Abbie dutifully remained in the hospital wing as ordered by Madam Pomfrey, being allowed to leave only for her classes and, after she begged and Flitwick backed her up, choir rehearsals. She ignored the homework piling up beside her; instead, she would spend hours with her head buried in her notebook, writing and rewriting, channelling all the emotions running through her head into music. Being stuck in the hospital wing, she had only her imagination and the tapping of her fingers on the bedside table as accompaniment, but she did her best with what she had.
McGonagall had spoken to Hermione, who naturally was curious, and smart enough to figure out what had happened; the events of that day were a secret Hermione had sworn to keep. It was hard to ignore Abbie's absence outside of classes, however, and although the why of it was not known, the whole school quickly knew that Abbie Payne was being kept in the hospital wing for medical reasons.
The faculty knew what had happened, of course; despite Snape's protestations, McGonagall had insisted they know, so as to facilitate keeping gossip among the students at a minimum. Why Abbie had done what she'd done, however, was known only to Snape. McGonagall had asked, but respected Snape's insistence that it was not for her to know. Abbie was right in suspecting that McGonagall knew Snape was her father; he'd divulged the information to her and Dumbledore shortly after finding out himself, if only to tell them to keep it to themselves.
Snape, meanwhile, visited Abbie in the hospital wing often, sometimes bringing her food from the great hall - always with the curtains drawn so as to not draw any attention from other students temporarily present. It was just before he was about to go and see her, a little over a week after she'd been admitted, that he heard a familiar double knock on his office door as he put away the essays he'd been grading.
"Yes?" he said curtly in response, hoping it was simply another student.
The door opened and in the doorway, much to Severus' surprise, was Persephone.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, standing up.
"Hello to you too, Severus," she replied, shutting the door behind her.
They looked at each other for a long moment. She looked tired, he noticed. One thing he remembered so vividly about her was the way her blue eyes shone so brightly, so opposite to his own; not with the kindness of Lily's eyes, perhaps, but with a vivacity completely unique to her. Now, however, they were dull, drained, like she'd seen more than she ever cared to.
Persephone had never seen Severus look at her the way he was now. In the beginning, perhaps with a passive uncaring, but as they'd grown closer he'd always been glad, even reluctantly, to see her. Now she saw a terrifying anger in his eyes.
Silently, she withdrew a parchment from her pocket and handed it to him. Severus recognised the Hogwarts seal, now broken, and Minerva's handwriting on the front. He didn't have to look at the letter to know what it said.
"So this is what it took for you to appear," Severus sneered. "I'm sure if she'd known, she'd have tried to kill herself earlier."
Persephone's jaw clenched at his words.
"And what have you been doing all this time?" she replied. "She's been spiralling right under your nose, while you were... what? Making the potion for her?"
Severus clenched his fist, screwing up the parchment in his hand.
"I've been here ," he replied through gritted teeth. "Keeping my distance as we agreed . ...Do you truly believe you can accuse me of neglect? Why do you imagine she did it, Persephone? How do you imagine a 13-year-old feels when her mother disappears with barely a letter a year?"
A frown began to knot between Persephone's eyebrows. "Do you think I chose this? Do you think I wanted to go years without seeing my child?"
"She certainly does!" Severus shouted. "She has spent entire Christmases, summers, alone! Fending for herself! She's a child! How on earth do you think it acceptable to leave a child in such a situation?!"
Persephone was staring at him, her mouth agape.
"I didn't choose to stay away, you idiot!" She shouted back. "My job -"
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR DAMN JOB!" Severus screamed at her, any sense of composure gone, spit flying from his mouth as he yelled. "YOUR JOB IS NOT MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER! NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER!"
"I KNOW!" Persephone shouted back, hands gripping the edge of his desk. "I can't choose my missions, Severus! Merlin knows if I could I wouldn't have chosen you! Going home without permission would be disobeying a direct order from my superior!"
" Then disobey, " Severus replied emphatically, as if he was spelling out an obvious answer to an ignorant child. They were stood across from one another now, angry body language mirrored as they both leant forward, their faces mere inches apart despite the desk between them.
" I took an Unbreakable Vow, " Persephone replied in the same condescending tone. "I cannot tell anyone anything about the Department or disobey my superior! I was 18, I had no idea what I was committing to, but the Vow still stands even now!"
Severus slammed the table with a fist. "STOP LYING!" He shouted, causing Persephone to flinch. "I don't care if you lied before, but don't you dare lie now! Not when it comes to our child!"
"I'm not lying!"
"'Cannot tell anyone anything about the Department?'" Severus repeated. "You told me plenty! Facts I know were true because the Dark Lord corroborated them!"
Persephone hung her head and groaned with frustration. Why did he have to be so damn difficult?
"I knew you were using me, Severus! I was feeding you insignificant information to keep your lord and master satisfied so that I could continue using you! Don't you see? I could tell you just enough because I was ordered to! It cancelled itself out! You were just so damn desperate to impress him that you didn't even stop to consider why it was so easy! I played you like a fiddle, Severus, and you were still too damn blind to realise!"
