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Tweak says, "*twirl!*"

Lily Luna Potter (ex_moonlilie525) wrote in colligo_threads,
@ 2010-10-17 17:34:00

Entry tags:

!@event, !closed, #complete, lily luna potter, severus snape

Who: Lily Luna Potter and Severus Snape.
What: Snape needed even more of a guilt complex.
Where: Their lab.
When: Last night after Hannah and Snape went on their body-finding adventure.
Rating: PG-13 for minor violence and character death.
Status: Complete.

Lily was devastated by the loss of her aunt, but she was also old enough to know that these things happened in apocalypses, and she couldn't just stop. It was the week before the full moon and she had potions to take care of for two werewolves. So when Serverus had decided to go along with Hannah to look for Sirius and Hermione's bodies, she had elected to stay behind in the lab. That decision also came, in no small part, because she didn't want to see her aunt's body. She was so glad Rose and Hugo weren't here to know their mother was dead, and was even more relieved her own mother wasn't in the city. She didn't think she could bear to lose her. She worried about her father, of course, but at least one of her parents was safe.

She had sent Remus and George's daily dose of the potion by owl a few hours earlier, and was focusing on the rest of the batch of Wolfsbane and their other potions. The good thing about Severus being gone was that she could have some time to herself without actually having to ask for it. The bad thing was that, between the potions and her emotional state, she didn't hear the zombies until they were already inside. She hadn't expected it, since the zombies hadn't really been coming in to buildings. There were three of them, and once she realised they were there, she went for her wand, and pointed it at one, shouting a slicing hex with enough force to take off its head.

The other two were close, too close, and one of them grabbed hold of her arm. She dropped her wand and kicked at it, trying to get away from it, then cast a wandless spell that set it on fire. She winced as her wrist was burned by the flames, but jerked away and ignored the pain, focusing on just getting out of the situation alive. She quickly moved to grab her wand and was knocked down by the last zombie as she did. She screamed as it lashed out with a sharp piece of metal, leaving a deep cut down her side. There was another sharp pain at her arm, but she ignored it and used another slicing hex to kill the zombie. She scrambled away from her body, pressing her hand to the bleeding cut, then examine the wound on her arm. As she did, her eyes widened when she realised it wasn't just a wound but a bite. It was suddenly harder to breathe and she felt dizzy and terrified.

"Oh god," she whispered, slumping down against the wall. She was going to become one of those things. She was going to become a monster and kill people. Logically, she knew she needed to kill herself, to stop herself before she changed enough that it was too late to stop herself, but she was still a seventeen year old girl and she didn't want to die. Unsure of what to do, she just leaned against the wall and started to cry softly to herself.

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playedmypart
2010-10-17 11:05 pm UTC (link)

Severus was not happy. Not that Severus was ever really happy but this place, and the things that happened in a rapid order that left no room to even breathe between each one, was beginning to take its toll on him. Going to fetch bodies of people he knew - even if one of them was a man he utterly despised - had been difficult and yet necessary. He wasn't going to let Hannah go on her own. She was determined but she was also emotional and the last thing they needed was another death to deal with.

Except, as he appeared in the middle of the potions lab only to find chaos where order had been before he'd left, Severus realized with a sweeping glance that another death might very well be unavoidable. The thought was enough to make his stomach churn and his scowl deepen. Yet he wasted no time in locking his gaze on the small redhead crying softly, taking note of the blood and way she clutched at her arm. There were other wounds, he was sure of it, but that one seemed the important one.

"What happened?" he demanded as he crossed to her in several quick strides. His robes billowed around him ominously but Severus' tone wasn't hostile and his gaze, while severe, wasn't angry. If anything there was concern present. Perhaps hidden under layers but still there as he reached for her arm without bothering to ask in order to see the wound for himself.

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ex_moonlilie525
2010-10-18 12:07 am UTC (link)

Lily's head snapped up when Severus spoke and she looked up at him with wide eyes that were tear-filled and terrified. She was so glad that someone else was there, because she didn't want to be alone, but she was also scared she would hurt him. "I...I don't know," she said. "I don't know how they got in. The door was closed and I thought it was locked but...there were three of them. I took care of them, but..." She trailed off and started crying again.

Wordlessly, she moved her hand from her arm and let him take hold of it so he could see the wound. "One of them bit me," she finally said, almost too quietly to be heard. "I...don't know what to do. I know what it means and I know...but I'm scared." She didn't want to admit to being afraid in front of the man she idolised, but she supposed it really didn't matter how she looked to him now. "I don't want to die," she said, much quieter.

