Her Father's Daughter

Her Father's Daughter

Chapter Three

Ginny sighed as she knocked on Professor Lupin's classroom door.

"Come in," came the hoarse reply from inside.

She entered the room and walked slowly to the front of the class. Professor Lupin was seated behind his desk, reading a novel. He closed it and smiled at the seventeen-year-old.

"Thank you for being on time," he said, indicating for her to take a seat at the desk before him.

"What am I to do?" Ginny asked coldly. "Lines?"

Lupin shook his head at her, laying his book down on the desk. "No, you have two choices," he explained. "You can spend your two hours this evening doing your homework, or you can talk to me about what's bothering you."

Without hesitation, Ginny opened her book bag and pulled out her essay for Professor Malfoy. She ignored Lupin's gaze and began writing.

Lupin sighed quietly and picked his novel up again, returning to the dog-eared page. He would allow her, during this first detention, to ignore him, but he worried that no matter what Dumbledore had said, Ginny would not want to talk to him about her situation at all.

Ginny played with her quill while thinking about her essay. Given how busy she'd been the previous evening with patrols and earlier in the day with the start of her other classes, she'd barely given Malfoy's assignment any thought. And now, with her tensions running high, she found herself at a loss for words.

She'd been lucky the previous evening that when she'd came to turn in her report to Malfoy he'd been absent from his office. She merely left her report on his desk and hurried up to Gryffindor Tower before she saw him.

Her other classes that day had been the same as the first day- a review of sixth year material, followed by a long lecture about N.E.W.T.S. The only class she'd looked forward to had been Potions, and Snape had been as condescending and frightening as ever. But Ginny found she'd actually enjoyed his belittling for once. She thought she knew him better than most other students, and deep down, she knew he had a good heart and a passion for wanting his students to succeed.

He'd held her back after class to discuss her private study with him. He was apprised of her detentions, and after a brief lecture, they'd decided to begin their study the next week. Ginny was looking forward to it, and she felt Snape was too, no matter how much he pretended to be bothered by her. She knew that his war injuries had all but broken his spirit and that his hateful attitude was merely a compensation for his not being able to walk anymore.

The other students, who had not seen him, except for being seated at the Welcoming Feast, were not aware of his condition, and they were surprised to find him behind his desk when they'd arrived for class. Snape, who had been known for his dramatic first-day entrances, all but ignored them for the first several minutes. Ginny was glad to see his intimidating glare had not been impaired, though she was probably the only student who felt that way.

Thinking back on it, she giggled before realizing she was still in detention with Lupin. He quirked an eyebrow at her over his book at her laugh but said nothing. In turn, Ginny forced her face back into the stony glare she'd been practicing all afternoon.

She returned her thoughts to her essay. What were her weaknesses? Well, for one, she didn't feel very strongly about Malfoy of all people reading her private thoughts, but she supposed she didn't really have a choice. Right off, she couldn't really think of any weaknesses, but after several moments, her conscience began to speak very quietly to her.

Vivid images of arguments with her family and friends over the years brought themselves to the forefront of her mind. Her temper was definitely her biggest weakness. She wrote several sentences about that and included some examples of times her temper had gotten her in trouble. Smirking to herself, she wrote a brief anecdote about a certain Bat-Bogey Hex during her fourth year. Malfoy would definitely not be pleased to be reminded of that incident.

Recalling that moment brought back the memory of the fight at the Department of Mysteries. Looking back, Ginny knew that she and the others had been rather reckless in flying off to London without knowing the whole truth. But, at the time, they were intent on saving Sirius... Sirius.

As Ginny was writing about her sometimes reckless nature, she thought of Sirius. A sudden image of him, smiling and laughing in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place flashed in her brain, and she felt herself quickly overcome with emotion. She remembered back to that awful night at the Ministry. Without really realizing it, she began to imagine what would have happened if the other members of the Order hadn't arrived. Her very first thought was that Sirius would still be alive.

But Harry and the rest of you wouldn't be, said the small voice in the back of her mind.

Ginny sighed loudly and shook the thoughts from her head. But the image of Sirius laughing wouldn't leave her mind. She found herself fighting to remember other moments with him. She remembered trying to listen to Sirius and Harry, gazing at the Black Family Tree. He'd seemed so bitter and despondent, and Ginny wondered still what had made him turn against his family.

