Chaos Isn't Understood – Prologue Part 1 – Innocence Without Lies
Prologues will be short! Actual story chapters will be longer!
So, the fabled new story, here it is. This story has been in the back of my brain for I shit you not, nearly 6 years! I am damn tired of trying to write it and not being happy enough with the results!
This story, as do many of mine, features original characters in abundance, however I am trying to keep their activity to that of SRM, since I think that's an acceptable level. I wanted an OC professor since it allows greater access to the behind the scenes goings on of Hogwarts, and Professor Snape ^_^
A disgusting, listless feeling overcame Harry as he meandered through the corridors of Hogwarts. He couldn't do anything to alleviate his boredom since he couldn't go flying, and his friends were busy too, Ron was at quidditch practice, and Hermione was studying. Surprise, he wandered past the staff room, he heard a small commotion coming from inside, so he quickly pulled his invisibility cloak out of his pocket, and wrapped it around himself, waiting patiently by the door. Sure enough, it wasn't long before something happened.
The door was thrown open with such ferocity that there could only be one culprit.
"I'm going home to see my wife," Snape declared, with a fury so palpable it was like being cut with a knife.
Harry's heart thundered in his chest, and curiosity bubbled in his stomach. Was that code for Voldemort was calling? The likelihood of Snape having a wife was laughable at best, at worst Harry felt it was impossible. He couldn't think of anyone less suited to having a wife than Snape, he very clearly wasn't the loving sort.
Harry carefully crept along the wall, intrigued as to what the Professor was hunched over. As it turned out, nothing interesting, a simple muggle-style wallet.
"Damn, going to have to pay on my card," he muttered as he looked through what Harry assumed was his wallet. "What to get her though," there was a thoughtful intonation to the Professor's voice, and suddenly Harry started to wonder if his automatic assumption of Snape's marital status was correct.
Nothing happened for several minutes, Snape continued to stare at his wallet, as if expecting it to give him an answer. Eventually, an idea seemed to strike him, he shoved his wallet back in his pocket and withdrew a small jotter from the depths of his robes. He smiled as he noted whatever it was he was thinking, and Harry couldn't help but notice he looked a lot different smiling, as opposed to sneering which was the norm for the sour Professor.
Suddenly he took off, sweeping down the hallway in his usual manner, leaving a small piece of paper in his wake. Interestedly, Harry picked it up, and was mildly shocked for the third time that day. The paper was actually a photo, of a young looking boy with cropped black hair and scabby knees, wearing what Harry thought was probably a school uniform. The boy was of mixed race, and if Harry's suspicions were correct it meant his mother was of Asian origin. The boy's father was clearly Snape, they had similar eyes and the boy's jawline was almost an exact replica. The kid was smiling brightly at whoever was taking the photograph, and since it was an ordinary muggle photo, Harry had to speculate the identity of Snape's wife further, since he was pretty sure the picture was of Snape's child. It wasn't a pleasant thought, Harry believed Snape shouldn't be trusted with small children.
He was now left with a rather painful choice however, he could either run after Snape and give the photo to him and reveal he'd been there, or wait a few days and return it then, explaining that he'd found it outside the staff room and had then asked Dumbledore if he knew who it belonged too. Harry decided to go with the latter, it made the whole situation look less like Harry had been eavesdropping.
Fear coursed through Harry's body as he made his way down to the dungeons a week after learning Snape's very well kept secret. He had his story set in his head, but he was expecting at the very least one detention, just for knowing the picture was Snapes. A very short enter later and he was sat in front of Snape's desk, with a displeased looking Snape staring at him.
"Well?" He demanded impatiently.
Without speaking, Harry reached into his pocket, pulled out the photograph, and placed it on the desk in front of Snape.
"I found this outside the staff room, so I asked Professor Dumbledore who it belonged too," Harry explained as politely as he could manage. If Snape could tell Harry was lying through his teeth, he didn't mention it as he studyed the picture.
"So, you were listening. You're not as quiet as you think you are."
Harry felt like he was going to have a heart attack.
"Thank you, I'd be most displeased if I lost this."
He was pushing his luck, but he couldn't resist.
"So, did your wife enjoy her gift?"
Snape smirked, and for once Harry couldn't sense anything malicious.
"Hmm, you could say that." Snape seemed to hesitate, but then motioned to the photo. "My daughter. I'm glad it was found."
Harry was slightly alarmed, he'd never seen such a young girl with hair that short, except if they were ill. He wondered how to approach the subject.
"Is she okay?" He asked carefully, not really wanting an angry Snape screaming in his face.
The man himself seemed rather confused, until Harry motioned vaguely at his own hair.
"Oh, she's fine, girls have short hair where her mother's from. I say fine, but she broke her arm a few days ago falling out of a tree, never learns I swear, this is the third time, and it wasn't even our own tree this time."
It was mildly frightening that he was having such a civil conversation with Snape of all people, about his child.
"Is she your only child? What's her name?"
"Sun is not my only child, I have three sons too. Yuu NÄ“, Soul and Moon, and I'm sure their names are going to be the butt of many jokes next year," Snape murmured darkly.
"How old are they?"
"Seventeen, eleven, six and three," Snape answered, Harry was mildly surprised, even though at that point he really shouldn't be, that Snape had a child that was older than he was. It was a little disconcerting.
"If you think that's weird, try thinking about the wonderous conversation I had with Umbridge when I got back," Snape stated humorlessly. "She had the gall to insinuate that I basically err, force myself upon my wife."
Harry pulled a face.
"Oh yeah, but here's the thing. My wife is seven and a half foot tall -she's a very tall woman- she weighs at least eighteen stone probably closer to twenty, most of it pure muscle. She has been in the military for almost as long as I have been alive, yes my wife is considerably older than I am."
He couldn't restrain the laughter, it just burst out of him before he could reign it in.
"It gets better, I told her that yes, my scrawny five foot eleven, ten stone arse was going to manage that. She'd break me if I tried."
