Elizabeth sat at the table, eating breakfast the next morning, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. Her father was sitting at the other side of the table, writing another letter, but she was too tired to make any remark about it. She had another nightmare the night before, but she hadn't thought that she had woken up her father, but she had woken up this morning, he had been sleeping in the armchair by her bed.

"How are you this morning?" Severus asked, not looking up from the letter he was penning.

"Alright." Elizabeth pushed her cereal around in her bowl, not looking at his face.

"What was your dream about?" Severus signed the bottom, waving his wand over the paper to dry the ink before he sealed it into an envelope, before he looked up at her.

"What?"

"Rennie, I heard you screaming last night. I slept in that chair. I know you had a nightmare. Do you want to talk about it?"

Elizabeth ducked her head, dragging her spoon through the milk, not wanting to share, but knew she should. "It was about my uncle… they always are. It just… I'm so sick of them."

"Well, I am sending this letter to Saundra, to see where we will be meeting her on Thursday. Do you have a preference?"

"Can I meet her here?"

"Yes you can." Severus held the letter up. "I suggested that in this letter, so Thursday, we will have her here." He smiled a little at her before he got up, heading to his study where his owl was, an inky dark bird that was growing old in age. He had received the bird as a going to school present when he was 11, from his maternal grandfather, right before he died. Even though his mother had been disowned by her parents when she married his father, his grandparents had still made an effort to be a part of his life. It made no sense to him, but the large sum of money that was left behind after their deaths was enough to put him through his potions mastery debt free.

"And when school starts, would we come back here for therapy or…?" Elizabeth asked when he came back into the room, playing with the dregs of milk at the bottom of her bowl.

Severus shook his head, giving the letter to the owl which flew out the window to deliver the letter. "No, you would meet her either there or in her office, depending on where the two of you decide." He took her bowl and brought it to the sink, washing her dishes and putting them on the drying rack.

Without the bowl to fiddle with, she began to pick at her fingers, surprised to see her father's much larger ones cover her's to keep her fingers still. When she looked up, she saw him sitting in the chair next to her, looking at her face. "I just don't want people to think that I'm weird or anything…" She trailed off, not wanting to reveal too much about her fears.

"I can assure you, she's not going to think you're weird." Severus leaned forward and kissed her forehead, getting up from the table. "Now, I will be in the lab. Entertain yourself for a while and I'll be up around lunchtime."

Elizabeth nodded, waiting until the door closed to the basement before she got up herself, heading up to her bedroom. She pulled out her school books, flipping through the defense book, sitting in the chair swing, trying to absorb as much information as she could before the beginning of term, but before she could get too into the text, she was distracted by the first meeting with her therapist in two days' time.

What if Saundra didn't believe her? What if she wanted to tell her aunt and uncle everything that she had said about them? She knew she had that contract that said anything she said would remain private, but what if she could ignore that? What if Severus found out the entire story? He might not want to take care of someone like her, with all the things she had been through, she wouldn't blame him, however, if he sent her back to them.

Before she could work herself up anymore, she turned her attention back to the book on her lap, forcing herself to read her book, using a small notebook to take notes and write down any questions she had while reading. She wanted to make sure that at least if people thought she was a loser like before in her old school, at least she would be known for having the smarts to at least make her professor father happy.

*S*S*

"How are you doing today, Elizabeth?" Saundra settled in the armchair Severus had offered her before he disappeared into the lab, leaving the two alone to talk.

"I'm okay." She sat on the sofa across the room from her, holding a throw pillow against her stomach. She was nervous to talk about her feelings, but knew that not only was it good for her, that it was going to help her work through her issues, but also her father was paying a lot of money for her to have a therapist.

"That's good, okay is good, dear." Saundra smiled warmly, settling back in the chair, recrossing her legs. "Now, we're not going to be doing any sort of soul searching today or any sort of therapy, like I'm sure you think of therapy." She had a notepad on her knee, pen dangling from her fingers, but she wasn't looking very serious, not like her aunt and uncle did when they found invisible dirt in the corner of the living room. "I just want to get to know you today. And I brought some games that you might be familiar with and some that you may not know, if you want to play them. But if you want to talk about anything particular or if the conversation just goes to something more than just getting to know you, we don't have to stop. Just say whatever you want." She reached over to the side of the chair and slid a tote bag in front of the chair, pulling out a few boxes and card games.

