Author's Note: Hi! Welcome to Year 5 of Olivia's time at Hogwarts. It will be most fun and interesting. Plus I've already written it all so updates shouldn't be too far apart. Prepare for the awesomeness!

~TheVampyre13

(Summer before Olivia's 5th Year)

Ellen had started dating a Muggle man named Ryan Mathers right before my third year of school and in the two years since then they had remained together. We'd been to his house a lot and eventually, sometime during my fourth year, Ellen had told him that she and I were witches. After he got over the initial shock, Ellen brought him to our house in Diagon Alley and showed him around the Wizarding world. He was alright as far as Muggles go and I learned a lot from him. He taught me about CDs and music and promised to teach me how to drive a car when I was old enough, which sounded exciting and unnerving at the same time.

Towards the end of the Summer before my fifth year at Hogwarts, Ellen announced that Ryan had received an advance at work and that they'd be going on vacation.

"Just you two?" I asked after she told me, laying in the living room.

"If it weren't for school you could go, too, but we won't be back until mid-September. We're going on a cruise- to Hawaii," she said dreamily.

"You're going to America- without me? What's going to happen to me while you're off gallivanting?"

"Well I was considering leaving you here by yourself, but not with that escaped murderer running about-"

"Like Sirius Black would dare show his face in Diagon Alley- everyone knows what he looks like. If I was an escaped convict, I'd be halfway to China by now."

"-Then I thought perhaps you could stay with Mr. Ollivander-"

"No way, Ellen- he's old and creepy."

"He babysat you when you were little," she argued.

"Yeah, but I'm not a baby anymore, I-"

"-Which is why I thought of Severus."

I stopped talking immediately.

"Snape?" I asked, not sure if I'd heard right.

"Yes. Would you like that?"

I'd started working as Snape's apprentice during my second year. I'd learned a lot from him and he even let me work on my own potions. My interest in him had not waned a bit and, despite his grumpy demeanor, I had grown fond of him and considered him one of the few people I thought of as friends.

"That's fine with me, I suppose. Where does he live?" I asked Ellen.

"A dreary little place called Spinner's End."

"Hmm. Have you actually talked to him about this arrangement?"

"Well not exactly..."

"He might say no."

"He won't," she said certainly, "He owes me."

So that is how, on August 3rd, I found myself on the Knight Bus, with my trunk crammed full of everything I could possibly need for the next month. The Knight Bus was amazing- it moved faster than Muggles could see, darting in and out of traffic. A shrunken head hung at the front of the bus. It talked in a Jamaican accent and taught me a few swear words I'd never heard before. The Knight Bus made a lot of stops and it was nearly nighttime when they finally called out Spinner's End.

I was the only person getting off there but Stan Shunspike, who worked on the Knight Bus, helped me get my trunk off the bus. Then the bus took off again and I was left standing alone on the side of the road. I took off walking, dragging my trunk behind me, in the direction that I hoped was Snape's house. The streets were narrow, with buildings on all sides that all looked the same. Everything looked old and dirty. Even the air smelled bad. The entire town was in the shadow of an old mill that had obviously not been in use for many years.

Eventually I came to a bunch of houses that looked abandoned. The windows were boarded up and some of the roofs looked as though they were caving in. At the end of a long row of these abandoned houses, I found a house with a light on in the window. I checked the address Ellen had written down for me. It was Snape's house alright. I looked around. I hadn't expected him to live in such a poor place. I had always envisioned him living in a grand, gothic manor of some sort, not a rundown shack.

Still dragging my trunk behind me, I went and knocked on the front door. A few moments passed, then the door was opened and Snape stood there looking out at me.

"Right. Come in, I suppose," he said stiffly.

He stepped aside, opening the door wider so that I could drag my trunk inside. We stepped directly into a small sitting room. There were bookshelves all around, filled with old books. A threadbare sofa, an old armchair, and a rickety wooden table were grouped together in the middle of the room. A candle-filled lamp hung in the direct middle of the room, casting a flickering, dim light. Everything seemed dusty, even the floors. It looked as though it were rarely inhabited which, with his being a teacher most of the year, I assumed it was. I noticed that it was wired with Muggle electricity, like Ryan's house. This surprised me, but then I remembered that Ellen had told me his father had been a Muggle. No doubt this had been his house.

"Not what you expected, I presume?" Snape said, his eyes on me.

