Alone at Last

Alone at Last

(In order of entrance)

Lily Evans, Severus Snape, Professor Lyra Alciene, Sirius Black, James Potter, Peter Pettigrew

It was just one of those nights. One where you could just sit back and stare at the stars. But that's not what Lily and Severus had in mind; instead, a deep discussion of the feelings that had been held back for Merlin knew how long.
And so, she came to a sheltered spot on the lake's edge, out of view of the castle. It would be impossible to find them only if you heard them talking, and it would be easy to hear them talking through the silence. But that wasn't what worried Lily Evans this night.
What if James would come and find them alone here? Alone with James's sworn enemy. Oh well, love does not come easy for some. Glancing over her shoulder, she waited for Severus.

He sighed, slowly sliding out of the doors of Hogwarts. Obsidian eyes glanced around, hoping they didn't get caught. Already Severus Snape had had to erase one professor's memory. He didn't want to have to do it again. His eyes scanned the lake, looking for Lily. When he spotted her, he glanced around again and made his way near her.
When he reached her, he nodded in greeting, "Hi." He stepped down to the lake, placing the handle of his wand in it as the moonlit water rippled and started to turn crimson. He lifts it out of the water and wipes it off on his shirt, on whatever was left white. He stood and glanced at Lily, "So, what's with all of the groping?" he asked, kind of demanding-like. Though he didn't seem to notice that it sounded that way.

It took her a long time to comprehend what he meant by 'groping', but said nothing, only hung her head, waiting for him to start yelling like James would have by now. But instead of just sitting there and saying nothing, she looked up, patting the ground next her for him to have a seat.
"I like you, Severus." It took all the strength she could muster to say this and she had to try to keep from leaping up and just holding him.
Bringing her knees to her chest, she sighed once again. Why did talking to him have to be so goddamn hard?!

Severus sat right next to her when her words struck him. "As a friend, right?" even though he figured that friends wouldn't be hanging all over each other. Well, maybe Gryffindors were like that, but Slytherins certainly weren't. He thought of him and Lucius hugging and shuddered. No, Slytherins would never do that.
His dark eyes glanced out at the lake; he wasn't sure what to say. He hoped that she meant it in a friendly way because this would definitely be awkward if it wasn't. He rests his arms on his knees, before he glanced at her, a bit of nervousness in his eyes. Lucius had tortured her, as he had for a few seconds. She can't like me; it's absurd and crazy. A Slytherin and a Gryffindor? You've got to be kidding me.

"No, Severus," she said, her voice taking on a completely different tone. Placing a finger under his chin so that he was facing her and looking directly at hers, she sighed. "More than a friend."
Letting her hand drop once again to her knees, she looked out over the lake's shining waters. It seemed that what she had just said dropped a bomb on dear old Severus. At this moment, the silence struck most clear. Furrowing her brow, her gaze once again fell on Severus, wishing he would do or say something to end this awkward silence.

He raised a brow, "You've got to be kidding me. I know Potter is behind this." But he knew it wasn't true; that was the strange thing. He frowned a little. "Then I guess I will avoid you so you can start to unlike me or something..."
"James would kill me, Lucius would kill me, Sirius would help James... And there's the fact that you don't really like me." His mind worked quickly, trying to think of something to back that thought up. "You just think you like me... Women like mysterious guys..." He obviously was making it up as he went, "Er... it's just one of those... 'once in a lifetime' things... So, you really don't like me, you really like James, you just don't see him enough." That works; she might believe that.

Getting on her knees, Lily looked into his eyes. "No, Severus. I think I love you." Glancing away, she stared back at the lake. If he wouldn't believe her, she would make him believe, and she turned her head back, leaned it to the side and went in for a full-frontal snog.
Giving him a half-smile, she stood up and brushed off her robes. "Do you believe me now? I've never kissed James like that before..." Her eyes once again met the lake, but soon she was walking back toward the castle, leaving Severus with his thoughts. If he followed she would be more than happy to talk to him.

His eyes widened; that was the most unexpected thing. His enemy's girlfriend just kissed him. Things were getting stranger and stranger. He watched her leave. "She can't love me, it's practically illegal," he muttered to himself. He stood up a bit dazed, from all the thoughts that were rushing to his head.
Severus glanced around, half-expecting someone to pop out and kill him where he stood, his dark eyes searching possible hiding places. Maybe, no one is here... I suppose that is good... He shook his head in an attempt to clear it. He had to get back to his Common room to think. Plus, he was exhausted, and now he found out Lily liked him. Lily, a Gryffindor, Potter's girlfriend, the chick he had a crush on, and the girl who blinded him earlier today. He made his way to the castle, not particularly caring if a professor found him now.

