A/N: I do not own anything to do with the Harry Potter universe. J K
Rowling owns it all. I'm just having fun with her characters. This is the
sequel to my first story Sekhmet's Book. I don't as yet know if I'll make
this into a trilogy series. I guess I'll just see how this story goes for
now. I am currently writing this story as fast as I can. which is
unfortunately about one chapter per month. So, it's not complete but it
most definitely will be. just give me time. Please leave a review as my
muse needs feeding before she gets up and leaves.
Enjoy.
Chapter Five
Hogwarts, Present Day
Severus turned the page as he lay propped up with pillows in his and Hermione's bed. After the staff meeting he had returned to their chambers with Callum and played with his son for a while. Callum seemed to have so much energy these days and he was now not as focussed on practicing his magic, which would have usually tired him out enough to fall asleep for most of the night. Instead, Severus had had to play with his son and had eventually decided on tickling him until he was exhausted from laughing and fell asleep on the hearth rug. Now, Severus lay in bed reading a bit of the diary before he fell asleep. Thankfully some of his concerns had been laid to rest but there were more burning concerns now, for one. who was Sekhmet if it was not Hathor. and indeed it couldn't be Hathor as her animagus form was far too small and of the wrong form to cause such wanton destruction.
Severus caught sight of the pictures that Michael had drawn for him. One was of Hermione, she looked so different with her pregnancy and the glamour that she wore in order to fit in, a glamour that she would have to maintain at all times since Hathor wouldn't leave her alone. This alone would be taking so much energy out of her. On the opposite page was the picture of Re's mark, which Michael had said was just about the only thing that would stop Sekhmet from harming a person. Severus turned over the page again and found a couple more pictures of the burial chamber that Michael had been working in at the necropolis in Memphis and the view of the flax field through the air vent of the pyramid in Giza, complete with crop circle formation. One more picture was of a now completed Sphinx at Giza, which Severus had already looked at previously and the last picture was of daily activity on the Nile and what Severus assumed to be the port of Memphis.
Looking at the diary, Severus noticed that he was just over half way through now. So, with any luck Hermione would not have had to stay in the past for much longer. Severus flicked through the diary quickly to see how much he had left to read and was shocked to find that after about a further twenty pages there was absolutely nothing else written.
His mouth went dry.
His heart rate increased ten fold.
What on earth had happened?
Why stop writing?
He was far too tired to read through the rest of the entries just now, he would have to pick it up from where he left off tomorrow. With his mind racing he put the diary down, picked up a bottle of dreamless sleep potion and downed half of it- not wanting to be completely unrousable should Callum need him through the night.
He was asleep after a short while.
~~*~~
Severus woke up to Callum who was sitting up in his cot and crying loudly. He sat up in bed and reached for his wand on the side table, casting a low level illumination charm over the room. He gingerly got out of the warm bed and padded across the floor to see what was wrong with his son.
"Callum?" Severus asked as he stifled a yawn and reached down to pick his son up.
"Daaadaa, daddaaa, daddyyy," Callum cried as the tears ran down his face.
"Hey what's wrong? Bad dream?" Severus asked as he hugged Callum to his chest and rubbed his back soothingly. Severus looked over to the clock on the far wall and noticed it was only five am. "Hungry?" Severus asked as he looked down into Callum's tear filled eyes. "No? Well then, what is it?" Callum continued to cry on his father's shoulder.
Severus decided to move out into the lounge room and then off into the kitchen to brew himself a mug of tea. He was no good this early in the morning without some form of hot drink to wake him up properly.
As he walked back out into the lounge room with Callum still in one arm and his mug of tea in the other, he headed over to one of the armchairs beside the fireplace. He sat down and placed his mug on the small table before re- positioning Callum on his lap and looking down at his son. "Now, what is all this nonsense in aid of, Master Snape?" Severus asked and to his astonishment Callum stopped crying momentarily and pointed over to the table. Severus looked over and found the photograph that Chris had given Hermione for her birthday of her parents, Chris and Hermione. "Oh, now I understand." Severus said as he picked the photo frame up and brought it closer to the both of them. "I miss mummy too, son but I will get her back. Don't worry." Severus said as he glanced between the still picture of his wife and her parents and brother, and his son. He was actually a bit surprised that Callum would recognise a photo of Hermione, she looked a bit younger in this picture and it wasn't as though it was a moving and talking picture.
"Daddddyy." Callum babbled unhappily.
"Do you know who this is, Callum?" Severus asked as he pointed to Hermione in the picture. Callum was silent as he looked at the picture. He knew who she was but just didn't know what to call her. "Mummy, this is your mummy, Callum." Severus repeated the words over and over for a few minutes until Callum started to mumble and finally he got the word right.
"Mummy, mummy, mummy," Callum babbled again and Severus smiled and hugged his son tightly. Hermione would indeed be very proud when she next saw Callum.
