Chapter Text
Isla I
Wednesday, 1 August 1990
Isla was quick to dress, throwing on the first dress she could find before she rushed out of her room and carefully opened the door to Papa's. Papa was still asleep despite the time (they were supposed to leave the house at 8:00, and it was already 7:45, for goodness sake), so Isla walked up to the side of the bed and sat down, poking her father's arm.
"Papa," Isla whispered, putting slightly more force into each successive poke. "Papa, it's almost 8:00."
Papa stirred, one of his eyes prying itself open. "What?"
"It's almost 8:00!"
Papa groaned as he sat up, his eyes still shut as he rubbed his face to wake up. "Have you brushed your teeth?"
"Yep."
"Combed your hair?"
"Yep."
Papa opened his eyes fully and glanced at Isla's hair. "Very good," he said. "We ought to have breakfast."
"We could eat at the Leaky Cauldron," Isla suggested excitedly.
"You've been thinking this through, haven't you?"
Isla nodded with a grin.
Papa smirked. "Give me a few minutes."
Isla hurried out of Papa's room and downstairs to the fireplace, sitting on the couch to wait patiently... or as patiently as she could manage. It wasn't every day that a young witch went to Diagon Alley for her first wand, after all. Fidgeting with her fingers, she thought about what type of wand she would get, or if it would be the same as Papa's (pine with unicorn hair), or if she would see a wand she liked but ended up getting one that didn't look as nice. Then again, Papa had always told her that a wand was its substance, not its appearance.
Footsteps sounded from the stairway, and Isla turned to see Papa had come down, dressed in his usual clothes: a white dress shirt hidden under a dark blue surcoat, paired with black slacks and dress shoes. He wasn't wearing his outer robe given the weather.
"Ready to go?" Isla asked.
Papa nodded as he took her hand and led her to step with him into the fireplace, grabbing some Floo powder. "The Leaky Cauldron!" Papa called out as he threw it down at their feet.
Isla felt the green flames engulf them, only to vanish and reveal the room where the Leaky Cauldron's Floo chimney was located. Papa stepped out, and Isla hurried after him, clutching his arm as they entered the dining area. Other witches and wizards were sitting around, but they all seemed to have just woken up. Papa sat isla sat down at one of the smaller tables before he said, "I'll be back in one moment."
Isla watched as Papa walked up to speak with Tom the bartender (she didn't know his last name), and she started fidgeting with her fingers once more as she looked around. A woman and two children, a boy wearing glasses and a girl with wild red hair, entered through the main entrance.
"Could we have some ice cream too?" the girl asked.
"We haven't even had breakfast," the woman said.
"Oh, but you see, Aunt Marley," the girl said, putting a strange emphasis on every word, "we could wait for Mummy to get off her shift, and we could get it together!"
Aunt Marley scoffed and shook her head. "You know I'm going to say 'yes', don't you?"
"Yup!" the girl replied with a toothy grin.
Aunt Marley laughed and turned to look at Tom the barman, and her amusement suddenly vanished. "How about," she suggested quickly, "we go visit her first, and then we can look around?"
"No breakfast?" the boy asked.
"We'll find some vendor food," Aunt Marley said.
"C'mon, Harry!" the girl squealed as she grabbed Harry's hand and dragged him to a door in the back, Aunt Marley following after them.
Just as they had left, Papa returned with a cup of tea for himself and two glasses of pumpkin juice and water for Isla. "Food should be ready in a bit," he said.
"Papa," Isla asked slowly, "do you think we could have some ice cream later?"
"I haven't bought any."
"No, I mean... here." Isla continued fidgeting with her fingers. "I heard those two other children talking about it."
"Fortescue's?" Papa asked; he'd never been one for sweets. "In the morning?"
"... we don't have to."
"No, it's fine."
Isla's eyes widened. "Really?"
Papa nodded. "It's a special day, isn't it? We can go after we buy your things."
Isla smiled and got out of her chair to hug Papa. "Thank you!"
Papa kissed the top of her head. "I'll even let you have two scoops."
