I've been hacking away at the stories that I still need to update like Miles Apart and Space Enough to Grow. I have a Severus raises Harry story in the works, but I don't know if there is any interest in that. Let me know what the consensus is. Anyways, I'm sorry for the long wait, but school has been killer.
Brooke laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Things were changing, and she could feel it. She was too young to remember the last war, but she remembered the stories that Professor Lupin and Sirius had told her and her friends. People were frightened and no one tried to do any shopping after dark. Her parents were starting to look into hiding places for Emilia and the girls, even though Voldemort knew that Alexis and Brooke were alive. There was no possible way that they could be logically placed with their mother. Once the child was born, Severus had proposed that they send it away to family they had in the states, but Emilia was hesitant. She was always fearful of her daughters getting hurt and with the looming threat of darkness on the rise, Brooke could understand why she was nervous. She had even overheard Severus telling Emilia that he could tell Voldemort that they had gotten a divorce and that she had moved away to get away from Severus. Then they would have a logical reason to send the girls away with Emilia, rather than have them stay with Severus.
The clock on her nightstand blinked as the time turned to 3:28 AM, and Brooke sighed. She never had issues failing asleep, and she had tossed and turned for hours before giving up. So what if she was dead tired tomorrow, the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins didn't have class and neither did she so she could sleep in the afternoon or even in the later morning. Having forfeit the idea of sleeping like a person should be at 3:30 in the morning, she got up and lit the candles she kept to limit the amount of light that came from under her door. Severus hated when they were up late, even when it was to do homework. He insisted he would make themselves sick from the practice.
Quietly pulling a few books from her shelf, she sat crossed legged on her rug, back braced against her trunk at the foot of her bed. The candles floated near her, giving her just enough light to read by. She had to make sure she didn't wake her parents, because she was sure Severus wouldn't be too happy that she was still awake. He would soon be awake himself. The man was never sleeping past 5 on a good day.
As she jotted a note down on the pages of her potions text, her door opened, making her jump and ink splatter on the white carpet.
"Shit!" Brooke capped her ink and waved her wand, making the dark black stain disappear.
"I take it you could not sleep either?" Severus was still clad in his sleep pants and a tee shirt, both rumpled with sleep.
"Not really…" Brooke said quietly, closing her book. Severus waved his wand and the sconces on the wall lit with soft warm light, drowning out the candles.
"Come," Severus held out his hand and helped Brooke up, handing her the crutches that were laid against the wall so she could walk out into the living room.
"Why are we going into the living room?" Brooke followed her father out into the large room, expecting him to settle into his chair. When he continued into the lab, her heart started to beat with excitement. She hadn't really brewed since the accident and she had been itching to experiment with her father again.
"I'm allowed to brew?" Brooke smiled widely. "Mum said I wasn't allowed till I was off my crutches."
"What she doesn't know won't kill her. And I think with the current climate, it will be alright, given the circumstances." Severus held the door open for her and then sealed it behind him. He waved his wand and changed their pajamas to jeans and old sweaters. The lab was cold, and Brooke was thankful that the cold cement floor was no longer stabbing into her feet. Severus had given her thick socks and sneakers to protect her feet.
Alexis was not allowed in the private lab of Severus Snape. She longed to be in the worst way, but Severus could not trust her not to blow herself or the room up. She had already done the same to the potions lab during the summer, and while it wasn't a large explosion, it was enough to make him doubt her abilities and prohibit her from the room. She had thrown many the tantrum about the issue but her father wouldn't budge. He was the strictest about safety in the potions lab, and both the girls knew it.
"What are we brewing today?" Brooke laid her crutches on the empty table that Severus had in the lab for belongings and robes.
"We are making a draught of peace today. Your mother needs them to sleep after the conversations we have been having about going into hiding."
Brooke nodded. "Why is she scared? Yes, stuff is happening but nothing too bad has happened yet."
"Yes, but she knows what my service to the dark lord looks like. She and I have no control over my safety, you know that." He sighed and started to powder the porcupine quills. "You were lucky to be so young when the first war broke out. You and your friends have lived in relative peace for your whole lives, but this… this is just how it started the last time."
