Hey,
here is chapter 22. This chapter was a fun one to write. Thank you so much for the reviews. I hope you once again enjoy this chapter. Don't forget to review! Even if it's just a few words! Every word is welcome!
Enjoy,
TempeGeller
Chapter 22: Danger Danger
Hermione stared at the diary once more again. Part of her felt bad for invading her mother's privacy. Another part of her wanted to know everything about the figure Leyviena McGonagall. She was unsure if she would like Leyviena. The woman was the classic example of an overachieving Gryffindor with a hero complex. Hermione knew that her mother cared little for her own life and that meant that people around her would get hurt. Hermione started to understand the person that was Leyviena McGonagall. She was similar to her mother, she cared more about her friend than her own life. She opened the page, she found sketches of her mother pregnant. Snape had drawn them, it showed a happy couple. What had happened, it wasn't written down. The dairy stopped on 15th of September, her mother had no written anything else. She moved her fingers over the handwriting. She wanted to know her mother's embrace. She had not grown to love her adoptive parents any less, but there was a special connection between Hermione and Leyviena. Sometimes they were almost the same person. In the back of the book she found her mother's last rapport card. The comments resembled the ones on her own. The marks were exactly the same. She hugged the book to her body. She felt how her eyelids got heavier. When she opened her eyes once again, there she was. The woman that had done everything to save her life. The woman that given her to the Grangers. Leyviena McGongall, she was wearing long soft blue robes. Her eyes showed kindness as she sat on the bed beside Hermione. Her fingers went through Hermione's hair. Hermione could only watch her. She had long slender fingers, her hair reached way over the lower part of her back. She said no words. She looked at Hermione. There were tears in her eyes, almost like she couldn't believe how Hermione had turned out.
"Mom." Leyviena nodded her head. Hermione sat up and moved her arms around the woman. Was she asleep? Or was her mother truly here? She didn't want to let the woman go. She smelled like lily's and herbs. Almost like she had been making potions whole day and tried to cover it up with the smell of lilac.
"You are so beautiful." Leyviena replied. "You are the perfect combination of me and Severus. I wish I could have raised you. How I regret not being there my whole life?"
"You knew where I was…" Hermione replied. "You could have watched over me?"
"Do you really believe I was never there?" A smile appeared on Leyviena's face. "Do you remember all of your teacher?"
"I had the same teacher for 6 years, she really liked me. She lived next door. She babysitted me all the time. I was kind of…" Hermione stared at her. "You were there. That's why the teacher were always so full of affection. What about Hogwarts?"
"Me and Lily both took jobs at the schools were our children went." Leyviena spoke. "We were able to have our children in our class. You don't know how hard it was not to raise you, but you had amazing parents. I wasn't going to take you away from Mark and Jean. I could never do that, so I watched you. There was never a day I stopped loving you. I couldn't follow you to Hogwarts, dangers were coming up. I needed to find a way to destroy him, when he came back. Lily however has been here since day 1."
"Who?"
"Your flying teacher off course. Don't tell Harry." Leyviena replied.
"Couldn't Lily just raise him?"
"Things are more difficult than that." Leyviena spoke. "First there were so many death eaters, they would have known where Harry was, if Lily was with him. They needed to believe she was death. After they were all in Azkaban, it became more difficult. It was impossible to return, there were whispered of Voldemort everywhere. We didn't dare to go back to our original forms. I spent my time near you as long as I could. After you were in Hogwarts, Lily kept watch over both of you. There were never times I was unafraid. I kept researching Voldemort under Dumbledore's watchful eye. We discovered truths about Voldemort and we tried to find a way to fully destroy him. Than he returned. I was so glad you were nowhere near that little town. After that my job became more important, it wasn't until I saw Madge again I knew what would destroy him. You, Harry and Neville need to find a way. I don't know yet just how, but I will find it. And I will give my live, so you can be alive. I will always do that Hermione. You are my daughter, my flesh and blood. I love you and I will never stop loving you."
