Disclaimer: Collection of Snape's past collides with his present, and my own take of how this affects him.
Everything belongs to JKR

Slithered From Eden

The Hogwarts Potions Master and Head of House, Professor Severus Snape was a complex man. Sure, he took drastic measures in teaching students and was known as many nicknames ranging from Greasy Git to Bat of the Dungeons. However, there was more to him than meets the eye...

Severus told Lily that she was special. She was special just like him. He needed to tell her - he wanted to in fact. Because no one bothered to tell him that. So when the little girl realized it was true, she agreed with him. They were both special.

As soon as Harry turned his direction to the Head Table, Severus froze. Disgust. Hatred. Revenge. That boy looked like his enemy. But just when a sneer dared to appear on his face, the Professor's breath hitched. The Potter boy was looking straight at him. And all the man could think of was how utterly tragic it was for the young one to look like him, but have her eyes. Then in a flash the moment was gone. Harry flinched with pain, covering his scar, and Severus turned to the stuttering man beside him. Snape mused that something quite magically wrong was going to happen that year.

The long haired boy was currently staring at the sky with his new friend. That's right, a friend who could do magic just like him. He couldn't believe it. There was something about this Lily that made Severus feel at ease. Somehow he knew that they would be friends for a long time. Looking at how peaceful she was staring at the same sky right beside him, he knew she thought so too.

Stalking away from that horrid trio, Snape knew he was right. The naive little Gryffindors were just giving off the scent of trouble. They were definitely up to something. He could even see it in that bespectacled boy's face. The brat had even dared to look at his Professor that way. Snape shook his head, the child seems to be much more confident with his new best friends around. The man couldn't tell if that was a something of an accomplishment.

He didn't mean it. As soon as the hateful comment slipped from his lips, Severus couldn't stop the ringing in his ears. It was as if Lily's reaction to his words wasn't enough. The ringing was like the dreadful silence that occurs after you've lost the war, and it's all your fault. Only this time the ringing in the boy's mind were from the sounds of a girl crying at him to stay away from her. A girl who use to consider him her best friend

Overseeing, the Yule Ball was not the worst task, nor was it the best use of his time. There was something about chaperoning little fools that was just not rewarding enough, especially outside of the classroom. His eyes wandered towards the Boy-Who-Lived himself. As the Professor went back to nursing his spiked drink, it almost happened in a flash. One second things seemed to be going fine with Potter and Weasley just sitting there, but then the next thing he knew, Granger appeared but then stormed off. The boys looked confused then discouraged, Potter seemingly berating his friend. Before he could assume anything else, Karkaroff started a conversation with not only him, but the Headmaster who just so happened to be seated at the same table as the Potions Master. Snape replied and nodded aimlessly to whatever the other two were discussing. As much as he'd hate to admit, the Professor was a little out of it the rest of the night, and it wasn't just due to his beverage in hand. He'd never tell a soul, but Severus wished the boys would apologize soon. Or even just showed they still valued her friendship and insight, albeit rather annoying. Whatever went down between them and the girl, he secretly hoped they'd patch things up. After all, there are only so many friendships that could defeat a troll and live to tell the tale.

Early in his Hogwarts years, Severus, like every other curious boy his age, tended to explore. During one particular exploration of his, he had found something quite intriguing. Noting that the reflection in the mirror he found, was just that - a mere image - and not just his Gryffindor friend being accosted by that silly Marauders gang into playing a trick on him, he relaxed. Severus grinned at the reflection of himself and his red haired friend. It seemed like ages before he realized he should get back to the dungeons and work on his potions. It wasn't that he was in awe with the mirror's ability or that he dreaded going back to do the homework, in fact he was rather enamoured with potions. It was just that he hadn't seen his friend smile like that in a while. He never wanted to forget.

In less than a minute the Potions Master was back inside Harry's mind, sifting through buried memories. He really needed to teach the boy better walls to put up, he was utterly useless at it. Figuring he should instead look for newer instances to berate the boy with, the man stopped suddenly. A glimpse of red hair, those eyes he'd know from anywhere, and that smile. Until that moment, Severus didn't realize that he'd been in front of that exact mirror just like the child, many years ago. Seeing the boy's face light up staring at his parents, Severus couldn't help it. The nostalgia of his own childhood disappeared and was replaced by coldness. And just like that, his bitter remark was enough for Harry to push him out of the memory.

He had the potential to hide away and start a new life, one far from being a death eater. He could've just denied being part of the Order as well. Professor Snape worked on both sides, light and dark. It was never what he asked to do, or what he even wanted. But one day he realized that sometimes its more about what you can do rather than what you could. That occurred to him the day he heard of that blasted prophecy.

His entire world had flipped on it ends. He had no choice the last couple months. No choice or say in anything really, but when had he? Even when the old Headmaster was alive, there was nothing he could ever do on his own. Now that Dumbledore had died, it seemed to Snape that there was still so many tasks to be fulfilled. Just as he finished announcing his commands as the new Headmaster to the staff, a firm hand grasped his before he could even move. He winced slightly, as nails dug into his left wrist. "I foresee grave danger for you" the bushy blonde woman whispered, voice hoarse, though she never spoke a word the entire meeting. No sooner then did she sweep out of the room in a haste. Despite it also being much gentler than its usual pain, Snape still couldn't shake off the feeling of the Seer's touch as he left the room. Damn that woman, he could still smell the sherry on her lips.

The Head of Slytherin still had memories, nightmares, and flashbacks. Everything would come flooding back to the very first time they had ever met, to their own days at Hogwarts wishing to still be friends, and the terrifying night he'd held her in his arms. The first time he'd seen her in ages, and the last time he ever would again.

After looking at Snape's memories, Harry finally understood. He had seen it all. Little did he know that amongst all the other phials kept in the Potion Masters study, lied a hidden memory probably never to be seen again. One which contained the memory of Snape apparating in a home just when a familiar voice, one so innocent, screamed. And as he finally reached the woman, the man held her in his arms, not only weeping for all the years he'd done her wrong, but for how she would never know his forgiveness. His sounds, however, were only muffled by the innocence of a baby boy crying.

In the last moments of his life, Severus Snape couldn't believe who was standing in front of him. The son, her son. The son that could have been so much more. But right now, none of that mattered. All that did was that the boy and his friends were just on the other side of the wall, mere moments ago, hearing their former Professor being killed. The golden trio was standing in the room where his murderer - the murderer of many - had once stood in. The thoughts rushed through his mind: 'They could've been heard. They could've been caught'. And before he could even stop himself, he thought 'They could've gotten killed'. Wouldn't it have been ironic to save someone you hate, only to die yourself? But here, Severus Snape was doing just that. At his weakest point, he was now realizing that Potter - Harry - wasn't so different from himself after all. Neither were his friends. The last moments of his life was filled with compassion as the Professor's last wishes were being carried out by his students, and the man himself understanding the true definition of friendship and bravery.

'He was the bravest man I ever knew'

Since the first moment he saw her son, he knew he would never forgive himself. So every time he saw The Boy Who Lived, he'd make it his duty to protect him. But in the process he'd take a chance of being rude and harsh and down right horrible. The only reason he did so, was because years ago his actions destroyed everything he ever loved. It haunted the man forever, and so giving the boy a hard time was his way of apologizing to Lily. It was what the man had wanted - hate from the son he never had. It was in fact what he thought he deserved. This time around Snape intended his actions to affect only himself.

And as the story shows, in the end it did not.

Last notes: I immediately thought of this idea as soon as I heard the song From Eden. I urge everyone reading to check out this, it's absolutely wonderful.