Sweet Juliet
Chapter 2: Growing Up
(A/N: Here I present to you…chapter two! I'm really very excited about this story, so updates are coming out rather quickly. Rest assured, though, because I have pretty much the entire day in the car to work on ALL of my writing, and on Friday as well. So, the next few chapters of my other stories should be coming out soon, too. As for this chapter, I don't necessarily want to call it a filler chapter, but its purpose is to chronicle Juliet's life from the time she moves in permanently with Severus until she receives her Hogwarts letter. I apologize if it is a bit slow, but it's a necessary evil. Enjoy and review!)
Juliet's nightmares began the day after her father took her home. Nearly every night for a month he found himself waking up to the sound of her crying, carrying her to his room, and allowing her to sleep next to him.
Sometimes they closely resembled what life had been like for Juliet not long ago. She would recount to her father images of hiding behind the couch, Christine closing in on her, slapping her, kicking her, cutting her… More often than not it was her bloodcurdling screams that awoke Severus in the middle of the night.
Other times the dreams were Juliet's deepest fear come to life. She had no idea that her father had wiped all memory of her from Christine's mind (and, days later, every family friend who knew of her), and so lived in constant fear of being ripped away from her new, happy life. In these nightmares, Christine would barge into the house on Spinner's End and grab Juliet faster than anyone could blink. She would hit Severus over the head, and he would fall, unconscious and bleeding, to the ground. As much as she screamed for him, he was never able to save Juliet.
It was three weeks after Juliet moved in that she had her worst nightmare yet.
She had been asleep for nearly four hours, and Severus thought she was finally getting better. He went to bed happily, looking forward to a good night's sleep. It was scarcely fifteen minutes later when the door to his bedroom was thrown open.
Juliet ran into his arms, sobbing harder than ever before, and clutched onto him tightly, her grip vice-like.
"Daddy!" she wailed. "Daddy, you have to hide. Please, don't let her get you. Don't go, Daddy, don't go!" The tears flowed down her cheeks steadily as Severus tried his best to calm her down. He stroked her hair, shushing her quietly and rocking her back and forth on his lap.
"Juliet," he said gently, once her sobs had died down and she was barely hiccupping, "tell me what happened. Shh, it's okay, I'm here, Juliet. You're all right…what happened, baby?"
"Daddy," she said shakily, "it was Mommy. She used t-the knife on y-you. Mommy k-killed you, Daddy! You've gotta hide, Daddy. Hide from Mommy!"
"Juliet," he said, "listen to me. Your mother isn't going to kill me. She'll never bother us again. We're perfectly safe here. It'll be okay, Juliet… Daddy wiped her memory. She doesn't even know we exist. We'll be okay."
She hiccupped, looking up at him in wonder. "Promise?"
"I promise. Come on, let's get you back to bed."
"Daddy?" she asked, looking up at Severus with big eyes, "Can I stay here tonight?"
He smiled, sighing. "Of course, Juliet." He laid back down and she snuggled up against him.
"Good night Daddy, I love you," she said sleepily.
"I love you too, Juliet. Sleep well." He kissed her forehead and they were asleep within moments. The rest of that night, Juliet's dreams were sweet and peaceful.
The remainder of that summer flew by, with no more nightmares or late-night hysterics. September first, when Severus would have to return to his job at Hogwarts, loomed ever closer, and he realized he would have to make arrangements for Juliet.
He contacted Dumbledore about his problem, who informed him that an old friend of his had recently moved out of his small cottage in Hogsmeade and given it to Albus. He said that he would be glad to let Severus and Juliet stay there during the school year. Severus gladly accepted, and he and Juliet left a week before the start of school to get settled into the cottage. They would return to Spinner's End come June.
On September first, Juliet accompanied her father to the Opening Ceremonies for the year. After the sorting and dinner, Severus took her to the small teachers' lounge to meet his colleagues. Sybil Trelawney and Filius Flitwick took a liking to her right away. While Severus talked to Albus and Minerva McGonogall, Sybil danced around the room with Juliet while Filius amused her with simple charms.
Quirrel kept his distance from Juliet, though he was not necessarily unkind, giving her a smile here and there. Severus tried his best to keep her a safe distance from Hagrid, fearing that he could make one wrong move and crush the small child.
From that day on, Juliet made frequent visits to the castle on weekends and holidays, and the majority of the staff absolutely adored her. On Christmas, since most of the students had gone home, Severus brought Juliet to eat dinner in the Great Hall with him, the staff, and the handful of students who had stayed behind. The house tables were sent somewhere else, and a single, smaller wooden table was placed in the middle of the room.