"Tell me, Persephone," Severus replied, walking around the desk now so they were almost toe-to-toe. "Do you get a thrill from this? Hm? Lying and manipulating to get your way? Even at school, you thought nobody noticed, but I did. Always using other people's hearts against them. What do you get from all this? A feeling of power? You called the Dark Lord's followers evil, but at least they were honest about their cruelty! But you, you pretend to be better than them, better than me, but you are no better!"
"Like I was the only one! You were doing the same thing to me, Severus!"
"I befriended you, Persephone! I never asked for more than friendship! Merlin knows I wanted to, I wanted you, but I never crossed that line!"
"Never -?" Persephone scoffed. She was the one leering towards him now, but they were already so close, he found himself backing up against the wall. "Are we forgetting how Abbie came to be, Severus? Or do I need to teach you about the birds and the bees? You fucked me! You brought me to that damn party and fucked me in a random bed just to get information out of me!"
"I fucked you because I wanted to!" Severus shouted. He hadn't even known it at the time, but he'd had plenty of time to replay that night in his mind, and he knew there was only one truth. He'd wanted her, only her, and despite all his rage, he still did. "You are such a manipulative little bitch, you can't even comprehend that other people don't see the world the way you do! Tell me, have you ever done anything simply because you desired it? Or is everything you do a lie?"
Persephone grabbed him by the robes, pushing him further against the wall, her body pressing closer to his, so close he could feel her breath on his skin. They stared one another down, their eyes exchanging hard stares of passion and anger and repressed feelings that were coming back to the surface after so long. Then, she kissed him. She kissed him fiercely, communicating in the only way either of them seemed to know how.
At first Severus tried to pull away, but her grip on him was strong and she had him trapped. The only thing he could do was try to beat her at her own game, and so he did. Severus kissed her back, one hand holding her head in place as he pushed his tongue into her mouth, causing her to let out an involuntary moan. She fought back, their lips and tongues battling as he overpowered her and pushed her back, causing her to fall back against the desk. He pushed her back further until she was sitting on the edge and he locked his hand on her thigh, lifting her leg up as if to prevent her from running away.
Their battle continued, Severus allowing his lips to leave hers only to bite back down, relishing in her sharp inhale as he pierced the skin and tasted a small trickle of blood. She drew her head back at last, licking the blood off her lips before she growled, "Did that feel like a lie?"
"I don't trust you for a second," he replied venomously. "I could fuck you until you screamed and I still wouldn't believe a word you said."
That was all the challenge she needed.
" I dare you ," she whispered into his ear.
"What?"
"Fuck me until I scream, Severus," she challenged. "Then look me in the eye and tell me I'm a liar."
They were both acutely aware of the way his cock twitched in his pants at just the thought of it. He looked at her beneath him, hating her, loving her, wanting to scream at her and wanting to make her scream. Nobody could confuse him the way she did, and he hated himself for it. He was usually so in control of himself, able to compartmentalise his feelings and act composed when he wanted to rage. Dangerous, she'd called him when she broke it off, but if anyone was a danger, it was her. He knew she was manipulative, selfish and a liar, and yet he was powerless to her.
"Do you really want me to believe you?" he asked, an idea forming in his mind.
She nodded and reluctantly released her grip on him as he pulled away and turned his attention to the shelves of potions on the wall. Severus selected a small vial from the top shelf and held it up to her.
"Veritaserum," he announced.
"You can't be serious."
"Deadly," he replied.
"You want me to take a truth potion?"
"I trust my potion making skills far more than I could ever trust you, Sephy."
He mentally chastised himself for the slip; he'd only ever used her shortened name affectionately. He needed to take her power away, and quickly.
"You want me to make you scream?" Severus said darkly, approaching her where she still sat on the desk, her legs still open for him. "Let me know you mean it."
He had her cornered, he knew. She couldn't say no without proving him right. Persephone grabbed the vial from him and threw the contents down her throat.
"Ask me anything," she smirked.
"Do you want me to fuck you?"
"Yes."
His cock began to harden further at the sight of her so ready for him. He could see her eyes slightly glazed, a sign the potion was working.
"Beg for it."
"Please," she moaned as he grabbed her by the back of the neck. "Please fuck me."
He brought his lips close to hers, not quite allowing contact, enjoying watching her squirm in his arms.
"Tell me why, Persephone. Tell me why you want me to fuck you."
Severus smirked as he saw her battling the effects of the potion, trying to stop herself from replying, but she'd taken the whole vial when only a drop would have been sufficient, and she couldn't help herself.
"Because I can't resist you," she confessed. "Because whenever I touch myself I think of you." Because I loved you and still do , she felt herself trying to say, but she fought it, fought with all her might. She'd been trained in resisting veritaserum, and she'd resisted it successfully many times, but this time was different. This time she wanted Severus to know the truth. But he couldn't know that truth. That truth she kept for herself. "Because," she allowed herself to say, "The last time you fucked me was the only moment of truth in my life."
"Got you," Severus whispered victoriously, causing her to whimper as he stepped back. "Go to my chambers," he instructed her, waving his wand to unlock the door in the corner. "I'll join you in a moment."
