Author's Note: JKR owns all.
Just another little songfic I had lying around. Enjoy.
She was upset, that much was clear. So he took her carefully- for fear of breaking her tiny body- into his arms and let her rest her soft downy head upon his shoulder. She burrowed her little face into the fabric of his cloak and restlessly shifted her pudgy baby fists against her own ears, all the while cooing with discomfort. She was a marvel, even when distressed.
And Severus would have seen more delight in his infant daughter's mannerisms had he known how to relieve her of her restlessness. It was two in the morning. She was changed, fed, and as far as he was concerned, her tiny form should be so cried out to the point of exhaustion.
Yet she was awake. Thus, he was awake.
He supposed Hermione might know a simple solution to the disquiet of their child, but she was off to a scholar's conference in the South of France. Sounded more like a vacation to him. He probably could have just flooed her, or Molly, or Poppy, for that matter.
But he was too stubborn.
This was his daughter.
He brought her into this world, and he was perfectly capable of soothing her whilst in it, thank you very much.
Severus gazed sideways at the precious being in his arms. Her noises were slowly increasing in volume and frequency. He would need to act before it once again became an all out wail-and quickly.
He remembered, then, a lullaby his mother had sung to him when he was a child. She had not sung to him often, for she did not have the demeanor of a cheery housewife who hummed to herself as she cleaned. No, not at all. But when he was restless, she would slip into his nursery and hush him with the quick cradlesong lest he wake up his father, who would yell harsh words at his mother to silence him.
Severus certainly thought it was worth a try. The lyrics he remembered actually quite fit the circumstances.
So, in the low timbre that was his natural voice, he began,
go to sleep little babe
go to sleep little babe
your momma's gone away and your daddy's gonna stay
didn't leave nobody but the baby
The infant in his arms moved her head almost in shock. Who was this, this singing creature holding her? It could not be her father. He smirked, and continued without pause,
go to sleep little babe
go to sleep little babe
everybody's gone in the cotton and the corn
didn't leave nobody but the baby
His daughter's restless movements came to a halt, and he could feel her tense form relax against his shoulder.
you're a sweet little babe
you're a sweet little babe
honey in the rock and the sugar don't stop
gonna bring a bottle to the baby
Her eyelids lethargically closed, with the fluttering feather-light eyelashes coming to a halt on the top her silken cheeks.
don't you weep pretty babe
don't you weep pretty babe
she's long gone with her red shoes on
gonna need another loving babe
He moved with measured steps to the armchair specifically placed in the nursery for such midnight happenings, and slid into it, all the while continuing,
go to sleep little babe
go to sleep little babe
you and me and the devil makes three
don't need no other lovin' babe
He felt his own body begin to ease into the comfortable chair, and his own eyelids begin to droop. His last words were slightly slurred as his exhausted form finished,
go to sleep little babe
go to sleep little babe
come lay bones on the alabaster stones
and be my everlovin baby
Fin.
Please leave a Review. But Shhhhhh. You must do it quietly, Severus is sleeping:)
So, it has come to my attention that Severus's mother would never have the opportunity to sing an American folksong to her son. So...humor me? :)
