A/N: The world of Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling. I am just having fun
playing with her characters. This story is rated R for a reason. You have
been warned. I also have this story listed on Whispers, Adult Fan Fiction
and Lord and Lady Snape websites.. In case it gets deleted here.
Chapter Twenty-five
The book had been in its new residence for a week and a half now and it was already the last day of the school holidays. The students would return the next day and Hermione still felt very anxious despite the fact she had personally had a hand in placing the wards on the book.
When Harry had returned to the castle with the book Dumbledore had been waiting along with several of the other teachers. Hermione, Severus and Penny had not been far behind him and as soon as they had arrived they had all followed Albus and the book down into the sub-dungeons to the specially selected cell. Hermione had seen the sack placed onto the floor and unwarded before more levitation charms were used to elevate the book onto the pedestal in the middle of the cell.
Hermione had noticed five symbols on the cover of the book that she had never seen there before. Four of the symbols were positioned in a circle surrounding an inner design, which was intricate and completely encapsulated within the outer circle. Usually the cover was blank and when she asked what they meant everyone looked at her as though she was seeing things. When she asked what the others saw on the cover they said that it was blank as usual. Yet, Hermione could clearly make out four raised symbols and an inner design that looked familiar to her for some reason. She quickly copied them down as the wards were being placed onto the book and then they left and cast continuous wards on their way out of the room and the sub-dungeons.
For just over a week now Hermione had had these four main symbols etched into her mind. Her only explanation for having been the only one to have seen them was that it was possibly because she had been the only one present who had been under its control. She was certain that this was the key that needed to be decoded in order to open the book and perhaps the only way it could therefore be destroyed. So over the last week Hermione had spent a lot of time in the library when she was not spending time looking after Callum, sorting out her revision curriculum for her classes and spending time with Severus. She had also visited Poppy in order to have the pregnancy illusion charm removed so that she was back to her normal self again and quite happy to be able to see her feet once more.
Hermione had definitely seen these symbols before though, of that she was certain. The middle design had eluded her though but then she had somehow thought that this was not too important right now. Severus had watched her over the last week and had asked her what she was up to so she had shown him the symbols she had sketched but they meant absolutely nothing to him- or anyone else she showed the pictures to either. She had even allowed Albus to show the symbols to his friend Dr. Quentin Cardoba but he had not come across anything like this in the course of his studies of ancient artefacts either. So, it was a puzzle, and one she was not going to rest from until she had the answer to.
~~*~~
Callum was crying yet again but he had just been fed, winded and had his nappy changed. He had been carried, rocked, jiggled, sat up and lain down but all was to no avail. Hermione and Severus were both getting to the ends of their tethers and were beginning to argue with each other now, which was not a good sign. They did agree on calling Poppy however, and so within minutes the school nurse was arriving through the floo network.
"Oh dear, what's up with the little fellow?" Poppy asked as she approached and held out her arms to take him from Hermione.
"We don't know, Poppy. We've tried everything we can think of and nothing is working. He does seem to be quite hot though." Hermione told her completely exasperated.
"Well, let me just run a few scans and we'll see." Poppy said as she placed the still screaming Callum down on the couch and pulled out her wand as Hermione and Severus looked on worriedly.
"We could always try a silencing charm," Severus suggested sarcastically.
"Severus. I sincerely hope that was an attempt at humour for if I find you anywhere near Callum with your wand drawn I will hex you into the middle of the next week! No questions asked." Hermione glared at him warningly.
"Of course, dear. I would not dream of hexing my son," Severus replied, "and yes, it was a poor attempt to break the tension. I am sorry." Hermione stopped glaring at him as both their attentions now turned to Poppy for her verdict.
"He is running a high temperature. I think he is getting a cold." Poppy declared. "Do you have some pepper-up, Severus?"
"He is surely far too young for such a potion, Poppy." Severus replied, although he was a highly skilled Potions Master he had never administered medicinal potions to a premature baby before.
"I will only give him a very small dose. I do know what I am doing, Severus." Poppy retorted.
Hermione handed her the potion as she had already left to get it from the bathroom cabinet. "Here you go, Poppy."
"Thank you, dear." She conjured a bottle of what was presumably water and added about a tablespoonful of the potion before cradling Callum in her arms and offering the bottle to him. He drank it down immediately and stopped crying almost instantaneously. Once he was finished Poppy scanned him once more to find him the picture of health again. She looked down at him just as he began to open his eyes for the very first time. She smiled warmly at him and motioned for his parents to come forward. "He has brown eyes. Who won the bet?" Poppy said as she grinned at the sight before her of Severus and Hermione looking completely gob smacked as they peered down at their son.
"Severus did," Hermione said as tears of joy rolled down her cheeks. She was wondering when Callum would open his eyes and was almost giving up hope. "Look, Severus. My eyes and nose, and your hair and ears. Perfect."
"Just like his mother," Severus said as he hugged her.
"He's fine now. You shouldn't have any more problems. He can sleep in his own cot now as well, no need for the incubator anymore but do still keep him in your room." Poppy told them both.
"More good news. We can at least now take him out of our chambers since he does not need the incubator anymore. Thank you, Poppy." Severus told the nurse.
"Not a problem. I'm just at the end of the fireplace if you need me again, and don't hesitate to call me next time." With that Poppy left for the infirmary again and Hermione lifted Callum into her arms as he kept his eyes open and peered bleary eyed up into her face for the first time.
"Oh, Severus, look at him. It's just wonderful." Hermione said as she lifted him to a more upright position so that Callum was now looking at his father for the first time.
"I never thought he would be able to cast glares at such a young age. That's quite a look there, son." Severus said chuckling as he moved to look deeply into Callum's eyes. "Quite breathtaking, my love. Wonderful news indeed."
"I'm sorry, Severus for being mad at you. We should have called Poppy sooner." Hermione said and he looked up into his wife's face as he held Callum's hand with two fingers.
"We learn from experience and no harm done, my love." Severus said standing up straight again and kissing her on the lips. When they broke free they looked down to find Callum gazing at them both and they both smiled down at him. It was truly amazing.
~~*~~
Hermione and Severus left their chambers with Callum securely in his father's arms and headed towards Hermione's classroom for a change in scenery before the students arrived. Hermione had to ensure that everything was ready for her classes and she had not stepped foot in the room since Harry had been teaching the final week before the holidays and she had to leave her revised lesson plans and dispose of the old ones. They had decided to go the long way around rather than simply through the adjoining doors from their chambers to her office to the classroom. It was just so that Callum could see a bit of the castle, although his eyesight was still quite poor.
They didn't meet anybody on the way and so it was a relatively quick journey. When they got to the classroom Hermione unwarded the door and opened it. They stepped inside and the torches lit automatically. It was already evening and the sun was setting. The Hogwarts Express would arrive within the next hour and Callum was going to be looked after by Kelpy the House Elf during dinner.
