When Serena Met The Cursed Child

by Rakusa

No spoilers from the book since I haven't read it. Spoilers for When Harry Met Serena... so read that one first. This is a what-if in a what-if world and this time things went as planned.

3. The Way Things Were Meant to Be

AN: This chapter is going to be a bit more "greatest hits" with several time jumps without stating explicitly that they're jumping, it's all in the language and wording used.

AN2: I needed to write this story, not just because it fills in a lot of missing details from the original fanfic nor because it goes down another what-if path without having to recreate everything and yet having it be very similar but because I needed to write it. I kept circling back on the Snape-Serena relationship in the original fanfic and wanted to explore that soooo much more and I kept trying to recall/remember what it would be like if Snape had the chance to raise her and so that's what I did, I wrote the fic not just for you fine folks but for me. I am incredibly selfish, I know but that selfishness has also brought you pleasure, I hope, so I don't feel too bad. ;D.

AN3: I warn ye, there is under-aged drinking in this chapter. Don't say I didn't warn ye. But it's not over the top. :)

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3

The Way Things Were Meant to Be

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She was an incredibly precocious impish toddler. Severus would blame her uncles Sirius, James and Remus for influencing her had she not displayed these traits even as a baby, always crawling and getting into things that she shouldn't and causing near fatal heart attacks not just for him but for any who happened to be watching her at the time.

Serena was also the sweetest little girl he'd ever set eyes on and those two personality traits were a terrible match for any male, partial or not, biased or not. And for those who were both partial and biased, ooh, she was definitely trouble for them and their mental health.

She had a way with a lot of the females too. Narcissa was probably the most removed and cautious around Serena but she always gave in to her cousin. She gave her that extra sweet that five seconds earlier she'd said no to. She gave in to Draco a fair amount too, but that was different he was her son and she loved Draco with a fierceness that would have been scary had anyone else displayed that level of protection but no one in their inner circle was scared because they had no cause to extract her ire.

McGonagall was no match for Serena either, she'd wooed her future professor with the simple act of climbing onto Minerva's lap and giving her a big strong hug, especially strong for such a little girl. Despite having an extra month of development before being born and growing quickly, she was under the average in terms of size. Serena had then fallen promptly asleep in Minerva's lap and Minerva had laughed and laughed and laughed. He'd brought her around during winter break and had moved in down the street from Minerva in Hogsmeade once he was allowed to leave the castle with her.

Severus and Minerva went from just respecting each other as skilled professors who had honed their particular craft extremely well to being friends.

Even as toddlers Serena and Draco were great friends and cousins and so were Serena and Harry and his younger sister, another dark haired looker with green eyes, although they saw each other less often. She saw Draco weekly whereas she saw Harry and Iolanthe monthly. She saw her uncle Sirius more often, he came by weekly, much to Severus' annoyance at times but every Wednesday he was there to eat dinner with them and to play with his niece. They saw Sirius on those monthly visits with the Potters too when they went over the weekend to their house. It was easier for Severus to take Serena with him to the Potter's giant home than it was the other way around. Severus hadn't built rooms for guests nor had he purchased a house with more than 2 rooms and there were at least 4 of them if they were to come visit, which he didn't particularly prefer.

By Serena's 5th birthday things had mellowed out considerably between Severus and Sirius, they'd managed to put most of their aggravation behind them for the sake of the child and proximity without the other men around to whip any one of them up into a frenzy actually allowed them to get to know each other. Had Sirius not joined Gryffindor, then he would have been in Severus' house and they might have actually been... well friends would have been too strong of a word. Severus' only friend before Serena created those bonds and bridges had been Lily, the others in school weren't friends, just housemates that he had spent time with for something to do.

They still disagreed on issues and Severus would not hear nor entertain for one minute allowing Serena to spend an entire week with Sirius at his home. That had caused a blow out between them but because Sirius still wanted to see his niece, came by that following Wednesday like clockwork and they ended up working through that issue.

The tension between James and Severus was a bit more difficult to navigate. Severus did not think James was the best choice for Lily, he had been a bully and a pure-blood purist too, just not as outspoken and was careful of the way he showed it and Lily had been the exception to the rule for James. He had overlooked her muggle beginnings because he wanted her but could not overlook Severus' half muggle lineage, nor even her sister's.

Over time, he gave up trying to figure out why Lily had bent to his pursuit and tried to at least be on friendlier terms with James and he played with her children. They called him 'uncle Severus' and that warmed his heart more than he was willing to admit. It was dangerous, this path he was on, he had the riskiest road ahead of him if the Dark Lord ever returned. He had never had weaknesses before except for Lily and now he had a whole network of friends and family members that could be used to get at him but none more than Serena and she was the one he had the greatest access to if he were to return.

Severus started early on his teachings of when and where it was acceptable to not only use the name 'Voldemort' but also when it was acceptable to show an abundance of affection and sweetness. He hated to curtail her natural love and sweetness but he wanted to protect her from Voldemort's wrath if he were to return. She wasn't a particularly fast learner in that department and so he gave up and let her be herself for now. He would try again if the Dark Lord ever returned.

"Daddy!" Serena sprung herself at him from the cupboard beneath the sink and she wrapped her arms and legs around his leg and he laughed in surprise and love. He swooped her up and held her tight and her little arms almost choked him in her exuberance back.

"You shouldn't be down there munchkin, you could get into something dangerous." Although most of the dangerous substances were in his lab.

"Ok daddy!" She would find another place to hide tomorrow before he returned from Hogwarts and would attack him again and she always managed to surprise him. "Play?" She asked with large blue eyes and he shook his head no. "Daddy! Play!"

He grinned at her and he did what she wanted and they played for over an hour. She got him to play dollies and tea and pony and even dress up where he had to wear a frilly pink hat for ten minutes. There were a lot of games similar to those muggles played if not the same but he had been raised by one of each and so despite his shady upbringing, he knew of the games, even if he didn't play them with his own parents. He heard the stories from his classmates in muggle schools for several years and then he switched schools and heard about what wizard children did. He played purely wizard games with her too, including the magical tickling feather.

That night he tucked her in and was exhausted, teaching children all day, brewing potions for whatever witch or wizard that needed it for whatever purpose between fellow professors and Madame Pomfrey had been draining and his daughter was the only cure for that and had brought new energy into his day but when she grew tired, he did too. He was just going to brush his teeth and then head to bed when she reminded him to take a shower. Sirius had taught her that but Severus was not as annoyed as he could be, he often forgot that he had the potion fumes all over him and it didn't make his hair or appearance any more inviting than normal and it was good to shower it off every evening. He would have waited until morning otherwise and if he did that, he might have forgotten.

Minerva commented one day that he looked handsome when he had gotten every last irrelevant potion from his hair and clothing and he felt fresher for sure. She had laughed and walked away, embarrassed that she'd said something like that to a fellow teacher and he knew she meant it even if she didn't mean to say it. Even his students started doing better in class, especially the girls and it was all years, not just the ones that could see the change from when they started.

Serena being a creative child also used his hair as a guinea pig and put it in all sorts of styles and used the most girly colored ties in his hair too. Her favorite though it seemed was to put corn rolls in his hair and they were really difficult to get out and ended up teaching with them in his hair but with black hair ties or clear. She'd also somehow gotten a hold of a potion that dyed his hair streaks of green, silver and black. That at least was fitting for his house. It was shortly later that Sirius taught her a spell that changed his hair to bright red. He didn't care, he had been teased all his life and this time if anyone teased him, which most wouldn't dare to his face, despite how ridiculous he may look, it would be for something positive and good. He may be mellowing out himself as he found himself sometimes smiling as he walked down the corridors and students actually came up to him to ask him questions and volunteered to answer questions and he realized that they weren't quite as dumb as they appeared at first, just scared. Although to be honest, some of them were incredibly dumb and he didn't change his teaching style too much, he got results and some of the other teachers praised him for his teaching abilities, he was incredibly gifted and smart in his field and the students recognized it now too with a greater capacity than they had before.

With those softer edges, things got done a lot quicker and better and he told himself to remember that the next time he was about to snap at one of the children.

He never snapped at Serena, despite all the fear she instilled in him at times, despite all her kooky plans and jokes and pranks, often with him as a target, he had infinite patience. Even when she went in on plans with her uncle Sirius or her uncles Sirius, James and Lupin.

They still played jokes on him, they involved all the children but the jokes were tempered, they were kinder and they were only meant to surprise Severus rather than harm him in anyway. But his favorite moments were when she turned those skills back onto her uncles or when she included him on the jokes she would play on her relatives, but only on that group. With the Malfoys she was as sweet as icing and as innocent looking as cream.

