Prologue

WARNING: Extreme AU. Do not read if you don’t enjoy that kind of thing!

Prologue

Remus Lupin came into the Gryffindor Common Room to find his three best friends huddled around a table in the corner, snickering at something Sirius Black was holding. “What’ve you got there?”

“It’s Malfoy’s.” James answered, poking it absently with his wand. It was a gold medallion shaped like an hourglass hanging from a heavy gold chain. On one side was an intricate serpent, and on the other a curiously shaped knife.

Malfoy’s. That explained the glee with which they were, not to mince words, hexing it. The seventh-year Slytherin prefect seemed to derive especial pleasure in taking points from the fifth-year Marauders. “How’d you get it?”

“I raided his room.” Peter replied, grinning. “I borrowed James’ cloak and got inside when he left for class and…” he waved his hands expressively.

Lupin grinned. “I’m impressed, Peter! So we’re going to hex it and then sneak it back into place and…”

“Wait for him to put it on.” Sirius finished, clapping Peter on the shoulder. “Think of it as a delayed time-bomb. The beauty of it is that we’ll almost certainly have alibis.”

Peter smiled at Lupin’s praise. He rarely took the initiative, and it was nice to be recognized.

“What kinds of hexes have you put on it so far?” By now Remus had his own wand out.

Sirius enumerated a half-dozen curses and hexes of various kinds, finishing with, “I don’t think we should do too much more, or he might notice the difference.” That was a good point. Some wizards could sense changes in the magical nature of inanimate objects.

“Let me do one more for luck,” Lupin said with a somewhat evil grin, “and then Peter can take it back.” Without waiting for a response, he pointed his wand at the medallion and muttered “Inversus!”

“What’s that one do?” Peter asked.

James grinned and handed the medallion to the stocky boy. “If this thing had any magical use at all, Remus just reversed it.”

“Oh my!” Peter took the medallion by the chain and vanished under James’ cloak. “Open the door, would you?” Fifteen minutes later, he was back in the Gryffindor Common Room, playing Exploding Snap with Sirius.

Two months later, the Marauders had forgotten about the medallion in the wake of their first serious fight. Remus and James were furious with Sirius for the nearly deadly prank played on Severus Snape. Peter, uncharacteristically, took Sirius’ part – though it was more due to his dislike for the Slytherin than anything else.

~*~

“What?” Severus jumped to his feet in shock. Albus Dumbledore had escorted him from the infirmary directly to the Headmaster’s office to ‘have a little chat’.

“Severus, please. You must understand my position. If Mr. Lupin’s condition becomes public knowledge, the other students might panic.”

“What I understand,” he retorted, “is that Lupin is a monster, and Black nearly got me killed, and all you’re going to do is give Black a week’s detention.”

“It’s not Mr. Lupin’s fault that he’s a werewolf. As for Mr. Potter, he did save your life – how can I punish him for that?”

“Fine. I’ll take care of them myself since you won’t.” And he made to leave.

“Mr. Snape, if you walk out that door now, you will find yourself on the next train to London.”

He turned around angrily and glared at the old wizard. “You think threatening me is going to change anything?”

“You’re going to give me a Wizard’s Oath to keep Mr. Lupin’s condition secret. And you will not tell anyone the truth of why you were in the infirmary for two weeks. Or I will Obliviate you here and now, and send you home with a suitable story about your lack of ability.”

“That’s blackmail!” He didn’t have to try very hard to imagine what his parents would think, nor what his father would do.

“Yes it is.” Albus drew himself up to his full height. “Which is it to be, Mr. Snape? My patience is not endless.”

Severus drew his wand slowly and spoke the words of the Oath. “There. May I go now?”

“One more thing, Mr. Snape.” The Headmaster was still looming over him. “If anyone asks why you were in the infirmary, you will tell them that you had a dispute with Mr. Black and his friends which resulted in your being attacked by the Whomping Willow. I’m sure you can come up with a suitable reason why they should do such a thing.”

Severus grimaced as he trudged into the Slytherin Common Room an hour later. His arms were piled high with books and scrolls, and he dumped them onto a table and began sorting them by subject. “Transfiguration. Charms. Arithmancy. Charms again. More Charms. I’m never going to get caught up on homework! And it’s all Black’s fault!”

Lucius Malfoy stepped into the room just in time to hear the last sentence. “Sirius Black?” He looked at the fifth-year boy carefully. “You were in the infirmary for two weeks, Severus, and the Headmaster wouldn’t say a bloody word. And no visitors allowed either!” The corner of his mouth twitched slightly. “He caught me trying to sneak in to see you at least twice. What did Black and his goons do to you?”

The dark-haired Slytherin looked up and grimaced. “They hexed me from behind and dumped me in reach of the Whomping Willow.” You win this round, old man, but I’ll figure out a way around it, and then those Gryffindor arses are mine!

“You must have royally ticked them off! What did they think you did?”

I hate this. I hate lying to Lucius. He’s been my friend for years. But if I tell him the truth, Dumbledore will expel me. “Pettigrew told them that Lily Evans asked me to go to the Yule Ball with her.”

Lucius stared at him. “Merlin’s teeth! No Slytherin would even think about going to a ball with a Mudblood. But they believed the little rat and decided to, ah, teach you a lesson?”

“Yes.” The one word released a torrent of overwhelming anger and shame. “They nearly got me killed, and all they got was a detention! They’ve been getting detentions all year – what’s one more going to do? They never fight fair – it’s always four to one. I’ve missed two weeks of classes, and I’ve got more homework than I can make up! I don’t know what I’m going to do.” He sat down tiredly. “I figured it out, Lucius. I can’t catch up. There just isn’t time.”

The Slytherin Prefect raised one elegant blond eyebrow and flicked his eyes toward a pair of first years who were sprawled in front of the fireplace. “I think I can help you Sev. Leave your books here and come up to my room for a minute.”

Lucius’ room was up a flight of smooth stone stairs, and down the hall past the seventh-year boys’ dorm. Severus had never actually been in it, though of course he knew where it was. He looked around in appreciation as Lucius unlocked the door and waved him inside.

It wasn’t a large room to begin with, and the massive black oak furniture it contained made it seem a little smaller. Lucius rummaged around in the top drawer of his dresser, and finally pulled out a small green velvet box that he opened carefully. “This is a Time-turner, Sev.” He explained how to use it. “This one is old – it’s been in the family for decades – so you can only use it twice a day, and you can only go back one hour. But that would still give you two extra hours a day to do homework.”

Severus stared at the older boy. “You’re offering to let me use this?”

“Certainly! Slytherins have to look out for each other – no one else will! Besides, you can help me study for my Potions NEWTs next term.”

A slow small smile spread onto Severus’ face, and he nodded. “A bargain, then. Accepted.”

They shook hands and Lucius handed him the medallion. “Don’t let anyone know,” he cautioned. “They’re rigidly controlled by the Ministry.”

He nodded again and went back down to the Common Room to get his books. The first-years had gone; the room was deserted. Severus hung the medallion around his neck and spun it as he’d been instructed. There was a brief spinning sensation and a wrenching feeling as if he’d used a portkey inadvertently. Then everything went black.