AUTHORS NOTE: I want to apologise for the long delay in updating Father Mine and many of my other stories. I've been in a very dark place over the past few weeks, and it's made it difficult for me to find the energy or the will to write. I hold all of my reviewers and readers in such high esteem that I felt it would be better to wait until I felt more human and give you a shorter chapter, than give you a longer chapter that was sub par when you've waited so long for it.
At times I've been that low over the past few weeks that I was considering things that I haven't in a long time, and it was only the fact that I had promised you all I would leave nothing unfinished, that got me out of bed these past few mornings and stopped me from doing something drastic.
So here's the next instalment of Father Mine for you all, and I'm sorry again for the delay. But I also want to thank you all for the constant support you give me, it really does mean more than you know.
Tearful blue eyes met his ebony ones, and the cacophony of noise around him dimmed into utter silence, his occlumency walls crumbled into so much dust, and the acid that was pumping around his blood stream set alight...when two shaky arms reached out imploringly and called to him. "Daddy"
If anyone would've asked him what happened next, he would have in all honesty been unable to tell them. For the next thing he recalled after Rose's tearful exclamation to him, was the sight of Arthur helping Molly up from the floor, some 20ft away from where he last remembered her being and the aurors looking frantically from him to the judge, who was apopletic with anger and barking instructions.
Rose was a heavy presence in his arms firmly tucked into his side, face pressed into his neck and she continued to hiccup, and hands holding tightly onto his hair. Hermione was tucked under his other arm, her arms wrapped around his chest holding onto both him and Rose as she too sobbed into his chest.
He couldn't even recall how his wand came to be in his hand, but sure enough the arm he had around Hermione ended with the ebony wood clasped tightly in his grip, pointed towards Molly.
The area around them practically hummed with magical energy that he was exuding, that snapped and crackled as it danced on his skin and those around him.
His nostrils flared as he breathed heavily, chest rising and falling as his whole body was on live wires with the adrenaline coursing through his system. The judge barked an order at the aurors, who reluctantly moved forward, though it only took a look from Severus and a almost imperceptible tightening of the grip on his wand for them all to stop in their tracks.
The judge was shouting at the aurors to arrest him, but they were all torn between the choice of doing what was right and siding with Severus, and potentially losing their job for doing so.
Just as the judge went to reach for his wand, and Severus straightened his back prepared to do whatever it takes, the firm voice of Arthur Weasley cut in.
"As Head of My House, I herby vow that I relinquish my claim of custody over Rose"
"Arthur NO!" Molly screeched, but it was done. The magic recognised his claim, as did the law and despite desperately wanting to hex him to oblivion, the Judge left the room with a disgusted sigh and one last angry look at Severus.
"What have you done? How could you?" The woman sobbed and cried but Arthur remained firm.
"It's over Molly. It's Over." The emphasis on his words was not missed, especially by the weasley children and there was a sharp collective inhale from the gathered red heads. Hermione felt that Arthur was talking about more than just the custody battle.
Ever the gentleman, Arthur helped Molly regain her footing, before turning his back on her and approaching Severus. Severus sheathed his wand out of respect, though did not let go of the handle.
Arthur just offered him a sad smile and an apology. "I'm sorry about all of this old friend. Take care of them would you?" Severus inclined his head in responce, and Hermione just offered a watery smile to the kindly old man.
They were only mildly surprised when Arthur offered nods of acknowledgement to both Draco and Lucius as well, and once more with a chuckle indulged Scorpius in a small wave. Having Rose back in Severus's arms had calmed the toddler, and he was halfway back to his usual happy self already.
And without further ceremony, Arthur left the room with the rest of the weasleys following suit. Lucius and Draco subtly said their goodbyes too, and then It was only Molly who remained stood alone and crying, and Percy who loitered in the doorway, no doubt waiting to escort his mother.
Looking upon the broken woman in front of him, Severus felt something stir in his chest as he passed Rose into Hermiones arms. "Wait outside the door, I shall be with you momentarily"
Hermione just looked at Molly wearily, but kissed him on the cheek and did as he asked, for she trusted him implicitly.
Looking at the weeping woman in front of him, it was not hard to dip into her mind. Molly was not a bad woman, deep down, she'd just got a little...lost.
She was hurting from the loss of Fred, hurting from Ron's actions and the subsequent loss of him, hurting at the lack of Rose in her life...and suffering from the biggest case of 'empty nest' syndrome he'd ever witnessed.
"Did you know that after the war, a number of children from Slytherin families were left orphaned" He said casually and Molly met his eyes with her own tearful ones.
"What's your point?" She asked through her tears. As she collapsed into a chair, all the fight having left her.
"Despite many being babies or young children during the war, and still now being many years away being old enough for Hogwarts, they remain in a Ministry orphanage off Diagon Alley, do you know why?" Molly said nothing, but met his eyes, so he continued.
"Because nobody cares about the children of Death Eaters. The majority are under 6. Few have decent clothes that fit them, they have little in the way of toys and resources, many have probably never had a proper home cooked meal in living memory.I help where I can, though they have a strict policy about the children not having influence from families with known ties to the dark, so what I can do is limited"
Meeting her eyes, he watched as she cowed away from the venom in his gaze.
"Rose is lost to you. She is not yours anymore, in fact she never was. She is and always has been Hermione's. And as of today, she is also mine. Until she is old enough to make her own decisions, you will stay away from her"
At that he turned and left the room, with his hand on the door handle he stopped and looked at her over his shoulder.
"Some of those children can't even read" And he heard her sharp intake of breath. "Those children. They need a mother"
With that, he left her alone in the empty courtroom.