Eyes That Held The Truth:

Eyes That Held the Truth:

The green eyes found the black, but after a second, something in the depths of the dark pair seemed to vanish, leaving them fixed, blank, and empty. The hand holding Harry thudded to the floor, and Snape moved no more.

I hadn’t revisited Snape’s death scene in the book for a long time, but recently, I stumbled upon the lines describing his final moments in a post, and something struck me something I had never noticed before: Snape dies with his eyes open.

Given how central his eyes have always been in shaping our perception of him, I began to wonder if there was a deeper meaning behind this detail. Could his open eyes in death carry a message of their own? Here are a few thoughts that came to me:

1. A Search for Redemption:

The fact that Snape dies with his eyes still open might suggest that, even in his final breath, he was still searching — for redemption, for forgiveness. He spent his entire life trying to atone for past mistakes, but he never truly found that closure. He never heard Harry forgive him, and his sacrifices went largely unnoticed. His open eyes could be a sign that he dies with some things left unfinished, especially when it comes to being at peace with himself.

2. The Eyes as a Mirror to the Soul:

We’ve all heard the saying that “the eyes are the window to the soul,” and in Snape’s case, this feels especially true. In life, his eyes were filled with depth and secrets, but in the moment of his death, they become “blank and empty.” It’s as though everything that made Snape who he was the pain, the complexity, the hidden truths — vanished in an instant. His soul, once so guarded, has left, and all that’s left behind is a body, an empty vessel.

3. Unfinished Love:

Snape’s final moments, staring into Harry’s green eyes, feel like a tragic symbol of his undying love for Lily. Those green eyes — the very ones Harry inherited from his mother are the last thing Snape sees. It’s as if he’s holding onto that connection, even in death, unable to “close” the chapter of his life that revolved around her. His eyes remaining open suggests that, emotionally, he never found closure. Even in death, his heart still longs for her.

4. Harry’s Role in Snape’s Life:

It’s significant that Snape dies looking at Harry. Harry represents so many things for Snape — both his deepest pain, as the son of James, and his chance at redemption, as the child of Lily. In many ways, Harry is the center of Snape’s story. His open eyes, fixed on Harry, reflect the complicated emotions Snape felt toward him. Even in death, Snape is still connected to Harry, unable to fully let go of all the feelings he carried for him. He remains fixated on Harry even after death, just as his eyes had been for the past 19 years, always watching over him, always saving him.

5. A Final Moment of Truth:

Throughout his life, Snape was a master of concealment, always hiding his true emotions, always playing his cards close to his chest. But in death, with his eyes wide open, there is no more hiding, there’s no more control. His eyes are wide open, leaving him vulnerable and exposed. his final act stripped of all the secrecy and control he held onto so tightly. His open eyes are like the truth revealed at last — nothing left to conceal, nothing left to protect. It’s a moment of raw honesty, where his story can finally be understood.

The Hidden Tragedy of Snape's Sacrifice is He Died at 20, Not 38

Where does the idea of selfish Severus Snape and his possessive love come from? Do people really believe that Snape died in the Shrieking Shack at 38, at the hands of Voldemort? Do they honestly think that, until he was 38, he lived a normal, happy life, full of hope and dreams, right up until that last minute when everything was suddenly ripped away from him?

Snape didn’t just die in that moment. His life ended 18 years earlier, when he was 20 years old, standing on a hill in front of Dumbledore. That’s when he gave up everything—his freedom, his future, and his life—in exchange for the safety of the Potter family: James, Lily, and Harry.

From that moment on, Snape no longer lived for himself. He had no control over his own fate; his life had been bargained away to protect others. Every step he took after that was part of a long, ongoing sacrifice.

People say they don’t like Snape because he didn’t make up for his mistakes the way he should have, that his redemption arc wasn’t complete. Excuse me? I’m not sure what more a person can give than their life. What’s more precious than their time and youth? What’s more important than their freedom? Snape sacrificed all of that—what else did he even have left to give?

He was barely out of his teenage years when he chose to give up everything—his youth, his dreams, his ambitions, even his loyalty—for people who didn’t care about him. Yet, Snape stayed on that path with unwavering courage for the next 18 years, never backing down.

In truth, Severus Snape was a boy who lost his life at 20. The only thing is, they didn’t bury him until he was 38.