"So, what do you think your mummy has to do down here, Callum?" Severus asked his son as he sat at one of the student's desks near the front and sat Callum up on the desk supporting his head with his hand. Hermione moved to the front of the room and turned to look up at her family as she heard Severus speak. She smiled warmly at them both and waved at Callum who seemed to be following her with his eyes.
"Mummy has to find her old lesson plans so that Minerva doesn't teach the first and second years the wrong syllabus." Hermione responded as she began to rifle through her desk drawers.
"Well, there you go," Severus said as Callum gurgled in response and stuffed a balled up fist into his mouth while his parents chuckled at him.
"Do you know, Harry is the most untidy person I think I know, and he was only in my classroom for a matter of five days." Hermione protested as she looked into each drawer and found a veritable fountain of useless paperwork and screwed up parchments. "I think I should have come down here earlier to survey the damage."
"Do you need a hand, love?" Severus asked, as he struggled to remove Callum's fist from his mouth and managed to get his own hand covered in saliva. Disgusting, he thought screwing up his face.
"Well, there's not a great deal you can do with Callum needing your supervision." She said as she glanced up at Severus who was looking for something to wipe his hand on.
"Hermione, I am a wizard. I can use my wand." Severus replied as he pulled it out of his sleeve and placed it onto the desk along with a handkerchief, which he immediately put to use.
"Then please put these up on the walls for me," Hermione said tossing some rolled up parchment in his direction, which she had brought with her. "Put two up on either side of the black board, please so that they will be seen by everyone who enters the classroom."
"What are they, have you managed to find out yet?" Severus asked as he separated them out and repelled them against the wall sticking them in place with his wand. They each contained large symbols painted in black that made no sense to him but he had seen Hermione around them a great deal in the last week and was quite frankly now sick of the sight of them.
"Oh, those are what I saw on the cover of that book. I know that I've seen them somewhere before and I'm hoping that perhaps someone in my class will recognise them." Hermione said as she lifted out the bottom drawer and upturned it on the desk so that all of its contents spilled out. "Harry. just wait 'til I see you!" She said angrily to her self.
"Hello, someone say my name?" The very man in question said as he popped his head through the door, and caused all of the rooms occupants to turn and look at him.
"Yes. How come you looked after my classes for five days and I find my classroom in this state, Mr. Potter?" Hermione demanded quite red faced from anger and exertion.
"Oh. well. Sorry. Can I help tidy up?" He asked as he sheepishly made his way into the room and waved at Callum who was following him with his eyes.
"Just tell me where you put my lesson plans, Harry." She said exasperatedly.
"They'd be right here," he said producing a sheaf of parchments from his robes. Hermione sighed and glared at him as he handed them over to her. "My reason for being here of course."
"Of course. Thank you." She replied sarcastically and promptly ripped them up and summoned a bin from the back of the room. She scooped up all of the balls of paper and loose parchments from the drawers and deposited the whole lot into the bin, placing the new lesson plans into the top drawer and pushing the bottom drawer back into its place in the desk.
"It was fun teaching your classes for a week, anyway 'Mione." Harry told her.
"Yes, I do appreciate it, Harry. Did you set their holiday homework for revision as well?" She asked him as she stood up straight again and moved round to the front of her desk.
"Of course I did. They are expecting an exam sometime this week." Harry replied.
"Good, I like to work my classes hard; it's the only way to learn." Hermione commented as Harry took on a mock look of shock. "What?" She asked him.
"Well, that's not what I heard. They said things like 'Professor Granger lets us go early' and 'Professor Granger lets us have our lessons outside on hot days'." Harry grinned at the look of abstract horror of her face and glanced at Severus to see he was silently amused as well. "So, I didn't really know what to believe and."
"You didn't, Harry." She asked as a dreadful feeling came over her.
"I told them that as you were not available to ask. I would teach them the way I wanted to for the week and kept them indoors and until the class was officially supposed to end." Hermione let out a big sigh of relief and nodded her head in approval.
"Hmm. I'll have to work the little tykes twice as hard if they think I'm being too lenient on them." She grinned.
"Okay, so why do you have weird symbols around the room?" Harry asked looking to the four painted black symbols on the posters at the front. "They don't look like anything to do with Arithmancy that I've seen."
"I've shown you these before haven't I?" She asked frowning slightly; she had shown them to so many people she couldn't quite remember.
"No," Harry said shaking his head.
"Then you are somewhat lucky, Potter. I've been inundated with looking at the things." Severus responded under his breath as he sat and played with Callum. "Yes, mummy's gone slightly mad hasn't she, son?" Callum promptly gurgled in agreement.
"Thank you for that, Severus. A little support in this would be too much to ask for I suppose?" She asked glaring at him and he just smiled sheepishly before returning his attention to Callum.
"Okay, so you're stumped I guess?" Harry asked to try and break the argument up before it started.
"That's right, although I'm positive I've seen them before." She replied gazing at the posters again.
"Hmm. I think I have as well but my mind is a blank right now." Harry said. "That one over there looks like a Muggle door key though, doesn't it? Although it's very intricate." Harry said pointing to the one on the far right. "The first one on the left is just like one of the Scottish thistles, although a very simplified version- kind of like a stick drawing."
"Yes, and yet it still means nothing to me. I've looked up countless Ancient texts particularly centring around the Egyptian and Ancient Greek eras but there's just nothing like this at all and it's too simplified for the hieroglyphics in use at the time the book was written as well." She sighed heavily. "There's a fifth symbol that these four actually encircle." Hermione told them indicating the posters again.
"A fifth one? Why have you not been studying this one as well, love?" Severus asked with a frown. "It is most unlike you to leave anything out."
"Well, even though it is the centre of the whole design it does not seem to be the one that needs to be solved first. Does that make sense?"
"Well, not really, 'Mione. To me, if something's in the middle it's also centre of attention and the most important part." Harry said.
"Well, I wouldn't have thought you would think anything else, Potter," Severus intoned dryly from his seat and Harry just shook his head at him whilst Hermione glared.
"Perhaps if you could show us a picture of the middle symbol as well? It may make the others mean something?" Harry said.
"Sure, I do have the design here on the back of my little piece of paper," Hermione said as she dug into one of her pockets and produced the small piece of parchment she had been looking at for the last week. She moved over to the desk where Severus and Callum were and placed it down on the surface.
"Hermione," Severus said as he gazed at the symbol. "Are you telling me you don't know what this symbol means?"
"Well, yes." She nodded her head and looked at him blankly.
"Hermione you took Potions as part of you university course did you not?" Severus asked.
"Yes, you know I read for a major in Arithmancy and a minor in Potions, Severus." Hermione said as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other and looked at him curiously. "Why?"
