"Dad, I'm 18 years old." Elizabeth stood beside her father at the bookshop.

"I am well aware of your age," Severus said calmly, handing the clerk a stack of Galleons.

"So I'm too old for school."

"You're certainly too old to be whining in my ear," Severus took the bag and thanked the clerk before leading them outside. "We were through this before you went off on your ridiculous suicidal jaunt. I would allow you to have your fun, and then you were going back to school."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. She knew by now that Severus thought that the past year was anything but a game. Even so, in the months since Voldemort's demise, the Headmaster had been dealing with his residual terror by pretending that the entire mission was a childish, disobedient lark.

She understood it. It didn't mean it didn't annoy her.

"The building is all blown to hell anyway." Elizabeth muttered as they went out onto the street.

"That is nearly corrected," Severus said. "I'm going there now to see what still needs to be completed. Are you accompanying me, or are you going to sulk somewhere else?"

Elizabeth glared at him.

Severus smirked. "That's the same look you used to give me right before you packed your bags and ran away for a few hours. Make sure you have your house key this time; you wouldn't want to get locked out."

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes and resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at him. You run away and try to come back without a key one time when you're fourteen and no one lets you forget it.

"I'm going to the shop. Probably to complain about you for awhile."

Severus nodded and gave her a one-armed hug. "I'll see you later at home then."

"I hate that you're doing your creepy-calm thing."

Severus smirked again and Disapparated.

Elizabeth sighed and headed toward the doors of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. The shop was busy, the summer months and the world's general brightness encouraging business to flow through the doors.

"Miss Evans," a wizard Elizabeth had never seen before bowed low as she went in. Elizabeth smiled politely back at him, but cursed herself internally for not putting up the glamour she'd used since the Battle of Hogwarts. She'd always drawn attention in the streets, but since the fall of Voldemort, she had become even more recognizable.

Severus, true to form, did not approve of her masking herself.

"It's just different hair and eyes," Elizabeth had told him. "I'm still me. Besides, don't you want me to be safe?"

"I do," Severus nodded. "And that's why I want as many eyes on you as possible. No one would dare touch you in public if people know who you are."

"Why don't I just wear a big sign that says 'Severus Snape's Daughter'?" Elizabeth sassed.

"An excellent idea," Severus had answered dryly. "I'll have one made up tomorrow."

So she looked exactly like herself walking into WWW. Luckily, Fred was behind a register so she didn't have to search the shop.

"Hi," he said, kissing her as she came around the counter.

"You're busy," Elizabeth commented.

"Ginny was supposed to work," Fred shrugged, "but apparently when she said 'I need a summer job' she meant 'I want a job I can do whenever I feel like it."

"I thought working here was part of her sentence," Elizabeth smirked.

"Yes, well," Fred grinned. "Apparently her lifetime grounding is a bit more flexible than the name would imply."

"I thought your mum would never get over it."

"Get over Ginny joining a mortal battle when she was told to go home? No, me either. But apparently she is now just focused on how Ginny is alive."

"I can help," Elizabeth said, pulling out her wand and waving them over her robes, turning them magenta.

"Bless you," Fred kissed her again. "You're up early today."

"Dad made me come with him to buy books this morning," Elizabeth said, smiling at the next customer and accepted the basket of joke products from the young man's hands.

"Books?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at him. "Seventh Year books."

"Ah, the Hogwarts Express leaves in ten days," Fred looked at the line. "That's not good for business."

"I am not going," Elizabeth said firmly.

"Okay," Fred said neutrally, handing change to the woman he was ringing up.

"Really, I'm not."

"Okay."

"Fred," Elizabeth looked at him.

Fred raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you want me to say?"

"That you're going to help me convince Dad to lay off. Or at least that I can stay with you when he kicks me out."

"Sorry, love." Fred shook his head.

"Fred!"

Fred looked at her. "Listen. If you don't want to do it, then don't. But then you're the one who has to explain to our children why they have to go to school if both their parents are drop-outs."

"You dropped out first!"

"And I'm a wildly successful business owner," Fred grinned. "What's your excuse?"

Elizabeth glared at him and finished checking out the two First Years who were buying dung bombs, prattling on to each other the whole time about what House they were going to be in.

"Good morning, everybody," Ginny came through the door.

"You're late," Fred said shortly as she came around the checkout counter.

