Through Tinted Windows

Epilogue

"... and that's the story of how your father and I got together," Hermione concluded with a smile on her aging face.

Of course, the version she had fed to her twenty-year-old daughter was slightly censored, but she gave a pretty good recounting of the occurrences in the way they had met again. At the end of the little tale, Helene stared wide-eyed at her mother, quite like the other couples of the Bachelor Auction had those many years back. Hermione smiled at her reaction.

"And Father was your professor for Potions? That must have been weird," her daughter murmured with a frown.

"Yes it was. I told you that it was at first. But we stopped looking at each other in the way that you regard Professor Binns. I'm not encouraging you to do the same and marry a man far older than you. I'm not discouraging it either. As long as you marry for love and not for something as materialistic as money, I think I'll be fine with your choice." The older woman lost some of her amusement as she paused. "I can't say the same for your father, though..."

Gail laughed. She was used to her father's over-protective habits when it came to the men in her life - and there had been only a few because most were scared off by the reputation of the man who sired her... and her older brother, Anthony, or as he preferred it, Tony. She remembered the last time she brought her boyfriend over for a small dinner. Both father and son never stopped scowling and grilling the boy - both regarding Marek with identical pairs of intense obsidian eyes that seemed to pierce right through the walls that were strategically placed around him. Afterwards, Marek couldn't take anymore broke up with her; something she was relieved that he did for it took off a lot of pressure from her as she was thinking about doing the same.

"Don't worry," she reassured Mrs. Snape. "I know that the one who I'll marry will be able to stand the presence of Tony and Father. I don't think I could live with myself if I couldn't go to Christmas with the knowledge that there would be some strain while I was here."

The door burst open just as she finished and revealed her father, his eyes glowering. Gail knew that when he had that certain look, he really wanted to talk to Mother, so, getting up and stretching, she excused herself, smiling at Hermione before attempting to go out the door.

"Where do you think you're going without a hug from your old man?" Severus questioned in a gruff voice.

Gail grinned and gave him a tight hug. "Hello, Father."

"Haven't been visiting enough, girl," he scolded when the separated. "What have you been up to around that keeps you away from home so long?"

She rolled her eyes. "It's something called college. I believe you've heard of that term before - you know, going to get tertiary education..."

"I know what a bloody college is. You think I didn't go to a Wizarding College? You must be going mad." He hid his little grimace as he remembered that while he was still twenty, he was still under Voldemort's shadow, and didn't get to college until he was in his mid-twenties. She didn't have to know about the fact that she was the daughter of an ex-Death Eater.

"No, I just think you're forgetting how it felt to be twenty and still getting an education," she joked before muffling a little laugh.

Her mother's unruly hair and cheer, his raven eyes and tendency for snappish-ness - the girl was the best of Granger and Snape put into one package. Tony looked was the utter Snape... all but the exception of his nose, which was not as large as Severus's own. He watched as she walked out the door in speculation, thanking whatever higher deities there were for the gifts he was given.

"Severus, are you going to stand there all day or will you come over here and tell me why you were scowling so?" Hermione's voice cut into his contemplations and his eyes - still sharp when they wanted to be - softened as it flicked onto her figure. She was still a beautiful woman, he mused as he walked over to her seat. He swept her into his hold then, and sat down onto the seat along with her cradled in his arms. She chuckled and snuggled into him. "You're relentless."

"Yes well, I like to think so," he said thoughtfully with a little smirk on his face. They sat like that for a while, absorbing the moment as the held each other - Hermione tracing patterns on his chest as he rubbed her arm with soft fingers. Finally, Severus chose to speak. "Tony won a contest from the Enchanted Corporation."

His wife pulled back abruptly, eyes wide with surprise. "Are you serious?"

He let out an exasperated breath. "It isn't April Fool's Day, dear. Do you think I'm actually kidding about this?"

"So... it's time for us to let him go... he'll be getting married very soon." She sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder and smiled wistfully. "Wow. We'll finally be able to extend our family."

"Ugh, grandchildren," he muttered, remembering his experiences with both their children.

Hermione laughed. Well, perhaps it isn't so bad, he countered to himself in his head as he began to chuckle at the sound of her contagious cheer. There was the sound of the door opening again and Gail stuck her head in. She had a confused look on her face. "So wait, what did Father do for you on the cruise?"

Hermione swiveled her head and gazed at her daughter with a secretive smile. "He proposed... among other things."

The younger girl pouted. "That can't be all... it seemed like a wonderful plan! Oh, you aren't going to tell me? Fine," she muttered and left again.

"You told her about how we met?" Severus asked.

"It was about time I did, as well. She had been asking for a long time. She's old enough to know."

"I just hope that she wouldn't settle for anything less than the best."

"And I didn't?" she teased, causing him to poke her in her side. "I'm just joking, love. You should know that you were the only one for me... my, how cliché did that sound?"

"Not bad... ah, I remember that cruise as if it were just yesterday that we had gotten back... the sex was incredible..." he got a playful whap from her "... and so was the fact that I got the announcer to make it seem like we were the only ones on the ship. Absolute solitude and a whole lot of private time."

"Hey, remember how it had a glitch that one time?"

"Of course! We were in the main kitchen doing our... business... and then another couple caught us in the throes of our passion... that was quite a crazy moment for all of us."

Hermione laughed. "Yes. I think it got them thinking more creatively though when it came to the ice cream and chocolate."

"And don't forget the whipped cream and icing... Oh wait, that was Japan. Seeing you all dressed up in that kimono was really... it still makes me shudder in delight. That was a wonderful getaway, if I do say so myself."

"Ah, those were the days..." she murmured wistfully.

"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Severus demanded. "You think that now that I'm sixty and your in your early forties that we can't have that much fun anymore? Alright, it's high time that we took another cruise. What about to Jamaica and then go try out Italy again? We had a lot of fun in Italy for our second honeymoon..."

"You're absolutely incorrigible, Severus," she chuckled, giving him a big affectionate kiss on his lips.

"Hmm, well that's why you love me."

"Uh huh, just one of the many reasons..."

Fin