Things went back to normal between Leonora and Harry, but he was still bitter towards Draco. Draco always put on a calm front but she could tell it bothered him that her cousin disliked him.
Leonora began regularly taking the Trauma Diminutive potion and hadn't dreamt about her time at her parents house or being tortured since before Christmas. She knew she still had a way to go before he was mentally healed, but it was a good start.
Neville seemed very glad to have his old friend back after having spent the first semester constantly sleep deprived. She spent a lot of time with him in the gardens, since most of his work needed an extra set of hands.
"Are you suggesting that you take over all duties regarding Miss Bishop?" McGonagall asked Snape, bewildered by his request.
The two were sat in the Head of Gryffindor's office during lunchtime of the first day back from holiday.
"No. I am only asking for the duty of well-being checks. I am unsure if Dumbledore has informed you of her situation-"
"He has," She interrupted.
"Yes, well, if I am right, I have gotten her to trust me. I know you have spent the last six years trying to accomplish the same, but she can relate to me. I see myself in her. I think you are very capable of such a thing, but I think this arrangement would be the best for Leonora," Snape explained himself, not trying to offend his coworker.
Surprisingly, McGonagall seemed to understand.
"Miss Bishop has only said two obscene words to me when she sat in that very same chair. If she is comfortable with you, so be it," She replied, giving him permission. "Does she know you're her godfather?"
"No, she does not," Snape said.
"Why not? She thinks her only family left is her distant cousin."
"Yes, but the circumstance I became her godfather was through being close to her father. That itself can be seen as a foundation of mistrust."
Their voices became distant as Leonora woke up in her bed at Hogwarts in time for breakfast. She quickly wrote out the dream in her notebook and got ready for the day.
Leonora didn't have time to show or tell anyone about the dream before she was taken out of Charms class for a well-being check. Except this time it wasn't McGonagall, it was Snape. She was relieved that the dream she had was true-- she hated wasting an hour of her day every month in silence with her head of house staring at her.
"Not shocked to see me?" Snape asked her as they settled in his office. It was cold, yet warm. Dusty, yet neat. Dark, yet calming.
"I had a dream again, Professor," she admitted, handing him the notebook to read for himself.
He was silent as he read her written words. He spent more time looking at the book than he needed to finish reading, she could tell he was thinking.
"I had this dream last night, but it took place two weeks ago. Is it accurate?" Leonora said, ending the weird silence.
"Word for word. Anything unusual about the dream? It doesn't seem like any of your senses were amplified," Snape answered, ignoring the obvious.
"Nothing unusual, I don't understand why the blood ward gave me this dream," Leonora wondered aloud.
"It seems to me that it thinks you knowing you are my goddaughter is essential for you. I don't know why or how, but it worked in the same way that the dream about Harry and his friends did. You watched him stand up for you, so you were more inclined to build your friendship with him and ultimately keep him safe. But, it did tell you about Ron and Hermione. You knowing little details like that could quite possibly alter your decisions."
"Little details? Why did you never tell me you're my godfather?" Leonora asked loudly but not angrily.
"Rician and I drifted apart over the years and when I first taught you I never cared to divulge that useless information. Now that the information isn't useless, I was worried you could possibly have an angry reaction," Snape explained slowly, and Leonora read between the lines.
"It's not your fault," She immediately told him, and he was taken aback.
"If I had seen what they were doing to you, I could have stopped it. I could have helped you," Snape told her, not looking her in the eye anymore.
"Could you? I mean, maybe you could've told Dumbledore who could've done something small, but other than that, if you betrayed Rician you would've betrayed the Dark Lord. It was better you didn't know. I don't blame you at all, Professor."
The room was silent for a few minutes, and they let it stay that way. Snape was collecting his emotions enough to continue the well-being check.
"How has the Trauma Diminutive brew been working for you?" He finally asked, moving on.
"I think this is the most sleep I've gotten in my life," She sheepishly admitted, "I get about seven or eight hours of sleep every night."
"Good improvement. How do you feel about having these checks once a week?" He questioned hesitantly.
"Once a week? Isn't that excessive? I'm not suicidal!" She joked, but the Potions master just raised his eyebrows.
"I'm actually not! Does it seem like I am?"
"It very much seems so. You seem to act upon your self-destructive impulses quite often," Snape concluded.
Leonora rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
"That is also another example. You present yourself as rude and obscene when you are really deflecting, trying to get people off your scent."
"I've always been this way!" She defended herself.
"You have always been deflecting."
"Fuck this, no way in hell I need well-being checks weekly." Leonora exclaimed, getting up from her chair and exiting his office.