"Dumbledore knew." Hermione asked. "Why didn't he tell your mother?"
"It was too dangerous."
"Mom." Hermione looked at Leyviena. "I can't be mad at you. Can you tell me after this dairy end? How did you get hurt when you got to my home?"
Leyviena couldn't believe her pregnancy had gone by that fast. The baby was meant for October, it was only the 15th of September, she had just written in her diary. She smiled as she moved her hands over her baby bump. The baby kicked to her hand, she felt how Hermione already loved her. She looked forward to the baby, she and Severus would be parents. Severus loved the baby, he would always draw her. He also made small pictures of what the baby would look like and placed them all over the house.
She spoke to her husband. Yet she said no word about Voldemort. She knew he would come for the baby, yet she hoped she could protect her own baby. When she turned around, she saw how Severus walked towards her. He gave her a soft kiss on her forehead.
"You are getting more beautiful every day."
"You are wrong." She smiled. "I'm not beautiful at all. I'm a whale."
"You are still pretty to me." He put his arms around her. "After all that's my baby you have inside there. Hermione, isn't it?"
"That is the name we painted above her bed."
A soft smile appeared on his lips. He kissed her and slowly he moved his head towards her stomach and kissed it as well. He moved the shirt up.
"Hermione, can you hear me?" The baby started to kick right away. He moved his hands towards her stomach and felt how the baby kicked them. He moved his hands to the little feet and stroked them softly. He could hear Leyviena's laughter. He wanted nothing more than to hold the baby in his arms. A girl, she would be just as beautiful as her mother. He whispered something to the baby, but Leyviena could not hear it.
"I love you." He whispered to the baby. "My little princess."
"What about me?" a smile appeared on Leyviena's face. "Do you still love me?"
"Always."
She sat in the library, she had covered every inch of room with books. The only room that wasn't covered with books was a small fireplace and small window that allowed light in the room. Severus had always compared her to that window, he told her he was the dark room and she was the only thing that allowed light inside his life. She had painted all the walls in bright colours, changed the colour of the door and filled the home with bright stories. She stepped in front of the window. She had never liked the house, the air was always polluted. She preferred the mountains, but she didn't want to pull her husband away from here. He had always loved his mother and this was the only reminder he had of her. She would never expect him to give it up. Yet she doubted the polluted air would be good for the baby. She rubbed her pregnant stomach as she turned around.
"It's late." Severus put his arms around her body. "I'm sure it's not good for the baby."
"I shall decide myself what's good for the baby." She immediately regretted. "Severus, this is my first baby too. We're both going to make it. I promise you that. She's going to be a lucky girl."
"She?" He stared at her.
"Hermione Eileen Snape." She smiled.
She moved to the kitchen and took a bottle of water. The water in the neighbourhood was nowhere near good for consumption. It had something to do with the neighbourhood. She took a sip and stared at Severus.
"I'm worried Severus." She looked to her feet. "This whole situation with your master. He will think it is his baby. Yet I swear to you Severus, Hermione is yours. He'll come after her, I don't know what to do. I'm scared for us. I'm really scared."
"He won't touch our baby."
"You've sworn him alliance in exchange for my safety." She bit her lip. "As long as Hermione isn't born she's save. When she's born, he'll take her from me and there will be nothing you can do about it. He's your master and in his eyes this baby belongs to him. He'll turn her in a weapon. I don't want to know what he will do with our sweet girl and I'm sure he won't succeed. She has a goodness inside her that can't be destroyed, like you. She's like you."
"I won't let him take her." He took her hand and pulled her in his arms. "I would rather die, than let him take the baby. It's all my fault, if only I had been as strong as you were, I wouldn't be placed before …"
"You did what you thought was right." She place her hand on his. "I don't blame you, I don't understand your choice. I love you and you did it out of love."
