The Heiress: Chapter six:

Hélène tells a tale

"Won't you come inside, Miss Granger?" Hélène asks, gesturing towards the door. Hermione followed her into the house, and Hélène took her into the drawing, where they both took seats facing each other.

"I trust you've heard by now that Justine's mother is dead, have you not?"

Hermione assured her that she had.

"I will get to that part of the story, but I think it's best that I start at the beginning." Before commencing, she called for Mitzy the house-elf, who promptly brought them tea. Mitzy knew better than to disobey Missus Hélène, she could get just as stormy as her brother when she was crossed.

"Our father was a very brutal man, there is no kinder way to put it, so there you have it. I barely knew him, or my mother since I was very young when the first set of tragedies came to pass. You see, my father often suspected my mother of going behind his back with other lovers, unfortunately, he was correct in his assumption. Mother was just too unhappy to be bound to him, and only him. Severus had just turned seventeen, and I was just barely six when my father killed my mother and her younger lover. He was sent straight to Azkaban, and Severus and I were sent to live with relatives until Severus was old enough to leave his school, and then he was made to be my legal guardian. Hold on a moment, dear."

Hélène paused to sip her tea, and Hermione felt the familiar sting of tears in her eyes as she pitied the younger Severus and his baby sister.

"Don't cry for us, dear. Snape's are made of stronger stuff than one would think."

"I'm sorry, it's just…so horrible!"

"Yes indeed."

"Keep going, by all means."

Hélène smiled bitterly and nodded.

"My father did not survive prison very long. Once I turned ten years of age, Severus decided that I needed a mother figure, and since he was owner to one of the largest fortunes in the Wizarding world, quite a lot of women desired him. He threw a party, deliberately inviting the women to stay as long as they liked, of course you know what this means."

"I do now."

"Well, he then told me that after a week, I would be the one to pick his bride, since she would, in a sense, be replacing my mother. Well, being a child I overlooked their personalities and picked the most aesthetically pleasing of them all, Annette Alice-Justine Lamotte. I had heard that she was part veela, and you know how that would appeal to a young girl. Justine showed her true colors shortly after the marriage, and through servant's whispers, I found out that she had refused my brother the marriage bed, which I did not understand at that age."

"Of course you didn't, you were a child."

"Annette was constantly flaunting her lovers in front of Severus and I, but I don't think he cared, or rather, he pretended not to. She was not at all motherly towards me, calling me the nuisance, and even going as far as trying to exclude me from the family meals. Severus would never let this pass. Even though he wasn't an affectionate guardian, I knew he loved me nonetheless. We were all each other had."

"When I was sent away to Beauxbaton's school, Severus never revealed his problems in his letters, and out of dread of seeing Annette, I decided to stay at school over the holidays. Severus did not object, he didn't want me at home to be treated so cruelly by her."

"When I came home from school at the end of my final year, I had found out that Annette had left Severus, and ran off with one of her lovers, I can't tell you how happy I was that she was gone. Severus even seemed in a lighter mood, and it appeared to be like old times, with just him and me, and no one else. But, she came back some years later, wanting to have a proper relationship with her husband, and to have a child." Hélène took another pause for some tea, Hermione had barely touched hers, she was absolutely riveted.

"Do go on, before I die of anticipation!" Hermione encouraged.

"Very well, Miss Granger. When Annette came back she appeared to be a changed woman. I wasn't living at home anymore, but from what I did witness, she showed us all a very sweet and generous woman, and I think Severus almost fell in love with her, for she gave every indication of being in love with him."

"Her pregnancy was not an easy one, and bits of her came back during it. She would often complain, and whine, and Severus worked himself to death trying to please her, I did my part and took a break from my traveling to stay at home and take care of her as well, though it was no easy task with her veela temper. After an unusually long labor, my niece was born. Annette refused to see her, saying it was too painful. After she finally laid eyes on her daughter she declared that Justine was too dark and ugly, too much like her father. Annette then locked herself in her room, only taking meals. When Severus or I tried to bring Justine to see her she would say, 'Take that nasty thing away from me, she's the reason I hurt so bad'…I hated her then."

"Annette stayed like that for almost two years, and she never held Justine for all that time. Severus, as I said, is not naturally affectionate, nor is he one of those sickeningly doting fathers, but he loved Justine with all of his heart and soul. He was the one who soothed her when she cried in the middle of the night. He was the one who cleaned her and fed her, I tried to offer my services, but he said it was too much of a burden for someone so young. Justine was his burden, and sometimes I thought he was happy to be caring for her."

It was hard for Hermione to believe that the man who went out of his way to ignore his daughter, and frighten most young children, could ever care for an infant. It was an amusing thought, however.

"Annette came out of her rooms quite suddenly, looking like she had just been on a tropical break, instead of someone who had been bedridden for nearly two years. She looked right at Justine, who considered her mother as no more than a mere stranger, and smiled. It was one of the most terrifying smiles I have ever seen in my life. Severus didn't want to let Annette hold her, but she insisted. Justine hated her, she screamed, and cried, and gods bless her for being so smart about people."

"Annette wanted to have a moment alone with her daughter, and she walked up the stairs with Justine screaming in her arms, wanting to be back with her Papa. He and I followed her quietly, she didn't seem to notice us. It was when we had followed her to the attic, when we realized what her intentions were. All of those years in isolation had left Annette quite mad, mad enough to kill her own daughter, and so she tried. She barely made it to the window, holding Justine up high, when Severus acted. He pulled Annette back, resulting in her dropping Justine to the floor, and my poor little dear had quite a scare over that. I picked her up, and took her downstairs, hearing Annette struggle to come after us, but Severus held her down. He managed to lock her back into her room, and owled St. Mungo's to take her away."

"Good for him," Hermione whispered, with admiration in her eyes.

"They never got to her…when they arrived and opened the door, Annette was found, hanging by her neck. No letter. She was not one for excuses."

"My goodness…"

"From then on, Severus seemed to stay away from Justine. He confided in me that if you love something too much, people will see, and they will try and take them away, so you must take care not to love things. That was his explanation, and the only love that child ever gets is from her damn house elf…and from me whenever I get time to visit."

For once in Hermione's life, she did not know what to say.

"I hope you take care of that child, Miss Granger. She needs someone to notice her, and don't you ever disappoint her, or leave her, do you hear me?" Hélène's self control faltered, and tears came to her eyes.

"Of course I will."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"May the gods help you if you back down on that, Miss Granger. I won't have that child cry anymore. I won't have her be unloved."

"Not when I'm here."

"Miss Granger, and my sister…how cozy you both look, talking about me?"

Hermione and Hélène turned to the doorway, to see Severus standing in it, looking quite menacing as per usual.

"You're hardly an interesting subject, brother dear," Hélène declared, standing up and walking to him to give him a quick peck on the cheek before leaving Hermione alone with him.

"Miss Granger, would you like to stay for supper tonight?"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, otherwise I wouldn't have asked you. I don't think I need to tell you that Potter and Weasley needn't come."

"Of course not."

With that he swept out of the room, and Hermione found herself pondering her former potion's master.

End of Chapter