lily evans (potter) & severus snape
If you don't want to be spoiled on events from book 7, do not read ahead!
» Their Canon relationship?
Lily and Severus met when they were children, before they received their Hogwarts letters or attended Hogwarts. Severus had been spying on Lily for some time, studying her as she performed wild magic. Lily was the first magical person, other than his mother, who he had met. They lived in the same industrial area, somewhere in Northern England. We know for a fact that Snape lived on Spinners End, and we are given to believe that Lily lived down the road.
Lily and Severus became instant friends and Severus taught Lily everything about Hogwarts and the Wizarding world. We know for a fact that Severus had a crush on Lily when they were children, to which it morphed into love as they got older. Lily, unfortunately, never returned those feelings. It's not mentioned in the books, but in an interview with JK Rowling after the book was released, she did say that Lily would probably have returned his feelings if he had not dabbled in the Dark Arts. She also goes on to say that Severus dabbled in the Dark Arts because he wanted to show off to Lily, and let her see that he was a powerful wizard, worthy of her love.
In Lily's and Severus fifth year, we see another whole perspective on the whole "Marauders bullying Snape" pensieve scene. As we know, Lily comes to Severus defense, and in a rage, because Severus does not want to be protected by a girl, he calles her "Mudblood". That one word is the catalism that straines and breaks their relationship for good.
In 1981, Severus overhears half of the infamous Prophecy. He goes to tell his master, not knowing that he is condemning the woman he loves to death. When he eventually does find out, he begs Voldemort to spare her life. Behind Voldemort's back, he goes and asks for Dumbledore's aid in protecting Lily. In canon we know that Voldemort actually did try to spare her life, and when she did not relinquish her hold on Harry, he decided to kill her. This was yet another turning point for Severus, as when he learns of her death, he agrees with Dumbledore to protect Harry for Lily, and becomes a double spy, becoming the new professor of Potions. Eventually, Harry comes to Hogwarts and, well, that's another story. ;)
We learn in Deathly Hallows that Snape's patronus is a doe, which was Lily's. We learn that he is still in love with the woman he could never have, and we finally learn why it was so important that Harry had Lily's eyes. :)
» My personal stance on their relationship?
After finishing Order of the Phoenix, I was absolutely positive that Lily and Severus had been friends. JK is a master at writing the subtle, but I could see right through that whole pensieve scene. So I wasn't shocked when the truth finally came out, just pleasantly surprised. Fanon was actually what opened my eyes to a romance between them or unrequited feelings on Lily's part. By reading a few good fanfics, I started to actually believe that maybe Severus was in love with Lily, something which had never crossed my mind. Friends, yes, but nothing more than that. And in reality, they never were anything more than that, but I think you get my point here. ;)
It's a pity that Lily never returned his feelings. It's a pity that Severus dabbled in the Dark Arts, and all of that for power and fame so he could impress a girl who was already impressed with him, please! This just goes to show that Severus was a very very insecure young man, which JK actually confirms. I only wish Lily could have given him a second chance, but then, by giving him a second chance, Severus would have repented and she would have fallen in love with him eventually, and then that's all AU from there. So it would have never worked in canon, but then there's fanon. I'm all for reading an AU fic where Severus is Harry's dad. Doesn't Severitus make a little more sense now? lol! It's more plausible. But I'm getting off track here. ;)
In the end, their relationship actually makes the most sense. Everything we read about them in the last book makes perfect sense. So I guess, in closing, I really don't have a personal stance on their relationship. *re-reads what I wrote* I have seemed to just have written my thoughts on the relationship, and not my stance. o.o I guess my stance on them is that I'm glad they were friends in canon, I wish they were more than friends in canon, but I understand why it couldn't happen, but then again, as always, there is the lovely world of fanon, which twists things around to suits people's tastes. In the end, I'm satisfied with the Lily and Severus relationship in canon. It's cliche, but it works.