As she left, Severus waved his wand once more, casting muffliato and the anti-alohomora charm on the office door to prevent unwanted intrusions, before following her and performing the same charms again as he closed the door to his chambers, just to be sure. He barely had a chance to turn around before she grabbed him by the shoulders and spun him around, pinning him back against the door as her lips met his again.
"No, no, no," Severus whispered. "This won't do."
He grabbed her by the waist and spun her around so she was the one pinned against the wall. His bulge pressed into her thigh as he moved his lips down her jaw and then her neck, alternating between kisses and bites while one hand held her head in place and the other slipped down under her waistband and he teasingly ran a finger along the edge of her pants, just barely brushing her ass as he sucked and nipped on the nape of her neck. She whimpered, which only served to turn him on more, and his trousers began to feel uncomfortably tight.
Severus pulled back and moved his hand to hold her by the jaw, looking lustfully into her eyes, still slightly glazed but filled with desire. "Strip for me," he ordered.
"Now who's got a feeling of power?" Persephone teased, intentionally echoing his earlier words, but she obeyed and soon enough her clothes were on a pile on the floor. She stood bare before him as he looked her up and down.
"Your turn," she smirked. "You must be so hot in those layers." She snaked her arms under his robes and pushed them to the floor. "They seem a little... tight ," she said as she cupped the bulge threatening to explode out of his trousers. He shivered as he felt her fingers tracing him; if he wasn't careful, he would cum in his pants before he'd even touched her.
Severus pushed her onto a sitting position on the bed and he quickly unbuttoned his jacket, tossing it aside, leaving only his undershirt between Persephone's hands and his skin. She didn't go for the shirt, though - instead, she loosened his trousers and pulled them down along with his pants, finally releasing his cock.
"Suck it," he commanded, and she barely had time to respond before he shoved his cock in her mouth, as far in as he could go without choking her. She almost gagged, but she resisted, knowing he'd take it as a win. Instead, she moved her head back and forth ferociously, lapping up every drop of precum dripping out of him. Severus threw his head back, revelling in the moment. He'd fantasised about having his cock sucked so many times, but the feeling was beyond anything he'd ever imagined. He could soon feel himself on the edge of cumming and so he withdrew from her mouth to stop himself. Persephone wiped away the precum that had dribbled down her chin, which drove Severus wild, and so he picked her up, grabbing tightly onto her ass, and threw her back onto the bed, causing her to squeal as she landed on the pillows.
Severus quickly tore away what remained of his clothes so he was as naked as she was when he climbed on top of her and kissed her again, the taste of his own cock still on her lips.
"Tell me what you want," he purred into her mouth between kisses. "I'll do it."
"Fuck me in the ass," she responded.
Severus drew back slightly and looked at her, her eyes still glazed, although they seemed to be less so than before.
"With pleasure," he responded, before flipping her over onto her hands and knees. He dug his fingernails into her shoulders and ran them roughly down her back, leaving scratch marks in his wake as he moved down to her ass. She gasped with surprise as he slapped her there, leaving a large red mark behind, before leaning over the side of the bed to retrieve his wand from his robes. Years of having only his own hands for pleasure had prompted him to discover a spell to produce lubricant, which he cast now between her ass cheeks, causing her to shiver slightly from the cold. He tossed the wand aside and gently used his thumbs to coax the lube into her asshole, massaging it gently to allow the muscles to relax and allow him entry.
When he was satisfied she was ready, Severus gently slid the head of his cock inside, causing Persephone to moan into the pillows. He was desperate to fuck her roughly, but he knew he had to start gentle, and so he slowly started moving back and forth, thrusting a little further into her each time until eventually he was buried deep inside her and he began to pick up the pace, faster and faster, and Persephone couldn't stop herself from crying out with pleasure as he gripped her ass tightly, his skin slapping against hers.
"Touch me," she begged. "Please, Severus, I need you to make me cum."
Severus obliged and moved one hand to her front, burying his fingers in her wetness, teasing her entrance with his fingers, relishing the sound of her moans as she whimpered into the pillow. He allowed his finger to move up slightly until he found her clit, dripping wet, and he found a rhythm as he pounded into her ass and rubbed circles around her clit. He was groaning too now, unable to resist the pleasure he felt from hearing her call out his name as the walls of her ass rubbed against his cock. He was close, so close, but he couldn't let her win, and he held back, focusing on his movements against her, watching her writhe around beneath him. He felt her muscles clench, first in her crotch and then in her ass, and her arms gave way as her orgasm crashed over her, overwhelming her senses, and as she screamed his name, Severus came too, his cum spurting out into her as he cried out, his moan filling the room as he continued thrusting until the feeling faded and he gently withdrew from her. He picked up the wand he'd tossed on the bed and, with a few waves, cleaned up the cum dripping out of her before she rolled onto her back.
Exhausted, he followed suit and lay down next to her, suddenly acutely aware of how cold his chambers were, and he pulled the tousled sheet up to cover them both before wrapping an arm around her and holding her close to him. She returned the embrace, and as she looked up at him, he saw the glazed look was gone from her eyes; the potion had worn off.
"Still think I'm a liar?" Persephone teased, a playful smirk on her lips, drawing his attention to them. He kissed her quickly, then deeply, before he spoke.
