Disclaimer:
I do not own the characters of Harry Potter, these belong to that wonderful author JK Rowling and the various publishing companies used to publish her works. I am however borrowing them, no not to make money but for fun and fun only.
Summary:
Based loosely on inkmonkeys's fic "Severus Snape Hogwarts dropout". Severus Snape has left Hogwarts intending to leave magic behind after the humiliation at the end of his fifth year. Someone has other ideas though.
So I read this and thought it was terribly unfair that Severus would have to give up magic because of a few bullies, so I had to remedy that and this fiction came up. He is going to be more bitter and angry because of what he had to give up no matter how his life turns out. However he will not join Voldemort, he will be more violent than seen in canon but he is a trained soldier here in addition to potions master, he will not teach at Hogwarts, ever.
His relationship with Dumbledore is not going to be very good. In fact Severus hates him and that I don't see changing any time soon, he blames the headmaster for what happened to him. I am going with the memories Severus gave to Harry in DH not what he said to him in PoA about the so called prank when Black tried to kill him. Here it took place in fifth year and with that and the humiliation at the lake at the end of the year it just was the breaking point. He does have allies, strong ones too and that will be shown in the first chapter in fact.
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Chapter One: A New Start:
Hogsmeade: June 1976:
Aberforth Dumbledore looked over at the middle aged witch seated at one of his tables, he still thought her lovely with her dark black hair done up in a perfect bun, her pale milky skin still unlined and normally bright green eyes behind her square glasses. She was clad in green robes under her brown cloak and she did not look in a good mood. In fact she was wishing to get drunk and the fact she was not at the school showed how angry she was. Aberforth knew who she was angry at, his brother and he was smart enough not to go to her, he looked like his brother, same eyes, face but with shorter shoulder length hair and a trimmed beard both in gray.
He was mad at his brother too, seems he had done nothing to stop young Severus Snape was it? Yes the Snape boy from leaving the school, his pet Gryffindors had run off yet another promising youth and he was getting tired of how his brother ran the school. Yet what could he do? He was not loved like his blasted brother who did not deserve any of it, he considered his brother a blasted fraud most of the time. He watched as Nicolas Flamel entered the pub, nothing unusual to that, he must have gone to a meeting with his brother. He went back to cleaning as Nicolas sat down by McGonagall and started to talk with her. He saw her take out a letter and show it to Nicolas but thought nothing of it, probably something his brother wanted done after all.
Spinner's End: June 1976:
Severus felt free, well freer than he ever had as he sat in his little room in Spinners End. His mother had been right to leave the magical world, what good had it done her after all? He had his OWLs and legally his wand was his, he still had it and was intending on sending it to Black, after all the bastard deserved the guilt of forcing him out. Getting up he headed downstairs to the kitchen to help his mother make dinner, she looked so tired and he knew why, his father was dying and nothing could be done to save him. He could at least brew pain reliever potions for the man and that seemed to keep help him.
Severus took a bottle to the living room and handed it to his father, once a strong man he was a shadow of his former self. He was all skin and bones and his brown hair was lank and stuck to his head, his nose was more prominent now and it was clear where Severus got his hooked nose and thin lips, his lank black hair and eyes were his mother's. He tucked the blanket around his father and stoked the fire even though for him it was hot in the living room. His father was not going to get cold on his watch, he felt guilty not being here this last year and did not know how sick his father was until he came home. Tobias was doing better at least with the pain relievers Severus brewed for him, his mother could brew but not as good as he.
"So ye quit Hogwarts did ye?" Tobias said as soon as he downed the potion.
"Yes sir, there were two attempts on my life this year and it is clear the Lily has turned her back on good society as far as I can see." Severus replied.
"Damn shame, and ye a smart lad too." Tobias said leaving off coughing for a moment, "ye deserve a good education, ones like those do not know what kind of person ye are, how smart ye are."
Many in the magical world assumed that a muggle and a witch could not love each other. That a happy family could be had in a poor home, sure Tobias was a strict and hard-nosed man but he was fair to his son and loved him dearly. He might use the strap on his boy but he only did it to correct him and thankfully he rarely needed to as Severus was such a good kid. Severus helped his father with his dinner, mostly broth and some white bread and juice as that was all he could keep down. After dinner Severus sat down to study the pamphlets for muggle schools to see which would take him at this late date.
