Lily Snape [3]

Chapter Twenty-Two:

Chapter Twenty-Two: 

"I'm engaged," I blurted as I laid upon a small couch in my father's chambers at Hogwarts, my entire body hurt but I'd finally manage to quit sobbing an hour earlier, and now I was simply trying to find a way to break the uncomfortable silence which was only broken by his pacing footsteps. 

"I kn-what?"  If I'd been able to move more than my lips to talk, I'd probably have laughed at his very surprised facial expression, before I nodded, confirming what I said was true.  "To who?"  

"Fred Weasley," I answered as if it was completely obvious.  Though I felt as though he wanted to do nothing more than tell me what an idiot I was, he simply nodded and muttered his congratulations before continuing to pace.  We were waiting until the middle of the night, as Father planned to sneak me out of the school and no matter how much I argued about it, he refused to change his mind.  

He promised that the Weasley's would be safe, and to prove his point, he promised to personally put charms, spells and curses around their property so that nobody could go in or out without express permission of Mrs or Mr Weasley or myself.  I was still skeptical, but I trusted Severus Snape with my entire life, so I'd have to trust him with the Weasley's lives as well.  

"When did it happen?" Father asked after several more minutes of his pacing.  

"A couple of days after Christmas.  He proposed and he gave me a cat, so all in all I think it was a good day," I chuckled softly, hoping to make him relax.  It didn't work.  He kept on wearing a hole in the floor.

I gave up on talking for until it was time to leave, at which point McGonagall had met with us in Father's room, Merlin and my luggage in tow.  I pushed myself into a sitting position before struggling to stand.  

"I've contacted Mr Weasley, he'll be at the train station to pick her up.  Let's go, before we lose our  chance."  

Father wrapped one arm around me, helping me to keep steady as I began walking, Minerva McGonagall raised my things with a swish of her wand, and both the pet carrier and my case followed dutifully behind the three of us.  The dark was nearly suffocating as we crept through the corridors and out of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  

"Stay down and keep quiet." 

I nodded to show I'd heard, but after only a few minutes of walking, my head started to pound and my stomach had begun lurching.  I felt dizzy, nauseous and all together, simply not okay.  They'd really messed me up in that classroom, though I thought I could handle it, I realized then that I definitely couldn't.  Anymore of that and I'd kill myself just to make all of this stop.  

Shaking my head of those thoughts, I stumbled and fell, releasing my father as my entire body hit the ground painfully.  Whimpering, I got back onto my hands and knees as Father leant down to help me back up. 

"I'm sorry." 

"Don't be ridiculous, you've done nothing wrong," McGonagall snapped, her eyes alight with worry for me yet still angry, at the Carrow's I assumed.  

"I have to sit down for a minute, I just.. I can't," I panted, out of breath in just the six minutes we'd been walking.  I knew bruises lined my body from the ropes I'd been bound with and I was rather sure I had at least one bruised or cracked rib, if not more, and so soon after that entire ordeal, I simply couldn't keep going.  

My mind kept playing flashbacks, over and over of the students laughing as they tortured me.  How could any seventeen year old, much less six of them, be that evil?  They were too young.  

Once again, I was filled with such an intense hatred for Voldemort, and without meaning to, I'd sat a small patch of grass on fire.  One of the professors put it out nearly immediately, though I wasn't sure which one, and they agreed to let me rest for a moment before we had to continue on our way.

I grunted as I plopped myself down on the ground, panting for breath as my head seemed to spin.  After only a moment, I could feel my stomach churning, and I turned my face before basically puking my guts up.  My eyes watered as I spit a few times to get the horrid taste out of my mouth before I forced myself to stand back up and keep moving.  

By the time we were there, I was relatively sure I was about to pass out just from exhaustion alone. Father helped me onto the train as McGonagall loaded my things into an empty compartment, releasing Merlin from her cage before she nodded, wished me luck and left.  Father stayed with me for a few moments longer.  

"There's a war coming, Lillith, and if worse comes to worse, I should say.  I'm proud of you, and I'm proud to call you my daughter, I wish you the best of luck with your upcoming marriage... I love you."  He leaned down, quickly kissing my forehead before he left, his cape flowing wildly behind him.  

I didn't even get to say it back..  

----

The trip back to Kings Cross Station was completely boring, and uneventful. Nobody bothered me, and I didn't move a single muscle until the train had stopped, and even then the most I could do was sit up before I felt sick to my stomach once more.  

Fred and Mr. Weasley hurried inside the train to help with my things, and Merlin hissed as Mr. Weasley pushed her back into the cage before trotting off with her and my things.  Fred was left to help me.  

"I feel like an invalid."

"That's because you are, now shut up and let me take care of you," Fred smiled, though it didn't quite reach his worry-filled eyes. He leaned down as I stumbled and scooped my legs up so that he wound up carrying me bridal style, and I didn't even have the energy to tell him to put me down.  

"You weigh about as much as a kitten, by the way.  I wont let you get away with not eating anymore, that's probably half the reason you're so sick that Snape had to send you home."  

My eyebrows knitted together as I glanced up at him.  "That isn't why they sent me back, is that what they told you?"   

He nodded and I shook my head, burying it into the place between his neck and shoulder.  "The Carrow's spent four hours letting a few seventh year Slytherin's practice the Cruciatus Curse on me, because I couldn't and wouldn't tell them where Harry was."  

I think, after I muttered that, he was so shocked he almost dropped me but he managed to keep hold nonetheless and seemed to hug me even tighter to himself.  I could practically hear himself screaming inside of his mind, at anyone who could possibly be to blame for what happened.  Him, Ginny, Snape, the Carrows, Slytherin's, me, his parents, I knew that he wouldn't dare say anything out loud, but he was thinking it. 

"It isn't anyone's fault, just so you know, nobody but myself is to blame." 

He let out a pitiful half-chuckle.  "Sometimes it's like you can read my mind, Lils.. I love you.  I won't let something like this happen to you again, I promise.  You're the last person on Earth who deserves all of this."  

Leaning up, I kissed his cheek before laying back down against him, excited to get back to the Burrow and just sleep.