Her name was Turnage. Hermione was uncomfortable with having a house elf, but she was long past her SPEW days. The boys seemed to think it was a real hoot, and Roman especially was quite taken. Besides, the cottage was too perfect to give up just because they didn't want the help of a house elf.
Turnage informed them that the house itself had a name: Pembleton Cottage.
As the place was already quite comfortable, the Snapes didn't have to do as much as they originally thought they did, but they still wasted no time in transforming it into their new home. Turnage was overjoyed to finally have humans to look after again. As a last, most important step, Hermione warded the area heavily. Though intricate wards were already in place to keep the property from being scene by muggles, Hermione made it so that only a Snape could bypass the wards—anyone else would need permission. She could have limited it to just herself and her three sons, but she wanted Severus to be able to make it at any time.
Dinner that night was a celebratory affair.
"A toast," said Hermione, "to new beginnings!"
"To seeing Dad!" said Johnny. Roman and Bryan echoed that sentiment.
"To our new littlest member!" cheered Roman. He gave Turnage a tight hug, who squeaked and reddened adorably.
"Onto more serious matters. We need a new family name. I'm still a Granger as of 1998, and you boys can't be Snapes…"
"Aw, I forgot about that! Imagine not being a Snape. Bryan Schmidt!" Bryan laughed at the thought.
"Are we going with a German surname, then?" asked Johnny.
"That depends—do we want to reveal ourselves as Germans or keep that a secret?" said Bryan.
"I think it's not a big deal being from Germany, but it's best not to sell ourselves that way to the student body. I wouldn't mind the staff knowing, but you know how some people are; the war's just ended and people from the Durmstrang will likely be seen as dark," said Hermione.
"So what if they think wrong? We're not, and I was really looking forward to having a real German last name," said Johnny, half sulking. They had been the only English family in their village, and all the boys had been uncomfortable with that at some point. They were also fiercely proud of their German nationality.
"Well, if we choose an English surname, would we want it to be a magical one, and then claim to be a distant cousin of whatever family we chose?" Bryan asked.
"Half-blood would be best, I think. Then you could go both ways. Have a magical parent and be home schooled, still have a muggle last name, and be able to explain how you know so much muggle culture, if it ever comes up" said Hermione.
"Shame. Schmidt rolled off my tongue so perfectly! Roman Schmidt, Sydney Schmidt…"
"Hey! I haven't been called Sydney in thirteen years!"
"Yeah, well Sydney Schmidt just sounded better than Johnny Schmidt," his big brother explained.
"What about Southgate? Johnny Southgate."
"No offense, Johnny, but that's one of the silliest names I've ever heard. It sounds like a building name."
"Probably because you've run across a building at some point named after a person who was a Southgate. The name came before the building, you dud."
"If you guys are so keen on sticking to an S name, how about Sawyer? Pretty traditional English, and I don't recall any magical families named Sawyer…" Hermione trailed off, trying to remember if she'd ever run across a wizarding Sawyer.
The three seemed to contemplate that for a moment, and Hermione could see them trying it out in their heads.
"I think that would be acceptable," Johnny finally said.
"Yeah, and besides it's not permanent, right? Once we get Dad back into our lives we can be Snapes again?" asked Roman.
"Of course we'll be Snapes again. This is just temporary," Hermione reassured.
"In that case, then it wasn't even that important anyway, I guess. Sawyer is fine." The boys all agreed with Bryan. "What do you think, Turnage?"
The little elf had remained silent during the whole exchange. "Turnage does not think it matters, Young Master Bryan. Though she does agree that Southgate is more suitably a building name."
Bryan smirked at Johnny and then addressed the elf again. "Just Bryan will do, Turnage. I'm no master!"
"What about me? Do you guys have a suggestion for me?" Hermione asked her sons.
They looked at her confusedly. "I thought you'd just be yourself?" said Bryan.
"Oh, yes I'll be Hermione Granger, but what about when the Sawyer boys need a parent? Their mother can't very well be Hermione Granger as well."
They nodded in understanding.
