The Prince's Tale (The Story of Lily and Severus)

The Playground

DISCLAIMER: This is a Harry Potter fan-fiction. I do not own any characters in this story, they belong to J.K. Rowling -  I am just a gal who is a humongous fan of the wizarding world created by her. I am simply here to give my own take of what happened before the days of Harry and gang. I would not recommend reading this story if you haven't read DH or at least seen DH part 2. 

So, without further adieu... enjoy!

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The air was warm and the sun was bright as a young boy crept from his home to a nearby playground to escape his parent's constant bickering. The boy, who went by the name of Severus, found himself behind a large, overgrown bush admiring two girls from afar. 

The girls were sisters, in fact. However, Severus was not truly paying attention to the eldest girl, Petunia, for her neck was far too long for his liking and she seemed to be quite pretentious. He watched the girl with the red hair swing back and forth on the swing-set, appearing to defy gravity.

To any average passerby, the young girl's actions would have been positively alarming. One might think she did not even know that it would be possible for her to fall. But no one did pass by. In fact, the girls knew not of Severus' presence; they both assumed they were alone. Petunia was frantic, panicking as her younger sister swung higher than thought to be possible, but Severus only watched from afar.

"Lily, don't do it!" cried Petunia, stopping her swing by digging her heels into the ground. But she did; the younger girl, Lily, launched herself from the swing at its highest point and flew into the air. Not only did she gracefully land on the ground without injury, but she first soared through the air in a remarkable way that could not have happened only by chance. Lily laughed at her strange landing, with her tangled, red hair wildly blown across her face, and Petunia stood with her hands on her hips looking as unamused as ever.

"Mummy said you weren't allowed, Lily!" Petunia shrieked, unable to explain the feat preformed by her younger sister. She glanced around to see if, by chance, anyone else had seen the incredible trick Lily had done, wanting to assure herself that it was not just a trick of the mind. Severus had seen the entire thing but he would not have come to Petunia's defense even if she asked him directly. 

"But I'm fine," Lily giggled. "'Tuney, look at this. Watch what I can do."

Lily ran to scoop up a flower that had fallen from a tree close to where Severus crept, her short, blue dress trailing behind her. Petunia was unsure whether or not she wanted to see another trick of Lily's, but decided to go against her instincts and follow her. Once Lily was positive her sister was close enough to see, she held the flower in the palm of her hand. The pink blossom opened and shut itself over and over again, much to Petunia's horror.

"Stop it!" she cried.

"It's not hurting you," Lily replied coolly, yet she felt very insecure inside. She crumpled her hand atop the flower and dropped its pathetic remains to the ground.

"It's not right," Petunia stated, still obviously mind-blown. "How did you do it?"

Severus felt a nervous stirring in the pit of his stomach. He felt rather protective of Lily, he didn't want to see her mocked by her sister when she didn't have a proper answer to that question. With a deep breath, he stepped out from his hiding place place in the bush. "It's obvious, isn't it?" he asked the two girls.

Petunia, spooked by Severus' pale, sallow skin, overgrown jet-black hair and sudden appearance in the playground she thought to be deserted, ran to the swing-set. Lily was taken aback by his sudden appearance, but she did not fear him. In fact, she felt as if she had some sort of unspoken connection with the boy before her, though they'd never met. 

"What's obvious?" Lily asked, curiously. Truthfully, she longed for answers as to why she could do things that other children could not.

Severus was nervous, yet excited. This was the moment he had longed for for such a long time. He was finally speaking to the free-spirited girl he watched from time to time. He glanced over at the play-set to locate Petunia before revealing the truth to Lily. "I know what you are," he whispered.

"What do you mean?" Lily asked, cocking her head to the side.

"You're... you're a witch," Severus revealed.

Lily stomped her foot in a childlike manner and covered her mouth with her hand to cover a gasp that escaped her throat. "That's not a very nice thing to say to somebody!" she added, defensively. Lily was completely and totally offended by his words. She turned with her nose in the air and marched towards her sister.

"No!" Severus cried, chasing after the girls, flapping his arms with his oversized jacket. The girls turned and evaluated him, but only from the safety of behind the poles of the swing-set. 

"You are," Severus repeated. "You are a witch. I've been watching you for a while. But there's nothing wrong with that. My mum's one, and I'm a wizard."

"Wizard!" Petunia's cold and belittling laugh pierced the air. "I know who you are. You're that Snape boy! They live down Spinner's End by the river," she said to Lily, mockingly. "Why have you been spying on us?"

"Haven't been spying," Severus replied, feeling his cheeks grow increasingly pink under the accusations. "Wouldn't spy on you, anyway," he added, angrily, "you're a Muggle."

Petunia felt completely idiotic as she had no idea what the word "Muggle" even meant. She played it off as she did, though, because his bitter tone was unmistakable. "Lily, come on, we're leaving!" she screeched. Lily did as she was told and followed behind her sister, glancing at Severus a few times as she walked away. He stood in utter disappointment, remembering Lily's piercing green eyes. He longed for her to turn back around and talk to him. Severus needed a reason not to return home to his angry family.

When the Evans sisters were long gone, Severus crumpled into the mossy ground and cried. He finally had worked up the nerve to speak to Lily, but had only left her completely repulsed. 

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Author's note: Hey! I hope you guys liked it! This chapter is mainly just what happens in The Deathly Hallows, but with a bit of my own interpretation. I felt it was important because, obviously, this is the first time they ever spoke. There will be more chapters that follow the book, but the next one will not. Don't worry, the unseen Lily and Severus moments will be here shortly. PS, who all got into Pottermore early? I got in on day one! <3 Anyway, leave me a comment and tell me how you like it! Oh, and don't forget to vote. :)