002 Lose the Last Dance
Title: Lose the Last Dance
Author: accountingwitch
Rating: G
Character/Pairing: Snape, James/Lily, mentions Lucius/Narcissa and Marauders
Genre: fic
Warnings: none
Word Count: 1080 holy crap
Merlin's beard, I CAN write long fics! Anyway, if you recognize the music, I found it really set the tone while writing this.
The Great Hall was fantastic for the Hallowe'en Ball. Golden stars glittered in a pitch black sky, overshadowed only by the full moon in the centre. Old trees were paired with harvest crops along the walls, shading long tables that offered drinks and snacks of all types. The Hall itself was cleared to make way for a massive dance floor, where tunes alternated between slower dances and faster pop hits.
Scattered around the room were numerous chairs, and one was currently being occupied by Severus Snape. The teenager was tall in an awkward way, all limbs and angles. It was not helped by the hooked nose and stringy hair that fell in front of his face. His dress robes were a size too large, black and billowy, yet despite being a talented wizard Severus had made no attempt to alter them. It was as though he wanted to look like "a great vulture wearing a black tent", as Sirius Black had sneered only minutes earlier.
"Severus," Lucius said. The older boy was radiant, if only for his pale blond hair swept stylishly back. His dress robes were a dark grey he insisted was charcoal, velvet and cut well to suit Lucius' figure. A black cape hung elegantly over his shoulders.
"You don't seem to be enjoying yourself," Lucius commented jokingly as he sat down.
"I don't have to," Severus answered. In his hands was a goblet of pumpkin juice; Severus took a long sip from it.
"It's a ball," Lucius pointed out. "Balls are meant to be fun, and amusing."
"Don't you have a girl to flirt with?" Severus sniped.
As if on cue, Narcissa Black appeared. Her dress matched Lucius' suit, with crushed black velvet that daringly exposed her shoulders. The overall effect made her pale hair and skin glow, enhanced by a delicate silver tiara and glittering choker. The only thing that marred her near-ethereal beauty was the ugly frown on her lips.
"Lucius, you promised me a dance," she pouted.
"Yes, yes my dear," Lucius said. He elegantly rose to his feet, cape swirling dramatically; Severus wondered if it was natural or if Lucius had spent hours perfecting the move. "Only comforting a most morose member of our house."
"Severus, don't you have someone to dance with?" Narcissa asked.
"No."
"Do you want - "
"No."
"Ah." Narcissa, normally quite well-spoken, was taken aback for a moment, and Severus could see a flash of relief flit across her face. It occurred to him that she would have asked to dance with him, if only out of sheer politeness, and the response was like barely evading a deathblow. Severus supposed she meant well, but he didn't need pity.
"Go and enjoy yourselves, I'm having plenty of fun here," Severus said in his most sulky voice.
Lucius and Narcissa quickly left Severus, unnerved by his mood. Severus watched the pair enviously. They could be twits occasionally, and more than once they had fought over the most ridiculous things (like a poorly-written love note), but they did genuinely seem to like each other and enjoy each other's company. In fact, it might have been considered...
Severus banished the word from thought as the music changed and his head snapped back to the floor. The last notes of yet another pop tune had ended, and the music shifted to a slower waltz-like melody. Snape vaguely identified it as something he'd heard his mother play on the Wizard's Wireless, but couldn't name it right away. It was something he liked, though: it was something lower and darker, where waltzers made heavy steps and deep, sweeping motions.
Severus' heart twisted when he saw the first couple on the floor. Potter was wearing a simple set of dress robes of pure black. The cut was similar to Lucius', but without the fancy material or cape. Severus thought Potter came from a high-standing pureblood family - or maybe the idiot spent all his Galleons on things that weren't fancy clothes.
