Hello everyone! I am so sorry for not posting sooner but things have been a lil wild. I won't bore you with the details of my life, though! Ok, moving on to the important stuff...

We're now only ONE chapter away until I post that 100% brand new chapter I told you about! with that one, THE SECOND PART OF THE STORY BEGINS! I'm excited. Anyway, let's continue.

LyraxSlytherin: your reviews sure know how to make me grin. You're so lovely! Thank you so much for reviewing! You're gonna be seeing more of Tonks because she's pretty much the queen of my world. I love her.

vampirela69: Thanks for reviewing again! And also, I was DEVASTATED when Tonks died! She's my favorite female character! I felt personally betrayed.

SPARKELS77: Thank you so much for another review! You're great!

brightandglimmer: Thank you for the congratulations and for reviewing! I hope you like this chapter! :)

Welcome Evangeline Whitlock, chrissy. reed. 33, Mmackoff and camsam17. Thanks for following and adding this story to your favorites!

**If you don't know/don't feel like googling what epoch is, Wikipedia defines it as "a moment in time chosen as the origin of a particular era."**

XXIV

Epoch

"Okay, do you have everything?" Juliana asked Cassie as they both stood in the middle of the living room. Cassie nodded before putting her backpack on, and secured her ponytail with a tug.

"Can we go now?" We were supposed to go ten minutes ago." She whined. Juliana smiled and rolled her eyes as she grabbed the keys to the car.

"Yes. We're going now." She replied and ushered her daughter to the front door. Cassie was staying overnight at her best friend Rosa's house, and just like everytime she went there, she was very excited. Once Juliana dropped her off and arranged with Rosa's parents that they were going to take Cassie home the next day, she went back home and prepared for a busy evening of potion making.

Time passed quickly and before she noticed, evening had turned into night. When she finally saw what time it was, she couldn't stop the curse that came out of her mouth.

"Oh, shit." Juliana frowned at her watch. "Severus should be calling in an hour... do I eat or do I shower?" She mumbled to herself with a frown. "Eh,"she shrugged, "I'm not even hungry." She decided that she would get something to eat after or while talking to Severus. Once she was done tidying up her lab, she went upstairs to her room to get a shower. Just as she was drying her hair with a towel, the phone rang. She looked at the clock with her eyebrows raised. It wasn't time for his call yet, and Severus was strictly punctual on weekdays when he was teaching at Hogwarts. But today was the first day of the year and─

Oh, no.

Juliana had completely forgotten that today was supposed to be Harry Potter's first day. Harry Potter, Lily Evans' son. Same-eyes-as-his-mother, Harry Potter.

Oh. No.

Juliana bolted for the phone and answered before it could ring a third time.

"Yes?" She asked, out of breath.

"I can't do it." Severus' broken voice whispered from the other side. Juliana's shoulders fell.

"Come home." She commanded.

"What?" Severus sounded like she caught him off guard. She rubbed her eyes for a moment before speaking again.

"Come home. I won't let you be alone, and if you don't come, I will go there to be with you. You know I damn well can." She heard his halfhearted laugh and it felt like a victory.

"I'll be there in a minute." He paused for a moment. "I love you. So much." His voice had turned into a whisper, and it almost sounded on the verge of desperation.

"I love you more." Juliana answered with a smile before hanging up. She knew he would appreciate her use of their little private joke.

She moved to sit cross legged in the middle bed, waiting for Severus. He had a special portkey that brought him directly to their room, and true to his word, a minute later he was in front of her.

Juliana pulled him into her arms and he buried his face in the crook of her neck. Before he knew it, he was sinking into her embrace. The feeling of his lips softly caressing her skin had her almost shivering and trying not to sigh. She ran her hands through his hair and his arms tightened even more around her.

They moved to the bed without speaking, and tangled into each other they situated themselves on the middle of the bed. Severus rested his head on her chest and let himself relax under the soothing way she massaged his scalp with one hand as the other rubbed his back, while both of his hands encircled her waist.

Juliana didn't speak first; she knew she had to wait for him to be ready.

"I love you." Severus whispered hoarsely after a while. She smiled and kissed the top of his head.

"I love you too, my love." She answered softly, holding him closer.

"How do you do it?" He asked without looking at her and she frowned, confused by his question.

"Do what?"

"An hour ago I was convinced I wasn't going to be able to keep the promise I made and now that I'm here with you…" He took a deep breath. "I can't help but feel that anything is possible and that I can do everything─ as long as you're with me." He said honestly and moved to rest his head on the pillow next to hers, both still holding each other.

Juliana felt her eyes sting and smiled softly before leaning in to kiss him deeply, meaningfully. Severus responded eagerly, grabbing her thigh and draping her leg around his waist, pulling her closer.

She moaned and bit his bottom lip, making him groan in return. Their hands touched everywhere and everything─ they were more than desperate for the feeling of each other's bodies.

After they were done, Juliana lay naked completely on top of Severus. Her weight didn't even phase him─ quite the contrary: it was a perfect way to have her as close as possible without being in her, and Severus enjoyed it tremendously. So did Juliana, who had begun kissing his neck while caressing his chest, while Severus' own hands busied themselves on her backside and the close areas.

They spent some time kissing lazily, both feeling drunk in love, until he decided he was finally ready to speak.

They changed positions─ Severus sat up and she placed herself between his legs, her back against his chest and her head resting on his shoulder as she held the hands that hugged her stomach.

"It will be hard… too hard sometimes." He whispered dejectedly.

"Yes, it will." Juliana replied honestly, without hesitation. "But you know I am sure that this is not something you're not capable of doing."

"He looks just like him." He hissed and she inwardly cursed. Of course he does, she thought. Obviously that had brought back memories. The worst memories.

"But he's not him, Severus. He didn't even know his parents." She emphasized and he sighed deeply.

"I know. His eyes made sure to remind me of that."

"Are they really...?" She began to ask carefully, knowing it wasn't necessary to finish the sentence.

"The same as Lily's? Yes, they are." Severus replied and Juliana felt his hand rubbing her side as he pulled her even closer to his chest. Comfort, he's asking for comfort, she realized. She pulled away from him and turned around, moving until she was able to straddle his lap. Severus' hands moved to caress her face while he looked at her like he couldn't believe she was real. He did that often. She bit her lip and slowly moved closer to his face until their lips connected in a soft, languid kiss that she hoped could convey what she was trying to tell him.

I'm with you on this. I'm with you on everything, always. You are not alone.

Juliana figured he got the message because a small smile formed in his mouth─ another victory─ but it disappeared way too soon for her liking. She pulled away and he looked down, refusing to meet her eyes.

"What? What are you thinking?" She asked softly as she moved a strand of hair behind his ear. Severus' eyes closed and he grabbed her hand gently, giving it a soft kiss before placing it on his cheek.

"The sorting... he's a Gryffindor. It made me remember his father being sorted into Gryffindor after Lily was..." He said before rubbing his eyes, letting out a sigh. "I'm sorry. I know I have to, but I it's so hard to let go of it." He confessed before leaning back against the headboard. She rested her forehead against his and intertwined their fingers, squeezing softly.

"Love, it's okay that you're not able to let go of it. You're not ready to move on yet. And you shouldn't─ you can't. There's still too much to be done." He nodded in agreement. "I just want to always be able to help you through this, and I want you to tell me whenever you need me. All I ask is that you don't bottle up your feelings because it will hurt you─ and it will hurt me as well." He kissed her lips for a moment before nodding again.

"I won't, love. I promise."

AHHHH, it's Harry's first year! Cassie is a teenager! We're getting closer and closer...

If you don't remember, bolded lines are spoken in Portuguese!

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