Elizabeth slept for nearly 14 hours. While she'd been saved from the lethal consequences of the venom, her body was still processing the toxin, not to mention sleeping off the events of the past twelve hours. Severus had tucked her securely into the bed between Ginny and Hermione, the latter slowly waking from her petrified state.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley fussed over their daughter, each on one side of the bed. Ron was securely wrapped in his mother's arms on her lap as she alternately hugged him and smoothed Ginny's blankets.

"Is this going to be a yearly tradition?" Remus had whispered when he arrived that night. Molly, Ginny, Hermione, and Elizabeth were asleep. Severus was sitting beside Elizabeth's bed, desperately trying to forget all the events of the past several hours. He looked up from where he was picking lint off the blanket.

"It seems that way," Severus grimaced.

Remus sat down on the other side of the bed. "Have you slept?"

"Her life flashed before my eyes," Severus said, not answering the question. "I didn't know that would happen. They say that your own life flashes before you die, but they don't tell you that when you see your child's blood seeping under a basilisk, you see her life."

"She was bleeding?" Remus put his hand on her forehead, as if through that motion he would know where she had been hurt.

Severus shook his head. "I mean, she was, but it wasn't what I saw." He sighed. "I really can't… I don't even know how to communicate."

"Sleep, Sev. I'll stay with her. She's fine, Poppy said so."

"I don't know if I can."

"Drug yourself, Snape. You have a variable pharmacy down there."

Severus shook his head, but Remus brandished his wand. "Do I need to knock you out?"

So Severus went to the Dungeons to sleep, and Remus sat with his goddaughter until the sun came up and she woke, squinting into the light. "Remus?"

"Hey there, Sevling." He smiled down at her. "How do you feel?"

Elizabeth stretched her arm. "A little stiff… better than before though."

"Next time you're going to have a party with murdering psychopaths, I expect to be invited," Remus joked.

"I'll put you on the list."

"Good," Remus smoothed her hair. "Do you need anything?"

"Actually," Elizabeth nodded. "My wand, it's down in the Chamber."

"I'll get it."

"It's on the other side of the snake," she said. "I don't know how you'll—

"I'll get it."

"I just don't want Dad to have to… see it again…"

"Elizabeth," Remus stood. "I said I'd get it. Anything else?"

She smiled a little. "Can you be super careful and get the basilisk's fangs? Dad mentioned once that he could make potions with them, but they are really hard to find."

"Elizabeth Evans, did you just instruct me to be 'super careful'?" Remus mock glared at her.

"Yes, sir."

"So exactly like him," Remus chuckled. "I will be, as you say, 'super careful', and I'll be back soon. I'll take a teacher with me to help."

"Not Lockhart."

"Oh, good thing you stopped me on that one," Remus said sarcastically. Elizabeth grinned as he left the room.

Molly Weasley woke. "Oh, you're awake, sweetheart!" She hugged Elizabeth hard, kissing her cheeks. "Such a brave little girl," she wept.

"I'm okay, Mrs. Weasley, really," Elizabeth said.

"Let her breathe, Mum," Fred's voice came from the door.

"Oh, Fred!" Molly turned to her son. "Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah, Mum, everything's fine. Dad sacked out on the sofa in the common room, but he's going to talk to Dumbledore now. He wants you to meet him in the office."

"Alright," Molly wiped her face. "Will you sit with Ginny?"

"I'll watch her Mum, I promise," Fred assured her.

"Okay," Molly looked at Elizabeth. "I'll be right back." She went into the corridor, still sniffling.

Fred looked at Elizabeth. "Betsy… are you… I mean… you're alright?"

"Yeah," Elizabeth nodded. "Look, Fred, I'm sorry—

"No, I am," he crossed the floor and sat in Severus' vacated chair. "I was worried and I shouldn't have acted like that." He reached out and captured her hand in his. "The whole time you were down there…" He bit his lower lip. "I'm sorry."

Elizabeth sat up. "I almost didn't make it in time," she looked over at Ginny.

"But you did," Fred said firmly. "You did. You saved her." He looked at her arm. "What happened?" He traced the scar with his finger.

"Basilisk fang," she said, as if that kind of thing happened all the time.

"Did it hurt?"

"Not as much…" she trailed off.

"As what?"

"Voldemort…" Fred flinched. "He said things. About you and me. And how you were going to feel when Ginny and I were dead."

