The Unwanted by Lemon Curd
Summary: When Harriet Potter starts Hogwarts, Severus Snape notices she is unusually quiet and withdrawn. Thinking that she might be sick, he takes her to Madam Pomfrey. What he learns is much more disturbing than a simple sickness. With the ever-optimistic Albus Dumbledore being no help whatsoever, Severus decides that desperate measures need to be taken.

On Halloween morning, Harriet Potter receives a letter from the Half-Blood Prince
Categories: Teacher Snape > Professor Snape, Healer Snape Main Characters: .Snape and Harry (required)
Snape Flavour: Canon Snape
Genres: Horror
Media Type: None
Tags: Girl!Harry, Incognito!Snape
Takes Place: 1st Year
Warnings: Emotional Abuse, Self-harm
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 11 Completed: No Word count: 26033 Read: 24919 Published: 26 Sep 2021 Updated: 08 Feb 2022
Chapter 4 by Lemon Curd
During breakfast in the Great Hall, Severus watched Harriet receive his next letter. This time, she did not immediately read it, but just pocketed it.

The answer was on his desk after the last lesson for the day.


„Dear Half-Blood Prince,

I don’t feel like a Harriet because I should have been a boy. That’s all. It’s not like I think the name is bad or anything.

My mum was good at potions? Really? I can’t imagine. I hate potions. I mean, I’m not really good at it, I always forget some ingredient, but mostly I hate it because the teacher is so nasty. He gave my friends and me detention just yesterday, because we were attacked by a troll. As if that wasn’t bad enough!

What was the teacher called when you went to school?

Yes, I live with Aunt Petunia. We don’t really get along, but I don’t think it’s because she wants to be able to do magic. She hates magic.

Yours sincerely,

Harry“


He should have known this would eventually be a problem. Of course Potter would write about him.

At least, right now, there weren’t any insults in there, so perhaps he could nip it in the bud.


„Dear Harry,

it is difficult for me to grasp why you think you should have been any different. Your parents certainly thought you perfect the way you were, back then, and I feel inclined to agree.“

At least he did not think she would be better as a boy. She might be better if she wasn’t a foolish child who bought potions from mysterious strangers, but … nevermind that.


„When Lily and I went to school, the potions teacher was Professor Slughorn. He was rather lazy and I did not like the way he favoured the students he thought would go on to become famous, but we did not let that keep us from being good at potions.“

Perhaps, there was an opportunity here, to get closer to the child … Merlin, he felt like such a creep.

„Do not hesitate to ask me if you have any questions on potions. Or if you need help with any other subject. I am confident I can help you with everything you will encounter in year one.

I wish I could say I am surprised that you were attacked by a troll, but truth be told, Hogwarts was never really safe, and I had my fair share of encounters with dangerous creatures.“
He should probably ask whether Potter was hurt … even though he already knew she wasn’t … well, at least writing these letters was an intellectual challenge.

„Were you hurt very badly? Trolls have been known to kill adult witches and wizards, so I would be very worried if I did not already know that you survived.

Trying to keep you out of such dangerous situations by punishing you for being attacked does not make much sense, after all you didn’t intend to be attacked by a troll, did you?

Adults can be rather irrational when they are worried about children’s safety.“

Thinking about it … that was absolutely correct. How on earth had he assumed the detention would keep Potter from doing something this stupid again, when the very real danger of getting killed couldn’t?

He must have assumed that Potter feared detention more than she feared death. Which was likely not the case.


And of course, something about seeing a face vaguely similar to that of his old enemy made him forget all his carefully laid plans.


Viewing Potter as abstract entity, it was much easier to keep his anger in check.

„In fact, I am worried that your aunt might have unfairly punished you for your accidental magic, now that you tell me she has grown to hate magic.“

Should he try and explain the sour grapes phenomenon to Potter? Tell her that Petunia hated magic so much because she could not have it?

It was not that important.

Better to use the space to make Potter feel … loved.

The irony of the situation … Severus was probably the one person who actually liked Potter the least. Of those who did not want the girl dead, that was.

Why couldn’t Petunia have gotten over herself and at least pretended to love her dead sister’s only child?
For someone who had never met the child’s other parent, how hard could it be?

And then there was that other suspicion that was eating away at him ever since he had first had it.

„Does your uncle hate magic, too? What is he like?“

Not that the child was likely to be forthcoming with intimate details, but perhaps, a general feel for the situation …

Should he add a reassurance that he would always be there to intervene if Potter’s living situation got worse?

Every way he could think of wording such a reassurance sounded creepy even in his own head.

A male stranger approaching a child and offering to remove her from her family, without said family knowing where she went … there was no way that was not creepy.


In the end, he just signed the letter and sent it.



Potter’s answer contained no confirmation of his worst fears. Uncle Vernon apparently hated magic, too, and showed no kindness towards the girl, and yes, aunt Petunia did punish her by having her stay in her room for days, but nothing worse was mentioned.


Severus’ reassurance that she was perfect as she was was left unanswered – probably an emotionally difficult topic. He hoped she didn’t feel he was being creepy by, in a way, complimenting her.

He sighed and took another sip of coffee. This whole letter writing business was an exercise in creepiness, and he could only hope the result would justify the means.

But that had always been his modus operandi, hadn’t it?

Dumbledore probably relied on it, too. Relied on it that Severus would do the morally reprehensible things that needed doing, as he had done as spy.

When he had offered to do anything whatsoever if only Lily was kept safe, he had hoped, selfish as that was, for a way to get out. By that time, he had known the Dark Lord was a monster. Perhaps because he had realized Lily was not safe, perhaps because the Dark Lord planned to murder a baby.

It had been foolish to think so. Dumbledore needed a spy, and a spy would have to get his hands dirty to be trusted, and Severus’ hands were already dirty.

He would never again have a pure soul, or a clean conscience, so what did it matter if more evil was added?
To be continued...


This story archived at http://www.potionsandsnitches.org/fanfiction/viewstory.php?sid=3706