Chapter 2

Skyrah had gone to pick up all her clothes and belongings to settle down on Spinner's End. When she returned, dinner was already on the table. Her husband was reading a book, but Skyrah couldn't quite tell the title.

"Hello, Severus."

Black eyes met her own dark ones, forgetting about the reading. He left the book aside and greeted her awkwardly, "Hello, Skyrah."

"I see you have already cooked," she commented with a little smile which took Severus aback.

"Yes, I've been waiting for you," he replied smoothly.

"Can we start eating already?" she hoped. " I'm hungry."

A curt nod was his response. They sat down in front of each other and started to eat. There was a tense silence which Skyrah decided to break.

"I know it's just an omelet, but it tastes surprisingly good."

Had Voldemort's daughter just complimented his cooking skills? Apparently. His black eyes faintly widened in confusion but he managed to mutter a soft thanks. That simple word made the woman grin faintly. What was wrong with her? Why did Voldemort's daughter keep grinning at him? It had been the second time in the same day.

"So, tell me, Severus. Do you like working at Hogwarts?"

Unbelieving. Did this woman want to chit-chat with him now? He pondered the answer in his head and carefully said in his silky voice, "It is a job which puts me in a perfect position to serve your father."

Severus hoped his answer would suffice. It didn't,for Skyrah lifted an eyebrow and tried again, "That's not what I was asking you. Forget about the spy thing for a moment, will you? Do you like being a teacher for the sake of it?"

Damn this woman, he thought. She wants to get to know me; a tiny mistake could mean the end…

"I didn't choose it. There are pros and cons, like all professions," he eventually said, staying on neutral ground and not giving much information about himself.

"What's the thing you enjoy the most about it?"

Bloody hell! Does she ever stop questioning? he thought exasperated. There was something suspicious about the situation. Why did she care anyway? He didn't know if he'd regret it or not, but he asked her boldly, "Why do you want to know?"

"You are my husband. I should know this type of things about you, and you should get to know me too. We need to convince Dumbledore, and for that, we must behave like a real married couple. How are we supposed to do that if we are complete strangers?"

So that was it. She was doing it for the sake of the mission. Of course! Severus wasn't surprised at all.

"Besides, I've been a Professor too and I liked it… I wanted to know if we had something in common," she continued.

Severus nearly spat out the water he had just drunk. Voldemort's daughter had been a Professor? And she had actually enjoyed it? That was a new one.

"Is that so?" he wondered. She had caught his attention. He'd give her that.

"I taught History of Magic in Ilvermorny for a few years. I studied there when I was young."

"America's wizarding school…"

A soft grin was plastered on her face the moment he recognized the school.

"You know it then?"

"I've heard of it… So how was your experience there?"

He wanted to know what kind of information she provided him so that when she asked him, he could tell her something about the same lines. His plan backfired on him though, for the next thing he knew, she was saying, "I'm not telling you anything else until you answer my question, Severus. I asked first, after all."

Bugger! he cursed internally. He couldn't avoid it. He had to tell her something.

"What I like the most is correcting the exams or essays and seeing that there is at least somebody who is not a total dunderhead and actually paid attention in class… I do not show it, though."

Skyrah nearly laughed, but she controlled herself and let only a timid smile appear. "Teachers can influence a lot their students' lives. What I like the most is to know that I inspired some of them."

She kept on smiling and it looked like she was recalling some memories, probably related to some students she had had. If he hadn't known any better, he'd have never said Skyrah was Voldemort's daughter. Sure, at first she had seemed cold, but so was he. And now she looked… human. They were actually conversing. This woman just kept on surprising Severus. He cleared his throat and tilted his head towards her plate before inquiring, "Are you finished? Do you want a yogurt as a dessert? Or would you rather have some fruit?"

"A yogurt's fine. Thanks."

They ended the meal in silence. Severus muttered a few incantations and the dishes were washed in an instant. When he turned around, Skyrah was already lying on the sofa, skimming through the pages of the book he had been reading before she arrived.

"A potions book?" she mumbled with a giggle, shaking her head, "Figures." Severus kept quiet, so Skyrah continued, "Potions has always been my weakest subject. Would you consider teaching me?"

"Excuse me?"

"Teach me potions. I'm not that good at it, but I'm not a dunderhead either," she repeated with a chuckle.

Her little laugh caught Severus's attention. He actually liked the way it sounded. Wait… What was wrong with him? Why did he keep having these thoughts about Skyrah? Realizing she was expecting an answer, he nodded.

"Great! Thank you! By the way, why did you join my father?" she asked, narrowing her dark brown eyes.

