FIC: "Up In Flames" by kcstories
Title: Up In Flames
Author: kcstories
Rating: PG
Words: ~1,000
Warnings: Character death (not Lily or Severus). Not exactly canon.
Disclaimer This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros. Inc. Written for fun, not profit.
Summary: When Severus Snape arrives on that chilly autumn evening, the sight that greets him is even grimmer than he expected.
Author's Notes:
Up In Flames
When Severus Snape arrives on that chilly autumn evening, the sight that greets him is even grimmer than he expected.
An old oak tree has fallen, shards of glass and other debris litter the scorched lawn, and the big stately home itself is partially in ruins. The front door has been blasted off its hinges and is lying a few feet away.
At least the latter means he doesn't need to reach for his wand.
Just as well. He'd rather not leave any traces of his own magic behind. The authorities are pretty thorough these days and nowhere near as clueless as their reputation suggests.
Holding his breath, he walks in stealthily.
They will be in the nursery, all three of them. Such was the plan.
He gingerly makes his way up the stairs and to the room the farthest down the corridor.
He takes a deep, bracing breath. Two bodies are lying on the floor, motionless, while the infant is in its cot, gurgling innocently and completely unaware of the tragedy that almost struck.
The realisation will probably hit him later on in life, though. The memory might even haunt him for the rest of his days, even if tonight's events ended well.
They did in fact end well, didn't they?
Gritting his teeth, Severus hunches down on the floor.
Best get this over with quickly.
He decides to check on James first. He listens carefully. And again. Then he curses under his breath.
There is no pulse, nor a heartbeat, no matter how faint. There isn't a single sign of life at all.
Severus curses once more, out loud this time. Everything had been planned down to the last minor detail. Every eventuality had been taken into account. This wasn't supposed to happen. He promised Lily...
Lily. Oh, bugger!
He gets up, leaps almost. She is the only one he'd ever abandon his cool and collected demeanour for; and he does, more often than she will ever know.
"Lily," he says, laying his left ear against her chest. He squints, tries not to make a sound, and finally hears it: a hint of a heartbeat.
Thank Merlin.
He reaches into his robe pocket and takes out the flask. He slips it between her lips.
Two drops should do it.
In a matter of seconds, she coughs, gasps, and then sits up groggily.
"S-Severus," she stammers in a strained voice while her gaze frantically darts around the room. "D-Did it work? M-My magic? I-Is Harry...?"
Severus nods. "Harry is just fine," he is quick to reassure her.
He doesn't mention the scar he noticed on the boy's forehead or the possible implications of the unusual injury. There is another, more pressing matter that needs to be addressed. Immediately. He swallows thickly and continues, careful to keep his tone neutral, "I'm afraid not everything went according to plan, however. James isn't... What I mean to say; he didn't make it."
Lily shakes her head. The urge to scream is written all over her face. "He didn't believe me," she replies, exasperated. "I told him to take the-the potion you gave me. He said he had, but clearly, he didn’t. He had a thing about trust; trusting you, specifically." She clenches her fists. Her eyes fill with tears. "Merlin, could he really have been that pigheaded; that selfish?"
Severus bites back the 'Yes' that burns on his tongue and instead says, "You have to come with me, Lily. There is no time to waste. We have to get you and Harry to a safe place before the Da-before his followers find out about this. We must leave. Right this instant."
"Yes," she says, and inhales sharply. "We must."
***
An hour later, Severus returns. Alone.
The scene is precisely the same as when he left it. No one seems to have alerted the authorities yet.
He sneers at the sheer predictability of it all. It doesn't take much to fool Muggles. Most of them are only capable of seeing what they are also able to believe in.
The Ministry of Magic won't be dissuaded quite as easily, however. Their people will get here soon; as soon as someone raises the alarm that strange, hostile Magic has been detected in Godric's Hollow.
Severus hasn't much time. He shouldn't dawdle. There'll be plenty of opportunity for reflection and introspection later, if he still deems it necessary then.
He picks up the jerry can filled with petrol, unscrews the lid and carefully pours the contents along the wall.