Elizabeth had to admit, she was interested. "What do you have?" She leaned over, trying to get a good look into the bag.

"I have guess who, clue, pick up sticks and scrabble and for wizarding games, I have chess, exploding snap and gobstones." She put all the boxes on the coffee table, waiting for Elizabeth to make a choice. "But if that's not your fancy, I also have a ton of craft supplies, if you want to make something?"

Elizabeth smiled sliding off the couch to kneel before the coffee table, her hands ghosting over the boxes, not daring to touch them fully. "Can we play clue? I haven't played this in a really long time."

"Of course we can!" Saundra waited for Elizabeth to open the box, taking out the board game and the pieces. "Which piece do you want?"

Elizabeth considered the pieces before her, looking at the six game tokens she had at her disposal, before she plucked Mrs. Scarlett out of the pile, placing her at the start. "Who do you want?"

Saundra leaned forward in her chair, putting Mrs. Peacock next to Elizabeth's piece, before she waved her wand and sent the other pieces to march in place next to the others. As Saundra set the game up, Elizabeth looked a little confused.

"Why are the pieces set up?"

"You need three people to play, so if all the pieces are in play, the game will be that much better and it will give us more time to talk." She shuffled the deck and waved her wand, sending the necessary cards into the envelope.

"Now, why don't you go first?" She handed her the dice, waiting for Elizabeth to roll the dice. When Elizabeth moved her piece, Saundra leaned forward to shake the dice herself. "Now, tell me about school? You went to muggle primary school, correct? How was that? Did you like school?"

"Yeah, I really liked school. I was in the advanced classes and I did really well there. I was in advanced math and history, but I'm not sure how that's going to help in Hogwarts."

"Math helps a lot with potions, so it might help you do well there." Saundra made a note on her pad, but Elizabeth wasn't paying attention, looking at the board. "I'm sure your father wants you to do well in Potions."

"Yeah…" Elizabeth picked up the dice and rolled, moving her piece into the ballroom section of the board, picking up her cards. "I think it was Colonel Mustard, in the ballroom, with the wrench."

The board glowed red, causing Elizabeth to look up confused.

"The board is charmed to glow red if the guess is wrong." She made a few notes on the page provided for recording information, before she took the dice herself. "Did you like math?"

"I really liked math. I was really good at it." Elizabeth fiddled with her shirt hem, not sure with how much she should open up. She wanted to and she knew she should, but at the same time, the fear that they were all reporting back to her relatives was in the back of her mind, keeping her fearful to open up with any detailed information.

"Were you always in advanced math?"

"I was. My aunt and uncle hated it because Dudley wasn't as smart as me." Elizabeth frowned and shook her head. "Well, I'm sure he was, but he didn't really try in school. He was more focused on being mean to me and everyone else if I'm being honest."

"I bet that made you feel sad." Saundra moved her piece to the conservatory, considering her options. "I think it was Mrs. Scarlet, with the candlestick in the conservatory." The board glowed red, showing the pair that Saundra was wrong.

"A little. I just wanted to do well, but they were always so negative. I really want to do well at Hogwarts to… I dunno, it's dumb."

"Elizabeth, nothing you say is dumb." Saundra smiled kindly. "And nothing you say will be shared, even with your father. Not unless you say so."

Elizabeth considered her options before she pulled the pillow to her stomach once more, placing her chin on the top edge. "I just want to make Severus proud; you know? My aunt and uncle never cared and since he's been so kind to me, I want him to care." Elizabeth watched the pieces move on their own free will, the board glowing red after every turn.

"He certainly does, Elizabeth. I knew him in school, very briefly, but from what I saw and heard, he does all he can for those he loves." Saundra pushed the dice to Elizabeth. "He's going to want to hear about all you have to tell him and if you're liking school."

