Severus woke the next morning to see Albus sitting in an armchair beside his bed. "You didn't need to stay here," he said quietly, sitting up.
Albus shook his head. "It's not like I haven't slept here before." He smirked at his son. "Remember when you had Dragon Pox when you were 14?" He smoothed the blankets. "The only child I'd ever known that didn't get them in grammar school."
"You do know that if I ever had an excuse to meddle with your memories that I would choose to get rid of a few of the more embarrassing ones?" Severus grumbled, pulling the covers off and standing by the bed.
"How do you feel?"
"Fine. A little bit of a headache still, but otherwise not bad."
"Emotionally?" Albus put his hand on Severus' shoulder. Snape looked at him calmly.
"I always knew I lost her. At least now I know that she forgave me for that day. The only thing I have left to feel guilty about is that I sent her to Godric's Hollow. However," he pulled trousers and a shirt from the back of the desk chair, "I am perfectly comfortable blaming you for that right now, or maybe Potter." He smirked to himself. "Yes, Potter, I think. And Black, of course. I ought to go to Azkaban to kick that bastard in the groin a few hundred times, then rip him apart…" His eyes glowed for a moment. "But right now, I need to find my daughter." He dressed and donned his robes.
"You should take Hagrid with you."
Severus sighed. "If I need help, I'll send for it." He gripped his wand.
Albus nodded. "Go. Bring her here when you find her."
Severus nodded, headed for the fireplace. "Their home is connected to the Floo?"
"Only to the one in my office."
Severus nodded again before walking into the office, grabbing a handful of powder from the candy dish on the mantle, throwing it into the fire and stepping in before intoning "Dursley residence" and disappearing.
*S*S*
There was something wrong with the floo. When he arrived at the Dursley's fireplace, there was wood blocking the exit. Severus crossed his arms, looking at the crude wall from inside. There was a chance he'd arrived at the wrong place. If that were the case, blasting his way into the house would be, at the very least, embarrassing. If he knew more about the house, he could apparate, but he wouldn't want to end up in a dog's cage or something. Of course, if Elizabeth was in there, so hurt or sick she couldn't get her letter, he wasn't sure that he cared about the chance for embarrassment or being bitten by a dog. He needed to get rid of the wood.
Confringo might cause too much of a blast. He didn't want to destroy the house, much less himself. Coming through the wood with a conjured ax would possibly send the wrong signal, especially if Elizabeth was in the living room. Deprimo might cause similar problems as the blasting curse, but would be less likely to destroy the house. He didn't know how the spell would react when cast in such a small space. Calm down, Snape, think clearly he thought to himself. After a moment, he rolled his eyes at his own idiocy. You call yourself a Slytherin? Going around prepared to blast things like a Gryffindor.
He raised his wand. Evanesco! The wall of wood before him vanished. He found himself staring out into a modest living room. He stepped out of the floo and straightened his robes. He glanced around the quiet room. There were photos along the mantle. He looked over them, recognizing Lily's sister, Petunia, from childhood. It was a shame, he thought wryly, that she hadn't grown into her obscenely long neck. At least he knew he was in the right house.
In the pictures, Petunia and… Vernon? Severus thought back to the limited interaction he'd had with his brother-in-law. Vernon. In the pictures, Petunia and Vernon were holding a plump boy of various ages. Severus could vaguely remember that Petunia had a child, about Elizabeth's age, but couldn't remember the child's name. He looked for a picture that included a little girl, but there weren't any. This did not help his anxiety level.
He walked further into the house, not hearing anyone, and wondering where they could be. Of course, you dolt, he muttered aloud. It's Sunday, they're probably doing something. He remembered that when he was still living at Spinner's End, Tobias would go fishing on Sundays and Eileen would go shopping. Often he'd stay home. It was the best part of his week. He heard a crash coming from the kitchen and he leapt in that direction, wand drawn.
On the floor, surrounded by a shattered drinking glass, was a dark-haired, green-eyed child. He suddenly wished he hadn't worn robes. This was the most Muggle home he'd ever seen. He got the idea that this child hadn't seen robes since she was a baby.
The green eyes looked up at him, frightened. "I'm sorry!" The girl cried, trying to sweep the broken glass with her hands.
"Stop!" Severus strode to the middle of the room and plucked the girl from the shards. Sitting her in one of the kitchen chairs, he crouched in front of her. "Are you hurt?"
