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The Professor and His Pint-Sized Shadow	By : SeverelySnaped Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Snape/Hermione Views: 9792 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Chapter Two: Because I Could Not Stop For Death, He Kindly Stopped for Me

Ice blue eyes looked up into dark black ones. The girl was not smiling, but the tears had stopped. This, at least, would do for now.
Jonette wanted her father back, and this man knew her Daddy. And they were brothers! Maybe he could help her get her Daddy back. She was wary, as any six-year old would be, but she warmed up to the idea that this man would take care of her.
�You run along to the playroom with the rest of your group. I have a matter to attend to and I will be right back.� Severus stood up to his full height and began to walk towards the door.
The girl looked at him and almost flinched upon hearing those words. The tears welled up again and for once, he knew why.
�I�m coming right back.� he emphasized. �I�m just going down to the office.�
She nodded slowly and walked to the other door on the far end of the room where the rest of the children had followed through, looking back every moment or so just to see if he was still there before disappearing altogether.
When Professor Snape made his decision of adopting Jonette known to Miss Ferraro, she looked up at him in surprise. It never occurred to her earlier that day that the two of them might even be related, probably because she was busy with the paperwork of so many other cases and basic day-to-day chores.
Within minutes, she had him signing the rest of the necessary forms concerning the child. This was, at least, one adoption she did feel good about. There were others earlier that week which she would definitely have put her foot down and said �no� given the chance, but as always, a Ministry official would have the last word. And she knew before the month was over, there would be cases of neglect and removal, but only time would tell from whose household that would be.
He was still signing papers when Miss Ferraro looked thoughtful for a moment and spoke up.
�Professor Snape, if I owl you a list of the children in this facility, will you and your colleagues go through it and see if you can�t find any other names that look familiar? Maybe one you might know a relative of some of these children that has been overlooked as well. You would think the Ministry would help us out with this matter, but they have been slow to respond to any of our requests, despite the fact they were extremely quick when it came to changing the adoption system altogether just recently.�
Severus pondered this for a moment before answering. �I don�t see why not. Our staff is well known in the wizarding world and although I may not be able to see a name that stands out, someone else might. You may even want to send a few more extra copies, however, for I do know some Ministry officials who would be willing to help with this matter on the side.�
She gave him a genuine smile and expressed her appreciation. At this point they were almost through. Miss Ferraro told him to wait there while she went to find Jonette and do a quick interview of the girl as well to see how she felt about leaving with the professor.
For the first time, Professor Snape took a good look around the office. He glanced at all the different notes, reminders and a few cartoons cut out from the Daily Prophet that were all tacked up to a large board made up of some type of cork-ish material. There were a few pictures in various spots, both muggle and magical, along with a few others in frames on Miss Ferraro�s desk.
Another wall had posters with questions like, �What Are the Reasons to Adopt?� and �Can I Become a Foster Parent?� There were pamphlets on child care and health facilities, a few of which he was handed copies of earlier in the interview for reference. There were a few on family planning and some that even referred supposedly infertile females to several specialists and medical practices in the region for a last minute opinion.
He never realized how much paperwork and services were in involved. They seemed to have answers for just about everything. Another twenty minutes passed before Miss Ferraro walked back to the office with Jonette in tow.
She said down at her desk and looked at Jonette. �Miss Lyons will retrieve the few items you brought with you, and then after we finish here you can go with your uncle. Does that sound all right with you, Jonette?�
The little girl nodded and sat down in the empty chair next to the professor, her feet not even touching the floor. She watched as the woman pulled out a large scroll with a Ministry seal on it.
�Okay, last signature and then we are done.�
�Do I get to sign too?� Jonette spoke up, feeling important.
Miss Ferraro looked quizzical and then smiled, looking at Severus before turning back to the girl.
�Would you like to sign as well, then? Seeing as you are part of this big decision, too?� the woman asked.
Jonette nodded her head again, and Severus tried to fight a smile. Definitely a Snape, he thought. We always have to have the last word.

�All right then,� Miss Ferraro continued. �Professor Snape, this is the main certificate I went over with you earlier, upon receiving the signatures it will then be signed by myself and then shall sent to the Ministry for approval. You should receive your own official copy in roughly about a weeks� time, give or take. Any further questions? Good. Then just sign right by the �X� here.�
Severus leaned over, grabbing the quill with shaky hands again, knowing that this was it. He tried not to show any emotion as he put his elegant script at the bottom of the scroll. When he was through, he was about to set the quill back into its holder before he remembered Jonette. Turning to her, he set the quill into her tiny hand and watched as she gave what could have passed for a small smile before standing up so she could reach the desk area to sign.
�There�s not really a space for the children to put their names, but I put an �X� right here under his signature just for you. I�ll make sure to tell the Ministry they may want to add a space for that in the future,� she smiled.
