This chapter is dedicated to Severus Snape for 18th birthday... Happy Birthday! Thanks for your reviews!

Tirza bounced into Snape's office the next morning after everyone left for Hogsmeade. "Aren't you going to Hogsmeade with Mr. Wood?" he asked, looking up from his desk. She shook her head no. "I need you to take me Christmas shopping today." Severus chuckled. "Oh you do, do you?" "Yep. So let's go! We'll have to go into a real town a day too, cuz you said AJ can't know about wizards and stuff." Snape sighed and Tirza giggled. "You're right, but it is not something I'm looking forward too," he told her. "Let's start at Diagon Alley; perhaps we'll go to Hogsmeade as well after the students have returned." "Cool! I'll go get my coat," Tirza said, jumping out of the chair. "And your hat and mittens as well!" Snape called after her. She returned, quick as a flash, bundled in her usual pink winter gear. Snape, of course, was in his usual black, accompanied by a long black wool robe. "You know, you're gonna have to get some muggle clothes before we go to NYC. Maybe we can go on a shopping spree!" Tirza decided, her eyes lighting up at the idea. "Let's worry about that later," Snape replied, rolling his eyes. They walked to the outside gate of Hogwarts and Tirza looked up at him, confused. "Where's your broom?" she asked. "We're going to apparate; I don't think you're ready for floo powder yet," he stated. He held her close and they both apparated to Diagon Alley.

After a quick stop at Gringotts to make a with drawl, they were on their way. Diagon Alley was packed with witches and wizards, crowding the street and the stores. Snape took Tirza's hand as they proceeded to the nearest store, Flourish and Blotts. "You don't have to hold my hand, dad; I'm not a baby," Tirza pointed out. Snape gave her hand a gentle squeeze in response. "Oh yes I do; I'm not taking any chances that you might get lost." Tirza squeezed his hand. "Why?" she prodded. She knew the answer already, but loved to hear him say it. Snape leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Because you are precious; if you were ever lost or taken, my heart would go with you." Tirza giggled and gave him a quick hug before they entered the store. "Now let me guess, we are here to shop for Miss Granger?" Tirza nodded. "Oh, you're a smart one, aren't ya?" she retorted sarcastically. "Ah Severus, what a surprise to find you here," a voice from behind them spoke. It sounded oddly familiar to her, though she couldn't think of whom it belonged to. They turned around to find Lucius Malfoy, smiling evilly at them. "Lucius," Snape greeted in his usually curt way. "And I do believe this is your delightful daughter, Severus. Tia, isn't it?" Tirza scowled. "Tirza." Lucius laughed annoyingly. "She certainly is her father's daughter with that look. Should Narcissa and I expect you for a late supper and drinks on Christmas Eve as usual?" He turned to look at Tirza, a sickly sweet smile on his face. "Would you like to come to Uncle Lucius' house, Tia?" "It's TIRZA. And no, I don't want to go to your house," she retorted. Lucius' eyes narrowed for a moment, his hand resting on his cane; Tirza's eyes narrowed in response. "Tirza enjoys a good joke, one thing that she and I disagree about," Snape interrupted. Lucius' face relaxed slightly. "Of course; must get that from her mother... a muggle woman?" Snape shook his head. "No; I don't know if you remember Ariel Shelby from when we were in school." "No, can't say that I do. So will you two be coming Severus?" "No, Lucius, I'm afraid that we won't be this year. It is our first Christmas together and we're looking forward to it being just the two of us." Lucius nodded, then turned and left the store.

"You know, I don't like him," Tirza stated after Lucius exited the store. "No wonder Draco's such a dork. Uncle Lucius my butt," she added. "He's not my favorite person either; we were close friends when we attended Hogwarts together, but things have changed over the years. But at least attempt to be civil and polite," Snape told her. "I can't even get along with one Malfoy and you want me to get along with TWO of them?" Tirza asked. Snape chuckled. "Don't worry about two of them; you'll not see Lucius at Hogwarts very often. He's not the most involved or caring parent I've ever met." "What does that mean?" Snape sighed. "Never mind. Now what did you have in mind for Miss Granger?"