Brooke tipped the jar of moonstones over and selected a few of decent size. Setting them aside, the remaining stones were placed into the jar again and the jar placed to the shelf it belonged on. Putting them in the spare mortar, she set to grinding the stones, chasing the bit of stone that jumped away from her pestle. Once she was nearly done, she stopped and looked at her father.
"Would adding shaved unicorn horn add to the potion? I know that we use it in the draught of the living death, but would it relax the user too much?"
Severus smiled. "You tell me. Work through it." He continued to powder the quills. Severus liked to have some ingredients already prepared for his younger classes, but once you were in your fourth year, you were expected to prepare your own ingredients. He never had jars of ingredients for his older classes pre-prepared, so everything had to be made fresh.
"Unicorns themselves are rare, and their blood gives the drinker a sort of immortality… The horn though gives peace, but a deep peace… One that could induce sleep, which is not what we want, but knotgrass gives a boost of energy, which could be added without effecting the horn shavings." Brooke frowned. "But knotgrass interacts with the quills which won't help and it could make the potions simply mud."
She snapped her fingers.
"But the horn and scarab beetles would function just as well and the beetles don't lessen the effects of the other ingredients." She grinned at her father when he reached into the cluster of jars and pulled out the horn shavings and the beetles.
"You already knew that?" Brooke picked up the moonstones and continued to grind them.
"Of course, I already knew that, Brooke, but I am a potions master and I did go to school for this much more than you are currently." Severus put the powdered quills into the dish he had set aside for them. He then cleansed the mortar and put in the beetles and unicorn horn in to grind them together.
"But still, you could have told me." Brooke said childishly.
"But still nothing. You figured it out and I'm proud of you. Therefore, you're in the potions club and its president."
"I guess. I just haven't been in the lab in a while." Brooke put the powder in the dish Severus handed her.
"You're a smart kid, and you practice your skills when you write in your journal." Severus lit a fire under the cauldron and measured out 2 liters of water, dumping it into the cauldron. Once that was boiling, he picked up a spoon and started to stir in the quills and moonstone.
"When do I get to go back to class?" Brooke washed out the dishes and other utensils that were used.
"Well, we were aiming for October 1st, and as its September 9th, you have about three more weeks, love. Maybe we'll be able to get you into potions or defense, but you must be cleared. Healer Sal should be back in two days to do an assessment of your health and we can update the timeline."
"I hope I get cleared for something. I'm going crazy in here."
"I know, but it's what has to happen." He smiled at his daughter.
"What's going on with the investigation?" Brooke asked, handing her father the powdered horn and beetles.
"We know who was involved, and your uncle is trying to figure out if there is a connection to the death eaters that are currently in Azkaban." Severus was trying to keep as much from her as was possible because he knew she would worry.
"Oh. Will you tell me when you get news?"
"I must talk to your mother about it. We don't want to worry you about what could be nothing." Severus kept an eye on the potion as the color changed from clear to a light pink.
Brooke nodded and returned to the cleaning of the lab. Severus never let her brew a potion she hadn't learned in class first, but she as allowed to help with the preparation of ingredients. He wanted to make sure that she knew what she was doing and he didn't always have time to teach her everything. He had grading to do, and he had lessons that needed to be planned. Everyone thought he taught her dozens of advanced potions, but that was not true.
*S*S*
Severus went up the stairs with Brooke when the clock on the wall chimed 7am. They could hear Emilia scurrying around, getting ready for work for the past hour and a half. Both Severus and Brooke knew that Emilia was going to be angry that they were up all night, even though Brooke could sleep all day if she wanted to. Emilia hated it when they stayed up late, and preferred that they stay in their rooms and toss and turn.
"Is Mum going to be mad?" Brooke stopped by the door, her hand on the doorknob, but not opening it.
"I would imagine so. We were down here for several hours, but she can get over it." Severus laughed and pushed past her. He opened the door and Emilia stopped putting her feet in her boots to look at the two coming out of the lab.
"How long have you two been down there?" She laced her boots without looking at them.
"Since 3:30 this morning," Severus continued into the living room and into the bedroom to get dressed for the day.
