Custody Battle

A/N: This next little bit of the story is inspired by spending some time between the pages of Ridley Pearson’s Kingdom Keepers, in so much as I’ve got the idea that the park stays open and the attractions run after dark, just despite the fact that the park itself is “closed.” With that being said, on with the show!


At nearly 11:00p.m. there were not too many places for an eleven-year-old girl to wander off to by herself. However, Caterina was an eleven-year-old witch. It was this particular thought that had both Hermione and Severus worried. They’d agreed to split up, Hermione heading back to Animal Kingdom, knowing that although it was closed, that perhaps her daughter was hanging about near it. Severus had sent word ahead to Molly and Albus just in case she turned up at the Burrow or Hogwarts. He headed off to the Magic Kingdom, which was being left open until midnight for a special event.

But by nearly midnight, he’d had no luck in finding his daughter. It wasn’t until Hermione appeared alongside him, apparating into existence with a soft pop, just behind the far wall of Cinderella’s castle. “I think I may have an inkling as to where she’s gotten off to…” she sighed.

“I’ve not heard a thing from Molly or Albus…”

“I figured as much,” she closed her eyes. “Come on.” Taking him by the hand, Hermione led the way through the path taking them away from the castle heading into Tomorrowland.

“I’ve already checked at Space Mountain and asked the ride attendants, no one has seen any child that fits her description.”

Hermione nodded. “I had much the same luck in every other area of the park, but then I thought a bit harder about what Jocelyn had said she’d said.” She turned her large, brown eyes to him and sighed. “A real family, right? One that isn’t causing chaos and turmoil?” Whatever she was getting at was completely lost on him and Severus gazed into her eyes, confusion playing full over his face. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze, and then tugged him toward a small queue line.

“The Carousel of Progress?” he said incredulously.

“Well, unless you’ve got a better idea, it wouldn’t hurt to check.” Hermione led the way up to entrance of the attraction and stood behind the velvet rope, waiting for an attendant to walk over and unhinge it. There was no way to be certain that Caterina was inside, but she chalked it up to a mother’s instinct, something just seemed right about the place. It was a ride that the family had enjoyed after two trips through Space Mountain when they’d entertained in the Kingdom the day before. It was also the only ride in the park with a true ‘family’ inside.
What seemed like ages passed and no attendant had come to let them into the ride. “You don’t suppose they’ve…” Hermione trailed off and gazed down at her watch. “It’s after midnight.”

“So it would seem.” Severus said and sighed. “Well if the park is closed…” but his eyes gazed around, watching the Astro Orbiter spin at full speed, running, only empty, not a single person was in any of the carts. The speedway appeared much the same, the cars racing around the track, only much akin to phantoms as they had no drivers. “How utterly—”

“Bizarre…”

“Well, I was going to say wasteful, but I suppose that bizarre might fit here too, though after Hogwarts you tend not to let that word come into play as much…” He shook his head. “Right, so, the attractions are still operating despite a lack of personage and crew…”

Hermione frowned. She’d heard magical things about the park, but this seemed a bit odd if not absurd. The velvet restraining rope hung between her and the door into the attraction. It seemed so authoritative, dictating to her that she could not, or at least should not, cross it. But she forewent the thoughts about breaking rules and carefully unhinged the metal edge, and a clanking sound echoed as she re-hooked it once on the other side. “I’m going in.”

“I’m coming too.” He said and simply stepped over the rope. Hermione stared at him for a moment. “What?”

“You just stepped over the rope.”

“Not now, Hermione.” He said and then moved ahead of her and pushed the door open. The theater was dimly lit, rows and rows of empty chairs filling the space right up to the stage’s edge. “I suppose she’s not—” but as he spoke the stage began to rotate, only it wasn’t the stage that was rotating. It was the auditorium floor. Grabbing her hand, Severus hopped the tiny gap from the doorway in which they stood into the first row of seats. “There must be three other compartments just like this.”

“One for each scene?” Her eyes filled with worry, but he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. She closed her eyes. “I swear, Severus…” she whispered as he pulled her into his arms. “I’ll blast her into bits when we find her…” and she let her head fall against his chest.

“Let’s worry about finding her first, yes?” he said and gently kissed the top of her head, before pulling back. “There…” he pointed to a gap at the edge of the theater wall. “When the floor rotates out of this scene, we’ll just…hrm…just…ah,” and he moved to the wall, stepping up on the stage.

