New Beginning

Chapter 2


Summer holidays just started, Severus Snape was down in the dungeons working on some potions to store up the stocks in the infirmary. Poppy’s supply was running low, not as low has it ever did when the golden trio were here, but still low enough that they needed to be replenished. Severus was stirring a cauldron when Albus walked into the classroom.

“Flitwick just resigned.” Albus said coming closer to Severus.

“Why now?”

“Said he didn’t want to teach anymore.” Albus ran a hand over his face exhaling.

Severus looked up at the old wizard. Albus started showing his age more this past year, he knew Albus wouldn’t retire; he would die doing this job. Poppy, Minerva, and himself had been watching him closely all year. Stepping in where he needed help.

“What do you need me to do?” Severus asked.

“Find us a new Charms Professor.” Albus looked at his fellow colleague and one that he considered a son.

“I’ll do it.” Severus gave him a sneer for good measure. Albus’s eyes twinkled.

“Thank you my boy. The University might be a good place to look.” Albus turned and walked out of the dungeon.

Severus went back to his cauldron. After the healing pot wer were done, Severus bottled up the supply and made a run up to Poppy. He would look into her stores again and select the next item he needed to stop onp on. Severus passed the main hall were some of the teachers were heading out going home for the summer break. He never left the castle during the summer, never had a reason too. Even though he was free to do so now, he didn’t have the drive and determination that it took to go outside the wards.

Poppy was sitting with Minerva at her desk when Severus walked inside the hospital wing. He strolled over the cabinets that held the vast quantity of potions needed to help any child.

“Albus said you were going to look for a Charms Professor.” Minerva said.

Poppy snorted.

Severus glared at the medi-witch. “Do you doubt my abilities Poppy?”

“When it comes to potions, no, not at all. When it comes to finding a Professor…” She let her voice trail off.

Minerva was hiding her grin behind her hand. “Now, Poppy. Albus wouldn’t have asked him if he didn’t feel that Severus couldn’t handle the job.”

Poppy sat back in her chair, “I can see it now. Another brooding man to walk the halls of the castle, that is all we need now.”

Severus snarled at Poppy. “I’m the only brooding man in the castle, we don’t need another.”

Minerva snickered.

“Okay, no brooding man, that just means he’ll find a brooding female.” Poppy winked at Minerva.

“It won’t be oodiooding anything.” Severus said and spun around and walked out of the infirmary leaving the woman laughing behind him.

Brooding indeed, a brooding female was the last thing the castle needed. There was enough darkness in Severus own heart to fill the castle alone. He knew the school couldn’t handle another one. Severus walked back down to the dungeon, who ever he chose had to get along with the staff, and along with the students but willing to teach the retched little urchins. When he reached his office he sat down and brought a quill and paper to him. Severus started making a list of characteristics he would like to see in the new professor, he didn’t care what race, creed, color, make-up, or even creature if there was ever such a creature that existed that could teach magic.

Patience, this was at the top of his list. One thing he learned about teaching was that the person had to have a lot of this quality. Children he learned sorely stretched the patience of a teacher to the extreme. The next quality was the willingness to teach in of itself. They didn’t need another Binns who just bored the children to death; History of Magic could be a lot better if they could find someone willing to teach that subject without putting all the children to sleep. Severus shook his head; he wasn’t looking to replace a professor for that subject. The person also had to have a degree in Charms, no sense in even going past this one. If they didn’t have a degree they wouldn’t even be qualified, the school had enough bad experience with teachers who weren’t even qualified to teach, though that had all been in one field, Defense Against the Dark Arts. Albus had found someone who had been qualified a year ago, and now Professor Longfellow was coming back the next year.

Severus sat back, Professor Longfellow hadn’t been a bad choice at all. Despite the rumors that had floated around the school, Severus had never wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. He just couldn’t stand all the incompetent teachers that came through. Longfellow had shocked him though, he was good, better than Lupin had been and that was saying something. Lupin had been the best the school had had for the last eleven years. Severus frowned, Lupin had not survived the last battle, if he had, he would have had the job. Severus had told Albus to bring the man back after the trio’s fifth year, but with the darkness looming Albus had left the werewolf where he wanted him, free to help the Order.

