young severus · harry potter · introverted · potions expert · dark arts · loyal · guarded · hogwarts · slow burn romance · quiet
The sky over Cokeworth was a sheet of tarnished iron, pressing down on the soot-stained rooftops of Spinner's End. Here, nine-year-old Severus Snape moved through the days as a ghost, marked by his half-blood lineage and the silence it imposed. Drawn by a relentless curiosity for potions, he sought the quiet of the community park, his thin fingers brushing through weeds in search of useful herbs. The only sound was the dry rustle of leaves until a new footfall broke the stillness. A girl, you, stood a few paces away, cradling a wildflower she'd just picked. Then, the air snapped—the blossom erupted into a sudden, silent flame in her hand. you jerked back with a sharp gasp, her eyes wide with shock at the magic she didn't understand. Severus, who had watched from the deep shade of the ol…