Status: Complete. :)
Always
Cool Winter Weather
The day had finally come for everyone to leave Hogwarts for the Holiday break, and Severus was more than ready to get on the train so that he and Lily could start making their way back to their respective homes. His parents weren't picking him up on the other end, at Platform 9 3/4. No, Lily's parents were going to drive him back to Spinner's End to make sure that he got safely, and then he would eat dinner at her house within the next two weeks. Both of them were excited about that, but especially Severus.
He was happy that he was going to be getting a second chance to prove to Lily just how much he loved her. He'd screwed up royally the first time and there was no way in Hell he was about to do it a second time. He'd promised himself that he was going to make sure he did well this time. He was going to take care of her and he was going to change himself for her. There would be no more secret potions being brewed, and he would no longer try to exact revenge on everyone who'd ever wronged him. If he did, he would run the risk of losing Lily, and he knew that if he did that, he'd never get a third chance.
Right now, he was in the Common Room, packing up the things that he'd be taking home with him. Of course, he would be leaving some of his things here at Hogwarts. There was no need for him to take all of his belongings when he still had clean clothes at home and some books to keep him occupied when he wasn't with Lily. It would be a good break, he was sure of that. All he needed to do now was get out to the lake so the boats could take him back to the train.
He was nervous to wonder whether or not Lily would want to sit in the train booth with him when they went back. He knew that she had other friends that she'd probably want to spend some time with, so he wasn't going to push his luck. He had all Christmas break to spend with her. He pushed his hand back through his hair as he buckled his trunk and used his wand to make it start following him.
He was thrilled that he and Lily would be getting an opportunity to be around each other so much for the next few weeks. Of course, he hadn't yet figured out what exactly the two of them would be doing with one another. All he knew was that he was excited to be able to spend time with her. He loved Lily and anything they did, even if it was some kind of tea party, would be something he enjoyed doing simply because she would be there doing it with him.
He pushed his hand back through his hair and then closed his eyes before he turned to see her standing in the hallway just outside of the painting that lead to the Slytherin common room. She didn't seem to care that she was the proverbial fish out of water, being the only Gryffindor in the Slytherin area right now; in fact, she looked rather proud of the fact that she was waiting there for Severus.
"It's about time you got out here," she giggled before she shook her head. "You take longer to pack than a girl, Severus. Honestly," she told him before she grabbed on to his elbow. "Come on, hurry up! If we hurry, we can get to the boat and we can ride across the lake with one another."
Severus smiled in response to her obvious happiness. She was thrilled to be going home for the holiday break, and he could understand why. She had a warm, loving family waiting for her back home. Of course, her sister wouldn't exactly be waiting with open arms, but that never seemed to bother Lily for too long. She usually just pushed that out of her mind and decided to focus her energies on other things until her sister pulled herself out of her morbid little thoughts.
"So, what's the first thing you want to do when we get home?" Lily asked her in her lovely voice, pulling Severus out of his thoughts once more.
He thought about it for a moment before he shrugged, turning to face her with a small smile. Kiss you, he mentally thought to himself, though he didn't say those words out loud. He didn't feel like exposing his feelings right here, right now; not when there were so many other people around them and certainly not when he knew there was a chance she probably wouldn't be willing to listen to what he had to say when it came to his heart.
"I don't know," he shrugged. "I was thinking maybe we could go to that old house outside of town like we used to when we were kids."
The building he was talking about was one that Muggles couldn't see. Even Petunia couldn't see it; nor could Lily's parents. It was a place that neither of them knew anything about and yet, both of them had always loved going there. Severus' parents had warned him when he'd been a young boy not to go over there, but he'd never paid attention to their warnings and when they'd realized he wasn't going to listen, they'd stopped trying to keep him and Lily away from it.
Lily's eyes brightened and she nodded before she nodded, squeezing his elbows lightly. "You know, that sounds great," she told him. "Maybe we can play Explorer like we used to. Remember that, Sev?"
