To his surprise, she lashed back. Like Dumbledore thought, he could hold himself to a certain part and held back his malicious tongue from snapping back. Severus masterfully had managed to hold his sly tongue throughout the years and wasn’t about to waste him time on a child with no guarantee of being his niece. Any aberration was not necessary. Instead a dark gaze watched as she stomped off, a slight sneer coming onto his pursed lips.

A sullen gaze whipped around, boiling into a furious glare. ”Liar,” Snape snarled. A lanky finger pointed down at Dumbledore’d chest, warning him against interjecting. ”My brooding sister had no intent to reconnect with what she called a miscreant puppet to Voldemort, despite her unknowingness to my true intents.” And after all these years he wasn’t bound to change his opinion based on these ‘hidden facts’ Dumbledore was suddenly discovering. Despite being loyal to Dumbledore, there were sometimes he had to put his foot down. ”While you’re brandishing the secrets of a thousand souls in your mind, it’d be ideal if you had an honest demeanor too.” Snape’s lashing out had been finally shifted to Dumbledore instead of Ellie. Obviously, she had ran off.

”Before you decide to introduce some novel information,” he continued, ”We should take the girl home.” No longer was Dumbledore taking sole responsibility for the girl. With that said, he moved out of the room with his robe swaying behind him and swished, darkened hair shining under the morning sun. Hopefully Ellie did not go far.

//mobile

// Ily, you’re too sweet. Same to you (as always lmaooo), we make a good pair.

His narrow gaze faded back into a satisfied, but still wary, glare and stared down at her. He craned his head downwards, black hair elegantly falling down into his face, as he listened to what she had to say before speaking himself. Disappointment was strung through her words, obviously. "Very well," Severus agreed. ”It’s better to hold your reigns back before you dig your own grave.” His lips pulled back into a smirk. Truly, he should be speaking for himself, but Severus was too high strung to admit his fault right now. ”Instead of lingering on our doubting bumbling, perhaps it’d be more gratifying to do something else.” Whisking away the girl towards another activity would prevail considered to this silliness. Dumbledore could possibly be more comforting... After all, he had her best interest in mind and not his.

He watched as Ellie's head raised and looked into the distance. The unfamiliarity of the situation seemed almost alien to her, but yet the surroundings was so orthodox to the half-blood. "Perhaps you'd like to take a walk?" he casually suggested. His words were a low grumble, almost forced and lousy. Despite that, reminiscing on the wonders of the world should be extraordinary for the child. It could surely sway her to go home quicker... or cause her to stay longer. Severus was betting on the first option and was hoping for a quick departure to her Nan's house.

//Dynamic duo af, dude. B)

Excellent. Her choice was ideal and perserving Severus’ dignity. Not only would he have to drag an unfamiliar child around but he’d have to deal with her marveling. Thankfully, the final decision saved both of them from the existential dread. ”Then we mutually confer,” he said eloquently, as if he was satisfied with himself.

A sneer turned into a scowl as Potter and his friends turned the corner. Harry had dragged him into this mess by bringing her back to Hogwarts because (of course) the Chosen-One had to be oh-so noble. The thought made Severus want to scoff. Despite that, dark eyes narrowed down onto Potter and practically drilled into him. ”Move along, Potter,” he sneered. ”Ten points from Gryffindor for needless wandering.” The boy needed to learn about minding his own business before his curiosity got the best of him. All of his wandering throughout the corridors had managed to cause tension. As for the other two, they followed along like ducklings. The professor couldn’t expect more from a know-it-all and a ginger buffoon since the Gryffindors were prideful and had to stay together. Their downfall with Potter was a pity.

Whether or not his comment influenced the three, they happened to scurry along anyways. Thus his attention swayed back towards Ellie. ”They’re rather droll, but I digress,” he drawled. Severus adjusted himself, standing tall. ”Follow me before the hippgriffs within the forest decide to nip at your toes this time around.” With that said, he began to prowl forward throughout the hallways with his dark robes sashaying behind him in the wind and dark hair flustering about.


//Feel free to time skip to wherever you please if it’s ideal! It’s your plot anyways aha.

// Agreed. + mobile and rushed  ending before class

With wand alight, he wandered silently through the jungle’s underbrush and navigated through all of the territory’s complications with the girl as his lead. Detention in the forest had served him too well. The familiarity with his surroundings was unsettling, but as they went further, the world he knew was starting to fade. As they went deeper into the forest, new things began to catch his gaze. To think that Ellie lived this far in the depths of the forest was astounding.

Soon enough, they arrived. While the clearing was a wonder of its own, to see that someone was inhabiting such an area was much more interesting to him. In the moment he knew the thought couldn’t lure on the fact. Severus’s eyes met the glowing eyes of the dog first, momentarily observing it before moving on. Next his dark eyes caught a silhouette of a stranger. As the world faded into view, an old friend came before him. Her skin lacked pigment and her face was sullen with vexation, something Snape did not expect from a previously lively friend of his sister’s. Things, though, have changed... for better or for worse.