"Two?!"
Lily I
Lily hadn't slept very well last night, at least not until she'd taken a small dose of her Dreamless Sleep, but that had almost made her late for work. Harry and Marley were staying with their father for three weeks (which had started last night), which had taken some weight off Petunia's and Vernon's shoulders. Dudley was excited that he had the boys' room all to himself, but Lily missed sharing a room with Marley; she was the only one of the three children who still wanted to read with Lily before bed, now that Dudley had taken to video games and television and Harry preferred reading that Japanese comic Dragon Ball (something which Sirius had gotten him for his birthday).
But right now, Lily didn't have the time to think about the children; Slug & Jiggers was about to open, and she had to sort out the counter before the first customers arrived. The owners, Messrs. Slug and Jiggers, were still on vacation, leaving Lily to run everything apart from getting the occasional letter explaining what needed to be done. It'd taken her more nights than she cared to admit how to order inventory from the suppliers and organize everything on the shelves based on product and delivery time.
Lily heard a knock on the door to the shop and let out a sigh; it surprised her how many people couldn't read a "closed" sign. She turned, and her annoyance immediately vanished as she saw Marley's face squished up against the window; Marlene and Harry were standing by her, and the latter waved. Lily hurried out from behind the counter and opened the door. "Hi!" she said excitedly.
Marley lunged at Lily and hugged her tightly. "Morning," she said, her voice muffled by being buried into Lily.
"I wasn't expecting you to come," Lily smiled as she kissed Harry on the cheek.
"They wanted to come visit," Marlene explained. "James had an early meeting."
Lily's jaw tightened.
Marlene mouthed "sorry" before patting Marley on the back. "Also, Marley was wondering-"
"After we look around, and you're off your shift, could we get ice cream together?" Marley asked without stopping for a breath.
"Noon?" Lily asked. "I'll have twenty minutes before I have to get back."
"Okay!"
"Aunt Marley said we could check out the new brooms," Harry added.
"Harry," Lily chided, "you have two already."
"Yeah, but they're not from Nimbus."
Lily sighed. "How much would it cost?"
"Oh, don't worry; Dad said he'd pay for it."
... Lily's chest went cold, a pressure building in her head. "Well," she said calmly, "let's hope you find something you like."
"So, noon works?" Marlene asked.
Lily nodded. "That's fine with me."
"We could buy it for you before you come!" Marley suggested.
"I'll have a scoop of strawberry, then," Lily replied.
Marley's face twisted in revulsion. "You still like strawberry?"
"What's wrong with that?" Marlene asked with a laugh.
"The flavor's not right."
"It's Fortescue," Harry argued. "Everything they make tastes good."
"Oh, Mummy?" Marley asked. "Could I sit in the shop with you until we're ready for ice cream?"
"You need breakfast first," Lily replied.
"After breakfast?"
"Why not go look around with Harry?"
"I'm not really that interested in brooms."
Harry shrugged. "Yeah, that's fine."
"Alright," Lily said as she looked back at Marlene. "I'll see you later."
"I'll be back in thirty minutes!" Marley called back as the three of them left.
"Oh, it takes longer than that for them to make breakfast, sweetheart," Marlene told her.
Lily smirked as the door shut behind them, only for it to slowly slide off her face the further the three of them walked away.
Severus I
The bell above the door rang as Severus opened it, allowing Isla to enter Ollivander's first; it felt like it was only yesterday when he'd stepped in and gotten his own wand with what little his mother had saved up for him. Each shelf behind the front desk was packed and chaotically organized, but someone like Garrick Ollivander had no trouble finding the exact wand for the individual. Coincidentally, while Severus was thinking about the old wandmaker, the latter appeared from behind one of the shelves.
"Good day, Professor Snape," Ollivander greeted with a soft voice.
"Mr. Ollivander," Severus returned.
Isla tugged on Severus's sleeve. "You know each other?"
"I sold the professor his wand when he first entered my shop," Ollivander answered. "Pine with unicorn hair, 10", pliable."