The black-haired boy chuckled and nodded, knowing exactly what the redhead was talking about. He remembered all the afternoons he and Lily had spent playing hide and seek among other games there. But their favorite game to play back then had been Explorer. There had been many different variants of it, if Severus remembered correctly. Sometimes they'd play it by lying on their backs and 'exploring' the clouds in the blue sky; other times, they'd play in the house and pretend that they were a wise witch and wizard in search of some ancient treasure.
"I remember," he told her lightly before he grabbed onto her hand with his. "Those were fun days, weren't they?"
Neither of the two of them had a chance to say anything else as the two of them walked out of the castle and started making their way towards the lake. The ground was covered in a heavy blanket of white snow; the only untouched parts being the paths that students made to various different areas on the grounds. In the distance, he could see a few Quidditch players practicing on the field, and towards the lake, he could see that the boats were being prepared for their journey to the train.
He was excited to be leaving Hogwarts this time, even though it was normally his safe place. He usually looked forward to coming to school in the fall and he dreaded leaving come summertime. At home, all his parents ever did was fight. He'd grown used to drowning it out, but of course like any person, there were times when all he wanted was the safety and the silence that Hogwarts could offer if one were looking hard enough.
He pushed his hand back through his hair as they moved closer to the lake before he stopped and turned to Lily, seeing her shivering. "You're cold," he pointed out, nodding at the cloak that she was wearing around her robes. He didn't hesitate in removing his own cloak and placing it around her shoulders in an effort to give her more warmth. He knew that it was likely that he'd end up catching cold or perhaps the flu, but he didn't care for himself. All he wanted to do was make sure that Lily wasn't cold and that she didn't get sick because of the cool winter weather.
She smiled gratefully up at him and then sneezed softly before her face flushed a light shade of red. Whether or not it was from the cold air, or if it was because she was happy that he'd given her his cloak, Severus had no idea. All he knew was that his heart skipped a few beats when her head lay lightly on his shoulder, her hand letting go of his elbow only long enough so that she could reach down to lace their fingers together. He didn't know what it meant, but he did know that it meant the world to him. All he could hope was that this was the start of a long relationship with Lily.
He was happy that he was going to be getting a second chance to prove to Lily just how much he loved her. He'd screwed up royally the first time and there was no way in Hell he was about to do it a second time. He'd promised himself that he was going to make sure he did well this time. He was going to take care of her and he was going to change himself for her. There would be no more secret potions being brewed, and he would no longer try to exact revenge on everyone who'd ever wronged him. If he did, he would run the risk of losing Lily, and he knew that if he did that, he'd never get a third chance.
Right now, he was in the Common Room, packing up the things that he'd be taking home with him. Of course, he would be leaving some of his things here at Hogwarts. There was no need for him to take all of his belongings when he still had clean clothes at home and some books to keep him occupied when he wasn't with Lily. It would be a good break, he was sure of that. All he needed to do now was get out to the lake so the boats could take him back to the train.
He was nervous to wonder whether or not Lily would want to sit in the train booth with him when they went back. He knew that she had other friends that she'd probably want to spend some time with, so he wasn't going to push his luck. He had all Christmas break to spend with her. He pushed his hand back through his hair as he buckled his trunk and used his wand to make it start following him.
He was thrilled that he and Lily would be getting an opportunity to be around each other so much for the next few weeks. Of course, he hadn't yet figured out what exactly the two of them would be doing with one another. All he knew was that he was excited to be able to spend time with her. He loved Lily and anything they did, even if it was some kind of tea party, would be something he enjoyed doing simply because she would be there doing it with him.
He pushed his hand back through his hair and then closed his eyes before he turned to see her standing in the hallway just outside of the painting that lead to the Slytherin common room. She didn't seem to care that she was the proverbial fish out of water, being the only Gryffindor in the Slytherin area right now; in fact, she looked rather proud of the fact that she was waiting there for Severus.
