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The first thing Emily noticed about being hugged by this man was how warm it was. She couldn't specifically recall any time she had been shown physical affection, or if she had, it had been done in general service, not because they truly cared. The kids in the children's home generally stuck together, but in the end they were all like animals in a zoo, and the people who worked there came and went, and they were the 'keepers' if they were anything else. But to have someone care about her was something new entirely. She froze for a moment, but all in an instant Emily threw her arms around his neck and hugged him back tightly. It some ways it felt strange to be showing affection to someone like this, specifically to this man, but having his arms around her, protecting her felt innately right. This. Was. Right. His larger frame enveloped hers and she closed her eyes, feeling his scratchy wool robes against her cheek.

She cried herself out standing there in the hallway, but she didn't want to let go of him because she was too afraid to lose the moment. A small connection had formed between them, it was no larger than a thread, but it was there and it was real, and it was something she had been desperate for her entire life. The dark man stood, pulling her up with him, and she was surprised at his actions. She held onto him tightly, burrying her face in his shoulder as he carried her. A few words spoken in a low voice and she was aware of how much warmer the air was. She could hear a crackling fire and she was aware of his sitting down. She sat sideways in his lap, just resting against him, her emotions so raw she couldn't bring herself to speak. His arm was around her and her smaller hands found his and she held onto his hand tightly, closing her eyes and breathing deeply. She had found the man who was her Father, but she wondered, as her consciousness slowly slipped into sleep, if he would be her father?

XxXxXx

Alex walked out of his room into the kitchen and saw his father sipping on the coffee in his hand and dark circles under his eyes.

"Where were you last night? I couldn't find you at all." Alex said with a yawn and a stretch. He looked over his Father as he settled down at the counter and he watched him for a long moment.

"Alex. There's something you need to know." His Father said, looking up at his son. Alex could feel a pit of uncertainty in his stomach and he wondered what, of all things, could be wrong that his Father would need to tell him before they even had breakfast.

"Yesterday… it was discovered that your sister was never… killed in the attack. She is alive." Severus said very slowly, looking at his son. He stared at his Father, thoughts whirling around in his mind, but mostly excitement welled within him.

"Really? Where is she? How did you find her, What hap…" His father raised an eyebrow and he clamped his mouth shut, knowing his father would continue if he was only silent.

"You already know her." He said quietly. Severus looked intently at his son and he saw his eyes flash.

"It… it can't be. Emily, it's Emily isn't it? The threads-that's why you were doing blood testing" He whispered rapidly. Severus watched his son for a moment.

"You were in my lab?"

"Looking for you." He amended quickly, his father nodded once in the affirmative at him. He wasn't forbidden to go in his father's private lab, however it was somewhat an unspoken rule that Alex shouldn't go into the lab alone because of the volatile nature of a lot of the work.

"Yesterday we completed the tests and we have confirmed it." Snape said.

"It makes so much sense… I mean, I felt like I already knew her. Does she know? That she's our family?" He asked.

"She knows I'm her Father… and she knows she has a brother, but the initial news of our relation seemed to shock her enough." He said. His son raised his own eyebrow at his Father.

"She only knows you as you put on as a professor. She doesn't know the real you yet." His son said simply. He picked up the cup of hot chocolate which had appeared before him.

"I can only hope." His father said, distantly. Alex looked up to see where his father was gazing and it fell right on the family portrait on the mantle. He could tell his Father had a lot on his mind. There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but one of the other things Alex had learned about his father, was that it was sometimes best to time questions accurately than to bombard him with them in the heat of the moment. "Emily is asleep the guest quarters, last night was a long night for the both of us, I think." Severus said. Alex glanced over his shoulder down the hall, not that he would be able to see her, but it hit him in that moment, that the three of them, nearly their entire family was together, in the same place.

"Dad… Emily is Hazel… she's alive, do you think that mom could be out there?" He asked his father in a quiet voice. He refused to meet his gaze as he stared down at his hot chocolate.

"I'm sorry, Alex… I cast the cremation spell myself. The circumstances for your mother to be alive are not possible, but for your sister, they are."

"Then how is she alive? I mean, it's amazing, but what happened?" He asked.

"We don't know. Dumbledore is looking into it, but as far as we know, she simply has grown up in a muggle orphanage."

Emily was standing in the shadow of the doorway, on some level surprise registered as she spied Alex sitting in his pajamas talking to a similarly casually clad professor Snape. She stepped forward and Snape looked up at her, and she watched Alex turn in his chair, his eyes meeting hers.

"Hi." He said quietly.

"Hello." She replied in a shy whisper, realizing that she was staring at her brother.

A/N

Oh the glorious cliffhanger. Sorry, I like it too much. This is a bit short and I'll go back and edit tomorrow morning when I'm not falling asleep! Please review! I'd love some ideas with where to go with it! Suggestions, what YOU want to read in this story!

THANKS! x