Dead Man Walking

Dead Man Walking

Summary: After the events of DH, Severus Snape lives a ghost of a life. That is, until one readhead comes into his life. SnapeLily, AU.

Severus always walked nowadays. No that he had much choice in the matter; his wand was still intact, but the Ministry decided to heighten its security after the Second War, and in their good graces decided to monitor all apparitions within the country. They probably would not have watched too closely if he bothered to apparate every once in awhile, but constant apparitions may draw too much attention. A dead man could not use magic, after all. That was not a risk he was willing to take.

Everyone thought he died when Nagini bit him. Silly bastards, a potions master dying of poison? Absurd. He could understand the blood loss, considering that neck wounds tended to bleed profusely, but not poison. There was not even that much blood; the wound was superficial, and it avoided any major arteries.

Being officially dead was not all roses, though. While it kept him from facing Azkaban for his murder of Dumbledore, it was nearly impossible to get a job. The magical world received word of his death as soon as the dead were counted, and the magical world had the foresight to report him dead, sans a few details of his death, to the Muggle government. Luckily his house was unknown in the magical world (it was owned by a Muggle, after all), and he cast several Notice-Me-Not and Muggle repelling charms on not only his own house, but the whole block of houses. It was a block of terrace houses, after all, and it wouldn't do him any good if the city came in and knocked down the whole block because most of the houses were in ruins.

The problem of a job was a hindrance to him. He surmised that it was well-known that he was a "dead" Death Eater, so just popping into the magical world would have repercussions. Nearly all of the Muggle jobs, including ones at temp agencies, required a tax number, and his was connected to a dead man. Even the notorious Knockturn Alley shops refused to accept anonymous potions, no matter how low the offer. All he had left were the small jobs where the employers were not willing to pay the exorbitant rates of the temp agencies. Those employers favoured the young men, usually in their early twenties, not a middle aged, sickly man.

The idea of getting a fake ID was laughable. While it would greatly expand the jobs available to him, he barely made enough to eat, so it was self-explanatory that he could not just save up for one.

That is how he took to wandering. Most hiring was done in the early mornings, so he had the rest of the day to fill however he pleased. Instead of rotting away at home, he decided he would have a slightly better chance of getting spare change by wandering the streets.

It was during one of these daily wanderings that he found himself in a bustling shopping district. "Bloody Muggles," muttered the sour-looking man as he stepped into a public restroom. Turning on the tap, he splashed the cool water onto his reddened face. It was a hot summer day, and he could not be bothered to keep his outfit transfigured for a day without work. With the water still dripping off his nose, he took a glance in the mirror. Same pallid face, red and lined after days in the sun. Same greasy hair still splayed in his face so as to avoid anyone recognizing his face. His face was thinner, though, with harder living, and his eyes were colder and blacker to the world. Looking down at his frayed coat, it was dusty and ragged from years of work and lack of care. He narrowed his eyes at his reflection, as if daring it to mock him, and left the dirty, towel-strewn room for the bustle of daily life.

Just then, he glimpsed a head of red hair. He paled at that. "Lily..." he moaned, reminded of his long lost childhood friend. The red-head turned around; this woman was older, heavy-set, with dull blue eyes and far too many freckles. Definitely not Lily. He walked onward.

He found an unoccupied bus stop bench. Sitting down, he sighed as the relief was taken off of his worn feet. The bus must have recently left, since the bench was unoccupied. Just then a middle-aged woman sat down next to Snape with a muttered, "Excuse me." Severus only grunted a reply, taking a small glimpse of her. She was also a red-head, but with clear skin and green eyes, though a bit heavier than the Lily he remembered. Green eyes...no, wait, Lily was dead. Severus let out a sigh at that thought.

"Excuse me," the woman said in a quiet voice. "Sorry to disturb you, but has the bus recently come?" Severus just shrugged. The woman still stared a moment, then snapped out of her pondering. "Oh, blast it. I'll be late for work. Ah well." She resumed staring at him. "Yes?" Severus muttered, it coming out louder and angrier than he meant. "Sorry," she said. "You just remind me of someone I know."

Severus merely grunted a reply as the bus came roaring to a stop.

Later at home that night, he pondered the strange woman. She was not Lily, of course, though she looked so similar. He blamed the sun on her resemblance. He would stay home until it was time for her to be at the stop, and then he would check it out himself.

Silly to even think the woman could be alive, really. No one cheats death. No one.

He took a stab at his beans.

The next day, he was watching the bus stop from a safe distance. Considering he had no money to take the bus, he couldn't just sit and wait as he did yesterday.

It had been twenty minutes already, with no sign of her. Chuckling at his rashness, he stood up to leave. Suddenly, he saw a flash of red round the corner. It was her. Having the ability to finally take a good look at her, he took in her pale skin, round face, fiery red hair, and stubborn walk. If he didn't know any better, she could have been her twin.

"No," he told himself. "Dead people can't be alive."

Skipping another day of work, he stood in the same alley. This time, she was there waiting. Unable to stand it any longer, he took the seat next to her. Not taking any notice of him, she kept on reading her newspaper.

Severus squirmed a bit at her lack of attention. He cleared his throat. "Excuse me, miss," he said slowly and quietly. "What are you reading?"

She looked up at him. "Oh, it's nothing, really, just the editorials."

He just stared at her a moment, taking in her words but not listening to them. It was the same voice, yet aged.

He broke out of his daze when she spoke again. "Sir?" she said with a hint of concern. "Are you feeling all right? You look ill."

"I'm fine, really. Just a bit tired is all." He blushed at her attention, having nothing resembling human conversation for years, apart from what was necessary at work.

"Really you shouldn't work yourself so hard." She stopped to think a moment. "Here, why don't we get together for coffee after work? I get off at 11, but there's a great all night restaurant just down the street that has a great cup of coffee. Maybe you would like to join me?"

Join her? That would be wonderful. Lily or not, she was the most he'd ever gotten in the way of human contact. Besides, he needed to be around her, to prove to himself that it is not her. There was just one problem.

"I, uh, have no money. I won't be paid for another week and only have enough for transportation." He blushed a little at that admission.

She chuckled slightly. "Don't worry. I've been in that position before. I'll cover for you."

Before he could stop himself, he blurted, "Really?" Shaking his head to bring himself back to reality, he said, "I couldn't possibly impose on you."

"No worries," she said. "I'll meet you here at 11."