At eight o'clock on Thursday evening, Josephine reluctantly left Gryffindor Tower for the History of Magic classroom. It was dark and empty when she arrived, but she lit the lamps and only waited five minutes when Snape turned up, carrying a large packing case, which he put onto Professor Binns's desk.
"What's that?" she asked curiously.
"A boggart," said Snape, stripping off his cloak. "It's the nearest option to a real dementor...It will turn into one when he sees you, so you'll be able to practice on him."
"Okay," Josephine said hesitantly. She felt uncomfortable. She didn't know what to say or how to speak to him. It was an odd feeling, being uncomfortable and unsure of oneself. It was foreign, unfamiliar. "Why are you teaching me and not Lupin?"
He was still fiddling with the case when he said, "I think you know Josephine. Lupin is not equipped to properly explain the specific effect the dementors have on you nor the significance of the Patronous Charm for you."
"And you are?" she asked, already aware of the answer.
"Yes," he answered quietly, and he turned to face her.
"Were you ever going to tell me?" she asked smally. "That you're, you know, my biological father."
He seemed to still completely, paling slightly. "When the time was right. I would have told you," he replied.
She was quiet for a moment.
When the time was right was ambiguous. Too ambiguous for her. The right time could've been her first day at Hogwarts or anytime during the year, not just waiting until she found out.
"She was beautiful," Josephine said softly.
"Yes, she was," Snape agreed mournfully, his voice heavy.
It was odd to see him in this setting, like she was seeing a side of him that was illegal for anyone to see.
"So...are you gonna teach me or?" she trailed off.
Snape snapped out of his thoughts and took out his wand, indicating for her to do the same.
"The Patronus Charm is highly advanced magic, beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level," said Snape. "It acts as a shield between you and the dementor. It is a positive force, a projection of the two things dementors feed on: hope, happiness, and the desire to survive, but it cannot feel despair, as humans can, so the dementors can't hurt it. It's not an easy Charm, Josephine. You won't get it on the first or second try."
"So, I'll get it on the third?" she joked, and a slight smile tugged at his lips before it was gone. "What does it look like?" She wondered what form hers would take.
"They're unique to the wizard that conjures it," Snape replied.
"Do you still have mom's mark?" she asked suddenly
Snape tensed, and there was a look of great despair and pain in his eyes before he nodded.
"Those never disappear," he said thickly, his eyes glassy, but it may have been a trick of the light.
"What was hers?" she asked before thinking the better of it. "Or is that too much?"
His mouth opened and closed like he was debating answering.
"An Occamy," he answered.
"And yours?"
He paused for an even longer moment. Maybe it was her hesitation.
"A Runespoor," he relented.
"What do you think mine will be?" she asked, unable to help herself.
"They're unique and impossible to predict," he spoke. "Though, I expect some sort of bird."
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No Goodbyes \ Ron Weasley
Fanfiction"You said it was unimportant, Joe! This is monumentally important!" "A foe like she'd never known." "Friendship was going to be the only way to get through this." "He looked at her, actually looked at her, and wondered how anyone who saw her didn't...