"Goddamn suicide watch," She muttered under her breath on her way back to the tower. She knew she wasn't suicidal, at least at the moment. This was the happiest she had been in her life, even with a war around the corner and being wanted by the Dark Lord. But was she happy? No. Does she need to be? No, especially not in these circumstances.
She wondered if Dumbledore put Snape up to this. Ultimately, if Leonora killed herself, Harry would no longer be protected and have nowhere to go for the summer before his birthday. That was their motivation, Leonora convinced herself.
"I don't think so. I think he feels guilty and somewhat responsible and is genuinely trying to help you," Draco told Leonora after she told him about the well-being check.
"I don't know. . ." Leonora said.
The pair were sitting at their bench in the courtyard during lunch. They had been spending a considerable amount of time there, especially since they could bring Masmi along. And it was their spot.
"I think you should reread this dream parchment, he really seems to care about you," Draco explained, handing back the notebook.
"How do you know?" She asked, rereading Snape's words.
"That he cares about you?" Draco reiterated, unsure about why she was confused.
"Yeah, how can you tell?"
"It's pretty obvious. He says he sees himself in you, wants the best for you, and is worried about ruining the trust you have for him. I think that gives away his sincere intentions," Draco pointed out to her. Her face was contorted in a way he had never seen before.
"Oh," She finally said.
"What are you thinking about?" He asked her, genuinely concerned.
"I don't think I've really been cared about," She confessed. "I don't know how to react."
Now it was Draco's turn to be silent. He had times where he felt like everyone was against him, but he was always showered with his mother's love and Snape's pride. Even his peers used to look up to him. He couldn't imagine how starved Leonora probably felt.
"I'm sure Neville cares about you," Draco assured her, but she gave him a weird look.
"Do I detect a hint of jealousy?" Leonora teased playfully, but Draco shrugged and awkwardly laughed. Leonora's eyes widened and she knew he knew.
"How do you know," She questioned, but Draco denied knowing what she was talking about.
"We never told anyone, how do you know?" Leonora demanded to know, and Draco shrugged.
"I don't really know anything, I just saw Neville kiss you last year," Draco admitted.
"That explains a lot," Leonora said, sighing. "I told him I wasn't interested and we're still friends."
"Yeah, I assumed you weren't interested when you ran away from him after he kissed you and ignored him for weeks," Draco said, and he couldn't help but laugh.
"What, were you keeping tabs on me last year or something?" She retorted, joining him in laughing.
"No! I always look out for people who help me hex Potter! We had an alliance even though we never really spoke!" Draco jokingly defended himself.
Masmi suddenly sat up from his nap and stood in attention, growling at someone in the halls.
Leonora had never seen him act this way, and she didn't stop him from his stance but instead peered through the bushes to see who it was.
Draco put his hand on Leonora's, pulling her to her feet and guiding her out of the courtyard.
"What?" She asked him as they headed towards the Great Hall, Masmi still on high alert.
"I saw Rician and Snape heading our way. We wouldn't have been able to avoid them if Masmi hadn't alerted us," He explained to her, praising the wolf.
"Did they see us?" Leonora asked quickly as they entered the Great Hall for the end lunch.
"I doubt it. We're fine in here with everyone else, I didn't want to risk being cornered trying to bring Masmi back," Draco explained, awkwardly standing at the foot of the Gryffindor table.
"The Hufflepuffs love him, anyways," Leonora said as her wolf ran up to his favorite Hufflepuffs. They always loved running into him and giving him affection.
Leonora invited Draco to sit with her and the other sixth year Gryffindors. He got a lot of strange looks from everyone else, but he was used to it.
"Harry," Leonora whispered, leaning in towards her cousin and his friends, "We just saw Rician and Snape by the courtyards."
Harry's eyes widened and he looked at Hermione, who had the same reaction.
"Did you hear what they were saying?" Ron asked, and Leonora shook her head.
"I would've led with that if I did," Leonora rolled her eyes.
"Maybe it has to do with your birthday next month?" Hermione suggested, and Leonora glared at her.
"Who told you about my birthday?" She demanded to know, but before Hermione could reply, Harry interrupted her.
"Why would her birthday have anything to do with this?" Harry asked.
Something clicked in Leonora's mind and she immediately looked at Draco, who had the same expression as her.
"Seventeenth birthday," They said in unison, making everyone even more confused.
"What's that got to do with it?" Ron exclaimed, and Hermione shushed him. Leonora looked to Draco to explain pureblood traditions to the trio.
"Pureblood families start introducing potential husbands at seventeen to hopefully carry on the family tree," He said, and everyone wrinkled their nose in disgust.