"Sorry," Ginny said, sounding anything but. "What do you want me to do?"

"Besides show up on time?" Fred looked at her. "Take the register. I'll get Marian over her to help you. Betsy and I are going to the office for a minute."

"'Going to the office'?" Ginny smirked. "Is that what we're calling it?"

"Just try to do actual work," Fred rolled his eyes. "Marian," he called to a woman restocking shelves. "I need you to work the register for a few minutes."

"Of course, Mr. Weasley." Marian stepped behind the counter.

Fred put a steering hand on Elizabeth's back and went to the back of the shop and into his office.

"Of course, Mr. Weasley," Elizabeth mimicked.

"If you'd say that, just once, my life would be easier," Fred sighed, sitting in his desk chair. "Listen, Betsy, I'm not telling you what to do. But I am telling you that you aren't going to run a register here for the rest of your life. So if you don't go back to school, you'd better find something else to do."

"You don't want me to work with you?"

Fred shook his head. "I'd love for you to work with me. I don't want you to work for me. This place doesn't need another joke-creator. Between Ron and I, we've got that covered."

Elizabeth frowned. "It's a conspiracy."

*S*S*

"Alright," Elizabeth opened the door of Severus' study and looked at him. "If I do this, and I'm not saying I'm going to, then there are some things I need."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Then, by all means, come storming in without knocking and demand favors."

"I'm doing this for you."

"I thought you weren't doing it," Severus smirked.

"Never mind," Elizabeth rolled her eyes and turned to go.

Severus sighed. "Alright, alright, sit down." He pointed to the sofa. "Tell me what you're thinking."

Elizabeth glared at him but sat, crossing her arms. "I'm not living in the dorm."

"Fine."

"Hermione and I want our own space."

"Is Miss Granger returning?" Severus asked.

"She has an incurable school-addiction," Elizabeth shrugged. "Anyway, you'll have to create a room for us."

"Done," Severus nodded. "Anything else?"

"I want to come and go as I please."

"No," Severus shook his head. "But I'll give you weekends."

"Fine." Elizabeth eyed her father like he was an opponent in a poker game. "I don't want to take History of Magic. Or anything else that's stupid."

"Potions, Defense, Charms, Herbology, Transfiguration."

"No Herbology."

"Herbology," Severus said firmly. "You can't take NEWT potions without it."

Elizabeth grimaced. "Fine. No Hogwarts Express."

"You haven't ridden it for years anyway."

"And I want to know how it's going to be."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "How what is going to be?"

"You. Me. We haven't be at school together in a long time, and now you're the Headmaster."

Severus searched her face. "It's not much different than when I was a teacher," he said. "In fact, we'll probably have less official contact than we've had previously."

Elizabeth stretched out her legs and stared at her toes. "Fine."

"Anything else?" Severus looked stood and came around the desk.

"I guess not," Elizabeth shook her head. "Happy?"

"Ecstatic," Severus rolled his eyes. He sat on the sofa beside her and put an arm around her shoulders. "Thank you, Hatchling."

"Why do you care?" Elizabeth asked, laying her head on her shoulder. "It's not like you didn't teach me almost everything you could during Sixth Year."

"Because I lost another year," Severus said softly. "You left last year and grew up again without me."

"Sorry," Elizabeth mumbled, closing her eyes.

"You should be," Severus mock-scolded.

"I'm still me," Elizabeth said, relaxing.

"Some day, you'll understand," Severus said gently, rocking her a little. "Someday when you have your own children."

There was a knock on the open study door, and they looked up to see Remus standing in the doorway, holding a baby with turquoise hair. "Teddy wants to know if his godmother is coming to Hogwarts."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and held out her arms for the baby. "Four months and already talking? You're so talented," she said, stroking Teddy's soft hair.

"He's advanced," Remus grinned. "Rolling over and everything. And feel his gums. He's got a tooth under there."

"I think I'll pass on the oral inspection," Elizabeth laughed wagging her fingers at Teddy. "I'll take your word for it."

"So?" Remus looked at Severus. "Are we relocating?"

"You guys were going anyway," Elizabeth said, standing Teddy's completely unstable legs on her lap. "Defense teacher," she looked at Remus. "I thought you did that already. That's a lateral career move, my friend."

