Aimee
As we had promised each other, within two years we had two beautiful children; Ethan Alexandar, who lived up to his name as Strong Protector, and Khalida Dante, the daughter I wanted and named Everlasting. p>Ethan was an exact duplicate of myself; tall, straight black hair and cold black eyes. He was incredibly strong willed, showing it at the age of two. He and Harry didn't get along at all; perhaps it was Harry's fault, not being able to deal with a younger brother, perhaps it was Ethan's fault, being too much like myself to accept a brother. He often climbed into my lap and begged me to get rid of Harry, until his little sister was born.
Khalida was a gorgeous child; red hair like her mothers and black eyes, she was a beauty who knew it. She was a know-it-all from the start, always bossing her older brothers around. They didn't take well to her at first, but after a while she was accepted as one of them.
Lily was ecstatic to find she was pregnant with Ethan;
we had been trying for a child for many months since she was determined
to have as many children as she could. She almost abandoned Harry when
Ethan was born; perhaps that was a factor in his and Ethan's relationship.
I took responsibility for Harry once more, trying to explain to him Ethan
needed the attention with Lily. How could you explain to a three year old
child that someone else needed his mother just as much or more than himself?
It was impossible.
Lily and I debated on whether or not to allow Harry
to call me Father. It was decided that when he was old enough to handle
the truth, we would tell him of his true origins. Before that, no one was
allowed to breathe a single word of James in the Snape mansion.
Khalida, soon dubbed Kaylee, was born second, a little more than a year after Ethan. She had quite a temper, always throwing fits, but she got along with Harry in the beginning, despite Ethan's best efforts to try and thwart their relationship. Ethan felt as if he was always overlooked when it came to Harry. Perhaps he was right; although Ethan favored me over Lily, I had always favored Harry over my other sons. It was almost as if I felt I needed to fill the void James had left; as if I needed to prove to him more than my other children how good of a father I was.
We had our sons and daughter and weren't planning on any more. Dea Edan was a surprise; no one expected her. She was a year younger than Kaylee, and much like Ethan was an exact duplicate of me, Dea was an exact duplicate of Lily. Auburn hair and vivid green eyes, she quickly attached herself to Kaylee. She was named Dea Edan, Goddess of Fire, for her hair, which was bright red when she was born. She was a homemaker from the beginning; she always begged Lily to show her how to cook – the Muggle way – and was always doing something with her hands. She was truly a Snape, however, as she was quick to judge anyone that walked into her life.
Drake Aidan, Fiery Dragon, was planned two years after the birth of Dea. Once again, he was the male counterpart to Lily; red hair and green eyes. He was much like his mother personality wise, also - eager to learn and incredibly friendly. Ethan tried hard to fill the Older Brother spot in Drake's life, but Harry was the one to catch Drake's attention. Drake admired Harry as much or more than he admired his great-great-great-great-grandfather, Dumbledore, who came by often to see how his grandchildren were doing.
We acquired three more house elves that winter, four for the care of each individual child and three for taking care of the manor. I was teaching Harry magic, unbeknownst to Lily, by the age of seven. He could move simple things and transfigure simple objects before I allowed him to ride a broomstick. He took to Quidditch naturally; a trait he had received from James. I myself was not a huge fan of Quidditch, but I bared it for the sake of Harry's enjoyment.
Our youngest child, a girl, was born Christmas Day,
1988. I gave her the first name of Star, Lily gave her the middle name
of Dakota. She had green eyes and black hair, much to Harry's delight.
She was a dear; always offering a smile and a hug to her older siblings,
always walking around with a teddy bear dangling from her arms. She was
a tiny ray of light in our dysfunctional family – everyone loved her. I
called her Baby even when she insisted I called her Star. We each had our
different nicknames for her, but I always liked to think she loved mine
the best.
The year Harry entered Hogwarts – 1991 – I was offered the job of Potions Master. Lily encouraged me to take it, saying it would make her feel a lot better knowing I was there to look after Harry while he was in school. Leaving our children behind would be hard, I knew it would be. However, I agreed, in spite of the fact Star was only three.
"Do you realize how much I'm going to miss you?" I asked Lily the night before Harry and I departed. She merely grinned and kissed me.
"Yes, I do. And I promise you, I'll be missing you twice as much."
"Impossible." I kissed her back, leaning over her. "There is no end to infinity, therefore it's impossible to double it."
She laughed, touching my nose with her forefinger. "Ok, you win."
I kissed her softly, twirling her soft hair in my fingers. "Your Papa will be there to look after Harry, baby."
"Ahh, yes, but you said so yourself that you wished to become a professor some day." Lily pointed out, slowly unbuttoning the top of my pajamas. "I'm just helping you realize what you're missing."
"You mean you?" I taunted, kissing her once more. "This is going to be impossible, Lil."
She thought for a moment, "Tell you what. I'll come down there every once in a while. I'm sure Mum and Dad would be happy to take care of the kids, and I'm sure Papa will supply you with a bed big enough for two. Even if he doesn't… I'm sure we could manage."
I laughed, "Quite the needy one tonight, aren't you?"
"For you?" she kissed me, "Always."
We had six children in the house, but somehow managed to have the same kind of relationship we had thirteen years prior, during our stay at Hogwarts. We took full advantage of every moment alone, and our children had learned long ago how to entertain themselves.
"I wished you could come with me." I breathed.
"But I am." Lily kissed me once more, "I'm just not going to always be there."
"I love you, Lil."
"I love you too, Sev, and don't you ever forget that."