With steady fingers, he lights a match.
This way, what happened here tonight will look like a random Muggle act of arson committed against a family that was a little different.
People will be shocked, of course, and call it a vile, outrageous crime, a sign of the times and society's ever-growing intolerance, but no one will suspect the involvement of anything... supernatural, and moreover, with the fire, there will be no remains left to identify. Lily and her son will be declared dead. It will make everything so much easier.
Severus takes a few steps back, and just for the briefest of moments, watches the first flames as they rise.
He knows he must hurry. Lily is waiting for him in a nearby barn, along with the little boy.
Thus far, Harry has been quiet and well behaved throughout the whole ordeal.
Unlike Potter senior used to be, Severus thinks with a wry smile, and once again his thoughts drift to Lily.
She is completely devastated about her husband's death. Of course she is.
Severus sneers again, but with no humour this time. Lily was too good for him, always far too good for that bastard.
No matter. Severus will take care of her, and of the brat, too; raise him as his own even, if she'll let him.
And if it turns out that Sybill, in a rare moment of lucidity, actually got the right end of the stick, if the Prophecy is correct and Harry Potter is really meant to defeat the Dark Lord some day, then perhaps Severus can help him with that; train the boy properly and ensure he doesn't develop the sort of temper that got his father knee deep in trouble time after time.
Severus has been giving this whole thing a lot of thought and after plenty of soul-searching decided that he has no real allegiance to the Dar-to Voldemort. Not in his heart.
He'd never have been able to forgive himself if he'd let Lily die.
He promised himself to look after her and to love her for the rest of their days, even if she never returns his love and always continues to see him as nothing but a trusted friend.
Even her friendship is probably more than he deserves after he treated her so cruelly all those years ago. It might have only been one ill-chosen word, spat out in the heat of the moment, but it inflicted more damage than a hundred poisoned daggers might have done.
The flames rise higher. The strong odour of smoke fills the air.
Severus nods to himself, satisfied, and turns on his heel.
With quick strides, he walks away, never looking back.
Behind him, the old house goes up in flames and by morning, there will be nothing left but memories and ashes.
Author: kcstories
Rating: PG
Words: ~1,000
Warnings: Character death (not Lily or Severus). Not exactly canon.
Disclaimer This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros. Inc. Written for fun, not profit.
Summary: When Severus Snape arrives on that chilly autumn evening, the sight that greets him is even grimmer than he expected.
Author's Notes:
Up In Flames
When Severus Snape arrives on that chilly autumn evening, the sight that greets him is even grimmer than he expected.
An old oak tree has fallen, shards of glass and other debris litter the scorched lawn, and the big stately home itself is partially in ruins. The front door has been blasted off its hinges and is lying a few feet away.
At least the latter means he doesn't need to reach for his wand.
Just as well. He'd rather not leave any traces of his own magic behind. The authorities are pretty thorough these days and nowhere near as clueless as their reputation suggests.
Holding his breath, he walks in stealthily.
They will be in the nursery, all three of them. Such was the plan.
He gingerly makes his way up the stairs and to the room the farthest down the corridor.
He takes a deep, bracing breath. Two bodies are lying on the floor, motionless, while the infant is in its cot, gurgling innocently and completely unaware of the tragedy that almost struck.
The realisation will probably hit him later on in life, though. The memory might even haunt him for the rest of his days, even if tonight's events ended well.
They did in fact end well, didn't they?
Gritting his teeth, Severus hunches down on the floor.
Best get this over with quickly.
He decides to check on James first. He listens carefully. And again. Then he curses under his breath.
There is no pulse, nor a heartbeat, no matter how faint. There isn't a single sign of life at all.
Severus curses once more, out loud this time. Everything had been planned down to the last minor detail. Every eventuality had been taken into account. This wasn't supposed to happen. He promised Lily...
Lily. Oh, bugger!
He gets up, leaps almost. She is the only one he'd ever abandon his cool and collected demeanour for; and he does, more often than she will ever know.
"Lily," he says, laying his left ear against her chest. He squints, tries not to make a sound, and finally hears it: a hint of a heartbeat.
