The Lost Cub

The next morning Elena was startled when she woke to find a pair of arms wrapped protectively around her. She looked to see Remus asleep next to her and wondered when he had come into the room. It was then she heard a chuckle from the doorway. She looked up to see Snape standing there and was surprised when he beckoned her to follow him. She gently slid from the arms so as not to wake their owner and followed Snape from the room and into the sitting room. It was there he gestured for her to sit and she did, on the couch while he sat in a chair.

“I bet you are wondering why Remus was asleep in your bed.” Snape said, when she nodded he continued. “When a werewolf has a cub they usually don’t let them out of their sight for the first couple of months. You were taken from him the night after you were born and now he is ‘making up for lost time’ so to speak. This was why he slept there last night. It was the wolf’s way of protecting and welcoming back it’s lost cub. He will be over protective of you, but that will come from the fear of losing you again. Though because you are older he will let you out of his sight some.”

Elena was shocked Snape would spend the time explaining this to her, she thought he wouldn’t want to talk to her at all. It was then she decided to use some Gryffindor courage and ask a question. “When are we going to have to talk with the headmaster?” She really wanted to know if her parents were going to keep her, but didn’t want to ask that.

“When your da…Remus wakes we will go to Albus’s office.” Severus said while berating himself for the slip. He knew his daughter would never call them dad or father, no matter how much he wished for it.

“Um… what am I supposed to call you guys?” She decided she would ask that and maybe get an answer to what she really wanted to know.

“You may call us anything you like. If you are not comfortable with calling us Dad or Father then you may call us by our given names.” Came a voice from across the room. Neither had seen Remus enter the room or knew he had been listening to the conversation.

Elena wanted to call them dad and father, to have parents, but didn’t know how Snape would react to that. She suddenly didn’t mind the way he had treated her in the past, and would endure it forever if only just to have a father.

Severus saw the look in his daughter’s eyes and decided to see if he could put her worried to rest. “I know Remus would like you to call him dad, and I myself would like for you to call me father, but only if you want to. We are not going to force anything on you. But don’t expect us to give you up either, you are stuck with us whether you like it or not.” He was surprised when he saw the tears running down her cheeks and even more so when she flung herself at him. He gladly accepted her into his embrace though.

Remus sat watching his daughter and husband together and for the first time in along time felt content, his last remaining members of his pack were back.

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A couple hours later the three and Sirius were sitting in the headmaster’s office discussing how they wanted to handle the situation. They had decided to have Harry Potter disappear and for Elena Lupin-Snape to come out of hiding, but they had to be careful so as no one would suspect the two were the same person.

“We could just have something “accidental” happen to Potter. If he were to die then no one would look for him in Elena.” Severus said while trying to reassure his daughter he meant nothing hurtful behind it by squeezing her small hand.

Surprisingly enough they all decided that would be best and that they would alter the Dursley’s memories to have them believe that Harry had committed suicide. They really wished they didn’t have to do it this way, but they also didn’t want people looking for answers and Elena being the answer. They also decided that she would return as a fourth year and they would tell everyone she was 14 to throw them off of her.

When that was done it was decided that a trip to Diagon Alley was in order, as Elena needed all new things. Her parent’s also decided now would be a good time to look for presents as her birthday was that day.

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Having gotten the list of school supplies from Albus and a list of the things she would need they were ready to go. Sirius was also going to join them in his dog form, as Remus thought it best to have the extra wizard along. He knew that the Deatheater who got away knew Severus had been a spy and had it just been him and Sev he would have had no problem leaving Sirius behind, but they had Elena with them and he wouldn’t take any chances with her safety. Plus it made it so Sirius could watch over her while he and Sev searched for birthday presents. Oh he wasn’t happy about the thought of letting her go off by her self, but also knew it would be safer with Sirius with her.

So here they were in Gringotts going to Severus’s personal vault to get the money they needed. Elena had offered to pay as the Potters had left her all their money, but her father refused saying it was his job to provide for his daughter.

