All disclaimers are in place. Refer to the Prologue section for details.

Simply Being Loved… is More Than Enough -BT PART TEN: PROTECTOR

Girl and Creature considered one another for a moment.

A very short moment.

Halo braced herself for the very real truth of the situation. Her stomach gave another violent lurch, a sensation that traveled to her extremities.

She was about to die.

Or at least, her life as she knew it was about to end.

How fitting, she thought, quickly pondering the earlier self-depreciating deluge of conclusions as a wave of cold shocked her system. The creature leapt, and she screamed in horror.

The scream.

And what happened next was even more shocking than discovering that she could do what she was doing. The rain soared away from the source of the sound like a hurricane blowing onto the coast and taking everything in its path with it.

The figure was being suspended where it had leapt into the air, hovering, thrashing in front of her. Halo could sense her consciousness being sucked out of her and replaced with what felt like icy blood.

"Expecto Patronum!" shrilled a terrified voice just as Halo ran out of breath. She fell to the ground facing the great stadium in the distance and saw what appeared to be… fireworks? They were all silvery and showered the field in vaporous sparks.

She noted there were sparks falling around her as well… and, barely conscious, wondering why there was a great silver cat looming over her.

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"I want her expelled!"

"Now wait a minute, her condition is precarious and best dealt with if she stays in this school."

"I've had enough, she's out of control! I no longer want responsibility…"

"She won't be around much longer, assuming your decision still stands. I suggest you make the most of it."

Halo had heard every word of the argument… from the safety of resting behind closed eyelids. She never fully lost consciousness, but the overwhelming despair had sucked every ounce of will out of her. Strong arms had lifted her, carried her somewhere. She wasn't sure where, but she deduced it was the hospital wing. Her eyes cracked open. She had presumed incorrectly. She was in his room…

The fireplace whooshed green flames… someone had just flooed away.

A cool hand tapped against her cheek. "Wake up."

"I'm awake," she mumbled, turning over on the enormous velvet quilt to face… her father. "Why didn't you just leave me there?"

The lost-for-words expression would have been… in any other situation… roughly comical. He opened his mouth to speak, but as no words came out his jaw hung from his face.

She didn't care if this confession would upset him. She rather thought he'd get some pleasure, some sense of release from hearing it. "You heard me correctly. I'm of no use to anyone, even the few who do seem to care would be better off if I weren't around. You yourself have made that clear." She crossed her arms over her chest and stared indignantly into space.

He had to admit… the confession must have been truthful; her unhappy emotions were most definitely in abundance or else the Dementor would not have wasted time sizing her up before moving in to claim her. But then, he realized, something must have tempted the dark creature to desire her; she must have had some hopeful thought, no matter how small.

He sighed. "You'll get your wish before long, Halo."

Halo blinked, setting her gaze from nothingness to rest on him. "What is that supposed to mean? Are you going to do me in?"

Snape raised an eyebrow, in mock surprise. He hadn't hid his reaction to her question well… in an effort to make her think he 'had no idea what she was talking about,' he'd rather obviously telegraphed to her his involvement in her demise. He shifted where he sat on the edge of his bed as a result of his conflicting emotions. It's so much more difficult to feign your feelings for a person when you have such a flimsy grasp of your true feelings for them, he told himself.

And he'd successfully acted the part until now. Well, in this case, he realized, he'd been acting from truth… he really had despised the girl until recently. Now he wasn't sure what to feel. She'd proven to be quite the strong individual, one he would have been proud to have in Slytherin had she not been his daughter.

His daughter. The realization, another of many that he'd stumbled over in such a short time, nearly threw him for a loop. Aren't fathers supposed to care for their daughters? he wondered. Not having seen many good parents in action (and no, Lucius Malfoy most certainly did not count), he hadn't a clue how he should at least act toward her.

Acting. Again, so difficult without the sturdy base of actual feelings from which to begin.

Halo was staring rather intently at him. He didn't realize he'd been silent for this long, a silence which broadcast the truth of the situation.

