A week passed, then another, and Severus came to the conclusion that Potter was following him around. At first he was annoyed and anxious, not knowing what the Gryffindor was planning. Every time he saw Sev he'd smile and come over to tease him a little or ask about his day and at first the Slytherin didn't even think it was weird because he thought that Potter was distracting him while his friend set up a prank...but soon he realised that wasn't the case. Potter was just talking to him. For no reason. And he was being nice.

He'd come and sit opposite Severus at breakfast and because the Slytherin was used to eating alone he'd feel self-conscious and touch his food less than he usually did, mostly just swearing at Potter and attempting to get him to go away. But then Potter made up this game where he'd put weird things together like put bananas into a BLT and dare Sev to eat it, and Sev would dare him to eat something weird back and it became a peculiar little morning ritual that was halfway between banter and insults. Potter would walk beside Sev in the corridors, sometimes he'd sit with him in divination. Of course mostly he still bothered the Slytherin but there was nothing cruel or malicious about his actions anymore.

And suddenly Severus could understand why so many people were in love with James Potter. He pretended the reason he allowed himself to be in the company of the Gryffindor was because Potter's presence seemed to keep Lucius away. The blonde walked around Hogwarts with Narcissa hanging off his arm, always looking vaguely pissed off. He didn't approach Sev to try and have sex with him though, because Severus wasn't alone. It felt good to be away from his and his toxic touch. Severus supposed he had something to thank James for then.

^°^°^°^°^°^°^°^

Severus jerked awake abruptly when thunder crashed outside. For a second the boy was disoriented, his heavy eyelids falling over his eyes, hair tumbling onto his forehead. Around him bookshelves climbed up to the tall ceiling and the gothic window on the wall next to his head was being viciously attacked by rain. Severus blinked and looked down at his arms, folded over an old book about Romanian magic history. He had fallen asleep in the library, on a Friday night. How sad.

The boy leaned back against his chair and yawned, stretching his stiff arms over his head. He had no idea what time it was but as the dim room lit up again with the lightning outside he decided it was probably time to go. Madame Pince, the young but moody librarian, gave him a little glare as he walked out, even though he made sure to put all the books he borrowed back where he found them.

As the boy walked through the empty Hogwarts corridors he decided he didn't want to go to the Slytherin dungeons just yet - his roommates hated when he was there and there was a bigger chance of bumping into Lucius there. It was a cold, stormy night so Sev couldn't go brood by the lake like he did most days, so instead he subjected himself to trailing through the castle like one of the ghosts. Every so often another student would rush past since there were still a few hours until curfew, but none of them offer Severus as much as a smile. That was typical.

The boy somehow found himself near the kitchens and the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room. He didn't know why he was there until his stomach let out a sudden dissatisfied growl. Severus frowned down and placed a hand over his tattered jumper as if that would make his hunger disappear. Recently he tried to eat as little as possible in the Great Hall, mostly because he was self-conscious about other students taking the piss of the way he ate, and also because he was scared someone might've spat in his food, or worse. This will just intensify when they find out I want to join the Deatheaters, Severus thought. He didn't want to think about that issue, not now, so with a sigh he pushed open the kitchen doors, hoping to get some snacks that would fill him up. However as he entered the kitchen, where the house elves were bustling about despite the late hour, he was forced to stop in his tracks.

"Master Severus!" one of the house elves exclaimed cheerfully as the boy was assaulted by delicious smells, "Have you come to join Master James and Master Remus?"

Snape swallowed as his eyes landed on Potter and Lupin, sitting at a counter in the centre of the huge kitchen and eating from a tall plate of sandwiches. It was too late to retreat into the dark because both the Gryffindors spotted Snape. A smile bloomed on Potter's face, a smile that made Sev's heart jump in his chest, and Lupin's face was unreadable.

"Snape!" Potter exclaimed cheerfully, "and here I thought you never ate!"

"I just want some water," Snape said in a huff, because Lupin didn't look too pleased at his presence, but then the boy surprised him by suddenly saying.

"You don't look too well I think you should have some of our sandwiches."

Severus hesitated but before he could decline Potter cheerfully pulled out a spare stool for him. The quiet rumble of the Slytherin's stomach enforced his thoughts that it was probably best to eat. The Gryffindors didn't look like they wanted to play pranks right now, both of them in sweatpants and t-shirts. They looked harmless. Still anxious, Sev slid onto the stool and made sure he was sitting as far from Potter as possible.

"Here, eat," Lupin encouraged him, pushing the plate of sandwiches towards him as the house elves twirled around them, bustling about the kitchen. One of them looked at Severus with big eyes on her ugly little face.

"Master Severus would like tea?" she asked in a croaky voice. Sev winced at the sound of his name but gave a little curt nod. He felt Potter's and Lupin's eyes on him and it made him uncomfortable, so he didn't look at them as he reached for a sandwich.

"So, what brings you into the kitchen, Snape?" Potter asked, completely forgetting his meal in order to openly stare at the Slytherin.

"Food," Sev said curtly, picking a tiny bit of his sandwich and popping it into his mouth, "Obviously."