The Malfoys never said one word about her kindness or lack of leaning towards the Dark Arts. In fact she hadn't really shown much magical prowess outside of those few small pranks and often laughed and clapped in glee at whenever her uncles or aunts showed their own skills. Severus didn't use too much magic at home, except to pull her away from potentially deadly things or to clean up the house. He had to be careful not to do so too often though because she giggled and cheered whenever he did because it was a lot of fun for her and she was always amused by it.

The living room that had once been barren in the previous house now had big cushions on the floor for people to sit on, on the off chance that they had someone over and they were all jewel tones. Serena despite growing up with pinks and silvers and pale greens preferred the jewel tones, the darker, deeper colors, and the pinks, silvers and a range of greens. He'd let her pick things out even at the age of 5 and she did so with gusto and it looked nice.

Perhaps going to Hogwarts wouldn't be the right school for her. There was an artistic school that catered to wizards and witches.

He'd send her to Hogwarts for a few years, let her see how she liked it and got on and if that wasn't for her, he'd ask her what she preferred. There were tiny things she did occasionally that told him she wouldn't be a squib, but she might be magically challenged or a lesser witch in the end, if he dared to compare her with other witches and wizards her age. If she were a squib, he'd flee the country if not the continent with her. He would hide her away, change her identity, corrupt her blood linkage if absolutely necessary but he couldn't do it if she had magic, not until she was 18, the trace made it impossible but they'd remove it if she weren't magical at all, there'd be no point to have it on her, she wouldn't be jinxing any muggles while underage.

He was glad that the Malfoys never said one word about Voldemort and Cassandra or for that matter him and Cassandra if they didn't know. Voldemort wasn't good enough for Bellatrix, who married one of his classmates because of blood purity but they didn't mind muddying Cassandra's name. He supposed Sirius and Regulus had already done that for that branch and they already had Andromeda marrying what they considered a mud-blood within their own branch. Serena was not a pure blood and would never be one of the 28 but they had chosen to follow Voldemort despite his half-blood status.

His known half-blood status. She was more of a pure-blood than Voldemort was.

Severus watched his brilliant daughter, now 7, rock the jungle gym. He'd brought her back to his parents' home, just so she would know where Lily and he had grown up. He would have never considered coming back here before but now that he had a child, he thought it was important that she understood her ancestry, all sides of it, even his. Although some things were just too horrid to tell her and some things he hoped never to tell her while others would have to be said sooner rather than later but he would wait for as long as he could.

The jungle gym wasn't here while he was growing up. It was a poor neighborhood and there hadn't been any money to put one in and it didn't look like it had been kept up very well since. She pulled herself up and through the bars and sat on them for a moment and he barely saw her moving before she was running across them and he pushed himself to his feet. For what he'd observed thus far with his daughter, she had a knack for suddenly going from incredibly graceful to completely klutzy. He ran over to the bars and knew he couldn't do magic here, there were too many eyes peering out from too many windows. He was in a pair of trousers and a sweater, all black whereas Serena was wearing black jeans and a white hoodie over a green long sleeved shirt. It was the first time she'd worn his Slytherin colors all on her own and he had been proud of her. They wore these clothes to fit in with the muggle world better.

He held his hands out to her when she got to the far end, so far she was doing very well but at any moment she'd break her neck. "Come on down now sweetie." He didn't know why she got it in her head to do this. Serena turned to him and obeyed and she started to slide down through the bars so she could hang by her hands and then drop the last foot but her hand slipped and she jarred herself on one of the wrungs and then fell the rest of the way but he caught her. "Are you ok?"

It was a gray dreary day but it was how he remembered this place but his bright haired child seemed so out of place here. She was like a beacon of light cutting through the fog, burning it up where she touched it rather than allowing her light to dissipate. She wasn't crying, so that was a good sign, or so he hoped. She sounded like she was in pain as she moved her arm but she didn't admit it. "I'm fine daddy, really." He didn't want to let her down and she didn't really want to be put down either as she wrapped her non-injured arm around his neck and wrapped her legs around his chest and held on tightly. He rubbed her back soothingly. "Can we go home?"

"We have one stop to make but yes, we'll go home." He walked away from the jungle gym and brought her back to his parents' home before they died and apparated from within there, away from others' eyes. He brought her to Madam Pomfrey's home since it was end of summer and no one had returned to the school yet. He could have taken her to St. Mungo's but he knew that, that this would be better, and a good way to get to know the woman who would eventually be taking care of her if anything did happen.

Poppy checked Serena over and gave her a lolly. "She's fine, Severus." She repeated Serena's words but he hadn't fully believed his daughter. "She is a bit bruised from where she hit the bars but that will go away in a day. If she were a normal muggle child it would go away in a week possibly two. She just needs to rub this on the bruises and they'll be gone very quickly."

Severus took the lotion. "Thank you Poppy. Sometimes I feel like I'm an overprotective parent who is on the verge of suffocating my child. I don't always know when I'm overreacting."

"You're a parent, Severus, and from what I've learned about parents and children in my many years treating the young, it's better to overreact than underreact and your children will tell you when you're going overboard. But just a hint between you and me, when you child says to dial it back 90%, dial it back only 30. They like it when you fuss, no matter what they say."

Severus laughed and nodded, taking that into consideration. "I'll see you in about a week Poppy, take care and thank you again." Poppy nodded, looking at him with a wonder that hadn't gone away in the last few years.

"And you Miss Serena, don't give your daddy anymore frights for awhile, ok?" She handed Serena another lolly when she agreed and Severus rolled his eyes at the woman, she was going to overdose on sweets.

She climbed onto his back and held onto him from behind and he again thought about how her grip was incredibly strong. He never worried that she would fall off. He apparated back to their home in Hogsmeade.

That night as he tucked her into bed he wondered why he agreed to let her stay with her cousins, the Malfoys, for a school/work week after school started. It would be the first time that he wouldn't see her for several days. He hadn't gone more than one in the past but the two kids had concocted it and he couldn't say no. Although he almost asked if the kids could stay at his house but he knew it was better that they had parental supervision while he was at work.

In the years past, he'd either broken the rules by bringing her in with him or left the school grounds to check on her every hour. When she wasn't moving around much on her own and wasn't able to open things that most adults couldn't, he felt more comfortable leaving her for, at max, an hour at a time. Once she became deft, agile and incredibly clever, he had a lot of people sitting her for a day or two either at his house or theirs. Sirius ended up taking her the most often although the Potters and the Malfoys took her many days of the year too. He needed to figure out a bit more permanent of a solution. She needed more stability and routine in her life and a consistent education.

Again he wished that Cassandra hadn't been taken from Serena if for nothing else than that reason alone, she would have been a good mother and would have been there for her and would have been able to be there when Severus couldn't. She would have been able to teach her things that Severus couldn't, that most of those females in her life couldn't. They had their hands full too.

The only positive he felt towards her staying with her cousins for a week was that it wasn't for a few weeks until after the first term started, so he didn't have to go back to work and miss her during the days and then the night too. He had time to get used to not seeing her all day before he lost even the nights. He kissed her forehead and whispered goodnight. "I love you." He wrapped the blanket more securely around her.

"Love you, daddy." She scooted over in the bed. "Read to me?"

He made a big show of giving in but he was happy to do so and he sank down into the bed with her and read her one of her favorite stories, the Tales of Beedle the Bard. She fell asleep near the end, trying bravely to stay awake until the end but never quite making it. He got up and made sure she was securely tucked in and then turned out the lights and gently closed the door 90% but never quite completely closed.

A week into that school's term he came home in pain. One of the students had mixed the wrong ingredient and he saw what was about to happen and so he pulled the boy out of the way but he wasn't lucky enough to move out of the way himself in time and his arm was scalded from fingertip to elbow and his robe's sleeve had burned off too. He was lucky that his wound was only skin deep rather than down to the bone. It had been a very dangerous potion to get wrong in that way.

Madam Pomfrey had recommended staying overnight but he wanted to get home, he'd deal with the pain and come back in the morning for a follow up. She sent him home with a balm but it would take a few days to heal even with regular administrations.

Serena came running up to him and he dropped to his knee to embrace her and pick her up. In her contagious enthusiasm, he forgot that he was supposed to be in pain and protecting his arm. He drew her into his arms and lifted her into the air and she giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. Sirius came walking into the room behind her but slower, having grown used to her typical greeting with Severus.