She was half-kidding when she'd said it. Now the blank stare on his face made her lean toward the comprehension that he truly was going to do her in, or at least have some part in it.

"You're… you're going to… bring me to Voldemort, aren't you?"

Silly girl. The thought that she would come to that bizarre conclusion hadn't crossed his mind.

"No, of course not." He paused, wondering how she could think him to be that cruel. But then, she knew of his past. He'd been open with her from the beginning in that respect, giving her information that would have nauseated a medieval executioner. He felt it was practical to inform her exactly what kind of man he was, and from there allow her to form her own opinion of the person she called 'Father.'

And she hadn't liked him one bit for it. But then, she hadn't feared him for it, either. Rather, she had come to respect him for his honesty. And if there was one thing the man was good at, besides survival, it was being scathingly honest where it counted most.

"Then what is it?" Halo's breathing had become quick and shallow as her dread mounted.

It was one of those times to be scathingly honest.

He sighed in something of defeat. "You're going to die, Halo. And I haven't decided if I want any part in saving you."

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Halo's expression turned blank. Her entire bloody emotional consciousness leapt from her like one who had stepped in a bed of hot coals.

"If that is how you feel…" her eyes had glazed over.

He surmised that he had done great damage to the girl's hardened outer shell, the one he had so readily forced her to build. "Perhaps I should explain the situation better."

"Like it matters."

"It does to me."

"Nothing matters to you." same monotonous voice.

That hit him like a rock sinking into the pit of his stomach. She did matter to him, at least, enough to refrain from pondering whether or not he should save her life when the need arose that evening.

"Just… let me explain." He paused. When no interruption prevailed, he continued. "When you were given to me, you were carrying a curse, more specifically one that deals with bonding one individual to another. It happened when I touched you for the first time. I had not been expecting it, and I was… irritated, at having been put in the position of being responsible for a life I had not taken part in creating."

He waited for a comment, a protest, but nothing came. He continued once again.

"The curse had a second part to it… one which, if left incomplete, would render the carrier's life shortened to fourteen years. As I have noticed your diminished health, it is safe to assume that the effect of the curse is finally setting in. Now for the important part… the curse can be completed, but only by the willingness of the responsible individual, meaning myself, to declare the carrier as their own. It cannot be transferred to any other. It would have to be done by me."

He waited. Still nothing from the dazed little girl with the glassy expression.

"I had no intention of declaring you from the moment the curse was initiated. After it would be completed, we would be bonded for life, and with that bond would include a heightened sense of being drawn to one another. In simple terms, it would force us to… love one another. I cannot… will not inflict such emotions on myself, or you for that matter, that we have not built first of our own free will." He sighed briefly. "I don't expect you to understand. I only wish for you to have this knowledge, if nothing else it will assist you in coping with your fate."

Halo visibly gulped. "Are you finished?" she said quietly.

"Yes."

She nodded blankly.

Snape sucked in a much-needed breath. "You'll stay here tonight. Tomorrow… we will discuss how you wish to spend the coming months." He stood up from his perch on the edge of the bed. When she didn't move for several minutes, he gripped her shoulders and lowered her onto the worn linen pillows. Pulling the covers up to her neck, he placed a hand on her nearest shoulder. "Good night."

Did I just put her to bed? I haven't done that since she was little… He extinguished the few candles he'd kept burning and settled in his ancient leather armchair. The darkness of the room heightened his remaining senses. He could still hear her breathing. Whether she was awake or drifting, he knew not. But somehow, a small part of him wished she would sleep, and awaken the next morning with no distress. Was that a hint of caring? He wasn't sure whether or not to let himself hope it was.

He shook his head. I cannot afford to care… it is too late for change. The words were still wiring through his brain as he surrendered to the closing of his eyes…

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… and awoke to being lightly shaken.

"Father?"

"Good morning, Halo." He blinked to adjust to the light that was now streaming through the tunnel windows. Apparently she had pulled back the heavy curtains to let the morning light through. He straightened in his chair and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"I… I broke something."