~~*~~
It was already Monday morning and the Hogwarts Express would be arriving later that evening and bringing back another new lot of first years. Chris would be returning as a second year and there would be no Layton Frontera to contend with this year. Harry Potter would be taking over as Acting Head of Gryffindor in Hermione's absence and a substitute teacher was going to be taking over Hermione's Arithmancy classes for the interim.
Severus had already organised all of his classes and the time potion was all under control. He was going to spend the day with Callum wandering around Diagon Alley to pick up a few potions ingredients and then perhaps take a walk around Hogwarts Lake if time permitted. They would be back in time for the sorting ceremony.
After breakfast Severus grabbed his travelling cloak before wrapping Callum up warmly and heading off of Hogwarts grounds to apparate them both to the Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley.
"Hello, Professor Snape." Tom, the bar keeper of the Leaky Cauldron smiled as he wiped a table when he saw Severus apparate into his pub.
"Hello Tom," Snape said as he held Callum tightly and nodded his head in Tom's direction.
"Who's this little fella then?" Tom asked as he stood up straight and waved to Callum.
"This is my son, Callum." Severus said proudly.
"Yeah, I 'eard you had a little un now. He's big inne?" Tom said with a huge grin on his face.
"Callum is nearly seven months old now." Severus replied.
"Wow, well 'ello there, Callum." Tom said happily. "Heh, I remember when our Alfie was his age." Tom said as he thought about his one and only child who had been killed in a Death Eater attack during Voldemort's first uprising.
"They grow so fast, Tom." Severus said, not wanting to get into the whole deal surrounding Alfie's death.
"Can I get you a drink, Professor?"
"No thank you, Tom. We must be going, we have a lot to do today and we have to be back at the school for the feast this evening." Severus said as he started to head off to the back of the pub towards the wall that would allow his entrance into Diagon Alley.
"Right you are then, Professor, you two 'ave a good day then." Tom
said.
"We shall," Severus replied as they left the pub. Severus withdrew his wand and tapped the brick wall in front of him, Callum watching in fascination as the wall suddenly started to move apart as the bricks shifted themselves into an archway. "Welcome to Diagon Alley, Callum," Severus said to his son as they entered the street and wandered down through the small crowd of people.
It wasn't too much later when Severus was stopped in his tracks by Molly Weasley. "Severus! What a pleasure it is to see you outside of Hogwarts." Molly told him jovially as she reached up and stroked Callum on the top of the head.
"Hello, Molly. We are spending our last day of freedom together." Severus said as he looked down at her.
"Yes, Ron and Lavendar spent yesterday with us. It was good to see the little family." Molly told him. Severus just smiled slightly. "How are you doing?" She asked all motherly.
"Oh, we are both doing just fine, thank you." Severus replied as he tried to maintain his slowly depleting level of patients.
"Hmm," Molly mumbled. "You've lost weight, Severus. You aren't eating properly are you?"
"I'm eating just fine." Severus sighed irritably.
"You are already too thin as it is, Severus. Hermione wouldn't appreciate you losing more weight."
"Do not nag, woman. I am fine." Severus growled.
"Hmm," Molly looked at him dubiously. "You must come over to dinner, Severus. Anytime you are free, bring Callum with you. I'll fatten you up." Severus decided to just accept her invitation; it seemed the only way he would be able to get away from the woman.
"Thank you, Molly. If my duties allow, I may indeed pay you a visit." Severus said with a nod of his head.
"Very well, be sure that you do. Keep me informed about Hermione as well. Ron told me what happened." Severus nodded once. "Right then, must be off, Arthur will be waiting for me at Gringott's."
"Good day to you, Molly." Severus said with a nod of his head again.
"Bye, Severus and take care of the little one." Molly said as she patted him on the arm and Callum on the head again before heading off. Severus quickly headed off into the nearest shop, which just happened to be 'Quality Quidditch Supplies'. not one of his usual haunts but is was simply to get out of the street for a little while.
"Ah, Quidditch," Severus said as Callum turned his head to gaze around the shop. Everywhere was an array of colours with the various top teams' strip colours and a wide range of broomsticks and Quidditch gear.
"Looking for anything in particular, sir?" A shop assistant asked from behind the counter.
"No, not really. Just looking," Severus replied.
"We have a range of strips for babies and toy broomsticks if you want to see?" The shopkeeper asked.
"I think he's a bit young for a broomstick, sir." Severus said as he glanced down at Callum and then over to the assistant.
"How about a new broomstick for yourself then, or we do a new family sized Excelsior 5000, which seats up to four people?"
"No, thank you," Severus said more forcefully, he'd never get Hermione onto such a contraption and he did prefer to fly by himself anyway. He decided the best course of action would be to leave quickly and head for a more appropriate shop.
