Hi there! Thanks for reading! Please let me know if you enjoy! I don't own any of Harry Potter!

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Most Hogwarts students returned home for the holidays, though they were certainly welcome to stay at the castle if they wished.

Lily Evans, a pretty, red-headed, seventh year Gryfinndor had gone home for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, though she had been quick to return and spend time with her beloved Slytherin, Severus Snape.

Severus Snape, unpopular with his pale skin and oily, black hair, had gone to visit his mother briefly on Christmas.

That was the only reason Severus hadn't spent the day at Lily's side.

The only reason…….

The couple were thrilled to be united again and after they had both returned to Hogwarts, while they walked down one of the castle's many deserted, stony corridors, Lily and Severus chatted fondly.

"I'm so happy you're coming home with me for New Year's, Sev!" Lily said with a happy smile as she leaned against Severus's shoulder while they walked along.

"So am I." Severus replied, giving Lily a small smile in return as he glanced over at her, "I just hope your parents don't mind."

Lily laughed and straightened up, "They love you, Sev! We've been friends for…..what? Eight years now? Best friends!"

Severus cleared his throat as "Yes, but they don't know we……They don't know about…..us."

Lily smiled over at Severus and blushed, "We'll graduate in a few months, then there's nothing they'll be able to say."

"No, especially not once we're married….." Severus replied slowly in his low voice.

Lily's cheeks turned a darker shade of pink as Severus's coal black eyes smouldered at her.

"You're making me blush, Sev." Lily laughed nervously, tucking a stray piece of red hair behind her ear.

"One of my favorite pastimes." Severus replied, a smirk in his voice.

Lily and Severus walked along in a tension-filled silence until they came to a dark corner.

Severus stopped.

Lily stopped.

Severus and Lily both looked around for a moment and when they saw the coast was clear, they dashed into the corner together.

Lily dropped her books and Severus wrapped his hands around her slender waist, pressing her against the chilled stone while he pressed his lips to hers.

Staying at the castle for the majority of the winter break was convenient for couples.

Fewer students meant fewer teachers on patrol.

And fewer teachers on patrol meant fewer chances to be caught during trysts…..

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Though it would detract from the time they spent privately in each other's company, Severus was more than glad to be invited to come home with Lily for New Year's Eve.

Severus was even happier when Lily's mother embraced him as warmly as Lily when they arrived that evening.

Lily's father shook Severus firmly and cordially by the hand.

Petunia was giving Severus a menacing stare during dinner, but between Lily's laughter and her parents' kind conversation, Severus barely noticed.

Silently, though, Severus wondered how Mr. and Mrs. Evans would take the news when they discovered that he and Lily were more than friends……

He tried not to dwell on the possibility of how they would react if they knew what he and Lily had already felt, already done………

Dinner eventually concluded and then came the muggle tradition of sitting in front of the television, watching the hours of broadcasting until midnight.

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Mr. and Mrs. Evans kissed.

Petunia sipped her sparkling grape juice with a scowl.

And Lily forgot herself in the moment…...

Bending forward, Lily kissed Severus plainly on the lips.

Severus's eyes widened as she pulled away.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans blinked in surprise.

Petunia's scowl deepened.

"Um….." Lily said quickly.

Severus was mortified and he glanced anxiously around the room like a trapped mouse.

"Um…….." Lily swallowed thickly.

"Well, Lily…..?" Mr. Evans asked, crossing his arms.

"Mum, Dad…….S-Severus……..Severus and I are dating." Lily proudly declared.

Severus's pale face lost what little color it had.

"...And we have been for quite a while." Lily added.

The Evans family blinked for a moment and then Severus breathed a sigh of relief as Lily's parents broke out in wide smiles.

"Congratulations, sweetheart!" Mrs. Evans beamed at Lily.

"Welcome to the family, then." Mr. Evans said, slapping Severus fondly on the shoulder.

"Thanks, Mummy." Lily smiled.

"Thank you, sir." Severus said politely, managing a small smile himself.