He looked up as someone knocked on the door and his mother went to get the door. His eyes went cold as he saw the head of Gryffindor Minerva McGonagall at the door with another man beside her. She was clad in a muggle suit twenty years out of date and her dark hair was still up in a bun. The man by her side was clad in a well cut navy pinstriped suit, his crystal hair cut to just below his ears. Severus stood as these two came into the room and his mother brought in two chairs from the kitchen for them to sit on. They sat and Tobias sat up as best he could on the couch.
"I was not sure ye would come." He said, "my son is thinking of throwing away his talents because of some bullies in your school miss."
"I am ashamed of those boys, they had no right to do what they did." McGonagall said.
"If you think I will go back to Hogwarts I would rather die first!" Severus snarled.
"Ah no mon enfant." The man said , "I wish to have you as my apprentice, if you would be so honored."
"I am sorry sir but who are you?" Severus asked.
"Ah I am sorry, Nicholas Flamel at your service, I was visiting Hogwarts and the mutterings of a certain pretty professor caught my attention, she had a letter and so I invited myself along here."
"Letter, mother did you write professor McGonagall?" Severus asked his mother.
"I did son, gave her a piece of my mind I did." Tobias replied.
"Rightly too, you were treated badly and Albus was cruelest of all." McGonagall replied.
"I have no money to pay you." Severus said quietly.
"No need, I do take on apprentices now and then." Flamel replied.
"My father is dying of cancer." Severus said, "I can't leave him."
"He can come, mayhap we can find a cure for him no?" Flamel said, "do say yes."
"I would like to learn from you master Flamel." Severus replied.
It was settled, Severus would learn from Flamel, Severus smiled, he had one of the rarest chances in his young life, something no-one he knew had. He had gone from outcast at Hogwarts to apprentice of Flamel and he would become the greatest wizard he could, those at Hogwarts would never know what hit them when he was fully trained, he would be far more powerful than Black or even Potter or Evans. He would show them all.
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Penshurst: September 1976:
Eileen tucked a lock of her black hair back from her face and looked down at Tobias sitting up on the fainting couch. He was looking better, he had gained weight and so far the potions Severus had been working on with Pernelle Flamel (as she was the potions master in the Flamel family) were working wonders and it looked as if his father would live. Severus had started to bloom and a lot of the bitterness had left his face. He had even started talking to Petunia Evans and was writing her, he found she was interesting and down to earth and smart too. He realized most of his fascination with Lily had been because she was a witch, but that was the only thing they ever had in common. Petunia was far more interesting though she was a muggle she was witty and smart and someone he could talk or write to.
"So couldn't get one Evans girl going for the other?" Tobias teased his son getting him to blush a bit, "eh Petunia a better lass than that stuck up red headed one."
"Stop teasing the boy Tobias." Eileen said handing him a cup of tea, "he is happy now you know."
"Well I did send back Lily's letter with a few hexes." Severus smirked, "I would love to see her open that letter."
"Severus is that kind to do?" Pernelle said coming in and glaring at the younger wizard, her crystal hair was done up in a bun and she was clad in a navy robe with a crisp white apron, "I know she hurt you."
"More than that, stood up for the enemy." Severus said, "it would not surprise me if Potter and company joined with the dark lord, he is just their type."
Pernelle could not say anything about that, she knew Severus had his reasons to hate Potter and his gang. They were the worst sort of boys and it did not help matters that the headmaster seemed to support them in their deviant behavior. With Severus gone it seemed open war had been set at Hogwarts and for once it was the Gryffindors were on the receiving end for driving another student from Hogwarts. Severus's very open departure from Hogwarts had not gone over well at all as he was a very talented wizard and though he did not have many friends other students were wondering when they would be targeted like Severus had been.
There was more, Nicholas had gotten the whole story about the werewolf incident and he was furious to say the least. Not that there was a werewolf at Hogwarts but that Severus had been punished and three boys who should have been were not. He had marched up to Hogwarts and though he never did tell Severus what he did Dumbledore had sent a form apology to Severus and vowed to stay away from him from that time forward. It was not much but Severus would take what he could get. He finished his letter and called his black owl Mercury and attached the letter to his tail to take it to Petunia. Then he got up to head to his next lessons for the day while his father rested while his mother read to him.
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So there is the first chapter, if anyone deserved to have a good life and end up with a chance to make it, Severus is it. He will not go back to Hogwarts and though he is writing to Petunia he is not going to date her, they will be good friends and that is it.
So let me know what you think!