Lo and behold, that was exactly what happened.
"Severus," came a voice from the direction of the castle, "What are you doing out so late?"
The figure of Professor Lyra Alciene walked towards him, eyeing her student with no particular emotion. Her auburn hair was pulled back into a messy bun, stray tendrils of hair framing her face.

His obsidian eyes widened at the sight and he hoped that she wouldn't notice the blood stains on his shirt. He turned away from her partially so she wouldn't see. "I... am... I came out for a midnight stroll..." It was partly true. He glanced down at himself, she would never believe him if he said it was his own blood.
"Nice night for a stroll, isn't it?" he asked, his voice very calm and collective. He still faced away from her. The back of his shirt was still white; it seemed to glow. He knew that he was probably going to get detention, but that was life. It may have royally sucked but there was nothing he could do; he'd have to grin and bear it.

Lyra tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she watched him change position.
"Yes, it is a nice night for a midnight stroll. Although, I do hope you're aware that students aren't supposed to be out this late." A slight smile was on her face. To punish, or not to punish? To quote (or misquote) Shakespeare, that is the question.
"So, is there a certain reason you decided to go for a stroll?" Lyra asked, her tone that of a merely interested person.

He sighed, "I know it's against the rules, but I needed to talk to someone, alone, but I'm not going to tell you who it is, they don't need to get in trouble. Give me detention or take away points, but let me go to my common room. I am tired and sore." It was completely true, his muscles were sore from getting little rest, and he was tired from not stopping. Plus, he had missed lunch and dinner.
He knew he would have to turn around to enter Hogwarts. He did this slowly, knowing that he would be accused of hurting something or someone. Unless, of course, Madam Pomfrey had chatted with this professor about a student who had cut himself badly, causing quite a bit of blood loss and a stained shirt that was partially ripped.

Lyra's amber eyes sparkled with amusement, then grew dim as she caught sight of his shirt. Her mouth tightened slightly, barely visible to the naked eye.
"Care to explain the state of your uniform?" She raised a questioning brow. "You can go after you explain, but I will have to check your explanation." Lyra carefully examined Severus with her gaze, lightening only partially after she saw he was physically decent.

He lifted his eyebrows in astonishment. "Well, it's a long story..." He sighed and began, reciting as if from practise.

"Well, I was in my dorm looking at some old family photos... You see, both of my parents are dead; my dad died when I was around five, my mum died over the summer. So technically, if I don't graduate, I have to live with my uncle, Professor Versilles. He hates me because he hated my father for marrying his little sister-" He stopped and looked up at her.
"I was full of emotion and I threw my cauldron out the window. I then looked around for someone or something to hurt after I demolished the window. Well, unfortunately, no one was there, so I opted to hurt myself. It wasn't very smart, but I was only thinking on emotions; I wasn't thinking that clearly. I cut myself." Severus showed her the scar on his palm.
"I ended up in the dungeons, arguing with someone, and a few spells were cast. Since I was moving quite a bit, my blood started flowing, and it stained my shirt and my wand. It surprised me, anyways. Professor Versilles came and yelled at us. He said he could fix my hand..." Severus looked down, remembering the pain his uncle had put him through. "He stuck the tip of his wand in my cut running it up and down the cut. He muttered a few things in Italian, which happened to be 'You stupid boy, I hope it hurts.' I guess he doesn't know I understand Italian. Anyway, he did it again and it hurt like hell."
Severus looked back at her. "Then, everything was sorted out and I headed over to the hospital wing, since Madam Pomfrey could fix my hand." He sighed heavily, and continued, "She was worried and all, but she healed it and it's nothing but a scar now." Severus started to leave, even more tired now that he remembered everything he had done that day.

Lyra wasn't visibly fazed by all this. "Get some sleep, sounds like you need it," Lyra advised Severus, a hint of concern in her otherwise neutral voice.
Versilles was his uncle? Nice to know for future reference. Wand in a slash wound, that had to be painful. Maybe she should have a word with Versilles, though it probably wouldn't help, knowing that man. Resorting to juvenile pranks and arguments wouldn't help either. Lyra sighed, still standing there and making no attempt to go back to the castle.

