Unexpected

"... should be arriving in a few minutes."

"I must say, I am not looking forward to... her arrival."

"Now, behave, Severus. She's not that bad."

"Didn't you go to school with her?"

"Mm."

Slowly waking up to the sound of an ongoing conversation, Abby didn't open her eyes yet, quite content to just relax in the soft bed; warm underneath the many blankets piled on top of her and her head cradled by a fluffy pillow. Though she didn't like the smell of cleaner in the air, the sharp odor making her nose twitch.

Wait... Didn't she know that smell?

Her eyes finally fluttering open, Abby saw a pure white ceiling above her instead of the mismatched dark stones that she was use to seeing for the last week. She instantly knew where she was - after all, how long had see stared up there and tried to make patterns out of everything, trying to keep herself from being bored to death? She was in the private room of the infirmary. Abby smiled brightly. She was home. She was at Hogwarts.

"Y-You're awake."

Turning her head towards the voice, Abby smiled at the young boy that was sitting in the next bed. "Hullo, Neville," she said softly. "Not that I'm not happy to see you... but what are you doing here?" She would have thought that his grandmother would had picked him up the second he was found. "Are you hurt?" She glanced over him with worry.

"I'm alright, Madam Pomfrey said I just need some rest. And I'm waiting for my granny, she's on her way to take me back home." Neville glanced at his lap, where his hands were twisting nervously. "I also... err... I wanted to say t-thanks. For saving all of us, I mean," he finally said. "I don't know how you did it, but thanks... Um... how did you do that?"

"...I'm really not sure," said Abby hesitantly. And that was half the truth. Sure, she knew that she had to keep on wishing very strongly, but she didn't know exactly how it worked. "Uh... do you mind not telling anyone?" she asked quietly. "Just till I figure it out, I mean."

Blinking, Neville nodded in agreement. "Sure. Its the least I can do."

Thanking him with a smile, Abby pushed herself up so she could rest against the backboard, but winced when she put weight on her hands. She'd forgotten that they had gotten all scratched up in her escape. "I'm fine," she said when she noticed Neville starting to worry. "Just a little achy." Settled, she took a moment to glance over hands. The small cuts and bruises she had gained were gone, but the new skin that was there was still a little sensitive to the touch.

"Oh, Abby!" Pomfrey rushed over. "You're awake! Goodness gracious, young lady, you can't even stay out of trouble for a few days," she said with a wagging finger, even as she started to tear up. "What am I going to do with you?" Sniffling, she carefully wrapped her arms around the younger girl, giving her a gentle hug. "I'm just glad you're back safe and sound," she admitted. "Thank Merlin that Severus found you."

"I missed you too, Miss Poppy," said Abby with a tearful sniff.

Pulling away, Pomfrey wiped away her tears before going on and saying, "Now, next time you get a situation like that, Abby, try not to drain yourself of magic again. The seconds time in less then two months - its not healthy for a growing young lady. Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am, I'll try," Abby promised, her cheeks burning in embarrassment as Pomfrey bustled off to check on another student in the main examination room, one who seemed to have caught a magical flu from playing around in the snow to long if Abby was to believe Pomfrey's mumblings.

"It seems that you can't stay away from Hogwarts for very long, can you, Abigail?"

Looking to the voice, Abby smiled brightly at the figure in the doorway. "Hi, Mr. Severus! Thanks for rescuing me and Neville - I knew you would."

"Mm." Severus swept into the room and sat in a nearby chair, looking over her with careful eye even as he tried to seem uninterested. "And how are you feeling now?"

"Better," Abby answered with a nod. "I'm just really glad to be out of that room. It was awful." She shuddered before going on to say, "Um... what happened to Thomson, sir?" she asked hesitantly. "I mean, did someone catch her?"

"Thomson was not the one that kidnapped you or the other children," Severus informed her, who was startled at the news. "It was in fact her assistant, Alice Meyer. Apparent, she was offered a large amount of money to steal a total of ten children. She took on Thomson appearance more then once, along with a few others, and ever forged quite a few documents. She probably would have gotten away with it if she just stuck to taking Muggle children. But then she acted rather foolishly and took you, and then Mr. Longbottom, and that caused the Ministry to catch on to her scheme just in time."

