Disclaimer: I don't own HP in any way, shape or form.
A little AU happy ending for Snape I came up with while watering my flower garden this afternoon. Not sure why it just popped into my head.
Warning, a little bit of James Potter bashing, but nothing to awful
XXX
My eyes slowly opened as I realized my bladder was once again full. I had to pee a lot in my old age and I wasn't exactly sure as to why. Did it shrink gradually with each passing year? As I went to get up I noticed my wife was no longer in bed, peaking over the other side of the, I saw that Edmond's cradle was empty as well. So I assumed one of two things: either she was feeding our son or changing him. After using the loo I made my way down the hall towards the nursery. I could see the light shine under the closed door so I knew they were in there.
The moment I pushed open the door she looked up at me and smiled, her beautiful emerald eyes alight with joy, despite the bags underneath them, but that was to be expected with a newborn.
"Did I wake you?" She asked softly, her eyes briefly moving down to our son who was eagerly suckling from her breast.
"No, I had to use the bathroom and noticed your weren't in bed."
My gaze drifted down to my four-day-old son, the son I never thought I would have, that I never knew I wanted until the day Lily announced she was pregnant. He looked so much like his mother, but had my dark eyes, and Lily said she thinks he has my ears, I couldn't say I agreed but she was adamant that he had the same loop at the bottom of his lobe that I did, and Lily was usually right about those types of things.
Of course, in my book, Lily's always right, even when she's wrong.
Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for her, that I have her in my life, as my wife, everyday for the rest of my life. That I was given a second chance at happiness, that we both were.
For years I had lived in longing for a woman I never thought I would have. She had married another and had given him a son. But in a way I had been happy for her, because Potter could give her everything her heart desired, while I could barely made ends meat, at least at the time. But that was a very long time ago. Things were quite a bit different now.
Lily and I had talked very briefly about trying for a child when we first married, we were in our late forties at the time and children would have been possible, in the end we decided against it, instead choosing to spend our time traveling the world, taking exotic adventures and simply being together. Although it was possible for witches to have children later in life then muggles, it was rare and so it came as quite a surprise when we found out at the not-so-young age of sixty-five that she was indeed going to have a baby, but an wonderful surprise at that.
Harry, my step-son was twenty-three and already married himself when Lily and I bonded for life, and in truth I was never very close with the boy, though I know he tried to make some sort of connection with me, for his mothers sake, but…he just looked to much like his father. It was sometimes difficult to see past that.
"He's asleep," my wife whispered as she gently pulled her nipple from his mouth.
"Here, I'll take him," reaching down I gently took him into my arms as Lily pulled back down her shirt and stood from the rocking chair.
We headed back to our bedroom, and I gently laid my son in his cradle before getting back into bed. Lily instantly snuggled up next to me, I wrapped my arm around her waist pulling her even closer.
"Harry and Ginny are coming over on Saturday."
"I know." I had known for two day's, but my wife seems to think it important to remind me every few hours.
As much as Harry Potter looked like James he acted much more like his mother, which was why I was actually able to handle being in the same room with him. His oldest son on the another hand, James Sirius, the name alone causes me to want to vomit, lets just say the boy is very much like his namesakes, thank Merlin all three of his children were already grown and wouldn't be visiting along with them, though his middle son Albus and daughter Lillian, were much more well behaved then their eldest sibling, still... Now his wife on the other hand I liked, Ginny was a lot like Lily, so I suppose it's true what they say, most men do marry women like their mothers.
I never understood what Lily saw in James, not that we talk about her late husband much, and when I did ask her she would sat something along the lines of, 'I was young and he was a lot of fun', I think in part she regretted running off with him, though she would never admit it out right. James Potter died in the line of duty, he had chased a suspected Death Eater into Knockturn Alley, without back-up, and was ambushed. Harry was eight at the time.
When he died I had considered writing her, sending my condolences, but I never did. I was afraid she would reject me once again, and it was simply easier to not have to face the possibility.
It wasn't until a decade later that I began talking to Lily again, shortly after the fall of Voldemort, and by her son's hand no less. I had run into her in Florish and Blotts, she looked surprised to see me but asked me how I was doing nonetheless and in response I invited her to lunch. We had decided to rekindle our friendship and things slowly grew from there.
Oh course Black and Lupin didn't trust me, Black apparently still thought I was in league with dark wizards, even though I had proven long ago I was not a Death Eater nor did I have anything to do with them. Losing Lily's friendship made me realize what making friends like that could cost me, and so I gradually started parting ways and eventually lost contact with them all together. Not that Black cared, he never believed my story, nor did Potter, despite proving I did not bear the Mark and submitting to questions under truth serum. But what did I care now, Potter was dead and Black was who knows where. He cut off contact with Lily when we married. Good riddens! Lily had a feeling he was still in contact with Harry but that was between Black and her son and she didn't want to get involved in it.
In our older age Lily and I kept mostly to ourselves. We lived in a cottage in the countryside, we had a horse and Lily grew vegetable in our garden, just like her mum used to. Occasionally I would brew for profit, if I received a request for a specialized order from an acquaintance or someone that was willing to pay well for whatever it was they wanted, but money really wasn't an issue for me, and hadn't been since I had come up with a cure for Dragon Pox, or more specifically a vaccine. Despite my wealth we enjoyed the simple life and so this is how we would continue to live our lives, and how we would raise our son.
Our Edmond.
Taking a final look at my sleeping boy and then at my wife, who I kissed softly on the forehead, I closed my eyes and unable to fight my fatigue any longer, I soon fell back asleep.
Thankfully our baby boy slept soundly through the rest of the night.
XXX
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