"Hermione, this denotes two things. Here," Severus pointed to near the top of the design to a lot of small symbols encased in an oval shape. "This is written in hieroglyphs and says 'Sekhmet', and this below," he pointed to a very intricate pattern that looked like a fully opened flower with a semicircle in front of it. "This is what I'm surprised you don't recognise."
"Well, do enlighten me then, Severus." Hermione said indignantly. "Don't keep me forever in suspense."
"It's the symbol for Potions, Hermione. The Wheel of Life with an Ancient cauldron." Hermione looked very surprised and stepped closer to her piece of paper.
"Are you sure? I know what emblem you speak of but this doesn't look like it." She said squinting at the design.
"Hermione, I'm a Potions Master. I carry this symbol with me at all times. Here look for yourself." Severus said as he pulled out a chain from the inside of his teaching robes and on the end was a small trinket, which he showed her.
"You've never shown me this before, Severus." Hermione told him quite astounded.
"I thought you knew, Hermione. Every Potions Master is awarded one upon graduation and entry onto the Register of Potions Masters." Severus told her. "Anyway, besides the point. This means that the other symbols encircling the centre symbol- our name and emblem, must be the actual ingredients for the potion that will perhaps be the key to opening the tome." Hermione's jaw dropped in total shock; she did not know what to say. "We just need to decipher the rest and brew the potion I suppose."
"It's the deciphering of the other four symbols that is the important part then, Hermione was right." Harry said. Hermione looked over to Severus.
"Before you ask, love. These other symbols are not found in the subject of Potions. I have no idea what they mean." Severus told her.
"Well, as I'm completely stuck and therefore no further forward. Please let me know if anything comes to you," Hermione told him and he nodded. "So, tell me. How come you're still at Hogwarts, Harry?" Hermione asked changing the subject.
"Ah, now that would be telling wouldn't it," he said grinning and then giving in as he sat on top of one of the front desks. "I'm taking a position here per Albus' request."
"Oh, joy," Severus deadpanned sarcastically and received another glare from his wife and an amused look from Harry.
"That's great news, Harry but what are you going to be doing? I thought all of the positions were now filled since Michael Creevy arrived to take over History of Magic?" Her mind suddenly a whirl. she could ask the new History expert about the symbols.
"Well, I've now got some extensive knowledge of magical creatures since I've been touring for the last two years and working with dragons for the last six months. Dumbledore wants me to teach some of Lee Jordan's classes as he's doing a part time degree at Edinburgh. So, I agreed since I'm still at a bit of a loose end. It's just until the end of the school year and then who knows." Harry explained.
"Well, congratulations, Harry. It'll be good to see more of you again and I know Ron will be ecstatic. Have you told him yet?"
"Yes, I told him this afternoon." Harry said.
"Congratulations, Potter." Severus said as he stood up with Callum and indicated that it was time to go. Hermione took Callum from Severus and gave her son a big hug and a kiss on the cheek as Severus shook Harry's hand.
"Thanks," Harry told them both, slightly taken aback at the show of emotion from Snape. "I guess I'll see you both at dinner, I've got to go as I'm meeting the students off the train. See you both later."
"Bye, Harry." Hermione shouted as he jumped off the desk and raced out of the classroom. "Okay, Severus. I'm finished here. Let's go take Callum home." They left through Hermione's office and headed up to their chambers through the secret door.
~~*~~
The Great Hall was packed once again now that the students had returned from their holidays. It would be a relatively short term now as there were only three months left to the school year and most of that would be taken up with revision and exams. Hermione had always loved this time of year when she had been a student as it meant she could spend as much time in the library without too many questions from Ron and Harry.
Severus and Hermione entered through the teacher's entrance and took their seats at the head table, which were now thankfully beside one another again since Hermione was no longer under the curse. This did draw some attention from the students, namely the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables, it was mainly a passing interest except for a few students who stared a bit longer. Those students being the Head Girl and Christopher Granger; the latter smiling brightly and the former looking somewhat guilty.
The Headmaster stood up and called for silence in the hall. "I have a few announcements to make if I may. Firstly some bad news, one of our Slytherin students has been taken into custardy by Aurors over the holidays as he had been found to be in possession of a very dark artefact which he was using to control people, one of those being our very own Professor Granger-Snape. He assaulted Professor Granger-Snape and forced her to go into premature labour." There was a very audible gasp as all eyes turned to Hermione and Severus and they held each other's hand discreetly under the table for support. "Thankfully, young Master Snape is well and making good progress." Dumbledore continued to a loud cheer throughout the hall and smiles from the proud parents. "Might I also offer congratulations to the Snape's for their new addition."
"Thank you," Hermione and Severus both said as they stood up and bowed slightly as they still clasped each other's hand. The cheering died down and Hermione remained standing as Severus took his seat once more. "If I may, Headmaster?" She asked turning to him slightly and he nodded his head to allow her to proceed. She took a deep breath before raising her voice so it would carry to the back of the hall. "I would like to publicly apologise to Miss Flint for anything untoward I have said to her or for any aspersions I may have cast on her character. She was also under the same curse I was and we were being played up against one another. So, I do apologise, Miss. Flint and hope you will accept." Sonia looked quite humble and very embarrassed at the end of the Slytherin table as she inclined her head and smiled slightly. Hermione sat back down as the Headmaster continued and Severus smiled at her warmly for what she had just done.
"I should like to introduce our new History of Magic teacher Professor Michael Creevy," Michael stood up, an image of his older brother Colin with his boyish good looks and blonde hair. He wasn't too tall and fell a couple of inches short of Hermione's five feet eleven inches. He bowed and sat back down quickly. "Also, Professor Harry Potter who will be helping Professor Jordan teach Care of Magical Creatures." Harry stood up and took a bow to much clapping and cheering for the two new additions to the faculty. Hermione glanced at Severus to see him roll his eyes and promptly squeezed his thigh under the table making him jump and bang his knee painfully. "Thank you, that will be all." Dumbledore said as he clapped his hands once and the food arrived on the tables, and he sat down and tucked in with everyone else.
As the feast ended Hermione rose from the table with Severus and headed straight for the Slytherin table to head off Sonia Flint before she could escape.
"Miss. Flint," Hermione called over the noise and attracting the girl's attention. "I wonder if I may have a word with you before classes in the morning. It shouldn't take too long."
"Of course, Professor. May I ask what it is about?" Sonia asked as students bustled out of the Great Hall behind her.
"It's about the curse we were both under. We shouldn't discuss it here but rest assured it's nothing to worry about. Have a good evening, Miss Flint." Hermione said dismissing her.
"You too, Professor." Sonia said as she left the hall. Hermione turned to look for her husband only to find him with a bunch of her Gryffindor first years. She rolled her eyes as she found him surrounded by redheads and wondered how many points he'd taken already. She approached cautiously.
"Is there a problem here?" She asked and Severus turned slightly to acknowledge her presence.
"None at all. Your students were simply offering their congratulations." Hermione's eyebrows shot up; it was highly surprising that Severus would be accepting of anything from a Gryffindor student.