"It's not all bad," I said, looking about, "In fact, with all these books, it's not unlike home."

Snape said nothing, but turned and gestured to one of the bookcases with his wand. To my surprise, it sprang aside, revealing a narrow staircase.

"You will find your room up there- the first door on the right. You can decorate it however you like. My room is the last door on the left and it will be locked at all times. You are not to go in there. The bathroom is the door directly in front of your room. The kitchen-" he said, pointing his wand at another bookcase which revealed another hidden passage, "-is there. You'll be pretty much on your own as far as meals go, as I am not accustomed to cooking for two."

He kept his tone cool, but I didn't mind. I had grown accustomed to his ways over the years and, however mean he acted, I got the feeling he actually liked me.

When Snape said nothing more, I dragged my trunk up the narrow staircase. The bookcase automatically closed behind me. I looked around me, listening to the heavy thunk, thunk of my trunk on the stairs, as I walked up. Halfway up the stairs there was a picture on the wall. It was a pale, sour-faced woman who had the same black hair as Snape. I could only assume that this was his mum, Eileen Prince, who was Ellen's aunt. Ellen told me she died years ago and I decided against asking Snape about her.

When I reached the top of the stairs, I found the hall with the three doors. I opened the first door on the right, which was to be my room. It was dark inside. I could barely make out a desk, on which stood an unlit candle. Using my wand, I lit the candle, and the room was flooded with a dim light. I could now see the light switch, which I flipped. The bulb overhead gave off a yellow light. The room was quite plain and dreary. The walls were white and the carpet a dull yellowish-tan color. There was a large bed. The sheets were pin-striped cotton, as were the pillowcases. There was a large black comforter folded on the foot of the bed, which was probably the only thing I liked in the entire room, besides the small writing desk in the corner. There was a simple oak bedside table which had an old lamp on it.

I ran my hands through my hair in an exasperated sort of way and looked at myself in the mirror on the old oak wardrobe.

"I've got a lot of work to do," I said to my reflection.

I started with a Color-Changing Charm, which I had learned my first year at Hogwarts so that I would not have to continuously dye my hair red, which I liked so much better than wispy blonde. I started with the carpet, though it took me a while to decide on a color. My favorite colors were green, black, and silver, so I decided to use these as the color palette for my room. I made the carpet black and the walls silver. I then went to work on the bed, changing the bedclothes to emerald green, then, as an afterthought, transfiguring them into satin instead of cotton. The pillows, of which there was only one, I duplicated so that there were three. I changed one of the emerald, satin pillowcases into black satin and put it atop the other two. I left the black comforter the way it was.

"Now, I must do something about the lighting," I said to myself, looking at the lone candle which did my magicked room no justice, "...I need something to transfigure."

I threw open the lid of my trunk and rummaged around until I found some old broken quills. It took me a while to get it right, but, with some effort, I transfigured two broken quills into torches which I could hang on two of the walls. I lit them using my wand, then turned the fire in them green so that they cast a green glow around my room, reminding me of the Slytherin Common Room.

My trunk had been magically expanded to fit a lot of my things, including my collection of about 15 stuffed animals, which I made a shelf for on the wall above the writing desk. I had several books which I put up here also and those that didn't fit I laid on the writing desk, along with my schoolbooks and some parchment, in case I felt like doing homework.

It took me the better part of at least two hours to decorate my room with magic and by the end of that time period I was exhausted. With a satisfied sigh I collapsed onto my bed. A few minutes assed, then there came a knock at my door. I waved my wand lazily and the door opened. Snape stood, staring around my room in awe, then his eyes fell on me. He was silent a moment longer, his black eyes piercing me in a way that made my skin break out in goosebumps.

"You're not supposed to use magic outside of school. The Trace-" he began.

"-isn't real," I finished, "At least, not when you live under a Wizarding roof."

He frowned at me, leaning against the door frame.

"You aren't supposed to know that."

"I read a lot," I replied with a shrug.

"Hmph," he said and something like a smile crossed his face…or maybe it was just a trick of the light, "…You did a good job."

"Thanks," I muttered, blushing at the compliment and looking away so he wouldn't see.

"…I'm going to bed now," he said after a moment, "If you get hungry or anything, you know where the kitchen is. There's not much, but…"

"I don't require much," I said with a brief smile, "I'm pretty much self-sufficient."

