Author's Notes: Thanks to those of you who left reviews. It inspired me to finish this chapter!


Disclaimer: Harry Potter, its characters and settings are all the property of J.K. Rowling.

Chapter Eleven: What Happened to Claudia?

A bleary eye opened slowly, but seeing nothing but blur, it shut again. There was a groan, and the crumpled heap that had been lying on the floor moved slightly.

Snape was suddenly aware that he was lying on something very uncomfortable that was painfully jabbing into his back. He rolled over; his movements causing him to raise his hands to his head as a sharp pain began to throb in his temple. Again, he opened one eye, and then the other. It took a few moments for the world in front of him to come into focus. Tilting his head to the side, he saw the object that he had been laying on – an empty wine bottle laying on its side. Another empty bottle, of what Snape suspected had been his father's vintage cognac judging by its shape, was standing nearby.

Snape began to look (slowly, his head was still throbbing) about him in confusion. Why was he lying on the floor? Why did he feel so awful? Why were there empty bottles on the floor beside him?

He had a few more moments of ignorant bliss before the memories of the previous evening came flooding back. He groaned again as he heaved himself up from the floor.

Slowly he stumbled over to his desk and collapsed in the chair. He caught sight of his face in the mirror on his wall and almost did not recognise the person looking back at him. His normally lank hair was dishevelled and standing on end. His eyes were bloodshot. He rubbed his hand against his cheek and his pallid skin felt clammy to the touch.

Resting his elbows on the desk, his head sank against his hands as the wretched thoughts that had plagued him last night flashed through his mind.

"Good God!" he thought bitterly to himself. This was an absolute mess. What was he supposed to do next? Was he supposed to tell someone, confront the girl? Did he even want to confront the brat? He shuddered at the very thought.

A sudden image floated into his mind of Ellie, standing over a cauldron with a desperate look on her face, hastily brushing a tear from her cheek. His heart softened for a moment, but then he shook his head furiously, angrily reprimanding himself for such foolish weakness.

A sudden determination washing over him, he stood up and began to stride to the door. His legs wobbled under him for a moment, but he managed to make it, although rather unsteadily. He pulled the door open and stepped out into the dark corridor.

His knees suddenly buckled under him, and he had to brace himself against the wall to keep from sinking to the floor. Using the wall as a crutch, he managed to make his way (feeling very undignified. Praise Merlin that none of his students were here to witness this) to the small bathroom further up the corridor.

Splashing some cool water against his face, Snape peered at his reflection in the mirror. He was starting to look slightly better. His eyes did not seem as red as they had been a few minutes before, and after dampening his hair with water and smoothing it down, he almost looked like himself.

Snape looked at his watch, and winced when he saw the time. It was after one o'clock. He had slept through the entire morning. Snape prayed that his absence at breakfast, and now at lunch, would not be noticed too much, or at the very least that nobody would ask him any awkward questions.

After freshening himself up, Snape debated what to do next. If he went back to his room, he would only torture himself with thoughts of Claudia and Ellie. It would be better to be around other people where he couldn't brood by himself. He remembered that he had been in the middle of marking essays in the staffroom the previous evening before it had hit him, and concluded that perhaps that would be the best thing to take his mind off things at the moment.

After checking once more that he bore little trace of how he had spent the previous evening (his eyes, he concluded, were still bloodshot, although it was barely noticeable now), Snape left the bathroom and headed for the staffroom.

When he got there, the room was empty. Everyone must still be at lunch, he supposed. He walked across the room to the seat he had occupied the previous evening. Lying untouched on the table beside it were the essays he had been marking the previous evening. Snape sat down and picked up the first essay in the pile.

A moment later Snape heard the door creaking open and looked up. Dumbledore walked into the room and noticed Snape immediately.

"Severus! We missed you at breakfast. Everything is okay I take it?" Dumbledore asked, a hint of concern in his voice.

"Yes, Headmaster," Snape replied, lowering his eyes to avoid eye contact.

"Good," Dumbledore replied and took a seat near Snape. Snape fixed his gaze on the parchment in front of him, not wishing to strike up a conversation. A moment later however, Dumbledore interrupted him.

"Does this belong to you Severus?" Dumbledore asked. Snape looked up and saw Dumbledore taking a piece of parchment up from the floor.

"Eleanora Winterbourne. The Properties of…" Dumbledore began, reading the heading on the parchment. Snape immediately snatched the parchment out of Dumbledore's hands, much to Dumbledore's surprise. Snape began breathing heavily. He was not sure why he had reacted that way. It had been instinctive. It was as if Dumbledore kept reading he would come across something that would betray the fact that Ellie was his, Snape's, daughter and Snape had to prevent it. He instantly regretted his actions however, as Dumbledore was now giving him a curious look.

