Dead Man's Wish

Chapter 7

It had been a couple of months since James and Sirius's prank, Severus and Remus were constantly avoiding them and giving them the silent treatment. Remus had told Lily about what the two had done to her best friend and she was enraged. Since she was quite the popular kid, she convinced almost everyone in their year to turn against the two pranksters.

James and Sirius were outcasts in all of their activities and were basically forced out of their dormitory into the common room where they set up some blankets and pillows on the large couch. 

'We really messed up this time, huh?' James said sorrowfully.

Sirius sat up from his uncomfortable position on the couch, 'You just realised that?'

'No, but I can't believe this is happening. I never thought that life at Hogwarts would be so... hard.' James replied, also sitting up now and fiddling with the buttons on his silk pyjamas.

Sirius looked at him sceptically, 'You can't say we don't deserve this treatment though, we were wrong.'

James nodded with obvious regret on his face. 

'We should do something, right?' Sirius said. 

'How are we supposed to do anything when they won't even look at us?' James retorted with mild anger in his voice while remembering how they stood outside their dorms, knocking and apologising furiously as Remus and Severus ignored them completely.

'Fair point. I guess we'll just have to wait and see then.' Sirius said before yawning and collapsing back onto the couch.

James sighed deeply before succumbing to sleep. 

Meanwhile, Severus was thrashing and suppressing a yell in his bed. He hasn't been able to sleep without having a nightmare since the prank and the potion he brewed was used up. He couldn't brew another batch because as soon as Slughorn found out what ingredients he was using, he deemed it unsafe for him to continue using his laboratory. 

Even though Severus pulled back his curtains already, Remus could still hear the sounds of him hitting his bed violently. He knew that something had happened to him and that whatever it was, it was a sensitive matter. He didn't want to trigger him so he decided not to bring any of his questions up. 

He had lasted almost three months of nights, classes, and meals with Severus until this day. He couldn't let Severus suffer silently. Therefore, he quietly walked over to Severus's bed, contemplated what results his actions might cause and decided it was worth it before slowly drawing back Severus's bedside curtain. 

The small boy didn't awake to the sound of it and Remus could see him sweating and kicking his legs on the bed.

'Sev!' Remus gently shook his shoulders, 'Wake up, it's just a dream, Severus.'

'Please...... don't hurt me...... I'm sorry.' Severus yelled out loud, still asleep.

Remus shook him a bit more violently, 'Wake up!'

Severus's eyes shot open and he frantically scanned his surroundings. Remus looked at him with concern and worry as Severus finally set his gaze on him. He still had a panicked expression but calmed down considerably. 

'Sorry for waking you up.' Severus said while blushing, thinking that's probably what he should say in this situation. 

'It's okay. I'm a light sleeper anyways. Are you alright? You seem pretty shaken.' Remus told him reassuringly. 

'I'm fine,' 

Remus sighed, 'Alright, if you say so then.' he said, knowing how persistent Severus was. 'Tell me if you need anything. I know we've only met a couple of months ago but I'm always there for you, okay?' 

'Thank you. That's much appreciated, Remus.' 

Remus nodded in response and looked at the scrawny boy quickly before going back to his bed and giving him and quick, 'Good night.' 

The next day, Severus was exhausted. He couldn't sleep the whole night after he was woken, though he was actually fine with that because he knew he would be plagued with nightmares if he did go back to sleep. He kept nodding off in classes and since he had a great reputation with the teachers, they were surprised to say the least. 

'Mister Snape. This is the third time I've had to tell you to wake up,' Professor Ellis, the old and grumpy Defence Against the Dark Arts professor thundered. 'Detention with Filch tomorrow.' 

Severus sighed gloomily and nodded. 

Suddenly, Sirius spoke up, 'But Professor, that's not fair. He's just tired. If you assign him detention, isn't that going to worsen the situation by making him more tired?' 

'It is his own problem. He should have gotten enough rest but he must have been up all night up to some shenanigans. Exactly what I expected from a Gryffindor. And you,' he said, pointing at Sirius, 'What's your name, boy?'

'Black. Sirius Black.' Sirius responded, standing a bit taller. 

'Since you seem to like Mister Snape so much, you can go to detention with him tomorrow.' Professor Ellis smirked. 

'Then I'll go as well, Professor.' James announced and he stood up abruptly with Sirius. 

Remus also stood up uncertainly, 'Me too, Professor.' 

Professor Ellis furrowed his brows and growled, 'Fine! You all have detention, you unwise, imprudent Gryffindors.' 

The four sat down. Severus turned around to look at Sirius and James but immediately looked away when they looked back at him. The bell rung exactly at that moment and the students started packing their bags.

Severus and Remus were the first ones to get out of the classroom.

'I'm sorry for making you do that. You didn't have to.' Severus told Remus who was walking next to him like normal.

'Severus, I told you,  I'll always be there right next to you. And I mean that both figuratively and literally.' Remus smiled at him warmly. 

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Sorry for not posting for so long. I haven't had a lot of inspiration and I've been busy with my finals and school work. I'll try to be consistent in writing this story. Really appreciate you all reading this.