After the surprise announcement, while everyone flurried around and readied for bed, Lily hugged Severus around the neck as she looked up into his eyes, whispering excitedly, "This is going to be our best year yet, Sev!"

Severus smiled down at Lily while Mrs. Evans made up the couch for him to sleep on.

Lovingly, Severus leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Lily's forehead.

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"I knew it the whole time." Lily's mother bragged to her husband once they were in their bedroom with their door closed, as she sat at her vanity, applying some lotion to her face.

"You did not." Lily's father replied while he read a book, lying in bed.

"I did so!" Lily's mother retorted, "I know my daughters…….And that boy, Severus, the poor dear…..he's been in love with Lily since they were small! I saw it in his eyes!"

"You didn't see anything in his eyes….." Lily's father said incredulously.

"I did, though!" Lily's mother insisted.

"You can't see love in a man's eyes." Lily's father scoffed, "I saw it in his actions. He's always trying to help Lily. A man only helps who he cares about."

"She kept insisting they were just friends." Lily's mother said sarcastically.

"Mmm-hmm." Lily's father replied suspiciously.

Lily's mother glanced over at Lily's father and they exchanged a smirk.

"Tell me…..." Lily's father chuckled while he turned back to his book and his wife looked back into her mirror, "Did we ever think our parents were as daft as Lily thinks we are?"

"Have you forgotten how we got married in the first place?" Lily's mother replied.

Together, quietly, Lily's parents shared a laugh.

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Lily wasn't foolish enough to attempt sneaking downstairs for a late night rendezvous with Severus, and if she had, Severus would have told her to go back to her room.

Severus loved Lily and he was looking forward to a future with her…...that meant he was not interested in gambling with her parents' opinion of him.

It was one night and they'd be back at Hogwarts.

They could wait until then.

Severus rolled around on the sofa for awhile, restless.

It wasn't that the Evans' sofa was uncomfortable, he just couldn't calm his thoughts.

There was so much promise in the next couple of months……

So many happy changes………

Severus laid on his back and sighed, staring up at the ceiling as he thought.

Then Severus's ears perked up.

One of the doors upstairs opened…….

Oh dear, Severus hoped that wasn't Lily coming down……..

Footsteps…..

Then another door opened and Severus realized someone must have had to visit the washroom.

It wasn't until Severus heard the sound of retching that he grew concerned.

Worried, Severus stood and walked halfway up the staircase.

When he saw the bathroom light on and the door closed while the door to Lily's room was open, his anxiety rose.

"Lily?" Severus called, walking up and knocking on the bathroom door, "Lily, are you alright?"

"...No." Lily squeaked, her voice high and tight.

Severus heard another vicious round of gagging and he snapped his fingers, undoing the lock on the door so he could rush inside.

Lily was sitting on the bathroom floor, in an awkward, uptight position as she crouched close to the toilet.

When Severus put his hand on her shoulders, he could feel her rapid pulse beating against his palms and he narrowed his eyes.

"Lily, what's the matter?!" Severus asked urgently, furrowing his brow.

"...I'm sick!" Lily managed to gasp before she leaned over the toilet again.

Severus quickly pulled her red hair back in his elegant hands as he murmured to her, "Alright….it's alright…..it was probably the chicken in the Great Hall at lunch, it didn't taste right today."

"It's not the chicken!" Lily groaned.

Severus watched as Lily pulled her head up from the toilet to straighten her back completely out, rocking her hips back and forth as she shrieked, "It hurts! It hurts so much, Sev!"

Thinking she was just ill with food poisoning or some sort of passing upset of the stomach, Severus's eyes widened when Lily mentioned pain.

"What hurts?!" Severus demanded, his eyes scanning over her frantically, "Where?!"

"I'm bleeding….." Lily whimpered.

Severus watched Lily drag her hand down over her body before she leaned back over the toilet and without thinking, he slipped his own hand underneath her bottom, failing to see any visible proof of Lily's claim.