It was only once she was in his arms that he remembered the pain, especially as she put pressure against it. He gasped in pain and she was instantly concerned about him. "You can leave Sirius." He put Serena back down to her feet and dismissed her uncle. He was usually nicer to him these days but he was in too much pain and didn't want Black around to witness it. He didn't thank the man for looking after Serena, she was his niece and would have done it anyway or against his wishes.

He tried to shield Serena from seeing his arm but she took his hand in both of hers and pulled it to her and she saw the raw arm and she cried over it, not in fear but in empathy. Her fingers shimmered ever so slightly and if he hadn't been watching it so closely he might have missed it, many would even with their eyes trained on the action. The pain disappeared right away and he turned his arm, it felt normal even though he could see that it wasn't still.

He wrapped his good arm around Serena and pulled her into his side as they both looked closely at the arm she had held in her hands. He should have at least felt it pulling as if the skin was too tight, too new but he didn't even feel that. It just felt, normal. He kissed the top of Serena's head wondering what she'd done and how she'd done it.

"You know the lessons we've been doing already?" He asked her and she nodded. "Well we're going to be working on something different for a little while, ok?"

"Ok daddy." She looked up at him. "Are you mad at me?"

He looked down into her wide innocent blue eyes and he shook his head. "Of course not sweetie, why on Earth would I ever be mad at you?" He hugged her tightly. "I just worry for you on occasion."

"I worry about you too sometimes." She admitted from her position against his shoulder.

"You're my child." He held her away from him but not too far. "You shouldn't worry about me. I can handle myself. The only one who should worry is me, it's my job." He winked at her and if anyone saw him winking they'd have a heart attack. They might accept some of the ways he'd changed since Serena came into his life but that would be pushing it a bit too far and it was why he didn't allow himself to show even half of what he'd become to anyone else but Serena. She had to be the only one he could trust, if he didn't trust her, she wouldn't trust him and then everything would be for naught.

She giggled and threw herself at him again and he picked her up. "Are you hungry? Did uncle Sirius give you anything to eat?"

She frowned and thought about it and he knew she probably had something recently, she could put away a horse and nobody would be the wiser. "No!" She shook her head and he laughed and carried her into the kitchen and whipped something up.

He'd been teaching her potions, really simple ones, really safe ones that he could be sure wouldn't blow up if mixed incorrectly and he watched her like a hawk as she did so. She'd be the best potions student before she even started but that wasn't why he did it. Albus had shared his fears that Voldemort would be back and Severus shared that fear and he wanted to make sure Serena could not only focus on her other studies more but could also protect herself in at least one way by the time she was 18. She would know every potion there was to make and their uses and would be brilliant at making them. Even if she were a squib she'd have been able to make most of these potions.

Now that he knew she wasn't completely inept in real magic, he didn't know if he was relieved or even more worried. It was a type of magic that hadn't required a wand and one that he wasn't sure if he'd ever seen before. Madam Pomfrey wasn't capable of something like that. He wondered if she could heal herself and no matter how much it pained him, perhaps he shouldn't be so protective of her and allow her to learn the hard way for once and see if she healed herself. Then that idea was ripped away and scratched out, no, he would not let her get hurt even by her own hand. Besides, if she were able to heal herself, why hadn't she earlier this year when she got hurt on the jungle gym?

He suspected she couldn't heal herself and he wouldn't even consider it again. He waved his wand and the food that finished almost instantly was plated and served both of them. "What do you think?" He asked once she took a bite and swallowed.

"Fantastic!" She said it with a French accent and they both laughed. She loved everything he made. Perhaps it was because she loved food so much but maybe it was more because he made it.

"What would you like to do after dinner?" He asked and she put her finger against her lips and thought about it.

"I want to... play horsey! And then maybe after that, ride a broom! Draco and Harry are already riding brooms and I want to, too!"

Snape rested a hand on top of her head. "We'll play horsey." He agreed. "But can we wait with the broom riding? We can do it when you get back from the Malfoys."

She was a reasonable girl whenever he gave her a timeline or a reason and she nodded, disappointed, sure, but understanding even at her young age.

He knew it was a bad idea to send her to the Malfoys for a whole work week and they took her on Sunday night and returned her on Friday night. He supposed it wasn't an entire week.

However he didn't know how much he regretted letting her stay with them until they brought her home with a broken leg. He tried to remain calm, she was chipper and chatting with her cousin Draco as if nothing had happened. "We brought her to Madam Pomfrey but she said that it would be back to normal in two more days."

"When did this happen?" He breathed and counted to ten before even asking that.

"Yesterday."

"And you brought her to Poppy but not to me?"

"She wanted to come back home with us and you were still teaching yesterday and she's fine. We didn't want to disturb you."

"When my child gets hurt, it doesn't matter where I am or what I'm doing or who she's with, I need to know right away. You would want to know the same if it were Draco." Severus laid into them but they understood and nodded, they wouldn't hold that information back again.

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Whereas Serena had the best time! She loved hanging out with her cousin and the rest of her family and really enjoyed their time spent together. Draco was a lot of fun and she was probably his only real friend their age and she only had him and Harry, and Iolanthe but she was a bit younger. She didn't know who Harry had his age. He and Draco had met on occasion and in an odd way they were related too so they tried to get along and they did whenever they saw each other.

Draco and Serena played tag and chased each other around the house and Lucius only laughed while Narcissa fretted over the two of them, afraid they'd get hurt or break something. To Serena they seemed more like aunt and uncle and called them that once by accident but they accepted it and praised her for it and told her to do it whenever she wanted to. She supposed Harry called Remus and Sirius 'uncle' and they weren't even blood related.

They went to Diagon Alley and had chocolates and ice cream and bought toys and did a lot of things her dad never took her to do, or at least very rarely but she never felt like she was missing out on anything. He didn't have much and what he did have she chose but she was ok with the simple way of life. But she also enjoyed doing this with the Malfoys.

Then they brought out the special treat, the one she was most excited for, on Wednesday. Brooms! They were going to practice riding them and Narcissa set them out and told them sternly that they were just going to be passengers this time around and probably would be until they were 12 but they were able to ride just the same.

Serena was with Lucius while Draco was with his mother and the four of them circled the house and then the neighborhood, which was really quite sparse of homes, it was mostly the Malfoy Manor and then another little house down the road and then another manor a bit further away.

They came back home and Serena and Draco were feeling the rush and jabbered to each other about how much fun that was and Serena made sure to turn and thank them for the ride. "Thank you very much for taking me out on the brooms today. I really enjoyed it."

"Not a problem, princess." She'd thanked them very formally for the treats too earlier in the week and the Malfoys found her dichotomy amusing, such formality when thanking or requesting something but so lax and free spirited otherwise.

Thursday night, after everyone had gone to sleep, Draco convinced her to look at the brooms again. "I don't know Draco... your mom said not to touch them." Her father, too.

"Come on sissy!" He grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room. "Do you want to be a sissy all your life or do you want to have fun and adventure?" He opened the chest with the brooms and pushed one into her hand and she tried to give it back but it lifted off the ground and up into the air and she held on scared for too long and but then her fingers slipped from it when they tired and she fell several feet and broke her leg.

Even then, even with the pain and the rushing to Hogwarts to see the already overworked care-giver, they went and took care of the break and she was in high spirits. That had been a lot of fun! And maybe with some more nerve or teachings she'd be able to handle that type of situation if it ever happened again!

Narcissa had paced the walkway between the rows of beds and wrung her hands. Dumbledore had been kind enough to let them in. "Why are you here again and not at St. Mungo's?" Dumbledore asked raking his fingers through his beard and smiling kindly at Serena and Draco. She had given a few whimpers after the scream that alerted them to the accident and the soft crying that followed but since then nothing more than the occasional whimper of pain.

Poppy had given her something to help combat the pain.

"We are just following Severus' orders. He told us 'that if anything should happen, Poppy will know what to do, if I cannot be reached right away'. Apparently Severus has taken her to Madam Pomfrey any time there's been something wrong with Serena. She knows Serena's medical history better than anyone and knows what to avoid."

Dumbledore shook his head but there was a smile on his face and he even gave a little chuckle. "I do not doubt it. Have you attempted to reach Severus?"

"No, we're bringing her back tomorrow and we'll deal with his wrath then." Narcissa hugged Serena to her chest. "We want to make sure that things at least appear normal before returning her. If she left us now, all she'll remember about her time is fear and pain and we want to leave her with one final happy memory so they'll come back." It made sense, especially when talking about a 7 year old's memory.