"I am becoming a packhorse," Snape grumbled. Tirza giggled. "But you make a very nice packhorse!" His arms were full of packages for several people on Tirza's list. Finally getting sick of holding everything, he took out his wand and shrunk the packages to miniature size and put them in Tirza's backpack. "Hey, if you didn't want to hold everything, why didn't you think of that before?" Tirza giggled and dodged a playful swat. "How did I ever get such a wise acre for a daughter?" he groaned, pretending disgust. She giggled again and gave him a hug. "Grandpa says it's something called "poetic justice", whatever that means. But you know you like it silly!" Snape chuckled and ruffled her hair. Tirza frowned and pushed her hand away. "Daddy, puh-leez!" "How many more gifts do you need?" Snape asked. She pulled her list out of her pocket and ran down the names. "Still need stuff for Grandpa, Isabel, Fred, George, AJ, Uncle Mike, Auntie Chrissy and you. But YOU can't be here when I get stuff for your present. Hey, have you bought any of my presents yet? Will you tell me what they are?" Snape's eyebrow rose. "Now what would be the fun of Christmas if you already knew what your presents were?" Tirza giggled. "I HATE waiting. Oh and I need Uncle Remus' present too." "Should we head to Diagon Alley now?" he asked. She nodded and several minutes later, they apparated to Diagon Alley.

"Daddy, can I go into Zonko's?" Snape chuckled. "I would have to be severely inebriated to give you permission to go into that store." Tirza looked up at him, confusion written on her face. "What does that mean?" "It means no," he replied. "But I wanted to get Fred and George some stuff from there!" she protested. "That is the last thing they need, or the school needs for that matter. They already wreak enough damage with what they buy themselves, without getting things for gifts," Snape stated. "Well, can I give them money and then they can buy whatever they want with it?" Snape sighed. "Alright; at least it won't be on my head if they take that money and purchase more of that junk." Tirza giggled. "You are so weird sometimes." "Do you call yourself normal?" he asked with a wink. "No! Normal is boring, you gotta be weird or you're just plain like vanilla ice cream, you gotta have hot fudge and stuff. But there's weird and then there's WEIRD." "And which am I?" he wondered. Tirza shrugged. "Not tellin." He rolled his eyes and they entered Honeydukes. "So who are we here for?" "Grandpa, duh!" she replied, shaking her head. "I wanna get him lots of candy and then I have something else for him to that Isabel is helping me with." Snape nodded and they began combing the aisles, for only the best candy would do for Grandpa!

Later that afternoon, after returning from shopping, Tirza whispered the password to the Gargoyle and rode the stairs up to Dumbledore's office and knocked on the door. "Come in." She opened the door and smiled at Dumbledore. "Hello sunshine. What can I do for you?" he asked. Tirza went over and sat in the chair in front of his desk. "Grandpa, I need a little help," she told very seriously. "Is it something important?" he asked, wondering if he should be concerned. "Very very important. I have a small present for daddy, but I can't think of something else to go with it," Tirza informed him. Dumbledore smiled. "I can't think of any ideas and I thought maybe you'd have some," she asked hopefully. "Well, perhaps a nice picture of yourself?" he suggested. Tirza shook her head. "No, not good enough; it has to be something really special cuz daddy is so extra special." "How about a painting?" Her eyes lit up. "Like in the medieval times, like a really formal thing?" she asked excitedly. He nodded. "But who would do that for me?" "I happen to have a good friend who is an excellent painter, who I am quite certain, would be willing to paint a portrait of you." "Who, Grandpa?" Albus chuckled. "Professor Lupin." Tirza giggled and clapped her hands. "Awesome! I'm gonna go ask him, cuz I got a medieval play dress and maybe Isabel would help me with my hair or Hermione. Grandpa you are so smart!" She threw her arms around him, hugging him tight. Albus returned the hug and kissed her head. "Thanks grandpa. Hey, I got another question. Does anyone dress up as Santa for the Christmas party?" "Yes, Hagrid does; the students seem to enjoy it," he replied. "Has my daddy ever dressed up as Santa?" Dumbledore shook his head no. "Why do you ask?" she sighed. "Well, AJ's daddy dressed up as Santa and I thought it would be cool if daddy would, but he probably wouldn't want too. Anyways, I'm gonna go find uncle Remus now. Bye grandpa!"

