Chapter 7.
She Will Be The Death Of Him
He ran to where Alana was lying. He checked her pulse and it was low. He screamed but nobody seemed to hear him. Time froze over him. Snape picked up the girl in his arms and ran down stairs. He barged into the kitchen holding the girl, unable to speak. They all stared at him.
"WHAT HAPPENED?" Mrs. Weasley jumped from her sit.
"What did you do?" Black yelled at him.
"I found her on the floor, her breathing is low". Never had he been so scared, yet he did not understand why he was so affected by this, him, the man who always managed to hold his grip under any circumstance, was on the verge of tears.
"Put her on the couch" Albus pointed him the old sofa that was on the far corner of the room, almost forgotten by its inhabitants. After that, he took the girl's pulse. "Remus, go to the school now and get Poppy, tell her to bring her basics" With that Lupin was gone, and the minutes it took him to return felt like hours. It was then when Alana came back to her senses.
"Where am I?" She tried to get up from the loveseat but was held back by Dumbledore.
"Professor Snape found you lying on the floor, Madam Pomfrey is on her way now, stay still" She was too weak to argue, but she managed to eye Professor Snape who was standing in the far end of the couch. His eyes were fixed on her and his hands were still over the arm of the couch.
"Move, move everybody move" Madam Pomfrey came running towards Alana dressed in her night gown, holding her medical bag in her hand. Dumbledore stood up to give her space. She took the girl's pulse, felt her temperature and then pulled out her wand performing a series of spells. They all looked expectant at the nurse, until Harry, Ron and Hermione came into the kitchen.
"Mum, I'm hungry when are we having lunch?" Ron unaware of what was happening, asked his mother.
Hermione opened her eyes widely "What happened?"
"You three, out" Mrs. Weasley pushed them out of the kitchen and closed the door.
Poppy stood up and told Remus to take the teenager back to her room and get her into bed. Much to Alana's refusal she was picked up and taken out of the room.
"What's wrong with her Poppy?" Snape looked straight towards the nurse, waiting for an answer. She eyed him, puzzled.
"I'm sure you are curious about Severus's interest on the girl Poppy and I'll explain it to you but first…" Dumbledore tried to ease things out.
"Has she received shocking news? Been under pressure? Had any big argument?"
"You can bet your…" Moody was cut off by Molly.
"Yes, I will explain it all later" Responded Dumbledore
Poppy, displeased with being kept in the dark still, carried on "Her fainting can be accounted to a number of factors, she's anemic, lacks of sleep, and if she's been very stressed out recently it could all have combined…"
"But she'll be OK right?" Severus was agitated.
"Yes, I believe so, she just needs sleep, a good nutrition and calm, most of all. Now, will anybody be so kind to let me know what is going on?" Dumbledore did his best to explain Poppy the events of the past few days, without leaving any important detail out but not taking much time.
"So she's…"They all nodded. "Wow… I never thought you of all people would have a kid Severus… this is…"
"Shocking? Incredible? Twilight Zone kind of story?"
"Sirius be quiet"
"I'm sorry Molly."
"Well…" Poppy was at lost for words.
"Yes, yes I know, you can all joke away in a minute but now tell me what I can do?"
"Well Severus as a potions master, you could brew a dreamless sleep potion, as her father…"
"I do not require your parenting advice thank you very much" He turned in his heels. "I'll be back in less than an hour with the potion" He left the house and apparated into his own.
He leaned into the wall, trying to catch his breath. If this was parenting not only did he clearly suck at it, but the stress was going to drive him insane. He remembered Alana on the floor, the terror he had felt, all the horrible thoughts that had gone through his head before Poppy's diagnose.
"I can't do this, I can't" He hit the wall behind him with his head repeatedly.
"Yes you can" The voice of a woman came out from the shadows.
"What are you doing in my house Minerva?"
"Albus sent me, to check up on you, he's worried"
"Why wouldn't he, his granddaughter is sick and I, her father almost past out myself because of all of this"
"Worrying is only natural when you have children; it means we care about them, you should worry about not worrying, that's when you're not doing a good job" He looked at her speechless.
