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 watched Scorpius with a heightened sense of scrutiny in the weeks after the ball.
He personally attended Maggie's appointments with Madam Pomfrey to ensure his daughter received her heat suppressants right on schedule.
Harriet saw Severus's hovering as unnecessary, she trusted Maggie.
Severus however, did not trust Scorpius.
The second half of the school year proved to be as busy as any other.
Those few, remaining months quickly flew by and before anyone noticed, somehow, the seventh years prepared for their graduation.
One April Saturday, the Snape family enjoyed a quiet evening at home without realizing that an unexpected visitor whizzed through the air.
The triplets had been put to bed moments earlier, and finally, Severus found himself alone with Harriet.
Disencan had retired to his room long ago.
The candles around the living area glowed while Mr. and Mrs. Snape shared a passionate kiss on the sofa.
Harriet had slithered into Severus's lap with her knees spread on either side of his lap, one of his skillful hands on her hip and the other tangled in her long, dark tresses.
"I want you, Sev….." She whispered against his lips once their kiss forced them to break for air.
Severus's chest heaved as he panted for breath while his fingers slipped from her hair.
He said nothing in return, too busy watching his wife as she let a delicious sigh escape her lips while she languidly straightened her spine and brushed her hair over her shoulder.
Harriet smirked at the look on his face.
It thrilled her to know that after so many years and so many children together, she still kept her husband mesmerized.
She groaned softly as she leaned down towards him again.
Severus's free hand snaked around her waist as his other tightened its grip on her hip.
Harriet's hair cascaded over her shoulder in a silent rebellion to envelope Severus in a cocoon that smelled of his mate's delicious scent.
They both closed their eyes as they angled to meet for another kiss that would inevitably lead to-
Knock, knock, knock, knock!
Harriet heard the murmured growl that managed to break free from Severus's impressive sense of self-restraint as the pining couple found themselves forced into a pause.
Harriet blinked at Severus after she pulled away and asked, "Who could that be?!"
Severus furrowed his brow as he cast Harriet a remorseful look of soul-destroying melancholy while she slowly stood from her spot on his lap.
Knock, knock, knock, knock!
Harriet bit her lip to stop from laughing as Severus rose to his feet in one smooth motion and glided towards the door with his teeth grit.
Although she shared his irritation, she slapped a smile on her face as she stood next to her mate while he cautiously opened the front door.
His anger at the random, unwelcome interruption overwhelmed him.
The hour was late.
Who could possibly have come to-
"Good evening, Professor Snape!...Mrs. Snape!" Scorpius nodded politely as he stood on the front porch in one of his finest, black suits.
Draco had purchased a very expensive new outfit for his only son from one of Knockturn Alley's best clothiers just for the occasion.
Severus sneered, but before he could slam the door in Scorpius's face, Harriet stepped in front of him and smiled, "Good evening, Scorpius! It's….It's awfully late, is everyone alright?" She asked as her smile faded, "...Your parents?...Maggie?"
"Oh, yes, ma'am." Scorpius nodded eagerly, "Um….Everyone's fine. I apologize for my tardiness….This is the only time I could come when Maggie wouldn't suspect anything."
"A warning would have been preferable." Severus grouched.
"I'm sorry, sir, but I couldn't risk writing a letter. Maggie may have caught me." He shrugged.
"That's alright! You look……very nice this evening." Harriet nodded, "Would you like to come inside?"
Severus instantly turned his scowl on his wife.
"I would, actually, thanks." Scorpius smiled.
Harriet graciously struck up a friendly conversation with Scorpius while she led him into the house.
Scorpius failed to realize his poor timing or the fact that his impromptu arrival had lowered him even further in Severus's opinion.
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After a very awkward quarter-hour had passed, Scorpius finally revealed the true reason for his suit and his visit.
Severus's black eyes widened in incredulous shock.
Harriet gasped as she clamped a hand over her mouth.
"Mrs. Snape," Scorpius began as he nodded at Harriet, "You've been so kind to me and my family over the years. You have my word upon pain of death that your daughter will remain my utmost priority until the last of my days."
Harriet rarely wept but as she gazed at the genuine longing on Scorpius's young face, heavy tears welled in her eyes.
Before she could nod in approval, Scorpius turned to Severus with a frown, "Professor Snape, sir, I know I've never quite been your favourite. I'm not certain why, but that's beside the matter. I love your daughter with all my heart, with all my soul, with all that I am and all I will ever be. I….I can offer her comfort, I….I can offer her…..whatever she wants! I vow to you, sir, that if you give me permission to ask her hand in marriage, I will stay beside Maggie until the end of my days."
Severus narrowed his eyes at Scorpius.
"Perhaps you may find someone you…..like better." Scorpius frowned, "Although I know, sir, that you'll never find anyone who loves her as much as I do."
