Love For Too Many

Chapter 4

A/N - contains mentions of abuse.

He didn't mean it. Severus never meant to hurt you. He was trying to tell you to finish the work load later and to go to your quarters. But he never had a way with words. Once you went head to head with him his temper got the better of him. He went back to his desk and put his hands on his face releasing a giant sigh. You had so much going on in your life right now and you weren't dealing with the emotions properly. He knew you were going to blow up soon and he just hoped it wasn't in front of the kids.

A soft knock wrapped against the door. Your crying had settled down to a whimper and you resealed your emotions into a grin wiping away the ruined makeup with the back of your hand. "Who is it?" You asked in the happiest voice you could muster.

"It's Minerva dear. May I come in?" You sigh in relief that it isn't Severus. He had snapped at you for no apparent reason right after being very gentle.

You stand and unlock the door allowing Minerva entry into your chambers. You headed to the sofa with Minerva cautiously following behind you. You sat down on the left cushion and Minerva took her place on the right.

"Y/n, it's probably not my place to say this, but if you ever need an ear to listen I have two. Also for next time, the silencing charms work on the personal quarters too." She smiled lovingly at you.

"Oh. I didn't realize how loud I was. Did many people hear me?"

"I doubt it. When I walked past I put the spell over your room and waited a while before coming back. Would you like to talk about it?" You breathed in deeply and took a long moment to fully exhale. It was time to tell someone. Even if it wasn't all of it.

"I think I'd like that. Where should I start?"

"The beginning is always a good spot to start."

"That is true. Okay here goes nothing-

"Dane my ex husband and I had just finished our seventh year at Hogwarts and decided to move in together. Things were going great! I got a job as a teacher and Dane became an accountant. But I didn't realize that after work he became a bar hopper getting drunker by the hour. Slowly he became angry and addicted to the nasty stuff. He began hitting me and lashing out. I thought he'd get past it so I stuck it out. That's when we found out that I had gotten pregnant." A muffled sob clogged your throat but Minerva didn't budge. She was here through and through.

"His abuse didn't lighten up much but his drinking got worse. I decorated the nursery and bought all the clothing for our bundle of joy while he went out and cheated on me while drunk. He'd come home and hit me until I was black and blue. I always used magic to cover it up while at work or in public but the welts took a long time to fade. After Wendy was born he lightened up on the drinking and even took time off of work to spend time with us. I was so excited that things were looking up. But after I returned from maternity leave the abuse and drinking picked right back up. I had to hide Wendy in her nursery to keep her from witnessing anything. They were her impressionable years." Minerva nodded for you to continue when you stopped for a breath.

"I got divorce papers ready on Wendy's first birthday and it took him almost a year to sign them. We moved away from those awful memories but he stalked us. That's when I quit my job and started a search to get back to my magic. I needed to find a way to keep my daughter safe. But with this job as a professor. I have to give Wendy to Dane on Mondays and Tuesdays while my parents get her for the rest of the week. I only get her on weekends until term is up. Not being able to make sure she's safe is killing me." Warm tears streamed down your face and Minerva pulled you tight against her body in a warm embrace to stop your shaking body.

"I'm terrified he's going to hurt her Minerva!" She rocked you slightly.

"Oh dear, I think I might have a solution. It's not publicly known but Hogwarts has a daycare program for us teachers. It hasn't been used in quite some time though for most of us teachers never got the beauty in parenthood. I'll talk to Albus and we'll see what we can do to bring your pretty girl back to you." The prospect of that made you sob even harder. You'd be able to keep her safe from him. There would be no way he could steal her from Hogwarts like he could your parents.

"Thank you Minnie." You hugged her tightly and she smiled at her newfound nickname.

For the second time that night a knock sounded at your door. "Come in." You stated in sniffles. The door creaked open to show Severus's emotionless face. But Minerva could tell as soon as she saw him he was riddled with guilt.

"Severus, can we help you?" Her voice brought his attention off of your crying face.

"Minerva. May I come in Y/n?" Minnie cut you off before you could answer.

"Not tonight Severus. You'll see her tomorrow morning in class. We are having a girls talk." She smiled down at you motherly. "Goodbye Severus."

"Goodbye Minerva." He paused looking at your emotional mess. "Goodnight Y/n."

The door closed and you looked at Minerva. "Minnie... he left emotional and physical scars. I don't know if I can ever trust someone else again."

She smiled knowingly at you. "Oh my dear, it'll take time. But there's hope right around the corner." She meant it literally but you didn't catch on. You just wiped the tears from your eyes and slowly sat up, pulling away from the embrace you had with Minerva.

"Would you like tea?" You asked a faint line of a smile dancing on your lips.

She just laughed at your quick change of emotion knowing full well your tears had not finished shedding for the night. "I'd love some thank you."

You hurried off to your adjoining kitchen. The small dining table reaching out to hit your thigh. You dodged it gracefully and got the tea ready.

Minerva followed you into the kitchen and looked around at the small space. "You got the short end of the stick huh? This is much smaller than my kitchen."

"Yes it is small but that's fine. I need to child proof everything soon. Especially if Wendy is going to be here more often." The thought made your heart swell. Your precious daughter is going to be here all the time. When she's older and gets her letter she'll already know her way around.

"She is a cutie. I wish I got the chance to meet her before you had to head out yesterday."

"How come you never had children?" You asked Minerva and her face dropped. "You don't need to answer."

She nodded to herself. "I think that story is for another night." You could understand that. You'd pushed off your problems for a long time too. You'd wondered how long Minnie had pushed off her problems but that was your business.

"Tea's ready." You walk over to Minerva at your dining table and hand her, her tea. You sit down in the opposite chair from her and sip your own tea. It soothed your nerves happily. Sliding down the back of your throat with ease.

Both of you finished your tea in silence. Neither of you really knew what to talk about now that all the trauma of your past few years had come to light.

"Thank you for the tea dear, I think I'll be on my way out. I'll talk to Albus in the morning."

"Okay, thanks for everything Minnie. See you later." She opened the door and walked out leaving you alone in the suffocating silence.