New Beginning

Chapter 14


Hermione looked at Severus after Dante left. “Mages are rare. Harry wasn’t a Mage.”

Severus motioned her to the couch; they both sat down, Severus crossed his legs and lay Darien down on his lap and gave him the bottle that he conjured. He started rocking him back and forth slowly, while looking at his son’s eyes, they were back to the soft brown that was so like his mother’s.

“You’re are right, Harry wasn’t a Mage.” Severus turned to her. “But he could do things with hiss, hs, he had some lower Mage tendencies, but not enough to be a true Mage.”

Darien put his foot on Severus’s chest, and Severus covered it with his hand.

“You think Darien is a Mage?”

“There’s a good possibility, Dante wouldn’t have said to get him tested, if he didn’t think Darien wouldn’t be one.”

Hermione reached over and pushed Darien’s hair off his face and smoothed it back. “How can he be? He wouldn’t have any of Harry’s magic would he?”

“He has his memories, and his emotions. I bet he was left intact with Harry’s magic too, then combine a blend of yours and mine with the paternity potions, I say that would make a very powerful wizard. It wouldn’t take much to push Darien into Mage status with as close as Harry was to being one.”

Severus watched as Darien’s eyes started closing, he was struggling to stay awake, but he was on the loosing side of that battle. The more Severus stroked his foot, the longer Darien’s eyes would remain closed.

“What if he is a Mage?” Hermione softly asked, not wanted to arouse Darien while he was almost asleep.

Severus closed his eyes, he didn’t want to think about that. If the Ministry of Magic found out, Darien would have to be registered. Not every Mage was registered, Severus knew this for a fact, he was only aware of two Mages right now. One of those being in Hogwarts, and he knew Dante wasn’t registered.

“It would complicate his life as well as ours.”

“Complicate it how?”

Severus turned to look at her. “If Weasley has a remote guess of Darien’s abilities from what he did this morning. The Ministry could require Darien to be tested. If he’s proved to be a Mage, he’d have to register, just like any other wizard who is different. And they could possible take him away from us, it has been known to happen.”

Hermione shook her head no, this wasn’t happening. All she wanted was a child, now that she had one, the fear of him being taken away didn’t sit to well with her. She felt like she was in the middle of the ocean with all the emotions colliding within her body, not even having the chance to breath. Severus reached up in front of her with his left arm and touched her left cheek, drawing her to his shoulder. Once her head was on him he reached down in her lap taking one of her hands in his and moved his thumb across the back of her hand in slow soothing circles.

“I won’t let them take him from us. They’ve been known to take child Mages away from their parents, when they can’t control the child. With Darien being at Hogwarts, he has more than just you and me watching him. Besides, Dante would help us.”

“Do you trust him?”

“Yes. Dante’s a Mage, Hermione. Don’t ask me how Dumbledore found him, I don’t know, but Dante’s the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this school has ever had. He’s become a very good friend, I would trust Dante with my life, and I don’t trust people easily.”

Hermione stayedet aet after that, she found her mind working overtime now. She knew she would be making another trip to the library the next chance she got again. Darien would need her, and she was bound and determined to help him, no matter what. That led her back to how she reacted around Ron, she couldn’t allow that to happen again, she couldn’t freeze up, knowing if anyone found out about Darien he could be taken away.

From what she read in the book Dante had pointed out, it would takotheother man to take away the jealousy spell. She read all of what could happen to her and what she would be feeling when the spell was taken off. When Severus had said it would be a hard decision to make he hadn’t been joking. Her only problem was she didn’t trust that many men, her options were slim. And in her mind there was no way she would ever ask Dumbledore to do this, that revolted her beyond measure and she loved the man like a grandfather. It would be to embarrassing enough for her to ask Dante, and she put him out of the picture right away, she didn’t know him enough to trust him. Severus she trusted, but she was scared to ask him, she didn’t want to end up hating him. The reversal spell could have complications with it; it being one that she would hate the man, would want to kill him any time she saw him, or become indifferent to him. Two out of the three effects of the spell didn’t appeal to her at all.

Hermione had gotten quiet, Severus bent his head forward and looked to where he could see if she had fallen asleep, she was wide awake. “Knut for you thoughts.”

Looking into his dark black eyes set her mind to thinking again, before she had found those eyes to be hard and cold, but seeing him with Darien the last several weeks, had shown her softness inside them, even if they were black. “I’m just trying to figure out who I trust enough to break the jealousy spell off of me.”

“Come to any conclusions?” Severus asked.

“I don’t like the odds.”

Severus leaned back, “I told you it would be a hard decision.”

“I don’t like the odds of the results that could happen when the spell is removed.”

Severus closed his eyes, the next question he was going to ask scared him. He wasn’t sure if he wanted that answer from her. “Have you found someone who you trust enough to do this?”

“Yes.”

Severus stayed still even as Hermione moved off his shoulder, the warmth lng hng him. He was comfortable around her, her and Darien had eased into his life, and the last several weeks he actually felt human again. He felt her hand on his cheek for the briefest moment before it was pulled back. Opening his eyes, he saw the guilt in hers for just that small touch she gave.