"Are you sure everything is okay Severus?" Dumbledore asked slowly.

"Yes!" Snape barked. Again, Snape regretted his behaviour as Dumbledore shot him another curious glance, and tried to compose himself.

"Yes," he repeated after a moment, calmer than before.

Dumbledore looked at Snape a moment longer, considering him. Snape began to feel uncomfortable. Finally, Dumbledore spoke.

"How is Miss Winterbourne coming along in your class Severus?" he asked.

Snape felt like throwing the parchment to the floor and stomping on it. Any other subject would have been welcome. That brat was always causing him grief.

"Her performance is... adequate," Snape said slowly, hoping this would satisfy Dumbledore.

"Ah, good. I have a particular interest in the child's well-being," Dumbledore replied, giving Snape a knowing look.

Snape froze. What did that mean? Did Dumbledore know?

"Really?" Snape replied calmly, although his heart was racing.

"Yes. The poor child has a tragic history, as you are no doubt aware of yourself," Dumbledore said, shifting in his chair to make himself more comfortable.

Snape heart began to pound so fast he was sure Dumbledore could hear. He tried to remain composed on the outside however.

"I heard her mother died when she was young," Snape said.

"Yes, indeed. Died within minutes of the birth in fact, "said Dumbledore solemnly. "Awful tragedy," Dumbledore added sadly, shaking his head.

Snape felt his pulse slow down. An image of Claudia taking her last breath flashed across his mind, making him feel as if he had just taken a blow to the stomach.

"Why did she… how did she…?" Snape began, stumbling over the words. He wanted to know what had caused Claudia's death, but it was difficult. Fortunately, Dumbledore understood what he meant.

"Officially, she took a fall down some stairs," Dumbledore said. Snape frowned. Officially?

"And unofficially?" he asked.

"Unofficially," Dumbledore said, drawing his chair closer to Snape and lowering his voice," I believe she was murdered."

Snape's eyes grew wide and he jumped out of his seat, his heart racing again.

"Murdered?" Snape exclaimed.

"Yes," Dumbledore said quietly.

"Who? Why?" Snape asked in an agitated voice.

Dumbledore looked mildly surprised at Snape's reaction, but answered the question.

"A man by the name of Joseph Ramsey. He was a cousin of Jonas Winterbourne, Claudia Winterbourne's father. You perhaps may be familiar with the name Severus," Dumbledore said.

Snape's mind was racing. Joseph Ramsey? That name did seem familiar, Snape thought. But who was he?

It came to him in a flash. Joseph Ramsey! He had been a Death Eater.

Snape sat down heavily. A Death Eater. Claudia had been killed by a Death Eater. He dropped his head into his hands for a moment, groaning. He had known him, even spoken to him once. A sudden surge of anger took over Snape. He had been on friendly terms with the man who had killed Claudia!

Snape jumped up again, his eyes flashing.

"What happened?" Snape demanded.

Again, Dumbledore looked surprised at Snape's reaction. Snape looked livid. Dumbledore however, continued with the story.

"The Winterbournes were a very wealthy family. Jonas had inherited most of the family money, and Claudia would obviously inherit it after Jonas and his wife died. Ramsey however felt that, as Claudia was a half-blood she was unworthy of the Winterbourne fortune. Nobody is sure of the exact details as there were no witnesses, but Joseph arrived at the Winterbourne manor late one evening when Jonas and his wife were out. Claudia was on bed rest, due to some complications with her pregnancy, and Ramsey apparently went up to her room to visit her. According to a servant, minutes later Claudia could be heard screaming from upstairs. The servant rushed out to the hall in time to see Claudia fall down the stairs. She was rushed to St. Mungo's, but there was nothing they could do. They did manage however, to save the child. When questioned, Ramsey claimed that when he entered the room, Claudia had been having a nightmare. He shook her to wake her but she jumped up and ran out of the room. He claims she must have tripped on her nightgown and that caused the fall. Of course, Jonas believed him. Why would he not? Ramsey was his cousin, and they had always been on good terms."

"Then how do you know he… he killed Claudia?" Snape asked.

"Some of us had our suspicions about Ramsey and his involvement with Voldemort," began Dumbledore. Snape flinched at the mention of Voldemort.

