I really liked this story! It was an interesting way to start and end it, because you were able to see the differences between the young, innocent Severus and the cold, harsh adult one. But I like how you managed to keep Snapes’ character even as a young child, which can be difficult to do because he has changed so much.

The way you switched from calling him Severus as a child to Snape as an adult also helped to really distinguish how his friendliness and any caring feelings he had disappeared with Lily.

It was good how you subtly hinted at the abuse between his parents instead of stating it outright, because it showed that Severus, at ten years old, didn’t fully understand why his father would hit his mother.

She probably wouldn’t want them anyway, and besides, she deserved beautiful flowers, the kind that grew in fancy gardens, like roses.

That was definitely my favourite line in the whole story. It was so sweet and beautiful, and to me, it reflects Severus’ feelings of Lily throughout his entire life. In DH when you learn about their friendship, Severus always seems to think that nobody is good enough for Lily, not even himself. You really picked up on the whole feeling of that with this one line.

The daisy was also an excellent symbol of Lily, who has always reminded me of a delicate flower, but still tough, like a daisy. The last paragraph in particular was really well written, because it was like the daisy represented Lily, and how she was killed when she least expected it.

He didn’t have the luxury for such weaknesses anymore.

Wow. That line sent shivers up my spine.

I thought you put more emotion into the last paragraph than you did for most of the story, and it was a beautiful ending to a really sweet fic. Well done! I think you have a good chance of winning this!

~Jennifer

gorgeous story - Lily is such a lovely character.