Daddy's girl

-Alternate opening to A girl named Hermione Granger series-


It was cold and slick outside; rain was falling in a sheet, freezing everyone outside to the very bone. Everything was bathed in a dull grey light that made him feel dead. He was sitting at the window, his chin resting on his folded hands, as he propped his elbows on his knees. He let out a weary sigh, as a woman cried out in pain behind him, panting and cursing in between contractions. The beeping of her heart monitor was beginning to irritate him.

He paid her no mind, even as she threw a pillow at the back of his head, causing his long black hair to fall in his face. "You unfeeling bastard!" She shrieked, grating on his nerves as she had been for the last four days. The door to the room swung open softly, and he heard the approaching footsteps of the healer, "Alright, Kathrine, let's see if you are ready." The rough voice of the healer; a nearly ninety year old man, echoed off the walls ominously. "Ah! Yes, there we are. Let me fetch my assistant and we'll bring this child into the world."

The next four hours were a blur, to the dark haired man, as he watched without interest, as healers prompted his – horrible – wife to push harder and harder. He had never been present before, at the birthing process, so he paid little mind when several more healers burst into the room, and blocked his view of the bed.

A sudden, high pitched wail rang through the room, followed by a flattened beep. It was a full five minutes, filled with shouting, a baby's muffled cry, and the flat beep, before the head healer approached him, holding a tightly wrapped pink bundle.

"I'm sorry, Severus, your wife didn't make it." The old healer stood in a silence a moment, as the room emptied behind him, and once he decided the young man before him was not going to speak, he continued. "I'd like to introduce you, however, to your daughter."

Severus recoiled slightly, and sneered down at the healer, "Daughter? The wretch couldn't at least give me a son?" He had never cared to be a father; in fact the bundle being offered to him now had been a mistake. Possibly the biggest of his life.

"Yes, a daughter. Will you please take her, and think of a name? I will send in Mary in ten minutes with the birth certificate for you to fill out." The elderly healer held the bundled infant closer to the dark haired young man, who made no move to accept her.

"I'd really rather not –" Severus was cut off, however, as an alarm echoed through the door to the room, and the healer hurriedly shoved the baby girl into his arms; which shot out on instinct to keep the child aloft.

He watched the healer leave in a hurry, and slowly let his eyes fall to the cargo in his arms. His heart leapt inside his chest in a way he had felt before. Staring back up at him, through the folds of sold pink fabric, was an angel with his eyes, and tiny tufts of her mother's curly brown hair.

He didn't understand the lump forming in his throat, as he adjusted her body into the crook of his left arm, and he brought his right hand up to nudge the fabric out of his way to view her better.

She was pink all over, as all newborns are, with huge, round eyes, nearly black like his own, and bright red, tiny lips. She had her mother's facial features, he could tell, with her heart shaped face, she would break many hearts. His own included.

He felt his heart throb in shock as the assistant healer entered the room, with a piece of parchment and a quill, poised to write. "Mr. Snape, sir, have you thought of a name for your daughter?" She asked, her voice shaking slightly with fear of the man before her. In the last four days, as she had attended his wife, he had not moved from the chair by the window, nor had he shown a single emotion beyond disdain. Now, with his daughter cradled tightly to his chest, she could see wonder, and fear on his face.

"Her…my…only…" His brain abandoned him, as he tried to string together a coherent thought. "Hermione? That's such a lovely name! Oh yes, it suits her to a tee! I've never seen a child with such dark and unique eyes –" Mary flushed, as Severus gaped at her, and she cleared her throat. "Ahem, yes. Splendid, I'll write that down, any middle names?" She quickly spelt out the first name in clear letters.

"She-no –" "Sean? No, sir, that's a boy's name. How about Jean?" The assistant healer gasped suddenly, startling both the father and daughter before her, "Hermione Jean Kathrine Snape! Oh it's such a lovely fit! You are so sweet, to give your daughter such a loving name!" She scribbled out the rest of the name on the parchment and held it out to him, "I'll just need you to sign here and confirm, thank you!"

He signed the parchment in a daze, and hardly noticed when Mary left. His eyes fell on his daughter once more, only to find her sleeping, breathing softly through her mouth. Her little limbs twitching within the depths of the blanket.


Severus was nearly at his wits ends. He had not slept a wink in the last month. He'd had to, by request of his mother, set up the wake and funeral for Kathrine, and his daughter, Hermione, had yet to sleep through the night.

She had grown quite a bit already, but she was still so tiny, and he'd relied heavily on his mother's aid, to stay sane. He spent long nights brewing potions to replace the breast milk he had no supply of, and he spent his days washing her little clothes and changing her diapers.

"My dear son, you look a wreck. I've found someone to babysit for you. You need a proper nights rest!" Eileen said lovingly, as she swept into her son's study and plucked the wailing infant out of his arms. Hermione settled against her grandmother's shoulder immediately and her face relaxed.

Severus reached out on reflex, his fingers stretching for his daughter, before curling into a lose fist, "Mother, I'm fine I don't need –" his own yawn cut through his protesting, and Eileen chucked, gently sweeping some of her greying hair out of her eyes, careful not to wake the baby.

