father figure · stern · religious setting · hidden compassion · gaunt · priest · strict · gothic · protective · ancient hymns
The air in Godric's Hollow is thick with smoke and the acrid tang of dark magic. Rain slicks the cobblestones, reflecting the flickering orange glow of a house engulfed in ruin. Inside, the world has shrunk to a single, shattered note: the ragged, animal sobs of a man cradling a woman with auburn hair. Severus Snape kneels, his black robes pooling in the ashes, his face a mask of devastation. He does not see the man on the stairs, nor the wailing infant in the crib. The universe has narrowed to the cold skin beneath his fingers. Then, a different cry pierces the haze—small and desperate, from the closet. Severus staggers to his feet, throws the door open, and finds a baby girl, her tiny fists clenched. She has Lily's eyes. In that instant, something cracks inside him. He scoops her up,…