Gabriella had gone through one of the most difficult days of her life. The entire student body seemed intent on cornering and interrogating her. She had a very difficult time escaping them and became eternally grateful to Harry when he'd showed her a few escape routes on the Marauder's map. Gabriella was surprised to find him to be such a kind young man, after hearing Severus' horror stories of the boy's father.
She was entirely sick of the attention of the other students and wished that she could merely disappear again, though of course she wouldn't. The Gryffindor common room was an uncomfortable place due to the curious students, and the same applied to her bedroom. Gabriella decided to go to the only place in Hogwarts where she knew she could have peace and quiet. Dispatching quietly from the lively Gryffindors she crawled through the portrait of the fat lady and headed towards the dungeons.
Gabriella smiled happily as she walked through the dark hallway into the dungeons. She remained in her human form for nostalgia's sake, fondly thinking of the 'lessons' she and Severus had had so many years ago. Gabriella shook her head. Too much time had been lost. She didn't know how she could ever make up for that time, or more importantly make it up to Severus. She knew that by sleeping for 15 years, she had subsequently shortened her life span by 15 years, but that did not matter in the light of what she was trying to protect.
Gabriella stopped suddenly as a lean blonde boy strolled towards her. He had a smirk on his face, but it was nothing like Severus'. The boy's smirk was much colder.
"So you're Gabriella Gisaf." The boy sneered. "I'm Draco Malfoy. I'm the one who saw you in Snape's penseive." The boy extended his hand.
"That was a horrible invasion of someone's privacy. You especially shouldn't have told anyone about it." Gabriella ignored Malfoy's hand. Malfoy withdrew it.
"No matter. So what are you, a Gryffindor, doing down here? This is Slytherin's area."
"I'm here to see Professor Snape." Gabriella looked past him down the hallway hopefully.
"What, you want to curse him? Get in another fight?" Malfoy sneered.
"What I do is no business of yours. Would you get out of my way please?"
"What if I don't want to?"
"I don't care if you don't want to." Gabriella said angrily. "I'm just going to go see Professor Snape. Leave me alone, alright?"
"I see no reason-" Malfoy was interrupted by the appearance of a tall man behind Gabriella's shoulder.
"Malfoy, are you disturbing this student? Provoking a fight is grounds for a detention." Snape said smoothly. Gabriella visibly relaxed.
"Yes Professor." Malfoy replied sarcastically. He shoved past Gabriella and shuffled down the hallway.
"Thanks." Gabriella said, turning around and smiling to Severus.
"Come on. We can speak in peace in my quarters." Severus stalked the short distance to his quarters, whispering a quick spell to open the lock on the door. He held it open and gestured Gabriella inside.
Gabriella shoved off her coat and placed it on the edge of Severus' bed. He gave her a slight smile as he settled himself into a chair. She sat on the ground at his feet, resting her head on his knee.
"You have no idea how hard this day has been. No one leaves me alone. I swear, this is the only place in all of Hogwarts where I can have some peace." Gabriella sighed.
"Is that the only reason why you came here?" Severus sneered.
"Of course not. There's someone I missed greatly that I wanted to talk to." Gabriella smiled warmly to her fiancée. Severus rested his hand in her hair.
"What's the matter? Apart from the other students."
"Well, they're the only problem. I guess what I really wanted was to be near you. And to give you an overdue explanation. There was an important reason for me to leave you."
Severus stood and motioned her to the bed. He lay down and leaned against the headboard and allowed her to lean into the crook of his arm. Gabriella wrapped her hand in the loose material of his shirt, wishing that she did not have to tell him this.
"Severus, do you remember the book you gave me for Christmas once, Merlin's Grimoire?"
"Yes."
"There was a spell in there that I performed that I probably shouldn't have. It was a divination spell."
"Gabriella!" Severus hissed. "That was not a spell you should have performed. A spell of that kind can be very dangerous."
"I know that. But I'm glad that I did it all the same."
"Is that why you left? Because of that spell?"
"Yes."
"Gabriella." Severus sighed. "How do you know that the spell wasn't wrong? That's very possible with such spells."
"I know because part of it became true a month later, exactly as it had predicted."
"So you chose to change the proper course of time. Gabriella, you know how foolish of an endeavor that is." Severus sneered.
"Not in this case. The spell revealed that should things remain as they were, or else you and someone else would die. The spell promised that if I changed time, you would both live."
Severus pulled Gabriella closer to him. "But how did your disappearance change things?"
"If I had stayed would you have joined Voldemort? I think not. And so you would have died rather than join him."
"By joining him many people died." Severus replied sourly.
"But at the same time you were able to change things and become a spy for Dumbledore, thus accomplishing great good." Gabriella clung to Severus. He sighed heavily and kissed her hair.
"And what of the other person? Who were you trying to save?"
Gabriella smiled wanly and touched her stomach.
"Your child."