AN - I own nothing! I'm just borrowing from J.K. Rowling!
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Chapter 17
Lucius was seated on one of the chairs at Severus's dining table. No longer was he in his wizarding clothes, but a muggle coat and tie. He pulled out his timepiece from his pocket. He had been waiting for the man to arrive for the past two hours.
After he had seen Hermione sneak out of Severus's old chambers, he went to New York, and tried to search for him with his connections. It didn't take him long to find him, slightly surprised that he still used the Snape name.
Many questions were running in his head. The thought of the Severus being alive had never occurred to him before. He had always looked at him as a brother. The both of them had watched each other's backs closely during their double spying days. They kept no secrets with each other. But him being alive and not telling him that he faked his death was entirely different.
Nonetheless, with his personal issues and questions aside, all he could do was think about Hermione. She had moved in into Malfoy Manor, and became a house guest, stating that she could no longer stay in Hogwarts. Without hesitation, or questions, he, his wife and Draco had gladly opened his home to her. Since then, she had kept a closer eye on her.
Hermione had spent most of her time alone in her guest suite, or in his library. Seldom times, he would see her taking a stroll around his vast gardens, obviously drifting off into her thoughts. Rarely, she would join them for meals, or even help Narcissa out with the planning of Remus's and Tonks's wedding that was to take place in his home.
Never was Hermione forced to be in a position in which she didn't want to be. He wanted to confront her and question her about the truth, but never did. He could see that whatever the problem was, it was taking its toll on her. Once, she fainted in the hallway on the way to the dining room. When Poppy checked up on her, she was told the stress wasn't too good for her or the baby. He was worried to say the least, needing to find the solutions to her problems, whatever it was.
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With one hand holding a box of pizza and a few beer cans, Severus shoved his other hand inside his jean pocket, searching for his keys. Finally, when he had found them, he unlocked the door, and walked inside his loft.
When the Severus closed the door behind him, he immediately saw Lucius sitting at his dining room table. The smirk on the blond man's face along with his crossed arms seemed all too familiar.
"Severus, or is it Samuel?" Lucius drawled. He examined what Severus was wearing. Just a plain black shirt, black jeans, and flip flops to match. Who would've thought? "I hope that's pepperoni. I haven't eaten anything for breakfast, and a real New York pizza is something that I haven't had in some time."
"Lucius," Severus said as he narrowed his eyes at the man as he walked towards the table. He set the pizza on the table along with the beer cans, taking his seat across from Lucius. "What brings you here?"
"I actually wanted to talk to you about something?" Lucius replied. He smiled a bit when he saw the pepperoni pizza when the box opened. "Aren't you going to get us some plates?"
Severus scowled at the man and just started to eat. "You are an uninvited guest, need I remind you? I don't give a rats arse about the plates."
With a shrug, Lucius took hold of one of the napkins and picked up his own slice.
"Why the fuck are you here?" Severus hissed. "No doubt Granger was the one who told you and whoever else that I was alive. I'm also quite sure that she's staying at Hogwarts now. She said that she wouldn't tell anyone, but then ratted me out. Why am I not surprised?"
"Granger? You address her by her last name?" Lucius frowned. "I assumed that things were more personal. After all, she is carrying your child is she not?"
Severus started to choke on the pizza that he was chewing. Quickly, he reached for the beer that Lucius passed to him. After chugging almost half the can down, he tried to catch his breath.
"Hermione hasn't told you, has she?" Lucius asked as he examined the still shocked man in front of him. "She's almost five months along."
"Shit!" Severus muttered as he ran a hand through his hair. He felt like he was stabbed in the stomach, like he was betrayed. The pizza in his hand was towed back into the box for he had lost his appetite. He had done the time calculations in his head. Why didn't she tell him?
"In fact, she doesn't know that I'm here. She never said a word about you or anything about what was disturbing her. There were some… dots you could say that were right in front of me, and I connected them so to speak. So I came looking for you. She didn't rat you out. She's one of the few people in this world that remain true to her word. You should know her better than that." Lucius was surprised to see emotions on Severus's face—emotions that he never thought that he would see.
"How is she?" Severus asked.
"She recently moved into my home, not being able to stay in Hogwarts for her own personal reasons. I knew then that it had something to do with you. Anyhow, she has been stressed and depressed since her arrival in England. In fact, she fainted the other day."
"Merlin, this is my fault," Severus murmured into his hands.
"She loves you Severus. it's very obvious to me."
Severus looked at Lucius in surprised as he then frowned.
"And you love her, don't you?" Lucius asked softly.
"I…" Severus wasn't able to answer. For weeks and months, he had been trying to forget Hermione as best as he could. But everywhere he looked, and everywhere he went, all he could see was her. Even her scent had remained on his pillows, and it was hard to ignore them when he tried to sleep.
Hermione had entered his life, and turned everything upside down. With her gone, he wasn't sure what was right side up anymore. He tried to move on, but couldn't. His life didn't seem to function properly anymore. Forgetting her was more difficult than forgetting the wizarding world. And for the first time in his life, he had actually felt at a loss, and incomplete.
Was it love? It was a question that he had asked himself over and over again. He knew he cared about her very much. Caring was an emotion that he felt with others in the past, but love was new to him. Now, with Lucius in front of him, and hearing the words that Hermione does love him, he knew the answer.
He was in love with Hermione Granger.
"You love her, you just didn't see it did you?" Lucius asked as he continued to keep his eyes on Severus when the man remained silent for a very long time, deep in thought.
"Perhaps," Severus replied as he scratched his brow. How was Lucius able to read him so well? Was he transparent? There was no way that Legimilens was used, otherwise, he would've felt his mind being pushed. "She never knew I was alive until we bumped into each other in the bookstore eight months ago."
Lucius nodded in understanding. "But what of the case that she's in? Are you also involved with that?"
"What case?" Severus asked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"The high profile case that Hermione is involved in. I don't know exactly what; I tried digging around for more info. So, you know nothing?"
"I haven't the clue. She never mentioned anything about a big case. If it's a big thing about her work, or whatever else, she had to go to L.A. a few times and talk to studio executives. Her books might be made into movies when the deal pushes through, but I don't think that I did yet. There's no agreement between them."
"So you really don't know anything, because it's about to go public soon."
"Oh fuck…" Severus cured as himself. He remember the last time that he saw her. she said that she needed a friend, but he pushed her away. Damn him!
"What?"
"Come with me," he told Lucius as he walked towards the door.
"Where are we going?" Lucius asked.
"Greg. Hermione's editor."
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AN – Sorry for the late update. Things have been very hectic, and stressful, and even depressing somewhat. Finding the time, or even being able to write has been hard on me. Make me smile, and please do leave a review.