Prophecies and Betrayals (sequel to The Marauders)

5

"All right, Evans?" said James. Snape noticed the change in tone. James sounded friendly now, and deeper too. Like a real man.

It made Snape want to spit the suds in his mouth all over James' arrogant face.

"Leave him alone," Lily repeated. Snape felt a small flutter in his chest as he saw the open dislike she showed toward James. She at least wasn't wowed by his messy hair and insufferably big head.

"What's he done to you?" Lily asked.

"Well," said James, pretending to think. "It's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean...?"

Again, the crowd laughed. Snape looked around, making a mental note of who all he would get back at someday. He was surprised to see that Remus Lupin was not laughing. He wasn't even watching. He was just sitting with his back up against a nearby tree, apparently engrossed in the open textbook in his lap. 

"You think you're funny," Lily said coldly. "But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone."

Snape couldn't suppress a little giggle from escaping his sudsy lips, and immediately choked. Lily's eyes flicked to his for just a moment, but it felt like an eternity. Snape couldn't read what was in her gaze, although he tried. But then Potter spoke again and Lily's eyes snapped to him, suddenly hard again.

"I'll leave him alone if you go out with me, Evans." James said. "Go on...go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again."

Snape felt his mouth grow sour despite the flower-flavored soap. Big-headed James Potter, always gotta jump the moment a chance presents itself.

The Impediment Jinx was starting to wear off, and Snape moved slowly toward his wand, careful not to draw attention to himself.

"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid!" Lily said.

"Bad luck, Prongs." Sirius said briskly. 

Snape had just curled his fingers around his wand when Sirius turned around and spotted him. "OY!" 

Snape leapt to his feet, head swimming from the fumes of the soap in his mouth. Without even thinking, he murmured the first spell that came to mind, and James fell back with a roar, hand trying to stanch the flow of blood from his forehead.

There was another flash of light, and Snape felt himself being hoisted into the air as if by and invisible hand. His pale cheeks grew hot as his robes slithered down past his head, pulled by gravity.

Although his vision was partially blocked by his robe, Snape glared out at the crowd as they cheered and pointed at his bare legs and faded underpants.

Upside down, he watched as  Lily stalked over to James, but even Snape didn't miss how her lips had curled upward for just a moment. She found this funny. Which made her even angrier at James.

"Let him down!" she said in a commanding voice that seemed to jolt James out of his laughter.

"Certainly," James said, and jerked his wand upward. Snape fell from the air and landed with a thump on the ground, the hard earth connecting with the his neck and sending pain flaring down his spine.

Biting his lip against the pain, he staggered to his feet and aimed his wand at James. 

Before he had a chance to exact his revenge, Snape felt his body go rigid as a board as Sirius yelled "Petrificus Totalus!"

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily shouted, wrenching her own wand free of her robes and pointing it at James. The boys eyed it warily. They knew what she could do if she really wanted to.

"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," James said earnestly.

"Take the curse off him, then!" 

James sighed, then turned to Snape and quietly murmured the countercurse. 

"There you go," he said as Snape struggled to his feet again. "You're lucky Evans was there, Snivellus-"

Snape felt the anger curdle his blood, but also a realization. This was the perfect time. Lucius, Bellatrix and all the leaders of the club were standing there in the crowd watching, as if they knew. Now was the time for Snape to complete his initiation. Now was the time for him to break his own heart, hurting himself worse than this would hurt Lily.

Snape focused on his hate for James at this moment, letting that hatred spill into his next words, which he spat like poison. "I don't need help from filthy Mudbloods like her!"

The silence that followed was deafening, and it was all Snape could do to keep himself from yelling 'I didn't mean that! I'm sorry!' but it was too late. The damage was done. His initiation was complete.

"Fine." Lily said coolly, her eyes like ice, piecing into Snape's very soul. "I won't bother in the future. And I'd wash my pants if I were you, Snivellus."

The use of his nickname did exactly what Lily had intended. Snape flinched back as though she had hit him.

That was the moment Snape knew that he had lost far more than his shot at being more than a friend to her. 

He had lost her friendship as well. Which somehow hurt even worse.

~~~~

That night in the dungeon, Snape stood silently in the back, brooding. The party around him was in the highest gear, since all the initiations were now complete. Although this party was partly for him, Snape couldn't feel more separate. 

All he could think about was Lily, and the look on her face when he called her a Mudblood.

It was far more than just a slur for them. The use of the word had shown Snape's alliance to people like him, and his supposed hatred of Muggleborns like her. Exactly what these people around him had wanted to hear.

"You did good," said a voice at his side. 

Snape turned to see Lucius, peering at him from over the rim of his mug. 

"Thanks," Snape said hollowly.

"I'm proud of you." Lucius stood up, slapped Snape on the back, and walked away.

Snape almost laughed at the irony of his friends' words. Where Lucius felt proud of Snape, Snape could feel nothing but disgust and shame at himself for what he had done.

All he could do was hang on to the impossible hope that the damage could be undone.

A\N Alright! That's where I'm gonna leave off for today! 

My fingers are cramping lol. I hope you all enjoyed these chapters, and that you'll stick around for the next one, which will be out next Friday! 

Again, most of this chapter was from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, chapter 28. I made a few tweaks to better fit the point I'm trying to make in this story. 

(Chapter image is not mine by the way, I found it on Pinterest)