Heading off back down the Alley they stepped into the Apothecary so that Severus could collect some ingredients. He was only there to get some extra scraped mugwump shells just in case there was a further problem once he actually could get back to the past. Callum wasn't overly impressed with the Potions store but then he had seen it all before having been in his father's dungeons on a number of occasions. Hopefully his like for the subject would change as he got older, Severus thought. He pocketed his shrunken package and headed back out into the street with Callum.
Spotting Fortescue's ice cream parlour, Severus headed over to it with Callum. His arm was becoming quite sore and he could do with a coffee. It was still fairly early so there were plenty of seats to choose from. He conjured a high chair and sat Callum in it next to his own seat.
"Professor Snape?" Severus heard a familiar female voice behind him. He turned frowning until and noticed it was Sonia Flint, who was dressed in a uniform and appeared to be working for Fortescue.
"Miss. Flint?" She nodded and smiled at him. "What on earth are you doing working here?"
"Oh, it's just for the summer. I start at university next week so I'm just making some money while I have the time."
"Well, at least you haven't abandoned any form of career. Your NEWT scores weren't that bad after all." Severus said, fairly relieved at the fact that this wasn't a permanent thing for her.
"Thank you, Professor. Now, what can I get you both?" Sonia asked smiling pleasantly and waving to Callum.
"Coffee, black and." Severus looked at his son in thought. "He can try some vanilla and chocolate ice cream I think."
"How old is he now? He's certainly a lot bigger since I last saw him." Sonia asked as she bent down and smiled brightly at Callum.
"Nearly seven months." Severus replied with a glint in his eye.
"Wow, it doesn't seem five minutes ago since your good lady was pregnant. She's not with you today then?" Sonia asked quite innocently. Severus sighed; he didn't want Hermione's disappearance to be common knowledge.
"She's busy with research today." He replied in a forced friendly manner.
"I see, well let me get your order, Professor." Sonia said and left immediately.
A few moments later Sonia returned with the coffee and ice cream before leaving again to serve someone else. Severus sipped his coffee while he helped Callum with his ice cream since he was not yet used to using utensils. He seemed to like it eventually although at first he spat it out due to his unfamiliarity with the coldness in his mouth.
Next on the agenda was a trip to the Snape vault in the bowels of Gringott's Wizarding Bank. They entered the bank and were immediately escorted to one of the small cars that would whisk them down to the vaults. Callum loved the ride down to the vault and the Goblins themselves, everything was all so very new to him. They got out of the car after about a ten minute ride and approached the large vault door with the Goblin who had already requested Severus' key. Within seconds the heavy door opened and Severus and Callum entered the vault. It had been a few years since Severus had been down to his vault and he suddenly realised that Hermione had no idea how much they were now both actually worth. This was just one of Severus' vaults; he had one under his ancestral home and another in Gringott's in Hungary. The money had been made from his teaching at Hogwarts, various research grants, prize money from Potions competitions and earnings from the three works that Severus had published under a pseudonym. He also had his inheritance from his father and grandparents and his mother kept a trust fund for him as well. On top of all this there was blood money given to him when he served Voldemort, which he always considered donating to a wizarding charity but had never gotten around to as yet.
This was the smaller vault and yet still consisted of three rooms which were jammed full of old treasures, gold, galleons and jewels. Severus grabbed a few handfuls of galleons and wandered back out of the vault. The trip down there had simply been to have a quick look and to let Callum experience the journey. He would have to return with Hermione when she returned to the correct time frame, she would need to get a key of her own and be registered at the bank as being authorised to make any withdrawals she wanted to. He couldn't believe they had been married almost ten months and this still had not been approached but then with everything that had gone on. he wasn't too surprised after all.
It was now time to head back home, back to Hogwarts and so Severus readied them both for apparition.
~~*~~
Severus apparated himself and Callum back to Hogsmede just as the Hogwarts Express was entering the train station. He noticed all of the carriages lined up awaiting the student's arrival and that Ron Weasley was wandering along the platform shouting for the first years to follow him as they got off the train. It was already fairly dark outside, as was fairly usual for this time of year in the far North of Scotland, which is where Hogwarts was thought to be located. After all, Hogwarts was unplottable and therefore could not be located or pinpointed on a map. so it was all speculation anyway.
Severus moved along the platform towards Ron. "Professor Weasley," he nodded in acknowledgement as he moved to pass him and head for one of the horseless carriages with Callum still cuddling into his shoulder.
"Severus?" Ron stopped and turned to face him. "Back late aren't you?" He asked.
"Perhaps," Severus conceded. The truth was he really didn't want to return to Hogwarts knowing that Hermione was not there. He didn't want to hear the announcement of yet another substitute teacher that Albus would have to make during the feast in order to cover for his wife's absence.