Sirius Black pulled off the Cloak and stood in front of Severus, his arms crossed. He glared at Severus, and held his wand to the other boy's throat. He had seen everything.
He glared as fiercely as possible, trying to make the boy cower with just a glare. If looks could kill, Severus would be dead a hundred times over.
He waited for a moment, watching the boy's face, and then hit him, as hard as possible, his fist connecting solidly with Severus' nose. His face was a mask of anger, and he panted, trying to control his anger.

Shocked, Severus stumbled backwards. He went a bit dizzy and almost fell over. The sides of his vision were going black, but soon everything went back to normal. What a cheap shot. He growled, "Damn you, Black. Lily isn't here to stop me from using them." He smirked evilly.
He pointed his wand at Sirius, "Crucio." He may have whispered it, but that whisper held so much malice and the wish to hurt, it was sickening. His dark eyes narrowed; he was sick of Sirius and wanted him to feel all of the pain he had to go through. Severus always wanted to escape the pain of home, but Hogwarts could never be his safe haven thanks to Sirius.

Lily, hearing the commotion behind her, ran toward Severus. One of James's little pals must have followed them. Taking out her wand, she peered at Severus and Sirius. Great, on her duty.
With a mix of anger at Severus for using that spell on Sirius, and hatred for Sirius's following of her combined, she screamed, pointing her wand at Severus. "Take that spell off of him," she growled. As much as she hated Sirius, she couldn't stand him being tortured. "And Sirius, you will come with me."
Peering at Severus, Lily gave a weak smile. Her wand floated to Sirius, then back to Severus. "Release the spell." Her voice shook with fury at the two's squabbling.

Sirius snarled at Severus, panting heavily and clutching his head. He grasped his wand, looking angrily at Lily and Severus.
"Why? Lily, you don't want to hurt James, and this scum just used an Unforgivable on me. That's Azkaban, minimum life sentence. He has to pay, I can't... I can't let him get away with it," he finished with a pleading note. "How about if I promise not to hurt him?" His face grew stormy as he looked to her.
"Lily..." Sirius' voice shook. "I won't let you hurt James, I can't. You have to promise... not to see Snivellus anymore, and he has to give up Unforgivables, or I swear I'll tell Dumbledore and there is no way on earth he will let you go free after harming a student of his. And I? I won't hurt Snivellus. I'll give you my word as a Marauder," he offered, trying desperately not to cry. It wasn't fair. True, Lily and he had never gotten along well, but James would be crushed to learn about this and Sirius couldn't bear to tell him.
He owed James and his family so much, and he was not going to stand by and watch Lily walk all over him with his worst enemy. Sirius would be fine, after the Cruciatus, he would recover, at least, but he couldn't let Severus continue like this. He'd put him behind bars as soon as he was an Auror; Snivellus would be his first target.

Lily bit her lip. Walking forward, her face crumpled a little in sorrow and anger. "Just get out of here, Black." She aimed a kick at his head, but it was ill done, since she was crying. Really, she didn't mean to hurt anyone, she just wanted to do what was right for her. But, obviously, she had done wrong.
"Just leave now." Her voice was full of anger and her face red with it. What have you done Lily, why? Glancing back at Severus for support, but soon she was falling to the ground, tears welling up in her eyes. Oh dear, here comes the water works.

"What's going on here?" James Potter said, rushing over and catching sight of Lily, Severus, and Sirius. "Hey, you stole my Cloak, Padfoot," he said in disbelief; how had he managed to lose track of it again? Apparently the situation didn't seem that serious to him.
Then he saw Lily, tears rolling down her face. "Lily, what's wrong?" Now he was concerned. Lily hardly ever cried, and she was in front of Snape. What was the matter?

Severus would have smirked, but Lily was crying and he was hoping it wasn't his fault. He lifted the curse, not out of fear of expulsion, but for Lily; she didn't want him to use the Unforgivables, so he wouldn't, at least not in front of her. He grimaced; he didn't have the upper hand, but they likely didn't know how skilled he had become in duelling.
Maybe James realized it in the dungeon, but he had doubted it. He probably thought it was luck that he had disarmed a Professor. It wasn't; it was skill and calculation. If he struck too late, his uncle would have had him on the ground, writhing in pain. "Black, you're an asshole for making her cry." His voice filled of malice and sarcasm when he saw James come along. "Well, hello, Potter."

