Very soon. As they walked out together, hand in hand, Snape walked past them and into the Three Broomsticks. Snape's whole body went rigid when he saw his worst enemy, but James walked straight past him and didn't even look back. Normally, he looked for every chance to torture the Slytherin, but today he was just not in the mood. Not when things were going from bad to worse. According to his plan, the love potion should be in full affect right about now. He had imagined Lily tagging along with Remus and Peter, suddenly seized by jealousy because she was falling for James. And when Lily worked out that she actually liked James, they could ditch all their friends and enjoy the day together. And even if the love potion wore off after 24 hours, Lily would be able to realize that she had absolutely no reason to hate James at all because he had been prepared to turn this day into a magical on for her. If only it had worked, James thought, kicking a pebble viciously. But no, a certain insensitive person had to ruin everything by making Lily mad. A certain person walking beside him and actually squealing today was the most wonderful day of her life.

Now he had no choice but to stick with Crystal all day. His friends had abandoned him; Sirius was obviously in heaven with Olivia, and Remus and Peter had taken off after Crystal sweetly asked them to "give them some privacy." (Remus had whispered before disappearing with Peter, "I told you it wouldn't work, Prongs!") To make things worse, Lily wasn't anywhere to be seen. He was beginning to worry about her. Alone, and in that awful state too. She was probably having a miserable time. His stomach clenched. She was supposed to be having the best time with him, if only the plan hadn't backfired...

"Hey, Crystal, why don't we look for Evans? She's tot dangerous to be left alone, you know," he joked.

Crystal looked surprised. "Lily? I'm sure she's fine," she said, shrugging delicately. Her expression brightened and she clutched James' hand even tighter. "Hey, there's Honeydukes. I love candy. Let's go."

You bitch. James couldn't believe it. And she was supposed to be Lily's friend? "Don't you care?" he asked incredulously.

"Of course I care!" Crystal looked insulted. She did that pouting thing again, which was seriously getting old, in James' opinion. "It's just that...we had a fight this morning and - and even though she apologized I kind of had the feeling she didn't really mean it which is fine because I'm still a bit angry. So it'll be sort of awkward if we face each other and I really think I should just stay away from her, at least for now," she babbled.

"Yeah, whatever," James muttered. He had already lost interest in her pathetic attempt at explaining. He was too thinking about where he could find Lily.

*

Lily sighed. She was walking by herself in one of the quieter streets. Compared to the noisy main streets that were packed with excited crowds of people, this was heaven. Well, close to heaven, she reminded herself grumpily. After all, there was that little fact that she had never felt so lonely and hurt to consider.

A middle-aged couple that had their arms around each other strolled by, happily enveloped in their own little world. She blinked back tears. Everyone else had someone special on Christmas Eve. Everyone else was having fun. She took a deep breath and wiped the tears away with the back of her hand before they turned into icicles or something. She could always go back to the center of Hogsmeade and hang out with her other, loyal friends instead of moping around by herself in a practically deserted street. After all, she had plenty of friends who liked her, didn't she? And they were nothing like that backstabbing, obnoxious Crystal Westwood. She couldn't blame Olivia; it wasn't her fault she had a date.

It's not Crystal's fault, either, Lily realized with a start. Potter was the one who asked her out; it's not like she purposely tried to get a date. So then why was she feeling a lot more vicious towards Crystal? It...it had nothing to do with the fact that James was involved, right? Right, she thought firmly.

"Aw, all by yourself on Christmas Eve, are you?" a nauseating voice interrupted Lily's thoughts. She looked up and gulped. Two huge, burly men who looked like they were in their mid-twenties stood in front of her, deliberately blocking her path. They were casually flicking their wands and grinning at her in a manner she didn't like.

"No, actually I'm meeting up with someone," Lily lied quickly. She smiled sweetly. "Now if you two gentlemen will excuse me...bit of a hurry here..."

"Nice one." This time the second man spoke, the one with a long, pointy face. He shared a knowing look with his friend, who had a messy tangle of brown beard. "We watched you the whole time. You looked you were in no hurry. And why would you be heading this way, anyway, girlie?" The two men snickered.

