Lily Lives On

Soul Stripped Bare

As they went closer, the magic of the place grew stronger. A muggle wouldn't notice it - so subtle it was. Inconspicuous, silent and carefully hidden. The mountain. Moria, as Lily had named it in her head, with a memory of Tolkien's intricate stories still fresh in her mind even after all those years since she'd abandoned the muggle world.

"Ready?" she whispered at Severus with a smile on her face. He shrugged carelessly beside her. His face looked solemn and particularly unpleasant this morning, as if something was bothering him deeply, a wrinkle of sneer present beside his nose ever so slightly.

"Sev?"

"Let's go," he said with impatience in his voice and resolutely walked forward. Lily had no other choice but to follow him. Standing in front of a rocky wall, behind which they were supposed to find a gate, he took out his wand and muttered:

"You can take our body, but you can never take our soul."

As a reaction to the password, the cold wind behind them suddenly stopped blowing, as if someone had flipped an on / off switch. The rocky wall slid aside and revealed a massive iron gate. Symbols of all Hogwarts houses had been forged into it: a lion, a snake, a badger and an eagle, all intermingled to create the complicated pattern of the gate. The four animals opened their eyes and focused them on the two newcomers, which made Lily shudder in awe and a little bit of fear, as well.

"Welcome to New Hogwarts. State your names."

"Lily Potter and Severus Snape."

The lion nodded its head in approval. "I see. The original KJPB. Do come in."

And the gate opened with a silent creak. Lily took a step forward, but Severus remained where he was.

"What does that mean?" he demanded, but the gate stayed silent. Lily turned to him to answer instead.

"KJPB is an abbreviation for Kristen Jills and Paul Belwyn."

Severus snorted bemusedly, but she just smiled back at him.

"Did you know that their relationship would probably never thrive if it hadn't been for the two of us?"

He raised an eyebrow. "How come?"

"Well, it seems like the thing you call 'silly Slytherdor affair' has united the houses of Gryffindor and Slytherin in ways we never thought possible. And besides, no one calls Slytherdor 'Slytherdor' anymore. They all call it KJPB now."

Severus snorted again.

"What a way to put pressure on the couple to stay together for the rest of their lives, don't you think?" he noted sheepishly.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Really, Sev, can't you at least once try to see things in a different shade than the blackest black?"

He wanted to answer but something caught his eye - they were now standing in an enormous dark corridor lined with columns and arches so high, that it was almost impossible to see the top of them. For the first time since the morning, he smiled and nodded in approval. The lack of light had a different effect on him than it did on Lily - while she was struggling to see clearly, muttering under her breath something like "what a bloody tomb this is", Severus felt calm. Darkness had always been his most trusted companion, a way to hide, a way not to be seen. Plus, people generally disliked it, just like they generally disliked his persona.

This is definitely more to my taste than the old Hogwarts, he thought to himself, just as Lily started her little rant:
"Ugh. So cold, dark and damp. I really hope it's for a short term only."

He pressed his lips together to prevent a chuckle from escaping.

"Oh, it's so lovely to see you both here alive and well," they heard from somewhere behind them. They turned around abruptly and saw Albus approaching them in haste.