Lupin let out a sigh and stood up, sandwich in hand, "Right. I'm going to the tower then. Thankyou," he threw in the direction of the house elves, who all happily chirped thank you Mr Remus and continued their work. The boy left, and Sev was left alone with Potter. An awkward silence settled over them as they slowly chewed their food. It used to be so easy - they used to hate each other and their only goal was to make each other's lives miserable. Now they were tethering on the thin line between hate and like, and Sev didn't know if they were friends or not. Besides, there were many unspoken things between them.

"So," Potter said after a moment, "You don't love Lily anymore because you're gay?"

Severus felt his cheeks burning at the sudden proclamation, "Shut up Potter," he hissed, but none of the house elves were paying attention to their conversation anyway.

"What? I'm just curious," the Gryffindor said innocently. Severus was so embarrassed he wanted the floor to swallow him up. The sandwich tasted like ash in his mouth.

"It's none of your business," he said quietly. Potter sighed, "When are you going to stop being so stand-offish with me?"

"How about never?" Severus offered, putting down the remaining half of his sandwich and standing up. Potter looked at him with his soft hazel eyes and Severus wanted, more than ever, to disappear.

"You're going to be friends with me, Snape, whether you want it or not," the Gryffindor stated, and a smile spread on his face. Severus' narrowed his eyes,

"I seriously doubt it," he seethed, feeling his irritation spike at how confident and sure of himself Potter was. Sev was going to make him fuck off, one way or another. But when he did he'd have to deal with the consequences - namely Lucius. But he'd cross that bridge when he got to it, right now he needed to get out of the kitchen and away from Potter's charming smiles.

^°^°^°^°^°^°^°^

Severus sat at the window and watched Potter and his friends having a snowball fight outside of the castle, enjoying the first snow fall of the winter. Sev himself was miserable, as always, and had taken a break from his studies to sit in the window of an abandoned classroom and trace patterns into the frosted glass with his finger. Everyone else was outside, ice skating, making snow forts or just enjoying the cold, but the Slytherin was inside, isolated, alone.

As the boy watched, Potter threw a snowball and hit Pettigrew in the back of the head. He was so graceful in his movements that Sev was envious. The Gryffindor leaned down to pick more snow up and then stopped, breathless, flushed and grinning, and looked directly up. He spotted Sev and his smile widened - he waved as if they were old friends. Severus felt himself blushing and he turned away from the window, pretending he hadn't been watching the Gryffindor. He didn't catch Potter breaking away from his friends in order to run back into Hogwarts.

Winter half term was just days away and Severus was coming to terms with the fact that once more he'd be left in the castle alone. He hated Christmas. To him it consisted of a painfully awkward dinner with a bunch of miserable kids who didn't want to go home, no presents except one from Lily, and then days spent dying of boredom and loneliness. Still, it was better than going back to Spinner's End and facing his father.

"Severus."

The voice simultaneously started Sev and made his blood run cold. Fuck, he thought briefly, turning around in the window, all tense. Lucius stood in the doorway of the classroom, his cold, piercing eyes focused on his housemate. Severus hadn't even thought that the blonde could find him here and now he watched as the older boy closed the door to the room behind himself. Severus felt sick. No please, not now...

"Lucius," he said faintly.

"You've been avoiding me," Lucius said sharply, eyes narrowed, "Why?"

"I told you. I don't want to keep doing...," Severus winced, "that with you."

"You seemed perfectly content to do it before," Lucius quipped.

"Well I changed my mind," Severus slid off the window and walked towards the door, trying to be confident and unwavering in his steps, "I have work to do."

Lucius grabbed his arm as the Slytherin attempted to walk past and kept him in place, his jaw clenched, "Listen. Narcissa is going to her family for Christmas but I'm staying at Hogwarts," his grip tightened on Sev's thin arm and the boy winced, "and so are you. We'll have plenty of time alone and I'm not going to stop what we started. You agreed to this remember? So be quiet, and turn around."

^°^°^°^°^°^°^°^

James was excited - earlier he had gone to Dumbledore and asked him if it was possible for Snape to come to his house for the Christmas half term. When Lily had first insisted that this happens James was disgusted; he couldn't imagine having that prick in his home at such a jolly time. But over the last month or so James had been looking forward to spending more time with the Slytherin and getting to know him better, because he kind of liked the boy. He never thought he'd feel that way but it happened - Snape was sarcastic, funny in a very ironic kind of way, but he was also kind and caring, especially towards Lily. It was also clear that he had built up a wall around himself, and James wanted desperately to break it down.

When James saw the boy in the window of the empty classroom he abandoned the snowball fight he had been having with the Marauders, even though he was winning, and practically ran up the stairs to the third floor, wanting to persuade the Slytherin to come to his home for Christmas. Even the staircases seemed to favour this, as they moved to lead him straight to the classroom that Snape was in. James hoped that the boy hadn't left as he approached the door, unable to keep the grin off his face.

He would've barged right in if he hadn't heard Snape's voice before.

"Stop it!" the boy shouted, and despite the fact that his voice was muffled by the door, the fear in it was clear. A second voice, very familiar, answered.

