Disclaimer: All Harry Potter people, places, and things, (all Harry Potter nouns) belong to J. K. Rowlings. Desiree Snape and Eleanora Snape are mine.

Chapter 8: The insufficiency of words.

She was marking essays and jumped when she heard a knock at the door. As she had expected, Severus stood, waiting for her to let him in. "Good evening, Severus," she said politely.

"Good evening, Minerva," he added as he entered and seated himself in one of her armchairs. "You wrote about Nora; what's happened?"

"I will tell you in a moment. I have raspberry tea if you would like some," she offered.

"I think a spot of tea sounds fine," he stated.

She left and returned momentarily with two steaming teacups. After she handed his cup to him, she took her seat and began the conversation. "As I told you in the note, Nora has gotten herself in trouble again."

He sighed and sipped his tea. "I assume that this recent incident has something to do with Malfoy?" When she nodded he asked, "He didn't strike her again, did he?"

"Oh no," she reassured him. "Apparently he insulted her mother. When I came upon them, she had turned him into a squirrel."

Severus chuckled. "At least she's creative when she gets into a quarrel."

Minerva rolled her eyes. "Yes, I suppose she is. I took away house points from Mr. Malfoy and she received detention for inappropriate use of magic."

"It's too bad that Malfoy cannot learn to mind his own business. And I suppose you would like me to talk to Nora about her methods of dealing with disagreement," he surmised.

"The girl is quite talented and she seems to do well in her classes," she remarked. Drinking her tea, she leaned forward. "But I would like to know why you didn't tell me that she is a Legillimens."

He set the teacup down on the coffee table. "I did not know myself until recently. I believe it is one of the reasons that she is here."

Minerva nodded, knowing that they still had the other matter to discuss. "Severus, we need to talk about the other morning. I think I should have- I'm sorry that I did not wake you- I cannot believe- I mean I used to be your teacher, but I had not expected to feel-

"We're not alone," he interjected, pulling out his wand. He looked about the room for any signs of movement or anything out of the ordinary. She followed him with her wand out, realizing that her acute hearing had also picked up some odd noises.

Hearing several plates crash to the floor, she jumped and grabbed onto him for a second. "It came from over there," she gestured.

They turned toward her kitchen area to find broken shards from the plates. Minerva looked up onto the counter and sighed heavily, seeing that it was only a house elf. Severus shook his head in disgust. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" he demanded.

The small creature trembled at him. "Kari is new, and I only wants to fix tea for nice professors, but Kari picks wrong cabinet. Kari sorry," she said sniffing.

"Are you working with the kitchen staff?" Minerva asked.

The house elf nodded. "I is new, just came last month."

Minerva levitated Kari from the counter to a safe place on the floor away from the plate shards. "As much as I appreciate the thought and your willingness to help, it would be better in the future if you waited until your services had been requested."

"Okay, Kari goes now," she said as she scampered out of the door.

"Don't you just adore complimentary kitchen thrashers?" Severus chimed in sarcastically.

Minerva lightly swatted his arm. "It was an accident. I think I have made sure that this will not happen again."

He had begun using repairing spells on the plates. "This is ridiculous. We look over our shoulders, thinking that each time it is Sirius Black. The worst part about this is the fact that the dementors are here. Those blasted dementors who are supposed to catch him have not yet done so, and their presence is everywhere!"

She sighed and nodded. "I know. Though we cannot see them, their presence seems to have set a gloomy mood over the school." She paused and added, "Not that you'd mind 'gloomy.'"

He turned toward her and shot her an indignant glare. "I'll have you know that the kind of gloom they bring is different than my usual melancholy demeanor." Having finished repairing the plates, he replaced the stack in the open cabinet. "Now that the plates have been restored, I should probably be going."

How am I ever going to get any answers? We still need to finish our discussion, she rationalized. "Thank you for fixing my plates. Severus, I need to say something…" she trailed off because she did not know how to phrase it.

Raising an eyebrow, he scrutinized her for a moment. Then he stepped closer to her and whispered, "Goodnight Minerva," before leaning toward her and kissing her gently.

Her eyes closed and she could not bring herself to pull away until he did so. "Goodnight Severus," she murmured.

After he had left she poured herself a second cup of tea and sat in an armchair. I would not exactly call that an answer, but it was rather pleasant, she thought to herself. As she prepared for bed, Minerva wondered about Nora and what Severus would say to her.

Nora walked to Severus' office the afternoon of the following day, nervous about what he might want to talk with her about. To her, he had always been something like an uncle as well as a stern, reserved man. Her mother spoke well of him though, as had her grandparents. With renewed confidence, she knocked on his door.

"Come in," his voice called from within as the door seemed to open by itself. "Sit," he instructed when she slowly walked in.