Severus slowly turned his head to look at Harriet.
Under the table, she grasped his hand.
Severus hated Scorpius.
He hated him because he was the one who had come to take his little girl away.
Regardless, as Severus gazed into Harriet's emerald eyes, his anger faded away.
He could not ignore Scorpius's undeniable devotion to Maggie.
How could Severus possibly refuse his precious little girl the same chance he had been given, a chance at true happiness?
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On the morning of the seventh years' graduation ceremony, Severus sat next to Harriet in the faculty stands on the castle's lawn.
Little Sev sat close to Severus, on the other side of his three little brothers, who pushed and squirmed against each other for the best view.
The Malfoy family had been seated directly across the way in the stands erected for visiting parents' usage.
Eventually, Hogwarts' band began to play as the seventh year graduates slowly made their way out of the castle and onto the lawn in their assigned order.
Severus rose to his feet, but not before Harriet squeezed his hand and whispered in his ear, "It's alright, Sev. I'll be beside you the entire time."
For a brief second, Severus cast Harriet an uncertain frown, which she quickly countered with a reassuring smile.
After he made his announcements as headmaster, Professor Slughorn began to call the names.
All the while, Severus relied on Harriet's comforting words more than she knew.
One name was called after another until the most dreaded one arrived.
"SCORPIUS MALFOY!"
Severus watched as Scorpius walked forward and collected his diploma.
Instead of resuming his place amongst his peers, he stepped over to the side and waited.
Harriet's pulse quickened as she looked on, excited for her daughter.
"MAGNOLIA SNAPE!"
Harriet sucked in a breath.
Severus frowned.
Choosing to conserve her energy, Maggie came forward in her chair and collected her diploma.
She smiled at Scorpius while she approached.
As she came towards him, the thousand different speeches he had rehearsed blurred in his mind.
Nausea turned his stomach.
His throat went dry.
Before the moment closed and his darling moved passed him, everyone gasped as Scorpius fell to his knees in front of Maggie, pulled a ring box from his robe's pocket, and shouted, "MaggieIloveyouwillyoumarryme?!?!"
Maggie's eyes widened.
A single second passed as she blinked.
She had trouble understanding his jumbled speech.
Maggie glanced between the beautiful diamond ring that lay in the velvet-lined box and his startled expression as she slowly played back his words in her mind.
The onlooking crowd had been rendered speechless.
Everyone present waited for Maggie's answer, but none quite as much as Scorpius.
A laugh came first.
He initially feared the sound to be mocking, yet as tears poured down Maggie's cheeks, he understood she had laughed out of joy not malice.
"Yes!...Yes, Scorpius, I'll marry you!...I'll marry you!" She cried.
A silent moment passed while everyone listened to her joyful acceptance before cheers erupted, followed by applause.
Harriet shouted joyfully as she watched the young couple embrace.
A frown remained on his face as Severus watched the young couple, however, with his wife next to him, he managed to reluctantly clap his hands together in a slow, deliberate motion.
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The victory of the day continued late into the night.
Shortly before dawn, Maggie woke from her sleep to find Ingrid opening the window beside her bed.
"What are you doing?" Maggie asked groggily.
"...I thank you, daughter of my son." Ingrid whispered into the fading darkness, "...For allowing me to earn my freedom."
"...What?!" Maggie asked as she sat up after the brutal realization of Ingrid's statement sank into her comprehension.
Ingrid turned to meet her gaze while she gasped, "Y-You're leaving?!?!"
"After one hundred generations of wandering the earth, my time is at last at its end." Ingrid nodded, "I can meet my love once more and tell him that the son of our son and the daughter of our son's son are well."
Maggie wanted to protest.
She wanted to scream and beg Ingrid to stay.
Although, as she listened to her great-grandmother's tired sigh, her own selfish wants suddenly seemed unimaginably cruel.
Her acceptance failed to stop her tears.
"Will……Will I ever see you again?" Maggie sniffed as Ingrid bent down and pressed a surprisingly tender kiss to her forehead.
"...In the next life, my child. For now, you must face this world and I must leave it." Ingrid commanded. She looked Maggie in the eye as she nodded, "...You are ready, you are strong. Remember, you come from me."
Maggie couldn't hold back her sobs as she watched her great-grandmother slip out of her window and walk towards the garden .
Through her mournful weeping, she noticed that a tall, rugged man appeared at the edge of her family's garden just as the sun began to rise.
Ingrid saw him too and once she did, she set off towards him at a frantic sprint.
Maggie sobbed joyfully as she watched the man and woman rush to embrace one another.
Their kiss was as desperate as any would have been for two lovers who had spent a millennia apart.
Maggie wiped her eyes.
The day's first rays of sunlight touched the earth.
In a whisper, Ingrid and the man disappeared into eternity.