Girlie. Lily felt annoyed. She hated it when someone used stupid expressions like that. "It's none of your business," she snapped, finally losing her temper. "Now step aside before I make you - " She reached for her wand.

"Ah, if that's the way you want - " Messy Beard shook his head and cast a Disarming Charm. Lily fell to the ground, hard, and her wand flew out her hand. The next thing she knew, two wands were pointed right at her throat. "We were hoping you'd pleasantly agree to spend some time with us, as you were looking so lonely," Pointy Face said with mock disappointment. His eyes glittered dangerously. "Too bad we have to force you, eh?"

Lily grimaced. Messy Beard was caressing her cheeks with his filthy hand. She had to bite her tongue to keep herself from screaming. She was sure - positive - that it wouldn't be pleasant if she so much as peeped. The wand tips were still dangerously close to her throat, one was even poking her and it hurt. She blinked her eyes rapidly, trying not to burst into tears.

"Let's go inside, it's freezing out here," Pointy Face said to his sidekick. Lily had no choice but to walk into one of the small, creepy houses on the left side of the street with two wands pointed to her back.

*

"Great, it's snowing," Severus grumbled as he stepped out of the Three Broomsticks after a good, quick butterbeer. The liquid had been wonderfully warm and good while it had lasted, but it looked like he was going to have to go back to his earlier half-frozen state. Too bad he was allergic to Gryffindors. He could've stayed inside the Three Broomsticks if it weren't for all those people bustling inside.

"Hey, look, it's old Snivellus," someone exclaimed. Severus recognized the boy from Potions - Finnigan. He was a few feet away from him, his arm draped over an equally snickering girl. "You actually came out of your room, eh? Smart move." Finnigan grinned meanly and threw a snowball that hit Severus right in the face. "Not."

Severus didn't waste any time. A flash of light later, Finnigan fell to his knees, clutching his gashed face and moaning. By this time a crowd had formed around them. Of course, most of them were Gryffindors and they gazed at Severus in a very threatening way. But before anyone can utter any spells to cast on the Slytherin, a stern voice cut through them.

"What's all this?" Professor McGonagall demanded, making her way through the crowd. She only needed a glance to figure things out. "Finnigan! Snape! Both of you, detention. Report to me at eight o' clock sharp in my office. And the rest of you," she said briskly, "go on, go on, nothing to be excited about."

Severus threw another hateful look at Finnigan's and took off in the direction where people weren't gathered and giving him nasty looks. He was suddenly so sick of everything, everybody. A few minutes of hurried walking paid off; now he was in a dark, ominous street lined with gloomy looking houses. He wasn't sure if he liked this part of Hogsmeade, but anyplace was better than where he used to be.

The snow was coming down quite heavily now, but he didn't mind. He continued to stroll mindlessly, enjoying the peace and quiet for a change... Wait a minute. What was that noise? He strained his ears. Whatever it was, it was definitely coming from the small, red house right next to him. It sounds like...like someone's crying. Sobbing, actually. Severus frowned and started to walk by. Something crashed inside the house, startling him. He stopped dead in his tracks again. He heard a faint shriek and sobbing again. It was definitely a female voice. A surprisingly familiar one, too.

Severus' breathing became uneven - he wandered why it bothered him so much that he had never caught a glimpse of Evans all day. She wasn't in the crowd or with the loud blonde girl who was hanging out with Potter. And he certainly didn't know why his pulse quickened at the idea of the sobbing girl inside the filthy house being Evans. Without hesitating, he ran to the front door and yelled, "Alohomora!"

A narrow hallway greeted him and he ran to the end of it. There was a door on each side, and he flung open the left one. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. A hard-faced man with an extremely pointy chin was grinning evilly and unbuttoning Lily's shirt while another man was pinning her against the wall. Lily's face was streaked with tears, her eyes wide and hysterical. She caught sight of Severus, and so did the two men. Dropping Lily quickly, they reached for their wands but Severus was too quick for them.

"Stupefy!" he bellowed. The spell hit the guy with the pointy face and he dropped to the ground, unconscious. His sidekick lunged for Severus with a fierce growl but Lily had already grabbed her wand from Pointy Face's pocket and had yelled, "Stuepy!"

