victoria cullen34: Sorry I'm a few weeks late! Work and life have been crazy busy recently so I'm just overwhelmed lol. Hopefully this chapter will give you all a glimpse of what the next year may be like for Olivia. :)
twilightlover426: It's still a long ways away, but the story will get there eventually :)
KleaKuqi: Yes, the Dementors is something that I wanted to approach differently since Olivia has had a totally different upbringing than Harry so their reactions will be drastically different.
X Blue Eyed Demon X: Thanks! :D
July 1993 – August 1993 (Second Year)
Olivia sat amongst the grass along the hillside overlooking the pond, a book spread across her lap. It was the second time she had read through its contents, but the subject matter was something that seemed to resonate with her. Occlumency. It was something that her dad had believed extremely valuable to learn with such expertise so she felt that it would be valuable to her as well.
It was hardly noon, but she couldn't wait until her dad returned for her. Over the summer, she had become increasingly agitated with Draco's attitude. His arrogance and jealousy was a dense aura exuding from his every pore. Every conversation ended up being a rant about Potter and how arrogant and stupid he was. All he could talk about was the many ways in which he planned to truly "show" Potter and his friends that he was better than they were.
It grated on her nerves to the point she wanted to cast him into the pond. On numerous occasions, she nearly had done exactly that. Of course, she understood his anger over some things, but the petty jealousy that he practically lived on was just ridiculous. Potter this and Potter that and Dumbledore and his bloody Gryffindors...that was all she ever heard anymore.
"Olivia? What are you doing?" sounded the familiar grating voice from behind her. She sighed internally.
"Reading," she replied stiffly.
"Well, I can see that, but why? School doesn't start for another two months."
"Because I want to, Draco. Did you need something?" she asked, still attempting to read a passage about creating a mindful barrier against unwarranted attacks.
"You just always have your nose stuffed in a book recently, like that bloody Granger."
There it was. Not even two minutes into a conversation and a name was already dropped. "Well, maybe it's because I am sick of your bloody arrogant prattling and greater-than-thou attitude lately."
"My arrogance? What do you call what you're acting like now?! Speak for yourself."
"Draco, I'm done with this conversation. Now, please, leave me to my book." Pond, pond, pond... The thought was just so tempting.
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
She slammed her book shut and stood, facing him to turn her fiery gaze to his stone grey eyes. "Draco, I am tired. I am tired of this constant petty jealousy of yours. All I hear anymore is Potter, Potter, Potter! Granger, Weasley, Dumbledore! I swear if I hear it again, I'm chucking you into the pond! I'm so sorry you got your knickers in a knot over the entire chamber ordeal and the quidditch match and whatever else it is that has got you pissed off, but get over it."
Draco opened his mouth to retaliate, but no noise followed. When he tried again only to realize that she'd unintentionally silenced him, she exhaled a breath of relief before turning back towards the manor. It wouldn't be long until her dad would come to retrieve her and she wanted to enjoy what little silence she had left. Retreating to her room upstairs, she was still too angry to find any amount of amusement in her accidental magic.
When a soft knock drew her attention some time later, she looked up from her book to see her aunt. "Your father is here, sweetheart," she said as Olivia was already rising from her spot on the bed. She grabbed her bag after putting her book inside.
"Bye, Aunt Cissa," she said, hugging her aunt around the middle before leaving her room. Once she was downstairs and saw her dad standing in the foyer, she barely slowed at all as she exited the front door of the manor.
Severus followed after his daughter, her swift, long steps matching his own. When he reached her side, he simply held out his arm for her to grasp on to before they disapparated from just outside the gate. They hadn't been home long before she found him in his lab, begging for something top chop or grind.
"Fight with Draco?" he asked simply.
She was quickly scraping the horn across the microplane. "Idiot. Arrogant. Bloody. Prick," she seethed, accentuating each word with a hard swipe of the horn. She stopped and peaked through her lashes to see her dad's raised eyebrow. "Sorry," she mumbled quickly for her language.
"That bad?" he asked as he resumed his labeling.
"I am just so sick of his jealous whining." Olivia put the horn down on the table again before continuing. "Everything is Potter's fault or Dumbledore's and I simply won't listen to it anymore. I think the huge display at the end of term was the last straw. First it was how Potter had rudely turned down his offer of friendship in their first year, which I don't know, I wasn't there. Then, there was the ordeal with him showing up Draco and ended up getting on the quidditch team in his first year. Then, when Slytherin had rightly won the house cup, Dumbledore added some last-minute points to Gryffindor, just enough for them to win instead. Add on everything that happened this past school year, only to have all our hard work unrecognized, which was the whole point in the first place. I just don't get it."
"He is a thirteen year-old boy, Olivia. Trust me, they are all that way. Draco takes after Lucius in more ways than you know. He'll have to learn things the hard way."
"By the way things are looking, now, we likely won't be speaking much this year. I hate arguing so I'd rather avoid him completely. I almost had him thrown into the pond today. I accidentally silenced him instead."
