He sat there all night, engraving the pain and guilt into the very core of his soul, using the arrow of love. He fed his being with the love, guilt, and grief that consumed him.
He reforged his Occlumency shields—stronger, more powerful than ever before. He controlled every emotion with the might of the strongest one, grounding himself in the love, guilt, and grief that held him captive.
"I need to distance myself from everything. It will be best for Potter... for Lucius."
"Voldemort claims to be immortal. How? I need to account for the possibility, even if it might not be true. I must keep my head down, grow stronger—stronger than anything. I'll use every tool, both dark and light, for her. I will never lose myself, not for her."
He made his way back to the common room, only to realize dawn had arrived. Without a word, he went straight to his room, gathered materials for his classes, and left again.
He walked. For how long? He couldn't say. Where, and why? He didn't know. He simply kept walking, his thoughts consumed with the possibility of Voldemort's immortality. He paced aimlessly, the idea clawing at him.
And then, as though summoned by his desperation, a black door appeared in an impossible place—on a solid stone wall, devoid of any magical trace.
He paused.
Without thinking, he stepped through the door.
Inside, he found a room that resembled a study. Five books were stacked neatly on a table, and empty shelves lined the walls. His eyes fell on one of the books. Secrets of the Darkest Arts.
He sat down and began flipping through the books before him. One caught his attention. Horcruxes.
"Where is this place? A hidden room? How did I even open it?"
He glanced around, took the book, and charmed it to disguise its appearance. The moment he stepped out, the book vanished from his hands. Surprised, he looked around. The wall behind him had disappeared too. He retraced his steps, using his perfected Occlumency to analyze the situation. Slowly, it became clear: He had to pace up and down three times to make the door appear. The moment he entered or left, the room vanished. And when he walked away...
He noticed something else. Whatever he wished for appeared in the form of a room—sometimes even an outdoor environment. Curiosity led him to experiment, and he discovered several facts:
The room could be anything. He had yet to encounter an impossible scenario.
He could command the room to do whatever he wished from within. It obeyed without question.
The room contained lost and hidden things—books, ancient treasures, secrets.
Things created in the room could not be taken out. Like the book he'd enchanted. However, items stored within could be retrieved.
Soon, it was time for breakfast, but not for everyone. The Great Hall's breakfast was still not ready. Severus headed toward the Hufflepuff common room, stopped before the portrait of the bowl of fruit, and entered the kitchen. There, he ate his fill, served cheerfully by the ever-smiling house-elves.
Afterward, he made his way to the library before his first class. His thoughts were clearer now—there were things he needed to do:
Study Horcruxes and find ways to destroy them.
Improve his dueling skills by refining every spell he knew—adjusting wand movements, intent, and other nuances to master their effects. He would begin with first-year spells and master them at a deeper level.
Become an Animagus. He needed to dedicate significant time to studying Transfiguration.
Put his potion studies on pause. With his NEWT-level skills, there was no need to push further unless absolutely necessary, just enough to make a living.
The year passed in silence. Severus rarely interacted with anyone beyond the bare minimum. He stayed in his own world, a fleeting existence. His walls—both literal and metaphorical—kept everyone out, even his Slytherin peers. Lucius could barely speak to him for more than a minute each day. Narcissa faced the same cold distance. The Slytherins who had once manipulated him could no longer pull his strings, and they felt the shift.
Lily, expecting Severus to come crawling back to her, to beg for forgiveness, was met with silence. There was nothing. She barely saw glimpses of him in class. He was nowhere to be found.
"He must be going deeper into the dark. How could he? This isn't the Sev I knew. Maybe it never was. Maybe all of it—everything he showed me—was just a façade. That's painful. Maybe Potter was right."
Potter, at first, was pleased that Snivellus was staying away from Lily. But then, Severus began to disappear more and more. Where was he going? Where was he vanishing to? The source of his entertainment had suddenly gone silent. Potter checked the map. Nothing. How?
He checked again later. There. The seventh floor? There were no classes there today. An abandoned classroom?
"I need to see what he's up to."