“What are you doing?”

“There’s a gap here that as the room rotates we should be able to squeeze into the next theater, hopefully she’s in there.” He said. His eyes did not hold the certainty that his voice did. This worried Hermione even more. But she said nothing as she reached for his hand and allowed him to pull her up onto the stage.

“They look so real…” she said, and stayed very close to him as the animatronics moves onstage. “It’s frightening.”

Severus rolled his eyes, but did not look at her. “Yes, terrifying,” he muttered. It warranted him a slap on the shoulder. Music that had been lulling in the background now welled to a full crescendo and the father figure, sitting in the chair in a smoker’s jacket with a piper and the dog, Rover, at his feet, began to swing back and forth and sing.

“There's a great big beautiful tomorrow, shining at the end of every day. There's a great big beautiful tomorrow, and tomorrow is just a dream away. Man has a dream and that's the start. He follows his dream in mind and heart.” The man, joined by voices of an invisible chorus, sang out.

“Time to go,” Severus said, taking Hermione’s hand and moving toward the gap in the wall as the floor began to rotate. They took a diving leap into the front row of the next auditorium, only to find it empty as well. He sighed, helping her to her feet. “Only two more…” Each scene was uniquely crafted but they hadn’t even made it into the third auditorium before Severus was sick of the music.

The fourth scene found Hermione and Severus staring at a blank auditorium once more, rows and rows of empty chairs. She sighed and collapsed into one of them. “I’m sorry, I feel like that was a waste of time. I was just so sure…” but Severus placed a finger over her lips, and then pointed up to the stage where the animatronics were engaged in all sorts of festivities in the ‘near future’ The young son was playing a video game with the grandmother and just between them by the television, Caterina was curled up on her side, fast asleep.

Hermione practically stormed up from her chair, but it was Severus’ hand that stayed her shoulder and she turned to him. “I’m furious too, but think about how relieved you are that we found her.”

It seemed strange, hearing those words from an otherwise unruly, almost savage man when it came to discipline and anger, but there was something about him being a father and the thought of losing his daughter that brought him down just a peg on that ladder. She nodded, and then flung her arms around him, burying her head against his chest. Severus wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close, gazing up to the stage.

“Mummy?” Caterina said, rubbing her eyes, and sitting up.

Hermione pulled away and turned to face her daughter. It took her a moment to pull herself up onto the platform stage, but when she did, Caterina came running to her. “Sweetie, don’t ever run away like that! You had your father and I frightened to death!”

“You guys were fighting!” she said, and then looked over Hermione’s shoulder to her father. “And you weren’t stopping them, why do we have to be the family that causes discourse in Disney World?”

Severus moved over and knelt beside Hermione, taking Caterina into his arms. “I love you very much,” he whispered giving her a hug. “But you are so ridiculously grounded for pulling such a stupid stunt, you could have been hurt.”

“You already hurt me,” she frowned. “Both of you.” Both of her parents drew wide eyes. “We can’t be a family because of you.” She pointed first to Hermione and then to Severus. “And I don’t want a broken family.” They were tall demands for an eleven-year-old girl, witch or not, and neither of her parents could believe they were coming from her mouth. “I thought that coming here, this is a real family. Everyone gets along.” She said.

“We try as best we can, Caterina, not all families can be perfect.”

“Not all families are made out of plastic.” Severus drawled.

“We need to get back, Blake will be worried.” Hermione said.

Caterina frowned. “I don’t want to go back. Not until you fix this, mum.” She said. “You got us into this mess you need to get us out of this mess, and not just us, but Jocelyn, the boys, and Emma too.” She crossed her arms over her tiny little chest and made her best attempt at a scowl. Severus could hardly contain his smile, but quickly cleared his throat to hide it.

“That is no way to talk to your mother.” He said.

“I’m talking to you too, daddy. You were in bed this morning too.” Severus Snape was not a blushing man, but there was something very unsettling about his eleven-year-old daughter taking that tone with him in reference to that specific incident.

“Caterina!” Hermione snapped and stood, picking the girl up, but she jumped down.

“I can walk, thank you.” And she turned on her heel and strode toward the exit door, hoping down off the stage.

Hermione sighed, turning her head to Severus. “Some daughter you’ve got there.”

“I think I’ll say the same to you.” They shook their heads and slowly followed Caterina back out of the Carousel of Progress.