All copyrights of Harry Potter belong to J.K. Rowling and strictly to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing of the Harry Potter world.
A/N: This story came to me in a dream and I truly did love this dream. I didn't want it to end. So enjoy, read and review please. I'm not a great writer but writing is a passion of mine so please excuse any errors, I do not have a beta reader.
Pairing: OC/Severus Snape
Rating: Mature
Story Description: Chanel Lotus is a Native American witch who goes to Hogwarts. What happens when she slowly falls for her professor, Severus Snape, will she see the real him or be fooled by his "darkness"?
The Native Flower that Blooms in Darkness
Chapter 1 How Love Came to Be
I can't explain it. I don't quite understand it myself. I was raised right, no problems growing up. But still I end up here, blood seeping from the wound in my chest, lacerations graces my skin, and I am dying. I'm not quite sure how I ended up here. Hogwarts is in flames, the stones crumbling, and my friends dying. But that's not the worst of it, watching him die, that was the moment that killed me. I've been dead the moment he fell to the ground. And now I join him. But that is the end of this story and not the beginning. So let me go back a few years, to when I was 16.
My name is Chanel, Chanel Lotus, I am in fact Native American. My parents wanted me to transfer to Hogwarts because well my father went to Hogwarts and to him it is the greatest wizarding school in the world. So I transferred my fifth year. I can still remember getting on the Hogwarts Express on Platform 9 ¾ at King's Cross Station. My parents waving as the smell of metal and coal wafted in the air. I knew no one and therefore wandered the train till I found an empty compartment in which I could read. I'm not a beautiful girl, not in my eyes. I stand at 5'4. I have black hair with a pixie hair cut, dark brown eyes, and brown skin. I'm not extremely thin nor am I extremely thick, I have the curse of my mother's curves and I have brown glasses. See? Not exactly the definition of beautiful. It was on the train that I met the Golden Trio. They had wandered into my compartment.
"May we join you, everywhere else is full," they said. I nodded my assent and returned to my copy of A Farwell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. There was a boy with black hair and glasses, another boy with red hair, a girl with busy brown hair, a red head girl, a blonde girl, and another boy carrying a strange plant. I was never very social so I immediately shut myself out. They talked, apparently two of them the bushy haired girl and the red head boy were prefects and left shortly for a meeting in their own compartment. I was left with the other four. They all looked at each other awkwardly when the red haired girl turned to me and asked what my name was.
"I'm Chanel, Chanel Lotus," I said trying my best to smile. I was born with a natural frown.
"I'm Ginny, Ginny Weasley. This is Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom, and Harry Potter," she said. They all had odd last name but then again so was mine. I smiled and shaked their hands in turn.
"I've heard about you Mr. Potter, I'm from the states," I said, they all did a little aha and then went on to talk about Hogwarts. "Well I'm a transfer student so this will be my first year at Hogwarts."
"Oh then you'll have to be sorted! Right?" Ginny asked. I shrugged my shoulders.
"I was just told to see a Professor McGonagall?" I asked. They all nodded.
"She's our head of house, we're Gryffindors but uh Luna is a Ravenclaw," Ginny said with an air of pride. I nodded and furrowed my brow. I wasn't all quite sure what a Gryffindor or a Ravenclaw was but didn't want to ask. I didn't want my lack of knowledge about Hogwarts to show. My father was away over the summer for his job and my mother didn't know much of Hogwarts either so I was going about this blindly. I continued to converse with the four of them until it was time to change into our school robes, Ginny helped me with mine as I wasn't quite used to wearing robes in the first place. When we arrived at the station I was told to follow a burly tall man named Hagrid along with the first years to Hogwarts.
"Hello Ms. Lotus, I 'ave heard all abou' ya. I'm the Gameskeeper and Care of Magical Creatures professor, I'm Hagrid," he said quite politely. I smiled at him and followed him and the first years onto these boats. On these boats we made our way to Hogwarts. It was quite a sight from where we were. It was by far bigger than my old school and beautiful in contrast. But at the same time it was a bit overwhelming.
As we arrived an older woman with her hair in a bun and an emerald witch's hat on her head led us into what she called the Great Hall. She called me to her side and told me that I would be sorted with the first years and to see her first thing in the morning about my schedule. I nodded and followed her into what was the biggest room I had ever been in. The room was filled with the rest of the students and was sitting at four big rectangular tables. At the head of the room was another table where it looked like where the professors sit. In front of the head table was a single stool and a wizard's hat. Professor McGonagall called us alphabetically and each of us were sorted into our "houses" according to McGonagall there were four, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now I understood what Ginny was talking about. As I sat down on the stool and had the hat placed on my head I was afraid that where I ended up was where I didn't want to be but I wasn't quite sure which house I wanted to be in. It wasn't a few seconds before the hat declared that I was to be placed in Ravenclaw. I sat at the table where Luna was sitting. She congratulated me and started to tell me all about Ravenclaw. Everything was a bit overwhelming. I ate as much as I could but in the end I wasn't that hungry. I followed Luna to our house and I was to room in the same room as her. I could feel myself beginning to have a bond with her. She was quite odd and had this way to her voice but she was the only person I knew in the house. I unpacked my trunk and changed into my nightgown and tried my best to fall asleep. I woke up earlier than everybody the next day and got ready to the best of my ability. Combed my hair to the side, put on some brown eye liner, grabbed my book bag filled with my books and made my way to the Great Hall where McGonagall said she would be waiting for me. She was sitting at the head table and motioned for me to come to meet her as I entered. I rushed up to her.
