Severus spent more time than he would have liked brooding over the problems in his new life in the following days. He was prone to brood by nature, but he found it to be distracting, especially when he was with Lily. Before, he almost revelled in his dark moods, but he had slowly changed into a man with a lighter heart, not that he had changed entirely.

And so, when the day came for him to accompany Lily to Diagon Alley, a part of him wanted to stay behind. He knew Lily would be heartbroken if he rejected her invitation, though, and he had already told her he would come. Severus forced himself to shower and dress nicely that day, hoping he would be glad later that he had gone on the shopping trip.

A couple of hours later found the couple in the middle of the crowded main street in Diagon Alley. With less than a week before school resumed, parents were shuffling through the street, jostling and bumping into each other, trying to keep up with their excited children, who always seemed to be several paces in front of their tired parents. Severus hated crowds, so he kept a tight grip on Lily's hand, not wanting to be separated from her. Whenever someone got too close or even had the audacity to bump into him, Severus would glare down his long nose at the exuberant child. Sometimes the child would actually mutter a hasty apology, but more often than not, the brat would scamper away, scared of Severus's intense gaze.

"There's Madam Malkin's," Lily was saying, and Severus glanced in the direction she was pointing.

"Do you want to go there first?" posed Severus.

Lily gave him a quick nod. "Yes, I'd rather being stuck carrying around my robes than my books. Much lighter, you know."

Severus conceded that was a good point, so they made their way through the insane rush of people and somehow managed to step into the robe shop without running, literally, into anyone. Severus stood by the door, figuring he would wait for Lily there.

"Aren't you going to come in a little farther?" asked Lily.

He shrugged. "You know I'm not getting anything. It won't take that long for you to be measured and get what you need, will it?"

"No, I suppose not," Lily replied, frowning. She glanced briefly at a pile of standard school robes on the table nearby and then back at Severus. "So, you'll just wait by the door, then?"

Severus knew the apothecary wasn't far away, and he knew they would need to make a stop there before the day was through. "How about this?" he suggested. "I'll go to the apothecary, and you can just meet me there."

There was an odd gleam in Lily's eyes when she agreed far too easily, and suspicious, Severus stepped out of Madam Malkin's and went down the street a couple of shops. As he entered the apothecary, he wondered if Lily had something up her sleeve. Why that strange look otherwise? Deciding to push the thought from his mind, Severus focused on the welcome, familiar smells and sights of the apothecary. Being a Potions master, he had frequented apothecaries a lot, especially the one in Hogsmeade.

There were some things he would need for seventh year Potions, but Severus liked simply walking through the smallish shop, seeing what was new or rare and buying ingredients he might later use. He realized he had spent much less time brewing than he had in his previous life. Without Lily, he had needed something to occupy his time, but his time was filled with not only Lily, but with visits to his father and, more daunting, thoughts about how the war would develop this time around.

Thankfully, the apothecary was nearly empty. Students would come in and purchase what they needed as quickly as possible, eager to exit and proceed to some place more exciting. Severus paid them no heed, however, and went about collecting what he wanted. He was in the middle of purchasing his desired ingredients when Lily stepped into the shop, a bag over her shoulder.

"Did you get your robes, then?" Severus asked.

"Yes," Lily said, smiling deviously.

His brow creased in perplexity, but Severus didn't remark further. Lily bought the herbs she needed in the apothecary, and together, they headed for Flourish and Blotts. The book shop was probably the most crowded store along the strip. Lily and Severus had to push their way through several kids who couldn't have been older than second years to make their way to the back of the shop, where the books for year seven were located.

"Do you want to go to Fortescue's after we're done here?" Lily asked.

Severus didn't care much for ice cream, but since they were here, and he knew Lily liked it, he agreed. He helped Lily find the books she needed and carried the majority of them to the check out for her, and after she paid, they graciously exited the shop and crossed the street to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor.

Lily got a chocolate cone with three scoops, but Severus settled for a mundane single-scoop of vanilla in a cup. Lily teased him good-naturedly for his choice. They found a table outside and sat down, and within minutes, an unwelcome voice greeted them.

"Oh, hi there, Lily!" came the exuberant voice of James Potter.

Severus momentarily figured Potter hadn't seen him, but then Potter continued, "Oh, you're not alone."

Severus glared at the other boy, not surprised to see Sirius Black sidling up behind him. "Potter," he stated evenly.

"Snape," Potter said, although he didn't seem as rude as usual.

Black was now standing next to Potter, and he glared at Severus. "James, c'mon, mate. You should know when you're not wanted."

Lily was frowning, her attempts earlier in the year at trying to make the boys treat each other civilly feeling like they failed. "See you soon," Lily told them, forcing a smile.

"Right you will," Potter replied, offering Lily a slight smile and then actually politely nodding to Severus.

Severus nodded back, not trusting himself to speak. He knew Potter was only being decent because of Lily, but at least he was trying to be mature, unlike Black, who simply left without saying another word, but feeling it necessary to sneer over his shoulder one last time at Severus before departing.

Once the two boys were out of sight, Severus slumped forward in his seat, placing his elbows on the table and resting his chin in the palm of his hand. He sighed.

"Sev, what's wrong?" Lily asked softly.

"This is what I have to look forward to," he stated bitterly. "It's a joke that Dumbledore made me Head Boy. They aren't going to take me seriously."

"You don't know that," Lily countered. "You'll have the authority to make them listen to you if they act like the toerags they seem to be."

Severus knew what it was to have authority. He had been a professor for sixteen years, after all. While he had taken some enjoyment out of abusing his power to watch others cower under his influence, the deeper part of him knew it brought no lasting satisfaction to wield power over others. Voldemort had instilled fear in many by force and power, and Severus didn't want to embrace the part of him that had at one time liked feeling the same thrill. At the end of the day, at the end of his sad life, he knew it couldn't bring happiness. He felt he knew something of happiness now, and he was having a difficult time reconciling the two parts of him.

"Perhaps," was all he muttered. "We'll see."

Lily, still worried for her friend, didn't push the subject. They finished their ice cream, and having completed their shopping, left Diagon Alley and Apparated home. They had Apparated directly into Severus's house, as to avoid risking exposure in the open.

Lily placed her bags down and withdrew something from one of them. Severus was examining the herbs he had purchased and placing them on the kitchen table when Lily approached him with something behind her back. He gave her a curious look and was about to ask what she was up to, but then she held her gift out to him.

"They're for you," she said, a hopeful smile on her lips.

Severus just stared at the folded black robes in her outstretched hands. "Lily, what- ?"

"Well, don't just stand there gaping at them, silly. Take them."

Severus reached for the robes and held them up. They were the standard school robes, large enough for a seventh year boy. "I can't-" he protested.

Lily silenced him with a finger to his lips, then kissed him. "You're Head Boy, Sev. I thought you would appreciate a new set of robes to look nice for the part, but more than that, I wanted you to have them."

Severus flushed, ashamed. "You know I can't afford... Lily, really, I can't accept this. It's too much."

Lily looked hurt. "Sev, why can't you just accept a simple gift? There are no strings attached."

Severus felt even worse now. He hadn't meant to insult or hurt Lily. "It's just... I'm not used to-" he stammered, overcome by emotion. He stopped trying to argue and sighed. "Thank you."

He dropped his arms, holding the robes in one hand, and encircled Lily in a strong embrace. "I know you meant nothing but well, Lily, and for more than the price of the robes, that is worth a lot more to me."