"Ariel!"
Hermione's head craned out of the carriage, despite the fact that there was apocalyptic rain beating against it, the wind howling in protest.
Ariel waved excitedly as she stood at the main entrance of the castle, battling to keep her hood on against the storm.
She strained her eyes against the wind, struggling not to go flying off the steps as the students began barreling past her to get into the castle and out of the rain. Hermione's carriage right at the front. Ron nearly fell out after her, ending up with a mouthful of Hermione's hair as the wind knocked Hermione's hood off. Ariel grinned as she watched the two of them bicker, the sound music to her ears.
Ariel, unable to help herself, met them halfway down the steps, throwing her arms around Hermione's neck. They took turns for a minute trying to lift one another off the steps, but when Hermione almost lost her footing, they dissolved into a fit of giggles as the rain left them absolutely drenched.
When they pulled away, Hermione was grinning so hard it looked like her face would split open. "I've been so worried!"
"About what?" Ariel teased. "About the owls not being able to send me more than ten books at a time?"
Hermione swatted at her shoulder and laughed. "About you — about Black. I was relieved when you wrote that Professor Dumbledore insisted you come to Hogwarts early, but not being able to see you…"
"I missed you too." her face hurt from how much she was smiling. She wondered if it would become permanent if she couldn't stop. She didn't really care.
Hermione hugged her again tightly. When Ariel finally pulled away, she saw Ron watching them from two steps down, looking very grumpy and very wet.
"We don't have to do that, right?" Ron grouched.
"Shut up," Ariel said, and then launched herself at him.
Ron sputtered as she pulled away, wiping at his tongue, but he too seemed to look a little relieved. "You two have too much bloody hair."
Seamus and Dean laughed as they passed, causing Ron to turn beet-red. For a moment, it looked like he was going to break away and follow after them, but he wiped the water out of his eyes instead and shook his head, the corners of his lips twitching.
"Come on," Ariel pulled Hermione forward, Ron right behind them. "It's freezing out here, and the house elves have outdone themselves this time, you should see the spread."
Hermione grumbled under her breath about slave labor, but Ariel didn't hear her. Her heart felt it had been surrounded in the Lumos, only ten times brighter. Once they were inside, they took turns drying each other off with some spells, wringing out their cloaks. Ron pointed his wand at their hair, to which Hermione dodged with a speed that was almost inhuman.
"Don't you dare," she warned. "My hair will frizz so much it'll grow three sizes."
"Really?" a curious expression crossed Ron's face, mischief lighting up his eyes in a way that reminded Ariel of the twins.
Hermione was having none of it. "Ronald, I am warning you —"
"Here," Ariel motioned for her to turn, tying back her hair into a somewhat tidy ponytail. "At least it'll stay out of your face.'
Ariel did the same to herself as Hermione watched, smoothing down the top of her head to try and de-frizz some more. "Your hair's gotten longer! You're going to need a haircut soon, I reckon."
She shrugged. She liked having it long, being able to thread her fingers through it. She'd never been able to do it before — Aunt Petunia had given her haircuts that made her look like an escaped convict. "Maybe."
They finished drying themselves off, Vanishing the puddles they'd managed to make in the process as the drier students began piling into the Great Hall. Ariel craned her neck over the crowd, still somehow shorter than most of the Second Years, and waved to Lavender and Parvati, who were excitedly chatting with Padme towards the front of the hoard of people.
A figure moved to block Ariel's view, her pale face much healthier, more filled out, her brown eyes wide with hesitation. Ariel almost didn't recognize her for a second, blinking dumbly until a small, hesitant smile graced her face.
"Ginny —" Ariel started to say, wanting to ask her how she'd been, but she was abruptly cut off when something slammed into her.
Ginny then promptly burst into tears, flinging her arms around Ariel's neck.
"I'm so sorry —" she blubbered. "I'm sorry —"
"Ginny, Ginny it's okay," Ariel soothed, turning red as the other students stared at them.
"I got all your letters, I just couldn't write back, I couldn't write it all down after…"
I have written you down now, you will live forever —
"I know," Ariel said quietly. "Listen, Ginny, that arsehole ended up turning into Voldemort. It wasn't your fault, I don't blame you for what happened. I'm just happy you're okay."
She sniffled, wiping at her face. "I should have known, all he talked about was you after a while. I feel so stupid."
She's terribly jealous
I was hoping for more than this cliche
"I did too," Ariel admitted. "Hermione and I knew something was off, we should've kept after it more. I'm sorry."