For a moment, Lily and Severus stared at the two men lying on the ground, as if they would wake up any moment and attack them again. But it looked like they were going be unconscious for a long time. Lily finally raised her doubtful eyes from the bodies and stared at Severus instead. He was staring right at her too, with those deep, dark eyes of his. The eyes that were usually filled with distrust and hate - but now she realized that there was something else now. Concern.

Lily was suddenly aware of how terrible she must look. Turning around to face the wall, she buttoned the top part of her shirt again with burning cheeks. Then she wiped her face grudgingly. When she turned around again, Severus had taken a step forward uncertainly. His face coolly masked his feelings, but Lily could tell from his eyes that he was shaken by the whole incident. So was she.

*

I have absolutely NO COMMENT about this chapter. Obviously, it's not one of my best works and I'm quite disappointed with it. I'm not sure I managed to capture the "spirit of things." Oops, what I just said was not a comment. It wasn't, it wasn't. *rueful grin* How can I ever thank the reviewers and, of course, readers? Like any other writer, I'm inspired by any kind of review; so if you have something to tell me, tell me. Please. :)

::cutesingleberry::

Oh joy, oh joy! Thank you so much for loving the characters! It's really important to me that they're similar to the real characters. *does a little dance* And yeah, I know what you mean about Crystal. She's an original character, and I secretly love all my original characters, but she seems to be an exception to that rule. Oh well.

::alenchic::

Ooh, a Sirius fan! Great! Maybe you can help me write a letter to Rowling demanding she miraculously brings him alive again. Maybe at the sixth or seventh book? I'm joking about the letter, but I was SO SERIOUSLY PISSED OFF at her when I read the fifth one for the first and last time. Yes, I hated that one. *shiver* It's stashed somewhere in my closet. Hopefully I'll never find it.

::aaawannabefirst::

Yes, I'm making Remus gay, but it's not going to be too obvious. I don't know when I'll mention it again, but I want to! I've always been this huge fan of Sirius/Remus. Ah, the tension.

::LaminaCourt::

I hope you got my explanation at the review board about Snape falling in love with James. ;) It's never going to come up in this story, but I might do a short one about that... God, it's hilarious... *manages not to fall of the chair*

::Rema::

Thank you for not throwing that razor blade. *smiles tearfully* The 'took me so long but it was worth it' part was incredible - thanks for understanding, you've made my day. :)

::WereWolfGurl145::

Aaaahh!! *runs around screaming* It was so cool to hear that, especially since it came from a L/J fanatic. (You are...aren't you?) Recommend some L/J fics that have a very cool SIRIUS in it, please. ;)

::Nymphadora51::

The meaning of the title "Twisted Love" is going to make a lot of sense later on, too. I guess it's plain obvious at the end of this chapter here... I don't really, uh, watch any soap operas but I'll take that as a compliment! :)

::Madelynn::

No, he was just going for Lily. Crystal doesn't need any love potion. She's already crazy about him, anyway. It's not such a stupid plan, if you think of it, because Lily was already slightly jealous from the beginning. And of course, if she eats one of the cookies given by him, she'll be affected by it and she's really going to be jealous of Crystal and James. Like it's a natural process. And if she has an incredible time with James later on, then she'll remember it the next day and...oh, what am I doing, trying to convince myself? *groan* I knew it was a stupid plan. *sniffle sniffle*

::LadyPadfoot::

Thanks for the highly encouraging "ooooo" there! ;)

::hpbookie20::

Another comment about the title! Yay! *does another dance* Ah, another understanding reviewer. Thanks. School sure sucks, doesn't it?

::Lucky Shamrock::

I really, really appreciate your patience! I'll try not to make you check too many times... :) Meaning, I'll try to update sooner.

*

Sneak Preview of Chapter 7: Lily and Snape are trapped in the house together - thanks to the awful blizzard. They manage to get along, because...oh, I should shut up already. (But those who are sharp readers should be able to guess what's going to happen. ) An important bond is made between those two, and meanwhile poor James is searching around in the snow for Lily, alone...until he meets the ultimate horror of his life.