James-Lily-Severus triangle

[lake4fam at earthlink.net]

No: HPFGUIDX 26687

   A very intriguing notion.  Postulate:  a young, very handsome (& 
he knows it,) Snape, truly in love with Lily; it's the love that 
makes fools of elders who say that they are too young to know for 
sure.  Severus is Slytherin, which means ambitious and proud.  He's a 
top rank scholar, much better than James, but too proud of his own 
scholarship to feign needing tutoring - from Lily.  He's a talented 
flyer and quite good on the Quidditch pitch - but not as good as 
James, who is inately brilliant.  Severus is reserved, and masks his 
sensitivity behind that reserve, and does it so well that Lily, 
although she tries to see beyond it, sees only the haughty facade. 
   Lily, a young witch in the first glow of her own femininity, 
flirts with Severus, among others, in such a manner that leads him to 
believe that she returns his affection. 
   Thus, when she turns to James in school, she unwittingly deals a 
blow to Severus' heart, and, of course, to his pride.  When she 
marries James, the loss turns Severus bitter, and in this mood,  
Severus is ripe for recruitment into the Death Eaters.
   As time works its healing magic, he becomes more and more 
uncomfortable with his role as a Death Eater, until he does whatever 
it is that he does that earns Dumbledore's trust, and is turned from 
the Dark Side (Star Wars fanfare.)  However, with his one true love 
dead, he no longer really cares about his appearance, hence the 
greasy lank hair; he is genuinely in mourning, and not at all 
interested in getting over it, hence the bitterness that infuses all 
his dealings with other people; and he is really, really pissed off 
(you DID say this was an adult group, yes?) at James, a Griffyndor, 
hence his attitude toward that house in general, and Harry, son of 
the woman Severus loved by the man he hated, in particular.
   Whew!  Is that enough depth from a soi-disant children's story by
a postulant to the Order of the LOON?

Sincerely,

the Tolkien, Star Trek, Pern, Elfquest, Harry fan who signs herself

dittany/custodienne