I’m really worried about the new generation of Harry Potter fans. They don’t even know that Harry Potter is originally a series of seven books by J.K. Rowling, not just some fanfiction on AO3! I think, soon enough, even the name and story of Harry Potter will be erased from its own narrative. No one will remember the tale of an orphaned boy discovering the wizarding world and getting caught in the battle of good versus evil. All that will remain are the ridiculous, over-the-top drama and fanfiction about the Marauders.

It might be surprising, but in the canon and the books, Regulus Black was this kind of teenager:

His face and appearance: described in Half-Blood Prince (in Slughorn's picture) as "smaller, slighter, and less handsome" than Sirius.

The photo on the right is Regulus Black in the Deathly Hallows movie; the photo on the left is Regulus Black from J.K. Rowling's official website.(wizardingworld.com)

His ideology: “Beneath this was a collection of yellow newspaper cuttings, all stuck together to make a ragged collage. Hermione crossed the room to examine them. ‘They’re all about Voldemort,’ she said. ‘Regulus seems to have been a fan for a few years before he joined the Death Eaters ...“ (Harry potter and deathly hallows book)

His status in the family: The golden child—obedient, loyal to pure-blood ideals, and the one who didn’t rebel like his older brother.

He was younger than me, said Sirius, ‘and a much better son, as I was constantly reminded.’ ‘But he died,’ said Harry. ‘Yeah,’ said Sirius. ‘Stupid idiot … he joined the Death Eaters.“ (Harry potter and order of phoenix book)

unlike snivellous regulus actually got abused by his mother and got casted the crucio curse multiple times to make regulus obey walburag and snivilus isnt even confirmed to have abusiev or neglective parents....sirius almost died because snivellous casted the flipping spell that he made to curse sirius and peter....he also bullies barty and regulus and bullied remus for his dyslexia....thats why the marauders bullied him in the first place. james just used the spell against him in the books for revenge bceuz he used it on pete and sirius on the tree thing when remus and james werent looking...reggie got casted sectumsempra when james was gone and he also bullied nevile and harry... he was so obsessed with lily and lily wanted to die because of it. lily tried to kill herself and she forced herself with snivellus because she believed that snivvy would change...and wdym james was a sexual assaulter???????snivvy literally lifted lily's skirt and forced himself inside her......he was obsessed with lily...and when they broke off he used charity as a coping mechanism....minevra did nothing wrong she was fair unlike snivellous and for all i know severus chocked reggie once and james wanted to kill him thats why he bullied him in the first place. he shouldnt stick his greasy hair and ugly nose in the first place on sirius and remus conversation about the full moon...he should be glad that prongs saved him and regulus treated his scars even though snivellouse tried to kill him. snivellousse stole the marauders map for malicious resons and stalked lily... yu didnt read the books and use fanfics for prof....stop spreading misinformatio

I can't explain how wrong this is. Please tell me this is satire, or I will truly kms.

"Bullied Remus for his dyslexia." I think I have an idea on what fanfiction have you read. Please consider reading the real books and stop using ATYD along with other fanfiction to make this.

And are you on something...?

i love your posts so so so so much! especially the one with the “undoubtedly its a beautiful moment” quote! i read it a while ago and i cant stop thinking about it :) i hope you know that i look up your blog everyday i open tumblr just to see what you posted about sev (not in a creepy way) :3

Aww, thank you so much! 🥺💕 I’m so glad to hear that you love my posts. Your message just made my day! 💖 To be honest, I’ve always had a lot of feelings and thoughts about Snape, but I didn’t think sharing them would be interesting to others. Seeing messages like yours really makes me happy that I started this blog.

forever grieving the life i couldve had- the person i couldve been- had it all never happened to me

What are your thoughts on Lily? I think she recieves too much hate. I get that she’s a flawed character but the way people are discussing her is like she’s a complete bitch and has been thhrougout her friendship with Sev, which I don’t agree on.

Thank you for asking this question. I had written a long meta about the relationship and friendship between Severus and Lily, but it became so lengthy that I wasn’t sure how to post it. Now, I've separated the parts that focus more on Lily’s character and written them here.(Yes, it's still long but it's shareable now)

I enjoy Snily fanfics and absolutely love Lily’s characterization in them, but I have different feelings about canon Lily. I’m not anti-Lily, but I don't think she holds any significant moral superiority or special virtues compared to other characters in the books.