"Who was she gonna sell us to?" Abby slowly asked after a moment.

"That you don't need to know," said Severus, waving it off. "But you can be happy to know that she is now in custody, and awaiting trail. Since the crime involved kidnapping children, I'm sure she will get plenty of years in Azkaban."

"That's good," said Abby with a nod, even though she had no idea what Azkaban was, though it didn't seem good if she was to judge it by the sudden fear on Neville's face. "She can't hurt anyone now."

As Severus nodded in agreement with her, the nearby fireplace was suddenly filled with green flames, and moments later, a woman stepped out. She was old, though not as old as Dumbledore, with dove grey robes that almost matched her hair that was pulled back into a bun, and sharp blue eyes that instantly went to Neville. "Oh, thank goodness," she breathed as she briskly walked forward.

"Granny!" Neville practically bolted out of his bed, running into his grandmother's arms and sobbing out his apologizes, promising never to talk to a stranger again and so on.

"Its quite alright now, Neville," said his grandmother soothingly, running a white gloved hand over his blonde hair. "You're safe, and we'll be going home soon." Lifting her gaze from her grandson, she looked to Abby, who was only a few feet away from her. "You are the girl that saved my grandson?"

"Um, yes, ma'am," said Abby with a nod.

"Then you have my eternal thanks," said the elderly Longbottom with a bow of her head. "I wasn't ready to lose my son's only child. Your name, young lady?"

"Abigail," she answered, "or just Abby."

"Augusta Longbottom. My grandson, heir to the Longbottom Household, now owes you a life debt, Abigail," Augusta said, holding her head a little higher. "In most situations, that would mean that he would be betrothed to you. That means marriage," she explained when Abby looked at her with confusion.

It wasn't a surprise that both Abby and Neville blushed a bright red, Severus chuckling quietly beside her. Marriage? She was only five!

"Don't worry, Abigail, I wouldn't suggest that," said Augusta with her own chuckle. "But the next situation would be for my Neville to become your protector, or maybe a better way would be for him to because your friend for life."

"Um, I really don't wanna force Neville to be my friend," said Abby with a shake of her. If she wanted the shy boy to be her friend, she wanted him to be because he wanted to. Not because he was forced to just because she "saved" her life.

"Well, then how about we say he owns you a favor?" suggested Augusta with a small smile, and Abby quickly agreed with a nod of her head. A favor sounded the best out of all that. "Excellent. And please, feel free to visit our home anytime." She said her goodbyes, with Neville waving farewell, and both of them left through the Floo in a rush of green flames.

"I would be careful on how you decide use that favor," Severus warned her. "The House of Longbottom has a lot of power and money. That favor could become very valuable someday."

Nodding in agreement even though she wasn't really sure why, Abby couldn't stop the yawn that suddenly filled her and escaped. Even though she had only woke up a few minutes ago, she was struggling to stay awake now. "Why I am still so tired?" she asked with a mumble, rubbing her eyes so they would stop burning.

Long potion-stained fingers grasped her hands to make her stop. "You've just lost a lot of magic," explained Severus even as he gentle pushed back into bed, pulling the blankets over her curled up body and up to her chin. "Your body is trying to get it back through plenty of rest and relaxation."

"So if I - yawn - sleep a lot, my magic will come back?" asked Abby with a mumble. That was good. Using all that magic had made her so tired and weak. She didn't like it.

"Something like that."

"But I don't wanna..." Abby yawned again. She didn't want to go back to sleep. She might wake up and find out that this was all a dream.

"You need your sleep anyway, you've been through quite a lot," said Severus, but he sounded so far away. "Don't worry, I'll come back when you wake up." There was a long pause, and Abby thought he said something else, something important, but before it could really register in her mind, she was fast asleep, dreaming of nonsense that she wouldn't remember when she woke up.

Trying not to chuckle at the sleepy girl, Severus pulled the blankets over Abby as he explained that she needed sleep to restore her magic. She mumbled something, but he could already tell she was starting to fall asleep. He promised to be back when she woke up, but then he paused as he gathered his courage for a moment. "I plan on adopting you," he admitted softly, even though he knew that Abigail was already fast asleep and couldn't hear him. But it felt like... somewhat of a relief to say it.