Taking a seat, she observed him marking a few essays. She noticed the usual degree of shrewdness that had always been there, except when he spoke to her mother. Part of her was relieved that she was unable to probe his mind. For her there was a comfort at not knowing a person's surface thoughts. "Professor Snape, cousin, sir… am I here because I turned Malfoy into a squirrel?" she asked tentatively.

It had taken him by surprise that she could be afraid of him, having occasionally seen his less strict side. "Nora, as with your mother, when it is a discussion between you and I, you may call me 'cousin' or 'Severus.' You are correct. I wanted to speak with you about your conduct toward Mr. Malfoy."

"He hinted that my mother was a harlot! I couldn't just let him get away with-"

"You need to learn to walk away. He was punished by Professor McGonagall and that should be sufficient for you. Being candid, it was an expert use of magic, but it was inappropriate in application. You cannot let what others say provoke you to break the rules. The next time he causes you problems, I want you to walk away or find a teacher. Is that clear?" he asked her in a calm, rational tone that left no room for arguing.

She nodded. "Yes. I will try harder to behave myself and not let name-calling get to me. Was there anything else?"

"Just one more thing; how did you know that you are a Legillimens?" he questioned.

She fiddled with her hands for a second. "When Professor McGonagall asked me about it, I figured out that because I can read peoples' thoughts from time to time and project mine, I assumed that I was probably a Legillimens, though I'm not sure."

He met her eyes. "You are one. Just take care not to tell any of the students if you can help it. None of them know, do they?"

It took her a moment to answer and her hesitation told him what he wanted to know. "Harry knows, but I know he won't say anything."

"You may go," he dismissed. She left and he returned to his essays, sighing. Of all people, why Potter? As much as I dislike the boy, she is probably correct, thinking that he will not tell anyone. He has enough dark secrets of his own to keep him busy, he reasoned.

Some nights later Harry was wandering the halls, looking for Peter Pettigrew with the Marauders' Map when he walked into Severus. He was relieved when Remus appeared and the two headed back to his classroom while Severus continued on his way. After explaining that he had seen Peter Pettigrew on the map, Harry decided to leave.

As Harry left Remus, he turned for a second to look over his shoulder, having the distinct notion that someone else was in the room aside from his professor. He shrugged inwardly and headed to his dormitory. Remus sighed and set the map down on the desk.

When he turned around Desiree walked out of where she had been standing in the shadows. "I've finished testing that new illuminating charm that you asked me to check. What was that all about?"

Remus sighed heavily. "There is a matter that requires looking into. It involves someone who was not supposed to be alive. Mr. Potter somehow came into possession of a map used by his father and his father's friends. It was fortunate that I was making my rounds. The boy ran into Severus and your cousin would not have known what to do with the map."

Desiree crossed her arms and looked away for a moment in thought. "That wasn't Severus' route," she finally stated.

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I've seen his routes and tonight he was not supposed to be there," she relayed.

"That does sound odd. I wonder where he was going," Remus remarked. Desiree left and he decided to investigate a few matters. As she walked to her rooms, she was also curious about Severus.

Minerva stood when she heard a knock at her door. She smiled finding Severus there and let him in. "I found it," he told her as he took a seat.

She offered him a cup of tea and he accepted as she set up the chairs across from each other and sat. "Shall we give it a try then?"

He nodded and set the game down on the table, allowing it to set itself up. "It took me longer than I thought, but I finally bartered the right potions for it," he informed her.

"I am amazed that it exists. Look at the intricacies of the players. This Samurai Wizard's Chess set is incredible," she expressed as she took the white side and he took the black side.

Two hours later, after watching with intrigue as the chess pieces battled with Samurai swords, Severus and Minerva finished their game and sat in the chairs drinking tea. "I would like to speak to Nora about becoming an animagus. I think she has the talent, she only needs the discipline to train."

"I wish that she had better taste in friends. I found Potter out in the hall before coming here. He had some sort of insulting parchment. Lupin was there so I let Potter go with him while I came here. He is exactly like his father, arrogant brat," he commented.

She eyed him incredulously. "Don't you think that's a bit harsh? He is only a boy and I do not see the problem of letting Nora become his friend."

He set his teacup down on the table and scoffed. "You don't see the problem? His father and his friends almost got me killed on a stupid, juvenile prank. Don't you dare try to tell me that Potter's harmless!"

"Severus, just let the past go. I am sorry that it happened and I am sorry that they were not punished more severely, but don't allow yourself to become a bitter old man over this," she tried to advise him.

"What do you think you know about that anyway? Oh, that's right, you were there," he snapped. Watching her reaction he realized that he should have kept his mouth shut. She turned her eyes away from him and looked as though she had been slapped.