Dumbledore nodded and gave in to their request not to tell Severus. Madam Pomfrey came into the room and administered something to Serena's leg. "Of course the child's come to me. I wouldn't have it any other way. Even as an adult, you be sure to call me, you hear, dear?" She was very stern and was looking straight at Serena when she said it. Serena nodded a little shy about the command but she would follow it if she could. Madam Pomfrey nodded and patted Serena's knee and turned to the adults. "You may take her back now."

Lucius scooped Serena up and they followed Dumbledore back to his fireplace. He'd given them special permission to use the Floo to his school on this one occasion. Otherwise they'd have to come in by broom just like everyone else and only teachers had permission to enter and exit as they pleased but usually only by themselves. They were loathe to put Serena on a broom again so soon but would have to take her back by it in the evening the next day so she wouldn't be completely scared of it in the future.

When they got back Draco jumped on his father's back and he carried his son upstairs piggy-back style while Narcissa had taken Serena when she noticed what her son was planning. She could carry Serena even without charms to make her lighter, she was a small 7 year old.

They stayed up and played a game that night and read her stories and just had a fun time. Serena fell asleep in Draco's bed, they had been arm wrestling and Serena and Draco too fell asleep mid 'fight'. Lucius and Narcissa looked in on them and smiled at the cousins. They covered both of them with a blanket and left the room.

She didn't complain about the pain once and they brought her home the next day to face Severus and his choice wording.

–

Severus took Serena to Madam Pomfrey's after the Malfoys left, not quite satisfied to hear her prognosis via 3rd party. Madam Pomfrey told him what she told the others but made a show of checking on Serena anyway and was quite surprised to find the bone mended completely with no scars. "Is there something magical about your house?" She removed the rest of the cast and turned to look at Severus in surprise and he shook his head, he didn't think so. Two occasions didn't make a pattern.

Had Serena healed herself? It was a reasonable explanation and she probably didn't want to say anything to the Malfoys about her ability. Severus needed to reinforce that idea. This skill wasn't to be shown to anyone if she could help it. He wouldn't tell her not to heal anyone. The older she got the less he wanted to teach her the way of the dark arts. Although she should probably know them in order to combat them if they were used on her.

Tears welled in her eyes and she looked away from them and he went to comfort her. He didn't know what had sparked that reaction in her. He ran his hand down the back of her head soothingly. He thanked Madam Pomfrey and took Serena home. They could have walked but it was faster to Floo home.

It took a bit of time but within an hour he had her laughing and giggling again and her earlier sadness was gone. He loved her to pieces but sometimes he thought that she was a very strange child, both when she was happy and sad.

Life continued like this for years, full of joy and family. He also continued to train her in the abilities that he thought she would need to survive and then trained her in a few other arts as well. Nobody bothered him about teaching her underage since they didn't know that he was doing it. He was teaching her at home behind several veils in a magical community near the school. Anyone could have been casting a majority of those spells.

One day when she was 12, she dropped her book that she was reading onto the table and got to her feet, angry at him for whatever reason. He had been working on a new potion, trying to work out the exact ingredients that would be needed to make his thoughts work when she did that. He jerked his head up and looked at her. "Would you please stop doing that?"

"Doing what?" Severus asked in surprise.

"Looking at me with eyes so sad that it makes me cry!"

He almost spluttered at that accusation. "I wasn't doing that!" Nobody had ever accused him of having sad eyes before. Or at least, not really. Lily had said something to him once upon a time but these days she didn't even notice. Cassandra had seen the pain in his soul but hadn't seen it on his face. He didn't know what he had to be sad about now.

"Yes you do! I don't know if you're thinking about the past or the future but it makes you worried and sad and I can feel it!" She was crying now too. "Today it isn't nearly as bad as it usually is but I can feel you thinking those sad thoughts over there and all I want to do is help you through it!"

"Oh god, Serena, I didn't know." He came over to her and she threw herself into his arms. "I am sorry. I didn't know you felt my emotions so keenly. I will try not to wander down those dark paths so often but I'm only human and it's going to happen on occasion."

She nodded. "I know people are sad more than they realize. Sirius is often sad but nobody sees it and he plasters on a smile and says or does some jokes to cover it up and so nobody realizes he is, and others are sad too. It's just when you get sad, it's a deep cavern you go down but don't let yourself feel or experience it in a way that will allow you to move on; instead you force yourself to think about something else. This time it was about a potion." She sniffed. "What makes you so sad anyway?"

"You mean you don't know?" He teased, thinking she'd been able to read his thoughts, Voldemort had been excellent at reading thoughts, but not his, Snape was good at blocking that out.

"Of course not." She was just so in-tune with him that she knew when his feelings shifted.

"How about my emotions?" He asked, just because it came to him just then and she gave a shrug, not really answering.

He'd been trying to teach her occlumency but his legilimency didn't work on her, not even the first time he tried it. Either she was naturally skillful, (there were a few that existed), or there was something else, like a different frequency that her mind worked at. He tried to teach her legilimency but wasn't exactly keen to let her test it on him, it was hard to let down that mind shield. It wasn't just her he risked letting in if he did so, but he'd built up a tolerance against Voldemort and he worried that if he still existed somewhere his great skills at legilimency would reach him even here in Scotland.

He wanted them to be protected against a skilled legimus, especially Voldemort.

So he sent Serena to try it on Harry, without his knowledge, the next time they got together, which would be later that week when the weekend rolled around. He'd be reading Harry's mind too, just to monitor and see if they came up with the same thing. It would give him some of his answers. Harry was the easiest to read since he was so cocky and wide open. It could have been innocence or just the lack of caring or knowledge.

It turned out neither of his assumptions were correct when it came to Serena.

Serena succeeded in reading her faux-cousin but she wasn't naturally gifted using the skill he taught her. She only got pieces here and there. But there were thoughts and ideas and feelings that she told him about that he hadn't seen. He wasn't worried about anyone reading Serena's mind anymore with legilimency, but she may have been too emotional to be a skilled occlumency user if the need arose. He was much better at controlling his emotions than most people which was why her comment that day had puzzled him and he reevaluated his own skills and safe guards. They were in tact.

Serena for her part had wondered what was wrong with her when her training with her father went awry and she couldn't seem to get the skills down that he said she would need. She was only praised for her efforts and he never really pushed her with occlumency after he had been unable to read her other than to teach her the basics, in case it was just him that she was able to block and not others. She had barely scratched the surface of Harry's thoughts. There wasn't much in there that she found interesting or felt the need to probe deeper in.

His thoughts were very boyish, he and Draco had shared a lot of thoughts although her uncles would hate to hear it. His thoughts were about brooms and quidditch and even a little about girls but not that icky stuff that she sometimes read in adult minds when she was practicing her skills. No, his thoughts about girls were ones of annoyance, at his little sister, or girls in general. He didn't have too many negative thoughts about her, just that girls were odd and full of germs boys didn't have or that they were too clean or something. He loved his family and that was clear even without the mind reading skill her dad was trying to teach her.

She tried reading his mind without the silent, wandless spell and heard a bit more but nothing substantial. He was home schooled, just like she was and Lily was in charge of his education. Both of their educations and he was doing decently. Serena turned her attention onto her aunt. The woman was frustrated with Harry's complete lack of effort when it came to schooling, he just skated by, learning the magic that he thought was useful and relying on that. Iolanthe on the other hand had already surpassed her brother and found ancient runes a particularly interesting subject. She liked history and Serena decided she'd share some of her history books with her female cousin the next time she visited.

Lily was particularly good at charms, not surprising when she was so charming. That errant thought was not hers. It was from James from several years ago when they were all in school together and her lips tightened and she frowned at her uncle when she realized he had been mean to her father.

James looked over to her and wondered why she was frowning at him. She gave a huff and closed her mind from theirs. She didn't need to know all their secrets, these weren't even their current thoughts. She looked away from him and realized that all three of these uncles had been mean to her father. Yet here they were, all together and acting friendly. She had never missed the suspicious looks her uncles had tossed her father's way even though they were with less frequency now, perhaps even gone mostly for good.

Sirius had been the one to change the most in his opinion of her father, he also had the furthest to go but close proximity at least 5 days a month for 11 years did wonders for his attitude too. Could she even go so far to say they were friends? No. No, they knew it too. She didn't know if they would ever be friends.

She gave her aunt Lily a big hug which had surprised her with the suddenness but not with the action and she gave Serena a hug back. Lily was an amazing person and she had her faults, of course, but Serena wanted to be a lot like her. "Sweet girl. It's nearly time for dinner. Why don't you go wash up?" Lily suggested but hugged Serena one last time before Serena wandered off.