"Yes," he said honestly. "But not about that."
"No," she replied. "Not about that."
"I might need some more convincing though," he said.
Persephone chuckled and kissed him again, pushing him backwards to roll on top of him.
"Fine," she said. "My turn."
Severus woke early the next morning, as was his usual habit. He had been sleeping on his back and was met with the familiar sight of the dark ceiling of his chambers. It wasn't until he heard Persephone moving next to him that he remembered he wasn't alone.
He looked over at her; where he had been sleeping rigidly on his back, she was on her front, one arm and a leg hanging off the side of the bed, her head turned towards him.
He knew he should feel guilty for sleeping with her again. But looking at her next to him, watching her breathe peacefully, he couldn't help but wish he could wake up like this every day. His heart ached in his chest with a longing to do more than just sleep with her; he wanted to wake her up with a kiss every morning, to sit and work by her side every evening, to cook her dinner and swap stories of their days. He allowed himself to fantasise of a life they might have had, one where he didn't work at Hogwarts and she didn't work at the Department of Mysteries; a life they shared in a cottage somewhere, isolated from the rest of the world, where they may apparate elsewhere for the workday but they always came home to one another, and during the holidays Abbie would come home from Hogwarts and join them. She'd look forward to the holidays, rather than dreading them; she'd come back to a loving home instead of months of loneliness.
Severus reached over to gently stroke a stray hair from Persephone's face. She was so beautiful and he knew, despite his attempts to deny it to himself, he knew he loved her. Even with all the lies and mistrust between them, he still longed to be with her. He still remembered, all those years ago, the night they'd conceived Abbie, the way he felt so content holding Persephone in his arms, and the way she'd whispered gently, like a breath, barely audible but he had heard it. I love you . Had she meant it? She'd referred to that evening as the only moment of truth in her life - had that been it? Had she let her mask slip and revealed the truth? Or was it just another lie?
His heart wanted so desperately to believe it to be true, but his self-doubt nagged away at him. Of course she was lying , the voice in his head told him. How could anyone love me? How could anyone look at me and see someone likeable, let alone loveable?
He pulled his hand away from her face, causing her to stir but still she slept on. Severus was relieved; if she woke up next to him, he wasn't sure he could resist holding her, kissing her, whispering sweet nothings into her ear.
Quietly, he rolled out of the bed and got dressed into a fresh set of robes, leaving the ones he'd thrown on the floor last night in a basket for the elves to take later. He picked up Persephone's clothes and carefully folded them into a pile for her, then he left her a quick note before leaving to prepare his lessons for the day, desperate to keep his mind off the naked woman in his bed.
Persephone woke a few hours later; it took a few moments for her to recognise the unfamiliar surroundings. She reached over to find the rest of the bed empty.
She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Severus?" she called out, to no response. She stood up and looked around for her clothes, which she realised had been folded at the end of the bed, and atop them was a piece of parchment, which she picked up and read.
Persephone -
Abigail has double potions with me this morning. Wait in my office, and I shall bring her at lunch.
If you are hungry, simply call out for an elf and one shall attend you.
Yours,
Severus
Persephone chuckled at the fact he'd signed the note, as if she would doubt who it was from, but she found herself staring at the signature; there was something so intimate about the way a person wrote their own name. And she noticed, too, that he'd signed off with "Yours." If only he were.
Get ahold of yourself, Persephone , she thought to herself as she began to get dressed. It's just some ink on a parchment.
Abbie was bored. Bored of the hospital wing, bored of having to be escorted everywhere as if she'd jump out of a window as soon as she was left alone. She was given plastic cutlery, as if she'd try something with a butter knife, and she wasn't even allowed her wand except for in lessons. Being on suicide watch was counterproductive, she thought; if she was allowed to actually do something, she wouldn't be alone with her thoughts all the time and she'd be less likely to try anything again. At this point, she was tempted to try something just for the sake of some excitement.
Every morning, she had to eat her breakfast alone in the hospital wing, until someone came to collect her for her morning lessons. Sometimes it was McGonagall, sometimes it was Snape, sometimes it was Percy Weasley or Penelope Clearwater fulfilling their prefect duties. Since this morning was potions, it would likely be Snape, so she made sure she was ready to go before he arrived, knowing he wouldn't care to dawdle.
Sure enough, exactly ten minutes before the class was due to start, Snape arrived at the hospital wing to collect her. Madam Pomfrey handed him Abbie's wand so he could give it to her in the classroom, and the two of them set off, Abbie having to hurry to keep up with Snape's long strides.
"How are you this morning?" he asked.
"Bored," Abbie replied truthfully. "Do you know when I can leave yet?"
"When Madam Pomfrey deems it allowable," Snape said.
Things were weird between them. After she'd first arrived at the hospital wing, they'd had a private moment of emotional intimacy spurred on by Snape's devastation at the thought of losing her. Since then, he'd visited her every single day, but they'd never talked about anything more substantial than schoolwork
"You didn't come by last night," Abbie said.
"Well observed."
Okay. Good talk.
Maybe he was bored of coming to see her. She wouldn't blame him. She was certainly bored of the whole situation.
They walked in silence the rest of the way and Abbie slowed slightly as they approached the potions classroom, hoping nobody would notice they'd been walking together.