It was Potter's partner that made Severus' gut wrench, though. Lily was led by Potter, and she was wearing a glorious red-orange dress. It looked ragged, with pieces of the dress floating around her, but Severus quickly realized that the lighter material was supposed to resemble autumn leaves swirling around her. She wore her hair down and unadorned, and Severus noted that the dress matched the colour of her beautiful hair. She wore no jewellery, and Severus found her simple beauty a refreshing contrast to Narcissa's gaudy display of wealth.
The pair stepped, one-two-three, moving quicker and further on the first two beats only to pause longer on the third. It made their movements sweeping and dramatic, as Severus imagined it. Potter swept Lily around in a tight circle, and Severus was entranced at the sight of red leaves swirling in Lily's wake. Even as other students gradually crowded the floor, Severus only had eyes on the pair, as though Lily's dress was a flame in the midst of black suits and dresses.
"Having fun, Severus?" someone called out.
Narcissa swept by, borne along by her Gryffindor cousin who had the look of grim duty on his face. They were gone before Severus could form an answer, but it was enough to snap Severus out of his reverie.
He quickly checked on Potter's remaining friends. Pettigrew and Lupin were sitting together at the far end of the hall. Pettigrew had this look of abject worship on his face as he gawked at someone in the dancers - Severus couldn't tell who. Pettigrew's fascination had gone to the point where he was pouring Butterbeer on the floor and not noticing the mess he was making.
Lupin was holding onto a few pieces of chocolate, which wasn't a surprise, as everyone in his year knew the boy's obsession with chocolate. However, instead of eating it Lupin was watching Severus. Severus noticed just as Lupin turned away with a jerk, but he had seen the look in the shabby boy's eyes.
Curiousity. Pity. And, perhaps, a bit of sorrow.
Severus glanced at Potter and Lily again. Unlike the dark mood he had always associated with the song, the pair were smiling, Lily laughing and something Potter said. They continued to move in the quick-quick-slow steps, but their steps had a livelier feel to it.
What Severus would do to be in Potter's place now - to hold Lily, to see her smile like that for him...
Abruptly Severus stood up and, unnoticed to everyone but a surprisingly-alert Lupin, stalked out of the Hall. He had better things to do than torture himself.
Author: accountingwitch
Rating: G
Character/Pairing: Snape, James/Lily, mentions Lucius/Narcissa and Marauders
Genre: fic
Warnings: none
Word Count: 1080 holy crap
Merlin's beard, I CAN write long fics! Anyway, if you recognize the music, I found it really set the tone while writing this.
The Great Hall was fantastic for the Hallowe'en Ball. Golden stars glittered in a pitch black sky, overshadowed only by the full moon in the centre. Old trees were paired with harvest crops along the walls, shading long tables that offered drinks and snacks of all types. The Hall itself was cleared to make way for a massive dance floor, where tunes alternated between slower dances and faster pop hits.
Scattered around the room were numerous chairs, and one was currently being occupied by Severus Snape. The teenager was tall in an awkward way, all limbs and angles. It was not helped by the hooked nose and stringy hair that fell in front of his face. His dress robes were a size too large, black and billowy, yet despite being a talented wizard Severus had made no attempt to alter them. It was as though he wanted to look like "a great vulture wearing a black tent", as Sirius Black had sneered only minutes earlier.
"Severus," Lucius said. The older boy was radiant, if only for his pale blond hair swept stylishly back. His dress robes were a dark grey he insisted was charcoal, velvet and cut well to suit Lucius' figure. A black cape hung elegantly over his shoulders.
"You don't seem to be enjoying yourself," Lucius commented jokingly as he sat down.
"I don't have to," Severus answered. In his hands was a goblet of pumpkin juice; Severus took a long sip from it.
"It's a ball," Lucius pointed out. "Balls are meant to be fun, and amusing."
"Don't you have a girl to flirt with?" Severus sniped.
As if on cue, Narcissa Black appeared. Her dress matched Lucius' suit, with crushed black velvet that daringly exposed her shoulders. The overall effect made her pale hair and skin glow, enhanced by a delicate silver tiara and glittering choker. The only thing that marred her near-ethereal beauty was the ugly frown on her lips.