"Severus?" asked Pomfrey a few minutes later as he came back into the main examination room. "She's asleep then?"

"Yes, and I expect she will stay that way for quite awhile," Severus said as he stood, smoothing out his robes with a sweep of his hand. "I have an appointment with the headmaster after dinner - please let me know when she woken up, if you don't mind."

"Of course, Severus," said Pomfrey with a nod before bustling around again to take care of her other patient.

Making his way through the halls of Hogwarts up to the Headmaster's office after a rather satisfying meal, Severus ignored the children as they raced - then slowed down to a quick walk at the sight of him - back to their rooms after gorging themselves. While no one outside a few members of the staff knew that Abby had returned, he had no doubt that at least by the end of the next day, the news would have spread like wildfire. And Abby probably would have some guests tomorrow afternoon, from the older Slytherins to some of the younger Gryffindors.

"Butterbeer," Severus said to the gargoyle, who sneered at him before moving aside, accepting the password and letting him pass without trouble.

"Ah, right on time," said Dumbledore with a smile as he entered the office, waving a hand towards the chair and holding out a colourful tin with the other. "Lemon drop?"

"No, thank you," said Severus, sitting down. "I just ate."

Dumbledore sighed. "No one ever wants a lemon drop," he mumbled as he placed the tin away, but not before popping one into his mouth. "I missed supper, as you saw, to finish up some unfinished business. Anyway, how is Abby doing? Recovering well from this incident?"

"She's sleeping soundly," answered Severus. "Magic exhaustion and some minor malnutrition was all Pomfrey found, otherwise, rather well after being in the company of a mad woman for a over a week. We aren't exactly sure how she lost that much magic in a short period of time, or how she even escaped, since Longbottom says he didn't know."

"Glad to hear she's doing well. You will be glad to hear that while Miss Thomson has returned the other children to their homes, and I've pushed to have Meyer taken to trial as soon as possible. Obviously, she will be found guilty, whither she admits it or not, and is likely to be sent to Azkaban for at least fifty years - five years for each kidnapped Muggle child and ten for Abby and Mr. Longbottom."

"She deserves more then that." growled Severus. The mad woman had been planning on sell on the children to one of the more dangerous, bloodthirsty vampire clan, where they would either keep them as blood servants or turn them. It didn't matter which - once they were forcibly bitten, they would never be able to leave. Severus shuddered at the thought of Abby, pale and weak from being drained, or with dark red eyes that would matched her blood stained lips.

Not commenting on that, Dumbledore smiled and carefully moved them on. "Its possible that both Abby and young Longbottom will have to appear in court, as witnesses. She will stay here until that happens, one of the reasons I'm pushing forward the trail date." He pressed his fingers together and leaned back. "Now, my boy, what was it you wanted to talk with me about that couldn't wait until tomorrow?"

Suddenly feeling very nervous, Severus cleared his throat. "I've... I've been thinking that maybe you were right, Albus." Damn, he really hated admitting that.

"Oh? And what was I right about this time?" asked Dumbledore, the twinkle in his eye growing.

For a moment, Severus was tempted to send him a glare before changing to a completely subject, or maybe even burn his precious tin of lemon drops. But holding back those feelings, Severus cleared his throat again and went on. "That the best thing for Abigail is to stay here... with me."

"Ah, so you would like to become her guardian?" said Dumbledore, smiling brightly. "While a little unexpected, this is wonderful news, Severus, and I'm so glad to hear it. Abby seems to have wormed her way into your heart as well."

"So it would seem," said Severus dryly. He hadn't realized till Abby was gone, but she had brought a light into his life, and was the first person in many years to actually make him feel happy. And he had let her go so easily. And had nearly lost Abby for good, without even saying goodbye. He wasn't about to make that mistake again.

"I'm warning you now, though, its not going to be an easy process," said Dumbledore. "Even though I have a few friends in the Ministry that have given their permission for you to become her guardian, and later on adopt her if you like, you still have to fill out the necessary paperwork and go through an examination. For them to see if you're fit to be a parent," he explained when Severus started to look confused. "You might have to have a friend or two speak on your behalf."

Severus gave a stiff nod. He knew that he wouldn't be able to breeze through it, though he certainly did hope for a moment.

