"Have you done it? Have you gotten Harry Potter?" His voice was whisper-like and I nearly cried at the sound of it. "Vallencia." 

"Yes, Father?" I struggled to keep a calm face.

"Has Harry Potter fallen in love yet?" He then appears, all dressed up in his smoky black cloak. "Vallencia." He flashes closer, so that he's right behind me. "Is he in love with you?"

"Almost. I can tell he likes me, Father." I turn to look at him.

He smiles devilishly. It frightens me. The fact that that frightens me scares me even more. I never used to be scared of him. "Good. I won't stay for long. You need to rest your mind."

"No. Father, don't go. Please." I reach out to him and touch his elbow.

"There is nothing left to say." He turns, about to apparate.

"Don't you love me?" I say, my voice cracking.

He turns back to face me slowly. "Of course, dear." His words sound sincere, but I see the venom in his eyes. The venom I never saw before. What have I gotten myself into?

                                                        *                          *                          *

"Vallee. Vallee. Are you alright? Vallee!"

I open my eyes and see Harry. I had collapsed. Had I dreamed  that? Did I really see Father? "I'm okay," In say weakly. I'm laying in his arms. Severus. Get Severus. Father was there. And he's assisting me now. "We need to see Professor Snape."

"Snape? Why Snape?" Harry asks. I see my reflection in his glasses and cringe at the sight of me. The left side of my face was smudged in blood and my eye was black. "What happened?"

"You collapsed." He purses his lips, as if he's thinking. He opens his mouth to speak then shuts it, then opens it again. "Vallee, did you hear Lord Voldemort speaking?"

I stare at him. I hadn't expected him to even begin to think that. "Excuse me?"

"I mean, I hear him... often, and well, I sometimes collapse. I was just wondering if someone else understood." He runs his hand through his hair. 

I ponder this for a moment. "I did. It... frightened..." I stop. I'm so sick of lying to Harry. He doesn't deserve it. "Harry-"

"What's happened?" Severus asks, walking towards us with his overpowering presence. 

"I... fell." I gulp.

He eyes me warily. Was he questioning my loyalty to Father? Then I think of how I was about to reveal everything to Harry. "And how did you fall? Did Potter push you?"

"Why would I do that?" Harry asks.

"Enough, Potter. I was talking to Miss... Skaal." He raises one brow slightly.

"No, Professor, I am simply dehydrated." I eye him severely.

He nods slightly. "Perhaps you should come with me. Potter, don't you have a friend you could check on?" Snape asks.

Harry opens his mouth, then nods. He walks off.

Once he's gone, Severus extends his arm to help me up. I take it. "Thank you, Severus. What do you need me for?"

"It seems your father wishes for you to see me." He brushes his black hair away from his face softly. 

"Do you know why?" I ask simply.

His eyes darken. "We should finish this conversation in my office."

I nod and we start walking towards his office. I see Minerva McGonnogal walking in the direction opposite of us. She eyes me suspiciously. "Skaal? Are you alright?"

I nod and smile. "Just had a slight fall. Professor Snape is assisting me."

"Alright. I suppose Professor Snape is doing his job of assisting students. But next time, you should come to the head of your house."

I smile. "Of course. He was just around."

She nods and continues away. Severus looks at me and pulls me towards his office. When we arrive, he starts sorting through his bottles. "The fall wasn't bad. We should just have something else, in case someone gets curious and decides to snoop."

"Why did Father tell me to see you?" I ask immediately.

"To check on you, I would assume." His calm demeanor unnerves me. 

"Why would I need to be checked on?"

He turns towards me, his dark eyes piercing. "He probably means Potter more than you."

"He's falling." I turn away and admire some odd object. "But I'm not taking any chances."

I turn towards him. He's eyeing me closely. "Yes. That would make sense."

"Now, if you don't mind, I have... friends to check on."

"Why was Granger so upset, Vallencia?" Snape asks coolly.

"Don't call me that," I snap. He continues watching me. "I don't know why she was so upset. I've made Harry my target and I've made it pretty obvious."

"Is she upset with you?" he asks, coming closer. He leans in very close. Way too close for comfort. "Because if she is, you'd better fix it before Potter finds out."

"Harry already knows," I say. "It will not affect his opinion of me."

Snape pulls on his cloak quickly. "Were you or were you not in a relationship with Granger?"

"I was not." 

He grunts. "You should really be more careful." He backs away and says, "dismissed."

I hurry out of the room, desperate to find Hermione. I thought I liked her, but perhaps I was just trying to be defiant, like most teenagers. Perhaps my hormones were simply raging and she was their first target. I shake my head and turn the corner. Dumbledore. "Hello, Headmaster."

"Hello, Vallee. I assume your peers are helping you adjust?" He smiles. Damn old man. Was he being fake with me?

"Oh, yes. Very much so."

"I have noticed Harry has been very kind to you," he says.

"Yes, he has. He's very sweet." I smile.

Dumbledore puts his hand on my shoulder. "Don't hurt him." He looks around, then leans closer. "he deserves truth."

I freeze. "What do you mean?"

He merely smiles and starts walking down the hall. "Headmaster?"

He turns and winks. "No one calls me 'Headmaster', Vallee." Then he vanishes.

I turn around in a circle a couple times, then groan. Does he know? And if he does, how did he find out? I think back to the one person I don't trust. Severus.

OMG!!!! 100 reads????!! That probably seems like nothing, but I am so thankful. You guys have no idea how much it means to me!!! Thank you guys so much! Love you!!

-Blu