Chapter Four
Snape sprinted through the castle to the eagle guarding the Headmaster's quarters. He quickly uttered the password required to gain access to the staircase and dashed up the stairs as fast as he possibly could. When he arrived to the top he was slightly out of breath and was forced to pause for a moment. Dumbledore came down the stairs from the upper level of his office afraid that something had happened to the young potions master.
"Severus!" He exclaimed while helping him to a chair and grabbing him a glass of water. "What happened? Did Voldemort discover you?"
"No…..the meeting…..was fine…." Snape answered pausing between his breaths. "I apologize…for worrying…you. Something did….happen…..though….and you were the only…..person I could…think to talk about….it to."
Their conversation was put on hold for a moment while Severus drank some more water and regained his ability to speak. The Headmaster racked his brain to think of what it could be that his Professor felt was so urgent he chose to nearly kill himself in order to get to him.
"Headmaster…" Snape began, interrupting Dumbledore out of his thoughts. "I'm not sure where to begin. This whole day has been so overwhelming and what I'm about to tell you will probably convince you that I've gone mad but please just listen."
Albus nodded, encouraging him to continue.
"I met a young girl today at the coffee shop the Death Eater meeting was held at." Snape spoke quietly, almost afraid to voice his suspicions. "She was around sixteen or seventeen and pretty much looked like the average muggle girl. When she came to serve me though….I noticed she had the same uniquely piercing eyes Skylar had. Do you remember them? They were like emeralds, and when she looked at you it was almost like she could see inside you. This girl could do that too. She saw that I was different from the other Death Eaters."
"Severus…" Dumbledore spoke with empathy but Snape interrupted him.
"I know the child died. And I know it's foolish to dream that anything different could have happened, but the connection I felt to this girl, Brody Hart was her name, was unbelievable. You know that I rarely experience bonds with anyone, especially people I'm meeting for the first time. She's the right age, has the right look….is there even a chance that…?"
"There's always a chance I suppose" Albus interjected firmly. "But I do not think it is wise for you to believe that you child is still alive. Do you not think if she existed we would have received word of it due to her magical powers? Even if there was some chance that she had been raised by muggles we still would have received some notification of her existence when it was time to send out the Hogwartz letters."
"Perhaps she never received hers. Or she didn't accept. Are there any records that I could look at?" Severus asked desperate to hold onto his theory.
"You could talk to Minerva. She deals with all the letters that are sent out. I imagine she'd have a list of all the wizards who were eligible to attend the school each year. But Severus, I urge you to let this go. It's not worth it to dwell on the past. You need to move on."
"Albus, you know me. I'm not a dreamer. I've never dared to imagine that my child could still be alive. But I felt something in that shop, something I haven't felt since Skylar died. And I have to see what it meant. Maybe this is what my dreams were alluding to, maybe Skylar was trying to tell me something." Snape sighed. "I just have to explore this now or my past will haunt me forever. If don't look into this girl now, I know I'll regret it for the rest of my life."
The Headmaster nodded. "Very well. You do whatever you think is best. But how about we make a deal? You can have the rest of the summer to explore this but if nothing comes of it after that then you let it go?"
Severus thought for a moment. "That seems fair. Thank you Headmaster. I think I will go talk to Professor McGonagall now. Goodnight."
Dumbledore watched the potions master leave with a worried look on his face. He hoped Snape's interactions with this Brody Hart would not cause the poor wizard more hurt and suffering.
