Categories > Books > Harry Potter > Always

The Reunion

by HeadmasterFelix 0 reviews

Lily arrives on Severus's doorstep.

Category: Harry Potter - Rating: R - Genres: Romance - Characters: Lily,Snape - Warnings: [?] - Published: 2012-11-16 - Updated: 2012-11-16 - 1888 words

-1OOC
Severus saw Lily through the small peep-hole in his front door. He felt as if his blood was going to boil. Anger was not something that he often felt, and it was always well controlled. Not today. She pushed him too far. Showing up in his office after fourteen years with not a word only to tell him that his son was being raised by that jackass all these years. And the time before that she had conceived that plague of a child just before she ran off to marry Potter. No. Lily Evans had ruined his life and the meager amounts of contentedness that he had managed to find too many times with her unexpected arrivals. Still, something inside of him could not allow him to turn his back. With a clenched fist he pushed down his seething rage and swung the door open.
Lily did not expect a warm welcome, but Severus did not hide his hatred well and she was thrown off. She stood before him, guard down and emotionally bare, and looked over his face and rigid features. They stood in silence for a long moment.
"I'm sorry to drop in on you like this."
"I highly doubt that." He wanted to hit her. That feeling sickened him.
"I had to see you."
"And what makes you think I would ever want to see you again, Mrs. Potter?"
"Don't call me that," she snapped.
His eyes narrowed. "And why not?" They could both hear the bile.
She shook her head with disbelief. "Are you really such a well-bred pureblood now, Severus, that you can't even acknowledge the existence of divorce?"
His features softened and his eyes moved down her body to examine her left hand. Divorce? Why hadn't he heard? Certainly he was not so out of touch. He felt his heart sink, but despite his desire to comfort her he could not fully let go of his hatred.
"I don't expect you to understand, or to agree with my choice - no one does. I made my choice as a seventeen year old girl and apparently I ought to live with that for the rest of my life, regardless of anything else. But damnit, Severus, please," she begged. "You cannot call me by that name anymore. I cannot live my life as his property or in his shadow for another moment."
He just watched her for a moment. She was trembling, her voice was giving way, and he doubted that the tears in her eyes were allowing her to see him any longer. There she was - Lily Evans. The immensely strong woman who was afraid of nothing - not even her own vulnerability as she stood crying on the doorstep of the man who had shown her nothing but hatred and rejection. Here was the beautiful girl that he knew all those years ago. How could he have ever forgotten her?
Severus moved to embrace her, one arm with it's flowing woolen cloak covering her shoulder and shielding her back. He led her inside, closed the door, and for a long time they stood in his entry way while she cried, enveloped in his cloak with her tears pouring into his chest.
Eventually she calmed and so did he. In a voice he had not used with her since they were on the cusp of adulthood he welcomed her into his home and began to make her tea. She waited for him and tried to collect her thoughts. She tried to remember why she had come here, what her plan had been, and what she had hoped to gain by seeing him again. Certainly it was not just to come crying to him. She had come here to reignite things with him and to right the mistakes she had made so many years ago. She had little hope of fulfilling those goals now - not with how things had just gone. It was clear to her that Severus had long lost his passion for her.
Soon he rejoined her. She anticipated distance, but Severus wanted nothing to do with that. He sat right beside her, his hip against hers, and handed her a warm cup. They sat in a gentle silence, both searching their minds for where to go from here.
"I had no idea." He was apologetic.
"News hasn't circulated the faculty?"
He shook his head. "I imagine the headmaster has kept a tight lid on it, for Harry's sake."
They were quiet again.
"How long has it been?"
"Nearly two months. I've been staying with Molly and Arthur."
"That's generous of them."
"Yes, it's been very nice." She tried to participate in what felt like small talk.
Silence again, but Severus could not continue with small questions.
"Lily... why did you come to me today?"
She bit her lip and thought about just what it was she wanted to say. Finally the truth emerged. "I have to get on with my life, and if it's in any way possible, I need my life and yours to be connected."
Connected? What an odd word to use. He said nothing.
"I don't know how my life should have gone, Severus. Maybe all of this was always meant to be - maybe my time with James was necessary, maybe our time together was good and maybe what we gave to Harry was what he needed. Maybe all the right decisions were made and I'm left in this chaos and pain for all the right reasons and maybe I really did make all the right choices - or maybe I made all the wrong ones and I'm just now starting to sort through the disastrous aftermath. I don't know. I've never known, I've just had fleeting confidence. What I do know is that now, from this point forward in my life, I need to have you." Her gaze met his but she could not read his reaction.
He watched her speak and he soaked in her words. It would take him much longer than this to process her proposal, but for now he could do nothing but grant her request. He took her cup from her hand, set it down, and slipped his hand in hers. He said nothing - he did not want to confirm any future plans; he did not want to lead her on. He could not simply break down the walls that he had spent the last decade and a half building because she came to him now. What he could do was love her here in this moment and press on from there.
His touch was so very welcomed. She leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder and he brought his arms up to fully embrace her. They each felt the pulse and steady breath of the other and it was comforting.
They did not make love that night. They were physically close and they spent long hours catching up on the the years they lost of each other's lives, but at the end of the night Severus showed Lily to the guest bedroom and left her with nothing more than a deeply ached for kiss.
As Lily settled into bed she felt contented. Certainly she would rather be sharing a bed with Severus, but it seemed at this point that she would have that opportunity in the future. For now she could feel hopeful, and that was so much more than she'd had in a very long time.

