Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
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Severus surmised that Voldemort would act quickly, however his dark master's stealth still surprised him.
During that same night that he had spoken with Voldemort in the filthy alley, Severus woke to the Dark Mark on his arm burning with such an intensity that he grimaced.
Severus slid out of bed, careful not to wake Lily, and dressed himself before he apparated away to answer Voldemort's call.
As he traveled through the air, Severus tried to look forward to the meeting with hope, not fear.
He would eliminate the threat that Peter posed.
He, Lily, and Harriet would be safe at last, that's what would happen.
Severus didn't allow his mind to wander into the dangerous possibilities of what the outcome may be if his sly plan backfired.
He couldn't allow himself to dwell on negative thoughts.
He needed his focus to maintain his Occlumency, lest Voldemort discover his scheme.
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Severus landed in the middle of a clearing somewhere surrounded by dense trees and thick grass.
"Severus!" A voice hissed out, "What a relief it is to know that I can count on your prompt response!"
Severus turned in the darkness to see Voldemort standing a short distance away, with Peter Pettigrew suspended in the air as he struggled for breath while some sort of ominous, black veil of smoke encircled his neck.
Severus narrowed his eyes for a moment and briefly wondered how Voldemort had managed to find Peter that soon……
Once his dark eyes trailed down to Peter's forearm that had been exposed by his unfastened sleeves, the scene made more sense.
The telltale Dark Mark on Peter's arm was plainly visible.
Severus felt his spine tingle with eagerness as he sought to send Voldemort away before Peter had the opportunity to mention anything incriminating to the living evil whom Severus falsely served.
"Your great power knows no bounds, my lord." Severus flattered Voldemort while he bowed to him and added, "I could not find Pettigrew anywhere."
Voldemort laughed mirthlessly at Severus.
Without warning, he made a slashing motion with his wand.
Peter crashed to the ground with a heavy thud as Voldemort released him.
He gasped for breath, coughing and sputtering, while Voldemort turned to Severus and smiled, "I didn't want to rob you of the pleasure, Severus. I'll let you fulfill my command and handle the betrayer."
"Have no doubt, my lord, I shall secure the Longbottom boy's whereabouts before Pettigrew takes his last breath." Severus replied with the unreadable mask of solemn stoicness on his face that he had grown accustomed to wearing.
"No need to worry about that!" Voldemort exclaimed with a wide grin as he lifted his hands, "I've gathered the information that I sought….Pettigrew is yours to do with as you will, Severus, as long as he's dead when you leave him."
"...My lord?" Severus asked with an incredulous scowl, "...Peter Pettigrew already divulged the location of the boy?"
"Of course." Voldemort sneered, "The brave last a few minutes under the Cruciatus Curse, but cowards like Pettigrew can endure for only mere seconds."
Severus furrowed his brow as Voldemort sneered at him and nodded, "Enjoy yourself, Severus."
In a quick blur, Voldemort vanished.
The night seemed unsettlingly silent besides Peter's groans and whines.
Severus cautiously approached his enemy who had finally started to breathe again somewhat normally.
"P-Please…..H-Have mercy!" Peter begged as he held a grubby hand up towards Severus.
"LEGILIMENS!" Severus cried after he whipped out his wand and pointed it at Peter.
He had no issue entering the rat's mind to peruse his thoughts and memories.
Severus saw each occasion during which Peter had stolen a hair.
Severus saw the experiment that Peter had conducted in his apartment and his visit to James.
He also saw the correspondence that Peter had received from…….
Peter whimpered as Severus withdrew himself from his enemy's thoughts.
A solemn frown of remorse crossed his pale face while he looked down at Peter in utter loathing.
"So……...You do know the location of the Longbottoms……" Severus whispered while he stared down at Peter.
What were the odds that his lie would be true?
"I heard a whisper, nothing more!" Peter cried as he rolled into a ball and held his hands up defensively, "A whisper in one of the taverns about the Longbottoms' little family…...I had intended to give that information to the Dark Lord soon…...I-I didn't expect him to extract it from me so forcibly! I'm a good servant, really, I am!"
"How valiantly brave of a Gryffindor." Severus sneered as he kept his wand pointed at Peter, "To have an infant slaughtered so that you may gain notoriety in the Dark Lord's eyes."
"If he hadn't strangled me, I would have told him more!" Peter cried.
An ominous look crossed Severus's pale face as he asked, "...More?"
Peter's meekness vanished for a moment as he looked up at Severus with a wicked grin.
"I know that James Potter's son lives…….in your very house. Tell me, did you know that too?...Snivellus?" Peter sneered.
Severus gripped his wand.
He swung his arm.
Severus Snape was not a murderer by nature, not a cold-blooded monster like Voldemort, but he was willing to do whatever it would take to hold onto the paradise that he had found with Lily and Harriet.
