And Time Dies

A/N: Chapter 2 Warnings: Unwanted Pregnancy/Termination

Time had flown. The weeks with Lily had been magical as always, though they did not make another attempt at making love. Severus had asked once, but seeing the slight fear in Lily's eyes, he asked what was wrong. It had taken a great deal of prodding to get her to explain what was wrong.

"Oh," Severus had managed simply. "Then we won't do this again," he said softly, kissing the line between her red hair and her milky skin softly.

"Thank you, Sev," she said, curling into his arms. She liked it better this way anyways, Severus could tell.

As time went by, Severus even managed to find a potion to stem his lustings after her. His body itched for her, wanted her badly. The fact was, that first time had been only a first try, a taste, a sample of what could be. At least, those were the thoughts that plagued him each night before bed. He cursed his hormones and wished them away, that he was more mature, that his body would listen to logic.

Even with the potion, he had to 'pull one off' on a regular basis. He had never been one for masturbation, but after that night, it had fascinated him like never before. One of his roommates had even commented on it, saying that they'd never heard such girly sounds in their room before. Severus had blushed ruddy and did his best to ignore them.

He was musing over all of this in Potions.

"Severus?" he looked up, Slughorn was staring at him expectantly. "What are you adding into that Euphoria Potion?"

Lily was also staring at him, "Peppermint, sir," Severus said simply.

"Peppermint?"

"Peppermint."

"Why peppermint, Severus?" Slughorn asked, suspicious now.

"Well, this is a potion made to induce euphoria, correct?"

"Correct, Mr. Snape, get to the point please?"

"Well, adding peppermint will counter the side effects of excessive singing and prevent nose-tweaking," Severus explained calmly, stirring his potion carefully, then added the next ingredient carefully. Slughorn still looked dubious, but went back to the blackboard nonetheless.

Severus had his doubts about Slughorn's teaching abilities at times, now was one of those moments. If he were Slughorn, he would've demanded that he, Severus, taste the potion, to prove that it worked. Well, some teachers were just pitiful. Lily was still staring at him from across the room. Severus just shrugged at her.

"I need to talk to you," she mouthed. "Badly."

He nodded, and turned back to his potion. At the end of class, he stoppered his potion off, keeping a few mouthfuls for himself. There were times when euphoria was useful, whether he took it himself, or if he spiked somebody's drink. He collected his things and left the dungeons, looking for Lily.

She was nowhere to be seen.

"Whatever you did to her, Snivellus, you're gonna pay for it."

Potter.

Severus continued walking, doing his damnedest to ignore the hotheaded Gruffindor Chaser. He heard the whizz of the jinx, but hearing it did him no good. He didn't have the Quidditch-honed reflexes of James Potter, and was hit square in the back. It was nothing all that potente, just something that immobilized him quite successfully by glueing him to the spot.

This is when the panic began. What would they do to him today?

"Lily's been in a funk for the past few weeks. YOU have been seen with her on a regular basis. Isn't that right, Sirius?" he was sneering. Sneers did not become him.

"That's right, James!" That wasn't Sirius, that was Pettigrew. Oh well, they didn't seem to care. Only Severus seemed to note it. He felt fear quake through him, desperate to leave him quivering. He never thought he would be thankful to be immobilized. He probably would've fallen over into a ball right then. Last time they'd gotten to him he'd spent the weekend with the mediwitch explaining away particularly unfriendly leeches and removing them carefully.

How people like this got into 'Good Gryffindor,' Severus couldn't say.

Fortunately, Professor Dumbledore started towards them and Severus was released without any torture. The Gryffindors disappeared down the corridor and Severus was left shaking as the Professor walked past, not quite noticing Severus. The transfiguration Professor waved a hand in recognition, but nothing more. Severus stayed in her wake, for a moment, though, to avoid Potter and his posse.

Once he was around the corner, he managed to catch a glimpse of Lily who was turning into another corridor. He was about to follow her when Dumbledore stepped in front of him abruptly, stroking his long, gray-bespeckled brown beard slowly.

"Headed anywhere particular, Mister Snape?" Why did he have to sound so damned trustworthy? Severus looked up at the Professor's face and opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted. "I would recommend you try not to delay for too long. You've certainly waited long enough. Run along now," and with that, Professor Dumbledore turned around and started walking in the direction he had been originally, before some how surprising Severus.

Oh, how he hated that man.

How could he not delay when he was being interrupted by either his golden boy Potter, or well, the Professor himself. Severus broke into a run after his red-haired beauty, turning down the corridor and keeping his beady eyes on the look-out. In a similar fashion to old man Dumbledore, Lily stepped out before him. He nearly fell over trying to avoid smacking into her. He maintained his balance, but only just.

"You needed to talk to me?" he didn't sound pleased, and Severus winced at his own tone of voice. "How are you? Are you alright? Potter said you aren't looking too good..."

"Who cares what Potter thinks?" Lily asked, raising a brow slightly, then taking Severus' hand and starting to walk. "But yes, we do need to talk," she added, sighing and leaning into him slightly as they walked together.

"Is something wrong?" Severus released his hand to wrap the same arm around her waist, taking her far hand. She smiled up at him, and as usual, Severus couldn't help but be astounded by her loveliness.