"It still works well," Severus replied.
"Now, for your measurements," Ollivander said, turning his attention to Isla. "Wand arm, please."
Severus guided Isla over to Ollivander, and the wandmaker pulled out a tape measurer for Isla's arm and height. Isla's pulse was high, at least according to Severus's finger on her wrist as he held her hand, and her eyes were focused on the floor.
"Now then," Ollivander finally said, "Let's see what we have." He walked back to the shelves and started picking out boxes, setting each of them back as he found a new one. "No, not that one... Definitely not that one... Oh, but this isn't the season for that wood... Ah!" The wandmaker hurried back and brought out a box, setting it down on the counter and opening it for Isla to see. "Hawthorn with unicorn hair, 13", unyielding."
Severus glanced at Isla, still holding her hand, and saw that his daughter's eyes were now locked onto the wand. She gently took it out of the box, letting go of her father's hand.
"Give it a little wave," Ollivander suggested.
Isla raised her wand and waved it in a pattern. "Expecto Patronum!"
No light came out from the wand, not yet at least, but a gentle breeze passed through the room, rustling any loose pages on the counter or sticking out of some of the books present. The flames of the lit candles flickered but remained lit, and red sparks shot out of the wand's tip soon after.
"A rather bold first attempt," Ollivander commented. "I think this wand likes you very much."
"What?" Isla asked.
"The wand chooses the witch."
"Why?"
Ollivander smiled. "Each wand has a will of its own, mostly based on what it's made from."
"Oh, Papa mentioned that too."
"Some wands only pick a witch or wizard who's destined to grow. In your case, hawthorn wands choose those battling themselves."
Isla looked up at Severus. "Can I have this one?"
"The wand chose you," Severus answered. "Of course, you can."
Isla smiled, her eyes moistening as she looked down at the wand again.
"Oh dear," Ollivander took out a handkerchief and handed it to Isla, who dried her eyes.
"I'm a witch now," Isla whispered, sniffling as she hugged Severus.
"Just be careful not to misuse it," Severus cautioned. "We'll practice a few charms at home."
Isla nodded, still hugging him.
Severus drew 7 Galleons from his pocket and handed them to Ollivander, who in turn handed him the box for the wand. "We have to buy the rest of your things," he said to Isla.
"Could I go and buy some of it by myself?" Isla asked.
"That would depend on where you're going."
"I need a cauldron."
"I can buy that for you."
"... I just wanted to look around a bit."
Severus took a moment to consider it. "You're allowed to look around any shops that are immediately next to whatever shop I'm in."
"Yes, Papa."
"And never down Knockturn Alley."
"Yes, Papa."
"And be careful about giving people your name."
"Yes, Papa."
"... very well," Severus said with a nod. He said to Ollivander, "Have a good day, Mr. Ollivander."
"And you, professor," Ollivander replied as Severus led Isla out. "Have a good year!"
Marley I
Marley was told, mainly by Daddy, that sitting in Slug & Jiggers with Mummy would be boring, and Uncle Sirius had told her that Mummy would be too busy to spend time with her and Aunt Marley and Harry, but it turned out that neither one of those things was true, because Marley loved watching customers come in and buy things from the shelves. There were all sorts of people that had all sorts of things to buy, although Marley didn't really get why people would bother buying ingredients instead of buying the potions that they were buying the ingredients for. She'd asked Mummy early on in the work shift, and Mummy had explained that some people preferred brewing their own potions, which meant that she didn't have to brew so much for the next day.
Among the people who'd come in to buy something were students going back to Hogwarts. Both Marley and Mummy knew one of the families coming in, Mrs. Weasley and her sons Charlie, Percy, Fred, and George; it was Charlie's final year, while it was Percy's fourth and Fred's and George's second. Marley watched as Mummy and Mrs. Weasley talked each other's ears out, while Charlie took care of helping his brothers get their supplies.
"Oh, she looks exactly like you!" Mrs. Weasley said as her attention turned to Marley.
"Petunia thinks so, too," Mummy replied with a laugh. "Although I think she likes her more than she likes me."
