SUMMARY: Oh man I totally suck at these... This is a story about a young girl named Wendy Phillips, a Muggleborn who finds out she is a witch and who finds herself dependent upon a very surly wizard named Severus Snape. Interesting relationships develop...

DISCLAIMER: I probably won't remember to put this at the top of every chapter. Do I really need to? You know I don't own it. I know I don't own it. I know you don't own it. I know only J. K. Rowling owns it. It makes us all very sad.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hi. Welcome. Greetings. Thank you all for coming to read my fanfic. I encourage you all to read my bio as I am looking for friends and a proof-reader. Not really sure what else to say. Y'all make me nervous. That's silly, isn't it?

Anyway, this is my fic. I hope you enjoy it. If you do enjoy it, please review. Reviews keep me writing. They pop up on my phone and give me little bursts of much-needed confidence. Suggestions are welcome, too. Suggestions about what you think should happen, where the story should go...Know that I already have some vague ideas but I may take some suggestions into account and then wouldn't that be cool? You get to see your ideas come to life, I get to...not have writers block so much and hopefully make some friends!

Anyway I'll stop rambling. Thanks for clicking on me!

~Cubbette

As the Moon Rises

Chapter 1

Wendy Phillips was a Muggleborn. When the Sorting Hat had placed her in Slytherin in her first year, everyone had been surprised except her. She did not know what it meant to be a Muggleborn in the midst of such pureblood aristocracy and their prejudice against Muggleborns. She had not been prepared for the amount of abuse – both verbal and physical- she would come to take from her fellow students. She hadn't known about purebloods, half-bloods, Muggleborns – so crudely called Mudbloods by her Slytherin peers. She had still been reeling from finding out that she was a witch. She did not know how difficult that life was going to be for her.

For the first few weeks she worried. Worried she didn't belong there, in Slytherin House, or at Hogwarts at all. She spent her free time hiding in her dormitory with the curtains drawn around her bed. It was the only way the others would leave her alone. More often than not, she cried herself to sleep without ever going down to dinner. The other girls would make fun of her if they heard her crying.

A few weeks after the start of term, one of the older girls told her that Professor Snape, their head of house, wanted to see her in his office.
"Probably going to kick you out of Slytherin House," the older girl sneered. "Serves you right, Mudblood. You don't belong here."

"Maybe he'll put her in Gryffindor," added a nearby boy.

"Or Hufflepuff," said the girl. The two shared a cruel laugh and Wendy turned and walked out of the Common Room, keeping her face expressionless.

Wendy wasn't entirely sure where Snape's office was but she knew better than to ask the older students. They took extreme pleasure in sending her in the wrong direction – into the boy's lavatory or the kitchens, where students weren't allowed. She'd found the latter rather helpful. She had been scared of the house-elves at first until she got to know them. They lived to serve and they hadn't ratted her out to any of the teachers. In fact, they loaded her up with extra food every time she visited, which was good considering the frequency with which she skipped meals in the Great Hall, not wanting to see any of her classmates.

She headed in the direction she knew the Potions classroom to be, figuring Snape's office couldn't be too far from there. When she got close, she found one of Hogwarts infamous moving paintings. This one was of a man on the back of a horse, a sword strapped to his waist.

"Excuse me, sir?" she asked the painting timidly. "Can you tell me where Professor Snape's office is?"

"Certainly young lady!" he declared. "You are almost there. It is just around the corner, on the right."

"Great! Oh, uh, thank you sir," she said with a slight bow.

"You are very welcome, young one. Any time."

She hurried around the corner, took a deep breath, and knocked.

"Enter," said a low, dangerous voice from within.

Wendy realized she was trembling as she reached for the doorknob. What if he really was going to remove her from Slytherin house? She took another deep breath and opened the door.

Professor Snape was sitting at his desk, dressed in his usual black robes. He put down the quill he was writing with and looked up.

"Gwendolyn Phillips," he said. "Have a seat."

As much as Wendy hated her first name, she didn't dare correct this scary man who was meant to be her advisor.

Wendy sat down in the chair in front of his desk and met his gaze nervously.

"How are you, Miss Phillips?" he asked.

"F-fine," she replied, surprised. From what shed heard of Professor Snape, he wasn't one to take an interest in student's well being.

Snape cleared his throat.

"...Professor Dumbledore thought it would be a good idea to check in with you. See how you were adjusting to life at Hogwarts."

"Fine," she repeated blankly. The headmaster knew who she was?

"As a Muggleborn, in Slytherin House...Well, it's unheard of, really. I imagine you've had some difficulties, with your classmates?"

"Well..." she said hesitantly. She didn't want to get anyone into trouble.

Snape inclined his head.

"Children can be cruel and...superficial," he said. "May I make a suggestion?"

"Of course, sir," she replied, trying not to sound too desperate.

"Excel," he said.

"Sir?"

"Excel at everything. Surpass your classmates. Do your best – better than your best – in everything. Particularly spells," he said seriously. "If you excel in magic, well...they can't make fun of you for being Muggleborn if you are better than them."

Wendy was silent a moment, thinking. What he said made sense.

"Okay," she said slowly. "I'll try...Thank you, sir."

He inclined his head and she took that as her cue to leave. She was almost to the door when Snape spoke again.

"If you ever need a place to practice spells, or a quiet place to study...my classroom is empty in the evening and most of the weekend. I would not be opposed to letting you in to utilize the space, as long as you ask first."

"W- thank you, sir. I really appreciate your help," she said, meeting his dark gaze. He quickly looked away.

"It was the headmaster who asked me to speak with you," he said softly.

Wendy wanted to say that she didn't think the headmaster had asked him to share his classroom, but she was not about to get on his bad side.

"Well...thank him for me," she said, then turned and left.