Her voice was shaking as she spoke. "I know what you went through because I remember what you told me. I tried to help you because I knew what would happen if I didn't," she paused and he noticed tears in her eyes. "I'm so sorry I could not have done a better job of it. When you asked me to look after Nora, I thought that this could be my chance not to fail you again."

He stood and walked over to her, kneeling in front of her to meet her gaze. "Minerva, I'm sorry. I spoke without thinking because I was mad. You never failed me. I failed myself and the truth is that I have been grateful for your vigilance. Thank you for wanting to help Nora. Can you ever forgive me for the horrible things I said to you all those years ago?"

She had not expected this. They both stood and she swallowed before replying. "Of course I forgive you."

Using his handkerchief he wiped her eyes and noticed that they were more brilliantly green than he had ever seen them. "I want you to keep the chess set," he told her, unsure of what else to say.

She smiled warmly. "Thank you. It would seem that with the recent events, we have been trying to make it up to each other, regarding the past…" she trailed off, noticing how close he was standing to her.

Before she realized what was happening they stood centimeters from each other. He cupped her face with one hand and kissed her soundly. She responded and placed her hands on his shoulders. They broke apart due to lack of oxygen. "Goodnight, Minerva," he said, dashing out of the door quickly.

Watching him leave, she smiled because she had observed a small amount of pink in his usually pale cheeks. I never thought I'd see him blush. I only hope that my discussion with Nora goes well, she thought to herself while preparing for bed.

Nora dragged her feet, sighing as she made her way to Minerva's office yet again. What did I do this time? Draco probably framed me for something I didn't do, she speculated.

Minerva was waiting with the door open. As Nora entered, the professor instructed the girl to close the door and take a seat. "Am I in trouble again?" Nora inquired after having done what was asked of her.

The professor smiled and shook her head. "No, Miss Snape. I brought you here this afternoon because I wanted to know if you were interested in becoming an animagus."

Nora's blue eyes grew wide. "You mean so I could turn myself into an animal I'm suited for? Yes, I'm interested!"

Minerva smiled politely. "I am glad to hear it. However," she paused and looked at Nora over the top of her glasses, "it will require discipline and perseverance as well as a bit of hard work. Are you able and wiling to do this?"

The girl nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! When do I start?"

"You will meet with me every Tuesday afternoon when you have finished the day's classes," the professor explained.

"May I go now?" Nora inquired. I can't wait to tell Harry.

Minerva nodded. "Yes, and before you dash off, it is probably better if you limit whom you tell to possibly just Mr. Potter."

Nora raised an eyebrow and looked at her professor quizzically. "How did you know that I was planning to tell him? Oh, I accidentally broadcasted my thoughts again."

"One of these days your cousin will have to teach you how to better control your abilities," Minerva mentioned as Nora continued on her way to the door.

Harry found Nora in the Common Room studying. She looked up quickly when he walked over to her. "You'll never guess what happened today, but you can't tell anyone," she began.

He thought for a moment. "I know you went to Professor McGonagall's office. Was it something good instead of what you were afraid of?"

"Yes," she paused and looked around to make certain that they were alone. "She wants me to start training to be an animagus. Isn't it neat?"

"I think it's splendid. But don't tell Hermione, she might get jealous," he remarked.

"Professor McGonagall said that if I told anyone, it should only be you," she explained.

He raised an eyebrow. "You put out your thoughts again?"

She nodded. "I know it's a bad habit, I just don't know how to control it. By the way, where did you go the other night? I saw you sneaking out with a map."

"I'm surprised you noticed. I was trying to use it and explore a bit. People's names show up on the map and you can see them moving around. But then I ran into Snape and then Lupin came too and he has the map now," Harry answered.

"You shouldn't go looking for Sirius Black. If he's as dangerous as I've been hearing, you could be in real trouble," she mentioned.

She did not like the cold look she saw in his eyes for a second. "I'll deal with him accordingly when the time comes. I'm not afraid."

A few months later, Minerva had been passing by the window when she noticed a few disturbing sights. Ron, Harry, and an unrecognizable bedraggled man were levitated into the castle by Severus. She walked over and waited outside of the hospital wing for answers. Severus limped out and did not see her until she placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to wince.

"You should have yourself looked at," she suggested.

He took a deep breath and looked away. "The limp is a minor problem. In the dark I stepped in a hole. There isn't time anymore. Lupin transformed into a werewolf and those children are very lucky to be alive. And Pettigrew wasn't dead like everyone thought; he's very much alive and heading straight to Voldemort. He got away because Lupin transformed and we all had to guard our lives. I'm not even entirely certain what happened while we were there because Potter stopped me from capturing Black. I could use some brandy about now."

"Then come with me," she stated. He followed her to her rooms and collapsed on the couch as she brought him a glass.

He drank it quietly and set the cup down on the coffee table. After a few minutes she looked over at him and noticed that he had fallen asleep on her couch again. I am not waking you up after the events of today, she decided, transfiguring the couch into a bed. Then she headed toward her own bed.