"Hey, ride back with me? Callum would enjoy a trip over the lake I think, and I bet you've not done it since you graduated." Ron asked hopeful. Severus thought about it before nodding and moving towards the moored boats with Ron. "Right first years," Ron shouted over the noisy babble of new students. "Four to a boat, don't rock them or you'll fall in and the giant squid hasn't eaten for a while."
"Hey, my sister told me that the squid is harmless." One dark haired boy piped up from the back of the crowd.
"Oh? What did your sister tell you of the Potions Master Professor Snape?" Severus asked with an evil glint in his eye at the audacity of the first year in front of him. Callum had fallen asleep in his father's cloak and so could not be seen by anyone else in the darkness surrounding them all.
"That he's mean, evil and strict. Someone you don't wanna cross by all her accounts, and that he eats babies for breakfast." The boy replied. "Oh, and he's super mean to everyone not in Slytherin." Severus raised his eyebrow in amusement. "So, I'm gonna try to get in that House."
"Is that so," Severus drawled. He would have fun with this student during the year. it should keep his mind occupied if nothing else.
"Right," Ron chuckled and shook his head at the evil grin crossing his colleague's face. "Everyone got a boat? Off we go then." Ron said as he got into the last boat with Severus and Callum and it began to sail over the lake with a tap of his wand.
As expected, when Hogwarts came into view there was an audible gasp from the new first years and silence descended throughout them as they all took in the sight they had been met with. Severus remembered his first trip across this lake, he had been one of the unfortunate ones to fall in and be rescued by the giant squid. He had fallen in because he had been sharing a boat with none other than Sirius Black, who had stood up to hand something over to James Potter in the next boat and therefore rocked it at a most inopportune time when Severus had let go of the side. This had started off the rivalry between the two of them and from that point onwards things had escalated from bad to worse.
The boats finally got into the port underneath Hogwarts and the House Elves were already busy taking charge of the bags and cages filled with familiars. The first years got out and huddled on the side of the dock before Ron and Severus finally disembarked. Callum had fallen asleep even before Severus had got into the boat in Hogsmede and Severus had simply wrapped him up inside his travelling cloak to keep him warm from the chill of the night air.
"My sister said Snape turns students he hates into one of those things," the dark haired boy from earlier told one of the other students as he pointed to one of the House Elves. The other first year promptly looked scared stiff and as though she was about to wet herself.
"Oh, he's not that bad." Ron told the two first years as he and Severus stood, overhearing everything.
"I wouldn't bet on it," Severus told them with a sneer before heading off up the large staircase and into the school. He had to settle Callum down properly and summon Kelpy before he could even think about going down to the feast.
About half an hour later after changing into his familiar teaching robes and casting quick cleansing spells, Severus headed for the Great Hall. He had missed the Sorting but it really didn't bother him, he had sat through more than his fair share over the years. He entered the hall from the student entrance so he could gauge a better reaction from the students once they knew that he hadn't left the faculty. He opened the large doors and entered the hall just as the Headmaster was about to finish his speech. Briskly walking towards the staff table he noticed that the dark haired first year who had wanted to get into Slytherin just so the Potions Master would be nice to him had actually been sorted into Gryffindor. He grinned evilly at the first year as he passed the table and saw his shocked expression as Dumbledore greeted him in front of everyone. "Ah, Professor Snape, I am glad you could join us. Welcome, come and sit down. The feast is about to begin."
"Thank you, Headmaster," Severus said as he took his seat at the head table and the food suddenly appeared on all of the tables as the feast began.
"Did you have a good day, Severus?" Remus Lupin asked from beside him as the Headmaster sat to Severus' left.
"Yes, quite pleasant indeed, Remus," Severus replied.
"How is Callum doing? Did he enjoy Diagon Alley?" Dumbledore asked.
"He appeared to, Albus. He is fast asleep as we speak; fell asleep before we took the boat across the lake actually." Severus replied.
"Really? No one appeared to fall in this year." Albus said with a twinkle in his eye as he surveyed the selection of lemon puddings in front of him on the table.
"No," Severus said dryly as Dumbledore smirked at him; he did like to rib Severus about his mishap during his first trip in the boats. Thankfully he had managed to keep it a secret from Hermione or he'd no doubt get it from both sides as often as possible.
"Hello there," Severus heard a female voice from his right hand side; the seat next to Lupin's. "I'm the new Arithmancy lecturer. My name's Priscilla Wolf now. Call me Cil." Severus looked up and glared at the woman. She was a few years older than Hermione, closer to his own age in fact and had blonde hair and brown eyes. She looked familiar although Severus could not place why, he certainly did not recognise the name. She was thin and had a very engaging manner and smile as she reached over Remus and politely held her hand for Severus to shake. "I arrived earlier today but you weren't at the staff meeting."
"You may address me as Professor Snape, Madam, and I was far too busy today to attend a staff meeting." Severus told her bluntly as he glared at her proffered hand and promptly picked up his knife and fork. She just smiled back at him and nodded pleasantly.