He nodded briefly, then turned and left the room.

Snape's POV

I was intensely aware of her in the next room as I lay on my bed. I'd given up all hope of trying to sleep, letting my mind wander freely…to her, as it inevitably did. The ridiculously revealing Muggle clothes she had taken to wearing did more harm than good.

I wondered what she was doing now, in her fantastically magicked room. I thought about using Legilimency on her, but decided against it. I had promised myself last year, when I noticed the first glimmer of her affection for me in her mind, that I would stay out of her head. It scared me, that affection. I, Severus Snape, who had unblinkingly faced death multiple times, was afraid of the fact that someone might feel affection for me. It was an impossible notion. So I had dismissed it as puppy love, distanced myself from the girl as much as I could, and let it go.

But now she was here, in my house, with those eyes and that smile…

I let out a groan and rolled over in my bed. I shouldn't be thinking of her like this- she's a student and she's only fifteen years old. She's still a kid for crying out loud. Just a stupid, ignorant kid. I let out another heavy sigh, closed my eyes, and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

The next morning when I woke, I was still tired. I forced myself to get up and get dressed. On my way to the stairs, I noticed the green light shining from beneath Olivia's door. I considered knocking to see if she was awake, but decided against it. I continued down the stairs.

As soon as I entered the sitting room, I smelled bacon. Olivia was laying on the couch, a plate on her stomach and a book in her hands- one of my books, I might add, though I didn't particularly mind. It took her a moment to realize I was standing there watching her as she read and absentmindedly ate bacon.

"Good morning," she said brightly, "Want some?"

She extended the piece of bacon she had just bitten off of.

"I'll pass," I said dryly. My stomach chose that moment to growl loudly, demanding food. Olivia grinned.

I said nothing, but swiped a piece of toast from her plate as I passed on my way into the kitchen.

I summoned my breakfast from the Hogwarts kitchens, as I usually did. The house elves expected me to do so every morning and set aside food just for this reason for all three meals. Olivia came into the kitchen as I was eating.

"Can I go explore the town?" she asked, putting her plate in the sink.

"Do I look like I care what you do?"

"Uhm…maybe?"

"Hmph. Try again."

She grinned again, her emerald eyes sparkling.

"I'm just gonna go," she said, waving her wand so that the dishes began to wash themselves.

"Don't expect to have fun," I said dryly, "And when you get back I might not be here."

"Why? Where are you going?"

"There's only a month left until term starts back. I have to go to Hogwarts and prepare lessons and…stuff."

"Oh. Hey- what's that door there?" she asked, pointing to a door to the left of the stove.

"Oh that- open it and see."

Curious, she walked over to the door and opened it. She was silent a moment, staring into the room. I came to stand behind her.

"It's a potion-brewing room!" she exclaimed loudly, startling me.

"Right. You can use it, if you want to. You've no doubt noticed I have countless books on potions. You can practice brewing whatever you like- but nothing illegal," I added quickly, "No poisons."

"Aw, you take the fun out of everything," she said lightly, grinning.

I left shortly after that, Disapparating and reappearing right outside the gates of Hogwarts. I started up the path towards the castle. The sun was shining brightly and it was going to be a beautiful, if not hot, day. I thought of Olivia, wandering around Spinner's End, walking along the rubbish-strewn banks of the filthy river, exploring the Muggle shops in the next town, as I had done when I was younger.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't see Dumbledore walking down from the castle until he was a few feet away from me.

"Severus. Just the person I was hoping to see," Dumbledore said, turning so he could walk with me back up to the castle.

"How can I be of service?"

"I wanted to have a word with you about the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. Let's wait until we're back in my office."

I stared at him in silent amazement, not daring to hope that all my dreams were about to come true.

"Lupin?" I demanded furiously, "You want Lupin to be Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?"

"Yes," said Dumbledore calmly, his hands steepled on top of his desk in front of him, "Is there a problem?"

"You know damned well there's a problem!" I snapped, "One- he's a werewolf, two- this is a school of children, and three- he's a bloody werewolf!"

"Severus," Dumbledore said reprovingly, "It's time that you get over your childhood grudge and-"

"It's nothing to do with that," I snapped, "He's a werewolf. You want a werewolf loose in a school full of children? Albus, this is a new level of crazy, even for you."

"Which is why you will play a crucial role in Remus' employment here at Hogwarts," he said to me.

