DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING JK ROWLING DOES!

"Albus!"

He looked up from his book as she ran in.

"Albus," she said, finding him at his desk. "I'm so glad you're awake. We have a situation," she panted, sounding more Scottish every second.

"What is it, Minerva? I see you have stopped the ruckus outside," he said calmly.

"Yes, well, I believe we have found the source of that," she stated as she ushered Hagrid in. Dumbledore's eyes widened.

"What is this?" he asked. "And already a week into classes."

"We found her on the stairs, sir," Hagrid explained as he laid her on a couch. "She's unconscious."

"I see that, Hagrid," Dumbledore replied. "I believe you should go fetch Madame Pomfrey."

"Yessir," Hagrid said, running out the door.

"Now, Minerva," Dumbledore began. "What are we to do with her? I suppose…"

"What is going on?" Snape said as he rushed in. "First, there's what sounds like a shouting match outside, and just a moment ago Hagrid almost ran me over! Can someone please explain…"

"See for yourself, Severus," the great bearded man replied. "It seems we have a new arrival."

Snape turned towards the couch, finally noticing the girl. He walked over to her, noticing the wild black curls surrounding the skin that was almost too pale to be normal. "Oh. So what do we do with her?"

Dumbledore considered this. "Well, Minerva and I were just about to discuss that when you came in."

"Yes, well, Albus, we will need to know what year she'll be. She's very small, so perhaps only a second or third year…"

Snape lost track of their conversation as the girl slowly began to turn her head to the sound of their voices. He stared as her eyes flickered open and she saw him, appearing as if she wanted to say something. She was weak and in pain, he could tell. As she opened her mouth and tried to sit up, her face twisted into a painful grimace and she fell back, unconscious, onto the couch.

He couldn't take his eyes off of her. Her eyes, they were green. Bright green, exactly like…

"I suppose we could Sort her tonight," Dumbledore said. "That way…"

"No," Snape said as he suddenly came back to the conversation. "She should know what year she's in first."

"I agree with Severus," McGonagall stated. "It's the middle of the night. We might as well wait until morning to do all of it."

"She can stay in Slytherin," Snape said, as Madame Pomfrey burst through the door. She immediately began examining the young girl.

"How thoughtful, Severus, to remember that one of your girls had moved. What a splendid idea," Dumbledore agreed.

"Have you come to any conclusions?" McGonagall asked as Madame Pomfrey walked towards the small congregation.

"She may have a slight concussion and she's pretty roughed up," the woman said, "but what worries me is not her condition. I think you'd better take a look at this." She flattened a crumpled piece of paper on Dumbledore's desk. It read:

To Whom May Be Concerned:

This girl now belongs to you. She no longer has parents or a home. Do not try to find either, for she has brought shame upon both. Neither wants to be found.

She will tell you anything else you need to know.

That was where it ended. The three professors looked up in astonishment.

"I guess it's settled then," McGonagall said in amazement. "I'll just call Hagrid back."

"No need, Minerva," Snape said. "I'll take her."

"Severus are - " she started to say as he gently lifted the young girl into his arms. "Alright, then." She nodded.

"She'll be fine in the morning, though she may have a headache," Madame Pomfrey said.

"I'll leave her a note for when she wakes up, and a potion," he said as he walked out of the door.

He studied her as he walked. She was very small, fragile even. He would have been surprised if she was tall enough to reach his shoulder. She also looked emaciated, like she had never eaten more than a meal and a half in a day. He wondered who had been her caregivers.

Her eyes flickered again, and once more he saw a flash of brilliant green. There was no doubt about it, history would repeat itself. The Sorting Hat would declare her a Gryffindor before it even touched her head. No, he couldn't let that happen. There was too much going on, and he had to take care of her this time. He couldn't let that happen again.

As he laid her down in the empty bed in the dormitory, he paused to consider what to put in his note. As he thought, he searched his pockets for the potion that took head pain away. These days, he always carried it with him.

He found, as he laid the potion on her bedside table, that Dumbledore had somehow already written a note and sent it there. Now it merely waited to be opened. Dumbledore must have known that he wouldn't be able to find the correct words. But then, these days Dumbledore seemed to know everything.

Severus Snape walked out of the dormitories and back to his residence, to await whatever the next morning was going to bring.