"And as Elettra's obviously had no luck, I guess they'd do anything to continue their name, even if I'm not pureblood," Leonora added, laughing at her sister. She had no sympathy for her.
"So then what's he doing with Snape?" Harry asked.
"Professor Snape," Snape's voice said behind their table, the students shocked to see him. Rician was by his side.
"Leonora, how nice to see you," He said, smirking, and Leonora glared at him. Masmi stood up and guarded the girl with his body, showing his teeth to Rician Bishop.
"Come with us Miss Bishop," Snape said, but Leonora didn't get up. The Great Hall had become quiet and all eyes were on them.
Leonora ignored Rician's presence and looked at Snape for silent approval. She knew he wouldn't let her walk into a dangerous situation.
And there it was. His stern eyes wavered for just a moment and he gave her the slightest nod of approval.
"You want to take her out of school the week of her birthday?" Dumbledore questioned Rician.
They were sat in his office, Dumbledore and Snape on one side of the desk and Leonora and Rician on the other.
"Yes. We are going on a trip to Romania."
Leonora scoffed and rolled her eyes. Rician glared at her, but she glared right back. He couldn't hurt her.
"Ah. So let me make sure I understand the situation. You, even though you're currently being investigated for alleged child endangerment, want to take your child out of school, against her wishes, to Romania. When she is seventeen," Dumbledore spoke calmly, watching Ricians face turn red with anger. "Oh, not to forget that Romania is one of the few places to legally acquire an arranged marriage."
"We can shorten the trip and make it local. But you cannot tell me what to do with my own child." Rician spat angrily.
"I am not your child!" Leonora told him, standing up and putting space between them.
His face looked like it was about to explode.
"Yes you are! And you will obey me!" Rician yelled, and reached to grab her arm, but decided against it. He took a deep breath and started at the girl.
"Leonora," Rician called, his voice calm again. "I've heard how you and the Malfoy boy have been getting along."
She quickly turned her face back to him, eyes wide with shock.
"So? What, are you gonna blind him too?" She yelled.
"Enough." Snape sternly interjected.
"This is not my matter to solve. Unless Miss Bishop is willing to leave school grounds, nobody is allowed to force her anywhere. That is final." Dumbledore ended the argument and shooed everyone out of his office.
Once the grand door was closed, Rician immediately grabbed Leonora by the neck and held her to the wall.
"Crazy bastard-" Leonora gasped between choked breaths.
"Listen to me girl," He snarled, "I'm not asking your permission. You're either coming to Romania, or make things work with the Malfoy kid. The Dark Lord has seen your strength and is giving you another chance to take the mark. Do not fail me again."
Rician let go of Leonora who fell to the ground shaking. "I. Am. Not. Your. Daughter." She said, but Rician was already down the hall and Snape was kneeling in front of her.
She pushed Snape's comforting hands away from her as she used the wall to stand up. She stared at Rician, her face turning to stone as they made brief eye contact before he rounded the corner.
"Leonora-" Snape began.
"Yeah, I'm fine," She dusted her clothes off and began to walk.
"I'm sorry."
"What?" Leonora turned around to face Snape, becoming very dizzy.
"I apologize for not telling you of your status as my goddaughter. And for not stopping Rician a moment ago. He needs to believe that I agree with him."
"I know, I know, no hard feelings. But. . . thank you."
Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Leonora sat in the courtyard that night with Masmi while listening to what happened with Rician.
"So he wants you to either marry Draco or whoever they choose, and they will let you back to the family?" Ron said after she had explained.
"Exactly. I think The Dark Lord sees me as a way to get to Harry. Which is true. ." Leonora said, trailing off.
"But he overestimates her desire to appease her parents. I doubt he knows what they did to her as a child," Draco explained, and everyone else furrowed their eyebrows.
"Did to her?" Harry asked.
"It doesn't matter. But, we can use them. I could pretend to appease them," Leonora changed the subject.
"Why? We already have Snape there? And historically, appeasement does not work. They'd just ask for more," Hermione said.
"And how would you fake a marriage?" Harry asked.
"It's just an introduction to potential suitors, I doubt they'd make me marry during school. But I could do much more than Snape. He'd want to use me to get to you, so I could give fake information. I doubt Snape could give fake information, he just omits the truth."
"Well, that's what happens traditionally, but what if their intentions are to marry you off as soon as possible? Maybe have a child before the inevitable war, to carry on the family name? And what would stop The Dark Lord from killing you?" Draco said, offering a different perspective.
Leonora scrunched her nose in disgust at the thought of having a child.
"He's right. We can't run into this blind." Hermione concluded. "We only have a month to make a plan."