I’ve Got The Spirit, But Lose The Feeling

We always talk about Rowling using Snape's "black, tunnel-like eyes" as a literary device for his Occlumency, which is true. But from a purely genetic standpoint, how does a pale, white British man from the Midlands end up with hair and eyes that dark?

The answer is likely in his mother's side of the family: the Prince bloodline.

1. The "Black Irish" phenotype in Ireland and parts of the Celtic regions, there is a very famous genetic contrast.

While many associate Irish people exclusively with red hair, there is a massive sub-population known historically as the "Black Irish." These are people with extremely pale, fair skin, but coal-black hair, heavy eyebrows, and deep, dark brown eyes that look pitch black unless hit by direct sunlight.

Snape and his mother are the textbook definition of this.

2. Eileen's name is the biggest clue Rowling rarely picks names at random.

"Eileen" is the anglicized version of the pure Gaelic/Irish name Eibhlin. Given that Cokeworth is located in the Midlands (an industrial hub that historically attracted thousands of Irish migrant workers during the industrial eras), it makes perfect sense that the Prince family carried these strong Celtic roots.

3. He is a Prince through and through in the books, it's explicitly stated that Severus looks exactly like his mother-the long face, the heavy brows, the bleak demeanor. Apparently he completely wiped out his Muggle father's traits with the exception of the hooked nose and inherited the full, raw Black Irish genetics from Eileen.

So to me, Snape isn't just a gothic character design; he and his mom are ethnically Celtic/Irish, and his appearance perfectly fits the biology of that heritage.

Edward Hopper, Studies of Hands

Your Patronus form changes when you either fall in love or get traumatized, like, canonically, man, it's either true love or trauma.

But then, how come Tonks's Patronus changed to become a wolf like Remus's and Severus's Patronus changed to become a doe like Lily's, but Lily and James had different Patronus? While the same animal, they're not the same Patronus at all!

Wouldn't this mean they weren't really in love, since that's what makes it change?

How come Remus's Patronus didn't change to mirror Tonks's? Doesn't this mean he didn't love her that much? (Probably why he tried to abandone her with their newborn, smh/j)

Like, if anyone fell in love with Severus their Patronus would also become a doe, not a stag, that's how it canonically works.

tiny HC difference: I don't think he knew how to cast a patronus before Lily died. The Patronus' only use (before Dumbledore invented talking with them in OotP) was to ward off Dementors. It is a niche, rare, difficult spell barely anyone learns how to do. You don't learn it at school, almost no jobs require it - and Death Eaters don't need it as Dementors ally with them. Also not their brand.

Also (because I'm a horrible pedant, I'm sorry, I don't like it either): Patronuses have more than one use. For example, we see Order members use them to communicate with each other. Snape, in particular, also doesn't think a Patronus is the best way to ward off a Dementor:

Having wasted a lot of time worrying aloud about Apparition, Ron was now struggling to finish a viciously difficult essay for Snape that Harry and Hermione had already completed. Harry fully expected to receive low marks on his, because he had disagreed with Snape on the best way to tackle Dementors...

Half-Blood Prince, Ch. 21

But I do think we do have enough evidence that Lily could cast a doe.

‘Snape’s Patronus was a doe,’ said Harry, ‘the same as my mother’s, because he loved her for nearly all of his life, from the time when they were children. (DH ch36)

This is what Harry deduced from seeing it's history himself. Maybe he was wrong… but I doubt it:

From the tip of his wand burst the silver doe: she landed on the oŃce łoor, bounded once across the oŃce and soared out of the window. Dumbledore watched her ły away, and as her silvery glow faded he turned back to Snape, and his eyes were full of tears. ‘After all this time?’ ‘Always,’ said Snape. (DH ch33) (I don't know why the text has done this. It's fine on the PDF. 'oŃce łoor'? It's interesting tho I'm gonna keep it hehehe)

Dumbledore also recognizes the doe as Lily. Maybe the Lily-Doe connection is purely Severus' perception. Maybe he told Dumbledore that, to him personally, a doe symbolized Lily - and Harry got the wrong idea and spouted nonsense.

…Or maybe, as an Order Member, Lily Potter learned how to cast a Patronus, and it was known to be a doe. (with or without input from James' anything. They don't need to match.)

As for the Patronus' use as a messenger:

I mentioned Dumbledore inventing it around OotP - and that was somewhat incorrect? Oops.

I could have sworn it was mentioned directly in the books - but it seems the information that Dumbledore invented speaking via Patronus was actually from the authors old website:

Members of the Order use their Patronuses to communicate with each other. They are the only wizards who know how to use their spirit guardians in this way and they have been taught to do so by Dumbledore (he invented this method of communication). ( https://web.archive.org/web/20110806214330/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/faq_view.cfm?id=99 lovely looking website... black yellow cyan... )

BUT - that doesn't seem to be in the books. My general rule is 'Authors word unless contradicted' (and for Pottermore: 'unless contradicted - or it seems really dumb')

So, to me, it is a recent spell modification Dumbledore invented himself for the Order's use - and is not common knowledge. People do not learn how to cast a Patronus just to send messages.

Though it's understandable not to listen to things outside the books.

In the books, still, the only people we see use Patronus' are the Order - and they use them a lot. They know what all of eachothers are. The ability for them to speak isn't mentioned at all until the Order is well back together AND Dumbledore has agreed to let Harry in rather than block him out.

“Was that a Patronus?” asked Harry, who had seen Dumbledore send messages like this. “Yes, I’m sending word to the castle that I’ve got you or they’ll worry. Come on, we’d better not dawdle.” (HBP ch8 - about Tonks' patronus)

I think this is the first time it is explicitly mentioned a Patronus sending a message…? Specifically 'word' as well, not just like... having their patronus show up somewhere like a signal

Severus disagreeing with the 'the best way to tackle Dementors' is really interesting. That's a nice blink-and-youll-miss-it catch! But to be a significantly horrible-er pedant:

That doesn't mean a Patronus has some other use aside from Dementor-dealing or secret-newly-invented-message-sending.

It doesn't even mean that Severus disagrees with using a Patronus - he might be disagreeing with like... a method of casting or someshit. (Because he is the highest order of horrible pedant. <3)

But it MIGHT mean that. Maybe. Death Eaters and the Ministry 'tackle' Dementors by allying with them, making deals with them. They're reasonable creatures!

They'll bury the dead, gather information, follow orders - withhold on immediate feeding for the promise of more reliable situations. Give them a gaol, promise them fresh inhabitants to replace dead ones - and they manage it all until a better offer comes up.

That's a far more permanent method of keeping them in-line than simply filling their bellies every time they show up like a buffet. I could see him making that sort of argument. (Pulled out of my own arse ofc!!! He doesn't actually say any of that.)

Snape: my father never loved me-