"Severus." Remus began to say but Snape cut him off with a glare. "Alright, I won't push you, I realise how hard this must be for you." Severus nodded once and from that point on the feast passed without another attempt at conversation from him or with him.
Enjoy.
Chapter Five
Hogwarts, Present Day
Severus turned the page as he lay propped up with pillows in his and Hermione's bed. After the staff meeting he had returned to their chambers with Callum and played with his son for a while. Callum seemed to have so much energy these days and he was now not as focussed on practicing his magic, which would have usually tired him out enough to fall asleep for most of the night. Instead, Severus had had to play with his son and had eventually decided on tickling him until he was exhausted from laughing and fell asleep on the hearth rug. Now, Severus lay in bed reading a bit of the diary before he fell asleep. Thankfully some of his concerns had been laid to rest but there were more burning concerns now, for one. who was Sekhmet if it was not Hathor. and indeed it couldn't be Hathor as her animagus form was far too small and of the wrong form to cause such wanton destruction.
Severus caught sight of the pictures that Michael had drawn for him. One was of Hermione, she looked so different with her pregnancy and the glamour that she wore in order to fit in, a glamour that she would have to maintain at all times since Hathor wouldn't leave her alone. This alone would be taking so much energy out of her. On the opposite page was the picture of Re's mark, which Michael had said was just about the only thing that would stop Sekhmet from harming a person. Severus turned over the page again and found a couple more pictures of the burial chamber that Michael had been working in at the necropolis in Memphis and the view of the flax field through the air vent of the pyramid in Giza, complete with crop circle formation. One more picture was of a now completed Sphinx at Giza, which Severus had already looked at previously and the last picture was of daily activity on the Nile and what Severus assumed to be the port of Memphis.
Looking at the diary, Severus noticed that he was just over half way through now. So, with any luck Hermione would not have had to stay in the past for much longer. Severus flicked through the diary quickly to see how much he had left to read and was shocked to find that after about a further twenty pages there was absolutely nothing else written.
His mouth went dry.
His heart rate increased ten fold.
What on earth had happened?
Why stop writing?
He was far too tired to read through the rest of the entries just now, he would have to pick it up from where he left off tomorrow. With his mind racing he put the diary down, picked up a bottle of dreamless sleep potion and downed half of it- not wanting to be completely unrousable should Callum need him through the night.
He was asleep after a short while.
~~*~~
Severus woke up to Callum who was sitting up in his cot and crying loudly. He sat up in bed and reached for his wand on the side table, casting a low level illumination charm over the room. He gingerly got out of the warm bed and padded across the floor to see what was wrong with his son.
"Callum?" Severus asked as he stifled a yawn and reached down to pick his son up.
"Daaadaa, daddaaa, daddyyy," Callum cried as the tears ran down his face.
"Hey what's wrong? Bad dream?" Severus asked as he hugged Callum to his chest and rubbed his back soothingly. Severus looked over to the clock on the far wall and noticed it was only five am. "Hungry?" Severus asked as he looked down into Callum's tear filled eyes. "No? Well then, what is it?" Callum continued to cry on his father's shoulder.
Severus decided to move out into the lounge room and then off into the kitchen to brew himself a mug of tea. He was no good this early in the morning without some form of hot drink to wake him up properly.
As he walked back out into the lounge room with Callum still in one arm and his mug of tea in the other, he headed over to one of the armchairs beside the fireplace. He sat down and placed his mug on the small table before re- positioning Callum on his lap and looking down at his son. "Now, what is all this nonsense in aid of, Master Snape?" Severus asked and to his astonishment Callum stopped crying momentarily and pointed over to the table. Severus looked over and found the photograph that Chris had given Hermione for her birthday of her parents, Chris and Hermione. "Oh, now I understand." Severus said as he picked the photo frame up and brought it closer to the both of them. "I miss mummy too, son but I will get her back. Don't worry." Severus said as he glanced between the still picture of his wife and her parents and brother, and his son. He was actually a bit surprised that Callum would recognise a photo of Hermione, she looked a bit younger in this picture and it wasn't as though it was a moving and talking picture.
"Daddddyy." Callum babbled unhappily.
"Do you know who this is, Callum?" Severus asked as he pointed to Hermione in the picture. Callum was silent as he looked at the picture. He knew who she was but just didn't know what to call her. "Mummy, this is your mummy, Callum." Severus repeated the words over and over for a few minutes until Callum started to mumble and finally he got the word right.
"Mummy, mummy, mummy," Callum babbled again and Severus smiled and hugged his son tightly. Hermione would indeed be very proud when she next saw Callum.
~~*~~
It was already Monday morning and the Hogwarts Express would be arriving later that evening and bringing back another new lot of first years. Chris would be returning as a second year and there would be no Layton Frontera to contend with this year. Harry Potter would be taking over as Acting Head of Gryffindor in Hermione's absence and a substitute teacher was going to be taking over Hermione's Arithmancy classes for the interim.