"Well, siblings tend to get into all sorts of disagreements," Mrs. Weasley said, waving her hand as she gestured to her sons. "I could think of a few stories from home."
"We've got everything, Mum," Charlie said as he led the other boys to the counter.
Marley peered into one of the cauldrons, which they'd have bought from next door, as Mummy took money from Mrs. Weasley and bid them farewell. "Mummy," Marley asked, "do you think I'd be any good at potions?"
"That depends on how good of a cook you are."
"... I'm eight, I don't cook."
"Well, you've helped me and Aunt Tuney in the kitchen."
"I mean, Harry did most of the helping."
"He's older," Mummy laughed. "I'm sure you'll get the hang of it once he's off at Hogwarts."
Marley nodded, but she didn't like how Mummy said it. She didn't want to think about living with either Mummy or Daddy without Harry there, and fortunately, she was pulled out of those thoughts as the bell rang above the door, and a girl walked in. The girl was around Marley's height, but thinner and with black hair and eyes.
"How can I help you, dear?" Mummy asked.
The girl eyed the shelves and then looked back at Mummy. "May I look around?" the girl asked. "My father's buying my school supplies next door."
"School?" Mummy sounded surprised. "Aren't you a bit young?"
"I'm eleven," the girl replied, pulling a wand out from the inside of her jacket to show them. "We bought my wand earlier."
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I just... you're the same height as my daughter." Mummy gestured to Marley. "Marley, how about you introduce yourself?"
"I'm Marley Evans!" Marley said to the girl, stepping forward and holding out her hand. "You can call me Marley."
The girl looked down at Marley's hand, her brow furrowing as she fidgeted with her fingers. Finally, she took Marley's hand and shook it. "Isla."
"Isla...?"
"My father said to be careful talking to strangers."
"That's very responsible," Mummy replied. "He sounds very nice."
"He is," Isla said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders.
"Are you looking forward to Hogwarts?" Marley asked.
Isla nodded with a small smile. "I can't wait to see my friends again."
"My brother's going next year," Marley said, "but he's got a different last name than me, so you won't recognize him."
"I..." Isla's brow furrowed even more. "How can you have two different last names?"
"Mummy and Daddy divorced before I-"
"Marlene!"
Marley turned in shock as Mummy raised her voice; she didn't look angry, but she now looked even paler than usual. "Sorry."
"... no, it's alright," Mummy said gently. "It's just not something you go around telling people."
Marley nodded before addressing Isla again. "Anyway," she said more carefully, "his name's Harry Potter."
Isla nodded before looking at the clock on the wall. "Oh, I ought to go," Isla said. She looked at both of them before saying, "Thank you for having me," curtsying, and quickly leaving the shop.
"... odd girl," Mummy said. "Sweet, though, don't you think?"
"I can't believe she's eleven!" Marley exclaimed.
"Marley," Mummy asked, "is it alright if we have lunch before ice cream?"
"Did you skip breakfast again?"
"No, of course not," Mummy answered, but Marley knew when her mother was lying.
Marley walked over and hugged Mummy. "We can have breakfast for lunch."
Mummy hugged her back. "Haven't you already had breakfast?"
"It can be second breakfast."
Marley felt Mummy laugh. "Second breakfast sounds lovely."
Severus II
Severus had bought himself a single scoop of vanilla ice cream in a cup, while Isla had wanted one scoop of French vanilla and one scoop of strawberry on a cone, giving very specific instructions for the French vanilla scoop to be under the strawberry, but not too deep into the cone. Currently, she was taking small scoops out from both the vanilla and strawberry with a small spoon she'd taken for herself and allowing it to melt in her mouth like when the two of them were back home. She was smiling to herself about something, no doubt about the lessons Severus had promised her for later.
"How do you like the ice cream?" Severus asked.
"I like it," Isla answered, dabbing her lip with her napkin before neatly placing it back on the table.
"Better than what we buy at home?"
"Mm-hmm," Isla nodded.
