NEVER STOPPED LOVING YOU
He sat in his chair beside the fireplace, his back was to her, "I don't love you."
She shook her head, not believing him, she went to wrap her arms around his neck, but stopped when he raised his arm up, forbidden her to get any closer, "Severus, how can you make love to me, and say you don't love me?" She had tears running down her cheeks.
He had tears running down his face as well, he wanted to turn around, and wrap the young woman in his arms, but, he stayed seated with his back to her, "It's called sex," and he paused, "Which by the way, I have had better."
She stared at him, this time crying a little louder then she started out, she glared at him, "I can't believe I gave myself to you!" She hurried out of his living quarters, crying.
It was the last day of school.
He bowed his head, and cried into his hands, "Please forgive me one day, Hermione." He had said, and done what he had done, because of the coming war, he knew if she let her emotions get in the way of fighting, then he would surely loose her, but if she had thought that the man she loved really did go to the dark side, then she would most likely fight with revenge.
THE PRESENT – TEN YEARS LATER
"Thank you for taking me up on my offer, Miss Granger," Minerva walked the now young woman of twenty-eight, down the familiar halls," Albus is going to introduce you as the new Potions Professor, during the evening feast, after we sort the students into the home. Ron, and Harry will be there as well, Ron is the Flying Professor, and Harry of course is our new Defense Against The Dark Arts, Professor."
Hermione looked around the halls, then looked at the older woman, "Minerva. Albus didn't talk to Severus, about," she noticed the people of the paintings stretching there ears toward the two woman, so they could hear better, "About, you know?"
Minerva understanding, already what she was talking about, shook her head, "Of course not, dear," she looked at the time in one of the portraits, and took the young woman by the shoulder, "Hermione, Albus is looking forward to see where the boy ends up, and he wants you to be the one to break the news to Severus," she kissed the young woman on the cheek, "I will see you at the Great Hall, I need to go get the first years, and greet them at the door."
Hermione smiled as her mentor, hurried away, she started walking to the great hall, looking at some of the pictures, not paying attention to where she was going, and Smack! "Watch where you're-" She froze when she saw a hand reaching down to her, and smiled at the familiar face, "Don't you ever watch where you are going, Professor Weasley?"
The man wrapped his arms, around the woman, "Hermione, I am so sorry, was in bit of a hurry, you going my way?"
"To the Great Hall, yes," She returned the hug, smiling, "it's been so long Ron, how are you?"
"I am doing great, how are things with you?" Ron started walking with Hermione, as they headed to the Great Hall, "You know Georges daughters are starting school here, they will be sorted with the others," he looked around, "Where are yours?"
Hermione smiled, "Their grandmother dropped them off at the train station, they should be with the other children, when they are to be sorted. I wanted them to have the whole experience of riding the train without any adults," she froze, when she saw a figure coming there way, he was in all black, and the only color, or what little color you could see was his pale face, 'Severus.'
The man saw the woman, and stopped in his tracks, 'What is she doing here?'
Ron stared at the awkward situation, knowing the two's past, he gave Severus a slight bow, as he went into the Great Hall, leaving his friend in the hall, 'They got to get use to being around one another eventually,' he thought to himself as he took a seat beside his all time best friend, Harry, and next to Ginny who was the schools Medwitch.
"Have you seen Hermione, yet?" Harry leaned towards his friend.
Ron smiled, "She is in the hall, stiff as a statue."
"So you must had run into Severus," Harry knew that his other best friend had never stopped loving the Potions Professor, "Hope they come to some understanding, I mean it is his-"
OUT IN FRONT OF THE GREAT HALL
Hermione, tired of the awkward situation, curtsied her head, "Severus, how have you been?" 'Ever since the day you broke my heart.'
Severus stared at her, 'She is still as beautiful, as she was when I last saw her;' he felt all the same emotions he had felt since the day he lied to her, when he said he wasn't in love with her, he wanted to wrap his arms around the woman, and not let her go, "I been doing alright," he looked at the door, and then at her, "Can we talk?"