Elizabeth nodded, taking her turn. "I really liked school before so I'm hoping that I like Hogwarts too." She got shy suddenly. "I just hope that I do well there and don't make a fool of myself." She liked Saundra, she felt heard and seen by this woman, even if she just met her. Elizabeth was also glad that she wasn't asking probing questions like her old school counselor used to do, only to report back to the Dursleys' when she said anything negative about her aunt and uncle.

"You seem like a very smart and capable young lady, so I don't see why not." Saundra moved her piece after she rolled. "I think you'll be great."

"But what if I'm not enough?" Elizabeth buried her chin further into the pillow, her voice soft.

"What makes you say that, dear?"

"I dunno… This is so new to me… and everyone knows me and if they're expecting me to be so great and I'm not, then what do I do?"

"You do your best. Just because people know who you are, doesn't mean you own them anything. If I'm being honest, you don't have to do anything you don't want to do." Saundra said, gesturing for Elizabeth to play her move.

"Severus said the same thing. It's just hard, you know?"

"I'm sure it is. From what you've told me and from what your father told me before I met you officially, you've had a really tough beginning. But we're here to make sure that you get the mental health help that you need and to make sure that you have a great support system going into September." She watched as Elizabeth moved her piece into the kitchen.

"Ummm, Mrs. Peacock in the kitchen with the…. Lead pipe." The board glowed red. "Dang it."

"Elizabeth, you do understand that we're here for you, right?"

"Mhmmm." She nodded, handing the dice to Saundra. "It's weird having that, but it's something I could get used to." She laughed a little, looking down at her lap. "Did he tell you about Remus?"

"Your father? Yes, he did mention it in his letter to me this week." Saundra looked at Elizabeth with compassion. "Is that alright?"

"Yeah, it's okay." Elizabeth nodded. "It's just weird knowing that he knew me from when I was a baby, but I don't remember him from that time and that he wants to have a relationship with me, like things should pick up from where they left off."

"And you don't want that?"

"I do, but I don't know him. The last time I trusted someone so blindly, they told my aunt and uncle everything I said and I got in so much trouble." She sucked her lips in and blinked a few times.

"Elizabeth, I am not going to tell them anything. You're safe here, you know that? Your father loves you very much and wants you to be happy and healthy here. And if you want to get that help and to come out of your shell, that's what I'm here for." Saundra reached over and shook the dice, moving her piece around the board, looking at her cards.

"It's just hard to trust after that." She shrugged, picking at her cuticles.

"Well, let's not focus on that right now. Tell me, are there any subjects that you are looking forward to at Hogwarts?"

Elizabeth smiled. "I really want to do defense. I really liked what I read in my textbook and I'm excited to try it out."

"Not potions?"

"Well," She took the dice and shook them, tossing them onto the board. "Don't tell Severus, but I'm really nervous about potions. I don't think I'm going to be good at it, from what I've read."

"What makes you say that?"

"It's just so technical. I'm great at cooking and baking, I really am great at it, but potions is a little more than that. What if I make a fool of myself? I don't want to disappoint Severus."

"I think as long as you try, he's going to be happy. Just do your best."

"That's the plan at least. Mr. Green, in the ballroom with the knife."

The board glowed green, causing Elizabeth to grin brighter than she had in a long time.

*S*S*

When Severus came upstairs at the end of the two hours to see how the session was going, he was surprised to hear laughter coming from the living room where his daughter was with her therapist. When he came into the room, he pulled up short when he saw his daughter wearing a pipe cleaner crown, sitting on the floor next to the coffee table. Saundra had a paper ring necklace on, laughing alongside his daughter.

"So, when Jenny and I finally got out of the classroom, Dudley had thrown a massive tantrum and completely destroyed the hallway. He had ripped the water fountain off the wall and the hallway was flooded! So I was scared that I was going to get in trouble for it, but the school made sure to tell my aunt and uncle that Dudley was completely responsible, and they were forced to spend thousands of pounds to repair the school property." Elizabeth cut out a star from cardboard, painting it with gold paint, cutting out a second one, gluing them to sandwich a small wooden dowel between the two cardboard pieces to create a fairy tale wand, adding curly sparkly ribbon.

"Did that change anything at home?" Saundra asked, folding paper into origami swans.

