The dungeons of Hogwarts had always felt like a sanctuary to Severus Snape. The cold, damp air, the dim lighting, and the isolation from the rest of the castle offered him solace—a place where he could retreat into himself, away from the world’s judgments.
Yet today, as he prepared for the start of another school year, that comfort eluded him. An unfamiliar unease gnawed at the edges of his thoughts, and no matter how much he tried to ignore it, the feeling refused to dissipate.
His mind kept wandering back to Alice Northumberland, one of his most promising students. Alice had always been different—quiet, intelligent, with a sharpness in her gaze that had caught his attention early on.
Over the past year, they had grown closer, though Snape had refused to acknowledge just how close. It had been a mistake—a grave, unforgivable mistake.
It had happened one night after she had come to him for help with an advanced potion.
They had been alone in his office, the only light coming from the flickering candles around them. She had been standing too close, her presence overwhelming him in a way he had not anticipated.
There had been tension between them for weeks, unspoken and unacknowledged. But that night, something had snapped inside him—a weakness, a lapse in his rigid control.He had done the unthinkable. Even as it was happening, he had known it was wrong—violently, inexcusably wrong. But he had been unable to stop himself, driven by something dark and desperate. Alice hadn’t fought him, but her silence had been a scream louder than anything he could have imagined.
And afterward, she had left, her face a blank mask that haunted him in the darkest hours of the night. He had spent the summer trying to push it from his mind, convincing himself that he could move past it, that it had been an aberration, a moment of weakness that would never be repeated. But the guilt festered within him, a poison he could not purge.
Now, as he stood before his first class of the day , that guilt clawed at him with renewed ferocity as he knew who would be sitting in his classroom. He scanned the room, his gaze passing over the students until it landed on her. Alice sat near the back, her face pale and drawn, her usual spark dulled.
But it wasn’t just the haunted look in her eyes that drew his attention. It was the way she sat, hunched over slightly, her hands resting protectively on her abdomen.
Severus Snape wasn’t one to miss details, especially when it came to his students. It was a trait honed over years of navigating the treacherous waters of both the Dark Lord’s inner circle and Dumbledore’s expectations. He had always been hyper-aware, always watching, always anticipating the next move. But with Alice Northumberland, something was different.
She had returned from the summer holidays quieter than usual, her usual fiery spark dimmed. At first, he attributed it to the natural ebb and flow of adolescent moods, perhaps compounded by the trauma of what had occurred between them. Severus had expected her to be distant, to avoid his gaze, to barely speak unless absolutely necessary. And she did all of those things.
But there was something else—something that didn’t sit right. In the first weeks of the new term, he noticed the subtle changes in her behavior. She no longer participated in Potions with the same enthusiasm she once did, often asking to be excused from practical tasks. . Her face, which had once been bright with curiosity, now appeared pale and drawn, with dark circles under her eyes.
She seemed fragile in a way that was deeply unsettling. At first, Severus dismissed it as stress or perhaps even a physical illness brought on by the turmoil she had experienced. But as the days wore on, he noticed other things—small, almost imperceptible changes in her appearance. Her robes, once perfectly tailored to fit her slender frame, now hung a bit looser around her shoulders but tighter around her middle. Her posture had changed too; she often held herself protectively, her hands resting on her abdomen when she thought no one was looking. A suspicion began to form in his mind, one that he immediately pushed aside as impossible, too far-fetched. But the thought persisted, gnawing at the edges of his consciousness, until he could no longer ignore it.
Severus felt the ground tilt beneath him. His blood ran cold as he realized what he was seeing. She was pregnant.
He forced himself to continue the lesson, though his voice was distant, his thoughts a chaotic whirl of fear, anger, and self-loathing. When the class ended, he dismissed the students with a wave of his hand, watching as they filed out, one by one.
„Miss Northumberland, stay,” he ordered, his tone leaving no room for disobedience.