Severus had already organised all of his classes and the time potion was all under control. He was going to spend the day with Callum wandering around Diagon Alley to pick up a few potions ingredients and then perhaps take a walk around Hogwarts Lake if time permitted. They would be back in time for the sorting ceremony.
After breakfast Severus grabbed his travelling cloak before wrapping Callum up warmly and heading off of Hogwarts grounds to apparate them both to the Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley.
"Hello, Professor Snape." Tom, the bar keeper of the Leaky Cauldron smiled as he wiped a table when he saw Severus apparate into his pub.
"Hello Tom," Snape said as he held Callum tightly and nodded his head in Tom's direction.
"Who's this little fella then?" Tom asked as he stood up straight and waved to Callum.
"This is my son, Callum." Severus said proudly.
"Yeah, I 'eard you had a little un now. He's big inne?" Tom said with a huge grin on his face.
"Callum is nearly seven months old now." Severus replied.
"Wow, well 'ello there, Callum." Tom said happily. "Heh, I remember when our Alfie was his age." Tom said as he thought about his one and only child who had been killed in a Death Eater attack during Voldemort's first uprising.
"They grow so fast, Tom." Severus said, not wanting to get into the whole deal surrounding Alfie's death.
"Can I get you a drink, Professor?"
"No thank you, Tom. We must be going, we have a lot to do today and we have to be back at the school for the feast this evening." Severus said as he started to head off to the back of the pub towards the wall that would allow his entrance into Diagon Alley.
"Right you are then, Professor, you two 'ave a good day then." Tom
said.
"We shall," Severus replied as they left the pub. Severus withdrew his wand and tapped the brick wall in front of him, Callum watching in fascination as the wall suddenly started to move apart as the bricks shifted themselves into an archway. "Welcome to Diagon Alley, Callum," Severus said to his son as they entered the street and wandered down through the small crowd of people.
It wasn't too much later when Severus was stopped in his tracks by Molly Weasley. "Severus! What a pleasure it is to see you outside of Hogwarts." Molly told him jovially as she reached up and stroked Callum on the top of the head.
"Hello, Molly. We are spending our last day of freedom together." Severus said as he looked down at her.
"Yes, Ron and Lavendar spent yesterday with us. It was good to see the little family." Molly told him. Severus just smiled slightly. "How are you doing?" She asked all motherly.
"Oh, we are both doing just fine, thank you." Severus replied as he tried to maintain his slowly depleting level of patients.
"Hmm," Molly mumbled. "You've lost weight, Severus. You aren't eating properly are you?"
"I'm eating just fine." Severus sighed irritably.
"You are already too thin as it is, Severus. Hermione wouldn't appreciate you losing more weight."
"Do not nag, woman. I am fine." Severus growled.
"Hmm," Molly looked at him dubiously. "You must come over to dinner, Severus. Anytime you are free, bring Callum with you. I'll fatten you up." Severus decided to just accept her invitation; it seemed the only way he would be able to get away from the woman.
"Thank you, Molly. If my duties allow, I may indeed pay you a visit." Severus said with a nod of his head.
"Very well, be sure that you do. Keep me informed about Hermione as well. Ron told me what happened." Severus nodded once. "Right then, must be off, Arthur will be waiting for me at Gringott's."
"Good day to you, Molly." Severus said with a nod of his head again.
"Bye, Severus and take care of the little one." Molly said as she patted him on the arm and Callum on the head again before heading off. Severus quickly headed off into the nearest shop, which just happened to be 'Quality Quidditch Supplies'. not one of his usual haunts but is was simply to get out of the street for a little while.
"Ah, Quidditch," Severus said as Callum turned his head to gaze around the shop. Everywhere was an array of colours with the various top teams' strip colours and a wide range of broomsticks and Quidditch gear.
"Looking for anything in particular, sir?" A shop assistant asked from behind the counter.
"No, not really. Just looking," Severus replied.
"We have a range of strips for babies and toy broomsticks if you want to see?" The shopkeeper asked.
"I think he's a bit young for a broomstick, sir." Severus said as he glanced down at Callum and then over to the assistant.
"How about a new broomstick for yourself then, or we do a new family sized Excelsior 5000, which seats up to four people?"
"No, thank you," Severus said more forcefully, he'd never get Hermione onto such a contraption and he did prefer to fly by himself anyway. He decided the best course of action would be to leave quickly and head for a more appropriate shop.
Heading off back down the Alley they stepped into the Apothecary so that Severus could collect some ingredients. He was only there to get some extra scraped mugwump shells just in case there was a further problem once he actually could get back to the past. Callum wasn't overly impressed with the Potions store but then he had seen it all before having been in his father's dungeons on a number of occasions. Hopefully his like for the subject would change as he got older, Severus thought. He pocketed his shrunken package and headed back out into the street with Callum.