Severus Snape hadn't expected that serious question after chatting about potions and school. What was she playing at?

"I wanted to be respected," he answered vaguely.

"I see…"

She appeared to be lost in her thoughts. This. This was his chance to find out why Voldemort's daughter acted so... strangely. Legilimens, he thought, staring straight at her. The intrusion had to be subtle; he wouldn't push into her mind violently, or there was a risk she would catch him. He underestimated her. Before he could see anything which could give him a clue about what she really thought and what she was playing at with all this chattering, Skyrah's occlumency walls were up. Fuck, Severus thought, watching her face grow severe. With that expression, she did look like the Dark Lord's daughter.

"Try that again, and I swear, what my father will do to you will be nothing compared to what I'll do," she threatened.

Severus didn't know what to do. He was too busy cursing himself.

"Forgive me. I don't know what came over me." Lame excuse, he thought. It was the best he had, though.

She snorted, "Of course you knew. You legilimenced me for a reason, Severus." He kept mum, feeling like he had screwed up for a lifetime. "Procure it doesn't happen again, for your own good."

He nodded. Skyrah looked like she had really meant her threat, but the fact that she was giving him a chance after something like that could only mean two things. Either, she was a fool, or she was not as cruel as her father. It had to be the latter, for she had demonstrated to be clever and cunning during the previous conversation. She wasn't stupid and he couldn't underestimate her. Not again.

"What were you looking for in my mind?" she inquired as her expression softened gradually.

Lying to her when she had just threatened him would be a terrible mistake, so he opted for the truth, "I thought you were playing with me with all that chit-chat. I was trying to find out the reason."

"I already told you. I want to get to know you so that Dumbledore does not suspect anything."

"I know, forgive me."

She sighed and massaged her temples. "Shall we brew something together now? A sixth-year potion, perhaps? I never took advanced potion making lessons. I preferred History and Defense Against the Dark Arts."

Glad for the change of subject, Severus guided her to his potions lab. At least, brewing a potion would relax him.

"When was the last time you brew a calming draught?"

"Why? Is that what we'll brew? I studied the calming draught potion by the end of fifth year. It isn't an advanced one."

"So it has been long," he gathered, seeing she wouldn't tell him just how long. She didn't deny it, either. "Indeed. We will brew a calming draught. It will give me an idea of your strong and weak points in potion-making, and whether we need to refresh your memory on certain Potions knowledge."

"You could use any other advanced Potion for that."

"It takes thirty minutes to brew a calming draught, whereas more advanced potions require long periods of time."

That one convinced her. To his surprise, she acted on initiative and approached the shelves, in search of jars that contained the necessary ingredients. He waited until she collected them and started to work together. Skyrah wasn't as bad as she had claimed; in fact, she did a better job than most sixth year students. She questioned him whenever he followed a step she clearly hadn't been taught - his own improvements that were not in books, and she listened to him carefully. If only his students were as attentive as she was, he would not stress so much about blowing cauldrons and ruined ingredients. Granted, she almost made two errors, but Snape caught her before anything could go wrong. It felt strange to brew potions with someone else, and yet, he hadn't minded her presence. He had enjoyed her company, actually. She made it easy to work in group, and he was aware that teamwork wasn't his forte. He was more of the solitary type. He worked alone. He was always alone. The thought they made a good team terrified him.

Thirty minutes later, the calming draught was cooling in flasks they put in a cupboard from the lab.

"Can we go to bed?" she asked, covering her mouth to hide her yawn.

Again, a curt nod was his response. She transfigured her robes into a soft blue pajama and Severus did the same with a black pajama instead. She looked at him amused.

"What?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you always wear black? Even to sleep?"

"Obviously."

The response made her chuckle. It was as if the tense conversation which had taken place just before the potion-making had never occurred.

"Good night," he added when her mirth ceased as he made to leave.

Skyrah frowned. "Where are you going?"

"To the sofa."

"To do what, exactly?"

"Sleep?"

"It's your house! You have your own bed!"

Severus looked embarrassed now. "I figured you'd like some privacy…" I'd like some privacy, he added to himself.

"Flash news! We live here. We are married. We have to learn to trust each other. We'll sleep on the same bed. End of discussion."

Severus didn't have a say in the matter, for Skyrah took him to the bedroom and threw herself into the bed.

"Join me."

Flashes of what had happened on this bed hours earlier flooded his mind: the way it had felt to touch her skin, the soft moans coming from her sweet mouth, her wet and tight walls clenching around him, her face when she had finally reached her climax… Severus's cheeks started to heat up. Before Skyrah could notice though, he lay down as far from her as possible and gave his back to her. He closed his eyes, trying to think of anything but the woman who was lying next to him. Challenging, considering he heard her breathing and felt a warmth in the bed that never had been there.

