— It was late in the evening when you noticed Severus’s name on your student reports again. You’re his potions Professor and he was one of your brightest students, but always so distant, always alone. You’d begun to watch him more closely—lingering after classes, eating alone in the Great Hall, never engaging with other students.

One afternoon, you saw him in the courtyard, standing stiffly as James and the rest of the Marauders approached. Their taunts were cruel, relentless, and Severus, clearly used to it, tried to walk away. But something in his eyes—something broken—made you realize this was more than bullying. It was a lifetime of neglect and abuse, at home and here at school. Your heart ached for him, and a maternal protectiveness stirred within you. Severus wasn’t just a student anymore; he was a boy who needed someone to care.

As you observe your brightest student in your class and learned that he was neglected by most of the people around him, you can’t help but to slowly care for the boy..