Finally, Lupin's voice broke her thoughts. "Your time is up, Ginny," he said quietly. "You may go. See you tomorrow evening."

He'd been pretending to read but had really been watching the young girl. He wondered what had ensnared her thoughts so deeply for those few hours. He had seen her working on her essay for Malfoy, but somewhere along the way, she'd gotten off track. She'd stared off into space, and at one point, Lupin thought she looked like she might cry. How he wished she'd open up to him.

For one thing, he'd known her since she was twelve, and he felt he'd built up a good report with, not just her, but her whole family. And then, there was the aspect that he was the only real connection she had left to her true father. There were so many things he wanted to tell her about Sirius, but she knew he would have to wait until she came to him with questions.

Ginny silently gathered her things and left the room. She stowed her books in her dormitory before heading out into the corridor again to begin her patrol.

Hours later, she was finishing up her last round of patrolling in the Astronomy Tower. She walked to the edge of the parapet and leaned over the railing. The stars were bright tonight, and she leaned her head back to take in as much of the night sky as she could. A particularly bright constellation caught her eye, and she raised her hand, tracing it, star to star, with her index finger.

She couldn't remember the name of that constellation, but she knew she'd studied it before. While staring at it, Ginny subconsciously fingered her necklace's charm. Sighing once more, she turned and went back inside to return to her dormitory.

=

Ginny hurriedly finished her essay for Professor Malfoy at lunch. Her morning had gone fairly well. She'd avoided being stung by a poisonous plant during Herbology, and she had successfully performed all the Charms Lupin had assigned them for homework. She'd also successfully avoided talking to her Charms professor all during class, though he'd quietly reminded her about her detention that evening.

After lunch, she slowly made her way to Malfoy's class. She dreaded his class, and she knew that her other classmates felt the same way. Even Christian Zabini complained about his former house-mate during patrols.

He'd confided in Ginny that he wouldn't be surprised if Malfoy was planning on using their weaknesses against them in class and that one of his could be particularly embarrassing.

Ginny took her seat close to the window and waited on the others to arrive. She pulled her essay from her bag and quickly reread it, wondering if what Christian said could be true. But none of the qualities she'd written about were embarrassing, even for Malfoy.

When Professor Malfoy entered the room, the chatter died down quickly, and he strode casually to his desk.

"At the end of class, please bring your essays to the front. I will review them and hand them back next class," he said eyeing some of the nervous students.

Christian Zabini gave Ginny a knowing look before turning away.

"Please pull out some parchment," Malfoy said. "We're going to take notes today."

The class grumbled, as they'd all been hoping for a practical lesson. Ginny wondered what Malfoy was up to. Not since Umbridge had been their teacher had they really had a lecture in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"Has anyone heard of Niccolo Machiavelli?" Malfoy asked.

Several of the students looked around in confusing and began thumbing furiously through their textbooks. Malfoy chuckled.

"No, you won't find him in there," he explained. "Machiavelli was a Muggle."

He paused as the students began mumbling to each other about the Slytherin prince teaching about a Muggle of all people.

"Can anyone tell me about him?" Malfoy asked. "Miss Weasley?"

Ginny gulped and searched her memory. She'd recognized the name, but she couldn't place its significance. Finally, realization hit her.

"He was Italian, I believe," she began, and Malfoy nodded in encouragement to her. "He was a writer, mostly about politics, and he wrote a book called, The Prince, I think."

"Ten points to Gryffindor," Malfoy said. "You're right about him, but he also wrote poetry, philosophy and treaties, as well as political theories.

"Machiavelli was condemned in his own time for his views on human nature. In his work, The Prince, he defines human nature as entirely selfish and states that any means necessary must be used to retain order."

"Sounds like a great prat to me," Zabini said with a laugh.

"Believe me, he was," Malfoy chuckled. "But he was also a great thinker, and no matter how ruthless and deceptive his views may seem, think about them. How many people do you know have achieved their means by being cruel and cunning? Hell, even I resorted to that type of methodology at one time in my life."

"But how does this relate to Defense?" Colin Creevey asked.

"Because, Mr. Creevey, don't you think the enemy will do whatever he can to manipulate you, blackmail you?" Malfoy replied. "Of course he will, and evil has in the past. It isn't just the Imperius that can force someone into doing something they don't want to.