The girl shook her head, tucking her arms behind her back. Severus pulled them back out and looked at the scratches. He looked up, and her hair slipped off her forehead, revealing a lightning bolt scar. He sucked in his breath at the sight. "You have glass in your hands, Elizabeth. Stay very still." He raised his wand and cast a cleaning and healing charm. "Are you hurt anywhere else?" He looked sternly at her. "Don't lie to me again." The girl, eyes riveted on her healed hands, pointed to her ankle, where there was another piece of glass.
Severus waved his wand again, then ordered her to stay where she was. He went back to the mess, vanishing the glass slivers before turning back to the girl. He looked at her quietly. Lily's eyes looked back at him. She was so small. She was 10, but she was short and thin, and her clothes hung off of her as if they'd been fitted on someone else.
Elizabeth suddenly seemed to realize something. "I'll finish washing the dishes, I promise. Please don't tell my Aunt and Uncle!"
"Where are your relatives?" He asked quietly, wondering why his daughter was alone in the house. Ten was too young for that, wasn't it?
"They're at the zoo. It's Dudley's birthday." The girl looked up at him. "I mowed the lawn and vacuumed, but I still have to dust and clean the bathrooms and finish the dishes so I can cook dinner." She looked shy all of a sudden. "Thank you for fixing the glass. How? I…never mind."
Severus crouched in front of her. "Why would you have to do all those things?"
She looked at him, then stared at the floor. "My Aunt and Uncle took in a freak like me, but I have to earn my keep."
Severus felt his blood boil. "Who called you a freak?" The child recoiled and he tried to soften his tone. "Elizabeth," He tipped her face up gently. "Did your relatives call you that?"
She nodded. "Things happen around me," she whispered. "I'm bad." Suddenly, she looked at him in horror. "I'm not supposed to talk to you."
"It's alright, Elizabeth, I'm a friend. What kinds of things happen to you?"
"Once my teacher's hair turned blue," she said softly. "And then once I was running and I ended up on the school's roof." She blushed. "I don't try to make them happen! I promise!"
She accidentally apparated, Severus thought, swelling with pride. He looked down at his little girl. "Elizabeth, you didn't do anything wrong. You did accidental magic."
The child's eyes widened. "You can't say that! Uncle Vernon will be mad!"
Severus cocked his head to the side. "It's not a bad word. It's true. You're a witch, Elizabeth. Just like your mum."
Elizabeth shook her head vigorously. "My mum and dad are dead. They died in a car crash because my dad was a rotten drunk." She whispered the last part.
Severus scowled, then remembered something. "Elizabeth, what was your father's name?"
"James," Elizabeth answered, then put a hand over her mouth. "I'm not supposed to know that," she said earnestly. "I just saw a picture, and there was writing on the back. Aunt Petunia has a box, but I'm not supposed to know about it. Uncle Vernon doesn't know about it."
Severus sighed, though he didn't really have a problem with James being remembered as a rotten drunk. "Elizabeth, do you want to keep living here?"
Elizabeth looked confused by the question. "I have to live here. No one else wants me."
Severus shook his head. "Elizabeth, your parents did not die in a car crash. Your mother and James were killed by a very bad man. But James was not your father." He paused, wondering how to say it. "I'm your father." Artlessly done, Severus. You could have been gentler, he scolded himself.
Elizabeth seemed to consider the point. "Then why do I live here?"
The question stabbed Severus in his heart. "I was in a lot of danger, when you were a baby, and I thought you would be safe here." He looked her over. "It appears, however, that I was wrong. Tell me, do you do all the chores around here?"
Elizabeth nodded.
"And what happened if you don't?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "Not supposed to talk about it," she whispered.
"It's alright, I'm not going to let anything else happen to you. Do they hit you?"
Elizabeth shook her head, and Severus breathed slightly easier. "They lock me in my room sometimes, with no food."
Severus glared at no one in particular. It seemed to him that "sometimes" came often due to his daughter's stature. Lily had been small, but not this small. "Show me your room, Elizabeth." Hesitantly, she slipped from the chair and walked to the door under the stairway. She opened the door to reveal the cupboard, with a pallet and a blanket.
Severus was not altogether surprised; he'd had warning with the letters after all. But the reality made the knife in his heart twist. "Elizabeth, I want you to get everything that belongs to you. You're coming with me."
