Unwanted

That night ended Voldemort's reign of terror. Harry Potter had fulfilled his part of the Trelawney prophesy and found the hatred and darkness in his soul to cast the killing curse at the Dark Lord. Any remaining Death Eaters were sent to Azkaban. The Malfoy riches couldn't keep the patriarch of the family out of the prison and his wife and son returned to Britian. Draco returned to school with Ron and Harry; Severus returned to his teaching position. Dopey followed his master to Hogwarts, becoming Tristyn's personal elf. Maaki had been killed by a stray curse during the battle. Severus hadn't been sorry to see the little traitor die, except that he hadn't been the one to fling the curse.

A month later, a recovered Ron Weasley and the entire Order of the Phoenix received Order of Merlin. Severus found that getting the covetted award didn't hold the same appeal as it did years ago, before his wife and daughter's inclusion in his life. Scrigmour lost the Ministry seat and Alastor Moody, of all people!, became the new Minister of Magic.

Albus had laughed hysterically at the news, but Moody was fairly good at the job.

Severus snickered with the headmaster and returned to his teaching position. Every weekend he apparated to the Americas, hopping from one area to another when he felt a signature of magic. Sometimes he took Tristyn, sometimes he left her with the Potters or Ron Weasley. He had come into the boy's debt when he'd saved his daughter's life, risking his own, risking disfigurement to save her from Wormtail. Soon he became Tristyn's favorite person, even moreso than her godfather.

Her first birthday was celebrated at the Burrow. The Weasley clan along with Potter, Albus and Minerva were there to wish her a happy birthday. Everyone had a good time, but for Severus watching out the window, anxiously wishing against all hope that Hermione would show up.

Tristyn's second, third and fourth birthdays followed much the same way. Her extended honorary family joined together to wish her well and amaze at how pretty she'd become, even with her father's unfortunate nose, but on her it was adorable! Her black hair got longer, thicker and curlier. And instead of learning new hexes and Dark curses, Severus learned how to braid his daughter's hair and console her when she fell ill as children are wont to do. And he still went to America, searching every chance he got, to find his wife.

The Halloween before her fifth birthday, she asked the question he had been dreading.

Severus brushed Tristyn's curls out, wondering again how her hair could be brushed, and braided all day but still be full of snarls when she returned home from her day school in Hogsmeade. At least she'd inherited something from her mother. He sighed and held the locke tenderly as he brushed the snarl out so he wouldn't pull on her scalp.

"Daddy, can I wear my dress robes to the Halloween Ball?" She asked for the fifth time that night. After having been told 'no' about going to the ball with the Hogwarts students in the Great Hall, she'd superceded her father and headed up to the headmaster's office, sitting on his knee and pled her case for being old enough to go and should be allowed. Severus was upset but had to give her credit for getting by him. She was his little Slytherin. He smiled and finished her hair, pulling it into a ponytail and kissing her head quickly.

"Yes, you may wear your dress robes tonight, love. Try to be neat, and remember our rule."

"No magic!" She piped in, jumping off the couch and running into her room. He put the brush down and returned to reading the fifth year essays he still needed to grade.

"Daddy." Her little head came into view over the top of the paper he was reading. He sighed and stopped reading.

"Yes, Tristyn."

"How come I don't got a Mummy?" She rested her chin on the armrest of the couch, her brown Hermione eyes gazing up at him so innocently.

"Oh, dear." 'Why now?' He wondered. Severus dropped the essay down and pulled his daughter into his lap. "Your mummy was very very ill when she had you."

"Is she dead?"

"No. I don't believe she is. She's gone, love. She had a very difficult time and left when you were little."

"Did she hate me?" Her eyes were worried as she snuggled into her father's chest.

"If your mummy hadn't been so sick, I think-no I know- she would love you with all her heart. It's like your mummy forgot she had you."

"Where is she?"

"I don't know, Tristyn. You know how I go away on the weekends sometimes? I'm looking for her."

"Uncle Harry said her name was Hermione, like my middle name, and she was his bestest friend after Uncle Ron."

"They were best friends here in school. And they were always in trouble." He tapped the tip of her large nose with his index finger, reminding her that she tended to get into mischief in her day school too. "Your mummy fought a mountain troll with those two dund--friends of hers in their first year here."

"How hurt were they?"

"They beat it." Severus scowled, remembering finding the three of them standing over the unconscious troll in the girls lavoratory. Tristyn grinned then, showing her missing front teeth.

"She beat a troll?"

"I believe it was mostly Potter and Weasley though. And in her second year she brewed polyjuice potion in Myrtle's bathroom. She accidently used a cat hair and was in the hospital wing for two weeks."

"That doesn't sound fun." She had had to spend a few nights there with Poppy when she had gotten chicken pox after her third birthday.

"She didn't like it." Severus smirked, remembering the cat-faced girl sitting morosely in the cot while he told her and Poppy exactly what he needed to do to brew the antidote. Tristyn scrunched up her little face in contemplation, then brightened with a gap-toothed smile.

"I can ask Uncle Ron and Uncle Harry about my Mummy, too!"

"Yes, well, not until after I've spoken with them first." He muttered, thinking of some of their more hair-raising adventures. "Now, if you want to have dinner in the Great Hall before the Ball, you need to get dressed, now, little Miss Snape." He smiled as she wrapped her little arms around his neck and hugged him tight, giving him a sloppy kiss on the cheek.

"I love you, Daddy." She whispered then jumped off his lap again and raced to her room. Severus closed his eyes and dropped his head back on the couch. He knew she would ask about Hermione one day, but he had hoped to have a bit of advanced notice and cursed the dunderheaded duo who'd mentioned his wife to his daughter. 'Jelly-legged jinx? Hmm, juvenile, but effective for those two.' He thought, imagining his next confrontation with the remaining two of the Golden Trio. 'And appropriate.' He considered continuing with the grading, but decided to give his students a break and wait until tomorrow night. Fatherhood was making him soft in his old age. He stood up and stretched, advancing on his daughter's door. He smirked as he heard her muttered 'bugger!', but didn't call her on it. She'd get into enough big trouble that he didn't need to catch her on the minor things.

He only had to wait another couple of minutes for his daughter to leave her room, her brand new periwinkle blue dress robe swirling around her lean figure. He was suddenly reminded of Hermione on the arms of Viktor Krum at the Yule Ball. He hadn't realized that he'd chosen something that looked so much like something her mother had once worn. Severus smiled at her and bowed low, extending his arm.

"My lady?"

Tristyn giggled and placed her hand on her father's forearm as he led them out of their quarters and through the dungeon to the Great Hall.


A/N~~yay! another chapter. I got a lot done with no internet this weekend! four chapters ahead of submission! thanks for the reviews, everyone, and understand why it's taken so long between updates!
Marti