Severus wasn’t hurting for money either. Sure he was the third son in a family of five and the youngest of all of them, which meant he didn’t get much of the family fortune, but that didn’t matter as he saved every sickle he ever made teaching (which paid more than you would expect) and he made potions privately for hospitals and private customers. All in all he was richer than his brothers and sisters combined, but he liked to live simply, as did his husband. He could also see from the time he spent with his daughter she didn’t waste money on frivolous things. He thought this was a good thing after seeing how his nieces and nephews had been, always whining and complaining about how something wasn’t of high enough quality. He instantly thought of how his godson had to act in public, what people didn’t know was that the Malfoys always apologized for their rudeness when no one but the salesperson was around. The thing that surprised him the most was that the salespeople never told anyone how nice the Malfoys could actually be, then again he saw how big of a tip was usually left.

Remus had only one brother and two sisters and he was the oldest of all of them. However his family had disowned him for being a werewolf and he had to get by on very little. Even now when he had Severus’s money, and was going to be working at Hogwarts again he still tried to save as much of it as possible.

Elena gasped when she saw the amount of money her father had. She didn’t think she could spend that much in one lifetime, or in ten. She knew she had a lot from James and Lily, but had expected nothing like this from Snape, her parents had told her a little about their families this morning and she had thought that her parents would have been, well, poor. Guess she was wrong.

When they had the money they figured they would need they left the bank and headed to a shop to buy clothes first. They had split up, with Sirius going with Elena when they reached the shop and began to look around at the different robes. It was then all three, well four counting Sirius realized they were useless when it came to picking out clothes for a girl. Then the bell on the door rang signaling that someone had entered and Elena thought they were saved when Hermione and Ron walked in. She could just go up to Hermione and ask for help right, and if that didn’t work she could tell them the truth, they were her best friends after all.

After quietly telling her parents what she planned to do she walked over to the two, but stopped in her tracks a few feet away when her heard her name, well Harry’s name, mentioned.

“Can you believe Harry is taking all the credit for defeating Voldemore?” Ron said outraged.

“Well, he was the only one in the grave yard fighting him.” Ginny said, and Elena wondered why she hadn’t seen her.

“Yeah, but we have been there for him since we were 11 and he always took the credit. He was so stupid and such a coward he wouldn’t have stood a chance without up to pull him out of danger.” Hermione said with just as much loathing.

“Right, because he freaked when the giant spiders came, or was petrified, or was afraid to fly on Buckbeak, or, well do I need to continue, or should I just get Mum and see what she thinks of all this. You remember how she reacted the last time you both behaved this way. She knows you were only friends with Harry for his fame and she can’t stand that fact, neither can Fred or George, or any of the others with the exception of Percy. I just wish someone would tell Harry so he doesn’t get his feelings hurt worse.” Ginny said as she stormed off and right into Elena, knocking both of them to the ground.

In an instance Remus and Severus were at the two girl’s sides helping them to their feet. They had heard the conversation and wanted to make sure their daughter was ok. Looking at her they could see she had been hurt by their words, and the fact that her best friends had lied to her, but she hid it well. They didn’t think Ginny suspected a thing.

“I am so sorry, I didn’t see you there. You aren’t hurt are you?” Ginny said as Remus pulled her to her feet. She was shocked to see him with professor Snape of all people, but then got a good look at the girl she ran into. She was no idiot, and could see the resemblence of the two men in the girl and knew she had to be their daughter. Wow, those two men sure knew how to hide that they liked each other, everyone in school thought they hated each other.

“It’s ok, no harm done. I’m Elena by the way. Elena Lupin-Snape.” Elena said remembering she wasn’t supposed to know Ginny.

Ginny had the strange feeling she knew this girl, but ignored it as she held out her hand, “Ginny Weasley. Are you shopping with your parents?”

“Yeah, but they are as lost as I am with all this.” Elena said trying to keep the tone light.

“Hey, my mom should be hear any minute. Why don’t we help you shop and then we can take you to get your hair styled and I can help show you the different types of makeup that would work best for you.” Ginny said, excited about the prospect of making a new friend. It had been hard to make friends since what had happened her first year and she really wanted to be friends with Elena. “Is that ok with you professors?” She decided it best to ask Elena’s parents too, and she knew her mother wouldn’t care.

