The wards around Silverthorne Manor glowed like distant stars behind him as Severus walked the long path toward the edge of the property, clutching the memory crystal Alaric had given him. The rain was coming down harder now, slicing cold lines across his face. He didn't care.
He had one destination.
And one purpose.
He Apparated directly to the front steps of Hogwarts.
By the time he climbed the stone staircase to the headmaster's office, he was soaked to the bone and furious enough to set the castle on fire.
"Fizzing Whizbees," he snapped at the gargoyle.
It jumped aside at once—whether from obedience or fear was questionable.
Snape stormed up the moving staircase and threw the door open.
Dumbledore looked up from his desk, quill hovering mid-air. "Severus. You seem... distressed."
"That is a polite word," Snape hissed, slamming the memory crystal onto the desk. "Watch it."
Dumbledore frowned faintly but obediently placed his wand to the crystal.
The memory bloomed like liquid silver.
A cold, rain-whipped night.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVadRy94KY
A small park bench beneath a flickering lamppost.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡctUN1lp5iX
A tiny child—no more than five—curled in on herself, shaking violently.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhQaCQGvUvt
Her thin arms clutched a faded baby blanket to her chest.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr6JN6pHcaQ
Fresh bruises bloomed across her arms and legs—dark against skin that was far too pale.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv7SsetFdiS
Her hair, soaked through, clung to her face like threads of midnight.
The memory swelled.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gUzQ1QYeB
Alaric and Elarisse appeared, rushing toward the trembling girl.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBShLBelBJf
Elarisse fell to her knees first, gathering the crying child gently into her arms.
Alaric wrapped his cloak around Mavis, lifting her gently into his arms, "Let's go home," he said.
The vision faded.
Silence hung thick in the office.
Dumbledore's face was pale, the blue in his eyes dimming like a dying star. "Merlin..."
Snape leaned forward, voice low and poisonous. "You will not send her back to them."
Dumbledore opened his mouth—but Severus cut him off.
"No," Snape snapped. "You will listen. And for once, Albus, you will not hide behind your politics or your Ministry excuses."
Dumbledore's jaw tightened. "Severus—"
"She was battered. Half-starved. Freezing to death on a park bench." Snape slammed both hands flat on the desk. "A magical child left like rubbish."
"There were... reasons," Dumbledore said weakly.
"Reasons?" Snape spat. "Reasons that justify a five-year-old being abandoned? Beaten?"
Dumbledore flinched.
Snape pressed on, voice rising like a crack of thunder.
"Alaric and Elarisse found her by chance. She could have died—would have died—had they not been there. The Dursleys were never suitable guardians."
"The Ministry—"
"THE MINISTRY," Snape roared, "is a nest of incompetent vipers who made their decision based on prejudice and convenience. And you let them."
Dumbledore sank into his chair, looking older than Snape had ever seen him.
"I could not interfere," he whispered. "The Wizengamot made the ruling mere hours after her parents' deaths. I wasn't granted guardianship. They never even asked me."
Snape's rage flickered—but only for a heartbeat.
"And so you washed your hands of her?" he demanded bitterly. "You, of all people?" He jabbed a finger at him. "You protected countless children during the war—yet you let her be thrown to those Muggles?"
"She was supposed to be safe," Dumbledore said, voice fraying. "Hidden from danger. Away from magical politics."
Snape laughed—a cold, cutting sound. "If being hidden means being tortured, then the Ministry has succeeded brilliantly."
Dumbledore bowed his head.
Snape exhaled harshly, pacing like a caged storm.
"At the manor," he said quietly, "she is not a burden. She is loved. Protected. Fed. Happy." His voice softened painfully. "She calls Elarisse 'Mama' now. And Alaric... she follows that man like a shadow and calls him 'Papa'."
A small smile threatened his lips before he crushed it.
"They blood-adopted her," Snape said firmly. "Legally. Magically. She is Mavis Potter-Silverthorne now. Their daughter."
Dumbledore's gaze sharpened. "Blood adoption is irreversible."
"Yes," Snape said with steel. "Because they knew she deserved permanence. Not temporary charity."
Dumbledore rubbed his temples. "If the Ministry discovers she was removed from her assigned guardians—"
"Let them try," Snape growled. "The Silverthorne wards could repel the entire Auror Corps. And if they insist on testing me—" he leaned forward until his face was inches from Dumbledore's "—I would testify personally against Petunia and that brute of a husband."
Dumbledore winced again. "...Was it truly that bad?"
Snape slammed a folder onto the desk.
Elarisse's careful handwriting labeled it: Mavis: Healing Records – Initial Condition
Bruises.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq9KYoW8VZk
Malnutrition.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdmsVW3Cb1p
Broken rib.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7nPFoEPUc
Night terrors.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj2ZL8UF4eB
Magical suppression trauma.
Dumbledore exhaled a shuddering breath. "Oh, Mavis..."
"Yes," Snape said sharply. "Oh, Mavis. And you expect me to allow her to be returned to the people who did that?"
The office creaked around them as Snape's magic surged.
Dumbledore became still—too still.
Finally, he spoke.
"...No."
It wasn't weak.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYL9zKNz92G
It wasn't hesitant.
It was final.
Snape inhaled, steadying.
Dumbledore looked up at him, aged and honest.
"You're right," he said. "In trying to protect her from one danger, I placed her in another. I was... blinded by precedent and politics." He paused. "I will not repeat that mistake."
Snape straightened, tension easing.
"Mavis stays with the Silverthornes," Dumbledore said firmly. "With no interference from me—or the Ministry. I'll handle the paperwork and divert any inquiries."
Snape nodded once. "Good."
Dumbledore studied him, eyes gentling. "You care for her."
Snape looked away sharply. "I care for her safety."
"And for her," Dumbledore repeated softly, "as a child."
Snape didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
Dumbledore smiled sadly. "You and the Silverthornes have given her back something she thought she had lost."
Snape turned toward the door.
"Her childhood," Dumbledore finished.
Snape paused only long enough to murmur—
"...Yes."
He swept out of the office, robes snapping behind him.
Dumbledore watched him go, whispering to the empty room:
"Take care of her, Severus. She may be the hope this world never knew it needed."17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc8bY0bmimc
and then Add to home screen.