Disclaimer: I don't own a thing here except Dylon. I actually am not a huge RW/HG fan, but for this story it just...works. You'll see, it's all in my head right now.
Title: The Third Prophecy
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Severus Snape/Hermione Granger
A/N: This took me so long to write because I had about ten different ways to approach this chapter and it took me a while to whittle it all down. I was so excited from all of my reviews that I worked on it right away, then couldn't decide how to make things work out, so I stopped writing for a while, then school go hectic, so yeah. Pity me!
Also, I unfortunately didn't have this chapter beta read because I wanted to get it up soon, now that it's finally typed, and I'm sure my beta, larrytheguitar, has a long list of things to do before betaing this, so it isn't probably as good as the first chapter. But here it is...
In a shabby flat in London, a woman paced back and forth, a wailing baby in her arms. Trying to calm her son, she began to sing.
"Sleep, baby, sleep. Your father tends the sheep. Your mother's pickin' another dream from the dreamland tree," Hermione Weasley-Granger cooed to her son. Dylon, her only son, was still in a right state. His face was almost as red as the hair atop his head. Hermione ran her fingers through the red wisps of baby fluff hair, and as the words spilled from her lips, so did the tears from her eyes.
Eventually, the babe hushed, and Hermione softly laid him down to rest in his small, rickety cradle. She herself then collapsed into the nearest chair, sobbing silently. It had been a full year to the day since the Final Battle, when Ron had died. A whole year without her best friend, her baby's father, and without a true smile on her lips. She had lost several friends in the battle, and yet nothing hit her as hard as Ron. For she had kept a secret from him, and now it was burning to get out of her.
Hermione continued to sob, trying to remain soundless to keep Dylon asleep. Deep hiding in her heart, she felt so much guilt. There was the unbearable guilt of not being there with her friends to take on the most dreadful adversary of all. The day Harry and Ron left to finish the fight, she, under their orders, was locked in her flat to keep her unborn child safe. She remembered so quickly how she had spent hours and hour banging on the door, screaming to be let free to help.
Second pressing on her heart was the guilt for keeping something from Ron. She should have told him back in their seventh year she didn't really love him, but with all of the pressure from the Weasleys, Harry, and Ron himself, she couldn't bring herself to do it, and ended up somehow engaged to someone she felt no feelings for past deep friendship. The thing that tore her the most was Ginny Weasley, who she saw clearly in her mind, grinning and saying, "I'm so glad you love my brother, Mione. Who knows, we could be sisters someday!" How did she let it happen, though?
Suddenly, a gong cut into her thoughts, and she automatically looked at the clock, recognizing the sound. She was going to be late for work again if she didn't get a move on.
"Damn," she muttered to herself, pulling herself out of the chair. She made her way to the other half of the one-room flat where her things were stuffed into a dilapidated wardrobe, throwing things aside trying to find a clean robe. A moment later, a crackle was heard, and Hermione spun to see a red head pulling herself out of the fire, a genuine smile painted on her lips.
"Hello, Ginny, dear," she called, straightening out her robes and walking over to greet her sister-in-law, and trying overly hard to sound normal. She grabbed her traveling cloak and pulled it on, forcing a smile and politely inquiring, "How's Harry?"
Ginny looked up from where she was gazing down to Ron's firstborn and smiled. "Oh, he's fine," she said with a smile. Hermione took a moment to wonder if Ginny had looked at a calendar, or if the rest of the world had moved on and she was stuck replaying the past, like a broken record.
Brushing those thoughts aside, Hermione "smiled" back and said hastily, "I'd better be off, then. See you after work, I suppose." She gave one last look to her child and with a small pop, she was gone.
~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~
Meanwhile, at a familiar Scottish castle and institution of magical learning, the stones that were used at the hard dungeon floor in the Potions office were getting a deal more worn that the normally composed Potions Master paced back and forth. He knew what he had to do, that was easily provided for him in the form of a marvelous epiphany, he just couldn't for the hell of him figure out why.