She'd spent a week here on occasion too over the years. She spent a week at the Malfoys and a week at the Potters and a week at Sirius' each semester. The two boys had even spent a week at her house over the summer for the last 3 summers. It was always awkward for her though as they were always posturing, it was that male competitiveness that they both had.

That following summer, they were out riding. They were all able to ride brooms now as long as they were in Hogsmeade and without supervision, although she knew her father was never far away. Harry and Draco were always trying to outdo one another when it came to being the fastest or the most agile. Serena would just ride her broom serenely and one time she almost fell asleep on it as she made lazy circles around the town. She clocked about Harry's speed when they were on the same type of broom but she was far more agile than both of them. She just didn't bother to compete with them, what did she gain if she won? Having to prove herself again and again until they managed to lord some small victory over her forever.

They still teased her about not being able to keep up but at least this way all knew she wasn't trying to. She'd taken herself out of the fight. But they were actually pretty chummy otherwise. They stayed clear of some of the dicey topics but with Serena being their middle ground, it was hard to insult the other even if they wanted to.

Harry was technically a half-blood but Serena always wondered why he wasn't more than that if his mom was a muggle-born witch. It wasn't like his mother had no magical abilities at all, she just came from parents who didn't have any... at least Lily was a witch and so that should have changed the blood status just a bit more. Serena was at least 3/4ths and Draco was 100%. Endymion would give her grief for using three different ways to talk about measurement if he'd heard.

She froze in mid-air and wondered where that had come from. Endymion? Who was that? She did a little spin in her little spot in the sky and wondered if there were someone's thoughts she was reading but why would they be thinking about what she was just thinking? There was no one. She happened to be in a very barren part of the grounds. She had lost Harry and Draco somewhere and she went back into town. They had an agreement to meet up at the Three Broomsticks if anyone ever separated from the group.

She was 12 now and after next summer she would join the ranks of the students who would fill these walls over the weekends during the school year. For her it wouldn't be quite the same treat but she would be able to go home too and spend a nice quiet weekend with her father instead of at the school. But that wasn't until the second year, second term and later.

The shop owners all knew her name and greeted her whenever they saw her and for that at least, she'd be unique, she'd get to see all of those that she'd grown somewhat close to over the years. The other students wouldn't have that. So in a way, she supposed it would be even more of a treat for her.

She'd met some of the students already, as she had almost every year that they came out. She sometimes helped out at Zonko's Joke Shop when the town got busy, especially the first weekend of each term. She'd met some interesting people helping out there and most were just in it for a laugh.

There were 2 brothers she'd met at different times although they were about a year apart. Their names were Bill and Charlie and they both told her that they were in looking for a gift for their middle brothers who just loved these kinds of things. She'd see Charlie again when school started up but it was his last year. There was a year's gap she learned between Charlie and his next brother who would also be allowed off school grounds in the second semester but doubted they'd see him in there. He was very rigid and had his nose to the grind, Bill had joked last year and Charlie had nodded, he didn't expect his brother out and about either, at least not in a place as irrelevant as a joke shop. She'd gotten to know both and found Bill to be a fairly serious type but with a sense of humor, he was one of those easy to see succeeding type and doing it with grace and flourish. Charlie on the other hand seemed a bit more studious but in a different way, he cared deeply about animals and was always off fantasizing about dragons and other animals and yet he excelled as well. Both had both been prefects and now that Charlie was in his 4th year, he followed in his brother's footsteps and became a headboy too. Bill unfortunately had finished before summer break started.

Serena had enjoyed their company, each so different from each other and yet obvious to tell they were brothers and not because of looks and the red hair. There was just a kindness both had and they cared about their family. People with modest means and strong, caring families had a certain feel to them. They were always nice to her and sometimes Bill even brought her a sweet when he knew she would be working. Apparently she was their youngest brother's age and reminded them of their sister. She didn't know if she was offended or pleased by such a description; either way they were both interesting to talk to. She wanted to meet this Percy and find out if he was anything like his brothers. She would find out that he wasn't in almost every way but a handful.

That though would be much, much later.

Now, she was waiting at Three Broomsticks, talking with the owner when Harry and Draco came in. "That was a riot. Where'd you get to S?" Harry asked plopping down next to her and Draco took her other side.

"Oh, I was just wandering and ended up here. So I decided I might as well get something to eat." They nodded and ordered themselves.

"Might we try that dodgy place down a ways tomorrow? Have you ever been?" Harry asked while Draco drank the butterbeer she'd had in front of her. She would have swiped it back but she really didn't mind, she'd just drink his.

"I haven't. Dad says-"

"Oh bollocks what dad says." Harry grumbled. "If he had his way, we'd never have any fun."

She looked at him in surprise. Her dad had treated him kindly but had never been overly interested in anything Harry had to say through the years but her dad wasn't boring nor mean to him and she was taken aback to find out that Harry thought that. She'd never heard it in his thoughts before either. It was Draco that came to her father's defense. "Severus is protective, sure, but he let's Serena get away with a ton and doesn't ever tell you no unless it's something that could potentially harm her." Draco pointed out. "He's far more lenient than my father." She supposed that was true and she smiled over at Draco for lending his opinion, it had been helpful.

"Anyway..." Serena dragged out the comment until she got Harry's attention again, he was a bit moody right now and it was probably what her dad called 'teen years' but he wasn't a teenager yet, it was still about a week away. "Dad says that Dumbledore's brother is the owner." That's all she was going to say but she decided to add the other part her father had said. "Also we should probably not consume anything there as it might lead to a severe illness or reaction. It's a dodgy place for dodgy business and entertainment."

"Like girls?" Harry asked with an eyebrow raised in curiosity and disgust but there was a bit of excitement there too.

Serena made a face. "No, like card games and other forms of gambling. Geez Harry. What if I always wondered if there were boys around to ogle at?"

"Mom said in America there were women who dressed like bunnies." Harry tried to defend himself but it just made things worse.

"Hopefully there's men dressed like bunnies too." Serena responded dryly, just imagining how either of those would go down here. Did they have bunny tails on their robes? Or were they just a muggle thing? She couldn't even picture it, the only time she was around muggles they had on as many if not more clothing than them.

"I wonder if it's a brain sickness." Draco commented, not understanding it at all, having never been in the muggle world. "Why would anyone want to dress like bunnies or any other animal?"

Serena laughed, he made a good point.

Harry was unhappy that the cousins were gaining up on him, he thought bro solidarity would win out but he was mistaken. Draco and Serena were much too close for that to happen. Serena bumped shoulders with him. "Cheer up Harry, we're all on vacation, on our own for the first time in awhile. Can you honestly say you can do what we do at your house with zero supervision?"

"We don't have zero supervision." He reminded her. "Everyone knows who we are and reports back to your father."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Reports can be altered, can't they?" Her eyes and smile just danced with mischief and he wondered what she had up her sleeve. "Most of them are as much my friend as they are his. Not everything gets back to him." She blinked innocently and he grinned, catching her meaning.

Draco was watching in curiosity. "What do you mean?" Harry and Serena just laughed and she wrapped her arms around him. "No, seriously, what are you getting at?"

She shook her head and whispered in his ear and he grinned too. She could get away with a lot in this very place, especially in the summer.

Madam Rosmerta dropped off another round of drinks but this time instead of butterbeer, it was red currant rum and she bent down to say something to them so others couldn't hear. "Drink it slowly boys and stay for about an hour after you finish and eat something succulent. I don't want daddy in here after me, ok?"

The boys nodded and Serena knew the drill already. She was never given an entire glass when she was in here on her own during the day while her dad was at school, but she'd been given some on occasion, especially when she was incredibly bored or lonely. Often Madam Rosmerta and some of the other frequent guests entertained her by playing games with her. She was supposed to be home studying and she did that too, but it wasn't quite as fun.

The shrunken head had been bewitched so she was one of the exceptions to the rule when it came to under-aged drinking and Harry and Draco were given a pass this time too. They followed her instructions and it was a good thing too because the alcohol went straight to their heads, having not been used to it. Sure Sirius slipped Harry a drink on occasion and Serena too on even rarer occasions, but it was few and far between for Harry. Serena herself didn't drink too often but she was used to this place's alcohol, having been introduced in a controlled manner. She was probably the tamest when it came to alcohol and in the future she'd never have a real problem with it, not seeing the need to get drunk and party like the rest. She would have fun with just one or two or even none.

The boys got rowdy and she groaned and dropped her head into her hands as she watched them get rambunctious on top of it. Perhaps it hadn't been Madam Rosmerta's greatest idea. She stopped by the table and sat with Serena as they watched the two dance and jump around and make fools of themselves. "I did tell them to drink it slowly, didn't I?"