"Well, thank you." Hermione responded and then noticed Christopher was amongst the Weasley's. "I will speak with you this evening Mr. Granger if you would follow Professor Snape and I, please."
"Yes, Professor." Christopher said as the Snape's turned to leave.
"So will you still be teaching, Professor Granger?" Jo Weasley asked and Hermione turned to face her again.
"Yes, I will be teaching, you don't get rid of me that easily. I will still be your Head of House and I now retain the title of Professor Granger-Snape again so please address me as such from now on."
"Oh, pleased to hear it, and I didn't mean any disrespect, Professor." Jo replied quickly and somewhat relieved.
"Well, I believe curfew is approaching and you should all be returning to your dormitories." Hermione said as she noticed that they had attracted quite a large mixed House crowd. "Good night everyone." With that the crowd dispersed and Hermione and Severus left via the teachers entrance with Christopher in tow.
"Did you have a good holiday, Chris?" Hermione asked as they headed for her and Severus' chambers.
"Yeah, eventually. Once we knew you were alright anyway, it was really scary seeing you in that state, Hermione." Chris said as he walked along beside his sister.
"Well, sorry about that." Hermione said as she put her arm around his shoulders and hugged him as they walked.
"Congratulations to both of you by the way," Chris said looking up at his sister and brother-in-law.
"Thank you, Mr. Granger," Severus replied as they reached the portrait hole and Hermione said the password. They entered their chambers to find Callum wide awake on the floor in front of the hearth with Kelpy using her elf magic to make objects fly around in front of him to keep him entertained.
"Oh, Professors! Kelpy is playing with Master Callum, he is happy. Master Callum is being good for Kelpy." The elf said as she looked up to see them enter and jumped to her feet immediately.
"So, no problems, Kelpy?" Severus asked as he removed his cloak, and took Hermione's from her as well.
"No, Master Callum is settled, Professor sir." Kelpy replied happily.
"That is good to hear, Kelpy. I was very worried." Hermione told the elf. "I think we will be fine now though. You may retire for the night and thank you, Kelpy."
"Professor is welcome, Kelpy likes Master Callum." Kelpy said as she bowed and popped out of the room with a click of her long fingers.
"He's so small, Hermione," Chris said as he kneeled down on the floor beside his nephew and peered down at the little boy who fixed him with a stare.
"Yes, he has gained nearly four pounds in the last three weeks though and he can open his eyes now." Hermione said as she settled onto the floor beside Chris.
"He has the Granger eye colouring, and Severus' black hair." Chris said as he looked down in awe. "Can I hold him?"
"Of course you can. Do you know how to, Chris?" Hermione asked.
"I've seen it done but have never had the opportunity."
"Here, just support his head and cradle him in your arms." Hermione said as she picked him up off the floor and handed him over to Chris.
"Wow, he's tiny. What's his full name again?" Chris asked as he settled himself with his back against the couch and legs outstretched in front of him.
"Callum Andrew Snape." Severus supplied as he brought three mugs of tea in and set them onto the small table.
"So, you decided to agree on the surname at least," Chris noted with a grin.
"There was never any question about it, Chris. I was under the curse at the time I said otherwise." Hermione told him.
"Okay, so how will you manage to teach and run Gryffindor with Callum this small?"
"Well, Kelpy will be watching him sometimes and at other times Lavender Weasley is going to mind him for us. When we each have a free period either Severus or I will have him. It'll work out fine." Hermione reassured her brother.
"Well, I know mum and dad want to see him so much, so perhaps they could watch him a bit for you as well?"
"Perhaps but Callum is a little too young to apparate with safely so it would have to wait until he's around three months old first," Severus said from the couch he was occupying as he sipped his tea. "Callum is due a feed, Hermione."
"Would you like to do the honours, Chris?" Hermione asked as she conjured a bottle of milk. Chris nodded enthusiastically and Hermione showed him what to do. After Callum had finished Hermione showed Chris how to wind a baby and then left Severus the lovely task of changing his nappy.
"Well, classes are tomorrow and it's after curfew, Chris. I'll escort you back to Gryffindor while Severus puts Callum to bed alright?" Hermione asked.
"Okay, it was fun seeing my nephew this evening, thank you." Chris said standing up and quickly guzzling his ready-to-drink tea. "Good night Callum and good night Severus. See you in class tomorrow."
"Yes, good night, Chris." Severus said as Chris and Hermione left through the door that would lead down to Hermione's office.
Severus managed to get Callum off to sleep without any trouble and was changing for bed when Hermione came back in. "Bed so soon, love?"
"Well, I'm just changing for bed. Why, what did you have in mind?" He asked in a seductive purr.
"Oh, I don't know, the fire looks rather cosy right now. Come and sit with me by it. I think we should talk and I don't want to disturb Callum." Hermione said as she moved over to the couch and Severus followed. They sat down and Hermione snuggled up into Severus' warm embrace as they both got comfortable.
"What's on your mind, love?" Severus asked as they sat watching the crackling of the logs.
"Well, I was wondering what was going to happen to Layton." She asked, after all, the last she had seen or heard from him had been in the Hogs Head.
"He will likely be tried as a juvenile." Severus told her.
"He won't go to Azkaban will he?" She asked looking quite worried now.
"No, he's under age. Why so concerned after all he did to you?" Severus asked as he frowned down at her thinking that his wife had a lot of misplaced compassion.
"It's because he's a juvenile, Severus. He has such a long life ahead of him and he was trying so hard before he was enfolded into the Book of Shadow's snare completely."
"He's likely to be deemed clinically insane, Hermione and sent to St. Mungo's for life under guard." Severus said with a sigh. "The book will have altered his mind and thought processes as it did with its previous owners. You see part of his mind will be trapped in the book, as he was being controlled more by the book than anyone actually realises and so he will literally be a few screws short."
"Then if I can open the book perhaps it will release his mind completely and he will be in effect cured?" Hermione suggested.
"Well, yes but then no-one since Sekhmet has been able to open the book and there's no telling what would happen if you could get it open." Severus said becoming worried himself now.
"Meaning?" She asked.
"Well, so little is known about the magic behind the book, therefore we just don't know what the outcome of opening said book would be. You could release who knows what from it."
"But, Severus, if it is just memories then the only person affected would be Layton Frontera. All of its previous owners are dead now. Well and truly."
"Granted but I still have a bad feeling about this, Hermione. I would urge you to just let the matter drop." Severus advised.
"Severus, if you know me at all you would know that I can't do that."
"Yes, I am aware of that and that is why you shall not be doing it alone. I will help you if you are so bent on carrying this out." Severus sighed and secretly hoped that this puzzle could never be solved.
"I am and thank you, Severus. I'd like to try and save Layton from a life sentence whether it be Azkaban or St. Mungo's."
