Chapter 2: A Perfect Scheme
A/N: Neither Syrus nor SteffieSnape own anything from the Potterverse, nothing, only their imaginations and their OC's. Just wanted to make that clear if you didn't know.
She had arrived back at Hogwarts in the beginning of August, three weeks before any of the other students. After the events of the previous month she had gone home to her parents for only a few short weeks, then was expected back at Hogwarts for obvious reasons. Since her secret had been revealed to only a very small number of people, it was necessary for her early return, Snape included. Usually only Filch and Hagrid remained over summer to watch the school, but Dumbledore and Snape had made other plans.
She spent the first few weeks still in a daze, however, after all that had happened, but finally came around towards the end of break. It would always affect her to some extent, but she was going to live with it obviously. The third week she actually began studying with Snape, getting an advance on her training still. After all, she had seven years of school to get done in only half the time.
It was now a week before the other students would arrive, and she had the day planned with Hermione. Although Snape was her friend, it was on a completely different level. She felt as though Hermione was her only real friend within a thousand miles.
She said her good byes to Snape for the day, kissing him once, and flooed into Hermione's living room. She brushed the ashes from her clothes as she stepped out.
"Hello Seda," came her friend's voice.
She looked up and saw Hermione waiting for her in the kitchen, drinking a cup of tea.
"Hi," she replied as she walked over to greet her.
It had been a month since they last saw each other, and everything they wanted to say or ask seemed too awkward at the moment. They looked at each other uncertainly for another moment until, finally, they embraced.
"So, how are things going?" Hermione pulled away and grinned as she touched Seda's stomach.
"Well," she took a breath, "nothing too horrible yet. I haven't really gotten any morning sickness. I've been a bit more moody though. Is that normal?" She smiled softly. She still had that new mommy glow about her, even though it was nearly a month now. The first few months of pregnancy were such a wonder.
Hermione laughed slightly. "Yes, it's normal. It only gets worse however."
Seda gave her a pitiful look. That's not what she really wanted to hear.
"Well, it might not be so bad for you. I made Ron miserable I guess, so he tells me anyway." She sighed. "Hopefully Snape will be more patient with you. He's a little more mature than Ron was at least."
"Yeah, maybe. You know how he is though. We argue about the stupidest things. I can't imagine how it will be when my pregnancy is more intense. He might poison me." She laughed. She knew he wouldn't really do that, but thinking it, he might.
"When ever you argue, just remember not to drink anything he offers you," she laughed. "Ron offered to put me in a deep sleep until delivery day. It didn't happen though."
They both laughed softly at their sarcasm towards their lovers. They couldn't help it; sometimes men were just as impossible as they believed women to be.
"Where's Madison?" Seda asked as she looked around the room.
"Oh," Hermione put her cup down. "Ron actually had the day off so he took her out with Harry. That way I have my hands free, and she gets to spend more time with him."
"Ah, ok. I haven't seen her in so long. How is she? Five feet tall yet?"
"No, not quite, but she's getting there. She turned three on the sixteenth." She sighed. "She has a new toy now that keeps her busy. It makes my hair frizz however."
"What is it?" Seda grinned. "A water gun or something?"
"It's a broomstick for toddlers. It only levitates a foot off the ground, but its enough to have her zoom around the house and drive me nutters." She shook her head.
"I bet you love Ron for that," she chuckled.
"Actually, Ron didn't buy it for her. Percy, Ron's brother did." Her face suddenly lost its interest, as if she felt sick.
"Is that bad?" Seda couldn't help but ask.
"Well," she took a breath, "it's kind of a long story. I'll explain when we get to Diagon Alley."
Seda nodded, and then she followed Hermione over to the fireplace. Hermione paused and looked at her as she reached for the floo powder.
"Do you want to floo together? I mean, I don't want you to fall or anything." Hermione was a hopeless worrywart.
"I'm ok. I got here all right anyway. I've gotten better at flooing now. I used to be awful… fall all over the place." She shrugged.
"Ok, but I'll go first in case I have to catch you on your way out."
"Ok," Seda agreed.
She watched as Hermione threw the floo powder in the fireplace, causing it to blaze an emerald green. Then she spoke clearly the words of her destination, and she was gone.
Seda followed suit and soon found she was spinning through the air before she came stumbling out of the other end. Hermione caught her anyways, just to be safe.
