Saved by Love (Severus Snape / Original Female Character)

Hogwarts

Hogwarts

Professor Minerva McGonagall was getting ready to go to her quarters and rest after dinner when she received orders from the Headmaster to go get a student at the Castle gates – which she found very strange for she hadn't noticed any of their students missing, also Dumbledore hadn't even told her the name of the student she was supposed to escort back to the castle. But she sighed and went anyway – after all, orders were orders.

McGonagall took a thestral carriage and quickly approached the gates.

Once the thestrals stopped, she jumped off, immediately recognising the student on the other side of the tall iron gate: it was the half-veela girl from Durmstrang.

"What are you doing here?" McGonagall asked, discourteously, "You asked to floo home not an hour ago!"

"I need to see Dumbledore," replied Florence nervously.

McGonagall couldn't believe she was losing precious resting hours for that. She exhaled, trying to control her annoyance, and opened the gates to let the student in.

"What's your name?"

"Florence- Delacour." She hesitated, quickly realising she shouldn't use her father's surname anymore.

"Ok, Miss Delacour. I'm Professor McGonagall. What is it that you have to speak to the Headmaster?"

"I'd like to talk only to him, please."

McGonagall looked at the girl, her expression clearly showing she didn't like what she was seeing.

But precious minutes were ticking by and she wanted to rest, "Very well," she took a deep breath and continued: "It's late and I'm tired, let's board the carriage and go see the Headmaster."
____________________

The ride from the gates to the castle was mostly silent.

Florence tried to make polite conversation, but the teacher was clearly not interested.

When they stopped at the castle doors, McGonagall got off of the carriage and told Florence to follow her.

They walked upstairs for a few minutes, going up three floors, until they stopped in front of the statue of a gargoyle.

The stern professor gave the statue a password (Gingerbread) and it moved to the side, opening the entrance to a spiral staircase.

McGonagall turned to Florence then, "Go upstairs and wait for Professor Dumbledore in his office, he hasn't returned from the Great Hall yet. Don't touch anything. There are lemon drops in a jar on his desk, you can have some if you like."

"Thank you, Professor."

McGonagall nodded and walked away. Florence walked upstairs and entered a very beautiful office.

There was a large desk to the left with two upholstered chairs in front of it and another tall, equally upholstered, wooden armchair behind it.

Books filled many shelves all around the office, and large portraits hung on the walls, probably of previous headmasters, but the people in them were all asleep or gone for the night, so she had no one to talk to.

Florence sighed and sat on one of the chairs in front of the desk, feeling the weight of the reality of her situation hit her: in her haste to leave her father's house, she hadn't stopped to think about how welcome she would actually be in Hogwarts.

What was she going to tell Dumbledore? And what would he do to her? After all, she was Voldemort's daughter; would he give her a chance and let her stay in the castle?