Fred, unable to think of a word bad enough to call the Dark Lord, settled for a growl and pulling Elizabeth out of bed and into his lap. "It would have been bad," he said finally.

"Because Ginny's your sister?" Elizabeth looked on her hands entwined with his.

Fred paused. "Because Ginny's my sister," he agreed, pulling her tighter. "And…you're… you know…"

"Ron's best friend?"

"Yeah," Fred shook his head as if arguing with himself. "And you're also, kind of…"

"Ahem," Fred was cut off by Severus, clearing his throat in the doorway. "Mr. Weasley, did you have permission from a Healer to remove my daughter from her bed?"

"No, sir," Fred flushed.

"No?" Severus moved so he was directly beside their chair. "Did you, by any chance, have my permission to be anywhere nearly that close to my daughter?"

"Uh…um…" Fred stammered. "No, sir?"

"Is that a question, Mr. Weasley?"

"No, sir. I mean, yes, I mean, no, sir, I didn't have your permission."

"Then I suppose you should return her to her bed, don't you agree?"

"Yes, sir." Fred released Elizabeth, who took her cue to put herself back in bed.

"You are supposed to be sitting with your sister, are you not, Mr. Weasley?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then you had better get to it," Severus glared at the redheaded boy.

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

Thank you? Severus suppressed a smirk as the boy fled to Ginny's bedside, noting that the Gryffindor chose the opposite side, putting as much space between himself and the Potions professor as possible. So much for Gryffindor courage.

"Where's Hermione?" Elizabeth asked, noticing the bed on her other side was empty.

"In the Tower," Severus supplied, keeping one eye on the Weasley boy.

"Can I get out of here?" She asked plaintively. "I'm not tired anymore."

Severus sighed. "Alright. Your grandfather would like to see you anyway."

*S*S*

"Don't you want to know how Ginny got hold of that diary, Mr. Malfoy?" Elizabeth asked, having stood in the Headmaster's office listening to Lucius babble on about… whatever Malfoys babble about.

"Elizabeth," Severus reminded himself once again to teach Elizabeth the concept of children being seen and not heard.

"How should I know how the stupid little girl got hold of it?" Lucius growled.

"Because you gave it to her," Elizabeth said, glaring at him. "In Flourish and Blotts. You picked up her old Transfiguration book and slipped the diary inside it, didn't you?"

Severus' hand dug into her shoulder.

"Prove it," Malfoy hissed.

"Oh, no one will be able to do that," Albus said, smiling. "Not now that Riddle has vanished from the book. On the other hand, Lucius, you should refrain from giving out any more of Lord Voldemort's old school things. If any were to appear in any innocent hands, I think Arthur Weasley will make sure they are traced back to you."

Lucius' hand twitched toward his cane-encased wand.

"Don't even consider it," Severus said smoothly, casually tapping his wand against one hand.

"We're going, Dobby!"

Lucius wrenched open the door and kicked the house elf through. Elizabeth stood for a moment, then it came to her.

"Professor," she said quickly. "Can I give that diary back to Mr. Malfoy, please?"

"Don't touch that thing," Severus said sharply, but Elizabeth had already grabbed the diary and dashed out of the office. Quickly, not sure her plan would work, and again disregarding Severus' 'think before you act' rule, pulled off one of her shoes and yanked off a sock, stuffing it into the diary.

"Elizabeth Rose!" Severus called after her.

"Right back, Dad!"

Elizabeth caught up to Lucius and Dobby at the top of the stairs.

"Mr. Malfoy," she gasped. "I've got something for you."

She shoved the diary into his hand.

"What the—

Lucius ripped the sock off the diary, threw it aside, then looked furiously from the ruined book to Elizabeth.

"Your father aught to teach you some manners, you little brat," he said softly. He turned to go.

"Come, Dobby. I said, come."

But Dobby didn't move. He was holding up Elizabeth's sock, looking at it as though it were a priceless treasure.

"Master has given a sock," said the elf in wonderment. "Master gave it to Dobby."

"What's that?" spat Lucius. "What did you say?"

"Got a sock. Master threw it, and Dobby caught it, and Dobby— Dobby is free."

Lucius Malfoy stood frozen staring at the elf. Then he lunged at Elizabeth. "You've lost me my servant, you nasty little—

"Impredimenta!" Severus shouted, stopping Malfoy in his tracks. He strode up to the gasping man. "Don't ever come near her," he hissed. "When I release you, you'd better get out and stay out, or my next spell won't be so forgivable."