Jonette held the quill with the best grip as she could and managed to scrawl out a decent �Jonette Marie Snape.� Well, as best as a six year-old would, anyway. She handed the quill back to Miss Ferraro who then added her own signature before sealing it up and attaching a small note to the scrollwork.
�Well, that takes care of that.� Miss Ferraro beamed. �You have the rest of your papers there to take with you and I see Miss Lyons has just set your suitcase by the door,� she said, nodding towards Jonette. �We will miss you very much. However, I have a feeling you will be much happier where you are going.� With this she stood, offering her outstretched hand and word of congratulations to Professor Snape, who shook it with an honest grip. She then shook hands with Jonette as well, and then led them out into the hallway.
Miss Ferraro was barely through with the two of them when the front clerk ushered another adopting couple inside.
�I would walk you out front, but as you can see, it�s going to be a busy day. If your certificate doesn�t arrive after two weeks, owl us for more details. Good luck and let us know if you need anything! Goodbye!�
The two watched as the door was shut and once again he could hear the process starting all over again for another awaiting child.

Such is the nature of life, Severus thought, before looking down at the girl before him. �Well, shall we go then?�
Another nod of the head and she picked up her suitcase, barely managing to do so when he took it from her. �You better let me handle this. You�re liable to tip over,� he remarked dryly.
As he passed the office next door, he glanced inside to see if Albus was still in there and could tell by the footwear of the eccentric old man that indeed he was. He set the suitcase down and motioned for Jonette to remain where she was and took a few steps into the room. Professor Dumbledore and his caseworker were going over some of the same forms and the two of them looked up.
�Excuse me for interrupting, but I was��
�Ahh�there you are, Severus!� the old man cut in as the caseworker shook her head letting him know that she didn�t mind the intrusion. �Did everything go all right?�
The potions professor shifted nervously. �Ah�quite well.� He cleared his throat. �I was just taking care of the last bit of it when I noticed it was nearing ten o� clock and I really should be getting back to my��
Again, he was cut off by the headmaster. �There is no need.�
�Pardon?�
�I have taken the liberty of assigning substitutes for your classes today. I wanted to make sure you had enough time to �take care of business,� as it were.�
Professor Snape felt a bit relieved at this. His nerves were already shot several times over the past two days, and for once, foregoing his daily routine of idle chatter and dunderheaded questions appealed quite nicely.
�Thank you. I didn�t even think about that beforehand.�
�No need. I did it because I knew you wouldn�t,� he smiled. �So, have you made a decision? Or do you need to come back after thinking it over?�
Severus licked his lips. �Err�no, Albus. I have made my decision. She�s ah�outside the door, actually. It was my brother�s little girl, if you could believe. I didn�t even know she was here.� With this he opened the door a bit wider and the headmaster took in the form of the small child standing on the other side, who was apparently looking at some of the pictures on a nearby wall.
The headmaster�s eyes grew wide at this before his mouth broke into a very large grin. �She�s a Snape all right. Look at that raven hair.�
Severus smirked a little, wishing to leave as soon as possible knowing the headmaster would never let him hear the end of this, no matter whose child he took home.
�Yes, well�thank God that�s all she�s inherited. Would you mind terribly if we headed on, Albus?�
�Not at all, my boy!� the headmaster spoke up as Severus cringed. He always hated it when Albus called him that. �I will be tied up here a bit longer, but I will see the both of you tonight. Let the house elves know first thing so they can set up a room for your newest addition. And congratulations, Severus. You will make a wonderful parent.�
Severus gave him a look that said, �Don�t be so sure.� But inside his mind a tiny voice told him that it was a compliment and he should try and be civil.
�Yes, well�thank you just the same, Albus.� He then turned towards the woman who was helping Professor Dumbledore with his papers and said, �Don�t let him bring back a red-headed one.�
He was out the door before she could reply so he missed her mouth gape open at the strange request, but he heard Albus� chuckle clearly as he shut the door and picked the small suitcase back up.
�Well now,� he motioned towards Jonette. �Let�s be off before they pass another crazy law.�
She followed right behind him; a little pint-sized shadow, doing her best to keep up. He was afraid to Disapparate with her just yet as he was not entirely sure what restrictions the Ministry may have had regarding children in that matter, if it even mattered, but he was not entirely keen on footing it the whole way, either. He thought about using a local floo, but that might be too much for her at the moment.
Looking behind him, he was watching her try to keep an even pace, as she was almost jogging at that point. She didn�t seem to mind it at first, but as time wore on, she looked a bit flushed and needed to catch her breath. He stopped and turned around.
�Getting tired?� he asked softly.
She shook her head. �No�no sir.� He knew it was a lie but he could see she was trying not upset this total stranger with whom she was going home with.