Ginny just shook her head, almost in disbelief. "Hermione told me everything, all you did for me. How did you manage it all? Killing the basilisk alone —"
Ariel felt her body tense as she remembered the sound of the floor shaking beneath her feet as the basilisk moved, not wanting to relive the memory. She diverted and asked Ginny how she had been doing instead.
Ginny looked away for a moment before answering softly, "I'm okay. It's not easy, but I remember what the Headmaster told me, that there were older and wiser wizards tricked by him." she smiled faintly. "I still have nightmares, I still get scared sometimes when writing... but it's getting better. The Mind Healers helped a lot."
Ariel squeezed her hand, feeling the same sensation in her chest. "I'm glad."
"The trip to Egypt definitely helped to take my mind off of it, too. Did Ron tell you in his letters — Fred and George almost locked Percy in one of the tombs."
As if right on cue, a pair of arms picked Ariel off the ground from behind, squeezing her into a hug.
"Evans, old girl," said George's voice as a second pair of arms lifted her up. "My, how you've grown! We used to be able to lift you over our heads with one arm."
"Very funny," Ariel said dryly, but she couldn't wipe the grin off her face. "Maybe you too are just getting shorter."
"Or weaker," Ginny supplied, earning a snort from Hermione. "Once I learn that Bat-Bogey Hex, it's game over for you two."
George clutched at his chest mockingly, pretending to keel over. "The very thought strikes fear into my heart."
Ron rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "You're on your own, mate. I'm not going anywhere near that."
Ginny shot him an indignant glare before turning back to Ariel with a smirk. "Obviously I can only take them down when they get tired of meddling with each other."
"Smart," Ariel agreed. "Divide and conquer."
"Terrifying," Fred shuddered theatrically. "It almost worries us as much as Sirius Black does."
Hermione shot them both a very cross look, still shaking water out of her hair.
"Any sign of him?" Ron asked Ariel, glancing at the doors at the heavy oak doors as they swung shut. "Dad said he'd be mad as a hatter to try and escape, let alone after twelve years in Azkaban. He was going to write to you, you know, warn you, but Mum thought it'd frighten you…"
Fred gave Ron a little smack on the back of the head before leaning on his shoulder. "Life of the party, this one."
Ginny snickered as Ron and Hermione glowered, looking both worried and annoyed with the subject being joked about.
Ariel just shook her head. "Nothing, I honestly haven't heard much news about it. Have you?"
"Just a few sightings here and there but nothing concrete." Hermione interjected, sounding only a little like one of the professors. "Besides, Ariel is perfectly safe here. Black can't get anywhere near the castle as long as Dumbledore is Headmaster, and that would be without the Dementors keeping guard."
George shuddered, for real this time. "Awful things, those Dementors. They searched the train on the way here."
Ariel's mouth went dry. "What? They did?"
"Yeah," Ron shivered, rubbing his arms. "I think I would've broken out of Azkaban too, if I had to feel like that all the time. I felt like I'd never be happy again."
Before she could think about it, Ariel blurted out: "Did anyone faint?"
They all stared at her in confusion. Ariel immediately regretted asking.
"No, but Malfoy came running into our compartment like a bat out of hell." George grinned. "Slimy little bugger was shaking like a leaf, wasn't he Fred?"
That made Ariel feel slightly better, almost wishing she'd been there to see for herself, but the idea of coming that close to the Dementors was enough to make her blood run cold. Hermione linked her arm with Ariel's as they followed Ron and his siblings towards the Great Hall, the warmth radiating from it like a waiting embrace.
"Too good to ride the train, Red Cap?" called the Worst Voice Ever.
Ariel had predicted that it would be five minutes into Malfoy arriving that he'd insult her. It had really only taken about three. When Ariel begrudgingly turned, she found Malfoy squelching in from outside, handing his cloak to Goyle to dry as he shot some spell at his boots that sucked the water out of them with an unflattering squeal.
"I thought it'd be pretty obvious why, with the Dementors and all." she said with an eye roll. "Nice to know you were thinking of me, though."
Malfoy shot her a withering glare as George patted Ariel's shoulder. "You live in that boy's head rent free, sweetheart."
He sneered. "Don't flatter yourself, Evans. You're not worth thinking about. I was merely curious why someone like you would be granted the privilege of avoiding the train."
Ariel let out an exasperated sigh. It was always the same with Malfoy. The moment he opened his mouth, she knew it was going to be something insulting and derogatory. It was exhausting, the vendetta he had against her.
Lucius —
Master gave the Weasley girl a —
You little Halfblood brat —
Deciding not to dignify Malfoy with a response, Ariel pulled Hermione forward and continued down the corridor towards the Great Hall. Before they could file in, the enchanted ceiling just as stormy as the real sky outside, they were stopped by Professor McGonagall.