Most of what we know about Lily comes from when she was 15. Yes, it’s admirable that she sacrificed her life at 21 to save her child, but that doesn’t necessarily say much about her character. Many mothers of any age and from any part of the world would do the same for their children. We don’t know how much she matured or grew as a person. We don’t know if she was satisfied with the choices she made as a teenager or what her feelings toward Severus were in her final days. That’s why I base my judgments on 15-year-old Lily.

I see her as a warm, charming, and somewhat immature girl who, coincidentally, really enjoys positive attention (though not to the extent that James does).She tries to be kind to everyone to be liked, yet feels that other girls don’t really like her and are envious. Unlike her son, she doesn’t have a complex moral code, she tends to see the world in black and white like her sister Petunia. To her, you’re either on her side and therefore her friend, or you’re against her and her enemy. She’s the type of person who can easily attract people at first glance but struggles to form deeper, more meaningful connections with them.

I think part of the reason people dislike her is that they see her as more than what she is and have high expectations of her. Fanon often portrays Lily as a girl from a high-status, wealthy family, a feminist, strong, and independent woman, which makes people expect her to have been able to solve many of the issues she faced. However, in canon, she clearly doesn’t have any of these traits. We don’t even know if her family was rich or poor, but since she lived near Snape, it doesn’t seem like there was much of a class difference between their families.

Yes, canon Lily is lively, smart, and kind, and she gets good grades, but that’s different from being ambitious, powerful, or having feminist or progressive views.

Lily marries and has a child immediately after finishing school, before she truly reaches intellectual and emotional maturity. In canon, we don’t see her play a significant role in the war, undertake any special missions for the Order, or even hold a notable job or career before having Harry. She fits more into the traditional role of a wife and homemaker. I think if she had survived and the war ended, she would have lived a life very similar to Molly Weasley (though not with as many children). She’d be a loving wife and warm mother. Of course, she would likely spoil her child more than Molly does, letting him off the hook easily. Like Petunia, she would overlook her child’s mistakes unless it involved dark magic.

I understand that most people in the wizarding world marry young, but we have characters like Minerva McGonagall, who remains independent, even refusing to change her surname after marriage. In Fantastic Beasts, we see women who, despite the war, maintain their roles as strong, independent individuals whose identities aren’t solely tied to being someone’s wife or mother. So, Lily isn’t an exceptional character in this regard. She’s more like the average woman of her time. When we view her as a very average woman, rather than the amazing, powerful, modern figure seen in fanfics, her behavior becomes much easier to understand.

As for her marriage, I can imagine what was going through her mind: everything with James Potter was easier, simpler, and more stable because, from birth, everything was handed to him. He doesn’t need to work hard for happiness or a future, as his high social status and vast family wealth are guaranteed. He probably promised Lily a successful marriage and a sweet and happy family, perhaps even on their first date, filling her with hope for what was to come. It’s only natural that a teenage girl like Lily, who sees the world in black and white and has a fragile social standing in the wizarding world, would quickly decide that marrying someone like James Potter — who is at the pinnacle of her moral scale ( he doesn’t use dark magic) — was the best choice for her future. This pattern of marriage reminds me of Petunia. She marries her boss, who is also much older than her because he can give her the stable, normal life she dreams of, with a secure income.

Sometimes I think the way Lily chose James and how Snape chose Voldemort are similar. Both were teenagers who made these decisions to secure their place in the wizarding world and cover their insecurities. Lily is fortunate to have an easier life than Severus, and as a woman, she can rely on the support of a wealthy and pure blood man. Snape, on the other hand, didn’t have Lily’s privileges. He had to work hard to secure his place, offering his life and loyalty to Voldemort, who promises him acceptance, security, and protection in return.

I also disagree with the idea that Lily is responsible for all of Snape’s problems or that if she had stayed friends with Severus, he wouldn’t have joined Voldemort:

Snape’s life was far more complicated and difficult for Lily’s presence to magically fix everything. Rowling says Snape sought acceptance, security, and peace. Clearly, Lily couldn’t provide those things for him (after all, she was just 15). Snape needed a strong, father-figure type of support at that age. Teenage Snape, contrary to those who want to portray him as obsessed with Lily, had a proud and independent personality. He didn’t base his entire life around Lily’s presence or absence. Yes, he apologized for his mistake, but when Lily threatened to leave him, he didn’t make any effort to change his circumstances. That’s why I don’t believe the people who say Snape only switched sides because of an obsession with Lily. His love for her lit the path for him later in life, but it was Snape who gave that love the power to guide him and help him grow.