"Yeah, my aunt and uncle were mad, even though it wasn't my fault. But Jenny and her family let me stay with them until they were over it." Elizabeth shrugged. "They let me stay with them a lot after school so that I didn't have to go home until the last minute and to do laundry and stuff. They made sure I had everything I needed."

Severus shut the door in the hallway to alert them to his presence, before he spoke, coming to stand behind the sofa where Elizabeth sat. "How is everything going?"

Elizabeth turned, beaming. "Severus!"

Severus couldn't help but smile back, sitting next to her. "Miss Mullings, I cannot thank you enough for the help you're providing." He put his arm around his daughter.

"Oh, it's a pleasure! Elizabeth is a joy to work with!" Saundra carefully pulled off the paper necklace, putting it in her bag before she waved her wand, sending all the supplies back into her bag. "Should we meet same time next week?"

"Yes!" Elizabeth turned to Severus, grabbing his arm. "Yes please!"

Severus chuckled. "Thursday works great. Are you coming back here, or will we go to your office?"

"Here, if you'll allow it? Elizabeth would be more comfortable here rather than there I would assume?" She looked at the young girl who was beaming from ear to ear.

"Of course." Severus nodded before he got up to shake her hand. "Thank you so much for your help." He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a check. "Here, for the month."

"Thank you, Severus. It was nice to see you again, Elizabeth." She gathered her bag and waved goodbye to the young girl, before she stepped through the fireplace, the flames flashing green.

He looked at Elizabeth who was still wearing the pipe cleaner crown and holding the wand. "How did it go? Did you like her?" He smirked at the attire she had made for herself.

Elizabeth climbed onto her knees, beaming. "I loved her! I can't wait till next week! She's so nice and we played all these games and did some arts and crafts!" She threw her arms around his neck, the pipe cleaners nearly poling him in the eye. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For allowing me to do this and for believing in me enough to help me." She mumbled into his neck, feeling his hand rub her back. She sniffed, feeling a little burning in the back of her eyes, like she was about to cry.

"Rennie, of course I would support you in this. You're being very brave to even admit you need help." Severus pulled her back and kissed her forehead, pulling on the pipe cleaner crown a little. "Don't cry, love. I'm proud of you." He tutted and wiped her eyes that were watering a little, before he pulled her down to lay her head on his shoulder. "Now, I know that today was probably a little emotionally tiring, but Remus asked if you would be okay if he came over for dinner?"

"That's fine, Severus." Elizabeth nodded, fiddling with the wand she had made.

"Are you sure? He doesn't need to come over tonight." Severus took her chin in his hand, pulling her eyes to his.

"Yeah, it's fine. What are we having anyways?" Elizabeth got up and went into the kitchen, reading the menu board. "Pork chops? Does Remus eat pork chops?" She turned, a confused look on her face.

"I believe he does." Severus smiled, getting up and heading to the kitchen to start dinner. "Now are you helping me or are you going to defend the backyard kingdom from trolls?"

"Ha ha," Elizabeth said, rolling her eyes, as she sat at the table, putting the wand on the tabletop, leaving the crown on her head. "I can do both."

"I'm sure you can." Severus reached into the fridge and took out the pork chops he had marinating from the night before, laying the bowl on the counter before he took out a series of pans. "So are you staying or going outside?"

"You want to get rid of me that badly?" Elizabeth got up, raising on her tiptoes at the counter to see into the bowl.

"I want you to either help or get out of my way." He moved her back, only for her to wedge herself between him and the counter once more. "Elizabeth."

"Severus." She sassed, hauling herself up onto the counter, sitting next to the range. "I can help."

"You can help by getting your backside off my counter." He moved to pull her down from the wood surface, only to be shocked and taken aback as she bicycled her legs to keep him from reaching her. "Elizabeth!"

"You can't take me down if you can't get me." She laughed, using her legs to keep him away. Using her hands to hold onto the edge of the counter, she kicked and tried to keep him from grabbing her socked feet, emboldened by his own chuckling, rather than anger. She shrieked with laughter when he broke through her defenses, pulling her off the counter and over his shoulder, carrying her to the living room, where he dumped her onto the sofa, long fingers tickling her ribs. She laughed, tears running down her cheeks, with Severus stopping to pull her up as the fireplace glowed bright green, revealing Remus on the hearth.

