Upon losing both her parents at the mere age of one-month-old, Ophelia is raised by Severus Snape. It is great for the most part. Only thing is, it's incredibly lonely. Which is why she's excited to go to Hogwarts.
But when she has to deal with bei...
She had been giving him the cold shoulder for the last couple of days. That is until she seemed to figure out that he was quite fond of the cold shoulder and went a different, more irksome route. Passive-aggression.
Instead of avoiding him, she trailed after him, acting as a shadow. Sighing loudly or putting on her sad eyes. He had ignored them. Snape was not one for meekness and always encouraged her to address her emotions and problems directly, so he refused to give in. Until now.
They were currently in his study, one of the few rooms in their lavish but simple house.
Deze afbeelding leeft onze inhoudsrichtlijnen niet na. Verwijder de afbeelding of upload een andere om verder te gaan met publiceren.
It had been a routine for years now.
Snape was never one for breakfast (probably due to the lack of it growing up) and spent his morning's brewing. Ophelia spent hers tending to her gardens but would always join him when done.
Sometimes she'd assist him with brewing, listening as he described what different things did. Other times she would sit silently and read, or tell him about the newest gossip she had snagged from Mrs.Figg or the other kids in the neighborhood.
She sat, a book in her hand but obviously not reading it as she let out her tenth sigh for the last hour.
"What.... Is it?"
"I didn't say anything," she replied indifferently, turning a page of the book in her hands without looking at him. Though annoyed, he felt the corner of his lips lifting up at the Snape-like action.
"Your thoughts are practically screaming."
"Are you reading my mind?" she asked, squinting at him.
"No," Snape rolled his eyes, half in annoyance and half in offense. Not at the implication that he would read her mind, but at the implication that he even needed to.
Back then he was young, sure. Full of frustration and devoid of patience, with no idea how to raise a baby and what to do and not willing to spend hours trying to decipher whether this cry meant she was hungry or that cry meant she was itchy, he'd constantly enter her mind to see what she wanted.
But over the years she learned to communicate and he learned her. He hadn't had to resort to such methods since she was out of diapers.
"But, if that concerns you so much perhaps we should resume your legilimency lessons." They would need to resume them anyway. He had been lax lately but the way last year had gone with Potter had reignited the fire in him. She would need to be ready for anything.
With that, he went back to his potions.
It was quiet for a few moments before she loudly closed her book, turning to face him.
"What was wrong with Towser?" she demanded.
"Tow......ser" Snape drawled out, trying to recall the name. There were a lot of people he thought had something wrong with them.
"The dog."
Ah. The monstrous hound from the shop, how could he forget? When he had gone to collect her in the animal shop he had expected to find her with a cat or bird, maybe even a hamster.
Instead, she had practically been sitting face-to-face with this half-wolf creature. Another half-wolf creature flashed in his mind, the canines and claws. The urge to throw Ophelia over his shoulder and run from the shop was strong and had his nerves not been made of steel, he would've.
"The creature was dangerous," he answered simply, going back to measuring out his ingredients.
"He was nice! And cute, and-"
"-And dangerous." Snape interrupted, "I know you do not understand how so, but the animal was not a fitting pet. Trust me."
Snape felt her stare on the side of his head, as she seemingly tried to conjure up some more words.
He sighed, "If it is of true importance to you, I will get you a pet. But not that one."
Ophelia nodded. She was not completely content with the outcome but Snape did not mind. She would find out that life rarely left you pleased with the outcome and he rather she learned it in small, abysmal moments like this.
"Now, you need to pack."
"I already packed my stuff for school. My trunks are all ready to go." She smiled, proud of herself.
"Not for that. You will be spending the night at the Malfoys."
Snape had to be back at Hogwarts and Mrs.Figg's other job wouldn't allow her to escort Ophelia to the train station (lest they risk Potter seeing her and blowing the woman's cover). He told her as much.
Snape dreaded going back to Hogwarts but as one of the professors there, he was required to be there before the students arrived. Typically they were supposed to spend the whole week preparing the castle and their curriculum, but Dumbledore had given him leave since it would be his daughter's first year at school.
Ophelia appeared dejected at first and Snape felt for her. He knew what it was like to not have your parents there to send you off like everyone else.
" Go on." He urged, "If you finish quickly we can stop at Honeydukes."