"Well, for the safety of the Malfoy heir, would it suffice to say that, until further notice, you'll not be staying over during the summer?"
Olivia laughed as she went back to grating the horn. "While I may not cause physical harm to him, Daddy, I can't promise that his pride won't be sorely bruised if we have to be in the same room for any period of time."
Olivia sat at the table with her oatmeal as she read over the same passage in her book once again. Hearing footsteps enter the kitchen, she spoke, "Daddy? Could you explain the use of a wall in Occlumency? I understand the concept, but it doesn't seem like it would be quite effective."
Severus was pouring his coffee as he thought about her question. "How so?"
"Well, it seems to me that a series of protective barriers would be far more effective. The use of a wall, being the barrier between the offensive force and your most sensitive memories, it just seems to be easy to break. One could simply use brute force and the wall would crumble. Any idiot can use force."
"That's very observant," he said as he sat across from her at the table, pulling his fingers through his hair. "I agree. That is precisely why I use an entirely different approach to protecting the mind from outside forces." Olivia sat up a little, attentive to his outlook. "A maze-like structure is a far better way to confuse anyone attempting to occlude your mind. It will easily take them to meaningless memories, for example, what you had for breakfast or the act of walking somewhere unimportant. You place your most sensitive memories deep within the maze, also behind a series of walls and puzzles, making it even more impossible to break through."
"So, the proverbial wall could be anything created by the witch or wizard unique to their own mind. A maze, library, or location like the Forbidden Forest, perhaps?"
"Exactly. It should be unique to the person so anyone attempting to force their way through could not possibly know where the secrets lie without knowing that person inside and out and, even then, it should be reinforced with things that only that person knows." He drank his coffee slowly, watching his daughter digest the information he'd just given her, when there was a tapping on the kitchen window.
Olivia was quickly to her feet, knowing the day. She opened the window, allowing Muninn to step onto the sill. She took the letters from his outstretched claw while he perused the handful of blueberries left on the counter for him. Dropping one onto the table next to Severus, she broke the seal on her own letter.
"When could we head to Diagon Alley, Daddy? I won't have the full year head start like I had last year. I'd like to at least get started before term starts," she said as she looked over the year's book list. When no answer came, she looked up. Her dad was deeply engrossed in his own letter, his brow furrowing deep. "Is something wrong?"
Glancing up, he composed himself before finishing his coffee. "Just the headmaster being his usual self. Perhaps we'll go later in the week. I must go write a very strong letter." He left the kitchen in a hurry after putting his mug in the sink.
Olivia's own eyebrows rose with intrigue and she held back her amusement knowing that the headmaster was about to get a letter that was likely to be both short and filled with words she wasn't allowed to say in public. She wondered what Dumbledore had done this time.
Olivia didn't know the outcome of the correspondence between her dad and the headmaster, but she did know that the headmaster must have made the final decision because her dad's scowl was very evident for days afterward. She stood in front of the shelves of Flourish & Blott's looking at her list. A couple titles had been added in her dad's hand. She was in charge of her books and robes while he went to Knockturn Alley for some supplies.
She was picking up the third year's Defense Against the Dark Arts text when a girl's voice sounded next to her. "You're Professor Snape's daughter, correct?" Olivia turned to see none other than Hermione Granger. "Sorry, I couldn't help but notice the resemblance," the girl laughed. "I'm Hermione Granger," she introduced herself while holding out her hand. Olivia was slightly surprised that she would be happily introducing herself to a Slytherin and one who she knew to be a friend of Draco's and the daughter of a Professor.
"Olivia Snape," she responded, shaking the girl's hand. She reached for the book again, pulling it from the shelf.
"Are you reading ahead a year?" she asked as she pulled the same book from the shelf.
"My father added it to my list. I had read ahead for last year, but, unfortunately, I won't get as much of a head start this year."
"That's good, though. It's important to stay ahead as much as you can. Might I safely assume you're already ahead in Potions?"
"I help my father enough during the summer that I am."
"It must be nice, having a Professor around, especially being able to help with things like that. I'll bet you know tricks only he knows just from watching him your whole life." She stopped and laughed, "The most I get is how to properly floss."
Olivia couldn't help but smile at her comment. The girl seemed nicer than she had originally thought. "If not that, at least how to brew the strongest cup of coffee."
Hermione did laugh at that. "Well, I guess I'll see you around school, then. It was nice to meet you." The girl left after Olivia nodded in response. The entire conversation had confused her. Hermione truly was strange.
She finished collecting all her books and told the cashier that the amount was to be drafted from her father's account. The next thing she had to do was to get sized for her new robes, which always bored her out of her mind.
As the term drew closer, Severus was becoming more and more concerned with the state of things. First there was the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who just so happened to be the worst possible prospect. He wondered if there was absolutely no one better suited for the position or if it was just the headmaster's sentimentality that won the man the post.
Remus Lupin. He hadn't heard that name in so long. It was true that Lupin wasn't the worst of his kind, far from it. However, the fact was still that he was a werewolf. He was dangerous. To have a werewolf inside the walls of a school teaching children, one of which was his own, positively enraged him. Albus even had the gall to volunteer his services to brew the canine's monthly potions!