"To learn more however, we must travel three years into the future. Jonas Winterbourne and his wife are now getting older, but they are raising their granddaughter who managed to survive the fall that killed her mother. Ramsey is still suspected of involvement with Voldemort, and of killing Muggles, although this knowledge is not widely known however. Voldemort had now fallen from power, after his encounter with young Harry Potter. Ramsey was on his own again, with no hope of gaining any power or influence. Ramsey too is seething that Claudia's daughter has survived the fall that killed her mother. She, obviously, will now inherit the Winterbourne fortune, unless she can be… disposed of. Threats had been made against the family months before. Jonas's wife is a Muggle, so Jonas, taking the threats seriously, went into hiding. Before leaving however, Jonas entrusted two people with his whereabouts – a former colleague from the Ministry of Magic… and his cousin, Joseph Ramsey. While in hiding, Jonas is contacted by his colleague. The Ministry is in desperate need of his expertise after the fall of Voldemort. But, Jonas cannot leave his wife and granddaughter alone. He needs to trust someone to take care of them, someone like his cousin. Jonas leaves his family in his cousin's care, and joins the Ministry of Magic in a secret operation. While there however, he learns the awful truth that his cousin is fact suspected of being a Death Eater. Horrified, he rushes home, accompanied by his former Auror colleague, but tragedy awaits him. He finds Ramsey standing over his wife's lifeless body, his wand in his hand. Ramsey makes a run for it and almost escapes. Jonas however catches up to him. A struggle ensues, and Ramsey kills Jonas, using the same curse he used to kill Jonas's wife. Jonas's Auror friend however, is not far behind, and succeeds where Jonas failed. Ramsey is restrained and his wand taken away. Eventually he is taken to Azkaban." Dumbledore paused here and wandered over to a nearby table that contained a pitcher of water. He poured himself a glass and took a sip. Snape sat with his head resting on one hand, taking in Dumbledore's story, disbelief etched on his face. Dumbledore walked back to his chair and settled down again to continue with his tale.

"The child meanwhile miraculously is safe. Ramsey had attacked the Muggle grandmother before attempting to move on to the child. The question is what to do with the child? She has no known living relatives left, apart from Ramsey. Her father is unknown," Dumbledore continued.

"Perhaps if he had been known, he would not have been in a position to care for the child," Dumbledore added, and shot Snape a curious glance. Snape started. Dumbledore stared at Snape for a moment, and then continued.

"I was aware of a woman who had once worked for the Winterbourne family, as a nanny to Claudia I believe. She seemed to be the closest thing to family for the child that I could find. I applied to her, asking would she be interested in taking on a new charge. She was reluctant at first, but eventually we managed to come to an arrangement. Therefore, you see Severus, why I am interested in the child's well-being. She has suffered many losses in her young life," Dumbledore finished.

Snape sat in silence, a stony expression on his face. The news that Dumbledore believed Claudia was killed because of Ramsey's belief in the Dark Lord's Pure-blood propaganda made him feel physically sick. He had once himself aligned himself to Voldemort's beliefs. In fact, this had been what had driven a wedge between him and Claudia all those years ago before she left Hogwarts.

"I saw you coming out of The Hog's Head with Lucius Malfoy again," Claudia said sounding worried. Snape sighed in exasperation.

"Have you been spying on me?" he demanded.

"Of course not! But Severus, this is the third time in a month. What does that man want from you?" Claudia asked desperately.

"He is sharing his ideas with me. I have already told you this Claudia," Snape answered impatiently, beginning to feel angry at this inquisition.

"Not that Pure-blood nonsense again!" Claudia exclaimed.

"It's not nonsense!" Snape retorted.

"Oh please! You of all people should know it is Severus. Your father is a Muggle," Claudia replied.

"NEVER MENTION MY FATHER AGAIN!" Snape yelled, shaking with anger. Claudia recoiled.

"Severus, what's happened to you? You've been acting so strangely lately!"

"Nothing has happened to me! Why can't you leave me alone for once? I can't do anything without you asking me twenty questions!" Snape hissed.

Claudia stared at Snape, frowning in confusion and disbelief. This wasn't the Severus she knew, the Severus she loved.

"You've changed," she finally stated, shaking her head.

"Severus?"

"What?" Snape said in a confused tone as he was roused from his thoughts. He looked up to find Dumbledore looking at him with concern.

"Are you alright?" Dumbledore asked.

"I… yes," Snape answered hastily and then stood up. He could not sit facing Dumbledore in this room anymore.

"Excuse me Headmaster," Snape said, and then walked quickly to the door and left the room.

Dumbledore watched him leave, noting his agitated state.

"Interesting," Dumbledore mumbled to himself and then got up to pour himself another glass of water.