[Chapter Size: 2500 Words.]
Third Person POV
London.
...
...
The lightning kept cutting through the sky as he traveled with his new ability, moving through the clouds until reaching a specific area of London.
Meanwhile, a new day began in London, and the magical world was stirred by the news that the champion student of the dueling championship at the Durmstrang Institute had returned after disappearing for a month.
The cover of the Daily Prophet featured a photo of Severus Snape, describing him exiting a painting according to the painting's own account, as he had vanished through Apparition, catching the Ministry somewhat off guard. After all, Snape's Apparition wasn't registered, with Hogwarts students only set to learn it after that year's holidays.
So another frantic search began for Severus Snape, with some reporting sightings of him in Diagon Alley.
In any case, today everyone was abuzz with the news, with Aurors searching for any sign of the boy to bring him to the Ministry for explanations of what had happened—after all, he had been involved in a magical accident and everyone wanted to know what had happened to him in a place no one else had been able to reach for so many days.
Meanwhile, Severus was inside a cloud, at that moment above his old house, as he observed the place from the sky.
"What's with the sky today... it's been thundering all day..." a wizard muttered, looking up at the sky with dissatisfaction.
"Who knows, anyway, let's get on with our job. If we can't hide in the clouds with our brooms, it will certainly be dangerous." another replied.
They were walking through the abandoned industrial area where Severus lived, their mission to check the place at the request of the Death Eaters, who were after Severus that day, in addition to the Ministry itself having sent Aurors to investigate the situation and ask Tobias to urgently summon Snape to the Ministry.
The news that his son was still alive did not please him at all, saying Severus had to be kept as far away from him as possible, that he was dangerous. This was certainly passed on to the Ministry, who would now seek Tobias's testimony with so many suspicions surrounding Severus.
He was practically being hunted from all sides now, but no one could discover where he was. No matter where he went, his location always remained a mystery.
"7 wizards... Interesting, but I expected more." Severus commented, looking down from within the cloud, while lightning still danced around him, echoing throughout that area of London.
He was studying who was after him, which is why he waited for the news of his return—which would clearly appear the next day, with the Durmstrang Institute wanting to clear his name—saying immediately that Severus had returned.
He had been there for half a day waiting to see people from the Ministry, especially from Voldemort. Six of them were patrolling the area, working for Voldemort, while there was only one from the Ministry.
"Let's begin to act at once. The moment has come when I no longer need to hide, after all, I'm determined not to return to Hogwarts." he decided.
The suspicions against him had increased to a level he could no longer control, considering he had entered a painting just as the other Dark Lord had done, his mysterious Apparition, or even his disappearance and failure to respond to the Ministry—even with a new Minister in charge—would soon raise many suspicions against him.
Severus believed this was perfectly normal, and now he would become aggressive to the point that his shadows were already circling the area, looking for the most opportune moment to hide within the shadows of the wizards themselves.
Severus wasn't very interested in the wizard from the Ministry, but he would have to take him out if he wanted to do what he really had to do in that place.
He had waited long enough to begin acting, and his shadows were already prepared. Then, he vanished, with a shadow appearing behind the Ministry member.
The man couldn't even react before feeling a spell strike him in a corner between houses, as he held an umbrella to shield from the possible rain. He was frozen and pulled into one of the alleys.
Severus appeared on one of the rooftops the next moment. He hadn't hurt the Ministry member, but he would act against the others.
There were two minutes before he could switch again with one of his shadows. Each switch came with this cooldown—it was the ability he had gained after completing the demonic tower.
He finally waited for the time to pass so he could use his speed to act, and so he decided to move.
Severus appeared in the place of another shadow clinging to the feet of a pair of wizards, then grabbed them and vanished with them using shadow teleportation. They barely had time to react before they felt their throats being slit by Severus's blades.
He dropped them in an alley and returned to another location to wait for the cooldown again, as it was faster than using shadow teleportation repeatedly.
He hunted them all. There were only two pairs left, and Severus killed both in the next moment, clearing the entire area. He exited one of the alleys, walking through the streets where only a few people passed by with umbrellas, still afraid of the rain, while some lightning—provoked by Severus himself—echoed through the sky.
He passed by his house, stopping for a moment, able to see some movement. His father was likely there, living his hated and grumpy life as always. He would never need to enter that house again, and he moved on.
A few houses down, he reached the park from the memories of this body, where he had first met Lily and her sister, telling Lily she was a witch after seeing her doing strange things with the swing as she spun.
Severus saw someone in particular whom he knew well. By a twist of fate, the person noticed him too, making a face upon recognizing him.
Petunia was with that fat boy Severus had seen when he first returned home. He looked at her for a moment and ignored her the next, moving forward. The boy didn't seem to know he was a wizard, staring at him that way—let alone that he was a killer—because he doubted the boy's expression would be the same if he knew the truth.
Lily was in her room hugging that day's newspaper. She had been devastated for days after reading that Severus Snape had been declared dead. Her heart shattered like never before, feeling a pain she had never experienced.
She loved Severus, even though she had told herself many times—and even though Severus had responded with an indifferent tone—that it was all a lie, the result of a potion given to her unknowingly by the one she had trusted most at Hogwarts. She felt full of doubts in her mind, felt betrayed, frustrated, and lost.
Her parents were worried about her, as she had spent an entire week crying over Severus's death. Her mother seemed to understand, but they were concerned. They said Severus's father had even celebrated the news. She was shocked.
But everything changed that day—the news that Severus had returned and was alive, despite many strange things and even a certain tone in the article suggesting that Severus was some kind of criminal and should urgently go to the Ministry for a trial.