"Good night, Severus."

"Good night, Skyrah."


Severus woke up to his wife's whimpers and moans. She was sweating and she kept tossing and turning, mumbling nonsense words. Severus was debating whether he should wake her up when he heard her crying out in her sleep, "No! Please! I'll do anything! Please, don't kill them! No!"

In that moment, Severus decided to wake her up or else he wouldn't get any rest. He got his wand and used lumos. The light didn't wake her up. He called her name. She kept screaming. He spoke louder.

"Skyrah!"

Her eyelids lifted, revealing dilated pupils. As she sat up, nearly hyperventilating, she did not acknowledge his presence. Severus stayed immobile, unsure of how to react. When her breathing became more regular, she wrapped her arms around her knees and hid her face behind her legs. Her shoulders were shaking and Severus could hear sobs coming from her mouth.

"Skyrah?"

She immediately shut up and looked at him, eyes red.

"Severus?" she held back a sob. "I-I d-didn't mean to w-wake you up… I-"

Tears were still streaming down her face, so Severus did the only thing that came to mind. He got to the lab and summoned a calming draught flask. The woman was still crying when he came back, but the big sobs had subsided. She took the vial and emptied the contents. In a few minutes, she was calm.

"Thanks, Severus, and sorry about that…"

"Don't mention it," he said hurriedly, slightly embarrassed and awkward.

She smiled and took his free hand, squeezing it in gratefulness. Her touch, strangely enough, didn't feel foreign. It felt like home. A part of him wanted to push her away. She was dangerous, the daughter of his enemy. Another part of him just wanted her, no matter her blood, to keep touching him. Nobody touched him.

"Do you think you'll be able to sleep now?"

She nodded.

"Good night, then."

He muttered a nox and lay down once again, missing her touch when she did the same and put some space between them.

"G'Night…"

Her breathing was steady and deep, indicating she had fallen asleep.

Severus didn't get any sleep for an hour though. Her screams had seemed so real. It was as if her nightmare wasn't actually a dream but a dreadful memory. Something told him that Skyrah wasn't the woman who cried due to a stupid nightmare… So he had to be right. The question was what happened in that memory.

He wasn't sure he'd ever find out.


When Skyrah woke up, the right side of the bed was empty. She got up, had a quick shower, got dressed and went downstairs. It smelled of… pancakes? It was then she saw her husband with his head buried behind the Daily Prophet. The sight made her smirk.

"Good morning, Severus."

"Good morning, Skyrah," he replied, leaving the newspaper aside.

"You've made pancakes" she observed. "Thanks."

Severus nodded and both of them had breakfast in silence. Getting one bite, she said, "About last night… I don't know how to thank you. I-"

"Forget it, Skyrah."

She gave him a sad smile.

"You know, you are a better man than you believe."

He looked at her dark eyes, astonished by her comment. He couldn't mull over it. His dark mark burned and he hissed, grabbing his mask and putting on the Death Eater robes. Skyrah knew it was her father.

"I'm going with you. He'll want to see me too."

Severus nodded and took her arm. The pair apparated and found themselves in front of Voldemort. They were alone in the woods, again. Voldemort approached his daughter and caressed her cheek.

"Skyrah, my dear Daughter. You two have consummated the marriage, haven't you?"

"Yes, Father."

Severus noticed she looked cold once again; even her eyes held no emotion. It was as if the Skyrah he had laid with and the Skyrah in front of Voldemort were two different people. The big question was, which Skyrah was the real one?

"Excellent. You understand the need of having an heir is something which must be fulfilled as soon as possible."

"We're taking care of it, Father. These things can take time, but we will be constant and won't stop trying until we achieve our goal. There's nothing we want to do more than granting your wishes. We live to please you. You can trust in me, Father."

"I know you wouldn't dare to disappoint me, Daughter. Severus, Skyrah must fill the vacant position at Hogwarts this year. Talk to Dumbledore this week ."

"Yes, my lord."

With a wave of a hand, Voldemort dismissed them. Skyrah took Severus 's arm, as if she was anxious to leave the woods, and they found themselves back in the living room. Severus noted his wife had closed her eyes and sighed in relief. She almost looked afraid… It was like she had held all the emotions in check in front of her father, and now she was delivering them all. Was Voldemort's daughter afraid of her own father? He did not know. What he did know was that Skyrah Snape was unquestionably a puzzle.