As she stood up, his grip slid down onto his wand and leered over it’s metaphorical trigger. Lanky fingers held on tight to its base. It’s light faded out of view and left the three in the darkness of the forest. As it did so, a sneer slowly grew on his lips. Furrowed brows pressed together and narrowed eyes stared bullets into Elizabeth Grey’s own gaze. ”Grey,” he echoed back. Looming eyes caught their attention on her wand. ’Expelliarmus.’ If successful, the wand would drop down into the grass. ”Whoops,” he drawled as his dark gaze followed the wand. His eyes would move back to Elizabeth’s own gaze, his lips twisting into a smirk. ”It’s rude to point your wand at an old friend.”

Severus lowered his own wand. His grip remained tight though, as who knew what the woman was truly capable of. ”You know very well that it’s not a genius idea to point a wand at me, especially in an area where no one would be able to find your rotting corpse after I’ve done the deed.” His words were cold and calloused. The threat was mostly empty though, as it was a result of his frustrated catharsis. ”Now may I explain myself?”

His gaze did not follow Ellie as she walked inside but instead remained intertwined with Elizabeth's own gaze. He could feel Grey's despair and exasperation that pent up all throughout the years coming down onto him all at once. While understandable, Severus still believed he had the high ground. Once loyal to the Dark Lord himself, he was no more within that allegiance and was instead playing the role of Dumbledore's double agent due to the death of one of his greatest pleasures: Lily Potter. She was someone who did what was good for the world and acknowledged Severus, despite the Marauder's opinions about Severus. Lily had never put him down or thrown him aside, just like his own father had. Through it all, the girl was there as a reminder that he could do better. He held her on a pedestal. She was the light the world needed. So he kept fighting.

Despite having hope, Lucius Malfoy had coaxed him into what he thought was his purpose. Cruel and conciseness was his pleasure. He desired revenge on those who wronged him and hadn’t learned the art of forgiveness. With the Malfoy dragging him into the Dark Lord's haven, Severus followed willingly. The semblance of their friendship and justification had taken him in. Then Voldemort snuffed out Lily’s bright flame. Dumbledore, seeing an opportunity, had taken an abuse boy in and tried to use him for the purpose of winning the war. The headmaster still was taking control of him successfully, leading him with false intent. Guilt-ridden and too busy with his own agenda, Severus was oblivious to Dumbledore's overlooming plan nevertheless.

Her words were true. Severus could not deny that. He was no killer by nature, only someone hidden in the shadows that gathered information for both sides of the story. The half-blood just remained silent, watching with a narrowed gaze. As she began to pace around him, he could almost imagine the tip of her wand dragging around his throat and pressuring him to speak of all of his dastardly deeds. "You see me as some mangy rat within the sewers as per usual," came Snape's exasperated drawl. "Even the worst of them can redeem themselves sometimes." Minus Peter Pettigrew.

As she continued encircling him, his gaze held forward. Dark eyes anchored down onto the house. Severus only held Elizabeth's own stare when she rounded to his front. "The Chosen One-" His tone was mocking. "-found her at the edge of the dark forest within the Hogwart's domain." It was the time for the truth if he was going to sway her perspective. "Troubled and unsettled, she came into Hogwarts under the watch of Dumbledore." Severus, though primarily the one who watched over her, was not going to take primary credit for the task as he was unwilling. Without Dumbledore's information, the professor would of given her up a long time ago. "I assisted-" He paused momentarily to emphasize his point. "-with her recovery." Minus Pompfrey's help. He doubted Elizabeth remembered the old hag. ”You cannot blame me for being tempted by the face of my dearest sister.” They were too similar in every way. It had caused a soft spot within Severus that he grossly did not want to take acclaim to. ”Dumbledore knew of all of you, revealing of my sister’s secrets and some of your own.” His voice grew cold and harsh. ”Things that I should of known.” It was almost as if he was growling by this point in time. While he did not regret any of his actions, he knew that they chose not to contact him because of them.  ”When it came time to take her home, she denied the help of the headmaster and instead, regrettably, relied on me solely.” An inquisitive eyebrow rose in her direction. ”Would of thought that her Nan told her about stranger danger...” It was for the better that she didn’t.

Explainations and taunts (for now) provided, Severus remained still. His broad shoulders and skinny frame remained loose, yet underneath he knew that he was tense. "All I want to know is what I have been desiring for so many years." He had no sick intent in mind whatsoever. "Where is my dearest sister?" Hopefully, Elizabeth would confide in the uncle to her presumed god daughter.

//I don’t deserve you! You’re too sweet ahhh... I make sure to note it just in case sometimes when it comes to longer posts. Who knows when auto correct will strike! mobile for a part of it