Severus realized that he had to fight to resist the urge to kneel down and embrace Lily. If he did it, he knew he would be dead; two against one wouldn't be easy to handle.

Sirius glanced down at the Cloak on the ground, and looked up at James. He said, slowly, every word echoing around them, "I swear I would never hurt Lily if I could help it." He looked at Snivellus, and his fury boiled up again.
He felt like he was going to explode if he didn't leave right now, and it began to rain, the clouds opening up and pouring down on his angry face. He relaxed suddenly, as the rain drained him of every emotion, leaving him empty.
Sirius knelt and picked up his wand and the Cloak, then moved to stand next to James. His face was solemn and blank as he gazed almost unfeelingly as Severus. He moved his wand up, protecting James and Lily, and aimed it carefully at Severus. He wouldn't let that greasy git touch either of them over his dead body.

Severus growled. "Watch it, Black, I'm a Death Eater. I am also fairly good with the Unforgivables. If I wanted to, I could call all of the Death Eaters here instantly." He smirked evilly. "It's as easy as that."
He stepped away from Lily; he hoped that she didn't try to hug him. Severus wouldn't have a chance and she would try to block all spells that they might send at him, like that one time in the dungeon. She was silly with the 'love' that she says she feels. His hatred for the others solidified. "Black, you know I would love to torture you. Torturing Potter is fine, but you know that you hold most of my hatred and sometimes I can't keep it in check."
Severus motioned at his scarred hand. "Imagine what pain I can cause with one Cruciatus curse. People who can produce ones; they have a lot of malice and hatred. I have that. Some have actually felt the pain of the horrid curse, also something I have gone through on numerous occasions." He smirked. "You have to really want to kill someone to use the Avada Kedavra curse. I made a vow that if I get expelled, it will be for murder, nothing else. Black, do you think I have the ability to kill you?" He smirked again. The expression on his face wasn't false or anything of the sort. He spoke nothing but the truth, and it scared them.

"I wouldn't doubt that your slimy black heart is capable of it, not for a second," Sirius hissed at him. His wand was still aimed at Severus' heart, and he had great reflexes; he could cast a spell faster than Severus could block, or aim his wand at them. Sirius had also been practising for a good long time, and could perform an Unforgivable, even though he didn't want to.
Sirius wished a professor would notice them. He wasn't exactly in their good graces, but they would still expel Severus if they saw him duelling; put him in Azkaban for life if he killed anyone.

Lyra emerged from the Forbidden Forest, where she had gone after seeing Severus off. Glancing at the cluster, she began to quicken her pace. As she got closer, she could see the positions that Sirius and Severus were in. Even better, their facial expressions. Reaching them, she stopped by James and Lily.
"Would any of you care to tell me what's going on here?" Lyra asked, using her best listen-to-me-now-or-face-a-painful-detention voice. She glanced around at the four students, her eyes stern.

Severus simply ignored the professor.

His face became his usual mask of no emotion. He still did not raise his wand to the challenge. "The question is, are you able to?" It was said simply and left to hang there. Severus could handle any spell that was cast at him. If you have experienced the Cruciatus curse as much as he has, nothing seems to be able to equal up.
He was not afraid, far from it. He knew Sirius was an asshole, but he certainly wasn't mean; well, not mean enough to actually use the Cruciatus curse and make him feel as much pain as Versilles could. He glanced at Lily, wishing she had left him so he could enjoy the torturing of Sirius Black. He deserved it; Severus never had a great home life, but he didn't go around picking on people who didn't deserve it. 'Till the start of this year of course. He had mentally snapped, maybe he would recover, maybe he wouldn't.
He joined the Death Eaters, not to be great or famous or even for power. But perhaps to escape, to escape the cruel life he was thrown unwillingly into. He knew that the chances of being killed were great, and that's what he wanted. He could never kill himself, or so he thought. He never thought he could hurt himself to the extent he did earlier, but he did. Severus didn't fear anyone, not even Death himself. He only feared himself, sometimes such as in the Forbidden Forest where he couldn't control himself. The result of Potter's pain. Other times he did have control and tortured others anyway. As far as he was concerned, the 'fun' had happened to him throughout his life, so why not spread it around?

Ignore her. That was just lovely... What happened to respecting one's elders? Well, she wasn't that much older than them... and she had never respected hers... All right, fine. She'd stay out, but still keep a close watch. Lyra trusted her students not to outright kill each other, only torture.
Turning, she went to the castle steps where she merely sat and watched.

