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Chapter 12
Apparently Amelia Williams was more stubborn than one Severus Snape, during the next three months the pediatrician had been a constant presence in Severus' life. The first week after their little quasi bet Amelia Williams had steered clear of Severus' house or so he thought.
Amy didn't know why but she wanted to get to know this man so badly. She was usually friendly but being friends with this surly man who has two adorable children had become a priority for her. She had an ally, Molly, the older woman wanted Severus to have people around him, she had explained, "I can't always be around him. He needs somebody to help him with the boys, Severus needs to realize that he is young and have friends close to his age. My husband and me are too old to be any good company and my children still see him as an authority figure." She wanted him to come to her; Molly had assured her he eventually would.
As it happened a week to the day that she'd been to his place, Severus Snape was ringing the doorbell.
He had one wailing Harry and one annoyed Draco. He looked stressed out, "Molly is visiting her son in Rumania, and Andromeda won't answer my calls. I don't know what is wrong with him. The doctors say there is nothing wrong, that he is just colicky. Draco is being a pain in the arse, he is tired, and Harry won't let him sleep."
"Come in, have a sit. Put Draco on my bed; let him nap. The room down the corridor." She examined Harry; there was nothing wrong with him. She rocked him but he continued his crying. She sang to him and went into the kitchen. Amy took a bottle from Severus bag, and prepared weak chamomile tea.
She was singing and dancing around with the baby in her arms. She felt Severus looking at them, after drinking his tea and some weak crying Harry fell asleep. "How did you do that? He's been restless for hours."
"Chamomile tea" she said as she left Harry next to Draco.
They went back to her living room, "I have some tea, would you like some?"
"Yes, please." he was beyond tired; he'd decided to ask for help because it had pained him to see his baby crying. He felt powerless, the doctors at the muggle hospital sent him home after he yelled at them, incompetent dunderheads.
"When was the last time you slept properly?" she asked softly.
"Two days ago, when Molly left." he said despondently.
"Well, that explains why. You look like hell." She said, he smirked, "this is nothing I've had much worse nights..."
"I bet, raising two kids alone. Must be though." She smiled sadly. She didn't know why he was a single dad and would not ask.
He looked uncomfortable so she said, "I gave him weak chamomile tea. It will sooth his stomach and bring some relief."
"Why didn't I think of that?" he looked as if he wanted to punch himself in the head.
"I don't fault you, you were sleep deprived. Once when I was studying for finals during med school I woke up at 3:00AM thinking it was the afternoon. I didn't realize until I got to the university."
Severus laughed, "I don't believe it, I made you laugh." She was delighted.
It was a very weak friendship but during Molly's two week long absence Amelia Williams managed to visit Severus' house whenever she could. She taught him to make Harry's tea and also got Draco to exercise his legs, he was still behind Harry when it came to physical abilities but the blond baby was catching up.
"Very good love." She gushed when Draco managed to stand up by himself for more than a minute.
"Who's my baby love?" she cooed ticking his side when he fell on his bottom and was about to cry. Draco giggled, hugged her and played with her hair.
Harry who was playing by himself whined, "Ahhh, ahhh," he pouted. "Don't get jealous of your brother. You're my baby love too. She kissed his face and stomach."
Severus loved watching her interact with his boys. His sons needed someone to give him all of that attention. He loved them and played with them but the way Amelia looked after them and just took care of them was tender, soft and just different, it seemed more natural.
At that moment Severus decided to let Amelia visit the boys, he was allowing this only because the boys seemed to like her and would miss her once Molly came back. Yes, that was the only reason why.
A pattern of visits had been established during those first three months. Once Molly came back Amy continued to be a presence in Severus' and the boys' lives. She was thankful for Molly; if it weren't for her Amy would have had to work more in order to get into Severus' life.
"I am so glad you're back. Thank you, you are wonderful." She hugged the older woman as soon as she saw her.
"So, it worked. Severus finally accepted your help, that is great news dear." Molly was glad; she had a feeling these two would become inseparable.
"Oh, let me tell you everything…" Amy spent the whole afternoon after work telling Molly about the past two weeks and all the advances she had made.
