Disclaimer: Characters belong to the amazing J.K Rowling.
Severus Snape Babysitter Extraordinaire
The large grandfather clocks pendulum swung to and fro, but Severus felt like it was in slow motion. His wife had just left the house to fix an malfunction at the store she managed leaving him in charge of babysitting her baby nephew who she was minding for the day as the parents were out at a wedding. She had promised it would be less than an hour and the six month old baby boy was in a great routine and would sleep the whole time. His wife often volunteered her services to her large family however Severus was usually at work and he by choice had little to do with the slobbering messy and teary infants.
Severus had listened as his wife prattled on about how no one could follow her troubleshooting guides and once the wards went off it would take hours to clear all the magical residue. She was after all very inventive with her anti-theft wards, he supposed learned from all the time she spent with him. They had being a together for five years and were approaching their fourth wedding anniversary. He had no family left but her side more than made up for it and they constantly needled through hints and suggestions about when they were to start a family. Usually a murderous stare or sneer could halt such talks and his ever patient wife would laugh it off well aware that knew of her position on the topic.
He was an honest man and during there courtship he had explained he had no desire to rear children of his own thanks to his own childhood and at times rather sour disposition. For starters he had never expected to pair up with such a vivacious and stunning woman and there were still rumours he had concocted some special potion to bewitch her into seeing him. The reality was he had been unable to resist her shock of red hair and the chemistry between them was electric. Yes he had managed to snare one Miss Ginny Weasley, the former school sweetheart of his one time enemy Harry Potter.
The War had happened during Potter's last year at Hogwarts, and Severus ended up working with him to ensure Voldemort's downfall and in doing so grudgingly gained some respect for the boy, he had so many of his mothers qualities. The resulting wartime damage to the school gave Severus the opportunity to try a new career and he left to begin a consulting agency, for the right price he would set up labs, conduct research and trials. It had turned out to be quite lucrative and he often enjoyed the challenge.
His reputation led to the Weasley brothers hiring him to complete some potion trials as there products were flying off the shelves and they could not keep up with demand. Severus had initially found it trivial and pointless but he had to admit the Weasley twins were very inventive and clever, plus it paid handsomely. Ginny Weasley was the store manager and bookkeeping brains of the enterprise and had arranged a meeting to talk about a contract and had impressed him with her quick thinking and confidence. They had bantered over wages and ideas and he soon only met with her instead of the twins. He began to look forward to her visits, and the welcome distraction it brought. He teased her one visit that she owed him a dinner for all the hard work he was putting in and as ever she was quick to reply with a time and date.
The first date was a disaster, the restaurant slow and getting everything wrong plus poor Ginny ended up with food poisoning. The next day Severus took his date a refreshing mint anti sickness potion to help aid her recovery and a month later they were officially inseparable. Ginny brought out something inside of him soothing his rough edges and vastly improved his temperament. Her family did not understand it at first, after all he was known to be a horrid grouch and significantly older than her but she would not be swayed. Molly was the first to truly accept him as a suitor as she saw how happy he made her daughter and over time the rest of the family followed suit.
A year later they were married, Ginny was aware they may never have children but she accepted this as she did not want to live without him. Most of her brothers were married thus she was able to spend lots of time with her nieces and nephews, she did at times she feel a touch wistful holding there chubby little hands and breathing in that special baby smell but did not push the issue. Percy's youngest son Michael was staying with Ginny today although Severus had not seen him yet as he had been busy in the library sorting out some newly acquired texts.
His wife had interrupted his work with the problem at the shop and had left relaying that if the boy woke up he could floo her office and she could be home in seconds. She had provided him with an orb that would glow and emit sounds from the guest room if said baby should wake, and it felt like a ticking time bomb in his hands. He settled in on a couch the orb next to him and began to peruse one of the books however he felt distracted constantly checking on the orb. A mere 10 minutes passed before it began to glow and the faint sound of wailing could be heard.
Severus stared intently at it, the glow getting stronger and sound louder. He waited a minute and realised the boy was probably awake now and not going to stop. Debating on flooing his wife he decided to investigate first, he was after all a well educated man maybe it was a simple fix. Walking into the darkened room, he peered into the little cot and the babies wails increase to a shrill cry. He found himself trying shushing noises which did nothing, it appeared he would need Ginny after all. Crossing over to the fireplace, he tripped on a raised part of the rug obviously caused by the cot set up. Before he could stop himself he muttered a swear word, the baby now changed to a chortling laughing sound studying him through the sides of his crib.
