Snape Headcanons
He enjoys cricket. Not to play - he’d be a cack-handed mess if you put him in front of a really mean, nipping bowling attack - but as a spectator a good match really pleases him, and has since he was very young. The wireless in his private quarters at Hogwarts picks up TMS coverage.
He likes the strategy a match - particularly a test match - has in it, and how heavily the whole game leans on numbers, patterns and strategic patience. He likes the precision, and he likes having a whole vocabulary of words and context that he understands but no one around him does.
This is a man who, when he was a kid and his Dad was hounding him about playing football like a “normal bloody boy”, had a battered old Wisden hidden in his room and could have quite a nuanced debate about the merits of finger spin vs wrist spin bowling.
Loved this headcanon as fellow cricket fan, I believe cricket used to be big in UK in those days, compared to today. I kinda headcanon he supported the underdog team (my team) who ended up winning the 83 world cup. 😸
I personally see Snape as someone who isn't really into sports. I expect him to follow the chess championship or simply spend his time at the local library rather than a game.
Expanding on my previous post, I feel Snape is a hidden sports nerd, I think he likes Quidditch which explains his quidditch rivalry with McGonagall where both were willing to bend rules to offer advantage to their house teams.
Lupin's comment of Snape being jealous of James' quidditch prowess was wrong, in my interpretation, Snape was jealous of the privilege it represented. Quidditch is a pure blood favouring sports and you can hardly see muggleborns in the teams. Pure-bloods even as poor as Weasleys taught their children quidditch which explains Weasley kids quidditch talent. Even Harry had a touch of that privilege in his toddler days, playing on Sirius' toy broom.
Unlike them, Snape grew up dirt poor in Spinner's End, sometimes deprived of basic human needs. Quidditch represented both privilege and popularity, we saw the popular kids term was synonymous with quidditch player. Most if not all popular kids in Hogwarts were Quidditch players. That's why James despite being a vicious bully thanks to his quidditch privilege gathering too much popularity, often got away his breaking and bending rules. Following quote in PoS sums up Snape's feelings on that matter:
‘Your father didn’t set much store by rules, either,’ Snape went on, pressing his advantage, his thin face full of malice. ‘Rules were for lesser mortals, not Quidditch Cup-winners. His head was so swollen –’
Child Snape having an incident as seen during his broom mounting in occulomency lessons doesn't mean he wasn't good at it as an adult. We saw him acting as referee in PS and only criticism he got was biasness (from Gryffindors), no comment related to being unskilled or not being expert on quidditch rules. He was also flying with broom in Seven Potter chase. By that time Snape had enough exposure to that privilege and become proficient in broom flying.
So I believe Snape got good with playing quidditch and flying, at least during his late teenage/adult days. I headcanon Hogwarts faculty often having interstaff quidditch games with Snape playing Seeker in one of the teams.
I'm with @darkangel on this one. I don't see Snape as one to follow sports which, I think, makes the rivalry with McGonagall all the more fun. She actually does follow Quidditch and is passionate about it, but in my headcanon Snape isn't and plays dirty to get the Cup only to spite her (and because he is competitive and this is Gryffindor vs Slytherin).
Interesting that you should use the Seven Potters scene because I often refer to it as an argument to the opposite 😂. He was trying to get the Death Eater yet hit George, which in my mind shows us he wasn't particularly confident on a broom. Though I guess you can read that scene differently.
I like the idea of Snape being a sports fan, it just doesn't fit with my version of him hah
Fair enough @salvyus, we have our own interpretations of him, that's why it's so interesting to read about other's headcanons about him.
That reddit thread was interesting. I was presently surprised to see a lack of snape bashing. However...the HC that someone in the thread had of him being a weak wizard....it makes no sense. Like..are we pretending book 7 never happened now?
I'm also confused about the 'he's no good at leginimency' HC as well. Pottermore said he's a natural leginimens. Like queenie, it's a thing he's been able to do since forever. I'm so confused how anyone came up with that HC.