"Good morning Ms. Lotus," she said handing me a piece of parchment. I took the piece of parchment and looked at the schedule. My first class was Potions with a professor Snape?
"Good morning professor," I said nodding at her.
"That's your schedule as you can see, you are a fifth year and we have gone over the classes you took at your previous school. Your father suggested that you be in Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes so that is what I put you in as well as your core classes. Your first class is Potions with professor Snape, he is here," she said gesturing to her right. I followed her gesture and nodded to the professor. He looked about middle-aged with black hair and these dark eyes. I nodded towards him and looked back at my schedule. He didn't so much as look at me.
"Okay," I said ready to turn to go sit down.
"Luna said she would be willing to show you to your classes," McGonagall said. I nodded my head and turned to go sit by where Luna was having breakfast.
"Let me see your schedule!" she said brightly as I sat down beside her. I handed her the parchment and watch her bounce in glee as she surveyed my schedule.
"We have our core classes together but I'm not taking Ancient Runes," she said frowning a bit. "Have you met professor Snape?'
"Um, not really. McGonagall showed me who he was but he didn't so much as look at me," I said looking back at the head table to look at the professor. He was eating his breakfast with an air of not wanting to be interrupted by anyone. He seemed shy but then again looks are deceiving. He was a mystery to me and I liked mysteries. I could feel myself identifying with the professor. We both had dark features and though he seemed a bit rude I did enjoy Potions at my old school.
"He's just like that, don't take it personally," Luna said bringing me out of my thoughts. I turned back to look at her, she smiled brightly. It was contagious. I'm not used to smiling; it always takes a bit of effort to smile especially if you were born frowning like I was. I wanted nothing more than to sit in some dark corner of the castle and read my book but I didn't want to be rude to Luna, not when she was being so nice to me. So I followed her to our first class, Potions. We took seats in the front of the class and waited.
"I do hope some of you have learned something these past five years I've been teaching Potions, because today will be no exception in testing your knowledge," professor Snape said with no smile in sight. I watched him walk into the classroom with an air of someone who wasn't joking or of someone who never joked. He took one look at me and sighed. "And those of you new to my class better learn quickly." I frowned and tried my hardest not to curl in on myself. He had this monotone voice that made you question yourself. I never liked questioning myself. I had this urge to reach into my bag and take one of my anxiety pills but I didn't want to not in front of the class or in front of professor Snape. No one knew but I have muggle illnesses. My mother never wanted my father to take me to a wizarding hospital so I'm stuck with pills and therapy. There is a reason I'm sad all the time, and I'm not social. I have Major Depressive Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder as well as Bipolar Disorder-NOS. Professor Snape reminded me of this teacher I had back in first grade. She would yell all the time and intimidate you but professor Snape didn't yell but damn could he intimidate. I followed his directions and the directions in my potions book but somehow my potion wasn't turning out as it should, I took one look around the classroom and found that everyone else was having the same trouble. Professor Snape stalked around the classroom with an air of disapproval and sneered at the other students whenever a puff of smoke emitted from their cauldron. I was dreading his comments as he came nearer to where Luna and I were. Luna was having trouble with her potion as was I but at least mine wasn't moving across the table like some mad science experiment.
"Ms. Lovegood, ten points from Ravenclaw for your moving abomination," he said with an air of sarcasm. I could feel my hands shaking as he moved to look at my cauldron. I couldn't stop. I tried to stop my hand from shaking around the handle of the wooden spoon I was using but it was no use. I was ready to just give up, to sigh and assent my surrender but then I felt a hand on mine guiding my movements around the cauldron and I instantly stopped shaking. I opened my eyes and looked down at the hand on top of mine. It was a pale hand with veins sticking out, it was also cracked and sturdy, it was emitting warmth I've only felt in my mother's hands and I didn't want it to let go but it did and I was left speechless.
"If you would stop shaking, your potion might come out decent enough. Ten points from Ravenclaw for nervousness," professor Snape said walking to his desk. I couldn't look at him not after what I just felt. I couldn't explain it. I didn't quite understand it myself. That single touch stopped my shaking, something that's never happened before. My mother would try to do the same thing but my hands would go right on shaking, trembling. My anxiety can be a curse and only pills could stop it but I was no longer shaking nor was I worrying or anxious. That single touch made it all go away and I was left speechless. I finished the potion in silence. Luna went on chattering as if nothing had happened and maybe to her and everyone else nothing did happen but I felt it. It was like electricity, snare drums, and lightning. It was warmth, safety, and I didn't know how to react. How did someone react to such a feeling? A feeling of…of…of such massive proportions. Maybe I was overanalyzing it but how could I not? When you have anxiety like I do, it's hard to find something to help it. Professor Snape did something that's taken me years to achieve on my own. I could explain it. I didn't quite understand it myself.
. . .