"What is there to talk about?" She shook her head, and then saw the look of disappointment on his face, "Maybe later, because there are some things you need to know, I need to be there for the sorting of the hat."
"I always thought you found those rituals boring," He was grinning, remembering the last year she was a student, and how she had fallen asleep at the table while all the others cheered around her at the new members.
"I do, but I still need to be there," She looked at the time, when she heard the first years walking in there direction, she then hurried into the hall, and took a seat beside Ron.
Once Minerva had them lined up, she went down the rules of how the sorting hat, which had suddenly appeared as she talk to the first years, and explained the different houses.
"…Adam Bass…Ravenclaw!"
"…Sabrina Epstein… HufflePuff!"
"…Sarah Frost…. HufflePuff!"
"….Preston. Granger…"
Hermione noticed Severus looking in her direction, when Preston made his way to the stool; he had black hair pulled back into a long ponytail, pale skin, and what he could tell brown eyes. She looked at Ron, and Harry, who also noticed Severus's expression, "I definitely think I need to talk to Severus tonight."
Preston had his fingers crossed.
The hat seemed to turn on his head, and looked at Hermione, then at Severus, "This is a tough one, indeed. Both parents were great in there houses, at one time, or another. Tough one to call, any ideas?"
All the students, including the teachers stared at Preston.
"…I know where you will go…" The hat spotted an identical child, sensing that the occupant that wear him, he looked down at the small boy, "Two of you will be great in either house…."
Minerva realizing it was taking a while looked at her roll seat, "Alexander Granger, please come with you brother," she lifted the hat from Preston, and held it above both there heads.
"Yes, I see now, the right place for the both of you, Slytherine!"
Severus watched as the two boys hurried to there seat, Alexander looked identical to Preston, except his hair was wear down, and wasn't as long, as is only went below his ears, but both had the same pale skin. He looked over at Hermione, who just smiled, when the twins looked in her direction, and waved.
The hat didn't even touch, Darrel Malfoy's head, when it said "Slytherine."
The Potter's little girl was put into Gryffindor, along with Ron's youngest niece. No one didn't seem to mind that there Preston, and Alexander had been put in Slytherine. They all sort of figured it would happen that way, saying that there father was of pure blood, Wizardry.
After the staff introductions, everyone had there feast, and were sent to there common rooms for the night.
"Hermione placed the wand to her throat, to make her voice carry over the noise, "Alexander, and Preston Granger, come here please." She looked at Severus, who watched her in interest, "Meet me at the lake."
He looked at her confused, and then nodded, "I will be there," he had realized that she called two of his students, from the house, "Miss Granger, even though they are you sons, they need to follow my rules, you need to ask before calling them away from there group.'
Albus smiled at Severus, as he placed a hand on Hermione's shoulder, before the young woman had a chance to yell, "I give her permission, to take the twins out of there groups, she will return them Severus."
"Professor Snape, in front of my students," Severus growled.
Hermione noticed how the two approaching sons, stared at Severus, as they passed him to reach there mother, she wrapped a hand around both there shoulders, "We're going to the lake, I want to introduce you to the bat, I told you about," she glared at Severus, as she walked out of the Great Hall with the two boys.
"Albus, did you hear what she called me in front of my students?" Severus looked like his head was about to blow up, as it ganged almost a tomato color.
"Go talk to her, you will understand when she is finished talking," Albus flicked his wand at Severus, causing the man to appear at the lake, just as Hermione and the boys got there.
Hermione gasped, at the sudden appearance of Severus, but came back to her calm self quickly, she glared at Severus, "Before you go opening you damn mouth, let me finish what I need to say, alright Severus?"
Severus nodded, seeing as how he didn't want to make the woman even more, angrier then she was at that point.