He crouched down. �First lesson you will learn today is to be honest with me at all times, is that clear?�
Her eyes widened as if she had done something wrong. �Yes sir,� she whispered barely. He could tell by her eyes that perhaps his classroom tone wasn�t the best approach, so tried speaking a bit more gently.
�I merely meant, if you are tired, you should let me know.�
She seemed a bit more at ease after he said this, but she said nothing further, and he rolled his eyes before scooping her up into his right arm and carried her the way he had seen other fathers do with their young children. She nervously squeeked at first, but settled against him comfortably after a moment so he figured that his brother must have picked her up this way quite often.
He felt like a fool, but he tried not to show it. Thank God there were hardly any people out today, save for the few people who politely nodded at them as they passed.
�We Snapes have very long legs,� he murmured at her. �When you grow into yours you will find it easier to keep up with me.�
He wasn�t expecting a reply, but was slightly surprised when she did. �That�s what Daddy says.�
Her voice was so small. He couldn�t ever remember even talking to a child this young since�well�never. There were cousins or colleagues with their children, sure�but he couldn�t ever recall being in the same room for too long of a time or speaking to any of them. He may have muttered an �excuse me� when damn near stepping on one in a crowd, but for the most part he couldn�t remember any recent encounters.
They walked on before coming to the secluded path between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. In another twenty minutes time he would be able to make out the sight of the castle. And after another forty minutes, he would take his shortcut from the edge of the Forbidden Forest to his quarters.
He was lost in his own thoughts when she spoke again. �Do you know where Mummy and Daddy are? Are we going to see them?�
His stomach lurched again and all he could do was shake his head at the moment before he could reply.
�No.�
She set her head down against his shoulder and he could hear the quiet sobs from the shaking girl, knowing she was too little to understand what words like �political war� and �wizarding revolution� really meant. He would have to tell her that her parents were dead. But he couldn�t do it right off. Not right now. He would wait until they were settled in later on tonight so she could have a long cry and then sleep on it.
She quieted down a little bit when Hogwarts came into view, probably taking it all in with curiosity and wonder, but she said nothing, nor did she remove her head from his shoulder. For some reason, that made him feel content inside.
They finally reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and it wasn�t long until they made their way from his secret passageway, with heavy promises that nothing would hurt her in the dark corridors when he felt her tense up, to his quarters. He would wait and show her the castle when they were both ready to deal with it.
He dreaded the inevitable, and it was after a tense dinner with Albus and Jonette in his rooms that he sat her down right after the headmaster�s departure that he told her the truth. And she cried harder than he had ever seen one so small ever cry before.
He knew she didn�t understand. She knew what death represented, but to a six year-old child it merely meant that they would never see a loved one ever again. Children didn�t know what death really was, only that it was something bad. They couldn�t comprehend about souls or the afterlife or what happens to a body when it dies, now matter how much explaining their parents did. They couldn�t understand the world of the deceased. And neither did some grown-ups.
But Severus knew what death meant very well, having almost seen it himself on several occasions. He knew that his brother and his wife were killed for their ties to the Ministry, possibly just even for being related to him. He hoped and prayed this was not the case. The last thing he needed as the years wore on was this little girl�s accusing finger pointing in his direction. He could face death and Voldemort and a jury of his peers with a brave face, but he couldn�t face that.

As he looked down at the sniffling, almost-hyperventilating girl in his lap, his arms instinctively wrapped tighter around her and he began to speak soothing words that came somewhere from deep within him. After another good half hour, he managed to get her to calm down a good bit.
�I feel�I�feel sick�� she whispered. The emotional onslaught right after dinner couldn�t have been good on her digestive system, he figured. He made to stand up, but her grip on him was tight, as if she would not let go. He lifted her up a bit so he could carry her with him, walking into his study and retrieving a small vial from the shelf before returning back to the large chair in the other room.
He sat back down and pulled her to a better sitting position. �Sit up,� he said softly. �Now drink this.�
She was shaking and her voice was no different. �I can�t�I�ll get sick�I feel like�I want�� she trailed off, almost becoming incoherent.
�Jonette�listen to me,� he said in a firmer tone. �This will help you. If you feel nauseous, this will settle your stomach, but you have to drink it first. Can you help me with that?�
The whimpering girl gave a light movement of her head and he held the vial to her mouth as she drank a bit of it. He was lucky to get half of it into her system, but after a moment, he was able to get her to drink the rest.
When it was beginning to take effect, he noticed the shaking subside a little, but he knew that he would have to give her something stronger before she went to bed. She had cried herself into a headache by now, surely, he thought after a moment.
�My Mummy�s gone�� she said in broken tones. �She and Daddy left me.�
�I know,� he answered softly.