"You all right?" she asked one more time.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." Seda looked around. "Is this the Leaky Cauldron?"
"Yes, have you been here before?" Hermione brushed the ashes from both of them, typical motherly thing even though Seda was a friend.
"Only once, last year when I came with Severus."
"Ah, well what do you want to do first? Do you want your supplies or do you want to get the fun stuff?"
"Erm… let's get my school stuff first. That way we can hurry, and we'll have more time for the real shopping." She grinned.
"Sure, that works." Hermione agreed.
They started off by going to the Apothecary, which was right next to The Leaky Cauldron. She bought her potion supplies, and then spent a few extra minutes looking at various jars. Then they set off down the path of Diagon Alley, and Hermione started explaining the history with Percy. She finished by the time they got to Gringotts, telling her about last weeks sudden appearance.
"And he just came back after that many years? That seems a bit odd. So suddenly with no warning," Seda said to Hermione as she finished gathering her money.
"It does. I just want to know what came over him all of a sudden," Hermione said more to herself.
Finally they headed straight for Flourish and Blott's to pick up Seda's new books. It was the last on her list for school necessities, and then they had the rest of the day to roam around and shop elsewhere.
They ended up staying in Flourish and Blott's a little longer than they anticipated though. Since they were both extremely fond of reading, the sight of books made them feel like children in a toy store. Seda was in the middle of browsing through A Guide to Finding Your Inner Power when her attention was drawn elsewhere.
"Hermione?"
Seda turned to see another witch about the same age as her, with shoulder length dark, red hair. She was looking at Hermione in disbelief. Hermione turned around and looked just as shocked.
"Violet?"
Both their eyes widened when they realized whom the other was. They made expressions of thrill, but didn't know what to say.
"Oh… Merlin! I haven't seen you in… nearly four years. How are you?" Hermione spoke first, her mouth still open somewhat in shock.
"I know. I kind of lost contact with everyone for awhile." Violet sighed. "I'm good though. A lot of changes."
"I see you cut your hair." Hermione added.
"Yeah." She shrugged. "So how are you? The last time I saw you was before your baby was born."
"Everything is fine. We had a girl. She just turned three on the sixteenth, and she's wonderful."
"That's great. I'm really happy for you, and for Ron." She smiled, but it looked a little hesitant.
"Thanks," Hermione said humbly. She looked over at Seda who took a step closer, curious obviously. "Erm… Violet, this is Seda. Seda, this is Violet."
"Hi," Violet said, smiling brightly.
"Nice to meet you," Seda replied warmly.
They looked at each other for a long moment, almost as if they all ready knew each other. Then it was silent and they all looked at each other, wondering what else to say. The only sounds came from the hustle and bustle of the bookstore.
"So… what are you doing here? Just visiting again?" Hermione broke the silence.
"Well actually, I have a job here now. I was an Auror back in the states, and then I was transferred here." Violet smiled somewhat to herself.
"Really? Ron and Harry are Aurors too." She paused for a moment. She knew the subject of Ron might be a bit tentative with Violet still.
There was another silence while Violet tried to say something.
"Are you busy? I mean, I have to stop by the post office, but I really want to catch up on things," Violet said kind of rushed.
"I needed to stop by there too, actually." Violet and Hermione looked at Seda. "I wanted to mail something to my parents. Maybe we can go together. That way you two can talk."
Seda looked at both of them, waiting for their replies. It was just a friendly suggestion.
"Sure, I don't mind." Violet shrugged.
"Ok, then… well we can finish shopping later I guess." Hermione turned to Seda. Hermione gave her a sort of look, obviously talking about the baby shopping.
"It's fine. I just need to buy my books then, and we can go," Seda said as she started picking up her schoolbooks. She walked over to the counter to pay, while Violet and Hermione followed behind.
Violet looked at her stack of books curiously, but didn't say anything. Several minutes later they were strolling down the street of Diagon Alley towards the mail post. When they got there Seda picked out an owl with great endurance. Her owl had to deliver a letter all the way to America. Violet picked out a standard owl, for relatively close deliveries.
As Violet tied the letter to the owl Hermione couldn't help but notice whom it was addressed to.
"Have you seen Ginny at all?" Hermione said.
"Not for two years," she replied as the owl took flight. "I was writing to tell her that I actually have a change in plans. I was going to stay with her for awhile until I found a new place."