"Tell you what, I'll make a compromise. You boys wanted a German surname, well you can live vicariously through me. If you ever slip and reveal your background, that can be easily explained by having a German mother. I'll just be… Hildegard. Hildegard Sawyer, nee Diehl."
Roman made a face. That was such an old, unfashionable name. No offense to any Hildegards.
"Don't worry, Hildegard won't even show up unless absolutely necessary." She chuckled, finding the name funnier than it probably was.
With that out of the way, Hermione sighed as she realized that there was still much to do. She needed to get the kids registered for Hogwarts and go to Diagon Alley and most importantly, to get her parents from Australia… After the headache her mother had given her the first time around, she wasn't looking forward to going through it all again. Their relationship hadn't truly improved until grandchildren entered the picture, so maybe things would look up this time?
Getting the kids into Hogwarts would prove a daunting task. Since they weren't from this world, their names would not have been on the Hogwarts registry. That meant Hermione would have to speak to Minerva in person. I guess Hildegard makes an appearance sooner that I thought.
Minerva was surprised, to say the least. Her morning tea had been interrupted by a heavily-accented mother with her three sons in tow. She introduced herself as Mrs. Sawyer and at first it was difficult to understand what she was saying, but finally Minerva caught the idea that she was trying to register her sons.
"Sawyer, you say? I don't recall their names ever appearing on the registry! Names show up when magical children are born. If you're trying to fake your identity… Your youngest also looks a bit young. Are you sure he's eleven?"
Hermione had decided on sending Roman despite his young age. He would be turning ten in the end of August, so he'd only be a year younger than his year mates. There was no way she was leaving her youngest home alone, no matter how good company Turnage might be, and she knew he would enjoy being in the company of his father again.
"Ve liffed im Germany, alzo ve ver am Durmstrang lists, aber mein huzbant und I raized die Kinder, pardon me, children, because ve believed ve ver besser… qualifiedt. Aber mein huzbant ist jetzt indizpozedt from dee var und I finde mich zu distraught zu continue." She said this with her nose in the air and obvious disdain for Hogwarts that Minerva didn't like.
The boys, for their part, were doing their best to hold in their laughter. Their mum was having way too much fun playing the part of an aristocratic pureblood. She had changed her facial features, lightening her hair to a pale blonde and making her eyes a crisp green to match Bryan's. The angles of her face were dramatized, and she looked every inch the pureblood wife she was aiming for. Hermione was terrified of being recognized by her mentor even if she didn't look physically the part, so she hoped that insulting the school would throw Minerva off.
"What my mother means is that she is no longer able to homeschool us anymore, and she was never a huge fan of Durmstrang, which is where we should have gone, so she would like to put us in Hogwarts," Bryan put in helpfully.
"Not just anyone who isn't from our area can go to Hogwarts. Why should I take you three?"
"Please, Professor. We care about our studies very much and would like to continue where we left off. We can take placement tests to show that we're qualified!" Johnny, the resident bookworm put that in desperately. However, the desperation stemmed from the fact that he was dying to see his father again, not because he wanted to ensure that his education continued where it left off.
Minerva felt an odd sense of pity for this child who obviously loved knowledge. He reminded her of someone, but she couldn't think of who.
"Very well. If you score well enough on the placement tests, I'll do my best to find a spot for you three. How old were you again?" she asked, addressing Roman.
"I'm eleven, Professor," Roman lied.
"Then you won't be needing to take any of the tests," she said kindly to the youngest boy. "I will arrange a day for you two to come back so we can see where to put you. I assume you are familiar with OWLs over there?" At their nod, she concluded, "Be ready for any day next week."
"Mum, that was laying it on a bit thick. Your accent didn't need to be that bad," said Johnny.
"No, it didn't need to be, I know. I just thought it was funny," Hermione said with a chuckle.
Diagon Alley sans Gringotts was next on the agenda.
Hermione felt like she had been given a new chance at life as she watched her three boys prance happily from shop to shop. Sorrow enveloped her when she cradled her empty belly, but she willed the negative thoughts away as she focused on what she did have and what she could now have again.