Amy also told Molly about the plans she had for the boys. All hallows eve was getting close. The older woman looked sad for a moment.
"Does Severus know about your plans?
Amelia nodded, "Yes, he agreed, we'll have so much fun." Amelia kept talking but Molly was already contemplating the ways in which Severus would hurt that day.
Halloween was always though on Severus, this year was no different; he tried to focus on work. He got home by 10:00 PM. "Hey stranger, I thought something had happened to you." Amelia wore a pink dress and had transparent wings on.
"I'm sorry why do you have wings?" he asked.
"Today is Halloween silly. I'm a fairy." She circled around the room.
"Draco was a dragon and Harry was a pumpkin. I swear I let them choose their own costumes."
Amelia couldn't stop talking, she carried on, "we had so much fun, and we went trick or treating and got lots of candy. They laughed so hard when they saw other children in costumes. We saw the most beautiful little girls dressed as sun flowers…"
Amy noticed that he wasn't paying much attention; Severus was looking at a fixed point in front of him. "Severus, are you alright? Did something happen?"
He blinked and shook his head, "I'm fine, I don't like Halloween that's all." Amy had never seen him like this. Severus eyes were empty without any feeling, like dark black tunnels.
"I don't like seeing you like this. I am a good listener, just don't shut yourself ok." She said hesitantly.
Severus nodded and smiled sadly. "Thank you Amelia but I don't think talking would help me." He rubbed his eyes tiredly.
He closed his eyes and felt her hugging him. "A hug always helps." She said simply when he looked into her blue eyes. For the first time in years Severus let another adult hug him, he didn't push her away or cringe when she squeezed him.
He allowed himself; he hugged back. They stayed like that for about two minutes. Severus moved back; "Thanks Amelia."
"No problem, it was fun to take the boys out. I'll have some of the pictures by next week." Amy knew he wasn't just thanking her for babysitting the boys but also for being there for him.
Two weeks after that Amy walked up to Severus house; he was supposed to be home. Molly opened the door and let her in. Amy was glad to see the older woman; she went straight to the point.
"I am worried however, Severus pretends nothing is the matter with him but I think there is something bothering him. I know it is work related, he's even taken another day at the lab."
"I cannot believe it, Amy has he taken any advantages; don't tell me he's been neglecting the children." Molly sadly asked, Severus could be a workaholic or so Minerva told her.
Amy looked scandalized for Severus' sake, "no, he loves the boys. You know that Molly, his whole face changes when he gets home from work. Severus plays and dotes on them. But when we are alone, after the boys are sleeping, he starts talking about his research. Nothing concrete, for some reason he doesn't think I would understand. He is wrong of course, I'm a bloody doctor."
Molly could see what was happening; sometimes it was hard to hide the fact that they were magical. She was sure Amelia would not understand all of the nuances involved in Severus' research.
"Don't worry dear, he's always been a little standoffish when it comes to his research work." She patted Amy's hand.
"Now, you must tell me, how are the boys doing?" Amy's eyes sparkled and she went on to explain Draco's physical prowess and Harry's latest antics.
"Harry is a little bugger, I swear, sometimes I can see those green eyes fill with mischief. He has a way of manipulating Severus; last night we were having dinner and Harry was able to get chocolate ice cream out of Severus' cup just by pouting and giving him puppy eyes."
She smiled fondly, "I think Draco is in love with Hermione, I noticed he's fascinated by hair but the way his face lights up when he sees her is just too damn cute."
Molly laughed and let her continue with her observations. Soon it was 7:30 and Severus was back from work.
"I'm so sorry Molly, I just had to finish that experiment." He found his neighbor on the rug playing with Draco, Harry was asleep by the playpen.
"Where's Molly?" he asked as he sank down on the sofa.
"She left half an hour ago, something about Ginny and Fleur." Amy said distractedly as she rolled a ball in Draco's direction.
"I'll cook something for us then, thank you for staying with the boys." He said as he went into the kitchen. It was natural to see Amelia every day now. His research at St. Mungos was not yielding results yet and he was more determined to get them. This resulted in his staying more hours at the lab.