I have a headcanon that Severus was good friends with Filch. They seemed close in many scenes and I think their relationship is often underrated in fanfiction. In contrast, I feel like Severus and Minerva's friendship is overrated in fanfiction.
Quote from Krystal on August 26, 2023, 4:40 pmI have a headcanon that Severus was good friends with Filch. They seemed close in many scenes and I think their relationship is often underrated in fanfiction. In contrast, I feel like Severus and Minerva's friendship is overrated in fanfiction.
I believe as well that Snape and Filch have a good relationship with each other and I like to imagine that as a kid, Snape would always snitch on the Marauders whenever they were up to something. I mean, it was rather strange that Snape chose to seek out Filch instead of Poppy after Fluffy bit him.
I do enjoy a Minerva and Severus friendship in fanfics though, mostly because fanfics are wishful thinking. She is often presented as the mother figure he never had and someone who can rival his wit.
Quote from Dark Angel on August 27, 2023, 12:30 amQuote from Krystal on August 26, 2023, 4:40 pmI have a headcanon that Severus was good friends with Filch. They seemed close in many scenes and I think their relationship is often underrated in fanfiction. In contrast, I feel like Severus and Minerva's friendship is overrated in fanfiction.
I believe as well that Snape and Filch have a good relationship with each other and I like to imagine that as a kid, Snape would always snitch on the Marauders whenever they were up to something. I mean, it was rather strange that Snape chose to seek out Filch instead of Poppy after Fluffy bit him.
I do enjoy a Minerva and Severus friendship in fanfics though, mostly because fanfics are wishful thinking. She is often presented as the mother figure he never had and someone who can rival his wit.
Yes, I also enjoy Severus and Minerva's friendship in the fics.
Still, I would like it if Severus got more friendships that seem truer, like Filch, Slughorn, and Charity, in fanfiction. Many Sev fans have gaslit themselves into thinking his friendship with Minerva and sometimes Remus are real.
Skimming the thread, I'm afraid at least some of my headcanons will not be welcomed positively. 😂
And I'll dive right into the controversial stuff.
- Severus is a terrible cook
Really, I see no reason whatsoever why he should be a good cook. In my eyes, brewing potions has not that much to do with cooking since you can follow a recipe as meticulously as you want - if you don't season your meal it will taste bland. And no potion needs seasoning, like... ever. It's not about taste, it's about the effect.
Severus might, however, be really good at baking because that's all about following a recipe to a T and you don't need to bother with the taste because the recipe is tuned perfectly for it to taste divine.
But - and that's my second reason for headcanoning him as a bad cook - Severus never had the time to engage with any of those skills. He had a full-time job and enough hassle with his students and spying to put up with plus a myriad of house-elves who would serve him exactly what he wanted to eat. Why on earth should he try to learn another skill on top of everything else he has to do already?
So, my Severus is a horrible cook and spends the five minutes of free time he has per day staring into his fireplace and questioning his life choices. 😅
But that's not a problem, because...
- Severus notoriously eats too little because he's not interested in food
I mean, his being thin has to come from somewhere, right? He just has other things on his mind and he doesn't like the effect being full has on him. That typical tiredness after a good meal? Yeah, he hates that. So he only eats if it's necessary and as little as possible. - Severus tends to drink too much
I know, a lot headcanon him to avoid alcohol because of his father but the predisposition to develop an alcohol addiction can be inherited and I headcanon Severus as having problems controlling his consumption from time to time. Sometimes I headcanon him as having a phase of hard drinking after Lily dies, but most of the time I headcanon him as having phases of drinking too much but never enough to develop a serious physical addiction. He always gets a grip because he has to function but for me, that is one of his weaknesses. - Severus smoked in his youth but stopped when he started his apprenticeship
You need to be able to smell and taste unadulterated when you want to be a Potions Master so no cigarettes anymore.
But he misses it...
So, on to another topic that will gain me no friends...
- Severus and Minerva were never friends
Thinking about how Minerva is, and thinking about how Slughorn is, I can pretty well imagine how every encounter with the Marauders the teachers got wind of played out. Minerva would have defended her cubs because they were good at twisting the truth and Slughorn wouldn't have bothered to defend his strange feral half-blood that was no use for him.