"Brooke Eileen, get your backside back in bed right now!" Emilia stood and brushed her robes off of invisible lint.
"But Mum, I'm not tired." A large yawn betrayed her as she covered her mouth,
"Bed, right now." Emilia pointed to the door of her daughter's bedroom and didn't put her finger down until Brooke slinked past her and into her room. Brooke silently closed her door and toed her shoes off before flopping into bed. She wanted to prove to her mother that she wasn't tired, but her mother knew her better than she often knew herself.
Brooke rolled onto her side, barely registering the door to her bedroom opening again and her brace being removed from her leg.
*S*S*
Alexis had stopped looking for Brooke at the table at mealtimes. She had hoped for the past week that her parents would allow the older girl to dine in the great hall, but she was wrong. Instead, she had supped with Draco Malfoy, a person Alexis thought would never be back in their home after Brooke and Draco had their fall out during 2nd year. She was surprised her parents had allowed her to have guest in their quarters without them there, but they always did have a soft spot for Draco and Brooke.
Alexis remembered Draco and Brooke having their massive argument in the quarters of Severus and Emilia when they had their falling out.
"I don't see why my being friends with Harry is such an issue for you, Draco!" Brooke's fists were clenched and her jaw was set.
"I don't see how you do not understand that I have feelings too!" Draco was equally furious at the 12 year old girl before him. He had no idea how she couldn't understand that it was so hard for her to understand why he was angry. It was bad enough that he was friends with a Gryffindor, but why was she friends with the kid who hated him the most? Eventually, he rationalized, she would hate him too.
"Harry is my friend, Draco! If anything, you've been the one who has been distant since last year. I've been reaching out to you, trying to hang out with you, even putting up with Crabbe and Goyle, but you've been pushing me away." Brooke turned away from him to wipe tears from her eyes without him seeing.
"I never asked you to be friends with Crabbe and Goyle!" Draco's eyes were mad.
"And I never asked you to be friends with Harry!" Brooke whirled around and tossed her hands in the air. "I think you need to leave."
"What?" Draco instantly calmed.
"I think you need to leave. I will not stop being friends with Harry. Obviously, you cannot accept that." She pointed to the portrait. "Leave, and I'll think about what else I would even want to say to you. I don't want to say anything I don't mean."
Alexis was glad that they had rekindled their friendship. She liked Draco, as he was always nice to her and included her when Brooke and he were playing exploding snap or gobstones. He stopped coming around once he and Brooke fought. She was a little sad, but she didn't want to force him to come over when he was uncomfortable being around Brooke since then.
Next to her, Hermione, who had taken the 11 year old under her wing, was unfurling the morning Daily Prophet. She gasped and those around her jumped.
"Look at this! Ministry seeks educational reform Dolores Umbridge appointed first ever 'High Inquisitor'" Hermione looked at Harry and Ron with wide eyes. Alexis poked at her fruit, knowing the Umbridge was nasty. She had yelled at one of the girls in her class for having her wand on the desk until she cried.
Hermione continued to read:
""In a surprise move last night the Ministry of Magic passed new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time,' said Junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley. 'He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve.'"
Hermione flicked the paper out and continued to read.
""This is not the first time in recent weeks Fudge has used new laws to effect improvements at the Wizarding school. As recently as August 30th Educational Decree Twenty-two was passed, to ensure that, in the event of the current headmaster being unable to provide a candidate for a teaching post, the Ministry should select an appropriate person. 'That's how Dolores Umbridge came to be appointed to the teaching staff at Hogwarts,' said Weasley last night. 'Dumbledore couldn't find anyone, so the Minister put in Umbridge and of course, she's been an immediate success totally revolutionizing the teaching of Defense Against the Dark Arts and providing the Minister with on-the-ground feedback about what's really happening at Hogwarts.' It is this last function that the Ministry has now formalized with the passing of Educational Decree Twenty-three, which creates the new position of 'Hogwarts High Inquisitor.'