"Am I interrupting something?" He asked, clearly amused. Elizabeth turned to look at him, her eyes a little wide, not expecting him to come through. She still wasn't sure about the floo, not liking that people could come through whenever they felt like it and that everyone thought it was completely normal.

Elizabeth wiped her eyes free of moisture as she tried to calm herself down, laughter still rumbling in her throat as Severus pulled her into his lap, still chuckling himself.

"Not at all," Severus said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "We were just about to start cooking." He let her get up before standing himself. "Make yourself at home. I'm going to get started." He turned to Elizabeth who was straightening the crown on her head. "So, are you going to keep mucking around in the kitchen or are you going outside?"

Elizabeth leaned into his side, wrapping her arm around his waist in a sidewards hug. "I mean, I was having fun keeping you away from the counter."

"Don't be cheeky," He propelled her to the back door. "Go entertain yourself. No gymnastics, understand?"

"But Severus, there's nothing to do out there." She whined as much as she thought he would allow, bouncing a little in annoyance.

"Elizabeth, I am not having you on for a tantrum. Either go outside or go somewhere else, I need to get dinner started if we're going to eat anytime soon." He leaned down to look into her eyes, arms crossed over his chest. "It has been a good day, let's not end it in a fight, please."

"Fine," she huffed, blowing her bangs out of her face, before she stomped out of the house, heading into the back garden. There, she wandered over to the large oak tree that was in the back of the yard, hoisting herself up into the tree, climbing nearly to the top.

She had been told that morning that Remus was coming over, but she had put it in the back of her mind, not wanting to dwell on it too long. She hadn't spent much time with him, but he had been doing better with respecting her boundaries the last few times he had come over. He had been at the house nearly every day, but often times, he only gave her a wave and a hello before he went into the lab to talk to her father. The day before, he had ruffled her hair, but had waited until he had her full attention before he approached her, but he hadn't tried to hug her since that first disastrous day.

Elizabeth climbed higher, settling in a deep V where two branches attached to the trunk of the tree. Severus hadn't encouraged them to spend a lot of time together and Remus hadn't tried to force it either. Part of her wanted to get closer to her and the other part, in the back of her mind that was often louder than her rational brain told her that he was trying to get her to open up to get her in trouble. But she had seen how he looked at her out of the corner of his eye when he thought she wasn't paying attention when she sat with Severus in his armchair. He clearly longed for the relationship they used to have, but she wasn't sure if she was ready. She wanted to trust him, but what if he wasn't what he said he was?

*S*S*

"Enjoying life with a ten year old girl?" Remus joked, going into the fridge for a drink. He poured a glass, taking a sip as Severus shot him a glare, laying pork chops into the pan on the stove.

"You know, it's been an alright experience so far. She had her first therapy session today and I can only assume it went well. She was laughing and sharing some story about her cousin with Saundra Mullings. So with any luck, these therapy seasons will be useful." He covered the pan and began preparing broccoli, seasoning the vegetables well before popping them in the over.

"Well that's something." Remus sat down at the table, placing his glass on the wood. "And she seems a little more secure here. She had enough gall to mouth off to you, so that must be a good thing, at least."

"She was nervous two weeks ago, but you're right. At least she's not cowering anymore." Severus chopped potatoes, using quick even chops before coating them in olive oil and salt. "It's more than I expected."

"How is her eating?" Remus reached into the bowl of fruit on the table, peeling an orange, snacking on the pieces. "She ate everything on her plate the other day when I was here, but is it normally like that?"

"Better." Severus put the potatoes in the oven as well, setting a timer. "Though I did catch her in the kitchen at midnight the other night because she was hungry from not eating supper. She's doing better now, but I've been staying up later than normal to make sure she stays in bed." Severus rubbed a hand on his neck after washing his hands. "But it's worth it, you know? Making sure she's stable for school and making sure she's healing is what's most important now."

"It's her first year all over again, then mate?"