"I don't know what you did to her, Snape, but I won't forget it, ever." James was completely and utterly ignorant to everything that had happened there tonight, but he obviously wasn't letting that stop him.
Bending down to help Lily, he wrapped his giant work cloak around her. That would keep her warm. "Come on, let's get you back to the castle." James helped Lily get to her feet. He didn't care about Severus right now, there was a professor watching and Snape wasn't that stupid. If word ever got to his uncle...

Severus did nothing; his obsidian eyes seemed as cold and dead as the actual stone. He had done nothing wrong as far as he was concerned. He never touched Lily. Nor would he as long as she went out with Potter. His pale face was as dead as his eyes were, with the exception of a purplish bruise appearing on the side of the lower part of his jaw bone. It was from where Versilles hit him, though he didn't notice the pain. He was sick of today's events, and life in general. He wished Sirius had the power to kill him, but he knew that Sirius probably couldn't. Stupid Gryffindor 'hero' notions.
Finally he spoke, drawling his words. "Well, Black, you could kill me and make yourself a hero." He turned his back to the professor and rolled up his left sleeve exposing his dark mark. He rolled it back down and continued, his voice a mere whisper so only Sirius and those close to him could hear, "Sirius Black killing a Death Eater to protect Lily and fellow students from harm..." His voice was cold, yet it had a sense of adventure to it. "You could become the youngest Auror ever. Some of the older Aurors have never killed a Death Eater. Yet, a rookie, a school student managed to defeat one of the feared Death Eaters." His eyes had a devilish gleam to them.

Sirius held his wand, his hand shaking with the effort. "Do you want to die, Snivellus? Do you want to be just like your parents, just like my parents, a sick Death Eater who survives by serving a thing who believes every non-pureblood wizard should die? A Muggleborn maniac, at that. Are you that pathetic? Do you have nothing to live for? No goals? No friends?" he spat at Severus, taunting him in return. His face grew warm with anger. He no longer noticed James and Lily, or Professor Alciene, only himself and Severus. Flashes of memory washed over him, pictures of an unhappy but extremely wealthy family, with a younger version of himself sitting in the corner, or locked in his room, or being caned, or being beaten or humiliated in front of all his parents' guests. All their friends that he so hated, as he hated his parents even though his father had just recently died. He didn't mourn the loss, and waited for his mother to die, waiting for that happy day when their presence in the world would no longer torment him. If he had gone along with their wishes, he would have ended up like Severus, without a doubt.

Severus nodded his head as if he were agreeing. "You always could describe me so well." His voice was cold and venomous, "Death does not scare me, perhaps that is why I became a death eater. But neither of my parents were death eaters, even though they knew the Unforgivables. But they had no wish to follow the Dark Lord. Well, I doubt my father had time, he did die, you understand. My mother was too drunk most of the time, so I doubt she would have been able to make it to the meetings. My uncle, thankfully, isn't one either. He thinks they are silly, but he's just afraid of them."
He grinned, though it wasn't one of happiness, "Perhaps, you should rid the world of me? I doubt anyone would care, I know I wouldn't. I must say I don't agree with everything the dark lord says. You could say, I just joined for the chance to kill, to torture."

Looking a bit shocked, Lily shook her head, her long mane of red hair falling over her shoulder and gleaming in the moonlight. Her eyes began to sparkle with tears as she looked to Severus. "Surely you don't mean that?" Lily's voice held a great amount of caring. Perhaps too much, probably enough to give her and Severus away.
Walking a little closer to Severus, she tried to smile, but a frown had been etched on her face by the last comment. Shaking her mane of red hair once more she glanced back at Sirius and James, but her emerald eyes fixed on Severus. "You can't mean that?" she repeated, a tone of pleading in her voice.

He glanced at Lily. "Well, you should believe now. You've seen me torture people, like James and that Jeni girl. Did I look like I enjoyed it or did it seem like I hated every minute of it?" His voice was a bit cold, not that he could help it nor would he try. His obsidian eyes were cold even as they looked at her. They slowly left her and resumed glaring at Sirius. He may have wanted to kill Black, but he couldn't. Not here. He knew Sirius was the only wretched one at this school that would kill him.
Lucius knew the curse, but not many could kill a friend. Severus wouldn't even waste his time thinking twice about it. But then again, Severus didn't waste his time thinking twice about most things. If he wanted to torture someone, he would, no questions asked.

