Disclaimer: I do not own any of the people or places that belong to the wonderful world of Harry Potter, as they belong to J.K. Rowling. The OCs (Katherine, Septimus, Helena, Christoph, Elisa, Henry, Nick, Justin, Kyle, Carlos, Mike, Nurse Canter, Headmaster Mickels, Hunfrith, Olwen, Huffie, Sorsek, Bilik, Fossum, Lars and Sven) are entirely my own.


Chapter 7: Mr. Prince Goes to Town

Once Severus was sure Katherine was indeed feeling better, the two dressed quickly and began making a list of everything they would need to inquire from town. Severus was glad to hear that it was a full wizarding village, and had a large apothecary for all of his brewing supply needs.

After the list was finished, Severus and Katherine found themselves walking down the same path that she had lead him to the house the night that they had arrived. The sun hung high overhead, as it was drawing towards late morning. The air was fresh and clean; much more pleasant than the city air of London, or even Manchester for that matter. The trees, forest ferns and grass were well green, and spring flowers were sporadically placed amongst the green.

Severus and Katherine talked quietly as they strolled down the dirt path to the road outside the wards. Severus was surprised when Katherine told him that they could not apparate directly once outside of the property, and that everyone inside a radius of one mile had to use a community apparation point. Katherine explained it was a way that the local government was able to keep tabs on who was apparating into a certain area, and if they were allowed to be in that area or not.

"Of course it is mainly to make sure that the people in this area remain safe," Katherine said, as they reached the apparation point, which was nothing more than an open space on the gravel road marked by a wooden sign. "Most of the residents of this area are either relocated witches and wizards, or government employees; most of them Unspeakables."

"Then, wouldn't have it detected me, when you portkeyed us here on Saturday morning?" Severus asked.

"No," Katherine said, as she held her arm out for Severus to took. "The portkey was approved by the government and was masked by my signature, so it gave them no indication if there was more than one traveling by it."

"Ah," Severus mumbled. "Are you really sure you are up to apparating us both?" Severus asked with a raised eyebrow towards her outstretched arm.

"Well, how do you propose we get there?" Katherine asked curtly. "Fly?"

"Why not floo?"

"Because the only community floo network in town is more than likely brimming with people who are making their way home or somewhere else for early lunch," Katherine smirked. "And I know how fond you are of crowds, love."

Severus grumbled under his breath, but knew she was right. Reluctantly he took hold of Katherine's arm, and with a sharp turn and a crack, the apparation point was empty once again.


Katherine and Severus appeared with a loud crack on a small dirt road just outside of Amadahy. The small village appeared peaceful and serene, much like Hogsmeade was during the spring months, but without all the students.

Katherine took out her wand and enlarged the small bag she had brought to carry the groceries and other purchases. Then the two began making their way into the village streets. The town was indeed busy, and Severus watched the shoppers bustling about as Katherine lead them to the center of town.

"Where to first?" Severus muttered to Katherine, as he watched two small boys ogle over a broomstick in the Quiner's Quidditch Collection window.

"Well, we should stop at the bank," Katherine said as she lead them towards a gray stone building. "We'll need to withdraw quite a bit in order to get all of your clothes and necessities, plus groceries...well...extra groceries since Septimus will be home Sunday."

Above the large building hung a large wooden sign marked Superior Bank - Amadahy Branch in golden letters. Two wizards, both dressing in burgundy cloaks, stood on either side of the large wooden doors at the building entrance. Neither wizard spoke, but Severus could feel their eyes upon him as he followed Katherine through the doors.

The interior of the bank wasn't much different from Gringotts. The floor was covered with white marble, and at least a dozen goblins worked behind wooden desks, counting golden, silver and bronze coins. But it wasn't the goblins that caught Severus' eye, it was the giant that stood at the withdrawal window where Katherine was heading.

"Katherine," Severus hissed lowly, trying to stop her. But it was too late, just as Katherine came within a few feet of the giant, the massive beast turned and looked down at the blonde witch. Severus' eyes widened as the at the sight of it; the giant had to be at least twenty-two feet in height, his head and neck bent slightly so it could fit inside the building. It looked much like the giants found in Europe, but there was something different about the face.

"Well," the giant's deep voice filled the room, causing Severus to grip his wand tightly in his pocket. "Katherine Prince has returned."

"Hello Hunfrith," Katherine smiled up at the large creature. "How is the family?"

"Very good," the giant replied. "Olwen's growing like a weed." Severus thought he could feel the floor shake when the giant laughed, but his black eyes never left the giant's face. Then suddenly the giant's eyes were upon him.

"What are you looking at?" the giant sneered, eyeing Severus up and down. Katherine turned around to see her husband's eyes narrowed in on Hunfrith and clutching the wand in his pocket.

"Oh for Merlin sakes Sev," Katherine sighed, causing Severus to lose his focus on the overgrown creature. "Take your hand off your wand, our magic doesn't work inside this building for security purposes." Slowly, Severus removed his hand from his wand and looked in confusion towards his wife.

"Hunfrith, this is Severus Prince, my overcautious husband," Katherine said, gesturing to the wizard. "Sev, this is Hunfrith.