Severus took a bit of his own ice cream and ate, masking his dislike for the sweet taste. "Have you thought about what House you'd like to be Sorted into?"
"Well..." Isla didn't finish her sentence, her eyes instead locking onto her ice cream cone as her fingers fidgeted.
Severus recognized it as a sign of stress; he'd noticed that, whenever he mentioned the Sorting Ceremony, Isla became more quiet. "Any House would be proud to have you."
"Even Gryffindor?"
Severus stiffened. He hadn't made his dislike for Gryffindors much of a secret, although he thought he'd managed to show an equal amount toward every House. "... being Sorted into a House doesn't define you," he said. "I don't hate all Gryffindors."
"Which ones do you like?"
Severus opened his mouth, then shut it again as he visualized the mental list he kept of people in his life whom he genuinely liked (and not just whom he could tolerate); the only people on it were Isla and Mr. Filch. He saw that Isla's distress was slowly growing, the girl having set her spoon down, and it forced him to think of anyone. "... when I went to Hogwarts," Severus admitted for the first time in his life, "my best friend was a Gryffindor."
Isla's eyes widened. "... really?"
"Was," Severus clarified. "It ended poorly."
"Is that why you don't like Gryffindor?"
"There were other factors, but those factors were all from Gryffindor." Severus took another spoonful of ice cream. "And Slytherin."
Isla didn't say anything, but she picked up her spoon and continued eating.
"It was mostly my fault," Severus explained, "but I didn't realize it until it was too late. And when I tried apologizing, she didn't want to listen."
"'She'?"
Severus paled. "Yes."
"... did you... were you two together?"
"No," Severus said quickly. "No, we weren't."
"Because of Mama?"
Severus's heart nearly stopped. Isla had long forgotten what had happened to her mother and her mother's family, and whatever abuse she'd endured. "That... no, that wasn't a factor."
"Oh." Isla ate more of her ice cream. "I don't really want to be in Gryffindor, though. I'd rather be in Ravenclaw."
"Is that so?"
"Helena and Myrtle were in Ravenclaw, so they'll fly by my table if I get Sorted into their House."
Severus smiled. "I'm sure they'd love the company."
"Me too," Isla said, her nervous demeanor having returned to being at ease.
Severus stopped eating momentarily to watch Isla enjoy her treat, the latter not even noticing. With the way she held herself up properly, even with something as simple as eating ice cream, he had no doubt she would do well wherever she was Sorted. And even if she was Sorted into Gryffindor (even though it didn't sound like she wanted to be), Gryffindor would become more tolerable with her in it.
Lily II
Lily had gotten off work for lunch later than she'd hoped, Marley being quite vocal about the whole thing until they finally met up with Marlene, Harry, and now Mary Cattermole (formerly MacDonald) and her daughters, Maisie and Ellie. Fortunately, no one asked why Lily had ordered breakfast for lunch, as Marley had explained that it was her idea to have a second breakfast; the last thing Lily needed was an intervention when all she wanted to do was spend time with Harry and the girls.
Marlene had looked troubled when Lily had met up with them at Fortescue's to explain her lunch plans, only to hear that Marlene had spotted someone who looked like Snape ordering something; she'd left and taken the children elsewhere, at least long enough before returning to find he was gone. Lily wasn't sure why she would even mention Snape in the first place, seeing that she hadn't seen or heard from him for over a decade, and it was to her fortune that the children had been too distracted to hear Snape's name and ask what it meant.
Marley had asked to hold Ellie and was now balancing the toddler on her lap as she tried eating her double scoop of French vanilla. Harry had ordered treacle tart ice cream (Lily didn't even know that was even a flavor there), Marlene ordering the same, while Mary was sharing mint chip with Maisie and Ellie. Lily licked her single scoop of strawberry and listened to Marley describe her day to Marlene and Mary; Harry didn't care too much, as he was entertaining Maisie.