Lily glanced at his cold eyes, but after a moment's thought she looked away. After all that had been said and done, he just glared at her like she was... an enemy. Maybe he was right, in thinking that a Gryffindor and a Slytherin could never be together. Sniffling slightly she returned her gaze to Severus. This time her voice was strong.
"It may seem that no one would care if you died, Severus..." Judging by the look of coldness on Severus' face, she decided against getting any closer then she already was. "...But I would." her voice suddenly went soft. Tucking her robes tightly against her to keep the cold out, she waited for Sirius to tell all that had just happened. About the kiss, about the 'I love you.'
But she was beyond caring. Her heart was set, well almost. It shifted uneasily when James was near. But, when Severus was there, it was as if a great weight had been lifted. He was sensible. And, well, he had something that James didn't. Probably something James would never have, like an attitude and that big head of his. Her eyes suddenly fell to the ground and she hoped that Severus would hold her.

"Lily?" James said in disbelief. Was she actually flirting with Severus, the greasy-haired Slytherin? He was so utterly shocked; he almost dropped his wand as he asked, "Is this true, Lily?" He looked straight into her eyes, hoping for an answer he was almost sure he wasn't going to receive.
James picked up his cloak, and turned to leave. The cold night nipped at his face and ears. There was a mixed emotion of hatred, disbelief, and woe inside James. He needed time to think this over.
Running faster, he made his way past the professor at top speed. Once he got to the Gryffindor Common Room he through his head on his pillow and cried himself to sleep. The emotions had all built themselves up inside of him and he just needed sometime to let them all flow out, and in front of your enemy was not the place.

Back at the lake, Sirius Black was standing stock still, not wanting to turn his back on Severus to go comfort his friend. James needed to be alone.
He pointed his wand at Severus and muttered a small "Expelliarmus," and catching his wand neatly.
He looked at Lily and held his hand, laying his wand down as well, trying to be fair. He didn't want to exactly give up his wand, not with a slimy Death Eater around, but if Severus gave up his, he wanted to be as fair as possible.
He took a deep breath and shut his eyes, trying to control his anger. "I want you both to just listen to me for one minute. Just... listen to me. I have a proposal. Sniv- Snape, I want you to leave Lily and James alone. They don't need this. They don't deserve this.
"Lily," his voice broke a little here, "I want you to look at what you did to James. What you have just done to yourself, your reputation, your friends. Is this what you want to do? Love a Death Eater? Someone who kills for fun and wouldn't hesitate for a second to kill any of us? Someone without a conscience, who lives off favours from You-Know-Who? Don't throw your life away; he's not worth it. James... He'll never understand. It'll just kill him. He can't take it.
"And as for me, I know, I understand what I'm asking of you. All I'm asking for is just your pledge. A blood bond that you will not do these things, and you may demand one thing of me each. Agreed?"

Glancing as James raced away, Lily winced visibly. She went to chase him but was soon drawn back by the words of Sirius. It seemed unfair what she was doing. But the course of true love never did run smooth, whether it be with Severus or James.
"He's not like that," she inserted, in the middle of his speech, and often through it she could be seen shaking her head. "You judge him, and he could have killed you by now. But he had mercy on you, perhaps you should take a look at that."
"And my reputation shall be no worse then it already is." She shrugged her shoulders, not caring about the little matter of reputation. Well, she did care, but only a little. "And as for James, he brought this upon himself, he barely pays any attention to me when you're around, and it breaks me up. How do you think I feel when that happens? No, I'm sorry. I know what I want."

Peter, who had also been under the Invisibility Cloak with Sirius in his Animagi form, was cast aside along with the Cloak, clinging desperately to it. He quickly made his way behind a tree, with the Cloak still over him, and transformed back into his normal self. He stuffed the Cloak in his deep pockets, and then headed towards the group. He could not believe what he had just witnessed.