"Well," Lily took a deep breath and considered her words carefully. She couldn't think of an easy way to drop this weight on Severus' shoulders, but she would have to do it somehow. "Remember that day in the Forbidden Forest?"

"Of course, how could I forget?"

"I... I talked to Moaning Myrtle about it afterwards," she said softly.

"What? She'll have told the whole school by now!" Severus exclaimed, removing himself from her abruptly.

"No, she hasn't said a thing! Oh, Sev! Why do you have to do that!?" she scowled at him, and he felt his heart tremble. "You're so quick to judge! You Slytherins..."

"Us Slytherins?" Severus certainly didn't look pleased anymore. "What, and YOU Gryffindors are so much better than us? Bleeding heart martyrs who just happen to laugh when a Slytherin trips or gets anything less than an O on their OWLs? You saw how Marty responded after Gryffindors decided to bug him about his OWLs, he jumped off of the Astronomy Tower! It's amazing he's still alive!"

Lily glared at him, "You're impossible! I'm not even talking about that!" She turned away from him, crossed her arms and sniffed. Severus wasn't going to fall for that this time, though.

"Well I'm tired of being abused because my House Colours are green and silver!" he exlaimed, ebon brows furrowed and an ugly expression dimming his face.

"Well I'm pregnant! How's that for abused!" with that, Lily stomped off, leaving an astounded, and very suddenly terrified, fourteen year old boy behind. Exactly how she had managed to come up with that in the midst of an argument, Severus had no idea.

Could she possibly be pregnant? Lily had used the protection charm, she had looked over it with him even. It had looked sound and good. He should know. Feeling came back into his limbs, and once again Severus was running after Lily.

"Lily! Wait!" he called, listening for her footsteps. He heard them, but they were moving away fast, and seemed to be getting faster. But Severus was taller, and he caught up with her. He grabbed her by the shoulders, "Wait!" Lily turned around and smacked him, hard, on the cheek.

"You bastard, you slimy son of a bitch, how could you do this to me?" she accused, tears streaking down her porcelein cheeks, her eyes bloodshot and shining. She beat on his chest, and Severus winced. He wasn't strong, he never had been, he was a brainier kid than he was a brawnier one. He pulled her in close with some effort, though, and wrapped his arms around her.

"Shh, we'll get through this, my love," he whispered, kissing her hair as she gave in and sobbed into his robes.

She didn't say anything for a while, and for a while, neither did he. She was the first person to speak after that, whispering something Severus couldn't quite hear. The world, it seemed, was collapsing on top of her. She was fourteen and pregnant. Suddenly fourteen didn't seem like such a big, significant age any longer. Her mother had been well into her twenties when Tuny was born, and nearly thirty when she had Lily. Fourteen was just... too young.

"Let's get you to Madam Zardoza," Severus mumbled, taking her hand again and starting towards the hospital wing.

"No! She'll have to tell my parents... And yours too," she whispered. "We need to... we need to find a way to get rid of her," Lily said, dropping to the floor and beginning her tears again. Too young, that was all Lily could think.

"What? Get RID of her? Her?" Severus was trying to understand too many things at once. "Why!?"

Lily looked just as surprised as Severus felt, "Why? We're too young to be parents, Sev! Any fool knows that!" Lily had to wonder why she had even bothered telling him - she should have just done it. "One day, Severus Snape, we'll marry and we'll have children... But it's too early, Sev, it's just too early..."

"Your parents! They'll help us, won't they?" Severus was desperate. His hands had flown to her belly, where their child lay unaware of its doom. Severus looked into Lily's green eyes, and felt the rebuke before it happened. Lily's shock, Lily's disgust.

"Because you can't take responsibility," Lily muttered. Severus didn't hear her, though, and she spoke up again. "Whether they could or not, it's still too much. I want this child as much as you do. This is my baby! It... it goes against instinct to say it must die, but she must, she just... she must," Lily's tears started all over again. Severus winced, unable to understand.

They stood their silently now, then together they started for Myrtle's bathroom. There they would determine the safest way to get rid of their "problem," their child. She was right, fourteen was too young. And the talk that would start around school. And the emotional strain. He couldn't do that to her. This was his fault, completely, guaranteed. He rubbed his temples as they sat down on the cold tiles in the bathroom. Myrtle was absent, probably contemplating death in the u-bend, or spending time with the Giant Squid. She wasn't here, that was all that mattered.

They discussed their knowledge, and in the end settled on one specific little charm. It wouldn't do much, only jumpstart her womanly functions... and evicted the life within Lily's womb. She spent the next hour experiencing waves of pain as she clung to Severus for support and comfort. Tears flowed down her cheeks, and as the hurt continued to wash over her, Severus became almost thankful that they rid themselves of the child now. Lily would only hurt more if she carried it to term. Still, the thought of a child: of a family. Of his and Lily's family... Staring at the wall as Myrtle's wailing penetrated through the plumbing, Severus couldn't help but imagine what it might be like if this had happened in ten years, instead of now.

After another hour, or maybe another day, they parted ways to hide away in their dormitories and pretend that none of this had ever happened.