"It seems that way." He settled in the chair at the head of the table. "But no nappies, so I'm content with that. She's fairly self-sufficient."

"It's probably best to have a child too independent than not at all." Remus commented, leaning back. "She wasn't as afraid of me this time."

"You didn't charge at her this time or the past couple times. I thank you for that, seeing as she needs to eat dinner and I know she won't eat if she just got sick."

"I'm just glad she's allowing me to be in her life at all. Being distant to her is better than not being allowed to see her. After the last decade of being alone, any contact is good contact."

Severus nodded, getting up to check dinner, taking the two sides out of the oven and turning off the stove for the pork chops. "I think she's going to come around eventually. I wrote to Saundra about it, so maybe she'll bring it up and help her work through her fears surrounding you."

As Severus plated the meal, putting it into serving bowls, he looked out the window to see where Elizabeth was. When he couldn't see her, he turned, panicked. "Did Elizabeth come inside while I was cooking?"

"Not that I saw, why?" Remus stood up, throwing the orange peels in the rubbish.

"I don't see her out there." Severus threw the towel in his hands on the counter, rushing out the house to the back garden. "Elizabeth!"

When she didn't respond right away, he looked around frantically, Remus rushing out behind him, wand drawn. "Elizabeth! Where are you?" Severus' breath was coming quick, chest heaving as panic rose in his throat. He turned to Remus, face white. "What if she was taken from the yard? She knows better than to wander off! Who knows how to get past the wards that would-"

"Up here, Severus!" They heard her voice come from the tree, interrupting his rambling, both men rushing to the base, looking up.

"What are you doing up there, Elizabeth Renee?" Severus snapped, relief flooding his body as he saw her, but fear staying after seeing her 20 feet in the air.

"I was told to find something to do, so I climbed the tree. You said no gymnastics." She hooked her legs around the branch, flipping backwards to hang upside down, resulting in Severus drawing his wand.

"So you thought the tree was a safer alternative?" Severus pinched the bridge of his nose. "You need to get down, now. Some of the branches are dead so you might get hurt." He pointed at his feet.

Elizabeth pulled herself back up to sit on the branch once more, beginning her climb down, when her foot slipped, causing her to gasp and clutch the branch.

"Elizabeth!" Remus didn't hesitate to hoist himself into the tree, climbing up to her level, settling on the branch across from her. "Hey, come on." He held his hand out to her.

"I can't." She held onto the tree until her knuckles were white. "I nearly fell."

"I know, but I can help you." He offered his hand once more, helping her onto his branch, pulling her to hang onto his neck, carrying her on his back. "See, I got you." He climbed down the tree, being careful to avoid her getting hit with branches. When they got to the bottom, Remus crouched, allowing her to slide off only to be crushed into Severus' arms.

"Foolish child!" He tucked her head under his chin. "You could have gotten hurt! You could have fallen!" He let her go, holding onto her upper arms. "Never climb that tree again. If anything had happened to you-" He let the threat linger in the air, crushing her to his chest once more.

"I'm sorry." She said, sounding young. Severus had to remind himself she was young and didn't have much guidance in her life before now.

"You should be, making me worry like that." Severus kissed her forehead. "Now, I think you need to thank Remus for helping you and then we all need to get inside to have supper." He tried to still his heart, but he just couldn't, thinking about how hurt she would have been if she had fallen.

Elizabeth nodded, pulling away from her father before she approached Remus, who was giving her the space she usually wanted. "Thank you, Remus, for the help." She dug her toe in the ground, looking at her hands. "I wouldn't have been able to get down without your help."

"It's quite alright, love. I'll always be around to help you." He smiled a little, his arms spasming as he stopped himself from hugging her like Severus had.

Elizabeth gave him a weird look before she went into the house, Severus' hand on the back of her neck.

*S*S*

"Take this to the table." Severus handed her a serving bowl of potatoes and large spoon, giving her a gentle push.

Elizabeth shuffled forward, placing the bowl on the table, sticking the spoon in the bowl, moving out of the way of Remus, who carried the plates. "Sorry, Remus."

"You're alright, love." Remus put the plates down at their places, waving his wand to send the silverware to rest next to the plates.