"It's like they've mixed drugs and alcohol together." Serena moaned.

Madam Rosmerta laughed. "I've seen worse. At least they're having fun. Won't you join them?"

"I'd rather dance to real music but not with them." She wrinkled up her nose. "They're my cousins and while I don't mind dancing with my cousins, I'd rather it be a moment of group fun in the midst of a crowd rather than just the 3 of us."

"That would be rather a bit awkward. Would it be better if I danced with you?" She was just teasing Serena but it would be better. "Oh wait, I have to go serve our new customer. I'll be right back." She rested a hand on Serena's shoulder and Serena turned to look at who just came in. It wasn't anyone she recognized and she breathed a sigh of relief. It would be just her luck for her dad to come in while the three of them partook in a single drink. Although if a single drink did this to her cousins, she didn't want to know what would happen with more alcohol in their systems.

The doors opened again and Serena didn't look. She did look though when she noticed someone sitting down at the same table with her and in Harry's spot. "Fancy a spot of grub?" He asked as he took in the three empty drink glasses. "Butterbeer, was it?" He asked nodding towards the two boys who were now singing. Really, she had no idea what had gotten into them, it wasn't like they were celebrating a win or something.

Perhaps they were just excited to be free of their own parents for awhile, even if they were lovely. She wondered if she'd have been just like them had she been in one of their homes and they were free from oversight. She smiled at Bill. "What are you doing here? You've just finished Hogwarts earlier this year!"

"I was just passing through." He replied cheekily and she wrinkled her nose at him, knowing there was more to the story. "Actually, I got a job breaking curses as Gringott's."

"Oh wow, that's amazing!" She was really excited for him but he wasn't looking too sure of himself. "You're really skillful, you'd have to be to get the job and you were a headboy so you had to have been pretty close to top of your class, at least in the boys' arena." She winked at him but noticing how Draco and Harry got on with their schooling, she felt maybe the bar was fairly low.

Bill laughed. "I wanted to visit old haunts before I took on the job. I've been sent to the Gringott's bank in Egypt and I don't know when I'll get back here again."

"Oh..." It made a lot more sense now. "I get it, four years away from family and this place starts to feel like family and you'll want to say a proper 'see you later'. Have you seen a lot of your school friends too, before heading there?"

Bill nodded. "I did. I spent a lot of time with my family too before leaving. I wanted to check in with some of my professors, Dumbledore, Mcgonagall and Snape I know don't go very far, even in the summer." She grinned, she was the reason why her dad didn't go too far. She wasn't sure what he'd be doing otherwise. Probably something important. "I also wanted to see you again. I saw you once this summer but you were with the Malfoys and you didn't stay too long and I wanted to have a chance to talk."

"You still should have said hi." She chided and he shook his head.

"I didn't want to bother you. Besides the Malofys and the Weasleys haven't gotten on in years." His eyes strayed to Draco and she hoped he didn't feel uncomfortable because of her cousin. "I'm surprised you get on so well."

She smiled gently. "We're related so we've grown up together, besides, they've always been nice to me and I like Draco."

"I suppose you would get on with anyone." He teased and she shook her head, she didn't know about that. He nodded, knowing he was right. "I'm glad though that you do." He tugged on one of her pigtails. "Where do you think I could find your father?"

"Probably at home." But she wasn't supposed to give their home address to anyone. Only a select few knew where it was here and they could easily tell others but her father forbade her from saying too much about it and she tried to respect most of his rules. He usually had good reasons for them though he didn't always share why.

He nodded. "And Dumbledore?"

"I don't see the headmaster all that often, contrary to popular belief." Serena objected to being considered a friend to all the professors, just a few and Madam Pomfrey... She did see Dumbledore on occasion though, he and her father had serious conversations that she wasn't privy to but whenever he left, her dad was always upset. "Have supper with us and then I'll send my dad to you when I go home afterward. It wouldn't surprise me if he showed up here before we finish."

"That sounds like a very nice plan." Bill agreed. "I'll be disappointed that I missed Dumbledore but your father is a nice substitute." She was glad, she liked that students thought highly of him and wanted to speak to him one last time before going off on an adventure far away, not knowing when they'd be back, if ever.

"Maybe my dad will be able to contact him for you and you'll get the opportunity after-all."

He didn't end up showing up at the Three Broomsticks by the time they finished dinner but they had a nice meal nonetheless. Harry and Draco didn't make a peep about the older boy's presence and she was glad, especially after that weary tone in his voice when he first laid eyes on Draco. Maybe Draco didn't know who Bill was and that was fine too. It was unlikely they'd see each other again any time soon.

Draco and Harry flew off ahead of her towards home but she stayed back for a few more minutes to say a proper goodbye to one of her first good friends that was somewhat close to her age. He and Charlie were a few years older, sure, but they always made a point to come see her during the weekends, especially if they knew she'd be around and she tried to be but she had a lot of familial obligations and commitments as well that she liked and wanted to honor. "I'll miss you. I was already going to miss you over the weekends but now that I know you won't even be in the U.K, I'll probably feel it more keenly."

"Not to worry!" Bill said, trying to be brighter about it than he was feeling himself. He was excited for the task at hand but would also miss everyone he was close to here in the U.K. "I'll be seeing you again before you even graduate Hogwarts, I'm sure of it. Also you'll soon be surrounded by so many Weasleys you won't know how to cope. There will always be at least 2 in your life there if not 5."

"Two?" She questioned, unsure. She knew Charlie was leaving too after this year.

"Yes. Percy, then the twins will be next and then Ron is your age and Ginny follows the year after. So even when all the older ones are gone, you'll have those two."

"They'll never replace you." She tried to reassure him and he shook his head.

"Nor do I think it would be possible, but you'll really like them. They're a lot of fun. I daresay you'll be better friends with them than you ever were with me and that's ok." Serena threw her arms around Bill's shoulders and he hugged her back. "I'll write."

"I'd like that. I can't wait to hear all about your adventures in Egypt. Egypt! It sounds like an awfully grand adventure!"

He laughed and hugged her tighter. "Oh I'm sure it will be and I know you don't think it but once you're at Hogwarts you'll be in for an adventure of your own."

"What could I possibly learn there or do there than I don't already have access to?" She just didn't get the point.

"You'll see." He told her mysteriously but wouldn't clarify. "It's very different from regular life and once you graduate there's a whole host of opportunities awaiting you and I'm sure you'll go far."

She wasn't so sure but it wasn't about her, it was about him. "Make sure you have plenty of sun protection spells, both against the direct rays and also the bouncing rays from the sand. Those are more likely to burn you."

"Not to worry mum, I've got plenty of charms for that." He teased her and she pulled away to give him a slug on the shoulder but she put very little strength into it and he still rubbed it in pain. "You've got some power in that arm." He suddenly grinned at her. "You should try out for Quidditch your first year."

"I don't know-"

"Do it." He urged. "I'm sure you'll get a great position."

"I'll try out." She promised and he laughed. "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking that if you end up getting on the team it won't matter which team you'll be on. If you're in Gryffndor you'll be a star player and help them towards victory but if you're on another team then you'll be giving them a run for their money."

"You've never even seen me play."

"No but I know you. You'll be an asset to any team. Hopefully some day we can play with my family." He was imagining it and she nodded.

"I'd like that." He wasn't thinking of her romantically because A. she was too young for him and too young in general and B. he didn't like her that way. He had liken her to a sister many times before.

"Dad will be here shortly." She gave him another hug and then got on her broom and caught up with Harry and Draco who were almost to her house. She jumped off her broom when they got home and went in to talk to her dad first. He put a hand on her shoulder and borrowed her broom because it was easily accessible and went to go meet up with Bill.

"It's nice to see that your dad is meeting up with Bill." Harry mentioned as he entered the house followed by Draco. He always looked at the living room with the range of jewel toned pillows that served as seating in amazement. It was so odd for the man who dressed in all black except for a white collar that peaked out from below, Serena hadn't been able to break him of that yet. He had to remind himself that Serena had decorated this room but Severus had decorated her room in silver and pink and green, there hadn't been much black in there. It was almost the opposite of what she chose for their combined living quarters. From what his dad had said, Severus was unlikely to do something nice for someone unless his daughter was directly involved, he never had in the past. Although, having spent some time with Severus now, albeit in Serena's presence, he felt his dad might be a bit biased and didn't really know Severus all that well while they grew up.