Thank Merlin.
He reaches into his robe pocket and takes out the flask. He slips it between her lips.
Two drops should do it.
In a matter of seconds, she coughs, gasps, and then sits up groggily.
"S-Severus," she stammers in a strained voice while her gaze frantically darts around the room. "D-Did it work? M-My magic? I-Is Harry...?"
Severus nods. "Harry is just fine," he is quick to reassure her.
He doesn't mention the scar he noticed on the boy's forehead or the possible implications of the unusual injury. There is another, more pressing matter that needs to be addressed. Immediately. He swallows thickly and continues, careful to keep his tone neutral, "I'm afraid not everything went according to plan, however. James isn't... What I mean to say; he didn't make it."
Lily shakes her head. The urge to scream is written all over her face. "He didn't believe me," she replies, exasperated. "I told him to take the-the potion you gave me. He said he had, but clearly, he didn’t. He had a thing about trust; trusting you, specifically." She clenches her fists. Her eyes fill with tears. "Merlin, could he really have been that pigheaded; that selfish?"
Severus bites back the 'Yes' that burns on his tongue and instead says, "You have to come with me, Lily. There is no time to waste. We have to get you and Harry to a safe place before the Da-before his followers find out about this. We must leave. Right this instant."
"Yes," she says, and inhales sharply. "We must."
***
An hour later, Severus returns. Alone.
The scene is precisely the same as when he left it. No one seems to have alerted the authorities yet.
He sneers at the sheer predictability of it all. It doesn't take much to fool Muggles. Most of them are only capable of seeing what they are also able to believe in.
The Ministry of Magic won't be dissuaded quite as easily, however. Their people will get here soon; as soon as someone raises the alarm that strange, hostile Magic has been detected in Godric's Hollow.
Severus hasn't much time. He shouldn't dawdle. There'll be plenty of opportunity for reflection and introspection later, if he still deems it necessary then.
He picks up the jerry can filled with petrol, unscrews the lid and carefully pours the contents along the wall.
With steady fingers, he lights a match.
This way, what happened here tonight will look like a random Muggle act of arson committed against a family that was a little different.
People will be shocked, of course, and call it a vile, outrageous crime, a sign of the times and society's ever-growing intolerance, but no one will suspect the involvement of anything... supernatural, and moreover, with the fire, there will be no remains left to identify. Lily and her son will be declared dead. It will make everything so much easier.
Severus takes a few steps back, and just for the briefest of moments, watches the first flames as they rise.
He knows he must hurry. Lily is waiting for him in a nearby barn, along with the little boy.
Thus far, Harry has been quiet and well behaved throughout the whole ordeal.
Unlike Potter senior used to be, Severus thinks with a wry smile, and once again his thoughts drift to Lily.
She is completely devastated about her husband's death. Of course she is.
Severus sneers again, but with no humour this time. Lily was too good for him, always far too good for that bastard.
No matter. Severus will take care of her, and of the brat, too; raise him as his own even, if she'll let him.
And if it turns out that Sybill, in a rare moment of lucidity, actually got the right end of the stick, if the Prophecy is correct and Harry Potter is really meant to defeat the Dark Lord some day, then perhaps Severus can help him with that; train the boy properly and ensure he doesn't develop the sort of temper that got his father knee deep in trouble time after time.
Severus has been giving this whole thing a lot of thought and after plenty of soul-searching decided that he has no real allegiance to the Dar-to Voldemort. Not in his heart.
He'd never have been able to forgive himself if he'd let Lily die.
He promised himself to look after her and to love her for the rest of their days, even if she never returns his love and always continues to see him as nothing but a trusted friend.
Even her friendship is probably more than he deserves after he treated her so cruelly all those years ago. It might have only been one ill-chosen word, spat out in the heat of the moment, but it inflicted more damage than a hundred poisoned daggers might have done.
The flames rise higher. The strong odour of smoke fills the air.
Severus nods to himself, satisfied, and turns on his heel.
With quick strides, he walks away, never looking back.
Behind him, the old house goes up in flames and by morning, there will be nothing left but memories and ashes.