She said up, looking at him oddly for a moment before stroking his cheek rapidly, as if she were petting a dog. Severus was lost. He had absolutely no clue as to what she was doing.
�You know magic!� she nodded, as if she just found a solution. �You�you have a wand like Daddy, right? You can make sparks�you can bring Daddy and Mummy back, right? You can bring them back�okay?�
He was stunned. He couldn�t speak as the frantic girl climbed off of his lap and started pulling on his hand, trying to get him to move out of his seat.
�Come on, Professor�we n-need to get a wand� We need to get a wand, right? So we can go�so we can go get them�� she said, pulling harder. He closed his left hand over hers and pulled her back to him, oblivious of the tears stinging his eyes.
�No,� he rasped softly, shaking his head. �I can�t.�
�Yes we can!� she shouted, pleading. �We n-need a wand so you can say the�the words�and then sparks will fly and we will get Mummy an-and Daddy back!� She said everything in such a rush, her voice very nasal-sounding from all of her hysteria.
He pulled her into a fierce hug then.
�Please!� she screamed. �Please help me! We can get them�we need to�!� She started sobbing again and struggling, but he wouldn�t let her go.

�It doesn�t work that way.� He barely managed to choke the words out. �It just doesn�t work that way.�
�Whyyy�.?!� she cried, muffled by his chest.
He didn�t want to do this, and he wasn�t ready for any of this, either. It was all too much. But he also knew that it was the same for her as well.
�Because once our body dies�we don�t come back.�
�WHY?�
He flinched. �Because that�s that way it is,� whispered. �That�s the way life is.�
�Can�t they become ghosts?�
�No.�
She was not satisfied with his answer. �Mummy�s�Aunt�Jennith was�a ghost,� she croaked out. �We used to go see her��
�Were your parents brave, Jonette?� he asked quietly, already knowing the answer.
She nodded against him. �My Daddy w-was the bravest wizard in the whole world�and Mummy was the bravest witch.�
�See?� he explained. �That�s why they can�t become ghosts.� She quieted down as she listened to him, and he figured if he could at least keep her talking and if he answered all of her questions she would calm down some more.
�Why?� she asked again softly.
�Because they were not afraid to die. Your parents were so brave that death itself could not scare them.�
�But why did they leave me?�
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, not because he was aggravated but because this girl was asking him more things he just wasn�t prepared for. This was going to be a long night.
�We cannot choose the time in which we die, Jonette, save for those who are cowardly enough to take their own lives.� The latter of which he was tempted to do several times in his past. �No one knows when it will happen, and if they did they would probably try and prevent it.�
�Did they�want to die?�
�No.�
�I didn�t want them to die��
�No. No you didn�t. They didn�t want to leave you, either. But there are things in this world that are out of our control.�
�I�I miss them, Professor�I miss them so much. I miss Nana and Vader and Mummy and Daddy��
�I know.� He didn�t ask who Nana and Vader and were.
�Do you miss them?�
He refused to tell the girl that he wasn�t on speaking terms with her father since before she was born and had only met her mother once while shopping in Hogsmeade. Now wasn�t the time for that, nor would it be for a long while. She needed comfort right now, not more facts she couldn�t understand.
�Yes.�
She nodded sleepily, exhausted from all of her crying. He carried her back into his bedroom, not even bothering to set foot in the room the house elves had made for her, and set her down on the bed.
�Don�t go!� she said, shaking herself awake a bit. �Please don�t leave me here! I�m scared!�
�I won�t leave you,� he said in a hushed voice. He pulled another vial from his bedside table drawer. Again, he tried to get her to drink it down. �It will help you sleep and to feel better.�
�And you won�t leave?� she asked as he held it up to her lips.
�No.�
She drank the vial in one take and settled back onto the pillow, blinking her eyes slowly, trying to stay focused on him.
�I will be right over here on this sofa, see?� he motioned beside him. �Right in the same room. I�m not going anywhere. Would you like me to leave the fire going?�
She nodded and closed her eyes again. �N-night�� she whispered, her face still flushed.
�Goodnight, Jonette.�
The professor crossed over to the bed and sat down beside her, covering her up and leaning over to kiss her forehead on impulse. He felt her arms wrap around him to hug him briefly before she lost all consciousness whatsoever and her grip loosened hold.
He took a deep breath before getting back up, running his hand through his hair. And he felt so tired. So very, very tired right now.
Before he let himself do just that, he sent a message to headmaster asking for another few days off. He never missed a day of teaching unless he was deathly sick or had to attend to school business. Albus could spare him a few personal days. There was no way he could leave this girl alone tomorrow in the state she was in and he knew it.
After getting ready for bed, he stretched out on the sofa and listened to rise and fall of every breath this little girl took.
His brother�s little girl.

And now his.
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The Professor and His Pint-Sized Shadow