It was problematic at best, Hermione and Ron started school so he no longer had babysitters for Mondays, and thankfully Amelia had taken over. It was also a blessing that Molly was there for him. Andromeda had Teddy to take care of, he usually dropped the babies at her place on Tuesdays, and she had yet to meet Amelia. He was stressed out; his neighbor's help had been so needed. Severus went into the kitchen; he'd changed his mind in the past two weeks. After really taking to her he had discovered a smart, caring, friendly woman. A friend, she was not oversensitive and could take a lot of his dry sardonic remarks. She was brutally honest and would point out his flaws without hurting him.
Her entering the kitchen interrupted him; Amelia sat down on the counter next to him. "So how was your day?" she asked cheerily.
"Shitty" he said.
"Aren't you a ray of sunshine? Mine was good, thanks for asking. After I got home from work I chatted with Molly and played with my baby loves."
"Why do you insist on calling them those silly names? Harry and Draco, those are their names."
"Shut up, they happen to love those pet names." She glared at him, as if daring him to contradict her.
He harrumphed but remained silent, after half an hour of listening talk about the boys' day he said. "This is ready, get a plate for yourself."
They sat down to eat dinner, "how was work?" she asked again, this time expecting a proper answer.
"Same as usual." She looked at him pointedly.
"Very well, I won't ask again." She said coldly.
"I just don't know what to tell you. I'm frustrated that the experiments are not working and I don't have enough data." He said giving up, he needed to talk to someone, and Amelia was a good listener.
"Relax, just don't get overwhelmed, maybe you should take a break. This week has been hard on you." Amelia took his hand in hers.
Severus had lied to himself for years but he could not deny the single fact of his life. He had always craved contact, affection. He was thrilled every time this woman chose to comfort him. A single touch from her made him felt loads better.
They moved to the couch; "I can't, I have to keep working on it. I know I'm close to a breakthrough. I just need to work harder." He sighed and checked on the children.
"I'll take them upstairs." He took Draco first; he then took Harry, who got a little fussy.
"Give him to me" demanded Amelia, she saw Severus was exhausted; Harry lay down her shoulder and hugged her before finally closing his eyes.
Amelia smiled and kissed the top of his head, "I'll get him to his cot." Severus nodded and turned on the telly. She looked so good with his sons, when Molly first started pushing Amelia into his life he was afraid to confuse her with Lily.
His fears were unfounded; Lily Evans had been a sweet girl, his best friend. He'd been in love with her since he was a boy. Amelia was nosy, annoying and incredibly rude when she wanted to be. Lily would have never told him to piss off if he told her she was annoying. Amelia would glare at him and give him the finger but she would stay and annoy him even more. Lily would have gotten hurt; with Lily he was always afraid he would mess things up.
As he said to Dumbledore, he would always love Lily. His love for her had been a driving force until Harry went to Hogwarts, since that moment his life goal became protecting that boy. Severus had time to think about his relationship to Lily after he discovered that Harry was his son. For years he had idolized Lily, making her this beacon of hope and happiness. In his eyes she had been almost perfect, knowing that she had lied to him changed his view of her. His Lily was not perfect, she was human, he still loved her but some of the guilt he felt had gone away after having his second chance to raise Harry and Draco.
Soon it was 9:00 PM, Amy headed home, "Sleep, and don't even think of leaving the boys with me tomorrow. I am going shopping with my friend Ericka."
"You told me that, they are staying with Andromeda at her place." He said in a bored tone.
"When am I going to meet her? I have even met Bill's wife but I haven't met her yet." She said, she was curious about the older woman. Amy wanted to know if she was just like Molly.
"What makes you think you'll meet her? You are just another babysitter." He said not looking up.
"Oi, I know I'm your best friend! You ungrateful bat." She hit him in the head.
He gave her his best glare. "You don't scare me. I have seen you bathe Draco and Harry and I have picture of you laughing." She winked at him.
"Witch." He muttered.
"So long, grumpy face. I'll see you around." She said as she walked out of the house.