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. "Will you..." she trailed off, unable to ask the question. "I'm sorry...I don't want to ask you to do that, but I don't know if I can." She was quiet for a moment, and she looked down again. "Please?"

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playedmypart
2010-10-18 03:14 pm UTC (link)

No. The word reverberated through Severus' mind like an unending echo. No, he wouldn't. He couldn't. Asking him to kill her might not have been easy for her, but he could not bring himself to take her life. Yet even as the arguments began to pile up, he knew he had no choice. Her magic wouldn't allow her to end her own life in a quick and painless fashion and, despite her intelligence and maturity, she was still a frightened seventeen-year-old girl. Asking her to take her own life in any other fashion was a level of cruelty that not even Severus was capable of managing.

So he had no choice. He knew it. She knew it. Her life was forfeit the moment she was bitten and for every second that passed, it was becoming less and less her own. He wasn't certain how long the infection took to spread. They may have hours, even days. But they might also only have mere minutes. He didn't know the specifics and that meant that time was not on their side.

Deep lines creased his forehead as Severus scowled at the reality of the situation. He wanted to placate her. Rarely did he feel the urge to do such a thing yet at the moment he wanted to do nothing else. But he didn't. It would be a waste of time and an insult to her intelligence as well as his own.

So he merely gave a sigh that seemed to come from the very depth of his soul; one that spoke of his dislike of the situation and acceptance of something he did not want to accept. Then he drew his wand, eyeing the girl for a long moment.

"Are you certain?"

Such a simple question. Just three little words that spoke far more than anything else could. It was her decision. If she said yes, he'd do what he had to do much as he'd always done but at least he'd let her make the call. It might not help him sleep any better at night but it might, at the very least, allow him to look her family in the eye once it was all said and done.

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ex_moonlilie525
2010-10-19 04:48 am UTC (link)

Lily felt terrible, asking Severus to do this, but it was the only feasible option. She didn't think she could kill herself, and she didn't want to turn into one of those monsters. As there was no cure for the condition, and there was very little chance one would be found before she completely changed, she couldn't rely on that. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "I don't want to ask this of you...it isn't fair at all and you shouldn't have to do it." She gave him a small, shaky smile. "But life's rarely fair, I guess...still...if there was another way, I would use it. I just can't think of one that's at all practical or feasible."

When he asked if she was certain, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. No, she wasn't certain at all and she wasn't ready, but she really didn't have a choice in this. Still, her father had died once and lived to tell about it. The least she could do was be as brave as he had been. Opening her eyes, she wiped her tears away with her sleeve and looked calmly at Severus. "It doesn't matter if I am or not," she said seriously. "This has to happen and...I'm okay with that. Better this than the alternative. I would much rather die now than become one of those things. That's just a worse sort of dying."

She reached over and touched his hand with hers. "You're a great man, Professor Snape," she said, "and more importantly, you're a good man. And I'm very glad I got to meet you." Taking her hand back, she nodded. "I'm ready."

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playedmypart
2010-10-19 05:17 am UTC (link)

Severus didn't speak. He couldn't. If he was going to do this, he couldn't allow himself to focus on the emotions of the moment. The sorrow, the acceptance, the sentiments she was expressing, none of it. It wasn't right. She should at least be given kind words before her death, but even if he was the sort of man to do such a thing the fact remained that right now he simply couldn't. He had to focus everything on what he had to do.

So he simply gave a nod of his head, dark eyes shining with emotions he didn't dare voice or even give much thought toward. He took a step back and raised his wand higher. Then he allowed all of the hatred he felt toward the situation, toward how wholly unfair it was, toward the senseless of it all, wash over him. He ignored everything else, twisting the hatred and anger until he could feel it ready to pour from him with or without his consent. When it finally reached a breaking point a half of a heartbeat later, he all but spat out the words.

"Avada Kedavra!"

There was a flash of green that seemed to encompass the entire room even as it struck Lily directly in the chest. And just like that, it was over. Severus' arm fell limply to his side and his hand trembled ever so slightly. After a long moment of silence, save for his own ragged breathing, he spoke to the still form of the girl lying mere feet away.

"I can truly say it was a pleasure knowing you, Ms. Potter," he murmured softly. Removing his outer robe with a flick of a few buttons, he calmly covered her with it then pointedly turned his attention to the mess the zombies had left behind. He would deal with the rest later. For now he simply wanted to be alone with his grief.

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