Remus laughed. "Teachers get free tuition, or so I hear. Of course you have to work there ten years to get the discount, so we'd better start now."

Severus shook his head. "I'm not sure I want you two in the same castle," he took Teddy from Elizabeth and slipped a finger into the baby's mouth. "Rem, that's not a tooth, it's a – Ouch!"

Elizabeth and Remus dissolved into laughter. "What about it not being a tooth?"

"Go away, all of you." Severus glared, handing Teddy back to Elizabeth.

*S*S*

A few days later, after the next full moon, Elizabeth stood in Remus' bedroom doorway, Teddy in one arm. "Say… 'Hi, Daddy!'"

Remus grimaced. "This is the part Dora was supposed to help with…"

"Well, now you've got me," Elizabeth said brightly, bringing the baby into the room and sitting on the bed. "Teddy and I need to talk to you about something."

Remus looked wary. "It's never a good sign when you wait until I'm incapacitated to talk about something. You didn't elope, did you?"

"And risk the wrath of Molly Weasley?" Elizabeth shook her head. "No, I need to talk to you about Sirius' estate."

"It's yours, Sevling. You don't need our permission—

"I'm not asking permission for anything," Elizabeth interrupted. "I was talking to Teddy," she indicated the baby, who had fallen back asleep while they were talking, "and he thinks that he'd like to go to university some day. And he'd also like to marry a nice girl, even though he'll never find someone quite as awesome as his godmother," she kissed Teddy's head. "But he's going to need money for that."

Remus shook his head. "We're going to be fine," he said firmly. "I have a job again—

"Did they start paying teachers well all of a sudden?" Elizabeth asked, raising one eyebrow. "I didn't think so," she said, when Remus didn't reply. "This isn't for right now. I'd like to set up a trust. For when he's older. Consider it a gift for his Hogwarts graduation."

"Elizabeth…"

"Asking you is really more of a formality," Elizabeth said, smoothing his blankets with her free hand. "If you don't let me do it, I'll just do it behind your back, and I'll throw in a house. Actually, I might do that anyway." She held Teddy in front of her face and spoke in a high voice. "Please, Daddy?"

Remus rolled his eyes. "He's going to love you no matter what, you know."

"Obviously," Elizabeth said, putting the baby on his chest. "This isn't about that. You've always done everything you could for me. Let me do this for him."

Remus looked down at his son, whose hair was alternating between bright green and purple. "I suppose… just in case…"

"Men," Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "You're just about impossible to give money to. Honestly."

"You didn't try to set up a trust for your father, did you?"

Elizabeth laughed. "Do I look suicidal? Do you remember the freak out he had over this money to begin with? I'm just saying that, historically, people have been very resistant to my gifts."

Remus shook his head. "Alright, gift-giver. Why don't you gift me with today's Daily Prophet?"

"One step ahead of you," Elizabeth pulled the paper out of her back pocket. "Dad read the lead story and said some very imaginative curse words. I'm interested to see your reaction."

"What is it?" Remus took the parchment.

"You should read it for yourself. I should probably take the baby," Elizabeth settled with Teddy in the armchair beside the bed.

Remus shook the paper open to the front page. Elizabeth watched him carefully as he read the headline.

Silence.

"I think Daddy had a stroke," Elizabeth whispered to Teddy.

"Death Eaters Sue for Freedom of Assembly." Remus read the headline aloud. Twice.

"It doesn't change the more you read it," Elizabeth said. "I tried that."

"What do you think they're playing at?" Remus scowled at the paper. Teddy, sensing his father's distress, started to fuss on Elizabeth's lap.

"They don't have a leader anymore," Elizabeth said, forcing cheerfulness into her voice and bouncing the baby. "They can assemble all they want, but there's nothing for them to do but sit around and test each other's blood."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Severus appeared at the door, holding a scroll bearing the Malfoy crest.

"No chance," Elizabeth shook her head. "You saw how down and out the Malfoys were at the end. No way is anyone following Lucius."

Severus raised an eyebrow and unfurled the scroll. "How can you still be so surprised by his arrogance?" He held up the parchment. "I hold in my hand an invitation for all former and current Death Eaters, even those who were," he glanced at the invitation to get the wording right, "'uncomfortable with the former leadership.'"

Remus snorted. "As if people wanted to be Death Eaters, just not as much of a Death Eater?"

