Chapter Text
What do you do when a demon latches on to one of your children? According to Tobias Snape, you lure it away and, if so inclined, have your fun until you get bored. After that, you can rid yourself of it and its evil essence. Tobias was growing bored until his solicitor’s eyes lingered on Lily’s arse for just a second too long. He even grew intrigued when Lily offered to get Kingsley something to drink, never having offered anyone anything while living in his home.
“I kept quiet, of course. I knew who she was when she invited me to your engagement party. It took no less than ten seconds after you stomped off for her to start flirting with me.”
Tobias Snape was alive and well, and having the time of his life. He’d won some game he’d been playing with Lily Evans, formerly Potter. The man sipped from a martini glass in his grand mansion which still belonged to him and no one else.
“I knew then that I had to destroy that relationship.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me?” Sev asked.
Everyone in the room, including the sleepy hound by Tobias’ feet, knew why.
“You’d never believe me. You would have thought I was trying to steal her away.”
“But you did steal her away,” Sev shot back.
“For your own good. Really, she left. I have no need to steal women, as you know. I know you hate me and that’s fine. You are entitled to feel the way you do. But remember this: I will always be your father. I had to get her away from you.”
“While you were sleeping with her, you gave her something and she could have given it to me!” Sev told him loudly. There was no reason to speak softly about this. Everyone knew.
“I did not give her anything besides my credit card and that new red Porsche she loves so much. We didn’t start anything like that until after you punched me for teasing and making eyes at that delightful creature you’re sitting with right now. I knew you were done with Lily. I decided later that I was tired of her and her grating personality. She’s bloody annoying. Sevy, I do not know how you put up with it.”
“Then who did she get the infection from?” Hermione thought aloud.
“Who knows,” Aria said with a yawn. It had been a long day. “Mr. Snape, why go through all this?”
He sat up a little straighter. Hermione could tell he was enjoying having an audience. “I was looking for a bit of fun and found it. She thought she had me wrapped around her little finger. I’ll admit, I spent more than a few pounds on her but it was entertaining watching her think she’d finally hit the jackpot. You pay to play as they say.”
“Dad, you hurt me today,” Fidelia told him. “I don’t think I could ever forgive you. You could have told me what you were planning. I thought you were gone!”
“I know, Princess, but this plan necessitated that only a few people knew the truth. She knows how you feel about me and if you weren’t able to behave as you did today, she might have figured it out and made plans to get away, even while in labor. She’s one determined woman.”
“You already knew she was planning to murder you, though,” Hermione pointed out. “You have evidence, correct?”
“Yes. Kings was her co-conspirator and he would do all the dirty work. He has everything recorded for me. That part was not fun, I must say. When he told me that she came to him with a proposition to kill me, I was quite put off.”
“Then none of this was necessary!” Fidelia concluded.
“And the pregnancy?” Aria asked. “Why? Why bring another life into this?”
“Two things,” Tobias began. “If I suddenly ended up dead and she was the beneficiary to this grand fortune, it would be suspicious. Most people know that Fidelia and Sev are my heirs. Fidelia especially. So, getting pregnant was the best way for Lily to get into my will as I would update my estate to ensure this child was in it in the event of my death. I was going to die before I ever saw the child or determined paternity. She would make sure of it. Furthermore, she was already pregnant with Kings’ baby when she finalized this little project of hers. I had nothing to do with that. Poor man had no idea with whom he was dealing.”
“Hold on,” Aria said. “She’s a racist. Why would she have a baby with him? Why would she even be with him?”
“That simply didn’t matter,” Tobias said. “She’s said things to me and to Fidelia. I am not a pillar of morality whatsoever but even that disgusts me. Being with Kings and having his child was a means to an end. He is in charge of my estate papers, making him a perfect target. He says they used condoms but she eventually admitted to tampering with them so he would know it was his. She blackmailed him saying she would accuse him of assaulting her or, at best, tell me how he stole her away from his biggest client so I would destroy him professionally.”
