A/N: Sorry about the cliffy…okay not really. Hehehe. So, to clear up a question from a new reader, on their wedding night Hermione did take the contraception potion but not the lust potion. Severus took the lust potion. Plus that was in June, so the baby could not have possibly been from then.
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Chapter 31: Surprises
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"The other portraits are reporting, sir. There is no sign of her in the corridors, library, entrance hall, Hospital Wing, or main classrooms," reported one of the former Headmistresses' portraits.
Severus stopped mid-pace and sneered, "I already told you I checked there. She is not in the castle. They took her. We're wasting time." With a defeated thump, he dropped heavily into a chintz chair.
Albus had watched as the younger man had worked himself into a state of frenzy since first entering his office. Through all the years of knowing Severus, Albus had never seen him this distracted. He hoped for Severus' sake that Hermione was still alive where ever she was.
They both jumped at a sharp tapping sound coming from the window. Albus got up and let in the waiting barn owl. Deftly he relieved the bird of its burden. The owl took off as he unfolded the note. He read it and then, his face grim, handed it to Severus.
It was a ransom note. Instantly Severus recognized Lucius' handwriting. It read:
If the persons of Harry Potter and Severus Snape are not surrendered by sundown tonight, Hermione Snape will forfeit her life. If you wish to comply with these demands bring the aforementioned persons to Suffix Hill, Norfolk. They should be bound and without wands. A portkey will be in place. Only Potter and Snape should use the portkey. Failure to follow any of these guidelines will result in the Mrs. Snape's death.
Angrily Severus crushed the note, "We can't let her die."
"We won't Severus. I promise you," Dumbledore replied. He paused for a moment, thinking. "We will not need to surrender you or Harry though. We will follow the original plan with a few differences."
The younger man looked at him, onyx eyes filled with determination, "What ever it takes."
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Hermione blinked rapidly to clear the bleariness from her eyes. She stiffened, as a drawling voice said, "Hurt didn't it. You don't want me to do it again do you? Maybe I won't if you would just answer the question. What does Dumbledore plan?"
Her brain was fuzzy from the several Stunnings and two rounds of the Cruciatus Curse. It was becoming harder to think. It took her a moment to process exactly what Malfoy had demanded. Once she understood that he was once again asking about the Headmaster's plans for countering Voldemort she glared at him and remained silent. She took private satisfaction at frustrating him with this tactic, though she regretted it somewhat when it resulted in another curse being thrown at her.
They had been battling each other this way for the last six hours since she had woken from her Stunned sleep in the dungeons of what was presumably Malfoy Manor. So far she wasn't impressed. The room was dank and had an unclean feeling. But that could have been from the mold growing on the ceiling and the dark stain on the far wall that looked suspiciously like blood.
Finally coming to the conclusion that he wasn't going to receive an answer, the blond wizard gave a growl of frustration and replaced the Body-Bind that had held her previously. Frustration doesn't look good on him, she thought as she watched him pace. He expected a reaction from Albus and Severus by now. I hope they won't actually give themselves up. The original plan can still work. I just hope they come soon.
As if on cue a nervous looking house elf popped into the room and stuttered, "M-m-master, there are g-guests waiting in the hall." Without waiting to thank the elf, Malfoy left the room.
Hermione waited anxiously to see who had come. She hoped that if it was Severus, Harry wasn't with him. She didn't have to wait long, as the door swung open. Her heart leapt as her husband entered the room. She was a bit confused though to see that he wasn't bound and still carried his wand. She was even more surprised though to see who followed him; it was her. She realized that it was really Draco, but was stumped as to why he had come when she was already here.
Once Lucius had re-entered the room, Severus turned to the other man, maintaining a grip on Draco's arm. Eyes narrowed Lucius said, "Let me make sure I understand. You want me to believe that this…creature that you're holding is actually your wife, and that the one I took is an imposter. That you were not betraying our master and that Dumbledore replaced your wife with someone else and you didn't even notice." He sneered and laughed coldly, "I don't believe you. For one, I know you are a traitor to our lord. Second, I have had this one in my possession for the last six hours. Any polyjuice potion would have worn off hours ago, and clearly it has not."