She turned a bit as she walked on the stairs to their shared bedroom. She took a peak through the door that lead to Hermione's bedroom. It was connected to their room by a door. She moved her arms around her own body, she knew Severus was standing behind her. He looked at her full of worry. She felt it too, suddenly she felt a sharp pain.
"The baby, I think she's coming." Her breathing went faster. "Hermione is coming."
"We have to get you St. Mungo's?"
"He'll know." She screamed as the pain got worst. "He'll know that baby's here, we have to stay here. The baby will be born here."
"It's too dangerous." He took her face in his hands. "You could die."
"Woman have given birth longer than that."
"And childbirth was the top cause of death for women between 20 and 40." He replied. "We're going."
"If we go to the hospital, we could just as well hand Hermione to him." She walked in the direction of their bathroom. "Prepare me a bath!"
"Leyviena!"
"Do it! Or I swear to god, I will make you do it! You know I can, right now I give you a choice of your own. I will do anything for the safety of our child and you know staying here is the best."
"What about a muggle hospital?" He replied. "We could travel to …"
"He'd know if used magical transportation." She stared at him. Her blue eyes looked in his eyes, she was scared he could see it. Yet he knew there was nothing they could do. If they went somewhere, Voldemort would take their child. That was the last thing he wanted, so he simple listened to her and prepared a bath. He heard her screams of pain, there was nothing he could do. There was no time to make a potion and he couldn't think of any recipe's right now. He couldn't watch it, he only held her hand. He didn't know how much time passed when a baby's cry was heard. He only knew the love for the small child in his wife's arms. They stared at her. The girl had come a whole month early, the 17th September had become the best day in their life. Leyviena smiled. He gave her a soft kiss on the forehead as he took the baby in his arms. She had dark brown eyes and light blond hair.
"Time is by our side." Severus stared at her.
"He won't come for her in a month."
"I could say the baby was still born." He replied." But he'll want and I don't know…"
"I can make him believe it again, but it is just as bad as living it Severus." She replied. "How long can we keep up the charade?"
"It will buy us another ten months, maybe even more." He place his hands on the side of her face. "Even more if it doesn't work right away. What do you say? I know it's hell for you, but we could remove…"
"That doesn't work on me Severus." She replied. "Whatever he has in store for me, it will be burned in my memory. I will do it to protect my baby. If only he doesn't find out."
He stared at the baby and noticed how everything was tainted. He feared what he would do to his wife, only to protect their child. He had always promised he would protect her. Yet he would bring pain on her. Something she had already gone through. It was all his fault. The baby wasn't supposed to happen, when they found out, Leyviena had been very scared. She grew more scared when Voldemort found out and drew plans to steal the baby from her. He had never wanted to harm her, yet it was the only way to keep their child save. Everything went by so fast, he had watched as Leyviena washed the baby and dressed her. After an hour they watched the baby in her crib.
After that she moved to the bed, in the night she heard loud bangs on the door. She moved to the window, but when she saw Madge at the door, she refused to open. The woman was something that made her scared, she hardly believed the things Madge was saying. She closed her eyes, after 15 minutes the knocking stopped. An hour later she moved the bed and fed her daughter. She looked at the long blond hair and her brown eyes.
"I love you so much Hermione." She kissed the baby's forehead. After 15 minutes she returned the baby to the room.
She went back to bed and that morning she woke up at 8 o'clock. She made some tea and started to clean the house. She had a small crystal in her pocket so she could hear the baby. She thought about everything that had happened. She didn't look forward to anything that was happening with Voldemort. Yet she would do anything to protect her child. She had to make sure he would never find her. She moved around the house, there was a happiness inside her. She couldn't wait until Severus would be home. After she had her tea, she cleaned her house using magic. She still didn't love the house, yet she had tried to be happy here. That afternoon she went to the park, the park where Lily and Severus had met. She had changed her form so no one would know she was here. She watched the small children run, she couldn't wait until she could run around with Hermione. The small child laughed from the stroller. She slowly moved her finger over Hermione's cheek. She took the child in her arms.
