#please request things

Lu Guang was home alone.

He was far from helpless, even if the siblings were noticeably more offensively capable then he was, and he proved as much during the whole subway tunnel fiasco. Which Cheng Xiaoshi still kinda felt bad about, even if it was Lu Guang's desperation that drove him to switch places in the first place.

Regardless, Cheng Xiaoshi didn't like it.

Lu Guang hated being alone.

Normally- or, in the new normally- Qiao Ling would stay behind if his roommate was too busy to come out with him to run errands. But, given that it was nearing the time their city seemed to sleep, the two had decided it was better that he didn't go alone.

Cheng Xiaoshi didn't really like this either.

He hoped Lu Guang was doing ok, but he didn't really have the best track record of taking care of himself. Especially when left to his own devices.

"You're going to get wrinkles."

His sister poked insistently at his face. It sorta helped ease the uncomfortable wrongness itching his organs.

He bat her hands away regardless.

"Hey- cut it out, landlady! Not all of us need a twenty step skincare routine to avoid aging..."

Qiao Ling's offended gasp finally tethered him down to their surroundings; the amber flickering of a streetlight and the pale blue glow of a moth in moonlight. The comforting scuff of sidewalk under his feet.

Cheng Xiaoshi loosed a sigh, trying to dislodge the tangled knots that had made home in his chest. Lu Guang was fine. The siblings were going to get back to him, drink their milk tea, and enjoy a cheesy movie and everything was going to be fine.

"Are you worried about Lu Guang?"

He didn't bother responding this time.

"...Me too."

Thankfully, the studio was finally within reach. Cheng Xiaoshi's hands were full with their teas, so he left unlocking the door to his sister.

"We're back, Guang-Guang"

His call was met with silence. Awful, sticky, normal silence that did nothing to ease how tight his heart was feeling. He waited for his roommate to meander back from wherever he had disappeared to, which is what he normally did when he was too far from the entrance to greet them back at a comfortable volume, and set about freeing his hands.

Nothing.

No shock of white hair.

No quiet greeting to Qiao Ling as she made herself comfortable on their couch.

No soft footsteps coming down the stairs.

Cheng Xiaoshi made his way to their shared bathroom, trying to ignore the wheeze at the edges of his breathing.

Lu Guang was fine.

He knocks on the door.

"Lu? You in there?"

Silence. And then-

"Yeah."

The relief that crushes Cheng Xiaoshi's lungs is immeasurable. So dizzying that he feels like he could cry.

Lu Guang was fine.

"We're back. And we brought milk tea." "Welcome home. I'll be down in a second."

Feeling ten years younger, he heads back towards the stairs to claim his spot on the couch before his sister decides the whole thing was hers.

Cheng Xiaoshi almost misses the polaroid innocuously left outside the bathroom door. The white backing is the only part visible from where it oh so innocently lays.

It wasn't like Lu Guang to be so careless with their jobs, even less so with his own photos. Huh.

"Hey, Lu, you left-"

The photo is stained with brown red finger prints. Splatters of what had ruined their last couch coat at least a quarter of the waxy material, breaking apart and staining his fingers in a way that makes him sick.

Cheng Xiaoshi is jiggling the door handle before he even realizes he's moved.

"Lu Guang! Are you ok?"

This can't be happening. Not again, not so soon. Lu Guang was supposed to be ok-

"Open the door-!" "I'm fine."

He so clearly is not. The tremors that Cheng Xiaoshi had thought he was imagining before, or maybe were just side effects of being left alone so long, are more pronounced now. His soft voice is raised and panicked, cornered in a way Cheng Xiaoshi never wanted to hear directed at him.

"Let me in!" "Idiot, it's just a papercut!" "Then let me in-"

A papercut wouldn't make his unflappable roommate sound like that. Wouldn't make the sink run so frantically in the background. Cheng Xiaoshi doesn't have time to wait for Lu Guang to open it on his own.

He reaches up, fingers trailing along the very the top of the door frame until they catch on the thin metal rod up there. A good investment when the other took too long in the bathroom.

And a good investment when Cheng Xiaoshi's best friend could be in fatal danger again.

It takes far too long with his shaking hands to unlock the door, and he barely pries it open an inch before it clicks shut in his face. Lu Guang had thrown his body against it.

He had never been more grateful to be stronger than his twig of a roommate.

Cheng Xiaoshi throws his weight right back and manages to lodge his thigh in the opening before Lu can retaliate. From there, it's easy to shove it open the rest of the way and take his best friend into his arms.

It's a horrifying sight.

Thick, rivulets of burgundy drip out of his tear ducts, marring Lu Guang's pretty face into something out of those scary movies that Qiao Ling forces them to watch.

"Cheng Xiaoshi-"

Cheng Xiaoshi cups his face as carefully as he possibly can, trying to fight the panic clawing up his throat. He can't afford to freak out right now, not when the gentle touch he offers his best friend splinters him to pieces.

"What happened?" "I don't know- I don't know- this has never happened before. I don't- I was just looking through photos-"

Lu Guang's breath stutters and wheezes upon an inhale. His cattish grey eyes are wide an unseeing, or perhaps seeing too much, and he clings to Cheng Xiaoshi's arm in a way he only lets himself do when he's too deep in a panic to stop himself.

"It's ok- it's going to be okay. Lu Guang, breathe!"

He's so bad at this. So completely not equipped to deal with a panicking Lu Guang. Cheng Xiaoshi has never felt like worse of a friend than he does right now, unable to help the person that had carried him through many of his own panic attacks.