"See, I'm right. Mother knows best. You get on up to bed, I'll pack Hermione's bag and take her to the sitter's." He was halfway out of his study before her words sank in, "Wait, where are you taking her?" His eyes went wide with panic; he did not want any of his current friends watching her! With the exception of Narcissa Black – soon to be Malfoy – he didn't know anyone who actually liked children.

"Hush now Severus, you'll wake 'mione." Eileen scolded, rocking gently to ensure the continued peace, "I've spoken to the girl you were friends with, Lily, and she's staying at her parent's this week, just a couple streets away. I bumped into her in the grocery, when she heard of how things are, she offered!"

Severus felt the bottom drop out of his stomach, and the room spun slightly, "Lily – Lily Evans?" The name felt both foreign and familiar on his lips, as he hadn't spoken to her in three years now. "Yes, well, no, actually." He couldn't tell if he was more disappointed or relieved, until his mother went on, "She'll be Lily Potter in a week, actually. That's why she's in town, wants to speak to you; I think she wants you to come to the wedding, but I could be wrong."

"Oh listen, you've got me rambling, you naughty boy," "I'm not a –" "Off you go, to bed! Take some dreamless draught, I've got this covered." She shooed him up the stairs, making sure he stepped into his room before she sauntered into the nursery at the end of the hall, humming under her breath.

Hermione shifted, with a slight whimper, and her tiny fists clutched onto her grandmothers jumper, as Eileen flitted about the room, filling the diaper bag with a casual flick of her wand, and a few hushed words. Once the bag was packed and stocked, she gently lowered the sleeping baby into her basinet, and lifted that into her arms instead.

She walked to the Evans', thinking fondly of her son, and the struggles he had already had to face. His father had been cruel, and she'd had to wait many years before she could free them from him. The day was grey, as it had been since the start of September, and there were no shadows on the ground. Eileen never heard the footsteps following her, nor the heavy breathing of the drunken man, and she did not hear his gun fire.


Severus was awoken to the sound of fists pounding on his door, and it took several moments for him to realize it was a frantic sound, spurred by fear.

He leapt out of his bed, not caring that he was dressed in ratty pajamas, and he flew down the stairs at near inhuman speeds. He wrenched open the door and his heart froze. Lily Evans and – the bastard – James Potter were standing on his stoop, glowering and flustered.

"What is wrong with you?" James shouted drawing his wand with a violent gesture, as Lily shook with sobs. Severus was too shocked to say anything, and he grew nervous as he realized his wand lay in his study, well out of reach. "Lily extends a means of forgiveness and you throw it back in her face!"

Severus blinked a few times, his brain going foggy, trying to figure out just what the situation was. And then, it hit him like a train. Lily was supposed to have been watching Hermione; his mother was supposed to have dropped her off hours ago, he could only assume, judging by how dark it had become.

"N-no…" It came over him quickly, the realization that something bad had happened. He could barely form a single word, as the world began to spin; his daughter, his mother, missing and possibly dead.

He didn't even see the curse that James sent at him, let alone dodge it, and he crashed into the bottom of his stairs. He shook his head to clear the fog, and he shot to his feet. His wand flew out of his office, through the sitting room, and into his hand in the blink of an eye, and he shoved past his most hated rival, and his beloved childhood friend, not hearing their shouts of anger and confusion.

He looked up and down the street wildly, before sprinting in the direction he knew his mother would have gone. He kept his eyes peeled, looking for anything that was out of place, and when he came upon the alley his mother had frequently used for a shortcut, he sank to his knees and cried out.

There was a deep pool of blood, surrounding his mother's body, seeping from multiple wounds. He knew, of course he knew, that this was his so-called father's doing. There was no one else in all of Britain that was as twisted as he.

The sound of footsteps coming up behind him, snapped him from his thoughts of revenge, and he turned his head just enough to see Lily and James, pale as ghosts. Lightening cracked overhead, and was followed by booming thunder, and suddenly a baby's wail surrounded them.

Severus scrambled forward, through the blood and dirt, and spotted Hermione's basinet, partially hidden by boxes. He reached inside of it and plucked out his daughter's tiny form, checking her from head to toe. "Hermione, shhh, its daddy." He cooed shakily, clambering to his feet, shaking violently.

Lily and James stood back, she, feeling ashamed for having jumped to conclusions before; and he, feeling jealousy for the way the infant settled at the sound of his rival's voice. "Sev –" Lily whispered, taking a step forward, raising a hesitant arm, "I'm so sorry –"

Severus patted his daughters back gently, and looked up to glare at the two in front of him. "Sometimes, sorry isn't enough." He spat, remembering the last time he had spoken with Lily, his oldest friend, when she had refused to hear his own apologies. He watched her wince, and felt remorseful. "Sev, we apparated…we didn't know….I thought maybe –" She was near sobbing again, as he took an instinctive step back.