"So you found somewhere then?" Hermione asked encouragingly.
"Well… I'm moving in with Draco," she said somewhat quietly.
Hermione's eyes widened. "What? When did this happen? Are you still together?"
"We continued to see each other while I was in the states, but we've been getting more serious lately. I actually asked to be transferred so we could be closer. He just asked me to live with him last week."
"Wow… I had no idea. Well that's great. Where are you living?" Hermione asked, fairly stunned.
"He has a house in Grogan's Cavern, a small wizarding community just outside Sheffield. I start moving in with him tomorrow, and I start my new job next week."
Hermione still had a look of shock on her face. She shook her head slightly to think straight.
"Congratulations then." It was about all she could say.
"Hey, are you hungry? Maybe we can all sit and talk over some food." Violet suggested to both Hermione and Seda.
"I'm getting rather hungry myself," Seda said. Her hand instinctively rested on her stomach. Not because she was gesturing hunger, more of thinking about her baby.
They left the post office and stopped at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor for lunch. When they were seated comfortably at a small table outside they gave their orders.
"So how do you know each other?" Violet asked curiously, gesturing between Hermione and Seda. She took a bite out of her sandwich and waited for someone to say something.
Seda and Hermione exchanged glances, not knowing how to explain with out giving away the secret. They couldn't exactly point out the issues they went through together with out mentioning the result, which happened to involve Snape, a whole lot.
"I mean, I never saw you at Hogwarts," Violet went on, noticing their behavior.
"Well, um… It's kind of difficult to explain," Hermione began, not sure where to start.
"I started going to Hogwarts last fall," Seda said finally. She had to start somewhere.
Violet looked at her peculiarly. "What do you mean?"
Seda took a deep breath. "I was supposed to start Hogwarts when I was eleven, like everyone else. The problem was… I had gone missing." She glanced at Hermione.
"Missing?" Violet was rather confused. "You mean like kidnapped or something?"
Seda shook her head. "No. I… my parents were killed and… well my mother was still pregnant. I was spared somehow and then sent to live in America where I was adopted."
"I'm sorry… why didn't you get a letter or go to an American wizarding school?"
"Well that was the problem I guess. I was written down in the book when I turned eleven, but there was no trace of me anywhere. My mother had disappeared right after I was born, though she is dead now, and when I was in America my name had changed. I was…. well I was unplottable in a way." Seda tried to explain as best she could. It was still hard.
"You were unplottable?" Violet was more confused now.
"Yes, in a way. Voldemort went after my parents," there was a strange silence, "and my mother placed a charm on me right when I was born so I couldn't be found. The truth died with her so that is why no one knew about me or where I was."
Violet stared at her in bewilderment for a second before she came back to herself.
"So… how did you end up at Hogwarts?"
Hermione glanced at Seda again before Seda answered.
"While I was attending college in New England I was discovered finally. They told me what I really was and offered me the chance to officially begin my training. I accepted of course because I was so relieved I wasn't insane like I thought I was." She laughed momentarily. "I had noticed some powers before but I didn't know why I had them. When I found out I was really pleased there were more people like me."
No one said anything. Violet was still trying to take it all in.
"That's how I ended up at Hogwarts last year. I've been doing about two years worth of training in a year. I have private lessons with the teachers to keep me moving forward, and hopefully I'll graduate fully trained in a few years."
"How did you meet then… at school? That's not possible is it? I mean, unless… Hermione are you a teacher now?" Violet suddenly look excited and confused all at once.
"No. We met… in Hogsmeade actually. I, er… I sort of helped Seda through her first year." Hermione looked back at Seda and smiled strangely. "We survived it and have been friends since."
Seda smiled to her self in an odd way too. The past year had been a cross between a nightmare and a revelation. As hard as it was it happened for a reason, and with out it she wouldn't be where she was; another stage in her life with a complete understanding of why things happen. Not to mention she was madly in love and wouldn't change it for anything in the world, all because of a curse that nearly claimed her life.
"That's cool. I was wondering why you had those particular books." Violet looked relieved then, as things started to make sense. She smiled to herself.
As they finished the rest of their lunch Violet explained her previous situation to Seda. She told her how she attended Hogwarts for a year because Voldemort also had it in for her. She finished by telling them both what she had been doing in the past few years, and that her training took all of her time.
