The characters from HP obviously do not belong to me.

Chapter 2

(Flashback to the past)

The warmth of the fire greeted him as he entered the house. The table was set and he could smell dinner cooking in the kitchen. Settling down on his armchair, he made himself comfortable as he went through the day's meeting. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up he saw his beautiful wife smiling down at him.

'Tough day?' she asked.

'Any meeting with the Ministry is always tedious', he answered, standing up.

 'Why did they want to see you?'

'Sources report that Riddle and his followers have been sighted at Glasgow. The Ministry thinks they have something big planned. They want me to go down tomorrow with a couple of Aurors and check things out. I'm afraid…' his next words were interrupted when something barreled into the room and attached itself to his leg.

'Daddy! You're home!' it cried. At the sound of that voice, all his worries flew away as he bent down to pick up his son….

That was the last time Albus saw his wife and son alive. While investigating in Glasgow, he had received the news that the Dumbledore summer house had been attacked. He had returned home immediately, only to find the house in shambles and no sign of his wife and child.

Worried to death, he had not slept a wink for two days before the Ministry contacted him. They had found Liya. Her body had washed up on a beach but there was no sign of their son… The Ministry believed that young Severus's body had been swept away by the tide, forever lost at sea.

Refusing to accept that both his wife and son were dead, Albus devoted much time in his search for his son and the apprehension of the wizards who were responsible. Three wizards were eventually caught and thrown into Azkaban, but none of his sources ever found any information about Severus. As the years past, all hope of Severus's survival had faded from his heart.

However that changed soon after Severus Snape turned himself in to Albus. During the numerous night meetings when Severus reported to him, Albus could not help but notice how Severus resembled him when he himself was young.

In all the years that Severus Snape had been in Hogwarts, Albus never once connected him with his missing son. Now, upon getting to know the young man better, he was amazed that he had never noticed the similarities both Severus Snape and Severus Dumbledore had shared.

Perhaps Severus Snape was his long-lost son….

With these thoughts running through his head, Albus continued walking towards the dungeons. Suddenly, a letter materialized out of thin air in front of him. Surprised and curious, he took it. It was a simple envelope with no seal; it only had his name, Albus Dumbledore, on the front.

He opened it and was startled to see who it was from. It was written by Liya Dumbledore, 15 years ago, on the day of the attack.

'Dear Albus' it read, 'if you receive this letter, then I am dead and Tom Riddle has been defeated…'

As he read on, the events of that fateful day were unfolded before his eyes. His suspicions were correct. Severus Snape was his son.