Chapter 15

"Why are you so convinced that Athena is acting strange? I thought you liked her?" Harry asked his aunt as they walked around the house towards the large garden behind.

"I do like Athena, I love her as though she were my mother. That's how I know something isn't right. Last night she acted so strange, it was as if she were a completely different person. And when I asked her about the wedding she was behaving as though it was the first she heard of it."

"Maybe it was?" Harry offered.

"No, I know it wasn't. Severus had to get the ring from her and besides he wouldn't not tell her. They are usually very close." This caused Harry to stifle a small laugh and receive a warning glance from Alex.

"What happened to Snape's father?" Harry asked, curiosity again getting the better of him.

"You're not to repeat any of this to your friends or anyone for that matter. No one at school especially." Harry nodded. "His father was an abusive drunkard who is hopefully still rotting in Azkaban. Years ago when Sev and I were in first year his mother was brought to St. Mungo's, he had nearly killed her and had done the same before to Sev. Dumbledore stepped in and helped get him locked away."

"And what of your parents?" Harry asked, realizing that he never heard anything about these grandparents he never knew he had.

"My parents disowned me when I joined the Death Eaters. They hated Severus, thought he corrupted me." She said with a small laugh. "Didn't want anything to do with me. Still don't, redemption matters very little in their eyes."

"But you're their daughter, won't they want to come to the wedding? Or… you're good now…"

"I am good now, I was good then, just very confused as was Severus. The last thing they would want to do is come to my wedding to a man they believe took me away from them." Alex said with a sad look on her face.

"And you're okay with that?" Harry was slightly shocked by his aunt's almost levity of the situation. If he knew that his parents were out there somewhere he'd want to find them.

"There isn't much I can do about it Harry. Besides why would I want people at the wedding that don't really…" Alex didn't finish her sentence, some thing suddenly clicked in her mind. She remembered the Christmas that she spent here… she and Sev snuck out of the house through the basement.

Mini Flashback (better then nothing at all)

"Sev where are we going?" Alex asked, trying to suppress a giggle of excitement.

"You'll soon see, now be quiet." He answered in a hushed tone. They made their way down the stairs to the basement door. It opened soundlessly.

The basement was dark and cluttered, like a maze of junk. "Are you bringing me down here so you can have your way with me?" Alex asked jokingly.

"I wouldn't have to take you anywhere special to do that. Just wait for you to stumble past my bedroom door." He teased her. "Here we are." He said proudly, stopping at a bookcase.

"We're going to read the night away?" Alex asked slightly unimpressed. Snape just rolled his eyes then pulled on a copy of an Advanced Potions textbook. The bookcase slid to the side revealing a doorway that led to darkness. Looking more impressed Alex took hold of Snape's hand and followed him down the tunnel.

Told you it was a mini flash back

"It came out… over here…" Alex muttered to her self, rushing over to the tall hedges in the garden. Harry watched as she searched frantically around the hedges. "I knew it was here." Alex exclaimed, she latched her hand onto the round handle and pulled. It was locked. "Damn it!"

"What is it?" Harry asked.

"A secret entrance into the basement. Harry you can't tell Athena or the house elf about this, understand?"

"Yes, but what's so important about the basement?"

"I don't know yet, but I fully intend to find out."

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