"Lucius, you promised me a dance," she pouted.
"Yes, yes my dear," Lucius said. He elegantly rose to his feet, cape swirling dramatically; Severus wondered if it was natural or if Lucius had spent hours perfecting the move. "Only comforting a most morose member of our house."
"Severus, don't you have someone to dance with?" Narcissa asked.
"No."
"Do you want - "
"No."
"Ah." Narcissa, normally quite well-spoken, was taken aback for a moment, and Severus could see a flash of relief flit across her face. It occurred to him that she would have asked to dance with him, if only out of sheer politeness, and the response was like barely evading a deathblow. Severus supposed she meant well, but he didn't need pity.
"Go and enjoy yourselves, I'm having plenty of fun here," Severus said in his most sulky voice.
Lucius and Narcissa quickly left Severus, unnerved by his mood. Severus watched the pair enviously. They could be twits occasionally, and more than once they had fought over the most ridiculous things (like a poorly-written love note), but they did genuinely seem to like each other and enjoy each other's company. In fact, it might have been considered...
Severus banished the word from thought as the music changed and his head snapped back to the floor. The last notes of yet another pop tune had ended, and the music shifted to a slower waltz-like melody. Snape vaguely identified it as something he'd heard his mother play on the Wizard's Wireless, but couldn't name it right away. It was something he liked, though: it was something lower and darker, where waltzers made heavy steps and deep, sweeping motions.
Severus' heart twisted when he saw the first couple on the floor. Potter was wearing a simple set of dress robes of pure black. The cut was similar to Lucius', but without the fancy material or cape. Severus thought Potter came from a high-standing pureblood family - or maybe the idiot spent all his Galleons on things that weren't fancy clothes.
It was Potter's partner that made Severus' gut wrench, though. Lily was led by Potter, and she was wearing a glorious red-orange dress. It looked ragged, with pieces of the dress floating around her, but Severus quickly realized that the lighter material was supposed to resemble autumn leaves swirling around her. She wore her hair down and unadorned, and Severus noted that the dress matched the colour of her beautiful hair. She wore no jewellery, and Severus found her simple beauty a refreshing contrast to Narcissa's gaudy display of wealth.
The pair stepped, one-two-three, moving quicker and further on the first two beats only to pause longer on the third. It made their movements sweeping and dramatic, as Severus imagined it. Potter swept Lily around in a tight circle, and Severus was entranced at the sight of red leaves swirling in Lily's wake. Even as other students gradually crowded the floor, Severus only had eyes on the pair, as though Lily's dress was a flame in the midst of black suits and dresses.
"Having fun, Severus?" someone called out.
Narcissa swept by, borne along by her Gryffindor cousin who had the look of grim duty on his face. They were gone before Severus could form an answer, but it was enough to snap Severus out of his reverie.
He quickly checked on Potter's remaining friends. Pettigrew and Lupin were sitting together at the far end of the hall. Pettigrew had this look of abject worship on his face as he gawked at someone in the dancers - Severus couldn't tell who. Pettigrew's fascination had gone to the point where he was pouring Butterbeer on the floor and not noticing the mess he was making.
Lupin was holding onto a few pieces of chocolate, which wasn't a surprise, as everyone in his year knew the boy's obsession with chocolate. However, instead of eating it Lupin was watching Severus. Severus noticed just as Lupin turned away with a jerk, but he had seen the look in the shabby boy's eyes.
Curiousity. Pity. And, perhaps, a bit of sorrow.
Severus glanced at Potter and Lily again. Unlike the dark mood he had always associated with the song, the pair were smiling, Lily laughing and something Potter said. They continued to move in the quick-quick-slow steps, but their steps had a livelier feel to it.
What Severus would do to be in Potter's place now - to hold Lily, to see her smile like that for him...
Abruptly Severus stood up and, unnoticed to everyone but a surprisingly-alert Lupin, stalked out of the Hall. He had better things to do than torture himself.