Severus rolled his eyes and in an almost bored tone of voice replied, "Apparently, my wife here, has been doing potion experiments on the side without my knowledge. According to what she told me when I threatened her. She managed to create a base potion that extends the life of any potion to last for up ten hours. The imposter here, took it before going to been that was approximately ten hours ago, give or take a few minutes. If she told the truth, that Hermione is actually Ginevra Weasley." Severus looked at her pointedly and shoved the disguised Draco towards her. Losing his balance he fell on top of her blocking her view of the two older men.
If Hermione had been able to move her face, it would have shown the most profound shock. This was definitely not in the original plan. She had no idea of how Severus expected her to suddenly turn into Ginny. Draco was attempting to push himself up but was hindered by the fact that his hands were tied together.
It came as an extreme surprise then, when she felt the Body-Bind evaporate. Careful not to move, so as to give away that she was free, she looked at Draco's hands. He was indeed holding a wand, which was jammed between his bound hands. In the merest of whispers, he said, "The chain around my neck. Take the vile. It holds polyjuice. As I get up, drink it." More loudly he gave a pretend unladylike grunt and muttered a vague, "Sorry," to disguise the sound of Hermione swallowing the potion.
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The gathered group of witches and wizards stood huddled together for warmth in the chill December air on top of Suffix Hill. They had easily captured the two wizards sent to guard the portkey, which Severus and Draco had used. Now they were just waiting. Some were waiting with excitement, some with anxiety and others with grim impatience to be going. This was their chance to capture one of the most notorious Death Eaters since the war began. If they got lucky they might even capture You-Know-Who himself. But first they had to find them.
"Have they stopped moving yet?" asked Ron as he peered over Harry shoulder to look at the map of Northern England. A little red dot was tracing its way across the countryside and seemed to be slowing down as it approached a black dot noted as Wiltshire. Remus nodded solemnly as the red dot came to a stop on the map.
"Severus suspected that they would be there. It one of Malfoy's mansions," he said. He then turned to the rest of the crowd and said, "Alright, everyone. We have a location. Remember, we kill no one. Capture anyone who tries to attack you. Are goal is to get Severus, Hermione, and Draco out as safely as possible and to capture any and as many suspected Death Eaters as possible. Remember your positions. Wait until the wards are disabled be for entering the manor. Good luck and be careful."
They all nodded acknowledgement before Disapparating to Malfoy Manor. Suddenly they all reappeared in various positions around the house. Using a new map that showed the grounds and various levels of the manor, they followed the tracking charm as Severus and Draco moved to the Dungeon level. As the red marker came to a halt in one of the rooms, Remus relayed the position to the other team members through spelled amulets they all wore.
He turned to Harry, Kingsley, and Moody. They each nodded at each other to show they were ready. As one they cast the spell to disable the Anti-Apparation wards. With in an instant they apparated to the room that was marked by a blinking red dot.
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Draco sat down on the floor next to Hermione, careful to conceal the wand he held. His father was telling Snape that he still didn't believe him, but both men turned as Hermione let out a slight gagging sound before swiftly growing straight red hair and blue eyes in a freckled ivory skin face, the spitting image of Ginny Weasley.
Malfoy was staring an uncharacteristic dumbfounded expression on his face. He suddenly seemed to realize what he was doing, and schooled his expression into the more typical cold sneer, as he said, "So, Severus, it seems your little mudblood bitch is good for something after all. I…aaaaahhhh." Lucius' sentence turned into a scream of fright as his hair had suddenly burst into flames. No one had spoken a spell.
As the older Malfoy put himself out with water from his wand and tried to repair the damage, Severus and Draco shot surreptitious glances at the red haired girl sitting on the floor. She too looked a bit surprised but a small smile played on her lips. Apparently Mrs. Weasley was right. A pregnant woman's magic does get away from her sometimes, Hermione thought.
Malfoy, looking somewhat worse for wear, had once again turned his mind to the situation and was glaring at each of them as if daring them to say which had been the culprit of the fire. Getting no response but blank stares, turned to Severus and took up his rant, "It seems you were right about the whelp. But since you brought me the real thing it no longer matters. If you truly serve our master it would not matter to you if I kill the little blood traitor would it."
