Don't Save Me

Chapter 3: Animal Farm

The rest of the day went smoothly as there weren't any more unwelcome intrusions on my mind. I was walking around the grounds with Lily and we came across Severus reading under a tree.

"What are you reading, Severus?" I asked as Lily and I sat down beside him. He startled slightly but as soon as he looked up, his body relaxed.

"Everything okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, sorry... I just wasn't expecting visitors," Severus replied, laughing, trying to break the thick layer of tension that had just formed. I shifted closer and peered at the book he was reading.

"Animal Farm?" I asked as he closed the book and looked up at me.

"It's one of my favorites," he replied, looking down.

"You're kidding?" I replied. "Mine, too!" Lily beamed from next to Severus as she watched our interaction. There was no jealousy in her eyes, only pure happiness that she had found a friend who accepted Severus. At my words, Severus looked up at me, and a smile spread across his face.

"Really?"

"Really," I laughed. "The idea that ordinary people can become evil when put in a position of power... how easy it is for power to corrupt someone... it's-," I paused, not yet ready to open that can of worms... not yet ready to expose that secret. Severus sensed my pause and placed his hand on top of mine.

"The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which," he quoted, looking up at me. "It's one of my favorite quotes... what's yours?"

"Oh... uh..." I paused, not sure if I should say it or not. His eyes watched me carefully, waiting for my response. "Well, it's kind of dark," I laughed.

"The whole book is dark," Severus responded, laughing.

"True,," I responded before continuing. "Uhm... I guess it would probably be... When they had finished their confession, the dogs promptly tore their throats out, and in a terrible voice Napoleon demanded whether any other animal had anything to confess." I looked down as I finished the quote... one I had memorized and ingrained into my head years ago.

"You're right... that is dark." I looked up and punched him, playfully, in the arm and he fell over into my lap, breaking into a fit of laughter. "Ahh! Y/n Y/l/n has killed me! A mere punch and I am done for!" he exclaimed, his head still resting on my lap. Lily and I laughed and Severus looked up at me.

"So, how do you know that book? It's just that... I wouldn't expect somebody from a magical family to really know classic muggle literature."

"Oh... uh... I was raised by my aunt and uncle. My uncle was raised in an orphanage and was surrounded by muggles. I guess he wanted me to be raised the same way." I look away as I say this, waiting for Severus and Lily to get up and walk away... waiting for them to call me a filthy mudblood. To be honest... I had no idea about my blood status. I didn't even know who my parents were. My uncle never talked about them and my aunt just always said she would tell me when I got older. That never happened.

"Oh, I'm sorry... Can I ask... what happened to your parents?" Severus asked, respectfully.

"Honestly, I don't know. I was never really told anything about them."

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have brought it up," Severus said as he pulled me into a hug.

"Hey it's fine," I laugh. "You didn't know. So what about you?" I ask, trying to change the subject.

"Half-blood. My father is a muggle and he always had this book sitting on a shelf in his study. One day I stole it and he's never noticed." I can see sadness behind Severus's eyes at the mention of his father... maybe even anger. I have my own fair share of secrets so I don't press the issue. Severus, Lily, and I began talking about how classes were going and the conversation just kept flowing. Before we knew it, we had been talking for two hours. I looked up and noticed James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus making their way across the courtyard.

"Aww, look how cute! Snivellus found someone to take pity on him!" Sirius called, laughing as they made their way over to us. Lily stood up and walked toward them.

"Really, you guys. Shut up!" she shouted. "Who Y/n and I are friends with is none of your concern!" I looked over at Severus and noticed how he hung his head and sunk back into the tree he was reading under. I grabbed his arm and the two of us stood up together.

"Go to the Great Hall. I'll see you tomorrow," I said, wanting Severus to get out of here as quickly as possible. I knew if things escalated, he would end up being the one who gets expelled because he is a Slytherin and he would be blamed. I stormed over to Sirius.

"What the hell is your problem!?" I shouted as Lily stepped aside, allowing me to stand directly in front of Sirius. "Are you really that insecure that you have to mess with him? Lily and I are both friends with him so why can't you just accept that?" Sirius doesn't respond so Lily continues.

"Y/n is right. We are both friends with him and unless you want to lose us both, you should probably shut up." I saw Sirius and James instantly look up as Lily said this.

"Sorry," Sirius and James muttered under their breath before walking off to the Great Hall.

"Y/n, that was badass!" Lily exclaimed. "Thanks for sticking up for him. He really is a good person... they just don't know how to leave him alone."

"I know, Lily... I know he is and no one gets to tell me who I can and can't be friends with. I've had enough people telling me what I can and can't do to last me a lifetime."

"What do you mean?" Lily asks. Shit, I shouldn't have said that.

"Nothing... I just mean in general. People always seem to want to tell us what to do because we are kids."

Lily nods in understanding and we make our way to the Great Hall.

The Great Hall is bustling with excited students as we walk in and take our seats. I look over to the Slytherin table and notice Severus's eyes already staring at me. I give him a small smile before turning to Lily.

"What happens if we sit at a different house's table?"