Tobias took another sip of his drink. “She knew that even if it didn't work out with me, she could drain Kings for the next eighteen years. She was set either way. Thelma can tell you. Lily Evans is an evil, covetous, conniving witch. She was just securing her future I suppose, hopping from one millionaire to the next. Even after she knew she was pregnant, she kept going to other men, keeping them interested. I wouldn't touch her anymore. She started getting anxious when I refused to marry her. She formulated her plan and continued to blackmail Kingsley, who told me everything. He would rather be fired than sent to prison over something like this. She isn’t worth it but she thinks she is. Lily always thinks the world revolves around her and now it’s crumbling. It is so sweet.”
For a man she spent a great deal of time hating, Hermione was starting to like him. There was something about his style that just pulled her in. He was in it for the long game. That kind of dedication could not be ignored. If this was what he did when he was bored, what could he do when he put his mind to something? Become a multimillionaire, she supposed.
“You started all this to get her away from me?” Sev asked for clarification.
“Yes.”
Thelma raised her hand. “Sir, how did you know for certain the child wasn’t yours?”
“You know I had a vasectomy years ago. I kept that to myself.”
“But you seemed to genuinely believe the baby was yours,” Thelma argued. “I was confused. I thought maybe you reversed it.”
“Just another trick, you see. I wanted her to think she’d won. She planned my death and thought that I was none the wiser. I had to be overjoyed. Kingsley even drafted a false will that states that her children--not mine--will be the sole beneficiaries of my estate. Ridiculous woman. She told him that it would look like I was madly in love with her and wanted to make sure our children lived well after my unfortunate demise. Ha! So much fun. As if I would sign such a thing.”
“Okay so, who killed you?” Aria asked. “I mean, pretended to kill you. How could she know you'd be flying the day she went into labor?”
“Well, this was one of many plans. I like to fly my planes if the weather is good. I like to play a bit of golf and go to the racetrack. Sometimes, I stayed home or went into the city to do some business. She made plans. In one plan, someone cut my brake lines. In another, someone contaminated the fuel in my plane. She even had a contingency where I’m robbed in the hospital parking lot and stabbed so badly, that they couldn't save me. Either way, I was not going to see this child. I fancied the plane crash idea. It’s very dramatic like her. The weather was agreeable so that’s what we went with that morning. I wanted to make it easy for her, you see. She was having a baby after all. The plan was that Kings would ‘hire’ someone to tamper with my fuel tanks. It would be a tragic but spectacular way to go. There was no way I would survive. He had someone at his office call Thelma’s phone so that it seemed real. Lily knows that I have Thelma and Fidelia as my main contacts. Fidelia doesn’t live here so we didn’t call her.”
“How could you know that she wasn’t going to investigate or wonder why the police hadn’t contacted her?” Sev asked next.
“Lily thought giving birth would be the perfect alibi. How could she pull off something like this while in labor? I was going to die the day she went into labor according to the plan. That was the trigger. She called Kings to put it all in motion and he called me. I reported the whole thing to the authorities. She thought she had it all figured out and she would come off looking innocent, the grieving mother. She was going to get money from Kings as well for child maintenance. Evil woman.” He paused and said with a brighter tone, “Now, she is handcuffed to her hospital bed, I’m safe at home and enjoying a martini, and Kings has a son. When I spoke to him earlier, he was over the moon. It wrapped up quite nicely, I think.”
“This is insane!” Fidelia exclaimed and stood. “I’m leaving. I can’t stand to be around you! You did this for fun! Are we just toys to play with? I mourned you! Dad, you’re a lying bastard and I hate you.”
As Fidelia fled the room, Aria followed behind her. Hermione could see when she mouthed ‘Call me’ before turning the corner. The front door opened and slammed shut.
“She’ll calm down,” Tobias sighed. “It’s probably the hundredth time she’s said that.”