She ran excitedly down the hallway, heading for Remus' office; as she ran around the corner, she bumped into someone. "Watch where you're going, brat!" Draco sneered. "God, it was an accident, you don't have to be all Klingon about it!" she retorted. Draco scowled and grabbed her arm, pushing her out of his way. Instead of the usual reaction of flying fists, Draco was surprised to see her shiver. "Don't touch me," she whispered. He gave her a strange look; he was thankful that he wasn't getting his ass kicked, but it was strange all the same. "Don't look at me like that, snot!" she snapped. Now that was a normal Tirza reaction, Draco mused. She caught the sneer on his face and her scowl grew darker; how she wished she could use the water bucket over the door trick on him. That thought stuck in her mind as she turned to walk away. Suddenly Draco shrieked and she whirled around to see him standing there, dripping wet. Tirza burst out laughing, almost doubling over she was laughing so hard. "This. Is. Not. Funny," Draco told her. "Are you kidding? This is great!" she retorted. "How did you do that?!" he shouted, stomping and squishing towards her. She shrugged her shoulders. "As if I freakin' know." She caught the look on his face and took off running. Draco followed her, yelling, but Tirza had a plan, and one that wouldn't get her in trouble at that! She recognized the hallway and the passage that Remus had told her was behind a statue of a fat, bald wizard. There was just enough shadow in that part of the hallway that she whispered the password and slipped quietly into the passage, with the statue returning to its usual position. As Draco yelled and searched for her, she carefully walked forward in the dark passage. A light suddenly came on in the passage and Tirza breathed a sigh of relief; all she'd have to do now was get to the other end and then go ask uncle Remus about the painting.

It wasn't long before she reached the end of the passage and whispered the same password; a section of the wall swung open revealing Lupin's office. "Oh man, that is way cool," she stated as she stepped into the office. "Tirza?" Remus asked. "What were you doing in the passage?" She giggled. "The coolest thing happened! Draco was bothering me again and I thought about all the water stuff he's done to me and I wished I could do it to him and then he was all wet! I don't know how it happened, but it was awesome! But then he started to chase me, so I had to get into the passage so I didn't get into a fight and get in big trouble again. Besides, I was coming to see you anyway," she told him as she sat on the small sofa. Remus came over and sat beside her. "You were?" She nodded. "Well grandpa said I should have a fancy picture painted of me for daddy for Christmas and he said that you paint really good and might do it for me. Would you please? Pretty please?" He chuckled at the hopeful look she gave him. "Of course; we could start tomorrow if you'd like. We'll have it done in time for Christmas." Tirza beamed and jumped onto his lap, giving him a big hug. Tirza's very affectionate nature was still just a bit unnerving to Remus, being a werewolf, most didn't want to be in the same room, let alone hug him. He hesitantly gave her a gentle hug. "You know, you could break somebody, jumping on them like that," he teased. Tirza giggled. "But Poppy could put ya back together like that," she replied, snapping her fingers. "Thanks uncle Remus!" she shouted as she left his office. Remus shook his head as the door closed; this was one of the times he found it difficult to believe that she was Snape's child. Dumbledore was absolutely right; poetic justice was the only way to describe it!