Why was Hermione Granger, know-it-all Gryffindor, the one to save the magical world from the hell that could become of it? Why was he graced as the only one, of course excluding Professors McGonagall, Sprout, and Dumbledore, and possibly Miss Granger herself, to know this information? Why was he, after all he had helped before, after all the hell he had paid, been the one to get stuck with this burden? And why did her have to waste his valuable time babysitting a grown woman?
Over the hours, Severus began to formulate answers for the questions his mind kept asking itself, with the aid of his select stock brandy and way too much time spent alone. Surely, to him, the answers made sense, no matter how far off they might have been, or how close they really were.
As to why Hermione was to be their savior, it only made sense to the irony of the world. First their was James Potter, and his friends, Lupin and Black, heroically getting the glory for their little deeds. Next came Potter, saving witches and wizards everywhere countless times from the terror of Voldemort. Then, pathetic Weasley gave his life, and if rumor was correct, left Miss Granger with the burdens of widow and single mother. But he couldn't feel much sympathy for her, for in a few months time, she would be basking in the limelight like all her little friends.
Not that Miss Granger couldn't have had the limelight from the beginning, of course. Severus knew that she was exceptionally bright, obviously patient to put up with Longbottom all those years, and she deserved much better than the fools she had for friends. But it was her own choice whether to pursue her dreams or let them fall away, and to Severus, it was quite clear which she chose.
Then, of course, why he was burdened with not only the information, but the tasks themselves, was because the universe was against him. He had pondered it before, and it was all that made sense. Nobody's life should ever be as hellish as his, and everyday it seemed worse. So this just went along to make him miserable to the point of death.
He supposed that the whole protection thing sort of made sense. Certainly Miss Granger could handle herself in a duel, but if twenty Death Eaters showed up at her door, it would be quite difficult for her to keep herself and the baby safe.
Eventually, he let the thoughts just slip away and his mind went numb from the brandy as he drifted into a deep sleep in one of the armchairs in his office, the fire dying out as the night turned slowly to day.
A/N: Did this take me long enough or what? I am truly sorry, I have had half written for a few weeks, but I wanted to end it right, and this is how it came out. I'm sure it could be better, but you never know. Swimming ends in three weeks, so after that, I should have more time for my stories, and I am trying to treat them all fairly, I'll do my best! Thanks to all who reviewed the first chapter, notes to you here:
Calliandra~ Thanks, that means a lot. My plot still has a bit to be worked over all, but overall, I think it's turning out okay. Is this chapter keeping the plot moving well do you think?
Porthos the Pirate~ Gee, in the time it took me to write this, you must have died, gone to heaven, and been up there for quite a while, because I am a slow writer. Sorry I didn't get to it sooner, it's been almost two months! So sorry, and I hope this makes up for it a bit.
Tracey Claybon~ Yes, I believe Trelawney deserved to go exactly the way she did! Thanks for the review.
piper~ Well, this is asap, so sorry about the wait on your end. More soon, I hope!
Master of Sarcasm~ Thanks bunchs! I love your pen name, by the way. No more about dear late Trelawney here, sorry to disappoint you. Kidding!
AdoraVampiress~ Sweet! I'm on your author alert. Now you know that this chapter's out. That was a really pointless thing to say on my part, but I'm still glad you like so far.
Silent Cobra~ Glad my attention grabbers worked. Thanks for the review.
Angelina-Malfoy~ Gee, I must be good at sparking the attention or something, you are like the third person to say that. I hope you still want to read after this chapter.
Emma-Kitty~ Glad you think so. Thanks for the great review, you rock my socks!
The-Rogue-Thorn~ I'm glad you think it's cool. It got more "angsty" this chapter, so I hope it sounds okay.
joani~ I finally (emphasis on finally) kept going. Sorry for the wait and thanks for the review.