"What are you all standing around for?" Snape said curtly to the students milling around in the corridor. "Get to your seats."
Abbie joined the throng of her classmates and gladly greeted Neville, Seamus and Dean as she sat down in her usual seat, trying to be casual as she slid her wand into her pocket from the desk where Snape had left it.
"Hi, Abbie," Neville said warmly. "How are you?"
Neville was the only person who ever asked how she was anymore - the others were probably worried she'd give them a depressing answer.
"Honestly fine," she replied. "Hopefully Madam Pomfrey's gonna let me out soon."
"I hope so too," Neville said. "It's not the same without you in the common room or –"
"Be quiet, Longbottom," Snape barked from the front of the classroom. Everyone else had been chatting as they sat down, but as usual, Snape was singling out Neville, who flinched and looked down, his cheeks turning red.
Soon enough Snape had them working on their potions, and Abbie noticed he seemed particularly more on edge than usual, shouting at the tiniest mistake from anyone, even Malfoy, his favourite. He might have even shouted at her if she'd made a mistake, but picking up on his mood, she was extra careful not to mess anything up. More than that, she was determined (in every class, but especially Potions and Transfiguration, as Snape and McGonagall were clearly the ones Pomfrey would consult) to prove that she was fine, and the best way to do that was to get everything right, as any slip up might make them think she still wasn't in her right mind.
While she let her potion sit, Abbie found herself wandering over to Harry, Ron and Hermione's table, and was helping Ron with his potion when she spotted Neville, out of the corner of her eye, about to place twice the amount of billywig stings he needed into his cauldron. She rushed over, accidentally brushing Malfoy on her way, and shoved Neville's hand away before he could do anything disastrous.
"Two," she said, urgently but gently. "Two, Neville, not four."
"Oh!" Neville exclaimed. "Thanks." He laughed nervously. "You saved me from Snape yelling at me again..."
"Professor!" Malfoy exclaimed from behind where Abbie stood. "Payne shoved me!"
Abbie turned around to see Malfoy dramatically cradling his so-called injured arm.
The class fell silent as Snape walked over to them, glancing between Abbie and Malfoy. He must have known Malfoy's arm was healed long ago and he'd been milking it ever since. Abbie had seen it for herself as she assisted Madam Pomfrey in the hospital wing - something she wasn't sure she wanted to do anymore now she was so sick of the place - and had mentioned it to Snape multiple times when they'd been brewing together and he seemed to agree, but still Snape seemed to play along with Malfoy's charade, and the whole class fully expected another house point deduction from Gryffindor.
"Don't be so dramatic, Mr Malfoy," Snape said, much to everyone's surprise. "It was barely a touch, and furthermore, Miss Payne was rightly on her way to prevent Longbottom from causing yet another disaster. If you had been in her way, she would have every right to move you aside, or else Longbottom may have melted his cauldron." He spun on his heel to face Neville, who shrunk into himself under Snape's piercing gaze. "Have you no reading comprehension, Longbottom?" he sneered. "The instructions clearly state two billywig stings, not four. You should be thanking Miss Payne for her quick intervention, or else you would be in detention for a month. Five points from Gryffindor."
"But sir," Ron spoke up from his table, "Abbie stopped him! She's in Gryffindor! Shouldn't it even out?"
Snape turned his attention to Ron. "Miss Payne merely prevented a deduction of ten points," he said. "But it's now another five for your insolence, Mr Weasley."
Abbie suppressed a snort of laughter as she saw Harry nudge Ron in annoyance.
"Is something funny, Miss Payne?" Snape's attention was on her now. The classroom was so silent now that one could hear a pin drop. "Perhaps you'd like to share your joke with the class?" He looked at her with as fierce a gaze as he did any other student, but Abbie was feeling cocky.
"I just think it's really funny," she said, "that Ron still manages to put his foot in it after three years of classes with you."
Snape raised an eyebrow. The Gryffindors were all frozen with fear now, anticipating what might happen next, while the Slytherins were looking on with mild amusement.
"You're quite right, Miss Payne," Snape said at last. "But don't think your clever observations will win you any points back for Gryffindor."
"I wouldn't dream of it, sir," Abbie replied with a smirk.
"Well?" Snape barked, looking around at the rest of the class. "Did somebody cast a freezing charm on you all? Get back to your potions before I have to give you all zeroes."
The tension dissipated and the low level of chatter carefully grew again as Snape returned to his desk and everyone turned back to their potions.
"Shit," Abbie cursed under her breath, realising she'd now left her potion sitting for too long. "Shit. Fuck. Bollocks. Son of a -"
"Language, Miss Payne," came Snape's voice from the other side of the classroom. Sometimes students compared Snape to a bat, and Abbie wondered if there was some truth to it with the apparent supersonic hearing he must have employed to hear her. "That's another point from Gryffindor."
"Sorry, sir," she placated, "won't happen again, sir."
Abbie spent the rest of the lesson trying to fix her over-brewed potion, and by the time lunchtime came around, she still wasn't happy with it but she didn't have much choice as she reluctantly handed it over to Snape.