"Ah, there you two are," she crossed her arms down at them, looking almost relieved. "Miss Granger, I need to see you in my office for a moment. You're not in trouble." she added only after they'd exchanged a look of panic. "Miss Evans, you may follow the rest of the students into the hall. I need to discuss Miss Granger's schedule with her before classes begin tomorrow."
Hermione immediately brightened, but dimmed only slightly when she gave Ariel's hand one final squeeze before waving mournfully as she followed Professor McGonagall. With a sigh, Ariel trailed after Ginny and Ron, who'd caught up to the other Gryffindor boys in their year.
She felt a bit overwhelmed, the Great Hall louder and brightest and full of life for the first time since last term had ended. It felt right, but also a little strange. Ariel had been taking her meals here, alone, since The Incident — an event which she refused to acknowledge, because it would be acknowledging Him, and Ariel had absolutely no intention of doing such a thing.
Even with that in mind as they entered the Great Hall, Ariel cast a quick glance at the staff table.
Her eyes locked with her fathers for a moment before he averted his gaze. Something jolted down her spine and down to her toes, like a bolt of electricity.
It was as if he couldn't stand to look at her.
Good.
Pushing her thoughts aside, Ariel turned her attention and glanced around the room. Ariel noticed a group of older students huddled in a corner, their heads together in deep conversation, overhearing snippets of their conversation.
"Black is out for revenge…"
"...no one is safe..."
"...I heard he's headed for Hogwarts..."
They looked right at her, then, before ducking their heads low in embarrassment. She tried to ignore it and listen to Ron's stories about their trip to Egypt instead, but she felt slightly jarred.
Ariel was thankful when Professor Dumbledore stood up, lifting his hands to silence the room.
Remus was only half-listening to Dumbledore's welcoming speech, only standing to be acknowledged when Pomona threw her elbow into his hip. He gave only the briefest of nods but smiled when he saw Ariel waving enthusiastically from her table.
She seemed happier than she had over the summer. He'd come across her in various spots — once by Hagrid's hut, feeding some kneazle kits that had been born, but most of the time had been in the Great Hall or the library. She'd moved back up into Gryffindor Tower at some point, which explained why she hadn't been out and about as much. He wondered if Snape hadn't wanted her around now that he was brewing the Wolfsbane. Or maybe he had just decided he'd had enough of babysitting James' daughter.
When he thought about it, Remus hadn't seen much of Snape either. The Wolfsbane had been waiting for him the week before his first transformation back at Hogwarts with explicit instructions on how and when to take it. It had made Remus quite ill, the first time, the late hours of the night spent retching over a toilet bowl, but the tolerance had grown with every reluctant swig. Other than that, he hadn't seen Snape until the staff meeting early that morning.
He caught sight of Snape's face momentarily. It should've caused something to combust, or at the very least keel over in pain. If looks could kill, Remus would've been dead on the spot.
Minerva arrived late, settling beside the seat to Remus' left (the very one Snape had avoided). He was sitting at the very edge of the table, beside Sinistra, who was reading a book with one hand and eating with the other. Snape was splitting a green bean apart like he was dissecting it.
"Trouble already?" Remus asked lightly as Minerva sat.
She gave him a wry smile as she held out her goblet and he filled it with the Elvish wine he'd helped himself to already. "Just a spot, but it's all smoothed over. A scheduling issue, hardly anything to worry about."
Remus noticed that a bushy-haired girl had squeezed between Ariel and another girl, one who had the same color hair as the three boys sitting across from them. He knew almost instantly that they were Weasleys — the girl looked a great deal with Molly. He forgot how many they had, now — at least six or seven.
"Hermione Granger," Minerva said, as though she'd read Remus' mind. "You'll enjoy having her in your class, she's an astonishingly bright thing. A good companion for Miss Evans, too. One is rarely without the other."
He gave a brief nod, watching as they laughed and ate and surveyed the rest of the room. There was a group of Slytherins that seemed to be watching Ariel's group, their heads bent low as they shot haughty, unkind looks at Ariel and her friends' backs. One of the boys had white-blonde hair and a sneer Remus recognized. He would've bet his wand arm that he was Lucius Malfoy's boy. Sirius had made a face when he'd read the birth announcement. "There's supposedly some Curse on the Malfoy line — how the bloody hell did Narcissa manage to pop out a baby? Christ, we'd better pray Bella doesn't do the same, the world couldn't handle that."
"I worry for her," Minerva shook her head and sighed. "Those risible Muggles she's forced to live with didn't return her Hogsmeade permission slip, either. She'll be the only one forced to stay behind."