"Death Eater lite," Elizabeth grinned. "Perhaps they don't wear masks. Or maybe Muggle-borns are okay, but Muggles aren't."

"You two can joke," Severus said disapprovingly, "but this is how these things get started. They lie low, and get a following, and then one zealot after another, each more insane than the last, takes over, and you're left with what we just conquered."

"People won't let it happen again," Elizabeth said, shaking her head. "Not after what we just went through."

"It was the second time," Remus reminded her, closing his eyes.

Teddy reached his chubby arms toward the bed.

"Come on, little man. Let's go see what's happening downstairs." Elizabeth stood. "Let Daddy rest."

Remus opened his eyes again. "Give him to me."

"Remus, it's really okay—

"Give him to me," Remus repeated, holding out his arms.

"Alright," Elizabeth nodded, handing over the baby. "But if you're going to fall asleep, call me. You don't want to roll over on him."

"Amazing how we managed not to kill you without your expert tips," Severus rolled his eyes, putting a hand on her back to steer her out into the hallway. "Listen," he said, when they were downstairs. "I don't want you out alone for awhile."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "First, you never want me out alone. Second, I'm not hiding from Lucius Malfoy. Forget it."

Severus scowled. "You used to be afraid of me, you know that?"

Elizabeth smirked. "I don't remember that. I remember being young enough to be grounded if I didn't listen to you."

"You could still be grounded," Severus growled. "Perhaps being locked in your room would change your attitude."

Elizabeth kissed his cheek. "Do you want breakfast? I'm going to make scrambled eggs, and then I'm going over to the shop, because Fred's a little shorthanded right now."

"I'll go with you," Severus said, sitting at the kitchen table.

"You've got to stay here with Remus," Elizabeth said, cracking eggs into a bowl. "He's going to let that baby fall off the bed, and someone is going to have to deal with that."

Severus frowned for a moment. "We'll take him with us."

"Remus?"

"The infant," Severus said, exasperated.

"You can't floo with a baby."

Severus glared at the tabletop for a moment. "You're going to floo straight to the shop?"

"Right into Fred's office," Elizabeth promised, pouring the eggs into the skillet.

"Hello?" Fred's voice came from the living room.

"Speak of the devil," Severus said, standing.

"Be nice," Elizabeth admonished. "We're in the kitchen!"

"Did you read this morning's Prophet?" Fred came into the room, holding up the paper.

"Yes. Feel free to overreact," Elizabeth said, taking the parchment and kissing him. "Do you want breakfast?"

"No," Fred shook his head. "You aren't concerned about this?"

"I'm concerned that you're supposed to be at work right now, and you already don't have enough workers." Elizabeth pulled plates out of the cabinet.

"I didn't want you flooing into Diagon Alley alone," Fred said.

Elizabeth pretended to sag against the counter. "I'm exhausted."

"From what?" Fred looked at her in confusion.

"From running through your head all the time," Elizabeth smirked.

Fred rolled his eyes. "I'm just saying that you never know what is on the other end of the floo."

"You're weird," Elizabeth shook her head, but put her arms around his waist.

"This from the girl who just massacred a pick-up line to tease me?"

Elizabeth grinned. "Are you sure you aren't hungry, obsessive man?"

"No," Fred looked down at her. "We had breakfast this morning. At the brother-intervention."

"I forgot that was this morning," Elizabeth grimaced. "How'd it go?"

"Which one of your brothers required intervention?" Severus asked, trying to sound disinterested. "My guess is Percy."

"It wasn't for a brother," Fred said, sitting across the table from the Potions Master. "Ginny wants to drop out of school. She wants to play Quidditch."

"And you told her that was ridiculous," Severus said, drumming his fingers on the table.

"Of course we did. All of us. I told her that under no circumstances was I going to give her a job so she could hang out for the rest of her life. Then she said she'd move in with Bill and Fleur, and Bill nixed that idea immediately…" Fred sighed. "I don't know what's gotten into her."

"No Quidditch team is going to take an underage witch," Severus said confidently.

Fred shook his head. "She'll be of age in less than two weeks. She's just not listening."

"Maybe because half of her 'intervention' dropped out themselves," Elizabeth said, plating the eggs.

"Elizabeth," Severus frowned.