Spotting Fortescue's ice cream parlour, Severus headed over to it with Callum. His arm was becoming quite sore and he could do with a coffee. It was still fairly early so there were plenty of seats to choose from. He conjured a high chair and sat Callum in it next to his own seat.
"Professor Snape?" Severus heard a familiar female voice behind him. He turned frowning until and noticed it was Sonia Flint, who was dressed in a uniform and appeared to be working for Fortescue.
"Miss. Flint?" She nodded and smiled at him. "What on earth are you doing working here?"
"Oh, it's just for the summer. I start at university next week so I'm just making some money while I have the time."
"Well, at least you haven't abandoned any form of career. Your NEWT scores weren't that bad after all." Severus said, fairly relieved at the fact that this wasn't a permanent thing for her.
"Thank you, Professor. Now, what can I get you both?" Sonia asked smiling pleasantly and waving to Callum.
"Coffee, black and." Severus looked at his son in thought. "He can try some vanilla and chocolate ice cream I think."
"How old is he now? He's certainly a lot bigger since I last saw him." Sonia asked as she bent down and smiled brightly at Callum.
"Nearly seven months." Severus replied with a glint in his eye.
"Wow, it doesn't seem five minutes ago since your good lady was pregnant. She's not with you today then?" Sonia asked quite innocently. Severus sighed; he didn't want Hermione's disappearance to be common knowledge.
"She's busy with research today." He replied in a forced friendly manner.
"I see, well let me get your order, Professor." Sonia said and left immediately.
A few moments later Sonia returned with the coffee and ice cream before leaving again to serve someone else. Severus sipped his coffee while he helped Callum with his ice cream since he was not yet used to using utensils. He seemed to like it eventually although at first he spat it out due to his unfamiliarity with the coldness in his mouth.
Next on the agenda was a trip to the Snape vault in the bowels of Gringott's Wizarding Bank. They entered the bank and were immediately escorted to one of the small cars that would whisk them down to the vaults. Callum loved the ride down to the vault and the Goblins themselves, everything was all so very new to him. They got out of the car after about a ten minute ride and approached the large vault door with the Goblin who had already requested Severus' key. Within seconds the heavy door opened and Severus and Callum entered the vault. It had been a few years since Severus had been down to his vault and he suddenly realised that Hermione had no idea how much they were now both actually worth. This was just one of Severus' vaults; he had one under his ancestral home and another in Gringott's in Hungary. The money had been made from his teaching at Hogwarts, various research grants, prize money from Potions competitions and earnings from the three works that Severus had published under a pseudonym. He also had his inheritance from his father and grandparents and his mother kept a trust fund for him as well. On top of all this there was blood money given to him when he served Voldemort, which he always considered donating to a wizarding charity but had never gotten around to as yet.
This was the smaller vault and yet still consisted of three rooms which were jammed full of old treasures, gold, galleons and jewels. Severus grabbed a few handfuls of galleons and wandered back out of the vault. The trip down there had simply been to have a quick look and to let Callum experience the journey. He would have to return with Hermione when she returned to the correct time frame, she would need to get a key of her own and be registered at the bank as being authorised to make any withdrawals she wanted to. He couldn't believe they had been married almost ten months and this still had not been approached but then with everything that had gone on. he wasn't too surprised after all.
It was now time to head back home, back to Hogwarts and so Severus readied them both for apparition.
~~*~~
Severus apparated himself and Callum back to Hogsmede just as the Hogwarts Express was entering the train station. He noticed all of the carriages lined up awaiting the student's arrival and that Ron Weasley was wandering along the platform shouting for the first years to follow him as they got off the train. It was already fairly dark outside, as was fairly usual for this time of year in the far North of Scotland, which is where Hogwarts was thought to be located. After all, Hogwarts was unplottable and therefore could not be located or pinpointed on a map. so it was all speculation anyway.
Severus moved along the platform towards Ron. "Professor Weasley," he nodded in acknowledgement as he moved to pass him and head for one of the horseless carriages with Callum still cuddling into his shoulder.
"Severus?" Ron stopped and turned to face him. "Back late aren't you?" He asked.
"Perhaps," Severus conceded. The truth was he really didn't want to return to Hogwarts knowing that Hermione was not there. He didn't want to hear the announcement of yet another substitute teacher that Albus would have to make during the feast in order to cover for his wife's absence.
"Hey, ride back with me? Callum would enjoy a trip over the lake I think, and I bet you've not done it since you graduated." Ron asked hopeful. Severus thought about it before nodding and moving towards the moored boats with Ron. "Right first years," Ron shouted over the noisy babble of new students. "Four to a boat, don't rock them or you'll fall in and the giant squid hasn't eaten for a while."