Abandoning the fireplace, Severus once again peered into the cot and the baby reached up its little arms. He hesitantly reached in a picked up Michael holding him stiffly infront of him, what if it was to vomit or pull on his hair? Michael stared intently at him beginning to wriggle from the uncomfortable position. Placing him on the bed Severus finely attuned nose caught hint of a most unpleasant scent, obviously emanating from the babies nappy.
This really called for his wife's help, he hurriedly flood her office however only her assistant was there, and she appeared a touch stressed explaining Ginny was stuck between floors fixing the wards and would likely be another half hour. He stressed that it was urgent she return and had to leave the conversation as Michael began rolling around the bed. Five minutes later and three nappies on the bed he thought he had it figured out, why on earth were the contraptions so complicated. Lifting up the child the new nappy promptly fell off, he was obviously missing a step. Sick of fiddling he brandished his wand and sealed the sides and it worked. Feeling impressed he finished dressing the wriggling baby and carried him to the kitchen.
Obviously it was not going to return to sleep so a meal would surely kill some time before Ginny's return. The bag on the bench top held all kinds of jars and a shrunken baby seat, returning it to its original size with some effort he got Michael strapped in. He sampled three jars and gosh weren't they all horrible featuring tasteless mush, going with the least offensive colour he offered him a spoonful. Michael was keen and happily enjoyed a few bites before he decided it was not for him, blowing raspberries and pushing the food out of his mouth. The next two jars produced the same results and Severus found his arms covered in baby food. The baby certainly seemed happier and after some cleansing spells he was sure his wife would be impressed with his effort.
Rummaging through the bag he found some simple plush toys and handed one to Michael who promptly dropped it. Sensing Michael was now restless in the seat he struggle with the buckles until it popped open and again carried him out arms locked and ventured to the library. Settling them on a soft furry rug propped with pillows he moved the toys around grabbing the babies attention, he seemed to enjoy it and began gnawing on one of its arms. He was sure Ginny would turn up any minute but decided to grab a colourful book just in case, justifying it would be engaging to young eyes.
Ten minutes later Ginny Snape returned home rushing around calling out her husbands name, the theft attempt at the store had taken up more of her time than she had anticipated and when her assistant finally grabbed a hold of her with the urgent message she had bolted. Severus was not one to enjoy baby-sitting, especially an infant that could not talk. Finding him in the library her heart skipped a beat as she observed him relaxed on the floor holding a book in front of Michael pointing out images, even holding a teddy in his lap. He might not be the definition of handsome but to her he was everything. Greeting him with a big smile and a kiss she took over and complimented him on how well he had done as he recounted the tale of the difficult diaper and messy lunch. She was soon able to settle Michael for a new nap and time flew and before she knew it Percy and his wife arrived to pick up their son.
Severus who had busied himself with household tasks and research for an upcoming project, couldn't resist joining his wife in the foyer as she said goodbye to her family. He nodded a farewell to Michael, really he hadn't been that bad. A gummy smile was returned and only Ginny noticed a faint twitch in the corner of his mouth. Percy was a bore but luckily the baby kept him busy and within a minute they had left. Ginny teased him about his almost smile and promised him an evening he wouldn't forget as a way of saying thank you for his help before heading to the kitchen to get dinner ready.
Collecting some unfinished paperwork from the library Severus was surprised to see one of the little plush teddy toys laying on the rug, Ginny must have forgotten to pack it up. Picking it up, he rubbed the soft fur and thought to himself really he had copped superbly well with the whole experience and that toothless smile had switched on something deep inside of him. He remembered how his wife accepted his clause of a childless marriage with such grace, surely he should take some time to re-evaluate as he knew she would make a wonderful mother and be there to guide him into becoming a good father figure. There was no reason why his past should be repeated, not with such a lovely woman by his side. Vowing to talk to her about the subject tonight, he joined Ginny in the kitchen sure that he would soon be about to make her day.
A/N: Hope you liked my little fluffy story. Drop a review if you'd like! I also have some other more mature stories of the same pairing if you'd like to check them out. Thanks for reading.