Part of that "whatever" meant that Peter would have to die.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Severus shouted.
A burst of terrifying, green light shot forth from Severus's wand, but Peter was surprisingly nimble for a man of his size.
He skillfully escaped the killing curse by dodging out of the way just in time.
Peter looked up at Severus with his eyes wide as Severus pulled back his arm again and shouted once more, "AVADA KEDAVRA!"
By the time that the ominous, green light flew forth again, Peter had leapt to his feet and ran off into the thick trees that surrounded the clearing.
Severus chased after Peter while he shot burst of light after burst of light from his wand using a nonverbal paralysis spell, but Peter constantly changed his direction to evade Severus in the same manner that a crafty mouse outmaneuvers a stealthy cat.
Peter winded easily.
As soon as Severus noticed that his enemy's pace had slowed, he tried once more to hit his target as he shouted, "AVADA KEDAVRA!"
Peter tried to run in the opposite direction, but Severus's careful aim clipped his hand.
He howled in pain while Severus rushed forward.
His dark eyes widened as he watched his enemy violently thrash in his clothes and wither away in the darkness.
Once Severus came upon Peter, the only visible remains of his fallen foe was a single finger, which the sharp edge of Avada Kedavra had managed to slice off in one brutal swipe.
Severus scowled in disgust at the dead rat that he found buried inside Peter's filthy suit.
He frowned at his enemy's determination to survive, as if switching into Animagus form would have negated the curse of death.
Severus murmured a spell to dig a shallow grave for the rat.
Once Peter had been buried under the soft, cool earth of that lonely forest, Severus allowed himself the luxury of a sigh before he raised his wand and apparated back to rejoin Lily in bed.
Rats could survive many things; beatings, drownings, fires…...
Rats could certainly withstand a little dirt.
The night had darkened the forest and obscured Severus's vision.
The killing curse had hacked off Peter's finger, but it had missed striking him so directly to end his life.
The pile of freshly placed soil moved, quaked, and trembled.
Eventually, Peter's crusted snout peeked through the layers of soil with a defiant squeak.
Once Peter crawled out of his grave, he scampered off into the forest, eager to find a suitable hiding place until the right moment presented itself that he may return and finally prove himself to his dark master.
Peter was not as stupid as others assumed.
He knew that his day may not come for many years, but when it did………
As he scurried along, Peter dreamed of the look that would be on Voldemort's face when he proved to be invaluable to the Dark Lord.
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Severus felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders when Peter's directions to the Longbottoms were found to be incorrect.
He had no attachment to the people that Voldemort hunted, however, it consoled him that he would no longer feel directly responsible if they were captured or worse.
While Voldemort settled himself about his task of discovering where he could find Neville Longbottom, whom he believed to be The Chosen One, Severus settled himself into his little family.
The arrival of winter brought with it the cozy tidings of a festive season unlike any other that he had experienced before.
Lily baked cookies, decorated their cottage, and somehow managed to keep every room in the house free from the chill that lurked outside.
Little Harriet watched her Mummy and Daddy one evening while they hung glistening balls of shimmering silver and gold on the tall, evergreen tree that stood beside the fireplace.
While Harriet cooed in delight at the glittering orbs of metallic color, Lily smiled at Severus as she patiently waited for him to place a silver hook on the ornament that he held in his hand.
They had decided to work in a partnership to decorate their Christmas tree.
Severus hooked, Lily hung.
"It would be faster to use magic." Severus drawled as he glanced up at Lily while he inserted the hook into the tiny hole at the top of the bulbous ornament.
"Magic would make it less meaningful though." Lily replied with a soft smile, "This is our first Christmas together, Sev, and Harriet's first Christmas alive! We can't throw away traditions. We have to establish them."
Lily frowned as she watched Severus's pale face fall in sadness.
"...What's the matter?" She asked gently.
"I…….My family never really had any traditions when I was growing up." Severus replied, "...None that are memorable, anyway."
"Well," Lily began in a cheery tone as she reached out, cupped Severus's cheek, and turned his face towards her, "Your family now will have lots of traditions! Every year, we'll decorate the tree together and sip cider by the fireside and bake cookies….."
Lily laughed as she dreamed of the happy memories that they would make.
Severus let the worries of the war fall away for a moment as he lost himself in her endless ocean of promising emeralds.
Lily's smile turned into a smirk as she leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Severus's lips while Harriet squealed behind them.
"I'm really excited to spend Christmas with you, Sev." Lily confessed as she pulled away and gently ran her fingers through Severus's black hair.
His mouth hung open slightly as he gazed at Lily in silent reverence.
The warm glow from the fireplace painted her in an ethereal light and temporarily stripped the words from his tongue.