Brie Black~ Thanks for reading, and like I said before, I did finally keep going, even if it took me forever!
~Emily
Title: The Third Prophecy
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Severus Snape/Hermione Granger
A/N: This took me so long to write because I had about ten different ways to approach this chapter and it took me a while to whittle it all down. I was so excited from all of my reviews that I worked on it right away, then couldn't decide how to make things work out, so I stopped writing for a while, then school go hectic, so yeah. Pity me!
Also, I unfortunately didn't have this chapter beta read because I wanted to get it up soon, now that it's finally typed, and I'm sure my beta, larrytheguitar, has a long list of things to do before betaing this, so it isn't probably as good as the first chapter. But here it is...
In a shabby flat in London, a woman paced back and forth, a wailing baby in her arms. Trying to calm her son, she began to sing.
"Sleep, baby, sleep. Your father tends the sheep. Your mother's pickin' another dream from the dreamland tree," Hermione Weasley-Granger cooed to her son. Dylon, her only son, was still in a right state. His face was almost as red as the hair atop his head. Hermione ran her fingers through the red wisps of baby fluff hair, and as the words spilled from her lips, so did the tears from her eyes.
Eventually, the babe hushed, and Hermione softly laid him down to rest in his small, rickety cradle. She herself then collapsed into the nearest chair, sobbing silently. It had been a full year to the day since the Final Battle, when Ron had died. A whole year without her best friend, her baby's father, and without a true smile on her lips. She had lost several friends in the battle, and yet nothing hit her as hard as Ron. For she had kept a secret from him, and now it was burning to get out of her.
Hermione continued to sob, trying to remain soundless to keep Dylon asleep. Deep hiding in her heart, she felt so much guilt. There was the unbearable guilt of not being there with her friends to take on the most dreadful adversary of all. The day Harry and Ron left to finish the fight, she, under their orders, was locked in her flat to keep her unborn child safe. She remembered so quickly how she had spent hours and hour banging on the door, screaming to be let free to help.
Second pressing on her heart was the guilt for keeping something from Ron. She should have told him back in their seventh year she didn't really love him, but with all of the pressure from the Weasleys, Harry, and Ron himself, she couldn't bring herself to do it, and ended up somehow engaged to someone she felt no feelings for past deep friendship. The thing that tore her the most was Ginny Weasley, who she saw clearly in her mind, grinning and saying, "I'm so glad you love my brother, Mione. Who knows, we could be sisters someday!" How did she let it happen, though?
Suddenly, a gong cut into her thoughts, and she automatically looked at the clock, recognizing the sound. She was going to be late for work again if she didn't get a move on.
"Damn," she muttered to herself, pulling herself out of the chair. She made her way to the other half of the one-room flat where her things were stuffed into a dilapidated wardrobe, throwing things aside trying to find a clean robe. A moment later, a crackle was heard, and Hermione spun to see a red head pulling herself out of the fire, a genuine smile painted on her lips.
"Hello, Ginny, dear," she called, straightening out her robes and walking over to greet her sister-in-law, and trying overly hard to sound normal. She grabbed her traveling cloak and pulled it on, forcing a smile and politely inquiring, "How's Harry?"
Ginny looked up from where she was gazing down to Ron's firstborn and smiled. "Oh, he's fine," she said with a smile. Hermione took a moment to wonder if Ginny had looked at a calendar, or if the rest of the world had moved on and she was stuck replaying the past, like a broken record.
Brushing those thoughts aside, Hermione "smiled" back and said hastily, "I'd better be off, then. See you after work, I suppose." She gave one last look to her child and with a small pop, she was gone.
~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~
Meanwhile, at a familiar Scottish castle and institution of magical learning, the stones that were used at the hard dungeon floor in the Potions office were getting a deal more worn that the normally composed Potions Master paced back and forth. He knew what he had to do, that was easily provided for him in the form of a marvelous epiphany, he just couldn't for the hell of him figure out why.