"Very well, love. Now, I suggest we get some sleep as we will be awake in another few hours for Callum's next feed." Severus said and they got up from the couch and headed off to bed.
Chapter Twenty-five
The book had been in its new residence for a week and a half now and it was already the last day of the school holidays. The students would return the next day and Hermione still felt very anxious despite the fact she had personally had a hand in placing the wards on the book.
When Harry had returned to the castle with the book Dumbledore had been waiting along with several of the other teachers. Hermione, Severus and Penny had not been far behind him and as soon as they had arrived they had all followed Albus and the book down into the sub-dungeons to the specially selected cell. Hermione had seen the sack placed onto the floor and unwarded before more levitation charms were used to elevate the book onto the pedestal in the middle of the cell.
Hermione had noticed five symbols on the cover of the book that she had never seen there before. Four of the symbols were positioned in a circle surrounding an inner design, which was intricate and completely encapsulated within the outer circle. Usually the cover was blank and when she asked what they meant everyone looked at her as though she was seeing things. When she asked what the others saw on the cover they said that it was blank as usual. Yet, Hermione could clearly make out four raised symbols and an inner design that looked familiar to her for some reason. She quickly copied them down as the wards were being placed onto the book and then they left and cast continuous wards on their way out of the room and the sub-dungeons.
For just over a week now Hermione had had these four main symbols etched into her mind. Her only explanation for having been the only one to have seen them was that it was possibly because she had been the only one present who had been under its control. She was certain that this was the key that needed to be decoded in order to open the book and perhaps the only way it could therefore be destroyed. So over the last week Hermione had spent a lot of time in the library when she was not spending time looking after Callum, sorting out her revision curriculum for her classes and spending time with Severus. She had also visited Poppy in order to have the pregnancy illusion charm removed so that she was back to her normal self again and quite happy to be able to see her feet once more.
Hermione had definitely seen these symbols before though, of that she was certain. The middle design had eluded her though but then she had somehow thought that this was not too important right now. Severus had watched her over the last week and had asked her what she was up to so she had shown him the symbols she had sketched but they meant absolutely nothing to him- or anyone else she showed the pictures to either. She had even allowed Albus to show the symbols to his friend Dr. Quentin Cardoba but he had not come across anything like this in the course of his studies of ancient artefacts either. So, it was a puzzle, and one she was not going to rest from until she had the answer to.
~~*~~
Callum was crying yet again but he had just been fed, winded and had his nappy changed. He had been carried, rocked, jiggled, sat up and lain down but all was to no avail. Hermione and Severus were both getting to the ends of their tethers and were beginning to argue with each other now, which was not a good sign. They did agree on calling Poppy however, and so within minutes the school nurse was arriving through the floo network.
"Oh dear, what's up with the little fellow?" Poppy asked as she approached and held out her arms to take him from Hermione.
"We don't know, Poppy. We've tried everything we can think of and nothing is working. He does seem to be quite hot though." Hermione told her completely exasperated.
"Well, let me just run a few scans and we'll see." Poppy said as she placed the still screaming Callum down on the couch and pulled out her wand as Hermione and Severus looked on worriedly.
"We could always try a silencing charm," Severus suggested sarcastically.
"Severus. I sincerely hope that was an attempt at humour for if I find you anywhere near Callum with your wand drawn I will hex you into the middle of the next week! No questions asked." Hermione glared at him warningly.
"Of course, dear. I would not dream of hexing my son," Severus replied, "and yes, it was a poor attempt to break the tension. I am sorry." Hermione stopped glaring at him as both their attentions now turned to Poppy for her verdict.
"He is running a high temperature. I think he is getting a cold." Poppy declared. "Do you have some pepper-up, Severus?"
"He is surely far too young for such a potion, Poppy." Severus replied, although he was a highly skilled Potions Master he had never administered medicinal potions to a premature baby before.
"I will only give him a very small dose. I do know what I am doing, Severus." Poppy retorted.
Hermione handed her the potion as she had already left to get it from the bathroom cabinet. "Here you go, Poppy."
"Thank you, dear." She conjured a bottle of what was presumably water and added about a tablespoonful of the potion before cradling Callum in her arms and offering the bottle to him. He drank it down immediately and stopped crying almost instantaneously. Once he was finished Poppy scanned him once more to find him the picture of health again. She looked down at him just as he began to open his eyes for the very first time. She smiled warmly at him and motioned for his parents to come forward. "He has brown eyes. Who won the bet?" Poppy said as she grinned at the sight before her of Severus and Hermione looking completely gob smacked as they peered down at their son.
"Severus did," Hermione said as tears of joy rolled down her cheeks. She was wondering when Callum would open his eyes and was almost giving up hope. "Look, Severus. My eyes and nose, and your hair and ears. Perfect."
"Just like his mother," Severus said as he hugged her.
"He's fine now. You shouldn't have any more problems. He can sleep in his own cot now as well, no need for the incubator anymore but do still keep him in your room." Poppy told them both.
"More good news. We can at least now take him out of our chambers since he does not need the incubator anymore. Thank you, Poppy." Severus told the nurse.
"Not a problem. I'm just at the end of the fireplace if you need me again, and don't hesitate to call me next time." With that Poppy left for the infirmary again and Hermione lifted Callum into her arms as he kept his eyes open and peered bleary eyed up into her face for the first time.
"Oh, Severus, look at him. It's just wonderful." Hermione said as she lifted him to a more upright position so that Callum was now looking at his father for the first time.
"I never thought he would be able to cast glares at such a young age. That's quite a look there, son." Severus said chuckling as he moved to look deeply into Callum's eyes. "Quite breathtaking, my love. Wonderful news indeed."
"I'm sorry, Severus for being mad at you. We should have called Poppy sooner." Hermione said and he looked up into his wife's face as he held Callum's hand with two fingers.
"We learn from experience and no harm done, my love." Severus said standing up straight again and kissing her on the lips. When they broke free they looked down to find Callum gazing at them both and they both smiled down at him. It was truly amazing.
~~*~~
Hermione and Severus left their chambers with Callum securely in his father's arms and headed towards Hermione's classroom for a change in scenery before the students arrived. Hermione had to ensure that everything was ready for her classes and she had not stepped foot in the room since Harry had been teaching the final week before the holidays and she had to leave her revised lesson plans and dispose of the old ones. They had decided to go the long way around rather than simply through the adjoining doors from their chambers to her office to the classroom. It was just so that Callum could see a bit of the castle, although his eyesight was still quite poor.
They didn't meet anybody on the way and so it was a relatively quick journey. When they got to the classroom Hermione unwarded the door and opened it. They stepped inside and the torches lit automatically. It was already evening and the sun was setting. The Hogwarts Express would arrive within the next hour and Callum was going to be looked after by Kelpy the House Elf during dinner.