Either way, she was happy, hoping to see Severus soon and to find out if he was really okay. She was alone at home while her parents were out, and her sister didn't want to be in the same house as her, while her sister's boyfriend stayed nearby to avoid being embarrassed by Lily being a witch.
"Lily." Suddenly, the window burst open with a gust of wind whispering her name, and she recognized the voice instantly.
"Sev?!" She jumped out of bed and quickly looked out the window, seeing someone in front of the door. Her eyes wide, she rushed downstairs and, upon arriving, opened the door to see Severus standing there at the entrance.
"You're alive!" She murmured before leaping into his arms and hugging him. Severus didn't move, and he didn't seem to share the same excitement.
"I am. Can we talk?" He asked as she stepped back, still overwhelmed with happiness, and nodded.
"Come in." She said, and Severus entered the house. She closed the door and looked at him.
"Do you want something to drink?" She asked, but he shook his head.
"No. I'll be brief." He began, pulling out a vial. In the end, he hadn't even needed to brew the potion to counteract hers—he had gained a few vials after finishing the last dungeon and defeating the supposed Baran.
"This is..." She murmured, her eyes widening.
"This is your cure. I need you to take it." He said, handing it to her.
Lily didn't respond, visibly nervous as she stared at the potion in her hands... this would free her from the avalanche of emotions that had consumed her for nearly a year.
Would she still feel anything for Severus? she wondered. They had destroyed their friendship after she made it clear how much she hated the path Severus had chosen for himself, not wanting to be a part of it. And yet, he had changed—not for the better. Since last year, he had become much darker.
He no longer had those passionate eyes for her, desperately trying to fix things—quite the opposite. He had started to scorn her, calling her a Mudblood without hesitation. He treated her cruelly and didn't seem to care about her. He lashed out at anyone in school who crossed him.
Then, suddenly, she fell in love with him, unable to stop thinking about him—even though he went against everything she believed was right... He had even told her he was no longer the Severus Snape she knew. He had taken her to the Forbidden Forest and slaughtered hundreds of spiders and that witch. He had killed other wizards right in front of her when they attacked him, and Lily always seemed to remain in love and in awe of him, no matter what he did.
She had been shocked when she found out about the love potion. That had frustrated her more than anything. Severus had told her they should stay apart—and he hadn't been wrong.
And now... after everything she had been through, she could finally return to normal, and she wouldn't have to suffer anymore. Her gaze fell on Severus, who was waiting for her to drink the potion.
She had wanted to drink it at first, but after the pain she felt upon thinking Severus had died... she never wanted to feel that again. And she might very well go through something similar. She didn't want to believe she had lost him again—even if that was irrational.
"I don't want to drink this..." She said finally, as Severus raised an eyebrow at her.
"What do you mean... you have to drink it." He said, narrowing his eyes.
"I don't want to lose you, Sev... Please... can we stay together? I love you, and I don't want to lose you." She spoke with a passionate tone she had never used before. The Severus Snape of the past had longed for that confession more than anything else in life—perhaps he could have had it, if not for his mistakes. But all of that was in the past.
Severus took the potion as she tried to hand it back to him. She moved closer with a passionate glow in her eyes.
"Can we be together?! Get married and have a family together? I don't mind staying like this forever." She said, while Severus said nothing, just stared at her, his face close to hers as she clearly wanted to kiss him.
"Close your eyes."
Was all Severus said, and Lily obeyed without hesitation. A moment later, she felt his lips kissing hers, and a wave of happiness washed over her as she gave in without resistance, kissing Severus back, her tongue intertwining with his.
But something was wrong. There was a liquid slipping down her throat, and soon she realized—Severus was giving her the potion through a passionate kiss that was only real on her part, while he didn't seem to return her feelings.
Severus passed the last drop and pulled away, seeing Lily staring at him with tearful eyes.
"You did this...?" She seemed heartbroken once again.
"That feeling you have isn't real. You're being manipulated. It's time to end this. Goodbye, Lily."
Severus said, turning around and opening the door.
Lily stood there frozen, watching him leave, and then suddenly ran after him.
"Wait, Sev, don't leave me. I beg you!" She grabbed his arm just as he was stepping off the property. Severus turned back to her with a serious look.
Her desperate expression began to change suddenly. The potion's effect had begun to wear off, and the consequences of the love potion started to shift. She felt lost in that moment, staring at Severus with a strange look.
"The effect has ended, after all." Severus said in a serious tone.
"In the end, you don't love me, Lily. And you must remember—you were manipulated." He paused as Lily felt her heart change, looking at Snape not knowing what to feel for him when even her heart no longer seemed to know.
"Let me tell you something very serious. I'm not that Severus Snape because I changed or anything like that..." Severus decided to end it all at once.
"The truth is, Severus Snape, your childhood friend, died last year..."
"He took his own life, and I'm a soul that came from outside this world and took over your ex-friend's body—not because I wanted to, but because I was forced to. Understand this, Lily Evans: Severus Snape is dead. Dead by suicide, after completely losing himself when he fell into darkness and no longer had the person he loved. I'm not that person, and it's better if you stay away from me. Besides, I don't care if you tell everyone what you know about me." He finished his speech.
Lily, not knowing what to do with so much information, simply turned away. She ran... ran as fast as she could from that person while tears full of confused emotions streamed down her face.
Severus saw this and shrugged, walking away as a few people noticed the commotion caused by Lily's cries as she reached Severus. She entered the house and slammed the door shut. Severus then left that place and vanished as thunder rolled through the sky.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 213 - Preparing for War 02.
Chapter 218 - The Battle in the Sky of London.
Chapter 228 - Handling Matters at Hogwarts 01.
Chapter 235 - The Dark Fate of the Former Severus Snape.
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