Um... This is a thing???

I surprised to know that people ship this but it could work if James realized he was only being a dick to Snape because he liked him and not because he was in love with Lily

But then again Snape and Lily's Patronus is a doe and James's is a Stag so what if they were both possible soulmates for James? Hmmmm...?

Here are a few reasons why people ship them... 

Now, it's not surprising that a lot of Jeverus/Snames shippers are pro-Severus Snape, and a good number of us actually kinda hate James Potter for that very reason (I mean, we can all admit that James Potter was an entitled, cruel asshole throughout his life). And although I very rarely label ships as abusive, I can readily agree that, in canon, James and Severus have an abusive relationship, a bully/abuser and victim relationship. But we still ship them, for some reason? And a lot of people say it's for the enemies-to-lovers dynamic. I don't really buy that, at least not for myself. I have very specific reasons for why I ship my ships, and they're not usually for tropes as simplified and cliche as the enemies-to-lovers trope (no offence to anyone who likes that trope). Plus the Jeverus fics I've read explore character growth and dynamics in a way I rarely see in many other Marauders-era fics. They have the best characterisation of Severus Snape I've ever seen, with all his skills and quirks and flaws and soft spots and small joys, giving more to his character than just "abused child who pined hopelessly after Lily" (of course his abuse did shape some things about him, but there was more to Severus than that, he was more than his abuse and he was more than his love for Lily), and they don't romanticise (or completely demonise, even if he deserves a lot of the demonising) James Potter either. This is why I believe most Jeverus shippers have more articulate and interesting reasons for shipping Jeverus than the enemies-to-lovers trope as well. So I was trying to understand my own thought process behind shipping Jeverus.

Firstly, the way people ship them is that James Potter goes through a redemption arc. James sees his actions clearly, and realises what a huge dick he is to Severus. This leads to guilt and then a long process of trying to make it up to Severus, and, of course, he starts to get to know him and like him. Severus still hates James of course, and it takes ages for him to realise that James is being sincere in his apologies and that he actually does want to befriend Severus. Then, of course, it's the natural friends-to-best friends-to-lovers progression, though James falls in love with Severus first, and spends ages mentally battling with himself because he's scared of ruining the friendship they have and hurting Severus again. 

Severus takes much longer and spends even more time mentally battling with himself because he's falling in love with James Potter of all people (but James is actually being sincere and kind and a bit of a dork and the boy actually does have a sense of compassion and a brain, and Severus doesn't want to notice all this but he can't help it when James is practically drowning him in affection, no one's ever gone to such lengths for Severus before). Then hijinks and yelled-out confessions and Lily and the Marauders becoming matchmakers and James going to extreme lengths whilst courting Severus, leading to James and Severus finally getting together. 

I mean, let's not forget the whole "James saved Severus' life" thing. Don't get me wrong, I 100% know James just did it so that Remus and Sirius wouldn't get put in Azkaban, and not out of the goodness of his heart or anything. But if I view it through this narrative I have set up, then James is guilty af and maybe this is when he starts feeling like the Marauders have gone much too far. Killing Severus was never in the plan. This jump-starts his sense of guilt, and he tries to fight his feelings of guilt and self-disgust by starting the SWM thing. 

Afterwards, he realises he's gone too far again, and he kinda goes through a mental breakdown, re-evaluating all the shit he and the Marauders have done to Severus the last few years. He keeps trying to justify it, thinking to himself that Severus is a slimy git, a Slytherin, he hates Muggleborns, he's probably gonna become a Death Eater......but then he remembers how frantically Severus apologised to Lily after calling her a Mudblood. He remembers how absolutely broken Severus looked after SWM. He remembers the real fear in his eyes when Remus nearly killed him. 

He remembers how small and broken he looked every time the Marauders hurt him. He's suddenly wondering if he and the Marauders have been acting more like Death Eaters than Severus has ever acted. This jolts him, and thus brings about a series of revelations that boil down to (1) Severus Snape isn't a bad person and doesn't deserve all the shit he's had to endure from the Marauders and (2) the Marauders have been absolute dicks to Severus Snape and James needs to make it up to him. It starts out as self-justice, so he can let go of his guilt, but he quickly starts to like Severus and it just escalates from there.

People love watching James struggling with these new feelings and him pursuing Severus and earning his forgiveness, etc. Idk, for some reason having James falling for Severus is probably the best kind of punishment for him. Not because Severus is horrible or ugly or anything (I don't believe any of that), but because this is James' heart going against everything he believed to be true, everything he ever expected. For once, things aren't going James Potter's way. And he's sabotaged himself by bullying the object of his affections for years. 

And now he needs to suffer the consequences of his actions cuz they're affecting his own life, his own happiness, directly! James will have to emotionally suffer in order to (a) get Severus to forgive him, (b) get Severus to be his friend, and © get Severus to fall in love with him. On the way, he'll have to stop his bullying behaviour, change his view on Slytherins, and grow out of his sense of entitlement. So yeah, Jeverus is the best way for James to finally lose his bravado, suffer a lot in a very specific and personal way, and ultimately become a better person, while also making Severus feel loved. So yeah, it's cathartic.