"This is an exciting new phase in the Minister's plan to get to grips with what some are calling the "falling standards" at Hogwarts,' said Weasley. 'The Inquisitor will have powers to inspect her fellow educators and make sure that they are coming up to scratch. Professor Umbridge has been offered this position in addition to her own teaching post, and we are delighted to say that she has accepted.' The Ministry's new moves have received enthusiastic support from parents of students at Hogwarts. 'I feel much easier in my mind now that I know that Dumbledore is being subjected to fair and objective evaluation,' said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, speaking from his Wiltshire mansion last night. 'Many of us with our children's best interests at heart have been concerned about some of Dumbledore's eccentric decisions in the last few years and will be glad to know that the Ministry is keeping an eye on the situation.' Among those 'eccentric decisions' are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper, which have included the hiring of werewolf Remus Lupin, half giant Rubeus Hagrid, and delusional ex-Auror 'Mad-Eye' Moody.
"Rumors abound, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, once Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, is no longer up to the task of managing the prestigious school of Hogwarts. 'I think the appointment of the Inquisitor is a first step toward ensuring that Hogwarts has a headmaster in whom we can all repose confidence,' said a Ministry insider last night. Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden have resigned in protest at the introduction of the post of Inquisitor to Hogwarts.
"'Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge's office,' said Madam Marchbanks. 'This is a further disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore.' (For a full account of Madam Marchbanks' alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to page 17)."
Hermione snapped the paper down and glared at the newsprint. "This is horrible." Hermione's hands were shaking a little. "She was forced on us, nobody, nobody, asked for her to come. And now she gets to review our teachers? She's the worst."
Alexis accepted the toast that Ron handed her, along with the jam pot. When they were in Grimmauld place, Ron always made sure the few times that she had meals there that she always ate enough. The summer before, Molly taught all the kids to make simple breakfasts in order to start prepping them for living on their own. Usually, Alexis was to scrub the potatoes or fill the kettle with water, as Molly still viewed her as a baby.
"I think that we need to stick together and help each other through this year. After all, she's most likely going to abuse her power eventually." Alexis used her spoon to spread blackberry jam on the toast.
"Very well said, Lexi." Harry smiled a little at her. Brooke's friends really tried their best to make her feel welcome in their group, and while sometimes she felt like the little sister of the whole group, she still loved to hang out with them more than her own friends sometimes.
*S*S*
Severus looked over his reading glasses at the silent first years. They all had their heads down and were frantically scribbling the notes that Brooke was writing on the chalkboard. She had her father's notes in her hand and rather than have them on the board with a flick, Severus figured it would be easier to give Brooke something to do. It also gave him a little time to catch up on a little bit of grading. He watched Alexis' head bob up and down as she wrote, clearly trying to get every word down. Bridgett, on the other hand, was being a little lazy with her writing and it showed in her grades, as Severus slashed out one of her paragraphs on her latest essay in red ink.
Brooke wrote the last word on the board and placed the chalk nub down on the tray. She then folded the papers up and put them back in her father's folder and sat back on her stool by the back wall. Unfortunately, unlike the last classes, she was unable to walk around and help, which was making her stir crazy. She zoned out as Severus droned on about the uses of a water cooling potion, and only jerked to attention when the bell peeled through the halls, signaling the end of the class.
Severus gathered his documents and put them in his desk, giving his daughter a side eye while she got up and got her crutches.
"You know, when Professor Umbridge comes and watches my class, you need to be alert. She's most likely going to ask you questions." Severus waved his wand and all the chairs pushed themselves in quickly. "This is the first time anyone has ever been a teacher's aid before, and she's bound to try to poke holes in it."
Brooke nodded and went through the door that lead to the quarters while Severus locked up the room. She was ready for the brace and crutches to come off. She wanted to rejoin her classmates. No one came to visit her while she was in her parent's quarters because they were afraid of her dad. It was the most annoying thing.
*S*S*
The month of September dragged on and on for Brooke. Prepping for her sister's class, helping Severus brew and hanging out with Draco while he helped her catch up with the work was the most she had done. She was going stir crazy when October 1st rolled around. Her friends rarely came down, and she hadn't seen Gabby in pretty much a month.
