The Potions Master's Daughter

A Close Call and Tears of Sorrow

The next morning, it wasn't the sun that woke the transfigurations professor or the sounds of Hagrid's roosters crowing. Instead, Minerva was awakened from a horrid dream by a little girl taking her hand.

"Mummy. Food pwease," Sadie said, informing the exhausted woman of her hunger. Minerva smiled as the girl hugged her hand to her tiny chest. She pulled Sadie in for a hug, careful not to crush her, and got up. The little girl got up, too, stumbling along behind Minerva because she just learned to walk.

Minerva quickly threw an extremely casual robe on over her night clothes and brushed her dark hair, tying it in a low ponytail. She wasn't worried about bumping into Severus because Severus was probably still asleep in his quarters, but just in case, Minerva cast glamour charms around the girl, turning her eyes brown and her hair blonde. She picked Sadie up, who wrapped her arms around the woman's neck, and slowly made her way to the kitchens.

She knew the children all had the day off in honor the defeat of You Know Who, but also in memory of Lily and James Potter. The woman suspected that Severus needed the day off most of all. He wouldn't be his usual snide self, but instead depressed and quiet. His former professors knew what he was like when he was sad, and Albus knew it would just scare the students.

The house elves all fawned over Sadie after Minerva took the glamour charm off. Unfortunately, it was at that point that Severus Snape walked into the kitchens to see a mini him playing with house elves. Minerva had her head tilted back, laughing at the girl who was making a face as an elf played with her already long hair.

Severus approached Minerva slowly, not sure who the girl was, but feeling as though he knew her. Minerva jumped a foot into the air upon seeing and let out a shrill shriek, making the child start to cry. Minerva put a hand on her racing heart and went to pick up Sadie.

"Shh, Kitten. It's alright."

"Who is the child, Minerva?" Severus inquired.

Minerva had to think fast. "She's a friend's child that I'm watching over for now. You wouldn't know about her."

Minerva felt awful, lying to Severus about his own child, but he looked awful. His eyes were red and puffy and he looked exhausted and depressed. There was no doubt in Minerva's mind that Severus would not take the news well at the present moment. And technically, it wasn't a lie. It was a half truth.

Sadie snuggled close to Minerva, as Severus was scaring her. Minerva stroked the girl's hair, holding her close. Severus went to a house elf and was ordering it to do something when Minerva wandlessly removed any memories of Sadie from the man's memory. She hated it, but she quickly recast the glamour charm, collected Sadie's breakfast, and left for her quarters, still carrying the girl, nuzzled in the crook of her neck.

"Mummy? Who that?" Sadie inquired. Minerva smiled at the child's way of speaking.

"That, Sadie, was the potions master, Severus Snape. When you go to Hogwarts, he will be your teacher," Minerva informed the small child. Sadie nodded.

"Like you, Mummy?"

Minerva laughed at the child's obvious wit. "Yes, Kitten. Like me. We will both be your teachers. Now, let's get back to our quarters and eat."

Minerva fed Sadie some breakfast before giving her a good wash.

"Mummy? Why you look not like me?" Sadie asked as Minerva rinsed her hair.

Minerva sighed. "I've already told you, dear. I'm not your real mother. Your real mother can never take care of you again."

Sadie frowned, tilting her head like a confused puppy, making Minerva's job harder as she was drying the girl's hair. "Why?" Minerva picked the child up and took her to the dresser to clothe her.

Minerva started tearing up, finding herself unable to tell the young girl as she finished dressing the child. "I'll tell you when you're able to understand."

Sadie noticed that her mum was starting to cry, so she hugged Minerva. "Don't cwy, Mummy. I sowwy," the girl apologized. She hated seeing her mum unhappy. Minerva hugged back.

"No, Kitten. There's no reason for you to be sorry. It's not your fault." She stroked the girl's hair, still wet from washing it. Then she pulled back. "Now, come. I have work to do."

Minerva picked up the girl and carried her to the classroom. She set Sadie down at her mini desk and gave her some paper to doodle on. Then she picked up some scrolls and read them over. They were some third years' essays. She frowned at the first one, scribbling something at the top before circling a few sentences and then placing it in the large stack of scrolls growing beside her desk.

She had just marked the second scroll when a knock at the door startled both her and Sadie, causing Minerva to drop her quill and Sadie to drop her muggle writing utensil called a crayon. Minerva rushed to cast the Glamour Charm. Then, she realized she was still in her nightclothes and a bathrobe. She quickly pulled the child onto her lap, hoping to cover her casual appearance.

"Come in," she called out, going back to marking her scrolls. Albus poked his head in. She sighed in relief, putting the scroll down as her mentor came and sat in the chair across from her.

"Is this the child, Minerva? She does not look like either of her parents," Albus observed. Minerva smiled, waving her wand to remove the charm. The girl laughed as the magic tickled her while being removed from her body. Albus's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. The girl was the spitting image of Severus. Everything except for her eyes. Those were emerald green. Those were Lily's eyes.

Sadie shifted uncomfortably in her mother's arms. She didn't like how the man was looking at her. Albus's eyes flitted between the girl and Minerva, still not believing it fully. Minerva nodded, confirming his questions. He gently closed his mouth and swallowed.

"Is it really that hard to believe? Sadie looks just like her father, if I do say so myself," Minerva told him.

"Just like her father with the eyes like her mother," Albus added. "Much like Harry, I suppose." Minerva peered down at the child who was clinging to her night clothes, shying away from the prying eyes of her future headmaster. The transfigurations professor smiled.

"Very true. Sorry to be so blunt, Albus, but was there something you wished to discuss with me?" Minerva inquired as she gently changed the girl's tight grip to a loose one. She placed the child at her mini desk and got up to go to a bookshelf, grabbing three books and a few pieces of parchment for some research.

Albus chuckled. Minerva turned around to see him eyeing her night clothes. She pressed her lips into a thin line, trying to hold back a smile. She placed the the books on her desk and gave two of the five pieces of parchment to Sadie before sitting down at her desk and dipping her quill in the ink.

"Actually, Minerva, yes there is." Minerva opened a book, read a passage, and scribbled something down. She flipped the page, reading another passage and frowning. She quickly jotted something else down before crossing through her first sentence.

"What is it then?" Minerva asked, not looking up from her parchment.

"It concerns the girl and her father." The headmaster's statement brought Minerva to finally look up at him. Then, they both looked at Sadie.

Sadie was drawing with a bunch of different muggle crayons. She had made a very crudely depicted drawing of her mother, complete with dark hair and green robes as Minerva would wear on a normal school day. She finished drawing her mother's face and handed the woman her self portrait. Minerva took it with a smile and thanked her.

Albus cleared his throat, making Minerva turn to him again. "I think we should tell Severus about the girl. She is, after all, his daughter, and he has a right to know." Minerva shook her head.

"No. Lily herself asked me to keep Sadie from Severus until she was about to start here at Hogwarts. I intend to honor that wish, as should you. Severus will not learn of his daughter's existence. At least, not until she starts here. I am planning on purchasing a cabin in Hogsmeade so as to hide her better. Perhaps Rosmerta will be able to take care of her. The man has already had three run-ins with the girl. I had to remove the memories. It is just too much to risk. At night, I will return to the cottage instead of in my quarters. Severus will not know of his daughter and I will keep it that way."

Albus sighed. "As you and Lily wish, Minerva."