hellooo I saw this post about Snape and nagini: https://www.tumblr.com/urupotter/669839929564708864?source=share
And I wanted to ask you something about Voldemort's dynamic with Snape. Because he obviously does not actually want to kill Snape and even discusses it with Nagini. He also tried sparing lily 3 times only because snape asked, which is VERY different from the voldemort we all know.
So, my question is, why do you think voldemort cared so much for snape in a certain way (we never really see him act this way with other DE's) ? Like, even his most loyal and high ranking DE's (Bellatrix and Lucius) are made fun of in front of the other DE (and they all laugh at them), but Voldemort is never condescending toward him like that. Also, when Bellatrix tried to make Snape seem untrustworthy to Voldemort, he would have none of it and didn't buy into Bellatrix's (true) suspicions.
Also, the link I put in this ask shows Nagini sort of caring about Snape, and Nagini has Voldemort's soul inside her.
Honestly, I think this is a difficult question to answer because we actually don’t know anything truly personal about Snape and Voldemort’s relationship. We don’t know why Voldemort regarded Snape so highly — only that he did, because the text shows us again and again that he did. That lack of information leaves a lot of room for interpretation.
Something I’ve always wondered about is the fact that, in the books, the only wizards known to fly unaided are Snape and Voldemort. Why only them? This would have been an incredibly useful ability for the other Death Eaters to possess, so why wasn’t it shared? The implication seems to be that this kind of magic is either extraordinarily difficult, deeply personal, or intentionally reserved — and that Voldemort trusted or respected Snape enough to allow him access to it.
There is also the matter of intellectual equality. Voldemort does not seek companionship, but he does recognise competence. Snape’s mastery of Occlumency alone places him in a category almost entirely separate from other Death Eaters. We don’t know if any of the other death eaters are able to perform occlumency. The fact that Snape can block Voldemort’s mind — even partially — without Voldemort realising suggests a level of magical sophistication that Voldemort cannot dismiss, even if he thinks Snape is using it against Dumbledore rather than him. Teaching Snape flight, or allowing him access to similarly advanced magic, may have been less about generosity and more about acknowledgement: Voldemort recognising that Snape is capable of understanding and executing magic at his level.
Your point about Voldemort confiding in Nagini and justifying his decision to kill Snape is especially interesting. Voldemort almost never has to justify his actions to anyone, yet here he does — and not only that, he explicitly states that he regrets having to kill Snape. That alone suggests that whatever Voldemort felt toward Snape, those feelings were unusually strong. This wasn’t just the disposal of a servant; it was the loss of something valuable.
There are so many unanswered questions. Why did Snape join the Death Eaters in the first place? Was it one defining factor, or a culmination of many smaller ones? How did he come into contact with Voldemort? What were the circumstances that led to that first meeting? And what exactly was their relationship like during the First Wizarding War? Voldemort was willing to spare Lily at Snape’s request — something he would almost never do — which suggests that Snape was already highly regarded long before the events of the series.
My personal opinion — and I’d genuinely love to hear other interpretations — is that Snape reminded Voldemort of himself. Both were half-bloods sorted into Slytherin, both were raised in the Muggle world, both resented Dumbledore at that point in their lives, and both were exceptionally clever — often more so than the pure-bloods who believed themselves superior.
Snape was inventing spells and improving potions while he was still a student at Hogwarts. His knowledge of the Dark Arts was extensive, and he never shied away from it. He defended himself, refused to back down, and consistently proved that blood status had nothing to do with ability. These are all traits Voldemort would have recognised immediately, because they were the same traits he valued in himself. Snape proved himself valuable.
This may also explain why Voldemort treats Snape less as a disposable servant and more as an investment. He protects him when others fall out of favour. He listens to him. He regrets killing him. Voldemort is not capable of affection in the conventional sense, but he is capable of valuation. Snape is valuable not only because he is useful, but because he confirms Voldemort’s self-image as exceptional, justified, and right.
Snape met Voldemort’s expectations — and then exceeded them. Someone like that is not easy to come by, especially within a group built on inherited status rather than earned power. In Snape, Voldemort found a half-blood who outperformed the pure-bloods, challenged him intellectually, and validated his own belief that greatness was something you proved, not something you were born into. And for someone like Voldemort, that kind of reflection — that kind of success — would have been impossible to ignore.
And for someone as isolated, self-obsessed, and fundamentally incapable of human connection as Voldemort, that may be the closest thing to respect he is able to offer.