With a swift arm movement, Malfoy had his wand pointed at Hermione, and cried, "Avada Kedavra!" Green light shot towards the far wall, but missed its mark as Hermione dove out of the way.
Severus countered the attack on his wife with a Stinging Hex, and the duel was on. Draco and Hermione watched in amazement at the two wizards cast, countered and dodged hexes and jinxes with incredible speed. Suddenly the air in the room seemed to compress until it was almost impossible to draw breath. The pressure lasted for what seemed like and eternity before returning to normal.
For a moment the four occupants in the room were utterly still. Quick as lightening, Lucius cast one last curse before yelling, "You will not get away with this. You will dread the day you crossed the Dark Lords path," and apparated away.
Moments after Lucius' departure ten cloaked and armed witches and wizards apparated into the small room. Everything was frozen for a moment before the majority of the group realized there was no danger and relaxed. Severus rushed to Hermione, closely followed by Harry and Ron. After checking that she had no obvious physical injuries, Severus relaxed for a moment.
Remus and Moody approached him, as he was helped Hermione to stand. "What happened? Where is Malfoy? Where is the Dark Lord?" Moody asked in his usual abrupt manor.
Seeing the fatigue in Severus' face, Draco answered, "He felt the wards drop and apparated before we could stop him. He also knows now that Professor Snape is a spy. You-know-who was never here. I believe it was mostly a plot to expose the Professor and to gain points with his master by killing Hermione and capturing Harry himself."
Gruffly Moody frowned and responded, "Damn it. We were so close to capturing the bastard. No offense meant, my …boy. We'll get him next time. Snape, you're sleeve is smoking a bit. I would have that looked at if I were you." As Moody stepped away, they all looked at Snape's arm and saw that the black fabric was indeed singed, revealing a nasty looking burn on the pale skin beneath.
Remus smiled ruefully at them and said, "Someone always gets hurt. You should have Madame Pomfrey fix that for you. Hermione I know you say you're all right but you should really get checked in case something happened to the baby. I make you a portkey since you shouldn't be apparating in you condition." Severus shot Hermione a worried glance the health of the baby completely forgotten until this moment, as Lupin rummaged around in his cloak pockets for a moment before pulling out a slightly bent quill. After saying the spell to create the portkey, he turned to Draco. "I realize you're not hurt. But for the sake of your own dignity I suggest you wait in the Hospital Wing until you turn into your proper self. You can go with them."
With a few weary goodbyes to the would-be rescuers, the three grasped the quill and were whisked away at the tug of their navels.
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"Everything seems to be fine, my dear," Madame Pomfrey said, having finished all Hermione's diagnostic spells. "You were very lucky, that Severus came when he did though. If you had been hexed or stunned one more time, you might have had a miscarriage. Other than slight muscle soreness, you should be fine. If you have any stomach or back pain you come see me straight away. The polyjuice didn't affect the baby either. For some unexplainable reason, the contents of the potion only react to the first set of genes it encounters."
From the bed, next to her, Severus, covered in burn cream and bandages, growled, "I'll kill the bastard the next time I see him. He's a sadist and deserves to die for the pain he causes. I will never let him hurt you or the baby ever again."
Gently Hermione reached over to the other bed and grabbed his big hand in her small one, returning the hard squeeze of he grip. "I know, Sev. He will never hurt us. Nothing can hurt me, so long as you love me."
Severus looked at her, ebony eyes burning with the love that he felt, as he said, "Then you will never be hurt."
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Hermione stepped back to admire her handiwork. In a few short hours, the Snape family living room had gone from plain to festive as Hermione decorated it for Christmas. It was a bit late in coming, since it was already Christmas Eve. But having almost missed the holiday due to an evil slime ball had made her want to celebrate in the privacy of home, not just the rest of the school. She had just placed the last Christmas gift under the small tree Hagrid had gotten for her.
She had been surprised to find that unlike the way he acted in public, Severus liked Christmas and privately celebrated in his quarters every year.
Later that evening they sat on the couch in front of the fire. They had decided to start a tradition of opening one present on Christmas Eve. Hermione opted to open the small blue-foil wrapped gift from her parents. Severus chose the purple one from Albus.