Peter stopped, quivering with rage. His blue eyes flashed malice as he spoke, a bit shakily. "Liar, Lily, you're a liar." He paused, presumably to gather more steam for his anger. "I can't believe you. James thinks the world of you and there is no one, I repeat, no one he loves more than you. He'd die for you, and now what? You return his love by flirting with Sni- Severus. His worst enemy. You didn't even explain this to him!"
His voice was barely a whisper, though it was audible. "I don't see why James has loved you for this long. Obviously he didn't see this relationship coming. You, flirting with a goddamned Death Eater! They follow He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and kill people, in case you were oblivious to that fact." His eyes were travelling between Severus and Lily. "I don't blame Severus for this, because he has done nothing... Well, besides being a Death Eater. But you..." He couldn't find words. In fact, he was a bit surprised about how much he cared for James's feelings. He knew how he felt. "You don't even deserve James. So go on, marry Severus, the Death Eater, have a wonderful guilt-free life." And with his finishing statement, he turned and walked about 20 feet away and sat down, hugging his knees to his chest and staring out to the lake, where he wrestled bitterly with his thoughts.

Well, that was unexpected. From Peter, at least. He was the one who usually stayed quiet in the group. Well, she must really seem like a bitch. Placing a shaking hand on her mouth, Lily stared after Peter, the only one she somewhat liked from James's little fan club.
But, without thinking anymore of it, she placed herself firmly beside Severus. Like I have said before, the course of true love never did run smoothly. Glancing up at Severus, she bit her lip, unable to hold back anymore. She let a tear slip down her paling cheeks. Had this been a mistake? Asking herself this question over and over again, she bent her head toward the ground. "You're right, Peter, I don't deserve James. I deserve what I get." It wasn't intended to insult Severus; he probably deserved much more than her. Exhaling a sigh she bent to the ground, sitting on her knees.

Peter sighed softly. He often got carried away in his temper when he was angry. His anger quickly evaporated, leaving him with an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He shouldn't have said that, they would be getting enough crap from the other Marauders. He had caught her words, got up, and walked over to them. He sighed again, rubbing his eyes, which had seemed to age in the course of three minutes. "I'm sorry, Lily, I didn't mean it. I just get carried away, I shouldn't have interfered."

He paused, his blue eyes looking dejectedly to the ground. "I understand if you don't want to speak to me again, and simply hate me." Well, in truth, he never really got the chance to ever speak to Lily because of her Head Girl duties. But he certainly didn't want to be hated. "I..." He paused again, not really knowing what to say. "I'm sorry," he concluded shakily, the short blond-haired boy looking again to the ground as he awaited the most likely refusal of apology.

Severus Snape let Sirius take his wand; he didn't even try to summon a counter curse. He even let go of his wand. He was the villain and he wasn't quite sure how Lily came up with the pity thing. He felt pity for her, for she was blind with this 'love'. She didn't realize he was a Death Eater and she was a Mudblood. He might have to kill her someday. Secondly, though it wasn't as bad, was the fact that their love wouldn't be accepted.
He was never accepted for who he was, not even by his own mother, or his uncle, so it wouldn't affect him as much. But he wasn't too sure about Lily. His obsidian eyes cast a worried glance at Lily. He could just tell her right out he hated her guts, even though it would be a lie. It would probably be best for her. He then could go to James and tell him that it was just a potion he was practising on Lily and he messed it up so that she fell in love with him.
Severus looked down undecidedly, and then glanced back up at Sirius. He headed away from Lily so that she was out of hearing range. He motioned Sirius to come so they could exchange words. Severus kept himself from glancing at Lily, to see if she truly liked him. Then she would definitely be hurt, but James is what she deserved, not him. James was better than him, he knew it and accepted it. Severus was, after all, a Death Eater. James never retaliated against him when he had used the Unforgivables. Snape frowned. I can't use the Unforgivables on James now... It's not right... He won't defend himself...

Sirius Black nodded, letting out his breath in a loud whoosh. He followed Severus, motioning Peter to watch over Lily. He waited a minute, then handed the wands, including his, to Peter. He could trust him, as Lily wasn't in the best of condition to get them off of him quickly.
He turned and followed Severus, his mouth set in a grim line and his dark eyes pained. His fine hair settled down, even at the condemned's pace he was going.

Severus watched Sirius and lifted a brow. His obsidian eyes filled with a deep regret as he said, "I do love Lily, but I am a Death Eater, and she is a Mudblood. It wouldn't work..." His voice was a mere whisper, so only Sirius could hear him.

"Together with that, as you have said, repeatedly, I am not a very good person, not good enough for her anyways..." Severus bit his lip, actually seeming to hate what he knew he must say. "I think I will greatly insult her and tell her that I hate her..." His stomach did a flip-flop at the thought of having to say those things.
"Then, with your help, I will go find Potter and tell him that I had gotten Lily to test a potion of mine. But that I accidentally forgot to add something, and it unfortunately became a love potion of some sort..." Severus frowned again. "And that she accidentally fell in love with me and I wouldn't even think twice about loving a Mudblood..." He already hated himself for what he was going to do, but he knew it was for the best. A life with Lily would be torture for them both and he knew it, whether she did or not.