Juliet was given presents from all of the teachers, but her favorite by far was a toy wand from Flitwick that made a large banging sound and emitted sparks whenever she waved it.
On evenings and weekends, Severus would spend his time teaching Juliet to read and write. She picked it up rather quickly, learning the entire alphabet in a matter of three days, and even forming a some sentences within a few short months. By the end of the year, she had read the entirety of seven Magic Tree House books, and she wasn't even six years old yet.
Sadly, June came and they had to pack their things and leave the cottage until September. Juliet gave every teacher a kiss goodbye on the cheek. Even Quirrel, who seemed acutely uncomfortable with the situation.
At the end of that month, on June twenty-sixth, Juliet turned six. Severus bought a small cake from a nearby bakery, and they had a little party in their house. Just as they were about to finish up, there came a knock on the door. Confused, Severus asked Juliet to answer it while he finished the dishes.
She did so, and seconds later an excited squeal came from the sitting room.
"Mister Dumbledore!" she said excitedly, and Severus entered the room, dish towel in hand.
"Albus?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"
"Hello, Severus," he said, and then smiled at Juliet. "And hello, Miss Juliet." The two had taken to calling each other "Mister Dumbledore" and "Miss Juliet" around the past Halloween. Albus continued, "I came to wish you a happy birthday, dear. And, I have a special present just for you."
"For me?" Juliet's eyes were wide, and she looked up in wonder.
"Yes," he said, "but first I want to hear what your daddy got you."
Juliet beamed, running back into the kitchen and returning with a play cauldron, complete with child-safe potion ingredients.
"I'm gonna be just like Daddy!" she said happily, and Severus smiled at her, squeezing her shoulder. "I'll make lots of potions, just like him!"
"That's wonderful, Juliet," Albus said, smiling warmly. "Tell me, dear, what's your favorite potion?"
"That's easy," said Juliet matter-of-factly. "Felix Felices. I even learned how to say it right! It's my favorite 'cause it makes people have good days and be happy, and people are always more fun when they're happy!" Dumbledore smiled, placing a hand briefly on Juliet's head.
"I'm glad you realized, my dear. Now, give me a moment to get your present from outside." Juliet set her father's gift down carefully on the sitting room table, and waited, bouncing impatiently, for Albus to return.
When he did, Juliet could barely contain herself.
"A kitty!" she exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement.
"I hope it's all right, Severus," said Dumbledore.
He nodded. "Of course." Albus handed Juliet the small, light orange kitten, and she cuddled him to her chest lovingly.
"I wanna name him Felix," she said after a moment. "Just like my favorite potion."
Severus smiled. "I think that's a wonderful name, Juliet."
It was a month after Juliet turned seven when the nightmares began again. This time, however, they had nothing to do with Christine. They had everything to do with Severus.
At first Juliet tried to keep them to herself. Each and every night, she watched her father die a gruesome, horrible death, but she didn't tell him. She had grown old enough to learn that she didn't want him to worry too much over her. She went through her day as normally as possible, all the while fearing the night, when she would have to sleep.
One night it was particularly horrible. A man she didn't recognize stood talking to her father, a huge snake circling both of them. Juliet didn't like the feeling that snake gave her. She wanted to run to her father and warn him, but she found herself rooted to the spot.
The other man seemed to be getting more angry by the second. Before she could blink, he said something to the snake. It lunged at Severus, its sheer weight forcing him to the ground.
It lashed out, making contact with her father's arm first. He screamed in agony, but still Juliet could not move. She cried out for him, but no sound would leave her throat. The snake continued to rip at his flesh, and he screamed and writhed unable to get away.
It wasn't until his flesh was nearly ribbons that the snake finally sank its fangs into his throat. Blood spattered onto Juliet, but she could do nothing except sink to her knees and sob. All the while, the strange man looked on pitilessly, glaring at Severus.
It took several long, agonizing minutes for Severus to bleed out. When he did, the man looked up at Juliet, his blood-red eyes boring into her black ones. She wanted desperately to look away, but he held her gaze.
He spoke with her father's voice. "Juliet…Juliet…" Juliet began to shake violently. "Juliet! Juliet!"
Her eyes snapped open, and suddenly she was lying in bed. Severus loomed over her, shaking her by the shoulders and calling her name.
"Juliet!" he yelled. "Juliet, what's wrong?"
She was still trembling, her body covered in a cold sweat. "Daddy…?" She threw her arms around his neck, sobbing. "Daddy, you're okay."
He hugged her back. "Juliet, what happened? You were screaming."
"I…nothing, Dad. Just a bad dream."
