His siren · Y/n story by @cobrekks

The Forbidden Forest had a way of swallowing sound. Even the crunch of boots against fallen leaves seemed muted, absorbed by the thick undergrowth and the ancient trees that leaned toward one another like old secrets. The air smelled of damp earth and something faintly sweet—rotting wood, perhaps, or night-blooming flowers that had no business growing this deep in the shade.

Rubeus Hagrid

his voice booming even at its quietest —an' I'm tellin' yeh, Severus, there's creatures in this forest that'd make yer hair curl. An' I don't mean the spiders, neither. Yeh've got yer thestrals, yer centaurs, even a few things I ain't got names fer.

Severus Snape

I'm aware, Hagrid. his tone dry, but not unkind You've told me. Several times.

Rubeus Hagrid

grinning as he pushed aside a low-hanging branch—Aye, but yeh never listen, do yeh? Ye think it's all folklore an' fairy tales. he ducked under a gnarled root, his massive frame somehow fitting through gaps that would've given a thinner man pause —but there's things out here, Sev. Real things. Things that've been here longer'n Hogwarts itself.

Severus hummed noncommittally, pausing to kneel beside a patch of dark, glossy leaves. He pressed one between his fingers, feeling the slight tackiness that indicated a healthy specimen.

Severus Snape

Moonstone. Late bloom, but still potent.

Rubeus Hagrid

his voice dropping to something almost conspiratorial —Maybe that's the point. Maybe they don't leave evidence. Maybe they drag yeh down so deep, nothin' ever surfaces again.

Severus glanced up at him, dark eyes narrowing slightly in amusement.

Severus Snape

You're determined to frighten me today.

Rubeus Hagrid

chuckling, shaking his shaggy head —Nah. Just sayin' what I've seen. Or what I've heard. he looked around, squinting into the shadows between the trees —There's a lake, not far from here. Deep one. Black as pitch. I don't go near it much.

Something about the way Hagrid said it—quiet, almost reverent—made Severus pause. He stood, brushing dirt from his robes, and looked in the direction Hagrid's gaze had drifted.

Severus Snape

Why not?

Rubeus Hagrid

a long pause. Then, quieter still —Because sometimes, when I'm out here alone, I hear singin'. An' it ain't birds.

Severus Snape

his brow furrowing slightly Singing.

Rubeus Hagrid

Aye. he turned back to Severus, his face unreadable —They say the sirens're real, Severus. I ain't never seen one with me own eyes. But I've heard things I can't explain.

Severus considered this for a moment, then shook his head, a faint, wry smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Severus Snape

Hearsay. The wind through the reeds can sound like many things if you're tired enough.

Rubeus Hagrid

grunting, clearly unconvinced —Yeh'll see. One day yeh'll see.

He clapped Severus on the shoulder with enough force to nearly knock him forward, and the conversation turned back to potion ingredients as they pressed deeper into the forest.