Severus Snape

Professor Severus Snape (9 January 1960 – 2 May 1998) was a half-blood wizard, the son of the witch Eileen Snape (née Prince) and the Muggle Tobias Snape. During his lifetime, Severus Snape was the Potions Master (1981–1996), the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher (1996–1997), and the Headmaster (1997–1998) of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (which he attended as a student from 1971 to 1978). He was also a member of the Order of the Phoenix, and played a prominent role in both Wizarding Wars against Lord Voldemort. Despite Severus Snape's wizarding ancestry, he was raised in a Muggle home, Spinner's End, which was close to the Evans family home. He met Lily and Petunia Evans when he was nine years old, and fell deeply in love with Lily, becoming her close friend. In 1971, he began his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, being sorted into Slytherin. Severus became an immediate enemy of James Potter and Sirius Black and was a frequent victim of their bullying. Snape developed a passion for the Dark Arts at an early age, and followed the pure-blood elitists of his House, despite his own half-blood status and his love for Lily, a Muggle-born. This put their friendship to the test. After leaving school, he joined the Death Eaters, like most of his fellow Slytherin housemates.

Severus was a member of the Slug Club, likely because of his skill in Potion-Making. Horace kept a photograph of him as a student and a copy of the book Advanced Potion-Making that belonged to him. Despite this, Horace did not hold much hope for Severus' future, as his photograph was kept behind many others. [16] Shortly before Lily Evans was killed by Lord Voldemort, Snape switched sides and became a member of the Order of the Phoenix and a double agent during the Second Wizarding War. With great difficulty, Snape was able to prevent Lord Voldemort from learning the truth about his loyalties. Despite the opinions of others, Albus Dumbledore trusted Snape for reasons that were kept between the two until their deaths. Upon his death, it was revealed that his deep love for Lily Evans had caused him to redeem himself, joining Dumbledore's cause on the condition that he protect her from Lord Voldemort. Dumbledore and Snape's relationship was one of exceptionally strong loyalty, so much so that Snape agreed to assassinate Dumbledore at Dumbledore's request. Before Dumbledore's death, Snape promised to protect the students of Hogwarts from the Death Eaters, who would inevitably take control of the Ministry of Magic, as well as the school. Snape later participated in the Battle of Hogwarts, but was killed by Lord Voldemort, who mistakenly believed Snape to be the master of the Elder Wand (an immensely strong and powerful wand that he deeply desired). After his death, Harry Potter ensured that Severus Snape's portrait remained at Hogwarts, honouring him as a hero despite their significant personal differences.

Snape was born on 9 January 1960 to Eileen Prince, a pure-blood witch,[17] and Tobias Snape, a Muggle,[17] making him a half-blood wizard. Severus, whose father was neglectful and possibly violent, began to identify with his mother's family and created a secret nickname from his mother's maiden name, calling himself "the Half-Blood Prince". His unhappy relationship with his father may have been the origin of his disdain for Muggles. It is likely that Severus had no friends and received no affection from his parents. This lack of affection shaped Severus's bitter disposition and cruel behaviour throughout his life. Severus was very important to Harry Potter later in life, so much so that Harry named his son Albus Severus Potter after him. Severus grew up in Spinner's End, an unsightly suburb of Cokeworth. [18] This area of ​​the city was located near a dirty river and was full of brick houses, abandoned factories, and broken street lamps. For the rest of his life, Severus continued to return there when he was not at school. The young Severus is described as dirty and wearing clothes "so mismatched that it almost seemed intentional". As a child, Severus was apparently neglected and his parents fought constantly. He could not wait to go to Hogwarts at the end of the summer.

