Snape: An Alternate History

[fire_everything]

Well, yeah. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized…holy shit, it was actually possible. All the apparent problems with this scenario can be dispatched by applying magical solutions, Muggle psychology, or both. Let me break it down for you:

Lily Evans, Harry’s much-idealized dead mother, may have thought future husband James Potter was

Comments

[fire_everything]

I don’t believe he would have either, under normal circumstances. *winks mischievously*

Certainly, if he ever did anything to intervene in Lily’s marriage to James Potter beyond sending pissed-off vibes their way, it isn’t hinted at in canon. (Then again, you could fill the Grand Canyon with the interesting possibilities that aren’t hinted at in canon, couldn’t you?) More than that, though, I agree that Snape’s sexual insecurity wouldn’t manifest itself in that particular way; he’s an obsessive, but he’s not a stalker or an abuser in any conventional sense. A manipulator in small ways, perhaps - I‘m not sure he’d be a saint even in regard to Lily, but he would have limits regarding her that would stop well in advance of outright coercion. And his lack of belief in his own desirability/deservingness would have tended to swamp even such minor impulses in an overall mood of despair and resignation.

Nevertheless, I find the love potion scenario irresistible as a fanfic device: fucked up, yet so potentially awesome. So in order to make this fic I’m writing work, I had to figure out a set of circumstances that would make it suddenly plausible for Snape to do such a thing. Suffice it to say that in my fictional universe, he is provoked by a series of events - unfortunate or fortunate as the case may be - that conspire to seal his fate. ;)

You’re right too that canon supports the interpretation of Snape’s crusade as a specimen of courtly or chivalric love, but that is actually one of the problems I have with Snily in canon: insufficient smut! And the fact that it often REPLICATES this sad lack of smut is my biggest peeve with fanon Snily. This lack is something the forthcoming fic, whatever its other flaws, will definitely not suffer from. :)

[shyfoxling]

So in order to make this fic I’m writing work, I had to figure out a set of circumstances that would make it suddenly plausible for Snape to do such a thing. Suffice it to say that in my fictional universe, he is provoked by a series of events - unfortunate or fortunate as the case may be - that conspire to seal his fate.

Sounds interesting. I look forward to seeing it. :)

that is actually one of the problems I have with Snily in canon: insufficient smut!

LOL. A fan after my own heart. ('course there isn't much smut of any kind, given the intended age audience of the book.) I've written some spicier Severus/Lily fics, although I'm not sure they're smut really as they're more tender than that, but certainly with a good deal of erotic content.

[fire_everything]

Tender smut is some of the very best smut there is. ;)Where can one go to read these spicy Snily fics of yours?

[shyfoxling]

You could browse through the my fic tag on my journal (the Severus/Lily tag includes all kinds of other mentions). Particularly for this purpose there are Summer Shade, Lilies Are Red, Roses Are Blue, Awake Again, and maybe Sweet Root.

A Man's Greatest Treasure, which I didn't write, also comes immediately to mind as a good one. (You might pick through the other fics in that community as well.)

[fire_everything]

Ha! I've read "Sweet Root" - it was back when I didn't yet have a sense of who was who in the Snape fandom, who shipped who, and such. When I saw the title I remembered immediately that I'd liked it. The phrase "such and such stone of the most welcome weight in the world" had stuck with me from a fic I'd read back then, and as soon as I started rereading "Sweet Root" I was like, "Is this THAT fic??" Why yes it was! This must have subconsciously been part of the reason I friended you. :)

I don't think I've read the others before. I read "Awake Again," which was definitely new to me, on my phone this evening in a waiting room. Although my appointment was delayed over half an hour, I wasn't even mad. ;)

I am very much down with your take on Severus and Lily. In these fics they are recognizably themselves, and the scenarios you've placed them in are believable and moving. Also, um...hot. Ahem. Yeah.

I will continue reading these when I have the time and energy to concentrate on them fully, then go comment properly at your journal. I must warn you that I am a dorkily detail-oriented reader, and may write entire comments about a single sentence, kind of like I did a second ago. :/

[shyfoxling]

Thanks for all the encouraging comment!

I must warn you that I am a dorkily detail-oriented reader, and may write entire comments about a single sentence, kind of like I did a second ago. :/

And this is a problem because...? (Ravenclaw power!)

[fire_everything]

And this is a problem because...? (Ravenclaw power!)

I'm so glad you feel this way. Ravenclaws WILL rule the world, as soon as we finish reading, critiquing, editing and stylistically improving the instruction manual. :0

[shyfoxling]

TRUFAX.