The Unrequited Adoration of Severus Snape
A/N: I saw Deathly Hallows Part 2 last night and simply had to write this. I should be watching Doctor Who right now. Enjoy and review!
Disclaimer: I don't own the world of Harry Potter or its characters. Only my OC, Clover Crane.
The small rays of light shining through the compartment window illuminated the somber face of a young girl of about eleven years old. She pulled her large black robes around her small frame and gazed to the empty seats around her. This was not a very good way to begin school, alone and shy. Clover Crane bit her pink lower lip as she listened to the shouts and giggles coming from other compartments which happened to be full. She fingered the emerald shamrock around her neck and choked back tears. She was going to miss her mum and dad so much.
They said that the necklace was for good luck, but she didn't feel quite lucky at that very moment. She fiddled with the two gold coins in her lap and tried to think about what she would get from the trolley instead. Her thoughts of licorice whips and chocolate frogs were, however, interrupted when a small pale face appeared in the doorway of her empty compartment. Her head whipped around and her searching eyes met those of a rather skinny boy, a little older than herself, with sallow skin and a hooked nose.
Her eyes glowed at the possibility of a new friend as she tucked a strand of straw colored hair behind her ear. The boy's eyes were black just like hers, but his held a certain mystique and sadness. Hers were simply dark and plain on a round face still tan from the summer sun.
"Hello, I'm Clover Crane and who are you?" she asked tilting her head. The boy stood there with black hair shrouding a solemn face and pale hands clasped.
"I'm Severus, Severus Snape. Have you, by any chance, seen a girl with red hair and pretty green eyes?" he questioned his white cheeks flushing at the word 'pretty'. Clover tried to hide her disappointment by keeping her eyes downcast.
She had seen the red haired girl go flying by her compartment, her long tresses swaying behind her back. The short haired Clover remembered feeling a pang of jealousy after seeing the ginger. This caused her to pull a small knit cap over her own burnt locks that looked like mud splattered hay. This was all due to an eager yearning to begin her spells and a rather unfortunate fire which came from a mispronounced incantation. Her Persian cat was now quite hairless.
"Yeah, I believe she went tha' way," Clover explained with a thick Scottish brogue which she had picked up after living with her parents in Scotland for seven years. She pointed with one little finger to the left of her compartment out of the train. The boy, Severus, gave her a curt nod before hurrying off to find his ginger companion.
Clover slumped in her seat and gave a little sigh. She grabbed her wand case out of her rucksack and glanced at her new wand with caution. She'd have to be more careful with this one. Being the arsonist of Hogwarts certainly wouldn't gain her any friends. She laid her head against the cool window and closed her eyes, listening to the call of the trolley and imagining her hair was long and red.
Her eyes danced around the Great Hall in a frantic ballet, determined to see everything at once. Everything was enchanting, the floating candles, the house ghosts, the charmed ceiling which displayed the winking stars. There were the crimson and gold, brave and bold Gryffindors amongst which, she saw the beautiful red-head from before. Then there were the quiet and clever Ravenclaws, watching each new student closely. There were the jolly and gentle Hufflepuffs being ignored by the other houses but smiling anyway. There was finally the Slytherins with their cold mysterious auras and proud up-turned noses. A pale face stood out among the sneering bunch, a solemn face with large black eyes gazing at the pretty Gryffindor girl. Clover frowned as she watched Severus Snape, the boy from the train, smile ever so slightly at his red haired friend from across the hall. A Slytherin and a Gryffindor as friends, she mused, how curious.
She felt her stomach rumble as her eyes fell on the long wooden tables that would soon be loaded with a wonderful assortment of foods. While her thoughts were adrift with visions of chocolate pudding, Clover nearly missed her name being called. She stumbled as she made her way up to the Sorting Hat, blonde charred stands of hair hanging in her face.
Professor McGonagall gave her a thin lipped smile as she sat down on the small stool. She closed her eyes and folded her hands in her lap as the raggedy pointed hat was placed on her head.
"Ah such a sad little soul," an old crabby voice rasped in her ear, making her nervous, "you're a tricky one, girl, your mind is everywhere at once yet your fate has one unfortunate path. Pity your heart is soft and you work so hard to please others therefore…Hufflepuff!"
Clover nodded and hurried over to the yellow and black table, their cheers fresh and loud since she was one of the first to be called. She tried to mask her disappointment for a second time that day as she slid in-between a russet haired boy her age and a rosy-cheeked brunette. A boy sitting across from her held out his hand which was pale and freckled. He had the same colorings as she did, dark eyes and fair hair, but his skin was a milky white contrasting with her tan as she clasped his hand.
"I'm a first year too, Barty Crouch Jr.," he stated his tongue darting across his lips, "don't worry, we Hufflepuffs are much exciting than we let on." He gave her a weak smile as she looked around at the other Hufflepuff students. Clover highly doubted this was true but, she smiled back anyway.
"I'm Clover Crane and I must warn you, I have a knack for setting things on fire," she said picking up a strand of burnt hair with a grin. Barty smiled back and Clover decided things might not be too bad after all. Her gaze shifted from the freckled boy chatting before her, to the Slytherin table where there sat Severus Snape. So mysterious, she thought biting her lower lip. He sat there, silent and still as a statue, without touching his food, a curtain of straight dark hair covering his face except for his nose.
Quite strange, Clover thought, before digging into her roasted chicken and telling her new acquaintance about her unlucky streak despite her given name. By the time the chocolate pudding appeared on the table, Clover had forgotten all about the boy who was Severus Snape. If only it could have stayed that way.
A/N: So that's it for now. If I get reviews I will continue soon, if not… I'll try again with a new plot bunny. I hope Clover didn't seem Mary-Sue-ish and I hope you guys enjoy your summer! And the Deathly hallows part 2!