Why Would You Hide. A Severus Snape Fanfiction (Stopped)

Chapter 8: The Unexpected Gift

About six weeks later, Professor Snape had improved perfectly and seemed much happier. Most of the students had also changed their opinion of him, however that isn't to say they actually liked being around him, just that he had earned their respect. We had become closer as friends and there had been no more rumours like what there had been before.

I still hid my feelings from him, for fear that whilst I was still at school, it would be inappropriate to even tell him. However I obviously enjoyed being around him, and loved it when he asked to see me on some weekends. Like one Saturday. We had spent most of the day in his office. He had shown me some of the extremely advanced potions. All of which I managed to make, making me feel quite proud of myself. Afterwards, he had asked a house elf to bring us some lunch, and we sat and talked at his desk.

"So." I asked. "You have a family somewhere?" He raised his eyebrows before replying, in mock seriousness.

"Ah... My dear Amelia. That would be telling." He grinned as I laughed before continuing.

"My Muggle Father, Tobias hated magic. And therefore me. He died when I was 19, your age." I frowned slightly at his honesty.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. It was more for good than bad if I'm honest. He was... Er, not a very nice man. However my Mother Eileen is still alive somewhere. She disowned me after my father's death, saying it was my fault." He saw my look and assured me not to worry. "It's okay. I never loved them, nor them I. I don't need them." And he smiled, a gentle smile that told me he was telling the truth. "What about you?" He asked.

"No. My parents died when I was young. In the war. I was raised in a Muggle children's home. But when I came here and met Hermione, her parents let me move in with them in the second year. So I live with them now."

"I'm sorry." He said, mirroring what I had said only moments before. Making me laugh slightly.

"It's okay. I don't remember them. But Minerva told me that they were very brave, and would be proud of me. I can live with that." He looked at me for a while before getting up and going into his office for a minute, coming out with a rather small, but very dusty old book. He put it down on the desk and motioned for me to go and stand next to him. I walked round to his side of the desk and watched as he opened the first page.

"It's been years since I looked at this, I don't even know why I keep it to be honest." He moved his hand to reveal a clean, white page that contrasted with the dirty cover. In the very centre was a picture of a tall, thin, but very pale man with the same dark hair and eyes as Severus, who had his arm around the shoulder of a slightly shorter, and darker woman with brown hair. She was smiled up at him adoringly, fiddling with a strand of her hair, whereas he was looking from the camera to the woman. The caption at the bottom read, Tobias and Eileen. 1992.

I gasped in realisation. "This is your parents?!" I said, looking up at Severus, who smiled and nodded quickly. "Severus!" I said, Picking up the book and moving round to the sofa near the shelf of jarred eyeballs and the like. Flicking through the timeline of photos, I stopped when I got to one that said, Severus Tobias Snape. Born January 9th 1994. Snape sat down next to me and blushed at the picture of the newborn. He was clearly asleep, wrapped in a white towel with a small shot of dark hair already visible. I grinned up at him.

"Aww... Baby Sev." I said playfully. He looked away and I laughed. "Hey, don't be embarrassed! We all have baby photos somewhere!"

"Hmm..." He murmured. Squinting his eyes at me in annoyance, but evidently trying not to smile. I relaxed against him and carried on looking at the photos. Watching him grow up before me. I noticed how his clothes were mismatched and didn't fit in more photos that one. And in none of them was he smiling. At his 11th year, whilst he was in his Hogwarts uniform, I stopped and closed the book, looking up at him. He watched me questioningly.