"He's not an European giant Sev," Katherine said, as though she had read his mind. "Hunfrith and his family are Rephaites."

"Rephaites?" Severus muttered, looking back and forth between the witch and the giant, or whatever Katherine called it.

"Aye," Hunfrith said. "I'm a Rephaim. We're a rare breed of giant. Our kind was believed to be long destroyed, but that is of course just a rumor. Many of my kind were killed off long ago, so our ancestors fled our homeland and traveled east to the Bering Strait, which we used to cross over into North America. Most of us live in the mountainous regions of the continent, but there are some of us who have moved into areas more like this one. And unlike our distant European giant cousins, we are much more intelligent." Even though Hunfrith had finished, all Severus could do was stare at the Rephaim.

"Right, well," Katherine cleared her throat, and smiled back up at the Rephaim. "Good seeing you again Hunfrith."

"Yes," Hunfrith said, looking back and forth at the witch and wizard. "Good to see you returned home safely Katherine...umm...Severus, pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," Severus breathed, as the Rephaim walked past him, heading for the double doors.

"Tell Huffie I said hello," Katherine shouted at Hunfrith retreating form.

"Will do!" the Rephaim boomed back, before disappearing behind the closed doors. Once the Rephaim was gone, Severus looked back at Katherine, only to find the blonde witch glaring at him.

"What?" Severus snapped.

"That was bloody embarrassing, you know that!" Katherine snarled at him, as she pulled her wallet out of her bag to retrieve her vault key. "Really Severus? Going for your wand so quickly."

"Forgive me," Severus snarled back. "But you'd do well to remember that I do not know this area or those who dwell here as well as you do."

"Fine," Katherine snapped, as she approached the ornery-looking goblin behind the large marble platform. "When we get back home, I'll fill you in on all of the beings that inhabit this area." She finished by slamming a small silver key down on the counter in front of the goblin.

"Mrs. Prince," the goblin greeted her in a low voice. "See you have returned from your research trip."

"Yes, Sorzek," Katherine said, looking up at the tiny goblin. "I need to make a withdrawal from my...no...our account." Katherine continued gesturing to Severus next to her. "Plus we need an extra key made for him."

"No extra keys can be made for another," Sorzek sneered at the witch and wizard. "Unless it is for an immediate family member."

"I know Sorzek," Katherine said curtly. "This is Severus Prince, my husband."

"Very well," Sorzek grumbled, as he handed the key to another goblin. "The key will be ready as soon as you are finished in your vault. Bilik will show you down there."

"Thank you," Katherine nodded, and followed Bilik, with Severus in tow, to the lift on the left corner of the bank.

"Just as unpleasant here, as they are in England," Severus grumbled under his breath.

"That's one thing that I can't disagree with you there," Katherine muttered back, as they entered the lift with Bilik.

"Hold on," the goblin grumbled, as the lift's door closed, and the elevator shifted backwards for several feet before plummeting into the earth. The lift reminded Severus of the lifts at the Ministry, going in all sorts of directions until they reached their destination.

"Hall six hundred and eighty-two," the goblin announced as the lift came to a stop and the doors opened wide. A long narrow hallway laid before them, and Bilik lead the way, passing many vault doors until they reached the 'Prince' vault.

"Vault eleven hundred and three," Bilik announced as he put the key in the hole and opened the door to the vault. Severus' eyes widened once again, at the sight of the contents of the vault. Stacks of golden, silver and bronze were so high that they seemed to reach the ceiling; books and parchment took up at least one corner of the room, while gems and jewels took up another.

"Where did all this come from?" Severus breathed, looking at the stack of books.

"Some is from your vault, some is from mine," Katherine said, as she took the coin bag from the goblin and began counting out the coins before putting them into the bag. "Some is from Uncle Albus, while there is a bit from my mother, you know, part of my inheritance from when she died."

"The jewels?" Severus asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Some are from the Dumbledores, others the McGonagall side," Katherine said, as she neatly stacked a pile of coins on the small table to the left of the door. "There are some in there from your mother's side as well I believe.

"There Bilik," Katherine continued, now speaking to the goblin. "Two hundred and fifty Galleons, one hundred Sickles, and fifty Knuts."

"Very well Mrs. Prince," Bilik said.

As Katherine and Bilik were finishing their exchange, Severus wandered the vault. His eyes fluttered over the corner bindings of the never ending stack of books, then shifted his sights towards the gems and jewelry cases.

Most of the cases were flat, long boxes, indicating full jewelry sets, that more than likely including matching necklaces, bracelets, earrings and rings. But there was one box that caught Severus' eye.

A small ring box. Slytherin green in color, with a ornate silver 'P' inscribed on the lid. Quickly, he glanced back to Katherine and the goblin, only to see them still filling out the transaction, before picking the box up in his hands.

Carefully he lifted the lid, to reveal a silver ring with a large emerald as the center stone, adorned by two smaller diamonds on either side. The gems sparkled brightly in the faint light of the room, showing off their fine cuts and beautiful shapes. As Severus held it closer to him, to inspect the ring, writing on the lid's inside cover caught his eye. The writing was small and fading, but legible enough.