"So, what do you think your mummy has to do down here, Callum?" Severus asked his son as he sat at one of the student's desks near the front and sat Callum up on the desk supporting his head with his hand. Hermione moved to the front of the room and turned to look up at her family as she heard Severus speak. She smiled warmly at them both and waved at Callum who seemed to be following her with his eyes.
"Mummy has to find her old lesson plans so that Minerva doesn't teach the first and second years the wrong syllabus." Hermione responded as she began to rifle through her desk drawers.
"Well, there you go," Severus said as Callum gurgled in response and stuffed a balled up fist into his mouth while his parents chuckled at him.
"Do you know, Harry is the most untidy person I think I know, and he was only in my classroom for a matter of five days." Hermione protested as she looked into each drawer and found a veritable fountain of useless paperwork and screwed up parchments. "I think I should have come down here earlier to survey the damage."
"Do you need a hand, love?" Severus asked, as he struggled to remove Callum's fist from his mouth and managed to get his own hand covered in saliva. Disgusting, he thought screwing up his face.
"Well, there's not a great deal you can do with Callum needing your supervision." She said as she glanced up at Severus who was looking for something to wipe his hand on.
"Hermione, I am a wizard. I can use my wand." Severus replied as he pulled it out of his sleeve and placed it onto the desk along with a handkerchief, which he immediately put to use.
"Then please put these up on the walls for me," Hermione said tossing some rolled up parchment in his direction, which she had brought with her. "Put two up on either side of the black board, please so that they will be seen by everyone who enters the classroom."
"What are they, have you managed to find out yet?" Severus asked as he separated them out and repelled them against the wall sticking them in place with his wand. They each contained large symbols painted in black that made no sense to him but he had seen Hermione around them a great deal in the last week and was quite frankly now sick of the sight of them.
"Oh, those are what I saw on the cover of that book. I know that I've seen them somewhere before and I'm hoping that perhaps someone in my class will recognise them." Hermione said as she lifted out the bottom drawer and upturned it on the desk so that all of its contents spilled out. "Harry. just wait 'til I see you!" She said angrily to her self.
"Hello, someone say my name?" The very man in question said as he popped his head through the door, and caused all of the rooms occupants to turn and look at him.
"Yes. How come you looked after my classes for five days and I find my classroom in this state, Mr. Potter?" Hermione demanded quite red faced from anger and exertion.
"Oh. well. Sorry. Can I help tidy up?" He asked as he sheepishly made his way into the room and waved at Callum who was following him with his eyes.
"Just tell me where you put my lesson plans, Harry." She said exasperatedly.
"They'd be right here," he said producing a sheaf of parchments from his robes. Hermione sighed and glared at him as he handed them over to her. "My reason for being here of course."
"Of course. Thank you." She replied sarcastically and promptly ripped them up and summoned a bin from the back of the room. She scooped up all of the balls of paper and loose parchments from the drawers and deposited the whole lot into the bin, placing the new lesson plans into the top drawer and pushing the bottom drawer back into its place in the desk.
"It was fun teaching your classes for a week, anyway 'Mione." Harry told her.
"Yes, I do appreciate it, Harry. Did you set their holiday homework for revision as well?" She asked him as she stood up straight again and moved round to the front of her desk.
"Of course I did. They are expecting an exam sometime this week." Harry replied.
"Good, I like to work my classes hard; it's the only way to learn." Hermione commented as Harry took on a mock look of shock. "What?" She asked him.
"Well, that's not what I heard. They said things like 'Professor Granger lets us go early' and 'Professor Granger lets us have our lessons outside on hot days'." Harry grinned at the look of abstract horror of her face and glanced at Severus to see he was silently amused as well. "So, I didn't really know what to believe and."
"You didn't, Harry." She asked as a dreadful feeling came over her.
"I told them that as you were not available to ask. I would teach them the way I wanted to for the week and kept them indoors and until the class was officially supposed to end." Hermione let out a big sigh of relief and nodded her head in approval.
"Hmm. I'll have to work the little tykes twice as hard if they think I'm being too lenient on them." She grinned.
"Okay, so why do you have weird symbols around the room?" Harry asked looking to the four painted black symbols on the posters at the front. "They don't look like anything to do with Arithmancy that I've seen."
"I've shown you these before haven't I?" She asked frowning slightly; she had shown them to so many people she couldn't quite remember.
"No," Harry said shaking his head.
"Then you are somewhat lucky, Potter. I've been inundated with looking at the things." Severus responded under his breath as he sat and played with Callum. "Yes, mummy's gone slightly mad hasn't she, son?" Callum promptly gurgled in agreement.
"Thank you for that, Severus. A little support in this would be too much to ask for I suppose?" She asked glaring at him and he just smiled sheepishly before returning his attention to Callum.
"Okay, so you're stumped I guess?" Harry asked to try and break the argument up before it started.
"That's right, although I'm positive I've seen them before." She replied gazing at the posters again.
"Hmm. I think I have as well but my mind is a blank right now." Harry said. "That one over there looks like a Muggle door key though, doesn't it? Although it's very intricate." Harry said pointing to the one on the far right. "The first one on the left is just like one of the Scottish thistles, although a very simplified version- kind of like a stick drawing."
"Yes, and yet it still means nothing to me. I've looked up countless Ancient texts particularly centring around the Egyptian and Ancient Greek eras but there's just nothing like this at all and it's too simplified for the hieroglyphics in use at the time the book was written as well." She sighed heavily. "There's a fifth symbol that these four actually encircle." Hermione told them indicating the posters again.
"A fifth one? Why have you not been studying this one as well, love?" Severus asked with a frown. "It is most unlike you to leave anything out."
"Well, even though it is the centre of the whole design it does not seem to be the one that needs to be solved first. Does that make sense?"
"Well, not really, 'Mione. To me, if something's in the middle it's also centre of attention and the most important part." Harry said.
"Well, I wouldn't have thought you would think anything else, Potter," Severus intoned dryly from his seat and Harry just shook his head at him whilst Hermione glared.
"Perhaps if you could show us a picture of the middle symbol as well? It may make the others mean something?" Harry said.
"Sure, I do have the design here on the back of my little piece of paper," Hermione said as she dug into one of her pockets and produced the small piece of parchment she had been looking at for the last week. She moved over to the desk where Severus and Callum were and placed it down on the surface.
"Hermione," Severus said as he gazed at the symbol. "Are you telling me you don't know what this symbol means?"
"Well, yes." She nodded her head and looked at him blankly.
"Hermione you took Potions as part of you university course did you not?" Severus asked.
"Yes, you know I read for a major in Arithmancy and a minor in Potions, Severus." Hermione said as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other and looked at him curiously. "Why?"
"Hermione, this denotes two things. Here," Severus pointed to near the top of the design to a lot of small symbols encased in an oval shape. "This is written in hieroglyphs and says 'Sekhmet', and this below," he pointed to a very intricate pattern that looked like a fully opened flower with a semicircle in front of it. "This is what I'm surprised you don't recognise."
