Chapter 18:

Tonks tried her best hold in her giggles as she entered the Auror department. After all, who wouldn't laugh at the sight of the savior of the entire wizarding world asleep on his desk, drool making its way down out of his mouth? Tonks was there because Ginny flooed her frantically as she and Riley were having quite a nice time together. Apparently Harry hadn't been home yet and his wife was worried, so his temporary partner went to go see what had happened. Tonks quietly approached his desk to wake him up and shook him slightly.

"Not now, Gin, I'm sleeping," Harry said. "I'm just too tired."

"Aww, and I was so hoping we could spend the night in passion," Tonks deadpanned, waking Harry up immediately.

"Tonks! What are you doing in my bed—I never went home, did I? Oh Merlin! Ginny must be so worried that I didn't come home last night! I'm still in my same robes…I'm a mess!"

Tonks put up her hand to calm the jabbering Auror. "Relax. Yes, Ginny's worried—that's why I'm here. It's only midnight, you can still go home and change, if you are that worried," she teased. Harry blushed. "So, what kept you here so late?"

"Sam," Harry said simply. Tonks nodded. Ever since they returned from Portugal with one less child, they had all been working extra hard to find and return Sam. It was almost like Voldemort was back in power, but Sam was important. Her parents were one of them and Sam was like their niece. Everyone had been pulling extra weight and Ace was diverting cases from them, giving the easier ones to Kiki and Moody (who had kindly stayed to help her). "She's out there somewhere with Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Fudge. She's been with them for almost three months now. We need to get her back!"

"I know, Harry," Tonks said, rubbing the young man's back. "But I think you will do Sam a big favor by going home, getting something to eat and getting some sleep. Come back with a fresh mind."

"And all the same clues." Harry sighed and left the Auror office.

Severus couldn't sleep again. He had tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, trying to reach Elysium. He had debated getting up and taking a sleeping potion before remembering that they had all somehow gone "missing" when the Weasley twins had shown up for little Arden's birthday party. He had contemplated listening to music, but some…memorable…dreams prevented him from doing so. Instead, he slid out of his wife's arms, out of the bed, and into his parlor. He stared at his liquor cabinet for a long time, inwardly debating whether or not to have a drink. It might help him to sleep, but he didn't want to start turning to alcohol now. Instead he walked over and picked up the "Beauty and the Beast" CD. As long as he didn't fall asleep and it didn't wake anyone else up, he thought as he popped it into their CD player.

Kiki rolled over and tried to snuggle up next to her husband. Except she only ended up snuggling against a slightly warm side of the bed and a pillow that smelled like her husband. Something was up and she was determined to find out what…and drag said husband back to bed so she cuddle. She slipped out of bed and put on her bathrobe. She crept into their parlor when she heard the soft strains of music. She peaked around the corner to see Severus sitting in his favorite chair, eyes closed and a cup of tea in his hands. She knew he wasn't asleep and walked in further. She could make out the music and determined it was their musical.

She walked towards the chair when Severus moved, causing her to stop. He clicked something on the remote and the song changed to their song. She smiled as he put down the cup and stood up. Within minutes, she was able to get her wish to cuddle as they started to sway with the music. She closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest while he kissed the top of her forehead. Once the song ended, he pulled her down onto his lap as he returned to his chair. He buried his face in her hair and muttered something about Sam and possible locations she could be. Kiki felt her stomach drop in guilt and decided to come clean to Severus. "There's something I need to mention…"

Severus pulled out of her hair to look her in the eye, gold meeting black. "Is it the Aurors? Have they found a lead?"

"No," Kiki said. "It's something I should have told you a long time ago, but wasn't certain about it." She took a deep breath as her husband panicked. "It happened in September…I had, well, I guess I had a vision. I'm not sure," she added quickly. "Given my emotional state at the time and now, it could just be a trick of my inner eye. But I think it was a vision." Severus motioned for her to continue. "I had a vision of Lucius Malfoy with a young girl who could be Draco's little sister and she was about Sam's age. They were in New York City." She let out a breath.

Severus reburied his head in her hair and Kiki swore she heard him laughing for joy. "My daughter may be found by Weasley and Granger? Amazing," Severus commented. "Almost as amazing as the fact that Longbottom found the other kids. Now m'dear, to bed?"