He forces himself to take his own advice and breathe. Lu Guang liked cleanliness, so- he could start there.

"It'll be okay."

Cheng Xiaoshi carefully keeps his grip on his best friend with one hand, rubbing between his shoulder blades to try and ground him to the present. With his other hand, he reaches for the rag left by the sink.

He hadn't noticed it before, too focused on just getting to Lu Guang and making sure he was alive, to really take in his surroundings properly.

Carefully, more gently than he's handled anything in his life, Cheng Xiaoshi soaks the rag and cleans away the blood- because he can no longer deny that's what it is- sticking to his best friend's face.

"It's okay."

Finally, after what feels of years of gentle words and even gentler ministrations, the blood stops crawling out of his roommates face. Cheng Xiaoshi had carefully settled Lu Guang's hand against his chest, hoping his pulse- however erratic it was- would bring some comfort to him.

It had worked in the past, when the nightmares Lu denied having threw him around too harshly and he needed real proof that Cheng Xiaoshi was alive. It seemed to be the right call.

Lu Guang's stilted breathing had evened out into something closer to a strenuous hike before finally calming into something just slightly too fast. Improvement was improvement.

"...I'm-"

Cheng Xiaoshi pulls his best friend into his chest to cut him off, realizing the two had somehow ended up on the bathroom floor at some point during this whole debacle.

"Don't you dare apologize."

Lu Guang keeps quiet on his chest.

In the months after the last meeting, the war lingered on. (Y/l/n) had risen amongst the ranks of the death eaters and was becoming closer and closer to the Dark Lord. So close that others were becoming jealous of his rise to power.

When the time came for (Y/l/n) to host a meeting again, Severus’ heart fluttered. He had long since dreamed of seeing (Y/n) again. The set up was almost exactly the same as the last. (Y/n) came down the stairs to greet the guests of the house and was then ushered back up to her room once again. 

The discussion now included the newest member of the inner circle, Peter Pettigrew, Potter’s friend. The decisions to be made now revolved around the Potters and how to kill the boy, as he would prevent Voldemort from claiming his ‘destiny’ as ruler of the Wizarding world.

Dinner was served an hour into the meeting and all discussed personal matters as they ate. Conversations about Lucius’ son who had just reached his first birthday a few weeks before were what the majority of the wizards and witches were focused on. 

Dolohov leaned on the table looking over to (Y/l/n), he smirked before commenting, “That daughter of yours is a pretty, little thing, isn’t she.”

The conversation about Draco died and all faced (Y/l/n), curious about his response.

“Yes,” He said carefully, looking at Dolohov with a wary expression, “she is quite beautiful.”

“Have you given much thought into who she should marry?” Asked Bellatrix, her chin resting on her hands.

“I have.” (Y/l/n) answered pensively, looking down at his plate, setting down his cutlery and avoiding the gazes directed at him.

“You would want a good, pure blood marriage, wouldn’t you (Y/l/n).” Chuckled Rosier, as he drank wine from his goblet.

“I have a son that would be happy to volunteer,” Jugson laughed, “although he has an issue with breaking his toys.”

Severus clenched his fingers, angry with the topic of conversation. She loved him, not some stuck up pure blood man that would cast her aside when a younger, richer version of her came along. He was so distracted that Voldemort had to raise his hands. 

“Severus,” the Dark Lord said softly, his eyes glinting with malice, “ was there something you wanted to say?”

Snape swallowed and looked up at (Y/l/n) who was playing with a ring on his right hand, “I think his daughter is lovely, my lord.” He commented.

The whole table burst into laughter. 

“You?” Asked Mrs. Snyde giggled as her husband slapped his knee, “What self respecting pure blooded girl would ever want a half breed like you?”

Severus wanted to shout, he wanted to scream that she had asked to meet with him privately, but instead he looked down at his empty plate.

“It isn’t a bad wish.” Lucius said, patting Snape on the back. “However it will always remain a wish.”

The meeting adjourned near midnight, and the crowd that had laughed at him was disaperating around the boundary. Severus, on the other hand, snuck through the shadows and saw a tall ladder attached to the window sill of (Y/n)’s room.

Smirking to himself, he ascended the ladder and as the curtains shifted to reveal (Y/n)’s smiling face. “Severus.” She said.

Severus climbed quicker and into the room, almost falling on his way to the top. As soon as he was inside, he felt at home. The room was small, not tiny, but cozy. The walls were coated in books and beautiful paintings.

She led him to a chair and he sunk into it, his heart beating out of his chest and the blood in his face reddening his cheeks. She sat in a chair across from him and waved her wand sending the teapot to pour two cups of tea. 

The two young people were so enamoured that neither one noticed that the pouring was done until a spoon hit the china, causing both of them to jump.

(Y/n) let out a small squeak and then relaxed when the cup floated into her hand. “Cream, milk, sugar?” She asked as the smaller jars and cups stared up at him. 

“Just milk.” He answered, embarrassment flooding his face even more. 

The containers moved and the tea was made, then given to him.

The small talk was made and compliments were given and before either teen knew it, the sun was rising. 

Severus made his way to the window with (Y/n) and both smiled at each other. They stood in comfortable silence for a few moments before Severus began his descent to the ground.

(Y/n) quickly pressed a kiss to his cheek before shutting the curtains and hurrying to her bed. 

Snape pressed his hand to the cheek that she kissed and made his way to the thickit just outside the bounds of the house.

He disappearated with only one thought on his mind, she would be his, no matter what the others said. Severus had her attention and now he needed her by his side, whether she wanted to be there or not.