"Well, do enlighten me then, Severus." Hermione said indignantly. "Don't keep me forever in suspense."
"It's the symbol for Potions, Hermione. The Wheel of Life with an Ancient cauldron." Hermione looked very surprised and stepped closer to her piece of paper.
"Are you sure? I know what emblem you speak of but this doesn't look like it." She said squinting at the design.
"Hermione, I'm a Potions Master. I carry this symbol with me at all times. Here look for yourself." Severus said as he pulled out a chain from the inside of his teaching robes and on the end was a small trinket, which he showed her.
"You've never shown me this before, Severus." Hermione told him quite astounded.
"I thought you knew, Hermione. Every Potions Master is awarded one upon graduation and entry onto the Register of Potions Masters." Severus told her. "Anyway, besides the point. This means that the other symbols encircling the centre symbol- our name and emblem, must be the actual ingredients for the potion that will perhaps be the key to opening the tome." Hermione's jaw dropped in total shock; she did not know what to say. "We just need to decipher the rest and brew the potion I suppose."
"It's the deciphering of the other four symbols that is the important part then, Hermione was right." Harry said. Hermione looked over to Severus.
"Before you ask, love. These other symbols are not found in the subject of Potions. I have no idea what they mean." Severus told her.
"Well, as I'm completely stuck and therefore no further forward. Please let me know if anything comes to you," Hermione told him and he nodded. "So, tell me. How come you're still at Hogwarts, Harry?" Hermione asked changing the subject.
"Ah, now that would be telling wouldn't it," he said grinning and then giving in as he sat on top of one of the front desks. "I'm taking a position here per Albus' request."
"Oh, joy," Severus deadpanned sarcastically and received another glare from his wife and an amused look from Harry.
"That's great news, Harry but what are you going to be doing? I thought all of the positions were now filled since Michael Creevy arrived to take over History of Magic?" Her mind suddenly a whirl. she could ask the new History expert about the symbols.
"Well, I've now got some extensive knowledge of magical creatures since I've been touring for the last two years and working with dragons for the last six months. Dumbledore wants me to teach some of Lee Jordan's classes as he's doing a part time degree at Edinburgh. So, I agreed since I'm still at a bit of a loose end. It's just until the end of the school year and then who knows." Harry explained.
"Well, congratulations, Harry. It'll be good to see more of you again and I know Ron will be ecstatic. Have you told him yet?"
"Yes, I told him this afternoon." Harry said.
"Congratulations, Potter." Severus said as he stood up with Callum and indicated that it was time to go. Hermione took Callum from Severus and gave her son a big hug and a kiss on the cheek as Severus shook Harry's hand.
"Thanks," Harry told them both, slightly taken aback at the show of emotion from Snape. "I guess I'll see you both at dinner, I've got to go as I'm meeting the students off the train. See you both later."
"Bye, Harry." Hermione shouted as he jumped off the desk and raced out of the classroom. "Okay, Severus. I'm finished here. Let's go take Callum home." They left through Hermione's office and headed up to their chambers through the secret door.
~~*~~
The Great Hall was packed once again now that the students had returned from their holidays. It would be a relatively short term now as there were only three months left to the school year and most of that would be taken up with revision and exams. Hermione had always loved this time of year when she had been a student as it meant she could spend as much time in the library without too many questions from Ron and Harry.
Severus and Hermione entered through the teacher's entrance and took their seats at the head table, which were now thankfully beside one another again since Hermione was no longer under the curse. This did draw some attention from the students, namely the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables, it was mainly a passing interest except for a few students who stared a bit longer. Those students being the Head Girl and Christopher Granger; the latter smiling brightly and the former looking somewhat guilty.
The Headmaster stood up and called for silence in the hall. "I have a few announcements to make if I may. Firstly some bad news, one of our Slytherin students has been taken into custardy by Aurors over the holidays as he had been found to be in possession of a very dark artefact which he was using to control people, one of those being our very own Professor Granger-Snape. He assaulted Professor Granger-Snape and forced her to go into premature labour." There was a very audible gasp as all eyes turned to Hermione and Severus and they held each other's hand discreetly under the table for support. "Thankfully, young Master Snape is well and making good progress." Dumbledore continued to a loud cheer throughout the hall and smiles from the proud parents. "Might I also offer congratulations to the Snape's for their new addition."
"Thank you," Hermione and Severus both said as they stood up and bowed slightly as they still clasped each other's hand. The cheering died down and Hermione remained standing as Severus took his seat once more. "If I may, Headmaster?" She asked turning to him slightly and he nodded his head to allow her to proceed. She took a deep breath before raising her voice so it would carry to the back of the hall. "I would like to publicly apologise to Miss Flint for anything untoward I have said to her or for any aspersions I may have cast on her character. She was also under the same curse I was and we were being played up against one another. So, I do apologise, Miss. Flint and hope you will accept." Sonia looked quite humble and very embarrassed at the end of the Slytherin table as she inclined her head and smiled slightly. Hermione sat back down as the Headmaster continued and Severus smiled at her warmly for what she had just done.
"I should like to introduce our new History of Magic teacher Professor Michael Creevy," Michael stood up, an image of his older brother Colin with his boyish good looks and blonde hair. He wasn't too tall and fell a couple of inches short of Hermione's five feet eleven inches. He bowed and sat back down quickly. "Also, Professor Harry Potter who will be helping Professor Jordan teach Care of Magical Creatures." Harry stood up and took a bow to much clapping and cheering for the two new additions to the faculty. Hermione glanced at Severus to see him roll his eyes and promptly squeezed his thigh under the table making him jump and bang his knee painfully. "Thank you, that will be all." Dumbledore said as he clapped his hands once and the food arrived on the tables, and he sat down and tucked in with everyone else.
As the feast ended Hermione rose from the table with Severus and headed straight for the Slytherin table to head off Sonia Flint before she could escape.
"Miss. Flint," Hermione called over the noise and attracting the girl's attention. "I wonder if I may have a word with you before classes in the morning. It shouldn't take too long."
"Of course, Professor. May I ask what it is about?" Sonia asked as students bustled out of the Great Hall behind her.
"It's about the curse we were both under. We shouldn't discuss it here but rest assured it's nothing to worry about. Have a good evening, Miss Flint." Hermione said dismissing her.
"You too, Professor." Sonia said as she left the hall. Hermione turned to look for her husband only to find him with a bunch of her Gryffindor first years. She rolled her eyes as she found him surrounded by redheads and wondered how many points he'd taken already. She approached cautiously.
"Is there a problem here?" She asked and Severus turned slightly to acknowledge her presence.
"None at all. Your students were simply offering their congratulations." Hermione's eyebrows shot up; it was highly surprising that Severus would be accepting of anything from a Gryffindor student.