She froze in place, her knuckles white as she gripped the edge of the desk. Slowly, she rose and approached him, her eyes downcast. She looked smaller, more fragile than he remembered, and the sight of her in this condition—his doing—was almost too much to bear. When she was close enough, he spoke, his voice trembling with an emotion he could barely contain. “You’re pregnant.”
She nodded, her gaze fixed on the floor. “Yes,” she whispered, her voice hollow.
“And it’s…mine?” He could hardly bring himself to ask, though he already knew the answer. Again, she nodded. “Yes, Professor.”
The title cut through him like a knife. Professor. As if he still held any authority over her, as if he were still deserving of her respect. He felt bile rise in his throat, his shame and self-loathing threatening to overwhelm him.
“How far along?” he asked, though the answer mattered little. The evidence was before him, undeniable.
“Almost five months,” she replied, her voice barely audible.Five months. The timing was perfect, aligning with that night he had tried so desperately to forget. The night he had shattered both their lives.
“Alice…” he began, but the words caught in his throat.
What could he possibly say? How could he apologize for something so monstrous? How could he ever make amends for what he had done? She finally looked up at him, her blue eyes filled with an emotion he couldn’t quite decipher.
“Why?” she asked, her voice trembling. “Why did you do it?”
The question was like a physical blow, knocking the breath from his lungs. He had asked himself the same question countless times, but no answer had ever come.
“I don’t know,” he admitted, his voice cracking. “I was…weak. I’m sorry, Alice. I’m so sorry.”
Her gaze hardened, a flicker of anger sparking in the depths of her eyes. “Sorry?” she echoed, her voice rising. “Sorry doesn’t change anything. Sorry doesn’t undo what you did. Sorry doesn’t make this go away!”
He flinched at her words, but he didn’t look away. He deserved her anger, her hatred, and more.
“I know,” he whispered. “I know it doesn’t. But I will do everything I can to make this right. Whatever you need, I will provide. I will protect you.”
Alice shook her head, a bitter laugh escaping her lips. “Protect me? You’re the one who hurt me! You’re the one I need protection from!” Her voice choked with emotion. “How can you possibly protect me from yourself?” Her words cut deep, reopening the wound he had tried so hard to ignore.
He had no answer to give her, no words that could possibly ease her pain. All he could offer was the truth, as hollow as it felt.“I will not abandon you,” he said, his voice shaking with the effort it took to keep it steady. “You and the child—you will be cared for. You will not have to face this alone.”
She stared at him for a long moment, her expression unreadable.
Finally, she spoke, her voice soft and resigned. “I don’t want your help, Professor. I don’t want anything from you. I just want to forget.” The finality in her tone left him speechless. She turned away from him, her shoulders slumped in defeat. The sight of her retreating figure, so broken and vulnerable, was more than he could bear.
Severus stood there, watching Alice walk away from him, his mind a whirlpool of conflicting emotions. The sight of her, burdened with the life growing inside her, clawed at the last vestiges of his humanity. How could he have done this? How could he have allowed himself to become the very thing he despised?
And yet, even now, he could not let her go. He could not simply allow her to leave without ensuring that this situation wouldn’t spiral further out of his control.
If anyone discovered that he had slept with a student—let alone impregnated her—it would be the end of him. His career, his reputation, everything he had clawed and scraped to build over the years would be ruined. The Ministry would surely step in, and he could expect nothing less than a trial, public disgrace, and likely imprisonment. Severus imagined the sneering faces of his colleagues, the whispers in the halls, the loss of the only semblance of stability he had ever known. He couldn’t let that happen, ever.
“Alice!” he called, his voice sharper this time. She paused, her hand on the doorframe, but she didn’t turn to face him.
His heart pounded in his chest, the words coming out before he could think better of them. “I’ll marry you.”
She froze, and then slowly turned around, her eyes wide with shock. “What?”
“I said I’ll marry you,” Severus repeated, more firmly this time. “It’s the only way. You’ll need my protection. And the child. Our child, will need a father.”
Alice’s face twisted in confusion, then fury. “What makes you think I’d ever want to marry you?” she hissed, stepping back toward him, her voice rising. “You think you can just do what you did and then swoop in as if that makes it all better? You don’t get to control my life anymore, Professor!”