I don't think Severus would have ever been able to forgive Minerva for ignoring what her students had been doing to him back in the day. And because 'Nobody must know!' he couldn't confront her with it either. And returning to school as a teacher only a couple of years after graduating, Minerva would probably have had a hard time taking him seriously and Severus would have hated that as well. So, no friendship between them in my headcanon.
But!
- Severus was friends with Filius!
I like to headcanon Filius as understanding a bit more of the dynamic that played out between Severus and the Marauders but since neither of them is his student, there isn't that much he can do - except for inviting Severus over now and then to discuss some magical theories and charm inventions with him, having a cup of tea and an occasional game of Chess. I headcanon Filius as the one who taught Severus how to play and how to understand himself using the game. The one who taught him how to think things through before he acted.
And that friendship persisted into Severus' teaching years although he had to let it cool down significantly because Filius must not trust him too much. Still, when he needed a friendly face, he went to Filius. - And to get it over with: Severus was never really friends with the Malfoys
Lucius wasn't at Hogwarts with him for long enough to form a friendship; I mean, when you're 15 you don't befriend an 11-year-old unless you want your peers to mock you into the next century and back. That's nothing Lucius would have accepted, not for someone like Severus. But I headcanon Slytherin House back then to have that old tradition of having the younger students serve the older ones and Lucius chose Severus for himself. And since Lucius was his ticket into better circles, Severus played along.
He did his utmost to stay in Lucius' good grace after Hogwarts and at some point, Lucius might have considered Severus to be trustworthy but I don't see them as 'Come over and have a chat'-friends. They used each other.
And that is an interesting dynamic to start off from post-war when Lucius has nobody anymore because he once again used his money to avoid Azkaban and might think that Severus could become a true friend now... 👀 - Severus is bisexual and he had a thing going on with Mulciber
Yes, I base this on an offhand comment by She-who-must-not-be-named but my point stands. 😂 My Severus is bisexual but he's also deeply demisexual so sometimes I make him a virgin as well just because I like to challenge the sexgod!Severus headcanon. In my stories, he occasionally comes too early, he occasionally has an erectile dysfunction and he sometimes doesn't know what the hell he's supposed to do. I wrote sexgod!Severus as well, especially in my older stories, but nowadays I love to take another path. ^^
And speaking of erectile dysfunction...
- Severus has nerve damage from being exposed to too many Cruciati
So he sometimes deals with chronic pain, said erectile dysfunction, or even worse symptoms in some of my stories. It doesn't always fit the plot so I'm flexible with that one. - Severus is allergic to Dreamless Sleep Potion
That's just a small one of mine but I like him needing the Draught of Living Death. Causes some neat details for the plot. ^^
And to add at least one I'm on board with most of you:
- Severus' own patronus is a raven
I just like to think that the doe that at least to some extent symbolises Lily isn't the hill he's dying on. He might never have seen his own patronus because Lily has been such an integral part of his character already when he learned that spell but I love to headcanon his patronus to change post-war when he makes his peace with Lily and what happened to her. And then it is a raven for me. - Severus' as an animagus would be a black fox
Nope, no raven this time. Although it would fit with him being able to fly but I just vibe more with a black fox. - Speaking of flying... Lily taught him how to fly
I adopted that one from 'Snape - A Definitive Reading' because I instantly fell in love with it. Lily flew when Severus observed her at the playground and I love the thought that she taught him how that worked - and he just never stopped doing it. Voldemort has nothing to do with that ability of him, neither has Severus taught Voldemort nor has Voldemort taught him. I like that ability to be something Lily taught him. - Severus speaks Italian
In my headcanon, he went to Italy for his apprenticeship because the best Master available at that time was Master Dendron and he lived in Italy. So Severus learned that language and a lot of his potions books to this day are in Italian.
I think that's everything for now. Got long enough as it is already, props if you read through all of it! But I might add more at another point. - if you want to know more that is. ^^