"For tonight's homework, please write up a comparison between Machiavelli's views and the actions of Voldemort during his first rise to power, and bring it to class for next week," Malfoy said. "Trust me, you'll find some interesting coincidences."

Ginny frowned in thought. How odd that Malfoy would use a Muggle philosopher and a history lesson for a Defense class. Nevertheless, it didn't sound like a difficult assignment. Smiling to herself, Ginny gathered her things and hurried to leave class. She had just enough time before dinner to do some quickly flying.

After that, unfortunately, she had another detention with Professor Lupin to look forward to.

=

Ginny entered Professor Lupin's office for the second night in a row, wondering if her detention would be the same as the previous night. She hoped so; she had some Astronomy homework to do.

Lupin smiled at her from over his book as she walked towards him. "How are you this evening?" he asked kindly.

She nodded once at him. "Fine, thank you," she replied curtly. "What am I to do tonight?"

Lupin sighed and lowered his book. He gazed shrewdly at her before he spoke.

"Same as before, Miss Weasley," he said with a hint of sadness in his voice.

Ginny nodded again and took her seat. She pulled out her Astronomy book and the Star Chart they'd been given to label. She brushed the end of her quill across her lips as she began to work.

As she worked, Lupin mentally argued with himself. Should he force her to talk to him? Demand that she listen to his advice? Would she even listen? He sighed resolutely and wished that Sirius were there to fix this.

A slight gasp broke his thoughts, and he almost dropped his book. His eyes darted over to Ginny, and he found her staring wide-eyed at her chart. Her face was ghastly pale, and her quill was shaking in her fingers.

"Ginny, what is it? What's wrong?" he asked worriedly. He leaped from his chair and hurried around his desk to her side.

She didn't answer; instead, she stared at her chart in shock. Lupin followed her eyes to a particular constellation that had apparently caught her attention.

"Sirius," he whispered.

"But that's my star," Ginny replied, more to herself.

"Sorry?" Lupin said, perplexed. "Your star?"

Ginny, for the first time, looked up at him, her eyes still wide.

"I wish on that star every night," she said breathlessly. "I have since I was a little girl. Even on cloudy nights I can see it."

Lupin placed his hand gently on her shoulder. "Sirius did as well, when he was younger." He smiled at the memory. "He'd be up to all hours of the night in the dormitory, just gazing up at the star of his namesake."

"I had no idea it was in the Canis Major constellation," Ginny said, lowering her head. Her red hair fell into her face, and she brushed it back behind her ears.

Lupin sat next to her and watched her carefully. "Are you all right?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yes, thank you," she replied. She stood and walked over to the window.

Gazing out, she found her - and her father's star - and smiled to herself. "It is quite beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yes," Lupin replied, following her to the window. He, too, looked out at it and closed his eyes, fondly remembering his best friend.

Feeling his close proximity and remembering she was angry with him, Ginny coughed and returned to her desk. "My homework," she mumbled.

Lupin nodded and returned to his book.

When her time was nearly up, he spoke again. "Miss Weasley, I haven't yet asked your forgiveness," he said nervously.

"I never meant to offend you with my comments, and I'm sorry I didn't make myself clearer when I spoke," he continued. "I should have realized your discomfort and refrained from bringing attention to you."

Ginny looked up, stunned. "Thank you, Professor."

She sighed petulantly. "I'm sorry for calling you a prat."

Lupin chuckled. "Believe me; I've been called much worse."

"By whom?" she asked interestedly.

"James and Sirius, and even Peter, on the rare occasion," he laughed. "Sometimes I wondered if Hogwarts were big enough for all our egos."

Ginny giggled. "I wondered the same thing about Harry and Ron on occasion, especially last year."

Lupin smiled at her and checked his watch. "Your time is up," he said. "You may go."

Ginny gathered her things and walked to the door. "Good night, Professor," she said with a small smile. "See you tomorrow."

=

Snape beckoned to Ginny the moment she entered the Potions classroom. As she approached him, she realized how tired he looked. Concern etched on her face, she stopped in front of his desk.

"Are you alright, Professor?" she asked.

He ignored her question and said, "You have your last detention tonight, correct?"

She nodded, and he continued. "I'll expect you tomorrow evening for research."

"But I thought we weren't to begin until next week, sir," she protested. Ginny was already behind on her homework and Quidditch practice.

"Experimentation begins next week," Snape replied curtly. "Did you think we would do that without conducting the proper research first?"