"Also, while I don't think she'll argue, I believe it would be best to inform Abby of your plan before you start the process."

While Severus knew that was the best idea, he still had to hold back the wince. He'd hadn't thought of that. It had take a rather large dose of Gryffindor courage to even say it to her while she was sleeping. He wasn't sure he could do it again.

"Don't tell me you're scared, Severus?" Dumbledore said with a raised eyebrow.

Severus scoffed. "The very idea of me being scared is ridiculous, Albus," he said with glare. "I will tell her as soon as she wakes up."

Not even a moment later, the flames in the fireplace flared and turned bright green, Pomfrey's head appearing. "Ah, I hoped I'd find you here, Severus," she said with a smile. "Abby's woken up again, and she'd like to see you."

Damn the Fates. They were just mocking him now, weren't they?

"Ah, thank you, Poppy. He'll be down in just a few minutes," Dumbledore informed her. After the nurse's head disappeared and flames turned back to their orange-red colour, he chuckled. "Well, that certainly was convenient, wasn't it?"

"Too convenient, if you ask me," sneered Severus even as he stood up. "I shall... inform Abigail of my plans. You will gathered any papers I need to sign?" Answered with a nod, he replied, "Then I will return once I'm done."

"Don't rush," said Dumbledore cheerfully, popping yet another lemon sherbet into his mouth, and again, Severus held back the urge to destroy that blasted tin of candy. Instead, he made his way out of the office, making sure not to show on his face how much his stomach turning and twisting.

When he stepped into the private room that Abby was being kept in again, he was surprised to see her not smiling brightly at him, or shouting out her nickname for him. Instead, she was sitting up in bed again, staring at him and blinking slowly. "Abigail?" he asked with a frown, closing the door behind him. "Are you feeling well?"

Instead of answering him, Abby pushed back her blankets slipped out of bed, clad in only her nightgown as she padded over to him, still staring until she reached out and took his left hand. She grasped in both of her smaller hands, twisting it each and every way and looking over every inch his fingers, much like she did when they were first choosing her name. Severus stayed still as she did her examination, not sure what this was about.

Finally, she let go of his hand, blushing slightly. "Sorry, Mr. Severus," Abby mumbled. "I had a dream that you... well, weren't you, and that you didn't rescue me, so I was still stuck in that room. I just wanted to make sure..."

Sighing, Severus gently touched her shoulder and lead her back to her bed. "Rest assured, Abigail, you are safe at Hogwarts, and I have not changed since you last saw me a few hours ago." While she scrambled back into bed, he pushed the nearby chair closer, his knee's almost touching the mattress when he sat down. "Do you feel any better?"

"Yeah," said Abby with a nod. "Loads better. I don't feel tired anymore." She wrinkled her nose. "Is that gonna happen every time I lose a lot of my magic?"

"Sometimes. The effects will vary, but basically the same thing, yes," answered Severus. "Depending on how quickly you lose it, or if you lose it all at once or in bursts. If you lose a large amount at once, which is what I expect you did, it takes more out of you then just losing it in with multiple bursts. You waste more then just magic, you waste energy." He peered down at her. "Care to tell me how you lost your magic, or maybe how you escaped a room with no handle or lock?"

"Uh... I'm not really sure," admitted Abby, shrugging and glancing down at her sheets. "I just kept wishing I could get out of the room. Then Neville told me he could see through me for a second, like I was about to Apparate. So I kept wishing really hard, and suddenly, I was outside the door."

"Accidental magic, perhaps," said Severus after a moment of thought. Was he right when he thought they'd only seem a small part of her abilities? "It doesn't matter, though," he said, waving it off. "All that matters is that you're safe here."

"Yeah..." Abby was still looking down at her sheets, picking at any loose fibers she found. "Um... How long do I get to stay here this time?" she asked quietly. "Until they take me to a real orphanage."

"You won't be going to an orphanage," answered Severus, earning a look of confusion from Abby as she glanced up.

"What, why... Was my family found?" Abby asked in a frightened whisper. He knew that she didn't want to go back to them, not if they were ones that inflicted all the injures that were on her when they first found her.