It was at that time that Molly Weasley walked into the shop. After discussing what was needed Elena’s parents let her go with the Weasley’s knowing she would be in good hands with Molly.

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After the shopping was done the three women decided to get some ice cream, Ginny didn’t really want her mum to come with them, but understood that she had to be there as they had promised Elena. They also had Elena’s dog with them and she was surprised at how human like the dog was. She also noticed the strange looks her mum was giving the dog. She didn’t understand things until they met back up with Elena’s parents for lunch.

Remus and Severus had been shocked when their daughter walked into the Leaky Cauldron. They had rented a private room in the back so they could talk to the two Weasleys. They felt that family deserved to know the truth of matters. They had not expected to see their daughter looking like she did though, and almost forgot what they were going to talk about for thoughts of how many boys they would have to scare away from her.

Elena had gotten her hair cut so it was now halfway down her back and had some layers so it framed her face. She had also been taught to put on makeup and what clothes when together and which ones didn’t. She thought there were too many ruled to remember, but she would have to get used to it. She had also gotten a whole new wardrobe and was wearing a pair of form-fitting jeans and a light blue tank top with a white button up, short sleeve blouse over it, buttons left undone. They had bought lots of different color shirts, blouses, jeans, slacks, pajamas, skirts (which she didn’t think she would ever be comfortable wearing), robes, and a jacket for when it got to chilly and she didn’t want to wear robes. She was surprised when they got all this and still had lots of money left over, but Ginny just said her mum was a pro at getting a lot for a little. However she was even more surprised when her parents looked at her and she saw apprehension in their faces. That was until Ginny leaned over and whispered “They are now worrying about how to keep the boys away from you.”

Knowing that her parents had heard she looked at them and laughed when they both nodded to Ginny’s assessment of the situation and she went over to hug her dad and then her father. All tensions gone she followed them into the room they had reserved and listened to the conversation.

To say Ginny was surprised to find out her new friend was actually Harry Potter and that the dog was Sirius Black would be an understatement. However she didn’t think of Elena any different and promised to keep the secret. She understood that this was who Harry had been all along. It was also decided to keep this information from Ron and Hermione; after all they were only friends with Harry for his fame.

While Molly had been surprised, she was also glad to know that Harry, or Elena, had family who obviously cared for her. She could see how the fathers and godfather adored the girl when she looked into their eyes. Even Snape’s eyes softened when he looked at the girl. However, she couldn’t help but see this girl as her own daughter as well. She was just glad her parents decided to put her in the fourth year’s class. This way she and Ginny could have some classes together, and maybe Ginny could have a friend who wasn’t afraid of her.

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The two younger girls had to beg their parents to let them go shopping by themselves after lunch, but it was eventually agreed upon, as long as Sirius went with them. They readily agreed to this so as to have some time really getting to know each other. The two were in the bookshop when two people came over to them.

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Draco Malfoy and his best friend Blaise Zabini were in the bookshop looking for something interesting and talking about what had been happening during their summers when Blaise suddenly zoned out. Draco knew instantly what had happened to his best friend, as it happened all the time.

“Ok, where is the Weaslett? She had to be around somewhere as to steal your attention like that.” He said, annoyed that his best friend would ignore him like that. Blaise had had a crush on Ginny for about a year and still had done nothing about it. Draco didn’t understand the fascination, but then again there was no girl that he had ever had a crush on. Sure he liked them, but he didn’t think any was worthy of dating a Malfoy, or that his parents would like any he chose.

“She is over there talking with another girl who I have never seen before.” Blaise said while looking apologetically at his friend.

“Well you should just go over and ask her out, you have been like this for far too long.” Draco said.

“You know she would never date a Slytherin, besides I wouldn’t want to be on the bad end of her brothers when they are angry.” Blaise said.

Draco was about to respond again when there was a loud crash from the streets outside and people began yelling about Deatheaters. He knew this couldn’t be good and knew if they found out about him being here they would try to get him to get at his parents for spying on their lord. He also knew Blaise would be a target as his parents had never chosen sides and that was also seen at betraying their Lord.

“We got to get out of here.” He told his friend. However they didn’t have anytime to move as three Deatheaters stormed into the bookshop.