He looked at her quizzically.

"It's in my old room."

He rose from his chair and silently followed her. She pointed to the worktable from the doorway.

Snape stepped cautiously over to the table. Inside a sealed glass jar was a red-flecked, cream-colored… mess.

"The house elves brought fruit for breakfast… I put an apple in the jar, and well… the glass didn't break, but..."

"You did this?"

She nodded.

Snape looked at the jar in amazed wonder. He couldn't have been more proud, but his face was that of shock, much like the one he'd worn when he discovered Potter's snake-charming abilities.

"I… I'll clean it up."

"Wait… this is extraordinary, Halo." Higher praise from Severus Snape had never been given, and if it had, the witness hadn't survived to tell about it. In an instant, he had his wand out and the jar was empty.

"Go get another…" he spoke quietly, and Halo, having some idea what he wanted her to do, fetched the remaining apple from the fruit basket in the main chamber.

Snape dropped the apple into the jar and sealed it. He tentatively stepped back, urging her forward. "Show me."

Halo faced the jar and blew out a nervous breath. She turned apprehensively to look at him, her brow wrinkled with uncertainty.

"Please." His voice was low, nearly kind.

Halo turned back to the jar and began to hum a low, monotonous note. It grew louder, but its pitch stayed the same. Inside the glass, the doomed piece of fruit began to wobble, faster and faster, vibrating the jar across the table, almost to the edge, then… SPLAT.

Halo sighed, swaying on her feet. Snape took a step toward her, arms ready if she fell over from exhaustion.

"See? I broke it…" her voice was disappointed.

"The apple… but not the glass."

"It's not what I wanted… I'm not even sure what prompted me to try it." She slumped into a nearby chair and looked unmistakably miserable.

Snape knelt in front of her. "This is much more than I thought you would accomplish before…" he stopped suddenly, not desiring to rub in her fate. "It's a very serious accomplishment. You should be proud of yourself."

She sighed. "It's not much good if I won't be around long enough to use it." Her words were bitter, acid.

Snape uncharacteristically took pity on the girl. He decided that his survival depended on changing the subject.

"Would you like a new book?"

"Are you trying to buy my forgiveness?"

He paused. "Yes," he answered honestly.

Halo considered him for a long moment. Here he was, doing exactly what she'd wanted all the time she'd known him. He was actually asking what she wanted. The results could easily cause disaster. The wheels were turning at full speed in her head. "Any book?"

"Any book." After all, she won't be around long enough to make much use of a book I wouldn't normally approve. He mentally kicked himself for that unspoken consideration.

Halo nodded blankly, her face fixed on an unmarked point on the wall.

"Come. We'll go to Diagon Alley. There is much to discuss."

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Three new books and a trip to The Leaky Cauldron later, Halo was flipping through one of the texts while she waited outside the Apothecary. The Latin words blurred before her eyes, she really wasn't reading them anyway. All she could think about was the conversation she'd had with her father.

" I would rather you hated me…" he had said. "I cannot complete the curse, not because I do not wish to… but because love is an emotion I know very little about… but if I was to save you, it would have to be entirely my doing. Moreover… I did not want you to be responsible for having feelings for a father who has shown you nothing but mistrust and dislike… and your gift… I've known about it since you were a small child. I knew you would be used against me if you ever fell into the hands of the Death Eaters. No child of a Death Eater, current or former, has ever existed who has not been involved in their… activities. I'd much rather you were dead than condemn you to suffer that fate."

She really hadn't responded to him, just a few nods of understanding here and there. Not really understanding his motives as much as the language. She leaned against a worn wooden doorway across from the cauldron shop when a superior voice broke through her thoughts and brought her back to the present. "Well, well, well… if it isn't Halo Mandelor, the Reject of Slytherin."

Halo groaned under her breath at the snobbish voice. She didn't look up from her book. "Afternoon, Draco. Daddy break you out of school again?"