Later that night, when the staff meeting about the upcoming Christmas break had ended, Dumbledore asked Snape to stay for a moment. "Have you ever considered dressing up as Santa Clause for our Christmas party?" Albus asked. Snape's eyebrow rose. "Headmaster, are you feeling alright?" Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm feeling just fine Severus." "Then what would possess you to even suggest such a thing to me? You know how I hate parties and the like; let alone dressing in a costume!" Snape retorted. "What brings all this up?" "Well, I was asked a very interesting question by your daughter today," Dumbledore stated. "She told me that her little friend's father always dressed up as Santa at Christmas and she wanted to know if you had ever done that or would consider it. When she decided that you would most likely refuse, I must say that I detected quite a bit of disappointment." Snape groaned. "And I suppose you think I should dress up?" Dumbledore nodded. "I think it would mean a lot to her Severus. Not that she said as much, but I've come to be able to read her quite well." Snape rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "Alright, alright," he growled. "You get the idiotic costume and I'll do it; but just for her benefit, mind you! And not a word of this; if I do this, I want it to be a surprise." Snape turned and stalked from the teacher's lounge. Dumbledore chuckled as he went to his own quarters; that little girl certainly had Snape wrapped around her finger, but then he wasn't one to talk either. But if he had to be wrapped around a child's finger, Albus couldn't think of one that he'd rather have then Tirza.

Snape, wondering what exactly had gone through his mind to make him agree to play Santa, opened the door of his chambers; he found several people sitting in the dark in his sitting room, with Tirza's TV/VCR playing a movie. "What, might I ask are al of you doing in my chambers?" he growled. He identified the trespassers as Oliver, Neville, Ron, Harry, Fred and George. "Didn't Tirza tell you sir?" Oliver asked. "Apparently not, so why don't you?" Snape retorted. "Tirza said she felt bad because she couldn't have us over for a sleepover and asked us to watch some videos with her; I figured you knew about it." Snape groaned; that girl was always up to something! He looked at the faces (and found Neville's particularly amusing) and did not see Tirza's. "Where is Tirza?" Fred pointed to a pink lump on Oliver's lap. "She fell asleep a little over an hour ago and I didn't want to move and disturb her," Oliver stated. "So we threw a blanket on her and she hasn't moved since," George added. Snape glanced at the clock; it was after ten. Tirza must have been worn out from all the shopping. He looked again at the lump in Oliver's arms and chuckled, then picked her up. "You're not upset, are you sir?" Harry asked. Snape shook his head. "I should know better by now; with Tirza, one should always expect the unexpected." The boys nodded and left; Snape carried Tirza to her room and set her on the bed. "Do you want to change into your pajamas honey?" he asked the now slightly awake little girl. "Where's boys?" she asked sleepily. Snape chuckled. "Your little party is over, my dear; it's time to sleep." She yawned. "Night night." "So no pajamas?" he asked. When he got no response, he shook his head and tucked her under the covers.

"So where did you disappear to this morning?" Snape asked the next afternoon. Tirza blushed slightly. "Can't tell ya." He looked at her sternly, an eyebrow raised. "Alright little miss, what have you planned for Draco now?" Tirza giggled. "Nothing with Draco, I promise. But I can't tell ya cuz it's a secret; it's a good secret though." He looked at her warily, and then nodded. "Do you have any plans to disappear for the next while?" She shook her head no. "Good, I'd like to talk to you about something." He patted the seat next to him and Tirza came over and crawled onto his lap. "I indicated the couch, not my lap," he said with mock sternness. "Why do you get to occupy my lap?" Tirza giggled. "Cuz I'm cute?" Snape chuckled, and then became quiet. "Tirza, I need to talk to you about something important. I've been corresponding," "What's that?" she interrupted. "It means writing letters. I've been writing letters to AJ's father about certain laws in the United States." She nodded and he took a deep breath before continuing. "He has told me that it is still possible to have the boy who... did those things to you, to be put on trial." Tirza's face darkened. "We would have to talk to the District Attorney before the trial and they would need you to testify. I think justice needs to be done and perhaps it would help you feel better if he was tried and put in jail and punished for what he did to you." Tears began slipping down Tirza's face. "What do you think about this?" "I can't see him again; I can't be around him again daddy." Snape held her close. "He wouldn't hurt you; he won't ever hurt you again. I think it would help sweetheart, I really do. And you're a strong girl; I know you could do it. And I'd be there with you and so would AJ's family." The thought of ever having to see that bastard's face again made Tirza feel terrified, despite being in her father's arms. She couldn't do that; what was he thinking? What was he trying to do to her? She slipped off his lap and quickly exited their chambers. Snape knew her well enough that he knew she wasn't going to kill herself; she was undoubtedly on her way to see Isabel. He had already talked this over with Isabel, who agreed that the closure might help significantly, if Tirza was willing. She couldn't be forced; it would only make things worse. She'd have to decide all on her own.

