Lys couldn't leave right away. On the tattered sofa in Snape's house sat a stiff and slightly displeased Lucius Malfoy.
Seeing Snape step out with Stalys Black in tow, Lucius immediately realized that his earlier discussion with Snape had been dismissed outright.
"Forget it, Severus. Just make sure you know what you're doing," Lucius said cryptically. He couldn't afford to spell things out.
It wasn't worth inviting suspicion or trouble for Severus. As the Dark Lord's top lieutenant, Lucius was at the height of his power, but also constantly surrounded by danger.
Lys glanced at Snape, her eyes flitting between the two men. Although curious, she wisely kept her mouth shut.
It was best to steer clear of Death Eater affairs.
After Lucius left, Lys handed the materials in her hand to Snape and nodded. "I'll probably stop by in two days. Thanks, Severus."
Snape's expression turned strange. Glancing at Lucius's retreating figure, he looked somewhat annoyed.
He hadn't expected Lucius to persist with discussing those potions, even after he had declined and left his domain.
Snape shot Lys a glance and seemed to cast a spell. Lys's instincts kicked in, and she summoned her own magic.
The spell collided with her magic but wasn't entirely dispelled. The fragmented force rebounded, catching both of them off guard.
Lys suddenly found herself pulled into a dark attic—Snape's current home, though it appeared somewhat brighter.
A drunken man was violently beating a thick-browed woman and a little boy in worn maternity pants—young Severus Snape.
Lys's only thought was, "So Snape's hair wasn't this greasy when he was a kid…"
The scene shifted. It was winter, and a frail Lys, dressed in a tattered camisole, clutched her festering left arm. For a brief moment, she was blinded by the light as Senna released her from the dark room.
Taking a deep breath, Lys irritably turned to see young Snape being pelted with stones and mocked by children in the alley. In her daze, she even felt a tinge of envy.
As the scene flipped once more, Lys saw herself marveling at her first sight of Hogwarts, drenched and cloaked, exclaiming, "Wow! What is this?"
Lys quickly deduced that Snape must have attempted Legilimency, causing them to now be trapped in memories. She dared not act rashly, fearing it might damage the memories.
Scanning for an exit, she glimpsed two tombstones in a public cemetery, inscribed with the names of Snape's parents.
Gryffindor's hostility, financial struggles, an unclaimed flower in his palm, an empty home, and a lavish golden room.
The veiled insults of Slytherin aristocrats, Lily Evans's occasional disappointed glances, Potter's humiliation beneath the beech tree, and a darkness tinged with blood-red.
Lys clicked her tongue. "How do I break this spell?"
Another flash of light brought them into Lys's memories: a silver-feathered quill set from El Alb, Snape's dental potion, Hagrid lighting a fire with a snort of flame.
Endless books and notes, a labradorite ring Noah placed on Lys's finger for her excellent grades, the torment of mending a bone-deep wound, and a world of unsettling silver light.
Until a sunny scene of a family of three playfully casting water spells, contrasting starkly with the opening memories, made Lys curl her lips slightly.
Finally, under a tree, she spotted Snape. His face was pale, and as his magic erupted, they were both ejected from the memories.
"You've practiced Occlumency!"
"I haven't! That stuff gives me headaches. And why are you accusing me?!"
Lys was upset about her memories being pried into but couldn't bring herself to lash out at Snape, given his embarrassed and angry demeanor. After all, she still needed his help.
They stared at each other in silence until Snape took the materials from Lys's hand.
"Not seeing you out."
"No need."
They bid farewell through gritted teeth.
Lys could guess Snape's intentions. He was suspicious and wanted to see if she'd guessed his conversation with Lucius. But it backfired, revealing more to her instead.
Reflecting on her exposed memories, Lys felt relieved. Nothing sensitive had been revealed.
So be it. They were equally matched—neither could mock the other.
Lys, ever carefree, patted herself down and went home to cook.
Snape, however, was unsettled. He had seen the stark contrast between Lys's current life and her dark childhood. But so what? Different people walk different paths. Regret was possible, but turning back was not.
All he could do was strive harder to seize what lay ahead.
Snape suppressed all emotions and thoughts. Ever since fifth year, when he helped Stalys process potion materials and learned the Dark Lord practiced Legilimency, he had been honing his Occlumency. But it seemed he still had a ways to go.
Two days later, Lys returned for the potion. They acted as if nothing had happened. Lys even shared some giant kidneys she'd found in Knockturn Alley.
Pinching her nose, she handed over the foul-smelling package with two fingers.
Staring at the rare but reeking material, Snape couldn't tell if Lys was being generous or vindictive.
Watching Snape's frustrated expression, Lys smugly Apparated away. Senna and Noah were waiting for her potion at home.
Noah's transformation was undoubtedly agonizing, especially with the two magical chains embedded in his bones. Each struggle tugged at his flesh and restrained his movements.
Lys had once suggested removing them, but Noah only shook his head, saying, "At least I can stand now."
While the Wolfsbane Potion helped, it was only a temporary relief.
Noah's pain still drove him to lose control.
By the end of the full moon, Lys's eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion, her nerves stretched thin.
Returning to the reading room, she found Senna's injuries mostly healed. No longer needing to compete with Noah for the wheelchair, she was just a bit slow on her feet.
Lys felt she needed a break. She Apparated to Hogsmeade and visited Honeydukes.
Carrying a large bag of sweets, she frowned as she watched two figures disappear around a corner—Tonks Moody and Dolores Black?
How did those two end up in Hogsmeade?
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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