The dark dungeons of the mysterious school held many places left unexplored by most. No one cared to venture down there. It was not worth the effort to the Slytherins, and even the most adventurous students avoided it near the snakes.
Severus was the only one who came to this deep part of the dungeons—a refuge from the world. The world that had hurt him at every turn. The world that loathed him. The only person who didn't hate him now… was gone.
His world had come crashing down, all because of himself. Subtle manipulations, small favors, a friendly facade—these had been enough to pull his broken soul down a darker path. This half-blood prince had destroyed the only light in his pitch-black world. It was unbearable. The thought that his light had betrayed him—the one person he believed would never betray him—was soul-shattering. And that pain led him to his mistake, a mistake he could never fix, never be forgiven for.
This was it. The weight of it all. The pain, he couldn't bear it. Hadn't he suffered enough? What was left to live for? Apparently, a lot.
The green flames flickered around him, their eerie glow casting long shadows on the stone walls. The air felt heavier by the second. The dungeons of the most prestigious magical school in Britain seemed to feel Severus's wrath today—the raw, unfiltered agony he carried within. The guilt was gnawing at him, tearing him apart from the inside. Occlumency had no power over such an overwhelming storm of emotion.
"Yes, this is what I deserve. For hurting the only person who ever cared. Who saw me for who I was. I will carry this burden. I will repent. Forgiveness is a luxury for someone like me."
The depth of his love for her was immeasurable. No logic, no reasoning, nothing could ever outweigh it. It was part of him, carved into his very soul. It defined him. It always had, and it always would. He was a man who loved Lily Evans with every fiber of his being.
"Where did this all begin? Yes. Lucius. Voldemort. As long as he lives, she'll never be truly happy."
With an expression that could strike fear into the darkest of souls, and a resolve that matched the intensity of his love, he muttered through clenched teeth, "I will make sure you cease to exist. I will make sure she is happy. It doesn't matter where I am, as long as she is, nothing else matters."
Love is a powerful emotion—some even say it's the most powerful of all. But no one truly understands it like a mother. It's something Severus had never received from anyone, not even from his own mother. But he he gave it. Or at least, he believed he did. What really is love, though? It's the kind of feeling that drives someone to do anything for another person. Anything. This much, everyone understands. But the most crucial part is often overlooked—the fact that true love doesn't expect anything in return. It doesn't demand that the other person love you back. Nothing.