Kiki laughed, throwing her arms around his neck. "Yes milord. Hither away!" she said as he picked her up.

Hermione picked up little Susan as they left their hotel. Ron had gone a few minutes before them to hail a taxi, just as Kiki had taught him to before leaving. They were going to the Museum of Natural History as well as the Haydn Planetarium. Unfortunately, Ron screwed up the directions and they were let out a few blocks over in on the Upper West Side, right by a school dismissing its students for the day. Hermione set Susan down by the gate as Ron walked up to one of the nannies to ask for directions. The little girl the nanny cared for also leaned against the gate, dressed in a nice blue coat with a blue beret and blue gloves. Her blonde hair was straight and loose. Susan toddled over to the girl. "Sammy!" the two-year-old said, tugging on the girl's coat. "Sammy!"

"I'm sorry. My name isn't Sammy," the girl replied. "My name's Serena. You can call me Rena, if you want."

"Rena?" the little Weasley tried. She then shook her brown curls. "No. You Sammy! Sammy S'ape!"

"No. I'm Serena Malon. What's your name?"

"Sammy! It Su'an."

"Sue Ann?"

"No! Su'an!"

"Susan!" Hermione called, picking her daughter up. "You leave that girl alone now. Your father and I now know where we're going."

"Serena! Come along, you have a piano lesson at three," the nanny said.

Serena nodded. "Good-bye, Susan," she said, walking into the limo.

"Bye, Sammy," Susan said, waving. This caught her mother off guard. Hermione looked carefully at Serena. The young girl did look familiar, like Draco's little sister. Or daughter. And the girl was about six years old. Sam was six and taken by the Malfoys. Could that little girl be the missing Sam?

"Ron?" Hermione asked later in the hotel. "Did you see that girl?"

"No, I didn't," her husband responded. "Why?"

"Susan kept insisting she was Sammy. And when I got a good look at her, she looked like she could be Draco's sister."

"You think she could really be…? I'll contact Ace, get some Aurors down here. We'll look too suspicious if we continue to hang around them. They won't."

"Just nameless faces in the crowded Manhattan streets," Hermione said, hugging her husband. "I think Severus and Kiki will be so happy."

Harry burst into his house and swept his wife off her feet, twirling around. Ginny's red hair spun out behind her as little Molly watched from her playpen. Harry put Ginny down, kissing her passionately before her feet even reached the floor. Once she had regained her senses, Ginny asked her husband, "What was THAT for? I mean, I know I shouldn't question an amazing kiss like that…but…wow."

Harry laughed. "I just finished talking with your brother."

"Oh yes, I kiss you like that every time I talk to my brothers. Now, of course, which one? I know it isn't Percy, but that still leaves five others."

"Very funny, Mrs. Potter. I was talking to Ron."

"Ahh, and how is he and Hermione? How's New York?"

"They're very fine. I think the idea of Hermione being pregnant has finally sunk in and he's okay with it. Until the labor. But, New York is a very different story."

"Oh, a good or bad story?"

"A very good story," Harry said, walking over to pick up Molly. The little girl cooed as she tugged on a wayward strand of her father's hair. He still couldn't tame it but Ginny liked it like that. She walked over and gently took the hair from her daughter's hand.

"So, you going to tell me? Or are we going to play twenty questions?"

Harry laughed. "Alright. Ron and Hermione got lost and happened to run into a girl that looked like Malfoy's daughter. They think it might be Sam."

"Really?" Ginny squealed. "Kiki and Severus will be relieved and over the moon to have Sam back with them. She's their first…and there's something special about your first child." Ginny kissed Molly's cheek.

"Especially when you're a father and the first is a daughter," Harry replied. "I don't know how I'd feel if Molly were ever taken away. I heard Severus reverted back to how he was when we were students until Kiki Spatula of Death-ed some sense into him."

"Isn't it funny?"

"What?"

"Well, when we were students, did we ever think that Professor Snape, Bat of the Dungeons—"

"You forgot greasy."

