Snape's Daughter (Book Two)

Chapter Twenty-Two : The Dumbledore man

It was 12 O'Clock. That's when they came, the Death Eaters. Sound asleep, every student and almost every teacher was. Severus Snape stayed wide awake, sat up in his office sorting through paper work.

That's when they came.

Dolohov and Bellatrix flew into his office, Severus had noticed the dark clouds just seconds beforehand. Abruptly, he forced himself to his feet before tucking away his paperwork.

"Bella, why am I greeted with the pleasure of your company at this time of night?" Severus asked her, sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Oh don't get your little panties in a twist Severus, we're both here on the Dark Lords orders," Bellatrix sneered, stepping closer into the office.

"Well whatever it is, please have it completed as soon as possible. I cannot stay up much longer," Severus snarled.

"We require one student," Dolohov said, gliding up towards Severus and clasping hold of an ornament in his hand.

"This student is..?" Severus asked, snatching the ornament from Dolohov's hand.

"Echo Grace," Dolohov snarled, drifting over towards Bellatrix. The name rang several bells in Severus's ears, her knew of the Grace. Aurora Grace.

"We shall collect her and take her out of this school," Bellatrix said, pulling out her wand.

"And why might this be because?"  Severus asked her.

"Confidential Severus, confidential," Bellatrix sneered.

"I don't care, just please get it over and done with," Severus snapped, frustrated before returning to his desk.

"Of course, headmaster," Dolohov sniggered, exiting the office with Bellatrix alongside him.

A.M. 6am and Ellia was shook awake by delicate hands around her shoulders. Popping her eyes open, Ellia was greeted with the sight of Ginny and her ginger locks.

"Ellia, get up. Seriously, now, there's somebody waiting for you," Ginny said, ignoring the fact the first years were all complaining behind her.

"Who Ginny?" Ellia said, sitting next up and tying back her hair in a loose bun.

"It doesn't matter who, just grab your cloak and come on," Ginny said, almost dragging her out of her bed. Groaning, Ellia climbed out of her bed before reaching over for her Gryffindor cloak, and enclosing it around her petite figure.

"Where are we even going Gin?" Ellia asked, grabbing her wand and leaving the dormitory with Ginny.

"Room of Requirement," Ginny said, checking the coast was clear as she smuggled Ellia out of the Gryffindor Common Room. The halls of Hogwarts were lit up with single flames, yet Ellia wasn't distracted by them as she ran through the halls with Ginny. It came until they reached the now appeared door, opening for the two girls. As Ellia walked in, she heard a wave of whispers erupt from inside the room. Scanning the room with her eyes, she saw several Hogwarts students lying across hammocks that hung from the wall, and many laying across the floor.

"What the...?" she said, her jaw dropping as an old man walked up to her and Ginny. His beard grew long in a greyish colour and his eyes were dim and dark. His face had a tired expression slapped across it and the way he held his body posture said how he felt.

"Ginny, I see you've brought her here," He said, looking over at Ellia.

"As you said Alberforth, but why did I exactly have to bring her here?" Ginny asked the man, who Ellia presumed to be called Alberforth.

"Reunited," He simply muttered, his eyes looking directly into Ellia's," Just like her father." Growing impatient of waiting for answers, Ellia crossed her arms and dared her eyes at the man.

"Why am I here? And don't tell me I'm like my father, he's a murderer. He killed Al-"

"-bus Dumbledore," The man said, a sorrow glimpse in his eyes," I know what you're father's done. Any fool would."

"Then don't compare me to him," Ellia said, infuriated.

"I'd compare your personality to your mothers but you wouldn't know what that was like," Aberforth said, almost sneering.

"Don't talk about my mother! You don't even know who she is!" Ellia spat, growing more and more frustrated than before.

"Calm down El," Ginny said, snapping Ellia out of her mood. El. Nobody else called her that except the twins, Panemia, Aurora and Draco. It was their 'thing'. It made Ellia shudder when she realised that it was no longer like that, she just had to brush it off of her shoulder.

"I know you've had a tough time, Miss Snape, but I'm not the person you want to be taking your anger out on. I'm actually here to help, even though it is not much use anymore," Aberforth said.

"What do you mean? Help, we need all the help we can get in this war. We'll win," Ellia argued.

"We've already lost," Alberforth said, turning his back on Ellia and walking over to a nearby table.

"Aberforth Dumbledore," Ginny said, making Ellia's heart skip a beat," He's just as upset about Dumbledore as everybody else."

"Dumbledore had a brother?" Ellia asked Ginny, turning to face the
youngest of the Wealseys.

"And a sister. And a son actually," Ginny revealed to Ellia.

"Elisin Dumbledore? Was that his sister?" Ellia asked Ginny, linking the two together.

"No, it was Arianna. I don't know who Elisin is," Ginny said.

As Aberforth heard the name Elisin, his ears twitched into the direction of Ellia and Ginny's conversation. He knew exactly who Ellia was, he just never knew that she would grow up to be such a confident and argumentative girl. A beautiful girl as well. She may have her father's dark eyes and dark hair with matching pale skin and a hooked nose, but she inherited her timid expression and frame from her mother. It made Aberforth almost cringe to think that Albus could keep a secret from such an innocent girl, and her father helped too. He never liked that man, obviously his thoughts on him were always correct. However, his stubborn brother never saw through his forceful lies. Albus was a man of trust, something Severus used against him. His trust killed him and left Alberforth the last remaining Dumbledore. The last known Dumbledore.

"Ginny, why do I even need to be here?" Ellia asked the girl, now settled down on a chair.

"It's the safest place right now in the castle. And the most private," Ginny informed Ellia, handing her a small cup of hot cocoa. Sipping some of it, Ellia experienced the chocolate flavour burn down her throat. It wasn't as she always remembered.

"But why is it? Surely the dormitories are, neither one of the Carrow's have access to them, so they?" Ellia questioned Ginny.

"They can, actually. It was made acceptable at the start of the year. But they can't get into the Room of Requirement because they do not require it," Ginny explained to Ellia, munching on a small slice of toast.

"Oh," Was just Ellia's reply. What had her father made of this school? Honestly. This wasn't how it was never meant to be, Albus would've never had approved of such terror and destruction in a school environment. Something has to be done. Something soon.