Eileen Snape was dying, which to her was nothing new. She had been dying, as far as she was concerned most of her life. It had all started when she had developed a disease muggles called Leukemia as a child. St. Mungos had no idea what to do for her because it was exceptionally rare for a witch to have a muggle disease and she was left to become weaker day after day in a hospital bed. Until a muggleborn nurse suggested they try the muggle method, something she called Aminopterin, to heal her. Her parents were at first adverse to turning their only baby over to muggles but as she grew more ill they decided to take their chances,
It worked, that time. She spent over a year in the muggle hospital and it set her course later in life. Her nurse, Nurse Snape, had a son named Tobias, whom she brought with her to work frequently. Eileen and Tobias had become good friends and kept in touch throughout their entire education. She visited him every summer when she went back in for check ups. At Hogwarts, she always felt awkward, the treatments had weakened her magic, and because of that, she was always been reserved and even looked down on by some for her weakness. Potions was her favorite; they were easy for her because they required strength of mind and precision rather than vast magical reservoirs.
Her leukemia returned after she finished Hogwarts. Really, it had returned while she was still there, but she wanted to be able to say she had finished at least one thing in her life. So she had ignored her weakness and vomiting, dosed herself with endless Pepper-up potions, even though she knew they were harmful in large quantities, and finished school before returning to the muggle world for treatment.
While there, she and Tobias strengthened their relationship. She recovered again though now she knew her magic was almost all gone, leaving her with only an odd skill of seeing into the minds of others, which she had developed gradually because of the opacity of the medical profession. Tobias in an overly optimistic and expectant manner had decided she was completely healed when the doctors released her, and had asked her for her hand in marriage. She agreed though she knew she was not completely healed. She knew that the doctors did not want to say they would never get it all. She could feel the cancer still within her like a malevolent beast just waiting to break free again. She wanted the happiness they could have together, at least for a little while.
They had married and later they had had their son, Severus. With her magic gone she had never thought about the effect it would have on Tobias, she did not realize he would hate it when their little six-year-old boy found her old potions books and began to experiment causing an explosion that covered the kitchen in silver magical goop. She did not realize that Tobias would hate him for what he was, for what Tobias had never known that she was.
With Severus potions experiments and accidental magic, Tobias became withdrawn and distant. Her best friend was gone, leaving a bitter and violent man in his stead. She was only grateful when Severus turned eleven and went to Hogwarts. When that time arrived, as far as Tobias was concerned, Severus no longer existed. In a way, her best friend, the man she had married, returned to her while their son was at school, though he remained somewhat distant. The only concession he made to Severus's existence was to disappear each summer, allowing him to spend summers with her. The first summer Severus had returned to find him gone the entire time, she could see the hurt in his eyes. He had not understood at that young age why his father hated him so. Over the years he began to understand that he would never again have his father's approval, and though she knew it hurt him, her son tried to take the same stance as his father. Forget he exists.
When her son was sixteen the cancer reemerged as she had always known it would, but this time she knew would be the last time. She knew her body was too weak to fight it off again.
Her only true regret to passing on now was that her son would be practically alone. She knew he did not have many friends. The only ones she heard him speak of were Lucius Malfoy; a man from a family she knew was dark and not likely to be good for him, and the Muggleborn Lily, whom he did not speak of often anymore. She knew there was something wrong with the relationship even if he said he spent his days during the summer with her. He used to bring her by for tea.
It was not until he brought Jane home that she felt a ray of hope that he would not be alone. It was immediately obvious he did not care for the girl, but it was also obvious that she cared for him anyway. She knew the girls secret, she knew the girl was from another time and had seen what her son would become if he was left alone. So she had played dumb, and done everything she could to ensure that he would accept the contract, accept the girl, and she hoped he would be happy.
Perhaps he would one day know the joy that she had always received in watching him grow into the powerful wizard he was now and the greater possibilities she knew were yet to come. Perhaps with this girl, he would one day have children of his own to watch with pride.