It was only a few days ago that they were here last, so it was as they remembered—quiet, a bit morose, but definitely on the mend. There were a few other shoppers in search of miscellaneous trinkets and needs, but Hermione didn't see any other parents with their children yet. She wasn't even sure how many would be willing to send their young ones away this year. While all three of the boys had experienced buying school supplies, it was the first time Roman was going through it for himself. Seeing her youngest's excitement did much to thaw her iced heart. She only wished Severus were here to enjoy it too.
They were about to leave Flourish and Blotts when Hermione remembered that she needed to get seventh year books for herself too. Perish the thought.
Eeylops Owl Emporium and Magical Menagerie was a big hit—they were all looking forward to getting a familiar. Hermione hung back initially, as she knew Crookshanks was waiting for her with her parents in Australia, but then she realized that she wouldn't have Hedwig to borrow anymore, so she set about choosing an owl as well. She decided that the three boys would share an owl, as she didn't expect lots of mail for each of them. Honestly, it wasn't as if anyone at all knew of their existence except for her.
"Mum, look! This one looks like a baby version of Magda!"
Hermione followed Roman's voice and came face to face with an adorable, obviously still young long-eared owl. Magda was the majestic Snape family owl that the boys had come to love. Bryan and Johnny seemed to see the similarities in appearance too. Bryan was smiling softly, and Johnny reached a hand out to stroke the tiny owl's head.
"Ya guys took a liking to her?" came a booming voice from behind.
"Yeah, she reminds us of the owl we had at home," piped Roman.
The shopkeeper missed the looks the others shot at the young boy and refrained from asking what exactly happened to the previous owl, assuming that it had just passed from old age.
"Does she have a name?" asked Hermione, hoping to distract him from Roman's statement.
"No, she just came to us from a reservation up north. She's a sweet one; if you'll have her, her name'll be up to you. You'll know whether she approves!"
"Cool, we'll take her!" Roman exclaimed. Ducking his head sheepishly, as he hadn't confirmed with his family yet, he was relieved to see that they all nodded.
Hermione's choice of owl was a much more complicated process. All the owls seemed so foreign and out of touch to her. It wasn't until she spotted the baby snowy owl that she felt an air of familiarity wash over her. Of course this wasn't Hedwig, and Hermione wasn't even that close with Harry's owl, but this one just spoke to her. It reminded her of a time when she and Harry had been closer than they eventually became.
The shopkeeper smiled widely when he saw where her attention had landed. "The last time we had a snowy owl was seven years ago! Rare one, this is. He's already got a name, so don't try n' change it. Albrecht for noble and bright."
"Mum, are you sure that getting two baby owls is a good idea? We wouldn't be able to really send letters until they got older," said Bryan.
"Yes, I'm sure," said Hermione, "besides, there are always Hogwarts owls. And who would you need to be sending letters to?"
The family of four walked out of the place contentedly with Albrecht and the newly-christened Maggie.
Ollivander's was, as usual, an experience. If he thought anything weird about the Sawyer family as they walked in, he kept his thoughts to himself. The actual wand matching process with somewhat anticlimactic, as Bryan and Johnny just got the wands that they were used to having. Evidently, their particular wands had already existed for two decades before they made their way to their owners. They were relieved. Hermione was moved when Roman found himself the proud owner of a birch and dragon heartstring wand. Her youngest had always been attached to Severus, and it seemed their personalities were similar enough to warrant the same wood. Roman knew it too, and he looked at his new wand with an expression of utmost care.
The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful. Hermione enjoyed the time with children, but her mind was elsewhere—namely on her parents.
A/N I hope you don't mind the German! I think it would be logical for Severus and Hermione to want to raise their children without media scrutiny, and let's face it: Germany's no less of a livable place than the France that ffn writers are so fond of. I mixed in a few German words for the part where Hildegard spoke to McGonagall, so here's what she meant in complete English:
"We lived in Germany, so we were on Durmstrang lists, but my husband and I raised the children because we believed we were better... qualified. But my husband is now indisposed from the war and I find myself too distraught to continue."
I just have a bit more summer development to go through before they finally go off to Hogwarts—I can't wait for that either!