"I'm not made out for this"
"Parenting is an acquired skill, not a gift" She walked up to him ad patched his back. His gaze was distant, still afraid.
"I should brew that potion, tell Dumbledore I'll be there when it's done" She nodded and left.
While he collected the ingredients his mind was fixed on that image, his daughter lying on the floor, hardly breathing. He shook those thoughts away. "I need to concentrate" He did his best attempt to clear his mind, at least until the potion was ready. With a little bottle filled with an opal liquid he went back to Grimmauld Place. Mrs. Weasley was coming into the kitchen with a tray.
"I got her to eat a little bit, but not enough, maybe you'll have better luck Severus" Before he could speak he was carrying the tray back to Alana's room with the bottle in his left pocket. He knocked on the door and came inside. He found Alana sitting on her bed, reading the book she had borrowed from his library.
He cleared his throat and she looked at him "I'm not hungry, I told Mrs. Weasley already"
"The nurse says one of the reasons you fainted was for lack of food, I take it your father was not very concerned with your nutrition"
"He's not my father" He wanted to kick himself right then and there. "And she also said it was because I'm stressed out because people won't seem to be able to tell me the truth to my face"
Snape placed the tray on her lap and sat down in the bed. "I get you're upset, but you need to maintain your calm and eat something" She gave him a hard look and grabbed the fork. After a few bites she spoke;
"The book you gave is very interesting"
"I'm glad you enjoyed it"
"I'll be doing a lot of reading; Madam Pomfrey says I have to stay in bed for a week!" She seemed upset about that.
"Well, I'll get you a few books, maybe one about potions for our lessons"
"I thought we were done, you said…"
"I'm aware of what I said, but I gave it some thought and decided you could put some of your spare time into good use"
"That's what you had come to tell me before?"
"Hmm?"
"When you found me, Albus says you were the one to walk in on me"
"Yes, it was"
"You know, you're not as mean as they say"
"You should not listen to every single thing Black says"
"It's not only him…"She stopped, his face had become hard. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to upset you"
"It's no secret I'm not the most liked teacher, or person for that matter, you'll find that out soon enough when you start at Hogwarts"
"I like you" Those three words were enough to melt his heart. The people that had been around him all of his life, including his father, never seem to care for his company, but this girl, who did not know him at all had spoken the sweetest words he had heard in a long time.
When she was done with her food he gave her the tonic that he had combined with a mild sleeping potion, which sent her right off. After she fell asleep he stayed by her side, observing her, the way her breaths became more relaxed and how her hair glowed. He ran his hand through one of her curls and a small smile appeared in his face. He got up and left the room. He instructed Mrs. Weasley on the dozes of the potion and returned to Spinner's End. There he found another unexpected guest.
"She said she likes me Albus, how…?"
"Ahh… you're growing on her, the same way she's growing on you." Snape scowled but Dumbledore continued to speak "It is undeniable you have a bond with her, she's your child, it is only natural for those feelings to appear. I saw you when you carried her into the kitchen earlier; you were so pale, as if someone had sucked the life out of you, then when you knew things were going to be fine your color came back."
"People always disliked me, my own father loathed me but she…"
"Spoke the sweetest words you've heard in a long time. It does not take leggimens to know that's how you feel" Snape grabbed his left arm. "He wants you, go my friend, tell him about your advances, we must keep appearances you know"
Severus stood in front of the Dark Lord.
"Severus, I trust Lucius has briefed you about our previous meeting"
"Yes my Lord and I must inform you things are going according to plan"
"I'm glad to hear that, the girl will be very useful when we wish to kill the old man. Does he suspect?"
"No, he thinks I want to create a bond with the girl, become her father, and protect her from harm"
"And you do not?"
"I wish to serve you my Lord, if the girl decides to join this path then yes, I'll welcome her as my own, if not…"
"She'll be dead"
"Yes my lord"
"Now, go my boy, visit your child, make sure she trusts you completely before you expose your true motives"
"My Lord" With a bow Snape vanished out of Malfoy Manor.