Chapter 7

In a bright room, a pale and frail girl sat slumped in an armchair by the large floor-to-ceiling window, clutching a thick book. A young boy, around four or five, sat obediently on the carpet beside her, playing with building blocks.

"Little Fei, if you want to go outside and play, you can..." the girl said gently.

"No," the boy replied firmly, shaking his head. "I want to stay home with you."

...

"The surgery wasn't very successful. The patient is experiencing severe rejection..."

...

"Sweetheart, how are you feeling today? Little Fei has come to see you."

"Mum, I feel so tired. Continuing treatment is just prolonging the inevitable. I want to stop."

"Mum, I'll feel at ease knowing you have Little Fei with you. Let's just let things take their course."

...

"Mummy, is sister going to leave us? Where is she going? Will she come back?"

"Little Fei, she's going to a faraway place where she'll be happier."

...

I opened my eyes, the room still dark. Listening to the steady breathing of the other girls, I closed my eyes again.

This was my first night at Hogwarts. I hadn't dreamt of my past since I was six. Was it the new bed? I turned over and fell back asleep.

---

"Sawyer, Lily, we're heading out," someone called. "Alright, see you!" Lily and I called back, packing our bags as we waited for Severus outside the Potions classroom.

Ignoring the curious stares from students of both houses, we walked to the library with Severus, chatting and laughing. Two weeks into the term, people still weren't used to our trio, which I found rather amusing. I mentally rolled my eyes at their lack of composure.

Some classes were shared between Gryffindor and Slytherin, and we always sat together. After classes, we would head to the library to study and do homework together. It was perfectly normal for us, though some people couldn't stand it.

One evening, as we were heading to the Great Hall for dinner, we ran into the Gryffindor boys: James, Sirius, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew.

"Lily! Fancy seeing you here!" James greeted Lily enthusiastically.

"Can you only see Lily?" I teased.

"Oh, Sawyer, great to see you," he corrected himself, before turning to Severus. "And you, Snape. I don't get why you two hang out with this greasy git," he sneered, directing his last comment to us with a look of disgust.

"Take that back, Potter!" Lily snapped before I could say anything. "He's our friend, and you have no right to insult him!"

James flushed at Lily's reprimand, glaring daggers at Severus, who returned the glare coldly.

Ignoring everyone else, I dragged a fuming Lily and a sullen Severus away. Leaving them to wait outside the Hall, I fetched some food and rejoined them. "Let's go sit by the lake."

We sat under a large tree by the lake, eating in silence. "He's such an obnoxious, rude, and arrogant person..." Lily fumed. "Just ignore him. It's not worth getting upset over," I advised, knowing that such childish rivalries were common but hard to reconcile. "Severus, don't let them get to you. Our friendship isn't going to change because of some baseless insults."

Severus's mood improved slightly. We chatted about the essays we had to write for Professor Slughorn. As the sky darkened, we headed back to our respective common rooms.

In the common room, as I pulled out my Transfiguration homework, I said to Lily, "Next time they start on Severus, don't jump to scold them."

"Why not? Should we just let them say those awful things?" Lily retorted, holding up her parchment indignantly.

"I'm just saying, don't scold them right away. It'll only make them dislike Severus more. We're two Gryffindors defending a Slytherin. Those lions who already have a prejudice against Slytherin will just take it out on Severus," I explained, pulling out a pen from home—those quills were still a struggle for me.

"So, what should we do? I hate the way they treat Severus because of some ridiculous prejudice!" Lily protested.

"We'll do something, of course. That's where you come in." I winked at her. "Next time there's a conflict, distract them. Talk about anything else, but don't mention Severus or Slytherin." I looked at the essay topic: the theory behind transfiguring matches into needles. Not too difficult.

"Why me?" she asked, eyes wide with confusion.

"Because you're prettier," I replied with a straight face.

"Ha?" She was taken aback.

"Yes, pretty girls have more sway with boys. Only you can make Potter back off. Once we handle him, the rest will follow."

"...You always have such strange reasons."

---

One afternoon, after lunch, we were on our way to the library with Severus. The Gryffindor boys had just finished eating and ran into us in the entrance hall.

Another enthusiastic greeting from James. That boy was persistent. The mood was good until Severus arrived, and James immediately squared up like a rooster in a fight. Severus glared at him with equal intensity.

I gave Lily a meaningful look. She nodded.

"Aren't we going to the library? Let's go. What about you, Potter? I need to check my Potions essay for this afternoon," Lily said, acting nonchalant.

"Ah, Potions this afternoon! I'm sure to mess up. Severus, can you help me prepare for the potion?" I asked, giving Severus a pleading look.

Severus glanced at Lily, then at me, suspicion in his eyes but he said nothing. He nodded in agreement. Ignoring how Lily would handle James and his friends, I quickly led Severus downstairs.

We walked in silence until we reached the Potions classroom. I headed to the student supplies cabinet to gather ingredients.

"What are you up to?" Severus asked as he watched me.

"Nothing much. This way, Lily can handle them easily, and we avoid conflicts with our housemates," I said, carefully preparing the potion ingredients as per the textbook's instructions.

"You're cutting that too finely," Severus pointed out. "Cut swiftly to get clean slices." Severus was a natural at Potions. With talent and passion, I was sure he'd achieve great things in the field.

---

During the Potions class, I didn't ask about the earlier encounter. Later that evening, back in the common room, I asked Lily how it went.

"It was unbearable. Their stubborn prejudice is beyond understanding. They mentioned 'evil Slytherin' eight times and various derogatory terms for Severus eleven times. I can't believe I didn't argue with them," Lily said, exasperated.

"Wise, smart, and beautiful Lily, welcome officially to the conflict resolution team," I said, extending my hand for a handshake.

"Who's the leader?" she asked, shaking my hand.

"Me, of course."

"And the other members?"

"You and me."

"..."

"Seriously, you did great. Next time they badmouth Slytherin, respond objectively. Don't defend Severus in a way that sounds personal. That way, they can't argue," I advised as we headed to our dormitory.

"Hmm... that makes sense. Severus isn't upset, is he? We're not ignoring him," Lily said worriedly.

"Of course not. I explained it to him. We just want to avoid conflicts with our housemates."

Things began to settle down. The tension between James and Severus eased a bit, and soon, the Christmas holidays arrived. We all boarded the Hogwarts Express for the journey home.