Hermione wasn’t sure if Fidelia would forgive him this time. Maybe it would take months or even years for her to speak to him again. Fidelia was loyal but her father pushed her to the limit today.
Looking at Sev, Hermione wished she could read his mind. He was clearly processing since he was glaring a hole into the beautiful Turkish rug beneath their feet.
“What’s this about her having a child?” asked Hermione.
“Oh, yes! When Kings realized he was now stuck with this woman for the rest of his life, he did some checking. She was not only divorced but a convicted criminal as well. She was Lily Potter in her former life. The Potters come from old money. Old money is often old-fashioned. She got pregnant quickly, of course , and they had to marry. James told Kings that Lily wanted to be a stay-at-home mother. She was looking forward to it. But then he got suspicious about his son’s health. The boy was losing weight. The diaper rash couldn’t heal. Finally, he installed cameras and saw everything she was doing. She let him cry and cry. When she thought he was coming home, she’d change his diaper and feed him for the first time that day. Then, she’d act as if she was exhausted and give the child to him. She was torturing him, starving him like that. Lily didn’t have to even take care of him but she refused to hire a nanny. James said it was like she enjoyed having that control over a defenseless infant. Eventually, she was arrested and spent only a few months in prison. It was the best they could get. James requested a restraining order when she said she would retaliate.”
“Get back at him? James or the baby?”
“The baby. She made some threats,” Tobias said and cleared his throat.
“That poor baby,” Hermione said, distressed. “How could she do that to her own child? My sister said that she was upset about the C-section because it would leave a scar. Once, she told me she wouldn’t mind being pregnant but I didn’t think she meant it to this extent. Do you think she planned on repeating this?”
“Perhaps.”
Hermione spoke, “To bring children into the world, just to use them is sick.”
“As I said before, the world revolves around her. That’s no longer true with an infant, as you will soon discover.” He smirked knowingly.
Hermione gasped. “How do you know? Does it say I’m pregnant on my forehead or something?”
Tobias chuckled. “I like her.”
“Dad…”
“Not like that. You know what I mean. She’s good for you, Sev. Fidelia loves her so I know she is good. Have you told your mother that you’ll be a father soon?”
“She figured it out,” Hermione answered.
Tobias smiled. “She’s a good woman too. She put up with a lot but never tried to kill me.”
“You deserved it,” Sev muttered.
“You’re right. I regret what happened with Eileen and I’ve tried to make amends with you about the past.”
“I remember too much. I can’t forgive you.”
“I understand,” Tobias said, clearing his throat. “Now that all this mess with Lily is over for the most part, may I ask you for two things? Thelma, can we have some privacy? Thank you.”
The older woman departed quickly. When Sev didn’t answer his father, Hermione chose to speak up. “What is it?”
“First, I know I am not invited to the wedding but I would like to cover the costs and the honeymoon. Go anywhere you like. You wouldn’t take the house or the car when I offered them. Take this. Please? I hate to beg but there it is.”
“Hermione, do you want to take it?” Sev asked.
“Me? He’s your dad.”
“And you’re my wife. What do you think?” That was nice to hear and that made Hermione smile after such a long and strange day.
She said, “We will need a bigger place sooner than we thought. This would help us save faster.”
“Alright,” Sev agreed. “You can pay for the wedding and honeymoon. What was the other thing?”
“I want to set up trust funds for my grandchild or children. Now, I can do this without your input but I think you ought to be involved. No one will know about this except Kingsley who I trust with my life at this point. Nothing in your life would change.”
Sev turned to Hermione who nodded profusely.
“You sure? Money changes people sometimes.”
“But, we could give them the best education and opportunities. You never know what they’ll need.”
“Mhmm… Will we create the conditions for disbursement?” Sev asked his father.
“Of course,” Tobias smiled. “One more thing?”
“What is it now?” Sev said with a long-suffering sigh.
Tobias held up his glass. “Enjoy your day, son. I wish you both the very best--a lifetime of joy, laughter, and love. Cheers.”