"For my dearest Katherine
on our first anniversary.
All my love,
Severus"

'Severus and Katherine,' Severus thought to himself. 'It appears that my uncle had quite an eye for jewelry.' He wondered how many times the woman actually wore the ring, and which side of the family had actually had the ring in their possession since their uncle and aunt's deaths.

"Sev?"

"What?" Severus asked, snapping the lid of the ring box closed and quickly put it back on the table.

"I'm ready to go," Katherine said, looking up at him from the vault door.

"Right," Severus cleared his throat. "Coming."


The remainder of the afternoon consisted of grocery shopping and Severus' clothes hunt. He was greatly relieved that he was able to find everything he needed at Fossum's, well, except for his nightshirt. Severus was rather reluctant when the shop owner handed him a pair of pajama pants.

"We got rid of nightshirts long ago," Mr. Fossum said, as he rang up the total damage for the all of Severus clothes. "Most American men where pajama pants or boxers to bed."

"At least you carry frocks," Severus said, as he handed over several coins.

"Only reason is because of the Olsens..." Fossum chuckled, "and Katherine of course. You potion masters are all the same."

After a few more stops, Severus noticed Katherine was looking a bit peaky, and suggested they find somewhere to eat. Katherine led them to a small cafe that sat on the edge of town, overlooking the lake and part of the forest.

The waitress led them to a quiet corner booth and took their drink order before leaving them to their menus. They remained quiet as they looked over the list of options, but Severus mind was not on the selections. He hadn't failed to notice that Katherine had been extremely quiet since the incident at the bank this morning, and he knew it was his fault. He knew he had to apologize.

"Katherine," Severus sighed, put down his menu, so he could look at her. "I..." But his voice was cut off at the sight of tears in Katherine's eyes as she looked down at her menu.

"Katherine?" Severus asked worriedly. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Pregnancy hormones," Katherine said, as she put down her menu and waved him off. "What is it Sev?"

"I...just want to apologize for this morning at the bank," Severus said, swallowing hard at the sight of unshed tears still forming in her eyes. "You were right...I am a bit overcautious, but of course that's all because of the life I led up until now."

"No, Sev," Katherine sniffed, blotting her eyes with the paper napkin. "I'm the one who should be apologizing. I shouldn't of snapped at you. You really don't know this area or who all lives here, and that's my fault. I should had warned you before hand, before bringing you into town."

"Let's just say it was both of our faults," Severus said, reaching across the table and taking Katherine's hand in his. "Why don't we start discussing the area now over dinner?"

"Alright," Katherine said, slowly sliding out of her seat and joining Severus in his.


After being in the diner for well over two hours, Katherine and Severus had one place left to visit. Olsen's Apothecary.

"Sven!" Katherine called as they enter the small shop, that sat on the south end of town. "You're favorite customer is back!" Katherine waltzed up to the counter, as Severus stared in awe at the shelves upon shelves of potion ingredients. His eyes flew over the labels; some were common, but there were others that were rare, very rare.

"Mrs. Prince?" a voice came from the back room, causing both Severus and Katherine to look towards the doorway. A young man, dressed in a navy blue frock, came out to the counter.

"Lars?" Katherine asked in shock. "I thought you were still at the university, finishing your apprenticeship."

"Finished just after you left," Lars smirked. "You've been gone two years you know."

"Right," Katherine shook her head. "How are you?"

"Good," Lars smiled. "Took over pop's shop, got married and have a twelve month old son."

"Merlin sakes," Katherine chuckled. "All that in two years. I really have been gone too long."

"Sure have," Lars smirked, then turned his questioning eyes towards Severus.

"Oh Lars," Katherine said, gesturing Severus to join her at the counter. "This is Severus, my husband. Sev, this is Lars Olsen. He graduated from New Salem when Septimus was a first year."

"Pleasure to meet you," Severus said, shaking the young man's hand.

"Good to meet you," Lars said. "Mrs. Prince tells me that you're a potion's master as well."

"Indeed," Severus said. "Katherine and I apprenticed under the same master together."

"Amazing," Lars said. "Not too many husband and wife potion masters around...well...anywhere for that matter."

"No there's not," Katherine said smiling up at Severus.

"Well," Lars said, going back into business mode. "What can I get for you?"

After two hours and several Galleons later, Severus and Katherine finally left the Apothecary and made their way to the apparation point to return home. They had a lot to do in five days, before their son came home.


a/n: Please, please forgive me. Time and writer's block have been my undoing. But I promise that I will try an update more often, as I believe I hit a point where ideas are flowing in my head better. Chapter 8: Union Station should be posted some time around Friday or Saturday night.

A big thanks to RequiemWolfenstein87, Edwardswife1988, Missyick, Mira SeverusSirius Black-Snape, tigerlili48, grumpirah, sandradee27, LemonDropsWoolSocks, Sailor Dreamer95, MRSSPICY, Furionknight, bookivore, and lexiloo124 for their wonderful reviews!

Next chapter, Septimus comes home!