"It's about time you got out here," she giggled before she shook her head. "You take longer to pack than a girl, Severus. Honestly," she told him before she grabbed on to his elbow. "Come on, hurry up! If we hurry, we can get to the boat and we can ride across the lake with one another."
Severus smiled in response to her obvious happiness. She was thrilled to be going home for the holiday break, and he could understand why. She had a warm, loving family waiting for her back home. Of course, her sister wouldn't exactly be waiting with open arms, but that never seemed to bother Lily for too long. She usually just pushed that out of her mind and decided to focus her energies on other things until her sister pulled herself out of her morbid little thoughts.
"So, what's the first thing you want to do when we get home?" Lily asked her in her lovely voice, pulling Severus out of his thoughts once more.
He thought about it for a moment before he shrugged, turning to face her with a small smile. Kiss you, he mentally thought to himself, though he didn't say those words out loud. He didn't feel like exposing his feelings right here, right now; not when there were so many other people around them and certainly not when he knew there was a chance she probably wouldn't be willing to listen to what he had to say when it came to his heart.
"I don't know," he shrugged. "I was thinking maybe we could go to that old house outside of town like we used to when we were kids."
The building he was talking about was one that Muggles couldn't see. Even Petunia couldn't see it; nor could Lily's parents. It was a place that neither of them knew anything about and yet, both of them had always loved going there. Severus' parents had warned him when he'd been a young boy not to go over there, but he'd never paid attention to their warnings and when they'd realized he wasn't going to listen, they'd stopped trying to keep him and Lily away from it.
Lily's eyes brightened and she nodded before she nodded, squeezing his elbows lightly. "You know, that sounds great," she told him. "Maybe we can play Explorer like we used to. Remember that, Sev?"
The black-haired boy chuckled and nodded, knowing exactly what the redhead was talking about. He remembered all the afternoons he and Lily had spent playing hide and seek among other games there. But their favorite game to play back then had been Explorer. There had been many different variants of it, if Severus remembered correctly. Sometimes they'd play it by lying on their backs and 'exploring' the clouds in the blue sky; other times, they'd play in the house and pretend that they were a wise witch and wizard in search of some ancient treasure.
"I remember," he told her lightly before he grabbed onto her hand with his. "Those were fun days, weren't they?"
Neither of the two of them had a chance to say anything else as the two of them walked out of the castle and started making their way towards the lake. The ground was covered in a heavy blanket of white snow; the only untouched parts being the paths that students made to various different areas on the grounds. In the distance, he could see a few Quidditch players practicing on the field, and towards the lake, he could see that the boats were being prepared for their journey to the train.
He was excited to be leaving Hogwarts this time, even though it was normally his safe place. He usually looked forward to coming to school in the fall and he dreaded leaving come summertime. At home, all his parents ever did was fight. He'd grown used to drowning it out, but of course like any person, there were times when all he wanted was the safety and the silence that Hogwarts could offer if one were looking hard enough.
He pushed his hand back through his hair as they moved closer to the lake before he stopped and turned to Lily, seeing her shivering. "You're cold," he pointed out, nodding at the cloak that she was wearing around her robes. He didn't hesitate in removing his own cloak and placing it around her shoulders in an effort to give her more warmth. He knew that it was likely that he'd end up catching cold or perhaps the flu, but he didn't care for himself. All he wanted to do was make sure that Lily wasn't cold and that she didn't get sick because of the cool winter weather.
She smiled gratefully up at him and then sneezed softly before her face flushed a light shade of red. Whether or not it was from the cold air, or if it was because she was happy that he'd given her his cloak, Severus had no idea. All he knew was that his heart skipped a few beats when her head lay lightly on his shoulder, her hand letting go of his elbow only long enough so that she could reach down to lace their fingers together. He didn't know what it meant, but he did know that it meant the world to him. All he could hope was that this was the start of a long relationship with Lily.