“You picked me didn’t you?”

“You’re the only one I trust enough to do this. I told you, I don’t lihe ohe odds of the outcome, and I don’t want to hate you or kill you for that matter. It would make a big problem between you and me and that wouldn’t help Darien any.”

“Then pick someone else.” He would do it, he would hate doing it, but he would if she asked him.

“There is no one else I trust.” She looked down at her hands, they were fidgeting in her lap.

“I’ll do it,” Severus said with a sigh. “But not tonight, you’ve been through to much today already.” Severus picked Darien off his lap and placed him on his shoulders and stood. “Let’s put our son in bed. We can discuss things tomorrow.”

Severus lay Darien in his bed and left him in his mother’s chambers. He prowled the halls going over what could happen in his head. He would do it, but he had started feeling different about Hermione, he wasn’t quite sure what all that entailed yet, but he was sure that he wouldn’t like it if Hermione ended up hating him. His desire to protect her and Darien had been over whelming to him at first, but now, it felt only natural.

The desire he had to make Weasley pay, kept boiling up, he had been thinking along these lines throughout part of the day. He just hadn’t come up with anything that would let him stay out of Azkaban yet. Severus found himself in the kitchens, he wasn’t all that hungry, but he decided to go ahead and have a snack, that way he could keep up his thinking.

He was half done with his sandwich when Dante entered the room. “Not often I catch you in the kitchens. Shame on you out of bed after hours.”

“Could say the same for you.” Severus mocked him right back.

“Ten points from Slytherin.” Dante grinned as he sat down. One of the house-elfs bustled around him trying to get him whatever he desired.

“Doesn’t count, the year hasn’t started yet. And as soon as I can get the hat out of Albus’s office I’m having you sorted.” Severus gave him a snarl.

Dante took the sandwich he had asked for and the pumpkin juice and started eating. “Tell how you came about to have a child this year, when last year you told me you had no kids.”

Severus swallowed the last of his sandwich visibly and Dante raised an eyebrow at him. This was one thing Severus didn’t like about the man, he could read anyone like they were an open book to him. He was very good at reading emotions. Severus narrowed his eyes at him, which only caused Dante to smirk right back. “Darien needed a father, I got the job.”

“I w hav have thought that his father would have wanted to keep that job, seems to me the father wanted to keep her awfully mad to place the jealousy spell on her.”

“Weasley, is not Darien’s real father, Darien’s real father is dead. He place more than the jealousy spell on her.” Severus looked down and pushed his chips around on his plate.

Dante took a drink of his pumpkin juice studying Severus. “He placed the emotion suppression spell on her?”

“No, she did that one herself, six years ago. He placed the adulterous spell on her.”

“Good Lord, that’s not good. Now, hers is unbelievable what is she trying to do, give herself an aneurysm?”

Severus snorted and looked back up. “She forgot about placing it on herself. She took it off today.”

“No wonder I could practically taste her emotions off of her when I met her in the library.” Dante shook his head and continued eating.

Severus sat remaining silent, Dante continued eating watching his friend. He could see different emotions in the man, some clear, some coming through like murky water. Severus had a knack for hiding his emotions, but Dante could see through some of his walls he had up. He was worried, and warring with himself, trying to decide something that meant an awful lot to him.

Placing his sandwich on his plate, Dante reached across and snatched one of Severus’s chips to get his attention. “What are you worried about?” Dante ate the chip.

“She wants…” Severus looked down the table, “she wants me to take the jealousy spell off.”

Dante pushed his plate away. “And you’re worried she’s going to hate you.”

“Yes.”

“You two have Darien between you, I would think you would be the natural choice for doing this. She might not hate you after through.”

Severus glared at him, “My luck with Miss Granger, she’s probably going to want to kill me.”

“She doesn’t hate you. Now for Weasley, I would say she was on a murderous warpath before I left.”

“He needs to die a slow and painful death.” Severus snarled out.

“I agree, but that still leaves someone going to Azkaban, there are ways of getting revenge that doesn’t include death.” Dante sat back, “you worry about Weasley later, get through everything with Hermione first.”

“What if it doesn’t work out? I don’t want my son’s mother revolted at the sight o.”
.”

Dante smiled, “You like her.”

Severus looked down, of course he would see this, Severus just wasn’t sure how deep it ran.

“Do what she asks, stop worrying about things. If she ends up hating you, you’ll just have to change her mind.”

“How? I’m not some suave smooth talking man. I don’t have women fawning all over me, unlike you who could get anyone you wanted.”

Dante shook his head. “I can’t get anyone I wanted.” Severus glared at him. “Well I could, but they are never who I want. I don’t like anyone fawnfawns all over me, who runs after me, those are hard to find. Believe me I’ve tried. Be thankful she doesn’t fawn all over you, you would grow tired of her rather quickly.”

“You still haven’t said how.” Severus stated as he saw Dante rise from the table.

“Woo her. If she ends up hating you, romance her; be her white knight, or black knight, it doesn’t matter which. Just don’t give up before anything happens.” Dante walked away from him leaving him in his thoughts.