"What?" I asked cautiously.

"Remus will need you to brew the Wolfsbane Potion for him every month, to assure that nothing goes wrong."

I said nothing but glowered at him, knowing I couldn't say no to him.

"I'll give you a raise," he said temptingly.

"Fine," I growled, "…I guess I'll be back and forth to the castle a lot, since I'll have to start the first batch here. …My cousin is staying with me."

"Olivia?" he said interestedly.

"Yes…"

"Hmm. Interesting…"

"No. No, it's not interesting at all. She's staying with me because Ellen's on vacation and didn't want to leave her home alone because of Sirius Black."

"And where is she now?"

"Home alone," I said with a faint smile, "Probably wandering around the town."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not worried about Olivia. She can take care of herself. What would Black want with her anyway?"

"Speaking of Black… the Ministry wants to station Dementors around the outside of Hogwarts this year, in case Black tries to break into the castle."

"Pointless," I snorted, "If Black comes within a mile of me, he's as good as dead."

"We have reason to believe he's after Harry," Dumbledore said, which shut me up immediately, "…Which is another reason it'll be good to have Remus around this year. He can watch out for Harry."

"That's what I'm here for," I snapped.

Dumbledore was silent a moment, staring off into space.

"Is Olivia prejudiced against werewolves?" he asked unexpectedly.

"I don't know. It's never come up in conversation," I said dryly.

"Does she seem like the sort of person who would be?"

"Well she is a Slytherin, but… she isn't prejudiced against Muggle-borns and she loves animals quite a lot."

"She is your apprentice- you could teach her how to brew the Wolfsbane Potion. If you think you can trust her not to tell anyone about Remus' condition…then you may tell her."

"It's not a question of trust. …I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask- and Severus? Tell no one else but her."

Olivia's POV

As soon as Snape left, I wandered around the house aimlessly for a while, then I went upstairs and took a shower. I used Snape's soap, which smelled amazing, then hurried from the bathroom to my room, naked. I rummaged around in my trunk a moment, then dressed in short, blue jean shorts and a black tank top. I knew it was more revealing than was necessary but it was Summertime and hot outside. I towel-dried my hair and went downstairs. Snape hadn't told me to lock the door and he didn't have any neighbors, so I didn't bother.

I wandered around the little Muggle village just off of Spinner's End. I saw a few shops, including a grocery store which I planned to visit before returning to Snape's house. Somehow, I found myself beside a disgusting-looking river with trash all along the banks. It smelled horrible. I imagined what it must have looked like before humans started dumping waste in the river- probably crystal-clear with bright green grass.

I sighed heavily and continued to walk alongside the river, heading for the old mill which hovered over the town. I could tell it was no longer in use and thought it might make an interesting explore.

The closer I got to the old mill, the dirtier the water seemed to get.

"It was the mill that made this place such a dump," said a quiet voice. I nearly jumped out of my skin- I hadn't heard anyone approach. It was a young girl, around the age of 12 or so. She had thick, long red hair that I was immediately envious of and almond-shaped emerald green eyes that were perhaps a shade darker than my own, and she had a few sparse freckles on her nose. We could have been sisters we were so similar in appearance.

She was standing right in front of me on the path alongside the river, though I could have sworn she had not been there just a moment earlier.

"Who are you? …and where did you come from?"

"Me? I live here…sort of," she said with a smile, "My name's Lily. Who are you and where did you come from?"

"My name's Olivia. I'm staying with my grouchy old cousin at Spinner's End."

"You mean Severus?"

"Yeah," I replied, surprised, "You know him?"

"You could say that. He's not as grouchy as all that, you know?"

"Yeah, I know," I replied, also smiling, "…What were you saying about the mill?"

"The river was clean before the mill was built. Of course, there was no town then either. The mill spewed sludge into the river and the people in the town used the banks of the river to dump their garbage."

"Humans disgust me," I said with a sneer, "Animals never destroy nature the way people do."

"Don't sneer, Liv. It doesn't become you," she said and somehow this made me not want to sneer anymore, "Why are you going to the old mill anyway?"

"I just thought I'd go explore. Wanna go?"

"I don't think that's such a good idea," she said seriously, sounding wiser than her years.

"Why not?" I asked curiously.

"It's really quite dangerous. It's condemned, you know?"