He'd heard rumors over the years of Ariel's Muggle relatives. People had caught glimpses of them out in public together, and the bars were rampant with gossip about a little girl with a lightning bolt scar, a girl who was far too small for her age and stared owlishly at the people who tried to approach. He'd always dismissed it, knowing full well it might've been true, but what you didn't know couldn't hurt you.
Remus felt his eyebrows knit together. "Worry? Because she'll be left out?"
"Among other things," she began to cut at her roasted duck a little too harshly. "Miss Evans and her friends have a certain reputation amongst the staff for finding themselves in… spots of trouble, shall we say."
"Oh?" Remus hip his smile behind his wine goblet. "I wonder where she gets that from."
Minerva scowled, but it wasn't thorough and didn't hold the same weight as it had when Remus had been a student. "Not completely like James, thank Merlin and Morgana. I don't think I could've handled another one of those, not with those Weasley twins turning my hair white." she gestured with a sharp thrust of her chin to two boys huddled in front of Ariel, their heads bent low together. "Be careful with those two — I'm sure they'll like you just fine, but the mischief they manage to get up to pales in comparison."
"I find that hard to believe," Remus said, almost to himself. He jerked his head in their direction. "Who's the other boy — the younger one?"
"Ronald Weasley. Also seldom seen without Miss Evans or Miss Granger."
Remus nodded, mostly to himself. He was glad to hear that she had friends — close friends that cared about her. That was clear even just by watching them for a few minutes, as Ariel flicked Ron's nose while he swiped a spoonful of something orange off her plate. It was almost like watching a rising star, and Remus couldn't help but admire her spirit as he watched from afar. She seemed to bloom when she was around those she trusted and cared for.
"So then, what kind of trouble does she get into?" Remus asked offhandedly.
Minerva's mouth tightened into a thin line. "Trouble tends to find her, actually."
His eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"
Minerva hesitated, her eyes flicking to the corner of the room where Ariel was sitting. "I don't know if I should say… it seems she has a certain… penchant for finding herself in predicaments that would otherwise be impossible for a thirteen-year-old child to get into."
At Remus' incredulous look, Minerva sighed, pushing aside her plate, and leveling a serious gaze at him. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."
"What?"
She nodded grimly. "Escaped him by the skin of her teeth."
Remus eyed the wine. Was it simply too strong, or was he hearing Minerva correctly?
"He infiltrated the school?" he very nearly bleated.
Minerva nodded grimly, her eyes never leaving Remus' face. "And Miss Evans found herself in the middle of it all."
Remus' blood ran cold. "You don't mean —"
"He's gone," Minerva finished somberly. "For now, but I fear what that sort of lingering effect it has on the poor thing."
Remus's mind raced as he tried to process this revelation. How had he missed this in all the years he'd been away? How had he not known that she had been under attack even behind the protective walls of Hogwarts — and how in Merlin's name had Ariel managed to escape unscathed?
James and Lily would've been irate. There might not have been a school left, after Lily was through with them all. Peter had nearly dropped Ariel once as a baby and she'd Hexed his balls blue.
"That's… unbelievable," he murmured. The air burned his throat on the way out.
Minerva nodded once more before turning back to her plate and pushing it aside. "Indeed. And now, to make matters worse, we have Black to contend with."
Did you fight in the War?
Remus had expected Ariel to ask her parents, but she hadn't. The shame hung over him like a dark cloud, but he'd felt infinitely relieved that she hadn't. His heart ached for the girl at the thought of all she had endured in such a short time frame. "How does she fare with it? Does she struggle academically? I see there's no problems socially."
One of the Weasley twins was balancing a fork on his nose. Ariel was laughing so hard that she'd started to cough, causing Hermione to have to give her a few whacks on the back.
Minerva smiled faintly. "She's always been a good student — not like Miss Granger, but she excels in all her classes and is a quick study, she doesn't shy away from challenges, which lands her in spots of… trouble from time to time."
Remus noticed that her eyes flickered to Snape, then. He didn't notice, his narrowed eyes sweeping over the Great Hall in what appeared to be boredom. He'd barely touched the food on his plate and kept one hand of his goblet but did not drink.
"Severus?" Remus guessed, not feeling all that surprised.
She grimaced. "He is — and if you repeat this, Remus Lupin, I will vehemently deny it — always looking for an excuse to assign her detention. We've had quite a few heated discussions about it. This is, of course, in addition to the blatant favoritism he shows his Slytherins. With Miss Evans, I can only speculate, and I do not wish to spread baseless rumors, but I do recall a rather volatile feud between James and Severus during their schooldays."