When Severus pulled his hand out from under Lily and saw blood coating his palm, he dropped her hair and rushed out of the bathroom.

"...Sev!" Lily croaked, "Don't leave me!"

Severus was already down the hallway by the time Lily finished speaking and he used his fist to pound on Mr. and Mrs. Evans' door.

"Wake up!" Severus shouted, "Wake up! Hurry!"

Severus heard whispers, then rustling, and a second later, the door creaked open.

Severus was banging on the door so furiously that he nearly punched Lily's father right in the nose as Lily's parents stood in front of him, peering out with widened eyes.

"What on earth's the matter, son?!" Mr. Evans demanded, "Is the house on fire?"

"Something's wrong with Lily!" Severus blurted out.

Mr. Evans glanced over at his wife and both of them bumped into each other as they struggled to leave the room, following Severus as he glided down the hallway towards the bathroom.

Lily had just finished being sick once more and Severus was distraught to notice the small pool of blood underneath her as her father stood dutifully in the doorway while her mother rushed forward to her side.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?! What's wrong?!" Mrs. Evans asked.

Severus was both moved and terrified by the concern in Mrs. Evans' voice.

"It hurts!" Lily cried, wrapping her arms over her abdomen, "It hurts so much, mum!"

Severus gnashed his teeth as Lily's face contorted with sobs and her father called out, trying to stay calm, "Lily, where does it hurt? The front? The back? On your side?"

Lily choked on one particularly desperate sob and the agony in her voice twisted Severus's heart as she wailed, "...EVERYWHERE!"

Severus glanced at Lily's father and Lily's father quickly assessed the situation, "You've got stones! That's what's wrong! Remember when I had stones? I was the same way!"

"For goodness sake, Forest, call an ambulance! It doesn't matter if she has stones or not!" Lily's mother snapped.

"Forget the bloody ambulance! I can have her to hospital in half the time! Come on, get her in the car!" Lily's father shouted.

Severus felt like he was living out a nightmare.

Lily was still sick and the scene in the Evans' home became even more terribly chaotic.

Lily's father ran off to start the car while Severus and her mother rushed around, trying to decide how to delegate tasks.

"I need to wake Petunia!" Lily's mother agonized.

"Give her to me, I can carry her." Severus offered quickly.

A moment later, Severus came out of the bathroom with Lily in his arms while her mother held a rubbish bin in front of her ill daughter, banging on her healthy daughter's door, who woke with a groan but dressed quickly when she saw what was going on.

Two minutes later, startled, alert from adrenaline, and consumed by worry, Severus, Petunia, and Mr. and Mrs. Evans were all crammed in the family car, speeding down the street towards the hospital with Lily.

"Dad, hurrryyy!" Lily screeched, half-lying across her mother, half across Severus.

Lily's mother kept combing her hair back and rubbing her shoulder while Severus tried to hold her gently.

Really, Severus was scared to touch Lily, afraid of harming her further or causing her more pain.

Lily had been ill with a cold before but Severus had never seen her in her current state.

Unable to get settled in one position, Lily writhed across him and her mother, shrieking and wailing like a wild animal.

Even Petunia's beady eyes were full of concern as she watched her sister in silent horror.

"It's going to be fine, my darling." Lily's father called from the front of the car, trying to settle his own nerves as much as soothe his daughter, "Kidney stones are evil little blighters, but I've had them and so did your gran….We survived…..You will too."

"You don't even know it's stones, Forest!" Lily's mother hissed, "Three of my cousins had appendicitis! That runs in the family too!"

"You don't bleed with appendicitis!" Lily's father snapped.

"How would you know?! You've never had it and neither have I!" Lily's mother retorted.

Severus just wanted them both to shut up, he didn't want there to be anything wrong with Lily and he didn't enjoy speculating over the possibilities.

Lily's father pulled up to the A department at the muggle hospital and Severus hastily carried Lily inside, followed by her mother, while Petunia accompanied Mr. Evans to park the car.

