If Artistic Types Are So Inclined...(post 1 of 2)
I can't draw worth a cent. But if anyone who is of an artistic bent should be inspired to create a representation of nine year old Severus Snape in the summer of 1969 -- perhaps for my birthday (oh, I'm shameless!) -- here are some passages from my fanfic where I describe how Sev looks.
(See, I'm not even asking you to read the whole thing!) LOL
Chapter 6 -- The Games People Play
Severus pulled out two pairs of jeans he had gotten from the Free Store back in the city. One was embroidered with flowers and peace signs. The other was hand painted in bright Day-Glo colors in various symbols, words, and wild designs. He held up both pairs.
"Which one should I wear today?" he asked.
"Do those!" Azalea exclaimed, pointing to the painted pair. "They match my polish!"
Severus thought that the bright colors looked much better on the jeans than on Azalea's fingertips, but said nothing.
He stuffed the embroidered jeans back into the duffle bag, and then rummaged some more before pulling out an embroidered denim shirt -- another Free Store acquisition -- and his old smock shirt, now gaily tie-dyed courtesy of Annie.
"That one!" Azalea called out, pointing to the smock, even before Severus had had a chance to ask.
Chapter 7 -- Beautiful People
Severus spotted a pair of glasses with round lenses tinted a dark mauve lying on the ground. He picked them up and put them on.
"You look like John Lennon!" Angel exclaimed.
And here he was back at the camp, sitting on the side of the minibus with a bandanna tied around his forehead, his hair pulled back into a silver barrette to which was attached a roach clip with beads and feathers on it, wearing sandals, jeans madly painted in Day-Glo, his now tie-dyed smock, a fringed suede vest with a 'Love" button on its pocket, innumerable love beads and the ankh necklace around his neck, and his just-acquired pair of mauve glasses.
How much more foolish could he get?
Chapter 9 -- Heaven and Hell
Severus continued to gaze at the bottle, trying to process what Azalea was saying.
"For your sunburn, Sev!" Yesmina was stating emphatically, leaning down and staring directly into his face to drive the point home.
"My sunburn..." Severus mused, grinning at the bottle.
"We found you by the lake," Yesmina continued. "Earlier today. When we went looking for you. We found you by following your trail of clothes by the lake. You were laying naked on the edge of the lake..."
"By the lake..." Severus grinned.
"You, like, had to be out there for hours, man," Free added. "You're, like, red all over, man! If that stuff helps sunburn, man, then you better use it right away, man, else it'll be a real bummer for you tomorrow, man..."
"Bummer..." Severus grinned.
"He still trippin'!" Azalea muttered.
Chapter 10 -- With A Little Help From My Friends (Reprise)
"'Bro'?" he asked. "What does that mean?"
"Bro'...brother," Angel answered. "It mean you look like one of us, now!" He laughed.
Severus was not sure he understood. Did getting a tan turn him into a Muggle?
"It mean you don't look white no more!" Angel added, seeing Severus' confused look. "You look Rican, maybe even black..."
"He looks like an injun," DeWard opined. "He got straight hair like one!"
"Yeah," Angel agreed. "Could pass for an Indian. But there be Spanish with straight hair, too!"
"Let me see if I understand." Severus interrupted. "You are saying that because my skin is now dark, I'm now black? Or Indian? Or, what did you call it, 'Rican'?"
"Puerto Rican," Angel corrected. "But maybe you be Mexican...they got Indian and Spanish, they have straight hair like you..."
He laughed when he saw Severus' confused look.
"No, bro'," he smiled. "If it fades, it don't count! You still a honky!"
"What's a 'honky'?" Severus asked. Angel stopped laughing and actually looked a little ashamed.
"It's an insult, sorry," Angel apologized. "Don't let Azalea know I said that, I always on her case for using 'spick', and if we gonna tell you not to use that 'muggo' word, it's not right to call you honky..."
She put her underwear on underneath the dashiki, and then slipped her arms through the sleeves. She then became aware of Severus, who was just standing there, watching.
"Okay, we know you look fine!" she exclaimed, throwing her towel at Severus, who caught it. "Don't he look dark and fine, Mina?"
Azalea winked at Yesmina, who blushed and looked away.
"But he don't need to go struttin' his fine, dark stuff for us, do he?" Azalea laughed. Severus blushed.
"I do not strut!" he protested, using the towel to dry himself, then stopping and looking up. "At least, I don't think that I do!"
He looked from Azalea, who just laughed, to Yesmina, who smiled and shook her head, looking away again.
He threw the towel back at Azalea.
"I don’t strut!" he repeated, putting on his clothes. He decided not to tuck his smock into his pants…
Yesmina retrieved a long thin scarf and tied it around her forehead as a headband. She then held out a similar scarf, inspected it, and then looked at Severus. Without a word, she went over to him and wrapped the scarf around his waist as a belt, tied it in a knot on his side, and then pulled the top of his smock up slightly so that it puffed out over the scarf.
She inspected her handiwork with satisfaction, and then turned to Azalea, who looked at Severus with raised eyebrows.
"Doesn't he look...dashing?" Yesmina asked her, laughing. "Like a pirate!"
"He can't be no pirate!" Azalea laughed, getting to her feet. "Pirates strut! Severus tell us he never strut!"
Chapter 11 -- Bluebird
Severus broke through the crowd of muddy people just in time to see a particularly muddy young man holding Azalea in his arms, and then throwing her into what could only be described as a pit of mud.
Other people were running and throwing themselves into the mud pit, and a couple of other young women also got thrown in, screaming in delight.
Azalea was not delighted…
"It's only dirt, Azalea," Severus comforted her. "It'll wash out!" "It's mud! It's mud! It's mud!" Azalea gasped hysterically.
"Mud, mud, mud, mud, mud!"
She ran her muddy fingers through her muddy hair, and then wiped her muddy hands on her muddy face.
"It'll wash off, Azalea!" Severus repeated, at a loss for why Azalea should be so upset, and not knowing what else to say…
Severus reached down and grabbed a large handful of mud, and proceeded to smear it on his arm. He repeated it with the other arm.
This procedure at least had the effect of causing Azalea to stop crying. She stared at Severus, her mouth open in disbelief.
However, when Severus started to smear mud on his own face, Azalea grabbed his wrists, screaming, "STOP IT! STOP IT!"
"Why?" Severus grinned. "Now I'm a mud person, too!"
"NO!" Azalea screamed, wiping at his face. "No, no, no, no, no!"
However, Severus just grabbed some more mud, and proceeded to slap it on his head, working it into his hair.
"YOU STOP THAT!" Azalea screamed, trying to use her fingers to comb the mud out of Severus' hair. "Don't do that! Don't do that!"
"Now we're both, what was that term you used, mud people?" Severus grinned at her.
"No, no, no, Sev!" Azalea whispered hoarsely. "It not that type of mud!"
She started crying again. She sounded ashamed.