He knew, anyone could have jumped to the conclusions they had; he knew he wold have, but it was no excuse to attack him in his own home as James had done. He wouldn't have done that. "Whatever. Go away now." He dropped his eyes to his mother's still body, and carefully withdrew his wand, he was not leaving this mess for the muggle police, those incompetent bastards were to blame. He waved his wand with a strict swish, and sent off a wispy, silver creature to fetch the proper authorities.

James and Lily did not move, nor did Severus, as people in black robes began popping out of thin air, pointing their wands directly at the chest of the young father. "Drop your wand," the tallest man demanded, pointing his own wand level with where little Hermione was sleeping against her father's chest.

Severus lowered his wand, but did not let it fall to the ground, "I'm the one who called you," he hissed, angling himself so that the wand was no longer directed at his only child. "Likely story, Slytherin punk," a shaggy man said as he stepped over to James and Lily, who recognized him immediately. "Sirius!" James exclaimed, acting as though he had not seen his friend in ages, although they had in fact had lunch earlier that same day.

"Drop your wand sir," the tall wizard demanded again, though Severus stood his ground firmly, "I'll do no such thing." In what seemed like slow motion, several of the wizards in black shot disarming spells in his direction, and both his wand and daughter were dislodged from his grip.

Eyes wide with fear, he dove forward and caught the pink bundle in his arms, just barely managing to keep his balance as he once again checked his daughter for damage. She began to cry, having been disturbed from her sleep, and he hushed her in a panic. "Shhh, go back to sleep, love." He stroked her cheeks gently, and her cries died down into soft whimpers.

"Where'd you get the brat, Snivellus?" Sirius asked, directing his attention back on his job, earning him a glare from the over-protective father. "She's my daughter, asshole, so don't go getting any bright ideas." He sneered, stepping back defensively.

Silence fell, as the squad of magical law enforcement wizards studied the man before them. He was covered in dirt and blood, from when he had scrambled forward to find his daughter, and he looked as gaunt as a dying man in Azkaban.

Lily shifted uncomfortably beside her fiancé for a moment, until she felt she would burst, and she rushed forward to place herself between her childhood friend and the entirety of the magical law enforcement group. "You've been here five minutes, five whole minutes, and all you've accomplished is to threaten an innocent man, and nearly kill an infant!" She glowered at the men before her, and they had the decency to look ashamed, "And not one of you has noticed the body of his mother lying on the ground at your very feet!"

All eyes shifted downwards, and settled on the mangled corpse of Eileen. "Lily is right," James said quickly, stepping forward to stand beside her, "Get on with business, I'd like to get home, there's Quidditch tonight!"


Severus sat in his study, well past two in the morning, with his daughter sleeping on his lap, and a dying fire casting minimal light across the room. He knew what he was going to do, come morning, but that didn't make it easy. His hand rubbed soothing circles over Hermione's back, and he felt a single tear rolling down his face.

The last thing he wanted to do was give up his daughter, for he loved her, with everything he didn't even know he had, but it was unavoidable. His eyes flickered to his desk, and landed on three sheets of parchment. He had written a letter for her to read when she is old enough to understand, and written a letter for the orphanage at which he planned to leave her, to explain to the muggles running it that her name was Hermione, and she was the whole of his life. And should they send her to a bad home, they would regret it.

Giving her up, the thought of it broke his heart. But it had to be done now. Because tomorrow, he was going to hunt down his bastard father and kill him. And if he were sent to Azkaban, she'd be sent to a potentially evil home in the wizarding community. This was for her best interest.

The third letter he had written was to explain, should she show signs of it in her youth, she would be attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.


Severus stood down the street from the orphanage, shaking as he held the basinet close. He had tucked the three letters inside the folds of the light red blanket he had swaddled his daughter with; it was her favourite, and he had tucked her only toy, a worn out, but magically protected, teddy bear that had been his, once upon a time.

He walked slowly to the door of the orphanage, dragging his feet as he went, unable to bear the thought of parting. The sun would be up in less than thirty minutes, and the lower windows of the brick building were tinted with soft, flickering lights. "It's now or never." He breathed, climbing the steps and setting the basinet gently on the welcome mat before the door.

He knelt down and placed a swift kiss over her downy hair, and her eyes flickered beneath their lids, but did not open. "I love you, 'mione. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." He whispered, straightening up again. He took a deep breath and rang the doorbell, before apparating down the street, so he could watch her until she was safely inside.

The moment the door opened, revealing a middle aged woman with greying hair, he knew she would be safe. The woman's face lit up with shock at first, then sorrow, as she scooped up the basinet, and carried it inside. He turned on the spot and vanished, ready to begin the hunt for his father.


End!

This turned out a lot darker then I had intended, but I'm still quite pleased.

This is to follow the idea that Severus is the one to give her up for adoption, and it's pretty much just an alternate opening to my series.

Also, I thought it was pretty creative, how I made him name her too; the assistant healer turning his muttering into names :)

Sorry for any errors; I may have my brand new reading glasses on, but it is still getting rather late, and I'm rather tired.

The inspiration for this idea came from listening to 'daddy's girl' by Red Sovine on youtube.