Hermione also took the time to mention in passing about Percy's sudden appearance. Violet never met Percy, but she had heard of him vaguely from Ginny. The situation seemed rather odd to her too, but she didn't say anything.
They continued chatting through several shops, while Hermione pointed out a few things of interest to Seda. They had to keep a low profile on Seda's pregnancy because only a few people knew, and could know. Violet worked in the Ministry, and if something accidentally slipped about Seda being pregnant the questions would pour in. Violet wouldn't do it purposely, but odd things happen in the wizarding world.
Hermione was trying to be as discrete as possible, mentioning things to Seda that would benefit her with out Violet noticing too much. Yet, when Hermione fell across a baby blanket, beautifully knitted in pastel colors she couldn't help but beam in a motherly way. She and Seda exchanged looks of adoration towards the blanket, and finally Violet said something, not being able to stay in the dark for long.
"Why didn't you tell me you two were baby shopping?" She smiled at them.
Hermione and Seda froze suddenly, and looked at each other, again.
"Oh come on, you've only been gawking over baby things all afternoon." She smiled again. "Hermione… are you pregnant again?" Violet said rather eagerly.
Hermione's face fell into a mix of confusion and surprise, while Seda tried to contain a laugh. They looked at each other quickly while Hermione thought of how to answer.
"Err… um… I, uh… well I," she was completely at a loss for words. Seda had to laugh. It was too perfect.
Violet looked at Seda and grinned. "She is, isn't she?" she said as if she all ready knew.
Seda just bit her lip and tried extremely hard not to laugh.
"I knew it!" Violet said excited. "Hermione! Why didn't you tell me?" She said frustrated but she was still smiling at her.
"Erm, no one knows yet and we need it to stay that way," Seda spoke up, still smiling.
"Does Ron know yet?" Violet asked, still unable to contain her excitement.
"No… I, um…" Hermione was in a very awkward position now.
"Are you going to tell him soon?"
"No!" Hermione and Seda both yelled at the same time.
Violet stepped backwards a bit and looked at each of them. She was confused all over again, but tried to keep smiling. Babies were always exciting.
"Ok, ok. I see how it is. It's a secret right? Until the time is right?" She looked at them both, studying their faces. She had a very smug look about her now.
"Uh, yeah. It's a huge secret. I don't want him to know until I'm ready to tell him. So please, don't tell anyone, I'm begging you." Hermione pleaded nervously, for Seda's sake actually.
"Don't worry, I won't say anything, Auror's honor." She held up her hand in surrender.
Hermione and Seda looked at each other in relief somewhat. Well, that was taken care of now. Hermione knew Violet well enough to know she wouldn't say anything.
They spent the rest of the afternoon shopping, especially for baby items and mommy-to-be necessities. It was typical for three young women to gaze and awe over the cutest things, and it was amusing when there was a secret to be kept hidden. Then again it was even more amusing to know that there was another juicy secret to be kept hidden under the other secret. It was a rather ambiguous scheme to say the least.
"What are you so smug about?" Snape said to Seda as she sat down in the armchair.
She had just returned to the castle and dropped off things in her room. She and Snape now had a permanent floo connection between their fireplaces for apparent reasons. It was so she could go to his private chambers without anyone noticing, or vice versa. Now that she was pregnant he needed to keep his eye on her more closely.
"Hermione is pregnant," she laughed sarcastically. Snape's eyes widened slightly.
"Another Weasley? Aren't they satisfied with one?" he said rather disconcerted.
"Actually, it will only be one. It's a hoax." She laughed to her self again.
Snape narrowed his eyes at her from his desk. "Would you care to explain?" he said rather impatiently.
"One of her friends walked around with us today and, er…. she assumed it was Hermione that was pregnant, not me. We went along with it obviously."
He only raised his eyebrows in curiosity while he sat back in his chair.
"It's the perfect plan. The only other person who knows is actually being misled. So in a way, no one else does know." She laughed to herself again.
He could watch her smile for a long time he thought to him self. The brightness she illuminated within him was still more than he could believe.
"You two together is rather fallacious. Two bookworm Gryffindors using Slytherin tactics, amusing indeed." He smirked as he pulled her up from the chair.
"And who's to blame for that?" She grinned back at him. He didn't answer. Instead he kissed her to shut up her mockery. She still grinned into his mouth.