"—okay, Greasy Bat of the Dungeons, would ever become a family friend? We couldn't wait to get out of Hogwarts and away from him. Hoping the last time we EVER saw him was at his funeral. But then…things changed. Kiki and Harmony came along and we saw a side of Professor Snape we never dreamed was there. And now, we call him 'Severus' and he's a family friend."

"Funny how life works isn't it?" Harry said, pulling Ginny closer. She giggled softly as he kissed her forehead. "I'm sure my father's rolling in his grave." Ginny giggled harder.

The night after her chance meeting with Hermione and Susan, little Serena was blissfully sitting on her father's lap. Luke was checking his little girl's homework before Nora would give her a bath. Serena didn't tell her parents about Susan mistaking her for some one named "Sammy" when Rosita, her nanny, told about the "nice British couple who needed directions and their cute little girl who took to Serena." Her parents were already tense from the story and Serena knew that the little girl's mistake wouldn't be wise to tell. "Everything looks good," Luke said, hugging his daughter. She beamed in pride, giggling a bit, before running to her mother so they could run her bath.

After Serena left, Luke sighed and walked over to the couch. There, he dropped his façade and became Lucius again. When Rosita came home telling of helping a young British couple with a small daughter, Narcissa and Lucius had panicked. Serena said nothing really of it except the woman and her daughter were "nice." He knew there was more but his daughter wasn't telling, probably not to worry her parents. Lucius was tempted to use legimens on the girl, but feared it would trigger some memory of her biological father.

Lucius and Narcissa had every right to panic. Judging by the description of the couple, it sounded like Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley. What if they were sent to find them? Of course, they could actually just be a married couple on a vacation in New York City who got lost. They might not even be Granger and Weasley, just two people who looked like them. So many "what ifs?" ran around the track in Lucius' mind, giving him a headache. He lay down on the couch and closed his eyes, hoping the pain would go away.

The pain started to subside as he felt something slightly moist and warm crawl on top of him. He cracked open an eye to see Serena there, her grey eyes meeting his. She smiled and kissed him. "Night, Daddy. I love you," she said, hugging him. He smiled, hugging her back. Without a second thought, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to her room. Nora was waiting and watched as Luke dropped Serena carefully into bed. She giggled while he tucked her in. Nora bent to kiss her daughter before the two left her to go to sleep.

Lucius and Narcissa were sound asleep as a storm arose. The weather had warmed up so snow was out of the question, but a loud clap of thunder shook the apartment's window. Within minutes, a small projectile landed on their bed, jarring Lucius from dream land. He was fully ready to release his rage on the object when he realized it was Serena shaking under the covers in between the husband and wife. Serena remembered nothing of her life as Samantha Snape, but the final battle was still deeply ingrained in some place his charm hadn't reached. She wasn't such a light sleeper as Sam was, but she still jumped at many loud noises. The Slytherin in Lucius told him to tell her to go back to her room and stop the nonsense, like he would with Draco when the boy swore something lived under his bed (unfortunately, something actually did live under the bed, but that's another story). He pulled back the sheets automatically in Slytherin parent mode until he saw the shaking little girl, staring at him with tear glossed grey eyes. Old Lucius took a back seat to new Lucius/Luke and he tucked the little girl in, lying back down. Serena scooted closer and he felt her breathing even out. Within minutes, the two were both out cold.

A/N: "Avenue Q" rocked! It was such a good show—I had tears running down my face from laughing so hard! And I got to meet Barrett Foa afterwards with my friends. He signed our playbills and took a picture with us! Now I'm running Tech Week for "Bobby Kennedy" and I was in the theatre till after 1 AM painting and there were people who were staying later. Anyway, Thanksgiving is coming up…I'm so excited! I may update earlier next week or skip it because my Turkey Day break starts on Tuesday. I'll play it by ear. Thanks to my one (1) reviewer:

SarahtheBardess: My brain isn't working so good this week either because of the late nights I have to pull for Tech. Yes, Gred and Forge have taken Lily and Jamie under their wings. Oh, the cross purpose conversation happens WAY too often around my suite. She remembers and finally tells Sev! Your Bardess-sense? Didn't know you were a superheroine.

Yeah, so, since I know I'm busy at this time of the year, I'm letting all who didn't review off the hook. –Mac