Disclaimer: Everything is J.K.'s (except Cornelia Rosebury Snape!)
A/N: An explanation of Lia's special abilities are included at the end of the chapter
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Albus Dumbledore hummed contentedly to himself one fine morning a month before the start of term. For once, he felt as though his worries were completely lifted from his chest. Harry Potter had another run-in with Lord Voldemort at the end of sixth year. This time, the Dark Lord was truly dead and gone, with most of his Death Eaters thrown in Azkaban. A few had been able to buy their way out of prison, of course, which worried him slightly. Nonetheless, he could not deny that the atmosphere was very much uplifted. Smiling benignly, he opened a thank you package from the Ministry and absently popped one of its contents, an Every Flavor Bean, into his mouth. Ten seconds later, he grimaced and choked. Alas! Pig fart!
A gentle hoot interrupted his sputters. Dumbledore looked up to see a beautiful female owl with caramel-colored feathers. It obviously wasn't a native. Curiously, he unrolled the parchment she was carrying and read:
Dear Albus Dumbledore:
I send my owl Tatiana with unfortunate tidings. My mother, Camilla Rosebury, was murdered last night. Her will states that I be enrolled in Hogwarts as a seventh year, and that I reunite with my father. I have never met him before; his name is Severus Snape. I know all the details of his role in the war. Is it possible for me to meet him sometime? Thank you, and please reply as soon as it is convenient.
Sincerely,
Cornelia Rosebury Snape
Dumbledore put the letter down with a deep sigh. He remembered Camilla Rosebury very well. A mischievous and stunning girl with curly brown hair and devastating blue eyes, she was one of Lily Evans's closest friends as well as a constant companion of the Marauders. She and Sirius were a couple during fifth and sixth years, infamously known for being the most troublemaking couple ever, until surprisingly, she went out with Severus Snape her seventh year. They were married secretly not long after graduation and Camilla was sent off to America for safety reasons. She and Severus hadn't been in contact for the past seventeen years in fear of their letters being intercepted. Dumbledore couldn't recall Severus ever mentioning anything about a daughter, though. Eyes suddenly twinkling mischievously, Dumbledore reached for more parchment to compose a reply to Cornelia Snape.
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Lia Snape was sitting idly by the window when she noticed the solicitor striding up the path with an air of great importance.
"Oh dear," she groaned.
The solicitor was in charge of her mother's will. He was a pompous, conceited Muggle who basked in his self-importance and gave Lia covert looks that had chills running down her spine.
"Miss Snape," came a prim voice from the other side of the door. "I cannot for the life of me find a simple doorbell. Would you kindly open the door for me?"
Lia stifled a giggle. Her mother's unconventional ways always had the poor solicitor going home in a headache.
"Good day, Mr. Finckleberger," she said, formally, as she opened the door.
"Ah, my dear Cornelia," the solicitor exclaimed, giving her the once-over.
Lia very much wanted to throw a punch when she heard her full name. Instead, she whipped her wand out her back pocket and murmured something discreetly.
"Ah, yes, well," the solicitor stuttered, suddenly uncomfortable. "Ah, you see, I thought it might be, well, in your best interest if I were to look the house over for, ah, certain necessities before it goes up for sale. We both know your late mother's strange quirks, ah…"
His voice trailed off as he caught sight of the look on Lia's face.
"She was a remarkable woman, really!" he added, hastily. "Just a bit…well…I suppose I could have a look around?"
He squirmed uncomfortably. Lia wanted to slam the door in his face, but a thought came over her.
"Why of course, my dear Mr. Finckleberger," she smirked, sweetly. "I'm sure this will be an unforgettable tour."
The solicitor beamed brightly and strode towards the kitchen, attempting to scratch his groin discreetly.
"Just checking for the usual appliances," he called.
Still smirking, Lia hurried after him and waved her wand towards the kitchen.
"Good heavens!" he exclaimed, jumping almost a mile into the air at the sight of the pots and pans scrubbing themselves lazily.
"Just a new form of technology, sir," Lia explained, sweetly.
The frying pan stuck a soap-studded tongue out at the solicitor and blew a raspberry.
"Oh, now, that was entirely inappropriate!" he said, swelling indignantly and scratching his groin again.
The water bucket in the corner heard and flew up to pour its contents over the solicitor.
"Oh…oh…Miss Snape!" he roared, dancing on the spot with his tummy jiggling comically, spotless suit now soaked.
"Oh, you see, they are a tad bit sensitive," said Lia, feigning chagrin.
"A tad…sensitive!" he roared again.