Lily was tempted to interrupt what Marley was doing to talk to her, but the latter turned and smiled at her, a bit of vanilla ice cream on her lip. Lily took a napkin and wiped her daughter's face, only for her to stick her tongue out with a cheeky grin. And that was enough for Lily to know she didn't even need to share a single word with her, or even with Harry; it was enough to take James off her mind, even though she knew that, eventually, both children would go back to their father for three weeks.
Lily just hoped James would have meetings more often.
Isla II
Saturday, 1 September 1990
Isla couldn't look anyone in the eye as she stood with the other first-years before the Sorting Hat, not even Papa. Looking around the Great Hall as a student differed greatly from looking out from the head table; there wasn't a single person sitting down that didn't already recognize her from the years she'd spent living in the castle, save for those newly-Sorted. One of them was Cho Chang, a girl Isla had befriended on the Hogwarts Express, who now sat at the Ravenclaw table along with Marietta Edgecombe, her other friend. Cho and Marietta had helped Isla feel comfortable during the train ride, as it was the first time she'd ridden away from Papa.
"Snape, Isla!" Aunt Minerva called out.
Isla felt her blood run cold as all eyes were on her, but she remained composed; Papa was always composed, even when he was uncomfortable. Keeping her chin high, she approached the Sorting Hat and briefly made eye contact with Minerva, who gave her a small smile. Isla kept her lips tight and gave a small nod before sitting down on the stool and allowing the Sorting Hat to be placed on her head, her heart racing.
Hmm... Isla Snape, is it?
Hi.
It's good to see you sitting up here after all these years.
How can you see me if you don't have eyes?
... I see you're feeling rather nervous, but you've resolved yourself not to show fear... very courageous, indeed... but there's also a desire to prove yourself to your father... and there's no shortage of hard work... and yet, you don't quite fit inside those boxes... no, you quite outside the box, inquisitive, thirsty for knowledge-
I also want to be with Helena and Myrtle, and Cho and Marietta.
Your new friends. Loyalty, rather admirable for a... "RAVENCLAW!" the Sorting Hat bellowed.
The entirety of Ravenclaw's table erupted in applause, Cho and Marietta standing and waving Isla to sit with them. Isla got up as the Hat was removed from her head, and she turned back to face Papa. His face was unexpressive, save for the corner of his lip curling upward and giving her a small nod. Isla nodded in return before turning on her heel and striding stoically to the Ravenclaw table, sitting on Cho's other side.
"You've got to show us around the castle over the weekend!" Cho said excitedly.
"I'll have to check my schedule," Isla said properly, carefully draping her napkin over her lap.
"Our schedule," Marietta corrected.
"Is it really true?" a boy across from them, Marcus Belby, whispered as the Sorting continued. "You live in the castle?"
"Only during the school year," Isla whispered back, glancing over at Papa as he folded his hands on the table. "Papa- my father teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Cho and Marietta looked over at the table. "Which one is he?"
"The one in black."
"... wow," Marietta whispered.
Isla held back a sigh; this wasn't the first time a student started crushing over Papa, but she wished it would be the last. "He's very strict," Isla said, choosing not to tell off her new friend.
"Uh-huh," Marietta mumbled.
"Mari," Cho whispered, nudging Marietta, "stop that."
"Sorry," Marietta said quickly, clearing her throat as the Sorting Ceremony ended and Uncle Albus stood.
"I wish to say a few words to all our new and returning students before we commence our feast," Albus called out. "Let the feast commence!" He clapped his hands, and food and drink appeared across the entirety of Ravenclaw table.
As the Ravenclaws started putting food on their plate, Belby said, "I don't get it."
"Don't get what?" Marietta asked.
"He said he'd say a few words before the feast."
"He did," Isla explained as she carefully and precisely spooned roast potatoes on the side of her plate. "'Let the feast commence'."
It took Belby a moment, but he soon laughed out loud and buried his face in his hands as his cheeks went red.
"Are you sure they didn't Sort you into the wrong House?" Marietta asked teasingly.
Isla looked back up to where Papa was sitting, seeing that he was now looking at her. He raised his goblet in her direction, toasting her. Isla responded in kind, finally letting herself smile.