Harry Potter: I became Snape

The shadows of the trees stretched long across the ground. A timid little girl stood in the shade cast by an oak, her fingers tightly clutching the vine handle of a flower basket. She was about seven or eight years old, dressed in a faded linen skirt, her bare feet speckled with mud.

Beside them stood a man with a vacant stare, his body filthy and unkempt. His skin had an unhealthy grayish pallor, his arms hanging limply at his sides, utterly lifeless.

"It's getting late, sir," an old woman noticed Severus Snape's arrival. Her eyes lit up, and an exaggerated smile spread across her wrinkled face, revealing a mouth with only three blackened, yellowed teeth. "Are you lost? Need any help?"

"Thank you for your kindness, but no need," Snape replied, his fingers subtly sliding toward the wand hidden in his sleeve. "I'm just… passing through."

"Look at how pale you are, poor child. You must be starving," the old woman said, stepping forward without hesitation. "Why don't you come to our house for dinner? My granddaughter just picked some fresh mushrooms. We can also point you in the right direction."

The little girl shrank back, seemingly shy, hiding behind the old woman but unable to resist peeking at the stranger.

Snape noticed the vacant man instinctively shuffle two steps toward the girl.

"Such… touching hospitality," Snape said slowly, his fingers tightening around his wand.

"Stupefy!"

"Avada Kedavra!"

Two spells shot out almost simultaneously, crisscrossing in the twilight.

Snape dove to the side in a roll, the green light grazing his shoulder and scorching a blackened hole in the tree trunk behind him.

His hastily cast Stunning Spell veered wildly, missing even the hem of the old woman's robe.

Worse still, he felt an unusual vibration from the wand in his hand. The ancient wand he'd found in the cave seemed to be struggling under the strain.

"Young people these days have no respect for their elders!" the old woman shrieked, her voice suddenly high-pitched and grating.

Her withered fingers danced nimbly, unleashing a barrage of curses from the tip of her wand.

Snape dodged and weaved through the relentless magical assault, his long robes catching on branches and tearing in several places.

"Where's Nagini…" he thought frantically. "Why isn't she here now…"

The little girl seemed frozen in shock by the sudden battle, standing rooted to the spot.

The man beside her remained in his dazed stupor.

"Grandma, be careful!"

In a flash, the seemingly frail girl erupted with astonishing strength, shoving the old woman with all her might.

The elderly witch let out a yelp, falling face-first into the mud, her few remaining teeth snapping off. Her wand spun through the air, landing in a thicket of bushes.

Snape didn't miss the fleeting opportunity. Like a leopard, he lunged toward the wand's trajectory. At the last possible moment, his fingertips grazed the wooden handle.

As the old woman struggled to push herself up, she locked eyes with Snape, who now stood slowly, gripping her wand.

"Goodbye, Grandmother," Snape said, his lips twisting into a somewhat feral grin.

A brilliant red light shot from the newly acquired wand.

The old woman was struck by the spell, her feet lifting off the ground as she flew backward like a kite, crashing heavily into the oak tree behind her and collapsing to the ground.

"Thank you, sir!" The girl's face lit up with joy, tears streaming down her cheeks, carving clean trails through the grime on her face. "That old witch killed my mother and brought me here… She's been doing horrible experiments on me…"

Trembling, she rolled up her sleeve, revealing a dense network of scars on her wrist.

She pointed at the vacant man, sobbing, "That's my father… She turned him into this…"

Snape's expression shifted subtly. He lowered his wand, his voice softening. "Thank you, little one. You're safe now."

The moment the girl's face relaxed, he suddenly raised his arm. "Incarcerous!"

Thick ropes materialized out of thin air, binding the girl tightly, rendering her arms immobile.

Her tears froze on her face, replaced by stunned disbelief.

"Always stay vigilant," Snape said gruffly. "Sorry, but I need to ensure my safety first."

With a flick of his wand, he cast two more Binding Spells on the unconscious old woman and the vacant man.

The old woman's wand spun deftly in his hand. Though it wasn't as good as his original, it was far better than the tattered one he'd found in the cave.

He tapped the old woman's chest with the wand. "Rennervate!"

"Hello, Grandmother," Snape said, leaning down with a gentle tone. "What are you and your lovely granddaughter doing here? Can you tell me how to get out of this forest?"

"Oh, you young charmer, why so rough?" The old woman opened her cloudy eyes, saw herself tightly bound, and yet, surprisingly, let out a cackle. "Let Grandma go, and I'll lead you out of the forest…"

"Do you take me for a three-year-old troll?" Snape said calmly, his wand slowly lowering to point at her forehead. "In that case, let's make things more interesting. Perhaps the Cruciatus Curse will loosen your tongue."

He took a deep breath, shouting, "Cruci—"

A chilling wail, like an infant's cry, erupted from the old woman's mouth.

"Look out!"

Before Snape could finish the incantation, a piercing scream came from the girl behind him, followed by a deafening snap as the ropes binding her shattered, and a guttural, inhuman roar.

Snape only had time to half-turn before a massive force slammed into him, sending him flying.

He tumbled through the air, his back snapping several branches before he crashed heavily into a thicket of bushes.

As he struggled to his feet, he saw the once-vacant man's face contort, his nose and mouth jutting forward into a snout, gray-black fur sprouting across his body, and his fingers curling into sharp claws.

Within seconds, a fully transformed werewolf stood in the clearing, saliva dripping from its fangs.

"Not vigilant enough, are you?" the old woman hummed in a strange, eerie tune.

Under her command, the werewolf's claws carefully sliced through the ropes binding her.

Just then, a familiar rustling came from the thicket.

The old woman spun around, alert. "Who—"

A massive black shadow shot out from the dense forest, slamming into the werewolf from the side.

Nagini's enormous body coiled around the werewolf, scales grinding against fur with a teeth-gritting screech.

The moment her venomous fangs sank into its shoulder, the werewolf let out an agonized howl, its claws scraping sparks across her scales.

Snape seized the moment to scramble to his feet, grabbing the wand. "Crucio!"

The old woman let out a piercing scream of pain.

The curse knocked her to the ground, where she writhed helplessly, like a fish out of water, struggling to rise.

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