That was certainly putting it lightly. Snape and James had left each other bloody and broken every other week, especially as they'd gotten older, their tongues sharper and wands quicker to draw. Loathing was probably too light of a word to describe what Snape had felt for James.
Minerva's voice broke through the hazy memory that had crept to the front of Remus' mind — James' elated face at Lily finally saying yes to a date with him, quickly replaced by a grimace of pain when Snape had nearly sliced his nose off of his face. "He's respected in his own House because of how sternly he runs classes and the lengths he will go to in defending them, but as far as I can tell, most students simply fear him and try to stay out of his way when possible."
"And Ariel doesn't?" Remus guessed.
She pursed her lips. "She's quite stubborn, I've found. But she has a good heart and a sharp mind, and with her potential, I certainly hope she doesn't let that go to waste."
"No," Remus murmured, raising the goblet back to his lips and finishing the rest in one swig. "Let's hope."
Ariel and Hermione hurried up to Gryffindor Tower right after dinner, following the rest of their Housemates as Percy loudly called the password to the front of the crowd. "It's Fortuna Major!"
"Say it again for the rest of the castle!" Fred shouted from one of the staircases below.
Percy sent a severe look behind him as Ariel climbed through the Portrait hole, relieved that she wouldn't be alone tonight. She loved Gryffindor Tower, felt more at home than she had all summer, but being up there all alone had been rather draining. She'd started talking to the house elves who came to make her sheets and bring her meals in the Great Hall, but they'd stared at her so strangely that Ariel had begun to feel a bit mental.
"George and I are going to play a few rounds of exploding snap," Ron said as Lavender and Parvati motioned for Ariel and Hermione to follow them up to their dormitory. "Want to join us in a bit?"
Ariel nodded eagerly, beaming from the inside out over not spending another night alone and headed upstairs. Lavender was telling them about some boy she'd met while in Prague with her parents, while Hermione and Ariel shared private little looks that made them giggle. She was pretty sure that she'd never take any sort of boy advice from Lavender after the way she'd fawned over Lockhart, but then again, Ariel thought boys were about as interesting as flobberworms.
Still, it was nice to have something to think about other than the Other Matter.
That was, until Ariel pushed open the door and was nearly mauled.
She let out a scream as something pounced on her, something big and — hairy?
"No! Bad Crookshanks, bad!" Hermione scolded as she pried Some Thing off of Ariel's chest. "Where are your manners?"
Ariel winced as she looked down at her arms, now covered in bright, red scratches. "What the hell is a Crookshanks?"
"He's my new cat… and apparently, he doesn't like strangers." Hermione glowered down at the cat, who was now licking its paw indifferently, cradled in her arms. "Sorry about that. He's normally not so aggressive."
"Oh, gods," Lavender recoiled, horrified. "It's hideous."
Hermione bristled, holding Crookshanks closer. "He's beautiful, thanks very much. He's part kneazle, actually."
"Well, that explains what its face looks like that."
"Like what?" Hermione snapped.
Ariel squinted as Crookshanks hissed, but he still didn't fuss in Hermione's arms. "He does look… a bit different."
"Like he ran into a brick wall," Lavender supplied, rather unhelpfully.
"His fur is very pretty." Ariel tried. She tried to pet him and was rewarded with a menacing swipe. Ariel got the message and held up her hands in surrender.
"He's usually not like this," Hermione sighed, plopping him down on the floor. "Here, let me look at your arms —"
"Did he do all that?" Parvati pointed to Ariel's four-poster, which looked like the twins' explosives had gone off. She had left all of her Wizarding War research laid out (in a specific order, because she did have a system) along with her notes and a suspicious looking scone that she'd forgotten about. The pillows were sad and wrinkled, the comforter wrapped in a heap at the bottom of the bed.
"Shit," Ariel started kicking the books under the bed, throwing the ones she wasn't finished with under her pillow. "Sorry, I lost track of time and forgot to clean. I meant to do it before the train arrived, but I fell asleep."
She hurriedly tried to smooth out the mess, her face flaming as she realized how mental it must've looked. She silently wondered why the house elves hadn't touched it, but she'd turned them away every time they'd come to clean… maybe they'd taken the hint? Or maybe she'd forgotten to mention it while rambling about quite literally nothing at all, just wanting someone to talk to. She hadn't even gone to see Professor Lupin again, afraid that he might show up.
Hermione set Crookshanks down on her bed to keep an eye on him. He began grooming himself atop Hermione's pillow while watching Ariel with an air of "you couldn't have done this earlier?"
"Where'd you find him?" Ariel asked, wondering what in Merlin's name Hermione had been thinking. "He's huge."
Hermione scratched underneath his chin and cooed. "The shopkeeper said no one else wanted him. I couldn't leave him there."
