Before Harry Met Sevy

Chapter Two: Friends and Enemies

Severus sat on the couch in the living room, trying to concentrate on the book he held open in his lap. His father was in the kitchen, berating his mother for not having dinner on the table as soon as he'd Apparated home that evening. Three-week-old Steven was laying in his cradle in the corner of the room, utterly unconcerned about the stream of obscenities that were carrying over from the next room. Severus closed his book with a sigh and trudged up to his attic bedroom, knowing that dinner would most likely be jinxed or otherwise ruined by his father before his rant was finished. He reached up and wiped a bit of the grime from the window, looking across the yard at the Evans household. Since his visit with them, he'd been constantly comparing the loving atmosphere found within its walls with the oppressing atmosphere of his own. As he was contemplating what his life would be like if he was shown even a fraction of the love the Evanses showered on their children, a blur of red hair caught his eye. It was Lily, walking from her yard over to his front door, Albert not far behind. His heart hammering in his chest, he ran down the stairs, disregarding the reprimand he knew would come, and opened the door before they had a chance to knock.

"Hullo, Severus!" Lily greeted him brightly.

"Hullo, Lily. Hullo Albert."

"Good evening, Severus."

"Mum wants us to invite you for dinner," Lily explained. Severus glanced uneasily back towards the house.

"I can't," he said finally, though he yearned for the sense of normalcy he had felt with them.

"Come now, lad, why don't you just pop in and ask your mother, eh?" Albert prompted. The door swung open to reveal Silias, red in the face and quite out of breath.

"What do you lot want?" he snarled, laying a heavy hand on his son's shoulder. Albert's eyes narrowed at the tone in the other man's voice.

"We came to invite Severus for dinner at our place," he said, not appearing to feel threatened in any way.

"He doesn't want to go to your place, Evans. I suggest that you mind your own business in the future and stay away from my family." Albert didn't move, and from somewhere deep inside of him, Severus found the courage to speak back.

"But I do want to go, sir," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. Albert and Lily looked up at Silias triumphantly as the vein in his forehead began throbbing angrily.

"What did you just say?" he hissed, his mouth now next to Severus' ear. "You want to associate with these Muggles, do you? That doesn't surprise me, you've always had a tendency towards the mundane." Silias straightened up, his eyes flicking from his neighbors to his son, who stood as if he were waiting to be struck. "By all means," he suddenly said, waving his hand, "if you want to soil yourself with their company, I'll not stop you." He smiled maliciously down at his son as Severus stared up at him in amazement. "No doubt Steven will prove to be less of a - disappointment." That said, he shoved his son towards Albert and slammed the door behind him. Severus stared at the door with a mixture of relief and resentment. Lily came up and took his hand.

"Come on," she said softly, "I don't think you're disappointing. I think it was very brave to stand up to him." Albert clapped the boy gently on the back as Severus stared into Lily's brilliant emerald eyes.

"Yes," Albert began, clearing his throat, "it was - brave. Now, let's get home before Rose begins to worry."

From that moment on, Lily and Severus were inseparable. Now that Steven was there to occupy his parents' interests, Severus was free to wander wherever he chose, though his father's cruelty continued, unabated. Severus would return home late in the evening after spending a day with Lily to endure his father's countless tirades about the uselessness of Muggles, and how, in his opinion, they should all be wiped out. It was on one such occasion, on New Year's Day, that Severus felt he could no longer stand the constant degradation of his only friend and her beloved family.

"Lily's not a Muggle," he said forcefully, his eyes burning with anger."She's a witch. I've seen some of the things she's done, without meaning to." Silias stopped in mid-rant to glare down at his eldest son. Rebekah's spoon froze in mid-air, halfway to three-month-old Steven's mouth, as she looked anxiously from her husband to her son. Even the baby seemed to sense something important was happening, and didn't make a sound as he sucked on his fist, his eyes fixed on his older brother.