He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to push away the oncoming headache that had been threatening him for over an hour. Olivia had went to bed only recently, leaving him alone in the sitting room. Grasping his glass of Ogden's, he thought over the newest bit of information that had been revealed to him only earlier that evening.
Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban prison. Albus had sent him an urgent owl shortly after dinner. Severus discreetly cast protective wards around their home. He didn't want to worry Olivia too soon, but if Black had escaped, it was likely they wouldn't catch him anytime soon. He would have to have a discussion with her about what to do while at school.
He'd also sent his own urgent owl to Narcissa, letting her know about the situation so they could take their own precautions. While Narcissa was not close to her own family and certainly wasn't affiliated with Sirius Black at all, Azkaban often drove its inhabitants insane and it would not surprise him in the slightest to hear of Black visiting anyone and everyone he knew of to attempt to convince them to help him in one way or another.
It was something that he'd never quite understood, Black's turn at the end. As deep as he'd been in the Death Eater's himself, not once had he heard of Black being at all in favor of Voldemort and his motivations. Yes, he loathed the man, but something was amiss in it all. He wasn't sure whether Black simply went insane or if his betrayal was the result of something more personal with his group of friends. Either way, he betrayed Lily's trust and that resulted in her death and could have resulted in Olivia's death had Voldemort went to the bedroom first rather than Harry's nursery. He hated the man, filthy beast that he was.
With this happening, Severus felt a certain foreboding in his gut. Could this possibly be the beginning of something he'd hoped would never happen? He didn't want to live that life again. He had Olivia to take care of and protect; he wasn't sure he could live that way again, not with her. The last thing he ever wanted was for her to be pulled into anything similar to what he'd been through. If Voldemort were to rise again, he'd hoped that she would be of age and able to leave the country for a time.
Now, his gut was telling him that he should probably begin preparing her and himself for the worst.
It was the morning when the Daily Prophet arrived, Black on the front page, when he knew he had to explain to Olivia what was going on. Severus was hesitant because he knew his daughter. She was going to have questions. However, he also knew that she respected private matters so he hoped that certain things would go unmentioned.
He found her in her room, reading over one of the many books for her new courses. When she noticed his form in the doorway, she closed her book, obviously noticing that he had something to discuss. "Olivia, there's something I need to talk to you about."
Worry crossed her face, but she sat up, giving him her full attention. "Is something wrong, Daddy?"
"Nothing too concerning, but something you should be aware of, all the same." He pulled the chair from her desk over to her bed and sat down. "There's been an escape from Azkaban. You're aware of the war that ended shortly after you were born?"
"Of course," she said simply so that he could continue.
"The man who escaped, Sirius Black, is the one who provided the information, which led to the death of the Potter family. It's a belief that he may have his mind focused on the boy, now, which is why the headmaster will be taking certain precautions this year at Hogwarts. Also, the Ministry is stepping in and will be having Dementors guarding the grounds. I must ask you to be careful. Do not leave Slytherin after hours without either myself, Minerva, or Albus and do not leave the grounds."
"I thought Dementors were dangerous and didn't care who they went after. Why is Dumbledore allowing them near the school at all?"
"He's being forced to at least compromise with the Ministry, unfortunately. They are dangerous, which is why I want you to be cautious. I know you're quite young, but have you ever heard mention or read about the Patronus Charm?" When she shook her head, he explained, "It is a protective charm that drives away Dementors. It had a few other uses, but this is the main one. It's a highly advanced charm and very few can perform it. I will tell you that in order to perform it, you have to think of the happiest, most pleasant memory you have while saying 'Expecto Patronum.'"
Olivia just nodded in understanding. "If Sirius Black has escaped, does that mean he may try to get Death Eaters back together?" she asked carefully. It wasn't a question he expected her to ask.
"Black was not one for leading. He will likely only act alone or with as few others knowing his plan as possible."
"Do you think that others may come up again since he's escaped?"
"That is possible," he said, trying to keep the discussion focused only on Black and away from a possible oncoming war.
"Will that put you in danger?"
"Without a leader, they are easily disengaged. Most are too frightened to rise up without the Dark Lord and those who are still reside in Azkaban."
The air was tense as he sensed Olivia had more questions. Truthfully, she didn't know how to approach the questions she wanted to ask. He'd never really discussed his part in the war. All she knew was that he didn't like to talk about it; he always skirted around his own part in it all. Olivia was only aware of the facts, which everyone knew. She did know that he was a Death Eater alongside her uncle, but she also knew that Dumbledore trusted him and she also knew her dad, better than most, since she saw a different side to him.
Olivia knew that there was a bigger story than what he would tell her and only time would reveal if he would ever tell her. She also suspected that her mother had played some part, but never asked. It was simply curious that she had died, leaving her dad as her only family. Something always felt bad about asking about her. There were no pictures of her that she'd seen. Olivia didn't even know her name. In fact, the only information she had was something that the Sorting Hat had said in her first year. She was a Gryffindor.