She pointed to a open area, and looked at her boys, they nodded already knowing what mom wanted, and hurried away, but still in eye site of there mother. "Remember when we were together my last year at Hogwarts, how I gave myself to you, well after you dumped me like trash, I learned that I was four months pregnant. With the boys, I wanted to tell you, but I didn't know rather or not you were still on the dark side or not so I didn't tell you. Then ten years later, Albus asked if I would be interested in a teaching job here, and since my boys already got there letters, I couldn't turn Albus down, seeing it as a chance to still be with my boys. They are my life, they really are. Well Albus explained to me that you were a spy the whole time, and only pretended to be on the dark side, and you said all those things that day, to make me hate you, but knowing I could never hate you, I hated Voldamort, and in the war, revenge was on my mind. After the war, I went to live with my mom, and she helped me raise the boys. I wanted to tell you that Alex, and Preston are your sons."
Severus stared at where the boys were standing, he couldn't believe they were a part of him, that the woman he loved, and threw out had carried, and raised the boys without him. "Which is which again?" He asked in almost a whisper.
"Preston Sean Granger, is the one with the brown eyes, and always wears a pony tail, his hair is longer then Alexander's," Hermione pointed as Preston did a back flip, over his brother.
"He is athletic," Severus looked at the woman beside him, and smiled.
"Yeah, he had a lot of extra energy, so mom put him in gymnastics," Hermione pointed to her other son, "That is Severus Alexander Granger, he wears his hair down all the time, don't think he even brushes it sometimes, he is very sneaky, he learned how to do spells, when he was six, both of them actually, but Alexander, is the trouble maker. We were at a muggle zoo, and he wanted to see the lions up close, when I said no he threw a tantrum saying he wanted the lions, and next thing I new, the lion was outside the caged area. I had to quickly do a spell to get the lion back in the cage, and one so the people wouldn't remember what happened. He was only five at the time. He did another one when the teacher wouldn't let him have the basketball, and he threw another tantrum, and then a whole bunch of basketballs hit the teacher, Albus helped me out with that one. Mrs. Weasley offered to home school the boys for me so I could work, and not have to be worried rather the boys were behaving or not. He has your eyes," She was exhausted just talking about all Alex's spells.
"So I will have to keep a close watch on Alex," Severus looked at the boy, trying to figure him out, then looked at the other boy, "It is funny, I would had thought the one with the most energy to spare, would be trouble, but it's the other way around."
Hermione noticed Alex raise his wand, behind his brothers back, she flicked her wrist, causing both boys to freeze, she looked at Severus, "A mothers work is never done. Alex knows how to turn people into frogs, thanks to George Weasley."
"So how many times has he turned Preston into a frog?" Severus asked trying not to sound amused, didn't work.
She gave the man a look, "Today?"
The older man couldn't hold in the laughter any longer, "Really? That many?" He looked at the woman, "How many times has he changed you into a Frog?"
"I caught him, his first attempt, coming up behind me, I ducked down, the light hit the mirror, went back to him and he was a frog," She seemed proud, of that moment.
He walked around both the boys, staring at the, "So how long do you keep them like
this?"
She flicked her wand again, and aimed it at Preston, who finished with his back flip, "Preston?"
Preston turned around at the sound of his mothers voice, and looked at his statue of a brother, "He really doesn't listen, does he mom?"
She looked at Severus, as she flicked her wand at the other boy, "Alexander, I am taking fifty points from Slytherine, for attempted transfiguration."
The twins looked at there mom, "You're our mom!"
She brought her finger to her lip, and grinned, "Shhh- don't tell anyone that," she pointed to the tall man with her, "This is your dad, I showed you pictures of him, remember?" She noticed him look at her confused, "Severus, I didn't show them those pictures," she gave him a little wink.
"Oh, okay," He looked at the boys, and remembered she introduced Alexander as Severus, he looked at the woman once more, "You name him after me?"
"Yes," She kissed both there cheeks, and started walking to the castle, "Time for bed boys."
Preston stopped, and looked at Severus and his mom, "Does this mean, you two-"
"-are going to get-" Alexander continued.
"Married?" They both finished in unison.
To be continued………
A/N: I hope you like this story so far, please read, and review.