"I wonder why," Ariel muttered under her breath, but she smiled to herself, thinking back to when Hagrid had bought her Hedwig. That would've made a good memory for the Patronus — she made a mental note to write it down for later. She hadn't tried the Charm since the Other Matter.
Lavender and Parvati were looking through photos from each other's vacations, their giggling getting louder when Lavender got to the one of the boy — Tomas, it sounded like — she'd spent the summer with. Ariel only felt a little jealous. She'd been enjoying her summer, missing her friends but enjoying it, until it had blown up in her face.
I warned you —
Ariel let the waves of Occlumency sweep the thought away. She would not think about him, she would not. If he didn't think she deserved an explanation, then he didn't deserve a single thought of hers.
Hermione's eyes swept over the nest Ariel had made for herself. "I thought you were staying with Professor Snape?" she asked in a low voice, her brown eyes flickering over Ariel's shoulder to make sure they weren't being listened to. Ariel's eyes flitted over to the other girls. They were Transfiguring a picture frame for Tomas, or whatever his name was, not listening to Ariel or Hermione at all.
Ariel tried to keep her cool, not ready to have this conversation with Hermione. She'd wondered if she should tell her friends, but had decided against it for the time being, or at the very least until Ariel had come to her own conclusions — or he stopped being a lying arsehole — whichever came first, really.
"I was," she muttered. "then I wasn't."
Hermione's frown deepened.
"We had a row." Ariel forced through clenched teeth — don't think about it — please don't ask, please don't ask —
"Oh," Hermione was quiet for half a beat. "About what?"
She started piling the books on her nightstand. "Something stupid. It doesn't matter."
Her lips pursed in an expression of Skeptical Hermione-ness. "How long have you been up here, then?"
Ariel shrugged. "A week or so, give or take."
She blinked, her face morphing into one of concern. Ariel could feel her heart thudding against her ribs as she tried to organize the books and pretend everything was fine, but her hands were shaking, her breath uneven and heavy.
Dad
I warned you
Say something
Death Eater
You've never heard the term before
Dad Dad Dad —
"Do you want to talk about it?" Hermione asked. Her voice was low and cool and something else… something Ariel didn't want to hear right now.
She shook her head, pretending to take out a bookmark. When she turned back to Hermione, her eyes were glued to the covers of the books, a look of realization spreading across her face like an afternoon shadow.
"What did Professor McGonagall want?" Ariel asked instead of answering her. "She said there was a problem with your schedule?"
"Oh, that was nothing, it was an easy fix." Hermione said, almost dismissively.
"What was it, then?"
"Nothing… I just overloaded my schedule by accident. We worked it out, though."
Ariel looked up from what she was doing. Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed Hermione had picked up one of the scraps of paper she'd scrawled messy, incoherent notes on.
"Death Eaters?" Hermione asked in a very, very quiet voice, like she was divulging a secret. Her eyes briefly went back to Lavender and Parvati again, who were admiring their Sticking Charm work. If things didn't work out with Tomas, Ariel at least knew how to get him down.
She quickly racked her brain for an excuse for Hermione. "I was looking up information on Sirius Black."
That was a good lie — she hated that she was lying to Hermione, had promised she wouldn't ever again — but Ariel also couldn't shake the feeling that Hermione hadn't been totally honest with her, either. Or maybe it was just her guilt trying to justify it. Either way, Ariel wasn't going to tell Hermione their first night back at Hogwarts that her father was a Death Eater.
"Right, then." Ariel said awkwardly. "Well… should we go and find Ron?"
Hermione nodded, handing Ariel the parchment, which she quickly shoved into her nightstand.
The coin was at the very bottom.
Ariel slammed it shut without a backwards glance. The sound made Crookshanks jolt, a low moan of annoyance directed at Ariel, who was beginning to wonder if Hermione had been of sound mind when she'd adopted this menace. Ron was going to love him, especially with Scabbers.
"I'm leaving," Ariel said to Crookshanks. "Are we square?"
Crookshanks gave her a lazy look, his tail thumping onto the bed with a languid, dreary air Ariel didn't believe for one second.
"I think he likes you," Hermione said, cracking a small smile.
That was the biggest lie of all, but Ariel snorted and followed Hermione out of the room.
Severus was halfway through a cigarette when Dumbledore came through the Floo, looking both disapproving and somehow deeply understanding. Severus had only arrived a short while ago himself, only after putting the fear of God into the newest batch of First Years while also ensuring that they knew he was their only ally in this Gryffindor infested wasteland. Severus now found himself waiting for the newest group of Prefects to arrive for assignments, savoring every inhale of the cigarette and the still silence that surrounded him.
