Later That Night

"You do know it's called the forbidden forest for a reason, don't you?" Fred whispered into his best friend's ear, not wanting to make too much noise and attract unwanted attention.

"I told you," lovelle hissed at him, still upset. "I wasn't really thinking when I came outside. I just ran and ended up here on accident," she told him honestly. This night was hardly one she had planned.

"If we get eaten by anything," George started.

"It's not going to be pleasant," Fred finished, utterly terrified for the first time in ages. Him, his twin, and Haley were currently lost somewhere in the forest beyond the walls of Hogwarts. It was late in the evening and they were surrounded by a sea of darkness. So, to say finding their way back to the castle was even remotely possible would be a lie.

"Really? It sounds like a lovely time in my opinion," she snapped, sounding all too much like her father.

"Why did you," Fred went to ask. "Even come out here in the first place?" George finished for him.

"Didn't you hear what the other students were saying?" Lovelle sniffed, her saddened state making its return.

"About Snape being your dad?"

"That's what upset you?"

"They weren't exactly being nice about it," she enlightened them. "Percy told Penelope about me and my- …Severus," she let the two know, nearly calling the professor 'father' aloud for the first time, "who has the biggest mouth in this planet, apparently," lovelle insulted the redhead's girlfriend. "Because she told all of her friends…and word got around pretty quick," she wiped a stray tear from her cheek. "Now everyone is calling me 'the bat's daughter' and other rude things."

Lovelle had drawn her knees up to her chest, her face hidden from view. At this point, the trio had been sitting on the forest floor for the past twenty minutes (with no intentions of moving anytime soon).

"I actually found that one funny," Fred admitted with a laugh, surprising the distraught girl as she lifted her head quickly.

"No, 'Snape's spawn' was definitely a better one," George argued, chuckling along.

Lovelle swatted each of them, "You're supposed to be on my side!" she got up, hurt by their feelings towards her being picked on. They should be defending her, afterall.

"We are," Fred rubbed his newly aching arm.

"You can't take what other people say so seriously," George suggested.

"You've got to learn to laugh," his twin advised, "because if they realize their words are having the opposite effect," the other went on, "they will give up sooner rather than later," lovelle concluded as she often did with most of their sentences.

"Exactly," the duo confirmed simultaneously.

"I'm sorry," she apologized sheepishly, regretting having gotten angry with them.

"No worries," Fred put an arm around her shoulder.

"Just don't think that we aren't here for you," George felt the need to say this.

"Since we always will be," his brother completed the promise.

"Thanks guys," lovelle rested her head on Fred's shoulder, feeling a million times better.

They were just about to tell her not to mention it when a deep, menacing voice sounded from behind.

"Who are you to walk so bravely into our midst?"

The trio turned to see an extremely large acromantula standing not far from their persons.

"Our?" Lovelle couldn't help but question, not seeing any other spiders around.

The inquiry had been a big mistake, as no sooner had the word left her lips, hundreds of smaller insects came scurrying out into view.

"We didn't mean to," George latched onto her hand, feeling the need to be close in case things went wrong (which he knew they soon would).

"We were just passing through," Fred grabbed onto lovelle's free hand, standing on her opposite side. None of them had thought to bring their wands…no one knew they were out here…they were done for.

"You shouldn't have followed me out here," she whispered to the twins. "I'm so sorry," lovelle sounded as if she were saying her goodbyes.

"Shut it," George declined the apology, not wanting to hear her defeated tone. None of this was genuinely her fault anyways.

"We came out here on our own," Fred reminded her.

"It's not like you dragged us out into the forest."

"I know, but-"

"Enough," the acromantula silenced their hushed bickering. "My sons and daughters have waited far too long for the taste of human flesh."

"Can't they wait a bit longer?" Lovelle pleaded.

"We'd really appreciate it," George said in a shaky, high-pitched voice.

"We'll leave right now-"

"Aragog?" Hagrid walked in between the three children and the oversized spider. "What're you doin'?" he demanded an answer from his longtime friend.

"Allowing my children a meal," he confessed, not seeing the problem.

Suddenly, lovelle felt a searing pain aimed towards the left side of her ribcage. Her vision quickly began blackening. Fred had fallen to the ground…Hagrid was shouting words she couldn't make out…George was trying to get her attention, but the last thing she saw was a large spider carving its teeth into her body.

"No!" The redheads desperately tried pulling the creature off of their friend, not caring about whatever consequences might follow.

"Call him off!" Hagrid turned to Aragog, fear and anger flashing in his eyes.

Reluctantly, the acromantula conceded and put an end to lovelle's suffering. He couldn't say no to the man he owed so much to…his friend.

"I'll come back an' talk with you later," the gamekeeper spoke firmly, still displeased. He then trudged over to the unconscious girl's body and lifted her up into his arms with ease.

"We need to get her-"

"-Back to the castle," the two eleven year old boys told him frantically, worried for lovelle's life.

Hagrid couldn't agree more, which is why he retreated towards the hospital wing as quickly as possible.

Half an Hour Later

"Is she gonna be okay?" Harry asked in a small voice as he sat beside his sister's bed.

"She will," Severus nodded, sitting next to him.

It was the first conversation between the two since the potions master agreed to take the boy in. At first, the professor was bitter. Whenever he'd look at Harry he would see a miniature James in his place. However, after thinking further into what Albus had told him about living in the past, he no longer viewed the eight year old in such a way. He didn't reside there anymore and desperately needed to let it be. All that mattered now was his daughter and her brother (not James' son). They were a packaged deal by this point and Severus accepted it…albeit reluctantly.

"Are you sure?" he checked, frightened by the scene before him. Currently, lovelle lie underneath a set of white sheets, her face just as pale (if not paler) than them. Several of her ribs had been broken, but it was nothing Madam Pomfrey couldn't fix. A blood replenishing potion took care of the significant amount the girl had lost due to the football-sized wound on her side. All that remained now was a scar with slight discomfort.

"I would not lie to you," Severus replied honestly, looking away from lovelle and at Harry.

He hung his head, "I know…"

The professor (somewhat awkwardly) placed a hand upon the young boy's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him.

From there, the duo sat in silence, anxiously awaiting lovelle's awakening.

Several Hours Later

"What happened?"

Severus' head shot up at the sound of his daughter's voice. It had been quite a while since his and Harry's conversation; after which he had sent the boy to bed.

"You don't recall anything?" he questioned her, slightly concerned.

After a few moments went by, everything came rushing back. "Are Fred and George okay?" she asked, fear evident across her face.

"They are fine," her father reassured. He continued speaking when Haley chose to remain quiet. "Care to explain why you were out in the forest when you should have remained at the Welcoming Feast?"

"Can we please talk about that later?" she asked in a tone the professor had never heard from her before.

"We can," he nodded slowly, slightly bewildered. Under normal circumstances, he'd decline the request…but given all that had taken place, along with the way his daughter was currently behaving, he set the conversation aside temporarily.

"It's just…I didn't mean…" lovelle grasped her head, bits and pieces of the attack crowding her mind. "He came out of nowhere…I couldn't," she quit trying to explain as her breathing became heavy and her head, light.

"Hush, child," Severus placed his hands gently upon her shoulders. "You are safe now," he reminded her, his voice calm in spite of being worried.

She removed his hands soon after that, however, as they were holding her down, keeping her from going to the place she really needed to be: in his arms.

Although it had been unexpected (even though she'd done this before), her father didn't hesitate to return the embrace; comforting the girl more than he knew.

Tomorrow, he decided as he continued holding his now sleeping daughter, they would discuss everything…including how she was now legally a Snape, as the newly made Slytherin should have been from the start.