Severus gave a snort, his mind went over to the golden trio, back to that last night, the last night of the feast. He thought he would have been happier seeing the bane of his existence walking away from the school, but he hadn’t been. Potter for the last month had worried him that year. The boy wasn’t the same after Voldemort had gone. Severus had noticed, all the Professors had noticed. Potter was retreating into himself, a shell of what he once had been. The night he left the feast, Severus had left through the door behind the teacher’s table and followed Potter in the shadows. He noticed the boy stay in the shadows. He followed Potter to an empty classroom, one where he stood and looked out the window. Severus stayed back watching the boy, he had swirled a potion bottle, watching the rays of the moonlight glance off the bottle. Severus could swear he saw a lustful longing come over the boy as he stood there. More than once he almost made a dash for that bottle, but something stopped him. He didn’t think Potter would kill himself. Albus would have known if Potter had brewed something that would kill himself.

Severus shook off the memory of that night and looked back to the parchment in front of him. Intelligence was a must; intelligence would pay off, because the teacher had to deal with all of the houses. Being able to teach Ravenclaw was a hard job at times, those bright minds they had, would stump a teacher who was half intelligent. They wouldn’t be able to last. Even some of the other houses had their share of smarter than average students. Each house had shared traits within itself. Some more than others, only a few times had he seen Slytherin in the other houses, one of those times had been within Potter himself. And it wasn’t because the child had been a parselmouth, he had cunning. Sometimes more cunning than a true Slytherin.

Groaning Severus pushed the parchment away. This hadn’t been the first time he had found himself wondering about Potter. He had checked up on the boy, he was graduating this year along with his two sidekicks.

“Granger and Weasley, no doubt married by now. Such a waste.” Severus said into the office.

Granger was a waste on the Weasley brat. A Weasley shouldn’t be able to have that bright mind that she had. A Weasley wasn’t deserving of it. A Weasley would only want her to be at home aeariearing his children. He groaned at the thought. Granger needed more than that, Granger needed someone who could keep her at her wits end; Weasley wouldn’t be able to hold her that way. She needed someone who would challenge her and not be put off in doing so. Someone who could control that Gryffindor quality about rushing into things, more often than not, if Hermione had been in another house she would have turned out quite different. Potter and Weasley wouldn’t have brought out that quality of rushing into things before thinking them through. No doubt she’s rushing into something right now that would probably be all wrong for her.

“Hermione you foolish girl. What are you doing right now?” Severus looked out at the moon that was shining through the window.


********


“Hush, now. It’ll be fine.” Hermione soothed the baby on her hip while waiting for the bottle to warm to the right temperature.

She pulled the bottle and tested it one last time. Baby Harry was being impatient, and reached out for the bottle. She was thankful that the temperature was right this time and watched as he suckled the bottle with all his might. Hermione turned off the magical stove and shifted Harry from her hip to her arms when she sat down in the rocking chair. He greedily suckling the bottle and was twirling his tiny fingers through her hair that fell over her shoulder.

“You like that milk huh little man?”

He blinked at her and kept twirling her hair.

“You know, we have got to come up with a name for you. I can’t go around calling you Harry James Potter now can I.” Hermione smiled at him. “How about Robert Granger?”

Harry squinted his nose up at this and Hermione laughed.

“Nope doesn’t sound good does it.”

He was shacking his head no at that.

“How about Darien Granger, Darien Michael Granger? I like the sounds of that.” She looked back down at Harry, his sleepy eyes started fluttering shut. “No argument huh? Well, you’ll be Darien Michael Granger.”

She caressed the little cheek. They hadn’t really discussed changing his name, but they had discussed changing her into his real mother, and with that, she was fairly sure he wouldn’t mind her giving him a new name. This way he would be more apt to having a normal childhood this time. She watched as his eyes closed for the last time around those beautiful green eyes. She sighed, wondering at all would happen when she gave him the potion that would make him truly hers. She kept rocking well into the night, just holding him, and dreaming about what would come tomorrow when she would really be his mother, legally his. He would be hers. fellfell asleep in the rocking chair that night holding Harry soon to be Darien.