Hermione unwrapped her to reveal perfectly matched black pearl earrings. Smiling she put them on, before gesturing for Severus to open his. With a wary expression he carefully unwrapped the box. When he lifted out the gift Hermione burst out laughing. Dumbledore had given him a canary yellow scarf.
As they slipped into bed, Severus pulled Hermione closer to him and whispered, "Happy Christmas, Mione." Touched by the use of the nickname, she kissed him and whispered back, "Happy Christmas, my love."
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Hermione munched happily on her Christmas tree shaped toast the next morning as she contemplated the gifts she and Severus had received. She had gotten the usual candy and random books from her friends. Albus had given her a beautiful blue cloak. She had given Severus a first edition copy of Moste Potente Potions. Her smile widened at the remembrance of the loving way he had touched the embossed title and brittle parchment pages. In return he gave her a first edition copy of Entrancing Transfigurations for Masters in the Making. She had gotten the usual Weasley sweater, this one in blue, but expanded for the future months. To both of their surprise, Severus also received his very first Weasley sweater. It was, of course, in black with silver embroidered snakes on the cuffs.
Currently she was sitting next to Minerva and Severus' empty chair. He had claimed that there was something he had to do before joining them for breakfast. As she finished her toast and was moving on to scrambled eggs the Christmas post arrived. To her surprise, instead of an owl, a large crow or raven landed in front of her plate. Trying not to looked too shocked she took the note from its beak. It stayed on the table as open the snowy parchment.
Dearest Hermione,
I'm sorry to tell you I will not be joining you for breakfast. But if you will take the raven with you to our quarters, I have a second gift for you. As for the raven, he is part of the surprise and if you would like to do so, feel free to name him. Wait in the living room and I will meet you there.
Love,
Severus
Folding the note again, she looked at the raven. It was regarding her solemnly with one black eye. She had a sneaking suspicion of what the raven's part in the surprise may be, but let it go for the moment. Allowing the bird to climb on to her arm she carefully excused herself and left the dining hall.
As she walked to their quarters she contemplated possible names. Finally remembering one of her favorite fantasy stories as a child she told the raven, "I think I'll call you Saren." The creature cocked its head for a moment as if thinking over the name, before uttering a decisive "Caw!"
Smiling she entered the portrait and stopped in the middle of their empty living room. Suddenly, Saren took to the air and circled the room once before gliding to a stop on the floor in front of her. A moment later, her husband was kissing her until she couldn't breathe.
Once they had separated, Severus asked, voice sending a tingle down her spine, "Did you miss me?" Her response was to kiss him again.
When the finally came up for air, she asked, "So what's this about another gift? Why couldn't you give it to me this morning?"
He smirk pleasantly at her and grabbed her hand, "I need to put on a few finishing touches first." He guided her into their bedroom but approached the floor length picture of a bookshelf meant to confuse intruders. To her befuddlement, he reached out a hand and pressed the center of the O in the title of the second book on the third shelf. She was surprised to see that the portrait swung open, but what was behind it shocked her more.
It was a nursery. Wood paneling and soft green tapestries covered the stone walls. A simple but elegant lace lined basinet stood in one corner. There was a blue painted trunk for toys, and a delicately carved miniature wardrobe for clothing. Everything possibly needed to care for a newborn baby was in this room. It was perfect.
She looked up at her husband and saw worry in his eyes. He reached out a hand and gently wiped away a tear she had noticed shedding. Anxiously he asked, "Do you like it? It is too much? Or the wrong color? We can change anything as we go you know."
Choking back the tears she laughed, "It's perfect. I love it. Don't change anything. How did you do it? This room wasn't here before."
"Actually it was," Severus explained. "This was an unused classroom on the other side of this wall. Albus agreed to let me take out part of this wall and use it as a nursery. I had some help with the decorating though. Minerva, Poppy, and Molly helped a great deal. I just made the final cuts."
She grinned at him and pulled him down so she could kiss him properly. Lips moving against his, she whispered, "I love you."
"I love you too. Happy Christmas, Hermione," was the whispered reply.
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A/N: Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Ramadan, Happy New Year, Happy Holidays from me to you. See you on the other side.