"Lovely baby." A woman said. "I've never seen you around before."
"I just moved." She said. The truth was she had never seen this woman in her original form either. She had gone to this park more than once, yet she had never seen her before. She didn't say much more. After an hour she went back to the house. She started dinner, as she girl watched from the bed in the corner of the kitchen. When she heard the door open up, she ran to the living room. She was welcomed by Bellatrix Lestrange. Her eyes became bigger of fear, she wanted to run. At that moment Bellatrix threw a knife at her. It hit her right in the stomach. She moved away, pain went through her body, she grabbed her wand from the table and ran to the kitchen. She needed to get out here, she needed to grab Hermione. She pushed the pain away and grabbed the baby. Hermione knew something was going on, yet the baby didn't cry. In the few hours, Hermione had been anyting but a cry baby. Leyviena disapperated from the room and appeared in Hogsmeade. She moved towards the small house on the edge, the shrieking shack they had called it. She used magic to create a small basket and sat down. She moved her hands to the wound of her stomach. She knew it was deathly. She had known that the very moment the dagger hit her. She had been surprised by the attack. She had expected Severus, and she had not been careful. She looked at the basket, her child. She could not bring the baby to her mother. They would search for her there. The baby needed to go to a family she never knew. She moved fabric over the wound. She had a few hours at least. How was she going to find a family in a few hours? When she was little, she had visited a small town. She loved the Rose street there. Maybe she should go there, maybe she would find a family there. She took a piece of paper and started to write. She wrote to her child. And with her last strength she made potions. Potions that would make it unclear who Hermione was. She placed potions in the basket that could undo its effects. Then she disapperated to the street. She summoned rain and moved her arms around the baby. She walked up to the first house she saw.
"We'll never have a child." She heard the woman say.
"Jean, we can adopt." He replied. "I promise we will have a child."
She moved her hand to the door and knocked. She was sure these people would love her child. She could feel the pureness of their hearts. They were both dentists. She knew they worked with teeth, she had gone to them. It was rare in the wizard world that people did that. They hardly cared for their teeth and if they did, they used magic. The door opened up, the man had dark brown hair. His wife had the same colour. She handed the baby to them, when they wanted to invite her in. She ran. She felt how she was dying. This were the very final moments, she stared to the sky.
"I'm so sorry, Hermione." There were tears in her eyes. She looked in her daughter's brown eyes. Hermione reached for her. She welcomed the hug.
"I have to go." She stared at Hermione. "Be careful for Umbridge. She's very dangerous. And don't forget that I love you."
Leyviena walked out of the room. She walked through the Hogwarts halls. It was night, so there was no one around the castle. She knew where she needed to go. She wanted to see Severus, she knew the castle by heart. When she entered his chambers, she could see nothing. Everything was bathed in darkness.
"Lumos." A light appeared from the end of her wand. She walked on and sat beside Severus. His eyes were closed. Slowly she moved her hand over his.
"Severus." She kissed his lips softly.
"Leyviena." He sat up. He saw her above the light of her wand.
"I'm so sorry, Severus." She cried. "I've messed everything up. I cause you pain, by taking away the memories that hurt to you. So I decided to take me away from your mind, your life would have been so much better had we never met. You would not have been a death eater. You would have been happy. I'm …"
"Stop it." He replayed. "I don't care how much you toy with my mind. Don't you say that my life would have been better without you. You are everything to me, without you my life was empty. You gave me a wonderful child, we missed everything because of Voldemort and Bellatrix. I will kill anyone that touches you or Hermione. You make my life wonderful. I love you."
He stood up, putting the candles on. He pulled her in his arms. They swayed around, finally together again.
"We have missed so much Severus." She looked at him.
"We have so much ahead of us. We will be together."
"Severus, we have to destroy him. You have to help me. Please."
