HP: Wormwood and Lightning Wood

That morning, Snape opened the door and was greeted by a passionate embrace.

Snape nearly blasted the person off him with a single blow, but gradually relaxed after smelling the faint scent of cedar on the young man.

"Wester?" Snape was still not used to such close contact and tried to pull the young man, who was burying his face in his neck and sniffing intensely, up.

"Severus," West leaned on his beloved's shoulder, unable to suppress a sigh, "I miss you so much."

Sensing the chill emanating from the young man, Snape couldn't help but ask, "When did you get here?"

"Just arrived, Severus," West clung to him, "I'm so sleepy."

Snape was speechless for a moment, then pulled Redhead up and saw the bruises under his eyes.

"Just arrived?" Snape said coldly.

"Um... four hours ago." West blinked innocently. "I missed you so much, but Dumbledore came looking for me... I didn't want to bother you."

Snape really wanted to give West a good whack on the back of the head. "So you stupid troll stood outside for four hours?!"

He dragged West into the house, pressed him down on the sofa, and asked, "What does Dumbledore want with you?"

"We went to Horace Slughorn, who knew that Voldemort had made several Horcruxes," West said.

Horace Slughorn. Snape certainly knew this retired professor. He was very capable, had a terrifying collecting obsession, and enjoyed cultivating relationships with students from prominent families or those who were exceptionally talented.

Because of their talent in potions, he and Lily received special attention from Slughorn. After Slughorn retired, Snape succeeded him as the professor of potions.

"Severus, didn't you want to be the Defense Against Magic professor? Slughorn is going back to Hogwarts to continue as the Potions professor, then you could..."

Lost in his own thoughts, Snape only looked up when the young man's voice suddenly disappeared. "So Voldemort really did split up..."

His voice abruptly stopped.

West had already closed his eyes and fallen asleep on the sofa.

Snape quietly got up and went back to his studio.

When West woke up, the warm light of the setting sun was streaming into the room through the curtains. He sat up and found himself asleep on the sofa, covered with a blanket that had been warmed by the sun.

"Severus?" West stood up, looked around, walked to the potions workshop with the door tightly closed, and was about to knock when the door creaked open.

Snape looked at him. "Awake?"

"You're awake," West chuckled softly. "Going to dinner, Severus?"

"It's only five o'clock, Mr. Troll West," Snape said in his usual sarcastic tone.

A profound silence fell over the air.

Snape's heart skipped a beat. He tensed up, wondering if he had been too harsh in his words, leaving West speechless.

He became somewhat uneasy, pressing his lips tightly together. But West simply took a few steps forward, bringing his face close to West's, their lips almost touching.

West twitched his nostrils slightly and blinked. "Severus, you've had coffee again? What are you going to do if you can't sleep well tonight?"

Snape was speechless for a moment, but secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"As expected." West suddenly became serious.

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"Severus will indeed have to come back to Somerset with me, so I can supervise your rest."

"..."

"You don't want to? Severus, I can stay in Spider's End. Can I sleep with you? The sofa isn't very comfortable," West asked.

Snape's temples throbbed, and he stomped hard on West's instep.

"Hiss—actually, I can sleep on the sofa too… Ouch—"

"Severus, are you researching the Unicorn Tears?" West smelled the bitter scent in the air.

Snape ate the dinner brought to him by the Somerset elves, nodding expressionlessly.

"I remember the ingredients required unicorn tears?" West asked.

Snape grunted in response.

Unicorn Tears, an ancient potion, can heal near-death wounds, and its essential ingredient is unicorn tears.

However, very few wizards have ever seen a unicorn, let alone obtained a unicorn's tear.

Snape's only remaining bottle came from a Christmas gift from Harry Potter. He planned to try his luck in the Forbidden Forest after school started, even though he knew the chances were slim—unicorns wouldn't approach someone with a dark soul.

"Then you should come back to Somerset with me, Severus." West nodded solemnly.

Snape uttered a single syllable in confusion, "Why?"

"Didn't I tell you?" West said with a laugh, "There are a few unicorns kept at Somerset Manor, so..."

Snape glared at him, feeling a sense of déjà vu about the scene, but he was still shamefully tempted.

"Come on." Snape stood up and pulled West to the fireplace.

"But I haven't finished eating yet..." West's figure disappeared into the flames.

As expected (actually, it was only West alone), West once again lured Snape back to Somerset.

"Where's the unicorn?" Snape asked West, who was following behind him, as he emerged from the fireplace.

West shrugged off the dust. He was wrong; he shouldn't have brought up potions at the dinner table. He deserved to die.

However, looking into Severus's expectant black eyes, no one could bring themselves to refuse.

West pulled Snape's hand. "Come with me."

He led Snape through the halls and long corridors to the back gardens of Somerset Manor.

The style of the back garden is quite different from the rustic and luxurious Somerset Manor.

As night falls, the white cornflowers, like a sea, bloom quietly under the moonlight, swaying gently in the night breeze, delicate yet resilient, exuding a faint fragrance.

"This is my mother Dema Somerset's favorite flower," West said.

Snape listened quietly. West rarely talked to him about these things before.

"She's very different—compared to the Somerset family. I don't know if it's because the descendants of Somerset have snake blood, but the Somerset family is very cold-blooded."

"I firmly believe that it was my mother's arrival that changed Somerset, changed my father, and changed me."

West lowered his eyes, lost in distant memories.

"She was as graceful and passionate as a cornflower—Severus, every night I was tormented by the Dark Curse, she held me and sang me lullabies despite the tyrannical magic around us."

"My mother always said that I was a blessing from heaven to her, but in fact, she was the one who brought happiness to others—whether it was me or my father."

"Severus, did I not tell you how I died?"

West laughed. Snape frowned at him. "You don't want to talk about it either..."

"I committed suicide," West said calmly.

Snape gripped West's hand tightly.

"My father and mother left England when I was five years old to find a cure for the Black Curse, but they perished in a terrible natural disaster."

"I can't believe it. Before I died, it felt like I was back in my mother's warm embrace, hearing her whispers and sobs. I don't know how I triggered the family magic, or how I was reincarnated."

West then understood why Lily had become his second mother.

Lily and Dema have the same hair color, are both Muggle-born, are both warm and gentle, and most importantly, they both deeply love their children.

He was inspired by love and formed relationships with both mothers.

Cornflowers swayed quietly in the moonlight, whispering the secrets of the night. They can grow and bloom even in harsh environments, demonstrating their tenacious vitality.

Cornflowers symbolize rebirth, representing new beginnings and hope.