"Miss Payne, stay behind, please," he said as she handed her sorry excuse for a potion to him.
"Ooooh," sneered Malfoy as he passed her on his way out. "You're in big trouble now, Payne."
"Oh, go find a church and sit on the steeple, Malfoy," she spat back.
Malfoy laughed. "Careful, Payne," he said smugly. "Talk like that and Snape might put you in detention."
"I believe I will decide on detentions, Mr Malfoy," Snape said coolly as he approached. "Hurry along now."
Malfoy threw one last smug look at Abbie before striding out and leaving her alone with Snape.
"You know, Neville wouldn't be so bad at potions if you weren't so harsh to him all the time," she said. "He only -"
"Your mother is here."
Abbie blinked in surprise.
"...What?"
"Your mother. Persephone Payne. Perhaps you remember her?"
"But... How? Why? Where?"
"Apparition to Hogsmeade, I suspect," Snape said. "She received a letter from Professor McGonagall. And she's in my office."
"In your -"
"Come along, she's waiting for you."
Snape didn't wait for a response before turning away, and Abbie had to hurry to keep up with him. She knew there was little point asking him anything further, and besides, she'd rather hear what her mother had to say herself.
Persephone had been pacing back and forth in Severus' office for what seemed like an age as she waited for him to arrive with Abbie. She tried to distract herself by looking around the office. Although dank and cold - it was a dungeon after all - there was a character to the place and she felt she could have identified it as Severus' office even without knowing he taught at the school. There were subtle hints that gave it away, things she wasn't sure if she was noticing thanks to her training in observational skills or because she had once known Severus so well that she could identify him in tiny details.
The way his desk was so neatly arranged, for example; he'd clearly taken the time to tidy it that morning after they'd messed it up the night before. Only bare essentials lay out on the desktop, but Persephone suspected that a peek in a drawer would show a much messier storage system, although Severus would probably argue that he knew where everything was.
With still some time to spare, Persephone had an urge to prove herself right and opened one of the drawers. Not to rummage, she told herself, just to see if it was as messy as she suspected it would be.
What she didn't expect to find was a drawer full of parchment containing familiar handwriting; some hers, some his, and some Abbie's. It's not an invasion of privacy if it's something you wrote, right? That was what Persephone told herself as she looked through the drawer. Letters she had written him, she realised; not recently, but years ago, back when they were... whatever it was they'd been doing. She found letters Severus had written to her more recently but never sent - she averted her gaze from these, partly out of respect for words he'd chosen not to share, and partly out of fear for what they might say. In Abbie's handwriting were old essays she'd written, dating back to her first year. She flicked through them, noticing the grades - almost entirely full marks. She knew Severus well enough to know he wouldn't give her full marks just for the sake of it - Abbie must truly be excellent at potions to receive high marks from him so consistently.
Persephone carefully placed the parchment back the way she'd found it and sat on Severus' chair, her feet propped up on the desk as she pondered. She had been so sure that Severus hadn't truly felt any feelings for her, and she had fully expected him to not consider Abbie as anything other than another student. Yet here he was, saving letters and essays, and Persephone had been taken aback by how angry he was at her, how protective he was of their child. Nothing is more important than her , he'd shouted at her last night.
As for his confession that he'd slept with her because he wanted to - not as part of his plan to recruit her, as she'd always believed - that shocked her most of all. His claims of deceit and mistrust were all correct, of course. Lies were Persephone's only truth - she didn't know how to do anything other than deceive and manipulate other people. She'd even lied to Abbie, telling her she didn't know who her father was, only so she didn't have to face up to her own truth.
Persephone didn't have the chance to take that thought any further when she heard the door open and she quickly swung her legs down and stood up.
"Mum?"
"Hey, baby."
Abbie was so big . She must have grown almost a foot. Her face was fuller too; she was definitely a teenager now, not a child.
There was a momentary pause before Abbie flung herself into Persephone's arms and they hugged tightly.
"I missed you," Abbie said softly.
"I missed you too, baby," Persephone replied, noticing as she held her that Abbie now came up to her chest, where before she was up to her stomach. "I'm so sorry I couldn't come back sooner," she said. "I'm so, so sorry."
Behind them, Severus cleared his throat. "I'll leave you two," he said.
"No," Persephone and Abbie said in unison, catching him by surprise.
"I have a lot to explain," Persephone said. "As best I can. I owe you both that much."
When Persephone had told her supervisor Emmitt that she planned to keep her baby, she knew he was disappointed but he had the sense to respect her decision. He had given her a more in-house role as opposed to the field work she'd been doing, which allowed her to work during the day and come home at night. Such a work-life balance was coveted amongst Unspeakables with families, and Emmitt had only agreed to give it to Persephone on one caveat: that she return to field work when Abbie started at Hogwarts.
Previously, Persephone had always been able to come home fairly frequently, but as soon as she was back in the field, Emmitt was throwing her into the longest jobs, keeping her away for months on end. She suspected he was intentionally giving her the jobs nobody else wanted to punish her for taking ten years out of the field. She had argued with him multiple times that she needed to go home, even for just a day, during a school holiday, but he had stood his ground and Persephone knew she couldn't disobey him.