Severus flinched at the venom in her voice, but he pressed on, determined. “And what will you do instead? Raise the child on your own? Face the whispers, the judgment, the disgrace?” His tone grew colder, more pragmatic, as he continued. “You know what this world is like, Alice. No one will take you in once they know the truth. You’ll be ostracized, shunned—and what about the child? Do you want our child to grow up like that?”
Marrying Alice wasn’t just a matter of taking responsibility—it was a calculated move, a necessity to protect himself from the consequences that loomed over him like a dark cloud. By marrying her, he could cloak his actions in the veil of respectability, transforming the narrative from one of scandal to one of misguided passion and honor.
If they were married, who would dare to question their relationship?
The whispers of impropriety would be silenced by the institution of marriage, and any rumors that might arise would be dismissed as baseless gossip.
He could present her to the world as his wife, a woman of virtue and respectability, elevating her status from student to partner. By making her a reputable woman, he would protect them both. Himself from impending ruin and her from the inevitable scorn that would befall an unwed mother.
Severus knew the timing had to be handled carefully. If he pushed too soon, too quickly, the truth could unravel.
But once she was of age, once the child was born, he could begin to introduce the idea of their connection to the public slowly, meticulously. A subtle comment here, a lingering glance there, until the truth of their relationship became an open secret—one that no one would dare challenge. With their marriage in place, no one would suspect that the child was conceived under such dark circumstances.
It would be seen as the natural progression of a relationship, perhaps even a story of a stern professor who had fallen in love with a promising young witch.
And as the years passed, the details would fade, the scandal would be forgotten, and Severus Snape would remain untouched, his reputation intact. In his mind, it was the perfect solution—the only solution. He would sacrifice whatever remnants of his soul he had left to protect what he had done, to protect himself from the consequences of his actions. And in doing so, he would bind Alice to him, ensuring that she could never escape the shadow he cast over her life.
She trembled before him, her fury momentarily replaced by a flicker of fear. He could see the doubt beginning to creep into her eyes, and he hated himself for exploiting it. But he couldn’t stop, not now.
He had to make her see reason.
“I am not asking you, Alice,” he said, his voice dropping to a chilling calm. “I’m telling you. You will marry me. It’s the only way to ensure that you and the child are protected. I’ll make arrangements, we’ll marry quietly. No one needs to know the circumstances, and we’ll say nothing more of it.”
Her eyes searched his face, looking for something—maybe for a trace of the man who had taught her, who had, at times, seemed almost kind beneath his hardened exterior. But all she found was the cold, calculating Professor Snape, who always knew what was best, who always had a plan, and who always got what he wanted.
A tear slipped down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away. “I don’t want this,” she whispered, her voice filled with anguish. “I don’t want any of this.”
“I know,” Severus replied, his tone softening slightly, though his resolve remained firm. “But this is the way it must be. It’s for your own good, Alice. For the child’s good.”
She shook her head, backing away from him as if she could escape the weight of his words. “You’re doing this for yourself, not for me. You’re just trying to erase what you did.”
Her accusation stung, but Severus didn’t deny it. But that didn’t change the fact that what he was proposing was, in his mind, the only solution.“I’m doing this because it’s the only way forward,” he said quietly, his voice filled with an icy determination. “You need someone to protect you, Alice. Someone to care for you and the child. And whether you like it or not, I am the only person in this world who can do that.”
Alice stared at him, her expression a mixture of desperation and resignation. She seemed on the verge of arguing, of screaming, but in the end, she said nothing. The fight drained out of her, leaving only a hollow acceptance in her eyes.“What kind of life will this be?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “What kind of life will you give our child, Severus?”His name on her lips felt like a confession—a reminder of everything he had done and everything he could never undo.
But he pressed on, unwilling to show her how deeply her words affected him.“Our child will have a father,” Severus replied, his voice steady. “A family name, a place in this world. And you…you will have the security you need. I’ll make sure you’re taken care of. I’ll give you everything I can.”