"Allow Dobby, Professor Snape, sir." Dobby raised one long finger and Lucius blasted backward, crashing down the stairs. "You shall go now," Dobby intoned. "You shall not touch Elizabeth Evans. You shall go now."

Lucius Malfoy had no choice. With a last, incensed stare at the group on the landing, he swung his cloak around him and hurried out of sight.

Severus glared at his daughter. "I am going to assume that you were emotionally distraught from your ordeal, and that kept you from obeying me."

"That man is an ass," Elizabeth said fiercely, staring after Malfoy.

"While that observation may be correct, it doesn't change that your language is deplorable." Severus grasped her upper arm. "Your mouth is going to get you in trouble, young lady."

He marched her down to his office. "Sit." He pointed to one of the student chairs and sat in his own chair.

"Dad, you should be nice to Fred."

"Elizabeth Rose, has this experience stripped you of all fear of me?"

"I was never afraid of you, Dad. And you should be nice to him."

"That is not what we are talking about right now," Severus said, enunciating each word. He was a silent for a moment, and then the topic seemed to bubble up inside him, despite his desire to change the subject. "You," Severus slapped on hand on the desk and used the other to point a long finger at her, "should not be involved in that kind of relationship."

"What kind of relationship?"

"With a boy."

"Do you want me to be in a relationship with a girl?"

Severus scowled. "On a boy's lap, in public no less. It was unladylike."

"He put me there, Dad. He was scared, he was glad that I was okay."

"I share that sentiment," Severus said quietly. "But I had similar heart failure to the Chamber when I walked in to see my nearly-teenaged daughter very comfortable, alone with an older boy."

"He's not that much older."

"He old enough," Severus snapped. "I don't want to ever see you that close to him or any other boy until you are least 16."

"Do you not like Fred?"

"I like Mr. Weasley as much as I like any 4th year," Severus said tightly. "I'd like him better if he were two years younger and thought that you were a swell Quidditch pal."

Elizabeth giggled at 'swell Quidditch pal'. "So, basically, you want him to be Ron."

"Exactly." Severus shook his head. "I'm not saying you can't be friends, that you can't talk. But I don't want to rush something you aren't ready for."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and walked around the desk to hug him. "Alright, Dad. You will not see me sitting on Fred's lap for a few years, alright?"

"Thank you." Severus tapped her hip. "You can, however, sit on your father's lap anytime. You can also play with dolls and do finger painting."

"Dad," Elizabeth rolled her eyes again.

There was a knock on the door and Remus came in, wearing dragon-hide gloves and carrying a large bag.

"Am I interrupting?"

"Dad's afraid I'm having sex."

"Elizabeth!"

"Well, you are," Elizabeth shrugged.

Remus shook his head. "I brought your wand," he held it up.

"Did you leave it down in the Chamber?" Severus asked.

"Riddle had it," Elizabeth explained. "And then Fawkes grabbed me before I could get it back."

"The bird must have known that I was having heart failure," Severus said. "Let me see it," he took her wand and scanned it with his own. "It seems fine." He looked at Remus. "How did you get over that thing?"

"It was a pretty intense spell," Remus said. "I'm not sure what he used, but it definitely wasn't engorgio. It took Poppy and I twenty minutes to figure out how to reverse it."

"You took Poppy?" Severus raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I was collecting these," Remus laid the bag from his shoulder on the desk. "And your daughter insisted that I be 'super careful', so I thought it was best to have a medical professional right there."

"Collecting what?" Severus opened the bag.

"Careful, Dad."

"Here," Remus handed Severus his gloves. "Use these."

Donning the gloves, Severus started pulling out the bag's contents. Basilisk fangs, and several vials of green venom.

"Elizabeth said you would want them."

"So you do listen," Severus smirked. "Thank you, Remus. I should store all this down in the lab."

Remus shook his head. "Like a kid on Christmas over snake teeth. Come on, Elizabeth. Want to go flying?"

"Dad still has my broom." She dashed to the door of the lab. "Dad?" She shouted down the stairs. "Can I have my broom back?"

Silence.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at Remus. "He doesn't like it when I yell down. Hold on," she went down the stairs.

"Dad?'

"Yes?" Severus was carefully labeling vials of basilisk venom.

"Remus wants to go flying… could I please, please, please have my broom back?"

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Come over here, Elizabeth."

Elizabeth stood by his side while he washed his hands and dried them before crossing his arms.