Elizabeth looked both afraid and hopeful. She went into the cupboard and returned with a grey wolf plush. "Lunus" he said softly, holding out his hand for the toy. Elizabeth tentatively handed it to him.
"How do you know his name?"
*S*S*
Remus Lupin sat on the sofa, holding his goddaughter. He cradled her in one arm, and made the plush wolf dance with the other hand. She giggled every time he moved the wolf, and even more so when he gave it a voice. "Hello, Miss Evans. My name is Lunus."
Severus looked on with amusement. "I shouldn't let you hold her, you know. She's going to get confused over who her father is."
Remus rolled his eyes. "Not a chance, my friend, she knows who you are." To prove his point, he lifted the child up. "Elizabeth, where's Daddy?" The child grinned and kicked her legs towards Severus, drool bubbling from her mouth. "a-ay!"
*S*S*
Severus' lips turned up a bit. "Your godfather gave this to you when you were born. You wouldn't sleep without it." He tucked the plush under his arm. "Get the rest of your things, Elizabeth, and we will go."
Elizabeth shook her head. "I could bring the blanket, but it isn't very warm."
Severus narrowed his eyes, realizing that the child was not joking. She had nothing other than the grey oversized clothes on her back, and Lunus. "Don't worry, Elizabeth, I have blankets." He led her to the fireplace before he realized that the Dursleys did not have floo powder. Of course not, he thought to himself, then knelt down. "Elizabeth, we are going to apparate. It will feel similar to when you went up on the roof, but I know how to take us where we want to go. I have to hold you tightly. Is that alright?"
Elizabeth nodded, so he handed her Lunus. "Hold on to him." Severus picked her up, holding her against his robes and with a POP they were gone.
*S*S*
Elizabeth threw up when they arrived at the gates of Hogwarts. Or, rather, released a substantial amount of water from her stomach. Severus held her hair back from her face, then wiped her mouth with a damp handkerchief.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Tears formed in her eyes, and Severus pulled out a dry handkerchief to wipe them away.
"Hush. Everyone is sick after his or her first apparation." He pointed at the castle. "This is Hogwarts, so we're almost there. Are you ready?" Elizabeth looked uncertainly at the incline, but nodded. She took a few steps, but he could tell she was weak, and decided to pick her up, carrying her against his shoulder like he did when she was a baby. She was so small, and he could feel her ribs through her shirt. He paused to brush the hair from her face and to make sure that was holding Lunus.
It was strange, the transformation, he thought to himself. A day ago, he felt no need to be gentle to anyone for any reason. Even Albus and Minerva, who loved him, were not immune to his quick temper. He loved them, he supposed, much the way he'd loved his mother when she was alive. But the love sometimes felt more like debt. As if he owed them his allegiance for everything they'd done for him over the years. They would have never married if it wasn't to give him a two parent home. Albus was 44 years Minerva's senior. Old enough to be her grandfather. But Minerva insisted that Severus have a father who loved him like Tobias never did.
Today, he wanted nothing else than to protect the child in his arms. When he'd first gotten over the shock of seeing her, he'd felt an incredible amount of guilt. It was his fault that she had been in the house at Godrick's Hollow that night. But he had to push the feeling down. It was not the time to wallow. He needed Madam Pomfrey to take a look at the girl, and then figure out what to do from there.
They arrived at the doors, and Severus pushed his way inside and up the stairs to the Hospital Wing. "Poppy!" He called to the mediwitch, who came out of her office.
"Severus? Who do you have there?"
"I need you to examine her, she may have some damage, I'm not sure… I mean..." Severus Snape had never stuttered in his life, or at least his adult life. He prided himself on his command of the language, but he was lost on how to explain it to Poppy.
The witch looked confused. "Lay her on the bed, and let me see." Severus tried to put the child down, but she clung to his robes, casting frightened eyes at Poppy.
"Calm down," Severus said softly. "This is Madame Pomfrey. She will check and see if you are hurt anywhere. I need you to lie on the bed."
Elizabeth shook her head and burrowed deeper against him. Poppy looked on, waiting. The Severus Snape she knew would, at the very least scold the child, and at the most push her away. But, as she watched, he did neither of those things. Instead, he sat on the bed, and gently guided her away from him chest.