The nurses at check in took one look at Lily and scrambled to get her on a gurney and down the hallway.

Severus was amazed Mrs. Evans could run as fast as she did while they both raced alongside the nurses.

Lily's sobs were nauseating to Severus but he never let go of her hand, not once, and he did his best to keep his face calm when she looked up at him.

As calm as he could possibly be under the circumstances…….

The medical staff didn't even take the time to check Lily into a room before they ripped her away from Severus and her mother.

Lily was slid out of one imaging machine and into another before she was brought back to Severus and her mother, placed in a patient bay bed, covered only by curtains.

Severus moved his palm soothingly over Lily's sweaty forehead and her mother held her hand while her cries escalated even further.

Before the nurses had even gotten a chance to put a gown on Lily, though, a doctor rushed over and sanitized his hands.

"Hello, Miss Evans! Nice to meet you! Apparently, you're having some abdominal pain tonight and have a family history of appendicitis. Do you mind if I examine you?" The doctor asked with a professional tone.

Lily thrashed so violently Severus that saw her teeth chatter and when Lily's harsh whimpers in between her screams left her unable to speak, Severus's mother nodded at the doctor in her place.

The doctor didn't waste time with a gown either and Severus held Lily as still as he could, watching the physician closely as he gently pressed here and there, from Lily's rib cage down to her pelvis.

The doctor seemed to understand the urgency of the situation and it scared Severus even more when the physician glanced at the results of the Lily's tests for just a moment before he shouted over to the nurses.

"Scissors! Now! Start cutting! Get these off immediately!" The doctor cried.

Severus and Lily's mother looked over at each other nervously while two nurses rushed over and grabbed clean scissors off a cart, slicing through Lily's pajama pants.

The doctor covered Lily considerately with a sheet but Severus watched him move between her legs and speak to Lily over her cries, "Miss Evans, I need you to relax…...just relax……"

Mrs. Evans held one of Lily's hands and Severus moved to clutch her other just as she let out one last, ear-piercing, glass-shattering scream……..

And then all of a sudden, Severus heard the most terrifying sound in his life.

"WWWWWAAAA!"

"WWWWWAAAAAAA!"

Lily gasped for breath and she, Severus, and her mother watched in disbelief as the doctor reached over the sheet and placed a healthy, chubby, baby boy gently onto her chest.

Lily looked up at Severus, completely astonished, and then back down at the baby who squirmed in her arms.

Severus narrowed his eyes, inspecting the baby to make sure the child was alright, his eyes lighting on the newborn's wet tufts of black hair.

"You've set a new record, Miss Evans!" The doctor said to Lily, eyeing Severus, assuming correctly that he was the father, "That's the biggest appendix I've ever seen!"

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Lily's mother immediately ran to inform her husband that he was…...a grandfather….. and Petunia that she was an aunt.

Severus stayed behind and held Lily's hand during the care that she received after the birth.

"I didn't know…….." Lily said, tears welling in her eyes, "Sev, you have to believe me! I didn't know!"

"Of course I believe you….." Severus said in his low, smooth voice, "I touched your waist yesterday…….you never——"

"You don't even want children!" Lily cried miserably.

"I want anything with you, my love." Severus replied quickly, "Besides, he's here now, we can't return him."

"I know…" Lily sobbed.

The baby whimpered in Lily's arms as she raised a hand to dry her eyes, "W-What are we going to do?"

We~.

Severus appreciated the fact that Lily was already counting on him for love and support.

Loving and supporting Lily was the aim of Severus Snape's entire life, a goal he had made long ago.

Severus shrugged, "...We're going to raise our son."

"How?!" Lily wailed, "We haven't even graduated yet!"

"We'll…..find a babysitter, or something…...I'll write to the headmaster tomorrow, explaining what's….happened." Severus reached over and took Lily's hand, raising it to his lips to give it a kiss, "We were planning on marrying this summer anyway, what's a few months' difference?"

"I'm glad that you value responsibility, young man." A voice spoke from behind Severus.