That was, until she had stormed into his office yesterday, and shoved McGonagall's letter in his face. Her daughter had quite literally almost died of loneliness and although Persephone wasn't allowed to disobey an order, she was allowed to quit, which she threatened to do if she wasn't permitted to see her daughter.
"So he let me come," Persephone explained. "'Come back as soon as you know she's well,'" she said, in a stern, mocking voice. "So please, Abbie, don't tell me how you are, or I will have to go."
"He let you go yesterday?" Abbie asked, frowning. Persephone nodded. "Then why are you only here today?"
"It was late yesterday," Persephone only half-lied; late after she and Severus had worn themselves out, but she definitely didn't need to share that part.
"Why didn't you write more?"
Persephone considered how to respond without giving anything away about what she'd been doing. "I'm on an extremely dangerous job," she said. "Infiltrating some very dangerous people who have their eye on me most of the time. To write would be to give myself away. But listen..." She took Abbie's face in her hands and looked at her, firmly but with warmth. "I'm sure you hate me, Abbie, and you have every reason to. Every reason. I haven't been strong enough for you. I haven't stood up to my superior enough. I haven't fought for you. And I am so, so sorry. I swear to you, baby, I am going to march right back in that office and demand to be allowed to see you at least once in summer and once at Christmas. Okay?"
Abbie nodded, and Persephone pulled her into an embrace again. "And hey," she said, "You can stay here at Christmas, can't you? If I can't make it back." She looked up at Severus, who was watching them with an unreadable expression. "And maybe you can stay with your dad in the summer. If that's okay with him, of course."
Severus looked her in the eye.
"Of course," he said, and she knew he meant it. "Although I can't promise my house to be a particularly exciting place for a teenager."
"Oh, this one can make anything fun," Persephone smiled, not knowing Abbie's taste for fun had waned in the last three years.
Abbie smiled and looked up at her. There was a sadness still in her eyes, but a glimmer of hope too. "Thank you for coming back," she said. "You should... you should go though."
"Are you sure? I can stay a little longer."
"No, you should go," Abbie said with certainty as she stood back. "I know you'll come back." She nodded with the certainty of her words. "I'm fine."
And with those words spoken, like a spell, Persephone knew she had to leave.
"Okay, baby. I'll see you as soon as I can, I promise."
"I know."
They hugged briefly once again before she turned to leave.
"Severus, would you walk me to Hogsmeade?" Persephone asked.
He nodded and opened the door to grab a passing student; just Abbie's luck that he grabbed Malfoy.
"Mr Malfoy," he said, "Escort Miss Payne to the hospital wing."
Malfoy looked between the three of them, trying to figure out what was going on.
"Of course, Professor," he said. "Come along, Payne. Wouldn't want you getting lost."
Reluctantly, Abbie followed Malfoy out of the dungeon, and unsurprisingly, he began pestering her with questions.
"Who was that woman? Was that your mother? I bet it was your mother, she looked just like you. What's so important Snape has to meet with you and your mother? And why isn't it McGonagall? Is it something to do with why you're always in the hospital wing? It is, isn't it? What could possibly keep you in the hospital wing for so long, anyway? You seem fine. I bet you're faking it, whatever it is. But why Snape? Does McGonagall hate you so much she has to pawn you off to Snape?"
"Shut UP, Malfoy!" Abbie exclaimed at last. "Have you ever considered that it's none of your business? "
"It is when you're having meetings with my head of house, who's now made me walk you all the way to the hospital wing. Maybe I'll just leave you here, see if you get lost."
"I'd love that, but you won't."
"Oh? And why not?"
"Because Snape will find out and you don't want to piss him off."
"I can't anger Snape, I'm his favourite," Malfoy said smugly.
"Oh yeah? 'Don't be so dramatic , Mr Malfoy,'" she said in her best impression of Snape's drawl. "Yeah, you really sound like the favourite."
"What, you think you're his favourite?"
"I really don't care about being Snape's favourite."
"Good, because you're the last person Snape would give a toss about. Except maybe Potter or Longbottom. You know, I've noticed he doesn't even bother telling you off in class. I bet he gave up on you straight away."
Abbie knew Malfoy was winding her up, and logically she knew everything he was saying was complete bollocks, but that didn't stop the voice in her head from telling her he was right.
"Well, do you want to know what I think, Malfoy?" She said venomously, turning on her heel to face him just as they arrived outside the hospital wing. "I think you strut around like you're king of the castle because you're afraid people will realise you're nothing . You're a mediocre wizard at best, you don't even have any friends, just cronies . Your whole life you've been told you were better than everyone just because you were born, and you're afraid you're worthless outside of your name. Well, guess what, Malfoy? You are . You throw around your father's name like it gives you power, but the truth is nobody gives a damn who your father is!"
"At least I know who my father is!" Malfoy shouted back. People were stopping in the corridor now, watching them argue. "At least my mother isn't so much of a slut she can't even remember my father's name!"
Abbie didn't even bother drawing her wand; she just slapped him, and hard. Malfoy put a hand to his cheek, now burning red, shocked at what she'd done.
"You'll pay for that one, Payne," he said through gritted teeth, pulling out his wand. "Flipendo!"