He thrust a piece of parchment across the desk at her. "Bring these books from the library with you," he demanded. "I've already informed Madame Pince of your need for the Restricted Section during this term."

"But sir -" she began.

"If there's a problem with your schedule, Miss Weasley, perhaps you should rethink some of your extracurricular activities," he sneered. "I've arranged to be available for you. You could extend the same courtesy for me."

Ginny bit back a comment about Snape's courtesy and snatched the parchment from him. She turned to sit down, and her shoulders sank at his parting comment.

"Directly after dinner, Miss Weasley," he insisted.

For Ginny, Potions class didn't improve. Snape was particularly nasty to everyone, and he appeared to be weak, though his sharp tongue hadn't lost any strength. Her concern for him waned with each derogatory comment he sent her way. Only when she was gathering her books did she notice the twitch.

In her haste to leave, Ginny spilled the contents of her bag onto the floor. As she was picking them up, Snape wheeled himself past her. Out of the corner of her eye, she had but a split second to see his arm before it made contact with her cheek.

She fell to the floor, more in shock than pain, and Snape turned his chair to her.

"Miss Weasley!" he called. "Are you alright?" The chilliness in his voice was gone.

"I'm fine," she replied as she fought to regulate her breathing.

"It was an accident," Snape insisted as she stood.

"I know, Professor," she replied, forcing a smile at him.

His hollow face held concern and embarrassment, and the lines around his eyes wrinkled with frustration. He grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her down into a chair.

"Let me see," he murmured.

"Professor, I'm fine really," she insisted. "It just startled me."

Snape grabbed her chin, forcing her to keep her head still as he brushed the hair away from her face. His gasp was audible as his eyes took in the purple bruise now forming just under her left eye.

His right arm began twitching again under her chin, and Ginny gently took his hand in hers, pulling it away. She held it firmly and shook her hair back over her face, covering the wound.

Snape looked like a wounded animal, and for a moment, she wondered if he would cry. Snapping back to reality, he quickly drew his wand with his free hand and cast a Glamour over the bruise. He brushed his fingers across the Charm.

"My sincerest apologies," he whispered.

Ginny patted his palm. "How long has the tremor been there?" she asked without preamble.

He withdrew his hand from her grasp and placed it on his lap, covering it with his other hand.

"The last week it's become more pronounced and less controllable," he replied, avoiding her gaze. "The old potions aren't helping anymore." He paused and laughed mirthlessly. "And most wizards think that insanity is the only lasting effect of the Cruciatus. No one ever thinks about paralysis."

"Which is why you wanted to start researching the new one tomorrow," she said, finally realizing his need for haste.

She stood and picked up her bag. "I'll be here straight after dinner," she said softly, heading to the door.

"Miss Weasley," he called after her, and she turned. "I can't tell you how sorry I am."

"Don't think on it another moment, sir," she said. "It's forgotten."

She left, softly closing the door behind her.

As she left, Snape hung his head. He'd struck a student. And not just any student, his brightest and favorite student, the one he'd hand-picked as his research assistant.

A knock on the door broke his thoughts, and he momentarily wondered if Ginny had returned. Clearing his throat, he said, "Enter."

Remus Lupin strode into the room, his brow furrowed in thought. Snape swallowed with difficulty, wondering if Ginny had told him what had happened, and if she hadn't, should he?

"How are you feeling, Severus?" he asked.

"Fine," Snape replied curtly. "What do you want?"

Lupin smiled a small smile at his colleague. "I was wondering if I could talk to you about Ginny Weasley."

"Weasley?" Snape replied nervously.

"As you know, I'd hoped that she would open up to me during her detentions, but that hasn't been the case," Lupin said, taking a seat.

"What does that have to do with me?" Snape asked, perplexed.

"I understand she will be assisting you with your special Potions project this year," the werewolf continued. "I trust you'll begin soon?"

Snape absently rubbed his right hand. "We begin research tomorrow evening."

"Good, good," Lupin replied thoughtfully.

"Lupin?" Snape asked irritably, and the other man smiled forcefully.

"Just try and listen if she says anything, won't you, Severus?" he asked. "Perhaps through your mutual respect, Ginny will feel like talking about... things."

Wide-eyed, Snape nodded mutely as Lupin stood and left the classroom without another word.

Alone again, he sighed to himself, wondering when he'd become Ginny Weasley's elected confidant.