"Hey, my sister told me that the squid is harmless." One dark haired boy piped up from the back of the crowd.
"Oh? What did your sister tell you of the Potions Master Professor Snape?" Severus asked with an evil glint in his eye at the audacity of the first year in front of him. Callum had fallen asleep in his father's cloak and so could not be seen by anyone else in the darkness surrounding them all.
"That he's mean, evil and strict. Someone you don't wanna cross by all her accounts, and that he eats babies for breakfast." The boy replied. "Oh, and he's super mean to everyone not in Slytherin." Severus raised his eyebrow in amusement. "So, I'm gonna try to get in that House."
"Is that so," Severus drawled. He would have fun with this student during the year. it should keep his mind occupied if nothing else.
"Right," Ron chuckled and shook his head at the evil grin crossing his colleague's face. "Everyone got a boat? Off we go then." Ron said as he got into the last boat with Severus and Callum and it began to sail over the lake with a tap of his wand.
As expected, when Hogwarts came into view there was an audible gasp from the new first years and silence descended throughout them as they all took in the sight they had been met with. Severus remembered his first trip across this lake, he had been one of the unfortunate ones to fall in and be rescued by the giant squid. He had fallen in because he had been sharing a boat with none other than Sirius Black, who had stood up to hand something over to James Potter in the next boat and therefore rocked it at a most inopportune time when Severus had let go of the side. This had started off the rivalry between the two of them and from that point onwards things had escalated from bad to worse.
The boats finally got into the port underneath Hogwarts and the House Elves were already busy taking charge of the bags and cages filled with familiars. The first years got out and huddled on the side of the dock before Ron and Severus finally disembarked. Callum had fallen asleep even before Severus had got into the boat in Hogsmede and Severus had simply wrapped him up inside his travelling cloak to keep him warm from the chill of the night air.
"My sister said Snape turns students he hates into one of those things," the dark haired boy from earlier told one of the other students as he pointed to one of the House Elves. The other first year promptly looked scared stiff and as though she was about to wet herself.
"Oh, he's not that bad." Ron told the two first years as he and Severus stood, overhearing everything.
"I wouldn't bet on it," Severus told them with a sneer before heading off up the large staircase and into the school. He had to settle Callum down properly and summon Kelpy before he could even think about going down to the feast.
About half an hour later after changing into his familiar teaching robes and casting quick cleansing spells, Severus headed for the Great Hall. He had missed the Sorting but it really didn't bother him, he had sat through more than his fair share over the years. He entered the hall from the student entrance so he could gauge a better reaction from the students once they knew that he hadn't left the faculty. He opened the large doors and entered the hall just as the Headmaster was about to finish his speech. Briskly walking towards the staff table he noticed that the dark haired first year who had wanted to get into Slytherin just so the Potions Master would be nice to him had actually been sorted into Gryffindor. He grinned evilly at the first year as he passed the table and saw his shocked expression as Dumbledore greeted him in front of everyone. "Ah, Professor Snape, I am glad you could join us. Welcome, come and sit down. The feast is about to begin."
"Thank you, Headmaster," Severus said as he took his seat at the head table and the food suddenly appeared on all of the tables as the feast began.
"Did you have a good day, Severus?" Remus Lupin asked from beside him as the Headmaster sat to Severus' left.
"Yes, quite pleasant indeed, Remus," Severus replied.
"How is Callum doing? Did he enjoy Diagon Alley?" Dumbledore asked.
"He appeared to, Albus. He is fast asleep as we speak; fell asleep before we took the boat across the lake actually." Severus replied.
"Really? No one appeared to fall in this year." Albus said with a twinkle in his eye as he surveyed the selection of lemon puddings in front of him on the table.
"No," Severus said dryly as Dumbledore smirked at him; he did like to rib Severus about his mishap during his first trip in the boats. Thankfully he had managed to keep it a secret from Hermione or he'd no doubt get it from both sides as often as possible.
"Hello there," Severus heard a female voice from his right hand side; the seat next to Lupin's. "I'm the new Arithmancy lecturer. My name's Priscilla Wolf now. Call me Cil." Severus looked up and glared at the woman. She was a few years older than Hermione, closer to his own age in fact and had blonde hair and brown eyes. She looked familiar although Severus could not place why, he certainly did not recognise the name. She was thin and had a very engaging manner and smile as she reached over Remus and politely held her hand for Severus to shake. "I arrived earlier today but you weren't at the staff meeting."
"You may address me as Professor Snape, Madam, and I was far too busy today to attend a staff meeting." Severus told her bluntly as he glared at her proffered hand and promptly picked up his knife and fork. She just smiled back at him and nodded pleasantly.
"Severus." Remus began to say but Snape cut him off with a glare. "Alright, I won't push you, I realise how hard this must be for you." Severus nodded once and from that point on the feast passed without another attempt at conversation from him or with him.