Abbie didn't have time to react before she was thrown backwards, her feet lifting off the floor before she fell on her back, momentarily winded. Malfoy's laughter rang in her ears and she felt a rage coursing through her veins. She pulled her wand out and cried, "Petrificus totalus!" but she missed, her spell whizzing past Malfoy's ear and fizzling out.
"Trying to freeze the wall, Payne?" He laughed as Abbie got to her feet, but with a quick "Locomotor wibbly!" Malfoy knocked her down again as her legs gave out.
"What's going on here?!" shouted a voice, and Abbie looked up from her position on the ground to see Lupin running towards them. He quickly waved his wand in Abbie's direction and the searing pain of pins and needles told her she could feel her legs again.
"Nothing, Professor!" Malfoy said innocently, throwing his now empty hands in the air. "Payne tripped."
"A story your fellow students will corroborate, I'm sure," Lupin replied, gesturing to the watching crowd. "Both of you, come with me. Everyone else, get to your afternoon classes!"
Still recovering from the spell, Abbie clumsily clamboured to her feet, prompting Lupin to put an arm around her to support her as he escorted the two of them to his office, sat them down and confiscated their wands. "Wait here," he said, "while I fetch your heads of houses." Lupin left quickly before Abbie could tell him Snape wasn't in the castle.
Abbie and Malfoy glanced daggers at one another before sitting down. Abbie gently wriggled her toes, encouraging the blood to keep moving.
"If I end up in detention, Payne, you'll pay," Malfoy spat bitterly.
"Whatever," she replied.
"I mean it," he reiterated. "If you think -"
"Can you just shut up? For once?"
Malfoy sneered and crossed his arms, but he didn't say anything more until the door opened again and Lupin re-entered with Snape and McGonagall in tow.
"Explain yourselves," McGonagall said curtly.
"Payne assaulted me," Malfoy sneered. "I simply defended myself."
"Is that true?" McGonagall asked, turning her attention to Abbie.
This must be how Neville feels , Abbie realised, as she squirmed uncomfortably under Snape's piercing gaze. She couldn't bring herself to look at him, but she didn't need to; she could feel his anger radiating from him. Instead, she focused her attention solely on McGonagall.
"I slapped him," Abbie said matter-of-factly. "I didn't even leave a mark, I'd hardly call it assault . Besides, he said -"
"It doesn't matter who said what," McGonagall interrupted. "Violence - physical or magical - is not the way to resolve conflict. Do you understand?"
Abbie and Malfoy both nodded, but she privately wished she'd slapped him harder.
"A week's detention, I think. Do you agree, Professor Snape?"
Snape nodded.
"And since you clearly have issues between the two of you," McGonagall continued, "perhaps working on detention together would teach you to get along."
Abbie and Malfoy both began to protest, but one look from McGonagall was enough to shut them both up.
"No arguments. Now, both of you get to your afternoon classes, and quickly."
Abbie stood and quickly left, eyes still averted from Snape, who fortunately had let McGonagall do the talking - she wasn't sure she could bear him telling her off.
Her relief was short-lived, however, as she was halfway down the corridor when she heard quick footsteps catching up with her, and Snape wordlessly dragged her into an empty classroom.
"I'm gonna be late for class -"
"I'm sure Professor Burbage won't mind," Snape said shortly. "What is wrong with you, Abigail?!"
The accusation made Abbie glance away and cross her arms defensively. Snape grabbed her by the chin and turned her face towards him.
" Look at me ," he insisted. Reluctantly, she obeyed, and saw exactly what she expected to see: her father looking at her with a blazing anger in his eyes. "What could possibly possess you to end up in a fight with Draco Malfoy?"
"It doesn't matter," Abbie shrugged, not wanting to admit how easily Malfoy had gotten under her skin.
"Of course it matters! Malfoy is an exceptional spellcaster and he won't hold back, if Lupin hadn't intervened you might have ended up in a much worse condition."
Abbie looked at him incredulously. "Are you angry that I got in a fight, or are you angry that I lost?" she asked.
"Malfoy could have hurt you much worse than he did," Snape said, evading the question. "And I won't have your mother storming in here again asking why I'm not protecting you."
"I don't need you to protect me," Abbie said, stepping back so he released his grip on her. "I can protect myself."
"Oh? How many spells did he hit you with before Lupin showed up?"
"Two."
"And how many did you hit him with?"
"...None."
"You see! I know Malfoy's father, Abigail, and I can guarantee you he makes the boy practice his duelling during summer. You have no chance against him."
"So what, next time I should fight someone easier? Is that what you're saying?"
"You shouldn't be fighting anyone! Not without proper practice!"
"Then teach me."
Snape raised an eyebrow.
"You said Malfoy's father makes him practice in the summer. Well, it looks like you've got custody this summer, so teach me. Show me how to duel."
"Perhaps," he replied, "if you can get through the rest of the year without slapping Draco Malfoy again, I may show you how to defend yourself. But only if you behave . Do you understand me, Abigail? Not a toe out of line."
Abbie gave him a mock salute. "Yes, sir."
Snape restrained himself from rolling his eyes. "Get to class," he snapped, and Abbie hurried out the door.