"Elizabeth Rose Evans, are you ever going to steal anything, ever again?"

"No, sir."

"Are you ever going to purposefully disrupt my classroom or any other classroom again?"

"No, sir."

"Are you ever going to do something as stupid as brewing a dangerous potion without supervision?"

"No, sir."

"Alright then." Severus raised his wand. "Accio Elizabeth's Broom." It zipped out of the cabinet in the corner and into his hand. Elizabeth reached for it, but he held it back. "You may have this back. You may rejoin the Quidditch team, if your grandmother agrees." He smirked at the thought. As if Minerva would deny her House a chance at the championship. "Your detentions are not over. I will see you in my office, every Tuesday and Thursday after supper until the end of the year."

"Thank you!" She tried to take the broom again but he held it out of her grasp.

"Look at me," he said sternly, waiting until she was looking at him instead of the broom. "If I ever have to take this away for something so egregious again, you won't see it for a much longer amount of time, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"Alright," Severus handed her the broom. "Be careful, mind your godfather. And go easy on him, he's an old man."

"Hey!" Remus' voice came from the top of the stairs. "Wolf ears, here."

"Thank you, Dad." Elizabeth hugged him and ran up the stairs.

Severus watched her go, shaking his head, and returned to his bottling.

*S*S*

The rest of the term passed uneventfully.

Exams were cancelled. "Laziness," Severus muttered when that was announced.

All those involved in the Chamber incident recovered, though Dumbledore also announced that Professor Lockhart had decided to take an indefinite professional leave of absence. No one was concerned but Hermione, who still didn't believe Elizabeth and Ron's account of the Professor's attempted flee from the castle.

As a result, Defense class was cancelled for the rest of the term, which didn't stop Severus from making Elizabeth study Basic Defense Year 2 for an hour three times a week.

Before they knew it, the term was over.

"You know, Dad," Elizabeth said after the feast, serving her last detention in his office, "Ron was babbling on during the announcement of the House Cup. Who won?"

Severus grunted, but didn't answer.

"Seriously, Dad, I didn't hear. Was it Slytherin?"

"Do you want detention over the summer?"

Elizabeth grinned. "I'm finished," she held up the parchment. "I think 1000 lines was excessive."

"I think it wasn't enough," Severus responded, though he was internally impressed by her use of 'excessive'. "Bring them over here, please."

Elizabeth handed him the parchment, and he scanned it.

I will obey when told to leave the den of murderous Dark Lords.

I will obey when told to leave the den of murderous Dark Lords.

I will obey when told to leave the den of murderous Dark Lords.

I will obey when told to leave the den of murderous Dark Lords.

I will obey when told to leave the den of murderous Dark Lords.

"Adequate," he declared.

"I couldn't, you know," Elizabeth leaned on the arm of his desk chair. "Leave the Chamber. He would have killed us all. The only reason he hadn't done it yet is because, apparently, Voldemort enjoys playing with his food."

"When did you start talking like you're 35?"

"I'm not old, Dad."

"35 is old?" Severus smirked. "Are you ready to take care of me in 2 years when I'm ready for the old folks' home?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "I take care of you now. How is that going to change?"

"Oh, really?" Severus tucked the parchment away. "How about you help me now and go make sure your trunk is packed so I can send it home?"

"Okay," Elizabeth reached for the floo powder.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm flooing to the common room," she said, looking at him like he'd lost his mind.

"Walk, you lazy child! There's no basilisk waiting to kill you."

Elizabeth pulled her hand back. "Fine. Hey, are we going home when you pick me up tomorrow or coming back?"

"Home," Severus said, coming around his desk to usher her to the door. "Lack of exams meant more time to work at the end of the term. Anything else I need to do, I can do at Spinners' End."

*S*S*

"Um… Dad?" Elizabeth examined the charred… something in the pan on the stove. "Where's Francy?"

Severus grimaced. "Hatchling, Francy... is a very old elf."

"Really? It's hard to tell," Elizabeth poked the blackened blob with a fork.

"I promised my mother that I'd retire her when she started to show signs of senility."

"Okay… so… you cooked?"

"You were getting tired of sandwiches." Severus shrugged.

"Hello?" Remus' voice came from the living room. "Anyone home around here?"

"In the kitchen!" Elizabeth called back. "What was…umm… is… this, Dad?"

"Roast beef. It'll be fine when you put the sauce on it."