She nodded, taking the bowl of broccoli from Severus, sitting at the table as the adults joined her. She waited until Severus and Remus began to serve themselves, her hands clasped in her lap under the table. Severus sighed, taking her plate and filling it, putting more broccoli than potatoes on her plate, before settling it before her.

"Eat." He pointed at her plate, taking his own fork and knife to eat his own meal.

"I don't deserve supper." She said quietly, reaching up to push her plate away.

"Elizabeth, why don't you deserve supper?" Severus pushed her plate back to her, putting his utensils down, looking at Remus in confusion.

"I made you mad and I shouldn't expect dinner after that and-"

"Enough." Severus cut her off, taking her hand. "Never once have I withheld food from you. I never will withhold food from you as a punishment. I might have been a little cross earlier, but I was more worried than angry. I was worried when I couldn't find you. I thought someone had taken you."

Elizabeth looked down, nodding a little, her eyes prickling with tears. "I'm sorry for scaring you. I just wanted to have fun."

"Then we can go to the shops and find some things to put in the garden that are more age appropriate then, rather than the tree. And after your first year, we can see about getting you a broom, so you can practice flying, which is a little safer than the dying oak in the garden." Severus patted her hand. "Now, eat your dinner."

Elizabeth smiled shyly, picking up her fork, poking at her dinner, taking little bites. After a few minutes of silence, Remus cleared his throat.

"So, Elizabeth, are you looking forward to school?"

After she swallowed a bite of pork, she took a sip of the milk Severus had given her, before she answered. "Yeah, I am. I've been reading all my textbooks to prepare, but I feel ready."

"That's good." Remus wiped his mouth, dabbing at his moustache. "Did you go to muggle school?"

"Mhmm." She looked at him, nodding. "I did really well there, so I hope it carries over to Hogwarts."

"If you prepare now, you should be fine. And with your father's blood in your veins, I'm sure you'll be great."

After supper, Elizabeth took the dishes from the table, putting the leftovers in containers and into the fridge. As the men cleared the table and brought the dishes over, Remus rolled his sleeves up, taking over the washing, leaving Elizabeth to dry.

"Remus, it's my job to wash the dishes." Elizabeth nevertheless took a dish rag, drying the bowl he handed her.

"I know, but its not a chore to help." He smiled, washing a few more dishes in silence, as Severus took the dry dishes and put them in the cabinets, ruffling her hair as he passed. Elizabeth smiled a little, preferring this to the reaction she thought she would have gotten from her tree climb earlier.

*S*S*

After supper, Elizabeth went up to her room and took her transfiguration text off her desk, heading back down to the living room where the men were seated, chatting quietly. Severus had left the space next to him open for her, like she had sat every night after dinner, but as she looked at it, she made a choice, walking past Severus' and settling into the corner of the sofa, next to Remus, her feet on the cushion between them. As she opened her book to the marked page, she missed the shocked look passed between the two men.

Remus stayed still as a statue, his hands paused on turning the pages of his own book, his eyes locked onto Severus', who was doing the same. Elizabeth had been skittish around the man, at best, but this was unseen by the pair.

Eventually, the adults relaxed and so did Elizabeth, slowly coming out of the corner of the couch, curling up on the cushion next to him, getting closer to him. As the night wore on, she ended up with her head on his shoulder, flipping through her text. When the clock struck nine, Elizabeth yawned, covering her hand with one hand.

Severus noticed and put his own book down, marking his page with a green ribbon. "Come Elizabeth, it's time for bed." He got up, holding out his hand.

Elizabeth got up, marking her own book before she took her father's hand. "Wait," She pulled her hand out of his, pressing her book into his chest before she turned and wen back to Remus, climbing onto the couch, throwing her arms around his neck.

"Goodnight Remus."

He carefully hugged her back, tears in his eyes. He hadn't thought that she would ever allow physical touch for a while, but he wasn't complaining. He did know that he wasn't going to be the one to initiate hugs, but he was overjoyed that she even hugged him once.

"Goodnight, Elizabeth, sleep well." He kissed her temple, releasing her when she pulled away, taking Severus' hand once more, heading up the stairs with her father.