Tatiana the owl chose that moment to fly in with a letter attached to her leg. She hooted amusedly as she flew over the solicitor and dumped a good-sized stream on his head. Lia couldn't hold back her laughter anymore.
Ten minutes later, she finally ushered the indignant, furious solicitor out the door, his hair still covered with streaks of owl waste, thousand-dollar suit wrinkled, and scratching furiously at his groin.
"I'll be back soon, Miss Snape. You watch out!" he warned as he attempted to stride down the path with his usual pompousness.
Lia chuckled and turned to Tatiana.
"Is that a reply from Dumbledore?"
Tatiana hooted serenely. Lia unrolled long piece of parchment and read:
Dear Miss Snape,
I send my deepest condolences for your mother's death. Camilla Rosebury had been a remarkable girl during her school days and I have no doubt she grew up to be an extremely remarkable woman. I am, however, delighted to hear from you. Your father is currently the Potions Master at Hogwarts. I have not ever heard him mention a daughter, so my guess is that he has no clue of your existence. I will come back to this later.
You have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please owl back with the list of subjects you wish to study at N.E.W.T. level. Also, at ten sharp on August 31st, this parchment will turn into a portkey taking you to the Leaky Cauldron, where you can spend the night. The Leaky Cauldron leads to Diagon Alley, where you buy your school supplies. It may be wise to have your wand examined by Mr. Ollivander first. The Hogwarts Express leaves King Cross on September 1st. Please be at Platform 9 and three quarters at least ten minutes before 11 (which is when the train leaves). You will be Sorted when you arrive.
Now back to the subject of your father. Would you like to meet him sometime during the summer holidays? Or would you like to give him the surprise of his life when I say your name at the Sorting? It is completely up to you, but I have a sneaking suspicion of which one the daughter of Camilla Rosebury would pick.
Sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Lia grinned both in mischief and admiration. The man didn't miss anything, did he? Still grinning, she sent off her reply. What she didn't tell him was that she'd inherited from her mother the ability to perform Gypsy spells, Parseltongue from her father's side, and very special Pyromantic abilities of her own.
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A/N: Lia's abilities explained
Parseltongue: this is simple - the ability to converse with snakes )
Gypsy magic: Yes, the magical world does contain Gypsies. However, most of them choose to live in communities separate from the rest of the wizarding world. The few who venture out of those communities to attend schools (such as Lia's mother) are usually more powerful than your average witch or wizard.
Gypsy characteristics: All Gypsies are attractive, but in varying levels. Curly brown or black hair is most common, although some have been known to have wavy hair. No Gypsy has straight hair. The single most defining characteristic of Gypsies is definitely their extraordinary blue eyes, which have been described as "devastating" or "stunning" or "heart-melting." Indeed, many Gypsy women have been known to seduce Muggle men just by looking at them, although wizards are less susceptible to this charm. Unlike Veela, however, Gypsies cannot simply "turn on the charm." Gypsy blue eyes is a dominant trait; the trait is only subdued when the child has less than a quarter Gypsy blood, but if a wizarding couple, both of whom have some Gypsy blood and normal blue eyes, have a child, then the trait may be expressed once more.
Gypsy personalities: Gypsies are an outgoing, bubbly, have fun group. There are no known introverted or shy Gypsies. Some may be quieter than others, but they all have a genetic sense of fun in them. Gypsies are clever when it comes to manipulating people, and many Muggles and wizards have been outsmarted when buying Gypsy wares.
Special Gypsy powers: 1) Divination – all Gypsies are natural Seers. They have a special affinity for crystal divination; 2) Persuasion – Gypsies can use this power to coax others to act a certain way. However, this power is not coercive and people still have a choice to do what they want – they just feel more inclined to do it the Gypsy's way; 3) Intuition – Gypsies are legendary for their abilities to sense danger or evil intent. Although they cannot pinpoint the source, they can sense when something is definitely out-of-sorts; 4) Singing magic – Gypsies have beautiful voices. Their singing is used to communicate with animals and anything from nature; 5) Dancing magic – Unlike wizards, Gypsies don't always need wands to cast spells. Each spell has a particular pattern, and Gypsies dance that pattern to perform the spell; 6) Elemental magic – a Gypsy can control one of the many elements. Lia's special element is fire, which I listed under Pyromancy, since the ability isn't shared by all Gypsies. Some forms of elemental magic are: pyromancy, geomancy, aeromancy, and hydromancy.
Pyromancy: the ability to manipulate fire. Pyromancers control all forms of fire and some can perform destructive/defensive fire magic.