The return to lessons was smooth and uneventful. Snape was growing quite bored with listening to the lesson. He heard the front door open and his attention was drawn to it along with all of the students. Maggie… his daughter… entered the house and closed the door behind herself. Now that he looked at the girl, it was painfully obvious who her parents were.
She had inherited her father's straight black hair, which she currently had tied back in a high ponytail. She had also inherited her father's straight carriage and bearing. Her face was a blending of both of her parents, with her father's high cheekbones and her mother's soft lips. Her eyes, though… those were all her mother. Those were the eyes that drew people in with their warmth.
He watched the girl give her mother a small nod before her eyes landed on Harry Potter and she gave him a quick, bright smile. Maggie turned and left up the stairs, disappearing from sight.
The students all turned back to face Katrina with a little muttering. Most of the muttering was indistinct, but Snape clearly heard Draco Malfoy's comment to Crabbe and Goyle; "There goes Potter's filthy muggle girlfriend."
Snape was about to speak, but Katrina beat him to it. "25 points from Slytherin," she said coldly. She picked up her handheld computer and entered the point loss.
Draco's head snapped up and he glared at the Professor, "What? You can't do that!"
"25 more points from Slytherin for speaking back to your Professor," Snape said coldly, glaring across the room at Draco.
Every eye in the room was focused on him, and he knew why. He never took points from his own house unless there was a serious infraction. Well, he thought smugly, insulting his daughter was a serious infraction.
He glanced over at Katrina and saw her silently entering the second loss of points. She glanced up and met his gaze and he looked away.
Harry had been happy to see Maggie enter the house. The smile she had given him had made his heart skip a beat. When he heard Malfoy's comment, his heart began thundering in his chest in anger. His temper calmed somewhat when Professor Smith removed points from Slytherin. When Professor Snape also removed points from his house, Harry exchanged shocked glances with Ron and Hermione. They had never seen Snape take points from Slytherin, ever.
He glanced back up at Snape and saw him exchange a brief look with Professor Smith. Snape looked… amused? He glanced over at Umbridge, who had been unusually quiet the whole lesson and saw that she looked somewhat groggy. He wondered if Snape was slipping something into the wretched woman's tea. Whatever the case, he was glad that Professor Smith decided to end the day's lesson there.
Katrina was tired, frustrated with her lessons thus far, and completely stunned at Severus' actions to possibly continue her lecture. "Ok, class, I think we'll call an end to today's lesson now. Dinner will be at 6 as usual." She watched the students stand and start moving around and out of the living room.
"I'll show myself out," Umbridge said quietly, much more sedate than was usual for her.
Katrina silently stalked over to the stairs, "Maggie?" she called. Her daughter came springing down the stairs.
"Yes, mum?"
"Please show Miss Umbridge out," she said, straining to keep her frustration from her voice.
"Sure thing, mum," Maggie replied and Katrina didn't miss the quick smile her daughter tossed at Harry.
"Professor Snape, if I could speak to you for a moment?" she asked coldly, turning to face Snape who was just now rising from his chair. She saw the small, sharp nod he gave her and she spun on her heal, "If you'll follow me?"
She led him upstairs past the students' rooms and to her own. She yanked open the door and glared at him until he stepped inside. She followed him inside and resisted the urge to slam the door. "What were you doing?" she hissed up at him. "Are you trying to throw suspicion on us and yourself?"
"Draco knows better than to talk back to his teachers," he responded, the amusement clear in his eyes.
"I saw the shock in those students' eyes," she said, shaking her head as her anger subsided slightly. "Knowing you and your Slytherin nature, I bet that is one of the rare times you've taken points from your own house." She ran a hand through her hair, fluffing it gently.
"You've grown your hair out longer than you used to wear it," he said quietly. He took a step closer to her and slowly raised a hand, which he gently ran through her hair. "It's as soft as I remember."
Katrina's eyes widened for a moment before closing of their own accord. Merlin, but that felt good! She tipped her head up as his hand cupped the back of her head and soft lips met her own. She allowed the probing tongue entry to her mouth and she moaned as his tongue met hers. She had forgotten how excellent a kisser her husband was. Her husband. Shit. She hastily pulled away and opened her eyes. "We… we shouldn't do this," she said breathlessly.
He leaned in again and nipped at her lower lip and she almost gave in to his kiss again before reality crashed over her and she pulled fully away from him. "Severus… Sev, this is too fast." She saw his cold mask sliding back into place and she stepped forward again, placing a hand on his upper arm. "I'm not saying that we can't pursue this. I just think we need to slow down. Sixteen years is a long time, Sev." She gently ran her hand up and down his arm, "I never stopped loving you. I just need to remember how to be in love with you."
He nodded in response, his mask dissipating slightly. Her gave her a small smile as he placed a hand upon hers, stilling it on his upper arm. "You're right. Sixteen years is a long time. Assuming that vile Umbridge woman doesn't make me accompany her tomorrow, may I visit you after your lessons?"
She frowned slightly, "You had better be careful, Sev, or your students may begin to put two and two together. I would be happy if you would stay for dinner tonight, though," she added with a bright smile. "Do you think you could convince McGonagal to come here for dinner some night? I would like to introduce her to Maggie, just in case our daughter will have to stay with Minerva… I'd feel better if they met beforehand."
"I will ask her to come on Saturday evening. These students will be gone by then and although the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs will be here, it will be less risky than doing so under the eyes of my house and Gryffindor," he responded.
"I wonder why our two houses, the two most at odds with each other, are always placed together," Katrina wondered allowed.
"Not always at odds with each other," he said softly, stroking her cheek.
She laughed, gently pulling away, "We were the first inter-house couple from those houses in… what did Dumbledore say, 124 years?"
Severus huffed, "Something like that. Nor have there been any since."
Katrina smiled, "I've often wondered which house Maggie would have been sorted into."
"Certainly not Hufflepuff," he scoffed, "my daughter is not a timid girl."
"Nor into Ravenclaw, for while she is extremely intelligent, she is not an under-social bookworm."
"She certainly seems brave enough for Gryffindor," he said grudgingly.
Katrina laughed, "Oh, she would also make a brilliant Slytherin. She can be a devious, scheming girl when she is determined to get her way."
Severus frowned, "Devious? She isn't… she wouldn't be tempted by dark magic, would she?" There it was, his worst fear about having children. That was one of the reasons they had not actively tried to have a child.
"No," Katrina replied quickly with a quick shake of her head. "There is no way Maggie would be tempted by any of that. Your daughter, Severus, can barely kill a fly without feeling bad about it. Hurting another person is something our daughter could never willingly do."
He breathed a quick sigh of relief. "She would definitely be a Gryffindor," he said with a tone of disgust.
Katrina saw the laughter in his eyes and she playfully swatted his arm. "We should get out of here before rumors begin to circulate."
The rest of the week passed by in a quiet, unremarkable blur. Severus and Umbridge had been present every day that week, though Umbridge left immediately when classes ended. Severus stayed to eat dinner with Maggie and Katrina in the upstairs kitchen.
Katrina had told Maggie that she would be going to Hogwarts for a week of potions classes beginning June first. Maggie had been ecstatic, even though Katrina had explained that her daughter would essentially be sequestered in Severus' quarters.
Maggie and Severus had used their dinners together to discuss issues affecting the magical world. Katrina silently watched their discussions, seeing how much her daughter and husband enjoyed them. By Saturday, she had come to a difficult decision. She knew she would have to tell her daughter the truth, about everything.