"I'm just saying that maybe Bill and Charlie are more qualified to comment on the whole stay-in-school mantra," Elizabeth said, putting a plate in front of Severus.

Fred pressed his lips together. "George and I did what we had to do," he said quietly. "I know you didn't like it, but it worked out. I'm trying to keep Ginny from making a choice that might not end up so well for her."

Elizabeth met his eyes and was surprised to see genuine pain in them. "Honey, I'm sorry," she went to stand behind him and put her arms around his neck. "It worked out great." She kissed his face. "You're maybe too good of an example. WWW was years in the making. Did you ask her if she's been blowing up thing for years?"

Fred rolled his eyes, but smiled. "That was not a question, no."

Severus regarded the couple silently, his head tilted slightly to the side.

"What, Dad?" Elizabeth asked, looked back at him.

"Nothing," Severus shook his head. "You both just grew up… it's odd." He seemed to remember himself, schooling his features out of indulgence and back into Snape. "Not so much you," he looked at Elizabeth. "But you are a bit of a surprise," he raised an eyebrow at Fred. "If you'd asked me several years ago if Fred Weasley would ever be advocating responsibility, I would have wagered against it."

"If you were a betting man," Elizabeth finished, smirking.

"If I was a betting man, yes," Severus took a drink from his coffee cup. "So the older Weasleys are still in town?"

Fred nodded. "Mum's not doing so well, so we're taking shifts." He looked at Elizabeth. "Are you alright to go over there with me this afternoon?"

Elizabeth nodded, "Why don't you go say hello to Remus before we go? He needs someone to freak out about the Death Eaters with."

Fred gave a lopsided grin and headed toward the stairs. "I wish you would freak out more."

When Fred was gone, Elizabeth sat heavily in the chair next to Severus. "Another afternoon with Molly Weasley…"

Severus turned to look at her, his voice low. "Six weeks ago, I watched you stop breathing. I watched your heart stop beating. I watched you die, and it was the worst thing that I've ever felt. In that moment, there was nothing left for me to live for. And I only had to go through it for a few minutes. Molly is still living in that place. She will be, to some degree, in that place for the rest of her life. I can't imagine—

His voice faltered a bit, and Elizabeth stood to put her arms around him. "I'm sorry, Dad."

Severus cleared his throat. "Well, you should be," he said gruffly. "I should lock you up."

"I love you too," Elizabeth laughed.

*S*S*

Bill Weasley stretched his legs under the patio table. "How's he doing?" He nodded toward the house where Fred was attempting to get his mother to have a cup of tea and go to bed.

Elizabeth shrugged. "The shop is a constant reminder. George did everything last year. He's everywhere in that place. Like yesterday, a shipment arrived, 'care of George Weasley'." Elizabeth bit her lip. "But the nights are the worst."

"At least he didn't see it happen," Percy said, shivering. "Ron and I stood there… couldn't do anything."

"He wants to see it," Elizabeth said softly. "He's asked me. To see the memory."

"You didn't show him," Charlie said, his brow furrowing.

"Of course not," Elizabeth shook her head. "He never asks when he's thinking clearly."

"Fred said…" Bill suddenly sounded timid, a strange tone of voice coming from the boot-wearing wizard. "You saw George. At the end."

"I shouldn't have told him that," Elizabeth said, staring into the glass of lemonade she was drinking.

"But you did," Charlie said. "So now you have to tell us. Did he… did he look… how did he look?"

"He looked… like George," Elizabeth began quietly. "I asked if it was going to hurt." She smiled a little. "And he just smiled at me and said, 'Not at all, little sister. Easier than falling asleep.'"

"And was it?" Percy asked.

Elizabeth nodded. "I was surrounded by my family… and I thought Fred was dead. They told me that he was dead. It was… easy. Coming back was the hard part." She looked up at them, suddenly. "Percy, you can't show him either, alright? Or Ron."

"Don't worry," Percy shook his head. "No one needs it in their head." He cleared his throat and stood. "Speaking of Ron… he and Hermione sent a letter. Said to pass it on when we'd read it. I'll get it." He disappeared into the house.

The oldest Weasleys were quiet, everyone staring off into the distance until they heard the back door open and close again.

"She's lying down," Fred said, sinking into Percy's vacated chair. "What are we all talking about?"

Elizabeth looked at the other two wizards. "Life," she said simply.