In the morning she woke to the scent of cooking food. For a moment she forgot where she was - the smell was very similar to the Weasley's, but the dark curtains and the Egyptian cotton sheets shot her back into reality, and what a fantastic reality it was. She took some time to wake up before making herself look more presentable for her first morning with Severus. It was a difficult balance to strike - looking sexy, but as if she had done nothing. Lily straightened out her hair, cleaned up her face, and adjusted her neckline and breasts to be just a bit more flattering. With any luck, Severus would take note. With more luck, Severus would not take so much notice as to see through her shallow presentation attempts.
Severus woke up quite aware of his situation and very nervous. After showering and attempting to form a plan for the day he spent another twenty minutes flipping through his closet, and once he was in his kitchen he spent what felt like hours agonizing over what to make for her.
Ultimately his choices were... not like him. They would delight Lily, certainly, but they were not the choices that one would expect of Severus Snape.

When she finally descended to the kitchen she found that she really had nothing to be worried about. It seemed Severus had wanted to make an impression as well. There he was, standing behind the island in the kitchen and frying vegetables, completely shirtless. Lily smirked and held her tongue. It was ridiculous, really - there was no way that this was how he conducted himself on an average morning. She could not imagine him, private, practical and conventional as the year was long, baring his skin - especially not while cooking with oil. Still, it was flattering, and she appreciated the gesture. More than the gesture, she was appreciating the opportunity to see what had become of his form.
He had been confident before he heard Lily's footsteps, and then he felt himself deeply wishing he had made different choices. It wasn't that he thought she would find him distasteful, but the whole thing made him feel embarrassed. He thought he could feel his cheeks growing warm. When Lily entered the room he refused to meet her gaze.
"Good morning." There was a hint of seduction in her voice that she did not intend.
"Good morning." There was no such thing in his. His tone was as dry as ever and he continued to focus on cooking.
She cleared her throat and tried to clear her mind. Her eyes wandered his body despite her commands to the contrary. He was so pale and his body had become so very scarred in these many years. There were so many stories written in his arms and on his chest that she had not heard and that she wished she had been there for. There was something ghastly about his appearance, and it was certainly not her type, but seeing Severus bare before her like this made Lily shift in her seat and think girlish thoughts none-the-less.
Finally feeling able to leave the food preparations for a moment Severus excused himself. Lily watched him ascend the stairs, and when she was sure she was alone she dropped one of her hands between her legs. She enjoyed only a brief exploration of herself, but just knowing that she was still capable of getting worked up over a man brought her great relief. It was not something she'd had both the drive and relaxation for in quite a while and part of her had been afraid she'd lost the ability. Within almost no time at all Severus was coming back down the stairs with a loose black linen shirt covering his upper body.
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