Sirius nodded thoughtfully, his face not showing the least amusement, which was unusual for him. "Not a bad idea. Needs tweaking, though. You do understand, however? She cannot throw her life away, you would be in danger constantly, and so would she, and when James finally drags you off to Azkaban, or you get killed, then where would she be? You and I both know she isn't that strong, not strong enough to withstand that sort of blow. She can't be evil, you know that, it's not in her nature, and she could never kill, poor thing."
Sirius coughed, suddenly a little embarrassed. "I'll back you up completely. And... Severus?" He paused, his face slowly going red, this time with embarrassment rather than anger. "I-I, uh, just wanted to tell you... thanks. I owe you one. To protect Lily, though, we might have to perform a memory charm? Or would you prefer it differently? And what about her? Wouldn't a memory charm be easier than breaking her heart?" Sirius pleaded slightly, hating himself for sounding so pathetic around his archenemy.
"And Severus? That wasn't all I wanted to say." He levelled his eyes with Severus and looked at him, his dark brown eyes meeting Snape's obsidian ones. "I owe you for this, and it shall be one thing, anything you want, as long as it does not involve them," he waved his hand at his friends on the grounds behind them, and up at the castle where Remus was waiting. "One thing you may demand of me. Blood for your potions? I don't mind, you are giving all five of us our lives back, since Lily is as much as one of us as Peter is, and what one of us suffers, we all do."
It began to rain, solemnly, dampening the grounds and adding further bleakness to Sirius' mood. There was hope, but there were bad times, like these, but once they got through them, they'd be fine. They always were.

Lily nodded to Peter and placed a hand on his shoulder, "It's all right." Seeing Sirius and Severus walk off together seemed to dampen her mood ever-so-slightly. Without thinking, she picked up the robe she had cast aside when she had first come and marched off toward the castle industriously, leaving the two to their plotting.

It wasn't as if she was needed there, Lily realized. She likely had caused enough damage for one night.

Severus watched Lily leave; knowing everything Sirius said was true. "Why do you think I am letting her go? I don't want to screw her life up. James could do a lot better. Yes, a memory charm might be a better choice. We could tell James it was just a potion or use a memory charm on him." His obsidian eyes resumed their coldness, his emotionless mask coming back as the rain dampened his clothes, making the once dried blood on his shirt start to uncrystallize and flow.
Severus shook his head. "No, you don't owe me anything. I'm not doing anything for you. I'm doing this for Lily. You could die for all I care. So could James and all your little Gryffindor friends. I don't even know why I care." He starts to turn to leave, then spun around to face Sirius. "All I know is that I am very sick with myself and life in general. You better watch your back, not that it is a threat, but more of a warning."

Sirius nodded, slightly reluctantly. "I know." He looked up at the grey sky, trying to remind himself how to feel again. The rain hit his face with a slight pattering sound. He paused a minute before adding, "Severus... I will watch my back, and my friends', and they will watch mine. I don't care so much about my life; I'd give it to you willingly if I thought it would save James or Remus or even Lily from death. But you and I both know that this isn't just about us, that there's something beyond the obvious - Merlin, I'm starting to sound like Remus. I mean it though." He shut up for once in his life and continued to watch the sky, not wanting to see Severus' face.

Severus lifted a brow. "You're bloody weird, you know that?" he said, rolling his jet eyes. He personally didn't care about the obvious. He didn't care about anyone or anything but for a few lucky people. "You are going to have to find them and Obliviate them. Then make sure Lily hasn't written anything about me. She might have a diary, and since you are in the same House, you have a better chance of finding it."
He turned to leave, thinking how nothing more had to be said. He stopped and grimaced slightly, then left into the castle escaping the cold rain.

Sirius sighed, and turned to watch the now soaking-wet black figure trudge slowly up to the castle and vanish within it. He rubbed his face to get the feeling back in, wiped the rain out of his eyes, and followed him slowly, taking both wands inside. He looked back to where Severus had vanished, then took off at a run after him, muttering the entire way about idiots who forget their wands while trying to cast memory charms. They tend to be useful for that purpose.

Peter struggled to keep up with the rest, his blue eyes squinting because of the rain.