"Elizabeth, do you hurt anywhere?" He asked gently. The girl nodded. "Where?"
"My stomach," she answered slowly, "and my head."
"I want to help you, but I need Madam Pomfrey to help me find out how to make you feel better. Lie down on the bed, and I'll stay right here."
After a moment of thought, Elizabeth nodded, and allowed him to lay her on the bed. He stayed beside her while Poppy cast a diagnostic charm over her thin body. Reading the parchment from her file that was automatically filled with results, she pulled three potions from the cabinet.
"Sweetheart, I need you to drink these." She handed the first one to the dark haired child. "This one will make your stomach feel better." Elizabeth looked at Severus, who nodded, before she drank the vial. "The next one will help your head, and this last one will help you take a nap." Poppy watched as Elizabeth drank, and then gave her a glass of water. "Drink that, and then we'll get you tucked in." She waved her wand, and Elizabeth's grey sweat suit was transfigured into pajamas. The child was so startled and she dropped the water, and it went all over her and the bed.
"I'm sorry!"
Severus shushed her, picking her up and letting Poppy dry the bed and refill the water glass while he dried her clothes. "No harm done." He held her until she calmed, then tucked her into bed. "We'll leave the water right here incase you're thirsty." He smoothed the blankets. "Go to sleep; I'll be right here."
The two adults watched her fall asleep, then Poppy turned to Severus. "She was frightened by transfiguration? Was she raised by Muggles?"
Severus nodded, running his hand through his hair. "Muggles in the worst sense, Poppy."
"How did you run across her?"
Severus met the witch's eyes. "This is Elizabeth Evans. She's my daughter." He could tell the witch was going to ask more, and he just couldn't take the conversation right now. "What did you find out?"
Pomfrey consulted the chart. "Malnutrition resulting in an unhealthy weight for her age. She's 10?" Severus nodded.
"Almost 11."
"She's much too small. She'll need a nutrient potion and all the food she can get." Poppy looked at the chart again. "There are lots of injuries that were probably sustained over the course of a normal childhood that went untreated. I don't see evidence of immunizations or other well-child care. We'll immunize her, and make sure that any of her old injuries aren't doing her any harm."
Severus pressed his lips together briefly. "I told Albus that I would bring her to him when I brought her back." He strode to the fireplace and used it to fire call Albus, who arrived a moment later through the floo.
The headmaster looked down at the girl in the bed and smiled. "She looks just like you, Severus."
Severus snorted. "She looks like Lily."
Albus shook his head. "Maybe in her eyes. But look at her now, with her eyes closed. She looks just like you." Severus looked, and saw his hair, soft and dark and gently curly against the pillow. It was just like his had been as a child, before potions made it difficult to care for. He saw his cheekbones, the ones Minerva said were the envy of women who wished they had his bone structure. But she had Lily's nose, thank goodness, and Lily's lips. A perfect blend of the two of them in a 10-year-old package. With a lightning scar on her forehead.
Poppy put a hand on his shoulder. "She'll be out for another hour or so, Severus. Why don't you go get something to eat?"
Severus shook his head, and transfigured one of the wooden chairs into an armchair. "I'll stay here. I don't want her to wake up without me. If you could have one of the elves—
"Of course." Albus summoned an elf and ordered lunch for two, transfiguring another chair to sit beside his son and granddaughter.
*S*S*
Elizabeth didn't wake an hour later. Or two hours later. When she finally did wake, she found Severus asleep in the chair beside her bed, and a man with a white beard watching her. When he saw her wake, he smiled. "Your father can fall asleep anywhere," he said, gesturing to Severus. "When he was a little older than you, he used to fall asleep in the library chairs, head on the table." He shook Severus' shoulder. "Wake up, Sev, your daughter is awake."
"How do you feel?' Severus opened his eyes and sat forward, putting a hand on her forehead,
"Better." Her voice was stronger now that she was less afraid. Severus had brought her here so gently. He'd made her feel better and put her in this bed, the first one she'd ever slept in. "The bed is so soft," she said, smiling up at him.
Severus took his hand from her head and rested it on the bed. "I thought you were a bit feverish earlier, but you feel fine now." He pulled the blankets back a bit. "Are you hungry?"
"Yes, sir. If you show me where the kitchen is, I can make something for you."