His mother had defended Severus though on the few occasions when she heard her husband talking like that. She admitted that Severus had made mistakes but he'd recovered from them on his own and saw the errors before he went too deep to never be able to come back but before that and after he had been nice to her and had been a good person. Harry supposed both were right and both were wrong and both were blind to certain aspects of the man. Others seemed to like him though, as Bill just exhibited and Harry would give Severus more of a chance. In a few years he'd be his professor and he'd have to be in charge of his own judgments.

Sirius hadn't spoken bad about Severus and he knew that he had been against him at first too. Even Remus had moments when he was on the verge of saying something cruel to Severus and then changing his mind and over the years even that changed, he didn't even start now.

On the other hand, Severus never said anything bad about his dad or other uncles. Harry needed to apologize to Serena about his earlier comment. The two had been correct to gang up on him.

Severus returned home about an hour later and he was whistling and he died off as soon as he entered the room, remembering that he had an audience that wasn't supposed to know how soft he'd gotten. Serena laughed at her dad and ran to give him a hug and he hoped she would never stop giving hugs, they were always nice to receive, no matter his thoughts or feelings that led up to them.

The next day Serena, Harry and Draco headed to the Hog's Head Tavern and it wasn't as interesting as they thought it would be. Sure they got to meet the surly brother to their future headmaster but there was only one or two people inside and they had hoods up and no one spoke to them or each other. It was dark and dirty and they left shortly after arriving to go to Honeydukes Sweetshop instead. Hog's Head had been a disappointment to all three of them and no one had an interest in returning any time soon.

–

Christmas that year, Severus received a green sweater from his daughter, a red shirt from Harry of all people and Sirius got in on the fun and got him a gold sweater that in certain lights almost looked brown. He had never gotten a gift from Sirius before and he'd never given the other man one either. The Potters and the Snapes had exchanged gifts as had the Snapes and the Malfoys. Also of course he'd given Serena plenty of gifts and she'd somehow gotten him gifts too, but he figured Sirius had helped her purchase them when she was younger as he'd helped Serena give gifts to Sirius too.

Serena had also gotten him a gray scarf that could be mistaken for silver. She'd wrapped it around his neck before they went out into Hogsmeade that evening and she grinned in happiness as it brightened his features, but truthfully it had nothing to do with the scarf's colors, he was just really happy that Christmas. He had the best daughter on the planet.

–

Serena watched her dad fret the days after she turned 14. There was about a month left before school started and while she was excited, he was worried. "I'm a good witch." She reminded him as they got ready to go to Diagon Alley. He had most of the items she would need for her first year already but she needed her own things, things that were new.

While she didn't care if they were new, he did and he'd written in his own books so he didn't want to appear as if he were giving her cheats; although the Weasleys handed down their books every year with notes in them from when Molly and Arthur went to school. Some of the books were a bit outdated or missing information and if it was really bad they'd buy second-hand books that were only a year old, rather than a decade. They had to stretch their budget for the twins because they needed two of everything and so they had to buy a new set for one of them or mix them up. Severus had raised an eyebrow at the twins last year when he looked through their potions books, thinking they'd bewitched them somehow. They weren't embarrassed and proudly showed him their books. They probably had bewitched them but not in a way that Severus was able to discern and in the end, it hadn't mattered. They were good at potions but nothing overly special and made the same kinds of mistakes that most students made with some of the more complex ones, especially the ones that didn't specify some unique tricks. Although truthfully since they had 2 parents, they should have already had 2 of most things already, the other things they'd need would be robes that fit their lanky forms and their own sets of items that didn't get passed down.

"I know you're a good witch." Although she shouldn't have known that herself, yet.

"Then what's the problem?" Serena asked in annoyance and his eyes swung to her, that was not an emotion that he associated with her often.

"It's a big change for both of us." He might return to the house on occasion but she wouldn't be returning for at least the first year and a half, outside of summer break.

"I know that." Serena was getting impatient. She should have gotten her school supplies weeks ago, when everyone else had, she hadn't even seen her letter come, her father had opened it and the envelope had been burned but he'd shown her the letter itself and the school list, so she knew she was at least invited. Draco and Harry already had everything, all were brand new but again she didn't care! She was just anxious to get to school fully prepared and had wanted to do her shopping with them. They said that they had gone together and it had been funny, their parents were all pretty quiet and when they did speak to each other, it had been fairly tense, on both sides.

Harry had gotten a Barn Owl and Draco had gotten an Eagle Owl. She wanted an owl too, they were so neat and could fly and would be able to do tasks that the other ones wouldn't be able to do. She kind of wanted a Scops Owl just because they were so small and cute but she wouldn't be opposed to a Snowy Owl, they were quite beautiful. She just didn't want the same types as her cousins.

"You do know that Harry isn't blood related, or if he is, it's only very distantly related. He's not like Draco, who's your 2nd cousin. Harry's father was an attractive and extremely popular young man when he was at Hogwarts." Severus said unexpectedly and she wondered if he'd finally cracked her thoughts and he shook his head at her look. "Sometimes your thoughts are all over your face. I knew you were thinking about your cousins and their new familiars. Can't you wait on that one? There is something about getting one too early. You've got to bond with them. We have a family owl anyway and the school has owls also that you can use and I'll be there so you can talk to me directly at any time." He wasn't the only one she spoke to though and so wouldn't mind having an owl she knew would be available anytime she wanted to send a letter directly.

She was not interested in Harry even if he wasn't related other than to continue viewing him as a cousin. "Maybe I'll get an otter." She teased and he shook his head, knowing that she was just joking. This was a silly conversation anyway, the allowed familiars were: cat, toad or owl; although her dad had told her that there were always exceptions, Hagrid the groundskeeper had a dog and Dumbledore had a phoenix and Charlie had had a rat but he passed it onto the brother that was her year.

"I'd like to get you a dog if nothing else." She sent him another odd look, he'd given her a necklace in the shape of a black dog on it for her birthday and Sirius had hooted but hadn't said why. All she knew was that it had belonged to her mother.

"What's the deal with dogs?" She asked although she was pleased by the gift and felt even closer to her mother than she had before.

"They're loyal companions and can help protect you if the need arises." He explained and they entered the Floo network together and she was the one to drop the powder and say Leaky Cauldron. They could have gone to one of the other shops but he wanted to show her the muggle entrance if she was ever caught out in that world and had no way to come back home magically.

"I need protection?" She asked once they were in the Leaky Cauldron and it appeared as if no one was near by.

"It never hurts." He said and she knew that was the end of that line of questioning while they were in public. "Or how about a fluffy bunny?"

"A bunny?" Serena asked shocked. "Why on Earth would I want a bunny? So it can be eaten by Harry and Draco's owls?"

He laughed. "Touche, touche. Although to me you always remind me of a bunny, especially with your hair always being in this style these days." He touched one of her buns. She looked at him and wasn't offended by the comment, she could understand why he thought that and it wasn't just her hair but her personality too and her physical speed, agility and ability to jump great heights. She didn't even know why she started wearing her hair this way, she just had and couldn't bring herself to stop, not yet at any rate. Her hands just automatically did it for her, even when she thought she was going to braid it.

"So, what's first?" She asked as he tapped the appropriate brick and they were allowed entrance into the main part of Diagon Alley.

"Cloaks first, I think. They take the longest to prepare and once they're measured, we can go and collect the rest of our things and then we can come back and pick them up at the end of our trip." She nodded and they headed to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. They probably could have gotten most of these things at Hogsmeade but it was a treat to get out of that small town and shop in the bigger one. There she got measured and Madam Malkin started the work order for her three plain black work robes and Severus instructed that her name be stitched at the bottom, right above the hem of the front panel on the inside in silver thread. She also was fitted with a winter cloak, also black with silver fastenings just like every other student with her name in the same place. It would be out of the way so it wouldn't irritate her at all and would help keep it sitting properly as it added just a bit of weight and it would be easy to find. Her pointed black hat had the stitching on the underside of the brim in the back. Then they went to go get her protective gloves and he surprised her by buying ones that were layered, the first layer was soft leather, the next layer was chameleon skin and the last layer was the tough but mostly transparent hide of a very special dragon. They were surprisingly very flexible and capable of handling small items or delicate ones and were very tough and changed colors to fit a situation or location. She squealed and gave Severus a huge hug and thanked him for such a nice present.

"You'd already given me the necklace, this is too nice dad!" She did try to protest such extravagance.

He shook his head. "The necklace was your mother's and it was her gift to you. This is my gift for your 14th birthday and for going to Hogwarts." He explained.