Another thing is their respective "love" for Lily. I always thought James' "love" for Lily was just him wanting to be the one to finally "win" her, since she's "hard-to-get". James never had feelings for Lily, he just wanted to brag about the fact that he had finally gotten her to date him. He never respected her rejections and just kept pursuing her without her consent. Having Sev being the object of his affections will teach him about boundaries. And Sev's love for Lily seemed platonic to me. 

Maybe he and Harry and Dumbledore and all thought it was romantic love, but to me, it seemed more like a lonely boy who couldn't tell the difference between romantic love and platonic love, and just wanted to keep his only friend. Severus was too dependent on Lily, so I think getting with James Potter would be good for Sev, since Sev will feel wanted, like somebody's willing to fight for him, with James. Of course, I still want Sev and Lily to stay best friends, just with less dependence and more camaraderie and open affection for each other, like they were pre-Hogwarts.

Now, this next reason is more observational and may venture into hc territory. Let's face it, James Potter is canonically a bit obsessed with Severus Snape. Negative or positive, it's still an obsession. He literally pursues Severus to bully him more than he pursues Lily to ask her out! And his bullying behaviour and constant insistence that he bullies Severus "because he exists" kinda makes me think of alternative reasons. "Pigtail-pulling" comes to mind (AKA bullying someone cuz you have a crush on them).

 James seems like the type of guy who'd torment their crush to simultaneously get their attention and prove to themselves and the world that he doesn't like them. We all know that sometimes boys who are attracted to other boys showcase toxic masculinity so they can reassure themselves that they don't like guys. This seems like a very James thing to do tbh, internalised homophobia causing him to exhibit toxic masculinity to cover up the fact that he's in love with Severus. I can honestly see this being the reason he bullied Severus so much. He was ashamed of his feelings for a boy, much less a poor, conventionally unattractive Slytherin boy. I feel like that's why he pursued Lily so fervently; he was trying to prove to himself and the world that he's straight. 

Plus liking Lily could be used as an excuse. He can simply act like he's jealous of Severus and that's why he's so obsessed with him, not because he's in love with him. Idk, all this seems so real to me once I think about it, as if it actually happened in canon. Either way, James Potter is probably bi/gay/etc. and has internalised homophobia, and he constantly bullies Severus Snape to prove to himself that he hates him, when in actuality he's in love with him. The "crush" on Lily is a cover-up to mask his feelings for Severus and to convince himself and everyone else that he's obsessed with Sev cuz he's jealous of him, not cuz he's in love with him, and to convince himself and everyone else that he only likes girls. At least, that's how I see it😅

Another, more symbolic thing is their Patroni. James' Patronus is a stag. Severus' Patronus is a doe. And of course, we know that the books say that Severus' Patronus is a doe cuz he loves Lily, but I hc that his Patronus was always a doe. It just suits him better. Doe's are alert, skittish, sensitive, careful, they're always on the lookout for danger, they're the easiest prey (for bullies, in Sev's case). Lily is fierce, protective, and quick-tempered, so I think a lioness should've been her Patronus, but I digress. I just believe that Sev's Patronus has always been a doe. James' Patronus being a stag is perfect, since stags are proud, bold, and showy. And a stag (James) and a doe (Severus)? Compatible af. Soulmates. It's just one of my favourite Jeverus hcs.

If you look at their personalities, they're highly compatible. They differ but they're also similar (much like Gryffindors and Slytherins in general). I've read countless Gryffindor/Slytherin posts, and they really do mirror Jeverus. Slytherins reign in Gryffindors' impulsive, reckless instincts, while Gryffindors bring out Slytherins' sense of competitiveness so they can shine instead of hiding their abilities. Gryffindors and their grand schemes would mix perfectly with Slytherins and their ability to execute these grand schemes with subtlety and cunning and finesse. Griffinrin ftw❤️💚👏🏼👌🏼 

James is bold and loud and impulsive and showy, while Severus is careful and intelligent and clever and a perfectionist. James can bring out Severus' passion and skill, while Severus can reign in some of James' more destructive qualities. Not to mention the fact that James is rich and has a warm, loving family, and if he and Sev get together then James can buy Sev new quills, books, robes, and all sorts of gifts, and bring him over to his comfortable, warm house, where Sev will finally be doted over by a warm, loving family. James and Severus are a perfect fit. James has everything, except a good personality. In falling in love with and being with Severus, James will become a better person, get to be with the love of his life, and be happy. Severus has nothing in terms of material items or status or a warm, loving home environment. In falling in love with and being with James, Severus will get all that, get to be with the love of his life, and be happy. So James and Severus are in love with each other and happy, and everyone's happy!

So yeah, basically, these are the reasons people ship Jeverus/Snames! With a bit of canon divergence, it would work perfectly. It requires a whole lot of character growth and forgiveness and a slow, positive progression of their relationship, all the factors I adore in my ships! 

So, do I ship this? Hm... I guess so but only a little bit.

Rating: 5/10