She was sitting in the living room, curled onto the couch, when the fireplace roared with green flames. Healer Sal stepped out, dusting off his robes.
"Healer Sal!" Brooke quickly marked her place in her book and sat up perfectly straight.
"Hi, Brooke! I assume you're ready to see if this can come off?" He sat next to her and poked at her brace.
"More than anything." Brooke undid the Velcro that held on her brace and chucked it onto the other cushion of the sofa, itching the knee that was rubbed by the straps.
"Are your parents around?" He pulled out his wand and laid it on the coffee table, doing a physical examination of her knee first.
"Kinda. Mom's at work and Dad's teaching the third years." Brooke allowed him to stretch her knee repeatedly, feeling the joints.
"That's alright. I'll write up a report then." He waved his wand over her knee and examined the parchment that popped up.
"It seems that your knee has healed just fine. So, good news is, you're off your crutches and you can return to class. Bad news, you don't have a lot of strength in that leg. So, you're going to have to wear this soft brace and do some physical therapy." He handed her a tan floppy brace with stiff boning in the sides.
Brooke slid it on and stretched her knee a few times. It felt so much better than the large metal thing she had been wearing for the past two months. It had a little support, but it was not as clunky as the metal brace was.
Just as she was about to stand, Severus walked in through his office door, wiping his face with his hand. The second years were a mess that day, Sammy Gilbert blowing up three cauldrons and cutting his hand deep enough for a visit to the hospital wing. Severus had no time for the boy's inability to pay attention, and he was told to get his act together or to not come back at all.
When he looked up, Healer Sal was on his couch, picking up the brace and putting the medical equipment on the coffee table while Brooke stood up and was taking a few experimental steps. He watched as she was able to walk well enough, but not without a winch and a limp.
"Healer Sal!" Severus came over to the couch and shook his hand. "How are you?"
"I'm well enough. Brooke here is doing the best out of all of us. I think she can finally go back to her classes."
"I can?" Brooke turned around with a huge smile on her face. "Can I go back to the dorms?"
"Well," Sal looked at Severus. "I think going to classes is enough. For the first few weeks, I would like you sleeping down here, in case you have any pain at night."
"But I'll be fine." Brooke whined.
"Brooke, its either a limited class schedule and meals down here again or meals and a full course load. If you want to sleep in the dorms, then you can't go to all your classes. You'll put too much stress on that leg." Sal put his hand on her shoulder. "In about two weeks, we'll see how that knee is and then we'll talk."
She grumbled under her breath but nodded anyways. "So can I go to lunch now?"
"I think so. Be careful though. One nasty spill and you'll be back in that brace." Sal and Severus waved her off and she scampered out the door before they changed their minds.
"How long will she be in that brace?" Severus looked at the door that just closed.
"It's hard to say. I can let you know as her physical therapy starts." Hal smiled. "She's a fighter, I'll give her that. I don't think there is going to be an issue moving forward."
Severus nodded. "I just want this to end. She's just a little girl. She never should have been caught up in the middle of all of this."
"Have you heard from your brother?" Hal picked up his satchel and slung it over his body.
"Not yet, but I need to reach out to him. I would think that he would have had a breakthrough by now."
*S*S*
Eric had in fact made a breakthrough. He and his father had been working day and night to get warrants for the arrest of the 7 involved with the crimes committed. They, thankfully had the help of Mad eye Moody, who was able to pull records for them without going through the courts. Within the past month, they were able to get the warrants for the arrests for all 7. Now, they had to wait for the right time to send the proper Aurors to arrest those who were criminals.
Eric knew that Severus was not going to be too happy to find out that there were Aurors who were not actually committed to their jobs and that could have been Death Eaters working right under their nose trying to kill off the Snape Family. Now, with Emilia pregnant, they were even more careful to protect her. Last he heard, Severus was dead set on her going into hiding, preferably leaving the country, at least to have her baby. He did not want the Dark Lord finding out there was another child being born into his family. He wished them luck. He had no idea how they were going to pull it off.
Thank you all so much for the continued support and love for all my stories. You all the best and I would not be able to do this without the reader support that I do.
Lots of Love,
Erectopatronum