"Shut up."

Dread settled over James as he realised what was happening. The assumptions that Malfoy was forcing Snape into sex had been floating around James' head for weeks now - Snape would flinch every time the blonde came close to him, and leave the room if Malfoy walked in. But he didn't have any proof until he got over his shock and shoved open the door to the classroom. James walked in to see the thing he should've prevented ages ago.

Malfoy had Snape up against the wall, gripping the younger boy's wrists behind his back with one of his hands while the other tried to unbuckle the boy's belt. Severus face was red, his shirt had been ripped open, the buttons strewn across the dusty floor, and there were actual tears in his eyes. James was shocked, absolutely shocked, and then he was furious, disgusted, and all he wanted was to rip Malfoy from Snape and beat the living crap out of him, or preferably throw him out of the window.

"Potter?" Malfoy realised that James had walked in first, and he pulled away from Snape. James reached for his wand,

"You sick bastard," he growled.

Malfoy cocked an eyebrow, "Put that wand away, Potter, before you get hurt. This is none of your business."

Snape hadn't moved from his position by the wall, as if he were afraid to turn around, and Malfoy didn't look like he was going anywhere. He put a hand on Snape's wrist and jerked him around, almost violently. Snape wouldn't look up, and he looked so horribly small next to Malfoy that in that moment James hated himself more than anyone else. How could he have every physically hurt Snape? He looked like he would snap in half if anyone touched him too hard.

"Tell him to fuck off, Severus," Malfoy said coolly. Snape hung his head, his greasy hair falling into his eyes and shielding his facial expression. There was a contained anger in Malfoy's eyes though, "Tell him."

Snape opened his mouth, but James was first. He put his wand away, "Does Narcissa know you're a fag, Malfoy?" he asked calmly, and with a detached sort of pleasure watched as the blood drained from the Slytherin's face. It was stupid of him to not see this coming. Slowly Malfoy let go of Snape's wrist and James felt anger burn in his throat when he saw the red mark left behind on the boy's skin. His instincts told him to fight Malfoy right then and there but he knew his priority was to make sure Snape is alright, so he allowed Malfoy to walk to the door.

The blonde paused by James, "If you say a word Potter," he whispered softly. It was a threat, a warning, but Malfoy never finished it, leaving it hanging behind as he left the room, slamming the door shut. Snape flinched at the noise.

James exhaled and immediately made his way to the Slytherin, "Shit, Snape, are you alright?" he asked, reaching for the boy.

"Don't touch me," Snape jerked away from James, and when he looked up his eyes were full of tears and anger. His tattered shirt was hanging off one shoulder, his pale chest and stomach on show. James hated himself for looking over the plains of milky skin and Snape hurriedly wrapped the ruined shirt around himself, shivering, "J-Just get out," he said shakily. He looked a mess. James wanted to pull him into his arms and hold him until he stopped trembling, but he couldn't, because for years he had bullied Snape and the boy had no reason to trust him.

Slowly James took off his cloak, where the last of the snow from outside had melted, and he held it out to Snape. The boy glared at him through his tears, "I don't need your help, Potter," he spat.

"Yes. You do," James said calmly, "Get over your pride and take the cloak before you catch a cold."

Snape ripped the garment from James' hands and wordlessly shrugged it on. He looked like he could drown in it, it was so big on him. He sniffled, clearly trying to keep his tears at bay. James couldn't imagine how bad he was feeling right now.

"Is he going home for Christmas?" he asked softly, "Malfoy, that is." Snape shrugged, looked away. Clearly he couldn't tell if James was trying to make the situation better or worse.

"No."

"You can't stay here with him."

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do," Snape growled.

James knew he had to be confident in his next words, "Snape. Come to my house for the Christmas break."

Snape blinked, clearly caught completely off guard at the words, "W-What?"

"Yeah," James shrugged and put his hands in his pockets, now feeling weirdly shy as he looked away, "my parents have a house in London. Sirius is staying at Remus' for the break so...uh...so we have space and I just thought...my parents are pretty old but they like when I bring friends round-"

"I'm not your friend," Snape said coldly, the trace of tears disappearing from his eyes, "and I don't want your charity, Saint Potter."

"Why do you have to be so difficult?" James sighed in exasperation.

"Because you made my life hell for six years," Snape hissed, "because I hate you," his venomous words made James flinch. It was hard, because James suddenly really liked Snape and wanted to be close with him, in what way he was unsure of yet, and to know that the Slytherin still despised him was...painful. But James supposed he deserved it.

"You can't stay here with him," he said softly, "I know you hate me, and I know I was an asshole to you all these years. But I'm trying to change here, I'm trying to fix it. I'm not offering you charity. I'm asking, as a friend, if you'd like to spend Christmas with me," Snape dropped his eyes, "You don't have to if you don't want to. I just don't want you in the castle with that prick."

"Since when do you care?" Snape asked, and his voice sounded weirdly broken. James fought the urge to throw himself at the boy and hug him until he was whole again.

"You're important to Lily and she's important to me," James said softly, but that was not the reason he was asking, "I can give you time to think about it-"

"No. I've already made my decision."