He didn't acknowledge Dumbledore as he made himself comfortable. Severus noticed his ice blue eyes, shining in the dim, amber glow of his quarters, flickering to the girl's bedroom door. "I see that the castle is adjusting itself to your needs."
He hadn't gone in there since the girl had thrown everything into her trunk and stormed out without so much as a backwards glance. She must have left some things behind, but the girl had avoided Severus like the plague. He could hardly blame her, but it was so Lily-like that Severus had almost anticipated it. Silence had been Lily's greatest weapon. It wasn't surprising that their daughter wielded it just as well.
Severus ground his teeth together with so much force he could taste the fillings in his molars. "There's no need for it anymore. Why hasn't it removed itself?"
Dumbledore twinkled at him brightly, like he was a shooting star, granting a wish he'd been longing to give. "When I was a student here, my Transfiguration professor had six children."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"Forgive me, but your child does still reside here."
"Just because she's here doesn't mean she needs to be coddled by the castle." Severus took a long drag from his cigarette, blowing the smoke away from Dumbledore. "If the castle should be doing anything, it's making sure the little dunderheads don't go looking for the Dementors."
"I have the utmost confidence in our students." Dumbledore said calmly. "My hope was that they understand that Dementors do not need a reason to attack, as seen with Ariel this summer."
Severus tensed. When Dumbledore had returned from hunting Black, he'd been keen on seeing the girl, only to find her gone. Severus had all but thrown him out that night, blaming him for it all.
As if he'd read Severus' mind, Dumbledore's eyes flickered to the display cabinets shoved to the brim with books, the glass gone. Severus hadn't bothered to replace it, after he'd smashed every single one the night the girl had left.
Tonight had been the first time Severus had been in the same room as the girl in some time. She seemed well enough, glittering around the other little cretins instead of moping. He had, of course, kept close tabs on her, but Miss Evans had been careful not to wander off anywhere that he might be able to follow.
When her eyes had flickered to him, he'd felt something else rioting inside him, beating against him, like a second heart. That was until her wild glare had registered and Severus had forced his gaze elsewhere not half a second later.
"Severus," Dumbledore began, but stopped.
He knew what he was going to say. Apologies could not change the past, but they could shape the girl's future. The old coot was getting predictable.
"Well?" Severus snapped. "Spit it out."
Dumbledore sighed before looking him straight in the eye. "You must deal with this."
Severus stared at him, deeply annoyed and mildly offended. "What would you have me do? Grovel at her feet?"
He raised an unkempt eyebrow at him. "You don't think that you owe her an explanation?"
"I owe her better than that," he smashed the cigarette into the ashtray, glaring. He would give the girl the world and then some, if he could, but that wasn't the way life worked.
Dumbledore sighed. "You know as well as I do that this is simply about doing what is fair to her."
"And what would be fair, in your opinion?" Severus began his fingers scraping against the ashtray, letting them scrape the ceramic. "When has anything in that damnable girl's life warranted any degree of fairness?"
When has mine?
Dumbledore continued to wear that solemn mask of expectancy. "It is because of the circumstances that I am urging you to explain yourself to her."
"There is no point in inflicting more pain on the brat."
Severus could still picture her face, like all the light had gone from her eyes. It had gone with her when she'd left his quarters. Tonight was the closest he'd felt to normalcy since that moment, like he'd been suspended there since, numb to the merciless thread of time that had continued on.
Dumbledore's face hardened. "She cares for you a great deal, Severus."
I know that don't you think I know that — he would do anything —
That split second of hesitation had taken everything —
He shifted, tapping the cigarette against the rim of the ashtray. "She is a little fool. I warned her — I warned both of you that this would not end well."
The girl would not even look at him anymore. She had cheered and clapped for the goddamn motherfucking werewolf, who had hidden away like the two-faced coward he was for over a decade, hadn't even written the girl once, and had earned her respect in the span of a few weeks. At least Severus had the cover of his ignorance, however inexcusable, but he had tried for the girl, had known that eventually it would shatter and had done it anyway. The wolf would've folded like a deck of cards and ran off with his tail between his legs, had he been in Severus' position.
He thought of her face splitting open like a chasm, the hitch of her breath before she fled from the room —
"There is no reason that it has to end," Dumbledore said quietly, with a sincerity that gripped Severus like an electrical current. "She is your daughter no matter the circumstances. You have shown her more than I would have expected, and that affection is not so easily dismissed."
Severus felt his lip curl. "Affection? Do you think that's what this is? I never wanted any of this. I didn't want to be responsible for her, didn't want to care for her, but I did it anyway, because you insisted that it was the right thing to do. And now, after all these years, you expect me to just reveal everything to her and hope for the best?"