"Oh?" Silias sneered, his rancid breath flowing over Severus like a cloud. "And I suppose that makes her any better? She's still a filthy mudblood." Severus stood from the table, his small hands balled into fists as he shoved them into the pockets of his jeans. As he turned to leave, he heard his father's chair scrape across the floor, and he broke into a run as he tried to escape Silias's wrath. "Stupefy!" Severus's mind had barely registered the word when he felt himself fall, though he tried vainly to escape. He felt the rough hand of his father on his arm as Silias steered him towards the basement door, a sneer of triumph on his haggard face. "I believe we've been going far too easy on you, boy. Perhaps it's time for a reminder of what happens when we behave impertinently, eh?" He kicked open the door and tossed the boy inside, disregarding the howl that came unwillingly from Severus's lips as he struck the dirt floor. The door was slammed, and Severus saw the familiar blue light that meant he was now a prisoner once again. He struggled to his feet and made his way to the only shaft of light in the entire room, which filtered through a window just as grimy as the one in his bedroom. As he crouched against the cold stone wall, he thought about his actions, and wondered if he should have kept his mouth shut. No doubt his father's incessant observations on the Evans' bloodline would continue, most likely becoming even more disparaging, if that was possible. He drew his knees up to his chest and laid his head onto them in abject misery. Lord only knew how long his father would keep him down here, and no matter how many times he was thrust into this make-shift dungeon, Severus could never get used to the darkness that enveloped him once the sun went down. His vivid imagination never failed to provide him with images to attach to the noises around him - the sound of the rats scurrying on the dirt floor became the quick movements of something infinitely larger and far more sinister; the wind which whistled through the chinks in the walls near the surface was its eerie call; the constant drip of the moisture in the walls was the monster licking its lips in eager anticipation. As he struggled to turn his thoughts away from the countless horrors that abounded in the darkness, a shadow passed by his window, blocking his light. He looked up anxiously, afraid that the shadow meant evening, and a sleepless night, was dawning. Instead of the dusk which he imagined, he saw a small, toothy grin and a pair of bright green eyes staring at him. Lily began pushing at the window, giving up when she succeeded in only getting it open a few inches.

"What are you doing here?" he whispered up to her, looking fearfully over at the basement door.

"I came over to see if you wanted to play, but your dad said you were 'indisposed', so I thought I'd check to see if you were down here. And you are." She cocked her head to one side and stared at him quizzically. "How long do you hafta stay down there?" Severus shrugged.

"Until he decides to let me back up, I guess. That's how it usually works." She laid on her stomach and frowned down at him.

"But he brings you food, doesn't he?"

"When he remembers," he said quietly, turning from the window and leaning once again against the wall. There was no sound from Lily, and when he finally craned his neck to look up at her, she was gone. He sighed and rested his chin on his hands. He should have known she wouldn't want to talk to him very long. His mind began wandering to the days he'd spent with her family, and he began to yearn for the loving atmosphere that emanated from their home. As he began to daydream about Rose and Albert being his parents, a bundle landed next to him with a loud thud. Looking up at the window, he was surprised to see Lily had returned, laying on her stomach again and smiling down at him. "What's in there?" She grinned.

"Open it and find out, silly." He eagerly tore open the parcel, the folds of cloth falling away to reveal a stack of sandwiches, wrapped in wax paper, and a jug of water. "In case they forget," she explained softly, her eyes boring into his. Severus wasn't sure how to react.

"You didn't have to do that," he said, looking down at the sandwiches again.

"That's what friends do," she said simply. He glanced up at her as a grateful lump rose in his throat, but looked away before he shed a tear.

"Thanks," he answered as he stored the parcel underneath the stairs, to avoid having his father find them. Lily continued to stare down at him, following his movement with her eyes.

"What did you do that made him stick you in here?" she finally asked, her voice soft. He regarded her thoughtfully, not sure how much of the truth he should tell her.

"Because I talked back to him," he finally said, deciding that explaining his father's unjustified hatred of non-purebloods could wait for another time.

"Good for you," she said emphatically, "don't let him bully you, Severus." She peered into the basement, a frown on her face when she looked down at the boy. "Do they give you lights or anything?" Severus shook his head as he noticed the dusk he had feared was now settling over the house. Lily looked quickly over her shoulder to her own house. "I've got to go, Mum's calling for me. I'll be back tomorrow." She pulled the window shut and then waved wildly before returning to her own home. Severus drank in the remaining light as it grew dimmer, his fears coming back in full force now that he was alone once again.

True to her word, Lily returned the next morning, bright and early. She dropped down another bundle, this time filled with candles and matches.

"Mum says we shouldn't play with matches, but I figured you'd be careful with them. Besides, it isn't like you could burn down this basement. The only thing down here to catch fire would be the stairs. So, there really isn't much of a chance that you'll set the house on fire." He looked at her, his eyebrow raised quizzically.

"Are you all finished now?"

"Yes," she grinned."My rant is now complete."

"Alright then. Thanks for the candles"

"You're welcome." She looked around the empty room, then addressed him again, "What do you do when you're down her all alone?" He shrugged.

"Mostly think about how different my life could be." An awkward silence settled over the two children as they both thought of his words.

"You've got a little brother now, though. Things are bound to get better." He brightened at her encouraging words, a smile springing to his face.

"You're right! Now that Steven's here, he's bound to punish him every so often, isn't he?" His face fell at the thought. "I can't let him do that, though. I'll have to look out for both of us now. " With that thought in his mind, he made the decision that he would make sure his brother would not suffer the same way he had. He would make sure that Steven never had to sit down in this cold, dark basement alone. Ever.