"…No, I didn't know that," Is aid, looking towards the mill.

"Come on- I know somewhere more fun than the mill."

She took off back the way I had come and I hurried after her. She led me through the streets until we came to a slightly less-dreary place. I continued following her until she came to a stop at an abandoned park. There was a swing set, a slide, and rusty old monkey bars that didn't look safe.

"I used to come here all the time," Lily said dreamily, sitting down on one of the swings. I sat down on the other. I'd been to a park a few times as a kid and the swings had always been my favorite.

Lily and I began to swing, neither of us speaking. It was a comfortable sort of silence. There was something familiar about her- as if I'd known her my whole life. She started swinging, higher and higher, until it seemed she would swing over the bar. All of a sudden, she jumped out of the swing, giggling madly- and disappeared!

I was so startled I fell out of my swing and landed on my face. I scraped my arm a little bit, but other than that I was fine. I looked around wildly to see where Lily had gone, but there was no one about. I watched as the two swings swung to a stop. A chill crept up my spine and, unable to bear standing there a moment longer, I turned and ran back towards Spinner's End.

To take my mind off the eerie experience I stopped by the grocery store on the way back to Snape's house and used the little Muggle money I had to buy food to make for lunch.

Snape didn't come home for lunch, however, so I put the food in the oven to keep it warm. Being alone in the house with my thoughts made me uneasy and, after a few failed attempts at concentrating on a book, I went into the potion-brewing room Snape had shown me earlier. There were four cauldrons in the middle of the dungeon-like room, all of which were currently empty. There was a counter along one wall with a stone basin for washing things. The faucet was shaped like a snake with the water coming out of it's open mouth, which I thought was wicked awesome. Above the counter were several cabinets containing ingredients, tools, and the like.

I spent the rest of the day brewing potions and was barely aware of Snape coming in. He peered into three of the cauldrons, which now had potions bubbling happily away in them.

"You've done good. …Why does my kitchen smell like roast?" he inquired, looking at me curiously.

"Oh I made dinner," I said, hurrying into the kitchen to take the food out of the oven. The sudden brightness of the light made me stop and blink until my eyes adjusted- I'd hardly left the dimly-lit potion-brewing room for six hours.

"You didn't have to do that," Snape said as I took the food out of the oven.

"I wanted to," I said with a shrug, "Besides, I was bored."

I set the small kitchen table while Snape stood in the doorway, watching me.

"Well aren't we the domestic one?" he drawled as I put the food on the table. I scowled and threw a potato at him.

"Hey!" he protested, moving quickly out of the way so that the potato thudded harmlessly against the wall and fell to the floor. I waved my wand quickly and it vanished.

An owl brought the Evening Prophet and Snape read while we ate. I tried to be silent and still but my mind was reeling again. I wanted desperately to tell him about the vanishing girl, but I wasn't sure he'd believe me.

"I think I'm insane," I announced suddenly.

"So do I," he replied without looking at me. There was a lengthy silence and Snape turned a page in his paper and ate another potato.

"I met a girl today."

"Good for you," he replied disinterestedly.

"She said she knew you."

"Highly unlikely. A Muggle girl?"

"I assumed so, but perhaps not. She said her name was Lily."

The paper fell from in front of Snape's face, which was paler than I had ever seen it.

"Where did you hear that name?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"She told me," I said uncertainly, that chilled feeling creeping back up my spine again. I had the sudden feeling that maybe I shouldn't have brought her up. He closed his eyes, a pained expression on his face…or as close as he could get to a pained expression.

"What… what did she look like?" he asked.

"A little like me, to be honest, but her eyes were a shade darker than mine and almond-shaped. Her hair was thicker and longer, too. She was prettier than me."

Snape opened his eyes and looked at me. Somewhere deep in the black depths of his eyes I saw something akin to sadness. I had never seen such an expression in his eyes and it made me want to either take him in my arms or run upstairs and hide until he was back to normal.

"You aren't lying to me. …Are you?"

"N-no," I replied shakily, "Why would I?"

He said nothing but stood up from the table and left the kitchen. I remained seated, listening to the sound of his quiet footsteps as he went through the sitting room, opened the hidden passage, and went upstairs. The passage closed behind him, silencing the sound of his footsteps.

I stayed seated a moment longer, then stood and began to clean away the dishes, thinking that my already freakishly bizarre day had just become even more so.