Severus scowled. "Elizabeth, I asked if you were hungry. And since you said yes, I will ask the elves to bring you something to eat. My job as your father is to provide for you, not the other way around." Elizabeth bit her bottom lip.
"I'm sorry."
Severus sighed. Perhaps he'd been too harsh. It seemed that his quick tongue had not been reversed by the return of memories. He could remember not being so stern, so sharp when he'd been married, but the war had changed him.
"It's alright. I'm not angry." He put his hands under her arms and pulled her into a sitting position. "Elizabeth, your relatives did not treat you in a manner that I would have hoped for. From now on, you will eat three meals a day. Those meals will be cooked for you. You will sleep in a bed, and you will not do chores that are inappropriate for your age. Do you understand?"
Elizabeth nodded, sure now that the man who'd come to rescue her was crazy. Why wouldn't he want her to cook for him? Why would he want to do chores himself?
Elizabeth bit her lip again. "How will I earn my stay?"
Severus frowned again. "Elizabeth Evans, you do not have to earn your way. You are a child. Your mother and I had a child because we wanted to care for you and watch you grow up. We did not have you to double as a house elf." He stood. "Speaking of a house elf, let's get you some food." He summoned an elf. "What would you like?"
Elizabeth was speechless. She'd never been asked that question, nor did she know how to answer it. She could sense by now that nothing her relatives had fed her would be seen as acceptable by Severus.
"Elizabeth?" He could see the girl's discomfort. He sat back down beside her. "Never mind. Francy," he looked at the elf. "Please bring a turkey sandwich, some fruit, carrots, and a glass of milk." The elf disappeared. "I would have ordered dessert, but your grandfather is a walking candy factory. I'm sure he's got something he's dying to give you." He looked at his father. "One piece of something, Father, and only after she's eaten."
Elizabeth couldn't remember a time when there had been any conversation about her needs, let alone as long as this one. Her eyes filled with tears in the intense hope that someone finally cared for her. Severus saw the tears and interpreted them as tears of discomfort. "Are you alright? Does your head hurt again?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "Is it really going to be okay now? Do I really get to stay here?"
Severus' heart broke. "Elizabeth… come here." He sat in the armchair and pulled her into his lap. "Everything is going to be okay. I promise. And yes, you're going to stay. You're going to stay here until you're completely healed, and then I think we're going to go home for a little while."
"Home?"
"We have a house at Spinner's End. You lived there as a baby. I grew up in that house and your mother grew up nearby." Severus felt Elizabeth lay her head on his shoulder. "We'll stay there for the rest of the summer, and then we'll come back for school."
"We're in a school?"
Severus sighed. There was so much she didn't know. "We are at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
"Like on my letter?"
Severus blinked. "Like your letter, yes. I thought you hadn't received them?"
"I got a look at the envelope before Uncle Vernon took it away. They just kept coming! Even through the fireplace!"
That explains the boarded floo, Severus thought. "That was your Hogwarts letter, telling you what you need for your first year and where to meet the train. I would imagine that you will receive one here soon. The owls know where to find you." He looked down at her. "Not that I don't already know what you need or where the train comes."
"Do you work here?"
"I do," Severus nodded solemnly. "I teach students how to make potions like the ones you drank earlier."
"Will you teach me?" Lily's eyes sparkled at him.
"Of course I will. If you apply yourself, you will be making potions in no time."
Albus smiled. Leave it to Severus to make this into a lecture about hard work. "You have quite a bit of Potions talent in your blood," Albus said from his chair. "Not to mention that your mother was excellent with Transfiguration."
Elizabeth's food arrived, but she made no move to get up from her father's lap. She ended up eating on his knee, getting crumbs all over his new robes. When she noticed the mess, she looked at him, eyes wide, but he stopped her before she could speak. "Young lady, if you keep apologizing for accidents, I don't know what I'm going to do with you." He picked up his wand from the table and waved it over his robes, cleaning them in an instant.
"Listen to me, Elizabeth." He looked into her eyes. "You are a child. You will make messes, break things, and make mistakes. We can clean up the messes and fix what is broken. We can work to make sure you don't make the same mistakes twice. But I am not your Uncle, Elizabeth. I'm not going to lock you up or starve you for dropping crumbs." He handed her the apple that was left on the plate. "Eat that, then we'll see what sugary nonsense your grandfather has."