Remus arrived in the kitchen. "Hey, roast beef," he pulled a fork out of the drawer.

"No!" Elizabeth threw her hands between the "food" and her godfather.

"What?"

"This is ridiculous," Elizabeth said, scowling. "I'm cooking."

"You most certainly are not," Severus shook his head. "You're too young to be dealing with—

"Dad, I've been cooking since I was old enough to reach the stove."

"You don't have to do that here," Severus said firmly.

Elizabeth sighed in exasperation. "Dad, you love me, I get it. Cooking will not bring back bad memories and make me equate you with the Dursleys. It will not give me a feeling of slavery, or whatever you think it will do to my very delicate feelings. There is no chance that me cooking for us will damage our relationship in any way, but there is a strong chance that if you continue to cook we will die of food poisoning or starvation. Okay?"

Remus was doubled over by the end of her monologue. "You were right," he said around the laughter. "Like she's 35. She's been hanging around you too much."

Severus sighed. "It's not that I don't appreciate—

"Remus, could you take him to the living room or something?"

"This is my house, young lady," Severus snapped.

"Yes, and we're going to eat dinner in it, if you leave me alone for about an hour." She poked the blackened meat. "Go away, or I'll order pizza, which will probably be delivered by a Muggle teenager. Those boys can sometimes be chatty—

"Fine," Severus growled. "Fine, I give up." He pointed one long finger at her. "Any emotional disturbance from you—

"I'm only going to be emotionally disturbed if you make me stand in the corner while you eat it," Elizabeth assured him. "I don't mind cooking if I get to eat." She pecked him on the cheek. "Now go away."

"Yes, ma'am," Remus drawled, propelling his friend into the living room. "Goodness she sounds like you."

"No," Severus said, a little smile floating across his face. "She sounds like Lily. Not the vocabulary, that's me, but that motherly bossiness is all Lily. And Lily's mother."

Two games of chess later, Severus had sent several worried looks toward the kitchen.

"It's quiet in there."

"She's fine, Sev," Remus assured. "Listen, she's going to be 13 soon."

"Oh, believe me, I know. Every other word she's said for the last few months has been about how she's 'nearly 13'."

"I know you know, Sev. I'm saying, what should we do? I was thinking, she's so much more stable this year, maybe we could have a party."

"We'll see."

"Okay," Remus grinned. "By 'we'll see", do you mean 'call Albus and have him plan it'?"

"No!" Severus snapped, scowling. "I'll talk to her about it, alright?"

"Are you guys fighting?" Elizabeth stood in the doorway.

"No," Remus said quickly. "Your dad is a just a pain."

"That's not very nice," Elizabeth scolded, putting her arm around Severus' shoulders. "I'm going to eat your garlic bread."

"Garlic bread?" Remus sniffed the air. "I thought I smelled garlic."

The men followed Elizabeth into the kitchen.

"Merlin," Remus breathed. The table was set, salad, spaghetti with red sauce, garlic bread down the middle.

"There's salad dressing and cheese," Elizabeth put small bowls beside the rest of the food as Remus and Severus sat down. "Dig in, I couldn't do a warming charm, so eat it while it's hot."

Two helpings apiece later, Severus and Remus were both eyeing the last piece of garlic bread. "Excellent, Elizabeth, really," Remus praised. "Don't tell Francy, but she wasn't nearly as good a cook."

"I'll never cook again," Severus promised.

"Are you finished?" Elizabeth stood up. "I'll put the leftovers in the fridge."

"That, I can do," Severus waved his wand, the food vanished, and the dirty dishes started washing themselves in the sink.

"Dad, I'm supposed to wash the dishes."

"Not now, you aren't. If you're going to cook, you're going to trade a chore."

"Whatever you say, Dad." Elizabeth shrugged.

"I might really move in here now, Sev," Remus said. "Anyone want to go out for ice cream?"

"I made pudding," Elizabeth rising to pull the dessert out of the refrigerator.

Severus watched her put the pudding on the table. "Elizabeth," he beckoned her to his side and pulled her to sit on his knee. "You're sure—

"Dad!"

"Listen to me," Severus said sharply. "I'm asking you, Elizabeth, and remember that you know better than to lie to me."

"Dad," Elizabeth leaned her head on his shoulder. "Did it ever occur to you that I like being able to do something for you? And that I really want something edible?"

Severus kissed her temple. "Alright, then."

Not bad for two years, Severus thought fondly. Maybe everything really will be alright.