"Well, thank you." Hermione responded and then noticed Christopher was amongst the Weasley's. "I will speak with you this evening Mr. Granger if you would follow Professor Snape and I, please."
"Yes, Professor." Christopher said as the Snape's turned to leave.
"So will you still be teaching, Professor Granger?" Jo Weasley asked and Hermione turned to face her again.
"Yes, I will be teaching, you don't get rid of me that easily. I will still be your Head of House and I now retain the title of Professor Granger-Snape again so please address me as such from now on."
"Oh, pleased to hear it, and I didn't mean any disrespect, Professor." Jo replied quickly and somewhat relieved.
"Well, I believe curfew is approaching and you should all be returning to your dormitories." Hermione said as she noticed that they had attracted quite a large mixed House crowd. "Good night everyone." With that the crowd dispersed and Hermione and Severus left via the teachers entrance with Christopher in tow.
"Did you have a good holiday, Chris?" Hermione asked as they headed for her and Severus' chambers.
"Yeah, eventually. Once we knew you were alright anyway, it was really scary seeing you in that state, Hermione." Chris said as he walked along beside his sister.
"Well, sorry about that." Hermione said as she put her arm around his shoulders and hugged him as they walked.
"Congratulations to both of you by the way," Chris said looking up at his sister and brother-in-law.
"Thank you, Mr. Granger," Severus replied as they reached the portrait hole and Hermione said the password. They entered their chambers to find Callum wide awake on the floor in front of the hearth with Kelpy using her elf magic to make objects fly around in front of him to keep him entertained.
"Oh, Professors! Kelpy is playing with Master Callum, he is happy. Master Callum is being good for Kelpy." The elf said as she looked up to see them enter and jumped to her feet immediately.
"So, no problems, Kelpy?" Severus asked as he removed his cloak, and took Hermione's from her as well.
"No, Master Callum is settled, Professor sir." Kelpy replied happily.
"That is good to hear, Kelpy. I was very worried." Hermione told the elf. "I think we will be fine now though. You may retire for the night and thank you, Kelpy."
"Professor is welcome, Kelpy likes Master Callum." Kelpy said as she bowed and popped out of the room with a click of her long fingers.
"He's so small, Hermione," Chris said as he kneeled down on the floor beside his nephew and peered down at the little boy who fixed him with a stare.
"Yes, he has gained nearly four pounds in the last three weeks though and he can open his eyes now." Hermione said as she settled onto the floor beside Chris.
"He has the Granger eye colouring, and Severus' black hair." Chris said as he looked down in awe. "Can I hold him?"
"Of course you can. Do you know how to, Chris?" Hermione asked.
"I've seen it done but have never had the opportunity."
"Here, just support his head and cradle him in your arms." Hermione said as she picked him up off the floor and handed him over to Chris.
"Wow, he's tiny. What's his full name again?" Chris asked as he settled himself with his back against the couch and legs outstretched in front of him.
"Callum Andrew Snape." Severus supplied as he brought three mugs of tea in and set them onto the small table.
"So, you decided to agree on the surname at least," Chris noted with a grin.
"There was never any question about it, Chris. I was under the curse at the time I said otherwise." Hermione told him.
"Okay, so how will you manage to teach and run Gryffindor with Callum this small?"
"Well, Kelpy will be watching him sometimes and at other times Lavender Weasley is going to mind him for us. When we each have a free period either Severus or I will have him. It'll work out fine." Hermione reassured her brother.
"Well, I know mum and dad want to see him so much, so perhaps they could watch him a bit for you as well?"
"Perhaps but Callum is a little too young to apparate with safely so it would have to wait until he's around three months old first," Severus said from the couch he was occupying as he sipped his tea. "Callum is due a feed, Hermione."
"Would you like to do the honours, Chris?" Hermione asked as she conjured a bottle of milk. Chris nodded enthusiastically and Hermione showed him what to do. After Callum had finished Hermione showed Chris how to wind a baby and then left Severus the lovely task of changing his nappy.
"Well, classes are tomorrow and it's after curfew, Chris. I'll escort you back to Gryffindor while Severus puts Callum to bed alright?" Hermione asked.
"Okay, it was fun seeing my nephew this evening, thank you." Chris said standing up and quickly guzzling his ready-to-drink tea. "Good night Callum and good night Severus. See you in class tomorrow."
"Yes, good night, Chris." Severus said as Chris and Hermione left through the door that would lead down to Hermione's office.
Severus managed to get Callum off to sleep without any trouble and was changing for bed when Hermione came back in. "Bed so soon, love?"
"Well, I'm just changing for bed. Why, what did you have in mind?" He asked in a seductive purr.
"Oh, I don't know, the fire looks rather cosy right now. Come and sit with me by it. I think we should talk and I don't want to disturb Callum." Hermione said as she moved over to the couch and Severus followed. They sat down and Hermione snuggled up into Severus' warm embrace as they both got comfortable.
"What's on your mind, love?" Severus asked as they sat watching the crackling of the logs.
"Well, I was wondering what was going to happen to Layton." She asked, after all, the last she had seen or heard from him had been in the Hogs Head.
"He will likely be tried as a juvenile." Severus told her.
"He won't go to Azkaban will he?" She asked looking quite worried now.
"No, he's under age. Why so concerned after all he did to you?" Severus asked as he frowned down at her thinking that his wife had a lot of misplaced compassion.
"It's because he's a juvenile, Severus. He has such a long life ahead of him and he was trying so hard before he was enfolded into the Book of Shadow's snare completely."
"He's likely to be deemed clinically insane, Hermione and sent to St. Mungo's for life under guard." Severus said with a sigh. "The book will have altered his mind and thought processes as it did with its previous owners. You see part of his mind will be trapped in the book, as he was being controlled more by the book than anyone actually realises and so he will literally be a few screws short."
"Then if I can open the book perhaps it will release his mind completely and he will be in effect cured?" Hermione suggested.
"Well, yes but then no-one since Sekhmet has been able to open the book and there's no telling what would happen if you could get it open." Severus said becoming worried himself now.
"Meaning?" She asked.
"Well, so little is known about the magic behind the book, therefore we just don't know what the outcome of opening said book would be. You could release who knows what from it."
"But, Severus, if it is just memories then the only person affected would be Layton Frontera. All of its previous owners are dead now. Well and truly."
"Granted but I still have a bad feeling about this, Hermione. I would urge you to just let the matter drop." Severus advised.
"Severus, if you know me at all you would know that I can't do that."
"Yes, I am aware of that and that is why you shall not be doing it alone. I will help you if you are so bent on carrying this out." Severus sighed and secretly hoped that this puzzle could never be solved.
"I am and thank you, Severus. I'd like to try and save Layton from a life sentence whether it be Azkaban or St. Mungo's."
"Very well, love. Now, I suggest we get some sleep as we will be awake in another few hours for Callum's next feed." Severus said and they got up from the couch and headed off to bed.