Why was Hermione Granger, know-it-all Gryffindor, the one to save the magical world from the hell that could become of it? Why was he graced as the only one, of course excluding Professors McGonagall, Sprout, and Dumbledore, and possibly Miss Granger herself, to know this information? Why was he, after all he had helped before, after all the hell he had paid, been the one to get stuck with this burden? And why did her have to waste his valuable time babysitting a grown woman?
Over the hours, Severus began to formulate answers for the questions his mind kept asking itself, with the aid of his select stock brandy and way too much time spent alone. Surely, to him, the answers made sense, no matter how far off they might have been, or how close they really were.
As to why Hermione was to be their savior, it only made sense to the irony of the world. First their was James Potter, and his friends, Lupin and Black, heroically getting the glory for their little deeds. Next came Potter, saving witches and wizards everywhere countless times from the terror of Voldemort. Then, pathetic Weasley gave his life, and if rumor was correct, left Miss Granger with the burdens of widow and single mother. But he couldn't feel much sympathy for her, for in a few months time, she would be basking in the limelight like all her little friends.
Not that Miss Granger couldn't have had the limelight from the beginning, of course. Severus knew that she was exceptionally bright, obviously patient to put up with Longbottom all those years, and she deserved much better than the fools she had for friends. But it was her own choice whether to pursue her dreams or let them fall away, and to Severus, it was quite clear which she chose.
Then, of course, why he was burdened with not only the information, but the tasks themselves, was because the universe was against him. He had pondered it before, and it was all that made sense. Nobody's life should ever be as hellish as his, and everyday it seemed worse. So this just went along to make him miserable to the point of death.
He supposed that the whole protection thing sort of made sense. Certainly Miss Granger could handle herself in a duel, but if twenty Death Eaters showed up at her door, it would be quite difficult for her to keep herself and the baby safe.
Eventually, he let the thoughts just slip away and his mind went numb from the brandy as he drifted into a deep sleep in one of the armchairs in his office, the fire dying out as the night turned slowly to day.
A/N: Did this take me long enough or what? I am truly sorry, I have had half written for a few weeks, but I wanted to end it right, and this is how it came out. I'm sure it could be better, but you never know. Swimming ends in three weeks, so after that, I should have more time for my stories, and I am trying to treat them all fairly, I'll do my best! Thanks to all who reviewed the first chapter, notes to you here:
Calliandra~ Thanks, that means a lot. My plot still has a bit to be worked over all, but overall, I think it's turning out okay. Is this chapter keeping the plot moving well do you think?
Porthos the Pirate~ Gee, in the time it took me to write this, you must have died, gone to heaven, and been up there for quite a while, because I am a slow writer. Sorry I didn't get to it sooner, it's been almost two months! So sorry, and I hope this makes up for it a bit.
Tracey Claybon~ Yes, I believe Trelawney deserved to go exactly the way she did! Thanks for the review.
piper~ Well, this is asap, so sorry about the wait on your end. More soon, I hope!
Master of Sarcasm~ Thanks bunchs! I love your pen name, by the way. No more about dear late Trelawney here, sorry to disappoint you. Kidding!
AdoraVampiress~ Sweet! I'm on your author alert. Now you know that this chapter's out. That was a really pointless thing to say on my part, but I'm still glad you like so far.
Silent Cobra~ Glad my attention grabbers worked. Thanks for the review.
Angelina-Malfoy~ Gee, I must be good at sparking the attention or something, you are like the third person to say that. I hope you still want to read after this chapter.
Emma-Kitty~ Glad you think so. Thanks for the great review, you rock my socks!
The-Rogue-Thorn~ I'm glad you think it's cool. It got more "angsty" this chapter, so I hope it sounds okay.
joani~ I finally (emphasis on finally) kept going. Sorry for the wait and thanks for the review.
Brie Black~ Thanks for reading, and like I said before, I did finally keep going, even if it took me forever!
~Emily