As Tirza walked down the hallway, she began to cry harder. She soon found the painting that she was looking for and tapped the bricks in the pattern Lupin had shown her. The painting swung aside, revealing a passage. The light turn on as she passed by it and she sank to the floor. She just needed to be alone, where no one would find her, to think. It scared her to think her daddy purposely wanted her to be around that... that THING after what had been done to her. She pulled her knees into her chest and sobbed.

A/N: Next chapter, Tirza gets some advice from someone about pursuing her rapist and Christmas break starts! I also need some suggestions of Christmas presents for Tirza from the various people in her life, so throw out some suggestions all! Please? Stay tuned!

Severus Snape: Happy 18th birthday! Glad you liked the chapter!

FightingForThePeople: Thanks for the compliments! I will continue this steady through Hogwarts years until she gets married (just after graduation) and then will do several short stories with Sev as a grandpa!

Commboss: Glad you both have enjoyed it!

AlexGrey: Good luck on the second part of your finals! And no, the girls won't start rumors, or Snape might never let them sleep over again, LOL!

LostSoul: I hope you aren't offended that I didn't have a personal note about you not posting! I'm sorry! (pouts) You have a snake? Creepy... I can't stand snakes. About Sev disciplining Tirza, I think it is hard for any parent to administer any type of discipline to their child. I know when my little cousins were over, I had to give them a few time outs and they weren't happy about it and I felt horrible! Plus, I'm with you; Snape is probably hiding some decent muscles under all the black! I certainly wouldn't want to be the one over his knee! So it is hard for both Sev and Tirza, though in different ways. I don't think what your aunt does with that sign to her kid is right. That to me is way out of line! I'm personally a big softie and don't ever see myself spanking my future kids, let alone humiliating them like that. That's quite cruel actually; thank goodness she didn't do that to you!

CapriceAnn Hedican-Kocur: Glad you like it so far! Thanks for the review!

Kenomee: Poor thing, slicing your finger! That is never fun (I tend to be very accident prone... or perhaps there is a curse on me? LOL!) and I have done that several times. Aaron keeps telling me it would be fun to play connect the dots sometime with all of my scars (can't even keep track of how many there are!). He is such a brat sometimes! Malfoy will take a while to whip into shape (no pun intended), but there is hope for him yet! By the time Tirza's entire story ends, we all might like him a little better. But no hints why!! Wow, your house is 160 years old? Mine is like 25. Good luck with the re-wiring... electricians are like car technicians, always jacking up the price. I've been lucky to have a family member who is a mechanic and can fix all GM cars and is decent with all American models, but no electricians. You can't have everything in life. (pouts) Hopefully, you won't get ripped off; I hate it when stuff like that happens to the nice people!

Potter-Snape: Excellent idea about the painting! As you have read, I used it! Genius girl here! (LOL!) I thought it was cute that I made Remus a rather talented artist... another reason for Tirza to adore him, to Snape's chagrin.

Raclswt: The girls will be very good in Snape's classroom, just because they have seen his wrath visited on many and don't want to be on his bad side. Especially since that could mean no more sleepovers! Snape will still be jealous for a little while, and he'll be jealous of AJ's dad and how close he and Tirza are (which is natural as he was the father figure in her life for ten years!). He'll eventually get over it; I'll come up with something that only he can fix for Tirza and she'll assure him that she'll always need him.

MissLKid: Tirza's getting smarter about Draco, but there will be a few future slip-ups on her part and MANY on Draco's. Poor Draco, Sev and Remus will be watching him like a hawk. Okay, maybe NOT poor Draco.....

CraJure: Glad you liked it!

JeannaUO: Don't worry; Tirza will get to have some fun without being caught! I enjoy picking on Draco!

Hope you all liked it! Hugs, Kerry