"Juliet, tell me the truth" He looked at her sternly and she sighed. "All right. I…I keep having these nightmares. And every night, you die in some horrible way. Tonight was the worst."
Severus sat down next to Juliet. "How so?"
"Well…there was this man. I can't really remember much about how he looked except that he had red eyes. You were talking to him, and I think you made him angry. He had this snake…and…it killed you." She broke down into tears again and Severus pulled her close to him. He held her until she calmed down enough to look up at him.
"Juliet," he said. "It was just a dream. I'm not going to die any time soon. I'm perfectly fine."
"But, Daddy… It was so real."
"I know, baby, I know. Juliet…"
"Yeah?"
Severus held her a bit tighter. "You know that you are the most important thing in the world to me, right? I would give up anything for you and I love you more than anything."
She smiled. "I already knew that, Dad. Why are you telling me?"
He laughed shortly. "Because I needed to hear myself say it." He gave her one last squeeze and rose from the bed. "Goodnight, Juliet. I love you."
"I love you too, Dad."
Severus was smiling as he turned out the light.
It was a few months after Juliet turned nine. She and Severus were preparing to return to their cottage in Hogsmeade for the school year when the call came.
Severus was extremely confused when the phone rang, because they hardly ever used it to make calls, and it was even rarer that they would receive a call. He picked it up and found an old family friend on the line. It was the only one he had trusted enough not to wipe their memory four years previous when he had taken Juliet from Christine.
He wasn't sure how to handle the news that was relayed. It was about Christine.
For years she had been suffering from severe depression, for reasons that even she could not place. No one understood her condition, and no doctor could explain how to help her. She was sent to rehabilitation and put on anti-depressants, but she only worsened every day.
Two days previous, she had been found in her sitting room, dead. She had shot herself.
Apparently when Severus cleared the house of everything relating to Juliet, he had missed one solitary baby picture, because Christine was clutching it in her hand when she was found. A note not far away from her body read,
I can't bear to live on any longer. I have no idea who the baby in this photograph is, but I know that I lost that baby somehow. Honestly, with the state I'm in now, she's probably better off without me. I hope she's happy.
It said nothing more. When Severus told Juliet of her mother's death, she did not cry. In fact, she said nothing at all. She simply hugged her father tightly and retired to her room for the rest of the night.
They spoke no more of Christine.
It was Christmas by the time they worked up the courage to visit Christine's grave. She was buried in the graveyard of a church not far from Spinner's End. They used Floo Powder to get into their own sitting room, and then walked to the graveyard from there.
They remained completely silent the whole time. They stared at the grave for a good five minutes before Severus sighed and pulled out his wand. He waved it once, wordlessly, and a small wreath of flowers appeared there.
It was the only tribute left on the grave.
It was three days after Juliet turned ten. The single most embarrassing day of Severus Snape's life.
She ran into the sitting room that morning, completely frantic.
"Dad!" she practically screamed. "Dad, we have to go to the hospital! Now!"
Severus jumped up from the armchair, in which he was reading a book. "What? Juliet, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
"No! I'm bleeding and it won't stop! I didn't even notice until I went to the bathroom!"
At this, Severus' face turned beet red. "Uh…Juliet, you're not hurt."
She stared at him incredulously. "Yes, I am! Dad, I'm bleeding!"
He sighed and motioned towards the couch. "Juliet, sit down. We, uh…we need to have a talk."
She sat down next to him on the sofa, looking confused. "What do you mean?"
He groaned inwardly. "Well, Juliet, see, you're a girl. As you grow older and become a woman, you'll start to go through certain, umm, changes."
"Like what?" she asked, intrigued.
"Like, you'll do this once every month for a few days. You'll bleed, uh…down there, and you may get a few other symptoms like stomach cramps, headaches, your stomach might get a bit bloated, and some mood swings."
Juliet looked thoughtful. "Oh. How do I hide it from other people."
Severus' face grew even more red. "Well, there's two ways. These things called sanitary napkins and…well, uh…tampons."
Severus opened the window for the daily mail owl on June 19th, a week before Juliet's eleventh birthday. There was the normal Daily Prophet, and his class rosters for the upcoming year from Albus (he liked to send them out a few months early so the teachers could prepare themselves). There was, however, one other letter from Hogwarts, but it was not addressed to him.
Juliet McKae Snape
The bedroom on the right
7 Spinner's End
He froze, all the colour draining from his face. Juliet would be eleven in a week. It was time for her to go to Hogwarts.
"Daddy, what's that?" asked Juliet, entering the kitchen.
He turned, looking at her strangely.
"Umm, Daddy…?"