Lily Evans and her family probably lived in the same town, near Spinner's End. After observing her for some time, Severus noticed her obvious powers and began making friendly advances towards her. The two became fast friends, and he showed great interest in Lily from the start, although she only considered him a good friend. During this time, he also developed a disdain for Lily's older sister, Petunia. This was probably due to Petunia's offensive comments about his clothes and home, but also because she was a Muggle. Information from Severus's own memories of his early interactions with Lily and Petunia suggests that he was a reserved child with few social skills. Even when it was important to make a good impression, he often had trouble doing so. Memories show that both he and Lily had great magical talent before they entered Hogwarts. Severus attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as a student from 1971 to 1978, and was sorted into Slytherin, whose Headmaster at the time was Potions Professor Horace Slughorn. On the way to Hogwarts for his first year, Severus sat with Lily on the train, where they met James Potter and Sirius Black. This first hostile encounter would define the antagonism between the three for the rest of their lives.

According to Sirius, Severus excelled in the Dark Arts since he was a child. At eleven, he knew more curses and hexes than most seventh graders. He was supposedly friends with a group of Slytherins who would become Death Eaters, including Avery and Mulciber. Severus was responsible for creating a good number of popular spells such as Levicorpus, Liberacorpus, Abaffiato, and curses such as the Tongue Twister, a jinx to make big toenails grow and his trademark, Sectumsempra. Other Slytherins that Sirius said were friends with Severus included Evan Rosier, Wilkes, and Sirius's cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange. Severus also had contact with Lucius Malfoy, who was a prefect during his first year and greeted him kindly when he was sorted into Slytherin. The two probably got along well at Hogwarts (which could be one of the reasons why Severus seems to favor Draco Malfoy so much as a teacher). Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew were also colleagues of Severus. James and his group of friends were constantly at odds with Severus throughout their years at Hogwarts. Severus' memories, kept in the Pensieve, suggest that he was a studious and introverted boy, while James was arrogant, popular, and athletic. Immediately upon meeting him, James took a dislike to Severus for his desire to be in Slytherin. James's great infatuation with Lily, and Severus's close friendship and unrequited love for her, only made the tension between the two stronger.

A memory kept in the Pensieve shows James humiliating Severus by turning him upside down to reveal his underwear in front of many students, including Lily. She came to defend Severus, but he only made things worse: in response to James and in an attempt to regain his dignity, Severus inadvertently calls Lily a Mudblood. Lily refuses to forgive him for this, even after his repeated apologies. This would forever be Severus' worst memory. Severus Snape joined Lord Voldemort's Death Eaters, and was the spy responsible for informing him of the prophecy that foretold his downfall. In early 1980, Snape overheard an interview for the position of Divination teacher between Sybill Trelawney and Albus Dumbledore at the Hog's Head. During the course of the interview, Trelawney prophesied that at the end of July, a child would be born who would bring about the destruction of Lord Voldemort (which prompted Dumbledore to hire her, partly for her own safety). At the time, it was unclear who the prophecy referred to. Two children of prominent wizarding families were born that year at the end of July: Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom. Dumbledore testified at Igor Karkaroff's trial at the Wizengamot that Severus explained that he had been the one who had overheard the prophecy and told it to Voldemort. However, Snape did not hear the entire prophecy, as the barman caught him eavesdropping and threw him out.

When Severus Snape began teaching at Hogwarts in 1981, he initially applied for the Defence Against the Dark Arts position. Dumbledore instead appointed him to the position of Potions Master and Head of Slytherin House, following the retirement of Horace Slughorn. While it seems unlikely that someone so young would be appointed Head of any House at Hogwarts, it is possible that Snape was the only Slytherin teacher at the school, or that he was placed there to contain the young Slytherins, who were often accused (but not without reason) of joining the Death Eaters. After Voldemort's downfall, Snape did not attempt to find his master, because he, like other Death Eaters, believed Voldemort to be dead, and could use Dumbledore's protection to avoid imprisonment in Azkaban. It is unknown whether Snape truly believed Voldemort was gone or whether this was an alibi for the Death Eaters. This later brought him into conflict with fanatical Death Eaters such as Bellatrix Lestrange, but Snape was pardoned by Voldemort because he was able to provide him with thirteen years of information about Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix. As a teacher, Snape maintained a strict discipline, with little patience for nonsense, but was nonetheless efficient in his work and well respected by the other teachers. His deep understanding of Potion-making, exemplified by his excellent preparation of the Wolfsbane Potion,[19] transformed potion knowledge from mere chemistry to an art.