Severus was more than excited to spend Christmas with Lily, but really, Severus Snape was more than excited to spend any waking second that he could next to Lily Evans.
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Severus's meager salary as a young professor at Hogwarts still afforded what his small family needed.
He and Lily, er, Laima, spent the second Saturday before Christmas as a day out in Hogsmeade to enjoy the festivities and prepare for the upcoming holiday.
They kept little Harriet bundled up in her tiny coat, hat, mittens, and scarf while they walked through the snowy streets, listened to the carolers on the corner, and enjoyed a lovely lunch at The Three Broomsticks.
Whenever Harriet wanted to nurse, they apparated back to their cottage.
Lily had managed to buy most of the gifts for Severus and Harriet during the week while Severus worked, but as Lily browsed through one last toy store that Saturday, Severus took Harriet along with him to purchase something special for Lily.
Diagon Alley's finest jewelry shop, Slindelyn's Shimmering Somethings, had a brilliant window display that showcased all manner of pieces made from glittering gemstones and precious metals.
The shop had become quite popular, especially amongst gift hunters.
Severus managed to weave himself and Harriet through the crowds of people and into the packed shop.
The jewelers store was warm and loud.
A fire crackled at the front of the room while witches and wizards bumped against each other, all eager to view the fine products that gleamed intriguingly at them from black velvet cases.
Severus carefully held Harriet in his arms so that she could look at the shop's products too as they slowly made their way around the store and admired the goods for sale.
"Beautiful, aren't they?" Severus asked Harriet when she turned to blink her large, green eyes at him curiously.
Harriet put a tiny hand up to her mouth before she looked back down at the jewelry under the glass and Severus whispered to her, "Which one…..do you think that your Mummy would like best?"
Harriet glanced at Severus again and fell silent.
They walked over to the next glass case and Severus's eyes widened when Harriet fidgeted in his arms and shrieked down at what she saw.
The case was very small, with a single, thin bracelet of gold inside, adorned with tiny, glistening rubies all the way around from one fastener to the other.
"You think that your Mummy would like that one best?" Severus asked.
When Harriet laughed and cracked a wide smile at him, Severus frowned at her and replied, "Very well……..we'll buy that one then."
While he and Harriet stood in line for the register, Severus glanced at the case that held several, sparkling diamond rings.
He frowned when he found none to his liking.
Severus scowled while he cradled Harriet as they stood in line.
Perhaps later he'd try another store, but which one?
Every witch hoped to receive an engagement ring that came from Slindelyn's.
Harriet peered over his shoulder while they stood in line.
Severus hadn't paid particular attention to her happy giggles and squeals until he felt someone tap him on the upper back.
He whirled around with a scowl on his pale face to see an elderly witch beaming at him and Harriet.
"My apologies, sir. I just wanted to congratulate you on what a happy little girl you have there! You must be a wonderful father for her to smile so sweetly!" The elderly woman nodded.
Severus's black eyes widened.
For a moment, Severus heard his own father shouting as he relived the abuse that he had endured as a child.
It had been a fear that Severus harbored for years, that he may grow up to be like Tobias Snape, but...
You must be a wonderful father.
For a stranger to speak such words to him, the elderly witch's words threatened to make tears well in his eyes.
"T…..Thank you." Severus said tensely to the woman, "She takes after her mother."
Severus received few compliments in general.
He had not yet learned the best way to accept one.
"Does she?" The elderly witch asked with a happy smile, "How odd! She looks exactly like you!"
Severus did not see any resemblance between Harriet and himself, although some of her red tufts of hair had started to turn darker as she aged.
Regardless, he nodded at the witch gratefully while his heart pridefully expanded to such an extent that it threatened to burst out of his chest.
When his and Harriet's turn at the counter finally arrived, they stepped forward.
Little Harriet watched while Severus sent the clerk to retrieve the gold and ruby bracelet from its case.
"That'll be one hundred galleons." The clerk nodded at Severus while he began to pack the bracelet.
Severus spoke while he removed a leather pouch from his robes and counted out his money, "Do you stock new pieces often?"
"That depends." The clerk shrugged at Severus, "...What are you looking for?"
Harriet blinked while Severus spoke, "Your ring selection is quite disappointing. Surely you'll sell other designs in the future?"
"Oh, I'm certain that we will, sir." The clerk nodded as he placed the packaged bracelet into a bag.
Severus reached out to take the bag, but the clerk paused, reached over, and slipped a business card down next to the ring before he handed the bag to Severus with a nod, "That's the contact address for our main artisan. We'll surely get more rings in time, but if you have something specific in mind that you want, he's available for custom work."
"...Thank you." Severus nodded at the man while he took the bag.
As he and Harriet made their way out of the shop and headed walked through the frosty street to rejoin Lily, he smirked over at his smiling little girl.
Custom work sounded promising to Severus, indeed.