Alice closed her eyes, her shoulders slumping in defeat. “Fine,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “If that’s what it takes to protect the child…then fine.”
Severus felt a surge of relief, though it was tainted by a deep, pervasive sorrow. He had gotten what he wanted, but at what cost? He had bound her to him, but the chains were forged in guilt, not love.
“Tomorrow, I will travel to London to make arrangements” Severus said, his voice businesslike as he pushed his emotions aside. “The ceremony will be quick. Discreet. No one else needs to know.”
Alice nodded numbly, her eyes glazed over as if she were no longer present in the moment, lost in the reality of the life she had been forced into. With a final, unreadable look at him, she turned and walked out of the Potions classroom, leaving Severus alone in the darkness he had created. He watched her go, feeling the coldness of the room seep into his bones, realizing that though he had bound her to him, he had also condemned himself to a life of silent torment.A life where every glance, every word, every breath would be a reminder of the moment when he had lost not only his humanity but his soul.
Alice barely made it down the corridor before the weight of the situation crushed her. She stumbled, leaning against the cold stone wall, her breath coming in ragged gasps. The dungeon air was stifling, but it was nothing compared to the suffocating dread inside her. She had thought, even after everything that had happened, that she could somehow escape this nightmare.
But Severus's words had slammed that door shut, trapping her in a reality she couldn’t bear.
As the tears finally broke free, she slid to the floor, burying her face in her hands. The quiet sobs that wracked her body echoed off the stone walls, the sound pitiful and lonely. She had no one to turn to, no one to save her. She was alone with the man who had ruined her life, and now he was demanding even more from her.The sound of footsteps made her flinch. She looked up to see Severus standing over her, his expression a mix of determination and something she couldn’t quite decipher—regret, perhaps, or pity. He knelt beside her, his black robes pooling on the floor, and for a moment, she thought she saw a flicker of remorse in his eyes.
“Please,” she whispered, her voice broken, raw. “Please, just leave me alone. I can’t do this. I can’t…” Her voice trailed off into a sob, and she turned her face away, wishing she could vanish into the stone, disappear from the world entirely.
But Severus didn’t move. Instead, he reached out and gently took her face in his hands, turning her to look at him.His touch was surprisingly soft, but it held her captive, leaving her no choice but to meet his gaze. “Alice,” he murmured, his voice low and insistent. “You will come to understand. And one day, you will thank me for this solution“
She shook her head, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. “I’ll never thank you,” she choked out. “How could I? After everything you’ve done…”
But Severus’s grip on her tightened, not painfully, but with a firmness that made it clear he wouldn’t let her go. “I will make it up to you,” he said, his voice filled with a conviction that terrified her. “I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you, Alice.”
She wanted to scream at him, to push him away, to run far, far from this place and never look back. But her body betrayed her, frozen in his grasp, her mind spinning in confusion and fear. She searched his face, looking for some sign that he understood the depth of the wrong he had done, that he truly regretted it. But all she saw was that same cold determination, that same unyielding resolve that had always defined him.
Before she could protest, before she could even gather her thoughts, Severus leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss was not harsh, but it was possessive, claiming her in a way that made her heart break all over again. She felt his hands tremble slightly as they held her, and for a brief, horrifying moment, she wondered if this was his idea of making things right.Tears streamed down her face as he kissed her, mingling with the bitterness of the moment. She didn’t kiss him back, didn’t respond at all, simply endured it as she had endured everything else he had done.
When he finally pulled back, she was left gasping for air, her body shaking with silent sobs. Severus didn’t release her immediately. He kept his hands on her face, his thumbs brushing away her tears, his expression unreadable.
“You will see,” he murmured softly, almost as if he were trying to convince himself as much as her. “You will see that I can be the man you need.” Alice closed her eyes, squeezing them shut as tightly as she could, as if that could block out the reality of his words, of his touch, of his presence. But nothing could erase the feeling of his lips on hers, or the weight of his promise—a promise that felt more like a curse.