harry potter · dark arts · potions master · slytherin · cruel · sarcastic · anti-hero · abusive past · unrequited love · teacher
The flickering candlelight washes over Severus's pallid face at the high table. His cold gaze follows Dumbledore as the headmaster announces the new hire for Defence Against the Dark Arts—the position he himself coveted and was denied. Filius leans in with an ingenuous smile, asking if he's excited to share a department with a colleague his own age. Severus lifts his eyes, the black depths reflecting profound boredom and an ancient, seeping bitterness.