Lily looked up and Severus turned around to see Mr. and Mrs. Evans standing in the doorway.

Petunia squinted over Mrs. Evans' shoulder to see her new nephew for herself.

"If I may speak plainly, I value your daughter more than anything, sir." Severus replied.

"Well….from the devotion you've always shown my Lily, if she was in this situation with anyone, I expect I'd prefer it to be you." Mr. Evans nodded.

"And I will remain devoted to her, sir…..." Severus promised very seriously, "...Always."

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"If you don't mind, sir, would you give me another to take to Lily?" Severus asked Professor Slughorn.

"Certianly, my boy! How's our dear girl doing, anyway?" The kindly potions professor asked.

"Exhausted but well, I expect she'll be back for half-days next month." Severus replied.

"That's good to hear, that's good to hear!" Professor Slughorn smiled, "And congratulations, again, Severus! Having a son at such a young age!...I'm sure you two will be very close one day!"

Severus managed a terse smile in reply to his professor, but he wasn't so sure about that……

Close.

The only person Severus Snape had ever been "close" to was his darling Lily.

"Anyway, I wanted to tell you, Severus…. I've received permission to take an apprentice next year. The pay will be decent and your talents with a cauldron are plentiful. Think about it…….I'd be happy to have you…..." Professor Slughorn offered.

"Thank you, sir." Severus nodded, "I'll definitely consider it."

Severus gathered his items and made his way towards the courtyard to apparate home.

Class was over and a Lily would be waiting, anxious to get started on the day's assignments.

On his journey to the courtyard, Severus passed by James Potter, who threw him a scowl but kept walking.

Severus smirked after James had gone.

Severus had to give his newborn son credit for one thing in his short life, the infant's birth had certainly quieted his boisterous nemesis.

A seven year long rivalry decimated in a single day.

Once he was in his preferred spot, with a swish of his wand, Severus apparated to Lily's parents' house and made his way straight to the room he shared with his official fiancé.

"Good afternoon," Severus purred quietly as he stepped through the door.

"Hey, Sev…." Lily whispered, looking up from the rocking chair as their baby cooed softly, "Look, Harry….Daddy's home!"

"And Daddy has brought loads of work for Mummy." Severus announced, placing the text books and assignments he had collected from the day on the changing table that had been wedged in Lily's room.

"I'll get to them in just a moment." Lily said quietly, "He's getting ready to fall back asleep."

Lily's parents had been kind enough to allow the young couple to live with them until they could save enough to move out.

It was possibly the most awkward shopping experience of Severus's life, when he roamed the baby stores with Lily's mother the day after Harry's surprise arrival, buying everything a newborn needed.

But at the same time, Severus had also found it to be sublime……

Now, in mid-March, Severus went to class everyday while Lily stayed home with Harry, hoping to return to school soon while her mother watched the baby during the day.

Severus bent down to kiss Lily and Lily reached up, a small diamond ring glistening on her left hand as she touched his face and kissed him back.

"We missed you." Lily whispered.

"Missed you too….." Severus replied against Lily's lips until he pulled away and announced proudly, "Slughorn offered me a job…..well, an apprenticeship."

"An apprenticeship?" Lily asked excitedly, "Sev, that's great!"

Severus nodded, "It wouldn't start until after the wedding this summer…...I'd much rather teach defense against the dark arts but we could use the money right now. I need a job."

"Well, I know you would, but you're wonderful at potions, Sev. I think you'd be great." Lily said supportively, "Everyone knows Slugorn's getting ready to retire."

"Severus Snape, the new potions professor." Severus chuckled dryly.

"No, you'll be better than that." Lily chided, "How about Severus Snape, the potions master?"

"Truthfully, I don't really care what I am as long as I have you and Harry." Severus replied, leaning back in to steal one more kiss from Lily's plump lips.

"You always will, Sev." Lily smiled, kissing him once more.

"Always?" Severus asked very seriously.

"Always." Lily giggled.