"No," Severus said, and wasn't surprised at the sigh of relief she had at that news. "But..." This was his last chance to stop before it went too far... "But I'd like to give you one," he finally said, almost stumbling over his words, as simple as they seemed.

"I don't get it, Mr. Severus," said Abby with a tilt of her head.

Straightening, Severus took a moment to gather his thoughts before saying, "A family, I mean. I have made plans with the Headmaster to become you're legal guardian. And if a year goes by and no one claims you, I'd like to adopt you. If you have no problem with it, of course."

A long minute of unnerving silence filled with the air, making Severus wonder if she was horrified or just shocked. He was about ready to stand up and leave when Abby finally spoke up. "You wanna adopt... me?" she asked with a squeak towards the end, her green eyes wide as they could go.

"Only if you want me too," Severus said. "After all, you'll be the one stuck with me, not the other way around -"

The breath was suddenly knocked out of him as Abby somehow managed to leap out of bed and tackle him, her arms wrapping around his neck in an attempt to strangle him. It was all Severus could to make sure that they both didn't topple over and hit the ground, let alone get air back into his lungs.

"For the love of Merlin, Abigail," said Severus when he could finally breathe again. "Are you trying to kill us both..." he trailed off when he finally heard the sound of soft sniffling, and now he could feel the tears that were soaking his robes. "Is the idea of me adopting you so bad?" he asked dryly, all while trying to figure out what the girl was crying about.

"You - hiccup - really want me, Mr. Sev'rus?" Abby asked, her sobbing making it hard for him to understand her and causing her to slip into the old version of his nickname. "Really?"

Sighing, Severus wrapped his arms around Abby and held her against his chest, revealing the pressure around his neck when she moved her hands to clutch at his robes. "Is that such a surprise to you, Abigail? That someone might want you to become part of their family?"

Then he stopped himself, feeling like an idiot. Of course it was. Up to the point that she arrived at Hogwarts, she had clearly come from a family that wasn't kind to her to the point of beating her and causing her to hide any memory of them behind a mental wall. And while some of the teachers and students at Hogwarts had become her friends, none of them had taken the chance to become her guardian when they first had the chance.

Him included.

"I'm sorry that I didn't do this sooner," apologized Severus. "If I had, we could have avoided this whole kidnapping incident." He didn't dare mention how close she had been to becoming food for a clan of blood thirsty vampires. "I wasn't ready."

"How come - sniff - you're ready now?" Abby asked as she looked up at him with red tinted eyes.

Not sure how to answer that at first, Severus took a moment before saying, "I believe that I've realized what is truly important to me. But believe me when I say, I truly want you to be a part of my family, and I want... to become your father, if you'll let me."

"You wanna be my daddy?" Abby said softly, her eyes wide again.

"Yes."

Nodding slowly, Abby rested her forehead against his chest, and didn't have to see her face to tell that she was smiling brightly. "I'd really like you to be my daddy," she said in a whisper.

And Severus felt like his heart had skipped a few beats.

Curled up in the infirmary bed, Abby couldn't stop smiling. Mr. Severus was going to become her guardian! He had left her about an hour ago after she had finished crying, saying that he would go up the Headmaster's office in the morning to start filling out the paperwork.

But before he left, Mr. Severus made her promise not to tell anyone till everything was finished, and giving his own promise to her again that he really did want to become her guardian, and if everything worked out, her parent.

Her father. Her daddy.

Smiling brightly again, Abby could help but giggle in happiness, trying to making sure she didn't get too loud in case Madam Pomfrey could hear her. She was going to be part of a family.

But what if she did something wrong?

Abby felt her smile start to slip away as her happy feelings were soon replaced by fears and doubts. What if she did something wrong, like make him upset? He could get angry at her over something, anything, and decided that he didn't want her, not anymore. He would hurt her, hit her like her old family did.

Or worse. He would get rid of her.

He send her to the orphanage.

Burying her face in the pillow, Abby promised herself before she fell asleep that she wouldn't never, ever, do anything to make her new daddy mad. Because she didn't want to loose him again. Not when she just got back to him.

When she woke up the next morning to Miss Poppy bringing her breakfast, she didn't remember anything about the dream she had of a women with eyes like grass and a man with wild brown hair, promising her that everything would be alright.