"But the rest of it-"

"Are necessities. These are too but there's no harm in being a bit more stylish while being safe." He pushed back and took the gloves from her. "No more arguing. They're yours." He handed them to be engraved as well but this time the name was on the outside and in a white that glowed a bright red if someone else attempted to use them without her permission. If she was looking for them the name would light up a neon green to help her find them faster. A precaution he knew she would need because she lost things in her own room.

They collected her required books and collected the rest of her items, including a telescope, phials, scales and cauldron, which she'd place everything but the books into. She also got a trunk, it was antique but it was amazing! It was extremely organized with shelves and drawers and a hanger area but the outside while somewhat beat up, was quite beautiful, it was a collage of (faded) aqua and brown with dark brown leather straps and silver buckles and lock.

Then they headed over to Ollivander's for her wand. That was a fun experience that she wished to do again but knew it was highly unlikely unless her wand was broken or taken from her. She got to try out first the Dragon Heartstring wand but it kind of fizzled and died whenever she tried to utter the spell Ollivander taught her to say. He gave her another word and it did what it was supposed to do but wasn't anything exciting. He shook his head. "I thought not, you Miss Snape, could probably use pretty much any wand you'd like but this is not your match. A unicorn wand might do and will be the last that we try but I think you can handle something more special. He pulled out an average length wand made of ebony. She tried that first spell again and it was pretty but could have been better, he told her as much. Severus watched from the side, highly amused and he leaned against a desk with a lot of boxes of wands scattered over it.

"It's better." He looked at his massive wall of wands and pulled one out near the bottom. "Let's try beech." It was slightly shorter than the previous one and she cast the spell again and he frowned. "It's good too but it's about the same." He scratched his ear and then he clicked his fingers. "This has to be the one." Near the very top, in the very back there was a box that wiggled loose and came floating down to them "Let's try this one." He handed it to her and it was a rather long wand, 15 ¼ inches and 'quite bendy'. "It's longer than most that I create and usually someone of your stature wouldn't use one of this length but even just being in your hand, it looks right." It had a very simple design, but it had a design, at the base, where her hand would wrap around it, there was a bark-like texture and there was a single inlaid green leaf there and then another one along the smooth, but not straight or even length. "This wood is not used very often in my shop. I haven't sold one of these for nearly 70 years but you might be the first in a long time. Try it out my dear."

Serena tried it and it produced a beautiful light show, and Severus pushed himself to his feet in surprise. Most wizards and witches that bonded with their wands didn't have quite that same show, all of theirs paled in comparison to hers. All of them. "What-" He started but Ollivander was clapping.

"Oh yes, this is your wand. I can't imagine any other wand being nearly so good, although even you could probably handle a Thestral hair core if you happen to find a wand with one. They have been notorious for being unruly wands for almost everybody but a rare few. I will search for one or create one with this wood and I will send you an owl when I have it finished and I want to see what happens when you get your hands on it."

"What kind of wand is this?" Serena asked as she ran her fingers along the seemingly innocent design but it was set on top of a very pretty wood, it went from pale almost white wood to yellow and rich brown and redish brown to a dark brown in parts and it was not in a set order as those colors intersected or touched in an organic wave.

"Acacia wood and a phoenix feather for it's core." Ollivander touched it gently. "It will be your most loyal companion and will do extraordinary things."

"Phoenix-" Severus basically choked on that word and Ollivander turned knowing eyes his way and he wondered and worried that this little man would know- but he didn't tell Serena the truth of her lineage as he turned back to Serena to include her in the conversation.

"Oh yes, the phoenix feather is rare in a wizard's wand, it tends to have a mind of it's own as sometimes it acts on it's own accord and while not the most outright strongest in terms of strength, can produce fantastic magic if yielded correctly. Dragon Heartstring is the strongest core but it tends to be temperamental, sometimes refusing to do it's bidding and changes owners easily. You my dear would be only the 4th student I've sold one to and no one will wield this one but you, at least not well, but you have unique talents. The phoenix feather is rare and is very picky about who their owner can be. There is a famous singer that has a phoenix feather in her wand and one of your professors, Professor Kettleburn also has one. Then there was the man who's name shouldn't be said, even now, after his death." Ollivander closed Serena's hand over the wand. "His had a sister but this-" His eyes locked onto Severus' "- is not it." Severus breathed a sigh of relief. "Although I am sure you would have been able to handle that one as well." He laughed. "As for the wood, it's also a tricky wood. You appear to like tricky things Miss Snape. Acacia also strongly bonds with it's owner and will not perform well for anyone but it's true owner." He laughed again. "Tricky yes but also extremely loyal once you get them, both the core and the wood. What a lucky girl." He went to write down the wand and the name of it's new owner.

Severus paid for the wand and Serena skipped out happily, heading to pick up her robes and cloak next, hoping they were done. "Please do not create that Thestral wand." He had heard the rumors surrounding potential wands with that core and only one was known to exist to a very select few and he knew who had it.

"I must. I must know if someone can bend that elusive core to it's will. I will not sell it to her. No wand could bond better with it's owner than the one she now has but I am curious to see what happens if she casts even a simple spell with it."

Severus knew that he couldn't stop the man without getting into trouble himself and he just hoped Ollivander kept his word if it ever came down to it, that he wouldn't let her keep it. "You can't give it to her either." He spun as the thought occurred to him. "Nor suggest that she 'steal it'."

Ollivander shook his head. "I promise that she will not be in possession of that wand longer than it takes to do the spell and see the consequences. … unless her own wand has been broken."

Severus' lips twisted, not entirely happy by that loophole but he had to admit, he'd rather have her with a wand than without one. "Unless it does not conform to her wishes and then you will sell her a different one. Perhaps a unicorn core wand next time."

Ollivander nodded and promised that they'd try to find the next best fit rather than just assuming that the unique wand would be hers.

Severus brought the trunk with her goods with him and she loaded the clothing items into it once he arrived. He also bought her a holster for her wand. It was simple but it would do for now and it was a hip holster but an underarm one wouldn't work for such a long wand. She might eventually choose to have a leg holster or an under the sleeve holster but until she got to practice with taking it out on a quick draw, the hip one would have to do but it was also the most exposed and easy to steal position.

Having finished with their shopping, he wasn't any more relaxed or at ease with her finally attending school at the end of the month.

The only positive thing she had going for her was that she would not be alone, she had two cousins that were more like friends before she set foot through those doors, again. He supposed that was another thing she had on her side, she already knew most of the professors and had been inside Hogwarts numerous times already even if she didn't really have free range.

She would now have free range on the property of a very dangerous school and that twisted his stomach into knots.

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EAN: Anyone who is worried that these 'bad' characters are too soft, that's just for now. You'll be seeing the rougher side of characters in the future. But think about it, everyone is alive and Voldemort is dead and it's kind of a resting phase for many of them. Also with the Malfoys, there's many reasons why they're nice to Serena and consequentially Severus but the top one is that Serena is very infectious with her positive and bright personality that I hoped I showcased as she grew and if not, you'll be seeing it more in the future. In many ways the Malfoys had their son and got a daughter or proxy-daughter through the situation too. They're nice to her and we've only really seen them with her so far, haven't we?

EAN2: This story has started to switch to Serena's and Harry's perspectives on occasion. However since I had no interest in writing it from a baby's point of view, I relied on Severus which turned out better than I could have hoped for. I hope you liked it too. The future chapters will have Severus' point of view too, especially the ones that were in Serena's in the original but it will be more and more Serena's and Harry's. It's going to be a healthy mix of the three. The other story had a lot of Harry's because well, it needed to be but this time Harry seems a bit more vain to me and so we won't go into his point of view as often but it is still a HP/SM story and so we can't avoid him completely and we wouldn't want to, there's a lot of changes for him as well! :D

EAN3: So I was looking through pictures of Alan Rickman who was always a very attractive man, I noticed that the other colors he wore besides black/white were gray and a bright blue; with an exception of his costume in Sense and Sensibility where he wore red. He also wore some browns. No matter what role he was playing, he just didn't wear a lot of color. Must be a British thing, lol. I was hoping to find him in green at least.

EAN4: Harry got a BARN OWL in THIS story because Hagrid didn't buy it for him! His parents picked it out, or rather in this case, Iolanthe did because she liked it's face. Harry's wand is also not the one with the twin core to Voldy's if you've been paying attention to timing and purchases... Again it's because he's not Voldy's faux-killer and so he doesn't have that connection with Voldy.

I have to admit this story is really hard to write because it's gone in a 70 degree angle from the original story... lol. I love it and I love challenges!