Remus managed to drag his wounded body back to the castle and up to the infirmary. He knew Poppy would help him, but he passed out as soon as he laid down on the bed. Sunlight was all around him ours later, he felt someone sit down on the bed with him and begin stroking his hair. Opening his eyes slowly, he looked into the compassionate brow eyes of Desiree. She smiled at him and patted his shoulder gently.

"The nurse wanted me to watch you while she went down to lunch. I came as soon as I heard what had happened. Oh Remus, I'm so sorry! You forgot your wolfsbaine and a dog along with a hippogriff had to attack you in order to protect you and everyone else. I'm so sorry," she expressed.

Sore as he was, he reached out to touch her face. Her breath caught in her throat as she leaned closer to him. He brushed away a tear with his thumb before speaking. "Desiree, you are the sweetest friend that I have known in a very long time. Thank you for being here with me now. But how can you care for me, now knowing what I can become?"

Her small, yet expressive smile would be etched in his mind forever. "Because I love you, Remus," she told him before closing the distance between them to kiss him softly. She quickly moved back hearing the nurse returning. "I should be going. I'll see you back in class."

A few days later Desiree reached the door of the classroom and nearly plowed into Remus as she opened the door to find him preparing to walk out. "Remus, what on earth are you doing?" she questioned.

"I'm afraid I must leave. I resigned, not wanting to wait to be sacked. Someone let my condition slip into letters going home to parents," Remus explained plainly.

Harry walked past the two, having finished talking to Remus. "I should be going. Good day, Professor Lupin, Ms. Desiree."

When the young man was gone, Desiree followed Remus back into the classroom. "You're a wonderful teacher. Don't let him do this to you! You don't deserve this! He's ticked me off for the last time and I'll wring his neck before I let him be the reason you quit!" she exclaimed.

He turned around and clasped her shoulders. "Let it go. He was right this time. I transformed in front of three students and put their lives at risk. It's not worth the trouble to defend me and ruin your tie to the only family you have. Choosing me over him wouldn't make your life better. I know that you consider him an older brother. He would be hurt that you had shut your family out because most of what he's done has been to protect you."

She shook off his grasp. "I don't need protecting, nor do I want it! What I want more than anything is for the people I care about to stay put and stop leaving me!"

He noticed that tears had formed in her eyes. Seeing her deeply upset caused him to pull her into a warm embrace. "I promise that I will write to you as often as I can and I will try to visit on holidays."

"That's not good enough," she remarked. Because he had not let her go, she was able to place her hands around his neck. He was surprised when she kissed him tenderly, but he returned the kiss. Instead of pausing to analyze their actions, they continued to kiss passionately.

"The truth is that I find I care a great deal more about you than I was ever supposed to," he admitted. "What I am trying to say is that I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered in his ear before kissing his cheek.

"Now that we've settled that, I cannot promise that I will always be able to visit on the weekends, but I will promise you that I will be here as much as I can next year," he explained.

She nodded. "Alright. What are you doing for the rest of the summer?"

"Dumbledore wants to send me on a mission to Germany, but that is all I am able to tell you at the moment," he replied.

Desiree sighed heavily. "I want to ask to come with you, but I know I can't because I need to stay here for Nora. We'll be spending the summer here."

"I do not know when, but I will be back," he told her gently. He kissed her warmly before they parted. Though Desiree was upset with her cousin, she decided that Remus had been correct and she ought to let her frustration go.

Severus was cleaning his classroom, staring angrily at the orange stain Neville Longbottom had left on the floor from the previous week. Filch could not seem to remove it and Severus had tried eleven potions without any luck. He turned when he heard someone enter the room. "What brings you here, Minerva?"

She crossed her arms and did not meet his gaze. "I know what you did to Remus," she said dryly.

He walked over to her. "I had to. I understand if you, Desiree, and everyone else is upset with me, but he is a danger to the school if he forgets his potion. If you want to know the truth, I'd rather have not done it. But it had to be done. I know he is resigning and I know why, but for now this is for everyone's safety."

"You know how much I don't like the idea, but I do understand, and it may surprise you to learn that I also think you were correct this time. As sad as I am to see him go, he is a danger until a more reliable, longer lasting treatment can be developed for him," she conceded.

When she had looked over at him, she had observed the stain. She walked over to it and pulled her wand out. Two spells later the potion spill was gone. "How did you do that?" Severus asked in amazement.

"Sometimes situations need a fresh pair of eyes to be fixed," she responded.

"Thank you. I only hope that next year he cleans up his own messes. When Filch does not even want to clean a particular stain, there is indeed a problem," he said with a sardonic smile.

(my thanks to Leta McGotor, Quill of Minerva, LinZE for reviewing :D)