Dumbledore leaned forward, his eyes steady on Severus' face. "I am not asking you to reveal everything, only what is appropriate. You are no longer a Death Eater. That is a fact, my boy. When will you stop underestimating her? When will you stop underestimating yourself?"
Severus snorted, his arm twitching, an itch crawling under his skin like an army of angry ants.
"You are not," Dumbledore said seriously, his eyes hardening into steel, into that look that never boded well. "You deflected the moment Lily's life was in danger, and by extension, your own child's. In light of the situation, you and Lily did what you thought was best. I am asking you to do the same for Ariel, now."
He shook his head, anger brandishing his heart like a blade. "What was best was not good enough for either of you."
"You have not given Ariel the full picture."
Severus snarled in disgust, his fingers still scraping over the ashtray in a dissonant rhythm. He couldn't deny that he cared for her, in a twisted, convoluted way. He had killed for her, would kill again, would do anything and everything it took to keep her safe, but not holding her favor had begun to twist his heart into some unnamable, immovable thing. It gnawed at him every moment since she'd left, escaping up to her blasted Tower without another word to him the rest of the summer. Severus had wondered if he should have told her — about the Death Eaters, about Lily, about what he would do when the Dark Lord returned — but he hadn't been able to, not with her eyes shining with betrayal and pain. It had cut him down to size, to a breaking point he'd known would come, but was defenseless against.
She'd known, in that moment, that she had been wrong, anyway. All of her hoping and yearning and stubbornness had brought her nothing but regret.
Dumbledore sighed, his voice softening. "Frame it however you see fit, show her your choices in a way that will still keep her safe and protected — surely such a thing exists?"
Severus stared at him, incredulous. "I will not cherry pick the details —"
He held up a hand. "I'm not suggesting that. You have been… quite harsh with her in the past."
"So you'd like for me to sugarcoat it?"
Dumbledore looked away, into the smoldering fire. For a very long time, he said absolutely nothing.
"I would ask that, if you choose to do so, that you do it with certainty." his voice was gentle, almost meek, but his eyes seemed to look straight through Severus, down to the marrow. "Do not abandon her again, my boy."
I'm all alone now
Are you happy
Just like you
Dad
"I have no intention of doing such a thing." the words settled like lead in the pit of Severus' stomach. "I will handle it. She's mine."
Mine —
Dumbledore gave a grim nod, standing in one swift motion.
"Why do you press the issue so forcefully?" Severus asked. "I will — return. Would it not give you greater peace of mind to know that the girl is at arm's length? What do you stand to gain from this?"
Dumbledore remained silent for a moment, as if considering his words carefully. "There are many things in this world that it is wise to keep at arm's length, and many who are worth standing too close to for even the briefest of moments."
"Bullshit," Severus said automatically, not caring how crass it may have been. "You told me once that my rejection could turn the girl into the next dark wizard. She now knows that I was and wants nothing to do with me," he ignored the way his hand spasmed, curling it into a fist. "there you have it — no temptation whatsoever. It would be better if she had nothing to do with me, the Dark Lord would be suspicious enough without this inconvenient truth hanging above all of our heads."
Something flickered behind Dumbledore's eyes — something Severus knew had always been there but had been so carefully hidden. "I trust in your ability to handle Tom when the time comes. The temptation to keep Lily alive after you asked him to spare her life was not enough to create reasonable doubt. As long as there is none created in regard to Ariel, I see no reason why he would be suspicious." Dumbledore shifted, then, his face growing worn. "There is, however, a separate, delicate matter."
Severus' eyes narrowed. "What are you talking about?"
Dumbledore paused and gave Severus a long, searching look that seemed to cut straight through him, like he was made of shadow and mist. It seeped into his skin, making him feel transparent and vulnerable, as though he were as permanent as his cigarette smoke.
A knock at the door broke the tension. Severus swore under his breath, banishing the smoke and the smell of it as Dumbledore took his leave through the Floo. As the students slid inside, Severus felt a strange sense of unease, as if Dumbledore's words had taken root inside of him and he was now waiting for whatever it was to come to fruition.
He had no doubt that it would, in due time.
A/N: and we're back! this may be the worst start to the school ever for snape but he's gotta deal with it.
few announcements:
1. I'm operating on a weekly/biweekly posting schedule at the moment. updates will happen in the range of Friday-sunday, once a week going forward. so if you're looking for an update, keep an eye out for then (or check out my Tumblr, I try and keep people updated that way).
2. happy 300k words!
3. reviews would be loved and appreciate thank u all for the support of the story these past few months, it means the world.